The 323rd Night of Memory -2

The Tears Guideline of the Martyr Chitsasians

Compiled: Oral History Website
Translated by: Fazel Shirzad

2021-6-15

Note: The 323rd Night of Memory program was held online on the Instagram of Art Centers’ Night of Memory on Thursday, 22nd of April in 2021. Hossein Behzadi was in charge of performing this program, in which Colonel "Ahmad Heidari" and Ms. "Zahra Panahi" shared their memories. The second guest of this Night of Memory was Mrs. Zahra Panahirava, the wife of martyr Ali Chitazian. She said: "The martyr of the Chitazian was present in the front for seven years and all his comrades have many memories of his bravery; on the other side of the coin is his personal life. On the day of their engagement ceremony, he came to our house with his mother, and in those years, due to the tradition of marriages, I was very embarrassed and I  put down my head; I didn’t saw his face enough. On the other hand, my uncle was one of his subordinates at that time, and when I mentioned his name as a suitor, he was surprised and showed me an album of his photos, and I could only see his face there."

The narrator continued by showing the first photo of martyr Chitsasian she had seen: "After conducting initial research and definitions that I heard from my uncle, I realized that although he was the operation intelligence commander of the 32nd Ansar al-Hussein Division, he is very humble. He had all the personalities I had in mind from my future husband, such as sincerity, faith, and commitment, as well as being the man of war and being a warrior; because I believed that the goal of this person should be divine and useful for religion and the system.

In any case, our wedding ceremony was held in our father's small house in Hamedan. I need to hold this ceremony with simplicity and without formalities, and I would like this marriage to be a model for today's youth. The longevity of a marriage is about how good and deep it is, not the luxuries of its ceremony."

Mrs. Panahi continued: "After we got married, we had a two-day trip to Qom with our uncle and his wife, during which I became more acquainted with the martyr Chitsazian. His sincerity, intimacy, simplicity and purity, and his relation to people and society were very important to me. After this trip, on April first, he returned to the front and stayed there for about 40 days. He was martyred in December 1987, and as a result of our marriage, it lasted about a year and eight months, and during this short time that we were together, it was his high personality that was reflected in the family. We were in Dezful for five or six months of our lives, and this closeness to him made me realize the attractiveness of his personality. I found martyr Chitsasian a very stubborn man who was trying to stay well and live well. He used to say: "During these seven years that I was in the front, my best friends were martyred and left me, and why should I remain. While his brother was in the front for four months, he was martyred five months earlier than him in 1987, and he was always upset about why I did not join many of my martyred comrades."

Martyr Chitsasian's wife continued: "He was never disappointed and still hoped for life. His courage, patience, perseverance, and sincerity, and his honesty towards his friends and comrades had a great impact on the formation of the personality and behavior of this great martyr; all of which were life lessons for me. He used to pray particularly which made me always pay attention when he was praying, and now, 34 years after the martyrdom of this great martyr, I try to pray like him. His influence on the formation of my character was so great that even now, when I talk about it, I am overwhelmed again."

The narrator continued her speech: "I collected many memories of my life related to one year and eight months with the martyr Chitsasians In the book entitled "Golestan 11". One of the cases mentioned in this book is related to the spring of 1987 and the time of our life in Dezful. Because I couldn’t have enough relation with my family during the operations, I realized that my family had moved from Hamedan to Dezful to see us. On the way, the comrades of the martyr Chitsasian informed him that my family was coming to Dezful. When they got close to the city, they lost their way due to the darkness and the sound of a red alert and they could not find the address. They told that we saw suddenly a car with a bright light moving towards us and we realized that the driver of that car was the martyr of Chitsasian. Given the situation in the city, he realized that my family might get lost, so he personally went to greet them and show them the way. Ali (martyr Chitsasian) cared a lot about his family, and although there was a long way from the war area to where we lived, he returned home to make my family and me happy; after a short time, went to the war area at that night. From this perspective that he had toward the family, it is possible to be a role model for the younger generation."

Mrs. Panahi continued: "On one of the nights when the martyrs of Chitsasian had returned from the area, he had secrets and needs in their prayers and cried a lot. The next morning, he explained to me that he had dreamed his deputy, martyr Mosayeb Majidi. Martyr Majidi was martyred before our marriage in Operation Valfajr 8 in Shalamcheh and was buried two days before our wedding. This great martyr emphasized the tears’ guideline and showed this guideline to the martyr of Chitsasian. Eventually, this supplication in his prayers and their upheaval and their sincere conversation with God and the same way of tears caused him to join many of his martyred friends."