First, it was the giant Bhuddas, then it was another Bhudda. And now it is Cyrus the Great.
For 2,500 years, the tomb of Cyrus the Great has stood on the plain at Pasargadae, in southern Iran, a simple but dignified monument to a king revered as the founder of the mighty Persian empire. But some fear the dam and reservoir pose a threat to the ancient structure.
They say the project may increase humidity in the arid area near the city of Shiraz, which they believe could damage the limestone mausoleum.
That may seem far-fetched — officials dismiss it — but the feud highlights deep cultural fault lines in attitudes toward the Islamic Republic’s wealth of pre-Islamic relics.
“This is an illegal project which will harm our historical heritage,” said Mohammad Ali Dadkhah
, a lawyer campaigning against the Sivand Dam.
He accuses the authorities of not paying enough attention to sites dating from before the Arab Muslim invasion of what is now Iran in the seventh century: “They don’t care about pre-Islamic history.”
We have to remember that when Egypt built the Aswan dam, it asked for international help to protect the various temples that were situated in the surroundings, among others Abu Simbel. Spain helped Egypt back then, and that’s why Madrid has today the Temple of Debod.
When is UNESCO going to protest?
There is even a page calling for international defense of the archaeological sites of the Pasargade. h/t Stefania, who has also blogged about the protests people have made in Iran about this artistic crime. In her webpage I have found this documentary, which shows the truth about the Great Cyrus, the same king which freed the Jews from Babilonia and let them return to the Promised Land:
Cyrus (580-529 BC) was the first Achaemenid Emperor. He founded Persia by uniting the two original Iranian Tribes- the Medes and the Persians. Although he was known to be a great conqueror, who at one point controlled one of the greatest Empires ever seen, he is best remembered for his unprecedented tolerance and magnanimous attitude towards those he defeated. Upon his victory over the Medes, he founded a government for his new kingdom, incorporating both Median and Persian nobles as civilian officials. The conquest of Asia Minor completed, he led his armies to the eastern frontiers. Hyrcania and Parthia were already part of the Median Kingdom. Further east, he conquered Drangiana, Arachosia, Margiana and Bactria. After crossing the Oxus, he reached the Jaxartes, where he built fortified towns with the object of defending the farthest frontier of his kingdom against nomadic tribes of Central Asia.
The victories to the east led him again to the west and sounded the hour for attack on Babylon and Egypt. When he conquered Babylon, he did so to cheers from the Jewish Community, who welcomed him as a liberator- he allowed the Jews to return to the promised Land. He showed great forbearance and respect towards the religious beliefs and cultural traditions of other races. These qualities earned him the respect and homage of all the people over whom he ruled
Desde hace 2.500 años la tumba de Ciro el Grande se conserva en el valle de Pasargarde, al sur de Irán. Pero se va a construir una presa y el proyecto puede incrementar la humedad en el monumento hecho de piedra caliza. Mohammad Ali Dadkhah, un abogado que está actuando contra la construcción de la Presa de Sivand, ha calificado al proyecto como de “ilegal que dañará nuestra herencia cultural“. Además, ha acusado a las autoridades de no prestar mucha atención a los monumentos y lugares históricos que datan de antes de la invasión árabe-musulmana: “No les importa la historia pre-islámica“.
Hay que recordar que cuando Egipto hizo la presa de Assuan, pidió ayuda internacional para proteg
er los múltiples templos que se encontraban en sus alrededores, entre otros, los de Abu Simbel. España prestó ayuda a Egipto y por eso Madrid tiene hoy el Templo de Debod -derecha-.
Por supuesto, la UNESCO está más callada que una muerta.
A pesar de ello, los iraníes llevan protestando esta destrucción de su patrimonio cultural desde hace tiempo sin que por supuesto haya ningún tipo de reacción en los medios occidentales, tan interesados sin embargo cuando hay un monumento musulmán en ruinas. Hay incluso una página que denuncia la destrucción de este patrimonio cultural, único en el mundo y que recuerda al gran Imperio persa, antes de que Alejandro Magno lo conquistara.
Ciro el Grande fue el primer emperador aqueménida. Unificó a los medos y a los persas. Fue un gran conquistador y controló el imperio más grande de su tiempo, pero, a la vez, se le recuerda por su magnanimidad con los vencidos y por su respeto hacia los que tenían otras creencias. Fue el que dejó a los judíos, presos en Babilonia desde Nabucodonosor, volver a la Tierra Prometida.
Technorati: Buda, Buddha, Iran, pre-Islamic history, art, Islamismo, Islamism, Irán, historia pre-islámica, arte, Ciro el Grande, Cyrus the Great
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