Baghdad - Through Years and Tears
As we witness the invasion of Iraq by a neo-imperialistic coalition conspired by the self-serving oil and arms conglomerates who dictate US and British foreign policy; whose commanders watched on and allowed the destruction of irreplaceable ancient treasures, Qur'ans and manuscripts; we (as people of conscience) are forced to ponder, to mourn, to question and reflect on the fate of Baghdad ?¢‚Ǩ¬¶ Baghdad through the years and through our tears; writes Sadullah Khan.
Though the city's roots date back to ancient Babylon with settlement dating to 1800 B.C., Baghdad really became a center of culture, commerce and scholarship during the period of the Abbasid Caliphate in the 760s AD. When the city was then established it was called Dar-us-Salaam (Abode of Peace) and a suburb therein had an ancient Persian name called Baagh Daad (Gift of God). The entire city of Dar-us-Salaam later became known as Baghdad.
Baghdad in the Golden Age
When the Islamic empire under the Abbasid Caliphate made Baghdad the capital of the then Muslim world, it would become the world's leading center of education, culture, tolerance, cooperation and progress. The beauty and splendor of that Baghdad can be gleaned from the romantic images that provides the setting for the 1001 Arabian Nights, reflecting Baghdad at its peak; at a time when the Caliph Harun al-Rashid had diplomatic relations with Charlemagne in Europe and with the Emperor of China.
The five centuries that followed; referred to as the "Golden Age of Islamic Civilization", witnessed the most significant contributions to humankind, a period of unrivaled intellectual activity in the field of the sciences and the humanities; mathematics, astronomy, medicine, literature, linguistics, chemistry; theology, art, philosophy, spirituality as well as inventions. Baghdad became a city of museums, libraries, hospitals, theatres fountains, colleges and mosques; all this while much of the West festered in the "Dark Ages of Europe" and was steeped in squalor and ignorance.
It was then that Islam became heir to the intellectual heritage of most major civilizations that preceded it and Baghdad became a haven within which various intellectual traditions found a new lease of life. This integrative approach led to improvement in the ancient networks of canals, underground waterways, wells, water-wheels; introducing new breeds of livestock, cotton, sugar and rice; as well as transmitting the ancient Chinese art of paper-making which was instrumental to the later revival of learning in Medieval Europe.
Bayt-ul-Hikmah
Most of the greatest scholars from the 8th to the 13th centuries had their educational roots, directly or indirectly, in Baghdad. It was at the famed Bayt-ul-Hikmah (House of Wisdom) located in Baghdad that books, manuscripts and works from Greece, China, India and Africa were brought. This attracted the best Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Zoroastrian scholars who translated, studied, analyzed, discussed, debated and taught the best of what they gained. Many of the great western classical works of Plato, Socrates, Hippocrates, Euclid and Pythagoras were studied. The House of Wisdom produced the likes of Muhammad al-Khawarizmi, the 'Father of the Mathematical Science of Algorithm' (named after him) as well as the founder of Algebra (which was named after a book he wrote on this method of mathematical calculation titled Hisab al-Gabr wal-Muqabalah). It paved the way for the likes of unequaled geniuses such as Al-Kindi (Optics, Metallurgy, Philosophy and Physics), Al-Razi (Medicine, Opthalmology, Astronomy and Chemistry), Al-Farabi (Philosophy, Logic, Political Science, Music and Sociology), Abu Hanifah (Financier, Industrialist and Jurist), Jabir bin Hayyaan (Father of modern Chemistry) ...
Fall of Baghdad
The city of Baghdad went into decay after it was trashed by the Mongols in 1258AD. The marauding Mongols were eventually halted two years later in the Battle of Ayn Jalut in Palestine by the Mamluks from Egypt. Though Baghdad never regained its glory thereafter the Mongols themselves did eventually embrace Islam.
The present conquerors of Baghdad have backed Saddam when he fought Iran for 10 years, turned a blind eye to his gassing of the people in Halabja and then imposed sanctions on his oppressed people for 12 years when he became uncontrollable. In all this, the only ones who suffered were the innocent Iraqi people, not the ruling elite.
Though all celebrate the demise of the tyrant Saddam, we ponder over the motives and together with the rest of the world, abhor the method of the neo-colonialist occupying force that has taken Baghdad. The millions of people in 6357 cities throughout 136 countries, who have so valiantly protested against the unprovoked war of aggression on Iraq, are not fooled by the intentions of those orchestrating this unjustified war. Would any of these forces be sent there if Iraq had no oil?
Baghdad in Muslim Memory
Baghdad's glorious place in the history of civilization is etched in the memories, consciousness, folklore and culture of Muslims all over the world and continues to be echoed in the works of Hali, Iqbal, Naseem Hijazi, Al-Ghazali, Ibn Taymiyyah, and Ibn Khaldun.
As we look with great sadness at the fate of the city of Baghdad and the land of Iraq; the land where
Prophet Ibrahim started his mission of preaching monotheism, where Islamic Civilization reached its peak,
where the Prophet's beloved grandson gave his life in the struggle against tyrannical rulers; we wonder how
the land of Nabi Ibrahim and of Imam Hussayn are ruled by the Pharaohs and the Yazeeds of our times. In that,
I believe, lies a tremendous lesson for all of us; as well as in the realization that Allah will not change
the condition of a people unless and until they change themselves.