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Sunday 30 December 2012









Ashtizai raced frantically to Sham’s quarters, where she was sitting drinking tea with Vahoush.  ‘The queen is gone, I saw the guards with her, she is in a carriage, I don’t know where…’ the frightened maid’s garbled message interrupted the calm repose of mother and daughter.

Sham’s lined face dropped with instant concern. ‘Quiet yourself girl, you must be confused, are you sure it was Vashti?’

‘Yes,’ tears rolled uncontrollably down Ashtizai’s face. ‘She was wearing the gown I dressed her in this morning. Perhaps…they are going to kill her,’ she cried.

‘Nonsense girl, the law of the Medes would never allow it.’

‘But mistress, the anger of the king, it was terrible.’

‘He will cool down soon; we all know what he is like. Vashti was probably just going out for a break after the busy time we have had. You know how she likes to be alone sometimes.’

‘But with so many guards? And without letting me know? She always tells me her whereabouts, in case she is needed for anything.’

Vahoush stood and went to the door. ‘I will find Harpagos, to see if he knows where she is. If the queen is in danger, he will surely find her.’ But Vashti’s sister felt distinctly uneasy. Astyages’ new advisors were decidedly secretive about their intentions in matters of government. Taking advantage of the delinquent behaviour of the king, had they devised a plot to depose the queen?  Or worse still were these officials seeking to overthrow the Medes’ hold on both empires? On her way to the barracks Vahoush slipped briefly into the royal family’s shrine room to make a special appeal to Auramazdaha for her sister’s protection.

Harpagos was in a tumult of distress. It seemed his lifelong friend had done the unthinkable by banishing his wife forcibly without giving her access to legal appeal. He paced up and down the floor of his quarters, while Gulwashoo tried to understand the day’s events. ‘If only someone could penetrate the king’s addled mind,’ she lamented. ‘Then he might see reason.’

‘His habits have twisted it so much, I fear it will never be straightened,’ Harpagos commiserated. He looked directly at Gulwashoo. ‘If we have lost our beautiful queen at a time of extremity for our government it surely cannot be a coincidence.’

Gulwashoo had never seen such remorse in her husband’s eyes. ‘We must not waste time speculating, you must approach the king. Perhaps Vashti has been kidnapped?’

Harpagos had heard otherwise from reliable sources. But he had to know the truth. He reached for his sword as his manservant entered to announce the arrival of Princess Vahoush. She was panting and her face was flushed. When she saw the expressions on the faces of the vispavada and his wife, Vahoush became alarmed. ‘Is it true?’ she gasped. ‘My sister has been taken away under the king’s orders?’ Harpagos could only nod while Gulwashoo hugged Vahoush.

‘Surely something can be done,’ Vahoush cried.

‘I am about to request an audience with the king,’ Harpagos replied flatly, ‘but I hold little hope for the queen’s rescue. Apparently she has been sent to confinement and deprived of her throne, by immutable decree of …’ Harpagos paused as though lifting the weight of monumental words, ‘the Shahan Shah.’

Two hours later Harpagos returned, his face set like rock. ‘It is done,’ he declared to Gulwashoo and Vahoush. ‘She is on her way to Ecbatana for indefinite imprisonment.’

Vahoush collapsed into Gulwashoo’s arms. ‘How will I ever tell Sham?’ she cried. Then she turned to Harpagos. ‘You must lead the Bears to retrieve her. Vashti is the legally appointed Queen of the Medes she is being subjected to treasonous treatment.’

Harpagos shook his head. ‘Then I and the regiment would be committing a mutinous act against the king. And to use the regiment for such a purpose could place the soldiers under the same charge. We also risk civil war if the people decide to choose between the king and… the former queen.’

Vahoush gasped. ‘But we cannot leave her to rot in some obscure prison in Ecbatana. We must go to her. We will have visiting rights.’

‘That depends on the king’s will.’

Vahoush looked to her husband, who had not long arrived. ‘This is the work of unseen forces whose intent we cannot fully determine,’ he tried to explain to his stricken wife. ‘Nor can we tell how long they will prevail.’

“And it seems we cannot fight them.’

‘We may be halted in a worldly sense, but the power of Auramazdaha is not challenged,’ Pir Daidwar asserted. ‘We must unite ours with him and trust, because we know Ahriman’s defeat is not far away. These happenings confirm the Piree Magush’s belief that we will soon learn the time of the Saoshyant’s appearance.’  The young Piree’s efforts to encourage his listeners hardly seemed to soften the blows they were enduring.

But Vahoush wondered how she would help her mother through yet another ordeal.  ‘We must uphold each other at this terrible time,’ she asserted, as she led the way to Sham’s quarters. Ahead she saw Prince Darius hurrying down the corridor.

When the little party reached Sham’s quarters the sound of sobbing could be heard from within. Freshta had her arm around Zrena, who held her grandmother’s hand.  ‘Has mother really been taken away by the guards?’ Zrena cried on seeing Harpagos.

The vispavada glanced at Sham who rocked gently in her chair. ‘For a while, we do not know how long.’

Sham looked straight ahead. ‘First my husband, then my nephews and my son, Cyaxares is gone and now my daughter is too. Will Auramazdaha let everyone be taken from me?’ the old woman asked incredulously.

Harpagos searched desperately for words of comfort. ‘I advise you to gather your household and return to Ecbatana as soon as possible,’ he stated. ‘Vashti will need to know you are all close to her.’

Prince Darius, who had been pacing the floor, interrupted, his face white with rage. ‘I will stay here,’ he protested, ‘until I finish off that dog.’ Darius had rushed out to Vashti after his father’s judgment against her. His distress had been heightened by his horror as she spoke desperately to him in the corridor outside the banquet hall.

Drawing his sword he strode towards the door. But Harpagos brandished his quickly to prevent him. ‘If you are thinking of visiting the Shahan Shah consider again,’ he advised tersely. ‘It may mean your life.’

‘What does it matter if my mother’s is not avenged?’ he cried. ‘It was not enough that he humiliate her with his whores but then he expected her to dance like one in front of all those people. The man is mad… and dangerously evil. If he held so much as a candle to my mother the stink of his breath would extinguish it instantly. He deserves to be left in eternal darkness. Let us rid ourselves of him and replace him with my mother. Queen Vashti is the only one fit to rule.’

There followed a stunned silence. Darius had expressed what they had all often thought, but been too afraid to speak. Harpagos broke the silence. ‘Prince, as the heir to the throne you warrant my protection, only minimally less than your father does. The enemies of the empire might mount another attack. I advise you to remain within the palace grounds and I will double your guard. And as commander of the armed forces I order you to stay away from the Shahan Shah.’
To continue in the book of Queen Vashti


Monday 3 December 2012

Queen Vashti's family

Queen Vashti's family

Queen Vashti's family (see her here with her sister Vahoush and her cousin Freshta) were descended from the Mittani tribe of the Airyanem Vaejah people.  Her grandparents founded the empire whose centre was at Ecbatana, modern day Hamadan in Iran. She lived in the palace citadel near her uncle and aunt King Cyaaxares and Queen Holyah. Her mother was the king's sister and her father was the Medes' leading general. In those days political instability was a fact of life, much like it is in parts of the Middle East today. So all the royal family were carefully guarded against assassination and kidnap attempts, to say nothing of plots to destroy the government.
Young Princess Vashti was full of the fire that had burned in the hearts of her forbears when they established the Median Empire. Wanting to see the world beyond the palace citadel she conspired with her maid to venture where danger could have been lurking. In doing so she broke the first law of the Medes - never indulge the 'duru' or lie. The consequences were her first lesson in life, which set the pattern for a future in which she could be true to herself, her family and the empire.
Guard yourself against deception, it lurks everywhere and is a subtle killer of truth, trust, integrity, honesty and transparent authentic character. How many people do you know who you can trust in your family, your community your workplace, school and institutions right up the the highest levels of government and administration? What a different world it would be if deception were eliminated. The world would be more just, equitable and free to name just a few advantages.
Princess Vashti had to be truthful in her life as she prepared to lead the empire. Its future would depend on it.

Saturday 1 December 2012

Who were Queen Vashti's ancestors?


Who were Queen Vashti's ancestors

Queen Vashti's family were related to the famed Egyptian Queen Nefertiti who reformed Egyptian spiritual life to the worship of One god instead of many.She and her husband built a city dedicated to the worship of that god and they mediated his benefits for their people.Nefertiti's beauty and influence were reflected in the life and work of her descendant Queen Vashti of the Medes over seven hundred years later, in what is now Iran.
Who will you worship? Will it be the gods of shopping, beauty, image, clothes, sex, alcohol, parties, job status, money, drugs, fast stressed living, friendship, personal achievement and everything else that doesn't last?
Queen Vashti put her trust in One god, like her forbear Nefertiti. She never considered the accumulation of the material important, her focus was her family and the citizens of the empire she ruled with her husband. She gave up her freedom and her privileges to fight a battle against those who threatened the empire by denigrating its women.
Who will you put your trust in?

Wednesday 28 November 2012

Why Vashti matters today

 
 
 
 
 
Vashti matters today because she led the way in fighting for respect for the dignity of women and so that they would be regarded as of equal human value to men. And that was two and a half thousand years ago! How far behind granting the rights that this woman stood and fougnt for under challenge are most contemporary societies? To find out watch this site for a pictorial commentary on the life of Queen Vashti of the Ancient Medes: http://www.facebook.com/#!/vashti.medes

Tuesday 27 November 2012





Queen Esther replaced Queen Vashti of the Medes



Princess Vashti was born into the newly established Median Empire around 624 BCE. Her mother was the sister of King Cyaxares, her father was the leading general in the Medes' army, so a lot was expected of her. Her cousin Princess Amytis was married to another powerful man, Prince Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. But the Medes were different from the surrounding nations in that they had a simple ethical code (think good thoughts, say good words, do good deeds), they had only One god and they granted their women equal status to their men. So in theory a Queen had as much power as a King, although queens did not go into battle and the main signature on royal decrees was the king's. Some of these little discrepancies probably led to Queen Vashti's problem, when in 582 BCE she found herself mired in a terrible predicament. How she survived the challenges of her refusal to obey the king's order is described in Vashti, Queen of the Ancient Medes: Paperback - http://www.amazon.com/dp/1481017624/ref=cm_sw_r_fa_dp_HwTSqb1DGP9KX Kindle - http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AC3ZIYI/ref=cm_sw_r_fa_dp_OxTSqb08G4DRS

Monday 26 November 2012

Vashti (The Ancient Medes of Airyanem Civilization) [Kindle Edition]

Vashti (The Ancient Medes of Airyanem Civilization) [Kindle Edition]


Description of the Book

Queen Vashti, the Median queen who refused her husband King Astyages’ (Ahasuerus) order to attend his debauched official banquet in the year 582 BCE has long stood in the shadow of the woman who succeeded her, Queen Esther of Jewish Purim festival fame. Now her story has been brought to light within the context of the two and a half thousand year old Kurdish culture, of which she was one of the progenitors.
When she risked the loss of her crown by defying the world’s most powerful man, Queen Vashti qualified to become the political and ideological inspiration for contemporary Kurdish women, who fight alongside their men in Kurdistan today to regain the territories of their forbears, the Ancient Medes.
Just as political and religious powers jostle for control in these regions today, so did the ancient Babylonian, Median, Assyrian, Egyptian and lesser empires compete for the land and material wealth of the Middle East.
Born into a civilisation whose religious ideology granted equal status to men and women Vashti’s family lineage descended from the Egyptian Queen Nefertiti. Her grandfather established the empire around the great Sar-Kalai citadel palace of the capital Ecbatana, now the city of Hamadan in Iran. With its Hanging Gardens from which the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar modelled his own renowned palace gardens for his wife, Vashti’s sister-in-law Queen Amytis, the palace was the seat of power for King Cyaxares’ rule of the Median Empire, stretching from the Halys River in today’s Turkey to India in the east, Babylonia in the west and the northern coasts of the Persian Gulf.
Today the Median Empire would have covered half of Turkey, the northern part of Syria and Iran and Iraq. Now seeking to make what they consider a legitimate claim on these territories the Kurds wage guerrilla warfare to free their people, particularly their women, from the regimes which have appropriated their lands and oppressed their peoples for thousands of years.
Set in the era of 630 BCE to 539 BCE Vashti’s story traces her life from her birth into the royal family, through her training in the writings of the prophet, the source of the empire’s spiritual guidance. She learns the same hunting and horsemanship skills as the military, but falls prey early to her cousin and third son of King Cyaxares and Queen Holyah, the alluring Prince Astyages, who illegally attempts to court her. But tragedy strikes in the battle of Nineveh, interrupting the budding romance. When the king supports his eldest son and heir to the throne in his bid for Vashti, Astyages harbours resentment against those who thwart his plans and vows revenge.
When unexpected loss again assails Vashti and the royal family, Cyaxares looks to his niece as the most suitable marriage choice for the indulged and wayward Astyages. Resigned to a life of service to the empire Vashti marries her former love, but soon suffers the vagaries of his temper and his infidelities.
Unable to assuage her husband’s discontentment Vashti immerses herself in her work for the king and the women of the empire, giving birth in 602 BCE to a son, Darius, while mediating the Medes’ alliance with King Nebuchadnezzar through Queen Amytis. Their support for Babylonian military engagements with Egypt, Assyria and Judea is waylaid by the war with Lydia, following which the death of the king sees the ascension of Queen Vashti and King Astyages to the Imperial Median thrones. Three years later Vashti faces her greatest ordeal.
Her suffering must resonate with many young Kurdish women today as they face hanging, stoning and torture, in their struggle to regain the long held rights granted their ancestors. To shocked and horrified westerners, particularly women, who now enjoy the rights and freedoms also mostly won through bloodshed and sacrifice in past eras, the contemporary plight of the descendants of Queen Vashti and the Airyanem Vejah people seems totally unacceptable. Her story and theirs merge to tug on the heartstrings of freedom lovers around the world.
As the cries of the women guerrillas echo across the valleys below the remote peaks of the Qandil Mountains of Kurdistan (northern Iraq, Turkey, Iran and Syria) and mingle with the crack of gunshots against their repressive and intransigent foes, the tears of anguish shed during Queen Vashti’s courageous defence of the women of Ancient Media water their indomitable spirit of resistance.

Vashti: Queen of the Ancient Medes-Part I (Volume 1) [Paperback]

Vashti: Queen of the Ancient Medes-Part I (Volume 1) [Paperback]

Description of the Book

Queen Vashti, the Median queen who refused her husband King Astyages’ (Ahasuerus) order to attend his debauched official banquet in the year 582 BCE has long stood in the shadow of the woman who succeeded her, Queen Esther of Jewish Purim festival fame. Now her story has been brought to light within the context of the two and a half thousand year old Kurdish culture, of which she was one of the progenitors.
When she risked the loss of her crown by defying the world’s most powerful man, Queen Vashti qualified to become the political and ideological inspiration for contemporary Kurdish women, who fight alongside their men in Kurdistan today to regain the territories of their forbears, the Ancient Medes.
Just as political and religious powers jostle for control in these regions today, so did the ancient Babylonian, Median, Assyrian, Egyptian and lesser empires compete for the land and material wealth of the Middle East.
Born into a civilisation whose religious ideology granted equal status to men and women Vashti’s family lineage descended from the Egyptian Queen Nefertiti. Her grandfather established the empire around the great Sar-Kalai citadel palace of the capital Ecbatana, now the city of Hamadan in Iran. With its Hanging Gardens from which the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar modelled his own renowned palace gardens for his wife, Vashti’s sister-in-law Queen Amytis, the palace was the seat of power for King Cyaxares’ rule of the Median Empire, stretching from the Halys River in today’s Turkey to India in the east, Babylonia in the west and the northern coasts of the Persian Gulf.
Today the Median Empire would have covered half of Turkey, the northern part of Syria and Iran and Iraq. Now seeking to make what they consider a legitimate claim on these territories the Kurds wage guerrilla warfare to free their people, particularly their women, from the regimes which have appropriated their lands and oppressed their peoples for thousands of years.
Set in the era of 630 BCE to 539 BCE Vashti’s story traces her life from her birth into the royal family, through her training in the writings of the prophet, the source of the empire’s spiritual guidance. She learns the same hunting and horsemanship skills as the military, but falls prey early to her cousin and third son of King Cyaxares and Queen Holyah, the alluring Prince Astyages, who illegally attempts to court her. But tragedy strikes in the battle of Nineveh, interrupting the budding romance. When the king supports his eldest son and heir to the throne in his bid for Vashti, Astyages harbours resentment against those who thwart his plans and vows revenge.
When unexpected loss again assails Vashti and the royal family, Cyaxares looks to his niece as the most suitable marriage choice for the indulged and wayward Astyages. Resigned to a life of service to the empire Vashti marries her former love, but soon suffers the vagaries of his temper and his infidelities.
Unable to assuage her husband’s discontentment Vashti immerses herself in her work for the king and the women of the empire, giving birth in 602 BCE to a son, Darius, while mediating the Medes’ alliance with King Nebuchadnezzar through Queen Amytis. Their support for Babylonian military engagements with Egypt, Assyria and Judea is waylaid by the war with Lydia, following which the death of the king sees the ascension of Queen Vashti and King Astyages to the Imperial Median thrones. Three years later Vashti faces her greatest ordeal.
Her suffering must resonate with many young Kurdish women today as they face hanging, stoning and torture, in their struggle to regain the long held rights granted their ancestors. To shocked and horrified westerners, particularly women, who now enjoy the rights and freedoms also mostly won through bloodshed and sacrifice in past eras, the contemporary plight of the descendants of Queen Vashti and the Airyanem Vejah people seems totally unacceptable. Her story and theirs merge to tug on the heartstrings of freedom lovers around the world.
As the cries of the women guerrillas echo across the valleys below the remote peaks of the Qandil Mountains of Kurdistan (northern Iraq, Turkey, Iran and Syria) and mingle with the crack of gunshots against their repressive and intransigent foes, the tears of anguish shed during Queen Vashti’s courageous defence of the women of Ancient Media water their indomitable spirit of resistance.