The Machinations of the Azalís in Constantinople

The sufferings Bahá'u'lláh endured through the acts of His enemies, though very severe, were insignificant when compared with the manifold acts of treachery and misrepresentation perpetrated by the followers of Mírzá Yahyá, or the shameful behaviour of those who were reckoned among His own followers but who dishonoured His Name through their misdeeds. These men of evil inflicted far greater sufferings upon Him than His enemies who persecuted Him physically. In one of His Tablets He testifies to this:

I sorrow not for the burden of My imprisonment. Neither do I grieve over My abasement, or the tribulation I suffer at the hands of Mine enemies. By My life! They are My glory, a glory wherewith God hath adorned His own Self. Would that ye knew it!...

My sorrows are for those who have involved themselves in their corrupt passions, and claim to be associated with the Faith of God, the Gracious, the All-Praised.¹

Gracious God! This is the day whereon the wise should seek the advice of this Wronged One, and ask Him Who is the Truth what things are conducive to the glory and tranquillity of men. And yet, all are earnestly striving to put out this glorious and shining light, and are diligently seeking either to establish Our guilt, or to voice their protest against Us. Matters have come to such a pass, that the conduct of this Wronged One hath, in every way, been grossly misrepresented, and in a manner which it would be unseemly to mention. One of Our friends hath reported that among the residents of the Great City (Constantinople) he had heard with the greatest regret someone state that, each year, a sum of fifty thousand túmáns was being despatched from his native land to 'Akká! It hath not, however, been made clear who had disbursed the sum, nor through whose hands it had passed!

Briefly, this Wronged One hath, in the face of all that hath befallen Him at their hands, and all that hath been said of Him, endured patiently, and held His peace, inasmuch as it is Our purpose, through the loving providence of God--exalted be His glory--and His surpassing mercy, to abolish, through the force of Our utterance, all disputes, war, and bloodshed, from the face of the earth. Under all conditions We have, in spite of what they have said, endured with seemly patience, and have left them to God.²

O Shaykh! We have time and again stated that for a number of years We have extended Our aid unto His Majesty the Sháh. For years no untoward incident hath occurred in Persia. The reins of the stirrers of sedition among various sects were held firmly in the grasp of power. None hath transgressed his limits. By God! This people have never been, nor are they now, inclined to mischief. Their hearts are illumined with the light of the fear of God, and adorned with the adornment of His love. Their concern hath ever been and now is for the betterment of the world. Their purpose is to obliterate

differences, and quench the flame of hatred and enmity, so that the whole earth may come to be viewed as one country. On the other hand, the officials of the Persian Embassy in the Great City (Constantinople) are energetically and assiduously seeking to exterminate these wronged ones. They desire one thing, and God desireth another. Consider now what hath befallen the trusted ones of God in every land. At one time they have been accused of theft and larceny; at another they have been calumniated in a manner without parallel in this world.³

God alone--exalted be His glory--is cognizant of the things which befell this Wronged One. Every day bringeth a fresh report of stories current against Us at the Embassy in Constantinople. Gracious God! The sole aim of their machinations is to bring about the extermination of this servant. They are, however, oblivious of the fact that abasement in the path of God is My true glory. In the newspapers the following hath been recorded: 'Touching the fraudulent dealings of some of the exiles of 'Akká, and the excesses committed by them against several people, etc....' Unto them who are the exponents of justice and the daysprings of equity the intention of the writer is evident and his purpose clear. Briefly, he arose and inflicted upon Me divers tribulations, and treated Me with injustice and cruelty. By God! This Wronged One would not barter this place of exile for the Most Sublime Habitation. In the estimation of men of insight whatsoever befalleth in the path of God is manifest glory and a supreme attainment...

Such abasement hath been inflicted that each day they spread fresh calumnies.⁴

4. ibid. pp. 125-6.

The situation grew worse as the years went by, and the campaign of hostility and vilification reached such proportions as to become a cause of distress to Bahá'u'lláh during the last ten years of His life.

Two prominent followers of Mírzá Yahyá in Constantinople were a certain Shaykh Muhammad-i-Yazdí and Muhammad 'Alíy-i-Tabrízí. In one of His Tablets⁵ Bahá'u'lláh describes the former as the most wicked of all men. The latter was expelled from the Holy Land by Bahá'u'lláh because of gross misconduct and shameful behaviour. He went to Constantinople and joined hands with the former, and together they used every possible means at their disposal to undermine the unity of the Bahá'ís and to destroy the good name of the Faith.

Around the year 1880 some prominent members of the Afnán family, including Hájí Mírzá Muhammad-'Alí and his brother Hájí Mírzá Muhammad-Taqí,* maternal cousins of the Báb, decided to establish a trading company in Constantinople. They already had several such establishments in various parts of Asia and Egypt. They obtained permission from Bahá'u'lláh for the project and invited a very experienced Bahá'í merchant of Qazvín to join them in this enterprise. He was Shaykh Muhammad-'Alí, entitled by Bahá'u'lláh Nabíl ibn-i-Nabíl (Nabíl son of Nabíl). He was the younger brother of Shaykh Kázim-i-Samandar,† one of the Apostles of Bahá'u'lláh. Nabíl was an enthusiastic, devoted and pious believer. When Bahá'u'lláh issued permission, Nabíl went to Constantinople and started a business there which quickly became successful. This was in 1882. He applied

From the start Muhammad-'Alí, the mischief-maker, began causing difficulties for the Afnán's trading establishment. Eventually, in order to contain him, Nabíl, with the approval of the Afnáns, invited Muhammad-'Alí to become a partner in the business. For some years the affairs of the company went smoothly, and Muhammad-'Alí became the recipient of huge profits. However, during these years he involved himself secretly with the Azalís, especially his namesake Muhammad-'Alíy-i-Tabrízí and Shaykh Muhammad-i-Yazdí. Hand in hand with the Azalís, Muhammad-'Alí began a campaign of defamation against the followers of Bahá'u'lláh. Their lies and calumnies reached such proportions that Nabíl could no longer bear them. One evening he attempted suicide by throwing himself into the sea, but he was rescued in the nick of time.

During this time another believer, Abu'l-Qásim-i-Názir, arrived on his way to 'Ishqábád. Muhammad-'Alíy-i-Isfahání befriended Názir and persuaded him to postpone his journey. Soon after his attempted suicide, Nabíl was invited by Bahá'u'lláh to go to 'Akká. This was in the spring of 1889. In the meantime Muhammad-'Alíy-i-Isfahání stole four hundred pounds in cash from the coffers of the trading house and accused Názir of stealing it. This accusation he circulated throughout the city, and

Being defeated, Muhammad-'Alí found no other option but to attack the Faith. Supported by the Azalís, he published a statement in the newspaper Akhtar in which he falsely accused Hájí Mírzá Siyyid Hasan,* known as the Afnán-i-Kabír, of having robbed him of his profits, imputed to him dishonesty and deceitfulness, announced that he was severing relations with the trading house, warned people to beware of the treachery of the Bahá'ís and hinted that some of the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh had been responsible for the whole affair.

This was not, however, the end of the story. Although the company had by then been wound up by Mírzá Muhsin-i-Afnán (the son of the Afnán-i-Kabír) and the son of Samandar, and both men had returned to the Holy Land, it was necessary to refute the misrepresentations of Muhammad-'Alí. Three people were sent by Bahá'u'lláh to clear up the affair. These were Siyyid Ahmad-i-Afnán (another son of Afnán-i-Kabír), Hájí Amín and Názir. Later it was necessary for Nabíl to join them as well. This was the autumn of 1889. Their mission was successful insofar as Nabíl was able to prove in the Ottoman court the falsity of the claims of Muhammad-'Alí and the innocence of the Bahá'ís. A document was signed by the leading merchants of the city, testifying that Muhammad-'Alí had lied all the way through and that he owed the Afnáns a considerable sum of money. However, the mission failed to force Muhammad-'Alí to pay his debts to the Bahá'ís.

In the meantime Muhammad-'Alí and his infamous associates intensified their campaign of slander and calumny against the Bahá'ís. Nabíl, who was to return to Persia on the orders of Bahá'u'lláh, was, alas, engulfed again in the mesh of their conspiracy and intrigues. He could not endure this any more. This time he succeeded in putting an end to his own life by

* He was a brother of the wife of the Báb, see below, pp. 402-6.

In this connection it is necessary to mention the following occurrence, that haply men may take fast hold of the cord of justice and truthfulness. Hájí Shaykh Muhammad 'Alí--upon him be the glory of God, the Ever-Abiding--was a merchant of high repute, well-known unto most of the inhabitants of the Great City (Constantinople). Not long ago, when the Persian Embassy in Constantinople was secretly engaged in stirring up mischief, it was noticed that this believing and sincere soul was greatly distressed. Finally, one night he threw himself into the sea, but was rescued by some passers-by who chanced to come upon him at that moment. His act was widely commented upon and given varied interpretations by different people. Following this, one night he repaired to a mosque, and, as reported by the guardian of that place, kept vigil the whole night, and was occupied until the morning in offering, ardently and with tearful eyes, his prayers and supplications. Upon hearing him suddenly cease his devotions, the guardian went to him, and found that he had already surrendered his soul. An empty bottle was found by his side, indicating that he had poisoned himself. Briefly, the guardian, while greatly astonished, broke the news to the people. It was found out that he had left two testaments. In the first he recognized and confessed the unity of God, that His Exalted Being had neither peer nor equal, and that His Essence was exalted above all praise, all glorification and description. He also testified to the Revelation of the Prophets and the holy ones, and recognized what had been written down in the Books of God, the Lord of all men. On another page, in which he had set down a prayer, he wrote these words in conclusion: 'This servant and the loved ones of God are perplexed. On the one hand the Pen of the Most High hath forbidden all men to engage in sedition, contention or conflict, and on the other that same Pen hath sent down these most sublime words: "Should anyone, in the presence of the Manifestation, discover an evil intention on the part of any soul, he must not oppose him, but must leave him to God." Considering that on the one hand this binding

command is clear and firmly established, and that on the other calumnies, beyond human strength to bear or endure, have been uttered, this servant hath chosen to commit this most grievous sin. I turn suppliantly unto the ocean of God's bounty and the heaven of Divine mercy, and hope that He will blot out with the pen of His grace and bounteousness the misdeeds of this servant. Though my transgressions be manifold, and unnumbered my evil-doings, yet do I cleave tenaciously to the cord of His bounty, and cling unto the hem of His generosity. God is witness, and they that are nigh unto His Threshold know full well, that this servant could not bear to hear the tales related by the perfidious. I, therefore, have committed this act. If He chastise me, He verily is to be praised for what He doeth; and if He forgive me, His behest shall be obeyed.'

Ponder, now, O Shaykh, the influence of the word of God, that haply thou mayest turn from the left hand of idle fancy unto the right hand of certitude...We beseech God--blessed and glorified be He--to forgive the aforementioned person (Hájí Shaykh Muhammad 'Alí), and change his evil deeds into good ones. He, verily, is the All-Powerful, the Almighty, the All-Bounteous.⁶

The night before Siyyid Ahmad's departure for 'Akká, Muhammad-'Alí came up with another of his lies. He announced that a servant of the Afnán had broken into his premises and stolen a large sum of money. He circulated the allegation far and wide, saying that the stolen money was being taken to 'Akká. Jadhdháb proved to the Persian Consul that the whole episode was a mere fabrication. In this way the perfidy and dishonourable conduct of this unscrupulous man from Isfahán, who was a tool in

In a Tablet⁷ revealed in October 1890 (18 Safar 1308) Bahá'u'lláh states that on several occasions the Azalís have stolen some money and accused the believers directly and Himself indirectly of being the perpetrators of the crime. He cites the example of Názir, and then Siyyid Ahmad-i-Afnán, the latter being accused of stealing ninety pounds in cash together with valuable papers and taking them to 'Akká. Bahá'u'lláh in this Tablet asserts that all these calumnies originated from Mírzá Yahyá in Cyprus and were then made effective through the machinations of Shaykh Muhammad-i-Yazdí.

Two of the chief instigators of the mischief were Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ruhi and Áqá Khán-i-Kirmání. Both men were from the province of Kirmán. They collaborated for many years to discredit Bahá'u'lláh. They arrived in Constantinople in about 1888 and soon went on a visit to Cyprus to meet their leader Mírzá Yahyá. This visit resulted in the marriage of the two to his daughters, marriages which soon broke up.

Mírzá Áqá Khán and Shaykh Ahmad were both highly intelligent, erudite and talented writers. They were the elite in the group of Azalís in Constantinople. In many of His Tablets Bahá'u'lláh has condemned these two as the embodiments of evil and the source of all sedition. Long before their activities against the Faith were noticed, Bahá'u'lláh had remarked in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas the existence of the foreboders of evil in the land of Kirmán, stated that there existed an undercover situation displeasing to God which was hidden from the eyes of men, and promised that God would raise up men 'endued with mighty valour' in that city who would make mention of Him. No one could guess who the perpetrator of evil was until Shaykh Ahmad embarked upon his notorious activities against the Faith. Later, in several of Bahá'u'lláh's Tablets, it was made clear that the ominous remarks in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas referred to Shaykh Ahmad-i-Rúhí. He was the son of Mullá Ja'far-i-Kirmání, an Azalí and an inveterate enemy of Bahá'u'lláh.

In a Tablet⁸ revealed in 1880 Bahá'u'lláh, in the words of His

As to his accomplice, Mírzá Áqá Khán, he used to befriend the believers in Constantinople, and through them he gained a good deal of information about Bahá'u'lláh and the activities of the Bahá'ís in various parts. He even asked permission to visit Bahá'u'lláh and, when he did, it was obvious that his intentions were dishonourable. In one of His Tablets¹⁰ 'Abdu'l-Bahá recalls that when Mírzá Áqá Khán went to 'Akká he indicated that his intention in coming was to ask some questions so as to find the truth. Bahá'u'lláh intimated that Áqá Khán's aim was otherwise and that soon he would show his true colours. Áqá Khán did not ask any questions while in 'Akká, but on his return to Constantinople he published an account saying that he was not satisfied with the answers, whereas Mírzá Yahyá had already resolved his questions.

In one of His Tablets¹¹ referring to Mírzá Áqá Khán Bahá'u'lláh states that when a person rejects the proofs of the truth of the Cause which are demonstrated to him, he will receive his punishment. As we shall see, this perfidious man was executed in a most brutal fashion about four years after the ascension of Bahá'u'lláh.

One of the weapons in the hand of Áqá Khán was the Persian

...Briefly, they have incited a great many such as Akhtar and others, and are busying themselves in spreading calumnies. It is clear and evident that they will surround with their swords of hatred and their shafts of enmity the one whom they knew to be an outcast among men and to have been banished from one country to another. This is not the first time that such iniquity hath been perpetrated, nor the first goblet that hath been dshed to the ground, nor the first veil that hath been rent in twain in the path of God, the Lord of the worlds. This Wronged One, however, remained calm and silent in the Most Great Prison, busying Himself with His own affairs, and completely detached from all else but God. Iniquity waxed so grievous that the pens of the world are powerless to record it.¹²

In 1896 one of Jamálu'd-Dín's supporters in Persia succeeded in assassinating Násiri'd-Dín Sháh. From then on events moved very fast. Three men, including Shaykh Ahmad and Mírzá Áqá Khán, were sent back to Persia by order of the Sultán of Turkey, and were mercilessly beheaded in Tabríz by order of the Crown Prince, Muhammad-'Alí Mírzá, for committing acts of treason against their country. Thus the machinations of the Azalís in Constantinople received their death blow. Jamálu'd-Dín escaped the net and died a year later.

Hájí Mírzá Siyyid Hasan (Afnán-i-Kabír)

The sufferings and pain that this lengthy episode, stretching over almost a decade, inflicted upon Bahá'u'lláh is evident from the contents of many of His Tablets. For instance, the accusations against Afnán-i-Kabír described above are mentioned by Bahá'u'lláh in the following passages from Epistle to the Son of the Wolf:

...In the Great City (Constantinople) they have roused a considerable number of people to oppose this Wronged One. Things have come to such a pass that the officials in that city have acted in a manner which hath brought shame to both the government and the people. A distinguished siyyid, whose well-known integrity, acceptable conduct, and commercial reputation, were recognized by the majority of fair-minded men, and who was regarded by all as a highly honored merchant, once visited Beirut. In view of his friendship for this Wronged One they telegraphed the Persian Dragoman informing him that this siyyid, assisted by his servant, had stolen a sum of money and other things and gone to 'Akká. Their design in this matter was to dishonor this Wronged One...This Wronged One, however, beseemeth the one true God to graciously assist every one in that which beseemeth these days.¹³