Preface

Foreword and Biography of the Author
May 3, 2016
Moulana Sayyid Abu al-Hasan `Ali al-Husayni Nadwi’s Opinion Regarding the Book and the Author
May 3, 2016

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Ayat-e Bayyinat

 

وَ قُلْ جَآءَ الْحَقُّ وَ زَهَقَ الْبَاطِلُؕ اِنَّ الْبَاطِلَ کَانَ زَهُوْقًا

And say: “Truth has come, and falsehood has departed. Indeed falsehood, [by nature], is ever bound to depart.”[1]

 

Part 1

Nawab Muhsin al Mulk Sayed Muhammad Mahdi ‘Ali Khan

 

Preface

The publication of Ayat-e Bayyinat is the manifestation of my long-standing hope. This is the benevolent book which rescued me from falling into the dark abyss of deviation. In the beginning of the holidays of the 20th century, Shia dogmas and ideologies plagued my mind. In fact, the truth is that in those days I was externally a Sunni, but internally a Shia. There were many factors that made me incline towards Shi’ism. However, two factors were extremely instrumental, viz. my household environment and my Shia friends.

My family elders were somewhat devout and ascetic, but due to their gullibility and love for ignorant sufi folks, they were unknowingly the victim of adulterated Sunni beliefs. There was the custom of reciting the Shahadah Scroll and practicing Ta’ziyah in my home, just as was the popular custom in Awadh. I was brought up in this environment. I myself was and am today extremely emotionally affected by the painful martyrdom of Sayyidina Hussain radiya Llahu ‘anhu — which happened at the hands of a group of Muslims.

May Allah forgive me, for I harboured evil thoughts about Sayyidina Muawiyah radiya Llahu ‘anhu and wicked words regarding him would come out from my mouth. The Shia gained courage from this ill-behaviour of mine and found a fertile land; hence they planted the seed and began watering it. In those days, one lawyer from Jarwal — the district of Bahraich in Lucknow — who was known as Khatib al Iman, was widely renowned and accepted by a certain group of Shia; due to his refutation of the Ahlus Sunnah and his verbose speeches. On one side, my Shia friends began taking me to his gatherings, and on the other side they supplied me with material like Khurshid Khawar, Shab Hay Pesha and tons of such controversial books to read. Since I was ignorant of the fundamental differences between Shia and Sunni — such as Imamah, Tahrif al Qur’an[2] and reviling the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum — I was emotionally captivated by the bombastic speeches of the Shia lecturers and affected by their philosophical scrutiny and logical proofs regarding the incident of Karbala, thus falling into further deviation due to the emotional dogmas of love for the Ahlul Bayt. Such a time came wherein I made preparations to announce my acceptance of Shi’ism. However, Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala had something else planned for me as my reformation was decreed at the hands of a sufi elder.

The incident goes thus that my family was deeply affected by Sayed Muhammad Nur al Hassan Shah ‘Urf Achumiya — a sufi elder from Sandila, Hardoi — who we would call Dada Miya and whom my family would consult in important affairs. When he came to my house one day, I reluctantly divulged my intention to him in secret. There was an exchange of words for a while. Then after attentively listening to me he said: “It looks like you have only attended Shia gatherings and read their books which have left a devastating effect on your heart and mind. Changing your creed is no ordinary thing. Before taking this huge step, read the books of the Ahlus Sunnah on this subject and then ponder and reflect deeply over these two sects and judge according to your conclusion thereof.” I suggested that maybe such books of the Ahlus Sunnah are very rare since the only books that have crossed my sight are regarding Rasulullah’s salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam sirah, the pious and fiqh. He gave me a puzzled look and remarked: “You did not find them or you never made an effort to look for them? To claim this while living in Lucknow is bemusing. Lucknow is the heart of Shia – Sunni polemics. Molana ‘Abdush Sakur Kakorwi has done extensive work in this field especially regarding the Shia belief of Tahrif al Qur’an, concerning which he has written fabulous books. Had you made an effort, you would have certainly stumbled upon his books.” I said: “Molana, he is a scholar with Wahhabi Deobandi ideologies. Why should we read his books?” He retorted: “What does Deobandism and Barelwism have to do with Shia – Sunni polemics? Both of us accept the al Khulafa’ al Rashidin as rightful and deserving khulafa’, and both of us honour and revere the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum of Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Hence, we both are responsible in answering the allegations of the Shia in this regard. I myself have read a number of Molana ‘Abdush Sakur’s books. Shabbu Miya is one of my father’s disciples in Sandila who has a strong passion for Shia – Shia polemics. He has a library of books in this field. I will mention you to him when I go to Sandila after 8-10 days and I will send some books for you with someone who is coming this way. After reading those books, come to Sandila. I will arrange a meeting with him for you.”

About 15-20 days after this conversation, a friend of mine came with a stack of books and a letter which read:

 

I have sent you 7 books, viz. Ayat-e Bayyinat, Nasihat al Shia, Tanbih al Ha’irin, Abu al A’immah ki Ta’lim, Qissah Qirtas ka Kufr Shikan Faysla, Qatilan Hussain ka Khana Talashi and Munazarah Amruha. Read the books in the sequence I have penned them. Make a point to read Ayat-e Bayyinat very carefully since such an ‘alim has written this book who was previously a Shia and after pondering over the doctrines and laws of both sects became a Sunni. If your heart is still not yet satisfied after reading these books, then refer to Molana ‘Abdush Sakur or come to me if you like. I will arrange a meeting with Shabbu Miya for you.

 

I began studying Ayat-e Bayyinat. As I paged through the book, the passages of my mind lit up. I felt as if I was in an abyss of darkness all this time. Then, I studied the other books as well. It was a great misfortune for me that during the period that I was studying these books, Molana ‘Abdush Sakur rahimahu Llah passed away and the desire to meet him remained in my heart. Nonetheless, I had the opportunity to sit in the company of his successor, the Imam of the Ahlus Sunnah, Molana ‘Abdul Salam al Faruqi and Molana ‘Abdul Awwal al Faruqi from whom I received guidance and direction.

In those days, I had the thought that just as I was the victim of Shi’ism, many servants of Allah who sit in the company of the Shia are becoming Shia or half Shia due to their ignorance of this corrupt creed. Hence, books such as Ayat-e Bayyinat and Nasihat al Shia ought to be published and propagated on a large scale. When I mentioned to Molana ‘Abdul Awwal rahimahu Llah that Ayat-e Bayyinat has not been published in India since 1934 and that I have the intention of publishing it, he became extremely happy and directed me to translate the Persian texts therein. I also expressed my desire to translate it myself. Unfortunately, I was inundated with business work and notwithstanding the persistence of Molana; I was unable to complete this task. Time passed on and these two scholars left this world to meet Allah. I was in utter despair that maybe I will never be able to complete this mammoth task but Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala intended to take work from a sinful person like me. Two years ago, my friends Doctor Habib Fikri — previously a lecturer on Arab culture in Lucknow University — and Muhammad Yaqub Mantu gave me such courage that I prepared myself for this take notwithstanding my inability, incompetence and lack of means. The thought of translation hit me. Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala had destined this honour for Molana ‘Abdul Sami’ al Qasimi — a lecturer at Dar al Muballighin Lucknow. May Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala reward him abundantly for he expertly completed this work without any remuneration.

With regards to the publication of the book, I consulted Molana ‘Abdul ‘Alim al Faruqi who enriched me with his remarkable advises and lent a supporting hand to me. Molana did not hesitate in providing assistance whether financial or editorial whenever the need arose.

Although I tried to be brief, much time has been taken. Nevertheless, a few points need to be penned for the readers of this book. Molana Muhammad Manzur Nu’mani rahimahu Llah has written Irani Inqilab[3] Imam Khumayni awr Shi’iyyat, where he describes the Shia creed and the beliefs and ideologies of Imam Khomeini. On page 198 under the heading, Faruq A’zam’s day of martyrdom; the greatest festival, the most heinous example of fabrication against Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, he has reproduced a narration from Zad al Ma’ad of Majlisi where he determines the 9th of Rabi’ al Awwal to be Sayyidina ‘Umar’s radiya Llahu ‘anhu day of martyrdom extolling shocking virtues of this day. He further has declared this day as the greatest festival for the Shia. Sayed Muhammad Hamdani — a Shia mujtahid from Kashmir — has written a response to Molana Nu’mani’s book titled A’ina Hidayat. The legitimacy and worth of this response is questionable, but this is not the place to criticise it. Anyways, it is important to point out a deceit of his.

He displays much deceit and dishonesty in his response to this narration on page 396 of his book but has not commented about the presence or absence of this narration in Majlisi’s book. He spoke such a blatant lie which is only befitting for the taqiyyah monger Shia. He writes addressing Molana No’mani:

 

You should realise that the Shia celebrate the 9th of Rabi’ al Awwal as the birthday of Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.

 

The Shia should themselves decide as to whether they celebrate this day as the birthday of Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam or the festival of Zahra’. Hamdani has absolutely no shame to speak such a blatant lie in his old age.

 

کعبہ کس منہ سے جاؤگے غالب شرم تم کو مگر نہیں آتی

Ghalib! What face will you show by the Ka’bah?

You have absolutely no shame!

 

In order to make the readers aware, it is imperative that I state: Nowadays the Shia are continuing their old despicable habit of adulterating textual evidence. Recently in Pakistan, Muhammad Hassan Jafari has translated Majalis al Mu’minin of Qadi Nur Allah Shostari, which Akbar Hussain Jiwani Trust has published. Jafari has omitted all those texts wherein Qadi has acknowledged the marriage of Sayyidah Umm Kulthum bint ‘Ali to Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhuma. Similarly, in the Urdu translation of Sulaim ibn Qais al Hilali’s book, all those texts have been removed where the author admits to Sayyidina ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu pledging allegiance at the hands of Sayyidina Abu Bakr radiya Llahu ‘anhu.

A man with deficient knowledge such as me has stumbled over these discrepancies in the Shia books with a mere cursory glance. If the scholars were to scrutinise them, they will find hundreds if not thousands of such discrepancies.

The first time this book was published and distributed was in 1870 (1286 A.H) in Mirzapur when the author was 33 years old. The second print of the first chapter concerning the virtues of the Sahabah was published by Mustafa’i Printers Lucknow in 1884 (1301 A.H) concerning which Molana Mujib Allah rahimahu Llah composed this couplet:

 

از فیض طبع مہدی دین المعی عصر مطبوع شد رسالہ بے مثل و لا جواب

نام کتاب و نیز سن طبع اے مجیب آیات بینات رقم ساز با کتاب

From the grace of the contemporary academic printers, an unprecedented and unanswerable book has been published.

The book’s name and the year of publication, O Mujib is Ayat-e Bayyinat, the code number of the book.

(Ayat (875) + Bayyinat (426) = 1301 A.H)

 

Thereafter Mustafa’i Printers published the second chapter concerning the virtues of the Sahabah in 1887 (1304 A.H) as well as the second chapter regarding Fadak in 1898 (1315 A.H). The third edition of the first chapter concerning the virtues of the Sahabah was published in January 1934 (1353 A.H) on the request of Hafiz Ma’sum ‘Ali rahimahu Llah by United Press Lucknow to keep the name of the author alive. After Pakistan was made, many editions of it were printed there. However, India did not print it for a long time. Now after 72 years, Idarah Isha’at-e Haq is acquiring the privilege of publishing it.

I am indebted to all those who have assisted at whatever level in the publication of this book. I feel it my obligation to specially thank Molana Anwar al Haq al Qasimi — a teacher at Dar al Muballighin Lucknow — who helped tremendously in researching and locating the references of the Shia books. May Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala reward all these sincere and loving people abundantly and make this book a means of the guidance of all the misguided. Amin!

 

The dust of the feet of the Sahabah and Ahlul Bayt radiya Llahu ‘anhum

 

Sheikh Muhammad Firasat

7 December 2006

 

NEXT⇒ Foreword and Biography of the Author


[1]  Surah Bani Isra’il: 81

[2]  Adulterating verses of the Qur’an

[3]  The Iranian Revolution

BACK⇒ Return to Table of contents

 

Ayat-e Bayyinat

 

وَ قُلْ جَآءَ الْحَقُّ وَ زَهَقَ الْبَاطِلُؕ اِنَّ الْبَاطِلَ کَانَ زَهُوْقًا

And say: “Truth has come, and falsehood has departed. Indeed falsehood, [by nature], is ever bound to depart.”[1]

 

Part 1

Nawab Muhsin al Mulk Sayed Muhammad Mahdi ‘Ali Khan

 

Preface

The publication of Ayat-e Bayyinat is the manifestation of my long-standing hope. This is the benevolent book which rescued me from falling into the dark abyss of deviation. In the beginning of the holidays of the 20th century, Shia dogmas and ideologies plagued my mind. In fact, the truth is that in those days I was externally a Sunni, but internally a Shia. There were many factors that made me incline towards Shi’ism. However, two factors were extremely instrumental, viz. my household environment and my Shia friends.

My family elders were somewhat devout and ascetic, but due to their gullibility and love for ignorant sufi folks, they were unknowingly the victim of adulterated Sunni beliefs. There was the custom of reciting the Shahadah Scroll and practicing Ta’ziyah in my home, just as was the popular custom in Awadh. I was brought up in this environment. I myself was and am today extremely emotionally affected by the painful martyrdom of Sayyidina Hussain radiya Llahu ‘anhu — which happened at the hands of a group of Muslims.

May Allah forgive me, for I harboured evil thoughts about Sayyidina Muawiyah radiya Llahu ‘anhu and wicked words regarding him would come out from my mouth. The Shia gained courage from this ill-behaviour of mine and found a fertile land; hence they planted the seed and began watering it. In those days, one lawyer from Jarwal — the district of Bahraich in Lucknow — who was known as Khatib al Iman, was widely renowned and accepted by a certain group of Shia; due to his refutation of the Ahlus Sunnah and his verbose speeches. On one side, my Shia friends began taking me to his gatherings, and on the other side they supplied me with material like Khurshid Khawar, Shab Hay Pesha and tons of such controversial books to read. Since I was ignorant of the fundamental differences between Shia and Sunni — such as Imamah, Tahrif al Qur’an[2] and reviling the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum — I was emotionally captivated by the bombastic speeches of the Shia lecturers and affected by their philosophical scrutiny and logical proofs regarding the incident of Karbala, thus falling into further deviation due to the emotional dogmas of love for the Ahlul Bayt. Such a time came wherein I made preparations to announce my acceptance of Shi’ism. However, Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala had something else planned for me as my reformation was decreed at the hands of a sufi elder.

The incident goes thus that my family was deeply affected by Sayed Muhammad Nur al Hassan Shah ‘Urf Achumiya — a sufi elder from Sandila, Hardoi — who we would call Dada Miya and whom my family would consult in important affairs. When he came to my house one day, I reluctantly divulged my intention to him in secret. There was an exchange of words for a while. Then after attentively listening to me he said: “It looks like you have only attended Shia gatherings and read their books which have left a devastating effect on your heart and mind. Changing your creed is no ordinary thing. Before taking this huge step, read the books of the Ahlus Sunnah on this subject and then ponder and reflect deeply over these two sects and judge according to your conclusion thereof.” I suggested that maybe such books of the Ahlus Sunnah are very rare since the only books that have crossed my sight are regarding Rasulullah’s salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam sirah, the pious and fiqh. He gave me a puzzled look and remarked: “You did not find them or you never made an effort to look for them? To claim this while living in Lucknow is bemusing. Lucknow is the heart of Shia – Sunni polemics. Molana ‘Abdush Sakur Kakorwi has done extensive work in this field especially regarding the Shia belief of Tahrif al Qur’an, concerning which he has written fabulous books. Had you made an effort, you would have certainly stumbled upon his books.” I said: “Molana, he is a scholar with Wahhabi Deobandi ideologies. Why should we read his books?” He retorted: “What does Deobandism and Barelwism have to do with Shia – Sunni polemics? Both of us accept the al Khulafa’ al Rashidin as rightful and deserving khulafa’, and both of us honour and revere the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum of Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Hence, we both are responsible in answering the allegations of the Shia in this regard. I myself have read a number of Molana ‘Abdush Sakur’s books. Shabbu Miya is one of my father’s disciples in Sandila who has a strong passion for Shia – Shia polemics. He has a library of books in this field. I will mention you to him when I go to Sandila after 8-10 days and I will send some books for you with someone who is coming this way. After reading those books, come to Sandila. I will arrange a meeting with him for you.”

About 15-20 days after this conversation, a friend of mine came with a stack of books and a letter which read:

 

I have sent you 7 books, viz. Ayat-e Bayyinat, Nasihat al Shia, Tanbih al Ha’irin, Abu al A’immah ki Ta’lim, Qissah Qirtas ka Kufr Shikan Faysla, Qatilan Hussain ka Khana Talashi and Munazarah Amruha. Read the books in the sequence I have penned them. Make a point to read Ayat-e Bayyinat very carefully since such an ‘alim has written this book who was previously a Shia and after pondering over the doctrines and laws of both sects became a Sunni. If your heart is still not yet satisfied after reading these books, then refer to Molana ‘Abdush Sakur or come to me if you like. I will arrange a meeting with Shabbu Miya for you.

 

I began studying Ayat-e Bayyinat. As I paged through the book, the passages of my mind lit up. I felt as if I was in an abyss of darkness all this time. Then, I studied the other books as well. It was a great misfortune for me that during the period that I was studying these books, Molana ‘Abdush Sakur rahimahu Llah passed away and the desire to meet him remained in my heart. Nonetheless, I had the opportunity to sit in the company of his successor, the Imam of the Ahlus Sunnah, Molana ‘Abdul Salam al Faruqi and Molana ‘Abdul Awwal al Faruqi from whom I received guidance and direction.

In those days, I had the thought that just as I was the victim of Shi’ism, many servants of Allah who sit in the company of the Shia are becoming Shia or half Shia due to their ignorance of this corrupt creed. Hence, books such as Ayat-e Bayyinat and Nasihat al Shia ought to be published and propagated on a large scale. When I mentioned to Molana ‘Abdul Awwal rahimahu Llah that Ayat-e Bayyinat has not been published in India since 1934 and that I have the intention of publishing it, he became extremely happy and directed me to translate the Persian texts therein. I also expressed my desire to translate it myself. Unfortunately, I was inundated with business work and notwithstanding the persistence of Molana; I was unable to complete this task. Time passed on and these two scholars left this world to meet Allah. I was in utter despair that maybe I will never be able to complete this mammoth task but Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala intended to take work from a sinful person like me. Two years ago, my friends Doctor Habib Fikri — previously a lecturer on Arab culture in Lucknow University — and Muhammad Yaqub Mantu gave me such courage that I prepared myself for this take notwithstanding my inability, incompetence and lack of means. The thought of translation hit me. Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala had destined this honour for Molana ‘Abdul Sami’ al Qasimi — a lecturer at Dar al Muballighin Lucknow. May Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala reward him abundantly for he expertly completed this work without any remuneration.

With regards to the publication of the book, I consulted Molana ‘Abdul ‘Alim al Faruqi who enriched me with his remarkable advises and lent a supporting hand to me. Molana did not hesitate in providing assistance whether financial or editorial whenever the need arose.

Although I tried to be brief, much time has been taken. Nevertheless, a few points need to be penned for the readers of this book. Molana Muhammad Manzur Nu’mani rahimahu Llah has written Irani Inqilab[3] Imam Khumayni awr Shi’iyyat, where he describes the Shia creed and the beliefs and ideologies of Imam Khomeini. On page 198 under the heading, Faruq A’zam’s day of martyrdom; the greatest festival, the most heinous example of fabrication against Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, he has reproduced a narration from Zad al Ma’ad of Majlisi where he determines the 9th of Rabi’ al Awwal to be Sayyidina ‘Umar’s radiya Llahu ‘anhu day of martyrdom extolling shocking virtues of this day. He further has declared this day as the greatest festival for the Shia. Sayed Muhammad Hamdani — a Shia mujtahid from Kashmir — has written a response to Molana Nu’mani’s book titled A’ina Hidayat. The legitimacy and worth of this response is questionable, but this is not the place to criticise it. Anyways, it is important to point out a deceit of his.

He displays much deceit and dishonesty in his response to this narration on page 396 of his book but has not commented about the presence or absence of this narration in Majlisi’s book. He spoke such a blatant lie which is only befitting for the taqiyyah monger Shia. He writes addressing Molana No’mani:

 

You should realise that the Shia celebrate the 9th of Rabi’ al Awwal as the birthday of Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.

 

The Shia should themselves decide as to whether they celebrate this day as the birthday of Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam or the festival of Zahra’. Hamdani has absolutely no shame to speak such a blatant lie in his old age.

 

کعبہ کس منہ سے جاؤگے غالب شرم تم کو مگر نہیں آتی

Ghalib! What face will you show by the Ka’bah?

You have absolutely no shame!

 

In order to make the readers aware, it is imperative that I state: Nowadays the Shia are continuing their old despicable habit of adulterating textual evidence. Recently in Pakistan, Muhammad Hassan Jafari has translated Majalis al Mu’minin of Qadi Nur Allah Shostari, which Akbar Hussain Jiwani Trust has published. Jafari has omitted all those texts wherein Qadi has acknowledged the marriage of Sayyidah Umm Kulthum bint ‘Ali to Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhuma. Similarly, in the Urdu translation of Sulaim ibn Qais al Hilali’s book, all those texts have been removed where the author admits to Sayyidina ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu pledging allegiance at the hands of Sayyidina Abu Bakr radiya Llahu ‘anhu.

A man with deficient knowledge such as me has stumbled over these discrepancies in the Shia books with a mere cursory glance. If the scholars were to scrutinise them, they will find hundreds if not thousands of such discrepancies.

The first time this book was published and distributed was in 1870 (1286 A.H) in Mirzapur when the author was 33 years old. The second print of the first chapter concerning the virtues of the Sahabah was published by Mustafa’i Printers Lucknow in 1884 (1301 A.H) concerning which Molana Mujib Allah rahimahu Llah composed this couplet:

 

از فیض طبع مہدی دین المعی عصر مطبوع شد رسالہ بے مثل و لا جواب

نام کتاب و نیز سن طبع اے مجیب آیات بینات رقم ساز با کتاب

From the grace of the contemporary academic printers, an unprecedented and unanswerable book has been published.

The book’s name and the year of publication, O Mujib is Ayat-e Bayyinat, the code number of the book.

(Ayat (875) + Bayyinat (426) = 1301 A.H)

 

Thereafter Mustafa’i Printers published the second chapter concerning the virtues of the Sahabah in 1887 (1304 A.H) as well as the second chapter regarding Fadak in 1898 (1315 A.H). The third edition of the first chapter concerning the virtues of the Sahabah was published in January 1934 (1353 A.H) on the request of Hafiz Ma’sum ‘Ali rahimahu Llah by United Press Lucknow to keep the name of the author alive. After Pakistan was made, many editions of it were printed there. However, India did not print it for a long time. Now after 72 years, Idarah Isha’at-e Haq is acquiring the privilege of publishing it.

I am indebted to all those who have assisted at whatever level in the publication of this book. I feel it my obligation to specially thank Molana Anwar al Haq al Qasimi — a teacher at Dar al Muballighin Lucknow — who helped tremendously in researching and locating the references of the Shia books. May Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala reward all these sincere and loving people abundantly and make this book a means of the guidance of all the misguided. Amin!

 

The dust of the feet of the Sahabah and Ahlul Bayt radiya Llahu ‘anhum

 

Sheikh Muhammad Firasat

7 December 2006

 

NEXT⇒ Foreword and Biography of the Author


[1]  Surah Bani Isra’il: 81

[2]  Adulterating verses of the Qur’an

[3]  The Iranian Revolution