Awakening: A History of the Babi and Baha'i Faiths in Nayriz (Russian Language Edition)

Hussein Ahdieh · Hillary Chapman

Mar 2018 · Ibex Publishers

About this ebook

 Awakening: A History of the Babi and Bahai Faiths in Nayriz is an inspiring account of the brutal religious persecutions that took place in 1850, 1853, and 1909 in the town of Nayriz, Iran, against its Babi and Bahai residents. During this time, the town s citizens, spurred on by a corrupt Muslim clergy and government, launched several waves of bloodshed against the Babis and later Bahais who lived there. This type of persecution continues today in present-day Iran toward the Bahai's on a more subtle level and the history of the Babi and Bahai Faiths in Nayriz serves as a reminder of what can happen when religious fanaticism and paranoia are allowed to replace rational thinking and tolerance. The book gives accounts from survivors, attempts to explain the motives of the persecutors, and tries to provide a context if any can be found for the level of brutality that occurred. To any unbiased reader, the accounts of betrayals, tortures, and massacres will be shocking, yet sadly similar to other mass killings that have taken place around the globe.

About the author

 Hussein Ahdieh was born and raised in Nayriz, Iran, He is a sixth generation Bahá'í, his ancestors figuring among the first in Nayriz to accept the Bábi and later Bahá'í Faith. Hussein immigrated to the United States as a young man. Like many immigrants seeking a better life in America, he worked and attended college in the New York area. Hussein eventually completed a Masters Degree in European Intellectual History and a Doctorate in Education from the University of Massachusetts.