A prayer by the Báb during His captivity in the castle of Máh-Kú

This is the prayer which the Báb Himself quotes in the “Dalá’il-i-Sab‘ih” as His supplication during the months of His captivity in the castle of Máh-Kú:

“O my God! Grant to him, to his descendants, to his family, to his friends, to his subjects, to his relatives and all the inhabitants of the earth the light which will clarify their vision and facilitate their task; grant that they may partake of the noblest works here and hereafter!

“In truth, nothing is impossible to Thee.

“O my God! give him the power to bring about a revival of Thy religion and give life by him to what Thou hast changed in Thy Book. Manifest through him Thy new commandments so that through him Thy religion may blossom again! Put into his hands a new Book, pure and holy, that this Book may be free from all doubt and uncertainty and that no one may be able to alter or destroy it.

“O my God! Dispel through Thy splendor all darkness and through his evident power do away with the antiquated laws. By his preeminence ruin those who have not followed the ways of God. Through him destroy all tyrants, put an end, through his sword, to all discord; annihilate, through his justice, all forms of oppression; render the rulers obedient to his commandments; subordinate all the empires of the world to his empire!

“O my God! Humble everyone who desires to humble him; destroy all his enemies; deny anyone who denies him and confuse anyone who spurns the truth, resists his orders, endeavors to darken his light and blot his name!”

Hearing the “melody of His chanting” at the foot of Máh-Kú mountain

I have heard Shaykh Hasan-i-Zunúzí bear witness to the following:

“The voice of the Báb, as He dictated the teachings and principles of His Faith, could be clearly heard by those who were dwelling at the foot of the mountain. The melody of His chanting, the rhythmic flow of the verses which streamed from His lips caught our ears and penetrated into our very souls. Mountain and valley re-echoed the majesty of His voice. Our hearts vibrated in their depths to the appeal of His utterance.”  

- Shaykh Hasan-i-Zunúzí  (Quoted by Nabil; ‘The Dawn-Breakers’, chapter 13)

The Báb addressed a long Tablet to Muhammad Sháh – some excerpts translated and commented by A. L. M. Nicolas

“It is always in the same line of thought that when imprisoned in Máh-Kú he addressed a long letter to the Sháh (Muhammad Sháh) which we are about to analyze here. The document begins like nearly all the literary documents of the Báb with exalted praise of Divine Unity. The Báb continues in praising, as is fitting, Muḥammad, the twelve Imáms, who, as we shall see in the second volume of this work, are cornerstones of the Bayán edifice. ‘I affirm,’ he exclaims, ‘that everything which is in this world of possibilities other than they, is, in comparison, as absolute nothingness, and if one could express it at all, all that is but a shadow of a shadow. I ask God to pardon me for assigning to them such limits. In truth, the highest degree of praise which one can confer upon them is to confess in their very presence that it is impossible to praise them....

“‘This is why God has created me out of a clay from which no one else has been created. And God has given me what the learned, with all their science, are unable to understand, what no one can know unless he be completely humbled before my revelation.... Know then in truth, I am a pillar of the first word; whosoever knows that first word has known God wholly, and has entered into the universal good. Whosoever has refused to know it has remained in ignorance of God and has entered into the universal evil.

“‘I take God as witness, the Master of the two worlds, he who here below lives as long as nature permits and remains all his life the servant of God in all the works prescribed by true religion, if he entertains in his heart any enmity towards me, even so little that God alone might be aware of it, he is useless and God will prepare for him a punishment; he will be among those destined to die. God has determined the good which is implied in obedience to me, and all the evil which follows disobedience to my commands. In truth, today I see all that I have just said; I see the children of my love, the obedient ones in the highest heaven, while my enemies are thrust into the depths of eternal fire!

The Báb revealed “more than a hundred thousand verses” while at Máh-Kú

So great multitudes continued to come from all quarters to visit the Báb, and the writings which emanated from His inspired pen during this period were so numerous that they amounted in all to more than a hundred thousand verses.” (The “Taríkh-i-Jadíd,” p. 238)

“Behold, that about one hundred thousand lines similar to these verses have been scattered among men not to mention the prayers and questions of science and philosophy.” (“Le Bayán Persan,” vol. 1, p. 43.) “Consider also the Point of the Bayán. Those who are familiar with it know how great its importance was before the manifestation; but thereafter, and although it has revealed more than five hundred thousand verses upon diverse subjects, attacks are made upon it which are so violent that no writer would wish to relate them.” (“Le Bayán Persan,” vol. 3, p. 113.)

“The verses which have rained from this Cloud of Divine mercy [the Báb] have been so abundant that none hath yet been able to estimate their number. A score of volumes are now available. How many still remain beyond our reach! How many have been plundered and have fallen into the hands of the enemy, the fate of which none knoweth!” (The “Kitáb-i-Íqán,” pp. 182–3.)

(Footnotes to chapter 13 provided by Shoghi Effendi)

The Báb “devoted His time to the composition of the Persian Bayán, the most weighty, the most illuminating and comprehensive of all His works.”

As He [Báb] lay confined within the walls of the castle, He devoted His time to the composition of the Persian Bayán, the most weighty, the most illuminating and comprehensive of all His works. In it He laid down the laws and precepts of His Dispensation, plainly and emphatically announced the advent of a subsequent Revelation, and persistently urged His followers to seek and find “Him whom God would make manifest,” warning them lest they allow the mysteries and allusions in the Bayán to interfere with their recognition of His Cause. 

- Nabil  (‘The Dawn-Breakers, chapter 13)

The warden of the castle, ‘Alí Khán, began providing “whatever would tend to alleviate the rigour of the captivity of the Báb”

‘Alí Khán set out, within the limits imposed upon him, to provide whatever would tend to alleviate the rigour of the captivity of the Báb. At night the gate of the castle was still closed; in the daytime, however, those whom the Báb desired to see were allowed to enter His presence, were able to converse with Him and to receive His instructions. 

- Nabil  (‘The Dawn-Breakers, chapter 13)

The Báb’s miracle: the transformation of ‘Ali Khan, the warden of the castle of Máh-Kú

“Early the next day, the gate of the castle being still closed, we were surprised by a sudden knock at the door, knowing full well that orders had been given that no one was to be admitted before the hour of sunrise. We recognised the voice of ‘Alí Khán, who seemed to be expostulating with the guards, one of whom presently came in and informed me that the warden of the castle insisted on being allowed admittance into the presence of the Báb. I conveyed his message and was commanded to usher him at once into His presence. 

“As I was stepping out of the door of His antechamber, I found ‘Alí Khán standing at the threshold in an attitude of complete submission, his face betraying an expression of unusual humility and wonder. His self-assertiveness and pride seemed to have entirely vanished. Humbly and with extreme courtesy, he returned my salute and begged me to allow him to enter the presence of the Báb. I conducted him to the room which my Master occupied. His limbs trembled as he followed me. An inner agitation which he could not conceal brooded over his face.

The amazing promise the Báb made to his amanuensis concerning the immediate change of attitude by ‘Alí Khan, the warden of the castle

“One day the Báb charged my brother to inform Shaykh Hasan that He would Himself request ‘Alí Khán to alter his attitude towards the believers who visited Máh-Kú and to abandon his severity. ‘Tell him,’ He added, ‘I will to-morrow instruct the warden to conduct him to this place.’ ’ I was greatly surprised at such a message. How could the domineering and self-willed ‘Alí Khán, I thought to myself, be induced to relax the severity of his discipline?

- Siyyid Husayn, the Báb’s amanuensis  (Quoted by Nabil, chapter 13 of ‘The Dawn-Breakers’)

Some passages from the Bayán containing references to the Báb’s incarceration at Máh-Kú

“The Báb himself tells us how he spent his days in the prison in which he was held captive. His lamentations, so frequent in the Bayán, were, I believe, due to the discipline which, from time to time, grew more severe at the command from Tihrán. All the historians, in fact, Bábís as well as Moslem, tell us that in spite of the strict orders to keep the Báb from communicating with the outer world, the Báb received great numbers of disciples and strangers in his prison. (The author of Mutanabbiyyin writes: ‘The Bábís from all parts of the earth went to Ádhirbayján on a pilgrimage to their chief.’) 

“‘Oh! How great is your blindness, O my children! That which you do, you do believing to please me! And in spite of these verses which prove my being, these verses which flow from my power, the treasure of which is the very being of this personage (the Báb), in spite of these verses which come from his lips only by my permission, behold that, without any right whatsoever, you have placed him on the summit of a mountain whose inhabitants are not even worthy of mention. Close to him, which is close to me, there is no one except one of the Letters of the Living of my book. In his hands, which are my hands, there is not even a servant to light the lamp at night. And behold! The men who are upon the earth have been created only for his own existence: it is through his good will that has come all their joy and they do not give him even a light!’ (Unite 2, porte 1.)

The officer in charge of the castle “discharged his functions with the utmost severity”

He [‘Alí Khán, the officer in charge of the castle] discharged his functions with the utmost severity and refused to allow any of the avowed disciples of the Báb to reside, even for one night, in the town of Máh-Kú.  

“For the first two weeks,” Siyyid Husayn further related, “no one was permitted to visit the Báb. My brother and I alone were admitted to His presence. Siyyid Hasan would, every day, accompanied by one of the guards, descend to the town and purchase our daily necessities. Shaykh Hasan-i-Zunúzí, who had arrived at Máh-Kú, spent the nights in a masjid outside the gate of the town. He acted as an intermediary between those of the followers of the Báb who occasionally visited Máh-Kú and Siyyid Hasan, my brother, who would in turn submit the petitions of the believers to their Master and would acquaint Shaykh Hasan with His reply.” 

- Nabil  (‘The Dawn-Breakers, chapter 13)

Examples of the general attitude of the inhabitants of Máh-Kú towards the Báb

Such was the fervour which the Báb had kindled in those hearts that their first act, every morning, was to seek a place whence they could catch a glimpse of His face, where they could commune with Him and beseech His blessings upon their daily work. In cases of dispute, they would instinctively hasten to that spot and, with their gaze fixed upon His prison, would invoke His name and adjure one another to declare the truth. ‘Alí Khán [the officer in charge of the castle] several times attempted to induce them to desist from this practice but found himself powerless to restrain their enthusiasm. 

- Nabil  (‘The Dawn-Breakers, chapter 13)

The “gentle manners of the Báb… the ennobling influence of His love… His unexampled modesty…[and] the wisdom of His words” won over the inhabitants of Máh-Kú

He was soon made to realise, however, that he had gravely mistaken the nature of the Revelation of the Báb and had underrated the force of its influence. The turbulent spirits of this unruly people were soon subdued by the gentle manners of the Báb, and their hearts were softened by the ennobling influence of His love. Their pride was humbled by His unexampled modesty, and their unreasoning arrogance mellowed by the wisdom of His words. 

- Nabil  (‘The Dawn-Breakers, chapter 13)

Submissive attitude of Máh-Kú inhabitants towards Hájí Mírzá Aqásí, the prime minister

The country of the first minister on the Ádhirbayján frontier, this village was lifted out of obscurity under the administration of this minister and many citizens of Máh-Kú were raised to the highest offices in the state, because of their slavish attitude toward Hájí Mírzá Aqásí.” 

(Journal Asiatique, 1866, tome 7, p. 356, note 1; footnotes to chapter 13 provided by Shoghi Effendi)

Persian prime minister’s intent for sending the Báb to Máh-Kú

Háji Mírzá Aqásí had deliberately contrived to relegate the Báb to so remote, so inhospitable and dangerously situated a corner of the territory of the Sháh, with the sole purpose of stemming the tide of His rising influence and of severing every tie that bound Him to the body of His disciples throughout the country. Confident that few, if any, would venture to penetrate that wild and turbulent region, occupied by so rebellious a people, he fondly imagined that this forced seclusion of his Captive from the pursuits and interests of His followers would gradually tend to stifle the Movement at its very birth and would lead to its final extinction. 

- Nabil  (‘The Dawn-Breakers, chapter 13)  

The Báb’s reference to the inhabitants of Máh-Kú

“He dwells in a mountain of which the inhabitants could not even pronounce the name ‘Jannat’ (Paradise) which is an Arabic word; how then could they understand its meaning? Imagine then what can happen in the matter of the essential truths!” 

- The Báb  (“Le Bayán Persan,” translated by A. L. M. Nicolas, vol. 4, p. 14; Footnotes to chapter 13 provided by Shoghi Effendi)

Description of castle of Máh-Kú, its strategic location, and the sunni population of the town of Máh-Kú

The castle, a solid, four-towered stone edifice, occupies the summit of a mountain at the foot of which lies the town of Máh-Kú. The only road that leads from it passes into that town, ending at a gate which adjoins the seat of government and is invariably kept closed. This gate is distinct from that of the castle itself. Situated on the confines of both the Ottoman and Russian empires, this castle has been used, in view of its commanding position and strategic advantages, as a centre for reconnoitring purposes. The officer in charge of that station observed, in time of war, the movements of the enemy, surveyed the surrounding regions, and reported to his government such cases of emergency as came under his observation. The castle is bounded on the west by the river Araxes, which marks the frontier between the territory of the Sháh and the Russian empire. To the south extends the territory of the Sultán of Turkey; the frontier town of Báyazíd being at a distance of only four farsangs  from the mountain of Máh-Kú. The frontier officer, in charge of the castle, was a man named ‘Alí Khán. The residents of the town are all Kurds and belong to the sunní sect of Islám. The shí’ahs, who constitute the vast majority of the inhabitants of Persia, have always been their avowed and bitter enemies. These Kurds particularly abhor the siyyids of the shí’ah denomination, whom they regard as the spiritual leaders and chief agitators among their opponents. ‘Alí Khán’s mother being a Kurd, the son was held in great esteem and was implicitly obeyed by the people of Máh-Kú. They regarded him as a member of their own community and placed the utmost confidence in him. 

- Nabil  (‘The Dawn-Breakers, chapter 13)

The Báb told His companion (one of the Letters of the Living) what was going to happen to Him after Tabriz

Siyyid Husay-i-Yazdí has been heard to relate the following: “During the first ten days of the Báb’s incarceration in Tabríz, no one knew what would next befall Him. The wildest conjectures were current in the city. One day I ventured to ask Him whether He would continue to remain where He was or would be transferred to still another place. ‘Have you forgotten,’ was His immediate reply, ‘the question you asked me in Isfáhán? For a period of no less than nine months, we shall remain confined in the Jabál-i-Basít, [Literally “the Open Mountain,” allusion to Máh-Kú. The numerical value of “Jabál-i-Basít equivalent to that of “Máh-Kú.”] from whence we shall be transferred to the Jabál-i-Shadíd. [Literally “the Grievous Mountain,” allusion to Chihríg. The numerical value of “Jabál-i-Shadíd” is equivalent to that of “Chihríg.”] Both these places are among the mountains of Khúy and are situated on either side of the town bearing that name.’ Five days after the Báb had uttered this prediction, orders were issued to transfer Him and me to the castle of Máh-Kú and to deliver us into the custody of ‘Alí Khán-i-Máh-Kú’í.” 

- Nabil  (‘The Dawn-Breakers, chapter 13)

The Báb’s prison room in Tabriz

The Báb was imprisoned in Tabriz in 1848 in this now (1953) crumbling prison room of the old brick Citadel (Ark). 

(The Baha'i World 1950-1954)

circa 1930s: The citadel of Tabríz where the Báb was confined

(Baha'i Media Bank)

The amazing circumstances through which a noted Bábí merchant in Tabriz was able to visit the Báb seven time when He was under house arrest - and - Mulla Husayn’s earlier prediction

On the day after the Báb’s arrival, Hájí Muhammad-Taqíy-i-Milání, a noted merchant of the city, ventured, together with Hájí ‘Alí-‘Askar, to interview the Báb. They were warned by their friends and well-wishers that by such an attempt they would not only be risking the loss of their possessions but would also be endangering their lives. They refused, however, to heed such counsels. As they approached the door of the house in which the Báb was confined, they were immediately arrested. Siyyid Hasan, who at that moment was coming out from the presence of the Báb, instantly intervened. “I am commanded by the Siyyid-i-Báb,” he vehemently protested, “to convey to you this message: ‘Suffer these visitors to enter, inasmuch as I Myself have invited them to meet Me.’” I have heard Ḥájí ‘Alí-‘Askar testify to the following: “This message immediately silenced the opposers. We were straightway ushered into His presence. He greeted us with these words: ‘These miserable wretches who watch at the gate of My house have been destined by Me as a protection against the inrush of the multitude who throng around the house. They are powerless to prevent those whom I desire to meet from attaining My presence.’ For about two hours, we tarried with Him. As He dismissed us, He entrusted me with two cornelian ringstones, instructing me to have carved on them the two verses which He had previously given to me; to have them mounted and brought to Him as soon as they were ready. He assured us that at whatever time we desired to meet Him, no one would hinder our admittance to His presence. Several times I ventured to go to Him in order to ascertain His wish regarding certain details connected with the commission with which He had entrusted me. Not once did I encounter the slightest opposition on the part of those who were guarding the entrance of His house. Not one offensive word did they utter against me, nor did they seem to expect the slightest remuneration for their indulgence. 

It was reported that there were numerous Bábís in Tabríz before the arrival of the Báb

“The success of this energetic man, Mullá Yúsúf-i-Ardibílí, [a Bábí travel teacher] was so great and so swift that, at the very gates of Tauris (Tabríz), the inhabitants of this populous village acknowledged him as their leader and took the name of Bábí’s. Needless to say that, in the town itself, the Bábí’s were quite numerous, even though the government was taking steps to convict the Báb, to punish him and thereby justify itself in the eyes of the people.” 

(Journal Asiatique, 1866, tome 7, pp. 357–358; Footnotes to chapter 12 provided by Shoghi Effendi)

The arrival of the Báb in Tabríz caused a significant stir provoking a warning from the government

The circumstances of His arrival had stirred the people in Tabríz profoundly. A tumultuous concourse of people had gathered to witness His entry into the city.  Some were impelled by curiosity, others were earnestly desirous of ascertaining the veracity of the wild reports that were current about Him, and still others were moved by their faith and devotion to attain His presence and to assure Him of their loyalty. As He walked along the streets, the acclamations of the multitude resounded on every side. The great majority of the people who beheld His face greeted Him with the shout of “Alláh-u-Akbar,” [God is the Most Great] others loudly glorified and cheered Him, a few invoked upon Him the blessings of the Almighty, others were seen to kiss reverently the dust of His footsteps. Such was the clamour which His arrival had raised that a crier was ordered to warn the populace of the danger that awaited those who ventured to seek His presence. “Whosoever shall make any attempt to approach the Siyyid-i-Báb,” went forth the cry, “or seek to meet him, all his possessions shall forthwith be seized and he himself condemned to perpetual imprisonment.” 

- Nabil  (‘The Dawn-Breakers, chapter 12)

The Báb “remained forty days in Tabríz”

According to “A Traveller’s Narrative” (p. 16), the Báb remained forty days in Tabríz. According to Hájí Mu’inu’s-Saltanih’s manuscript (p. 138), the Báb spent the first night, on His arrival in Tabríz, in the home of Muhammad Big. From there He was transferred to a room in the Citadel (the Ark) which adjoined the Masjid-i-‘Alí Sháh. 

Footnotes to chapter 12 provided by Shoghi Effendi)