A Bahá'í Perspective

Mary Darling is cofounder of the production company href="https://www.westwindpictures.com/" target="_blank"Westwind Pictures, a leading independent media production company dedicated to creating thought-provoking content for a global audience. From award-winning scripted series to lifestyle shows, documentaries, and children's media, their diverse productions have earned international acclaim. We talk about the films they've produced in the interview. The following songs are played at the end of the program:

1. Expectation - Music of the Baha'i World Congress New York 1992

2. Let All Associate - New Creation

3. Beauty - Luke Slott

4. For Mercy - Grant Hindin Miller

Naviacute;d is a musician, music producer and the owner of href="https://lancastltd.com/" target="_blank"LANCAST Ltd, an independent company that creates music for film, animation, video games and mobile applications. Navid tells his story about learning the guitar as a teenager to working with href="https://www.discogs.com/artist/217416-Kenny-Phillips" target="_blank"Kenny Phillips and href="https://www.prodenstudio.com/" target="_blank"Proden Studio before striking it out on his own. He tells the incredible story of his start in the business by handing out a rudimentary business card to href="https://www.steventaylorfilm.com/" target="_blank"Steven Taylor and shortly after being asked to score his film href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-vtKhrPnxA" target="_blank"Buck, the Man Spirit. I play scores that Navid has composed at the end of the interview.

Masud is an artist, writer, and an actor. He talks about his spiritual journey and his work in the interview. You can find his work at href="https://www.masud-olufani.com/" target="_blank"https://www.masud-olufani.com/. I caught Masud while heading out from his studio. As a result the voice quality is lacking and there is background noise. But please be patient. At about 12 minutes into the interview the sound quality improves significantly. Songs played: 1. Where There Is Love-Elika Mahoney - Album: Birds Of Love 2. Whither Can a Lover Go - Jody Cooper bull; "Whither Can a Lo... 3. Wilderness - Eric Dozier; 4. Prayer for the Departed - Yosi Mesbah - Album: Badasht Vol. III - Visionaries 5. Beautiful Soul - Shameem - Album: The Second City 6. Let All Associate - Creation

Llewellyn was raised in the Disciples of Christ church, its origins coming out of the Second Great Awakening in the early 19th century in the US when protestant Christianity was spread through revivals. Llewellyn tells his story of how his spiritual journey led him to the Baha'i Faith, and then how being a Baha'i caused him to look back at milestone incidents in his life that led him on that path. The following songs are played at the end:

1. Truthfulness by Nabil Moghaddam

2. Unite by Ali Youssefi

3. Walk A Little Farther - Artists Unknown

4. Where there is love by Andy Grammer

Andy is an experienced and well-versed musician in many disciplines of music including guitar, singing, composing, arranging, teaching, and music producing, and has been performing for over 25 years. He has selected a number of his musical compositions for the interview that feature his guitar virtuosity and his singer-songwriter abilities. We also talk about his pursuit of becoming a musical therapist. Visit href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSXIkOWhQDqR3MBYH-w57cw" target="_blank"Andy'sTube Channel to hear more of his music.

Olya grew up in Iran under the severe persecution of the Iranian Islamic regime after the 1979 Revolution. She along with 10 other women were arrested soon after, for being Baha'is. All of her 10 women companions were eventually hanged and Olya believes she was spared so that she could share their story with the world. One of these women was a 16 year old, named Mona, who was arrested for being a teacher at Baha'i children's classes. She eventually escaped Iran and published Olya's Story: href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/olyas-story-olya-roohizadegan/1136790370?ean=9781851680733" target="_blank"A Survivor's Dramatic Account of the Persecution of Baha'is in Revolutionary Iran. Since the release of the book in 1993, exactly 10 years after the execution of her 10 women companions, she has presented herself in over 1000 public venues telling this story. She wants to write a 2nd book demonstrating how the death of these women allowed her to spread their message of love and unity throughout the world.

Winnie grew up as a poor northern girl who married into a well-to-do Southern family and started raising a family in the early 1960's. Before becoming a Baha'i, she was involved in promoting racial justice in her own small way. After becoming a Baha'i, her vision broadened, and she and her husband moved to Barbados and lived there for 12 years. Ironically it was her husband who studied agriculture in college, but it was Winnie that became the self-taught agriculturalist helping the agricultural efforts in the Caribean islands as well as in the States. She recently published a book, href="https://www.bahaibookstore.com/Food-Farmer-and-Community-P10366.aspx" target="_blank""Food, Farmer and Community: Agriculture and the Reconstruction of the World". She explains how agriculture is fundamental to a stable society.

Song List:

1. Toward The Sun - Amy Stephen Haghighi

2. Tree of Peace - by Jacqueline Odess-Gillett

Nadema is a Native American artist with her own business called Red Earth Studio Consulting / Productions. Before creating her own consulting and curating business, she had done important work by helping create the Southeastern Native Arts Directory and being the Repatriation Director for Standing Rock. href="http://www.nademaagard.com/" target="_blank"Visit her website.

Song List:

1. The Photograph Music and words Alan McKay and Sonbol Taefi;

2. This Is The Day by Mana;

3. This Newborn Child by Ramine Yazhari;

4. Thou Art The Rich by Nabilinho;

5. Thy Love by Kelsey Bulkin;

6. Thy Name Is My Healing by JB Eckl;

7. To Be Close To You (Anis) by Tara Ellis

June is the Centennial Professor Emerita of Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Michigan#39;s Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, where she also is the Mary Frances Berry Distinguished University Professor Emerita of Urban Planning. She was one of the first black teenagers to break the segregated white high school in her home town starting in the 10th grade. She describes how difficult and traumatic that experience was for her. Her website is: href="https://junemanningthomas.com/" target="_blank"https://junemanningthomas.com/

Song List:

1. The Most Hidden by Luke Slott

2. The Mountain by Jacqueline Odess-Gillett

John is a jazz horn player and composer. He invented his unique horn with the same range as the french horn, called the hornette. He's released 7 albums. We feature songs he has composed in the interview. Sit back, relax, and listen to some wonderful jazz. You can find his music at href="https://hmmusic.com/" target="_blank"https://hmmusic.com/