Táhirih

Bahá'í Faith

Central figures

Bahá'u'lláh The Báb · `Abdu'l-Bahá

Key scripture

Kitáb-i-Aqdas · Kitáb-i-Íqán The Hidden Words The Seven Valleys

Institutions

Administrative Order The Guardianship Universal House of Justice Spiritual Assemblies

History

Bahá'í history · Timeline Bábís · Shaykh Ahmad Persecution

Notable individuals

Shoghi Effendi Martha Root · Táhirih Badí‘ · Apostles Hands of the Cause

See also

Symbols · Laws Teachings · Texts Calendar · Divisions Pilgrimage · Prayer Index of Bahá'í Articles

Táhirih (Arabic: طاهره "The Pure One") or Qurratu'l-`Ayn (Arabic: قرة العين "Solace/Consolation of the Eyes") are both titles of Fátimih Baraghání (1814-1817 – 1852), an influential poet and theologian of the Bábí faith in Iran. As a prominent Bábí she is highly regarded by Bahá'ís and Azalis, and often mentioned in Bahá'í literature as an example of courage in the struggle for women's rights. Her date of birth is uncertain, as birth records were destroyed at her execution. Many sources agree that her birth date was in 1817.

Before becoming a Bábí

Táhirih was born Fátimih Baraghání in Qazvin, Iran (near Tehran) to a family of Islamic clerics. Her father, Hájí Muhammad Sálih Baragháni, was an Usuli mujtahid who was remembered for his interpretations of the Qur'an, his eulogies of the tragedies of Karbala, his zeal for the execution of punishments, and his active opposition to the consumption of wine. Her uncle, Mulla Muhammad-Taqi Baraghani, was also a mujtahid. In her early years, even though she was a woman, she was allowed to undertake Islamic studies, and was known for her ability to memorize the Qur'an as well as being able to grasp hard to understand points of religious law. At the age of fourteen she was married to her cousin Muhammad son of Muhammad Taqi and they had two sons and one daughter. Her husband eventually became the leader of the Friday prayers. The marriage, however, was not a happy one.

Having acquired a religious education from her father, she began a correspondence with leaders of the Shaykhi movement, including Siyyid Kazim, which flourished in the Shi`ah shrine cities in Iraq. It was Siyyid Kazim who gave her the title "Qurratu'l-`Ayn". She eventually become a supporter of the Shaykhi teachings even though her family was enemies of the movement. The differences in religious beliefs in the family caused tensions between Táhirih and her husband, and in 1843 at the age of twenty-sixshe separated from her husband and travelled to Karbala with her sister to visit Siyyid Kazim. However, by the time she had arrived, Siyyid Kazim had died. With his widow's approval, she set up in Siyyid Kazim's house and continued teaching his followers from behind a curtain.

In 1844, she, through correspondence, found and accepted `Ali Muhammad of Shiraz (known as the Báb) as the Mahdi. She became the seventeenth disciple or "Letter of the Living" of the Báb, and rapidly become known as one of his most renowned followers. She was the only woman in that group and thus she is sometimes been compared to Mary Magdalene in that aspect. Unlike the other Letters of the Living, Táhirih never met the Báb. Continuing to reside in Siyyid Kazim's home, she started to promulgate the new religion of the Báb, Bábism, and attracted many Shakhis to Karbala.

An English Orientalist Edward Granville Browne described Táhirih as "The appearance of such a woman as Qurratu'l-'Ayn is in any country and any age a rare phenomenon, but in such a country as Persia it is a prodigy -- nay, almost a miracle. Alike in virtue of her marvellous beauty, her rare intellectual gifts, her fervid eloquence her fearless devotion, and her glorious martyrdom, she stands forth incomparable and immortal amidst her countrywomen".

As a Bábí

While in Karbala in Iraq, Táhirih continued teaching her new faith. After some of the Shi`ah clergy complained, the government moved her to Baghdad, where she resided at the home of the mufti of Baghdad, Shaykh Mahmud Alusi, who was impressed by her devotion and intellect. There she started giving public statements teaching the new faith, and challenging and debating issues with the Shi'a clergy. At this point the authorities in Baghdad argued with the governor that since Táhirih was Persian she should instead be arguing her case in Iran, and in 1847, on instructions from the Ottoman authorities she, along with a number other Bábís, was deported to the Persian border.

During her journey back to Qazvin, Iran, she openly taught the Bábí faith, including on stops in Kirand and Kermanshah, where she debated with the leading clergy of the town, Aqa `Abdu'llah-i-Bihbihani. Aqa `Abdu'llah-i-Bihbihani, at this point, wrote to Táhirih's father asking his relatives to remove her from Kermanshah. She then travelled to the small town of Sahneh and then to Hamedan, where she met her brothers who had been sent to ask for her return to Qazvin. She agreed to return with her brothers after making a public statement in Hamedan regarding the Báb. Upon returning to Qazvin in July 1847 she refused to live with her husband who she considered an infidel, and instead stayed with her brother.

While she was in Qazvin, her uncle, Mulla Muhammad Taqi Baraghani, was murdered, and the blame for this placed on her by her husband, even though she denied any involvement. Baraghani had been an inveterate enemy of Shaykh Ahmad al-Ahsa'i. During Táhirih's stay in Qazvin, Baraghani had embarked on a series of sermons in which he attacked the Báb and his followers. There is no hard evidence as to the identity of the murderer, nor any proof as to Táhirih's involvement or lack of it. This accusation led to her life being in danger, and through the help of Bahá'u'lláh, she was escaped to Tehran.

Conference of Badasht

After the Báb's arrest in 1848, Bahá'u'lláh made arrangements for Táhirih to leave Tehran and attend a conference of Bábí leaders in Badasht. She was one of the principals at the conference, and she advocated a radical break with Islam. She is perhaps best remembered for appearing in public without her veil in the course of this conference signalling that the Islamic Sharia law was abrogated and superseded by Bábí law. Due to her appearing unveiled in front of men, she was accused of immorality, and in response to this the Báb, who supported her position, named her the Pure, Táhirih.

Death

After the conference of Badasht ended, Táhirih was captured and once again put under house arrest in Tehran. During this time many people, especially women would come and listen to her talks. Two years after the execution of the Báb, three Bábís, acting on their own initiative, attempted to assassinate Nasser-al-Din Shah as he was returning from the chase to his palace at Niyávarfin. The attempt failed, but was the cause of a fresh persecution of the Bábís, and on the August 31, 1852 some thirty Bábís, including Táhirih, were put to death in Tehran. She was in her early to mid 30's and was killed in the garden of Ilkhani in Tehran. A prominent Bábí, and subsequently Bahá'í, historian cites the wife of an officer who had the chance to know her that she was strangled by a drunken officer of the government with her own veil which she had chosen for her anticipated martyrdom. Afterwards her body was thrown into a well located in the garden. One of her most notable quotes is her final utterance, "You can kill me as soon as you like, but you cannot stop the emancipation of women."

Legacy

Táhirih is considered one of the foremost women of the Bábí religion and she played an important role in the development religion. Her role as a charismatic figure, in addition to her being able to transcend the restrictions normally placed on women in traditional society where she lived attracted attention. While she wrote extensively on Bábí matters, little of her writings have survived other than her poems which are regarded highly in the Persian cultural world. In addition to being well-known among Bahá'ís, her influence has extended beyond the Bahá'ís who consider her one of the leading women figures of their religion, her life has come to inspire later generations of feminists. Persian scholar Azar Nafisi on PBS's NewsHour on October 10, 2003: "The first woman to unveil and to question both political and religious orthodoxy was a woman named Tahireh who lived in early 1800s... And we carry this tradition."

In fiction

Bahiyyih Nakhjavani published her La femme qui lisait trop (The Woman Who Reads Too Much) in 2007. It tells the story of Táhirih. The writer adopts the revolving points of view, of mother, sister, daughter and wife respectively, to trace the impact of this woman's actions on her contemporaries and read her prophetic insights regarding her times, and perhaps ours too.

See also

• Tahirih Justice Center

Further reading

• Afaqi, Sabir (Ed.), ed (2004). Tahirih in History, Studies in the Bábí and Bahá'í Religions, Vol. 16: Perspectives on Qurratu'l-'Ayn From East and West. Kalimat Press, Los Angeles, USA. ISBN 1890688355. 

• Balyuzi, Hasan (1973). The Báb: The Herald of the Day of Days. Oxford, UK: George Ronald. ISBN 0853980489. 

• Banani, Amin (Tr.) (2004). Tahirih: A Portrait in Poetry, Selected Poems of Qurratu'l-'Ayn. Kalimat Press, Los Angeles, USA. ISBN 1890688363. 

• Nabíl-i-Zarandí (1932). Shoghi Effendi (Translator). ed. The Dawn-Breakers: Nabíl’s Narrative (Hardcover ed.). Wilmette, Illinois, USA: Bahá'í Publishing Trust. ISBN 0900125225. http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/nz/DB/. 

• Nakhjavani, Bahiyyih (2007). La femme qui lisait trop (The Woman Who Read Too Much). France: Actes Sud. ISBN 978-2-7427-7036-6. 

• Root, Martha L. (2000). Tahirih The Pure. Kalimat Press, Los Angeles, USA. ISBN 1890688045. 

External links

• Directory of Táhirih's Arabic and Persian writings at h-net
• Translation of Táhirih's poetry to English by Martha Root
• Táhirih - Táhirih's biographical entry from Memorials of the Faithful by `Abdu'l-Bahá