Today is Sunday; 4th of the Iranian month of Azar 1397 solar hijri; corresponding to 17th of the Islamic month of Rabi al-Awwal 1440 lunar hijri; and November 25, 2018, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1493 lunar years ago, on this day, 53 years before Hijra; the Almighty's Last and Greatest Messenger, Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) was born in Mecca in Aam al-Fil (Year of the Elephant), following the Abyssinian governor of Yemen, Abraha's elephant-led abortive attempt to attack the holy Ka'ba in 570 AD that brought divine wrath upon the aggressors in the form of a flock of small birds that showered them with a hail of deathly pebbles. The Prophet’s birth was accompanied by miracles, such as the appearance of a radiant light on the horizon in the Hijaz; the fall of idols in temples all over the world including in the Ka'ba which the Arab polytheists had polluted; the sudden crack in the main arch of the palace of the Sassanid king of kings, Khosrow Anushirvan, in Ctesiphon (Mada'en near Baghdad in Iraq) accompanied by the crashing down of several parapets; the extinguishing of the sacred fire of the Zoroastrian temple in Fars near Shiraz; the drying up of Lake Saveh between Yazd and Khorasan; the gushing out of a fresh water spring in the Samawah Valley in Iraq; the fall of thrones of all kings throughout the world and their inability to speak that day; the bewilderment of soothsayers; and above all the deep moan of Iblis the Satan. On this day the whole world was enlightened and there was joy in the world of nature, whether trees or rocks and other forms of life that praised God in their particular way. In brief, Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), whose celestial light was the first thing created by God Almighty, was born in the virtuous and monotheist Hashemite clan of the Quraysh that was descended from Prophet Abraham in lineage that was free of any disbelief or polytheism all the way up to the first created pair of human beings, Adam and Eve.

1357 lunar years ago, on this day in 83 AH, Imam Ja'far as-Sadeq (AS), the 6th Infallible Heir of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) was born in Medina. His period of “imamate” (divinely-decreed leadership) was 34 years, starting in 114 AH at the martyrdom of his father, Imam Mohammad Baqer (AS), and ending in 148 AH with his own martyrdom at the age of 65, as a result of a fatal dose of poison by Mansour Dawaniqi, the 2nd self-styled caliph of the usurper Abbasid regime. The jockeying for political power of the Islamic state by the Omayyads and the Abbasids, provided the 6th Imam with an opportunity, to groom a generation of scholars in different fields, including theology, Qur'anic sciences, hadith, medicine, astronomy, mathematics, physics, chemistry, botany, history, ethics, etc. His famous academy of Medina at its height had 4,000 scholars studying different branches of science, including the Father of Chemistry, Jaber bin Hayyan (Geber to medieval Europe). The founders of the four schools of jurisprudence of what later came to be known as the Sunni sect were directly or indirectly indebted to him. In short, the 6th Imam was the Reviver of the genuine teachings of Islam and the pristine practice and behaviour of his ancestor, the Prophet. In other words, his school of jurisprudence, the Fiqh al-Ja'fari, unlike other schools, is not any innovation or guesswork, but is the unsullied shari'ah of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA).

1063 lunar years ago, on this day in 377 AH, the acclaimed grammarian of Arabic, Hassan bin Ahmad, known popularly as Abu Ali al-Farsi al-Fasawi, passed away in Baghdad. He was attached to the court of the famous Buwaiyhid ruler of Iran-Iraq, Azud od-Dowla Daylami.

841 solar years ago, on this day in 1177 AD, the Battle of Montgisard led to the defeat of the Kurdish ruler of Egypt-Syria, Salah od-Din Ayyoubi, at the hands of the 16-year-old leprosy-stricken King Baldwin IV of the illegal Latin kingdom of Jerusalem. Salah od-Din was completely routed, suffered massive casualties, and managed to flee to safety only with a fraction of his army. Ten years later in 1187, after assembling a large multi-ethnic Muslim army that included Khorasani sappers from Iran, he managed to decisively defeat the Crusaders, end the 88-year illegal existence of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem, and liberate the Islamic holy city of Bayt al-Moqaddas. 

527 solar years ago, on this day in 1491 AD, a huge Christian mercenary force assembled from all over Europe under the command of King Ferdinand of Aragon and Queen Isabel of Castile, started its siege of Granada (Gharnata), the last Muslim stronghold in Spain, during the ten-year war against the Nasrid Dynasty. On January 2, 1492, Amir Mohammad XII was tricked into surrendering, because of treason among his officials, coupled with the infighting that prevented the two most powerful Muslim empires of the region – the Mamluks of Egypt and the Ottomans – from sending any relief force to the aid of Spanish Muslims. About 200,000 Spanish Muslims were forced to migrate from their homeland to North Africa after the fall of Granada that ended 8 centuries of the glorious Muslim civilization in Spain.

508 solar years ago, on this day in 1510 AD, learning that Ismail Adel Shah of the Iranian-stock sultanate of Bijapur was engaged in skirmishes with Vijaynagar, the Portuguese marauders led by Afonso de Albuquerque and supported by local mercenaries working for privateer Timoji (Thimayya), launched a surprise attack on the port of Goa on the western coast of India and seized through treachery, massacring some 800 Iranian and Turkish defenders as well as six thousand local Muslims. For four days the city was sacked and entire Muslim families were thrown into the crocodile infested rivers by the Portuguese, who forcibly converted the Hindus to Christianity. Several Iranian ladies were abducted and carried off to Portugal. For 450 years the Portuguese ruled Goa until its annexation by India in 1961. Historical artifacts and stone carvings on display at the Goa Archaeological Museum are inscribed in Kannada and Persian, since during almost two centuries of Muslim rule, Persian was the official and cultural language of the people of Goa, who now mostly speak Konkani.

456 solar years ago, on this day in 1562 AD, Spanish playwright, poet and novelist, Felix Lope de Vega, was born in Madrid. A key figure in the Spanish Golden Century of Baroque literature, his reputation in the world of Spanish literature is second only to that of Miguel de Cervantes, while the sheer volume of his literary output is unequalled.

431 lunar years ago, on this day in 1009 AH, the prominent religious scholar, Seyyed Shams od-Din Mohammad Tabataba’i al-Ameli, passed away in Jaba' village in Lebanon, at the age of 62. His father was the leading scholar of the region, Seyyed Noor od-Din Ali al-Ameli, while his mother was a daughter of the famous Second Martyr, Shaheed Thani, Shaikh Zain od-Din. Noted for his knowledge and piety, his teachers include his father, and the celebrated Iranian theologian Moqaddas Ardabeli, who taught him in Holy Najaf in Iraq. Among his students, mention could be made of the Iranian Akhbari scholar Mohammad Amin Astarabadi, who was martyred in Holy Mecca. His son Seyyed Hussain al-Ameli migrated to Iran and was appointed Shaikh ol-Islam of Holy Mashhad by the Safavid Emperor. Sharif Morteza, a contemporary scholar of Allamah Mohammad Baqer Majlisi, was from his progeny. Seyyed Shams al-Din Mohammad wrote several books such as “Madarek al-Ahkam fi Sharh Shara’e al-Islam”, as well as commentaries on Shaikh at-Tayefa Tousi’s hadith collections “al-Istibsar” and “at-Tahdhib al-Ahkam”.

351 solar years ago, on this day in 1667 AD, a deadly earthquake rocked the city of Shemakha in the Caucasus in Azarbaijan (122 km east southwest of Baku), in the Shirvan Khanate of the northwestern region of Iran’s Safavid Empire killing at least 80,000 people.

259 solar years ago, on this day in 1759 AD, an earthquake hit the Levant on the Mediterranean coast destroyed all the villages in the Beqaa Valley. The areas that experienced damage were the cities of Nablus, Acre, Tyre, Beirut, Tripoli and Hama. Damascus also suffered damage, while the shock was felt as far as Egypt. An estimated 30,000-to-40,000 people died as a result.

179 solar years ago, on this day in 1839 AD, a cyclone slammed the southeastern coast of India with high winds and a 40-foot storm surge, destroying the port city of Coringa (which has never been completely rebuilt). The storm wave swept inland, taking with it 20,000 boats and ships and thousands of people. An estimated 300,000 deaths resulted from the disaster in the then thriving port, which is now a tiny village in the East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh. Earlier in 1789, a cyclone had hit the same port city, killing at least 20,000 people.

142 solar years ago, on this day in 1876 AD, in revenge for their defeat at the Battle of the Little Bighorn five months earlier, the United States troops savagely sacked the sleeping Cheyenne village of Dull Knife at the headwaters of the Powder River, inflicting killing and plundering unarmed Amerindian men, women, and children. The Little Bighorn River in eastern Montana Territory was the most prominent action of the Great Sioux War of 1876. It was an overwhelming victory for the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes, which in defence of their homeland annihilated the US 7^th Cavalry, including a force of 700 well-armed led by General George Armstrong Custer. The US has a bleak and bloody record of ethnic cleansing of the native Amerindian population.

138 solar years ago, on this day in 1880 AD, the root cause of Malaria was discovered by French physician, Charles Laveran. With this discovery, he paved the way for uprooting this ailment. Dr. Laveran was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1907.

100 solar years ago, on this day in 1918 AD, following the defeat of the German and Austro-Hungarian Empires, Poland re-emerged as a nation state in Europe after 123 years of occupation and division amongst the great neighbouring powers. In World War II, Poland was once again occupied by Germany, and after the end of Nazi domination in 1945 it went under the influence of the Soviet Union. In 1990, with the collapse of communism, it became an independent country. Poland covers an area of 312,683 sq km and is located in Eastern Europe. It shares borders with the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, Lithuania, Belarus, and Ukraine. Its capital is Warsaw.

68 solar years ago, on this day in 1950 AD, while the oil movement was gaining ground, the oil commission of the Iranian parliament rejected the additional contract of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company prepared by the US and Britain to plunder Iran’s oil sources. The contract was strongly opposed by both the religious forces led by Ayatollah Seyyed Abu’l-Qassem Kashani, and the nationalist forces led by Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddeq. Finally, with popular support, these struggles bore fruit and Iran’s oil industry was nationalized on March 20, 1951.

66 solar years ago, on this day in 1952 AD,  Korean War: After 42 days of fighting, the Battle of Triangle Hill ends with Chinese victory, American and South Korean units abandon their attempt to capture the "Iron Triangle".

53 solar years ago, on this day in 1965 AD, the philosopher, Hakeem Mohammad Hadi Farzaneh, passed away at the age of 81 in his hometown Shah-Reza near Isfahan, where he taught philosophy and Islamic sciences to students, after having mastered Islamic sciences in the seminary of Isfahan.

52 solar years ago, on this day in 1966 AD, educationist, Mirza Jabbar Asgharzadeh Baghcheban, passed away in Tehran at the age of 80. Born in an Iranian Muslim family in Yerevan (capital of Armenia), he established the first Iranian kindergarten for the deaf in Tehran in 1924 and used the Persian equivalent of “Baghche Atfaal” for the German term ‘kindergarten,’ acquiring the surname Baghcheban. He established numerous Institutes and published many books about deaf children and on methods of teaching them. He is also the inventor of Persian language cued speech.

43 solar years ago, on this day in 1975 AD, Suriname in South America, announced complete independence from Holland after having gained autonomy in 1954. Suriname was occupied by the British towards the end of the 16th century, and in early 17th century it was exchanged with Holland for several Dutch possessions in North America. Suriname is a Republic with a coastline on the Atlantic Ocean. It shares borders with Brazil, Guyana, and French Guiana. Over 30 percent of the population is Muslim.

37 solar years ago, on this day in 1981 AD, the jurisprudent Ayatollah Mirza Ahmad Sarabi passed away. He started his religious studies at the age of 14 in Tabriz before enrolling at the seminary of holy Qom, where his teachers included Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Shahab od-Din Mar’ashi-Najafi, and Grand Ayatollah Mirza Jawad Aqa Malaki-Tabrizi. He then travelled to Iraq for studies at the famous seminary of holy Najaf, where he attained the status of Ijtehad. On his return to Iran, he involved himself in preaching and teaching with special focus on preachers travelling abroad for propagation of Islam. He also built several public utility buildings.

25 solar years ago, on this day in 1993 AD, the prominent religious scholar, Ayatollah Seyyed Ahmad Faqih Imami passed away in his hometown Isfahan at the age of 60. A product of the seminary of holy Qom, his teachers included Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Hussain Boroujerdi, the famous exegete of the holy Qur’an Allamah Seyyed Mohammad Hussain Tabatabaie, and the Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA). He returned to Isfahan to groom budding students and write books, such as “Miracles of the Holy Qur’an”, and “Leadership of the Islamic Republic”. His public services include establishment of the famous “az-Zahra Library” which is stacked with 60,000 books. 

AS/SS