Ustadh Sis (also spelled: Ustad Sis, or Ostad Sis, fa, استاد سیس) was a Persian heresiarch and anti- Arab rebel leader. They write that he was once a governor of

Khorasan Khorasan may refer to: * Greater Khorasan, a historical region which lies mostly in modern-day northern/northwestern Afghanistan, northeastern Iran, southern Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan * Khorasan Province, a pre-2004 province of Ira ...

and Alleged father to Ma'mūn’s Iranian mother, Marjil, which makes him Ma'mūn's grandfather. He claimed he was a prophet of God in the eastern fringe of

in the mid 8th century and managed to gain followers among the villagers in that area. Many were previously followers of

Bihafarid Behāfarīd (Middle Persian: ''Weh-āfrīd'', fa, به‌آفرید, also spelled ''Bihāfarīd'') was an 8th-century Persian Zoroastrian heresiarch who started a religious peasant revolt with elements from Zoroastrianism and Islam. He believed in ...

, whom the Abbasid commander,

Abu Muslim , image = Abu Muslim chastises a man for telling tales, Folio from the Ethics of Nasir (Akhlaq-e Nasiri) by Nasir al-Din Tusi (fol. 248r).jpg , caption = "Abu Muslim chastises a man for telling tales," Folio from the '' ...

, crushed militarily.

Reinvigoration of Bihafarid's movement

Ustadh Sis launched a rebellion in 767, purportedly with 300,000 fighting men. His initial base was the mountainous region of Badghis, and he soon occupied Herat and Sistan before marching towards Merv. He initially defeated an Abbasid army under the command of al-Ajtham of Merv, but was himself defeated in a bloody battle against an army led by Muhammad ibn Abdallah, the son of the Caliph al-Mansur (and a future Caliph himself). According to

al-Tabari ( ar, أبو جعفر محمد بن جرير بن يزيد الطبري), more commonly known as al-Ṭabarī (), was a Muslim historian and scholar from Amol, Tabaristan. Among the most prominent figures of the Islamic Golden Age, al-Tabari ...

, 70,000 of Ustadh Sis's followers were killed in the battle, and 14,000 were taken captive. Ustadh Sis managed to flee to the mountains, but the general Khazim ibn Khuzayma al-Tamimi followed him and was able to capture him. Ustadh Sis was sent in chains to Al-Mansur, who ordered his execution. Later, Al-Mahdi gave amnesty to 30,000 captives.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ustadh Sis Year of birth missing Year of death missing 8th-century Iranian people Iranian religious leaders Iranian prophets Rebels from the Abbasid Caliphate Khurasan under the Abbasid Caliphate 8th-century executions by the Abbasid Caliphate

Reinvigoration of Bihafarid's movement

See also

References