Meeting to determine the government system of Iran during the Achaemenid period

In 522 BC, the heads of the seven great Persian families killed Goumat Magh, who was sitting on the throne as Berdia, the son of Cyrus the Great, and returned the kingdom to Darius the Great and the Achaemenid dynasty..

During the meeting that followed, Hooten (Atans) He defended the system of democracy and spoke in condemnation of the government system of the kingdom. While confirming Hutton's criticisms of the monarchy, Megabiz defended the oligarchy. But Dariush defended the monarchy system, and because the opinion of four other people present in the meeting agreed with Dariush, the monarchy system was continued in Iran in the end..

To see the very impressive article of the Haft Yar uprising, go to the next article

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Haft Yar uprising

After Kamboja went to Egypt, Gaumat the usurper presented himself instead of Bardias, the son of Cyrus, and took the throne.. After taking the throne, he also took possession of all Cambodian women, one of these women was Fidmia, the daughter of Hoten, one of the most powerful nobles of Iran..

Hooten is a group of six (including himself) He formed Persian nobles whom he trusted in Susa, and upon the arrival of Darius from Pars, it was agreed that he should also be included in his group.. These seven people swore together to take action to repel the usurper.

Haft yaar became loyal to it

immediately attack the usurper and after performing the duty and praying for victory, they rushed to the palace. Finally, Goumat was killed in the palace by Darius and the story of the false Bardia rebellion ended (You can find a more complete description of this uprising under the title "The story of the seven Persian generals and the accession of Darius to the throne"Read in this blog).

Negotiations of seven generals about determining the type of government of Iran

Five days after Guomat was killed, the accomplices sat down to discuss their future actions in Susa. Theories were expressed in that meeting.

Hooten's words in support of the democratic government

The first speaker of Hooten (Atans) and the context of his statement was the preference to establish a democratic government in Iran, he said:

(It seems to me that the time has passed for one of us to be omnipotent and rule arbitrarily. The way and custom of tyrannical rule is neither pleasant nor good and you yourself know better how the increase of power and pride ruined Cambodia's work, and you saw the same situation in the period of Guomat Mugh by Al-Ain vote.. How is it possible to adapt this form of government to the rules of ethics and politics, in the same official way that only one person is powerful and independent, without any responsibility or supervision, to behave as he wishes? Even the most competent people, when they reach such a position and position, it is not unlikely that they will become a completely different existence, because such people at the peak of influence and authority will not see the state of affairs as before.. Some of the normal defects of arbitrary rulers are caused by envy and jealousy, and some others are the result of arrogance and pride.. Envy is because it is a weakness of human nature and pride is because ambition and infinite wealth cause this idea and deception that the mighty ruler will think himself superior to other people, and these two factors are the root of all kinds of corruption and lead to abusive behavior. will be. Every owner of absolute authority should be free from envy and jealousy as a rule, because he is able to do whatever he wants with his full powers, but as the situation of his subordinates shows, this is not the case.. He is jealous of the prominent and righteous elements of his realm because he only seeks his prominence and he is pleased with the behavior of humble people and it is for this reason that it is not more difficult to attract anyone's attention than to satisfy him.. However, a self-opinionated and tyrannical ruler does not have a stable behavior. If you respect and praise him to the extent that is appropriate and sufficient, he will be offended because he is not honored and praised more, and if you humble yourself too much, it will be interpreted as flattery and humility.. The other is that the arbitrary ruler weakens the foundations of traditions and old laws, executes innocent people, and makes women his means of torture, but the government of the people is exactly the opposite of that situation.. First of all, this form of government should be equality for all before the law. Secondly, when the people become rulers, the custom of the arbitrary ruler will disappear and the judges and judges will be elected by the votes of the people and will be responsible for their actions and opinions will be obeyed in all matters.. Therefore, I suggest that we abandon the monarchy and let the people have authority.)

Megabyz's words in support of oligarchy or multi-ton government

Megabiz said:

(I agree with what Hooten said about abandoning the Shahriari government. But his opinion about handing over the power of affairs in the hands of the common class is not correct. The masses of people are no more than a handful of people with no head, and no group is as oblivious to the importance of responsibility and prone to abuse and abuse as they are.. It is completely useless for us to relieve ourselves from the arbitrariness and freedom of a tyrannical ruler and then throw ourselves into the trap of unruly people, because the behavior and actions of an arbitrary ruler are at least similar to planning and thinking, but the actions of the common class are always useless and crude.. How can you expect goodness from those who are unaware of the value of those things. In the heads of ignorant and ordinary people, there is no thought at all. They are like the flood of a river that sweeps away everything in front of it, so I wish the democratic government would be given to the ill-wishers of Iran.. We should choose the best righteous people of this land and delegate the authority to them. It is obvious that we will also be among this category and there is no doubt that the decisions of the most competent people will be the best plans.)

Dariush's words in confirmation of the king's rule

Darius the third speaker said:

(I agree with all the points that Megabiz said about the common people, but I don't agree with his statements about Tenny's government.. Now we examine all three types of government, democracy, oligarchy, and monarchy, which we are interested in, and it is assumed that each of them is the best in its own way.. In my opinion, the third one is much better than the other two. How difficult it is to be in charge of one person, finding something better than that is conditioned by the fact that he is the most competent person to achieve that dignity and position, and his opinion and planning are equal to his character and behavior.. The power and supervision of such a person in the work of creation has undeniable benefits. In this type of government, secrets against the enemies of the homeland will be protected more than any other regime.

It is not possible in the custom of several people, in order to achieve brilliance and superiority in the field of national service, there should not be serious private differences between them.. Each of them will pursue the leadership position and only monitor the implementation of personal goals. Therefore, without a doubt, there will be duality and differences between them, and individual antagonisms will lead to open hostilities and eventually bloodshed, and saving from such a situation will lead to the rule of one person whether he wants it or not, which is a clear sign that the way of kingship is the best way and custom. It is rulership.

On the other hand, in the democratic government, ugliness will spread, but this promotion of corruption in government institutions will not only lead to individual enmities, but also to secret collusion between the interested parties, and those who are involved in the crimes will be tied together and mutually support each other. and this abnormal arrangement will continue until one person as a national hero suppresses the uprising and biased groups that only consider their own interests.. This victory of his will arouse the admiration and praise of the people and it will not take long for such an existence to become the total authority of the public, which is another clear evidence that the regime of the monarchy is unparalleled.. In short, to whom do we owe this freedom and who entrusted it to us?

Did we get it through democracy, or did we get it through the rule of the body, or is it the state heritage of the kingdom? This independence of ours is the blessing of one person, the great Cyrus. So I suggest that we keep the custom of the kingdom. In addition, it is very good to avoid changing and transforming the old standards that have become a means of good and benefits for us, otherwise we will face big problems.)

Four other people who did not mention anything confirmed Dariush's theories.

Scholars' opinion about Herodotus' narrative

Some contemporary researchers have doubted the possibility of such discussion and negotiation. It should be noted that what Herodotus quoted should not have been unfounded. These negotiations seem to reflect the realities of the age. The fact that some of Herodotus' compatriots doubted the authenticity and nature of these negotiations is because they loved those who were barbarians. (alien) They want to show that they are useless in familiarizing themselves with the issues related to democracy, oligarchy and monarchy, which have been the subject of discussion among the philosophers of the nation, and in this way, they call the Persians, whom they call their enemies, worthy of contempt..

References

1. Zarin Koob, Abdul Hossein. The days of Iran (Iran's ancient past) Tehran: Sokhon Publications, 1375

2. Zarin Koob, Abdul Hossein. History of Iranian people. Tehran: Amir Kabir Publications, 1364

3. Herodotus. Dates. Tehran: Publications of the Academy of Literature and Art of Iran, 1977

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