Daysam was a
Kharijite, born to a Kurdish mother and an
Arab or Kurdish father, who rose to prominence while serving the
Sajid ruler
Yusuf ibn Abi'l-Saj. With Kurdish support he managed to take over Adharbayjan by 938. His position in Adharbayjan was soon threatened by Lashkari ibn Mardi, a
Gilite formerly in the service of the
Ziyarids. Lashkari's Gilite and
Daylamite army expelled Daysam from Adharbayjan, but he was able to recover the province with the help of the
Ziyarid Vushmgir. In 941 or 942 Daysam's vizier, Abu'l-Qasim Ja'far ibn 'Ali, fled due to an intrigue against him to the
Sallarids of Tarum. There he convinced
Marzuban ibn Muhammad () to take Adharbayjan from Daysam. Daysam met Marzuban's army on the field by his Daylamite mercenaries (whom he had hired to counterbalance the power of his unruly Kurdish troops) defected to the Sallarid and he was forced to flee to the court of the
Ardzrunid king of Vaspurakan. Ja'far ibn 'Ali became Marzuban's vizier after he conquered Adharbayjan, but soon feared for his position. He went to
Tabriz and invited Daysam to return to the province. When he arrived at the city he gained the support of the Kurds. His army was defeated by Marzuban's, however, and the Sallarid besieged him in Tabriz. At this point Ja'far abandoned Daysam again, but Daysam managed to escape from Tabriz and enter
Ardabil. Marzuban was not far behind and he laid siege to Ardabil. Eventually Daysam's new vizier, who had been bribed by the Sallarids, convinced Daysam to surrender. Daysam was treated with leniency by Marzuban, who gave him his castle in Tarum after he requested it. In 949 Marzuban was captured by the
Buyids, who sent an army under
Abu Mansur Muhammad to conquer Adharbayjan. Marzuban's brother
Wahsudan ibn Muhammad sent Daysam to Adharbayjan to protect Sallarid interests there. Abu Mansur Muhammad's approach forced Daysam to retreat to
Arran, but after Abu Mansur Muhammad suffered a setback he retreated, allowing Daysam to take control of the province. Marzuban escaped from the Buyids in 953 and sought to regain his territory. Daysam was defeated by a Sallarid army near Ardabil, and the Daylamite leaders deserted from his side. He fled to
Armenia, where he was given aid by the Christians. A year later, however, he was expelled from Armenia; he made his way to
Baghdad, where the Buyid
Mu'izz al-Dawla received him with honor. After the Buyids made peace with the Sallarids, Daysam realized that he could not count on them for help in regaining Adharbayjan. He therefore left them for the
Hamdanids; with the aid of
Sayf al-Dawla of
Aleppo he occupied
Salmas in 955/956 as a Hamdanid vassal. Marzuban expelled from there, and Daysam again found refuge with the Ardzrunids of Vaspurakan. The Ardzunid king, however, facing threats from Marzuban, seized Daysam and handed him over to the Sallarid. Daysam was blinded and imprisoned. He was killed by some of Marzuban's supporters after the latter's death in 957. == References ==