Today is Saturday; 13th of the Iranian month of Shahrivar 1395 solar hijri; corresponding to 1st of the Islamic month of Zi’l-Hijjah 1437 lunar hijri; and September 3, 2016, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1435 lunar years ago, on this day in 2 AH, the blessed wedding of the noblest-ever couple, Hazrat Fatema Zahra and Imam Ali (AS) took place in Medina, presided over by Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). It was a marriage-made-in-heaven, since no man was worthy of the hand of the Prophet's immaculate daughter, the noblest lady of all times. A famous hadith says: Fatema would have remained unmarried if there was no Ali. The Prophet used to politely turn down any proposal for marriage from wealthy and powerful suitors, saying God will decide who ought to be the groom for his noble daughter. Following their marriage, these two exemplary figures started a simple life that was filled with kindness and spirituality. The fruit of this blessed union that guaranteed the continuation of the Prophet's progeny were two noble sons, Imam Hasan (AS) and Imam Husain (AS), and two virtuous daughters, Hazrat Zainab (SA) and Hazrat Omm Kolsoum (SA). The nuptials this day that were celebrated in the most modest manner with praises of God Almighty and without any extravagant dowry or bridal-money, serves as the all-time universal model for any Muslim couple anywhere in the world. Thus was planted the blessed tree of perpetual munificence, whose branches in the form of the Saadaat or honoured descendants of Imam Ali (AS) Hazrat Fatema (SA), have spread today all over the world. This made-for-each-other pair, are the ancestors of the Infallible Imams, the last of whom is the awaited Redeemer of Mankind, Imam Mahdi (AS) – God hasten his reappearance to cleanse the world of corruption and oppression, by replacing it with the global government of peace, prosperity, and justice.

1427 lunar years ago, on this day in 9 AH, shortly after Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) had dispatched to Mecca his companion Abu Bakr with the opening ayahs of Surah Towba to clarify the rules of the Hajj pilgrimage and to declare disavowal of disbelievers, Archangel Gabriel descended with the divine commandment, saying that either the Prophet should personally discharge this mission at the holy Ka'ba or depute the one who is nearest to him. The Prophet promptly sent his dear cousin and son-in-law, Imam Ali (AS), to overtake Abu Bakr and assume personal charge of the mission. Abu Bakr returned to Medina, while the Imam proceeded to Mecca, where without fear of the infidels, he clarified the rules of the Hajj through practical demonstration, while performing the pilgrimage. For three days the Imam continuously recited the opening ayahs of Surah Towba concerning bara'at min al-mushrikeen (disavowal of disbelievers), and made it clear that neither the polytheists are allowed anymore to enter the sacred precincts of the Ka'ba, nor should anyone follow the pagan practice of circumambulating the holy edifice naked, without clothes. Thus till this day, all Muslims are indebted to the Prophet and Imam Ali for reviving the pure Abrahamic rituals of the Hajj pilgrimage by God's command. 

1311 lunar years ago, on this in 126 AH, Yazid ibn al-Waleed or Yazid III, the 12^th self-styled caliph of the Omayyad usurper regime, died of a brain tumour, less than six months after seizing the caliphate through a coup against his immoral, drunkard and debauched cousin, Waleed Ibn Yazid or Waleed II, who was killed. The mother of Yazid III was an Iranian and he was known as “an-Naqqes” (the Diminisher) for his austerity measures in contrast to the profligacy and sinning habits of the Omayyads. It is worth noting that in 6 years from 126 to 132 AH, six Omayyad caliphs died one after another as this tyrannical dynasty came to its end.

1153 solar years ago, on this day in 863 AD, Amr bin Abdullah, known as al-Aqta or the One-Handed, the Emir of Malatya (in southeastern Turkey), was killed in a heroic fight in the Battle of Lalakaon (northeastern Turkey) with a huge Byzantine army that encircled his force of 8,000 Muslims, while he was returning from a successful expedition to the Black Sea port of Amisos. He was a thorn in the Byzantine side for over three decades, opening the way for the spread of Islam in Anatolia, and had participated in the victorious Battle of Dazimon in 838 under the Iranian Abbasid general, Afshin. In the 840s, he provided shelter to survivors of the Paulician sect of Christianity, who were fleeing persecution from the Greek Orthodox Church of Byzantium. In 844, Amr participated in another decisive victory over the Byzantines at the Battle of Mauropotamos. In the 850s, he often joined forces with Ali IbnYayha al-Armani, the Emir of Tarsus and decisively defeated Byzantine Emperor Michael III. Though unable to stop a raid in 856 by Petronas deep into Muslim territory, all the way to Amida (Diyarbakr), in 860 he teamed up with the Paulician Christians to inflict a major defeat on the Byzantines deep into Anatolia where he reached the Black Sea port of Sinope. His death three years later was a relief to the Byzantines. His reputation lived on and a literary tradition grew around his exploits, which became popular in Anatolia, with the emergence of the Seljuq Turks.

933 lunar years ago, on this day 504 AH, the Iranian Shafei jurisprudent, Ali Ibn Mohammad Tabari al-Kiya-Harasi, passed away in Baghdad. He rejected the dubious views of his famous contemporary, Abu Hamed Mohammad Ghazali, on the tyrant Yazid, and said it is permissible to curse the killer of the Prophet's grandson, Imam Husain (AS).

851 lunar years ago, on this day in 586 AH, renowned Mu’tazalite Sunni scholar and literary figure, Izz od-Din Abdul-Hamid ibn Hibbatollah, known as Ibn Abi’l-Hadeed, was born in Mada’en (Ctesiphon) in Iraq. Captured by the Mongols during the sack of Baghdad, he was released upon the mediation of prominent figures. His most important book is a voluminous commentary on the “Nahj al-Balaghah” – the collection of sermons, letters and maxims of Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS), the First Infallible Heir of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). His famous remarks on the Commander of the Faithful read: “The world cannot quote an example other than that of (Imam) Ali of a first class warrior and a marshal who is also a philosopher, a moralist and a great teacher of religious principles and theology. A study of his life shows that his sword was the only help that Islam received during its early days of struggle in its wars of self-defence. For Islam he was the first and the last line of defence… The other facet of his character is reflected in his sermons, orders, letters and sayings. What high values of morality they teach, what ethics’ they preach, what intricate problems of Unitarianism they elucidate, how rich they are in philosophy; how they imbibe the spirit of righteousness and teach rulers to become kind, good, benevolent and God-fearing rulers, and subjects to be faithful, sincere and law abiding, how they persuade men to be warriors who can fight only for God, truth and justice, and not mercenaries murdering and plundering for wealth and riches; and how they instruct teachers to teach nothing injurious and harmful to mankind. These are but indisputable proofs of his greatness and spiritual superiority. Has history ever produced a more splendid personality incorporating such variegated characteristics of mind and heart?”

757 solar years ago, on this day in 1260 AD, the Mamluks of Egypt decisively defeated the Iran-based Ilkhanid Mongols of Hulagu Khan at the Battle of Ain Jalout in Palestine, thus turning the tide against these savage invaders from the steppes of Central Asia. The battle marked the debacle of Mongol power, and was the first time a Mongol army had ever been permanently beaten back in direct combat on the battlefield. After previous defeats, the Mongols had always returned and avenged their loss, ultimately defeating their enemies. The Battle of Ain Jalout marked the first time they were unable to do so. Hulagu Khan was not able to advance into Egypt, (the dynasty he established in Iran was able to defeat the Mamluks only once in subsequent encounters, when the Ilkhan, Mamoud Ghazaan, who had converted to Islam, briefly occupied Syria and parts of Galilee for a few months in 1300). Thus, at Ain Jalout the Mongols were decisively defeated by Egyptian Mamluk Sultan Saif od-Din Qutuz and his able general, Baibars (the next Sultan). This victory over Hulagu's famous Christian Turkish general, Kitbuqa Noyan, ended the threat to Egypt and North Africa, a few years after the Mongol sack of Baghdad and the subjugation of Syria, which included the turning of Omayyad Mosque of Damascus into a cathedral.

358 solar years ago, on this day in 1658 AD, Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, died at the age of 59, and was succeeded by his incompetent son, Richard Cromwell, who resigned nine months later and fled to Europe in the face of royalist advances from Scotland to restore the monarchy. Born into the middle gentry (in a family descended from the sister of King Henry VIII's minister Thomas Cromwell), Oliver Cromwell was relatively obscure for the first 40 years of his life. After undergoing a religious conversion in the 1630s, he became an independent puritan, taking a generally tolerant view towards the many Protestant sects of his period. He was elected to the parliament for Huntingdon in 1628 and for Cambridge in the Short (1640) and Long (1640–49) Parliaments. He entered the English Civil War on the side of the "Roundheads" or Parliamentarians, and was quickly promoted from leading a single cavalry troop to become one of the principal commanders of the New Model Army that defeated the royalist forces. He was one of the signatories of King Charles I's death warrant in 1649, and, as a member of the Rump Parliament (1649–53), he dominated the short-lived Commonwealth of England. He was selected to take command of the English campaign in Ireland in 1649–50. Cromwell's forces defeated the Confederate and Royalist coalition in Ireland and occupied the country. Cromwell confiscated the lands of Catholics, and also led a campaign against the Scottish army between 1650 and 1651. On 20 April 1653 he dismissed the Rump Parliament by force, setting up a short-lived nominated assembly known as Barebone's Parliament, before being invited by his fellow leaders to rule as Lord Protector of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland from 16 December 1653. As a ruler he executed an aggressive and effective foreign policy. On his death from natural causes he was buried in Westminster Abbey, but after the royalists returned to power in 1660 they had his corpse dug up, hung in chains, and beheaded. Oliver Cromwell is one of the most controversial figures in British history – considered a military dictator by Winston Churchill, but a hero of liberty by John Milton, Thomas Carlyle and Samuel Rawson Gardiner, and a class revolutionary by Leon Trotsky.  In a poll in Britain in 2002, he was selected as one of the ten greatest Britons of all time.

268 solar years ago, on this day in 1748 AD, the 3^rd ruler of the Afsharid dynasty, Mohammad Ibrahim Khan, was deposed by Nader Shah Afshar’s grandson, Shahrukh Afshar, less than two months after he had usurped the throne of Iran from his brother, Adel Shah, the elder nephew and successor of Nader Shah. Shahrukh, who made Mashhad his capital, was deposed and blinded a year later by Mir Seyyed Mohammad Mar’ashi – a grandson (daughter’s son) of Shah Suleiman I Safavi and caretaker of the Holy Shrines of Qom and Mashhad – who ascended  the throne as Shah Suleiman II, but a few months later was dethroned, blinded and replaced by the blind Shahrukh. The eastern parts of Khorasan seceded from Iran during Shahrukh’s rule to become the new country of Afghanistan, while Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar seized Mazandaran on the Caspian Sea, and Karim Khan Zand of Shiraz took over most of the country. In 1796, after exterminating the Zands and founding the Qajar Dynasty, Agha Mohammad Khan tortured Shahrukh to death, thus ending all vestiges of the dynasty founded by the adventurer Nader Shah, who on liberating Iran from Afghan occupation had crowned himself king.

264 solar years ago, on this day in 1752 AD, “September 3” never happened, nor the next ten dates ever occurred in Britain and its colonies, including what later became the USA. The Roman era Julian calendar had become 11 days out of step from the solar cycle, making Britain adopt the Gregorian calendar, which moved this day's date up from Sep 3 to Sep 14. People rioted in the streets thinking the government stole 11 days of their lives. Instituted in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII on the model of Iranian solar hijri calendar, the 365-day Gregorian calendar has an extra day every four years (the leap year) and keeps track of the equinoxes. Russia adopted the Gregorian calendar only in 1918 (31 Jan 1918 was the last Julian date, followed the next day by 14 Feb 1918). Greece was the last country to do it in 1922.

233 solar years ago, on this day in 1783 AD, the American war of independence ended after seven years of fighting with the signing of the Treaty of Paris by Britain and the new country called the “United States of America” made up of the 13 rebellious New England colonies.

161 solar years ago, on this day in 1855 AD, US soldiers brutally massacred over a hundred men, women and children of the Sioux Amerindian tribe in Nebraska. The US army was led by General William S. Harney. The US has a sordid record of genocide and has almost exterminated the native Amerindian people.

133 solar years ago, on this day in 1883 AD, the acclaimed Russian novelist, short story writer, and playwright, Ivan Turgenev, died in self-exile in France at the age of 64. On completion of his studies in linguistics, he started his literary activities and his first major publication, was the short story collection entitled “A Sportsman's Sketches” (1852) – hailed as a milestone of Russian Realism. His novel “Fathers and Sons” (1862) is regarded as one of the major works of 19th-century fiction. Although born in a landowner family, his works show staunch support for freedom and materialization of the rights of farmers and peasants. For this reason, he was persecuted by the authorities and forced to flee to France.

98 solar years ago, on this day in 1918 AD, following the end of World War 2, Damascus, the ancient and historical Islamic city of Syria, was occupied by British troops, as part of the European plot to destroy the Ottoman Empire. Syria and Damascus were handed over to France by the British, and gained independence in 1944 during World War 2.

45 solar years ago, on this day in 1971 AD, the small Qatar Peninsula, jutting into the Persian Gulf from mainland Arabia, emerged as an independent country after 55 years of colonial rule by the British, who had seized it after backing the revolt of the Aal-e Thani tribe against 45 years of Ottoman hegemony (1871-1916). Before the Ottomans, Qatar was until 1868 under occupation of Bahrain’s Aal-e Khalifa pirate-rulers, which had seized this area on the weakening of Iranian power in the Persian Gulf in the late 18th century. Qatar, which along with the eastern coast of Arabia was known as “Greater Bahrain” in history, converted to Islam in 628 AD, when Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), sent his envoy Ala al-Hadhrami to al-Mundhir Ibn Sawa at-Tamimi, the ruler of Bahrain (which extended from the coast of Kuwait to Qatar and its south in what is now Saudi Arabia, including al-Ahsa, as well as the Bahrain Islands). On independence, Qatar joined the United Arab Emirates Confederation, but soon withdrew from it. Qatar presently serves as a base of US intruding forces in the Persian Gulf, and has aligned itself with the illegal Zionist entity, Israel, to fund terrorist groups trying to destabilize Syria.

38 solar years ago, on this day in 1978 AD, the first million-strong demonstration of the Iranian people against the Pahlavi Shah's despotic regime started. These rallies started from four districts of the capital Tehran on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr and after performing of the Special Eid Prayer. The demonstrators, who were holding pictures of the Father of Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA) called for independence and freedom and establishment of the Islamic Republic.

38 solar years ago, on this day in 1978 AD, 40-year old Hojjat al-Islam Ali Awsati, a leading activist against the despotism of the British-installed and US-backed Pahlavi Shah, was martyred by the regime’s forces while returning from the Eid al-Fitr Prayer. A staunch follower of the Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA), his funeral was attended by a huge rally that vented its anger against the regime.

5 solar years ago, on this day in 2011 AD, Iran’s first nuclear power plant was connected to the national power grid for a test run. The power plant in the southern port of Bushehr, with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts, was built with Russian help, after the German and French companies breached their contracts under US pressure on the victory of the Islamic Revolution, leaving work half-finished.

Shahrivar 13: is commemorated every year in honour of the great Iranian Islamic scientist, Abu Rayhan Berouni, who flourished a millennium ago, and authored books on a wide variety of topics. As a follower of the Prophet’s Ahl al-Bayt, he determined the shape of the earth as spherical and revolving around the sun – preceding European scholar by almost half-a-millennium.

AS/ME