Bahador Haqjoo was born on 6th August 1925 in Shiraz, Iran, the eldest of five children of Mohammad and Tahirih Haqjoo. His mother was the daughter of Binesh Haqjoo who was a well-known, knowledgeable man, a Bahá’í teacher and poet who had a great influence in every aspect of Bahador’s life. His father was not a Bahá’í but was open-minded and sympathetic towards the Bahá’í Faith and its teachings.

Bahador attended primary and secondary schools in Shiraz and was an exemplary student academically as well as in music and drama. He had taught himself violin at the age of 8 and later under well-known instructors in Tehran during his summer holidays while visiting his grandfather. From childhood he had a love of poetry and a talent for writing it. In adulthood, if he had time, he corresponded with friends and family in poetry form. His higher education started in the oil city of Abadan where he attended Abadan Technical College, aiming for a career in engineering. Soon after starting the course, he won a scholarship exam arranged by the oil company to go to Birmingham University, England, to embark on a five-year course in mechanical engineering. After graduation, he returned to Abadan in 1951. His return coincided with the nationalisation of the oil industry and the departure from Iran of ‘foreign’ experts in the field. Consequently, all the important and crucial posts in the oil company were allocated to Iranians, including a number of new graduates from Birmingham University. Bahador, whose interest and love was teaching, started his career as the head of the engineering department and as a lecturer in his old college.

Bahador met his future wife Shahla Mottahed in Shiraz, whose wish after finishing school, was to go to England and to a goal area of the Guardian’s Ten Year Crusade, combining it with furthering her academic education. Bahador’s aim was also to pioneer during the Plan. They were married in 1955 and went to live in Abadan to start planning their move to England. The University of Manchester accepted Shahla for a BSc course. They arrived in England in July 1957, four months before the passing of the beloved Guardian, whose last Message to the Bahá’ís of the British Isles was read during a summer school in Liverpool that Bahador and Shahla had attended. During that occasion they met a number of Bahá’ís from different parts of the country, including Manchester. They arranged their accommodation with Betty and Harold Shepherd who had a number of flats to rent in Manchester and one had just become vacant.

Bahador had started a one-year postgraduate conversion course in chemical engineering at the University of Manchester. The poignant passing of the beloved Guardian happened soon after they started their life in Manchester and they attended the funeral in London. In 1958, Bahador was elected to the Manchester Assembly. One of the Assembly’s Goals of the Ten- Year Crusade was the formation of an Assembly in the neighbouring area of Cheadle and Gatley Urban District Council which already had six Bahá’ís residing there. Bahador and Shahla offered with great joy to move to the area and together with another friend from Manchester, gave Cheadle and Gatley Assembly status at Ridván 1959. The area in later years was absorbed into Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council and the Assembly became the Stockport Spiritual Assembly.

After successfully finishing his one year course, Bahador was offered the post of lectureship in the Chemical Engineering Department of the University which enabled him and his wife Shahla to get permission to stay in the country, and also provided the additional opportunity for Bahador to begin research towards getting a PhD degree. In addition to the numerous Bahá’í activities in their new locality, Bahador was also involved in the activities of Manchester itself as well as regionally and nationally, being a member of the Regional and National Teaching Committees during the final stages of the Ten Year Crusade.

During those days, a very active Bahá’í Society was established in Manchester University which attracted a number of young students who enjoyed attending lectures given by many national figures, such as former members of the Universal House of Justice, David Hofman, Ian Semple and many more. These interested students were invited to the Haqjoos’ home for firesides, to hear other invited speakers such as Mr. Alfred Sugar, a well-known, elderly Bahá’í from the area who made a great impression on the young enquirers. Many declarations were received through those firesides.

In 1965 the National Iranian Oil Company invited Bahador back to Iran to become the President of the Abadan Institute of Technology, AIT – his old college, which had been expanded and had become a leading institute of learning for the oil industry. Bahador accepted the post and left for Abadan. Shahla, who was in the middle of writing her PhD thesis, joined him with their first child Ruhy later in 1967. As the President of the AIT, Bahador received an invitation from the State department of the United States of America in 1966, to visit universities in different States. He felt that it was a golden opportunity for him to combine the visit with travel teaching in the designated areas. He asked the hosts to make the necessary arrangements for him, through the NSA of the United States, to meet the Bahá’ís during the visit, and also requested that his accommodation be with the American families rather than being booked into hotels. As a result of his request, on his arrival in different parts of the country the Bahá’í friends often met him at the airports and took him to whatever programme they had arranged for him. Staying with the families also provided him with the opportunity to teach the Faith as well as gain an insight into American family life.

He was elected to the Local Spiritual Assembly of Abadan and served on that body during his whole stay in that city. As the president of the AIT he was able to make a number of changes in the administration of the Institute, including opening its doors to female students and also accepting entries, both male and female, from the neighbouring oil producing countries, all with great difficulty in convincing the authorities.

Bahador, Shahla and family (Ruhy, Nabil and Dana) returned to England in 1970, back to their home in Cheadle. He started working as an engineer, on a multi-disciplinary team appointed by Manchester University as part of a pollution research project. He was elected back to the Assembly and got involved with all the activities of the Bahá’í community. He was appointed an Auxiliary Board member for Protection in the north of England in 1982. He conducted deepening classes in Stockport and beyond, an area that he served for many years with great enthusiasm. His classes were well-attended and enjoyable. Many Bahá’í books including the Kitab-i-Aqdas, Some Answered Questions, Seven Valleys and the Four Valleys, Dispensation of Bahá’u’lláh (and many more) were studied in the course of a few years. He also became involved in the activities of the United Nations Association, first in Manchester and later in Stockport, where he represented the Stockport Assembly. He served as the Secretary and Chair of the Stockport Branch of the UNA until his passing.

Bahador, together with Shahla, who was also appointed to the UNA Committee, started hosting an Annual International Supper/ Music event at their home in aid of charities, from 1987. After their move to a smaller house the event was held in a local church, as the number of participants had increased. The Bahá’í friends helped in the preparation of food with music played by many Bahá’í and non-Bahá’í friends throughout the years. In the last few years, a renowned local orchestra played for the event without charge. In over 30 years of its functioning, the event raised thousands of pounds for charity, mainly UNICEF, and others such as Water Aid and the Adopt-a-Minefield project. In appreciation of services to the UNA, Bahador and Shahla were granted life membership of the organisation.

In 1987, the Stockport Assembly, with support and encouragement from the Bishop of Stockport, started an interfaith group which was hosted by Bahador and Shahla at their home, and which still meets every six to eight weeks. Each summer Shahla and Bahador hosted an annual Interfaith Group lunch (weather permitting in the garden) to which, in addition to the regular participants, many other guests were invited. Both the UNA events and Interfaith have been instrumental in our getting to know many people in the area and strengthening the bonds of friendship and love.

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Bahador’s funeral took place on 13th March 2018, attended by over 200 people from diverse backgrounds. The family were honoured to receive messages of condolences from the Universal House of Justice and the National Spiritual Assembly. Many friends wrote to Shahla on Bahador’s passing and she has derived great comfort from these letters. A few are quoted here.

An interfaith Stockport Quakers couple wrote, ”…we have valued his sincere friendship since we have been involved in the Interfaith Group. Always part of the warm welcome to your home, we loved his (Bahador’s) sense of humour, his realistic assessment of the human spirit and behaviour, his love and dedication to the Bahá’í Faith but with open willingness to hear about other faiths and value systems.

A Christian Scientist member of the Group: “…I hope and imagine that you found much strength and support in what took place on that special day (Bahador’s funeral). The prayers and ideas you and Bahador shared during our meetings lead me to think so…I pray that you are feeling the strength and peace of God and of your spiritual knowledge. There is so much love among the members of your faith, this must be a great comfort…”

Former Bishop of Stockport wrote: “…..I remember Bahador with affection and remember meeting you initially at Bramall Hall when you invited Sally and me to a Bahá’í occasion and then to the hospitality of your home where we met members of your family. The forming of the Interfaith Group was prophetic 30 years ago…..the aims of different faiths discussing common concerns is advocated in a book by the former Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sachs called “ Not in God’s Name” when he addresses the matter of violence in religion..

A Church of England minister member of the Group wrote,  ”…There is a hymn which speaks of the sevenfold gifts of the Spirit. Those gifts are listed as wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and fear of the Lord. Those gifts were very much evident in Bahador’s life. He was someone who was filled with the spirit of God. Together the two of you made God seem near. Thank you for all you have been and done….”

The Interfaith meetings were very much missed by all the participants after Bahador’s passing to the Abha Kingdom but I managed to re-start them, soon after I became emotionally and physically well enough to host them. I am so happy that they are going strongly and at present are held as Zoom online meetings because of the Pandemic situation.

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Written by Shahla Haqjoo

October 2020

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