Art I - 600th

I am the six hundredth. This is who I am. I was ashamed at first, that I am only a number under God's endless sky, but now as I have ridden through the bridge of Alshirat under the two crossed sword's shadow into the paradise between the 72 virgins, I am not ashamed anymore to narrate how did I arrived here by the endless grace of God. I was born in a small Balkan village, my father was a peasant and a poacher as everybody else in the village. I was the most strong between my other six brothers, I went for hunt with my father since I was seven years old. I was fourteen years old, when Turkish warriors arrived in our village and they gathered every boy who was older than fourteen, including me. My parents were very sad when we left, but I was happy as I knew that by taking me, Turks will not harm anymore my parents and my siblings, and they have not to pay tribute anymore. We arrived into the capital of the Empire, into Istanbul. Here we were circumcised and we knew the one true faith, here I met with God at the first time, as I leant on my back into the mosque and I stared upwards into the Sunlight razing through the dome, and I felt that I arrived home. After this we were divided to different families, I was put in the family of an old and wise hodja. He rose me up very severely, he beat me every time I made some sin or mistake, but all in all he rose me up with great love and he took care of me. I gained a lot of spiritual and physical strength and my faith was strengthened in God and in His prophet (Peace by upon him!). I got back into the garrison when I was eighteen years old, where our training continued. Soon, I became the most strong from ten of us, so I was chosen to be a bölükbasi, a corporal. We stayed in Istanbul for a short time, as we started to the Eastern border of the Empire, against Persians. The same wise hodja, who rose me through four years, visited us after the glorious campaign. He said that at the Western border of the Empire, a monster kills the faithful warriors of the Empire and every regiment has to send ten duelist to challenge and kill the monster. This monster already killed five hundred fifty of our comrades. That was a very huge respect, as I was also chosen between these ten duelist. The worst part came after this, when the warriors of the hodja lead us into an old fighting pit, they threw a single saber among us and they told that only one man can come out alive from the pit. There was nothing to add, we all saw that we will riddled with arrows if not obey, so we attacked each other to take the single weapon available. God was by my side, and even if I was hurt badly, I come out alive with the bloody saber in my hand. Nine of my friends came here into Paradise, where I also arrived later. 

There was nineteen other warrior like me who already killed nine of their comrades, and we, the twenty victor were taken by the hodja on a high mountain in Anatolia. We had to make our own tents, we had to hunt in order to live. All days were about hard work. I thought that all of us are very dangerous warriors if we may be here, but I was tricked by Satan to become high and mighty. We were only small rookies compared to the hodja. We fought, shot bows a lot every day, and we prayed five times per day, we made the holy lavement, and the hodja taught us a lot about God and His prophet (Peace be upon him!). News just came during these trainings, that the monster killed more and more of our warriors, five hundred sixty, five hundred seventy and the numbers were just growing. We became very curious how can be this monster but the curiosity does not fit a brave warrior, so we did not ask our master. All over two years the hodja taught we are ready for the challenge. The warriors of the hodja took our weapon on a morning and they chased us into the forest. A lot of wounded wolves were set free into the forests. They were real monsters, very huge Anatolian mountain wolves with grey fur. I did not fear anything and anybody except God until then, and my faith helped me to kill the wolf, which I strangled to death with my bare hands and I brought his corpse in front of the feet of the hodja. We remained only ten  - ten of us arrived into the Paradise - but we ten were such warriors who could defeat one hundred other warriors. The hodja said then, that the monster whom we have to kill is not a wolf, but a lion. A lion with two feet, with immense moustache and fire comes from his eyes. So ten of us started towards West to fight this lion for the glory of God and His prophet (Peace may be upon him!). We just got the news during the travel about the new faithfulls killed by the lion, five hundred eighty, five hundred ninety. We travelled through the whole Empire until we arrived the border of the lion's Motherland. That was kind alike place from where I came from, only with smaller mountains, but with bigger rivers. Until we got here, nine of our new duelists also fell by the hand of the lion. I was by far the most powerful from the ten of us, so I got the respect to face him at first. God helped me to won over the Satan in me, so I wrote my challenging letter in a very humble way, it was alike: 

"My letter may be given into the hands of the great Thury György himself, in the fortress of Palota. I, who I am, Abd el Karim, the first bölükbasi of the Janissary ordu, the warrior of the high Padisah and the humble servant of God and His prophet (Peace be upon him!) challenge you to a duel! We faithful Turks all  know that you are a great man, who feeds a lot of brave warriors. There are no other Thury György in the whole world beside you. We all know that and we often drink in order to salute you, not sitting, but standing up. The duel may happen on the twenty fifth day of Rejeb month, on the camp beside Palota. I challenge you to a deadly duel until the loss of the head, and I expect you to answer my letter as soon as it is possible. May God gave the victory who is better. God is with us!" Beside this letter, I also sent a very precious horse as a gift for the lion, may he see who is his enemy. "My letter may be given into the hands of the great Abd el Karim basi. I accept your challenge. May God decide in our duel!" only this was in his response letter, but that was enough for me. I was very anxious on the night before the duel, even if I knew that nobody could won over me during my whole life, may be either a Persian, either another Turkish, either a wolf, but I was a bit afraid that whether my faith will be strong enough. I prayed during whole night in order to step on the camp of the duel in a clear spiritual state. We were on the place of the fight in the noon, when the Hungarians arrived too. They wore the same garments like us, they sat on the same horses, they had similar weapons too. Even the way of fixing the saber was totally identical. It was alike our mirrored image faced us from the another side of the camp. The lion was a very muscular, happy an but he was shorter than me. He wore only a Hussar helmet and a breastplate as armor, he drew an immense Persian broadsword and he twirled in his hand alike it was a simple stick. We made an agreement on a fight without horse, until the loss of the head. Of course we prayed before the duel. He stabbed the broadsword into the ground, made a knee before it, made a sign of the cross and started praying. I already did the holy lavement so I could start praying in a clear state, I kissed the ground on my praying rug, turning to East. He finished his praying earlier than me, but he waited patiently until I finished mine. I took my shield into my left hand, I drew my Damascus saber and started towards him. He did not make any step towards me, just waited me patiently and he smiled so awkward that I became a bit afraid even if I already put all of my hope into God and into His prophet (Peace be upon him!). The lion said only this before he stroke me down: My God and Saint Ladislaus!

After ten minutes I became the Six hundredth. Now as I left my life in the Earth beneath me, I realized only here in the Paradise: we will never won over the lion. I can easily admit that now as the aim of my life was fulfilled as I fell in a holy war to protect and raise the faith of God and His prophet (Peace be upon him!). I am not even angry with Thury György because he killed me. That is not a shame to loose against the lion. We will never won over the lion, because we are not such a great warriors alike him. No. There are only two brave nation under the endless sky of God: we Turks and the Hungarians. We will not won over him because of that. We will never won over him as his faith is stronger. God bless Hungarians and God bless Thury György! Peace be upon him! 

Kertai Zalán's painting about Thury György