History

Date: 05 December 2014 - 21:11

News ID: ۸۲۳۱

Today is Saturday; 15th of the Iranian month of Azar 1393 solar hijri; corresponding to 13th of the Islamic month of Safar 1436 lunar hijri; and December 6, 2014, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.
1252 solar years ago, on this day in 762 AD, Mohammad "Nafs Zakiyya” (Pure Soul), the great grandson of Prophet Mohammad's (SAWA) elder grandson, Imam Hasan al-Mojtaba (AS), was martyred at the age of 53 near the holy city of Medina during a battle against forces sent by Mansur Dawaniqi, the second self-styled caliph of the usurper Abbasid regime.  His father was Abdullah al-Mahadh – a son of the survivors of the tragedy of Karbala, Hassan al-Muthanna and Fatema, the daughter of the Prophet's younger grandson, Imam Husain (AS). Known for his commanding oratory skills, amiable demeanor, and impressive build, years earlier during the rule of the Godless Omayyad regime, the persecuted Abbasid brothers – Ibrahim al-Imam, Abu'l-Abbas Saffah and Mansour Dawaniqi – had sworn allegiance to him at the famous gathering of the Hashemite clan at Abwa. On the fall of the Omayyads, the Abbasid brothers deserted him, broke their promise to return rule of the Islamic state to the Prophet's Ahl al-Bayt, and established their own dubious rule. For years, Nafs Zakiyya disguised himself and traveled incognito, so as not to arouse suspicion from the regime, and was eventually able to raise a sizable army to take over the city of Medina. He took over Mecca and Yemen in 145 AH. Before that he had sent his son, Abdullah, to Sindh (in present day Pakistan) to mobilize support. Meanwhile, his brother Ibrahim, in coordinated action, launched his uprising in Basra and within two months had liberated the whole of southern Iraq and Iran from the Abbasids, thereby cornering Mansour in his capital Hirah in central Iraq (Baghdad was not yet built). While Ibrahim advanced towards Kufa, and Mansour was on the verge of defeat, Nafs Zakiyya was deserted by most of his army and was martyred in combat. This emboldened the Abbasids and in the decisive battle near Kufa, an arrow pierced Ibrahim’s neck and he was immediately unhorsed and decapitated by the wretch, Hamid bin Qahtaba, who sent the head to Mansour's nephew Isa bin Musa – the cowardly killer of Nafs Zakiyya in the Hijaz. It is worth noting that Imam Ja'far Sadeq (AS), as the 6th Infallible Heir of the Prophet, sensed the plot, stayed away from the political tussle and even spurned the offer of caliphate by burning the sealed letter sent by a victorious commander of the anti-Omayyad uprising, since his right was God-given and beyond the power of politicians. Imam Sadeq (AS) was martyred through poisoning in 148 by Mansour, who is notorious for shedding of the blood of the Prophet's progeny, especially of Imam Hasan's (AS) offspring.
1168 solar years ago, on this day in 846 AD (as per the Gregorian Calendar), Imam Hasan al-Askari (AS), the 11th Infallible Heir of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), was born (8th Rabi al-Akher 232 AH) in Medina. He later moved to Samarra to join his father, Imam Ali al-Hadi (AS), who was forced to come to the Abbasid capital in Iraq by the oppressive ruler, Mutawakkil. The mantle of Imamate or divinely-decreed leadership of mankind came to rest on Imam Askari’s (AS) shoulders at the age of 22, following the martyrdom of his father through poisoning by the treacherous caliph, Mu'taz. For the next six years, the 11th Imam guided the ummah, until his own martyrdom in the prime of youth as a result of poisoning by the caliph, Mu’tamed. During this period, his son and successor, Imam Mahdi (AS) was born and brought up in secrecy, safe and secure from the Abbasid spies. The 12th Imam who is in occultation by God’s Will is expected to emerge in the end times as the Redeemer of mankind to cleanse the earth of all vestiges of corruption and oppression by establishing the global government of peace, prosperity and justice.
1133 lunar years ago, on this day in 303 AH, on this day in 303 AH, the well-known Iranian Sunni Muslim compiler of Hadith, Ahmad ibn Sho’aib ibn Ali an-Nasa’i, passed away at the age of 89. He was born in a village near the ancient Parthian capital of Nasa in Khorasan, northeastern Iran (presently in Turkmenistan). When he was 20 years old, he started his journey in pursuit of knowledge and covered Transoxiana, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Hijaz, and Egypt, where he settled. He is the author of "Sunnan an-Nasa’i", one of the six canonical hadith collections of Sunni Muslims. Towards the end of his life he wrote a book on the unrivalled virtues and merits of Prophet Mohammad's (SAWA) divinely-decreed vicegerent, Imam Ali (AS), titled "Khasa’es Amir al-Mominin Ali". When he recited this excellent book from the pulpit of the main mosque of Damascus, he was attacked by enemies of the Ahl al-Bayt and was severely beaten. He left Syria and while on his way to Egypt, succumbed to his wounds in Palestine.
1066 lunar years ago, on this day in 370 AH, the prominent Iranian philologist of the Arabic language and exegete of the Holy Qur’an, Mohammad Ibn Ahmad al-Azhari al-Harawi, passed away at the age of 88 in his hometown Herat, in what is now Afghanistan, but which is historically part of Iran’s Khorasan. While on the Hajj pilgrimage at the age of 30, he was captured by Arab tribes and learned their accent in captivity, using this accent and dialect in his book. He attended the classes of prominent Ulema in Baghdad before returning to Herat. His most important book is "Tahdhib al-Lugha", spread over 15 volumes on philology in which he has frequently cited the unmatched eloquence of Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS) and quoted some of the sermons of the Imam, decades before Seyyed Radhi compiled the "Nahj al-Balagha”. He has compiled exegesis of Holy Qur’an and Hadith.
774 solar years ago, on this day in 1240 AD, Mongol armies of Batu Khan invade the principality of Rus, occupy Kiev and destroy it. For several centuries the Russians acknowledged the Mongols and their Muslim Tatar successors as overlords.
236 solar years ago, on this day in 1778 AD, French chemist and physicist, Joseph Gay-Lussac, was born. The invention of a type of alcoholometer, and densimeter, and identification of chlorine as an element, are some of his achievements. His most important scientific activities are laws on expansion of gases, which have been named after him. He died in 1850.
212 solar years ago, on this day in 1802 AD, Paul-Emile Botta, was born in Italy to historian Carlo Giuseppe Guglielmo Botta. The family moved to Paris, where he grew up and became a scientist, who was assigned as French consul to Mosul (in Iraq), where his interest in archaeology led to the discovery in 1843 of the palace of the Assyrian king Sargon II (721 to 705 BC) at Dur Sharrukin (modern Khorsabad).
97 solar years ago, on this day in 1917 AD, Finland emerged as an independent country with a republican system following the fall of the Russian monarchy. Throughout history this land was divided between Sweden and Russia. Finland covers an area of over 338,000 sq km. It shares borders with Russia, Sweden, and Norway.
34 solar years ago, on this day in 1980 AD, Brigadier General, Ahmad Keshvari, attained martyrdom at the age of 27 while on an airborne mission during the 8-year war imposed on Iran by the US through Saddam. Born in northern Iran, he entered the airborne unit in 1972 and became an accomplished pilot. Following the victory of Islamic Revolution, he served the country in various fields, including the operations to clear Kurdistan Province in western Iran from anti-revolutionaries. He was made Commander of the Ilam Airborne Unit. Following the outbreak of Saddam’s war, he flew several sorties, inflicting massive casualties and losses on the invading forces, before attaining martyrdom.
24 solar years ago, on this day in 1980 AD, classical Iranian musician, Manouchehr Jahanbeglo, passed away at the age of 62. After learning music under prominent Iranian maestros, he left for Austria for completion of his studies, and obtained a PhD. On return to Iran, he researched and taught music. He has left behind a large number of books in this domain.
22 solar years ago, on this day in 1992 AD, to the shock of the civilized world, the historical Babri Mosque in Faizabad of Uttar Pradesh, India, was desecrated and razed to the ground by frenzied mobs of anarchic elements. The mosque built by Mir Baqi, the Iranian minister of the Founder of the Mughal Empire in the Subcontinent, Zahir ud-din Mohammad Babar, in 1528, was an architectural masterpiece topped by three domes and exquisite Persian and Arabic inscriptions. Three centuries later, it was mischievously registered as a monument built on the ruins of a temple, by a British official, following the fall of the Shi’ite-Muslim kingdom of Awadh to the colonialists, despite the fact that no Rajput history written by Hindus had made such a claim. Several decades later, seditious groups, intent on harming national unity, stealthily installed idols in one of sections of the mosque, and the court battle that followed led to the unjust division, and later the lock-up of the Babri Mosque. Finally anarchic elements, exploited by unprincipled politicians, alleging that it was the site of birth of a pre-historic figure called Ram (who seems to be a good Muslim from his positive characteristics), destroyed it and unleashed clashes all over the country, resulting in the death of over 2000 people, mostly Muslims. Although the Archeological Survey of India failed to find any traces of previous construction, let alone temple relics at the site of the destroyed mosque, the court issued a controversial verdict allotting only a third of the place for construction of a mosque – the rest to be reserved for a temple – a decision which India’s 220 million Muslims have rejected and filed appeal at the Supreme Court for restoration of the whole site for the worship of the One and Only God.
18 solar years ago, on this day in 1996 AD, Iranian film director and screen writer, Ali Hatami, passed away. After graduating from the Dramatic Arts Faculty, he started his screenwriting career. His films all manifest his love for Iranian culture and independence. His works include such films as: "Sattar Khan" and "Kamal ol-Molk". Finally, he passed away while making the TV Series: "Jahan Pahlavan Takhti".