A Social-Religious Report and Analysis of Anusim in Qajar era(case study in Mashhad)

Anusim(Hebrew: אֲנוּסִים), a plural word for “Anús” which means “coerced”, refers to group of Jews who were forced to apparently convert to another religion such as Christianity and Islam, while believe in their native religion at heart. From the time of Moses and Xerxes I of Persia(known as Xerxes the Great), this kind of dual-religious life was practicing in various countries such as Spain, Portugal, Eastern Europe, and Ottoman Empire. Jewish society, however, did not criticize this type of life. After the rise of the Safavids, this religious-life style becomes prevalent in Jewish towns of Iran such as Kashan, Isfahan, and Shiraz. This study attempts to explore this approach in the history of Iranian Jews, in terms of religious, social, economical, political, religious, and psychological factors. Instances of relevant events and people such as Allahdad incident in the 1839 in Mashhad are also reported. Coordinating and practicing of this sort of difficult life in different generations are also described.