War and Peace in Qajar Persia: Implications Past and ... - Oguzlar.az

194 Ali Gheissariwell – whether buying or selling. The proverbial “ham ziarat, ham tejarat”( [doing] both pilgrimage and trade) was therefore viewed as an ideal mix ofbest possible worlds.Hajj Mohammad-Taqi’s wider social circle consisted mainly of other merchantsregardless of their political associations. In fact on political issues manymerchants were characteristically circumspect and often hesitated to explicitlyidentify themselves with any particular political trend, ideology, or person. 80Their more visible involvement in the constitutional movement (as a movement)was at times due to pressures put on them by political societies (Anjomans)– for instance in the form of requests to help with expenses, or to act on theirdecisions, such as closing or decorating the bazaar for political events. However,the merchants seemed more willing to contribute to religious occasions,in deference to their personal beliefs and as good publicity. 81 Also, the majorityof merchants were often reluctant to publicly display their wealth – be iton the exterior of their houses or in their own appearance, lest the governmentor the public, each in its own way, put undue demands on them.Many Iranian merchants, like the Jourabchis, in addition to commonlyexpressed patriotic political ideals, also had certain economic expectationsin supporting the constitutional movement. Such expectations included a morerational system of taxation, more orderly trade routes (something that failedto materialize during the revolution), and preventing various local andprovincial strongmen from extorting money out of them.CONCLUDING NOTESIt is important to understand the ideals and motivations of the merchants whowere an important part of the constitutional movement, but whose valueswere not necessarily echoed by officials, intellectuals, or the ulama – of course,without suggesting a uniformity of ambitions or political orientations amongthe merchants. Often times national and international crises did impact, andat times severely, the fortunes of the merchants, leading to their prosperity,periodic losses, or ruin; in the case of merchants belonging to religious minorities,occasionally religious prejudice on the part of the mainstream populationcould also had negative consequences. Yet in one way or another, manyof them survived revolutions and wars – trading, as it were, under fire.These Memoirs include some political events, but also reveal much aboutboth public and, in a sense, the private lives of merchants during theConstitutional period. Hajj Mohammad-Taqi’s account of his private life onlyincludes passing accounts of the private sanctum of his household (theandaroun). Although accounts of his private life may be more indicative ofhis personal choices or idiosyncratic lifestyle, they nonetheless seem to providesome clues about life inside the homes of a representative mid-rankingShia Iranian merchant – regional, ethnic, religious, and cultural variationsnotwithstanding. The remainder of the Memoirs offers valuable information