13
2.
Manifestation of the Bab
Sayyid Ali, Muhammad, better
known to the world as the Bab, was born in Shiraz in the province of
Pars in the southern part of Iran on October 9, 1820 (or possibly on
October 20, 1819).(1) He was a descendant of the family of Muhammad
the Prophet of Islam. His father, who was a cloth merchant in
Shiraz, died when his son was quite young, and the child was left to
the care of his maternal uncle, Hajji Mirza Sayyid Ali, who raised
him. It is said that he was quiet and modest, and that as he grew
older he became studious and pious. When he was about seventeen
years of age he was sent to Bushire, the port on the Persian Gulf,
to help with his uncle’s business. There he earned his living by
trade, and spent his spare time in his studies.
After several years the young man,
disinclined to continue his Commercial pursuits. and becoming
increasingly interested in matters of religion, left Bushire for
Shiraz. After a short stay there he made a pilgrimage to the
shrines of the Shi’ite Imams near Baghdad in Iraq, and remained
for perhaps a year. While in Karbala, the site of the tomb of
the Imam Husayn, grandson of Muhammad, who was martyred there in
680 A.D., Sayyid Ali Muhammad became acquainted with
14
Hajji Sayyid Kazim of Resht,
the head of the Shaykhi movement, and was profoundly influenced by
Kazim’s lectures which he eagerly attended. He, in turn, by his
gentleness and devotion, won the esteem and affection of his teacher
and his fellow students. From Karbala Sayyid Ali Muhammad returned
to Shiraz, and there he was married in 1842 A.D.
It is not possible to trace
in detail the changes that took place in the mind and heart of
Sayyid Ali Muhammad during these years. He had probably become
disgusted by what he had seen and experienced of Islam as it was
then practiced in Iran and Iraq. The lectures of Hajji Sayyid Kazim
had centered his attention on the Imams, probably on the Hidden Imam
in particular, who would surely come soon as the long- expected
Mahdi to right the wrongs of the world. Long meditation and much
prayer brought to him the conviction that he himself had been chosen
by God for a special mission to men. Accordingly, on May 23, 1844,
when he was twenty-four years of age, in his native city of Shiraz,
he made the historic declaration which marked the beginning of the
Babi-Baha’i movement.
For what mission did this
young man think he had been divinely appointed, and what rank among
the servants of God did he at this time claim for himself? without
having a correct answer to these questions it is not possible to
understand aright the significance of the events of the years that
followed. The doctrine of the person and rank and mission of the Bab
will be discussed more fully in Chapter IV. Here it will suffice to
say that there have been at least three contradictory theories
regarding the initial claims of the Bab.
The first theory is that
Sayyid Ali Muhammad thought of himself as a Bab, or Gate, not in the
Shi’ite sense of being a vicegerent of the Hidden Imam, and the
intermediary between him and believers, but rather in being the
forerunner of a much greater person for whom he would prepare the
way, as John the Baptist did for Jesus Christ. Many Baha’is have
said that the Bab thought his mission to be that of
15
preparing people for the
coming of Baha’u’llah, a major Manifestation of God, who would soon
appear. As we will see later, this interpretation is not in harmony
with the Bab’s own statements, or with the facts of history.
The second theory is that
Sayyid Ali Muhammad at the time of his declaration considered
himself to he the successor ta Hajji Sayyid Kazim, the deceased head
of the Shaykhis, and to be like him a Bab, or Gate, to the knowledge
of the Hidden Imam. It was therefore in the traditional Shi’ite
understanding of the term that he gave himself the title “Bab.”
However, according to this theory, the Bab soon became convinced
that he was himself the Hidden Imam who had appeared, and his
followers quickly accepted him as such, and were pre- pared to fight
for the “Lord of the Age,” as loyal Shi’ites were expected to do
whenever the Mahdi should appear. Then, several years later, when
the Bab was in prison, he began (so it is said) to make the claim
that he was not merely the Hidden Imam come to fill the world with
justice, but was a major Manifestation of God, bringing in a new
epoch in God’s dealing with men, and taking the place of Muhammad
the Prophet of Islam, as Muhammad was thought by Muslims to have
taken the place of Jesus as the revealer of God to the world.
Differing from these two interpretations, the
third theory is that Sayyid Ali Muhammad from the time of his
declaration in 1844 believed himself to be a major Manifestation
of Deity, and in his earliest writings made this claim for
himself. Those who hold this theory believe that though he took
for himself the Shi’ite terms and titles, such as Bab, Reminder,
Proof of God, etc., he used these terms with a different
connotation. It was because of this that he was usually
misunderstood by his contemporaries, and also by many who later
became students of his movement. It is of course possible that
the Bab was not always consistent in his thinking and in his
pronouncements. However, it is the opinion of this author that
the third theory is closest to the truth, and that while Sayyid
Ali Muhammad may at times have given the
16
impression that he was a Bab
in the traditional sense, or was the Hidden Imam who had returned
after 1000 years, his real intent from the first was that he was the
Gate of God, a Manifestation of God to men, greater than any which
had preceded him. With this interpretation as the key to the
understanding of the Babi movement, we will proceed with the story
of Sayyid Ali Muhammad, leaving the consideration of the evidence
for the validity of this interpretation to Chapter IV.
The first person to hear and
attest the claim of the Bab was Mulla(2) Muhammad Husayn of
Bushruieh,(3) a small town in eastern Iran. Mulla Husayn was a man
of learning and influence and great force of character. He had been
one of the followers of Hajji Sayyid Kazim, and in Karbala had
become acquainted with the young student from Shiraz. About five
months after the death of his master he came to Shiraz and called on
his fellow student. To his great surprise, Sayyid Ali Muhammad
quietly informed him of his mission, and by reading to him portions
of his writings, and answering questions about difficult points of
theology, convinced his guest that he was the possessor of
supernatural knowledge.
The book from which the
young claimant read was Kit’ab-i-Awal (First Book), also
called the Commentary on Sur’atu’l-Yusuf, the Best of
Stories, and other names. This book had been previously written
by the Bab in Shiraz in the Arabic language. In it the author refers
to himself as the “Bab,” the “Reminder of God,” the “Solace of the
Eyes” (Qurrat’l-Ayn), the “Letter BA” and the “Point.” He
calls upon the monarchs of the world to convey his message to the
peoples of the East and of the West. He informs the people of the
earth that “whoever has obeyed the Reminder of God has in truth
obeyed God.” The author maintains the Koranic prescriptions, and
appears to use the term “Bab” in the traditional Shi’ite sense.
However, between the lines can be read higher claims, namely those
of divine authority and an independent and universal mission.(4)
17
Seyyid-Ali-Mohammad
Dit le Bab
By A.L.M. Nicholas, Paris, 1911
18
After several days of doubt
and indecision, Mulla Husayn enthusiastically professed faith in the
Bab, and became the first to believe in him, and the Bab conferred
on him the title “Babu’1-Bab” (Gate of the Gate). Gradually others
believed, till there were eighteen disciples. The last of these was
Mulla Muhammad Ali of Barfurush, a city near the Caspian Sea, to
whom the Bab gave the title “Quddus” (Holy). (5) These eighteen were
called by the Bab “Letters of the Living.” The meaning of this and
other terms will be explained in Chapter IV.
The new disciples, who became known as “Babis,” went forth to other
cities and began to proclaim with the greatest boldness and zeal the
advent of the Bab. Although Sayyid Ali Muhammad had not yet
proclaimed in full the nature of his mission, it seems that the
Letters of the Living understood clearly that he claimed to be the
bringer of a new revelation, to be a new Manifestation of God. They
read to the people the writings which the Bab had composed, and
pointed to them as a proof of his divine mission, as the Muslims
have always pointed to the verses of the Koran as the
all.-sufficient proof of the mission of Muhammad. Thus a great stir
began to be made all over Iran, some people showing great eagerness
to believe the good news, and others treating the Bab’s apostles
with disrespect and even blows.
While his followers were
thus engaged, the Bab with one of the Letters set out near the end
of the year 1844 for Mecca, where, according to one tradition, the
Mahdi would make his appearance, and there he proclaimed himself to
a few of the pilgrims. It is said that: he also addressed an
Epistle, in which he declared his mission, to the Sharif of Mecca,
who ignored it. Then he started back toward Shiraz, and early in the
year 1845 reached Bushire.
While he tarried there, one
of his zealous disciples, Mulla Sadig by name, in giving the call to
prayer in a mosque in Shiraz, openly added the formula, “I testify
that Ali Muhammad is the Gate of God.”(6) This innovation incensed
many people, and several of the Babis who were held responsible for
it were, at the order of
19
the governor, seized,
severely beaten, and expelled from the city. Also horsemen were sent
to Bushire to arrest the Bab and bring him to Shiraz. After his
arrival in September, 1845, he was examined by the governor, who,
fearing further trouble, kept him under observation.
To understand the attitude
of the government officials toward Sayyid Ali Muhammad and the
movement which his claim had inspired, it is necessary to
remember that the putting forward of a claim to be the Mahdi has
always in the history of Islam been connected with a political
uprising. In arresting the Bab the authorities were only doing their
duty in trying to forestall a probable upheaval. But in this attempt
they were unsuccessful. The fire had already been kindled, and was
spreading rapidly throughout the land. The people had long been in
expectation of the coming of a deliverer. The government of the
country under the Qajar Dynasty was corrupt and inefficient. The
popular religion was full of superstition, and had failed to bring
moral and spiritual renewal to the people of Iran. The Muslim clergy
were often both ignorant and evil men. The rich oppressed the poor,
whose lot was pitiable. The time was indeed ripe for a revolution.
And now, just 1000 years after the disappearance of the Twelfth
Imam, the rightful ruler who at his return would bring in the new
order, the cry was raised far and near that the Lord of the Age had
come!(7) Bold and eloquent: apostles were
going all over Iran
proclaiming his advent, and multitudes were eager to believe on him.
It is not surprising that the government became alarmed, and took
drastic measures to nip the movement in the bud.
Sometime after the arrival
of the Bab in Shiraz, the religious authorities also became greatly
disturbed at the course of events. It is said that they brought
pressure on the maternal uncle of the Bab to force his nephew to
make a formal denial of his claims. The Bab, accordingly, went to
one of the mosques in Shiraz, and to the great joy of the clergy
read a statement, which they took to be a complete denial. However,
at a later time the Bab explained
20
in writing that. what he
meant in his denial of Babhood was that he was not a Bab in
the traditional Shi’ite sense of the term, and he did not claim to
be a Gate to the knowledge of the Hidden Imam. (8) Later he made it
clear that his claim was to be a Gate of God, that is, a major
Manifestation.
In the early summer of the
year 1846 cholera broke out in Shiraz, and in the confusion caused
by this calamity the Bab managed to escape, and near the end of the
summer of l846 made his way to Isfahan. There he was received by
Manuchehr Khan(9) the governor of the city, who showed him great
kindness and afforded him hospitality and protection. In Isfahan he
married a second wife, who lived sixty-six years after the death of
her husband. The governor was a Christian and a native of Georgia in
the Caucasus, whose native land had been conquered by the Qajars,
and who had no love for the rulers of Iran. His motive for
befriending the Bab may have been to embarrass the Qajar government
as well as the Muslim Mullas. It is said that he offered the Bab a
strong army with which to march against the Shah, should he desire
to do so.(10) This offer was declined, for the Bab apparently had no
desire to fight. However, when his followers later began to use
their swords, according to their account in self defence, he did not
forbid them to do so. (11) While in Isfahan the Bab met and talked
with some of the leading Muslim clergy of the city. When asked by
what sign or miracle he could establish the truth of his claim, he
replied, “By verses, for without pause of pen I can in the space of
three hours write a thousand sentences on any subject that I
please.” He was asked to write a commentary on a portion of the
Koran, and when he did so it is said that, his hearers admitted that
such power must be of God, being beyond the capacity of man.(12)
About this time Mulla Husayn
of Bushruieh, the Bab’s First Letter and most zealous apostle, was
in Teheran busily engaged in preaching the good news of the
appearing of the Mahdi and inviting people to believe on him. He
made a considerable stir in the capital, and it is said that he even
tried to
21
influence the King, Muhammad
Shah Qajar, and his Prime Minister, Hajji Mirza Aqasi, but without
success.(13) finally Mulla Husayn was ordered to leave Teheran.
In the early part of 1847
Manuchehr Khan died, and the governor who succeeded him, wishing to
demonstrate his loyalty to the Shah, sent the Bab in the care of an
escort of armed horsemen to Teheran. When the party reached Kashan a
respectable merchant by the name of Mirza Jani bribed the guards to
allow the Bab to atop in his house for two days. Mirza Jani later
wrote the earliest and best history of the Babi movement., and in
1852 died as a martyr to the Babi cause. It is said that at a
village near Teheran a number of believers came to meet the Bab, but
the Shah did not permit the prisoner to enter the capital.
Instead, he was sent off to
Maku, a strong fortress on the northwest frontier of Iran, some 500
miles distant from Teheran. It was hoped that if the Bab were kept
out of light, the excitement which was being stirred up in his name
would die down of itself.
On the long horseback
journey across Iran, and later while he was in prison, the Bab
conducted him- self with such mildness and patience that he won the
hearts of more than one of his guards. The Babi historian is careful
to explain that the Bab of his own free will suffered himself to be
thus treated, far he was “fully able to effect his escape had he so
pleased.” “Such a one is able to do what he wills, for his will is
identical with God’s will.”(14) The Bab remained at Maku for. nine
months (from the summer of 1847 to the spring of 1848). There he was
treated kindly, and was allowed to communicate to a certain extent
with his friends, many of whom came from distant places to visit
him. As is evident from the Bayan, it was in Maku that the
Bab declared he was the “Qa’im.”(15) He was then transferred to the
Castle of Chihriq near Lake Rezaieh (Urumia), where he remained for
two years and several months till his execution in 1850. Here his
imprisonment was much more rigorous than it had been at Maku.
During the previous four
years since his declaration in Shiraz, Sayyid Ali Muhammad had
continued to
22
speak of himself as “Bab,”
but he had been preparing his followers to accept the higher station
which he now openly claimed for himself in declaring that the was
the Qa’im.(16) As we will see in Chapter IV, in doing so he intended
something different from and greater than what was meant in the
Shi’ite usage of that term. The Bab spent much time while he was in
prison in Maku and Chihrig in writing the books which were to guide
his followers after he was taken away from them. He was a most
prolific writer. Professor Browne published a list of some
twenty-five volumes composed by the Bab,(17) but it is known that he
wrote scores of other books, most of which have been lost.(18)
During the early part of his
Chihriq imprisonment (summer of 1848) the Bab was summoned to Tabriz
by Nasiru’d-Din Mirza, who was Crown Prince and Governor of the
province of Azarbaijan, and was soon to become Shah of Iran. There
he was examined by the Prince and the Mullas as to his claims. The
accounts that have been given of this trial are contradictory, the
Babi historians representing the Bab in the most favorable light,
and the Shi’ite historians in the most unfavorable.(19) The account
given by Browne, which has been generally accepted as correct, is
based largely on the Rawzatu’s-Safa, Qisasu’l-Ulema and
Nasikhu ’t-Tawarikh,(20) all written by Shi’ites.
According to these accounts,
the Bab admitted that the writings which were being circulated in
his name were his. When asked what he meant by the title “Bab” which
he had assumed, he replied that it meant the same as in the
tradition attributed to Muhammad, who said, “I am the City of
Knowledge, and Ali is its Gate.” The Bab also said, “I am that
person for whose appearance you have waited a thousand years,
namely, the Mahdi.” When he was asked to give his name and age, the
names of his parents, and his birth- place he did so, only to be
reminded that this information did not agree with the names of the
Mahdi and his parents, or with his age, which was one thousand
years. The Mullas then asked him questions about jurisprudence and
other sciences which he was unable to answer, in addition to many
foolish questions, to
23
make him look ridiculous.
The assembly then broke up, and the Shaykhu’l-Islam Hajji Mirza Ali
Asghar took the Bab to his own house, where he had the bastinado
inflicted on him.
Of this trial Browne
writes:(21) “That the whole examination was a farce throughout, that
the sentence was a foregone conclusion, that no serious attempt to
apprehend the nature and evidence of the Bab’s claim and doctrine
was made, and that from first to last a systematic course of
brow-beating, irony and mockery was pursued appear to me to be facts
proved no less by the Muhammadan than by the Babi accounts of these
inquisitorial proceedings.”
In his hook Materials for
the Study of the Babi Religion Browne published facsimilies and
translations of several documents which have an important bearing on
the significance of the trial of the Bab in Tabriz.(22) The first of
these is a letter written by the Crown Prince to his father Muhammad
Shah in Teheran, informing him of what had happened. His account of
the trial is similar to that given above, and ends as follows: “When
the discussion was concluded, His Reverence the Shaykhu’l-Islam was
summoned, who had the Bab beaten and inflicted on him an exemplary
chastisement, so that he apologized, recanted, and repented of and
asked pardon for his errors, giving a sealed undertaking that
henceforth he would not commit such faults. Now he is in prison and
bonds awaiting the decision of His Most Sacred, Royal and Imperial
Majesty.” It was not long after this that Muhammad Shah died.
A second document, unsigned
and undated, is, to quote Browne, “apparently in the Bab’s
handwriting and consists of a complete recantation of any superhuman
claim which he may have advanced or have appeared to advance. There
is nothing to show to whom it is addressed, or whether it is the
recantation referred to in the last paragraph of the preceding
document or another.” However, Dr. Sa’eed Khan of Teheran wrote
concerning this statement: “The original document is kept safely in
the Majlis [Parliament
24
in Teheran]. It was
addressed, as the contents well groves, to the Crown Prince
Nasserad-Din Mirza, afterwards Shah.” Dr. Sa’eed here refers to the
original of this document, which bears no seal, and not to the
“sealed undertaking” referred in the report of the Crown Prince.
The authenticity of the
writing, signature or seal attached to a document may be verified
only by submitting the document to examination by experts. Specimens
of the Bab’s writing are extant with which the writing in this
document might be compared, but as yet, so far as is known, this has
never been done. However, presuming that the document is in the
hand- writing of the Bab, we will quote the last part of it as
translated by Browne,(23) and attempt to understand its meaning and
purpose:
”Never have I desired aught
contrary to the Will of God, and, if words contrary to His good
pleasure have flowed from my pen, my object was not disobedience,
and in any case I repent and ask forgiveness of Him. This servant
has absolutely no knowledge connected with any [superhuman] claim. I
ask forgiveness of God my Lord and I repent unto Him of [the idea]
that there should be ascribed to me any [Divine] Mission. As for
certain prayers and words which have flowed from my tongue, these do
not imply any such Mission (amr), and any [apparent] claim to
any special vicegerency for His Holiness the Proof of God (on whom
be Peace.’) is a purely baseless claim, such as this servant has
never put forward, nay, nor any claim like unto it. There- fore it
is thus hoped from the clemency of His Imperial Majesty and Your
Excellency, that they will exalt the head of him who continually
prays for them by the favours and graces of their clement and
compassionate court. Farewell.”
Since the terms “His
Imperial Majesty” and “Your Excellency” appear in the document, it
is clear that it was addressed, as Dr. Sa’eed Khan said, to the Shah
and the Crown Prince.
The word amr which
Browne translated “mission” means “a command, a matter, a thing.” It
is therefore
25
possible to change Browne’s
translation “any [Divine] Mission” to “any matter.” Also, “any such
Mission” may be translated “any matter at all.” According to Mr.
Azal,(24) the alternative translation is the correct one in this
context.
”The Proof of God” is a
title from the Hidden Imam. As translated by Browne the Bab says,
“any [apparent] claim to any specific vicegerency title for His
Holiness the Proof of God.....is a purely baseless claim such as
this servant has never put forward, nay, nor any claim like unto
it.” Mr. Azal states(25) that the correct translation is, “any
pretension to special vicegerency for His Holiness the Proof of God
is a purely baseless pretension, and this servant has not set up any
such pretension, nor any other pretension.”
Assuming that this document
was written by the Bab, the question is, what was it that he denied?
If the claim of the Bab was, as has been generally thought, to be a
Gate to, or the vicegerent of, the Hidden Imam, or to be the Imam
come again, it is evident that the Bab does is this statement deny
such a claim, and apparently makes a complete recantation. But if it
is true, as was maintained in the early part of this chapter, that
the Bab did not claim to be a Bab or an Imam in the traditional
Shi’ite sense, but intentionally used the Shi’ite terms with a
different meaning, then this apparent “recantation” is only a
rejection of a position which he had never claimed for himself. His
claim, as we have seen, was higher, He claimed to be the Gate of
God, a major Manifestation.
However, if the Bab thought
himself to be in truth the Gate of God, why did he say, “this
servant has not set up any such pretension, or any other
pretension “? And if he claimed to be a new Manifestation, the
founder of a new world religion which would take the place of Islam,
why did he not follow the example of his ancestor Muhammad, who from
the beginning of his mission declared himself to be the Apostle of
God, and state with unmistakable clarity who he was? Of course, if
he had done so he would have been quickly condemned to death as a
false prophet, because Muslims believe
26
that no true prophet will
ever come to take the place of Muhammad, the “Seal of the Prophets.”
So perhaps the Bab hoped that by using the popular terms which were
acceptable to the Shi’ites, he might win their allegiance, and
prepare them for the later acceptance of his higher claims. If this
was his purpose, it seems that among the people it met with some
success. But the political and religious authorities were as
unwilling to welcome an Imam as they were to accept a new Prophet or
Manifestation in place of Muhammad. And so the Bab, whatever his
claim might have been, was rejected.
During the trial proceedings
the question arose as to whether or not the Bab was of sound mind.
He, therefore, “requested that a physician might be allowed to feel
his pulse, and certify to his perfect sanity.”(26) This was done, as
we will recount later.
A third document which was
translated and published by Browne is addressed to the Bab, and
contains the fatwa, or sentence of the Muslim doctors of the
law, It is formally sealed by two of them. The second seal is that
of the Shaykhu’l-Islam who had the Bab beaten in his house. It reads
as follows:
”Sayyid Ali Muhammad-i-Shirazi:
”In the Imperial
Banquet-hall and August Assembly of His Highness the Crown Prince of
the underlining Empire [of Persia] (may God aid, support and
strengthen him.’) and of a number of learned doctors, thou didst
admit certain matters each one of which separately implied thy
apostasy and justified thy death. The(27) repentance of an
incorrigible apostate is not accepted, and the only thing which has
caused the postponement of thy execution is a doubt as to thy sanity
of mind. Should this doubt be removed, the sentence of an
incorrigible apostate would without hesitation be executed upon
thee.”
Sealed by: Abu’1-Qasim al-Hasani
al-Husayni
Ali Asghar al-Hasani al-Husayni
27
Professor Browne also
published(28) a letter written by Dr. Cormick, “an English physician
long resident in Tabriz, where he was highly respected,” to the Rev.
Benjamin Labaree of the Presbyterian Mission in Rezaieh, Iran. As
far as is known, this is the only extant record of the impression
made by the Bab “on a cultivated and impartial Western mind.”
”You ask me for some
particulars of my interview with the founder of the sect known as
Babis. Nothing of any importance transpired in this interview, as
the Bab was aware of my having been sent with two other Persian
doctors to see whether or not he was of sane mind or merely a
madman, to decide the question whether to put him to death or not.
With this knowledge he was loth to answer any questions put to him.
To all inquiries he merely regarded us with a mild look, chanting in
a low melodious voice some hymns, I suppose.....He only once deigned
to answer me, on my saying that I was not a Musulman and was willing
to know something about his religion, as I might perhaps be inclined
to adopt it. He regarded me very intently on my saying this, and
replied that he had no doubt of all Europeans coming over to his
religion. Our report to the Shah at that time was of a nature to
spare his life..... On our report he merely got the bastinado, in
which operation a farrash, whether intentionally or not,
struck him across the face with the stick destined for his feet,
which produced a great wound and swelling of the face. On being
asked whether a Persian surgeon should be brought to treat him, he
expressed a desire that I should be sent for, and I accordingly
treated him for a few days, but in the interviews consequent on this
I could never get him to have a confidential chat with me, as some
Government people were always present, he being a prisoner.
”He was very thankful for my
attentions to him. He was a very mild and delicate-looking man,
rather small in stature and very fair for a Persian, with a
melodious soft voice, which struck me much. Being a Sayyid, he was
dressed in the habits of that sect..... In fact his whole look and
deportment went far to dispose one
28
in his favour. Of his
doctrine I heard nothing from his own lips, although the idea was
that there existed in his religion a certain approach to
Christianity. He was seen by some Armenian carpenters who were sent
to make some repairs in his prison, reading the Bible, and he took
no pains to conceal it:, but on the contrary told them of it. Most
assuredly the Musalman fanaticism does not exist in his religion, as
applied to Christians, nor is there that restraint of females that
now exists.”
And so the Bab, after this
humiliating and painful experience in Tabriz, having received the
fatwa of the religious authorities, was sent back to his prison
in Chihriq to await the decision of the government in Teheran. There
he remained for about two more years, engaged in writing his books
and epistles, setting forth his claims, and making laws for his
Theocratic Society.
NOTES
1.
For important dates in the life
of the Bab, refer to A Traveller’s Narrative, pp. 221,
249-253, Azal’s Notes, pp. 613, 854.
1.
2 A Mulla is a cleric of the religion of Islam.
2.
Mirza Jani in New History, pp. 33-39.
3.
Azal’s Notes,
pp. 530, 531, 831, 832, 835.
4.
New History,
pp. 39, 40, 399.
5.
Azal’s Notes, p.
839.
6.
A Muslim historian in O’.B.A.S., July, 1927, p.
451.
7.
There is a Shi’ite tradition that the Twelfth Imam
disappeared immediately after he succeeded his father in 260 A.H. It
was in 1260 A.H. that Sayyid Ali Muhammad put forth his claim to be
the Bab.
8.
Azal’s Notes,
pp. 729, 733, 747, 832, 841. See Appendix II, #34.
29
9.
Khan was formerly used in Iran
as a title equivalent to Sir.
10.
New History p. 211.
11.
In the Bayan slaying is forbidden – J.R.A.S.,
October 1889, pp. 927, 928.
12.
New History, p. 209, Bayan quoted in A Traveller’s Narrative,
pp. 218, 219.
13.
Nasikhu ’Tawarikh, quoted in A
Traveller’s Narrative, p. 176.
14.
New History, pp. 226, 227.
15.
Mr. Azal is of the opinion that the Bayan and the
Seven Proofs written by the Bab indicate that his declaration to
be the Qa’im was made before he left Maku for Chihriq.
16.
New History, p. 241, A Traveller’s Narrative, pp. 290-295.
17.
A Traveller’s Narrative, pp. 335-347.
18.
Browne in J.R.A.S., July 1892, p. 452, Materials, pp.
198-208.
19.
A Traveller’s Narrative, pp.
277-290, New History, pp. 285-290.
20.
A Traveller’s Narrative, p.
277.
21.
Ibid., 290.
22.
Materials, pp. 247-260.
23.
Ibid., pp. 256-258
24.
Azal’s Notes, pp. 847-850.
25.
Ibid., p. 848.
26.
Mirza Jani, in New History,
pp. 285, 354.
27.
Koran (Rodwell’s translation)
III:84: “As for those who become infidels, after having believed,
and then increase their infidelity – their repentance shall never be
accepted.”
28.
Materials, pp. 260-262.
