Today is Thursday; 7th of the Iranian month of Shahrivar 1398 solar hijri; corresponding to 27th of the Islamic month of Zil-Hijjah 1440 lunar hijri; and August 29, 2019, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1308 lunar years ago, on this day in 132 AH, on this day in 750 AD, the 13th and last self-styled caliph of the usurper Omayyad regime, Marwan II, titled “al-Hemar” (or the Donkey), was caught and killed in Egypt at the age of 62 after a 6-year rule while fleeing through Syria, Palestine, and North Africa, following defeat in the Battle of Zab on the banks of the river of the same name in northern Iraq at the hands of the Abbasids on January 25 the same year. Thus ended the 91-year Godless rule of the Omayyads established in 41AH on the seizure of the Islamic realm by Mu’awiyah ibn Abu Sufyan through a dubious treaty imposed upon Imam Hasan Mojtaba (AS), the elder grandson of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). Prior to the decisive Battle of Zab, the hated Omayyads had suffered a series of defeats all the way from Iran to Iraq by the combined forces of the Abbasids, Shi’ite Muslims, and Iranians. At Zab, Marwan assembled a vast army made up of many veterans of earlier Omayyad campaigns against the Byzantine Empire, but the zeal of the opponents demoralized his forces and they fled in the face of determined attack. Marwan escaped the battlefield and was relentless pursued by the Abbasids, who cornered him in Abusir in Nile delta and executed him. Marwan had ruled for 6 years from Damascus after being governor of Armenia and Azarbaijan for 12 years during which he terrorized the people of the Caucasus and devastated cities in Georgia.

1220 lunar years ago, on this day in 220 AH, Ali al-Uraidhi, the son of Imam Ja’far Sadeq (AS), passed away at the ripe old age of a hundred years. He lived in an area called Uraidh, some 6 km from Medina, hence his epithet al-Uraidhi. He was a great scholar and transmitter of Hadith from his father, brother Imam Musa Kazem (AS) and nephew Imam Reza (AS). Once when he was preaching in the mosque, Imam Mohammad at-Taqi (AS), who was still beardless boy entered, and on seeing him, he quickly sprang to his feet without adjusting the cloak and without wearing the slipper he came forward to greet him. When his companions chided him for behaving in such respectable manner to a boy who was the grandson of his brother, he replied that since God has granted the Divine Trust of imamate to the young boy it is incumbent upon all others to hold him in reverence. Both Shi’a and Sunni scholars have transmitted hadith from Ali al-Uraidhi, and there is a compilation known as “Musnad Ali ibn Ja’far” attributed to him.

1040 solar years ago, on this day in 979 AD, Fazlollah Abu Taghlib al-Ghazanfar, titled Uddat od-Dowla, the third ruler of the Hamdanid Shi’a Muslim Emirate of Mosul in Iraq, was killed following his defeat in battle near Damascus in Syria. Son of the famous Nasser od-Dowla, his reign was troubled, being marked by conflicts with some of his brothers, antagonism with the various branches of the Buwaiyhids of Iran for influence in Baghdad, and attacks by the Byzantine Empire. His relations with the Iranian Buwaiyhid emir of Iraq, Izz od-Dowla Bakhtiyar, were initially hostile, but the two later concluded an alliance. In 978, Jazira and the emirate of Mosul was occupied by the Buwaiyhids of Shiraz under Adhud od-Dowla, and he fled to the Fatemid-controlled parts of Syria, where he tried to secure the governorship of Damascus, and became involved in local rivalries which resulted in his defeat in battle and death.

884 solar years ago, on this day in 1135 AD, Mustarshid-Billah, the 29^th self-styled caliph of the usurper Abbasid regime, after a reign of 17 years, was killed by assassins, believed to be hired by the Seljuqid sultan, Mas’oud, who resented the caliph’s bid to assert independence in political affairs. When Mustarshid launched a military campaign against Mas'oud near Hamedan in western Iran, he was deserted by his troops, taken prisoner by the Sultan, but pardoned on promise not to quit the palace. Left in the royal tent, he was found murdered.

749 lunar years ago, on this day in 691 AH, the world-acclaimed Persian poet of Iran, Shaikh Moslehoddin Sa’di, passed away in his hometown Shiraz. He left at a young age for Baghdad where he studied at the famous Nizamiyyah Academy, excelling in Islamic Sciences, law, governance, history, Arabic literature and theology. The unsettled conditions following the Mongol invasion of Iran led him to wander for 30 years through Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Palestine, and Anatolia or what is now Turkey. He also refers in his works about his travels in Sindh or present day Pakistan, as well as India and Central Asia. Sa'di performed the pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina. Even during his travels he composed beautiful Persian and Arabic poems. On return to his hometown, Shiraz, he composed his two famous masterpieces, the “Bustan” or the Orchard and the “Golestan” or the Rose Garden. The poems in Bustan speak of such topics as justice, love, kindness, modesty, contentment, education, repentance, and prayers. The next year he completed the “Golestan”, which is in prose, and also contains his Arabic and Persian poems, in addition to moral and social anecdotes in 8 chapters. His collection of poems also includes odes and quatrains. The tomb of Sa’di in Shiraz is a frequently visited site.

498 solar years ago, on this day in 1521 AD, the Ottoman Turks, a year after accession of Sultan Suleiman, captured Belgrade fort in Serbia and transformed it into a major city in Europe by building schools, libraries, markets, mosques, baths, and other public amenities. Belgrade was a predominantly Muslim city for over three centuries until it was occupied by Christians who destroyed its wonderful Islamic architecture and killed and expelled its mostly European Muslim population.

493 solar years ago, on this day in 1526 AD, the Ottoman Turks led by Sultan Suleiman defeated Hungary in the Battle of Mohacs, in which Louis II, the last Jagiellonian king of Hungary and Bohemia, lost his life. The Muslim victory led to the partition of Hungary for several centuries between the Ottoman Empire, and the Habsburg Monarchy of Austria. Only in the 20th century would Hungary regain its political independence.

478 solar years ago, on this day in 1541 AD, the Ottoman Turks during the reign of Sultan Suleiman captured Buda, the capital of the Hungarian Kingdom, and for almost the next century-and-a-half ruled it Budin Eyalet.

415 solar years ago, on this day in 604 AD, the Iranian empress of Hindustan (northern India), Hamida Banu Begum, died at the age of 77 in Agra and was buried by her son, Moghal Emperor Jalal od-Din Akbar, in Delhi in the mausoleum of her husband, Emperor Naseer od-Din Humayun, who had died half-a-century earlier on his return from Iran and regaining of the kingdom with assistance provided by Safavid Emperor Shah Tahmasp 1. She was the daughter of Iranian Shi’a Muslim scholar, Ali Akbar Jami, a descendent of the famous mystic Shaikh Ahmad Jaam of Khorasan. When Humayun lost the throne of Delhi to the Afghan adventurer, Sher Shah Souri, she accompanied her husband to Iran to the court of Shah Tasmasp in Qazvin, visiting on the way the tomb of her ancestor, Ahmad Jam in Torbat-e Jam, and the holy shrine of Imam Reza (AS) in Mashhad. Soon after her return to India, she was widowed, but was held in high esteem by her son and the whole court, even occasionally presiding over state matters.  

387 solar years ago, on this day in 1632 AD, the English philosopher and physician, John Locke, was born. He spent over 20 years developing the ideas he published in his most significant work, “Essay Concerning Human Understanding” in which he analysed the nature of human reason, and promoted experimentation as the basis of knowledge. He was against absolute monarchies and believed that the ruling systems should gain the approval of the majority of people. His other famous works include “Two Treatises of Government”, and “A Letter Concerning Toleration”. He died in 1704.

76 solar years ago, on this day in 1943 AD, the famous Kenyan photographer of Indian origin, Mohamed Amin was born in Eastleigh, Nairobi. He developed interest in photography at school. In 1963, he founded Camerapix Company in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania and moved the company to Nairobi three years later. During the 1970s, he became one of the most relied-upon African news photographers, reporting on wars and coups all through the continent. His most influential moment came when his photos on the 1984 Ethiopian famine, brought international attention to the crisis and eventually helped start the charity wave.  Apart from Ethiopian famine, he contributed exclusive photos of the fall of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin and of Ethiopia’s Mengistu Haile Mariam. He was not just active in Africa, but also in the Middle East. He covered the Palestinian Black September uprising to seize control of Jordan in September 1970. He was able to move among the Palestinian forces where Western journalists could not. In 1991, Mohammad Amin lost his left arm during an ammunition dump explosion in Ethiopia during the Ethiopian Civil War. He died in November 1996 when his flight Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 was hijacked and crashed into the ocean near Grande Comore. He has authored numerous books, including “Journey through Pakistan”, and “Pilgrimage to Mecca”; and covered various themes like East African Wildlife and the Uganda Railway.

70 solar years ago, on this day in 1949 AD, the Soviet Union tested its first atomic bomb. In this manner, nuclear weapons were no longer the monopoly of the US and a “balance of terror” was established between the two superpowers. The resulting climate known as the Cold War continued between the East and the West blocs until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. The nuclear weapons threat, however, continues to loom large in view of the refusal of the big powers, especially the US, to dismantle their doomsday arsenals. The other nuclear powers are Britain, France, China, India, Pakistan, and the illegal Zionist entity called Israel.

67 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.

43 solar years ago, on this day in 1976, Bengali poet, writer, musician, and revolutionary, Qazi Nazr-ul-Islam, passed away at the age of 77. He was the national poet of Bangladesh. His poetry and music espoused Indo-Islamic renaissance and intense spiritual rebellion against fascism and oppression. As a result he was imprisoned several times. He was familiar with Persian language, and deeply influenced by Hafez Shirazi. His poems on Islam and social justice have been translated into Farsi.

32 solar years ago, on this day in 1987 AD, Palestinian cartoonist, Naji Salim al-Ali, noted for the political criticism of the Arab regimes and the illegal Zionist entity, in his works, died in hospital, after being shot in the face and wounded five weeks earlier, outside the London office of the Kuwait daily, al-Qabas, for which he drew political caricatures. He drew over 40,000 cartoons, which often reflected Palestinian and Arab public opinion and were sharply critical commentaries on Palestinian and Arab politics and political leaders. He is perhaps best known as creator of the character Handhala, pictured in his cartoons as a young witness of the satirized policy or event depicted, and who has since become an icon of Palestinian defiance.

29 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.

16 solar years ago, on this day in 2003 AD, Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Baqer al-Hakim was martyred at the age of 64 years, along with at least 125 other Muslims, while stepping out of the holy shrine of the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS) in Najaf after leading the Friday Prayer in its courtyard, due to a bomb blast carried out by US-backed Salafi and Ba’thist terrorists. Son of the Late Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Mohsin al-Hakim, he was active against the repressive Ba’th minority regime, suffering bouts of imprisonment, before seeking asylum in 1980 in the Islamic Republic of Iran, where he headed the Supreme Assembly for the Islamic Revolution of Iraq (SAIRI) in exile. On 12 May 2003, he had returned to Iraq after 23 years in exile, and was greeted by thousands of admirers from Basra till his hometown Najaf, where became active in the struggle against the American occupation of the country.

AS/SS