IRAN: Grass always greener on history’s other side

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Before the 1979 Islamic Revolution brought clerics to power, Iranians living under the Western-leaning Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi yearned to get in touch with their religious roots. A 1963 novel called “The life of Muhammad” or “Muhammad, the Prophet Who Ought to be Re-embraced,” by the Romanian writer Constant Geoghiu Virgil, became a bestseller, especially among the seminary students who fueled the toppling of the monarchy.

A similarly titled bestseller nowadays in Tehran may signal Iranians longing to get in touch with even deeper roots. Hassan Waghefi’s “Cyrus, the King Who Ought to be Re-embraced,” gives a romantic account of one of Iran’s celebrated ancient kings.

Since its May 2007 release, it has sold nearly 6,000 copies and is still going strong. Except for self-help books and cheap escape literature, few books in Iran ever sell more than 3,000 copies.

Cyrus, who ruled ancient Persia in the 6th Century B.C., founded an empire that stretched from Turkey to India.

Before the revolution, Cyrus the Great was celebrated as a symbol of power. But what drives his popularity these days is his history of accepting religious minorities and upholding the rule of law and concept of human rights. According to some of his fans, he was the antithesis to the ruling clerics, who some considered unenlightened and repressive.

Waghefi, a 37-year-old bookstore owner and writer, declines to comment on such heady matters. He says he “fell in love” with Cyrus two decades ago, in part because he was ahead of his time. He has piled his books in the shape of Cyrus’ tomb and displayed them in the window of his shop.

“He was a just ruler who oversaw 25 nations in his vast empire,” says the author, “He believed in justice, equality of genders. He thought that women and men had equal rights before the law.”

— Ramin Mostaghim in Tehran