A huge rock pinnacle in the Alamut Valley is the setting chosen by the Assassin cult's founder, Hassan-i Sabah, as his headquarters in a fight against a host of perceived enemies. The rock is too large for the castle to be seen at this scale. Photo by Newsha Tavolakian.
Did you know that the notorious Assassin cult originated in Iran? Their founder’s headquarters and the valley from which they operated for almost two hundred years is not far from Tehran. I was surprised to hear that archaeological research was going on there, so I made a point of visiting Alamut, the fortress castle of Hassan-i Sabbah, as my first stop outside Tehran.
The Assassin Cult, a name that may be derived from the Arabic “hashashin,” meaning hashish user, is surrounded in mystery and legend. This is in part because they were secretive, but also because the historical record we have of their activities is written from many different and conflicting perspectives. One of the best known of these, and probably least accurate, is that of Marco Polo. He is supposed to have visited Alamut in 1273, seventeen years after it was destroyed by the Mongols. The Mongols, under Hulagu Khan, grandson of Genghis, had proceeded from Alamut to sack Baghdad in 1258 and Damascus in 1260.
Marco Polo passed on a story about an “Old Man” luring young men to his castle and plying them into a stupor and three day sleep with hashish. When they awoke, they found themselves in a contrived paradise of wine, women, and song. The Old Man would then tell the young men that they could enjoy such a paradise permanently if they became assassins and died as martyrs.
The fortress at Alamut was woven into natural rock. Numerous caves, pits (used as cisterns), and tunnels suggest how the place was used to withstand seiges. It is said that the fortress ultimately fell to the Mongols because of an outbreak of cholera. Photo by Newsha Tavolakian.
Alamut is one of the most impressive settings for a fortress that I have ever seen. It sits 200 meters above the valley floor atop a rock so big that it makes the ruins of the castle on top look like the work of ants. Hassan-I Sabbah only lived here from 1094 to 1124, but the setting shows why it is no wonder that his followers were able to hold onto this place for so long. From the vantage point of the castle one can see the surrounding valley for miles. An invading army would first have to take a long trudge from the valley floor up to the rock. The side of the rock facing the valley is virtually vertical. An army would have to climb further, around back, where the big rock is less precipitous. With fortifications the back side would have been as daunting as the front.
When I visited Alamut, I met Hamedei Chubai, an archaeologist and director of excavations there. She had been working there for about five years and had established, from what I could tell, a very professional operation. There was an immaculate headquarters building with plenty of space for labs and visitors. A number of Iranian archaeologists and students were involved in research there.
Chubai accompanied me to the excavations on top of the rock. I saw that the whole top of the rock was covered in ruins. Chubai explained that after Hassan-i Sabbah’s castle was destroyed in 1256, others came and rebuilt. She took me down a ladder into rooms that ancient architects had built into a hole in the rock or on a ledge. She showed me how the brick workmanship of the lowest archaeological layer was superior to that of later times. This, she said, was the palace of Hassan-i Sabbah. He probably received visitors in that very room.
Dr. Hamedei Chubai isn't shy about her respect for Hassan-i Sabbah. She is shown here at the project headquarters with artifacts that may help her sort the truth from the fiction about the Assassins. Photo by Newsha Tavolakian.
Chubai doesn’t buy the hashish and paradise stories about Hassan-i Sabbah. “Really, I think he was a religious man, he was very insistent on his idea of rescuing Iran and the world from the oppressions of kings.” The religion she refers to is Isma’ili, a branch of the Shi’a community of Islam. Hassan-i Sabbah apparently identified himself as an imam with authority to pronounce new teachings to his sect that justified assassination as a religious duty. Among the kings Hassan-i Sabbah fought were the Abassid Caliphs of Baghdad and the Seljuk Turks who were occupying Persia at the time. She went on to explain how he was a very learned man, familiar with medicine, chemistry, and astronomy. He had an interest in educating others and most likely behaved as a strict role model. “I think this was the center of resistence for Iranian culture,” she said. For that reason, she says, Hassan-i Sabbah is famous in Iran, if not a hero.
It is interesting how someone can appear as a hero in one culture and a villain in another. There are obvious parallels today. This is part of what makes the story of the Assassin cult fascinating. It is a complex piece of the complex political and religious dynamics of the time. It involves the Caliphate of Baghdad, the Seljuk Turks, the Fatimid rulers of Cairo, Saladin (who suffered two Assassin attacks), and even the Crusaders, who the Assassins frequently saw as allies.
What do you think? Was Hassan-I Sabbah a hero or a villain?
My Shot
Daily Dozen
Voting Machine
Puzzles
Desktop Wallpaper
Buy NG Photos
Special Issues
Comments
Aug 20, 2008 8PM #
Your article is very interesting. I enjoyed it a lot. As for the question (hero or villain), the answer lies in one's perspective just like you wrote: "...a hero in one culture and a villain in another."
Aug 20, 2008 8PM #
It's really tricky to choose whether Hassan-i-Sabbah is a villian or a hero. As you've said, historical records were written from many different and conflicting perspectives. So it's really unfair to deem him as a villain based on current and western perception.
Aug 20, 2008 8PM #
I'ts all a matter of perspective. If you're looking from a westerner's point of view, you would probably say that he was a villain, the matter being that assasination is frowned upon in this day and age. But looking back at the times, their way of life and so on, and judging that in their minds and hearts they were trying to win Iran back. I can see how he would have been deemed a hero.
Aug 20, 2008 8PM #
I found this article really interesting, especially that Marco Polo could be linked in all this! For me, I would label Hassan-i Sabbah a villian because killing and labeling it a religious duty is wrong. I mean why would God have the commandment "thou shall not kill" then call people to kill others? I'm probably just simplifying the matter, but that's my opinion. Obviously people in different parts of the world think otherwise. You said stories about Hassam-i Sabbah varied depending on the different perspectives so the truth of Hassam's life could've been altered throughout the years.
Aug 20, 2008 8PM #
All of the comments so far are very thoughtful. The only thing I would add to previous comments is that I don't think it is "people in different parts of the world" whose opinions differ on the subject of killing so much as the justifications countries and individuals within various countries make as to why their rulers and/or their armies are on the attacking and killing end. For example: "Well, so and so (fill in the name of the enemy of the hour) was a cruel despot so he or she deserves to have been taken down by our good guys." Sadly, it never ends, and despite what the Bible says, there have been wars and crusades since recorded history that involved killing in the name of God in order to spread the "right" way of thinking.
Aug 20, 2008 8PM #
I am studying archaeology at Manchester university and have decided to write my dissertation on the assassins and whether there is any archaeological evidence for their use of hashish, as well as studying what the archaeological evidence can tell us of their role as assassins. I came across your article while searching and was wondering if as you have been to the site there was any chance you could offer me any advice or help? Would be greatly appreciated, please contact me on my email if you can, Pete
Aug 20, 2008 8PM #
Blogs are good for every one where we get lots of information for any topics nice job keep it up !!!
________________________
http://www.dissertation-help.co.uk/
Aug 20, 2008 8PM #
Hassan-I Sabbah was a true hero Muslim. I really appreciate his works. Please people I beg of you and please do not say negative thing about him and his people while you are not aware of truth about him. He was one of the humble Muslim brother in Islam.
Aug 20, 2008 8PM #
Sabah was definitely a hero. He righteously defended his learned refuge against the corrupt marauding orthodoxies that threatened on all sides. The Crusaders even had to cut deals with him because they recognized his superior ability.
The western story of hashish-intoxicated assassins is plainly ridiculous once one familiarizes oneself with what is known about Sabah in central Asia. No doubt he did have some hashish around as it was quite common for centuries, and no doubt he had some enemies killed - you would too if they were seroius enemies - governments have people killed all the time today, and yet nobody here is sure if HE was a villain? More total ignorance of history outside western borders.
Western ethnocentric tall tales from the Crusades through Marco Polo created the false western idea of the Ismaili "zombie maniac assassin" in the west. Sabah's actual fedayeen were likely no less moral or clear-headed than your "special forces", "seals" or other death squads are today. They are there to go in and take out the really threatening individuals and they do a good job if they are highly trained. The fact that Sabbah was doing this to protect a repository of advanced scholarship makes the Crusaders and the corrupt Caliphate arrayed against him the barbarian villains. There is simply no comparison. Sabah was known to be of very high moral character, unlike the Crusaders who wiped out all learning and tortured thousands of innocent people to death in their immoral, murderous and futile path to ultimate failure.
If not for such repositories of learning in the East, the west would still be in the Dark Ages. The information contained in libraries such as Alamut literally created the western renaissance; but Crusades, then as now, do nothing of social value except develop more horrifying weapons and sanctify murder WITHOUT a valid reason.
Aug 20, 2008 8PM #
You use the misleading phrase "percieved enemies". Every story I've read about Alamut relates strongly that the enemies were real. So how did you reckon them as "percieved"? Sounds like you're subtly impugning supposed motives of which there is admittedly no valid evidence, only evidence to the contrary. Good work! That's the kind of slight we have come to expect from western ethnocentrists. How's your Farsi and your Arabic? Fluent no doubt.
Aug 20, 2008 8PM #
Interesting to read the comments of many about what did or did not take place so long ago.
I have visited one such site located about 250 miles south of Tehran, very close to Esfahan (Isfahan). This castle is almost entirely crumbled but enough to see how much of a fortress it must have been. (of course it may be worse now as that was 30 years ago. The mountain top was about 1500 ft with little to no trails which made for a difficult climb. I do have pictures of this site and would be happy to share if I knew the right people were interested. I also have loacated it on Google earth. A final note to this,Why the argument as to wether or not the Assassins were true and just? as well the site I have been to proves there were more than one such group of people. ?
Post a Comment