November 7th: Commemoration Day of Cyrus, the Anointed of God

Today, the seventh of Aban, coincides with the commemoration day of Cyrus. Cyrus the Great was the founder and first king of the Achaemenid Empire. According to the Nabonidus Chronicle, on the 7th of Aban in 539 BCE, Cyrus the Great entered the city-state of Babylon and freed the imprisoned Jews. Cyrus the Great’s day is not officially registered in the official calendar; however, various groups of Iranian people seek to register this day in Iran’s national calendar, and every year on the seventh of Aban, they commemorate this day by visiting Cyrus’s tomb in Pasargadae. This day is not Cyrus the Great’s birthday, but rather a day of commemoration in his honor.

Government officials create obstacles when visiting or holding commemorative ceremonies for Cyrus by enthusiasts at Pasargadae and do not allow people to be present near his tomb. They fear the awakening of the people and the overthrow of their own regime, fearing that people might discover their true culture and civilization and, like Cyrus, fight for freedom.

The name of Cyrus, the great king of Persia, appears in several books of the Old Testament of Christians. Cyrus the Great was the anointed of the Lord, about whom prophecies had been made.

In the first year of Cyrus, King of Persia, in order that the word of the Lord spoken through Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, King of Persia, and he issued a proclamation throughout his entire realm and had it written as follows:

Thus says Cyrus, King of Persia: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has appointed me to build him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever among you belongs to any people of his, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the house of the Lord. (Ezra 1: 1-3)

This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut: I will go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name. (Isaiah 45: 1-3)

Part of Cyrus’s words are as follows:

I am Cyrus, King of the World, the Great King, the Just King. I declare that as long as I live, I will respect the religions, customs, and traditions of the nations over which I reign. I will not impose my rule on any nation. Every nation is free to accept me as their king or not, and whenever they do not wish me to be their king, I will not make war to rule over that nation.

After my death, do not mummify my body or wrap it in gold and jewels or anything like that. Rather, place it in the bosom of the pure soil of Iran so that every particle of my body becomes part of Iranian soil. What greater honor is there for a person than to have his body buried in soil like Iran’s? Ask all Persians and my allies to gather at my tomb and congratulate me that I will suffer no more evil.

Listen to my final words. If you wish to punish your enemies, do good to your friends. My children, my friends, I am now approaching the end of life and I have perceived this with clear signs. When I have passed away, consider me fortunate, and my wish is that this feeling be reflected in your deeds and conduct; for I have been blessed in childhood, youth, and old age. My strength has always increased, so much so that today I do not feel weaker than I was in my youth.

I have seen my friends happy because of their virtues and my enemies as obedient servants. My birthplace was a small part of Asia. Let my body be laid in the soil so that it becomes one with the soil of Iran.

Iran will return to its thousands-of-years-old civilization and culture.