Perozes apprehended his meaning, understood the situation, and, desisting from the pursuit, prepared to give battle where he stood.

But the Ephthalite monarch had no wish to push matters to extremities.

Instead of falling on the Persians from every side, he sent an embassy to Perozes and offered to release him from his perilous situation, and allow him to return with all his troops to Persia, if he would swear a perpetual peace with the Ephthalites and do homage to himself as his lord and master, by prostration.

Perozes felt that he had no choice but to accept these terms, hard as he might think them.

Instructed by the Magi, he made the required prostration at the moment of sunrise, with his face turned to the east, and thought thus to escape the humiliation of abasing himself before a mortal by the mental reservation that the intention of his act was to adore the great Persian divinity.