Journal of Safavid Studies
Volume:1 Issue: 1, Spring 2022

Jungs are manuscripts or collections of documents that contain a selection of historical, literary, religious, and scientific documents and texts. Ahmad Gholam’s Jung is from the second half of the Safavid period, especially from the late Safavid period (simultaneous with the Afghan invasion) and contains documents from this period and earlier periods. Its structural features consist of physical and formal dimensions such as the components used, the way letters are written and arranged, and their explanation.The achievement of the present article expresses the importance of historical values of the mentioned manuscript from a structural point of view. The research method used in this research is formal analysis with a phenomenological approach (analysis and empirical analysis and direct with a critical approach) and with reference to the present manuscript.

Iran-India relations are deeply rooted in history,going back to the onset of Indo-migration. Based on the policy of neighborhood, their relationshipgrew smoothly in the spheres of commerce and tradeand thentheir cultural relations and exchangesforged. Thecommercial convergence and cultural similarities between two nations extendedthroughout the Islamic age, followed by the Muslimization of Iran and some parts of the western and southern India. However, the promotion of their relationships can be seenthroughout the relations of the Safavids with the Bāberiyān and Shi’a-ruled states in south Indiasuch asBahmani, Adil Shāhī and Qutb Shāhī and particularlyNīzām Shāhī.It seems that The Shi’areligion have greatly affected these governments to be closer to the Safavids in Iran as aShi’a-ruled state. According to the research sources, the growth of Shi’a-ruled states throughout India began in the 8th century and reached its peak in the 13th century. These states emerged in some areas such as Kashmir, southern India, Awadh and Bengal. The factors behind the spread of Shi’as throughout India have been the presence of Iranian Shi’a Muslim scholars and businesspersons and the propaganda of Shia missionaries. However, not only didthese Shi’as, especially Nīzām Shāhī dynastyshare the religious similarities with Safavids, but also they were considered one of the significant trading partners of this state, who was knownas the main economic, political and religioussponsor of Shi’a-ruled states and Nīzām Shāhī in India in this period. This study aims to investigate the elements affecting the relationships between the Safavids and the Nīzām Shāhīsconsidering the political developments of thisDynasty.“Which factors have created huge impacts on the interpersonal growth of relations between two governments” and “how much impressionsthese relations have had on the political policies of Nīzām Shāhī Dynasty?”To explorethe raised questions, this papertries to hypothesizethe Shi’a-ruled states like the Nīzām Shāhī dynastyin South India have been given the supportof Safavid dynastyin the economic, political and cultural spheres for antagonism towards the Sunnislike the Bāboriyānsin India. Ultimately, what brought about the overthrow of the Shi’a-ruled statesin southern India, such as the Nīzām Shāhī dynasty was that the increased Bāboriyāns’power in northern India had been simultaneous with the vicissitudes of Safavids’ power in Iran. This researchin a descriptive-analytic method has used original library resources.

The relationship between the government and religious minorities as well as their social status in the Safavid era is one of the most significant issues in the period. It gained a critical status especially since the beginning of the reign of Shah Abbas I and the transfer of his capital to Isfahan. Although there is a lot of material about the welfare and special status of Armenians in Isfahan in the sources of this period, writings and resources about other minorities are available only sporadically. This is especially true for Zoroastrians in terms of their long presence in Iran. Although the number of Zoroastrians gradually decreased with the arrival of Islam in Iran, their transfer to Isfahan under Shah Abbas and the use of their power and skills for flourishing the economy of the Safavid period suggests the significance of this religious minority at that time. Using a descriptive-analytical research method and based on written sources, this study seeks to answer the question of the social status of Zoroastrians in Isfahan throughout the Safavid period. Earlier studies confirm that the social status of Zoroastrians had varied in different periods of the reign of the Safavid. Although this minority had a relatively favorable status during the reign of Shah Abbas I, after his death and the decline in religious toleration in the Safavid state, the Zoroastrians were once again oppressed and the majority of them were compelled to leave Isfahan.

Chronogram is the conversion of numbers and figures of history into letters, words and terms. Due to its development and growth, especially in the Safavid period, this technique has become a complex form and has gradually attracted politicians` attention and has been used directly in historical developments to prove their legitimacy, as well as their confrontation against their opponents. The use of the chronogram and the attempt to reconcile it with the rise of the Safavids, the accession of Shah Ismail, the formation of Shah Tahmasb's army, some of the Indian conquests during the reign of Shah Abbas and accession of Nader are some of these historical approaches which will be discussed in this study. In addition to stating a specific part of history, some of these chronograms, also indirectly reveal some hidden social and historical issues that can be used in historical analysis.

This article presents documents on the aftermath of a diplomatic affair from 1705, which was ‎engineered by Safavid Iran’s grand vizier Muhammad Mumin Shamlu and which was the last of ‎his undertakings to reorient relations with the Ottoman Empire. It was a part of his policy played ‎out as several faits This article presents documents on the aftermath of a diplomatic affair from 1705, which was engineered by Safavid Iran’s grand vizier Muhammad Mumin Shamlu and which was the last of his undertakings to reorient relations with the Ottoman Empire. It was a part of his policy played out as several faits accomplis unfolding at the same time and aiming to embitter Ottoman-Safavid relations, which had reached a formal alliance over the last decade. Starting out under the guise of a religious gift-giving, this initiative from the Iranian capital Isfahan to Prophet Muhammad’s shrine in Ottoman-controlled Medina first slighted the Ottomans’ lordship rights in the Hejaz and therefore became blocked by the Ottoman authorities in Medina as well as the digninaties in Constantinople. But soon, it grew into a subject of diplomatic correspondenceand thenbecame entangled in a robbery reaching out to Mecca and Baghdad, whose prosecution spread further to Constantinople, Cairo, Damascus, and the eastern Mediterranean waters. Even after the affair was put to rest, Ottoman-Safavid dealings did not heal from the harm done by Muhammad Mumin Shamlu’s succesive thrusts to undermine the cooperation of the 1690s.The peace outlived Beygdilli-Shamlu’s term as grand vizier, but he succeeded in downgrading it from an official brotherhood to a bare state of nonaggression. accomplis unfolding at the same time and aiming to embitter Ottoman-‎Safavid relations, which had reached a formal alliance over the last decade. Starting out under ‎the guise of a religious gift-giving, this initiative from the Iranian capital Isfahan to Prophet ‎Muhammad’s shrine in Ottoman-controlled Medina first slighted the Ottomans’ lordship rights in ‎the Hejaz and therefore became blocked by the Ottoman authorities in Medina as well as the ‎digninaties in Constantinople. But soon, it grew into a subject of diplomatic correspondenceand ‎thenbecame entangled in a robbery reaching out to Mecca and Baghdad, whose prosecution ‎spread further to Constantinople, Cairo, Damascus, and the eastern Mediterranean waters. Even ‎after the affair was put to rest, Ottoman-Safavid dealings did not heal from the harm done by ‎Muhammad Mumin Shamlu’s succesive thrusts to undermine the cooperation of the 1690s.The ‎peace outlived Beygdilli-Shamlu’s term as grand vizier, but he succeeded in downgrading it from ‎an official brotherhood to a bare state of nonaggression.‎

In the sixteenth century, the strategic region of the Caucasus had a set of political, economic, transportation, and religious benefits for both the Safavid and Ottoman governments that led the two powers to compete for profound influence and attention in the region. During this period, when some weak and unstable kings such as Ismail II and Muhammad Khudābanda came to power, lack of strength and better performance caused the Ottoman government to grasp the most of the opportunity to extend their influence over the Caucasus. This study aims at investigating the geographical location of the Caucasus considering the Safavid diplomatic policies and the challenges between the Safavids and the Ottoman Empire through analyzing historical data and library studies. Descriptive data analysis has been considered as the method utilized for this research. The research findings indicate that the ineffectiveness of Safavid foreign policy at this time and the consequence of this policy would have an inevitably negative impact on maintaining and controlling the Caucasus. As a result, this policy would provoke the Ottoman invasions, leading to the occupation of some parts of the Caucasus.