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March 5, 2007

Heydar Aliyev Foundation published the book `War and Our Historical Cultural Monuments`

Heydar Aliyev Foundation has realized one more philanthropic project towards the study and propaganda of our national and cultural values, distribution of realities on Azerbaijan all over the world. Next book published from series `Heydar Aliyev Foundation presents…` is titled `War and Our Historical Cultural Monuments` that has been developed with participation of famous scholars and specialists of the republic.

 

The book includes titles of historical cultural monuments, sanctuaries, mosques and temples within Azerbaijani territories under occupation and interesting and rich information on them. Surveys and events are underway towards enlarging that list, finding out sacred places and monuments destructed by Armenian occupants and assuring awareness of world community about facts of genocide against the culture and morality.

 

The book is opened with foreword by Mrs Mehriban Aliyeva, President of Heydar Aliyev Foundation, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, MP. In `Foreword` disclosing the essence of the publication in detail says: `People of Azerbaijan possesses the huge history of civilization. Our people that has specific place among the world nations for its historical traditions and high tangible and intangible values has not lost these values and protected up to this date despite severe trials it has undergone throughout the history. Our rich cultural heritage, pure historical origin, faith, strong belief, comprehensive mentality and open outlook on the entire humanity are one of superior qualities of our nation.

 

We are distinguished for one more quality that may arouse an envy of many. Tolerance not only concerning the faith but in all fields of the social consciousness, respect to other cultures is specific to us. There is no doubt that our national history is characterized for centuries with our religious faith, respect to the holy, care and love for the material and non-material monuments left to us by our ancestors. Attitude of every nation on its present and future is measured by its attitude on its history. It is very nice that after gaining its independence our nation obtained an opportunity to return once again to a number of issues the history tried to make forget.

 

One of these issues is protection and study of sacred places, abodes and sanctuaries that have played great role in our spiritual history. Those holy places are signs of wide expansion of Sufi orders in different periods of our history and selflessness of dervishes that were carriers of this ideological system. Dervish movement that had become wide socio-cultural institutions were propagating deep philosophic-poetic notions, clean and divine outlook. These persons traveling from country to country were also carriers of our national culture and mobile educators, faith patriots making the way to the integration of this culture into the Islamic civilization. Hundreds of masters of our ideological history, owners of word and wisdom have lifted the name of our nation high making contributions from these abodes to the treasure of the word of the world.

 

For people the sacred places have always been and are the place of moral purity, self-knowledge, in a word, perfection. Such sanctuaries are many in Azerbaijan.

 

But I would like to mention with regret that our holy sites in territories that are under occupation undergo the barbarian destruction that is nothing but vandalism violating all the international norms. We believe that the history itself will answer those reaching out for it.

 

I believe that this book presented to our respectable readers will become an interesting resource for every countryman`.