It was 1980.
Only a year before, the Iranian Revolution had ended in victory, and the revolutionaries had taken over full of triumphant swagger.
In Kermanshah, near the Iraqi border, the local militia unit got a tip-off. A well-respected medical man, Dr. S (his real name is Dr. Salek but as he’s alive and well and still working we can’t reveal more) was reported to be practicing Lahv-o-La’eb.
Lahv-i-La’eb is a term from Islamic Jurisprudence. It means playing musical instruments and perhaps even taking the odd nip of alcohol as a distraction from Respecting God Almighty.
The bearded revolutionary militia men showed up at the doctor’s house without warning. They knocked thunderously while ringing the bell so as to intimidate everyone inside. Dr. S’s family, relaxing on the sofa, jumped up in fright. Dr. S rushed to open the door, wearing his pajamas. The militia men barged straight past him without the slightest explanation.
There in the corner of the living room, they saw their suspicions confirmed. A guitar — instrument of the devil!
“Dr. S,” said the militia commander grimly. “Are you not ashamed of committing Lahv-o-La'eb while people are sacrificing their lives for the sake of our revolution?”
Dr. S, who was famous in Kermanshah for his wit and presence of mind, replied, “Why no, my brother. My guitar and I are devoted to the cause of the glorious revolution! We play only one song, night and day. You know it well: “Oh, Khomeini, Imam of our Nation, How Great You Are."
(This was one of the anthems of the revolution, specifically composed to praise Khomeinei and was actually sung – in chorus – by the Iranian politicians who gathered to welcome him home after 15 years in exile.)
It worked. The militia men seized the guitar, but did not arrest the doctor. Dr. S considered losing his instrument a small price to pay for avoiding being dragged off to the cells in the middle of the night.
Thirty-eight years later, the ideology of the revolution proved once again this last Saturday that its pieties can still offer convenient – if nonsensical — camouflage for those in need.
Shortly after President Rouhani’s swearing in ceremony, several allegedly revolutionary and devout Shia parliamentarians showed unseemly haste in their rush to take selfies with the EU’s blonde High Commissioner for Foreign Affairs, Frederica Mogherini.
Unfortunately for them, journalists noticed.
A few of the bravest, like the representative from Shiraz, apologized.
Others took refuge behind a hastily-improvised religious fib in the tradition of Dr. S of Kermanshah.
“Our intention was actually to shout “Death to America” — WITH Madame Federica Mogherini in the picture,” explained one of these hardliners.
Oh please!
After nearly four decades, we see once again that the Islamic Revolution’s cant – threadbare and rotten as it is – still excels at hypocrisy.
visit the accountability section
In this section of Iran Wire, you can contact the officials and launch your campaign for various problems
Interested in writing for IranWire?
Share your stories.
comments
As contradictory as it may seem, the Iranian "revolutionary" politicians define themselves as uncompromising opponents of the West, although they secretly admire it.
I liked comparison between Dr. S and what happened in parliament. still excels at hypocrisy. that's true!