[Script Info]
Title: 
[Events]
Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text
Dialogue: 0,0:00:00.00,0:00:02.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The things we make
Dialogue: 0,0:00:02.00,0:00:05.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,have one supreme quality --
Dialogue: 0,0:00:05.00,0:00:07.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they live longer than us.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:07.00,0:00:09.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We perish, they survive;
Dialogue: 0,0:00:09.00,0:00:12.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we have one life, they have many lives,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:12.00,0:00:15.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and in each life they can mean different things.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:15.00,0:00:18.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Which means that, while we all have one biography,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:18.00,0:00:20.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they have many.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:20.00,0:00:22.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I want this morning to talk
Dialogue: 0,0:00:22.00,0:00:25.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about the story, the biography -- or rather the biographies --
Dialogue: 0,0:00:25.00,0:00:28.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of one particular object,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:28.00,0:00:30.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,one remarkable thing.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:30.00,0:00:32.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It doesn't, I agree,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:32.00,0:00:34.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,look very much.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:34.00,0:00:37.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's about the size of a rugby ball.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:37.00,0:00:39.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's made of clay,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:39.00,0:00:41.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and it's been fashioned
Dialogue: 0,0:00:41.00,0:00:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,into a cylinder shape,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:44.00,0:00:46.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,covered with close writing
Dialogue: 0,0:00:46.00,0:00:49.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and then baked dry in the sun.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:49.00,0:00:51.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And as you can see,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:51.00,0:00:53.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it's been knocked about a bit,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:53.00,0:00:55.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which is not surprising
Dialogue: 0,0:00:55.00,0:00:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because it was made two and a half thousand years ago
Dialogue: 0,0:00:58.00,0:01:00.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and was dug up
Dialogue: 0,0:01:00.00,0:01:02.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in 1879.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:02.00,0:01:04.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But today,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:04.00,0:01:06.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,this thing is, I believe,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:06.00,0:01:08.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a major player
Dialogue: 0,0:01:08.00,0:01:10.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the politics of the Middle East.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:10.00,0:01:12.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it's an object
Dialogue: 0,0:01:12.00,0:01:14.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with fascinating stories
Dialogue: 0,0:01:14.00,0:01:18.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and stories that are by no means over yet.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:18.00,0:01:20.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The story begins
Dialogue: 0,0:01:20.00,0:01:24.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the Iran-Iraq war
Dialogue: 0,0:01:24.00,0:01:26.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and that series of events
Dialogue: 0,0:01:26.00,0:01:28.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that culminated
Dialogue: 0,0:01:28.00,0:01:30.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the invasion of Iraq
Dialogue: 0,0:01:30.00,0:01:32.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by foreign forces,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:32.00,0:01:34.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the removal of a despotic ruler
Dialogue: 0,0:01:34.00,0:01:37.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and instant regime change.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:37.00,0:01:39.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I want to begin
Dialogue: 0,0:01:39.00,0:01:41.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with one episode from that sequence of events
Dialogue: 0,0:01:41.00,0:01:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that most of you would be very familiar with,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:44.00,0:01:46.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Belshazzar's feast --
Dialogue: 0,0:01:46.00,0:01:48.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because we're talking about the Iran-Iraq war
Dialogue: 0,0:01:48.00,0:01:51.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of 539 BC.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:51.00,0:01:53.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the parallels
Dialogue: 0,0:01:53.00,0:01:55.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,between the events
Dialogue: 0,0:01:55.00,0:01:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of 539 BC and 2003 and in between
Dialogue: 0,0:01:58.00,0:02:00.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,are startling.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:00.00,0:02:02.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What you're looking at is Rembrandt's painting,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:02.00,0:02:04.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,now in the National Gallery in London,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:04.00,0:02:06.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,illustrating the text from the prophet Daniel
Dialogue: 0,0:02:06.00,0:02:09.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the Hebrew scriptures.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:09.00,0:02:11.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And you all know roughly the story.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:11.00,0:02:14.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Belshazzar, the son of Nebuchadnezzar,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:14.00,0:02:17.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Nebuchadnezzar who'd conquered Israel, sacked Jerusalem
Dialogue: 0,0:02:17.00,0:02:19.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and captured the people
Dialogue: 0,0:02:19.00,0:02:21.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and taken the Jews back to Babylon.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:21.00,0:02:24.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Not only the Jews, he'd taken the temple vessels.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:24.00,0:02:27.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,He'd ransacked, desecrated the temple.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:27.00,0:02:30.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the great gold vessels of the temple in Jerusalem
Dialogue: 0,0:02:30.00,0:02:33.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,had been taken to Babylon.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:33.00,0:02:35.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Belshazzar, his son,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:35.00,0:02:37.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,decides to have a feast.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:37.00,0:02:39.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And in order to make it even more exciting,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:39.00,0:02:42.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,he added a bit of sacrilege to the rest of the fun,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:42.00,0:02:45.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and he brings out the temple vessels.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:45.00,0:02:48.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,He's already at war with the Iranians,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:48.00,0:02:50.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with the king of Persia.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:50.00,0:02:53.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And that night, Daniel tells us,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:53.00,0:02:55.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,at the height of the festivities
Dialogue: 0,0:02:55.00,0:02:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a hand appeared and wrote on the wall,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:58.00,0:03:01.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"You are weighed in the balance and found wanting,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:01.00,0:03:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and your kingdom is handed over
Dialogue: 0,0:03:03.00,0:03:05.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to the Medes and the Persians."
Dialogue: 0,0:03:05.00,0:03:07.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And that very night
Dialogue: 0,0:03:07.00,0:03:11.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Cyrus, king of the Persians, entered Babylon
Dialogue: 0,0:03:11.00,0:03:16.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the whole regime of Belshazzar fell.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:16.00,0:03:18.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It is, of course, a great moment
Dialogue: 0,0:03:18.00,0:03:20.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the history
Dialogue: 0,0:03:20.00,0:03:22.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of the Jewish people.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:22.00,0:03:24.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's a great story. It's story we all know.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:24.00,0:03:26.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"The writing on the wall"
Dialogue: 0,0:03:26.00,0:03:29.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is part of our everyday language.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:29.00,0:03:31.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What happened next
Dialogue: 0,0:03:31.00,0:03:33.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was remarkable,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:33.00,0:03:35.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and it's where our cylinder
Dialogue: 0,0:03:35.00,0:03:37.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,enters the story.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:37.00,0:03:39.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Cyrus, king of the Persians,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:39.00,0:03:41.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,has entered Babylon without a fight --
Dialogue: 0,0:03:41.00,0:03:43.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the great empire of Babylon,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:43.00,0:03:45.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which ran from central southern Iraq
Dialogue: 0,0:03:45.00,0:03:47.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to the Mediterranean,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:47.00,0:03:49.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,falls to Cyrus.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:49.00,0:03:53.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And Cyrus makes a declaration.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:53.00,0:03:56.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And that is what this cylinder is,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:56.00,0:03:59.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the declaration made by the ruler guided by God
Dialogue: 0,0:03:59.00,0:04:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who had toppled the Iraqi despot
Dialogue: 0,0:04:03.00,0:04:05.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and was going to bring freedom to the people.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:05.00,0:04:07.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In ringing Babylonian --
Dialogue: 0,0:04:07.00,0:04:09.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it was written in Babylonian --
Dialogue: 0,0:04:09.00,0:04:12.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,he says, "I am Cyrus, king of all the universe,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:12.00,0:04:14.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the great king, the powerful king,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:14.00,0:04:18.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,king of Babylon, king of the four quarters of the world."
Dialogue: 0,0:04:18.00,0:04:21.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They're not shy of hyperbole as you can see.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:21.00,0:04:23.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is probably
Dialogue: 0,0:04:23.00,0:04:25.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the first real press release
Dialogue: 0,0:04:25.00,0:04:27.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by a victorious army
Dialogue: 0,0:04:27.00,0:04:29.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that we've got.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:29.00,0:04:31.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it's written, as we'll see in due course,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:31.00,0:04:34.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by very skilled P.R. consultants.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:34.00,0:04:37.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So the hyperbole is not actually surprising.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:37.00,0:04:39.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And what is the great king, the powerful king,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:39.00,0:04:42.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the king of the four quarters of the world going to do?
Dialogue: 0,0:04:42.00,0:04:45.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,He goes on to say that, having conquered Babylon,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:45.00,0:04:48.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,he will at once let all the peoples
Dialogue: 0,0:04:48.00,0:04:50.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that the Babylonians -- Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar --
Dialogue: 0,0:04:50.00,0:04:52.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,have captured and enslaved
Dialogue: 0,0:04:52.00,0:04:54.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,go free.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:54.00,0:04:56.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,He'll let them return to their countries.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:56.00,0:04:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And more important,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:58.00,0:05:00.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,he will let them all recover
Dialogue: 0,0:05:00.00,0:05:02.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the gods, the statues,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:02.00,0:05:04.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the temple vessels
Dialogue: 0,0:05:04.00,0:05:06.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that had been confiscated.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:06.00,0:05:09.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,All the peoples that the Babylonians had repressed and removed
Dialogue: 0,0:05:09.00,0:05:11.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,will go home,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:11.00,0:05:14.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and they'll take with them their gods.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:14.00,0:05:17.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And they'll be able to restore their altars
Dialogue: 0,0:05:17.00,0:05:19.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and to worship their gods
Dialogue: 0,0:05:19.00,0:05:22.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in their own way, in their own place.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:22.00,0:05:24.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is the decree,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:24.00,0:05:27.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,this object is the evidence
Dialogue: 0,0:05:27.00,0:05:29.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for the fact that the Jews,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:29.00,0:05:31.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,after the exile in Babylon,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:31.00,0:05:34.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the years they'd spent sitting by the waters of Babylon,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:34.00,0:05:37.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,weeping when they remembered Jerusalem,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:37.00,0:05:40.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,those Jews were allowed to go home.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:40.00,0:05:42.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They were allowed to return to Jerusalem
Dialogue: 0,0:05:42.00,0:05:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and to rebuild the temple.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:44.00,0:05:46.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's a central document
Dialogue: 0,0:05:46.00,0:05:48.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in Jewish history.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:48.00,0:05:52.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the Book of Chronicles, the Book of Ezra in the Hebrew scriptures
Dialogue: 0,0:05:52.00,0:05:54.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,reported in ringing terms.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:54.00,0:05:56.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is the Jewish version
Dialogue: 0,0:05:56.00,0:05:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of the same story.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:58.00,0:06:00.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Thus said Cyrus, king of Persia,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:00.00,0:06:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,'All the kingdoms of the earth have the Lord God of heaven given thee,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:03.00,0:06:05.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and he has charged me
Dialogue: 0,0:06:05.00,0:06:07.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to build him a house in Jerusalem.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:07.00,0:06:09.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Who is there among you of his people?
Dialogue: 0,0:06:09.00,0:06:11.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The Lord God be with him,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:11.00,0:06:14.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and let him go up.'"
Dialogue: 0,0:06:14.00,0:06:16.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Go up" -- aaleh.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:16.00,0:06:19.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The central element, still,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:19.00,0:06:21.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of the notion of return,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:21.00,0:06:23.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a central part
Dialogue: 0,0:06:23.00,0:06:25.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of the life of Judaism.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:25.00,0:06:27.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,As you all know, that return from exile,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:27.00,0:06:29.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the second temple,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:29.00,0:06:31.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,reshaped Judaism.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:31.00,0:06:33.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And that change,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:33.00,0:06:35.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that great historic moment,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:35.00,0:06:39.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was made possible by Cyrus, the king of Persia,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:39.00,0:06:42.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,reported for us in Hebrew in scripture
Dialogue: 0,0:06:42.00,0:06:45.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and in Babylonian in clay.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:45.00,0:06:47.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Two great texts,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:47.00,0:06:49.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,what about the politics?
Dialogue: 0,0:06:49.00,0:06:51.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What was going on
Dialogue: 0,0:06:51.00,0:06:54.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was the fundamental shift in Middle Eastern history.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:54.00,0:06:57.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The empire of Iran, the Medes and the Persians,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:57.00,0:06:59.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,united under Cyrus,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:59.00,0:07:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,became the first great world empire.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:03.00,0:07:06.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Cyrus begins in the 530s BC.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:06.00,0:07:10.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And by the time of his son Darius,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:10.00,0:07:13.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the whole of the eastern Mediterranean
Dialogue: 0,0:07:13.00,0:07:15.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is under Persian control.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:15.00,0:07:17.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This empire is, in fact,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:17.00,0:07:19.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the Middle East as we now know it,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:19.00,0:07:22.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and it's what shapes the Middle East as we now know it.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:22.00,0:07:24.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It was the largest empire the world had known until then.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:24.00,0:07:26.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Much more important,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:26.00,0:07:28.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it was the first
Dialogue: 0,0:07:28.00,0:07:30.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,multicultural, multifaith state
Dialogue: 0,0:07:30.00,0:07:32.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,on a huge scale.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:32.00,0:07:34.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it had to be run in a quite new way.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:34.00,0:07:36.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It had to be run in different languages.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:36.00,0:07:39.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The fact that this decree is in Babylonian says one thing.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:39.00,0:07:41.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it had to recognize their different habits,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:41.00,0:07:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,different peoples, different religions, different faiths.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:44.00,0:07:47.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,All of those are respected by Cyrus.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:47.00,0:07:49.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Cyrus sets up a model
Dialogue: 0,0:07:49.00,0:07:51.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of how you run
Dialogue: 0,0:07:51.00,0:07:56.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a great multinational, multifaith, multicultural society.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:56.00,0:07:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the result of that
Dialogue: 0,0:07:58.00,0:08:01.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was an empire that included the areas you see on the screen,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:01.00,0:08:04.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and which survived for 200 years of stability
Dialogue: 0,0:08:04.00,0:08:07.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,until it was shattered by Alexander.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:07.00,0:08:09.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It left a dream of the Middle East as a unit,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:09.00,0:08:11.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and a unit where people of different faiths
Dialogue: 0,0:08:11.00,0:08:13.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,could live together.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:13.00,0:08:15.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The Greek invasions ended that.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:15.00,0:08:18.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And of course, Alexander couldn't sustain a government
Dialogue: 0,0:08:18.00,0:08:20.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and it fragmented.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:20.00,0:08:22.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But what Cyrus represented
Dialogue: 0,0:08:22.00,0:08:24.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,remained absolutely central.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:24.00,0:08:27.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The Greek historian Xenophon
Dialogue: 0,0:08:27.00,0:08:29.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,wrote his book "Cyropaedia"
Dialogue: 0,0:08:29.00,0:08:31.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,promoting Cyrus as the great ruler.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:31.00,0:08:34.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And throughout European culture afterward,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:34.00,0:08:37.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Cyrus remained the model.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:37.00,0:08:39.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is a 16th century image
Dialogue: 0,0:08:39.00,0:08:41.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to show you how widespread
Dialogue: 0,0:08:41.00,0:08:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,his veneration actually was.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:44.00,0:08:46.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And Xenophon's book on Cyrus
Dialogue: 0,0:08:46.00,0:08:49.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,on how you ran a diverse society
Dialogue: 0,0:08:49.00,0:08:51.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was one of the great textbooks
Dialogue: 0,0:08:51.00,0:08:53.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that inspired the Founding Fathers
Dialogue: 0,0:08:53.00,0:08:55.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of the American Revolution.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:55.00,0:08:57.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Jefferson was a great admirer --
Dialogue: 0,0:08:57.00,0:08:59.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the ideals of Cyrus
Dialogue: 0,0:08:59.00,0:09:01.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,obviously speaking to those 18th century ideals
Dialogue: 0,0:09:01.00,0:09:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of how you create religious tolerance
Dialogue: 0,0:09:03.00,0:09:06.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in a new state.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:08.00,0:09:10.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Meanwhile, back in Babylon,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:10.00,0:09:12.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,things had not been going well.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:12.00,0:09:15.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,After Alexander, the other empires,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:15.00,0:09:18.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Babylon declines, falls into ruins,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:18.00,0:09:22.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and all the traces of the great Babylonian empire are lost --
Dialogue: 0,0:09:22.00,0:09:24.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,until 1879
Dialogue: 0,0:09:24.00,0:09:27.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when the cylinder is discovered
Dialogue: 0,0:09:27.00,0:09:30.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by a British Museum exhibition digging in Babylon.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:30.00,0:09:33.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it enters now another story.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:33.00,0:09:35.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It enters that great debate
Dialogue: 0,0:09:35.00,0:09:37.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the middle of the 19th century:
Dialogue: 0,0:09:37.00,0:09:40.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Are the scriptures reliable? Can we trust them?
Dialogue: 0,0:09:40.00,0:09:42.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We only knew
Dialogue: 0,0:09:42.00,0:09:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about the return of the Jews and the decree of Cyrus
Dialogue: 0,0:09:44.00,0:09:46.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from the Hebrew scriptures.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:46.00,0:09:48.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,No other evidence.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:48.00,0:09:50.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Suddenly, this appeared.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:50.00,0:09:52.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And great excitement
Dialogue: 0,0:09:52.00,0:09:54.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to a world where those who believed in the scriptures
Dialogue: 0,0:09:54.00,0:09:56.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,had had their faith in creation shaken
Dialogue: 0,0:09:56.00,0:09:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by evolution, by geology,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:58.00,0:10:00.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,here was evidence
Dialogue: 0,0:10:00.00,0:10:02.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that the scriptures were historically true.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:02.00,0:10:05.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's a great 19th century moment.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:05.00,0:10:10.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But -- and this, of course, is where it becomes complicated --
Dialogue: 0,0:10:10.00,0:10:12.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the facts were true,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:12.00,0:10:15.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,hurrah for archeology,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:15.00,0:10:18.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but the interpretation was rather more complicated.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:18.00,0:10:21.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Because the cylinder account and the Hebrew Bible account
Dialogue: 0,0:10:21.00,0:10:23.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,differ in one key respect.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:23.00,0:10:25.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The Babylonian cylinder
Dialogue: 0,0:10:25.00,0:10:27.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is written by the priests
Dialogue: 0,0:10:27.00,0:10:29.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of the great god of Bablyon, Marduk.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:29.00,0:10:31.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And, not surprisingly,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:31.00,0:10:33.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they tell you that all this was done by Marduk.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:33.00,0:10:36.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Marduk, we hold, called Cyrus by his name."
Dialogue: 0,0:10:36.00,0:10:39.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Marduk takes Cyrus by the hand,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:39.00,0:10:41.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,calls him to shepherd his people
Dialogue: 0,0:10:41.00,0:10:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and gives him the rule of Babylon.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:44.00,0:10:46.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Marduk tells Cyrus
Dialogue: 0,0:10:46.00,0:10:48.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that he will do these great, generous things
Dialogue: 0,0:10:48.00,0:10:50.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of setting the people free.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:50.00,0:10:52.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And this is why we should all be grateful to
Dialogue: 0,0:10:52.00,0:10:54.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and worship Marduk.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:54.00,0:10:56.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The Hebrew writers
Dialogue: 0,0:10:56.00,0:10:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the Old Testament,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:58.00,0:11:01.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you will not be surprised to learn,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:01.00,0:11:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,take a rather different view of this.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:03.00,0:11:05.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For them, of course, it can't possibly by Marduk
Dialogue: 0,0:11:05.00,0:11:07.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that made all this happen.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:07.00,0:11:09.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It can only be Jehovah.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:09.00,0:11:11.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And so in Isaiah,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:11.00,0:11:13.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we have the wonderful texts
Dialogue: 0,0:11:13.00,0:11:15.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,giving all the credit of this,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:15.00,0:11:16.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,not to Marduk
Dialogue: 0,0:11:16.00,0:11:19.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but to the Lord God of Israel --
Dialogue: 0,0:11:19.00,0:11:21.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the Lord God of Israel
Dialogue: 0,0:11:21.00,0:11:23.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who also called Cyrus by name,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:23.00,0:11:26.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,also takes Cyrus by the hand
Dialogue: 0,0:11:26.00,0:11:28.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and talks of him shepherding his people.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:28.00,0:11:30.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's a remarkable example
Dialogue: 0,0:11:30.00,0:11:34.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of two different priestly appropriations of the same event,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:34.00,0:11:36.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,two different religious takeovers
Dialogue: 0,0:11:36.00,0:11:38.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of a political fact.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:38.00,0:11:40.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,God, we know,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:40.00,0:11:42.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is usually on the side of the big battalions.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:42.00,0:11:45.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The question is, which god was it?
Dialogue: 0,0:11:45.00,0:11:47.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the debate unsettles
Dialogue: 0,0:11:47.00,0:11:49.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,everybody in the 19th century
Dialogue: 0,0:11:49.00,0:11:51.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to realize that the Hebrew scriptures
Dialogue: 0,0:11:51.00,0:11:54.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,are part of a much wider world of religion.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:54.00,0:11:56.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it's quite clear
Dialogue: 0,0:11:56.00,0:11:59.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the cylinder is older than the text of Isaiah,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:59.00,0:12:01.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and yet, Jehovah is speaking
Dialogue: 0,0:12:01.00,0:12:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in words very similar
Dialogue: 0,0:12:03.00,0:12:05.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to those used by Marduk.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:05.00,0:12:08.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And there's a slight sense that Isaiah knows this,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:08.00,0:12:10.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because he says,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:10.00,0:12:13.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,this is God speaking, of course,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:13.00,0:12:15.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"I have called thee by thy name
Dialogue: 0,0:12:15.00,0:12:17.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,though thou hast not known me."
Dialogue: 0,0:12:17.00,0:12:19.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I think it's recognized
Dialogue: 0,0:12:19.00,0:12:21.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that Cyrus doesn't realize
Dialogue: 0,0:12:21.00,0:12:24.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that he's acting under orders from Jehovah.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:24.00,0:12:27.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And equally, he'd have been surprised that he was acting under orders from Marduk.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:27.00,0:12:29.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Because interestingly, of course,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:29.00,0:12:31.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Cyrus is a good Iranian
Dialogue: 0,0:12:31.00,0:12:33.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with a totally different set of gods
Dialogue: 0,0:12:33.00,0:12:35.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who are not mentioned in any of these texts.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:35.00,0:12:37.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter)
Dialogue: 0,0:12:37.00,0:12:39.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That's 1879.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:39.00,0:12:41.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,40 years on
Dialogue: 0,0:12:41.00,0:12:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and we're in 1917,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:44.00,0:12:46.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the cylinder enters a different world.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:46.00,0:12:48.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This time, the real politics
Dialogue: 0,0:12:48.00,0:12:50.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of the contemporary world --
Dialogue: 0,0:12:50.00,0:12:53.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the year of the Balfour Declaration,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:53.00,0:12:56.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the year when the new imperial power in the Middle East, Britain,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:56.00,0:12:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,decides that it will declare
Dialogue: 0,0:12:58.00,0:13:00.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a Jewish national home,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:00.00,0:13:02.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it will allow
Dialogue: 0,0:13:02.00,0:13:04.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the Jews to return.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:04.00,0:13:06.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the response to this
Dialogue: 0,0:13:06.00,0:13:09.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by the Jewish population in Eastern Europe is rhapsodic.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:09.00,0:13:11.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And across Eastern Europe,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:11.00,0:13:13.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Jews display pictures of Cyrus
Dialogue: 0,0:13:13.00,0:13:15.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and of George V
Dialogue: 0,0:13:15.00,0:13:17.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,side by side --
Dialogue: 0,0:13:17.00,0:13:19.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the two great rulers
Dialogue: 0,0:13:19.00,0:13:22.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who have allowed the return to Jerusalem.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:22.00,0:13:25.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the Cyrus cylinder comes back into public view
Dialogue: 0,0:13:25.00,0:13:27.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the text of this
Dialogue: 0,0:13:27.00,0:13:30.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as a demonstration of why what is going to happen
Dialogue: 0,0:13:30.00,0:13:33.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,after the war is over in 1918
Dialogue: 0,0:13:33.00,0:13:36.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is part of a divine plan.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:36.00,0:13:38.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You all know what happened.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:38.00,0:13:41.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The state of Israel is setup,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:41.00,0:13:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and 50 years later, in the late 60s,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:44.00,0:13:47.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it's clear that Britain's role as the imperial power is over.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:47.00,0:13:50.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And another story of the cylinder begins.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:50.00,0:13:52.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The region, the U.K. and the U.S. decide,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:52.00,0:13:55.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,has to be kept safe from communism,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:55.00,0:13:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the superpower that will be created to do this
Dialogue: 0,0:13:58.00,0:14:00.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,would be Iran, the Shah.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:00.00,0:14:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And so the Shah invents an Iranian history,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:03.00,0:14:05.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or a return to Iranian history,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:05.00,0:14:08.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that puts him in the center of a great tradition
Dialogue: 0,0:14:08.00,0:14:10.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and produces coins
Dialogue: 0,0:14:10.00,0:14:12.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,showing himself
Dialogue: 0,0:14:12.00,0:14:14.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with the Cyrus cylinder.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:14.00,0:14:17.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When he has his great celebrations in Persepolis,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:17.00,0:14:19.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,he summons the cylinder
Dialogue: 0,0:14:19.00,0:14:22.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the cylinder is lent by the British Museum, goes to Tehran,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:22.00,0:14:24.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and is part of those great celebrations
Dialogue: 0,0:14:24.00,0:14:27.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of the Pahlavi dynasty.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:27.00,0:14:30.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Cyrus cylinder: guarantor of the Shah.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:30.00,0:14:33.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,10 years later, another story:
Dialogue: 0,0:14:33.00,0:14:35.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Iranian Revolution, 1979.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:35.00,0:14:37.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Islamic revolution, no more Cyrus;
Dialogue: 0,0:14:37.00,0:14:39.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we're not interested in that history,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:39.00,0:14:42.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we're interested in Islamic Iran --
Dialogue: 0,0:14:42.00,0:14:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,until Iraq,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:44.00,0:14:47.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the new superpower that we've all decided should be in the region,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:47.00,0:14:49.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,attacks.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:49.00,0:14:51.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Then another Iran-Iraq war.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:51.00,0:14:53.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it becomes critical for the Iranians
Dialogue: 0,0:14:53.00,0:14:56.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to remember their great past,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:56.00,0:14:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,their great past
Dialogue: 0,0:14:58.00,0:15:01.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when they fought Iraq and won.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:01.00,0:15:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It becomes critical to find a symbol
Dialogue: 0,0:15:03.00,0:15:06.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that will pull together all Iranians --
Dialogue: 0,0:15:06.00,0:15:08.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Muslims and non-Muslims,
Dialogue: 0,0:15:08.00,0:15:11.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Christians, Zoroastrians, Jews living in Iran,
Dialogue: 0,0:15:11.00,0:15:13.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,people who are devout, not devout.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:13.00,0:15:16.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the obvious emblem is Cyrus.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:16.00,0:15:19.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So when the British Museum and Tehran National Musuem
Dialogue: 0,0:15:19.00,0:15:21.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,cooperate and work together, as we've been doing,
Dialogue: 0,0:15:21.00,0:15:23.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the Iranians ask for one thing only
Dialogue: 0,0:15:23.00,0:15:25.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as a loan.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:25.00,0:15:27.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's the only object they want.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:27.00,0:15:29.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They want to borrow the Cyrus cylinder.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:29.00,0:15:31.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And last year,
Dialogue: 0,0:15:31.00,0:15:35.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the Cyrus cylinder went to Tehran
Dialogue: 0,0:15:35.00,0:15:38.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for the second time.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:38.00,0:15:41.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's shown being presented here, put into its case
Dialogue: 0,0:15:41.00,0:15:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by the director of the National Museum of Tehran,
Dialogue: 0,0:15:44.00,0:15:47.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,one of the many women in Iran in very senior positions,
Dialogue: 0,0:15:47.00,0:15:49.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Mrs. Ardakani.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:49.00,0:15:51.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It was a huge event.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:51.00,0:15:54.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is the other side of that same picture.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:54.00,0:15:57.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's seen in Tehran
Dialogue: 0,0:15:57.00,0:15:59.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by between one and two million people
Dialogue: 0,0:15:59.00,0:16:01.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the space of a few months.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:01.00,0:16:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is beyond any blockbuster exhibition
Dialogue: 0,0:16:03.00,0:16:05.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the West.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:05.00,0:16:08.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it's the subject of a huge debate
Dialogue: 0,0:16:08.00,0:16:11.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about what this cylinder means, what Cyrus means,
Dialogue: 0,0:16:11.00,0:16:14.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but above all, Cyrus as articulated through this cylinder --
Dialogue: 0,0:16:14.00,0:16:17.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Cyrus as the defender of the homeland,
Dialogue: 0,0:16:17.00,0:16:19.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the champion, of course, of Iranian identity
Dialogue: 0,0:16:19.00,0:16:21.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and of the Iranian peoples,
Dialogue: 0,0:16:21.00,0:16:23.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,tolerant of all faiths.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:23.00,0:16:25.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And in the current Iran,
Dialogue: 0,0:16:25.00,0:16:28.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Zoroastrians and Christians have guaranteed places
Dialogue: 0,0:16:28.00,0:16:31.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the Iranian parliament, something to be very, very proud of.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:31.00,0:16:34.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,To see this object in Tehran,
Dialogue: 0,0:16:34.00,0:16:36.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,thousands of Jews living in Iran
Dialogue: 0,0:16:36.00,0:16:38.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,came to Tehran to see it.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:38.00,0:16:40.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It became a great emblem,
Dialogue: 0,0:16:40.00,0:16:42.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a great subject of debate
Dialogue: 0,0:16:42.00,0:16:45.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about what Iran is at home and abroad.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:45.00,0:16:48.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Is Iran still to be the defender of the oppressed?
Dialogue: 0,0:16:48.00,0:16:50.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Will Iran set free the people
Dialogue: 0,0:16:50.00,0:16:53.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that the tyrants have enslaved and expropriated?
Dialogue: 0,0:16:53.00,0:16:56.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is heady national rhetoric,
Dialogue: 0,0:16:56.00,0:16:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and it was all put together
Dialogue: 0,0:16:58.00,0:17:00.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in a great pageant
Dialogue: 0,0:17:00.00,0:17:02.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,launching the return.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:02.00,0:17:05.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Here you see this out-sized Cyrus cylinder on the stage
Dialogue: 0,0:17:05.00,0:17:08.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with great figures from Iranian history
Dialogue: 0,0:17:08.00,0:17:10.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,gathering to take their place
Dialogue: 0,0:17:10.00,0:17:13.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the heritage of Iran.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:13.00,0:17:15.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It was a narrative presented
Dialogue: 0,0:17:15.00,0:17:18.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by the president himself.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:18.00,0:17:20.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And for me,
Dialogue: 0,0:17:20.00,0:17:22.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to take this object to Iran,
Dialogue: 0,0:17:22.00,0:17:24.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to be allowed to take this object to Iran
Dialogue: 0,0:17:24.00,0:17:26.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was to be allowed to be part
Dialogue: 0,0:17:26.00,0:17:28.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of an extraordinary debate
Dialogue: 0,0:17:28.00,0:17:30.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,led at the highest levels
Dialogue: 0,0:17:30.00,0:17:32.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about what Iran is,
Dialogue: 0,0:17:32.00,0:17:35.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,what different Irans there are
Dialogue: 0,0:17:35.00,0:17:37.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and how the different histories of Iran
Dialogue: 0,0:17:37.00,0:17:40.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,might shape the world today.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:40.00,0:17:43.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's a debate that's still continuing,
Dialogue: 0,0:17:43.00,0:17:45.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and it will continue to rumble,
Dialogue: 0,0:17:45.00,0:17:47.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because this object
Dialogue: 0,0:17:47.00,0:17:49.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is one of the great declarations
Dialogue: 0,0:17:49.00,0:17:51.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of a human aspiration.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:51.00,0:17:55.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It stands with the American constitution.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:55.00,0:17:58.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It certainly says far more about real freedoms
Dialogue: 0,0:17:58.00,0:18:00.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,than Magna Carta.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:00.00,0:18:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It is a document that can mean so many things,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:03.00,0:18:06.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for Iran and for the region.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:06.00,0:18:08.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A replica of this
Dialogue: 0,0:18:08.00,0:18:10.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is at the United Nations.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:10.00,0:18:13.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In New York this autumn, it will be present
Dialogue: 0,0:18:13.00,0:18:15.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when the great debates
Dialogue: 0,0:18:15.00,0:18:18.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about the future of the Middle East take place.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:18.00,0:18:20.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I want to finish by asking you
Dialogue: 0,0:18:20.00,0:18:22.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,what the next story will be
Dialogue: 0,0:18:22.00,0:18:24.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in which this object figures.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:24.00,0:18:26.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It will appear, certainly,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:26.00,0:18:28.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in many more Middle Eastern stories.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:28.00,0:18:30.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And what story of the Middle East,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:30.00,0:18:32.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,what story of the world,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:32.00,0:18:34.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,do you want to see
Dialogue: 0,0:18:34.00,0:18:36.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,reflecting what is said,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:36.00,0:18:38.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,what is expressed in this cylinder?
Dialogue: 0,0:18:38.00,0:18:40.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The right of peoples
Dialogue: 0,0:18:40.00,0:18:42.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to live together in the same state,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:42.00,0:18:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,worshiping differently, freely --
Dialogue: 0,0:18:44.00,0:18:46.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a Middle East, a world,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:46.00,0:18:48.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in which religion is not the subject of division
Dialogue: 0,0:18:48.00,0:18:51.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or of debate.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:51.00,0:18:54.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In the world of the Middle East at the moment,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:54.00,0:18:57.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the debates are, as you know, shrill.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:57.00,0:18:59.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But I think it's possible
Dialogue: 0,0:18:59.00,0:19:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that the most powerful and the wisest voice of all of them
Dialogue: 0,0:19:03.00,0:19:05.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,may well be the voice
Dialogue: 0,0:19:05.00,0:19:07.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of this mute thing,
Dialogue: 0,0:19:07.00,0:19:09.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the Cyrus cylinder.
Dialogue: 0,0:19:09.00,0:19:11.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Thank you.
Dialogue: 0,0:19:11.00,0:19:15.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause)