Cyrus Kar: 'In Search of Cyrus The Great' , A Doucmentary

Spenta Productions - Work in Progress

In a time of mounting hostility between East and West, few figures of history offer the unifying effect Cyrus The Great does. A factual film about this eastern conqueror, who founded the Persian Empire, will give the West a better understanding of Middle-Eastern history.

Long before the advent of Christianity and Islam, the rift between West and East was first shaped in opposition to the Persian Empire, by Herodotus, the 5th-century BCE Greek author who lived in Persian-occupied Halicarnassus. Despite the apparent conflict of interest, he is still considered the "Father of history."

But Cyrus The Great may be just the figure to dislodge this age-old wedge dividing East and West. Admiration for Cyrus is virtually uncontested. The Hebrew Bible hails him as a "Messiah," Greek Hellenes knew him as the "Law Giver," and the Babylonians welcomed him as Marduk's elect.

The empire he founded ruled the world for over 200 years and the people he conquered enjoyed more freedom and prosperity under Persian supremacy than they ever had under their own, native leadership. In his book, 'History Of The World,' John Roberts writes:

“Large areas knew longer periods of peace under the Persian Empire than for centuries and it was in many ways a beautiful and gentle civilization.”

For many Westerners, this may come as something of a revelation. The Persian Empire has long been vilified by Hollywood in films like Oliver Stone's 'Alexander' and the soon-to-be-released '300' - yet another movie based on Herodotus' "Battle of Thermopylae." But casting ancient Persia as a ruthless villain is a relatively new phenomenon.

Until the mid 19th century, the West knew ancient Persia as the paragon of "benevolent power," not just through the Old Testament but also through the 'Cyropaedia,' written by another Greek author, Xenophon. 'Cyropaedia' literally means, "The Teaching of Cyrus" and was as much a part of the political library as Machiavelli's 'The Prince.' In fact, it was the only alternative to Machiavelli's theory that "It is Better To Be Feared Than Loved."

Praised by the Bible, the Cyropaedia, and John Locke - their three most influential sources - America's founding Fathers broke with tradition and adopted Cyrus's model of 'benevolent government' for their new nation. This is one of Thomas Jefferson's two personal copies of Xenophon's 'Cyropaedia.'





But Cyrus's benevolent rule did not stem from the goodness of his heart but from the values of his culture. Piecing together Cyrus's culture was by far the most difficult part of our research. What emerged was eye-opening. We know Cyrus was a Persian and that the Persians were one of several Iranian tribes, which inhabited the region known today as Iran. Though little is known about Iran's pre-Islamic culture, scholars have revealed a striking resemblance to the pagan culture of pre-Christian Europe. After all, pre-Christian Europe and pre-Islamic Iran both trace their cultural roots back to the same tribe that once roamed the Caspian steppes. Gender equality, religious freedom, and equal justice, considered "Western values" today, were protected mainstays of Persian culture. Today, many in the Middle East consider such values meddlesome tools of Western neo-imperialism. But in an age of unspeakable human misery, it was a Middle-Easterner who, for the first time in recorded history, applied such rights to all the people within his vast dominion. The writing on this baked, clay cylinder gives us a rare snapshot of Cyrus bestowing these very rights on the people of Babylonia after conquering it in October, 539 BCE.



Today this cylinder is considered the world's first universal declaration of human rights and is considered by many as the precursor to the Magna Carta and the U.S. Bill of Rights.

The purpose of this film is two fold. First, it will show the West that Middle Easterners once shared many of the same values we consider "western values" today. Second it will show Middle Easterners that gender equality, religious freedom, and due process are not trappings of western neo-imperialism, but were once celebrated by their own ancestors.

For a preview of, 'In Search Of Cyrus The Great,' please click here.

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More on the Movie "300"

Dr. Hamed Vahdati Nasab
Bad history, worse timing
Warner Brothers could not have found a worse time in history to release movie like "300"

As an archaeologist and as the author of one of the petitions against the movie 300, I would like to shed some light on some of the aspects of the movie 300. At the time of this publication the petition that started on March 4th, 2007 has exceeded 38,000 signatures.

Briefly, the movie portrays the famous battle of Thermopylae between the Persians and the Greeks that occurred in 480 B.C. During that battle, the Persian Imperial army had to cross a narrow gorge in order to reach the Greek mainland. The gorge was held by almost 300 Spartans backed by 4000-7000 Greek soldiers, and they managed to hold Persian army for few days.

Although there have been claims that the Persian soldiers numbered more than1 million, in actuality the correct number would have been somewhere around 200,000 since at that time, it would have been logistically impossible to mobilize 1 million army.

The movie demonstrates both Persians and Spartans on the eve of the battle. Interestingly enough, the way the film depicts the Spartans is more or less historically accurate, especially when it comes to their clothing, attitude, and internal historical political issues. However, when it comes to the Persian side, the film portrays an army of beasts, monsters and demons whose leader is a naked gender-confused King wearing a ridiculous number of piercing and chains!

There have been numerous claims pointing out that this movie is in a science fiction genre; therefore, these petitions are too passionate and needlessly serious. Science fiction by definition means “a genre (of literature, film, etc.) in which the setting differs from our own world (e.g. by the invention of new technology, through contact with aliens, by having a different history, etc.)”(Prucher, 2006).

According to this definition one might ask, how can we call the movie a fiction while it shows the actual events, places, and characters with their real names? And why is this so-called fiction only applied to demonize the Persian side? Everybody agrees that the battle of Thermopylae did happen, Leonidas was the name of the Spartan king, and Xerxes was indeed the Persian king. In the movie Persians were called by their actual names, and the only fictional part is to show the Persians as monstrous savages!

For these reasons, I am hesitant to call the movie 300, just a fictional movie. Insulting Persians by twisting the historical facts is as unjust as making a movie about Dr. Martin Luther King, picturing him as something different and calling it just “science fiction!”

Calling Persians barbarians and slave drivers is another unethical aspect of the movie 300. It is a proven scholarly fact that the Persian Empire in 480 B.C was the most magnificent and civilized empire. Persia was established by the Cyrus the Great, the author of the first human rights declaration. By pursuing a policy of generosity instead of repression, and by favoring local religions, the Persian Empire was able to inspire its newly conquered subjects to become enthusiastic supporters.

Frankly, it is fair to say that given the historical evidence, Persians were among the few nations who did not have slaves especially when it came to building their magnificent palaces. Clay tablets discovered by University of Chicago scholars in 1947 demonstrate that these royal palaces were built by workers who compensated based on their skills. This was in contrast to Egyptian and Roman architecture built on the backs of thousands of slaves.

While I’m certainly not a conspiracy theorist, I must say that Warner Brothers could not have found a worse time in history to release movie like 300. Given the conflict going on between Iran and some western countries, this could be translated as more support for inaccurate generalizations about Iran, and anything but a message of love between the West and Iran.

Dr. Hamed Vahdati Nasab is an Archaeologist at the Department of Anthropology, University of Alberta, Georgia, USA.

I must add that the outfits and headgear of the Persian infantry lend themselves more to the stereotypical garments of medieval Arabian and Islamic attire than to the ancient garb of the Persian army, while the elite Immortals have been given an East Asian guise. Whatever happened to the research department? Islam as a religion and culture did not even exist in that era. Christianity and Islam were hundreds and hundreds of years away. Does Frank Miller think the Persian Empire was an Islamic Empire?? It sure looks that way. Maybe we need to send him a few copies of Encyclopedia Iranica…

There are many anti-IR, anti-Islam Iranian groups and resistance movements working actively against further Islamization and Arabization of Iran and the Mullahs. This movie sends a very wrong message and has already resulted in not only getting these resistance movements somewhat offside, but also given reason to the Mullahs to take advantage of the movie and further claim the Persian civilization and Islam as one and the same while they are feverishly trying to destroy anything pre-Islamic in Iran (Sivand dam fiasco,e.g.). It is akin to I claiming that Greeks & Macedonians were Christians during Alexander’s time, it would make me an ignorant person and right off the bat I will be discredited and not taken seriously.

Next thing we know the mullahs will claim that Cyrus and Darius were really Muslims in disguise! Therefore, the makers of the movie are reinforcing the Mullahs’ stance, even if they don’t realize it. Kudos to Frank Miller for providing more materials for the Islamist’s propaganda machinary; those whom we are supposedly in an ideological war with.

h/t to Iranian plateau

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Who did the Spartan Defeat?

The Persians ruled over the Greeks over 150 years…the Greeks were inspired and influenced in every aspects of their lives by the Persian..from politics , architecture and even democracy.

Some of you may know that Zoroastrianism, the first monotheistic world religion, was the official religion & philosophy of Iran prior to first Arab-Isam invasion of Iran in the 7th Century, with the second Islamic invasion occurring during 1979 ill-conceived revolution. Zoroastrianism was once the dominant religion of much of the Greater Iran but as of 2007 practiced only by fewer than 200,000 worldwide,[3] with its largest centers in India and Iran.

Zoroaster – the philosopher & teacher – more than 3000 years ago, advocated the concept of duality being Good vs. Evil (Ahura Mazda & Ahriman). The main motto for Zoroastrians is Good Thoughts, Good Words, & Good Deeds. It was under the influence of Zoroastrianism that Cyrus the Great set out his policies and carried out his noble acts (freeing the Jews from slavery and giving them permission to build their temple). When Cyrus the Great mentions (Ahura) Mazda, in the first declaration of human rights, he is referring to the Zoroaster’s God (Goodness).

“The charter of Cyrus the Great, a baked-clay Aryan language (Old Persian) cuneiform cylinder, was discovered in 1878 in excavation of the site of Babylon. In it, Cyrus the Great described his humane treatment of the inhabitants of Babylonia after its conquest by the Iranians.

The document has been hailed as the first charter of human rights, and in 1971 the United Nations published translation of it in all the official U.N. languages. “May Ahura Mazda protect this land, this nation, from rancor, from foes, from falsehood, and from drought”. Selected from the book “The Eternal Land”.”




The following is a translation of the cuneiform script written on the original cylinder. Although sections of the cylinder have been destroyed through time, the principal message of Cyrus’ Declaration is readily apparent. The cylinder is currently housed in the British Museum & a replica of the cylinder is kept at United Nations Headquarters in New York City.

First Declaration of Human Rights by Cyrus the Great, inscribed in cuneiform on a clay cylinder discovered in 1879, now on display in the British Museum.Cyrus the Great (585-529 BC), the Iranian emperor, defined the First Declaration of Human Rights on this cylinder. Cyrus is admired more as liberator than a conqueror of his vast empire because of his respect for human rights and the humane treatment of those he ruled. He is "anointed" in the Bible (Is. 45:4) as a liberator of God's people (Is.45:15) and the chosen one (Is. 48:15-15). Professor Richard Frye of Harvard University said; "Surely the concept of One World, the fusion of Peoples and Cultures into oneness was one of his important legacies".The following from this ancient cylinder are a rendition of the spirit of his message in modern English:

The Declaration:

I am Kourosh (Cyrus), King of the world, great king, mighty king, king of Babylon, king of the land of Sumer and Akkad, king of the four quarters, son of Camboujiyah (Cambyases), great king, king of Anshân, grandson of Kourosh (Cyrus), great king, king of Anshân, descendant of Chaish-Pesh (Teispes), great king, king of Anshân, progeny of an unending royal line, whose rule Bel and Nabu cherish, whose kingship they desire for their hearts pleasure. When I well-disposed, entered Babylon, I set up a seat of domination in the royal palace amidst jubilation and rejoicing. Marduk the great god, caused the big-hearted inhabitations of Babylon to …. me, I sought daily to worship him...

1. I declare that I will respect the tradition, customs and religion of the nations of my empire and never let any of my governors to look down or insult the inhabitants of my nations.

2. I hereby abolish slavery; my governors are ordered to prohibit exchanging men and women as slaves within their ruling domains. Such a tradition should be exterminated the world over.

3. If anyone opresses others, should it happen, I will take his/her right back and penalize the oppressors.

4. Today I declare Freedom of Religion. All are free to choose any religion, live in all regions and take up any job provided that they never violate other's rights.These proclamations ring true today in our times as they did in 583 BC. House Of Iran.

You're probably asking yourself right about now how did Iran get from Cyrus the Great to Ahmadinejad? The answer in a nutshell:

1. The Islamo/Arabo Conquest of Iran.
2. Too much focus on multi-culturlism.
3. Too much decadence and arrogance

That's how the Persian Civilization and Empire was lost. We should take a page from history and avoid the same fate right here in our country. Persia was undone by their decadence and lack of resolve as much as anything. If America is to take a lesson, it should be taken from the Persians. With a weak will to protect our ideals and democracy, the enemy already feels triumphant.

Update1: Video Clips on the Persian

The following clips were aired on Canada's History Television:
Engineering an Empire - The Persians (Part 1)
Engineering an Empire - The Persians (Part 2)
Engineering an Empire - The Persians (Part 3)
Engineering an Empire - The Persians (Part 4)
Engineering an Empire - The Persians (Part 5)

h/t to Winston

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300, The Real Story

The movie "300" is based on a Frank Miller comic book. It's grounded on fiction and not facts. It is not an actual historical portrayal. It is the creative fantasy of a comic book genius. The mere connection drawn by some Iranians and liberal lefties only emphasizes the problem with the deep disunity we're facing in our country; when it comes to the arts and literature: these are separate creative spheres that exist independently of politics and politicians

For the actual history I highly recommend Tom Holland’s “Persian fire : the first world empire and the battle for the West”.

A very good book not only on wars but also on persian empire. In a time when cultures of East and West seemed farther apart than ever, Holland concentrates on explaining the mighty Persian culture which, from the time of the victorious Greeks to our own day, was mocked, denigrated, and underestimated. He makes a fairly clear argument that this kind of cultural misapprehension, after the famous Greek victory, led to an alienation between East and West which had not really existed prior to the Persian invasions, and which affects our understandings even today. This book goes beyond these events, and covers much territory concerning the founding of the Persian Empire, and early Greek city-states, and the inevitable clash that resulted from their proximity.

In a world where the East rubs up against the West he can fill in the historical blanks that still bedevil us to this day. And today it still seems to me that we are living in the same battle of the past (East) versus the future (West). PERSIAN FIRE sets todays headlines, in some respects, against a 2500 year old backdrop. As we might watch the CBS news, the Athenians, in the shadow of their burned and gutted Acropolis, would watch the young buck playwright, Aeschylus, stage THE PERSIANS one year after the exhausted Greeks had won the war and returned to the abandoned Athens. Spartans, that weird and long-haired race of warriors, get their fair share of exposure but lose some of their mystique in Holland's re-telling of Thermopylae and the Spartan king's last stand.

He shows just why the Persian culture - in many ways, far superior to that of the more primitive Greeks - deserved respect for its own accomplishments, as well as how and why the Greeks came to blow up their honest victories and denigrate their Persian foes. All these points give PERSIAN FIRE a peculiarly modern resonance, as well as telling some of the greatest stories of antiquity with clarity and flair.

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