Today is Friday; 3rd of the Iranian month of Shahrivar 1396 solar hijri; corresponding to 3rd of the Islamic month of Zil-Hijjah 1438 lunar hijri; and August 25, 2017, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1692 solar years ago, on this day in 325 AD, the controversial Council of Nicaea (modern day Iznik in Turkey), convened by Roman Emperor Constantine I to remove all traces of monotheism from the teachings of Prophet Jesus (AS) and to impose upon the empire the creed coined Christianity by Paul the Hellenized Jew, ended with formal adoption of the polytheist concept of Trinity which splits God into three entities – Godfather, Godson, and Holy Spirit. The Council ruled all other forms of Christianity, such as Arianism, Adoptionism, and Sabellianism, as heretical and liable to persecution. In violation of the natural human desire to have lawful and healthy relationship with the opposite gender, it also imposed celibacy upon priests. The few monotheist followers of Prophet Jesus took to remote areas of West Asia as hermits, to await the advent of the Last and Greatest Messenger of God, Prophet Mohammad (blessings of God upon him and progeny), foretold by the Virgin-born Messiah and the previously revealed heavenly scriptures, as the descendant of Prophet Abraham’s firstborn son, Prophet Ishmael.

1076 lunar years ago, on this day in 362 AH, the prominent Iranian Islamic genius, Abu Rayhan Mohammad ibn Ahmad al-Birouni, was born in Kath, the capital of Khwarezm in Central Asia. His first 25 years were spent in his homeland where he studied jurisprudence, theology, grammar, mathematics, astronomy, medics and other sciences. Regarded as one of the greatest scholars of the medieval Islamic era, he was well versed in mathematics, astronomy, physical and natural sciences, and also distinguished himself as a geographer, historian, chronologist and linguist. While in Mazandaran at the Ziyarid court he wrote one of his important books: “al-Asaar al-Baqiyya an al-Qoroun al-Khaliyya” (Chronology of Ancient nations and Vestiges of the Past). With the conquest of the region by Mahmoud Ghaznavi he became court astrologer and accompanied the Turkish Sultan on his invasions of India, where he lived for several years and became acquainted with all things related to that land. He learned Sanskrit and wrote the famous Arabic book “Kitab Tahqiq ma li'l-Hind”, which is a highly analytical work. Of the more than hundred books and treatises known to have been written by him, some 65 percent are devoted to astronomy, mathematics, and related subjects like geography and geology. Birouni also devised his own method of determining the radius of the earth by means of observation of the height of a mountain which he carried it out at Nandana in India. He states in his writings (several centuries before Copernicus and Galileo) that the earth is round and spherical. In mineralogy, this great Iranian Muslim genius, who was a follower of Prophet Mohammad’s (SAWA) Ahl al-Bayt, succeeded in determining the specific density of many metals and minerals with remarkable precision. Almost all his works were written in Arabic except for “Kitab at-Tafhim”, in Persian, and in which he has scientifically proven the movement of the earth around the sun and the force of gravity. He died in Ghazni at the age of 78.

922 solar years ago, on this day in 1095 AD, the first batch of European invaders landed in Syria to start the brutal Crusader wars against Muslims. They occupied Antioch (handed over to Turkey in 1937 by the French occupiers despite the Syrian people's protests). Using Antioch as a base, they took advantage of the disunity and weakness of Muslim rulers, to advance towards Tripoli in what is now Lebanon. It seems that neither the Seljuq Sunni Turks who were dominant in Syria, nor the Fatemid Ismaili Shi’a dynasty of Egypt-North Africa that controlled Bayt al-Moqaddas, were able to properly assess the intricate plots of the crusaders. They dismissed them as ragtag Byzantine mercenaries. This underestimation of the evil plots of the enemy, coupled with the lethargy of Muslim rulers, enabled the European invaders to attack and occupy the coastal belt of Syria, before advancing upon the Islamic city of Bayt al-Moqaddas, which fell in 1099 AD, and where Sunni and Shi’a Muslims, as well as Arab Christians were massacred. Some 70,000 men, women and children made up of Arabs, Turks, and Iranians, were slaughtered by the Crusaders. After 88 years of occupation, Bayt al-Moqaddas was liberated in 1188 by the Kurdish ruler, Salah od-Din Ayyoubi who led an army of Kurds, Turks, Arabs and Iranians to end the illegal existence of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Crusaders were finally expelled from Palestine by 1270 AD.

918 lunar years ago, on this day in 520 AH, one of the prominent Persian poets, Khaqani Shirvani, was born in the northwestern Iranian region of Shirvan, which is now in the Republic of Azerbaijan. He is considered amongst the great classical poets of Iran and composed different styles of poems. The na'at, a poem which he wrote in praise of Prophet Mohammad (blessings of God upon him and his progeny) at a time when his literary talent had reached its peak, procured him the title “Hassaan al-Ajam” (حسان العجم) or the Hassaan of Persia – a reference to Hassaan ibn Sabet, the famous Arabic poet who composed panegyrics in praise of the Prophet. In 551 AH, he went on Hajj pilgrimage and described the spiritual atmosphere of the holy city of Mecca and the rituals through composing beautiful odes. On his return he stayed in Iraq and met Iraqi scholars. His travels gave him material for his famous versified book entitled “Tohfat ol-Iraqain” (Gift of the Two Iraqs), that is, 'Persian Iraq' and 'Arab Iraq'. He also wrote the famous ode “Aiwan-e Mada'en” (The Portal of Ctesiphon), beautifully depicting his impressions of the remains of the Sassanid Palace near Baghdad. His collection of poems contains 18,000 couplets. In the later days of his life he turned into a recluse after the tragic death of his children and wife. He passed away in Tabriz in 595 AH.

506 lunar years ago, on this day in 932 AH, Budapest the capital of Hungary surrendered to the Ottoman Turks under the leadership of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent who inflicted a crushing defeat on the Hungarians in the famous Battle of Mohacs. Till 1718 “Majaristan” as Hungary was called by the Turks was an Ottoman province. Although Islam in Hungary has a long history that dates back to at least the twelfth century, predating the Ottoman Empire, following the end of Turkish rule, Muslims were persecuted and either expelled or forced to become Christians. Today only a few thousand Muslims live in Hungary.

487 solar years ago, on this day in 1530 AD, Ivan the Terrible, the first Tsar of Russia, was born in Moscow. At the age of 3, following his father’s death, he was proclaimed Prince Ivan IV of Moscow, with his mother as regent. In 1547, he crowned himself Tsar of Russia – the first Russian ruler to assume the title. He next launched brutal attacks to conquer the Muslim Khanates of Kazan, Astrakhan, and later Siberia, thereby transforming the expanding Christian Russian Empire into a multiethnic and multi-confessional state. In 1552 AD, Kazan, the capital of Tataristan, was occupied after a long siege by Ivan the Terrible, who massacred as many as 110,000 Tartar Muslims and forcibly converted to Christianity many others, after destroying mosques or turning them into churches. His anti-Muslim policies brought retaliation from a joint army of Crimean Tatars and Ottoman Turks that attacked Moscow in 1571 and set it on fire, resulting in 80,000 casualties. The next year, Ivan managed to defeat another Tatar-Ottoman invasion around Moscow in the Battle of Molodi. He then turned attention to the region beyond the Ural Mountains in the east, and through military expeditions, treachery and deceit, took control of vast tracts of Siberia from its Muslim Khans, and styled himself Tsar of Siberia in 1580. In a fit of rage in 1581 he killed his own son Prince Ivan. In 1584, Ivan died at the age of 54.

387 solar years ago, on this day in 1630 AD, Portuguese forces were defeated by the Kingdom of Kandy in the Battle of Randeniwela in Sri Lanka, during the Sinhalese-Portuguese War. It was fought by Prince Mahastana (later King Rajasimha II), against the Portuguese forces commanded by Constantino de Sa de Noronha. It was fought near Wellawaya, a place close to the town of Badulla.

241 solar years ago, on this day in 1776 AD, David Hume, Scottish economist, historian, and philosopher, died at the age of 65 in his hometown, Edinburgh. He is known for his highly controversial system of radical philosophical empiricism, skepticism, and naturalism.

198 solar years ago, on this day in 1819 AD, James Watt, Scottish-English engineer, died at the age of 83. He discovered steam power, which led to a revolution in industry, especially in the land and sea transportation network. Steam ships and locomotives were the result of his discoveries.

192 solar years ago, on this day in 1825 AD, Uruguay declared independence from Brazil. Uruguay was under the domination of the Portuguese and Spanish colonialists since its occupation by Europeans in 1516. As a result of uprisings that started in 1810 and lasted till 1814, it gained relative independence. In 1820 Brazil occupied it. Five years later, at the peak of the independence-seeking movements in Latin America, Uruguay gained complete independence.

150 solar years ago, on this day in 1867 AD, British physicist, Michael Faraday, died at the age of 76. He initially worked in a bookshop, where he studied scientific works. A few years later, he became a laboratory assistant to the physicist, Humphrey Davy at the Royal Institution. His most important work was in electromagnetism, in which field he demonstrated electromagnetic rotation and discovered electromagnetic induction (the key to the development of the electric dynamo and motor). With this discovery in 1831, a huge step was taken in the scientific field. His inventions of electromagnetic rotary devices formed the foundation of electric motor technology, and it was largely due to his efforts that electricity became practical for use in technology. He made valuable experiments in the fields of chemistry, metallurgy, and development of electrical lamps. One of the important rules of physics, the SI unit of capacitance is named in his honour: the farad. He was one of the first scientists who managed to liquefy many gases, including chlorine.

117 solar years ago, on this day in 1900 AD, controversial German philosopher, Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche, died in Weimar, Germany at the age of 55 after having lost his mental balance in the last years of his life. He was an agnostic and did not believe in ethical principles. He was unable to grasp facts and realities. His idea of a perfect person is the one that is devoid of the concept of good and evil.

103 solar years ago, on this day in 1914 AD, during World War I, the library of the Catholic University of Leuven was deliberately destroyed by the German Army, resulting in the loss of hundreds of thousands of irreplaceable volumes and Gothic and Renaissance manuscripts.

26 solar years ago, on this day in 1991 AD, Belarus became independent on the collapse of the USSR. After World War I; Belarus was divided between Poland and the Soviet Union. At the end of World War 2 it had come under total Soviet control.

19 solar years ago, on this day in 1998 AD, the scholar Ayatollah Mohammad Jawad Najafi Khomeini passed away at the age of 75. No relation of the Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA), he was born in the city of Khomein (hence his surname), and completed his higher studies in Tehran where he was active in missionary work and writing books. Among the books authored by him is “Tafsir-e Asaan” – an exegesis of the holy Qur’an in Persian, which as suggested by its title is written in simple and easy-to-understand language for the common man. His other works are “Lata’ef as-Salaat” on the spiritual delights of the daily ritual prayers, “Biography of Seyyed Abdul-Azim Hassani”, and “Misbah ash-Shi’a”. 

11 solar years ago, on this day in 2006 AD, Noor Mohammad Hassan-Ali, the former president of the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago in the Caribbean Sea died, nine years after serving two 5-year terms. A retired High Court judge, he was the first Indo-Trinidadian to hold the office of President and was the first Muslim head of state in the Americas. He never allowed alcoholic beverages at the President's House.

9 solar years ago, on this day in 2008 AD, Iran launched production of a domestically built submarine capable of firing missiles and torpedoes. Two other submarines, which began production in 2005, have been delivered to Iran's navy, as part of self-sufficiency efforts to strengthen the country’s defences.

5 solar years ago, on this day in 2012 AD, Neil Armstrong, American pilot, engineer, and astronaut, who was the first to land on the Moon, along with Edwin Aldrin, died at the age of 72. In 1969 AD, Apollo XI landed on the Moon’s surface and the two men made history by walking on the Moon. On stepping on the lunar surface, he had proclaimed, "That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind." Years later, while on a trip to Egypt, when Armstrong heard the “Adhaan” (Call to Prayer), he was astounded and admitted that this was exactly the tone he had heard on the moon, although he could not understand it then.

AS/ME