Today is Tuesday; 18th of the Iranian month of Khordad 1395 solar hijri; corresponding to 1st of the Islamic month of Ramadhan 1437 lunar hijri; and June 7, 2016, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

Today marks the First Day of the blessed fasting month of Ramadhan – the month of revelation of the Holy Qur'an and the season of divine blessings. In description of the grandeur of this month, Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) has hailed its days and nights as the best days and nights of year, while calling on Muslims to benefit from the blessings of Ramadhan. The Night of Qadr marks the night that the Holy Qur'an was revealed. The martyrdom anniversary of the Prophet's 1st Infallible Successor, Imam Ali (AS) and the birth anniversary of his elder son, Imam Hasan Mojtaba (AS), the 2nd Infallible Imam, are the other important events of Ramadhan. We call on God Almighty to assist us to make use of the spiritual blessings of the fasting month of Ramadhan in the best possible manner.

1229 lunar years ago, on this day in 208 AH, the virtuous lady Seyyedah Nafisa passed away in Cairo, Egypt, at the age of 63, while engrossed in the recitation of the holy Qur’an. A descendant of Zayd, a son of Imam Hasan Mojtaba (AS) – elder grandson and 2^nd Infallible Heir of of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) – she was born in Medina and was the wife of Seyyed Ishaq al- Ishaq al-Mo’tamen, a son of Imam Ja’far as-Sadeq (AS), the Prophet’s 6^th Infallible Heir. In 193 AH, she had visited Damascus, Syria, for pilgrimage to the shrine of the Heroine of Karbala, Harzat Zainab (SA) – the Prophet’s granddaughter. Seyyedah Nafisa, like her husband, was considered an authority on Hadith, and people would flock to the classes that she held in Egypt for acquainting the people with the religious sciences of the Ahl al-Bayt. She performed the annual Hajj pilgrimage some thirty times and was known for her piety and miraculous powers that included curing the ill and saving Egyptians and the Nile River from drought. She was mother of Seyyed Qasim and Seyyedah Omm Kolthoum, while her equally pious niece, Seyyedah Zainab (daughter of her brother Seyyed Yahya), also has a much-visited shrine in Cairo, which some people wrongly think to be the resting place of the Heroine of Karbala, Hazrat Zainab (SA). The shrine of Seyyedah Nafisa is among the most visited pilgrimage centres in Egypt. Today, especially on Sundays and Thursdays, thousands of people visit her shrine. It is also a custom to hold wedding ceremonies near there. Each year on the birth anniversary of Hazrat Nafisa in Rabi al-AwaKhatun and Lady Zaynab (a) ceremonies are held in Egypt.

1009 lunar years ago, on this day in 428 AH, Abu Ali Hussain Ibn Abdullah Ibn Sina, the prominent Iranian Islamic genius, who was a physician, mathematician, philosopher, and astronomer, passed away at the age of 58 in the western Iranian city of Hamedan. He memorized the Holy Qur'an at a young age and then mastered logic, astronomy, and geometry, to such an extent that at the age of 18, he was considered an authority in all the sciences of his day. Due to successful medical treatment of the Samanid King, Nouh ibn Mansour, he was allowed to use the large royal library at Bukhara. He was a genius, who because of his political views and religious tendencies in favour of the Ahl al-Bayt of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), found himself persecuted by Sultan Mahmoud of Ghazna. Known as Avicenna to medieval Europe, his works were translated into Latin and for several centuries were taught at most western universities. Among his valuable books, mention can be made of the book: “Shafa” on philosophy; and “al-Qanoun fi't-Tibb” on medicine.

917 solar years ago, on this day in 1099 AD, the Crusader invaders from Europe laid siege to the Islamic city of Bayt al-Moqaddas, which they called Jerusalem and captured it a month and a week later on July 15. A year earlier these European invaders taking advantage of discord among the Muslims, especially the enmity of the Turkic warlords with the Fatemid Shi’ite Muslims rulers of Egypt who controlled most of Syria including Palestine, had captured Antioch. Then moving along the Mediterranean coast they laid siege to Arqa until May 13 but could not capture it. The Fatemids took up the proposal of peace on condition that the crusaders do not march upon Bayt al-Moqaddas, but this was ignored. Iftekhar od-Dowla, the Fatemid governor of Bayt al-Moqaddas, becoming aware of motives of the Crusaders strengthened the defences of the city. Meanwhile, the Crusaders were given money and horses by the Turkic ruler of Tripoli, who also promised to convert to Christianity if they capture Bayt al-Moqaddas from the Fatemids. The Crusaders thus succeeded in passing unopposed through Beirut on May 19, Tyre on May 23, and turning inland at Jaffa, reached Ramlah on June 3, which had already been abandoned by its inhabitants. On June 6, they seized Bayt-Laham, and on the next day reached the outskirts of Bayt al-Moqaddas. Iftekhar od-Dowla resisted but no reinforcement arrived from Egypt. Many Muslims sought shelter in the al-Aqsa Mosque, and the Dome of the Rock. When the city was starved and forced to surrender, the Crusaders broke all promises and started slaughtering the Muslim men, women, and children. In all over 70,000 people were massacred including Palestinian Christians and the Jewish minority. According to their own accounts, the Crusaders boasted of wading in blood up to their ankles, while killing Muslims. It is stated that when the Jews sought refuge in their synagogue, the Crusaders burned it over their heads, killing everyone inside.

704 lunar years ago, on this day in 732 AH, the Muslim historian and historiographer, Abdur-Rahman ibn Mohammad Ibn Khaldun, was born in Tunis into an affluent Spanish Arab family that had settled in North Africa because of Christian onslaughts. He is regarded as one of the forerunners of modern historiography, sociology, and economics. He travelled widely around Egypt, North Africa and Spain, where the Sultan of Granada, Mohammad VI, sent him on a mission to the Christian King of Castile, Pedro the Cruel. He returned to Egypt, whose Mamluk ruler sent him to negotiate with the fearsome Turkic conqueror, Amir Timur, during the siege of Damascus. In his autobiography, Ibn Khaldun has written on his discussions with Timur, who asked him in detail about North Africa and Spain. Among his many works is a voluminous universal history, but his fame rests on the "Muqaddemah", which is considered a unique work. He died in Cairo in 808 AH at the age of 76 years.

324 solar years ago, on this day in 1692 AD, an earthquake struck the island of Jamaica in the Caribbean Sea. It rearranged the geology, splitting the rocks, turning mountains to lakes, and engulfed two-thirds of Port Royal. On this day and the subsequent days, five thousand of the inhabitants were killed.

168 solar years ago, on this day in 1848 AD, French painter, Paul Gauguin, was born in Paris. He spent his last years on the Island of Tahiti in the Pacific Ocean painting the natives and the local landscape.

137 solar years ago, on this day in 1879 AD, as part of the War of the Pacific, between Chile, Peru and Bolivia, the Battle of Arica, also known as Assault and Capture of Cape Arica, was fought. Finally, Chile emerged victorious and dictated a treaty to the governments of Peru and Bolivia, according to which Bolivian coastlines and parts of Peru were annexed.

121 solar years ago, on this day in 1895 AD, the Iranian author and translator, Saeed Nafisi, was born in Tehran. He was the son of Ali Akbar Nafisi, popularly known as “Nazem ul-Atebba”, the compiler of Persian lexicon "Farhang-e Nafisi". Saeed Nafisi studied Law and Political Science, and lectured on history and literature in Tehran. He was an active member of Iran’s Cultural Centre and cooperated with several cultural institutions in European and Asian countries. He wrote numerous articles and books in different domains such as history, poetry, and lexicography. Among his works, mention could be made of the book “Social History of Iran”. He passed away in 1966.

111 solar years ago, on this day in 1905 AD, Norway declared independence from Sweden. Their union had been in effect in since 1814.

80 solar years ago, on this day in 1936 AD, the prominent researcher and jurisprudent, Ayatollah Seyyed Mirza Ali Aqa Shirazi, passed away at the age of 67. Son of the celebrated Grand Ayatollah Mirza Hassan Shirazi (famous for his anti-tobacco fatwa to save Iranian economy from British exploitation), he reached the status of Ijtihad at the young age of 20, and was known for his piety.

78 solar years ago, on this day in 1938 AD, during the Second Sino-Japanese War, the pro-West Chinese Nationalist government of Generalissimo Chiang Kai Shek, created the 1938 Yellow River flood to halt Japanese forces, resulting in the  death of almost 900,000 Chinese civilians.

49 solar years ago, on this day in 1967 AD, army units of the illegitimate Zionist entity called Israel, entered and occupied the Islamic city of Bayt al-Moqaddas (Jerusalem), and have refused to withdraw ever since. The Zionists, with the support of the West, especially the US, have continued to oppress and expel the native Palestinians, and in addition to Judaizing this Islamic city, have drilled tunnels underneath the sacred al-Aqsa Mosque as part of their sordid plan to destroy the former qibla of Islam.

46 solar years ago, on this day in 1970 AD, British novelist, Edward Morgan Forster, died at the age of 91. His novels include “A Room with a View” (1908) and “A Passage to India” (1924).

36 solar years ago, on this day in 1980 AD, Zionist warplanes bombarded the Tamouz Atomic Power Station of Iraq in the vicinity of Baghdad. Although this criminal attack led to worldwide condemnation, the UN Security Council did not take any measure against Israel. The illegal Zionist entity which possesses more than 300 nuclear warheads, manufactured with US, British, and French help, refuses supervision of its atomic installations by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

30 solar years ago, on this day in 1986 AD, the contemporary Iranian author, Zabihollah Mansouri, passed away after years of translation and compilation of several books. He was an expert on works and Divans of most Persian poets, and was fluent in English, Arabic, and French languages as well. He wrote articles in different magazines and papers for almost seventy years. Among his valuable works, mention can be made of “Imam Husain (AS) and Iran”, “Life and Works of Mullah Sadra”, and “The Fall of Constantinople”.

18 solar years ago, on this day in 1998 AD, the prominent Hadith scholar and historian, Ayatollah Sheikh Qawwam od-Din Mohammad Veshnavi Qomi, passed away at the age of 90 in holy Qom and was laid to rest in the shrine of Hazrat Ma’soumah (SA). Born in Veshnavah village in the Fordu Rural District of Kahak near holy Qom, at the age of 22 he left for Iraq to study at the famous seminary of holy Najaf, where he attained Ijtihad before returning to Iran. He was an expert on narrators of hadith, history and jurisprudence, and wrote several books in this regard such as “Hadith Thaqalayn”, Makarem al-Akhlaq”, and “Hayat an-Nabi wa Siratuhu” (The Prophet’s Life and Behaviour).

AS/SS