Art And Culture
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Lady of Culture: Tahereh Saffarzadeh

Lady of Culture: Tahereh Saffarzadeh
Lady of Culture: Tahereh Saffarzadeh

A place in Tehran District 1 would be named after the eminent Iranian female personality Tahereh Saffarzadeh, Secretary of the Second Literature and Science Festival of Tahereh Saffarzadeh announced.

Speaking at a press conference at the Art Bureau of the Islamic Development Organization, Reza Esmaeeli said on Tuesday that over 500 works have been received by the special section of the festival, which is titled - Lady of Culture: Tahereh Saffarzadeh, IRNA quoted him as saying.

The second congress in honor of Saffarzadeh, author, translator and holy Qur’an researcher will commence on October 26, on her 7th death anniversary, at the Art Bureau.

All Iranian women are invited to send their works and cultural resume to the festival secretariat.

The annual festival contains three sections: poetry, literary essays and research, and student dissertations. Winners will be chosen in each section and two others would also be acclaimed.

Along with the festival some books on the life and works of Saffarzadeh will be unveiled including a book of poems titled ‘A Tribute to Awakening’ and her biography ‘The Religion of the Awake.’ Saffarzadeh’s stamp would also be released during the festival.

This year, for the first time, a separate section for works on the Qur’an has been added to pay homage to her priceless work in translating the Qur’an and Islamic prayers. The book of selected essays of the congress is to be published next year.

It is hoped that after negotiations with the culture and Islamic guidance ministry, the festival will be held internationally.

 Simple Life

Jalal Saffarzadeh, brother of Tahereh Saffarzadeh, described his sister’s life as simple and far from haughtiness. A lot has been said on her greatness but “what I respect the most in her was her determination to promote the culture and literature of this country,” he said.

She believed the work of art is abiding when people consider it so. That was why she did not accept any award or prizes from festivals within and outside Iran and donated them all to the poor, disabled, and needy.

There have been noticeable efforts to fulfill her will regarding the establishment of the Awakening Foundation in her house, but numerous problems have hindered the process which “I hope will be resolved by the authorities,” his brother added.

 Two Awards

In the same meeting, Alireza Qazveh, poet and head of the bureau’s Literary Creations Center, said personalities like Safferzadeh have always stood tall in art and literature and the cultural fraternity is indebted to her.

She is a role model to every noble artist who has dedicated their lives to Iran and its revolutionary art, he added.

In the second festival, women writers in Persian language from other countries such as Afghanistan and Tajikistan would also be honored.

This year there will be two awards: one to an Iranian writer and the other to a Persian work composed by a foreign female writer.

Tahereh Saffarzadeh (1936 – 2008) was an Iranian poet, writer, translator and prominent university professor. Her bilingual translation of Qur’an in Persian and English (2001) is the first of its kind.

 

Financialtribune.com