In Memoriam 1992-1997/Manouchehr Farhoumand

In Memoriam 1992-1997 Manouchehr Farhoumand

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MANOUCHEHR FARHOUMAND

1904–1996

Manouchehr Farhoumand

Manouchehr Farhoumand was born in Hamadán, Iran, on November 16, 1904. His father, Ḥakím Naṣír, was a physician of Jewish background. His mother, Nushafarin Soleiman, was the granddaughter of Ḥakím Lalehzar, a physician and rabbi—the first Jew in Hamadán to embrace the Faith. It is said that her uncle Ḥakím Agha Jan, at the time of his death, opened his eyes following many days of coma and instructed those present to stand as though they were in the presence of Bahá’u’lláh. His family was amazed by the subsequent receipt of a Tablet from Bahá’u’lláh in which He said, “We were present at the hour of his passing.”

From an early age Manouchehr was immersed in the Bahá’í writings. He was extremely bright and able, a brilliant scholar. Under the guidance of the well-known Bahá’í headmaster, Dabeer Moayed

[Page 314]314 THE BAHÁ'Í WORLD Naimi, he graduated from Ta'id School (the Bahá'í school in Hamadán) and then from the American College in Hamadán years ahead of the other children his age. Although he was a gifted mathematician, he decided to follow in the footsteps of his forefathers and pursued a medical profes- sion. He attended the American University of Beirut in Lebanon from 1924 to 1929 graduating with honors. He continued his postgraduate studies at the Medical Faculty of Lyon in France, obtaining his MD with a gold medal, specializing in psychiatry and legal medicine in 1930. He returned to Tihrán and was the director of a mili- tary hospital until 1933 when he turned to general practice. He opened a surgery, the reception room of which he shared with his brother Heshmatollah Farhoumand. 189 The two doctors became very successful before giving up their practices in order to pioneer to Africa. Manouchehr married Nirvana, the daughter of Youness Khán Afrukhteh, the personal secretary and interpreter for the beloved Master, and Zarintaj, the grand- daughter of Razal-Rooh, the renowned Bábí martyr. In his book My Experiences as a Pioneer Doctor to Tanganyika, written when he was ninety years old (published in 1995). he wrote: During the Easter vacations of 1925 I was among about thirty Bahá'í stu- dents in the American University of Beirut who were invited by our dear Guardian to Haifa. While we were there the Guardian came up the slopes of Mount Carmel every evening to the Pilgrim House in the grounds of the Shrine of the Báb where we residents stayed, and then we followed him on his 189 See Heshmatollah Farhoumand, pp. 262-65. garden walks listening to his edifying words... again in the Easter vacation in the year 1927 we were invited by the beloved Guardian to Haifa. On this occasion only two of us, Mr. Mahmood Hafezi and I, had the privilege of vis- iting the Shrines and the Guardian. Those were the most unforgettable days of my life. Every morning I had the opportunity of hearing the Guardian's beautiful voice while he was chanting the Tablet of Visitation in the Shrines of the Báb and 'Abdu'l-Bahá... It was during my third visit (March 21, 1952) that the Guardian advised everybody who had the means to pioneer, to do so, and he encouraged me to go to Africa. I suggested that while some might judge me to be a competent physician, hardly any would be found to rank me among capable speakers or teachers. "Pioneering is in itself the most effective form of teaching," the Guardian replied. Then and there my resolve was formed. I would obey his command. I would go to Africa. Another day my mother-in-law, while seated next to the beloved Guardian, placed both her hands on his knees and begged him to allow her to sacrifice her life for the Faith. The beloved Guardian answered, "This is not the time for sacrifice. Pioneer to Africa and carry forward the torch your husband (Dr. Youness Khán) has handed you." In April 1954 accompanied by his three young children-Noushin, Shahpar, and Minerva he left Iran for Dar es Salaam, the capital of Tanganyika. His wife, Nirvana, and his mother-in-law, Zarintaj, who had become ill with cancer, were to join him later after going to Geneva. In a telegram, the Guardian suggested that he remain in Dar es Salaam, open a surgery, [Page 315]and teach the Faith. It was at this point that a simple decision made on Bahá’í principles produced far-reaching results. He refused to have a separate waiting room for white patients and another waiting room for Indian and African patients, as was the customary practice in the country at that time. In his book, he writes:

With such edifying words, "The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens," before me, how could I separate the Indians and Africans from the Europeans. On the other hand, this was the custom. Now I was indeed in a predicament. Some friends warned me that disregard of this particular custom might lead to the annulment of my license and the closing down of my surgery. After deliberating on the subject I finally chose to do what was implicit in Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings. I decided to have but one waiting room for all communities, black, white, or brown, so the notice outside the front waiting room went up, "All patients are welcome in here."... Word soon got around that here was a white doctor who did not discriminate against colored and black people.

The decision, while turning away a few white patients, attracted a number of educated Africans who, respecting his Bahá’í beliefs and his dislike of racial prejudice, continued to be his patients after the nation achieved its independence. These patients included President Julius Nyerere, Vice President Karume, and Prime Minister Rashadi Kawawa, as well as a considerable number of ministers, visiting ambassadors, and other dignitaries. It was said that his surgery that adjoined his house was the only place in the country where one could see the American and Russian ambassadors or the Israeli and Egyptian ambassadors sitting happily together. Without exception they all knew about the Faith.

Manouchehr used to take great joy in going out on teaching trips to Morogoro with his family, especially in the company of the Nakhjavání and Yazdání families. They would meet with Mrs. Naimi and the believers and contacts there. He continued to practice and to teach in Dar es Salaam until 1971 when he decided to retire and join his family in London, England. His wife had taken his children to London two years earlier so that they could continue their education. When President Nyerere traveled to England, he invited Manouchehr and Nirvana to meet with him, and he invited the Farhoumands to visit him in Tanzania. Manouchehr loved Africa and the Africans, and it was his ardent wish to return there with all the members of his family.

Manouchehr was a brilliant doctor and a talented linguist who could speak fluent Persian, English, and French, as well as some Hebrew, Arabic, Turkish, and Swahili. He played the Persian musical instrument "tar" and was a strong swimmer, an able horseman, and a keen gardener. He served on the Local Spiritual Assemblies of Shemírán (Iran), Dar es Salaam, and Three Rivers (United Kingdom) as well as on the National Spiritual Assembly of Tanzania. His proudest moments were during the World Congress in New York when he was surrounded by a crowd of believers, each of whom insisted on shaking his hand, reminding him that he had either saved his or her life, brought him or her into this world, or assisted the deliveries of his or her children.

There cannot be many people who have published a book at the age of ninety and who have managed to go on pilgrimage [Page 316]for the seventh time at that wonderful age. When he received the date for his last pilgrimage, he wrote back to the Universal House of Justice to cancel, believing that he would not live long enough. The visit was not canceled, and he was informed that he was expected to come to Haifa as planned.

He was especially proud that his youngest brother Parvis, his son Noushin, and more recently his grandchildren Ashley and Nirvana have decided to continue the long family tradition of becoming doctors.

Manouchehr Farhoumand died on June 15, 1996, surrounded by friends and relatives following a stroke a few days earlier. He was happy to discover that the senior consulting physician assigned to him was an African. Manouchehr remained conscious until the arrival of his brother Rouhollah from Canada and the receipt of a telephone message from ‘Alí Nakhjavání informing him that prayers had been chanted on his behalf in Haifa.

On June 18 the following cable was received from the Universal House of Justice:

PROFOUNDLY SADDENED PASSING MANOUCHEHR FARHOUMAND. HIS DEVOTED SERVICES CRADLE FAITH AND MORE PARTICULARLY TANZANIA REMEMBERED WITH LOVING APPRECIATION. CONVEY DEEP SYMPATHY HIS DEAR WIFE AND BELOVED CHILDREN. PRAYING HOLY SHRINES PROGRESS HIS NOBLE SOUL ABHÁ KINGDOM

He must be delighted by the choice of his place of interment, near the resting place of the Guardian and next to old friends Salim Noonoo and Isobel Sabri.

Noushin Farhoumand