August 1845: The governor ordered the arrest of Quddus and Mulla Sádiq

Husayn Khán ordered the arrest of both Quddús and Mullá Sádiq. The police authorities, to whom they were delivered, were instructed to bring them handcuffed into the presence of the governor. The police also delivered into the hands of Husayn Khán the copy of the Qayyúmu’l-Asmá, which they had seized from Mullá Sádiq while he was reading aloud its passages to an excited congregation. Quddús, owing to his youthful appearance and unconventional dress, was at first ignored by Husayn Khán, who preferred to direct his remarks to his more dignified and elderly companion. “Tell me,” angrily asked the governor, as he turned to Mullá Sádiq, “if you are aware of the opening passage of the Qayyúmu’l-Asmá wherein the Siyyid-i-Báb addresses the rulers and kings of the earth in these terms: ‘Divest yourselves of the robe of sovereignty, for He who is the King in truth, hath been made manifest! The Kingdom is God’s, the Most Exalted. Thus hath the Pen of the Most High decreed!’ If this be true, it must necessarily apply to my sovereign, Muhammad Sháh, of the Qájár dynasty, whom I represent as the chief magistrate of this province. Must Muhammad Sháh, according to this behest, lay down his crown and abandon his sovereignty? Must I, too, abdicate my power and relinquish my position?” Mullá Sádiq unhesitatingly replied: “When once the truth of the Revelation announced by the Author of these words shall have been definitely established, the truth of whatsoever has fallen from His lips will likewise be vindicated. If these words be the Word of God, the abdication of Muhammad Sháh and his like can matter but little. It can in no wise turn aside the Divine purpose, nor alter the sovereignty of the almighty and eternal King.”  

(Chapter 8, ‘The Dawn-Breakers’)