Writings by and
about Fāṭima Baraghānī, Ṭāhira, Qurrat al-`Ayn
IN PROGRESS 2007-8
Stephen Lambden (Ohio University)
Fāṭima Baraghānī,
- Qurrat al-`Ayn - Ṭāhirih (c. 1817-1852)
Best known as Tahirih (the "Pure One")
or Qurrat al-`Ayn ("Solace of the Eyes") Fatima Baraghani became a revolutionary Babi believer. Before coming
to faith in the Bab (1819-1850) in 1260/1844 she (like other members of her
family) was a very learned and accomplished adherent of the Shi`i than Shaykhi school
whose founding master Shaykh Ahmad and leader, Sayyid Kazim Rashti, she
came to greatly admire. Fāṭima Baraghānī came to be known by several titles, including Zarrin Tāj (Crown of
Gold) and Qurrat al-`Ayn (Solace of the Eyes). This dynamic, charismatic
and extraordinarily learned Persian woman was enraptured by the person and
teachings of the first two Shaykhī leaders then in 1260/1844 she, along with her
cousin and a number of other Shaykhis, were numbered among the first disciples
of Sayyid `Ali Muhammad Shirazi, the Bāb, subsequently known as the Hurūfāt al-Ḥayy (the 18 "Letters of the Living"). Ṭāhira
remained a devoted and revolutionary Bābī, (follower of the the Bab), from the very beginning of his
messianic career until she was brutally executed in 1852.
Writings of
Ṭāhira in Arabic and Persian
To date no
complete listing of all authentic writings of Ṭāhira exists. Only a
small proportion of her writings have been published though not for the
most part in facsimile or critical editions. Authenticity remains an
issue especially with respect to much of the poetry attributed to her.
Religious
treatises
Poetical
compositions
Though most of Tahirih's theological and apologetic Shaykhi and Babi
writings and the bulk of her poems remain unpublished, several volumes have
recently been published about Tahirih and her poetry including:
Amin Banani (edited and
translated)
-
Tahirih, A Portrait in Poetry-- Selected Poems of Qurratu'l-`Ayn
(=
Studies in the Babi and Baha' religion vol. 17). Kalimat Press Los Angeles,
2004. ISBN 1-890688-36-3 HBk. vi+145 pp. Contains an opening essay entitled
' A Woman for Our Time' (pp.1-30) followed by another by Jascha Kessler, `On
Translating a Persian Mystical Poet' (pp.31-38) and an Editor's (Tony Lee's)
Note (pp. 39-43). A selection of Tahirih's poems in the original Persian
(+Arabic) with English translation by Banani (and Kessler) occupy pages
45-105. Notes by Banani briefly supplement and clarify aspects these texts.
See further, URL:
http://www.kalimat.com/Tah-Poetry.html
Secondary
sources- biography and miscellany
There exist perhaps forty
to fifty or more books and articles about Tahirih a few several of which
recently been published.
Baha'i generated books about Ṭāhira include:
Mulla Muhammad
Nabil-i Zarandi (d.1892 CE) [Shoghi Effendi ed. and trans.]
Browne, Edward
G. (d. 1926 CE). This Cambridge orientalist made some impressive
statements about Ṭāhira
-
A
Traveller's Narrative
-
Add
-
Add
-
Add
Martha L. Root, (1938)
-
Tahirih
The Pure, 1st ed. Karachi, 1938.
-
Rep.
Kalimat Press Los
Angeles, ADD...
"Martha Root became fascinated by Táhirih's
story and traveled to Iran in an effort to learn more about this
remarkable woman. This book is the result of her research. .."
Fāḍil-i
Māzandaranī,
Hussam
Nuqaba'i
Nusratu'llah
Muhammad Husayni,
Abu'l-Qasim
Afnan (d. XXXX)
Sabir Afaqi
(ed.)
-
TAHIRIH IN HISTORY:
Perspectives on Qurratu'l-'Ayn from East and West Edited by Sabir Afaqi
The volume brings together most of what we know about Tahirih
Qurratu'l-'Ayn. Included is history from: 'Abdu'l-Baha and Shoghi
Effendi; the work of scholars in India and Pakistan; and essays by
Western scholars, such as E. G. Browne, A.-L.-M. Nicolas (translated
from French), Abbas Amanat, Farzaneh Milani, and others. Kalimat Press
Los Angeles, ADD...
Bayat, Mangol,
