A cultural symposium on significance of Mashhad
On the occasion of choosing Mashhad as the Capital of Islamic Culture for 2017, the Iranian Embassy in cooperation with the Kuwaiti-Iranian Friendship Union held a cultural symposium on the historical significance of Mashhad on Wednesday, the 38th anniversary of Iranian national day. Iranian Ambassador to Kuwait Dr Ali Reza Enayati expressed his happiness that Mashhad was chosen as the capital of Islamic culture, after Kuwait last year. “The Islamic Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) selected Mashhad due to its great cultural, religious and art value, and because tens of the most popular scientists, Islamic scholars, writers, astronomers and others who hail from there,” he noted during the symposium.
He mentioned the popular imams from Khorasan province, whose capital is Mashhad. “Mashhad wasn’t popular earlier, but after Imam Ali bin Mousa Al-Reza came to this city and died there, it transferred into a huge Islamic center that contains many religious centers and universities. Over 20 million visitors from all over the world visit the shrine of Al-Reza every year,” added Enayati. Cleric Sheikh Murtaza Faraj spoke about the religious role of Iran in general and Mashhad particularly. “Since Islam entered Iran, it plays a great role in preserving Islamic culture and heritage. Different nations converted to Islam, applied it and tried to spread it, but the Iranians played a major role,” he said, pointing out the great role of Imam Al-Reza in developing the civilization of the city. Dr Faisal Taha, professor of history at Kuwait University, highlighted the cultural role of the scholars of Khorasan during the fifth and sixth century after hijra. “At that time, this region was one of the most important regions of the Islamic world. Arab libraries need to include more studies of the cultural life and political situation of Khorasan.
The rulers and ministers there were very interested in education, and various families there supported the scientists, so paper manufacturing increased there and more shops opened. Linguistic and religious studies became very popular,” he explained. Academic researcher Dr Khalid Al-Saleh spoke about the geographic and historical value of Khorasan region and its role in Islamic civilization. “One of the main reasons this region flourished was due to its huge size, which was rich in natural resources and agriculture, which resulted in rising trade,” he noted.