22. The Iranian Enlightenment

Faramosh Khaneh 

Both Afghani and Blunt collaborated with Mirza Malkam Khan (1834 – 1908), a convert to Shiism and eventual Persian Ambassador to London, and the founder of Faramosh Khaneh (“House of Oblivion”), the first Masonic lodge in Iran, which was widely regarded as a center for Azali-Babi recruitment.[1] Persians made their first acquaintance with Freemasonry outside Persia, in India, and more importantly in Europe. The earliest evidence of Persian contact with Freemasonry is found in Tohfat al-ʿalam, the memoirs of India written by Mir Abdul Latif Shushtari (d. 1805), where he describes Freemasonry as widespread among Europeans but open to all, irrespective of religion, and remarks that it is known “among the Indians and the Persian-speakers of India as faramushi (“forgetfulness”), which is not inappropriate, given that their answer to any question (concerning Freemasonry) is: ‘I cannot remember’.”[2] The first Persian to encounter Freemasonry in Europe was Mirza Abu Talib Khan Esfahani (1752 – 1805/1806), known as “The Persian Prince” during his stay in London and as “Abu Talib Londoni” once back in India. He is known for a memoir of his travels in Britain, Europe and Asia Minor, translated as The Travels of Taleb in the Regions of Europe, written between circa 1799 and 1805. Esfahani visited a Masonic lodge during his stay in London between January 1800 and June 1802, but declined an offer of to join because of the licentious proceedings he reportedly witnessed among the Masons.[3]

Iranian acquaintance with Freemasonry coincided with the beginning of serious European political involvement in Iran, as early as the reign of Fath Ali Shah Qajar. The first recruits to Freemasonry were diplomats and other prominent travelers to Europe. The earliest initiation took place in Paris, during the period of the Franco-Persian alliance. In 1808, after the conclusion of the Treaty of Finkelstein between Iran and France, a diplomatic delegation under the leadership of Askar Khan Afshar (d. 1833) travelled to Europe in 1808. Askar Khan arrived in Paris on July 20, and met Napoleon on September 4, at Château de Saint-Cloud. On November 24, Askar Khan was initiated into the mother lodge of the Philosophic Scottish Rite. In the speech delivered at the ceremony, Napoleon’s Minister of State, Regnault de Saint-Jean d’Angely (1761 – 1819), remarked: “By him [Askar Khan] this pure light will return to its ancient cradle: Asia will recover the pious and useful institution with which it has enriched our climes.”[4] Askar Khan left in April 1810, as Persia in turn allied with Great Britain, then France’s enemy in the Napoleonic Wars.

Askar was the first in a series of Persian diplomats to be inducted into Freemasonry under the auspices of their European hosts.[5] During this period, the focus of the major powers’ interest in the East had shifted to Iran as a result of Napoleon’s preparations to march to India. Fath Ali Shah wanted to reclaim Georgia from the Russians with the help of Napoleon, who had made a pact of friendship with Iran in the Finckenstein Palace in 1807. Fath Ali Shah, however, switched to the British when Napoleon made peace with the Russians at Tilsit in the same year. While the British were driven by concerns about Napoleon attacking India, the Iranians were concerned about losing the allegiance of the French, despite the Treaty of Finckenstein. This culminated in Iran and Britain agreeing to the “Preliminary Treaty of Friendship and Alliance” in 1809.

The Jewish-born Mirza Abolhassan Khan Ilchi (1776 – 1845), was sent as the Iranian ambassador to London to wrap up the treaty, and was proposed for membership of a Masonic lodge in London by his official host, Sir Gore Ouseley (1770 – 1844), and initiated on June 15, 1810, by Lord Moira.[6] Ouseley accompanied Ilchi back to Iran where he became the new British ambassador, and was granted an English patent as provincial Grand Master for Iran.[7] Reports indicate that Ilchi succeeded in bringing a large number of Fath Ali Shah’s entourage into the Freemasonry [8] From 1810, the year of his initiation, until his death in 1846, Ilchi received a monthly allowance from the East Indian Company, transmitted by Ouseley, on the condition that his conduct of affairs was deemed satisfactory.[9] In March 1813, Ilchi signed the Treaty of Golestan on behalf of Iran, concluding the Russo-Iranian War of 1804–1813, which lead to the loss of most of the Iranian holdings in the Caucasus. Following the treaty, Ilchi served as the Iranian ambassador to Russia between 1814 and 1816 to discuss the recovery of some of the lost territory, which failed.

The suspension of relations between the Iran and France continued until the time of Napoleon III, when in 1855 a delegation headed by A. Bourré was sent to Iran. Napoleon III was able to establish friendly relations with Iran, concluding a trade agreement with the Iranian Prime Minister Mirza Agha Nuri (c. 1807 – 1865), and Count de Gobineau, who came with Bourré.[10] Gobineau, called Nuri “an old British protege.”[11] Gobineau was promoted to chargé d’affaires the following year, with the mission to keep Persia out of the Russian sphere of influence. However, he cynically wrote: “If the Persians… unite with the western powers, they will march against the Russians in the morning, be defeated by them at noon and become their allies by evening.”[12]

 

Sincère Amitié

 

During the reign of Nasser ad-Din Shah, seven members of a diplomatic mission to France headed by Farrokh Khan (1812 – 1871) were initiated into the lodge Sincère Amitié at the Paris headquarters of the Grand Orient on December 10, 1857, consisting of Farrokh Khan himself and Afghani’s fellow conspirator, Mirza Malkam Khan and others. Farrokh Khan established the Iranian embassy in Paris on January 25, 1857.[13] Between 1855 and 1857, Farrokh Khan was sent as ambassador to France to mediate between Napoleon III and England, finally signing the Treaty of Paris in 1857, marking the end of the hostilities of the Anglo-Persian War. According to the terms of the treaty, the Persians agreed to withdraw from Herat, later allowing Dost Mohammad Khan of Afghanistan, who declared war on Persia in conjunction with the British, to occupy it. Afghani would become counselor to the new Amir, Dost Mohammad Khan’s son, Azam Khan, in 1868.

On his return to Iran in 1858, after his initiation in the Sincère Amitié in Paris with Farrokh two years earlier, Malkam Khan established the Faramosh Khaneh, the first Masonic lodge in Iran, which along with several other leading secret societies, including Anjoman-e Okhovat, Society of Humanity and Mokhadarat Vatan Association—were secret societies known as Anjoman—played a major role in the Iranian Enlightenment, which brought new ideas into traditional Iranian society from the mid-nineteenth to the early twentieth century.[14] Malkam’s father, who had studied in India, taught French and English at the royal court. An enthusiastic admirer of the West, he sent his son on a state scholarship to France to study engineering. While in Paris, Malkam developed a keen interest in Freemasonry and political philosophy, especially in Saint Simon’s school of social engineering and Auguste Comte’s new Religion of Humanity.[15] According to Keddie, although Malkam was nominally a Muslim of Christian descent, he was a “free-thinker” who worked to spread a “religion of humanity.”[16] In a letter to Blunt, Malkam wrote:

 

Perhaps it would interest you to hear of the story of a religion which was founded some years ago in Persia, and of which I was at one time the head. It will exemplify the manner in which religions are produced, and you will see that the doctrine of Humanity is one at least as congenial to Asia as to Europe… In Persia we every day produce “new Christs.” We have “sons of God” in every village, martyrs for their faith in every town. I have myself seen hundreds of Babis suffer death and torture for their belief in a prophet whose teachings were identical with those of Jesus Christ, and who, like him, was crucified... When I was a young man, I, too, as I told you, founded a religion which at one time numbered 30,000 devotees…. I went to Europe and studied there the religious, social and political systems of the West. I learned the spirit of the various sects of Christianity and the organization of the secret societies and freemasons, and I conceived a plan which should incorporate the political wisdom of Europe with the religious wisdom of Asia. I knew that it was useless to attempt a remodeling of Persia in European forms and I was determined to clothe my material formation in a garb which my people would understand: religion. I therefore on my return called together the chief persons of Tehran, my friends, and spoke to them in private of the need which Islam had of purer doctrine… They all found my reasoning good, and in a short time I had got together 30,000 followers under the name of a Reformation of Islam. I thus introduced what material reforms I could. To my doctrine is due the telegraph, the reorganisation of the administrative departments, and many another attempted improvement since gone to ruin. I had, however, no intention at the outset of founding a religion. The character of saint and prophet was forced on me by my followers. They gave me the title of “Holy Ghost,” and the Shah, that of “Reformer of Islam.” I wrote a book, a bible of my creed, and enthusiasts maintained that I worked miracles.[17]

 

During the rule of the Qajar dynasty, and especially after the defeat of Iran in the Russo-Persian War (1826–1828), cultural exchanges led to the formation of new ideas among the educated class. During this period, Iranian intellectuals looked to France, which became a base for Iranians to study and reside in, because it had not interfered in the developments in Iran and was a serious rival to British colonialism.[18] Familiarity with French was one of the requirements of the Iranian educated class, and French took the traditional place of Arabic as the specialized language of students. Almost all works of Western literature, philosophy and history were translated into Persian through French.[19] For this reason, many intellectual customs in Qajar Iran were inspired by the French, including the tradition of setting up salons. Secret societies were mostly formed in the homes of wealthy princes interested in science. In 1859, the works of Voltaire were first translated into Persian by of the freethinking prince, Jalal al-Din Mirza Qajar (1827 – 1872), and the son of Fath Ali Shah.[20]

 

Dar ul-Funun

 

Grand Vizier Amir Kabir is widely considered to be “Iran’s first reformer,” a modernizer who was “unjustly struck down” as he attempted to bring “gradual reform” to Iran.[21] Amir Kabir began to implement a wide range of reforms in Iran, including limiting the income of the Ulama and using it for state needs. In 1851, Amir Kabir established Dar ul-Funun, the first modern university in the country, and the arrival of foreign professors, introduced the thoughts of European thinkers. Amir Kabir ordered the recruitment of professors from Europe such as Jakob Eduard Polack (1818 – 1891) and Alfred Jean Baptiste Lemaire (1842 – 1907) in Iran and the beginning of their work at Dar ul-Funun brought Western science and culture to Iran.[22] Polack, who was born to a Jewish family in Bohemia, the heartland of the Sabbatean movement, played an important role in introducing modern medicine in Iran.[23] Also a Freemason, Lemaire is known for teaching in the music department of Dar ul-Funun and for composing the first Iranian national anthem at the request of Shah Nasser ad-Din.[24] However, when Amir Kabir’s policy caused opposition from the Ulama and court circles, Nasser ad-Din turned against him, and had him dismissed and soon executed on his orders in 1852.[25]

Malkam’s Faramosh Khaneh had no affiliation with a European order, nor was it recognized by any. However, all members had joined European lodges while traveling abroad.[26] The membership of a large number of Dar ul-Funun students in Malkam’s Faramosh Khaneh was an important achievement for the Masonic movement, which was aiming to dominate the country’s administration by attracting the elite.[27] According to one account, the Faramosh Khaneh was originally presented to Nasser ad-Din Shah as a means for securing the loyalty of the most important men in the realm, where the Shah himself was to serve as Grand Master, and his courtiers, ministers and generals were to be faithful to him by the Masonic oath. Leadership of the lodge was vested in Malkam’s father, Mirza Yaqfib, who was acquainted with several of the Qajar princes, in particular Masud Mirza Zill us-Sultan (1872 – 1907), and who had served as interpreter for both the Russian embassy in Tehran and the Iranian office of foreign affairs. Meetings were held at the house in Tehran of Jalal al-Din Mirza Qajar. Jalal al-Din, a “free-thinker,” corresponded for many with Mirza Fatali Akhundov (1812 – 1878), a famous playwright and atheist who shared his hatred of the Arabs and of Islam.[28]

Having won the attention of the Nasser ad-Din Shah, Malkam Khan drafted for the court a treatise which Blunt referred to as “a bible of [his] creed,” that came to be known as the Kitabcha-yi Ghaybi (“A booklet Inspired from the unseen world”), and alternatively as Daftar-i Tanzimat (“Book of Reform”).[29] Clearly inspired by the Tanzimat movement of the Ottoman Empire, the Daftar was one of the first systematic proposals for reform written in Iran. Malkam used the term Qanun for these laws, to differentiate them from both the religious laws (Sharia) and the existing state laws (‘Urf). These new laws, Malkam insisted, should be based on two fundamental principles: the improvement of public welfare and the equality of all citizens.[30] The progress of the Europeans, as explained in the narrative, is primarily due, not to their technological innovation, but to the “customs of their civilization.”[31] Europe’s advancement is due its development of two kinds of factories: one that produces goods, the other that produces men, where “they take in ignorant children and turn out engineers and accomplished thinkers.”[32] The activities of all these “factories” are coordinated by a marvelously efficient system of government which represents “the essence of all achievements of the human intellect.”[33] Unless Iran adopts the European governmental system, just as unquestioningly as it did the telegraph, it will require another three thousand years to evolve a desirable state of government.[34] When Malkam is interrupted in his story by an imaginary listener who objects that as the adoption of European laws would be oppose Ulama, Malkam replies that, on the contrary, if anyone in Iran is prone to understand the principles of European government, it is the Ulama.[35] The account ends with a dream where Malkam has a vision of the old system of anarchy being brought to an end, and “the whole land of Iran transformed into a rose garden, as if by magic.”[36] Comparing his own text to the Quran, Malkam dares to celebrates that all this had been accomplished from the miraculous influence of a book which was written neither in Arabic nor even in rhymed prose.[37]

However, the lodge was dissolved by royal decree on October 18, 1861.[38] Although Nasser ad-Din Shah had initially considered the lodge’s proposal and becoming its Grand Master, the religious Ulema denounced the concept of Qanun as Bid’ah (“heretical innovation”), and accused the lodge of having connections to the “atheistic republican” Freemasons of Europe.[39] Malkam was also accused of attempting to create unity between Muslims and non-Muslims: “They wish to establish peace among all religions, be they true or false.”[40] Consequently, Nasser ad-Din Shah banned the society, abandoned the Daftar-i Tanzimat, and exiled Malkam Khan to the Ottoman Empire in 1862. As noted by Algar, one potential factor for the Shah’s concern could have been in part due to suspicions of sympathies among the Faramosh Khaneh for Babism, particularly since the assassination attempt the Shah’s life by four Babis in 1852. As well, Malkam, in a curious pseudo-autobiographical statement delivered in London, demonstrated a certain fascination with the exceptional rise of Babism and attempted to identify himself implicitly with the movement.[41]

 


[1] Gobineau. Religions et philosophies, p. 274; Cited in D. M. MacEoin. “AZALI BABISM” Encyclopaedia Iranica, III/2, pp. 179-181 Retrieved from https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/azali-babism

[2] “FREEMASONRY ii. In the Qajar Period.” Encyclopedia Iranica. Retrieved from https://iranicaonline.org/articles/freemasonry-ii-in-the-qajar-period

[3] Ibid.

[4] Hamid Algar. “An Introduction to the History of Freemasonry in Iran.” Middle Eastern Studies, 6: 3 (October, 1970), p. 276.

[5] “FREEMASONRY ii. In the Qajar Period.” Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved from https://iranicaonline.org/articles/freemasonry-ii-in-the-qajar-period

[6] Algar. “An Introduction to the History of Freemasonry in Iran,” pp. 279–281.

[7] Ibid., p. 277.

[8] Musa Faqih Haqqani. “Freemasonry and Persian constitutional movement.” Resalat, 3, pp. 32–40.

[9] Algar. “An Introduction to the History of Freemasonry in Iran,” p. 277.

[10] Sayed Jalaluddin Madani. “French melody, a passage in the relations between Iran and France in the contemporary history of Iran.” Zamaneh Journal, 18, pp. 124–140.

[11] Mikhail Volodarsky. “Persia’s Foreign Policy between the Two Herat Crises, 1831-56.” Middle Eastern Studies, 21: 2 (1985), p. 134.

[12] Michael D. Biddiss. Father of Racist Ideology: The Social and Political Thought of Count Gobineau (Littlehampton Book Services Ltd, 1970), p. 182.

[13] Sayed Jalaluddin Madani. “French melody, a passage in the relations between Iran and France in the contemporary history of Iran.” Zamaneh Journal, 18, pp. 124–140.

[14] Fereydun Adamiyat. The Thought of Freedom and the Introduction to the Constitutional Movement (Tehran: Sokhan Publications, 1961), pp. 130–131.

[15] Ervand Abrahamian. “The Causes of the Constitutional Revolution in Iran.” International Journal of Middle East Studies, 10: 3 (Aug., 1979), p. 396.

[16] Cited in Kedourie. Afghani and ‘Abduh, p. 19.

[17] W. S. Blunt. Secret History of the English Occupation of Egypt (London, 1907), p. 82–84; cited in Hamid Algar. Mirza Malkum Khan (Berkley: University of California Press, 1973), p. 12.

[18] Sayed Jalaluddin Madani. “French melody, a passage in the relations between Iran and France in the contemporary history of Iran.” Zamaneh Journal, 18, pp. 124–140.

[19] Ibid., pp. 124–140.

[20] Karim Mujtahedi. “Voltaire’s historical reputation in Iran” (2004).

[21] Afshin Molavi. The Soul of Iran (Norton, 2005), p.195.

[22] Maryam Ekhtiar. “Nasir al-Din Shah and the Dar al-Funun: The Evolution of an Institution.” Iranian Studies, 34: ¼ (2001), p. 153–163.

[23] “POLAK, Jakob Eduard.” Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved from http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/polak-jakob-eduard

[24] R. Khaleghi. The story of Iranian music, Tehran, Iran: Mahoor Institute of Culture and Art (2002).

[25] Arabadzhyan. “Shiite clergy among Iranian Masons.”

[26] Mangol Baya. “Freemasonry and the Constitutional Revolution in Iran: 1905-1911” in Andreas Önnerfors & Dorothe Sommer (eds.). Freemasonry and Fraternalism in the Middle East (University of Sheffield, 2008), p. 116.

[27] Musa Faqih Haqqani. “Freemasonry and Persian constitutional movement.” Resalat, 3, pp. 32–40. Retrieved from https://web.archive.org/web/20200323095800/https://www.magiran.com/article/1169884

[28] Algar. “An Introduction to the History of Freemasonry in Iran,” pp. 279–281.

[29] Blunt. Secret History of the English Occupation of Egypt, p. 33 n. 71.

[30] Ervand Abrahamian. “The Causes of the Constitutional Revolution in Iran.” International Journal of Middle East Studies, 10: 3 (Aug., 1979), p. 396.

[31] Majmu’a-yi Athar, p. 10; Algar. Mirza Malkum Khan, p. 28.

[32] Ibid., pp. 10–11.

[33] Ibid., pp. 11–12.

[34] Ibid., pp. 12–13.

[35] Ibid., pp. 13–14.

[36] Ibid., pp. 52.

[37] Algar. Mirza Malkum Khan, p. 33.

[38] Ervand Abrahamian. Iran Between the Two Revolutions (Princeton University Press, 1982), p. 66.

[39] Algar. “An Introduction to the History of Freemasonry in Iran,” pp. 282.

[40] Baya. “Freemasonry and the Constitutional Revolution in Iran: 1905-1911,” p. 119.

[41] Algar. “An Introduction to the History of Freemasonry in Iran,” pp. 282.

Divide & Conquer