"'One night, a few days after their arrival, Mullá ‘Alí, as
the spokesman of his companions, gave vent to feelings which he could no longer
repress. “You know well,” he said, “how great is our confidence in you. We bear
you such loyalty that if you should claim to be the promised Qá’im we would all
unhesitatingly submit. Obedient to your summons, we have forsaken our homes and
have gone forth in search of our promised Beloved. You were the first to set us
all this noble example. We have followed in your footsteps. We have determined
not to relax in our efforts until we find the Object of our quest. We have
followed you to this place, ready to acknowledge whomsoever you accept, in the
hope of seeking the shelter of His protection and of passing successfully
through the tumult and agitation that must needs signalise the last Hour. How
is it that we now see you teaching the people and conducting their prayers and
devotions with the utmost tranquillity? Those evidences of agitation and
expectancy seem to have vanished from your countenance. Tell us, we beseech
you, the reason, that we too may be delivered from our present state of
suspense and doubt.”
“'Your companions,” I gently observed, “may naturally
attribute my peace and composure to the ascendancy which I seem to have
acquired in this city. The truth is far from that. The world, I assure you,
with all its pomp and seductions, can never lure away this Husayn of Bushrúyih
from his Beloved. Ever since the beginning of this holy enterprise upon which I
have embarked, I have vowed to seal, with my life-blood, my own destiny. For
His sake I have welcomed immersion in an ocean of tribulation. I yearn not for
the things of this world. I crave only the good pleasure of my Beloved. Not
until I shed my blood for His name will the fire that glows within me be
quenched. Please God you may live to witness that day. Might not your
companions have thought that, because of the intensity of his longing and the
constancy of his endeavours, God has, in His infinite mercy, graciously deigned
to unlock before the face of Mullá Husayn the Gate of His grace, and, wishing,
according to His inscrutable wisdom, to conceal this fact, has bidden him
engage in such pursuits?” These words stirred the soul of Mullá ‘Alí. He at
once perceived their meaning. With tearful eyes he entreated me to disclose the
identity of Him who had turned my agitation into peace and converted my anxiety
into certitude. “I adjure you,” he pleaded, “to bestow upon me a portion of
that holy draught which the Hand of mercy has given you to drink, for it will
assuredly allay my thirst, and ease the pain of longing in my heart.” “Beseech
me not,” I replied, “to grant you this favour. Let your trust be in Him, for He
will surely guide your steps, and appease the tumult of your heart.'”
- Mulla
Husayn (Quoted by Nabil in chapter 3 of ‘The Dawn-Breakers’)
