Today is Saturday; 13th of the Iranian month of Aban 1397 solar hijri; corresponding to 25th of the Islamic month of Safar 1440 lunar hijri; and November 4, 2018, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1429 lunar years ago, on this day in 11 AH, Calamity of Thursday (رزیت الخمیس) occurred in Medina in the last days of the life of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). Also known as the “Event of Ink and Paper (Qirtas)”, the Prophet who was sick, asked for these items to write down his last will, saying this will strengthen unity and prevent Muslims from going astray after him. But he was denied these things by a group of his companions, and according to the famous Sunni book of Hadith “Sahih Bukhari”, Omar ibn Khattab said: The man is delirious; the Book of God is enough for us”. At this disrespectful remark, as is mentioned in the “Sihah as-Sitta” and other books of Sunan and Seerah of our Sunni brethren, a dispute arose among the companions, prompting the Prophet – who never says anything but on the commandment of God – to demand that they all leave him. Three days later, after the passing away of the Prophet and the unfortunate incident of Saqifa Bani Sa’da to elect a caliph or political leader, many prominent Muslims rued the denial of ink and paper to the Prophet, whose intention was to confirm in writing the leadership of Imam Ali (AS), whom he had often referred to as caliph and “wasee” (or legatee) throughout his 23-year mission. It is worth noting that two months earlier on 18^th Zilhijja, the Prophet on divine commandment had formally proclaimed Imam Ali (AS) as Vicegerent at the famous assembly of Ghadeer-Khom, while returning from his Farewell Hajj pilgrimage, during which he had specifically stated the prominence of the Ahl al-Bayt, as the legitimate and lawful leaders of the Ummah, saying:

“I am leaving behind among you the Thaqalayn, the Book of God (i.e. the holy Qur’an) and my progeny the Ahl al-Bayt. Hold fast to them and you will never go astray, for the two never part with each other even when they return to me at the Fountain (on the Day of Judgment).”

Hadith Thaqalayn and all aspects of the Prophet’s life, including reference to the Calamity of Thursday, open for us the path of guidance and provide for us the formula of Islamic unity. Interestingly, in the book “al-Muraja’at”, as part of the lively debate between Allamah Seyyed Sharaf od-Din Musawi and Sheikh Saleem al-Bishri the head of Egypt’s al-Azhar seminary, in order to determine facts and arrive at Islamic unity, the Calamity of Thursday when the Prophet was prevented from writing the Last Will, has been mentioned in detail.

1240 lunar years ago, on this day in 230 AH, Spanish Muslims led by their general of Iranian origin, Mohammad Ibn Rostum crushingly defeated the Viking marauders who made an attempt to invade Andalusian coasts in a battle near the Islamic city of Ishbiliya, (Seville). Cut off from their ships, most of the Viking invaders surrendered along with four of their vessels laden with booty. Offspring of the captured Vikings, embraced the truth of Islam and became cattle ranchers and makers of excellent cheese in Islamic Spain.

1084 lunar years ago, on this day in 356 AH, Saif od-Dowla, the Hamdanid ruler of Aleppo and most of Syria, passed away. Named Ali, he was the son of Abdullah bin Hamdan, and was a staunch follower of the Ahl al-Bayt of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). He was the younger brother of Nasser od-Dowla the Emir of Mosul. He distinguished himself in battles against the Byzantines and could be called the Warden of the Marches of the Islamic frontier of those days by checking the bid by the Christians to plunder Syria. Saif od-Dowla was a man of letters and surrounded himself with prominent intellectual figures, notably the great Arabic poets, al-Mutanabbi and Abu Firas Hamdani, as well as the noted Iranian Islamic philosopher Abu Nasr Farabi. Saif od-Dowla himself was a poet; his delicate short poem on the rainbow shows high artistic ability.

607 solar years ago, on this day in 1411 AD, Khalil Sultan, the Timurid ruler of Transoxiana from 1405 to 1409, died in Rayy near modern Tehran. He was a son of Miran Shah and a grandson of the fearsome Turkic conqueror Amir Timur, who in 1402 gave him rule of Ferghana valley – spread across in what is now Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kirghizstan – on being impressed by his military prowess during the conquest of North India. Upon Timur's death in 1405 Khalil viewed himself as successor and quickly casting aside his cousin, Pir Mohammad, the appointed heir, took control of the capital, Samarqand, including Timur's vast treasury. Meanwhile, his uncle Shah Rukh, the youngest son of Timur and governor of Khorasan, pressed his own claim and advanced against him from Herat in what is now Afghanistan, but turned back when Khalil's father Miran Shah, the governor of Azerbaijan marched in support. Khalil's position, however, began to weaken. He was unpopular in Samarqand, because of his wife Shad Mulk's undue influence on state affairs. A famine caused him to be even more despised, and he left Samarqand for his base Ferghana. His rule in Samarqand finally ended on May 13, 1409 when Shah Rukh entered the city unopposed and placed his own son, the famous astronomer-mathematician, Ulugh Beg, as ruler of Transoxiana. Shah Rukh showed clemency towards Khalil and appointed him governor of Rayy.

442 solar years ago, on this day in 1576 AD, during the Eighty Years’ War, Spanish forces invaded Flanders and captured the city of Antwerp in what is now Belgium. After three days of fighting the city was almost destroyed.

227 solar years ago, on this day in 1791 AD, US General, Arthur St. Clair, governor of Northwest Territory, was decisively defeated by an Amerindian army near Fort Wayne, Indiana on the banks of Wabash River. Miami Amerindian Chief Little Turtle led the powerful force of the native tribes of Miami, Wyandot, Iroquois, Shawnee, Delaware, Ojibwa and Potawatomi that inflicted the greatest defeat ever suffered by the US Army at the hands of Amerindians. The staggering defeat moved Congress to authorize a larger army in 1792.

117 solar years ago, on this day in 1901, Greek archaeologist Spyridon Nikolaou Marinatos, whose most notable discovery was the site of an ancient port city on Thera Island in the southern Aegean Sea, was born. The city, the name of which was not discovered, apparently had about 20,000 inhabitants when it was destroyed by the great volcanic eruption of 1500 BC, as a sign of divine wrath for its sinful populace after repeated warnings through messengers of God. Among the finds made at the site were the finest frescoes discovered in the Mediterranean region to that time, surpassing even those found at Knossos in Crete. The most famous of these murals is the "Two Boys Boxing".

100 solar years ago, on this day in 1918 AD, the Austro-Hungarian Empire surrendered to Allied Powers, a week prior to the end of World War I. It was the most important ally of Germany and broke up into several countries.

72 solar years ago, on this day in 1946 AD, the constitution of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) came into effect. The aim behind its foundation was to establish scientific and cultural links and bonds among world nations and to publish books in different languages. Among the clauses of the UNESCO charter are respect for justice, rule of law, and protection of human rights and basic liberties.

58 solar years ago, on this day in 1960 AD, at the Kasakela Chimpanzee Community in Tanzania, Dr. Jane Goodall observed chimpanzees creating tools, the first-ever observation in non-human animals.

54 solar years ago, on this day in 1964 AD, the Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA), was exiled to Turkey, following his arrest in Qom by the Shah’s security forces and his relocation to Tehran. The aim of the Pahlavi regime was to suppress the Islamic aspirations of the people. On hearing the news of the exile of their beloved leader, the people in various Iranian cities held mass demonstrations. Soon Imam Khomeini moved from Turkey to holy Najaf in Iraq, from where he continued to lead the Islamic movement of the Iranian people, until his triumphant return home some 15 years later to end the monarchy and establish the Islamic Republic system.

40 solar years ago, on this day in 1978 AD, during the mass protests of the Iranian people against the Pahlavi regime, students at Tehran University Campus, calling for the return home from exile of their beloved leader, Imam Khomeini (RA), were brutally attacked by the Shah's forces, resulting in the martyrdom of several of them. Hence, the 13th of Aban was named as Students Day, following the victory of the Islamic Revolution.

39 solar years ago, on this day in 1979 AD, on the first anniversary of the massacre of Tehran University students by the Shah's regime, thousands of Iranian students held a protest rally in front of the US embassy in Tehran that culminated in the capture of this den of espionage. It was a historic step and foiled a sinister plot to overthrow the Islamic Republic, since the US mission in violation of diplomatic norms, was openly indulging in spying and terrorist activities. Prior to the capture of the US spy den, the Islamic Republic’s Foreign Ministry had on several occasions protested to US meddling and conspiracies in Iran, but without any positive response from Washington. In fact, following the takeover of the US embassy, documented evidence was brought to light, proving its functioning as a centre of espionage, not just against Iran but throughout the region. The Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA), hailed this courageous and revolutionary move by the students and called the fall of the US Spy Den as the Second Revolution, greater than the First Revolution. Aban 13 has consequently been named as the National day of Campaign against Global Arrogance.

23 solar years ago, on this day in 1995 AD, Premier Yitzhak Rabin of the illegal Zionist entity was killed. In his previous term as premier from 1974 to 1977, he was forced to step down because of financial corruption. Rabin’s assassination by a fellow Zionist showed the disputes amongst officials of the usurper state of Israel. Rabin was a commander of Zionist terrorist groups and led numerous attacks on Arabs and Palestinians, committing heinous crimes including torture and murder.

AS/SS