arthra

"Do not think of putting yourself in danger; I know that I must die but I feel it is my duty to stay with my people. God grant that out of our sufferings a better world may emerge. I believe in God. I am a Bahá'í and will die a Bahá'í. Everything is in His hands."

These were the last known written words of a notable and couragous Baha'i Lidia Zamenhof (1904–1942) youngest daughter of the famous Ludvigo Zamenhof creator of the international language Esperanto..


"In 1925, she attended the Universala Kongreso in Geneva, where, 19 years earlier, her father had spoken of the pogroms against the Jews in his own home town and had urged the Esperantists to show forth the light of mutual understanding and friendship. During this congress, she attended a Baha'i meeting and met Martha Root, who was already well known among the non-Baha'i Esperantists for her fluency in the language and her whole-hearted and sincere support of the language itself and its aims. For Martha, the Baha'i movement was the 'Esperanto of religions'.

At this meeting, Dr. Adelbert Muhlschlegel gave a short talk in Esperanto in which he explained Baha'u'llah's teaching, cited Abdu'l-Baha's many praises of Esperanto and of Dr. Zamenhof, explained that Dr. Zamenhof had exemplified the spirit of Baha'u'llah and because of this was a true Baha'i, and that Baha'is all over the world honored Dr. Zamenhof "as an ideal model and loved him as 'majstro' ('master') and brother."

Sketch of Life of Lidia Zamenhof


Shoghi Effendi and the National Spoiritual Assembly of the United States/Canada encouraged her to travel to America where she taught the Baha'i Faith and Esperanto in 1937.. The US Immigration Service had her returned to Poland in December 1938.

"Under the German occupation regime of 1939, her home in Warsaw became part of the Warsaw Ghetto. She was arrested under the charge of having gone to the United States to spread anti-Nazi propaganda,[3] but after a few months, she was released and returned to her home city where she and the rest of her family remained confined. There she endeavored to help others get medicine and food."

[3] Heller, Wendy Lidia, The Life of Lidia Zamenhof Daughter of Esperanto, 1985, pp. 234-235


Lidia Zamenhof - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

She was killed at the Treblinka extermination camp in 1942.

Yeshua

A very touching and beautiful story Arthra. She is such a courageous woman and I only wish that she were more well-known worldwide! Her last words nearly brought tears to my eyes. We have a honourary phrase in Catholicism to describe such Martyrs as her, it is "Martyr of Charity (Love)". It is interesting that two of the most notable people to be given that title were St Maximillian Kolbe and St Edith Stein, both of whom died in Nazi Concentration Camps during WW2.

May the memory and example of brave Lidia live on through the ages and may her soul rest in peace forevermore, amen.

MacGyver

My respects. A great great human being! ...

arthra

“You can kill me as soon as you like, but you will never stop the emancipation of women.” - Tahirih

Tahirih was one of the Letters of the Living a primary disciple of the Bab..

Known for her outspoken and couragous stand for the liberation of women..

Then one day, and there was a wisdom in it, Bahá'u'lláh fell ill; that is, the indisposition was to serve a vital purpose. On a sudden, in the sight of all, Quddus came out of his garden, and entered the pavilion of Bahá'u'lláh. But Tahirih sent him a message, to say that their Host being ill, Quddus should visit her garden instead. His answer was: "This garden is preferable. Come, then, to this one." Tahirih, with her face unveiled, stepped from her garden, advancing to the pavilion of Bahá'u'lláh; and as she came, she shouted aloud these words: "The Trumpet is sounding! The great Trump is blown! The universal Advent is now proclaimed!"[1] The believers gathered in that tent were panic struck, and each one asked himself, "How can the Law be abrogated? How is it that this woman stands here without her veil?"

[1 Cf. Qur'án 74:8 and 6:73. Also Isaiah 27:13 and Zechariah 9:14.]

~ Abdu'l-Baha, Memorials of the Faithful, p. 201



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 or 1817 – August 16–27, 1852).

Táhirih - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

She was the mother of three children and was around thirty five years old when she was executed ..strangled by a scarf she chose.. Her body thrown down a well.

The spirit of Tahirih lives on ...



Tahirih Justice Center:

A Bahá

arthra

Books about Tahirih:

Adam's Wish: Unknown Poetry of Tahirih

THIRIH: A PORTRAIT IN POETRY Selected Poems of Qurratu'l-'Ayn

Sampling of Tahirih's poetry:

Tahirih_Poems_English

A poem of Tahirih:

Book Burning

I was born fearless and fearless die.
You cannot kill the spirit of God in the name of God.
Forgiveness is the lifeblood of generations,
and it will take generations
to forgive what you are doing.

I am Fatima and Maryam
I am Muhammed and Christ.
I weep tears of blood
for the pitiful hatred
you have inflicted on this earth.

You could have made a fountain
clear as a mountain spring
but make a mire.
You could have built homes for the homeless
but build mansions of pleasure.

You could have given your flesh
to the luminous atoms
of peace and understanding
but give in to the intoxication
of warring and lust.

A poem learned by the heart
cannot be burned.
When you are mortal as dust
on the desert of Dasht-e Kavir
I will still be here.

Source:

NH Arts - Poet Laureate

More later...

tonyfish58

Mona Springs to mind

A Dress for Mona: THE TRUE STORY



Cheers Tony

arthra

So Tony.. How are things "down under"?


During her trial the Judge said to Mona:

"You are accused of misleading youth with your beautiful voice and chanting. Now I am sure about the charges against you." ...

Mona's statement in Court after being asked to recant her Faith:

Although I was born in a Baha'i family, according to Baha'i principles, we have to search for the truth ourselves rather than imitate our family's ideas and that is exactly what I have done. You have many of our Baha'i books here and you could read them and find this out for yourself. They never insisted on my becoming a Baha'i or accepting their ideas. If Your Honour insists that I recant my Faith, I should assure you that I will never do that and that I am ready to be executed."

Read more:

"The Story of Mona: 1965-1983" - Part 3 STORY OF MONA (Part 3)

About the film..

Mona's Dream

arthra

“Look up! Our dawning day draws its first breath!
The world grows light! Our souls begin to glow!

No ranting shaykh rules from his pulpit throne
No mosque hawks holiness it does not know

No sham, no pious fraud, no priest commands!
The turban’s knot cut to its root below!

No more conjurations! No spells! No ghosts!
Good riddance! We are done with folly’s show!

The search for Truth shall drive out ignorance
Equality shall strike the despots low

Let warring ways be banished from the world
Let Justice everywhere its carpet throw

May friendship ancient hatreds reconcile
May love grow from the seed of love we sow!”

~ Táhirih (1817-1852)Translation: Jascha Kessler

Source:

http://www.bahaiperspectives.com/art...em-by-tahirih/

MacGyver

Tahirih was a great soul ... a great follower of God ... a great servant of the Bab and Baha'u'llah!

Her emancipation was the creation of Baha'u'llah! ... He was the lady who had the privilege to wear the first crown of the new era, where man and woman were to be equals in rights and respect.

However, lest we forget that she did not rebel against her King, but fought against the enemies of her King. She was loyal, she was honest and she was humble in her devotion to her Master and the Lord of all the Worlds! ...

tonyfish58

Things are great down under The eye of the cyclone slipped just below us so we were spared the massive destruction and just lost a lot of trees.

I named my daughter after Tahirih - Very inspiring story and a great loss to mankind.

Mona - What courage, what faith

Hope all is well with you - Cheers Tony

tonyfish58

Áqá Buzurg (Badí') the Pride of the Martyrs

Link to the Badi' Story above

Another courageous Soul and inspiring story

The Faith is full of these heroes that died to bring the word of God to this world

Thank God for their courage

Cheers Tony

arthra

Bahiyyih Nakhjavani on Tahirih:

tonyfish58

[QUOTE=arthra;12796]Bahiyyih Nakhjavani on Tahirih:

Thanks Arthra - Enjoyed that - I named my daughter Tahirih

Regards Tony

tonyfish58

I think Mirza Abdu'l Fadl deserves a mention - Link to story folows; Encyclopedia Article: Abu'l-Fadl Gulpaygani

Conversion and arrests (1876-1886). While he was living in Tehran, Gulpaygani had several encounters with Baha'is, starting in about the beginning of 1876. On one occasion he was astonished at the perceptiveness of an illiterate farrier whom he was told was a Baha'i. He came to know a cloth-seller called Aqa `Abdu'l-Karim. Although this man was uneducated, Gulpaygani came to appreciate his moral qualities and the keenness of his mind. Aqa `Abdu'l-Karim used to discuss with Gulpaygani difficult religious questions, quite unexpected for someone of no learning. Eventually it emerged that Aqa `Abdu'l-Karim was a Baha'i and that many of the points that he had been making were derived from Baha'i scripture. Gulpaygani was at first sad that such a good man should be a Baha'i but then became curious and asked to meet others.

For several months Gulpaygani met with some of the leading Baha'is including Nabil-i-Akbar (q.v.), Aqa Mirza Haydar `Ali Ardistani, and Mirza Isma`il Dhabih. While he was in the house of the last-named, he read two of Baha'u'llah's tablets, the Lawh-i-Ra`is (q.v.) and the Lawh-i-Fu'ad, which contain prophecies of the fall of the Ottoman vizier `Ali Pasha and of Sultan `Abdu'l-`Aziz, and of the loss of Edirne to the Sultan. He determined that if the events portrayed in those tablets came to pass, he would believe in Baha'u'llah. A few months later, precisely the events foretold occurred and Gulpaygani became a Baha'i on 20 September 1876.

As soon as he became a Baha'i, Gulpaygani began to talk to others about the new religion. Word soon spread of his conversion and he was dismissed from his post at the religious college. It happened that Manikji Sahib, who had come from India as the representative of the Indian Parsi (Zoroastrian) community, was looking for a teacher for a school that he had established for Zoroastrian children, and he invited Gulpaygani, who accepted gladly. A number of the prominent Zoroastrian converts to the Baha'i Faith were his pupils at the school (including Ustad Javanmard and Mulla Bahram Akhtar-Khavari).

During the next ten years that Gulpaygani spent in Tehran, he actively taught the Baha'i Faith in the capital. He played a role in the production by Mirza Husyan Hamadani of the Tarikh-i-Jadid (The New History), an account of the history of the Babi and early Baha'i religions, commissioned by Manikji. He was also imprisoned on three occasions: first in December 1876, when he was imprisoned for five months, after it became known that he had become a Baha'i; second in 1882-83, when some fifty of the prominent Baha'is of Tehran were arrested on the orders of the governor Kamran Mirza and at the instigation of one of the religious leaders of the city, Sayyid Sadiq Sanglaji, and held for nineteen months (BBR 292-95); and in October 1885 for six months, again on the orders of Kamran Mirza.

arthra

Tahirih had caught fire. She set out for Karbila, hoping to meet Siyyid Kazim, but she arrived too late: ten days before she reached that city, he passed away. Not long before his death the Siyyid had shared with his disciples the good news that the promised Advent was at hand. "Go forth," he repeatedly told them, "and seek out your Lord." Thus the most distinguished of his followers gathered for retirement and prayer, for fasts and vigils, in the Masjid-i-Kufih, while some awaited the Advent in Karbila. Among these was Tahirih, fasting by day, practicing religious disciplines, and spending the night in vigils, and chanting prayers.

One night when it was getting along toward dawn she laid her head on her pillow, lost all awareness of this earthly life, and dreamed a dream; in her vision a youth, a Siyyid, wearing a black cloak and a green turban, appeared to her in the heavens; he was standing in the air, reciting verses and praying with his hands upraised. At once, she memorized one of those verses, and wrote it down in her notebook when she awoke.

After the Báb had declared His mission, and His first book, "The Best of Stories,"[1] was circulated, Tahirih was reading a section of the text one day, and she came upon that same verse, which she had noted down from the dream. Instantly offering thanks, she fell to her knees and bowed her forehead to the ground, convinced that the Báb's message was truth.

[1The "Ahsanu'l-Qisas," the Báb's commentary on the Surih of Joseph, was called the Qur'án of the Bábís, and was translated from Arabic into Persian by Tahirih. Cf. God Passes By, p. 23.]

~ Abdu'l-Baha, Memorials of the Faithful, p. 193