Peshawar Nights (شبهای پیشاور در دفاع از حریم تشیع Shab-hā-ye Pishāwar) is a written firsthand account by Sultan al-Wa'izin Shirazi ("Prince of Preachers from Shiraz"),[1] recalling ten days of dialogues between two Sunni scholars and a Shia author about major topics relating to Shia Islam,[2][3] which took place in Peshawar (now in Pakistan, which, at the time, was part of British India) beginning on 27 January 1927. The book was originally written in Persian and published in Tehran and has subsequently been translated into several languages, the first English edition was published in 1977 in Pakistan.

Peshawar Nights
AuthorSultan al-Wa'izin Shirazi
Original titleشب‌های پیشاور
CountryIran
Languageen
SubjectShia-Sunni debate
GenrePolemic
Published1st ed. 1977

Background edit

1st page
2nd page
An article about the debate in "Durre Najaf" magazine.

It recounts a public debate between Shia Muslims and Sunni Muslims, that took place in the city of Peshawar in the North-West Frontier Province of British India (present-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan) for ten nights beginning on 27 January 1927. The two principal participants from the Sunni side were Hafiz Muhammad Rashid and Sheikh Abdus Salam from Kabul. The discussions were attended by approximately 200 people (Shia and Sunni Muslims) and were recorded by four reporters published following morning in the local newspapers.[2] According to the preface:

A condition of the dialogue was that only sources acceptable to both sects would be cited. The dialogue was held in Persian, commonly understood in the city of Peshawar (Note: Persian is no longer commonly understood in Peshawar). The transcript, made by four reporters and published in the newspapers daily, was published in book form in Teheran and soon became a classic authority in the East. The present work is based on the fourth edition, published in Teheran in 1971, the year in which Sultan al-Wa'izin died at the age of 75.[4]

English editions edit

 
Different English editions.

The title of the book is a translation of the original Persian title, Shabhaye-Peshawar.[2] Since its first translation, printing & publishing in English, it been re-translated, re-printed & re-published across the world several times. A few of the major English publications available are:

  • A digest by Peermahomed Ebrahim Trust, Pakistan from the 1970s[5]
  • A translation by Hamid Quinlan and Charles Ali Campbell, published by Ansariyan Publications, Iran, from the 1990s[6]
  • From the UK in the 2000s[7]
  • Multiple times in the 2010s:
    • In 2013, two parts; Part 1[8] & Part 2[9]
    • In February 2014[10]
    • In September 2014, two parts; Part 1[11] & Part 2[12]
    • In July 2015, two parts; Part 1 & Part 2[13]
    • In November 2015, two parts; Part 1[14] & Part 2[15]
    • In 2017, two parts; Part 1[16] & Part 2
    • In 2018[17]

Translations in other languages edit

Apart from English, the book has been translated into several other languages from original Persian. It is available in:

  • Persian (شب‌های پیشاور)
  • English (Peshawar Nights)
  • Urdu (شب‌های پیشاور)
  • Arabic (ليالي بيشاور)
  • Azerbaijani (Pişəvər gecələri))
  • French (Les Nuits de Pishawar)
  • Spanish (Las Noches de Peshawar)
  • Indonesian (Mazhab Syia, Mazhab Pecinta Keluarga Nabi: Kajian al-Quran dan Sunnah). In Indonesian, it was initially translated as Mazhab Syia and was reprinted in 2009 under the title Mazhab Pecinta Keluarga Nabi: Kajian al-Quran dan Sunnah.[18]

Book's coverage edit

The book is notable, it has not only been reprinted several times in English by different publishers across the world but also has been translated to several languages and has not only been cited by books but is also used as teaching/reference material in academia and suggested as reading material by others.

Citations and mentions edit

The book has been cited or mentioned by later books, journal, etc. including,

  • as a reference in book 'The Twelver Shi'a as a Muslim Minority in India: Pulpit of Tears'[19]
  • as reference in footnotes in book 'The Suffering of the Ahl ul Bayt and their Followers (Shia) throughout History'[20]
  • as a reference in magazine 'The Light, Volumes 24-25'[21]
  • in bibliography in book 'Discourses of Mobilization in Post-revolutionary Iran'[22]
  • mentioned in text of book 'Shi'ism In South East Asia: Alid Piety and Sectarian Constructions'[18]

Listings edit

  • listed in "Accessions List, Pakistan, Volume 18, 1979" [23]
  • listed in "Forthcoming Books, Volume 35, Issue 5"[24]

Peshawar Nights has been listed as one of the books "to understand Shia better", it is searchable and downloadable from internet free of charge.[25]

Academia edit

The book has not only been catalogued by university libraries cited by books but also is used as teaching/reference material in academia and suggested as reading material,

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Peshawar Nights". Al-Islam.org. 2013-01-26.
  2. ^ a b c "Translators' Preface". Al-Islam.org. 2013-01-26.
  3. ^ "Author: Sultan al-Wa'izin Shirazi". Peshawar Nights. 2019-01-05.
  4. ^ The Translators' Preface stats: the death of Sultanu'l-Wa'izin in 1971 is mentioned by Michael M. J. Fischer in Iran: From Religious Dispute to Revolution, p.178, Harvard University Press 1980.
  5. ^ Digest Peshawar Nights (convincing Shia Sunni Dialogue). Peermahomed Ebrahim Trust. 1977.
  6. ^ Shīrāzī, Muḥammad Sulṭān al-Vāʻiẓīn (1996). Peshawar Nights. Ansaryian Publications.
  7. ^ Peshawar Nights. Yasin Publications. 2001. ISBN 978-964-438-320-5. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  8. ^ Shirazi, Sultanu'l-wa'izin (2013-12-06). Peshawar Nights. Createspace Independent Pub. ISBN 978-1-4943-4845-8.
  9. ^ Shirazi, Sultanu'l-Wa'izin (2013-12-06). Peshawar Nights. Createspace Independent Pub. ISBN 978-1-4943-4846-5.
  10. ^ Shirazi, Sultanul Wa'izin (2014-02-25). Peshawar Nights: Shia Islam in Sunni Traditions. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 978-1-4960-8344-9.
  11. ^ Shirazi, Sultanul Waizin (2014-09-28). Peshawar Nights. Createspace Independent Pub. ISBN 978-1-5025-3303-6.
  12. ^ Shirazi, Sultanui Waizin (2014-09-28). Peshawar Nights. Createspace Independent Pub. ISBN 978-1-5025-3305-0.
  13. ^ Shirazi, Sultanu'l-wa'izin (2015-07-20). Peshawar Nights. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 978-1-5151-0300-4.
  14. ^ Shirazi, Sultanu'l-wa'izin (2015-11-04). Peshawar Nights. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 978-1-5191-1238-5.
  15. ^ XK, Sultanu'l-Wa'izin Shirazi-; Shirazi, Sultanu'l-wa'izin (2015-11-04). Peshawar Nights. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 978-1-5191-0804-3.
  16. ^ Shirazi, Sultanu'l-Wa'izin Sultanu'l-Wa'izin (2017-10-10). PESHAWAR NIGHTS Part - 1. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 978-1-9779-2374-5.
  17. ^ As-Sayyid, Sultan al-Wa'adhin (2018-02-16). Peshawar Nights. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 978-1-9856-0188-8.
  18. ^ a b Formichi, Chiara; Feener, Michael (2015). Shi'ism In South East Asia: Alid Piety and Sectarian Constructions. Oxford University Press. p. 270. ISBN 978-0-19-061315-0.
  19. ^ Howarth, Toby (2005-10-04). The Twelver Shi'a as a Muslim Minority in India: Pulpit of Tears. McGraw Hill Professional. p. 206. ISBN 978-0-203-01260-4.
  20. ^ Charbonneau, Mateen J. (2018-09-04). The Suffering of the Ahl ul Bayt and their Followers (Shia) throughout History. Lulu.com. pp. 76, 100, 216, 264, 265. ISBN 978-1-312-45203-9.
  21. ^ The Light. Bilal Muslim Mission of Tanzania. 1990. p. 21.
  22. ^ Azodanloo, Heidar Ghajar (1992). Discourses of Mobilization in Post-revolutionary Iran. University of Minnesota. p. 233.
  23. ^ Library of Congress Office, Karachi, Library of Congress (1979). Accessions List, Pakistan (Listing) (Pennsylvania State University ed.). Library of Congress Office-Pakistan, Karachi. p. 40. ISBN 978-0-19-577246-3.
  24. ^ Arny, Rose (2000). Forthcoming Books, Volume 35, Issue 5 (Listing) (the University of Michigan ed.). R.R. Bowker Company. pp. 486, 1214.
  25. ^ Mundadu, Mahfuz (30 June 2018). "Rejoinder: Sharifudeen Ibrahim Muhammad "Zaria Shia Massacre a victory to Muslims"!". abna24.com. ABNA. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  26. ^ "Peshawar Nights, by Muhammad Sultan al-Vaizin Shirazi" (Catalogue). onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu. University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  27. ^ Blake, Corinne (1998). "The Journal for Multi Media History, Volume 1 Number 1 ~ Fall 1998 - Teaching Islamic Civilization with Information Technology". www.albany.edu. New York: State University of New York at Albany. Retrieved 25 June 2020. In addition to classical material, the Ahlul Bayt site includes links to full text translations of more contemporary material, from Peshawar Nights...
  28. ^ Halsall, Paul. "Internet History Sourcebooks Project (created 26 Jan 1996: latest revision 2 January 2020)". sourcebooks.fordham.edu. Fordham University. Retrieved 25 June 2020.

External links edit