Báb

Shrine of the Báb at night from above in Haifa, Israel.

Siyyid `Alí Muhammad (Arabic: سيد علی ‌محمد‎ ) (October 20, 1819 – July 9, 1850) was a merchant from Shiraz, Persia, who at the age of twenty-five claimed to be a new and independent Manifestation of God and the promised Qá'im (or Mihdí). After his declaration he took on the title of Báb (Arabic: باب‎ ) meaning "Gate". Six years later he was shot by a firing squad in Tabriz.

His titles include, among others, the "Primal Point" and the "Point of the Bayan."

Bahá'ís claim that the Báb was the forerunner of their own religion. Bahá'u'lláh, the Prophet-Founder of the Bahá'í Faith, was a follower of the Báb and claimed to be the fulfillment of his prophecy.

Contents

Life

Early life

Born on October 20 1819, in Shiraz to a well-known merchant of the city, his father died soon after his birth and the boy was raised by his uncle Hájí Mirzá Siyyid 'Ali, who was also a merchant.

Upon reaching manhood, he joined his uncle in the family business, a trading house, and became a merchant. His integrity and piety won the esteem of the other merchants with whom he came in contact. He was also known for his generosity to the poor. In 1842 He married Khadíjih-Bagum and they had one son, Ahmad, who died in infancy.

View of the upper room of the Báb´s house in Shiraz where he declared his mission

The Shaykhi Movement

In the 1790's in Persia, Shaykh Ahmad began a religious movement within Shi'a Islam. His followers, who became known as Shaykhís, were expecting the imminent appearance of the Qá'im of the House of Muhammad, also called the Mihdi. After the death of Shaykh Ahmad, leadership was passed on to Siyyid Kázim of Rasht.

During the Báb's pilgrimage in Karbila, he is known to have attended the lectures of Siyyid Kázim several times. The length of time and the extent of the relationship between the two became the subject of a debate between supporters and enemies of the Báb's movement. Bahá'í sources indicate that the Báb only attended a few lectures, and was not any kind of disciple of Siyyid Kázim. Other writers refuting the Báb's claim, such as the Ahmadi author Maulana, assert that there was a close relationship that lasted possibly years, insinuating a less miraculous event when the Báb declared to be the Promised One.

Upon Siyyid Kázim death in 1843, he had counselled his followers to leave their homes to seek the Lord of the Age whose advent would soon break on the world. One of these followers named Mullá Husayn prayed and fasted for 40 days, then travelled to Shiraz, where he met the Báb.

Declaration to Mullá Husayn

On his arrival on May 23, 1844, Mullá Husayn was approached by a young man wearing a green turban, an indication that the wearer was a descendent of the Prophet Muhammad. The stranger, the Báb, invited Mullá Husayn to his home.

After being asked by the Báb of what he was doing in Shiraz, Mullá Husayn replied that he was searching for the Promised One. The Báb then asked how would the Promised One be recognized, to which Mullá Husayn replied "He is of a pure lineage, is of illustrious descent, is endowed with innate knowledge and is free from bodily deficiency". To the shock of Mullá Husayn, the Báb declared "Behold, all these signs are manifest in me.".

Mullá Husayn had one more sign by which to identify the Promised One. He had been told by Siyyid Kázim that the Promised One would write a commentary on the Surih of Joseph without being asked. The Báb fulfilled this requirement as well, writing the commentary after making his declaration.

The room where the Declaration of the Báb took place on May 22, 1844.

After spending the night alone with the Báb, Mullá Husayn recorded the following:

"This Revelation, so suddenly and impetuously thrust upon me, came as a thunderbolt... the knowledge of His Revelation had galvanised my being. I felt possessed of such courage and power that were the world, all its peoples and its potentates, to rise against me, I would, alone and undaunted, withstand their onslaught. The universe seemed but a handful of dust in my grasp. I seemed to be the Voice of Gabriel personified, calling unto all mankind: “Awake, for lo! the morning Light has broken. Arise, for His Cause is made manifest. The portal of His grace is open wide; enter therein, O peoples of the world! For He who is your promised One is come!”

:(Nabíl-i-A'zam, The Dawn-Breakers, p. 65)

Proclamation

There is debate between critics about what the Báb declared himself to be and when. The Bahá'í view of the subject is quite clear, as described by Shoghi Effendi in the introduction of The Dawn-breakers.

"The shi'ahs look for the Qá'im, who is to come in the fulness of time, and also for the return of the Imam Husayn. The sunnis await the appearance of the Mihdi and also "the return of Jesus Christ." When, at the beginning of his Mission, the Báb, continuing the tradition of the shi'ahs, proclaimed His function under the double title of, first, the Qá'im and, second, the Gate, or Báb, some of the Muhammadans misunderstood the latter reference. They imagined His meaning to be that He was a fifth Gate in succession to Abu'l-Hasan-'Ali. His true meaning, however, as He himself clearly announced, was very different. He was the Qá'im; but the Qá'im, though a High Prophet, stood in relation to a succeeding and greater Manifestation as did John the Baptist to the Christ. He was the Forerunner of One yet more mighty than Himself."

:(Shoghi Effendi, introduction to The Dawn-Breakers, p. xxx)

He later boldly proclaimed himself, in the presence of the Heir to the Throne of Persia and other notables, to be the Promised One.

Some secondary sources state that he first claimed to be the Gate of the Hidden Imám of Muhammad and later raised his claim to be the Promised One (Maulana).

Letters of the Living

Mullá Husayn was the Báb's first disciple. Within five months seventeen other disciples of Siyyid Kázim had independently recognized the Báb as a Manifestation of God, among them was one woman, a poetess, who later received the name of Táhirih (the Pure). These eighteen disciples were later to be known as the Letters of the Living and were given the task of spreading the new faith.

Travels and Imprisonment

After the first eighteen Letters of the Living had independently recognized the Báb, the Báb and the eighteenth Letter of the Living, Quddús, left on a pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina, the sacred cities of Islam. In Mecca, the Báb wrote to the Sharif of Mecca explaining his mission. After their pilgrammage, the Báb and Quddús returned to Bushehr, Persia.

After some time, due to opposition from the Islamic clergy, the Governor of Shiraz ordered the Báb's arrest. The Báb, upon hearing of the arrest order, left Bushehr towards Shiraz and presented himself to the authorities. The Báb was placed under house arrest at the home of his uncle. The Báb was released when a plague broke out in Shiraz.

After his release in 1846, the Báb departed for Isfahan. During the Báb's stay in Isfahan, crowds of people came to see him every day. Due to pressure from the clergy of the province, the Shah Mohammad Shah Qajar ordered the Báb to Tehran. Before the Báb could meet the Shah, the Shah's prime-minister sent the Báb to Tabriz in the north of the country, where he was confined and was not allowed to see any visitors.

The Báb was then transferred to the fortress of Maku in the province of Azarbaijan. During his time in Maku, the Báb wrote his most important work, the Persian Bayan, which he never finished before his death. Due to the Báb's growing popularity in Maku the prime minister transferred the Báb to the fortress of Chihriq. Once again, the Báb's popularity grew in Chihriq, and thus the prime-minister ordered the Báb back to Tabriz where the government would hold a meeting with the religious authorities to examine the Báb.

At the meeting, when the officials asked the Báb who he claimed to be, the Báb responded that he was the Promised One for whom the people of Islam were waiting. He was then ordered back to the fortress of Chihriq.

Execution

In 1850 a new prime-minister ordered the execution of the Báb; he was brought to Tabriz, where he would be killed by a firing squad. The night before his execution, as he was being conducted to his cell, a young man, Anís (born Muhammad `Ali Zunuzi), threw himself at the feet of the Báb, wanting to be killed with the Báb. He was immediately arrested and placed in the same cell as the Báb.

On the morning of July 9, 1850, the Báb was taken to the courtyard of the barracks in which he was being held, where thousands of people had gathered to watch his execution. The Báb and Anís were suspended on a wall and a large firing squad prepared to shoot.

While the ultimate significance of the subsequent events is controversial, the following details are well-established on the basis of numerous eye-witness reports, including those of Western diplomats; the order was given to fire upon the captives, the barracks square filled with musket smoke. When it cleared the Báb was no longer in the courtyard, and his companion left unharmed. Amid a great commotion in the crowd, many believing the Báb had ascended to heaven or simply disappeared, the soldiers subsequently found the Báb in another part of the barracks, completely unharmed. He and Anís were tied up for execution a second time, a second firing squad was ranged in front of him, and a second order to fire was given. This time, the Báb and his companion were killed. Their remains were then dumped outside the gates of the town to be eaten by animals, but these were clandestinely rescued by a handful of Bábis and kept hidden until such time as they could be interred in a special tomb erected for this purpose by `Abdu'l-Bahá on Mount Carmel, in the Holy Land. In the Babi-Baha'i tradition, the failure of the first firing squad to kill the Báb is believed to have been a miracle.

Succession

He Whom God Shall Make Manifest

The Báb left a great deal of writings alluding to a Promised One, most commonly referred to as "He whom God shall make manifest", and that he himself was "but a ring upon the hand of Him Whom God shall make manifest."

Within 20 years of the Báb's death, over 25 people claimed to be the Promised One, most significantly Bahá'u'lláh.

Will and Testament of the Báb

Before the Báb's death, he sent a letter addressed to Subh-i-Azal, which is considered to be his will and testament. Translations and commentary on the document can be seen [here].

The letter is recognized as appointing Subh-i-Azal to be the leader of the Bábí community after the death of the Báb. He is also ordered to obey the Promised One when he appears.

Bahá'u'lláh's Claim

Bahá'u'lláh claimed that in 1853, while a prisoner in Tehran, he was visited by a "Maid of Heaven", and given his task as a Messenger of God. Ten years later in Baghdad, he made his first public declaration, and became recognized by most Bábís as "He whom God shall make manifest". His followers began calling themselves Bahá'ís.

Subh-i-Azal's Involvement

Subh-i-Azal disputed the claim of Bahá'u'lláh, along with anyone who made the claim to be "He whom God shall make manifest". His followers became known as Bayanis or Azalis. For the Bábis that did not recognize Bahá'u'lláh, Sub-i-Azal remained their leader, until he died in 1912. Whether or not he had a successor is disputed.

Conflicting claims

Bahá'u'llah came out far more successful in his claim following doctrinal conflict. The vast majority of the Báb's followers abandoned Subh-i-Azal and become Bahá'ís. Today Bahá'ís claim to have over 6 million followers, while estimates of Azali's are as low as one thousand.

Bahá'í sources report that 11 of the 18 "witnesses" appointed by Subh-i-Azal to oversee the Bábí community became Bahá'ís, as well as his son. The man appointed by Subh-i-Azal to succeed him, Hadiy-i-Dawlat-Abadi, later publicly recanted his faith in the Báb and Subh-i-Azal, although Bayanis claim he was using taqiyyih.

Writings

Excerpts from the following and other writings are printed in the only English language compilation of the Báb's writings, Selections from the Writings of the Báb.

Persian Bayán
Arabic Bayán
Kitáb-i-Asmá' (The Book of Names)
Dalá'il-i-Sab'ih (The Seven Proofs).
Qayyúmu'l-Asmá' (Commentary on the Súrih of Joseph)

Notes

References

Bahá'í resouces

Other resources

British Broadcasting Corporation (2002). [BBC Religion and Ethics Special: Bahá'í]. Retrieved January 22, 2005.
Gobineau, Conte (1864). Les Religions et les Philosophies dans l’Asie Centrale.
Browne, E.G. (1889) "The Bábis of Persia" in Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, pp. 485-526 and 881-1009.
Browne, E.G. (1891), [A Traveller’s Narrative], Cambridge. Includes a lengthy introduction, the translation and then appendixes.
Browne, E.G. (1893). [The New History of the Báb]. Cambridge. Includes a lengthy introduction, the translation and then appendixes.
Browne, E.G. [Religious Systems of the World: A Contribution to the Study of Comparative Religion] (London: Swann Sonnenschein), "Babism",pp. 335.
Browne, E.G. (ed.) [Kitab-i Nuqtat al-Kaf: Being the Earliest History of the Bábis. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1910]

External links

[Selections from the Writings of the Bab at iBiblio]
[Writings of the Báb]
[Commentary on the Surih of Joseph revealed by the Báb]
["The Primal Point’s Will and Testament", Sepehr Manuchehri; Research Notes in Shaykhi, Bábí and Bahá'í Studies,Vol. 7, no. 2 (September, 2004)]
[bahai.org], the international website of the Bahá'í Faith.
[The Religion of Bayan] A website dedicated to the followers of the Báb who continued to support Subh-i Azal

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