10 Baha'i Women Every Person Should Know

"Women and men have been and will always be equal in the sight of God" --Bahá'u'lláh.

For Bahá'ís, equality and empowerment are essential spiritual principles. This is illuminated by the metaphor "The world of humanity is possessed of two wings: the male and the female. When the two wings ... become equivalent in strength, enjoying the same prerogatives, the flight of [humanity] will be exceedingly lofty and extraordinary.

With these emphatic statements, the worldwide Bahá'í community has been at the forefront of the movement to advance the rights of women since its start more than 160 years ago, resulting in countless Bahá'í women of startlingly diverse backgrounds influencing many fields. Below are just a few.

This article is dedicated to Mahvash and Fariba, and countless unjustly imprisoned women and men worldwide. Their courage, fortitude and inspiration build a better world for all.

 

 

 

Follow Homa Sabet Tavangar on Twitter: www.twitter.com/growingupglobal

Comments

[Sarah Trickey]

08:32 PM on 05/13/2012

Thank you :-)

[mheister]

01:24 AM on 04/10/2012

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't Judge Dorothy Nelson also on Jimmy Carter's short list if he'd had the opportunity to nominate a Supreme Court Justice?

[Louis de Pitera]

09:09 AM on 03/29/2012

Thank you very much for this wonderful article.

[Cindbird]

04:20 AM on 03/29/2012

I had no idea Carol Lombard was Baha'i. Thank you for this wonderful look at women of Baha'i faith. I is wonderful to learn more about these women leaders. Not just in faith but their leadership in areas like Civil Rights and saving native languages like my own Cherokee. Thank you for this glimpse of the strength of Baha'i women.

[viciousvirago]

08:40 AM on 03/28/2012

My internist is a Baha'i and originally from Iran. He is a good internist, somewhat condescending to women who are outspoken about their bodies (like me), but otherwise a wonderful man. I read a book on the Baha'i faith and was very interested in their faith for a while.

[Homa Sabet Tavangar]

04:24 PM on 03/28/2012

Sorry to hear about the condescension - especially from your doctor. There's no excuse for that. I think one big lesson is that while a person may embrace these teachings, and strive to live by them, it's really a PROCESS. We are all imperfect, but hopefully learning, and a work-in-progress - even those great women on this slideshow...

[viciousvirago]

08:26 PM on 03/28/2012

Homa Sabet Tavangar: Yes, we are all works in progress, but unfortunately a lot of people who use this forum do not know that. I'm tired of getting trolled by people who disagree with my views. I'm 59, been a personal trainer, ex-model and trauma surgeon, spent 2 years in Iraq and traveled to 38 countries and 27 states. I HAVE LEARNED A LOT. Apparently that pisses off a lot of people. I cannot imagine why. I sit at the feet of a wise, learned-one, do not walk away. Wisdom is a progression of steps.

[life rant]

06:10 AM on 03/28/2012

Ok. interesting article. BUT... Is it an article for Baha'is? I mean, if anyone read it and had no idea what the Baha'i Faith was, would you expect them to look it up first? I'm just saying...

[Homa Sabet Tavangar]

04:30 PM on 03/28/2012

This article is for anyone who wants to read it. Whether they want to know more about the Bahai Faith or not is their business; there is lots to learn about, readily available. Sources like www.bahai.org or www.bahai.us make that easy. I have enjoyed reading about 10 Sikh Women, 10 Muslim Women and 10 Jewish Women - all part of this series - and each helps me gain an added dimension on that Faith, based on learning about a few of its women.

[juliusaugustus]

02:36 AM on 03/28/2012

I think that all women who accept baha'i faith is a great woman.

[RheaHarmsen]

12:35 PM on 03/27/2012

Great job! I know it must have been hard to pick, but since these women were all so ego-free and focused on educating, uplifting and advancing humanity they are all part of one big wave of women giving their all to make that prophecy about the two wings come true. I'll add a few more names to the list, just to tickle people's curiosity:(I think we can easily hit 100)
11. Lady Blomfield, traveler, writer
13. Martha Root, journalist, traveler
14. Juliet Thompson, artist
15. Bahiyyah Khanum, Prophet's daughter
16. Zaynab, martyr warrior maiden
17. Mona, martyr children's teacher
18. Bani Dugal Gujral, head of Baha'i International Community at the United Nations
19. Lua Getsinger, actress, world traveler
20. Dr. Susan Moody, physician
21. Munirah Khanum, mother, great lady
22. Assiyih Khanum (or Navvab, the general)
23. Effie Baker (photographer)
24. Ruhiyyah Khanum, author, filmmaker
25. Amelia Colins, philantropist
26. Corinne True, temple builder
27. Agnes Parsons, race amity worker
28. Eleonora Armstrong, pioneer
and the list goes on (somebody please continue it). It is time that these women, each one of which has an extraordinarily inspiring story, be illumined by the light of history, as they have much to contribute to the world still, by their example. It is accurate to say that the Baha'i Faith has been spread throughout the world by many intrepid women taking up its banner.

[life rant]

06:21 AM on 03/28/2012

The list you have made above has absolutely no relevance for non-Bahai's reading this article... while these women are well-admired and important figures of the Faith, adding that they are important because they were "martyr warrior maidens", "the general", or "Prophet's daughter" sounds rather sinister... no offence intended.

[Teacher Trish]

10:55 PM on 04/01/2012

.....but it is a list of names one could use in a search engine and learn more. Without names one could not learn more. Considering the space given for a HuffPo post she was concise and informative. She offered education and you offered an unwillingness to learn more....no offense intended.

[PeterVanKan]

08:50 AM on 03/27/2012

10 baha'i women everyone should know.
earlier 10 sikh women everone should know
also 10 muslim, hindu, jewish, christian etc etc.
on top of all the celebrities we are supposed to know, the politicians and businessmen, the historical figures. Then there's our friends and family, old schoolmates, the people at the gym and the congregation, in the neighbourhood and the ones at the campsite we met.

How many people can one know ?

[Tsvi1]

05:55 PM on 03/27/2012

I know of quite a bit of people, but that's because I consider history important and study it.

[Teacher Trish]

10:56 PM on 04/01/2012

Exactly. You can never know too much.

[mheister]

01:30 AM on 04/10/2012

Not know personally, in this case, but know in the sense of expanding our grasp of history through knowing about the lives and contributions of great people.

[Wendy1844]

07:31 AM on 03/27/2012

Great list! I got to meet two of them and saw two others from a distance. The two I met are Mildred Mottahedeh (and I got one of her beautiful commemorative cups at the Bahá'í World Congress) and Dorothy Nelson several times including when she and her late husband James were teaching at a week-long session at Bosch Bahá'í School. Both women were pretty awesome. Dorothy Nelson was considered for Supreme Court Justice but decided she didn't want to have to go through the vetting it takes, which is pretty awful if you'll all recall when Kagen and Sotomayor were being interviewed. I don't blame her.

[Zilo]

10:47 PM on 03/26/2012

Didn't know Carole Lombard was one.

[Wendy1844]

07:36 AM on 03/27/2012

When I was new in the Faith n 1964, I met several people who knew her including one who had been brought into the Faith by her. She told me she was nothing like the gossip columns portrayed her. A few years ago, my husband and I went to see My Man Godfrey at our local restored movie theater that shows old movies and some of the more unusual new ones, and it was really wonderful and just hilarious! I could see why she was so beloved. A lot of actors and actresses back then seemed sort of stilted but not her. She had a unique charisma that really stood out. They had a nice small poster advertising the movie and I got one framed.

[LMPE]

10:24 PM on 03/26/2012

I think that Barbara Hale is also Baha'i.

[Wendy1844]

07:37 AM on 03/27/2012

I never heard that.

[ruhaba]

09:48 PM on 03/26/2012

There are so many notable Baha'i women, It is hard to chose , Martha Ruth, Ruha khanoom, Julia Thompson, Mona and so on.....

[ruths]

08:38 PM on 03/26/2012

Thank you for posting this article. I so loved reading it.

[Jelle NL]

04:33 PM on 03/26/2012

Very good that you included Mrs Mahvash Sabet and Mrs Fariba Kamalabadi. The imprisonment of these women is a continuous "defamation of Islam".