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Friedman on Sistani and the Nobel

See here. Friedman, like most commentators, acknowledges Sistani’s Shi’ism, but fails to understand what that means. “People power” as he describes is what the Ithna’shari conception of the state was/is prior to Khomeinism taking center stage. The idea of jurists leading the state, vilayat-e faqih, is a relatively new concept, but it’s already become normative for even op-ed writers who supposedly have the time to be able to think.

Navroz Mubarak – نوروز مبارك

Happy New Year to everyone. May the year bring you much joy and happiness. The springtime of a friend of Ali is always full of the efflorescence of Ali. None deserves eminence and praise among the people except he who befriends Ali. The heart of every Shi’i is protected from Satan in the fortress of Ali. As Ali is from the Prophet’s family, the true Shi’i belongs to the family of Ali. A hundred years of praise is not equal to even one in a thousand praises of Ali. Courage, knowledge, abstinence, generosity: these are the qualities I revere in…

Navroz Mubarak 2007

Yes, it is a hybrid date format. But the holiday is now hybrid. Little bit of Zoroastrianism, little bit of Iranian nationalism, little bit of Islam, little bit of 21st century style globalization. Here is a good, short history of contemporary Navroz. Just a clarification, the Ismailis don’t recognize Navroz as Hazrat Ali’s birthday, we recognize Yawm-e Ali as a separate holiday. Navroz is also a marker of the solar new year for most Ismailis. The Fatimids marked a celebration of the holiday as well in the 11th century. (see Ritual, Politics and the City in Fatimid Cairo). Here’s the…