Today is Saturday; 2nd of the Iranian month of Khordad 1394 solar hijri; corresponding to 4th of the Islamic month of Sha’ban 1436 lunar hijri; and May 23, 2015, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.
1410 lunar years ago, on this day in 26 AH, the valiant Standard-Bearer of the Immortal Epic of Karbala, Hazrat Abu’l-Fazl al-Abbas (AS), was born in Medina to the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS). His mother was the virtuous lady Omm al-Baneen Fatema bint Hazam of the al-Kilabiyya clan noted for its courage and bravery. Imam Ali (AS) had married her several years after the passing away of his beloved wife, Hazrat Fatema Zahra (peace upon her) the daughter of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). Hazrat Abbas (AS), who was over two decades younger than his older brothers, the Prophet’s grandsons, Imam Hasan and Imam Husain (peace upon them), was very much attached to them since childhood. Out of respect for their immaculate lineage, he never called them brothers, but would refer to them as Lords and Masters. He was in Karbala like a shadow beside Imam Husain (AS), and while trying to fetch water for the thirsty camp of the Imam, he sacrificed his life, by first losing both his hands, but never tasted a drop of water even when he succeeded in reaching the bank of the River Euphrates. His shrine till this day stands as a sentinel to the shrine of Imam Husain (AS), with pilgrims from all over the world seeking his intercession with God Almighty by addressing him as "Bab al-Murad” or the Gateway of Needs. His birthday is marked in the Islamic Republic of Iran as "Roz-e Janbazan” or the Day of the Valiant Disabled Veterans. We congratulate all listeners on the auspicious birth anniversary of Hazrat Abbas (AS), and will present a special feature on his life later in our programme.
1171 solar years ago, on this day in 844 AD is the spurious date of the fictional Battle of Clavijo in northern Spain between Muslims and Christian that never took place. Stories invented centuries later claimed it saw the victory of Ramiro I of Asturias over the Emir of Cordoba. In this myth, Saint James Matamoros, suddenly appeared and helped a vastly outnumbered Christian army to gain victory. Aspects of the historical Battle of Monte Laturce (859) were incorporated into this fiction. The myth, as it survives, was first fabricated about 300 years after the supposed battle on a spurious charter. A forged grant to the Church of Santiago de Compostela by which Ramiro reportedly surrendered a part of the annual tribute owed him by all the Christians of Spain also dates from the mid-twelfth century. The history of the cult of Saint James is rich in such frauds. Such myths were coined to instill a false sense of religiosity amongst the Spanish Christians to make them rise against Spanish Muslims. Modern Spanish scholarship has noted the heavy borrowings from the historical Battle of Monte Laturce that led to the defeat of Musa Ibn Musa, of the Islamicized Bani Qasi (descendents of the Hispano-Visigoth nobleman Cassius). After Monte Laturce, which was the result of family feud between Spanish Christians and Spanish Muslims, Musa was forced to fully submit to the Emir of Cordoba, who taking advantage of his weakness, removed him as Wali or Governor of the Upper March, initiating a decade-long eclipse of the Banu Qasi.
995 lunar years ago, on this day in 440 AH, the Iranian mystic and poet, Abu-Saeed Abi’l-Khair, passed away at the age of 83 in his native Khorasan. He was an expert on the exegesis of the Holy Qur’an, in addition to hadith, and jurisprudence, and was very deeply devoted to the Prophet’s Ahl al-Bayt. The important details of his thoughts and life are known from the book "Asrar at-Tawhid” (Mysteries of Monotheism) written by his grandson, Mohammad Ibn Munawwar, after his death. He was also an accomplished poet, and mostly composed quatrains.
981 lunar years ago,  on this day in 454 AH, Mo’iz ibn Badees, the 4th ruler of the Zirid dynasty of Morocco died after a reign of 46 years during which he turned against his own benefactors the Fatemid Ismaili Shi’ite dynasty. In the first year of his reign, during the regency of his aunt, as many 20,000 Shi’ite Muslims were massacred at the fall and destruction of Mansuriya, the former seat of government of the Fatimids near Kairouan, Tunisia. Ibn Badees earned notoriety for his persecution, suppression and killing of followers of the Prophet’s Ahl al-Bayt.
753 lunar years ago, on this day in 683 AH, the Iranian statesman, Shams od-Din Mohammad ibn Baha od-Din Mohammad ibn Mohammad Juwaini was martyred by the Mongol ruler, Arghun Khan on the alleged charges of poisoning of his father Abaqa Khan, who actually died of excessive drinking. A vizier and Sahib-Divan or Minister of Finance for 22 years under three Ilkhans – i.e. Hulagu, Abaqa and Ahmad Tekuder –both his grandfather Mohammad and his father Baha od-Din, had held the post of Sahib-Divan for Mohammad Jalal od-Din Khwarezmshah and Chingiz Khan’s son Ogedei Khan respectively. Born in Juwain, near Naishapur in Khorasan, he was a skillful political and military leader, who is also known to have patronized arts and culture. His brother is the famous historian Ata Malik Juwaini, the author of "Tarikh-e Jahan-Gusha”.
742 lunar years ago, on this day in 694 AH, Ghazan Khan, the 7th ruler of the Iran-based Ilkhanid Dynasty that included Iraq, Armenia, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, and parts of Turkey, Syria and Georgia, embraced the truth of Islam along with over 100,000 Mongols. He changed his name to Mahmoud and ruled for nine years during which he demolished the temples built by the Buddhist occupiers of the Muslim lands. He was the son of Arghun. His principal wife was Kokechin, a Mongol princess sent by Kublai Khan, and escorted to Iran from China by Marco Polo. Military conflicts during Ghazan’s reign included war with the Egyptian Mamluks for control of Syria, and battles with the Mongol Chaghatai Khanate for control of Central Asia. A man of high culture, Ghazan spoke several languages, and reformed many elements of the Ilkhanid realm, especially in the matter of standardizing currency and fiscal policy.
491 solar years ago, on this day in 1524 AD, Shah Ismail I, the founder of the Safavid Dynasty of Iran, passed away at the age of 37 after a reign of 24 years, and was succeeding by his young son, Shah Tahmasp I. To Ismail and the Safavids goes the credit of giving Iran its present political, cultural, religious, and national identity, although in terms of geography many of the areas of the Safavid Empire were lost to the aggressors and colonialists by the subsequent dynasties. Ismail I was devoted to the teachings of the Ahl al-Bayt of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). Born in Ardabil to the head of the Safaviyya Sufi order, Shah Haidar, and his wife Martha, the daughter of the Aq Qoyounlu ruler, Uzun Hassan, by his Greek wife Theodora, better known as Despina Khatun, he was the direct descendant of the famous mystic, Safi od-Din Ardabeli, and hence traced lineage to the Prophet’s 7th Infallible Heir, Imam Musa Kazem (AS). At the age of 13, Ismail launched his campaign in Erzinjan (presently in Turkey), and with the help of a 7,000 force of Qizl-Bash (literally ‘Red-Heads’ from the colour of their caps) Turkic tribes of Rumlu, Shamlu, Ustajlu, Qajar, Afshar, Zul-Qadr, Tekulu, and Varsak, he defeated the Shirvan-Shah, took control of Baku (presently in the Republic of Azerbaijan) and crowned himself as King of Azarbaijan in Tabriz. By 1509, he unified all of Iran, Iraq, the Caucasus, parts of Central Asia, and western Afghanistan, and took the title of Shah of Persia. He was an adventurous personality and the dynasty founded by him lasted 235 years, reviving Iran’s Islamic glories in science, art, architecture, philosophy, culture, and literature. Hence he wielded spiritual influence outside Iran as well amongst the followers of the Ahl al-Bayt in Iraq, Syria, Anatolia (modern Turkey), the Caucasus, Central Asia and the Deccan Plateau of India. The Timurid prince, Babar, who later founded the Mughal Empire in northern India, regarded Shah Ismail as his suzerain, and so did the Deccan Sultanates of Yusuf Adil Shah of Bijapur and Sultan Quli Qutb Shah of Golconda. For this reason, the Ottomans and Uzbeks were his mortal enemies, whose political ambitions, he decisively checked despite the setback he suffered in the Battle of Chaldiran against the former. Shah Ismail I was an accomplished poet in both Persian and his native Azeri Turkish, and wrote under the penname of "Khatai”.
397 solar years ago, on this day in 1618 AD, the 30-year sectarian war started in Europe between the Catholic and Protestant sects, and involved almost all major countries. Europe has a history of gory sectarian and ethnic wars among the various sects that make up Christianity. These senseless wars have claimed millions of life.
70 solar years ago, on this day in 1945 AD, Heinrich Himmler, Chief of Nazi Germany’s notorious intelligence agency, Gestapo, committed suicide while being held in prison by the Allied Powers, a few hours prior to his execution.
(Courtesy: IRIB English Radio – http://english.irib.ir)