A genius-deep and curious mind living in a culture and with a husband who didn’t think women should read, be seen, or think for themselves; beautiful, educated, and from one of the most prominent families of her time, Tahirih is said to be the first woman to unveil and question Islamic political and religious orthodoxy which led to her imprisonment and execution. She rose above immense obstacles and became a famous poet, philosopher, and religious leader inspiring and organizing women to reject their oppression. “The first woman suffrage martyr,” her poems are still popular and her influence on Bábí, Bahá’í, and women’s rights are immense and continuing to this day.

A low caste householder happily married and filled with sensual pleasure, Kankaripa collapsed into despair when his beloved wife unexpectedly died. Confronted and asked by a wise teacher why he was letting himself grieve so much and wouldn’t let go of the corpse when “All life ends in death, every meeting ends in a parting;” he learned meditation practice, how to visualize his dead wife as a Dakini, attained ultimate realization, and became a wise, enlightened sage. Understanding how big as well as small “disasters” can become the most important, beneficial, life-changing events in our lives; this ordinary, uneducated man exemplifies transforming another affliction into spiritual path.

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A slave secretly married to a slave with a different master and fearing their forced separation, Ellen (at least ¾ European) cut her hair short and disguised herself as a white man traveling with his servant who was really her husband. The elaborate disguise included facial bandages and a sling so she wouldn’t have to sign papers since she couldn’t read or write. She had to act a different gender, race, and social class. After many days traveling by train and steamer they arrived safely in the north and then - fearing slave hunters - went on to England where they wrote a popular account that became an important influence for abolition. After the war, they returned to Georgia and started an agricultural school.

Agnostic mystic, Discordian saint, electrical engineer, journalist and apostle of doubt; Wilson dedicated his novels, essays, and interviews to undermining mindless belief and conditioned world view in order to expand more openness to new understanding, creativity, and innovation. An early advocate of marijuana and psychedelics, he became friends and collaborator with Tim Leary, Alan Watts, Ram Das, and Allen Ginsberg. Developing a technique he called “guerrilla ontology,” he wrote 35 books most with the intention of creating cognitive dissonance to challenge belief systems and create openness to direct experience. His book The Illuminatus Trilogy remains a cult classic and well worth reading.

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First American abolitionist, founding father, and Constitutional savior

American Founding Father, author and primary advocate for the original Bill of Rights, George Washington friend and neighbor, and “the first known abolitionist”; George Mason helped create the American political foundation. Although he wrote many of the clauses and points in the Constitution, he was one of only 3 delegates who refused to sign it because of it sanctioning slavery. Recognizing defects in the Constitution and the inevitable need to change it, he became instrumental in bringing into the constitution provisions for changing it (Amendments) and for adding new states. This made it easy to make changes without violence while creating a strong foundation for the trajectory that became a transoceanic federal republic. The primary force for including articles of impeachment into the Constitution, he wrote the phrase, “other high crimes and misdemeanors.” Because he remained a contrarian and because most of his papers were lost in fire, history doesn’t remember him well and he became "a prophet without honor in his own country.” The results of his efforts, however, brilliantly support modern political freedoms.

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Apostle of creativity and individuality, Callimachus suggested we "abhor all common things.” Descended from the first Greek Royal family that reigned in Africa, he was one of the first critic-poets and led the trend of rejecting the Homeric epic style in favor of epigrams and short poems. A major influence on Ovid and Latin poetry in general, he invented for libraries what may have been the first bibliographical survey that listed, categorized, and identified where literary works could be found. Teacher to Eratosthenes, he wrote one of the earliest love stories in all literature with a theme since retold by millions of poets and novelists.

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Western Buddha

Author of 300 lost books, a huge influence on western philosophy through Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Karl Marx, David Hume, and inspiration for Thomas Jefferson’s “all men are created equal and endowed with certain unalienable rights, such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness;” Epicurus blended the wisdom of pleasure with the pleasure of wisdom (Durant) and fostered equality and freedom welcoming into his school without prejudice slaves, different races, women, and courtesans. “Unsurpassably kind” to everyone, with many parallels to Lao Tzu, Epicurus taught that the purpose of philosophy is to free us from fear and suffering, to guide us to happiness.

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Author of over 100 books, philosopher, novelist, and instigator of “optimistic existentialism;” Wilson wrote The Outsider in 1956 when he was only 24 years old and—translated into 30+ languages—it hasn’t been out of print since. A deep interest in metaphysical themes led him to in-depth studies and writings on people like Aleister Crowley, Gurdjieff, Helena Blavatsky, Paracelsus, Carl Jung, Wilhelm Reich, Rudolf Steiner, and P. D. Ouspensky. His challenging and ground-breaking reflections spawned an International Conference that began in 2016. Dissolving most boundaries of conformity, he brought an extremely open-minded and non-conformist views on most modern issues; but, went so far in that direction, he often fell into believing naive and primitive speculations. In spite of—or possibly because of—these “failings,” his books challenge conventionality and open conceptual, panoramic perspectives on the most important issues we struggle with on political, social, and personal levels.

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Banished from the UK, literary bohemian in 1930’s Paris, painter of over 2,000 watercolors, author of over 50 books (many banned for a generation), anti-Vietnam War voice, “one of the most iconoclastic literary spirits of our time,” legendary lover from Anaïs Nin to Playboy magazine star Brenda Venus when he was 84 years old; he pioneered new literary forms, attacked respectability, broke cultural taboos, and in one of the main events in 1960’s sexual revolution, won a Supreme Court decision on obscenity. Continuing a tradition from Dostoyevsky, Balzac and Nietzsche; he was an important influence on Jack Kerouac, Philip Roth, Alan Ginsberg and Norman Mailer who called him “the writer’s writer.”

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Born a slave, Epictetus found freedom and—until he was banished in 93 CE—taught philosophy in Rome as a way of life. He taught that the foundation of all philosophy is self-knowledge, that we all have basic goodness, and that we are not separate but interconnected and one with each other and all of the world. His influence extends from Marcus Aurelius to medal-of-honor winning US vice-presidential candidate James Stockdale and includes artists like James Joyce, Tom Wolfe, David Mamet and J.D. Salinger.

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Born during a time of great internal strife, famines, disease, drought, typhoons, and earthquakes; Nichiren criticized other schools for distorting Buddhist teaching for personal gain, manipulating people for political and religious control, materialism and corruption. Persecuted by Buddhist priests, exiled, ambushed and almost killed, arrested with the intent to behead by soldiers, and later banished to a remote, primitive island; he described chanting as the only personal and social path to salvation and taught that women can attain enlightenment. A strong voice for common people and the down-trodden, he emphasized basic goodness, practices anyone can do, and started a powerful movement still strong today.

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Born to a remote small farming family on a straw mat in a cowshed, the Dalai Lama became the world’s most popular political leader. He received the Nobel Peace Prize, the highest US honor of Congressional Gold Medal, the Freedom Medal, and is one of only 6 people given Honorary Citizenship by the Canadian government. Traveling the world for decades, he became the most famous voice for the environment, women's rights, non-violence, fair economics, and interfaith dialogue as well as the world’s main influence for the preservation of Tibetan culture. Promoting a Buddhist approach to science, economics, and politics; he has traveled to more than 67 countries and written more than 110 books.

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Chief librarian of Alexandria, student of the best teachers of his age: the Stoic founder Zeno, the first serious academic Stoic Arcesilaus, the famous poet Calimachus, and grammarian Lysanias; Eratosthenes invented geography (his terms still used today), made the first Western map of the world including parallels and meridians, calculated the circumference of the Earth and the tilt of its axis for the first time, invented leap day, accurately measured the distance from the Sun to the Earth, and founded “scientific chronology.” The first geographer to mention the Chinese, he criticized the Greek chauvinism of describing foreigners as barbarians and recommended judging people as individuals instead of as members of religious, cultural, or national groups.

Considered the greatest mathematician of ancient times and one of the greatest of all times, Archimedes was also an inventor, astronomer, and engineer frequently called ”superhuman" by Galileo. Some of his inventions include the block-and-tackle pulley system, the odometer, a way to find the value of π, the measurement of a circle and a sphere, the making of a planetarium, and the system of exponents for expressing large numbers. His formulations for uses of the lever and balance remained without improvement until 1586 CE. Featured on postage stamps issued by Germany, Greece, Italy, Nicaragua, San Marino, and Spain; his exclamation “Eureka!” while running naked through the streets of Syracuse after discovering the principle of displacement is the state motto of California.

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Cynic philosopher and the only women on Diogenes Laërtius' list of eminent philosophers, Hipparchia influenced Zeno's views on love and sex, on the founding of Stoicism. She fell in love with her teacher, the most famous Cynic of the time, Crates; and going against her parents, married him to live a street-life of poverty. Going far beyond what was considered acceptable for women, she wore men’s clothes and living on equal terms with her husband became a symbol for rejecting conventional values and thinking for yourself. Rejecting the conventional roles for women in favor of philosophy, she left her rich family, became a beggar, consummated her relationship with Crates in public, and with him epitomized unwavering fidelity and deep affection.

Daughter of a powerful Native American Chief, savior of John Smith, supporter of the Jamestown colony, and the first Native American featured on a US stamp; Pocahontas was captured and held for ransom during an English-Indian war. Instead of returning to her tribe when she could, she stayed with the English, converted to Christianity and proceed to convert hearts and minds in both America and Europe. Her name literally means “little reckless” and she was called in Europe a "civilized savage" but history clarifies the European savagery, the Native American wisdom. Her descendants include two first ladies, Nancy Reagan and Woodrow Wilson's wife, Edith Wilson; actor Glenn Strange famous for his roles as Frankenstein’s monster and the Gunsmoke bartender; as well as astronomer Percival Lowell responsible for the discovery of Pluto and an important inspiration for H.G. Wells, Robert Heinlein, Ray Bradbury, and Edgar Rice Burroughs.

Daughter of a Russian general, icon for 20th century equality-gaining women, erotic pioneer, psychoanalyst student of Sigmund Freud, author of more than 12 books including the first published works on Friedrich Nietzsche, major influence on 19th century intellectual circles, lover and confidant of Rainer Maria Rilke, close friend and/or lover of Nietzsche who she refused to marry, philosopher Paul Rée, Leo Tolstoy, and Boris Pasternak. One of the first female psychoanalysts, in spite of being persecuted by the Nazis and her library destroyed by the Gestapo, she lived a life of intense creativity, freedom, and independence far beyond the status quo of her time.

Elder sister, surrogate mother, and first disciple of the first Sikh guru, Nanak; Nanaki was instrumental in giving birth to the Sikh tradition. With a sister’s deep affection and a mother’s tender nurturing, she recognized Guru Nanak’s wisdom and potential when he was very young, encouraged his spiritual development, and became the first Sikh. She supported him when their father tried to force him into a conventional lifestyle as well as his rebellion against Hindu customs and rituals. She arranged his marriage, helped take care of his sons, and became a symbol and inspiration for the closeness of family and sister-brother relationship.

International symbol of social justice

Escaped slave, most influential 19th century black leader, adviser to Abraham Lincoln, champion of the working class, author, orator, and newspaper editor; Douglass eloquently agitated for the abolition of slavery, racism and capital punishment; for women’s rights, free public education, and land reform. Calling racism a “diseased imagination,” he convinced Lincoln to let blacks fight in the Civil War and helped enlist troops. Internationally famous, author of an American classic autobiography, a father of liberation theology, and the first African American in many political positions; his memory symbolizes and inspires the spirit of people everywhere to resist oppression and work for social justice.

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Great writer of the Tang and Sung dynasties

Famous politician and essayist, one of "The Eight Great Men of Letters of the Tang and Song Dynasties,” exiled for his political criticisms; Su Zhe skillfully criticized social conditions in an effort to influence the emperor into creating better living situations for the common person. Champion of reforms to help the poor and protect them from the rich and powerful and also to help the rich realize that their hoarding and selfishness only made them more vulnerable to revolt, robbery, and revolution. The temple where he lived and taught is now a museum and one of China’s more famous cultural attractions.

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