Persian Pilgrimages: Journeys Across Iran [Hardcover]

Afshin Molavi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2002

The truths about Iran—quite different truths from versions put forward by Washington, Tehran, and the media.

Afshin Molavi, a young journalist and writer born in Iran and educated in the West, traveled his homeland for more than a year, encountering every facet of Iranian society—students of the right and left, bazaar merchants, Islamic clerics, pro-democracy journalists, Islamic hard-liners, reformist politicians, grumbling taxi drivers, urban slum dwellers, partying teenagers, village farmers, handicapped war veterans, and kids hooked on anything western. All opened their hearts to him, speaking candidly about a wide range of issues: unemployment, politics, freedom, religion, poetry, history, the Internet, the legacy of the Islamic revolution, the current pro-democracy movement, Iran's relations with the West, and much more. Throughout his meetings and travels, Molavi wove the tale of nearly 3,000 years of Iranian history through pilgrimages to ancient and contemporary sites, shrines, and monuments, vividly explaining the relevance of Iran's past to today's Iranian predicament. The pilgrimages ranges from the tomb of Cyrus the Great on the windswept plains of Pasargad to the splendid rose gardens at the Shiraz shrine for the fourteenth-century poet Hafez, the golden domes of Ayatollah Khomeini's vast mausoleum in Tehran, a haunting war veterans' shrine for survivors of the devastating Iran-Iraq war near the border of Iraq, and the European embassy "visa pilgrimages" of college graduates frustrated by bleak job prospects and the social and political restrictions at home. Cutting through the official rhetoric of the Islamic Republic, Molavi adds much-needed context to its political power struggle and demonstrates that the realities of today's Iran are far more complex than if often understood in the West. Through interviews with courageous journalists, students, and pro-democracy advocates who battle an entrenched conservative ruling class unwilling to accommodate popular opinion and numerous conversations with average Iranians frustrated by their deteriorating economy and the conservative stranglehold on power, Molavi chronicles a land and a people hungry for change. Few books have penetrated the soul of Iran—both past and present—as deeply as this exceptional report on one of the world's most important nations. Persian Pilgrimages is a journey to remember. "A rare and important work that examines Iranian society from a grassroots, human level while offering a taste of the grand sweep of Iranian history. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in contemporary Iran." —R. K. Ramazani, professor emeritus of politics, University of Virginia. 12 pages of illustrations and map

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Journalist Molavi begins the chronicle of his year-long journey through a land in perpetual turmoil by saying, "This is a book about Iran and Iranians." In the midst of America's war on terrorism and as America is faced with the very real possibility of a second war with Iraq, this is a timely read. Reflective and at times deeply personal, Molavi, who was born in Iran and now lives in Washington, D.C., poignantly reveals Iran and its history through the voices of the people he interviewed, including merchants, students, feminists, traditionalists, children and revolutionaries, as they speak on such subjects as poetry, campus politics, personal appearance, democracy, religion, war and the West. In addition to his descriptions of landmarks and monuments, Molavi makes comparisons to other writings on Iran. He takes readers much further beyond the scope of magazine and newspaper articles, leading them through his own discovery of his homeland. In the end, he leaves Iran a conflicted man, weighed down by his new knowledge of the people and himself. "Surely, it would not be the last time I visited Iran, but somehow, I felt melancholy.... Had I seen everything I needed to see? Had I talked to enough people? What was this sense of loss I felt?" Not only a portrait of a country and people, this is also a personal journey into a man's past and his future.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Iranian American journalist Molavi spent approximately one year (1999-2000) living in Teheran and exploring the country that his family had left more than 20 years before. As he traveled the well-known cities (Isfahan, Tabriz, Khoramshahr) two decades after the revolution, he simultaneously explored the rich historical and cultural past of his roots. Molavi discovers two schisms in the popular consciousness, the first between the pre-Islamic Persian Empire dating from 500 B.C.E. and the current Islamic Iran, the second between a genuine devotion to Islam in the street and a concurrent wish for a green card or visa to a Western country. Cities with historical or cultural significance give him a springboard to discuss Persian poetry, the greatness of Persia, and more recent history and its effects. Unlike Elaine Sciolino's Persian Mirrors, which summarizes her experiences reporting from Iran for over 20 years and many visits, this account is total immersion. Both paint a warm and positive picture of a people and a place that have recently been portrayed in the news as the "axis of evil" and as always hostile to the West. Suitable for public libraries. Marcia L. Sprules, Council on Foreign Relations Lib., New York
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company; First Edition edition (October 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393051196
• ISBN-13: 978-0393051193
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,005,630 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #36 in Books > Travel > Middle East > Iran

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Extraordinary Journey Through Iran Today & Persia Yesterday, June 20, 2004

By 

Jana L. Perskie "ceruleana" (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Persian Pilgrimages: Journeys Across Iran (Hardcover)

Many years ago I lived in Iran. My husband and I, both Americans, worked there for an NGO, (Nongovernmental Agency), and were able to travel throughout the country. Our daughter was born there and when we left Iran, I left a piece of my heart behind. I recently came across Afshin Molavi's "Persian Pilgrimages: Journeys Across Iran" in a bookstore, and I couldn't resist buying it. After reading the book I must say that it truly brought back so many visual images, unique experiences and memories of Iranian friends, their extraordinary hospitality and culture, and the political turmoil that existed - even back then. I feel like the author has given me a greater understanding of the land I learned to love. He has also updated me on how the country and its people have changed over the years...and how they have remained the same.

Afshin Molavi, a young journalist and writer, was born in Iran and educated in the West. He returned to his homeland for a year, (1999-2000), to explore the many facets of Iranian society. Molavi states at the beginning of the book that his intent is to record the voices of Iranians, no matter what their politics may be. He traveled throughout the country, visiting many of the cities and towns that I knew, on a pilgrimage of sorts. Students of the right and left, bazaar merchants, Islamic clerics, pro-democracy journalists, taxi drivers, urban slum dwellers, village farmers, war veterans, partying teenagers, feminists, women who are pro and anti-veil (chador), political hard-liners and reformers all spoke openly and frankly to him and all have a voice in this wonderful journalistic-anthropological-travelogue.

Molavi weaves a story of nearly 3000 years of Persian/Iranian history and reflects on Iran's present problems in light of its past. He takes us to the tomb of Cyrus the Great in Pasargad and to the exquisite rose gardens of the poet Hafez's shrine in Shiraz. We visit a shrine to Iran-Iraq War veterans and the Ayatollah Khomeini's mausoleum. A fascinating portrait of everyday life emerges from Iranians who sometimes hold diametrically opposing views. Molavi's Iranian heritage and knowledge have allowed him to penetrate the culture as no foreigner could. His Western background gives him the distance to report objectively.

This book is a gem. I found it to be extremely well written, more informative than most books of this kind, and deeply moving at times. Highly recommended!
JANA

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant! Poetic, poignant, and charming. I loved it!, October 9, 2002

By 

Julia E. Tock (Washington DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Persian Pilgrimages: Journeys Across Iran (Hardcover)

I have not read a better written book on Iranian history, culture, and politics. Molavi is brilliant in the way he weaves through Iranian history while at the same time telling the story of contemporary Iran through his interactions with the people. It is at once witty, hopeful, heartbreaking, and charming, but thoroughly entertaining throughout.

I casually came across the title in the book store one morning and by evening I had finished it! For those interested in a fascinating culture and country, I highly highly recommend this. Simply put, Persian Pilgrimages is one of the best books I've read in years!

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superbly written, profound and insightful., December 27, 2002

By 

Lee Mincy (ALAMEDA, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Persian Pilgrimages: Journeys Across Iran (Hardcover)

For those considering books on Iran, I can say with utmost sincerity that having read nearly every book on Iran this past decade--from Sandra Mackey to Sciolino to Robin Wright to Bahrampour, etc--that Afshin Molavi's book takes top prize. This is not to take anything away from the others--they were all finely written and had their own value and charm. Persian Pilgrimages, is however, in a class by itself. It combines a broad survey of Iranian history as well as the most accurate account I've read on the happenings in contemporary Iran. Molavi's prose is very eloquent, he combines great writing with a great sense of humor as well as sense of humanity.

I highly recommend this book. It is truly an intimate encounter with one of the world's most fascinating countries and cultures.