Táhirih (Ṭāhira) () also called Qurrat al-ʿAyn () are both titles of Fatimah Baraghani/Umm-i Salmih (1814 or 1817 – 16–27 August 1852), an influential poet, women's rights activist and theologian of the Bábí faith in Iran. She was one of the Letters of the Living, the first group of followers of the Báb. Her life, influence and execution made her a key figure of the religion. The daughter of Mohammad Saleh Baraghani, she was born into one of the most prominent families of her time. Táhirih led a radical interpretationClose up: Iranian cinema, past, present, and future, Hamid Dabashi, p. 217 that, though it split the Babi community, wedded messianism with Bábism.Shiʻism: a religion of protest By Hamid Dabashi, p. 341 This radical interpretation of Shaykhism... wedded the messianic message to the figure of al-Bab
As a young girl she was educated privately by her father and showed herself a talented writer. Whilst in her teens she married the son of her uncle, with whom she had a difficult marriage. In the early 1840s she became a follower of Shaykh Ahmad and began a secret correspondence with his successor Kazim Rashti. Táhirih travelled to the Shiʻi holy city of Karbala to meet Kazim Rashti, but he died a number of days before her arrival. In 1844 aged about 27, in search of the Qa'im through the Islamic teachings she figured his whereabouts. Independent to any individual she became acquainted with the teachings of the Báb and accepted his religious claims as Qa'im. She soon won renown and infamy for her zealous teachings of his faith and "fearless devotion". Subsequently, exiled back to Iran, Táhirih taught her faith at almost every opportunity. The Persian clergy grew resentful of her and she was detained several times. Throughout her life she battled with her family, who wanted her to return to their traditional beliefs.
Táhirih was probably best remembered for unveiling herself in an assemblage of men during the Conference of Badasht. The unveiling caused much controversy, but Baháʼu'lláh named her Tahirih "the Pure One" at that same Conference. After the historic Conference of Badasht, a number of those who attended were so amazed at the fearlessness and outspoken language of that heroine, that they felt it their duty to acquaint the Báb with the character of her startling and unprecedented behaviour. They strove to tarnish the purity of her name. To their accusations the Bab replied: "What am I to say regarding her whom the Tongue of Power and Glory has named Tahirih [the Pure One]?" These words proved sufficient to silence those who had endeavoured to undermine her position. From that time onwards she was designated by the believers as Tahirih. The Báb continued to highly praise Táhirih and in one of his later writings equates Táhirih's station as equal to that of the seventeen other male 'Letters of the Living' combined. She was soon arrested and placed under house arrest in Tehran. In mid-1852 she was executed in secret on account of her Bábí faith and her unveiling. Before her death she declared: "You can kill me as soon as you like, but you cannot stop the emancipation of women." Since her death, Bábí and Baháʼí literature venerated her to the level of martyr, being described as "the first woman suffrage martyr". As a prominent Bábí (she was the seventeenth disciple or "Letter of the Living" of the Báb) she is highly regarded by followers of the Baháʼí Faith and Azalis and often mentioned in Baháʼí 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.
Early life (birth–1844)
Táhirih was born Fātemeh Baraghāni in Qazvin, Iran (near Tehran), the oldest of four daughters of Mohammad Saleh Baraghani, an Usuli mujtahid who was remembered for his interpretations of the Quran, his eulogies of the tragedies of Karbala, his zeal for the execution of punishments, and his active opposition to the consumption of wine. Her mother was from a Persian noble family, whose brother was the imam of the Shah Mosque of Qazvin. Her mother as well as Táhirih and all her sisters all studied in the Salehiyya, the Salehi madrasa her father had established in 1817, which included a women's section. Táhirih's uncle, Mohammad Taqi Baraghani, was also a mujtahid whose power and influence dominated the court of Fath-Ali Shah Qajar. The lack of contemporary evidence makes it impossible to determine her exact date of birth. Historian and contemporary Nabíl-i-Aʻzam cites that it was in 1817, whilst others claim an earlier date of 1814. Her grandson suggests a much later date of 1819, whilst some modern historians claim she was born about 1815. Shoghi Effendi and William Sears suggest the date of 1817, and other writers agree. This is supported by claims by a chronicler from the 19th century, who wrote that Táhirih was "thirty-six years of age" when she was killed, in accordance to the lunar calendar.If this is correct then according to the Gregorian calendar she would have been 35, placing her date of birth at circa 1817."She was thirty-six years of age when she suffered martyrdom in Ṭihrán". After interviewing Táhirih's family and the families of contemporaries as well as reading documents about her life Martha Root believed that the most accurate date of birth was between 1817 and 1819. These findings are contested in several books and articles, but the evidence does not conclusively support either date.The birth year of c.1817 is generally accepted as the most accurate date of birth, but modern historians and some contemporaries advocate 1814–15. For more information about 1814 see Amanat and Smith. For information favouring 1817 see Root and Milani.
The Baraghani brothers had migrated from an obscure village near Qazvin to the city where they made their fortunes in ecclesiastical schools. They soon rose to the ranks of high-ranking clerics in the court of the Shah of Persia and even running religious sections of Qazvin. The brothers also involved themselves in the mercantile business accumulating great wealth and royal favour. Her father was himself a noted and respected cleric, as was her older uncle who married a daughter of the monarch. Táhirih's two younger uncles were not as elevated as the older ones but still had reasonable power in the court. Her aunt was a renowned poet and calligrapher in royal circles and wrote government decrees in her "beautiful hand". At the time of her birth, the Baraghani's were one of the most respected and powerful families in Persia.
Education
Táhirih was educated particularly well for a girl of her era. A literate woman was itself a rare phenomenon and surprisingly her father decided to break from protocol and personally tutor his daughter. Though still living in a strict religious home, Táhirih was educated in theology, jurisprudence, Persian literature, and poetry. She was allowed to undertake Islamic studies, and was known for her ability to memorize the Qurʼan as well as being able to grasp hard to understand points of religious law. Her father was reported to have lamented at the fact that she was not a son. Táhirih was said to have surpassed her father's male students which further convinced him of her literary talents. Her father even allowed her to listen to his lessons which he gave male pupils, on the condition that she hide behind a curtain and not let anybody know her presence. Her father affectionately knew her as "Zarrín Táj" ("Crown of Gold").
Under the education of her father and uncle, the young Táhirih was able to grasp a better understanding of theological and educational matters compared to her contemporaries. Girls were expected to remain docile and reticent and many were reluctant to allow their daughters to pursue an education of some sort. Her father Mohammad-Saleh Baraghani was a writer in his own right and his writings laud the martyrdom of the Muhammad's grandson and third Imam Husayn ibn Ali and discuss Persian literature. He was reported to devote much of his time to scholarship rather than involving himself in the court, unlike his elder brother. Amanat cites that Táhirih was also known for her esoteric interpretation of Quranic verses. Táhirih's education in Qazvin proved itself in later years, inspiring many new trends among women in her social-circle and may have been instrumental in pressing Táhirih towards the more radical Shaykhi and Bábí teachings. Author Christopher De Bellaigue describes her as 'Simone de Beauvoir meets Joan of Arc' for being both a feminist and a saint.
Táhrih exerted a powerful charm and charisma on those who met her, and she was generally praised for her beauty. Contemporaries and modern historians comment on Táhirih's rare physical beauty. A courtier described her as "moonfaced",A typical Persian expression meaning exceedingly beautiful "with hair like musk" whilst one of her fathers pupils wondered how a woman of her beauty could be so intelligent. Historian Nabíl-i-Aʻzam reports the "highest terms of [her] beauty", George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, wrote, "beauty and the female sex also lent their consecration to the new creed and the heroism… the lovely but ill-fated poetess of Qazvín".George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston's Persia and the Persian Question, vol. 1, p. 497, note 2 British Professor Edward Granville Browne who spoke to a great number of her contemporaries, wrote that she was renowned for her "marvellous beauty". The Shah's Austrian physician, Jakob Eduard Polak, also cited her beauty. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá and Bahíyyih Khánum noted her beauty in several talks and writings. Táhirih's education with her father lead her to become a devoutly religious and she upheld these beliefs for the rest of her life. It also made her hungry for knowledge and she busied herself with reading and writing religious and other forms of literature. Her formal education ended when she was about thirteen or fourteen, when she was summoned by her father to consent to a betrothal arranged by her uncle and father.
Marriage and developments Though showing herself a capable writer and poet, Táhirih was forced to comply with family pressure and at the age of fourteen she was married to her cousin Muhammad Baraghani the son of her uncle. The marriage resulted in three children, two sons: Ibrahim and Ismaʻil and one daughter. The marriage however, was an unhappy one from the start and Muhammad Baraghani seemed to have been reluctant to allow his wife to further her literary pursuits. In Qazvin Táhirih reportedly won renown for her beauty and respect for her knowledge, however the latter was a quality regarded as undesirable in a daughter and wife. Her husband eventually became the leader of the Friday prayers. Her two sons fled from their father after their mother's death to Najaf and Tehran whilst the daughter died shortly after her mother's death. It was in the home of her cousin that Táhirih first became acquainted with and started correspondence with leaders of the Shaykhi movement, including Kazim Rashti, which flourished in the Shiʻi shrine cities in Iraq.