Siyyid Ahmad Khamsi-Báqirof
Siyyid Ahmad Khamsi-Báqirof (c. 1880 - 1950) was a Persian Bahá’í. He accompanied ‘Abdu’l-Bahá on His visit to Europe and was a prominent member of the Iranian community. In his career he was a successful businessman.
Biography[edit]
Ahmad's exact date of birth is not known but it is estimated to have been in 1880. His father, Siyyid Reza, was one of five brothers who became Bahá’ís and were entitled the Sadat-i-Khams by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. His father passed in 1881 and he was mostly raised by his uncle Siyyid Naṣru’lláh Báqirof in Baku, in what is now Azerbaijan.[1] He married Homayoun Khánum, one of his cousins, while living in Baku and they went on to have four daughters and two sons.[2] His sons were Mas’ud and Mahmud and his daughters were Laga, who married Mírzá Muhammadi-Khan-i-Partovi, Bahireh who married Habib Sabet, Mulik who married Shoghi Ghadimi, and Soraya who married Aziz Yazdi.[3]
Ahmad worked for the family business and at some point moved from Baku to Rasht in Iran to oversee the expansion of the business.[1] After settling in Rasht he established tea farming in Iran farming it in the south of the state of Rasht. He sent some of his tea to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá who revealed a Tablet encouraging him to establish more plantations. Tea was a popular product in Iran but was imported from China prior to Ahmad's plantations being established.[4]
Ahmad was well known as a Bahá’í in Rasht and despite Bahá’ís generally being discriminated against his rectitude of conduct resulted in him being respected in the city and the Imam-Jumih (a prominent Islamic clergyman in the city) of Rasht appointed him as the executor of his estate upon his passing and an American councilor in Iran appointed him as the director of the Rasht Revenue which was a government institution responsible for roads, health and tax in the region. He also served as an adviser to the US State Department Office of Foreign Trade at some point.[5]
In 1913 Ahmad went to France and joined the entourage of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá accompanying Him during His visit in Paris and to Germany, Austria, and Hungary. He was the only person added to the entourage which had accompanied ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in North America.[6] In Paris he successfully arranged meetings between ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and prominent Iranian government officials and also with Iranian students studying in Paris.[7] In Vienna he accompanied ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to a meeting with the Ottoman ambassador.[8]
In the 1920s Ahmad formally adopted the surname Khamsi when surnames were introduced in Iran and he also relinquished his Russian citizenship formally becoming a citizen of Iran.[9] He associated with prominent officials and in 1922 the Iranian government invited him to assist in reorganizing the governments finances as they were in crisis and he assisted until 1926. He was invited to assist again from 1942 to 1945.[5] He used his connections with prominent individuals and officials to protect both Bahá’ís and non-Bahá’ís from unjust oppression. In approximately 1930 he hosted ‘Alí-Akbar Furútan in his home when he visited Rasht with many firesides and other meetings facilitated by Furutan being held in his home.[10] In 1936 Shoghi Effendi instructed the Bahá’í community of Iran to establish a committee for Holy Places to catalogue and secure important Bahá’í sites in the country and Ahmad was instrumental to the work of the body.[11]
In 1950 Ahmad embarked on a travel teaching tour of Gilan with Fádil Mazandarání however he fell ill during the journey and passed away in Rasht that year.[10]
References[edit]
Notes[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Handal 2020, p. 75.
- ↑ Handal 2020, p. 76.
- ↑ Handal 2020, p. 77-78.
- ↑ Handal 2020, p. 80.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Handal 2020, p. 79.
- ↑ Handal 2020, p. 81.
- ↑ Handal 2020, p. 82.
- ↑ Handal 2020, p. 91.
- ↑ Handal 2020, p. 78.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Handal 2020, p. 102.
- ↑ Handal 2020, p. 96.
Bibliography[edit]
- Handal, Boris (2020). The Khamsis: A Cradle of True Gold. Self-published.
