The question whether she should be allowed to continue her teaching was submitted first to the Páshá of Baghdád and then to the central government, the result being that she was ordered to leave Turkish territory.”
(“A Traveller’s Narrative,” Note Q. p. 310; footnotes to chapter 15 of ‘The Dawn-Breakers’ provided by Shoghi Effendi)
On their arrival they took up their quarters in the house of Shaykh Muhammad-ibn-i-Shiblu’l-’Aráqí, after which they were, by order of the governor of Baghdád to the house of the Muftí Siyyid Mahmúd-i-Álúrí, the well known author of the celebrated commentary entitled “Ruhu’-Má’ání,” pending the receipt of fresh instructions from the Sulṭán in Constantinople. The “Kashfu’l-Ghitá” further adds (p. 96) that in the “Ruhu’l-Má’ání” references are reported to have been found to the conversations which the Muftí had had with Táhirih, to whom, it is reported, he addressed these words: “O Qurratu’l-‘Ayn! I swear by God that I share in thy belief. I am apprehensive, however, of the swords of the family of Uthmán.” “She proceeded directly to the house of the chief Muftí, before whom she defended her creed and her conduct with great ability.
(“A Traveller’s Narrative,” Note Q. p. 310; footnotes to chapter 15 of ‘The Dawn-Breakers’ provided by Shoghi Effendi)
According to Muḥammad Mustafá (pp. 108–9), the following disciples and companions were with Táhirih when she arrived in Baghdád: Mullá Ibráhím-i-Mahallátí, Shaykh Ṣáliḥ-i-Karímí, Siyyid Aḥmad-i-Yazdí (father of Siyyid Husayn, the amanuensis of the Báb) Siyyid Husayn and her daughter, the wife of Mírzá Hádíy-i-Nahrí and his mother. According to the “Kashfu’l-Ghitá” (p. 94), the mother and sister of Mullá Husayn were among the ladies and disciples who accompanied Táhirih on her journey from Karbilá to Baghdád.
(“A Traveller’s Narrative,” Note Q. p. 310; footnotes to chapter 15 of ‘The Dawn-Breakers’ provided by Shoghi Effendi)
From Karbilá she proceeded to Baghdád. A representative delegation, consisting of the ablest leaders among the shí’ah, the sunní, the Christian and Jewish communities of that city, sought her presence and endeavoured to convince her of the folly of her actions. She was able, however, to silence their protestations, and astounded them with the force of her argument. Disillusioned and confused, they retired, deeply conscious of their own impotence.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 15)
According to Samandar (manuscript, p. 9), the main reason for the agitation of the people of Karbilá which induced them to accuse Táhirih before the governor of Baghdád was her bold action in disregarding the anniversary of the martyrdom of Husayn which was being commemorated in the early days of the month of Muharram in the house of the late Siyyid Kázim in Karbilá, and in celebrating instead the anniversary of the birthday of the Báb, which fell on the first day of that month. She is reported to have asked her sister and relatives to discard their mourning garb and wear instead gay attire, in open defiance of the customs and traditions of the people on that occasion.
(Footnotes to chapter 15 of ‘The Dawn-Breakers’ provided by Shoghi Effendi)
The Báb’s appeal, which was originally addressed to His followers in Persia, was soon transmitted to the adherents of His Faith in ‘Iráq. Táhirih gloriously responded. Her example was followed immediately by a large number of her faithful admirers, all of whom expressed their readiness to journey forthwith to Khurásán. The ‘ulamás of Karbilá sought to dissuade her from undertaking that journey. Perceiving immediately the motive which prompted them to tender her such advice, and aware of their malignant design, she addressed to each of these sophists a lengthy epistle in which she set forth her motives and exposed their dissimulation.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 15)
Shaykh Sultán was also among those who fell under the spell of Táhirih. On his return from Shíráz, he identified himself with the Faith, boldly and assiduously promoted its interests, and did his utmost to execute her instructions and wishes. Another admirer was Shaykh Muḥammad-i-Shibl, the father of Muḥammad-Mustafá, an Arab native of Baghdád who ranked high among the ‘ulamás of that city. By the aid of this chosen band of staunch and able supporters, Táhirih was able to fire the imagination and to enlist the allegiance of a considerable number of the Persian and Arab inhabitants of ‘Iráq, most of whom were led by her to join forces with those of their brethren in Persia who were soon to be called upon to shape by their deeds the destiny, and to seal with their life-blood the triumph, of the Cause of God.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 15)
Among the men who in Karbilá eagerly embraced, through the efforts of Táhirih, the Cause of the Báb, was a certain Shaykh Sálih, an Arab resident of that city who was the first to shed his blood in the path of the Faith, in Tihrán. She was so profuse in her praise of Shaykh Ṣáliḥ that a few suspected him of being equal in rank to Quddús.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 15)
She [Táhirih] was able to win to the Cause the revered widow of Siyyid Kázim, who was born in Shíráz, and was the first among the women of Karbilá to recognise its truth. I have heard Shaykh Sultán describe her extreme devotion to Táhirih, whom she revered as her spiritual guide and esteemed as her affectionate companion. He was also a fervent admirer of the character of the widow of the Siyyid, to whose gentleness of manner he often paid a glowing tribute. “Such was her attachment to Táhirih,” Shaykh Sultán was often heard to remark, “that she was extremely reluctant to allow that heroine who was a guest in her house to absent herself, though it were for an hour, from her presence. So great an attachment on her part did not fail to excite the curiosity and quicken the faith of her women friends, both Persian and Arab, who were constant visitors in her home. In the first year of her acceptance of the Message, she suddenly fell ill, and after the lapse of three days, as had been the case with Siyyid Kázim, she departed this life.”
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 15)
Her indomitable spirit was quickened by the fire of her love for the Báb, and the glory of her vision was further enhanced by the discovery of the inestimable blessings latent in His Revelation. The innate fearlessness and the strength of her character were reinforced a hundredfold by her immovable conviction of the ultimate victory of the Cause she had embraced; and her boundless energy was revitalised by her recognition of the abiding value of the Mission she had risen to champion. All who met her in Karbilá were ensnared by her bewitching eloquence and felt the fascination of her words. None could resist her charm; few could escape the contagion of her belief. All testified to the extraordinary traits of her character, marvelled at her amazing personality, and were convinced of the sincerity of her convictions.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 15)
(Comte de Gobineau’s “Les Religions et les
Philosophies dans l’Asie Centrale,” pp. 137–138; (Footnotes to chapter 15 of
“The Dawn-Breakers’, provided by Shoghi Effendi)
The Báb’s immediate response to her declaration of faith which, without attaining His presence, she was moved to make, animated her zeal and vastly increased her courage. She arose to spread abroad His teachings, vehemently denounced the corruption and perversity of her generation, and fearlessly advocated a fundamental revolution in the habits and manners of her people.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 15)
According to Muhammad Musṭafá (p. 108), Táhirih arrived in Karbilá in the year 1263 A.H.[1846-47] She visited Kúfih and the surrounding district, and was engaged in spreading the teachings of the Báb. She shared with the people whom she met the writings of her Master, among which was His commentary on the Súrih of Kawthar.
(Footnotes to chapter 15 of “The Dawn-Breakers’, provided by Shoghi Effendi)
She [Táhirih] had left her native town of Qazvín and had arrived, after the death of Siyyid Kázim, at that holy city, in eager expectation of witnessing the signs which the departed siyyid had foretold. In the foregoing pages we have seen how instinctively she had been led to discover the Revelation of the Báb and how spontaneously she had acknowledged its truth. Unwarned and uninvited, she perceived the dawning light of the promised Revelation breaking upon the city of Shíráz, and was prompted to pen her message and plead her fidelity to Him who was the Revealer of that light.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 15)
In pursuance of the Divine decree, in the days when Quddús was still residing in Mashhad, there was revealed from the pen of the Báb a Tablet addressed to all the believers of Persia, in which every loyal adherent of the Faith was enjoined to “hasten to the Land of Khá,” the province of Khurásán. The news of this high injunction spread with marvellous rapidity and aroused universal enthusiasm. It reached the ears of Táhirih, who, at that time, was residing in Karbilá and was bending every effort to extend the scope of the Faith she had espoused.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 15)
The hand of Omnipotence, however, was busily engaged, at a time when the host of evil-doers were darkly plotting against Him, in confounding their schemes and in nullifying their efforts. In the easternmost province of Persia, the Almighty had, through the hand of Quddús, lit a fire that glowed with the hottest flame in the breasts of the people of Khurásán. And in Karbilá, beyond the western confines of that land, He had kindled the light of Táhirih, a light that was destined to shed its radiance upon the whole of Persia. From the east and from the west of that country, the voice of the Unseen summoned those twin great lights to hasten to the land of Tá, the day-spring of glory, the home of Bahá’u’lláh. He bade them each seek the presence, and revolve round the person of that Day-Star of Truth, to seek His advice, to reinforce His efforts, and to prepare the way for His coming Revelation.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 15)
As the appointed hour approached when, according to the dispensations of Providence, the veil which still concealed the fundamental verities of the Faith was to be rent asunder, there blazed forth in the heart of Khurásán a flame of such consuming intensity that the most formidable obstacles standing in the way of the ultimate recognition of the Cause melted away and vanished. That fire caused such a conflagration in the hearts of men that the effects of its quickening power were felt in the most outlying provinces of Persia. It obliterated every trace of the misgivings and doubts which had still lingered in the hearts of the believers, and had hitherto hindered them from apprehending the full measure of its glory. The decree of the enemy had condemned to perpetual isolation Him who was the embodiment of the beauty of God, and sought thereby to quench for all time the flame of His love.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 15)
(“La Religion de Báb,” pp. 18–19.; Footnotes to chapter 15 of ‘The Dawn-Breakers’, provided by Shoghi Effendi)
“It is believed,” writes Lieut.-Col. P. M. Sykes, “that the twelfth Imám never died, but in A.H. 260 (873) disappeared into miraculous concealment, from which he will reappear on the Day of Judgment in the mosque of Gawhar-Shád at Mashhad, to be hailed as the Mihdí or ‘Guide’ and to fill the earth with justice.”
(“A History of Persia,” vol. 2, p. 45; footnotes to chapter 15 of “The Dawn-Breakers’, provided by Shoghi Effendi)
Shortly after it was completed, Quddús arrived at Mashhad and abode in that house. A steady stream of visitors, whom the energy and zeal of Mullá Husayn had prepared for the acceptance of the Faith, poured into the presence of Quddús, acknowledged the claim of the Cause, and willingly enlisted under its banner. The all-observing vigilance with which Mullá Husayn laboured to diffuse the knowledge of the new Revelation, and the masterly manner in which Quddús edified its ever-increasing adherents, gave rise to a wave of enthusiasm which swept over the entire city of Mashhad, and the effects of which spread rapidly beyond the confines of Khurásán. The house of Bábíyyih was soon converted into a rallying centre for a multitude of devotees who were fired with an inflexible resolve to demonstrate, by every means in their power, the great inherent energies of their Faith.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 14)
Alone and with a heart wholly detached from all else but God, Mullá Husayn set out on his journey to Mashhad. His only companion, as he trod his way to Khurásán, was the thought of accomplishing faithfully the wishes of Quddús, and his one sustenance the consciousness of his unfailing promise. He went directly to the home of Mírzá Muhammad-Báqir-i-Qá’iní, and was soon able to buy, in the neighbourhood of that house in Bálá-Khiyabán, a tract of land on which he began to erect the house which he had been commanded to build, and to which he gave the name of Bábíyyih, a name that it bears to the present day.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 14)
Mullá Husayn set out the next day at the hour of sunrise to interview the Sa’ídu’l-‘Ulamá’. Alone and unaided, he sought his presence and conveyed to him, as bidden by Quddús, the Message of the new Day. With fearlessness and eloquence, he pleaded, in the midst of the assembled disciples, the Cause of his beloved Master, called upon him to demolish those idols which his own idle fancy had carved and to plant upon their shattered fragments the standard of Divine guidance. He appealed to him to disentangle his mind from the fettering creeds of the past, and to hasten, free and untrammelled, to the shores of eternal salvation. With characteristic vigour, he defeated every argument with which that specious sorcerer sought to refute the truth of the Divine Message, and exposed, by means of his unanswerable logic, the fallacies of every doctrine that he endeavoured to propound. Assailed by the fear lest the congregation of his disciples should unanimously rally round the person of Mullá Husayn, the Sa’ídu’l-‘Ulamá’ had recourse to the meanest of devices, and indulged in the most abusive language in the hope of safeguarding the integrity of his position. He hurled his calumnies into the face of Mullá Husayn, and, contemptuously ignoring the proofs and testimonies adduced by his opponent, confidently asserted, without the least justification on his part, the futility of the Cause he had been summoned to embrace. No sooner had Mullá Husayn realised his utter incapacity to apprehend the significance of the Message he had brought him than he arose from his seat and said: “My argument has failed to rouse you from your sleep of negligence. My deeds will in the days to come prove to you the power of the Message you have chosen to despise.” He spoke with such vehemence and emotion that the Sa’ídu’l-‘Ulamá’ was utterly confounded. Such was the consternation of his soul that he was unable to reply. Mullá Ḥusayn then turned to a member of that audience who seemed to have felt the influence of his words, and charged him to relate to Quddús the circumstances of this interview. “Say to him,” he added: “‘Inasmuch as you did not specifically command me to seek your presence, I have determined to set out immediately for Khurásán. I proceed to carry out in their entirety those things which you have instructed me to perform.’”
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 14)
The first words which, in the company of the assembled believers, Quddús addressed to Mullá Husayn were the following: “Now, at this very hour, you should arise and, armed with the rod of wisdom and of might, silence the host of evil plotters who strive to discredit the fair name of the Faith of God. You should face that multitude and confound their forces. You should place your reliance upon the grace of God, and should regard their machinations as a futile attempt to obscure the radiance of the Cause. You should interview the Sa’ídu’l-‘Ulamá’, that notorious and false-hearted tyrant, and should fearlessly disclose to his eyes the distinguishing features of this Revelation. From thence you should proceed to Khurásán. In the town of Mashhad, you should build a house so designed as both to serve for our private residence and at the same time afford adequate facilities for the reception of our guests. Thither we shall shortly journey, and in that house we shall dwell. To it you shall invite every receptive soul who we hope may be guided to the River of everlasting life. We shall prepare and admonish them to band themselves together and proclaim the Cause of God.”
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 14)
Such was the transformation wrought in the attitude of Mullá Husayn towards Quddús that the believers who gathered the next morning at his house were extremely surprised to find that the guest who the night before had occupied the seat of honour, and upon whom had been lavished such kindness and hospitality, had given his seat to his host and was now standing, in his place, at the threshold in an attitude of complete humility.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 14)
On the very night he was brought in contact with the Báb, Mullá Husayn, though at first conscious of his own infinite superiority and predisposed to belittle the claims advanced by the son of an obscure merchant of Shíráz, did not fail to perceive, as soon as his Host had begun to unfold His theme, the incalculable benefits latent in His Revelation. He eagerly embraced His Cause and disdainfully abandoned whatever might hamper his own efforts for the proper understanding and the effective promotion of its interests. And when, in due course, Mullá Husayn was given the opportunity of appreciating the transcendent sublimity of the writings of Quddús, he, with his usual sagacity and unerring judgment, was likewise able to estimate the true worth and merit of those special gifts with which both the person and the utterance of Quddús were endowed. The vastness of his own acquired knowledge dwindled into insignificance before the all-encompassing, the God-given virtues which the spirit of this youth displayed. That very moment, he pledged his undying loyalty to him who so powerfully mirrored forth the radiance of his own beloved Master. He felt it to be his first obligation to subordinate himself entirely to Quddús, to follow in his footsteps, to abide by his will, and to ensure by every means in his power his welfare and safety. Until the hour of his martyrdom, Mullá Ḥusayn remained faithful to his pledge. In the extreme deference which he henceforth showed to Quddús, he was solely actuated by a firm and unalterable conviction of the reality of those supernatural gifts which so clearly distinguished him from the rest of his fellow-disciples. No other consideration induced him to show such deference and humility in his behaviour towards one who seemed to be but his equal. Mullá Ḥusayn’s keen insight swiftly apprehended the magnitude of the power that lay latent in him, and the nobility of his character impelled him to demonstrate befittingly his recognition of that truth.
- Nabil (‘The Dawn-Breakers’ chapter 14)