Art & Culture
This Day in History
(May 29)
Today is Thursday; 8th of the Iranian month of Khordad 1393 solar hijri; corresponding
to 29th of the Islamic month of Rajab 1435 lunar hijri; and May 29, 2014, of the Christian
Gregorian Calendar.
1641 solar year ago, on this day in 363 AD, the Battle of Ctesiphon occurred between the
armies of the Sassanid King Shapur II and the Roman Emperor Julian the Apostate (who renounced Christianity and reverted to paganism). It was fought outside the walls of the Persian
capital Ctesiphon (Mada’en, near Baghdad), and was an unsuccessful European attempt to
seize Iraq for possible infiltration into the Iranian Plateau and domination of the east – like
Alexander of Macedonia. The battle was a Roman tactical victory, although Julian, who failed
to take Ctesiphon and fled when the Iranian army regrouped for counterattack (equipped with
war elephants from the Indian satrapies), was killed in the subsequent Battle of Samarra on
June 26. The treaty that followed, forced his successor Jovian, to cede five provinces to the
Iranians and make a pledge against interfering in the affairs of Armenia. The great success for
Shapur II (known as Dhu’l-Aktaaf or Broad-Shouldered to the Arabs for his conquest years
earlier of Yamama in central Najd in the Arabian Peninsula), is represented in the rock-carving
in Bishapur near Kazeroun, where under the hooves of the Persian king’s horse lies the body
of a Roman enemy (Emperor Julian), as a supplicant Roman (Emperor Jovian), begs for peace.
904 solar years ago, on this day in 1108 AD, the Battle of Ucles was fought in Spain resulting in the resounding victory of the al-Moravid troops under the command of Tamim ibn Yusuf
over an alliance of Christians of the kingdom of Castile and Leon under the command of Prince
Sancho Alfonsez. A great number of Christians were killed including Alfonsez.
828 lunar years ago, on this day in 606 AH, Atabek Arsalan Shah of Mosul, died. He had
asserted his independence from the Iran-based Seljuq Empire, and is famous for building the
Madrasa Shafe’iyyah in the Iraqi city of Mosul.
561 solar years ago, on this day in 1453 AD Constantinople was taken after a 53-day siege
by the Ottoman Sultan, Mohammad II (known as al-Fateh or the Conqueror), thus ending
Byzantine or the Eastern Roman Empire. He set out to revitalize the city, renamed it Islambol
(today’s Istanbul), and made it the capital of his empire. The first decree issued by him was
security and freedom of the residents who were almost all Christians. Hours later, he rode to
the Hagia Sofia to proclaim the Islamic creed, converting the grand cathedral into an imperial
mosque. When he stepped into the ruins of the Boukoleon, the Palace of the Caesars, built over
a thousand years before by Theodosius II, he recited the famous Persian couplet of the Iranian
poet, Shaikh Sa’di:
“The spider weaves the curtains in the palace of the Caesars;
“The owl calls the watches in the towers of Afrasiab.”
61 solar years ago, on this day in 1953, Mount Everest, the highest pinnacle of the world,
was scaled by Edmund Hillary of Britain and Tenzing Norgay of Nepal. The altitude of Mount
Everest is 8848 meters and it is situated in Nepal in the massive Himalayan Mountain Range.
25 solar years ago, on this day in 1989 AD, the Iranian Islamic scholar, Ayatollah Mir
Seyyed Ali Fani Isfahani, passed away at the age of 74. He studied in his hometown Isfahan,
where after attaining the status of Ijtehad; he left for holy Najaf in Iraq, where he stayed for 30
years lecturing on theology, jurisprudence, exegesis of Holy Qur’an, and ethics. He returned
to Iran in 1973 and until his death 16 years later, he used to lecture in holy Qom. He has left
behind more than 80 books, on various topics, including “Exegesis of Surah Fateha”, and
“Arb’ain Hadith”.
(9-3-1393)
Tomorrow is Friday; 9th of the Iranian month of Khordad 1393 solar hijri; corresponding
to 1st of the Islamic month of Sha’ban 1435 lunar hijri; and May 30, 2014, of the Christian
Gregorian Calendar.
Today is the first of Sha’ban; the month of worship and acceptance of forgiveness in the Divine court. Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) and the Infallible Imams have emphasized on fasting,
charity and other virtuous acts in this month.
762 solar years ago, on this day in 1252 AD, Ferdinand III of Castile died at the age 53 after
a reign of 35 years during which he occupied one by one the Spanish Muslim cities of Badajoz, Merida, Cazorla, Ubeda, the old capital Cordoba (Qurtuba), Huelva, Murcia, Cartagena
and finally Seville (Ishbiliya) the greatest of Spanish Muslim cities. Some other regions he
kept as vassal states under Muslim governors, while in areas directly under his rule, Christian
rule was heavy-handed on the new Muslim subjects. This eventually led to the mudejar uprisings of 1264-66, which resulted in mass expulsions of Spanish Muslim populations from their
homeland. Ferdinand III was buried in the Mosque turned Cathedral of Seville and his tomb is
inscribed in four languages: Arabic, Hebrew, Latin, and an early version of Castilian Spanish.
742 lunar years ago, on this day in 693 AH, the famous scholar and literary figure, Seyyed
Ghiyas od-Din Abdul-Karim ibn Ahmad ibn Musa ibn Tawous Hilli, passed away in Kazemain
at the age of 45 and his body was taken to holy Najaf for burial. Born in holy Karbala, his father
is the compiler of the famous book “Iqbal al-A’maal”. The Tawous family was famous in Iraq
and Iran, and its members widely respected by for their virtue, piety, and devotion to the cause
of the Ahl al-Bayt. His teachers, besides his father, included Muhaqqiq Hilli and Khwajah
Naseer od-Din Tousi. He authored several books including “Farhat al-Ghari be Sarhat al-Qori”
591 solar years ago, on this day in 1423 AD, Austrian mathematician and astronomer, Georg
von Peurbach, was near Linz. He studied the Islamic scientist, Ibn Haytham’s book “On the
Configuration of the World”, and replaced the Greek scientist Ptolemy’s chords in the table of
sines with the Islamic Arabic numerals that were introduced 250 years earlier in place of Roman numerals and which today are in use in the whole world (e.g. 1,2,3,4,5 etc.)
583 solar years ago, on this day in 1431 AD, during the Hundred Years War the 19-year-old
Joan of Arc was burned at the stake by an English-dominated tribunal in Rouen, France. The
Roman Catholic Church marks this day as the celebration of Saint Joan of Arc, the French
national heroine, known as Jeanne d’Arc. Also called the Maid of Orleans, she started her
uprising for the liberation of parts of French territory from the occupation of England. She led
the French army to several important victories, before she was captured by the Burgundians
and sold to the English.
379 solar years ago, on this day in 1635 AD, the Thirty Years War ended with the signing of
the Peace of Prague. It was principally fought in Central Europe, involving most of the countries
of Europe that were once part of the Holy Roman Empire. It was one of the most destructive
conflicts in European history, and one of the longest continuous wars in modern history. Initially, religion was a motivation for war as Protestant and Catholic states. In the next phase, the war
became less specifically religious and more a continuation of the Bourbon–Habsburg rivalry
for European political pre-eminence, leading in turn to further warfare between France and the
German powers. A major consequence of the Thirty Years’ War was the devastation of entire
regions, denuded by the foraging armies. Famine and disease significantly decreased the population of the German states, while Italy and most of the combatant powers were bankrupted.
169 lunar years ago, on this day in 1266 AH, the prominent Islamic scholar, Sheikh Mohammad Hassan Najafi, known as “Saheb-e Jawaher”, because of his famous jurisprudential work,
“Jawaher al-Kalaam”, passed away. A student of Shaikh Ja’far Kashef ul-Gheta, he took thirty
years to complete his monumental work which is still held in high esteem in Islamic seminaries.
152 solar years ago, on this day in 1862 AD, Azarbaijani philosopher and renowned poet
of the Caucasus region, Mirza Ali Akbar Zain al-Abedin Taherzadeh, known by his penname
Saber, was born in the city of Shervan in what is now the Republic of Azerbaijan, which before
the Russian occupation in the first half of 19th century was an integral part of Iran. He was
fluent with the Azeri, Persian, Arabic, and Russian languages, and wrote many ghazals in imitations of Persian poets, particularly Nizami Ganjavi. In 1885, he embarked on a tour of several
cities of Iran and Central Asia. Political satire was an important part of his work, and the butt
of his satire ranged from Emperor Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany to Mohammad Ali Shah Qajar
of Iran, and from the Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid to the defeat of Russian armies by Japan
as well as the scenes of social and domestic life at home. Part of Saber’s life coincided with
the Constitutional Revolution in Iran and his vibrant and biting political satire was recited by
the Constitutionalists in the trenches of Tabriz. He also made a fine verse translation of some
passages of Ferdowsi’s “Shahnama” into Azeri. Many of Saber’s poems are in admiration of
Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) and the Infallible Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt.
102 years ago, on this day in 1912 AD, US inventor and aviator, Wilbur Wright, with his
brother Orville, invented the first powered airplane, Flyer, capable of sustained, controlled
flight, died at the age of 45. Orville made the first flight, airborne for 12 seconds. Wilbur took
the second flight, covering 853-ft in 59 seconds. By 1905, they had improved the design, built
and made several long flights in Flyer III, which was the first fully practical airplane able to
fly up to 38-min and travel 24 miles. The history of aviation is as old as Man’s quest to fly.
In the heyday of Islamic science and civilization, there are records pertaining to the Spanish
Muslim polymath, Abbas ibn Firnas, who flew by employing a rudimentary glider in the 9th
century AD.
90 solar years ago, on this day in 1924 AD, the Iranian physician and lexicographer, Mirza
Ali Akbar Khan Nafisi, titled “Nazem ol-Atibba”, passed away in Tehran. He was a product of
Tehran’s famous Dar al-Fonoun Academy. In addition to his services to medicine, he also served
the cause of Persian language. His important work is the 5-volume lexicon“Farhang-e Nafisi”.
84 solar years ago, on this day in 1930 AD, the prominent poet and religious scholar, Seyyed
Ahmad Peshawari, known as “Adib Peshawari”, passed away in Tehran. Born
near Peshawar in what is now Pakistan, he came to Iran to attend the classes of
Islamic scholars such as Mullah Hadi Sabzevari. He also studied literary and philosophical books and wrote Persian poetry. .
(Courtesy: IRIB English Radio – http://english.irib.ir)
MAY 29, 2014
“Gulliver’s Experience”
Can Come True in
Iran’s Dwarf City
3
US Bankrupting
DONYAYE EQTESAD: The US empire is bankrupting itself
through extravagant military spending, it has been relentlessly pushing its weight around everywhere in the world, subverting or trying to
subvert democratically elected governments in places like Nicaragua,
Panama, Grenada, Haiti and Venezuela, and even seeking to undermine governments in states like Russia, Ukraine and Iran. But America’s bluff is being called.
Big Oil
ASR EQTESAD: Big oil wins again, and all it cost was a million or
so Iraqis who got blown to bits air raids or shot up at checkpoints, or
beaten to death with a rubber hose at Abu Ghraib or any of the other
democracy reeducation centers. Under the current circumstances, the
possibility of a withdrawal of western oil companies from Iraq appears
remote, and the Obama administration continues to pressure Baghdad
to pass the Iraq Oil Law.
Regime Changers
The mummified dwarf found in 2005
TEHRAN (Press TV) - The ancient
Iranian village in the south of Khorasan province, known as Makhunik,
has astonished many people who are
fond of visiting a real dwarf city.
Located about 100km east of
Shahdad district in Kerman (Khorasan’s neighboring province), the
remains of the ancient city and the
discovered structures evoke the image of ‘Liliput City (Court of Lilliput)’ described in Jonathan Swift’s
famous novel, Gulliver’s Travels.
According to archaeologists’ reports, the ancient town of Makhunik (Makhoonik) was the land of
Aratta civilization and dwarf humans are also said to have existed
since 6000 BCE.
The small size of the discovered
structures in the city can be the evidence of the belief.
Moreover, finding a 25-centimeter mummified dwarf at the area in
2005, which created great sensations among public, can also support the claim.
The corpse was excavated by two
smugglers who wanted to sell the
mummy for about more than 3 million U.S. dollars in Germany. The
archaeologists noted that it might
have been mummified under natural processes.
While forensic studies could not
help the archeologists in determining the exact age of the corpse, it
was estimated that the dwarf should
have been 16-17 years old at the
time of death.
The research at the area revealed
that even in some years ago, the
height of people in Makhunik seldom reached 150 cm but now they
have about normal size.
Meanwhile, the oldest metal flag
in human history was also unearthed in this ancient city.
Tehran University Grants Honorary
Doctorate to Al-Babtain
TEHRAN (KUNA) -- Tehran
University granted, to the Chairman of the Kuwaiti Foundation of
Abdulaziz Saud Al-Babtain’s, an
honorary doctorate for his cultural
efforts in Iran.
The ceremony in the Amini Hall
at the university hosted a number
of students and professors from
the university, including scientific, cultural, academic and diplomatic figures.
Abdulaziz Al-Babtain in a
speech marking the ceremony
expressed his thanks for the kind
gesture and the honorary doctorate given by Tehran University
to an Arab personality, which he
described as a national honor to
Kuwait’s leadership and people,
underscoring as well importance
of communication and bringing
views closer.
RESALAT: The West has overthrown, or made attempts to overthrow, almost any democratically elected governments, on all continents attempting to serve their own people, by providing them with
decent standards of living and social services. That is quite an achievement, and some stamina!
Functioning Democracy
AFTAB: Most Britons and Americans are not yet used to living under a government that has made voting meaningless. In a functioning
democracy, one can consider not voting a lazy protest liable to play
into the hands of the party in power. It comes hard to admit that in the
west a vote is not in itself an act of power.
Picasso’s Million-Dollar
Master Piece
in Iran
TEHRAN (MNA) –
Asghari said.
The First
World’s Galleries Expo secretary has
said works of Picasso, Dali, and Miró
will be displayed for the first time in
Iran.
Hamed Asghari said that negotiations to bring a $ 2.8m Picasso masterpiece to the Expo was underway.
“The expo sought three objectives.
First, to bring foreign art works
and collectors to Iran as the center
of civilization in the Middle East
and the world at large in an attempt
to belie all propaganda mounted
against Iran as myth,” he added.
“Second, to juxtapose Iranian art
works and global art pieces so that
a comparison could be made and
provide the audience an opportunity to see all works in a single visit,”
He also said that 30 galleries from
20 countries including Spain, Turkey, Switzerland, and Peru, and
120 artists in painting, sculpture,
and modern art which would be
displayed under the aegis of Nasle
Aftab Institute (literally, ‘generation
of sun’) along with Iranian art galleries in Qasr Garden Museum on
June 24-28.
Asghari also cited ‘continuous
and direct contacts between Iranian and foreign galleries’ as among
the objectives sought in the Expo.
“Currently, we are negotiating with
the holders of works of Joan Miró,
Salvador Dali, and Pablo Picasso
to bring the authentic works to the
Expo,” he said.
Apple’s Official
Representative Starts
Operation in Iran
TEHRAN (FNA) - Vaghaye Gostar Fars Company officially started its activities in Iran as the only
legal representative of Apple.
This comes as sanctions that
barred sales of consumer communications equipment and software
to ordinary Iranians have been
lifted.
Iran’s Industry, Mines, and
Trade ministry has approved the
Vaghaye Gostar Fars Company to
operate in the country.
The company will provide products from Apple with a 12-month
guarantee.
From now on, any Apple product without Vaghaye Gostar Fars
Company’s hologram will be considered smuggled.
Beauty Horse Festival - North Khorasan province - Iran
Courtesy: IRNA