Sheikh Ahmad Rouhi (

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

: شیخ احمد روحی) was an Iranian writer, political thinker, and libertarian. He is best known for his work with

Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani (;‎ 1854 – 1896/97) was an Iranian intellectual reformer, a Babi, and son-in-law of Subh-i-Azal. In his writings, he advocates for political, social, and religious reform characteristic of his generation of intellec ...

and

Jamāl al-Dīn al-Afghānī Sayyid Jamāl al-Dīn al-Afghānī (Pashto/), also known as Jamāl ad-Dīn Asadābādī () and commonly known as Al-Afghani (1838/1839 – 9 March 1897), was an Iranian political activist and Islamic ideologist who travelled throughout the Mus ...

in Istanbul and for writing nationalist and libertarian works. His famous book, '' Hasht Behesht'', is about

Bábism Bábism () is a Messianism, messianic movement founded in 1844 by Báb, the Báb ( 'Ali Muhammad). The Báb, an Iranian merchant-turned-prophet, professed that there is one incorporeal, unknown, and incomprehensible GodEdward Granville Browne ...

beliefs and critiques of

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...

Life

Sheikh Ahmad Rouhi was born in Kerman in 1847, he was the second son of one of the prominent Bábist figures of

Kerman Kerman (; ) is a city in the Central District (Kerman County), Central District of Kerman County, Kerman province, Kerman province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. History Kerman was founded as a def ...

. In Kerman, he married one of

Subh-i-Azal Subh-i-Azal (1831–1912, born Mīrzā Yahyā Nūrī) was an Iranian religious leader and writer who was the second head of the Bābī movement after the execution of its founder, the Bāb, in 1850. He was named the leader of the movement afte ...

's daughters, Tal'at Azal. he was a preacher of

and became popular among the people because of his kindness and trustworthiness. In 1875 he went to

Isfahan Isfahan or Esfahan ( ) is a city in the Central District (Isfahan County), Central District of Isfahan County, Isfahan province, Iran. It is the capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is located south of Tehran. The city ...

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

Rasht Rasht (; ) is a city in the Central District (Rasht County), Central District of Rasht County, Gilan province, Gilan province, Iran, serving as the capital of the province, the county, and the district. The city is also known as the "City of ...

and

Najaf Najaf is the capital city of the Najaf Governorate in central Iraq, about 160 km (99 mi) south of Baghdad. Its estimated population in 2024 is about 1.41 million people. It is widely considered amongst the holiest cities of Shia Islam an ...

with

and Mirza Hassan Khan Tabrizi and emigrated to

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

and continued his activities there. His acquaintance with

led them to political and social activities, and they worked with Mirza Hassan Khan Tabrizi to promote freedom-seeking ideas in their works. Letters sent by Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani and Sheikh Ahmad Rouhi, to Sheikh Hadi Najmabadi in Iran were sometimes so sensitive that, if discovered, the correspondents would be killed. After the assassination of Naser al-Din Shah, the

Ottomans Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empir ...

extradited Ahmad Rouhi, Mirza Hassan Khan, and Mirza Aga Khan, who had been imprisoned in

Trabzon Trabzon, historically known as Trebizond, is a city on the Black Sea coast of northeastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. The city was founded in 756 BC as "Trapezous" by colonists from Miletus. It was added into the Achaemenid E ...

, to Iran. On July 17, 1896,

Crown Prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent. ''Crown prince ...

Mohammad Ali Mirza beheaded them in the northern garden of Tabriz on charges of being Bábist and sent their heads full of straw to Tehran.

Hasht Behesht

In Najaf, Sheikh Ahmad wrote his famous book, '' Hasht Behesht'' (The Eight Heavens). ''Hasht Behesht'' is one of the reference books on the beliefs of

and a critical book on

and

Baháʼu'lláh Baháʼu'lláh (, born Ḥusayn-ʻAlí; 12 November 1817 – 29 May 1892) was an Iranian religious leader who founded the Baháʼí Faith. He was born to an aristocratic family in Iran and was exiled due to his adherence to the messianic Báb ...

. Also in this book, Sheikh Ahmad Rouhi sees the Constitutional Revolution as the downfall for the

Qajar dynasty The Qajar family (; 1789–1925) was an Iranian royal family founded by Mohammad Khan (), a member of the Qoyunlu clan of the Turkoman-descended Qajar tribe. The dynasty's effective rule in Iran ended in 1925 when Iran's '' Majlis'', conven ...

. Sheikh Ahmad Rouhi named the book based on the poem Hasht-Bihisht written by

Amir Khusrau Abu'l Hasan Yamīn ud-Dīn Khusrau (1253 – 1325 AD), better known as Amīr Khusrau, sometimes spelled as, Amir Khusrow or Amir Khusro, was an Indo-Persian Sufi singer, musician, poet and scholar, who lived during the period of the Delhi Sult ...

and praised him in one of the chapters of the book. Most copies of ''Hasht Behesht'' were destroyed by

Shia Islam Shia Islam is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political Succession to Muhammad, successor (caliph) and as the spiritual le ...

fanatics in Iran, and Sheikh Ahmad Rouhi's family was persecuted for this book. But a copy was brought to Britain by the historian and orientalist Edward Grenville Brown.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rouhi, Sheikh Ahmad Bábism People from Kerman 1855 births 19th-century Iranian philosophers 1878 deaths 19th-century Persian-language writers People of the Persian Constitutional Revolution