Prophet's Daughter
The Life and Legacy of Bahiyyih Khanum, Outstanding Heroine of the Bahai Faith
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3.5 • 2 Ratings
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- $5.99
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- $5.99
Publisher Description
Prophet’s Daughter is the first full-length biography of one of the greatest women in world religious history. Her towering spiritual strength offers readers an unrivaled model of sacrifice and service to one's faith. Born in Tehran, Bahiyyih Khanum (1846-1932) was the daughter of Baha'u'llah (1817-1892), Prophet and Founder of the Bahai religion. Because Baha'u'llah's teachings were seen in His homeland as a heretical threat to the established order, He and His immediate family and a small group of followers were exiled for some forty years. Meanwhile, thousands of other followers were exterminated in an effort to eradicate the new faith. From the age of seven, Bahiyyih Khanum accompanied her father in exile to Baghdad, Constantinople, Adrianople, and eventually Akka, suffering all of the privations her father suffered. Yet she played a unique and crucial role in supporting her family; assisting members of the religion during periods of unspeakably brutal persecution; managing the small band's household under prison conditions; and, later in life, working with Baha'u'llah's successors to establish the Bahai Faith as a universally recognized world religion. Her confident and resilient response to hardship and suffering, her acceptance of administrative responsibility, her exemplary leadership, and her capacity to deal constructively with change were exceptional.
Customer Reviews
A bit disappointing, yet worthwhile
I bought the book a few years ago. I was expecting a pen portrait of the Greatest Holy Leaf with accompanying pictures, her writings and contributions. Instead the author gives us the background and context of times she lived. Essentially, a longer version of what one might find in Ruhi book 4. The reasons for this:
1. The author warns us repeatedly that women weren't recorded in this region's history during the era in which she lived.
2. I'm guessing that since she is a member of the holy family, the author only wanted to use primary research. Perhaps the author wanted to treated her like the central figures of the Bahai Faith, where anecdotal things that are not "authenticated" (same story documented by multiple sources) dont't get published.
however, primary research items do exist--letters, prayers, telegrams, and other writings do exist and are supposed to be in the archives. Despite the fact it didn't meet my expectations, it's still well research book and worth the read.