Today is Thursday; 24th of the Iranian month of Aban 1397 solar hijri; corresponding to 7th of the Islamic month of Rabi al-Awwal 1440 lunar hijri; and November 15, 2018, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1453 solar years ago, on this day in 565 AD, Justin II succeeded his maternal uncle Justinian I as emperor of the Byzantine Empire, and ruled for eleven years till 574 during which he was embroiled in a devastating war with the Sassanid Empire of Iran in Syria and what is now Turkey. Justin suffered a shattering defeat at the hands of the Iranian Emperor, Khosrow I Anushiravan. The Romans agreed to pay 45,000 gold coins to Iran as war reparations. Justin died at the age of 58, four years after abdicating the throne in favour of Tiberius because of his mental breakdown following the defeat inflicted by the Iranians.

738 solar years ago, on this day in 1280 AD, German chemist and philosopher, Saint Albertus Magnus, died. He succeeded in whitening copper with the use of arsenic, after studying the Latin translation of Arabic books, especially those written by the Muslim scientists of Islamic Spain.

621 solar years ago, on this day in 1397 AD, Taj od-Din Firouz Shah, grandson of Ala od-Din Bahman Shah (founder of the Bahmani kingdom of Iranian origin) ascended the throne of Gulbarga in the Deccan (southern India), after removing the puppet boy-king Shams od-Din and his Turkic regent, Taghalchin, who five months earlier had blinded Ghiyas od-Din Shah Tahmatan and seized the throne. Firouz Shah, the greatest ruler of the dynasty, reigned for 25 years. The Bahmanis patronized and promoted Persian language and poetry, as well as Iranian art, culture, and architecture by inviting from Iran thousands of qualified persons in various fields. The famous Iranian poet Hafez Shirazi was also invited, but changed his mind midway through the journey, sending an excellent piece of poetry to the Bahmani court. The famous Gnostic of Kerman, Shah Ne’matollah Wali, was also requested to come to the Deccan, but sent his grandson – and later son – who preached the teachings of the Ahl al-Bayt in the Bahmani kingdom.

388 solar years ago, on this day in 1630 AD, German astronomer, Johannes Kepler, died at the age of 59. Following completion of his studies, he settled in Austria to lecture there. After studying Latin translations of the works of Muslim scientists, he devised the rule known as ‘Principles of Kepler’ about the movement of planets and discovery of the oval movement of Mercury around its orbit, all of which are believed to have been copied from Arabic texts written by Islamic scientists including the Iranian genius, Abu Rayhan Birouni, and the Spanish Muslim scholar, Ibn Hazm Andalusi, who almost five centuries before Kepler had proved the spherical shape of the earth and how it revolves around the sun.

149 solar years ago, on this day in 1869 AD, Russian orientalist, Vasily Vladimirovich Bartold also known as Wilhelm Barthold, was born in Saint Petersburg. He specialized in the history of Islam and the Turkic people (Turkology). He was the first to publish obscure information from the early Arab historians on Kievan Rus, which later emerged as Russia. He edited several scholarly journals of Muslim studies, and contributed extensively to the first edition of the Encyclopaedia of Islam. He wrote three authoritative monographs on the history of Islam, namely, Islam (1918), Muslim Culture (1918) and The Muslim World (1922). He also contributed to the development of Cyrillic writing for the Muslim countries of Central Asia. Most of his writings were translated in English, Arabic, and Persian. Bartold's collected works were reprinted in 9 volumes between 1963 and 1977, and whilst Soviet editors added footnotes deploring his 'bourgeois' attitudes, his prestige was such that the text was left uncensored, despite not conforming to a Marxist interpretation of history. His works include: “Ulugh-Beg”, “Turkestan Down to the Mongol Invasion”, “Mussalman Culture”, "A Short History of Turkestan", and “An Historical Geography of Iran”.

134 solar years ago, on this day in 1884 AD, the Berlin Conference started for division of Africa and plunder of its rich natural resources by European powers and continued until February 26 of the following year, attended by representatives of France, Britain, Russia, Belgium, Portugal, Austria, and Germany. Based on its decisions, each European state, which wanted to annex a part of Africa’s soil, should announce its intention to other colonial powers. Despite the decisions made, the feud between European states over expansion of influence in Africa was not settled.

129 solar years ago, on this day in 1889 AD, Brazil was declared a republic by Marshal Deodoro da Fonseca as Emperor Pedro II was deposed in a military coup. The Portuguese royal family had shifted to Brazil following the occupation of Portugal by Napoleon. With the end of the Napoleonic wars, King Joaop VI moved back to Portugal leaving his son as regent, who later declared himself Pedro I as independent ruler of Brazil. When monarchial rule ended in Brazil Pedro II was the emperor, whose reforms such as abolishment of slavery in 1888, angered plantation owners and led to his overthrow.

83 solar years ago, on this day in 1935 AD, the famous Islamic scholar of Lebanon, Seyyed Mohammad Hussain Fazlollah, was born in the holy city of Najaf in Iraq, to the scholar Abdur-Raoof Fazlollah. After 21 years of studying under prominent ulema, including Ayatollah Shaikh Mujtaba Ali Lankarani of Iran, he settled in Lebanon, where he was active in social, cultural, religious and political affairs. He established several schools, orphanages, hospitals and libraries. He firmly opposed the illegal Zionist entity and stood against US hegemonic designs on Lebanon, for which the Americans and the Israelis tried several times to assassinate him. He breathed his last on July 4, 2010 at the age of 74 in Beirut.

50 solar years ago, on this day in 1968 AD, Iranian poet, Mohammad Hassan Rahi Mo’ayyeri, passed away at the age of 59. Born into an artistic family in Tehran, his uncle was the famous poet Foroughi Bastami. He started composing poetry at the age of seventeen, and chose Rahi as pen name. He wrote the famous poem "Shod Khazan" in his teens. He studied the works of all great masters of Persian literature, but especially admired Sa’di, whose influence is visible in his poetry. Besides ghazals, he wrote mathnavis. His poems reflect beautiful imagery, eloquence, and delicacy of expression. His book “Sayeh-e Omr” (The Shadow of Life) was printed in 1964. His famous poem is “Golhayeh Rangarang”.

39 solar years ago, on this day in 1979 AD, the Assembly of Experts completed the drafting and approval of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Constitution, to determine the basis of the Islamic system of government in accordance with the holy Qur’an, the hadith and Islamic values, with special focus on social justice and compliance with human rights. The Constitution was duly put to nationwide referendum and approved by the overwhelming majority of the Iranian people, thereby opening a new chapter in the history of constitutions of world countries. In 1989, an amendment to the Constitution took place regarding abolishment of the premier’s post and strengthening of the presidency, and approved by the Assembly of Experts after put to people’s vote.

37 solar years ago, on this day in 1981 AD, the philosopher and famous exegete of the holy Qur’an, Ayatollah Allamah Seyyed Mohammad Hussain Tabatabaei, passed away at the age of 80, and was laid to rest in the mausoleum of Hazrat Ma’sumah (SA) in Qom. He was born in an academic and religious family in the city of Tabriz, northwestern Iran. His previous 14 ancestors were well-known scholars of Tabriz. Following completion of preliminary studies, he learned Islamic sciences and Arabic language, and after studying in holy Najaf, Iraq, where he attained the rank of Ijtehad, he returned to Iran and taught at Islamic seminaries. He studied under well-known scholars in Najaf, such as Ayatollah Mohammad Hussain Na'ini, Ayatollah Mohammad Hussain Gharawi Isfahani, Ayatollah Seyyed Abu’l-Hassan Jilwa, and the famous gnostic, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Qadhi Tabatabaie. He was an innovative philosopher, an expert mathematician, and an active farmer, in addition to being an Islamic Gnostic. He was also well versed in literature and theology and steeped in spiritual values. He wrote several works in philosophy and Islamic sciences, including “The Principles of Philosophy and the Method of Realism” and the famous 20-volume exegesis in Arabic titled “al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur’an”, which has been translated into English language as well. His sessions with French philosopher Henry Corbin were held every fall for 20 years from 1959 to 1979 in the presence of scholars to discuss vital issues about religion, philosophy, and also the challenges of the present world for those who seek truth and spirituality. The result was the writing of an interesting book by the Allamah titled “Musahibat ba Ostad Qorban” (Dialogues with Professor Corbin). His students include such famous personalities as Martyr Ayatollah Morteza Motahhari, Martyr Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Hussaini Beheshti, Martyr Ayatollah Mohammad Mufatteh, Imam Seyyed Musa as-Sadr, Ayatollah Abdullah Jawadi Amoli, Ayatollah Hassan Hassanzadeh Amoli, Ayatollah Mohammad Taqi Misbah Yazdi, Ayatollah Ja’far Sobhani, Grand Ayatollah Naser Makarem Shirazi, and Grand Ayatollah Hussain Noori Hamedani.

37 solar years ago, on this day in 1981 AD, Pakistan's prominent Urdu and Persian poet, Khawar Rezavi, passed away at the age of 43 due to heart attack. Born in Punjab in undivided India in a family tracing its lineage to Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), his real name was Seyyed Sibt-e Hassan. He took the penname "Khawar" (East in Persian) for writing poetry and essays, as he was a great admirer of eastern values and way of life. An enlightened scholar, he actively participated in the political and intellectual movements as a member of the Progressive Writers' Movement. He was against all types of tyranny, dictatorship, subjugation and exploitation. Due to his ideology and political beliefs he became a victim of the oppressive policies of General Zia ul-Haq, the US and Saudi-backed dictator of Pakistan.

35 solar years ago, on this day in 1983 AD, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus was founded, and recognized only by Turkey. On July 20, 1974, Turkish forces had landed on Cyprus on the invitation of local Turkish Muslim Cypriot leader, Raoof Denktash, after a coup d’état by Greece to take over the entire island. Since then Cyprus has been divided into the northern one-third controlled by Turks and the southern two-thirds controlled by the Greeks. UN measures for unity of this island state have remained inconclusive to this day. Cyprus first came under Muslim rule in the latter half of the 7th century AD when Arabs from Syria entered it, before being reoccupied by the Greek Byzantine Empire over two centuries later. It fell to the Venetians in the 15th century, and in 1570 was formally taken over by the Turkish Ottoman Empire, whose rule lasted till 1914 and the beginning of World War 1, although in 1878 it was leased to the British.

20 solar years ago, on this day in 1998 AD, the jurisprudent and sage, Ayatollah Mirza Hussain Hibbatollahi Maraghi, passed away at the age of 90, after over four decades of preaching and revival of Islamic values in his hometown Maragheh, northwestern Iran. A student of the Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA), he was also a poet and well-versed in literature.

18 solar years ago, on this day in 2000 AD, Mahdi Edoardo Agnelli, heir and only son of Gianni Agnelli, the Head of Italy’s Fiat Group of Automobiles, was martyred by Zionists in Turin at the age of 46. Born in New York, his mother was Princess Donna Marella Caracciolo di Castagneto of Florence. He studied at Princeton University, where after reading the holy Qur’an thoroughly, he converted to Islam and changed his name to Hisham Aziz. He travelled to India and from there to Iran, where he met the Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA). He soon embraced the truth of the school of the Ahl al-Bayt of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), a move that alarmed the Zionists, the US, and other enemies of Islam, especially his meeting with Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei. They devised a plan to remove him and pass on inheritance of Fiat’s multi-billion dollar fortune to his Jewish nephew (sister’s son), John Elkann. His body was found on a river bed beneath a motorway viaduct, with his car nearby, which means, he was thrown down by hired assassins. In 2003, Iran made a documentary on Mahdi Edoardo Agnelli and his name is enshrined in the Museum of Martyrs in Tehran.

AS/SS