نشریه تاریخ و فرهنگ
سال چهل و چهارم شماره 1 (پیاپی 88، بهار و تابستان 1391)

Financial policies in major parts of the Samanid era as well as throughout the Ghaznavid period were very tyrannical and in this period much oppression was inflicted upon the subjects and the affluent land owners in particular. Heavy tributes and other financial infringes and demands in this period, which lasted about a century in Khurāsān, plundered and confiscated many properties and lands of various classes of people, especially the aristocrats. A survey of the financial policies of this period indicates that since the Sasanid period, when the tribute revenues and certain new taxes were handed over to the commanders in chief and the troopers, the financial aggressions and the heavy tributes and confiscation of properties in Khurāsān – which were common since long ago – became more severe. This situation reached its climax in the Ghaznavids period. These financial policies mostly exposed the affluent or the wealthy aristocrats to harm.During the Samanid and Ghgaznavid periods, Nayshābūr was regarded as the center for collecting taxes (in its general sense: i.e. state revenues) in Khurāsān; therefore, the instances of these financial aggressions to the aristocrats and the general public were reflected in the sources more in Khurāsān than in other cities ruled by the Samanids and Ghaznavids. Due to these financial tyrannies, the Affluent of Khurāsān and Transoxiana, including Nayshābūr, sought to topple these two rules.

Despite the fact that the formation of the Fatimid state in Maghrip (297/909) was considered as a remarkable victory for the Ismā‘īlīs, success in the field of religious matters was not easily achievable there. As such, the religious and political ideals demanded that the Fatimids sought from the beginning to disseminate their religious beliefs among the inhabitants of the Maghrib territory. Accordingly, in addition to making the Isma’ilism a formal school, they made its promulgation as their main pivot of religious politics. The findings of this research indicate that contrary to the viewpoints of some researchers, the Fatimids were not only not negligent in dissemination of their formal sect in Maghrib, but also made great efforts in developing it, even though these efforts did not result in desirable outcomes. Education and propagation of Ismā‘īlī doctrines, prevention of performing the Sunnī religious rites of devotion, violent confrontation with the Malikite jurists of Maghrib, attempts to attract the attention of the Sunnī scholars by letting them participate in managing the current affairs as well as intellectual and cultural activities aiming at strengthening the theoretical and functional foundations of the Ismā‘īlī school of thought constituted the Fatimid’s different aspects of religious politics in Maghrib.

Asking God for guidance (istikhāra) in different ways has an age-old history in the world of Islam. Various evidences can be observed denoting its frequent application in the Muslims’ personal and social life. The widespread prevalence of this practice (rite) has undoubtedly had theoretical origins too, and has been influenced by the society’s intellectual discourses, as well. Numerous scholars in various ages have shown interest in this practice and each has looked at it from a different perspective, helping its development with their critical considerations. This study is an attempt to recognize such scholars and their theoretical attempts; as on one hand, aiming at identifying the cultural ground for the appearance of each perspective, and on the other hand, seeking to find out the impact of each perspective on the development of the culture of istikhāra.

The factors that have been influential in the damaging and destroying the Iranian historical monuments can be divided into two categories: first, the natural phenomena such as floods, earthquakes, famines, and droughts; and second, human behavior that on some occasions had intentionally or unintentionally caused some damages to the historical monuments. The flawed policies of the rulers that have usually resulted in wars and conflicts, the struggles and disputes among the various sects and schools of thought, the adverse economical situations of the society, and the loss of functionality of the monumental buildings are among the human factors that have been strongly effective in damaging the historical monuments.The present article addresses the destructive factors of the Iranian architectural works in the Islamic era until the rise of the Mongols (7th/13th century).This research has been carried out by searching into the historical, geographical, and literary sources and relying on the reports available on these works.

Throughout the history of the Islamic Iran the judicial system has always been based on common law and canon law (sharī‘a). Upon the formalization of Shī‘ism as the official school (nadhhab) in the Safavid era, the Shī‘a jurisprudence was set as the basis for legal judgments; and for the execution of judicial affairs the ruler appointed officers such as Ṣadr, Shaykh al-Islām, and other judicial authorities (as fully-authorized rrepresentatives of the King in public and criminal law enforcement) to this job. Towards the end of the Qājār era, the intellectual impacts of the Constitutional Movement and the presence of the new Western-educated class alongside the ruling class prompted the secular nationalism and modernization in the judicial system, particularly the amendment to the Constitution, which had taken into consideration the principle of separation of powers (three branches of government), formation of the new judicial system, and tendency toward a secular legislation. This was contrary to the viewpoints of the scholars, who regarded themselves as the custodians of the judiciary. Their argument was that there is no need for alternative law in place of canon law; and this way, despite the endeavors of the modernists, the full establishment of the common law judgment was left unfulfilled. Therefore, what is addressed in this article is to study the role of the scholars in the secular nationalism and modernization prior to the Pahlavi era.

Iran, in the Qājār period, underwent many changes in political, social, and administrative fields. This research tries to study the changes in one of the urban positions, i.e. the position of a village chief (kadkhudā), by means of examining its historical background as well as its duties and functions, since kadkhudā as one of the social high ranking officials in Iran and a subdivision of the local and administrative establishments has had a significant presence in people’s social life up to the end of Qājār era. The rank of kadkhudā in this period has been defined in different fields, among which were the chiefs of urban, artisans, and village quarters. They had specific duties and functions in each of these three fields. Study of the sources and documents left behind from this period indicates the influence and impact that this position has had on people’s life, because the holder of this position had an important role in adjusting the relation between the people and the rule (ḥukūma) and, through playing his role, could be influential and helpful and sometimes even harmful, taking steps towards improvement of life or the other way around.