‘Khanom Mah’; A Narrative of Woman for Woman

The Homeland and Resistance Service of the Iran Book News Agency (IBNA) reports: The Sacred Defense was an eight-year experience of the steadfastness and resistance of women whose homes were their front lines, and throughout years of relentless battle, they never allowed the enemy to bring the spirit and soul of Iran to its knees. The role of women in this historical period is broader than being limited to support and aid roles: women in the family’s stronghold bore the heavy burden of loss and anxiety, yet they did not allow the flow of life to stop. This responsibility required high flexibility and spiritual capability, which was less often mentioned in military narratives of the Sacred Defense that, for a long time, dominated other narratives in the publishing market. In recent years, this approach has changed, and books that address the war and its consequences from a feminine perspective have gained more popularity. “Khanom Mah,” on which the Supreme Leader’s endorsement will soon be published, is one of these books; a feminine narrative of a woman during the war days that aims to not merely recount her storytelling role but to place the woman at the center of this narrative. On the occasion of the Leader’s endorsement of this work, we sat down with its author, Sajedeh Taghizadeh, to get better acquainted with “Khanom Mah.”

First, for a better introduction to the audience, please briefly tell us about your life and activities. What made you interested in the field of Sacred Defense literature?

I am Sajedeh Taghizadeh, born on Khordad 3, 1365 (May 24, 1986) in the city of Meymand; Meymand is one of the beautiful cities in Fars province, known as the city of roses and rosewater. I have resided in Shiraz for over thirteen years and have had the honor of publishing nearly 17 book titles. I hold a Ph.D. in Persian Language and Literature and work in the fields of poetry, fiction, and biography writing.

My interest in the field of Sacred Defense literature dates back to my master’s studies; at that time, I decided to write my master’s thesis on steadfastness literature and the Sacred Defense. That thesis was later published as a book titled “Us Against Us,” which won the International Revolution Poetry Award and received commendation. After that, I entered the fields of storytelling, novel writing, and biography writing. Also, in 2015, I had the honor of getting acquainted with Khanom Mah, and this acquaintance led to the creation of the book “Khanom Mah,” whose first edition was released to the market in 2020.

What was your feeling when you found out that the Supreme Leader had written an endorsement for the book “Khanom Mah”?

The fact that Ayatollah Khamenei reviewed and endorsed the book was truly like a dream for me. The thought that one day he would read the book was very exciting for me; let alone that he would study the book, get acquainted or become more acquainted with this dear martyr’s wife, and write an endorsement for this book. This matter is very special to me, and I consider it God’s grace and the martyrs’ favor that this crown was placed upon me. I truly see this as a blessing for myself and a small honor in the presence of the martyrs; also for my dear parents, who are no longer alive but were always my motivators in the field of writing for the martyrs.

How did you get acquainted with Martyr Soltani and his family?

Our acquaintance was such that in the 2010s, I had meetings with the families of martyrs in Shiraz. In 2015, I met Haj Khanom and her daughter, Marzieh Khanom. After that, I asked her to kindly cooperate for writing the book. Initially, Haj Khanom considered this work somewhat contrary and contradictory to sincerity and the work that should be for God and should not promote oneself. Finally, by referring to the Supreme Leader’s statements and his special emphasis on addressing the lives of martyrs’ wives, and also with the cooperation of her daughters, we convinced her to share her memories.

Considering the book’s title (“A Narrative of a Woman Without Any Suffix”), do you think your effort to introduce Ms. Alinejad has been successful? What was her and Martyr Soltani’s family’s reaction to this work?

My goal with the title “A Narrative of a Woman Without Any Suffix” was to narrate the truth this time from the perspective of the martyr’s wife, and I wanted the martyr’s wife herself to be at the center of this tableau, not standing in a corner relating a story about the martyr. For this reason, the sections about the front and the war and the events the martyr experienced at the front have not been addressed at all; everything that has been stated relates to the narratives told by Khanom Mah herself or by family members. The role of a martyr’s wife is different from the role of a comrade-in-arms, fellow combatant, sister, or brother of a martyr. While respecting all these connections and the fact that all relatives of a martyr hold a special place, it seemed to me that the wife’s position is very distinct; because the wife was a companion, a partner, a participant, a shareholder, and influential in the martyr’s decisions.

The martyr’s family had a lot of experience with people coming to them wanting to do something for the martyr, so this issue was not strange to them, and they accepted. But perhaps they did not imagine that this book would be from the wife’s perspective and that the book would achieve such success; because before the news about the endorsement was published, the book had reached its ninth and tenth printings and was considered a popular book. In this regard, the news of the endorsement is not only a turning point and a very important and influential transformation for the author but also for the martyr’s family.

Which group of readers did you have in mind when writing “Khanom Mah”?

When I was writing the book “Khanom Mah,” my exact audience was women, and from the beginning, my goal was to write a feminine narrative for women; a narrative of a woman who happens to be a martyr’s wife and a martyr’s sister, but the center of the narrative and the zoom of my camera is on the character of this woman herself, the decisions she made, the resistance she showed, and the desires she had for her life.

In recent years, many works recounting the memoirs of martyrs’ mothers and wives have been written. Has this approach been able to fill the gap in addressing the role of women before, during, and after the Sacred Defense? In your opinion, what distinguishes “Khanom Mah” from other such works?

Thank God that in recent years, many books have been written about wives, because we have narrated the war in a masculine way for almost three decades, and we talked about the war as if men went to fight and came back, while the issue was not about gender, but about families. We Iranians participate as a family in every crisis; against Corona, against the 12-day imposed war, the Sacred Defense, social issues, cultural issues. In fact, the Iranian lifestyle is a family-oriented lifestyle. Therefore, when we talk about the great 8-year epic of the Sacred Defense, we must definitely look at the issue from the family’s perspective. It still needs to be seen. In this puzzle, the roles of grandmothers, daughters, sons, sisters, and brothers must also be seen for our tableau of war and Sacred Defense to be complete, accurate, and eloquent.

A part of the narratives of martyrs’ wives are completely common; meaning all martyrs’ wives almost had that love and affection, that simple living, that endurance of hardships, those social issues, and that presence alongside their husbands. This part is naturally common, and we cannot remove it to avoid repetition, but everyone’s narrative and story is unique to them; every woman’s story can be audible from her own perspective and for her own audience, and for her own audience, and it is precisely that love story which, as Hafez said, “from whatever tongue you hear it, it is not repeated.”

Are you currently writing any other works?

I have written the life story of one of the war nurses who was a comrade of Haj Ahmad Motavaselian in western Iran, in Paveh, Marivan, and Sanandaj; a Shirazi lady, and fortunately, this book is also in its final writing phase.