Bab, The

A disputed image of the Báb. Some hold it is a depiction of Siyyid Kázim, one of his forerunners.

Siyyid `Alí Muhammad (October 20, 1819 – July 9, 1850), better known as the Báb, was a martyred Iranian religious leader recognized by his followers as either the "hidden imam" of Islam or the Gateway (Báb) to him. After his death he became a major figure in the Baha'i faith.

The son of merchant from Shiraz, Iran, he announced himself at age 25 after reportedly meeting Mullá Husayn, who was specifically searching for the Qá'im or Mahdi, the messianic deliverer of Islam. However, source differ as to whether `Alí Muhammad claimed to be the deliver himself or his forerunner. After his encounter with Mullá Husayn, he assumed the title of "the Báb," meaning "Gate."

As the religion of the Báb (Bábism) spread, opposition from traditional clergy resulted in his arrest. When he refused to renounce his claims, Grand Vizier Mirza Taqi Khan, prime minister to Nasiri'd-Din Shah (the Shah of Persia), ordered the Báb to be executed by firing squad in Tabriz in 1850.

Bahá'ís believe that the Báb was the forerunner of their own religion, seeing their founder Bahá'u'lláh, who was a follower of the Báb, as the fulfillment of his prophecies.

Background

In the 1790's in Persia, Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsa'i began a religious movement within Shi'a Islam, preaching the imminent appearance of the Qá'im, the Promised One of Islam. After the death of Shaykh Ahmad, leadership was passed on to Siyyid Kázim of Rasht.

Meanwhile on October 20 1819, Mīrzā ʿAlī Moḥammad in Shiraz was born in Shiraz, Iran to a well-known merchant of the city. His father died soon after his birth, and boy was raised by his unclem who was also a merchant. Upon reaching manhood, he joined his uncle in the family business, a trading house. His integrity and piety won the esteem of the other merchants with whom he came in contact. He was also known for his generosity to the poor. In 1842 he married Khadíjih-Bagum and they had one son, Ahmad, who died in infancy.

File:House of the bab.jpg

View of the upper room of the Báb´s house in Shiraz where he declared his mission

Soon after Mīrzā ʿAlī Moḥammad's marriage, Siyyid Kázim's passed away, after instructing his followers to leave their homes after his death to seek the Lord of the Age, whose advent would soon break on the world. One of these followers, Mullá Husayn, prayed and fasted for 40 days, and then traveled to Shiraz, where he met the Báb.

On his arrival on May 23, 1844, Mullá Husayn was approached by a young man wearing a green turban, an indication that the wearer was a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad. The stranger, who was in fact the Mīrzā ʿAlī Moḥammad, invited Mullá Husayn to his home.

After being asked what he was doing in Shiraz, Mullá Husayn replied that he was searching for the Promised One. Mīrzā ʿAlī Moḥammad asked how would the Promised One be recognized, to which Mullá Husayn replied "He is of a pure lineage, is of illustrious descent, is endowed with innate knowledge, and is free from bodily deficiency." To the shock of his guest, Mīrzā ʿAlī Moḥammad declared "Behold, all these signs are manifest in me."

Mullá Husayn had one more sign by which to identify the Promised One. He had been told by Siyyid Kázim that the Promised One would write a commentary on the Surih of Joseph—the twelfth book of Qur'an telling the story of the patriarch Joseph—without being asked. Mīrzā ʿAlī Moḥammad reportedly fulfilled this requirement as well, writing the commentary after making his declaration.

After spending the night alone with the Mīrzā ʿAlī Moḥammad, Mullá Husayn recorded the following:

"This Revelation, so suddenly and impetuously thrust upon me, came as a thunderbolt... the knowledge of His Revelation had galvanized my being. I felt possessed of such courage and power that were the world, all its peoples and its potentates, to rise against me, I would, alone and undaunted, withstand their onslaught. The universe seemed but a handful of dust in my grasp. I seemed to be the Voice of Gabriel personified, calling unto all mankind: “Awake, for lo! the morning Light has broken. Arise, for His Cause is made manifest. The portal of His grace is open wide; enter therein, O peoples of the world! For He who is your promised One is come!”

(Nabíl-i-A'zam, The Dawn-Breakers, p. 65)

File:Room-bab.jpg

The room where the Declaration of the Báb took place on May 22, 1844.

In any case, Mullá Husayn became the Báb's first disciple. Within five months 17 other disciples of Siyyid Kázim had independently recognized the Báb as a Manifestation of God. Among them was one woman, a poetess, who later received the name of Táhirih (the Pure). These 18 disciples were later to be known as the Letters of the Living and were given the task of spreading the new faith.

A controversy exists over the question of the nature and timing of the Bab's declaration of himself. At some point, he reportedly proclaimed himself, in the presence of the heir to the throne of Persia and other notables, to be the [[Mahdi] himself.

The Bahá'ís view of the subject, however, is that the Bab declared himself to be the "Gate," in the same sense that John the Baptist declared himself to be one whose mission was to straighten the way of one who came after him. In other words, the Bab was a forerunner of a still greater prophet to come.

Career

The Báb and his eighteenth dsciple, Quddús, soon left on a pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina, the sacred cities of Islam. In Mecca, the Báb wrote to the Sharif of Mecca explaining his mission. After their pilgrimage, the Báb and Quddús returned to Bushehr, Persia.

Preaching and imprisonment

Soon the preaching of his disciples began to bear fruit, and as the movement strengthened, opposition from the traditional Islamic clergy resulted in the governor of Shiraz ordering the Báb's arrest. The Báb immediately left Bushehr and went to Shiraz, where he presented himself to the authorities. He was placed under house arrest at the home of his uncle, but was released when a plague broke out in the city. After his release in 1846, the Báb departed for Isfahan. There, many came to see him at the house of the head of the local clergy, who became sympathetic. After an informal gathering where the Báb debated other imams, his popularity soared.

However, after the death of the governor of Isfahan, who had become his supporter, pressure from the clergy of the province led to Shah Mohammad Shah Qajar ordering the Báb to Tehran in January, 1847. After spending several months in a camp outside Tehran, and before the Báb could meet the shah, the prime minister sent the Báb to Tabriz in the northwestern corner of the country, where he was confined confined and was not allowed to see any visitors.

After 40 days in Tabriz, the Báb was then transferred to the fortress of Máh-Kú in the province of Azarbaijan, close to the Turkish border. During his incarceration there, the Báb began his most important work, the Persian Bayán, which he never finished. Due to the Báb's growing popularity in Máh-Kú and the governor of Máh-Kú converting to his cause, the prime minister transferred the Báb to the fortress of Chihríq in April 1848. In that place as well, the Báb's popularity grew, and his jailors relaxed restrictions on him. Hence the prime minister ordered the Báb back to Tabriz. Under questioning there, the Báb reportedly admitted that he was indeed the Promised One for whom the people of Islam were waiting. He was then ordered back to the fortress of Chihriq.

Clashes, revolts, and massacres

During this time, the Báb's movement continued to spread, resulting in clashes between Bábís and local populations, as well as the military, especially in the northwestern provinces. From October 1848 until May 1849, in the northern province of Mázandarán, at the remote shrine of Shaykh Tabarsí, 313 Bábís, led by Quddús, defended themselves against the attacks of local villagers and 12,000 members of the shah's army under the command of Prince Mihdí Qulí Mirzá. They were finally subdued through false promises of safety and put to death or sold into slavery.

A revolt at the fortress of 'Ali Mardan Khan in Zanjan in the north-west of Persia resulted nearly 2,000 followers of the Báb giving up their lives in the village of Zanjan. With substantial population support for the Bab's forces, fierce battles followed for months, with government forces besieging the Bábís' fort. The siege eventually succeeded, and those remaining at the fort, including women and children, were put to death.

Execution

Shrine of the Báb

In 1850 a new prime minister ordered the execution of the Báb on the capital offense of apostasy. He was brought agin to Tabriz, where he would be killed by a firing squad. The night before his execution, as he was being conducted to his cell, a young man, Anís (born Muhammad `Ali Zunuzi), threw himself at the feet of the Báb, wanting to be killed with the Báb. He was immediately arrested and placed in the same cell as the Báb.

On the morning of July 9, 1850, the Báb was taken to the courtyard of the barracks in which he was being held, where thousands of people had gathered to watch his execution. The Báb and Anís were suspended on a wall and a large firing squad prepared to shoot. Numerous eye-witnesses including western diplomats, reported the order was given and the square filled with musket smoke. When the cleared, however, the Báb was nowhere to be seen, and his companion left unharmed. Amid a great commotion in the crowd, many believing the Báb had ascended to heaven, the soldiers subsequently found the Báb in another part of the barracks, completely unharmed. He and Anís were tied up for execution a second time, a second firing squad was arranged, and a second order to fire was given. This time, the Báb and his companion were killed. Their remains were then dumped outside the gates of the town to be eaten by animals.

Their bodies, however, were clandestinely rescued by a handful of Bábis and were hidden. Over time the remains were secretly transported by way of Isfahán, Kirmansháh, Baghdad, Iraq and Damascus, to Beirut and thence by sea to Acre, Israel on the plain below Mount Carmel in 1899. In 1909, the relics were then interred in a special tomb, erected for this purpose by `Abdu'l-Bahá, on Mount Carmel in the Holy Land. The Universal House of Justice is located close to this site and visitors are welcome to tour the gardens.

Legacy

Bahá'u'lláh

The Báb left a number of writings alluding to a Promised One, most commonly referred to as "He whom God shall make manifest." In some passes he states that he himself is "but a ring upon the hand of Him Whom God shall make manifest."

Before the Báb's death, he sent a letter addressed to Subh-i-Azal, which is considered to be his last will and testament. The letter is recognized as appointing Subh-i-Azal to be the leader of the Bábí community after the death of the Báb. He is also ordered to obey the Promised One when he appears.

Within 20 years of the Báb's death, over 25 people claimed to be the Promised One. The most significant of these was Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Baha'i faith. Bahá'u'lláh claimed that in 1853, while a prisoner in Tehran, he was visited by a "Maid of Heaven," and given his task as a Messenger of God. Ten years later in Baghdad, he made his first public declaration and became recognized by most Bábís as "He whom God shall make manifest." His followers began calling themselves Bahá'ís.

File:Babshrinenight.jpg

Shrine of the Báb at night from above in Haifa, Israel.

Subh-i-Azal, however, disputed the claim of Bahá'u'lláh and other claimants. Upon receiving a letter from Bahá'u'lláh declaring himself, Subh-i-Azal reportedly made a counter-claim to receiving his own divine revelation. His followers became known as Bayanis or Azalis. Subh-i-Azal later revoked his claim of having received a divine revelation, but the Bábis that did not recognize Bahá'u'lláh, continued to recognize him as their leader until he died in 1912. Whether or not he had a successor is disputed.

Bahá'í sources report that 11 of the 18 "witnesses" appointed by Subh-i-Azal to oversee the Bábí community became Bahá'ís, as did his son. The man reportedly appointed by Subh-i-Azal to succeed him, Hadiy-i-Dawlat-Abadi, later publicly recanted his faith in both the Báb and Subh-i-Azal.

The vast majority of the Báb's followers eventually abandoned Subh-i-Azal and become Bahá'ís. Today Bahá'ís claim to have over 6 million followers, while estimates of Azali's are as low as one thousand, isolated in Iran.

The archives department at the Bahá'í World Centre currently holds about 190 Tablets of the Báb. Excerpts from the following and other writings are published in the only English language compilation of the Báb's writings, Selections from the Writings of the Báb.

• Persian Bayán
• Arabic Bayán
• Kitáb-i-Asmá (The Book of Names)
• Dalá'il-i-Sab'ih (The Seven Proofs).
• Qayyúmu'l-Asmá (Commentary on the Súrih of Joseph)

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

Bahá'í resouces

• `Abdu'l-Bahá, (Browne, E.G., Tr.) (1891). A Traveller's Narrative: Written to illustrate the episode of the Bab. Cambridge University Press. 
• `Abdu'l-Bahá, (Browne, E.G., Tr.) (1886). A Traveller's Narrative: Written to illustrate the episode of the Bab, 2004 reprint, with translator's notes, Los Angeles, USA: Kalimát Press. ISBN 1890688371. 
• Effendi, Shoghi (1944). God Passes By. Wilmette, Illinois, USA: Bahá'í Publishing Trust. ISBN 0877430209. 
• Ferraby, John (1975). All Things Made New: A Comprehensive Outline of the Bahá'í Faith. Bahá'í Distribution Service. ISBN 8186953019. 
• Taherzadeh, Adib (1976). The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, Volume 1. Oxford, UK: George Ronald. ISBN 0853982708. 
• Taherzadeh, Adib (1977). The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, Volume 2. Oxford, UK: George Ronald. ISBN 0853980713. 
• Taherzadeh, Adib (1984). The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, Volume 3. Oxford, UK: George Ronald. ISBN 0853981442. 
• Taherzadeh, Adib (1987). The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, Volume 4. Oxford, UK: George Ronald. ISBN 0853982708. 
• Nabíl-i-Zarandí (1932). in Shoghi Effendi (Translator): The Dawn-Breakers: Nabíl’s Narrative, Hardcover, Wilmette, Illinois, USA: Bahá'í Publishing Trust. ISBN 0900125225. 

Other resources

• Amanat, Abbas (1989). Resurrection and Renewal. Cornell University Press, 124 Roberts Place, Ithica, New York 14850. ISBN 0-8014-2098-9. 
• British Broadcasting Corporation (2002). BBC Religion and Ethics Special: Bahá'í. Retrieved January 22, 2005.
• Gobineau, Conte (1864). Les Religions et les Philosophies dans l’Asie Centrale.
• Browne, E.G. (1889) "The Bábis of Persia" in Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, pp. 485-526 and 881-1009.
• Browne, E.G. (1891), A Traveller’s Narrative, Cambridge. Includes a lengthy introduction, the translation and then appendixes.
• Browne, E.G. (1893). The New History of the Báb. Cambridge. Includes a lengthy introduction, the translation and then appendixes.
• Browne, E.G. Religious Systems of the World: A Contribution to the Study of Comparative Religion (London: Swann Sonnenschein), "Babism",pp. 335.
• Browne, E.G. (ed.) Kitab-i Nuqtat al-Kaf: Being the Earliest History of the Bábis. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1910

External links

• Selections from the Writings of the Bab at iBiblio
• Writings of the Báb
• Commentary on the Surih of Joseph revealed by the Báb
• "The Primal Point’s Will and Testament", Sepehr Manuchehri; Research Notes in Shaykhi, Bábí and Bahá'í Studies,Vol. 7, no. 2 (September, 2004)
• bahai.org, the international website of the Bahá'í Faith.
• The Religion of Bayan A website dedicated to the followers of the Báb who continued to support Subh-i Azal

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