The letter of Mullá Husayn decided the Báb to undertake His
contemplated pilgrimage to Hijáz. Entrusting His wife to His mother, and
committing them both to the care and protection of His maternal uncle, He
joined the company of the pilgrims of Fárs who were preparing to leave Shíráz
for Mecca and Medina. Quddús was His
only companion, and the Ethiopian servant His personal attendant. He first
proceeded to Búshihr, the seat of His uncle’s business, where in former days
He, in close association with him, had lived the life of a humble merchant.
Having there completed the preliminary arrangements for His long and arduous
voyage, He embarked on a sailing vessel, which, after two months of slow,
stormy, and unsteady sailing, landed Him upon the shores of that sacred land.
(Chapter 7, ‘The Dawn-Breakers’)
