Lecture Guide #4
OUTLINE & GUIDE TO UNIT III
I. An Introduction to Islam
A. The Absolute Basics
B. On Mohammed
C. The Koran
D. Five Pillars of Islam
1. Declaration of Faith
2. Worship with Ritual Prostration
3. Charity
4. Fasting during Ramadan
5. Pilgrimage to Mecca
E. Sunnis & Shi'ites
F. Shi'ism and Iran
G. Summary
II. Iran (Persia) to the 1970s
A. Major Factors in Iranian History
B. Foreign Intervention & Influence
C. Opposition to Foreign Intervention
D. The 1906 Constitution
E. The Constitution Compromised
F. Autocratic Modernization
G. The Pahlavis and Islam
H. Summary
III. Opposition to the Shah and the Career of Khomeini
A. Opposition to the Shah
1. Tudeh party
2. Religious traditionalists
3. National Front (linked to Mossadeq)
B. Expressions of Opposition
C. Ruhollah Khomeini: Main Moments in His Life
D. Khomeini's Islamic Government
IV. The Iranian Islamic Revolution: Its Basic Contours
A. Conditions for the Revolution's Outbreak
B. Further Escalation in 1978
1. Cinema Fire
2. Black Friday
3. Expulsion of Khomeini from Iraq
C. The Shah's Collapse
V. From Revolution to Constitution
A. Unity of Opposition Unravels
B. Khomeini's return and Dual Power
C. For of the New Government
D. Towards a New Draft of the Constitution
E. Highlights of the Constitution
F. The Iran-Iraq War
VI. Constitutional Revision (1989)
A. Context: Multiple Centers of Power
B. Results
C. Revision of principle of velayet-e faqih
D. The Rushdie Affair as Distraction
DYNASTIES, RULERS & REGIMES IN IRAN
Dynasties & Regimes of Iran
Qajar dynasty (1796-1925)
Pahlavi dynasty (1925-1978)
Reza Shah Pahlavi (ruled 1925-41)
Mohammed-Reza Shah Pahlavi (ruled 1941-79)
Islamic Republic (1979-present)
Faqih (Religious Leader)
Ruhollah Khomeini (Ayatollah), 1979-1989
Ali Khamenei (Ayatollah), 1989-
Presidents of Islamic Republic of Iran
Abul-Hasan Bani-Sadr, 1980-1981
Ali Khamenei (*), 1981-1989
Ali-Akbar Hasheni Rafsanjani (*), 1989-1997
Mohammed Khatami (*), 1997-2005
Mohammed Ahmadinejad, 2005-
(*) indicates presidents who were religious clerics
A BRIEF CHRONOLOGY OF MODERN IRANIAN HISTORY
1501Shi'ism established as official religion of Persian state
1891-92Tobacco Rebellion (against British tobacco concession)
1905Russo-Japanese war precipitates Revolution of 1905 in Russia
1906-11Constitutional revolution in Iran
1907Britain & Russia agreement carving Persia into spheres of influence
1921Coup of Colonel Reza Khan leading to overthrow of Qajar dynasty in 1925
1941Britain & USSR force Reza Shah from power, establish zones of influence
1951Prime minister Mossadeq oversees nationalization of Anglo-Iranian Oil Co.
1953Mossadeq forced from power American- & British-led coup
1957Creation of domestic security apparatus, SAVAK
1963Mohammed-Reza Shah's reform movement known as the "White Revolution"
1971Mohammed-Reza celebrates 2500 years of Persian monarchy at Persepolis
1972President Nixon authorizes sale of sophisticated US weapons (but not nukes) to Iran
1976NovElection of Jimmy Carter as US President
1977DecCarter visits Tehran & praises Shah's Iran as "island of stability"
1978JanSemi-official newspaper article harshly criticizing Khomeini
Massive demonstrations in response to article
AugFire in cinema in poor part of Tehran; almost 400 die
SeptBlack Friday: Mass demonstrations in Tehran in defiance of martial law
OctExpulsion of Khomeini from Iraq to France
DecRegency gov't created by Shahpour Bakhtiar
1979JanShah leaves Iran on "vacation," never to return
FebAyatollah Khomeini returns to Iran from France
Khomeini authorizes creation of provisional gov't under Mehdi Bazargan
Royalist forces fully defeated; Bakhtiar escapes to France
MarchPopular referendum on "Islamic Republic" on new form of gov't
MayFormation of Revolutionary Guards (Pasdaran)
OctUS finally admits Shah from Mexico
NovRadical Islamic students take American embassy staff hostage
DecConstitution of the Islamic Republic approved and goes into effect
1980FebBani Sadr elected first President of Islamic Republic
AprilDisastrously unsuccessful US attempt to rescue embassy hostages
JulyDeath of Shah in Egypt
SeptIraq invades Iran, beginning eight-year war between the two states
NovRonald Reagan elected new American President (takes office Jan. 1981)
1981JanAmerican embassy hostages finally released
(?)Islamic Dress Law requires veiling of women in public
JuneFirst President Bani-Sadr forced from office
Bomb explosion at headquarters of Islamic Republican Party, killing 80+ people
Attempted insurrection of Mojahedin against religious authorities
OctAli Khamenei becomes president of Iran, first cleric to hold that post
1982MayIran recaptures Persian Gulf port Khorramshahr from Iraq
SeptIran rejects favorable peace terms brokered by Saudi Arabia
1988JulyKhomeini reluctantly agrees to UN Resolution to end war
1989AprilKhomeini authorizes review & revision of constitution
JuneDeath of Khomeini; succeeded as Faqih by Khamenei
JulyAmendment of the Iranian constitution
SHORT BIOGRAPHIES OF MAJOR FIGURES:
MOHAMMED, the Prophet (ca. 570-632). The Prophet of God who began to receive revelation in 610; in essence the "founder" of Islam; began to process of Islam's rapid spread through the Middle East & North Africa.
KHOMEINI, Ayatollah Ruhollah (1902-89). Relentless opponent of Pahlavi gov't from 1963; popularized idea of rule by a supreme Shiite jurist; guiding personality of the Islamic Republic.
MOHAMMED-REZA Shah (1919-1980). Second and last shah of Pahlavi dynasty (ruled 1941-79); launched ambitious reforms known as the "White Revolution" and sought to make Iran a major power in Middle East; forced out of country during the Islamic Revolution.
MOSSADEQ, Mohammed (1882-1967). Prime minister who oversaw the nationalization of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company in 1951; overthrown by an American- and British-led coup in 1953.
REZA Shah (1878-1944). First shah of Pahlavi dynasty (ruled 1925-41); headed a coup in 1921 that led to overthrow of Qajar dynasty in 1925; forced to abdicate by British & Soviet forces in 1941.
BASIC GLOSSARY OF ISLAMIC TERMS:
Islam = "submission" (to God); Muslim = one who submits
Koran (or Qu'ran) = the revelation of God through the Angel Gabriel to Mohammed; the holy book of Islam
ulama (sing. alim) = learned class of religious & legal scholars in Islam
Mecca & Medina = holy sites in Islam, destinations for Muslim pilgrimage
hijra = "emigration," referring esp. to that of Prophet & companions from Mecca to Medina in 622 (starting point for Islamic calendar)
Fatiha = "The Opening," the first chapter of the Koran, frequently uttered in many contexts
hajj = "pilgrimage" to Mecca, in principle an obligation of each Muslim once in life.
Ramadan = holy month of fasting, when Koran was first revealed
Shi'a = "party," "faction" or "sect." Shi'ism denotes several sectarian divisions in Islam, the most common feature of which is that their adherents attribute special political & religious authority to descendents of the Prophet Mohammed. Adherents = Shiites or Shias.
Sunni = other major sect in Islam, making up the majority.
Imam = a leader of prayer; in Twelver Shi'ism the term denotes the 12 individuals regarded as the successive legitimate, sinless, and infallible leaders of the religious community.
mujtahid = an Islamic religious scholar who has competence to practice ijtihad (independent judgment on religious matters).
Ayatollah ("sign of God") = honorary title of high-ranking Shia religious authority in Iran (in effect an especially revered mujtahid or imam)
faqih = one who has mastered sources & methods of jurisprudence to determine Islamic religious law (sharia)
fatva (fatwa) = written opinion of an Islamic religious scholar
TERMS & CONCEPTS IN IRANIAN HISTORY
Persia = Greek name for Iran, used by most westerners until the 1930s
Tehran = capital of Iran
Majles = Iranian parliament created in 1906 (roughly akin to Russian Duma)
SAVAK = Iranian domestic security apparatus, created in 1957
Tudeh Party = Iranian communist party, although it included secular leftists of various stripes. Contributed to victory in the revolution, but later outlawed by the Islamic Republic in 1983.
Mojahedin = Islamic Marxists, originating among religious wing of National Front. Contributed to the revolution, but later went into opposition against the Islamic government of Khomeini.
Islamic Government = Khomeini's 1970 lectures in Najaf (Iraq), transcribed and published in Iran and elsewhere
Velayat-e faqih = key concept developed by Khomeini proposing that legitimate political authority may be held by a meritorious Shiite religious scholar (faqih = one who has mastered the sources & methods of jurisprudence needed to interpret Islamic religious law).
Islamic Republican Party (IRP) = a party formed by various clerics close to Khomeini that became one of the real centers of political power in the Islamic Republic.
Revolutionary Guards (Pasdaran) = an armed force created in May 1979 designed to deal with threats to the revolution, mostly on the basis of existing militia groups like Hezbollahis.
Pahlavi dynasty / Reza Shah (1925-1941) / Mohammed-Reza ShahIslam / Koran (Qur'an) / Mohammed (the Prophet)
Mecca & Medina / Sunnis / Shias
Imam / Mujtahid / Ayatollah
ulama / Qom / Faqih
Constitutional revolution / Majles / Anglo-Iranian Oil Company
Mohammed Mossadeq / National Front / Autocratic modernization
"White Revolution" / SAVAK / Rastakhiz (Resurgence) party
Ali Shariati / Ruhollah Khomeini / Islamic Government
Velayat-e faqih / Tudeh Party / Mojahedin
President Jimmy Carter / Black Friday (8 Sept 1978) / Islamic Revolutionary Council
Islamic Republican Party / Revolutionary Guards / Mehdi Bazargan
American embassy hostages / Constitution of the Islamic Republic / Assembly of Experts
Faqih / Guardian Council / H. A. Khamenei
Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani / Constitutional revision (1989)