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Search for tag "Letters of the Living"

from the chronology

date event locations tags see also
1813. c. 1813 Birth of Muhammad Husayn-i-Bushrú'í (Mullá Husayn). Bushrui; Iran Mulla Husayn; Births and deaths; Letters of the Living
1817 (In the year) The birth of Fátimih Umm-Salamih, Táhirih (the Pure One), Qurratu'l-'Ayn (Solace of the Eyes), Zarrín-Táj (Crown of Gold). [BBD220; GPB7, 73, 75; DB81note2]
  • In BBRSM16 her name was given as Fátimih Bigum Baragháni and birth year is 1814.
    		•  Qazvin; Iran Tahirih; Births and deaths; Letters of the Living
    1822 (In the year) Birth of Mírzá-`Alíy-i-Bárfurúshí (Quddús), the 18th Letter of the Living in Barfurush (now called Babol). Barfurush; Iran; Babol Quddus; Letters of the Living; Births and deaths
    1844 10 Jan The arrival of Táhirih in Karbilá. She had learned of the views of Shaykh Ahmad and Siyyid Kázim and had corresponded with the latter from whom she received her name, Qurratu'l-Ayn, meaning "Solace of the Eyes". Against the wishes of her family she had left her home to join the circle of his students but arrived in Karbilá ten days after his passing. Convinced that the Promised One would soon appear she stayed on in that city as Siyyid Kázim's disciples were departing in their search. To one of them, her brother-in-law, Mírzá Muhammad-i-Alíy-i-Qazvíní, she gave a sealed letter and told him to deliver it to the One Sought. This he did and the Báb recognized her as one of the Letters of the Living. [B25-26; DB81note2]
  • She had had a dream in which a youth, a Siyyid wearing a black cloak and a green turban, appeared to her in the heavens, who with upraised hands was reciting certain verses, one of which she noted down in her book. Later on, when she had a copy of the Báb's Súrih of Joseph, she discovered that same verse which she had heard in her dream. [DB81note2]
    		•  Karbala; Iraq Tahirih; Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsai; Siyyid Kazim-i-Rashti; Mirza Muhammad-i-Aliy-i-Qazvini; Letters of the Living
    1844. 22 May Declaration of the Báb's Mission

    Two hours and eleven minutes after sunset Siyyid `Alí-Muhammad made His declaration to Mullá Husayn-i-Bushrú'í in the upper room of His House. [DB52-65]

    “I am, I am, I am, the promised One! I am the One whose name you have for a thousand years invoked, at whose mention you have risen, whose advent you have longed to witness, and the hour of whose Revelation you have prayed God to hasten. Verily I say, it is incumbent upon the peoples of both the East and the West to obey My word and to pledge allegiance to My person.” [DB315-316]

  • See SI231 for information on the anticipated return of the Hidden Imam. See BBR2pg42-3 and DB57 for a list of signs by which the Promised One would be known.
  • See BW5p600-4 for a brief biography of William Miller the founder of the Adventist sect who, after intense study of the Bible, had predicted the return of Christ on March 21, 1844. See BW5p604 for mention of other Christians who made similar predictions.
  • See DB383 and BBR2pg25 for information on Mulla Husayn-i-Bushru’i. See CoB110 for the significance of the first believer.
  • See SBBH1:14 for a possible explanation for Mullá Husayn's presence in Shíráz at this time.
  • Nabíl-i-A`zam relates that Mullá Husayn was welcomed at the Báb's mansion by Mubárak, His Ethiopian servant. Others resident in this house at the time were Fiddih (f), responsible for the preparation of the food and the mother of Siyyid 'Alí-Muhammad, Zahrá Bagum. [DB53; KBWB5]
  • For more information about Mubarack see Black Pearls: Servants in the Household of the Bab and Baha'U'Llah p21-22.
  • He revealed the first chapter of the Qayyúmu'l-Asmá' (the Commentary on the Súrih of Joseph. The entire text would later be translated from the original Arabic by Táhirih. [B19–21; BBD190–1; BBRSM14–15; BKG28; BW12:85–8; BWMF16; DB52–65, 264, 216, BBR2pg14-15, GPB23, 73; MH56–71; SBBH17, HotD30]
    • Bahá'u'lláh has described this book as being `the first, the greatest, and mightiest of all books' in the Bábí Dispensation. [GPB23]
    • See SBBH5pg1 for discussion on the Qayyumu’l-Asma’.
    • This text was the most widely circulated of all the Báb's writings and came to be regarded as the Bábí Qur'an for almost the entirety of His mission. [BBRSM32]
    • Images of the Qayyum al-asma' (‘Maintainer of the names’) can be see at the website of the British Library, Discovering Sacred Texts.
  • This date marks the end of the Adamic Cycle of approximately six thousand years and the beginning of the Bahá'í Cycle or Cycle of Fulfilment. [BBD9, 35, 72; GPB100] Shoghi Effendi is quoted as saying that this is the second most important anniversary on the Bahá'í calendar. [ZK320]
  • The beginning of the Apostolic, Heroic or Primitive Age. [BBD35, 67]
  • See MH86–7 for an explanation of the implication of the word `Báb' to the Shí'í Muslims.
  • Three stages of the Báb's Revelation:
    1. He chose the title `Báb' and Mullá Husayn was given the title Bábu'l-Báb (the gate of the Gate).
    2. In the second year of the Revelation (from His confinement in the house of His uncle in Shíráz) He took the title of Siyyid-i-dhikr (dhikr means `remembrance of God') and gave the title `Báb' to Mullá Husayn. At Fort Tabarsí Mullá Husayn was called `Jináb-i Báb' by his companions.
    3. At His public declaration the Báb declared Himself to be the promised Qá'im. [MH87–8]
    		•  Shiraz; Iran Bab, Life of; Bab, Declaration of; Holy days; Bab, Writings of; Mulla Husayn; Qayyumul-Asma (book); Surih of Joseph; Tahirih; Bab, Life of; Cycles; Ages and Epochs; Heroic age; Qaim; Promised One; - Basic timeline, Condensed; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Bab, Basic timeline; Mubarak; Letters of the Living; Fiddih; Bab, House of (Shiraz)
    1844 Jul - Aug Forty days after the Declaration of the Báb, the second Letter of the Living, Mullá `Alíy-i-Bastámí, had a vision that led him to Mullá Husayn and he accepted the Báb. During this period of waiting for the second person to recognize the Báb, He called Mulla Husayn to His house several times. He always came at night and stayed until dawn. [HotD41; Bahá’í Encyclopedia].
  • Sixteen others recognized Siyyid `Alí-Muhammad as the Promised One. The 18 were later designated `Letters of the Living'. [BBD138, B21–7; DB63–71, 80–2; MH73–81, MH121, SBBH1:16–17, GPB7-8]
  • See RB2:145–6 for the fate of the Letters of the Living.
  • See Bab26–7, BBD138, DB80–1, MH81 ; Letters of the Living (Hurúf-i-Hayy) for a list of the Letters of the Living.
  • See BBRSM24–5 for more on the Letters of the Living.
  • See BBRSM24–5 for a discussion of the special places occupied by Quddús, Mullá Husayn and Táhirih. See DB81-82 for the story of how Tahirih was recognized as a Letter of the Living by the Báb.
  • The Báb was the 19th Letter of the Living. [LW5.2]
    		•  Iran Bab, Life of; Bab, Declaration of; Mulla Ali Bastami; Dreams and visions; Mulla Husayn; Letters of the Living; Quddus; Tahirih; Bab, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded
    1844 Jul - Aug The intention of the Báb was to introduce the new Revelation slowly so as not to cause estrangement. He instructed the Letters of the Living to spread out and teach His Faith and to this end He assigned each one a special task, most often to their own native provinces. This is analogous to Christ's instructions to His disciples. He instructed them to record the name of every believer who embraced the Faith and to send their lists to His uncle, Hájí Mírzá 'Alí in Shíráz in a sealed envelope. His intention was to classify these lists once received into 18 sets of names with 19 names each (one Vahid meaning "Unity"). A list with the names of 18 Letters of the Living plus His own name would constitute the 19th set making one Kull-i-Shay (meaning "all things" with a value of 361). Thus fourteen Letters of the Living were dispatched; only Mullá Husayn and Quddús remained with Him. [BBRSM14–16, 36; SWB119; BBR2p36; DB92–4, 123; MH82–6; SBBH1:19]
  • To Mullá Husayn He had given the task of delivering a Tablet to Bahá'u'lláh in Tihrán and going to the court of the Sháh to apprise him of the Báb's cause. Mullá Husayn was not able to gain access to the Sháh. [B48–57; BBRSM15 BKG32–3; CH22–3; DB85-87, 96, 97; MH90–2, 102] He was also directed to send Him a written report on the nature and progress of his activities in Isfáhán, Tehran and in Khurásán. Not until He received this letter from Khurásán would He depart on pilgrimage. [DB123]
  • Mullá Husayn carried a Tablet revealed by the Báb for Muhammad Sháh to Tihrán . This was the first of a number of unsuccessful attempts to make him aware of the Revelation. [BBRSM20–1; MH102; SWB13]
  • Note: MH118-119 and DB127-128 indicate that Mullá Husayn had been in Tehran "between the months of Jámádí and Rajab". The first day of Jámádí, 1260 corresponds to 18 June, and the last day of Rajab to 15 August, 1844.
  • See RB2:303, `The Báb … sent Tablets to only two monarchs of His day — Muhammad Sháh of Persia and Sultán `Abdu'l-Majíd of Turkey.'
  • From Shiraz Mullá Husayn journeyed north to Isfahán where his message was rejected by the 'ulamás. Mullá Ja'far, the sifter of wheat, was the first and only one to embrace the Cause of the Báb in that city. There was however, a disciple of Siyyid Kazim, Mírzá Muhammad-'Alíy-i-Nahrí, who had been instructed to go to Isfahan some five years earlier to prepare the way for the advent of the new Revelation, who was receptive to the message of Mulla Husayn. He was instructed to go to Kirmán and acquaint Hájí Mírzá Karím Khán with the Message and then to travel to Shiraz. (This man's daughter was subsequently joined in wedlock with 'Abdu'l-Bahá.)[DB100]
  • Mullá Husayn then traveled to Káshán, about 130 miles from Isfahán. He had great success in that city but news of his conversion brought the wrath of the official clergy down upon him. [DB101note1; DB123-125]
  • He then went to Qum, another 100 miles from Káshán where he met with no success. After Qum he went to Tihrán. [MH98–101, DB101]
  • In Tihrán he took residence in a madrisih and first met with the leader of the shaykhí community, Hájí Mírzá Muhammad, but he failed to win him over. He did, however, manage to convince a number of souls in private conversations. [DB103note1] This same reference seems to indicate that his well-wishers assisted in delivering the Tablet to Muhammad Sháh and his minister, Hájí Mírzá Àqásí but they did not receive it. " the book was not submitted to thy presence, through the intervention of such as regard themselves the well-wishers of the government." [Selections from the Writings of the Báb page 13]
  • See Bab53–6; DB104–7, MH104–110 for the delivery of the Báb's Tablet to Bahá'u'lláh by the young student, Mullá Huhammad-i-Mu'allim, a native of Núr. Mullá Husayn did not meet Bahá'u'lláh on this occasion.
  • On receiving the Tablet of the Báb, Bahá'u'lláh accepted His Cause and asked that a gift of a loaf of Russian sugar and a package of tea be given to Mulla Husayn for delivery to the Báb. [DB106-107] See DB123-125 for his activities in Khán.
  • Mullá Husayn left for Khurásán, as he had been instructed, winning supporters for the Báb's Cause while there he wrote to the Báb regarding these new believers and Bahá'u'lláh's immediate response to the Báb's Revelation. [Bab56, DB128–9, MH118]
  • After Khurásán he travelled to Najaf and Karbilá where he was to wait for further instructions from the Báb. [DB86]
  • See MH121–2 for a discussion of the speed of Mullá Husayn's journey before the letter was dispatched to the Báb. It assumes that Mullá Husayn departed after the Báb met with all the Letters of the Living (date not before 2 July, 1844.) In fact both Mullá Husayn and Mullá 'Alíy-Bastámí had been dispatched before this meeting. [DB85-86, 92, HotD46]
    		• Kashan; Shiraz; Isfahan; Tihran; Mazandaran; Khurasan; Qum; Iran; Turkey Bab, Life of; Bab, Writings of; Bab, Speech to the Letters of the Living; Letters of the Living; Mulla Husayn; Bahaullah, Life of; Tablet to Bahaullah; Shahs; Mulla Jafar (sifter of wheat); Muhammad Shah; Sultan Abdul-Majid; First believers; Letters of the Living; Bab, Basic timeline; Bahaullah, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Kull-i-Shay
    1844. 11 Aug The Báb sent Mullá `Alíy-i-Bastámí to Najaf and Karbalá to proclaim His Cause among the Shaykhís. In Najaf Mullá `Alí delivered a letter from the Báb to Shaykh Muhammad-Hasan Najafí, the leading Shí`í divine and the keeper of the shrines in Iraq. [BBRSM15; DB87-91; SBBH20–1, HotD46]
  • The Shaykh's rejection of the claim led to a violent debate. Mullá `Alí was taken to Baghdád and imprisoned there. After a public trial, a joint tribunal of Sunní and Shí`í `ulamá, he was sent to Istanbul. He was the first martyr of the Bábí Dispensation. It is significant that Mullá Hasan Gawhar, a leading figure of the Shaykhí school, participated in the condemnation as it marks the first major challenge to Bábism from a Shaykhí leader. [Bab27, 37–8, 58; BBR83–90; BBRSM17; BKG31; DB90–2; MMBA, BBR2p17, GPB10]
    		•  Istanbul (Constantinople); Turkey; Iraq; Baghdad; Najaf; Karbala Bab, Life of; Mulla Ali Bastami; Ulama; Persecution, Iraq; Persecution, Arrests; Persecution, Deaths; Persecution; Shaykhism; Firsts, Other; Trials; Court cases; Persecution, Court cases; Letters of the Living
    1844 30 Sep The Báb received the letter from Mullá Husayn giving Him details of his journey and meeting with Bahá'u'lláh and others he had contacted. See DB126-128 for information on the letter and the affect it had on the Báb.
  • Nabíl indicated that the Báb received the letter on 9 October (26 Ramadan) and that it was a deciding factor in His decision to undertake the pilgrimage. [DB126–7, 129]
  • Balyuzi says soon after the Báb received the letter, `in the month of September' He left Shíráz'. [Bab57]
  • GPB8-9 says He received the letter in the month of Sha'bán, 1260 (16 August to 13 September, 1844).
  • See MH119 where the author speculates that if the letter arrived on 16 Ramadan (29 September) and the Báb departed from the port of Búshihr on the 19th of Ramadan (2 October, 1844), He had to have been in Búshihr when He received the letter. IIII
    		• Shiraz; Bushihr; Iran Bab, Life of; Bab, Pilgrimage of; Mulla Husayn; Bahaullah, Life of; Letters of the Living
    1844 Oct Pigrimage of the Báb

    The Báb, Quddús (Hájí Mullá Muhammad-`Alíy-i-Barfurúshí) and the Báb's Ethiopian servant, Mubarak, left Shíráz for Búshihr en route to Mecca. The journey took ten days. [Bab57; DB129; MH119]
  • DB129 says He left Shíráz during the month of Shavvál, 1260 (14 October to 11 November, 1844).
  • SBBH1 xxviii shows the departure date as 12 November, 1844.
  • Balyuzi, Bab57 says "in the month of September.
  • The Genesis of the Bábi-Bahá'í Faiths in Shíráz and Fárs p35 by A. Rabbani says He left port on the 2nd of October.
    		•  Iran; Saudi Arabia; Shiraz; Bushihr; Mecca Bab, Life of; Bab, Pilgrimage of; Quddus; Servants; Mubarak; Letters of the Living; Bab, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded
    1846. Dec Mullá `Alíy-i-Bastámí died in Istanbul naval dockyards. He was the first martyr of the Bábí Dispensation. [Bahá’í Encyclopedia] Istanbul (Constantinople); Turkey Mulla Ali Bastami; Persecution, Turkey; Persecution, Deaths; Persecution; Firsts, Other; Letters of the Living
    1848. late Spring Mullá Husayn went to the house of Quddús in Bárfurúsh (now called Babol), Mázindarán, and realized that the `hidden treasure' was his recognition of the station of Quddús. [DB261–5; MH148–54]

    Mullá Husayn proceeded to Mashhad and built a `Bábíyyih', a centre for the Bábís, as instructed by Quddús. He and Quddús took up residence in it and began to teach the Bábí religion.

  • See DB288–90 and MH158–68 for the result of this effort.
  • Among those who come to the Bábíyyih was Sám Khán, the chief of police. [MH158]
  • See MH156 for a picture of the Bábíyyih.
    		•  Barfurush; Mazandaran; Mashhad; Iran; Babol Mulla Husayn; Quddus; Babi centre; Letters of the Living
    1848. c. 26 Jun - 17 Jul The Conference of Badasht

    Bahá'u'lláh, who hosted and directed the event, rented three gardens, one for Quddús, another for Táhirih and the third for Himself. [Bab168; GPB31, 68; MF200]

    The conference coincided with the removal of the Báb to Tabríz for interrogation in July. It was held near the village of Sháhrúd in Semnan province. [BBRSM23; DB292]

  • `The primary purpose of that gathering was to implement the revelation of the Bayán by a sudden, a complete and dramatic break with the past — with its order, its ecclesiasticism, its traditions, and ceremonials. The subsidiary purpose of the conference was to consider the means of emancipating the Báb from His cruel confinement in Chihríq.' [BBRSM23; BKG43; DB297–8; GPB31, 157]
  • From the beginning of His ministry the Báb had implicitly claimed some higher spiritual station than merely that of being the "bábu'l-imám" and in the early months of 1848 while still in prison in Máh-Kú He put forward these claims to his companions. He proclaimed HImself to be the Imam Mahdi, the promised Q´'im (He who will arise), the inaugurator of the Resurrection and the abrogator of the Islamic holy law. [BBRSM23]
  • Bab167 says that the Bábís did not come to Badasht to make plans to rescue the Báb.
  • It was attended by 81 believers and lasted 22 days. [BKG43–4, 46; DB292–3; GPB312]
  • Each day Bahá'u'lláh revealed a Tablet, and on each believer He conferred a new name. Each day an Islamic law was abrogated. Henceforth, when the Báb was addressing the believers, He used the new name that Bahá'u'lláh had bestowed upon them. [DB293; GPB32]
  • See BKG44–5; DB293 and MF201 for the story of the central event, Táhirih's confrontation with Quddús and removal of her veil.
      Ṭáhirih, seizing upon the opportunity, arose and, unveiled, came forth from the garden. She proceeded towards the tent of Bahá’u’lláh crying out and proclaiming: “I am the Trumpet-blast; I am the Bugle-call!”—which are two of the signs of the Day of Resurrection mentioned in the Qur’án. Calling out in this fashion, she entered the tent of Bahá’u’lláh. No sooner had she entered than Bahá’u’lláh instructed the believers to recite the Súrih of the Event from the Qur’án, a Súrih that describes the upheaval of the Day of Resurrection.
      [Twelve Table Talks given by ‘Abdu'l-Bahá in ‘Akká, no. 9, "Ṭáhirih and the Conference of Badasht"]
  • Also see Bab167–9; BBD31–2; BBRSM46; BKG43–7; DB292–8; RB2:353.
  • See The World-Wide Influence of Qurratul-'Ayn by Standwood Cobb.
    		•  Badasht; Tabriz; Shahrud; Chihriq; Iran Conference of Badasht; Bahaullah, Life of; Bahaullah, Writings of; Quddus; Tahirih; Veils; Women; Womens rights; Gender; Equality; Bab, Life of; Bayan; - Basic timeline, Condensed; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Bab, Basic timeline; Bahaullah, Basic timeline; Letters of the Living
    1848 c. Jul Quddús was arrested and taken to Sárí where he was placed under house arrest in the home of Mírzá Muhammad-Taqí, a leading cleric. [Bab171; BKG50; DB300]

    Táhirih was arrested and was later taken to Tihrán where she was held in the home of Mahmúd Khán, the Kalántar of Tihrán, until her martyrdom in August 1852.

    Mullá Husayn left the army camp near Mashhad where he had been a guest of a brother of the Sháh. He planned to make a pilgrimage to Karbalá. While making preparations for the journey he received a Tablet from the Báb instructing him to go to Mázindarán to help Quddús, carrying a Black Standard before him. He was also instructed to wear the Báb's own green turban and to take the new name Siyyid `Alí. [Bab171; BKG50; DB324; MH174]

    		Sari; Tihran; Mashhad; Mazandaran; Iran; Karbala; Iraq Quddus; Mirza Muhammad-Taqi; Tahirih; Mahmud Khan; Kalantar; Mulla Husayn; Shahs; Black Standard; Green turban; Turbans; Names and titles; Letters of the Living
    1848. Oct - May 1849 The siege of the Shrine of Shaykh Tabarsí
  • See BBD217, BW18:381, DB345–413 and MH221–85 for chronicle of events.
  • The episode lasted seven months. [BBRSM26; BW18:381]
  • See BBRSM26 for the Bábís' intentions.
  • See DB343–5 for pictures and DB348, MH217–18 for sketches.
  • See MH212 for a diagram of the fortifications.
  • Bahá'u'lláh visited the fortress and approved the fortifications. [BKG51, DB347–9; MH227] See note below.
  • He advised Mullá Husayn to seek the release of Quddús. Mullá Husayn set out immediately and secured the release of Quddús, who had been in detention for 95 days. [Bab173; BKG51; DB349–50; MH227]
  • Quddús arrived towards the end of the year. Some sources say October 20. [Bab173]
  • See DB352–4 for the entry of Quddús into Shaykh Tabarsí. His arrival brought the number of Bábís in the shrine to 313. [DB354]
    • During the siege Quddús composed an extensive commentary on the word "samad" (lit. eternal), which appears in Qur’an 112:2: ‘In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful. Say: He is God alone; God the eternal! He begetteth not, and He is not begotten; And there is none like unto Him.’ [‘Abdu’l-Baha’s First Thousand-Verse Tablet: History and Provisional Translation by Ahang Rabbani and Khazeh Fananapazir p120]
  • Note: BBRSM26 and MH233–4 say that the number of defendants rose to 500–600 individuals.
    • 37 per cent of the identified participants were of the `ulamá class. [BBRSM50]
  • The siege began with the arrival of `Abdu'lláh Khán's forces on 19 December.
  • it is said that 2,000 soldiers were involved in the siege.
  • See PG116-117 where 'Abdu'l-Bahá recounts the story of the heroism of the defenders of Shaykh Tabarsí.

    Note: Moojan Momen in Two Episodes from the Life of Bahá'u'lláh in Iran (first published in Lights of Irfan, 20, pages 139-160) suggests that Bahá’u’lláh’s itinerary was: "Badasht, Núr, Tehran (where He met with Hujjat); He then set out for Jaz (with Mírzá Masíh Núrí and Mirza Majíd Áhí); in Jaz, Mírzá Masíh Núrí died and Muhammad Sháh’s decree arrived, then Bahá’u’lláh’ set out for Núr, visiting the Bábís at Shaykh Tabarsí on the way. There would just about have been enough time for this sequence of events to occur but it seems contrary to Bahá’u’lláh’s statement that He came to Jaz from Shahrúd (i.e. Badasht), unless we assume two visits to Jaz (one on the way from Badasht and then one coming from Tehran with Mírzá Masíh)."

    		• Shaykh Tabarsi, Iran Shaykh Tabarsi; Bahaullah, Life of; Mulla Husayn; Quddus; Letters of the Living; - Basic timeline, Expanded Le Journal de Constantinople 1848-1851 (second entry dated March 24 1849 and third dated March 29 1849)
    1848. 12 Oct - 16 May The siege of the Shrine of Shaykh Tabarsí As compiled by Moojan Momen the main events were:
  • 12 October: Mullá Husayn and his companions entered the Shrine of Shaykh Tabarsf and were attacked that night by a body of horsemen from Qádi—Kulá.
  • 19 December: Arrival of ‘Abdu’lláh Khan’s forces and the start of the siege.
  • 21 December: Major sortié led by Quddús dispersed besiegers.
  • early January, 1849: Arrival of Mihdi-Quli Mirzá and 3,000 royal troops.
  • 11 January: Night sortie led by Quddús upon the headquarters of Mihdi-Qulf Mirzá at Vaskés dispersed the camp.
  • 27 January: Arrival of reinforcements for the besiegers under ‘Abbás-Quhi Khan-i-Larijani.
  • 2 February: Major sortie led by Mullá Husayn dispersed the camp of their enemy but resulted in martyrdom of Mulla Husayn himself and some forty of his companions.
  • 27 March: Mihdi-Quli Mirzá built fortifications and started bombardment of the Shrine.
  • early April: Arrival of Sulayman Khan-i-Afshar with more troops.
  • 26 April: Sortie led by Mirzá Muhammad-Béqir-i-Bushru'i routed forces of Sulayman Khan.
  • 9 May: Quddús, receiving promises of safety written on the Qur’án, left the Shrine and entered the Prince’s camp.
  • 10 May: Quddús’ companions tricked into leaving the Shrine; they were then set upon and killed. End of Shaykh Tabarsi upheaval.
  • 16 May in Bárfurush, the martyrdom of Quddús. [BW19p381]
    		•  Shaykh Tabarsi, Iran Shaykh Tabarsi; Bahaullah, Life of; Mulla Husayn; Quddus; Letters of the Living; - Basic timeline, Expanded
    1849. 2 Feb Soon after midnight, Mullá Husayn led a charge of 313 men that again routed the king's army. He was struck in the chest by a bullet and died. His body was carried back to the fort and buried. Ninety other Bábís were also wounded, about 40 of whom died. [B174; BW18:381; DB379–82; MH266–70]
  • Mullá Husayn was 36 years old at the time of his death. [DB383; MH272]
  • See DB382–3 for an account of his life.
  • See DB415–16 for an account of the heroics of Mullá Husayn.
  • See DB381–2 and MH265–70 for an account of the death and burial of Mullá Husayn.
  • See SDH13–14 for an account of his death by Mihdí-Qulí Mírzá.
  • Seventy–two of the original 313 inhabitants of the fort had been martyred by this time. [DB382]
  • It took the army 45 days to re-assemble its forces. [DB384; MH277]
    		•  Iran Mulla Husayn; Mihdi-Quli Mirza; Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Deaths; Persecution; Shaykh Tabarsi; Letters of the Living
    1849. 16 May Quddús was tortured and, in the public square, he was struck down with an axe, dismembered and burnt. [Bab176; BBD191; BW18:381; DB409–13; MH283–4] When the

      "When the procession reached the public square, where the execution was to take place, Quddús, this youth of only twenty-seven years, cried out, "Would that my mother were with me, and could see with her own eyes the splendour of my nuptials!" As these words were being spoken the wild multitude fell upon him, tearing him limb from limb and throwing the scattered pieces into a fire which they had kindled for that purpose. Another account states that the Sa'ídu'l-'Ulamá had himself cut of Quddús' ears and struck him on the head with an axe." [TtP92]
  • As he died he begged God's forgiveness for his foes. [DB411; MH284]
  • His remains were gathered and buried by a friend. [Bab176; DB413]
  • See GPB49–50 for the rank and titles of Quddús.
  • See Quddus, Companion of the Bab by Harriet Pettibone.
    		•  Barfurush; Iran; Babol Quddus; Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Deaths; Persecution; Letters of the Living
    1850. Jun c. The Amír-Nizám, Mírzá Taqí Khán was determined to execute the Báb to halt the progress of His religion. On his orders the Báb was taken from Chihríq to Tabríz. [Bab152; BBR76–7; GPB51]
  • His guard took Him on a circuitous, much longer route through Urúmíyyih where His presence was noted by American missionaries. [Bab152; BBR73, 76]
  • Forty days before the Báb was to leave Chihríq He collected all His documents, Tablets, pen cases, seals, His agate rings, and His last Tablets to Mírzá 'Abdu'l-Karím Qazvíní, and put them in a coffer. He entrusted it to Mullá Báqir, one of the Letters of the Living, and instructed him to deliver it to His secretary. In the event that something should happen to Himself, the secretary was to proceed to Tihrán to deliver the box to ‘Jináb-i-Bahá', that is, Bahá'u'lláh. In His last Tablets, Mírzá Husayn-'Alí Núrí was referred to again and again as "Him Whom God shall make Manifest" also, He was referred to as "Bahá'u'lláh". [CH49; Bab151–2; DB504–5; TN25–6]
  • When the box was opened they found a Tablet in the form of a pentacle with 500 verses consisting of derivatives of the word ‘Bahá'. [Bab151–2; DB504–5; TN25–6]
  • This Blessed Tablet of the Bab was obtained in Cyprus by the Larnaca District Commissioner Claude Delaval Cobham, and he donated it to the British Library. It had been in the possession of Mirza Yayha in Famagusta. Mishkin-Qalam served Cobham toward the end of his 18 year exile in Cyprus, as a translator, which has nothing to do with this Tablet but it is interesting Baha’i history in Cyprus. [from an message from Anita Graves, National Bahá'í Archivist, Cyprus to Janis Zrudlo 25 April 2021.
    • Here is a link to a similar tablet at the British Libary website.
    • See Gate of the Heart 329-330 for a further explanation of the symbol of the pentagram and the circle.
    		• Chihriq; Tabriz; Urumiyyih; Tihran; Iran Mirza Taqi Khan; Bab, Life of; Missionaries; Mulla Muhammad Baqir-i Tabrizi; Letters of the Living; Bahaullah, Life of; Bab, Writings of; Relics; Box with writings; Boxes; Greatest Name; Bab, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded
    1852 16 – 27 Aug The martyrdom of Táhirih (Qurratu'l-'Ayn) in Tihrán. [BBR172–3; BBRSM:30; BW18:382; BKG87; MF203]
  • She was martyred in the Ílkhání garden, strangled with her own silk handkerchief which she had provided for the purpose. Her body was lowered into a well which was then filled with stones. [BBD220; DB622–8; GPB75]
  • See GPB73–5 for a history of her life.
  • See the story of her martyrdom and her life in the article in Radio France International.
  • 'Abdu'l-Bahá is reported to have said:

      She went to that garden with consummate dignity and composure. Everyone said that they were going to kill her, but she continued to cry out just as she had before, declaring, “I am that trumpet-call mentioned in the Gospel!” It was in this state that she was martyred in that garden and cast into a well. [Talk by Abdu’l-Baha Given in Budapest to the Turanian Society on 14 April 1913 (Provisional)
    iiiii
    		• Tihran; Iran Tahirih; Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Deaths; Persecution; Women; Gender; Equality; Letters of the Living; - Basic timeline, Expanded

    from the main catalogue

    1. Additional Tablets, Extracts and Talks, by Abdu'l-Bahá (2018). 57 selections, updated 2019. [about]
    2. Alí Bastámí, Mullá, by Denis MacEoin, in Encyclopaedia Iranica, Volume 1 (1985). Very brief article, short enough to qualify as "fair use." [about]
    3. Ali Bastami, Mulla, by Moojan Momen (1995). [about]
    4. Alí Bastámí, Mullá, by Moojan Momen, in The Bahá'í Encyclopedia (2009). On the second disciple to recognize the Báb, and the first Bábí martyr. [about]
    5. Ascent of Mount Carmel, The: Celebrating the Bicentenary of the Birth of the Báb, by John S. Hatcher, in Journal of Bahá'í Studies, 29:3 (2019). "From the Editor's Desk": Symbolism of the terraces on the shrine of the Bab; St. John's poem "Ascent of Mount Carmel"; overview of the articles in this issue of the Journal. [about]
    6. Authenticity of The Báb's Farewell Address to the Letters of the Living, by Universal House of Justice (2020). Memorandum of the Research Department of the Bahá'í World Center about the authenticity of the speech of the Báb to the Letters of the Living. [about]
    7. Báb's Farewell Address to the Letters of the Living, The, by Báb, The and Nabil-i-A'zam (1844). The Báb's farewell speech to the Letters of the Living, extracted from Nabil-i-A'zam's The Dawn-Breakers, pp. 92-94. [about]
    8. Babi Heroism and the Recovery of the Heroic, by Jack McLean (2009). In defining the three ages of Bábí-Bahá’í history, Shoghi Effendi named the first the Heroic Age, thus aligning the virtue of heroism and the Bahá’í Faith’s metaphor of historical time, with The Bab as the tragic hero. [about]
    9. Babi Movement, The: A Resource Mobilization Perspective, by Peter Smith and Moojan Momen, in In Iran: Studies in Babi and Bahá'í History vol. 3, ed. Peter Smith (1986). Babism from a sociological standpoint, esp. the place of the Babis in their contemporary cultural and economic classes. [about]
    10. Bayan (Bayán-i-Farsí and Bayán-i-'Arabí), The: Letters and Letters of the Living, by Universal House of Justice and Iraj Ayman (1994). [about]
    11. Explanations Concerning Sacred Mysteries, by Mirza Asad'Ullah (1902). Essays on the book of Daniel, and on the mysteries of: daily sacrifice, the kingdom, death, prayers for the dead, the figure 9, Jonah, fasting, and prayer. [about]
    12. Épître du Báb aux Lettres du Vivant, by Báb, The (1972). [about]
    13. Heroic in the Historical Writings of Shoghi Effendi and Nabil, The, by Jack McLean (2006). Unlike academic historians, Shoghi Effendi and Nabil interpret the events and characters they portray in moralistic terms. This paper explores the heroic motif through a literary framework in the model of Thomas Carlyle's concept of the prophet as hero. [about]
    14. Letters of Living, Dawn-Breakers, Quddús, Terraces, by Universal House of Justice (2000). Five unrelated questions: Identity of the Letters of the Living; "List of Illustrations" in the Dawn-Breakers; Status of the Writings of Quddus; Naming of the Terraces at the Arc; and The Bab's Tablets in the Dawn-Breakers. [about]
    15. Letters of the Living (Hurúf al-Hayy), by Muhammad Afnan and Todd Lawson, in The Bahá'í Encyclopedia (2009). Title given by the Báb to His first eighteen disciples. [about]
    16. Letters of the Quranic Dispensation and Letters of the Living (huruf), by Universal House of Justice, in Lights of Irfan, 4 (2003). Some meanings of the term huruf ("letters") in Bahá'í texts, including Letters of the Bayan, Letters of the Living, and Letters of the Quranic Dispensation. [about]
    17. Mulla Husayn, by Lowell Johnson (1982). A biography of Mulla Husayn, the first Letter of the Living. [about]
    18. Mulla Husayn Bushru'i: The Indomitable, by Darius Shahrokh, in Windows to the Past (1992). Life story of the first believer in the Bab. [about]
    19. Mulla Husayn Bushrui, by Moojan Momen and Todd Lawson, in World Religions: Belief, Culture, and Controversy (2011). [about]
    20. New Religious Movements, Tolkien, Marriage, by Universal House of Justice (1994). Various questions: new religious movements; Indian Letter of the Living; J.R.R. Tolkien; eternality of the marriage bond; illumination of Bahá'u'lláh's tablets. [about]
    21. Number of the Letters of the Living, by Muhammad Afnan, in Lights of Irfan, Volume 5 (2004). [about]
    22. Quddus, by Lowell Johnson (1982). Overview of the life of Quddus, the most prominent disciple of the Báb and the eighteenth and final Letter of the Living. [about]
    23. Social Basis of the Bábí Upheavals in Iran (1848-1953): A Preliminary Analysis, by Moojan Momen, in International Journal of Middle East Studies, 15 (1983). In the mid-19th century, Iran was shaken by unrest caused by the Bábí movement, which set off a chain of events that led on the one hand, to the constitutional movement in Iran, and on the other, to the establishment of the now world-wide Bahá'í Faith. [about]
    24. Story of Mulla Husayn (n.d.). Life of the first Bahá'í. Speaker not known. [about]
    25. Symbols of Transformation: The Gardens and Terraces on Mount Carmel, by Elham Afnan, in Bahá'í World (2002). Article, with photo gallery, about the development, design, and philosophy of the terraces surrounding the Shrine of the Báb on Mount Carmel in Haifa. [about]
    26. Tablet of the 'Light Verse' (Lawh-i-Áyiy-i-Núr), also known as Commentary on the Disconnected Letters: Wilmette Institute faculty notes, by Stephen Lambden (1999). [about]
    27. Tablet of the 'Light Verse' (Lawh-i-Áyiy-i-Núr), also known as Commentary on the Disconnected Letters: What on earth is a disconnected letter? Baha'u'llah's commentary, by Alison Marshall (1999). The meaning of the Arabic letters alif, lam, mim, as explained in Bahá'u'lláh's tablet Tafsir hurufat al-maqatt’ah. Includes List of disconnected letters in the Qur'an and Abjad values of the Arabic letters. [about]
    28. Tablet of Visitation for Mulla Muhammad 'Ali-i-Barfurushi (Quddús) (Ziyarat-Namih-i-Mullá Muhammad ‘Alí-i-Barfurushí), by Báb, The, in Rituals in Babism and Bahá'ísm, Pembroke Persian Series, Vol. 2 (1994). A tablet written by the Bab in honor of Quddus. [about]
    29. Tahirih, Letter of the Living, and Khadijih Bagum, Wife of the Báb, by Darius Shahrokh, in Windows to the Past (1992). Life stories of two key heroines of Bábí history. [about]
    30. The Báb; Husayn Bushru'i; Ruh al-Quddus; Tahirih, by Moojan Momen and Todd Lawson, in Holy People of the World: A Cross-Cultural Encyclopedia (2004). [about]
    31. Unrestrained as the Wind: A Life Dedicated to Bahá'u'lláh (1985). Compilation of quotations on topics of especial interest to Bahá'í youth. [about]
     
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