This Day in History (August 28)
Today is Sunday; 7th of the Iranian month of Shahrivar 1395 solar hijri; corresponding to 25th of the Islamic month of Zil-Qa’dah 1437 lunar hijri; and August 28, 2016, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.
Several millennium years ago, on this day – the 25th of Zil-Qa’dah – by God’s commandment the first part of dry land emerged from under the seas on Planet Earth which until then was filled with water without any soil on its surface. This blessed spot is the same place where Adam (AS) built the Symbolic House of God, the Holy Ka’ba, which is the focal point of prayer for Muslims throughout the globe. From here dry land gradually spread around the globe forming continents, land masses, and islands. This day is thus known as "Dahw al-Ardh” or Emergence and Spread of Land. According to narrations, Imam Mahdi (AS) the Saviour of Humanity and the 12th and Last Successor of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), will reappear on this day in the end times to cleanse the earth of all vestiges of corruption and oppression, and to establish the global government of peace, prosperity and justice. Special prayers have been recommended on this day as a form of thanksgiving to the Almighty.
Over 4,000 lunar years ago, on the eve of the 25th of Zil-Qa’dah, Prophet Abraham (AS) was born in Mesopotamia. He needs no introduction; and today all the three monotheistic faiths – Judaism, Christianity, and Islam – regard him as the progenitor. The holy Qur’an calls him "millah” or a nation by himself. Islam considers Abraham (AS) as one the Five Great Prophets – the other four being Noah, Moses, Jesus, and Prophet Mohammad (SAWA).
Some 2070 lunar years ago, on the eve of the 25th of Zil-Qa’dah, according to a narration, Prophet Jesus (AS) was born to the Virgin Mary (SA) by the Will of God, without the association of a male. The holy Qur’an testifies to his miraculous birth and goes on to refute his alleged crucifixion and the weird concept of Trinity, as well as the allegation that he was the son of God – the Almighty Creator is far too glorious to have such human traits as the need for spouse or children. Prophet Jesus gave tidings of the advent of the Last and Greatest Messenger, Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) – a prophecy found in ayah 6 of Surah Saff of the holy Qur’an, as well as the Gospel of St. John despite the tampering that the Bible has gone through over the past centuries.
1586 solar years ago, on this day in 430 AD, Christian bishop, Augustine died in Hippo – present day Annaba in Algeria. His writings included "The Confessions." He was the proponent of the theory of the so-called "just war", saying a nation’s leaders must consider among other things, anticipated loss of civilian life and whether all peaceful options have been exhausted before war starts. Intellectuals have criticized his views, pointing out that his dogmatic invective laid the foundations for centuries of intellectual tyranny by the Catholic Church.
1427 lunar years ago, on this day in 10 AH, Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) left Medina for Mecca to perform his Farewell Hajj, and was joined by over 100,000 Muslims from various regions. During the pilgrimage he showed the correct performance of the Hajj rituals, and at Mount Mercy on the plain of Arafaat he delivered his famous sermon, saying he was about to depart from the world and was leaving behind for guidance of the Ummah, the Thaqalayn (two invaluable things), that is, the holy Qur'an and his infallible progeny, the Ahl al-Bayt. While returning home from his Farewell Pilgrimage, the Prophet was commanded by God to halt at the pond of Ghadeer in Khom near Juhfa to proclaim his dear cousin and son-in-law, Imam Ali, (AS) as vicegerent.
1384 solar years ago, on this day in 632 AD – as per the Gregorian Calendar –Hazrat Fatema az-Zahra (peace upon her), the venerable daughter of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), was tragically martyred, leaving behind in a state of mourning her bereaved husband, Imam Ali (AS), and four little children – sons, Imam Hasan (AS) and Imam Husain (AS); and daughters, Hazrat Zainab (SA) and Hazrat Omm Kolthoum (SA). She was the daughter of the Mother of Believers, Omm al-Momineen Hazrat Khadijah (SA), and is regarded as the noblest ever lady of all times, even surpassing in merits, the Virgin Mary, mother of Prophet Jesus. God Almighty has vouchsafed her spotless purity in the holy Qur’an. She remains a model-par-excellence for all virtuous women, and her progeny, the Saadaat, plural of Seyyed, has today spread around the world and is held in esteem by all Muslims. We extend our heartfelt condolences on her tragic martyrdom, which was the result of the hurling upon her of the burning door of her house by a roguish group of her father’s companions, who had seized her patrimony of the orchard of Fadak, and had usurped the political rule of the Islamic state from her husband, Imam Ali (AS), the Prophet’s divinely-decreed heir. According to Islamic calendar she attained martyrdom either on the 13th of Jamadi al-Awwal or the 3rd of Jamadi al-Akher, 11 AH.
1291 lunar years ago, on this day in 145 AH Ibrahim Ibn Abdullah Ibn al-Hassan al-Muthanna, was martyred near Kufa in a battle with the forces of Mansour Dawaniqi, the 2nd self-styled caliph of the usurper Abbasid regime, shortly after the martyrdom of his brother Mohammad Nafs Zakiyya in an uprising in Hijaz. He was a great grandson of Prophet Mohammad’s (SAWA) elder grandson and 2nd Infallible Heir, Imam Hasan Mujtaba (AS), while his grandmother, Fatema (SA) was the daughter of the Prophet's 3rd Infallible Heir, Imam Husain (AS) the Martyr of Karbala. He launched his uprising in Ramadhan in Basra in coordination with his brother’s uprising in Hijaz, and within two months had liberated the whole of southern Iraq and Iran from the Abbasids, while Nafs Zakiyya liberated Arabia and Yemen, thus cornering Mansour in his capital Hirah in central Iraq (Baghdad was not yet built). It is worth noting that years earlier during the repressive rule of the Godless Omayyads, the Prophet's clan, the Hasehmites, had held an assembly at Abwa where Abu’l-Abbas as-Saffah and Mansour Dawaniqi (the future usurpers of the caliphate) had sworn allegiance to Nafs Zakiyya. But with the toppling of the Omayyads, the Abbasid brothers indulged in propaganda to hijack the rule of the realm by breaking their promise to handover the caliphate to the Prophet's progeny. Imam Ja'far Sadeq (AS), as the Prophet’s 6th Infallible Heir, sensed the plot and stayed away from the political tussle. He spurned the offer of caliphate by burning the sealed envelope sent by a victorious commander of the anti-Omayyad uprising, since his right was God-given and beyond the power of politicians. Among the offspring of Imam Hasan (AS), however, Nafs Zakiyya aspired for political power and challenged the Abbasids for breaching their promise. Thus, as a result of the uprising of the two brothers, when Mansour was on the verge of defeat, news arrived of the martyrdom in Medina of Nafs Zakiyya. This emboldened the Abbasids and in the battle near Kufa, an arrow pierced Ibrahim’s neck and he was unhorsed and decapitated by Hamid Ibn Qahtaba. Mansour, who three years later martyred Imam Sadeq (AS) through poisoning, is notorious for shedding the blood of the Prophet's progeny, especially Imam Hasan's (AS) offspring.
1050 lunar years ago, on this day in 387 AH, the esteemed Egyptian legist and historian Abu’l Hassan Ibn Ibrahim Ibn Zulaq, passed away. Among his works is the book "Kitab Sirat al-Mu‘iz" on the life of the Fatemid Ismaili Shi'ite Caliph, al-Mu'iz, who shifted his seat of power to Egypt from what is now Tunisia in North Africa, after his general, Jowhar as-Siqili, conquered the Land of the Nile and built the city of Cairo including the famous al-Azhar Academy. Ibn Zulaq is considered a reliable authority on Fatemid history.
827 solar years ago, on this day in 1189 AD, during the third Crusade, European invaders began the siege of the Palestinian city of Acre under Guy of Lusignan. It lasted until July 12, 1191, and was the deadliest event of the whole period of the Crusades for the Christian occupiers.
495 solar years ago,on this day in 1521 AD, the Ottoman Turks captured Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, during the reign of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent. The earlier attempt to take Belgrade by the Ottomans in 1456 under Mohammad al-Fateh had proved inconclusive.
474 solar years ago, on this day in 1542 AD, during the 19-year long Turkish-Portuguese War that lasted from 1538-to-1557, the Ottomans emerged victorious in the Battle of Wofla. The Portuguese were scattered, and their leader Christovão da Gama was captured and later executed.
267 solar years ago, on this day in 1749 AD, the prominent German poet and writer, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, was born. He became familiar with music, painting, and different languages, while pursuing studies in law. His deep interest in Persian and Arabic literature, especially the poems of the renowned Iranian poet, Hafez, made him study Islam and the holy Qur'an. He noted: "The miracle of Islam par excellence is the Qur’an, through which a constant and unbroken tradition transmits to us news of an absolute certainty. This is a book which cannot be imitated. Each of its expressions is a comprehensive one.” Goethe’s most famous books include West-Eastern Divan (inspired by the lyrics of Hafez), "Faust”, and "Iphigenie”. He passed away in the year 1832.
200 lunar years ago, on this day in 1237 AH, the prominent Iranian literary and political figure of the Qajarid era, Mirza Bozorg Farahani, passed away in Tabriz. He initiated effective reforms for the progress and development of the country. Among the books and treatises written by him, mention can be made of "Ahkam al-Jihad va Asbab ar-Reshad", in Persian about different types of strivings in the way of God for the progress of the society.
96 solar years ago, on this day in 1920 AD, the Islamic scholar and revolutionary, Ayatollah Mirza Mohammad Taqi Golshan Ha’eri Shirazi, passed away in Iraq at the age of 67 during the height of the struggle British domination of the country, and is believed to have been martyred through poisoning by colonialist agents. Born in Shiraz, he migrated to Iraq with his father and after studies at the Najaf seminary reached the status of Ijtihad. He opposed the British meddling in the affairs of Iraq and mobilized the Iraqi people in the southern parts of the country to inflict defeat on the British occupation army. He authored several books.
64 solar years ago, on this day in 1952 AD, the Source of Emulation, Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Taqi Khwansari, passed away. Born in the central Iranian city of Khwansar, he mastered theology, jurisprudence, and philosophy at the seminary in holy Najaf in Iraq. Alongside the Iraqi people, Grand Ayatollah Khwansari participated in their war against the British forces. He was held captive by the British and was sent to exile in Singapore. After four years in exile, he returned to Iran and became a lecturer at the Qom seminary. He continued to struggle against the British colonialists in Iran, and supported the Iranian nation’s struggles for nationalization of the oil industry.
26 solar years ago, on this day in 1990 AD, the Source of Emulation, Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Shahab od-Din Mar'ashi Najafi, passed away at the age of 96 and was laid to rest at the doorstep of his famous library in the holy city of Qom. He mastered theology, jurisprudence, hadith, exegesis of the Holy Qur'an, philosophy, and principles of ethics at the seminaries of Kazemain and holy Najaf in Iraq. After attaining the status of Ijtehad he returned to Iran and started to lecture and research at the Qom Seminary. He was a supporter of the Father of the Islamic Revolution, late Imam Khomeini (RA), in the struggles against the Shah’s despotic regime. He has left behind a large number of books on theology, jurisprudence, hadith, history and genealogy. Grand Ayatollah Mar'ashi Najafi also founded the public library in the holy city of Qom, which houses more than 300,000 books – many of them rare manuscripts collected by him.
4 solar years ago, on this day in 2012 AD, the Islamic Republic of Iran formally received from Egypt the rotating presidency of the 120-nation Non-Aligned Movement. The NAM summit in Tehran once again proved the world stature of the Islamic Republic and was a slap to the US and its few West European accomplices to try to isolate the country through threats and illegal sanctions.
(Courtesy: IRIB English Radio – http://parstoday.com/en)
Several millennium years ago, on this day – the 25th of Zil-Qa’dah – by God’s commandment the first part of dry land emerged from under the seas on Planet Earth which until then was filled with water without any soil on its surface. This blessed spot is the same place where Adam (AS) built the Symbolic House of God, the Holy Ka’ba, which is the focal point of prayer for Muslims throughout the globe. From here dry land gradually spread around the globe forming continents, land masses, and islands. This day is thus known as "Dahw al-Ardh” or Emergence and Spread of Land. According to narrations, Imam Mahdi (AS) the Saviour of Humanity and the 12th and Last Successor of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), will reappear on this day in the end times to cleanse the earth of all vestiges of corruption and oppression, and to establish the global government of peace, prosperity and justice. Special prayers have been recommended on this day as a form of thanksgiving to the Almighty.
Over 4,000 lunar years ago, on the eve of the 25th of Zil-Qa’dah, Prophet Abraham (AS) was born in Mesopotamia. He needs no introduction; and today all the three monotheistic faiths – Judaism, Christianity, and Islam – regard him as the progenitor. The holy Qur’an calls him "millah” or a nation by himself. Islam considers Abraham (AS) as one the Five Great Prophets – the other four being Noah, Moses, Jesus, and Prophet Mohammad (SAWA).
Some 2070 lunar years ago, on the eve of the 25th of Zil-Qa’dah, according to a narration, Prophet Jesus (AS) was born to the Virgin Mary (SA) by the Will of God, without the association of a male. The holy Qur’an testifies to his miraculous birth and goes on to refute his alleged crucifixion and the weird concept of Trinity, as well as the allegation that he was the son of God – the Almighty Creator is far too glorious to have such human traits as the need for spouse or children. Prophet Jesus gave tidings of the advent of the Last and Greatest Messenger, Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) – a prophecy found in ayah 6 of Surah Saff of the holy Qur’an, as well as the Gospel of St. John despite the tampering that the Bible has gone through over the past centuries.
1586 solar years ago, on this day in 430 AD, Christian bishop, Augustine died in Hippo – present day Annaba in Algeria. His writings included "The Confessions." He was the proponent of the theory of the so-called "just war", saying a nation’s leaders must consider among other things, anticipated loss of civilian life and whether all peaceful options have been exhausted before war starts. Intellectuals have criticized his views, pointing out that his dogmatic invective laid the foundations for centuries of intellectual tyranny by the Catholic Church.
1427 lunar years ago, on this day in 10 AH, Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) left Medina for Mecca to perform his Farewell Hajj, and was joined by over 100,000 Muslims from various regions. During the pilgrimage he showed the correct performance of the Hajj rituals, and at Mount Mercy on the plain of Arafaat he delivered his famous sermon, saying he was about to depart from the world and was leaving behind for guidance of the Ummah, the Thaqalayn (two invaluable things), that is, the holy Qur'an and his infallible progeny, the Ahl al-Bayt. While returning home from his Farewell Pilgrimage, the Prophet was commanded by God to halt at the pond of Ghadeer in Khom near Juhfa to proclaim his dear cousin and son-in-law, Imam Ali, (AS) as vicegerent.
1384 solar years ago, on this day in 632 AD – as per the Gregorian Calendar –Hazrat Fatema az-Zahra (peace upon her), the venerable daughter of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), was tragically martyred, leaving behind in a state of mourning her bereaved husband, Imam Ali (AS), and four little children – sons, Imam Hasan (AS) and Imam Husain (AS); and daughters, Hazrat Zainab (SA) and Hazrat Omm Kolthoum (SA). She was the daughter of the Mother of Believers, Omm al-Momineen Hazrat Khadijah (SA), and is regarded as the noblest ever lady of all times, even surpassing in merits, the Virgin Mary, mother of Prophet Jesus. God Almighty has vouchsafed her spotless purity in the holy Qur’an. She remains a model-par-excellence for all virtuous women, and her progeny, the Saadaat, plural of Seyyed, has today spread around the world and is held in esteem by all Muslims. We extend our heartfelt condolences on her tragic martyrdom, which was the result of the hurling upon her of the burning door of her house by a roguish group of her father’s companions, who had seized her patrimony of the orchard of Fadak, and had usurped the political rule of the Islamic state from her husband, Imam Ali (AS), the Prophet’s divinely-decreed heir. According to Islamic calendar she attained martyrdom either on the 13th of Jamadi al-Awwal or the 3rd of Jamadi al-Akher, 11 AH.
1291 lunar years ago, on this day in 145 AH Ibrahim Ibn Abdullah Ibn al-Hassan al-Muthanna, was martyred near Kufa in a battle with the forces of Mansour Dawaniqi, the 2nd self-styled caliph of the usurper Abbasid regime, shortly after the martyrdom of his brother Mohammad Nafs Zakiyya in an uprising in Hijaz. He was a great grandson of Prophet Mohammad’s (SAWA) elder grandson and 2nd Infallible Heir, Imam Hasan Mujtaba (AS), while his grandmother, Fatema (SA) was the daughter of the Prophet's 3rd Infallible Heir, Imam Husain (AS) the Martyr of Karbala. He launched his uprising in Ramadhan in Basra in coordination with his brother’s uprising in Hijaz, and within two months had liberated the whole of southern Iraq and Iran from the Abbasids, while Nafs Zakiyya liberated Arabia and Yemen, thus cornering Mansour in his capital Hirah in central Iraq (Baghdad was not yet built). It is worth noting that years earlier during the repressive rule of the Godless Omayyads, the Prophet's clan, the Hasehmites, had held an assembly at Abwa where Abu’l-Abbas as-Saffah and Mansour Dawaniqi (the future usurpers of the caliphate) had sworn allegiance to Nafs Zakiyya. But with the toppling of the Omayyads, the Abbasid brothers indulged in propaganda to hijack the rule of the realm by breaking their promise to handover the caliphate to the Prophet's progeny. Imam Ja'far Sadeq (AS), as the Prophet’s 6th Infallible Heir, sensed the plot and stayed away from the political tussle. He spurned the offer of caliphate by burning the sealed envelope sent by a victorious commander of the anti-Omayyad uprising, since his right was God-given and beyond the power of politicians. Among the offspring of Imam Hasan (AS), however, Nafs Zakiyya aspired for political power and challenged the Abbasids for breaching their promise. Thus, as a result of the uprising of the two brothers, when Mansour was on the verge of defeat, news arrived of the martyrdom in Medina of Nafs Zakiyya. This emboldened the Abbasids and in the battle near Kufa, an arrow pierced Ibrahim’s neck and he was unhorsed and decapitated by Hamid Ibn Qahtaba. Mansour, who three years later martyred Imam Sadeq (AS) through poisoning, is notorious for shedding the blood of the Prophet's progeny, especially Imam Hasan's (AS) offspring.
1050 lunar years ago, on this day in 387 AH, the esteemed Egyptian legist and historian Abu’l Hassan Ibn Ibrahim Ibn Zulaq, passed away. Among his works is the book "Kitab Sirat al-Mu‘iz" on the life of the Fatemid Ismaili Shi'ite Caliph, al-Mu'iz, who shifted his seat of power to Egypt from what is now Tunisia in North Africa, after his general, Jowhar as-Siqili, conquered the Land of the Nile and built the city of Cairo including the famous al-Azhar Academy. Ibn Zulaq is considered a reliable authority on Fatemid history.
827 solar years ago, on this day in 1189 AD, during the third Crusade, European invaders began the siege of the Palestinian city of Acre under Guy of Lusignan. It lasted until July 12, 1191, and was the deadliest event of the whole period of the Crusades for the Christian occupiers.
495 solar years ago,on this day in 1521 AD, the Ottoman Turks captured Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, during the reign of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent. The earlier attempt to take Belgrade by the Ottomans in 1456 under Mohammad al-Fateh had proved inconclusive.
474 solar years ago, on this day in 1542 AD, during the 19-year long Turkish-Portuguese War that lasted from 1538-to-1557, the Ottomans emerged victorious in the Battle of Wofla. The Portuguese were scattered, and their leader Christovão da Gama was captured and later executed.
267 solar years ago, on this day in 1749 AD, the prominent German poet and writer, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, was born. He became familiar with music, painting, and different languages, while pursuing studies in law. His deep interest in Persian and Arabic literature, especially the poems of the renowned Iranian poet, Hafez, made him study Islam and the holy Qur'an. He noted: "The miracle of Islam par excellence is the Qur’an, through which a constant and unbroken tradition transmits to us news of an absolute certainty. This is a book which cannot be imitated. Each of its expressions is a comprehensive one.” Goethe’s most famous books include West-Eastern Divan (inspired by the lyrics of Hafez), "Faust”, and "Iphigenie”. He passed away in the year 1832.
200 lunar years ago, on this day in 1237 AH, the prominent Iranian literary and political figure of the Qajarid era, Mirza Bozorg Farahani, passed away in Tabriz. He initiated effective reforms for the progress and development of the country. Among the books and treatises written by him, mention can be made of "Ahkam al-Jihad va Asbab ar-Reshad", in Persian about different types of strivings in the way of God for the progress of the society.
96 solar years ago, on this day in 1920 AD, the Islamic scholar and revolutionary, Ayatollah Mirza Mohammad Taqi Golshan Ha’eri Shirazi, passed away in Iraq at the age of 67 during the height of the struggle British domination of the country, and is believed to have been martyred through poisoning by colonialist agents. Born in Shiraz, he migrated to Iraq with his father and after studies at the Najaf seminary reached the status of Ijtihad. He opposed the British meddling in the affairs of Iraq and mobilized the Iraqi people in the southern parts of the country to inflict defeat on the British occupation army. He authored several books.
64 solar years ago, on this day in 1952 AD, the Source of Emulation, Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Taqi Khwansari, passed away. Born in the central Iranian city of Khwansar, he mastered theology, jurisprudence, and philosophy at the seminary in holy Najaf in Iraq. Alongside the Iraqi people, Grand Ayatollah Khwansari participated in their war against the British forces. He was held captive by the British and was sent to exile in Singapore. After four years in exile, he returned to Iran and became a lecturer at the Qom seminary. He continued to struggle against the British colonialists in Iran, and supported the Iranian nation’s struggles for nationalization of the oil industry.
26 solar years ago, on this day in 1990 AD, the Source of Emulation, Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Shahab od-Din Mar'ashi Najafi, passed away at the age of 96 and was laid to rest at the doorstep of his famous library in the holy city of Qom. He mastered theology, jurisprudence, hadith, exegesis of the Holy Qur'an, philosophy, and principles of ethics at the seminaries of Kazemain and holy Najaf in Iraq. After attaining the status of Ijtehad he returned to Iran and started to lecture and research at the Qom Seminary. He was a supporter of the Father of the Islamic Revolution, late Imam Khomeini (RA), in the struggles against the Shah’s despotic regime. He has left behind a large number of books on theology, jurisprudence, hadith, history and genealogy. Grand Ayatollah Mar'ashi Najafi also founded the public library in the holy city of Qom, which houses more than 300,000 books – many of them rare manuscripts collected by him.
4 solar years ago, on this day in 2012 AD, the Islamic Republic of Iran formally received from Egypt the rotating presidency of the 120-nation Non-Aligned Movement. The NAM summit in Tehran once again proved the world stature of the Islamic Republic and was a slap to the US and its few West European accomplices to try to isolate the country through threats and illegal sanctions.
(Courtesy: IRIB English Radio – http://parstoday.com/en)