Today is Sunday, 6th of the Iranian month of Farvardin 1396 solar hijri; corresponding to 27th of the Islamic month of Jamadi as-Sani 1438 lunar hijri; and March 26, 2017, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1322 lunar years ago, on this day in 116 AH, Ali, the son of Imam Mohammad Baqer (AS) – the 5^th Infallible Heir of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) – was martyred in Ardahal near Kashan in central Iran, along with a hundred of his faithful followers in an uneven fight with forces of the usurper Omayyad regime. He had come to Iran from Medina three years earlier on the invitation of followers of the Ahl al-Bayt on was peacefully promoting the genuine teachings of his ancestor the Prophet when the enemies launched an unprovoked attack upon him. His sprawling shrine in Mashhad-e Ardahal is a site of pilgrimage for people from all over Iran and other parts of the world, who every year on the second Friday of the Iranian month of Mehr, flock in great numbers to commemorate his martyrdom as per the solar hijri calendar.

1095 solar years ago, on this day in 922 AD, the Iranian Muslim mystic, Hussein ibn Mansour al-Hallaj, was executed in Baghdad by the Abbasid caliph, Muqtadar-Billah, on charges of heresy for uttering blasphemous remarks such as “there is nothing in my turban and cloak except God" and the phrase “an’al-Haq” (I am the Absolute Truth). He was a student of the two famous Iranian Sufi masters, Sahl Ibn Abdullah at-Tustari and Junayd Baghdadi, and was expelled by both of them for his weird views. Born in Fars province to a cotton-carder, as indicated by his family name “Hallaj”, he memorized the holy Qur’an at a young age and would often join other mystics in study. Initially a follower of the Hanbali school, it is said he became an Ismaili Shi’a Muslim. He performed at least three Hajj pilgrimages to Mecca, where he once stayed for a year, fasting and in total silence. He traveled widely as far as India and Central Asia, and wrote and taught along the way, gaining followers, many of whom accompanied him on his second and third trips to Mecca. He settled in the Abbasid capital Baghdad, where his weird utterances invited trouble. On refusing to renounce his beliefs, he was flogged, amputated, and hanged. His remains were burnt and thrown into the River Tigris.

1047 lunar years ago, on this day in 391 AH, the poet and eulogist of the Prophet and the Ahl al-Bayt, Siraj Wahhaj Hussain bin Ahmad, popularly known as Ibn Hajjaj, passed away. As per his will he was laid to rest in Kazemain at the feet of the holy shrine of Imam Musa Kazem (AS), the 7^th Infallible Successor of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). The renowned poet and scholar Seyyed Razi, who has earned immortality for compiling the book “Nahj al-Balagha”, which is a collection of sermons, letters and aphorism of the Prophet’s First Infallible Successor, Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS), composed a moving elegy at Ibn Hajjaj’s funeral. Among the panegyrics of Ibn Hajjaj is the famous eulogy in praise of Imam Ali (AS), which begins with the verse “Ya Sahebat al-Qubbat al-Bayza fi’n-Najaf" (O Possessor of the White Dome in Najaf).

1034 solar years ago, on this day in 983 AD, the greatest ruler of the Iranian Buwaiyhid dynasty of Iran-Iraq-Bahrain-Oman, Adhud od-Dowla Daylami, passed away in Baghdad and was laid to rest in the mausoleum of the Command of the Faithful, Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS) in Najaf. Born in Shiraz and named Fana Khosrow, he was the son of Amir Rukn od-Dowla, and became ruler of Fars after the death of his childless uncle, Amir Emad od-Dowla. He was sent by his father to crush a rebellion by his cousin Ezz od-Dowla, on whose defeat he claimed the emirate of Iraq for himself. On his father’s death, as senior Amir of the Buwaiyhid family, Adhud od-Dowla chose as his capital, Baghdad, which was suffering from violence and instability due to sectarian sedition by the Hanbalis. In order to bring peace and stability, he banned public demonstrations and polemics. He patronized a number of scholars such as the celebrated Shaikh Mufid, and renovated the holy shrines in Najaf and Karbala. He also undertook several scientific projects, such as the observatory in Isfahan, and the dam known till this day as “Band-e Amir” between Shiraz and Istakhr to irrigate some 300 villages. He also ordered digging of the Haffar Canal joining the Karun River to the Arvand Roud at the confluence of the Rivers Tigris and Euphrates. He embellished Baghdad with several buildings including the famous public hospital known as “Bimaristan-e Adhudi”, where the great Iranian physician Zakariyya ar-Razi used to practice.

990 lunar years ago, on this day in 448 AH, the statesman, warrior and literary figure, Majd od-Din Osama ibn Murshid ibn Ali ibn Munqidh al-Kinani, titled Moayyed od-Dowlah, was born in Shaizar near Hama in Syria. His life coincided with the rise and fall of several Muslim dynasties, as well as the invasion by the First Crusade and setting up of the illegal crusader states by the European invaders. He was a nephew of the emir of Shaizar and was a courtier to the Zengids and Ayyubids in Damascus, serving the famous Noor od-Din Zengi, and later Salah od-Din Ayyubi, over a period of almost fifty years. He also served the Fatemid court in Cairo. He often meddled in the politics and was exiled from both Damascus and Cairo. He wrote many poetry anthologies, such as the "Kitab al-Asa" (Book of the Staff), "Lubab al-Adab" (Kernels of Literature), and "al-Manazil wa'd-Diyar" (Dwellings and Abodes). For modern readers, however, he is most well-known for his "Kitab al-I'bar", which contains lengthy descriptions of the crusaders, whom he visited on many occasions, and some of whom he considered friends, although he generally saw them as European barbarians. It is sometimes assumed that Osama was a Shi'a Muslim, because he often writes about and praises Imam Ali (AS). His family cooperated with the Fatemids and other Shi'ia Muslim dynasties, and he himself served the Fatemids in Egypt. Researchers are divided, and some think that he had a "secret sympathy" with the Shi'a Muslims, while others believe he was probably Sunni with Shi'a tendencies. Still others think that his family members were Twelver Shi'as. He died in Damascus at the age of 96, a year after the liberation of Bayt ol-Moqaddas from the crusaders after 88 years of occupation.

848 solar years ago, on this day in 1169 AD, the Kurdish adventurer, Salah od-Din, proclaimed himself Emir of Egypt after usurping power in Cairo from the Fatemid Shi’ite Ismaili Muslim Dynasty. Known in the western world as Saladin, he rose from obscure origins to serve as assistant to his uncle, Asad od-Din Shirkuh (Persian for Mountain Lion), who was in the service of the Turkic Zengid Dynasty of Syria. Sent to Fatemid Egypt in 1163 with his uncle by Noor od-Din Zengi, he climbed the ranks of the Ismaili Shi’ite government as a result of his military successes against Crusader assaults. When Shirkuh died in 1169, the caliph al-Adeed made the mistake of appointing Salah od-Din vizier. He now began to undermine Fatemid rule and treacherously abolished the two-and-a-half century rule of the Fatemid caliphate. Salah od-Din savagely persecuted the followers of the Ahl al-Bayt, burned libraries, and imposed the Sunni creed on the Egyptians.

805 solar years ago, on this day in 1212 AD, Sancho I, the second king of Portugal or the breakaway northwestern strip of Islamic Spain, died. He was the son of Afonso I, who had rebelled against over five-and-a-half centuries of Muslim rule to seize the emirates of Lisbon and Badajoz. Sancho was nicknamed "the Populator" for seizing the territories of Spanish Muslims, carrying out ethnic cleansing, and resettling them with Christians from France and other parts of Europe. During the later years of his reign he lost territory to the al-Muwahhid Muslim dynasty.

673 solar years ago, on this day in 1344 AD, the Siege of the Spanish Muslim region of Algeciras ended and the Christian mercenary armies assembled from other parts of Europe by kingdoms of Castile and Aragon occupied this port city, despite the use of gunpowder by the defenders – the first time in Europe.

488 lunar years ago, on this day in 950 AH, the Ottoman Turks concluded a treaty with France to run the French Mediterranean port of Toulon. The Ottoman flag was hoisted in Toulon as almost all the French left the port. The Ottomans introduced the Azan for the five-times-daily prayers in this port, and turned the cathedral into a mosque during their 8-month stay. In this period under the command of the famous Turkish admiral, Khair od-Din Pasha (known as Barbarossa or Redbeard to the Europeans), the Ottoman navy, equipped with 30,000 troops raided the Spanish and Italian coasts and defeated the combined attacks by Spanish-Italian navies. The Ottomans left after King Francis I of France paid a sum of 800,000 in the currency of those days and released all Turks and Arabs who were forced to work on French galleys. Khair od-Din Pasha died two years later, but Toulon was again used as a safe harbour for several months, some three years later by another Ottoman admiral, Turgut Raees.

190 solar years ago, on this day in 1827 AD, the famous German composer and musician, Ludwig van Beethoven, died at the age of 57. He learned music under prominent musicians of his era, such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Beethoven was hard of hearing and went deaf as of the age of 49. He composed nine symphonies; all of which are the most famous classical music symphonies. His 5th Symphony, because of its epical spirit, holds a special status among his works.

136 solar years ago, on this day in 1881 AD, the large Ottoman vilayet of Thessaly was seized by the breakaway province of “Yunanistan” and absorbed into what is now known as Greece, by the powerful European Christian powers, such as Britain, France, Austria and Russia. All vestiges of almost five centuries of Muslim rule were erased, mosques were destroyed or turned into churches, Turkish language was eradicated and Muslims forcibly expelled.

118 lunar years ago, on this day in 1320 AH, the prominent Iranian Islamic scholar, Mirza Hussein Noori Tabarsi, popularly known as Muhaddith Noori, passed away at the age of 66 in holy Najaf and was laid to rest, as per his will on the right side of the entrance to the Mausoleum of Imam Ali (AS). Born in the town of Noor in Mazandaran Province in a religious family, he studied in Iraq under leading scholars including Ayatollah Shaikh Morteza Ansari Dezfuli. He was an authority on Islamic sciences, including hadith, exegesis of the Holy Qur’an, theology, and biography of ulema. He groomed numerous students, including Shaikh Abbas Qomi, the author of the famous prayer and supplication manual, "Mafatih al-Jinaan" (Keys of Paradise). A prolific writer, Muhaddith Noori wrote many books including "Najm as-Saqeb" on the Imam of the Age, Imam Mahdi (may God hasten his reappearance). Among his works is the voluminous book "Mustadrak al-Wasa'el”, in which he has collected 123,000 hadith of the Infallible Imams on the line of Shaikh Hur al Ameli’s “Wasa'el ash-Shi'a".

111 lunar years ago, on this day in 1327 AH, the 6^th Qajarid king of Iran, Mohammad Ali Shah, following the defeat of his army by popular constitutionalist forces, sought asylum in the Russian embassy. On the afternoon of the same day, the constitutionalists held a meeting to formally depose and replace him with his 11-year old son, Ahmad Shah. Over a month-and-a-half earlier on Rabi as-Sani 6, Mohammad Ali Shah was forced by the constitutionalists to revive the Majlis (parliament), which he had dissolved two years earlier, shortly after succeeding his father, Mozaffar od-Din Shah, to the Peacock Throne. A repressive and inefficient ruler, he had previously bombarded the parliament building with the help of the British and Russian forces. On being disposed, he fled to Russian-ruled Odessa (in present day Ukraine), from where he plotted his return to power. Two years later he landed at Astarabad on the Caspian Sea coast of northern Iran, but his forces were defeated. He again fled to Russia, then to Istanbul and later to San Remo, Italy, where he died on 5^th April 1925, the same year the 131-year rule of the Qajarid Dynasty ended when the British formally declared their agent, Reza Khan Pahlavi as the new king, while Ahmad Shah was on an extended, almost 2-year long visit, to Europe. Every shah of Iran since Mohammad Ali Shah has died in exile.

106 solar years ago, on this day in 1911 AD, the prominent American playwright, Tennessee Williams, was born. He skillfully expressed his ideas through the heroes of his plays, in which he mainly describes the simple Americans who face hardships and have failed to achieve their aims. Among his famous books, mention can be made of “Sweet Bird of Youth”. He died in 1983.

80 lunar years ago, on this day in 1358 AH, the Iranian Islamic scholar, Mirza Abu'l-Hassan Azarbaijani Meshkini, passed away in Baghdad. He attended the classes of prominent ulema and was an expert in theology, jurisprudence, and exegesis of Holy Qur'an. Among his valuable compilations, mention can be made of “Hashiyeh bar Makaseb”, which is an annotation of Ayatollah Shaikh Morteza Ansari's famous work "al-Makaseb".

65 solar years ago, on this day in 1952 AD, the uprising of Kenyan people started against British colonial rule, under the leadership of Jomo Kenyatta and his Mau Mau Group, which was comprised of armed combatants. This group demanded the equality of Kenyans with Europeans in social and political rights, and following its struggles, it managed to bring about Kenya’s independence. Kenya covers an area of over 580,000 sq km and is situated in Eastern Africa. It has a population of around 15 percent Muslims, the majority of whom live in the coastal provinces, and were once the rulers there.

46 solar years ago, on this day in 1971 AD, Iranian zoologist and the first Iranian planarialogist, Behzad Qorbani was born. He graduated from the University of Tehran and Martyr Beheshti University. In 1997, he identified two new species of fish (Dugesia Iranica and Dugesia Persica), that were found in the Karaj River.

46 solar years ago, on this day in 1971 AD, East Pakistan, officially declared itself as Bangladesh, following the military crackdown on the ethnic Bengali-speaking Muslim majority by the Punjabi-Pakhtoun armed forces of West Pakistan. India sided with the Bengalis in their armed struggle, and finally after the end of the 15-day war that erupted between India and Pakistan, Bangladesh became independent under Sheikh Mujib ur-Rahman, who was elected president, but, was later killed in a coup. Bangladesh covers an area of 144,000 sq km. It shares borders with India and Burma, and is the world's 9th most populous country. Over 90 percent of its 162 million people are Muslims.

26 solar years ago, on this day 1991 AD, Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay signed the Treaty of Asunción, establishing MERCOSUR, the South Common Market, which aims to counter the economic exploitation of South America by the US.

2 solar years ago, on this day in 2015 AD, on the orders of the US and the illegal Zionist entity, called Israel, the Wahhabi regime of Saudi, in league with Jordan, Morocco, Sudan, and four of the Persian Gulf states – Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Jordan – launched aerial attacks on Yemen, and later deployed ground troops, on the pretexts of restoring to power the fugitive Mansour Hadi, whose term as interim president had already expired a year earlier. The war has entered its 3^rd year, and although it has failed to break the resistance of the Yemeni people, Saudi Arabia and its accomplices in crimes against humanity, have so far killed over 14,000 people, including around 3,000 children and 2,000-plus women, in addition to destroying 757 schools and educational institutes, 111 university facilities, 271 factories, 1,520 bridges and roads, besides countless mosques, hospitals, power plants, and waterworks.

AS/SS