A helmet, made in the Golden Horde in the 14th century, bears the inscription of Surah “Ikhlas” (قل هو الله احد الله الصمد لم یلد ولم یولد ولم یکن له کفواً احد “Say: ‘He is Allah, the One, Allah, the Eternal Refuge; He neither begets nor is born, nor is there to Him any

Both Wahhabism and Salafism have been absolutely devastating for the Islamic world. Countless dead, destroyed countries, heritages gone, reputation all time low, intellectual stagnation.. KSA distancing itself from all this is a very welcome development.

Iskandar builds iron cavalry to counter the massive Indian elephants From the Great Mongol Shahnama

In Fuzuli's earliest work, "Beng ü Bâde" (بنگ و باده) from 1508, which is dedicated to Ismail I Khatai, a vivid scene unfolds of a dispute between two groups: the lovers of cannabis (beng) and the lovers of wine (bâde). This allegorical debate represents the conflict between

There is something tragic in the parallels between Ghaznavids & Byzantines in late 10th to 11th centuries. The successful advance on religious frontiers, the strengthening (but ultimately hollowing) of the state, civil war following the death of capable ruler, then the Seljuks.

Bukhari Persian heavily influenced by American English spoken by young Bukhari-American Jew. Video belongs to “kippahdepot”.

“Shoor Nokhood” (Persian: شور نخود، literally “salty chickpeas”) is a popular snack from Afghanistan. I had it in Herati style with boiled potatoes. Salty, acid and spicy.

Massive street art depicting a scene from medieval #Persian painter Kamaleddin Behzad’s Yousef and Zulaykha commissioned in #Tehran’s Vanak Square today

One of the strangest political stances amongst many people in Afghanistan is how so many love and admire two absolutely contradictory figures such as Ahmad Shah Massoud and Dr Najibullah. One Islamist leaning while the other a Communist. Both rivals. How is this even possible?

Iranians call to the “Persian Gulf” “Khaleej-e Hamishe Fârs” (خلیج همیشه فارس) which literally means “the Eternal Persian Gulf”.