Tradition: Persian Mythologym, Iranian Mythology
Alternative Names: The Worm of Haftvad; Haftvād’s Dragon
Category: Insect
The Myth
Haftvad’s Worm is a monstrous creature from the Shahnameh, the Persian Book of Kings. It begins as a tiny worm discovered inside an apple by Haftvad’s daughter while she is spinning cotton. Rather than discarding it, she considers its appearance a lucky omen and places it in her spindlecase. From that moment, her productivity increases dramatically: by the end of the day, she has spun twice as much cotton as usual.
The girl continues to feed the worm a piece of apple every day, and her cotton practically spins itself into fine thread. When her parents learn of her extraordinary success, she reveals the secret. Haftvad abandons his ordinary work to care for the creature, feeding it nourishing food until it grows too large for its spindlecase. Its skin is black like musk, marked with saffron-coloured patterns, and Haftvad places it inside a black chest.
The worm brings extraordinary fortune to Haftvad and his family, eventually transforming the fortunes of their entire town. As his wealth and influence grow, Haftvad gathers followers into an army, seizes control of the town, and kills a nobleman who resents his success. The creature grows alongside its master’s power, eventually becoming too large even for its chest. Haftvad moves it to his mountain fortress, where a specially constructed stone cistern serves as its new home.
There, Haftvad’s daughter feeds the creature rice, milk, and honey until it reaches the size of an elephant. With the worm’s supernatural luck behind him, Haftvad becomes so powerful that even the armies of Shah Ardashir struggle to defeat him. Ardashir sends two forces against Haftvad, but the first is defeated, while the second loses its resolve.
Ardashir eventually learns the truth: the worm is no ordinary animal, but a devil in disguise, perhaps even an incarnation of Ahriman, the destructive spirit of Persian mythology. Its death is the key to ending Haftvad’s power. Ardashir therefore enters the fortress disguised as a merchant, accompanied by trusted men carrying precious gifts, wine, lead, and a bronze cauldron. Claiming that he too has prospered through the worm’s favour, he offers wine to its guardians until they become drunk.
Ardashir then melts the lead in the cauldron and carries the molten metal to the worm’s cistern. The enormous creature raises its head, opens its mouth, and extends its red tongue, expecting food. Instead, Ardashir pours the boiling lead down its throat. The worm dies in terrible agony, its death throes shaking the foundations of the fortress.
With the worm dead, Haftvad’s supernatural fortune disappears. Ardashir’s forces quickly capture the fortress, and Haftvad and his eldest son are executed by being gibbeted and shot with arrows. The creature’s rise and destruction mark the end of Haftvad’s extraordinary power, revealing the danger hidden behind the worm’s seemingly miraculous gift of prosperity.
Sources
“Worm of Haftvad.” A Book of Creatures, December 18, 2020. https://abookofcreatures.com/2020/12/18/worm-of-haftvad/