Tuesday, December 26, 2006 at 2:02am
Tahirih: Baha'i Faith heroine in Iran
Whenever I introduce myself, nine out of 10 times I get the same question: "What does it mean?" In response I quickly explain the word itself means "purity," but that I am in fact honored to be named after a woman, Tahirih (also known as Qurrat'ul-Ayn), who lived a century and half ago in Iran. She excelled in education, and when her studies led her to embrace a new religion, the rulers ordered her execution.
Is this an old story with a new heroine? Or an ancient tale from a lost land?
Neither, I think.
A November 2006 report reveals new plans in the persecution of Tahirih's co-religionists (members of the Baha'i Faith) by Iranian authorities. It goes to show that in some ways not much has changed in Iran over the past 16 decades. The Muslim clergy still incite the masses, breed conflict in the name of religion, promote the treatment of women as second-class citizens and restrict freedom of belief.
Is Iran the victim of a recurring nightmare? Are the thousands of Tahirihs in Iran of today doomed as history repeats itself?
If so, then perhaps a look at Tahirih and her life might help us better understand the causes of this recurring nightmare. Maybe if we understand these causes better, we won't let history repeat itself.
Inspired by Tahirih's commitment to pursuit of truth and appreciation of truly learned scholars, I decided to interview Dr. Moojan Momen, a British-Iranian academic whose work is respected by friends and foes of the Baha'is. His research and writings on Babi and Baha'i history sets the standard for many. I asked him a few questions about Tahirih, and here is what he had to say:
Q: What were the circumstances surrounding Tahirih's early life?
Dr. Momen: Tahirih was born in 1817 into a learned Muslim family. Her uncle, who later on became her father-in-law, was among the most revered clergy in Persia. Her father ran the religious school in their hometown of Qazvin, a city historically viewed as a gateway to the West. Once a capital of Iran during the Safavid dynasty, many scholars, architects, historians and Sufis hail from Qazvin.
Q: What was it like to be a woman in Tahirih's time?
Dr. Momen: Women were secluded and restricted on all fronts. Most were not educated and lived to serve the men in their family. They bore children, looked after the household and many rarely left the confines of their homes. They were not in any way expected or permitted to play a social role. In fact, the only way they could learn about societal affairs was through the men in their immediate family.
Q: In such a setting, how did Tahirih's early life unfold?
Dr. Momen: Tahirih was exceptional. Tahirih grew up around learned men in her household and showed a great deal of aptitude in learning. She was a brilliant thinker. According to French scholar A.M. Nicolas, her brother reported: "We were all, her brothers and cousins, fearful to speak in her presence, so much did her knowledge intimidate us, and if we hazarded to put forward an opinion on a point of doctrine that was in dispute, she would prove to us where we were going wrong in a manner so clear, precise and magisterial that we were thrown into confusion and withdrew."
Q: What was she like as a young woman?
Dr. Momen: In keeping with tradition, Tahirih was married at a young age to her paternal cousin, and had three children. Her conservative husband and father-in-law were interested in the politics of Qazvin and did their best to preserve the status quo at a time when new schools of thought were attracting many Persians, including Tahirih. Her research and insatiable appetite for knowledge led her to a reformist religious authority named Ahmad Ahsa'i. His teachings challenged the narrow-minded legalistic and orthodox Muslim clergy, who fundamentally promoted Islam as a mere set of rigid laws. He declined a position offered him by the Shah of Iran and concentrated instead on disclosing to his students the spiritual meanings in the Islamic scriptures.
Q: How did Ahsa'i affect Tahirih and those around her?
Dr. Momen: She was drawn to these teachings and decided to visit a scholar in Karbala who had studied with Ahsa'i. Her family opposed her, and since women could not travel alone in those days, Tahirih arranged to travel with her sister and brother-in-law. But she arrived in Karbala too late. The scholar had died, and his widow, impressed with Tahirih's knowledge, invited her to lecture his students. Following the Islamic rules of gender segregation, she had to teach the men from behind a curtain. She did so and taught the students the Islamic teachings that emphasize seeking the truth and finding the promised one.
Q: And did she help them find him?
Dr. Momen: Well, a number of the students traveled far and wide to search for him. Tahirih wrote a letter expressing her allegiance to the promised one and gave copies to the traveling students. On 23 May 1844, one of the students met the Bab (meaning the Gate), who claimed to be the promised Mahdi, in Shiraz, a city in the heart of Iran, known for its mystic poets, Sadi and Hafez. He, Tahirih and 16 others became his disciples and began to spread his teachings. Soon, thousands of Iranians followed his teachings, which revolved around one main message: the time for a new religion had come!
Q: How did the Islamic clergy respond to this message?
Dr. Momen: Just as Jewish orthodoxy responded to Jesus, or the Crusades dealt with the Muslims. Religious history shows that every single revelation is rejected; great sufferings and persecutions follow, and decades or centuries later, its teachings and contributions are appreciated. Islamic orthodoxy forbids changing one's religion, views it as a spiritual crime and by some interpretations identifies death as the only punishment for such a crime. Consequently, the Muslim clerics who viewed the Mahdi as part and parcel of their own religion and way of thinking preserved their power by declaring the Bab an impostor and condemned him and thousands of his followers to brutal torture and murder. Scholars such as A.L.M. Nicolas, Edward G. Browne and many Westerners who resided or traveled throughout Iran have chronicled these episodes.
Q: What about Tahirih?
Dr. Momen: Her father was upset, but tolerant of her decision to accept the new religion. Her husband, however, divorced her and removed the children from their mother. Tahirih had to move back to her father's home, and, instead of giving in to the social stigma that accompanied such a development in her personal life, she became a source of education and encouragement for the women in Qazvin. Tahirih also continued to write academic and religious treatises and articles. In addition, she wrote many outstanding poems in Farsi, Arabic and Turkish, with amazing symbolism and beauty. Inspired by her newfound beliefs, Tahirih's writings and lectures proclaimed the need for new spiritual and social laws. However, not many realized the implication of such a statement until 1848.
Q: What happened in 1848?
Dr. Momen: Tahirih and her co-religionists from around Iran gathered together in a place called Badasht. It was there that they wanted to consult and find a way to fight against the oppression they suffered at the hand of the state and the clergy. The majority of the followers viewed the Bab and his claims as a continuation of Islamic laws, while a few such as Tahirih knew that his appearance signaled an independent revelation with a new set of laws, such as the inclusion of women in society. Following a series of events at Badasht, Tahirih appeared among the male participants of this conference without her hejab or head scarf, and, quoting from the Koran, she said: "I am the blast of the trumpet, the call of the bugle, like Gabriel I will awaken sleeping souls." Everyone was in disbelief. This act and what it symbolized shocked the participants, causing one man to cut his own throat while others unsheathed their swords to kill Tahirih! After 23 days of consultations and this decisive act of Tahirih, those gathered at the conference understood that the new religion they had come to espouse was independent of Islam and its teachings.
Q: If Tahirih's fellow believers responded to her with such shock, then what about the Muslim clergy?
Dr. Momen: The news of her actions reached the authorities and finally resulted in her arrest in 1849. She was kept at the home of the mayor of Tehran and was interrogated by the prime minister and the Shah who ordered her to recant her beliefs. She refused. Instead she met with many prominent women while incarcerated at the home of the mayor and continued to spread the message of the Mahdi. Two senior Islamic clerics examined her and issued her death sentence. When the headsmen refused to carry out the order, a drunken slave was sent to kill her. He ended her life by forcing a scarf down her throat!
Q: What happened to Tahirih's survivors?
Dr. Momen: Her family continued to remain Muslim, and all her children were taught their father's religion. The women and men who were taught by Tahirih preserved her works. Generations of Baha'is, Muslims and other Iranians and Westerners continue to celebrate her life and view her as a symbol for equality of rights among women and men, a fundamental principle of the Baha'i Faith. However, Tahirih's life was not confined to a single principle. Just as the sacrifices of the Virgin Mary gave life to Christianity, or the heroic deeds of Fatimah strengthened Islam, Tahirih's life and death helped establish a new era in human history. One inspired by the Promised One and enriched by a new set of spiritual and social laws for all humanity, regardless of race, religion, age, education or gender.
— — —
Tahirih T. Danesh is a human rights researcher, educator and consultant. She has worked on preserving and presenting the historical accounts of survivors of Baha'i persecutions in Iran. Her email address is {email tdanesh@juxta.com}tdanesh@juxta.com{/email}. © Copyright 2006 by Tahirih T. Danesh
Is this an old story with a new heroine? Or an ancient tale from a lost land?
Neither, I think.
A November 2006 report reveals new plans in the persecution of Tahirih's co-religionists (members of the Baha'i Faith) by Iranian authorities. It goes to show that in some ways not much has changed in Iran over the past 16 decades. The Muslim clergy still incite the masses, breed conflict in the name of religion, promote the treatment of women as second-class citizens and restrict freedom of belief.
Is Iran the victim of a recurring nightmare? Are the thousands of Tahirihs in Iran of today doomed as history repeats itself?
If so, then perhaps a look at Tahirih and her life might help us better understand the causes of this recurring nightmare. Maybe if we understand these causes better, we won't let history repeat itself.
Inspired by Tahirih's commitment to pursuit of truth and appreciation of truly learned scholars, I decided to interview Dr. Moojan Momen, a British-Iranian academic whose work is respected by friends and foes of the Baha'is. His research and writings on Babi and Baha'i history sets the standard for many. I asked him a few questions about Tahirih, and here is what he had to say:
Q: What were the circumstances surrounding Tahirih's early life?
Dr. Momen: Tahirih was born in 1817 into a learned Muslim family. Her uncle, who later on became her father-in-law, was among the most revered clergy in Persia. Her father ran the religious school in their hometown of Qazvin, a city historically viewed as a gateway to the West. Once a capital of Iran during the Safavid dynasty, many scholars, architects, historians and Sufis hail from Qazvin.
Q: What was it like to be a woman in Tahirih's time?
Dr. Momen: Women were secluded and restricted on all fronts. Most were not educated and lived to serve the men in their family. They bore children, looked after the household and many rarely left the confines of their homes. They were not in any way expected or permitted to play a social role. In fact, the only way they could learn about societal affairs was through the men in their immediate family.
Q: In such a setting, how did Tahirih's early life unfold?
Dr. Momen: Tahirih was exceptional. Tahirih grew up around learned men in her household and showed a great deal of aptitude in learning. She was a brilliant thinker. According to French scholar A.M. Nicolas, her brother reported: "We were all, her brothers and cousins, fearful to speak in her presence, so much did her knowledge intimidate us, and if we hazarded to put forward an opinion on a point of doctrine that was in dispute, she would prove to us where we were going wrong in a manner so clear, precise and magisterial that we were thrown into confusion and withdrew."
Q: What was she like as a young woman?
Dr. Momen: In keeping with tradition, Tahirih was married at a young age to her paternal cousin, and had three children. Her conservative husband and father-in-law were interested in the politics of Qazvin and did their best to preserve the status quo at a time when new schools of thought were attracting many Persians, including Tahirih. Her research and insatiable appetite for knowledge led her to a reformist religious authority named Ahmad Ahsa'i. His teachings challenged the narrow-minded legalistic and orthodox Muslim clergy, who fundamentally promoted Islam as a mere set of rigid laws. He declined a position offered him by the Shah of Iran and concentrated instead on disclosing to his students the spiritual meanings in the Islamic scriptures.
Q: How did Ahsa'i affect Tahirih and those around her?
Dr. Momen: She was drawn to these teachings and decided to visit a scholar in Karbala who had studied with Ahsa'i. Her family opposed her, and since women could not travel alone in those days, Tahirih arranged to travel with her sister and brother-in-law. But she arrived in Karbala too late. The scholar had died, and his widow, impressed with Tahirih's knowledge, invited her to lecture his students. Following the Islamic rules of gender segregation, she had to teach the men from behind a curtain. She did so and taught the students the Islamic teachings that emphasize seeking the truth and finding the promised one.
Q: And did she help them find him?
Dr. Momen: Well, a number of the students traveled far and wide to search for him. Tahirih wrote a letter expressing her allegiance to the promised one and gave copies to the traveling students. On 23 May 1844, one of the students met the Bab (meaning the Gate), who claimed to be the promised Mahdi, in Shiraz, a city in the heart of Iran, known for its mystic poets, Sadi and Hafez. He, Tahirih and 16 others became his disciples and began to spread his teachings. Soon, thousands of Iranians followed his teachings, which revolved around one main message: the time for a new religion had come!
Q: How did the Islamic clergy respond to this message?
Dr. Momen: Just as Jewish orthodoxy responded to Jesus, or the Crusades dealt with the Muslims. Religious history shows that every single revelation is rejected; great sufferings and persecutions follow, and decades or centuries later, its teachings and contributions are appreciated. Islamic orthodoxy forbids changing one's religion, views it as a spiritual crime and by some interpretations identifies death as the only punishment for such a crime. Consequently, the Muslim clerics who viewed the Mahdi as part and parcel of their own religion and way of thinking preserved their power by declaring the Bab an impostor and condemned him and thousands of his followers to brutal torture and murder. Scholars such as A.L.M. Nicolas, Edward G. Browne and many Westerners who resided or traveled throughout Iran have chronicled these episodes.
Q: What about Tahirih?
Dr. Momen: Her father was upset, but tolerant of her decision to accept the new religion. Her husband, however, divorced her and removed the children from their mother. Tahirih had to move back to her father's home, and, instead of giving in to the social stigma that accompanied such a development in her personal life, she became a source of education and encouragement for the women in Qazvin. Tahirih also continued to write academic and religious treatises and articles. In addition, she wrote many outstanding poems in Farsi, Arabic and Turkish, with amazing symbolism and beauty. Inspired by her newfound beliefs, Tahirih's writings and lectures proclaimed the need for new spiritual and social laws. However, not many realized the implication of such a statement until 1848.
Q: What happened in 1848?
Dr. Momen: Tahirih and her co-religionists from around Iran gathered together in a place called Badasht. It was there that they wanted to consult and find a way to fight against the oppression they suffered at the hand of the state and the clergy. The majority of the followers viewed the Bab and his claims as a continuation of Islamic laws, while a few such as Tahirih knew that his appearance signaled an independent revelation with a new set of laws, such as the inclusion of women in society. Following a series of events at Badasht, Tahirih appeared among the male participants of this conference without her hejab or head scarf, and, quoting from the Koran, she said: "I am the blast of the trumpet, the call of the bugle, like Gabriel I will awaken sleeping souls." Everyone was in disbelief. This act and what it symbolized shocked the participants, causing one man to cut his own throat while others unsheathed their swords to kill Tahirih! After 23 days of consultations and this decisive act of Tahirih, those gathered at the conference understood that the new religion they had come to espouse was independent of Islam and its teachings.
Q: If Tahirih's fellow believers responded to her with such shock, then what about the Muslim clergy?
Dr. Momen: The news of her actions reached the authorities and finally resulted in her arrest in 1849. She was kept at the home of the mayor of Tehran and was interrogated by the prime minister and the Shah who ordered her to recant her beliefs. She refused. Instead she met with many prominent women while incarcerated at the home of the mayor and continued to spread the message of the Mahdi. Two senior Islamic clerics examined her and issued her death sentence. When the headsmen refused to carry out the order, a drunken slave was sent to kill her. He ended her life by forcing a scarf down her throat!
Q: What happened to Tahirih's survivors?
Dr. Momen: Her family continued to remain Muslim, and all her children were taught their father's religion. The women and men who were taught by Tahirih preserved her works. Generations of Baha'is, Muslims and other Iranians and Westerners continue to celebrate her life and view her as a symbol for equality of rights among women and men, a fundamental principle of the Baha'i Faith. However, Tahirih's life was not confined to a single principle. Just as the sacrifices of the Virgin Mary gave life to Christianity, or the heroic deeds of Fatimah strengthened Islam, Tahirih's life and death helped establish a new era in human history. One inspired by the Promised One and enriched by a new set of spiritual and social laws for all humanity, regardless of race, religion, age, education or gender.
— — —
Tahirih T. Danesh is a human rights researcher, educator and consultant. She has worked on preserving and presenting the historical accounts of survivors of Baha'i persecutions in Iran. Her email address is {email tdanesh@juxta.com}tdanesh@juxta.com{/email}. © Copyright 2006 by Tahirih T. Danesh