Are Your Eyes as a Sea?

Narrated by the mother of martyrs Muhammad, Abdul Hamid, Nasrallah and Reza Junidi

Compiled by: Mahia Hafizi
Translated by: Fazel Shirzad

2023-7-23

The book "Are Your Eyes as a Sea?", written by Javad Kalate Arabi, narrated by Ansieh Junadi, the mother of the 4 martyrs, was published in the spring of 2023 by Iran Publication. The title of the book cover is written in the eye design and the word "eye" is used in the titles of the chapters. It seems that the author wants to force the reader to read all the chapters with this trick to discover the secret of the word eye; Father's eyes, your bright eyes, eyes that see, eyes that cry, eyes that wait, and are your eyes as a sea! These are the titles of the 6 chapters of the book are; including the album of pictures and the list of announcements.

To some extent, it is possible to find a connection between the names of the chapters and the text of the narrative; But the most obvious one is in the last sentence of the text of the book: "... these eyes of mine have no more tears, doctor... drying up." The doctor said: "did you see the sea?!"

The book has 240 pages and has been published in 500 copies at a price of 72 thousand Tomans (Iranian currency). Of course, it is written on the page of the birth certificate: "This book has already been published in 5 times and 5000 copies in Revayat Fatah and Martyr Kazemi Publication."

The narrative of the book begins in the city of Pishwa in a traditional house and family. The narrator has combined Iranian-Islamic lifestyle with local culture in his childhood and teenage memories. After marrying his student cousin, the narrator's life is told in the city of Qom. This story continues until the events of the revolution and the return to the Pishwa. Haj Ahmed Junidi; after the revolution, the father of the family was appointed to the Friday imam of Rudsar city. With the start of the war and the marriage of the sons, the social and revolutionary activity of the Junadi family has become stronger. In addition to telling memories of his children's martyrdom, in parts of the book, the narrator describes the revolutionary activities of his family and his wife in supporting the fronts.

In this book, the author presents the memories of this mother in the form of a story-like narrative with feminine prose. They have participated in Tehran marches with brides and daughters. "... On September 22, 1980, the war started. The news showed Mehrabad airport at 2 pm. Several planes were on fire. They said that Iraq has attacked several other airports. On the fifth of Mehr, Muhammad introduced himself to the barracks..." (p. 105)

Nasrallah, the third child and the first martyr of the family, was martyred on January 8, 1981 in the Nasr operation. Nasrullah Junidi was a member of the Irregular Wars Headquarters of Martyr  Chamran. His body came 75 days later. Iraq had thrown him into the water.

The second martyr of the family, the last son, was Reza. The morning after Nasrallah's seventh ceremony, Reza, who was 15 years old, was allowed to go to the front; But his father did not allow it. Four years later, the Basij educational tower went to Basij. Finally, he got his father's permission in 1982 and was martyred on April 24, 1983. After 13 months in 1984, in the cleaning phase that the Muslim Kurdish warriors did, Reza's body was brought, while there were only a few pieces of bones, windshield and a plaque. Reza, the youngest son of the family, was sent from Rodsar Basij to the Western Front and was martyred in the first deployment. Knowing that he is the son of Imam Jumeh, the anti-revolutionary demanded 30,000 tomans from the Iranian forces for the exchange of his body, but he faced the opposition of the martyr's parents.

Muhammad, the third martyr and the eldest son of the family, was martyred in the arms of his brother in Majnoon Island. His body was missing for 14 years. He was martyred as a member of the 27th army of Muhammad Rasoolullah (pbuh) in the Khyber operation while his brother Abdul Hamid watched his martyrdom and could not bring his brother's body back. Hamid had seen the moment of Muhammad's martyrdom. He was there with a distance of one or two meters.

Finally, Haj Abdulhamid also becomes chemically insane in the same area of Majnoon Island; After Muhammad's martyrdom, he became a martyr after his father's death.

"... he was not well at the ceremony of Mohammad Haj Agha; He was hospitalized for one or two months and died after illness. After enduring pain for two years, Hamid went to his martyred brothers on March 11, 2001." (p. 194)