“I am Cyrus. King of the world. When I entered Babylon… I did not allow anyone to terrorize the land… I kept in view the needs of people and all its sanctuaries to promote their well-being… I put an end to their misfortune. The Great God has delivered all the lands into my hand; the lands that I have made to dwell in a peaceful habitation…. . .When my soldiers in great numbers peacefully entered Babylon… I did not allow anyone to terrorize the people… I kept in view the needs of people and all its sanctuaries to promote their well-being… Freed all the slaves… I put an end to their misfortune and slavery (referring to religious minorities). The Great God has delivered all the lands into my hand; the lands that I have made to dwell in a peaceful habitation… “
"I have no religion, but if I were to choose one, it would be that of Shariati's."
Jean-Paul Sartre
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My Lord, grant me success in struggling during failure, in having patience in disappointment, in going alone, in Jihad without weapons, in working without pay, in making sacrifice in silence, in having religious belief in the world, in having ideology without popular traditions, in having faith (Iman) without pretensions, non-conformity without immaturity, beauty without physical appearance, loneliness in the crowd, and loving without the beloved knowing about it.
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photos: Farshad Palideh & Ehsan Mohammadi 
Dr. Ali Shariati was born in Mazinan, a suburb of Mashhad, Iran. He completed his elementary and high school in Mashhad. In his years at the Teacher’s Training College, he came into contact with youth who were from the lower economic strata of the society and tasted the poverty and hardship that existed.
At the age of eighteen, he started as a teacher and ever since had been a student as well as a teacher. After graduating from college in 1960, on a scholarship he pursued graduate studies in France. Dr. Shariati, an honor student, received his doctorate in sociology in 1964 from Sorbonne University.
When he returned to Iran he was arrested at the border and imprisoned on the pretext that he had participated in political activities while studying in France. Released in 1965, he began teaching again at Mashhad University. As a Muslim sociologist, he sought to explain the problems of Muslim societies in the light of Islamic principles-explaining them and discussing them with his students. Very soon he gained popularity with the students and different social classes in Iran. For this reason, the regime felt obliged to discontinue his courses at the university. Read the rest of this entry »
