and the due reward we have earned, for our deeds are vile, our actions repugnant, marked by treachery and scant fidelity. In turn, our rulers are oppressive tyrants, harsh and exceeding all bounds. The hadith says, “As you are, so will rulers be appointed over you.” This sound report confirms that the conduct of a people is mirrored in the conduct of their king. Do you not see that whenever a land is described as flourishing, its inhabitants living in security, ease, tranquillity, and delight, that is proof of the monarch’s justice, discernment, upright judgment, and sincere concern for his subjects and all within his jurisdiction? It does not originate with the populace themselves.

Thus the sages were right to say, “People resemble their kings more than they resemble the times they live in,” and another report states, “People follow the religion of their kings.”

Among the policies of Khosrow Anūshirwān was that if a man left a load of gold in some place, it would remain there untouched, however long it stayed, and no one would dare move it except its owner. Yunān, Anūshirwān’s vizier and a man of standing with him, once said: “O King, do not rely on evildoers, lest your province be ruined and your subjects impoverished; then your realm will sink into desolation, your sovereignty into penury, and your name be disgraced throughout the world.” In response Anūshirwān wrote to his governors: “If I learn that anywhere in my entire kingdom there remains a single tract of wasteland—other than saline soil that will not bear crops—I shall crucify the governor of that district.” Land is ruined by two things: the king’s incompetence or his injustice. In those days kings prided themselves on prosperity and envied one another for the unity of their realms.

A story: The king of India sent an envoy to the just ruler Khosrow Anūshirwān, saying, “I am more entitled to kingship than you; therefore remit to me the revenues of your territory.” Anūshirwān ordered the envoy to be lodged, and on the following day he assembled the dignitaries of his court and the notables of his realm, then granted the envoy audience. When the envoy stood before him, Anūshirwān said, “Hear the answer to your message.” He then called for a chest, opened it, took out a smaller box, and from it withdrew a handful of kibr (sulfur), which he handed to the envoy and asked, “Do you have this in your land?” The envoy replied, “Yes, we have plenty of it.” Anūshirwān said, “Go back and tell the king of India: you must first cultivate your own dominion, for it is in ruins; only after that may you set your sights on another realm.”