According to some sources, including Professor Davidson, on this day (November
25) of the year 870 AD (259A.H.) Abu Nasr-e-Farabi
(European: Avennsasar,:Greek Phrabius) the great Persian philosopher was born in the town of Farab in greater
Khorasan. He is known as the founder of Islamic democracy thought. His father
was a Persian general.
In his various writings, like Plato and Aristotle before him, Farabi worried
about the misuse of elections. He, like Plato and Aristotle, believed the best
ruler is someone wise about theoretical as well as practical matters, excellent
at persuading others and blessed with avid imagination. In addition to these
mental gifts the best ruler should be strong and agile enough to engage in
warfare. Such a ruler is so unique as to be like a living constitution model. If
such a person could not be found, Farabi proposed rulingship by a group of
individuals who together possess these qualities. Farabi believed in that
instead of reaching out for citizens (the present time voters), people must
search to find the best eligible individual to govern them.
However, Farabi did not discuss a legislative body because he was sure
Islamic
laws were perfect.
He studied in the city of Bukhara, the main center of Iranian culture and
language. Then he went to Baghdad for further studies. He acquired mastery over
several languages including Greek and Arabic, and is reported to have been
expert in different fields and sciences. He was one of the most famous Iranian
philosophers and beside Baghdad, he spent time and studied in Aleppo (Halab)-
Syria, Egypt and many more distant lands.
Farabi wrote in the tradition of Aristotle about metaphysics, politics and even
music. He was renowned as an important translator of Greek writings. Farabi
exercised great influence on sciences and knowledge for several centuries. His
famous book "The Model City"
or Madina Fadhila is a significant early contribution to socio-political
science. His major contributions seem to be in philosophy. As a philosopher, he
may be classed as a "neo-Platonist".
Although many of his books have been lost, 117 are known, out of which 43 are on
Logic, 7 are on Ethics, 7 are on Political Science and a book on music. While he
wrote many commentaries, some of his books remained the textbook for several
centuries. Farabi was a companion to many powerful individuals and at one time
was a judge. On the subject of intellect in philosophies, Farabi is as important
as Cicero, St. Augustine and St Thomas Moore and he died a bachelor in Damascus in
950 AD (339 A.H.) at the age of 80.
November 27
KARIM
KHAN UNHAPPY WITH
THE OTTOMANS DEFEAT
On
this day (November 27) in the year of 1770 Karim Khan Zand (Zend), the regent of
Iran and our country’s disputed ruler received the Tsar of Russia’s special
envoy at the pavilion used for formal meetings (at the present time, Pars
Museum) in Shiraz, who brought him a royal message.
The Tsar of
Russia, in his message, informed Karim Khan of his victory over the Ottomans
fleet in July 1770, and asked Karim Khan for his friendship. But Karim Khan said
to the Tsar’s envoy, “We are not happy about the defeat of other Muslim
peopleâ€. The Tsar’s envoy was shocked from this unexpected answer because
Karim Khan fought two wars with the Ottomans to get Basreh (Basra) and defeated
the Ottomans twice and recaptured Basreh. The envoy had come 2500 kms to give
his message to the Khan. He was the second Tsar’s envoy to Shiraz within five
years.
Karim
Khan saw himself as a representative of the people rather than the founder of a
dynasty. He refused the title “Shah†and called himself “Wakil†or
regent. He set a standard for justice and efficient administration. Karim Khan,
with 30 years (1749-1779) of benevolent rule was so anxious for people to be
happy that he paid musicians to play to them. He gave Iran a much-needed respite
from continual warfare.
Karim Khan expelled the Dutch
under Ketip Hauzen from Khark Island and Kharco and punished Sheikh Salman Bani
Kaab who had become an outlaw.
Karim Khan, a pure Persian from the
Zand clan of “Lur-Bakhtyari†people was one of the Nader Shah’s generals.
When Nader Shah was assassinated on June 10, 1747 at Fatahabad (Quchan) by some
of his generals, Karim Khan found himself in a chaotic situation because every
rebellious general wanted part of Iran for himself. Karim Khan decided to
challenge them to the end to keep Iran together as a united country. Therefore,
he went to war with each general in a part of the country that lasted ten years
and saved our homeland. After victory in this civil war, he pardoned all of his
adversaries and forgave them. Nobody was executed and all dead enemies were
buried with honor.
Khan ordered the construction of the Golestan Palace in Tehran but made
his capital in the city of Shiraz near the ancient capital of the Persian
Empire, Persepolis, 895 kms away from Tehran.
November 28
BAHRAM
CHOOBEEN; THE IRANIAN SOLDIER GENIUS
On
this day (November 28) in the year 588 AD, for the first time in the history of
warfare, Iranians used crude oil balls launched with a special launcher in a war
with yellow-skinned people for northwestern China.
These people
invaded the northeastern part of Iran Present Tajikistan and north of
Afghanistan) and occupied the city of Balk and Badghis. The commander of the
Iranian army at this time was General Bahram Mehran (Choobeen) who was born in
the city of Rey (six kms south of Tehran).
Like a piece of wood (wooden-choobeen), he was tall and lanky along with
being wise and a well-experienced officer. Bahram belonged to the Mehran family,
which produced the best Iranian army officers from the second to the seventh
centuries. He was the governor of “Azarbadgan and Armenia". After a visit
to the gushers of crude oil eruptions on the southwestern shore of the Caspian
Sea, he saw the burning power of crude oil and ordered the military engineers to
make crude oil (naft) more sticky to make a kind of ball similar to those made
with cotton and mixed with crude oil. Then
they developed a launcher that was able to throw a bunch of these flaming balls
to the lines of enemies and disrupt their order on the battlefield. This new
weapon was ready for a test within a few months and was secretly mass-produced.
Meanwhile,
Hormoz, the Sassanid shah of Iran, decided to punish the yellow-skinned invaders
and push them back to their own territories. However, they had three hundred
thousand men with weapons. Hormoz assigned General Bahram (Choobeen) to wage
this very dangerous war.
According to the
Tabari’s writings and other historians, Bahram selected 12,000 men between the
ages of 30 and 40 who were battle tested and among the best Iranian army of
500,000 soldiers. He did not march directly toward the city of Balkh, but chose
another way from Ahwaz to Yazd (Yezd) and then across the desert to the
outskirts of Balkh (not too far from Mazar-e-Shariff).
“Shabehâ€,
the head of the yellows, known as “khaghanâ€, was informed too late of the
approaching Iranian army. At that time, Bahram was only four days away for
Balkh. The war lasted only one day (November 27). Bahram’s forces of 12,000
saw themselves face-to-face with 100,000 to 300,000 yellows on elephants.
Bahram ordered
his soldiers to bombard Shabeh’s men with flamed crude oil balls and archers
blinded the elephants with their arrows.
Meanwhile, Bahram himself, with 2000 men attacked the headquarters,
killed Shabeh and captured his son. Bahram forced the yellows to retreat beyond
the “Pamir†mountains.
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