The Covenant of Baha'u'llah
by Adib Taherzadeh
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chapter 20 | start page | single page | chapter 22 |  |
Chapter 21
Covenant-breaking in the West
We now go back a few years to return to Akka at the close of the nineteenth century. As we have seen, the Covenant-breakers were becoming very frustrated, for they found themselves impotent to arrest the progress of the Cause of God. The news of the expansion of the Faith, especially the conversion of a number of souls in the Western world, had caused the fire of jealousy to burn more fiercely within their breasts. In December 1898 the first party of western pilgrims had arrived in the Holy Land and attained the presence of Abdu'l-Bahá. For the first time these newly enrolled believers came in contact with the magnetic personality of the Master. They felt the warmth of His genuine love and compassion and saw the light of divine spirit shining from His countenance.May Bolles Maxwell, who was among them, describes her impressions of meeting Abdu'l-Bahá for the first time in these words:
"In a moment I stood on the threshold and dimly saw a room full of people sitting quietly about the walls, and then I beheld my Beloved. I found myself at His feet, and He gently raised me and seated me beside Him, all the while saying some loving words in Persian in a voice that shook my heart. Of that first meeting I can remember neither joy nor pain nor anything that I can name. I had been carried suddenly to too great a height; my soul had come in contact with the Divine Spirit; and this force so pure, so holy, so mighty, had overwhelmed me. He spoke to each one of us in turn of ourselves and our lives and those whom we loved, and although His Words were so few and so simple they breathed the Spirit of Life to our souls...
"We could not remove our eyes from His glorious face: we heard all He said; we drank tea with Him at His bidding; but existence seemed suspended, and when He arose and suddenly left us we came back with a start to life: but never again, thank God, to the same life on this earth! We had 'beheld the King in His beauty. We had seen the land which is very far off.'" [21-1]
Another disciple of Abdu'l-Bahá, Mrs Thornburgh-Cropper, writes:
Upon arrival[1] we went to an hotel, where we remained until nightfall as it was too dangerous for us, and for Abdu'l-Bahá, ... for strangers to be seen entering the city of sorrow.
[1 In Haifa.]
"We took a carriage after the night had fallen, and drove along the hard sand by 'way of the sea beyond Jordan', which led us to the gates of the prison city. There our trusted driver arranged for us to enter. Once inside we found the friends who were awaiting us, and we started up the uneven stairs that led to Him. Someone went before us with a small piece of candle, which cast strange shadows on the walls of this silent place.
"Suddenly the light caught a form that at first seemed a vision of mist and light. It was the Master which the candle-light had revealed to us. His white robe, and silver, flowing hair, and shining blue eyes gave the impression of a spirit, rather than of a human being. We tried to tell Him how deeply grateful we were at His receiving us. 'No,' He answered, 'you are kind to come...'
"Then He smiled, and we recognized the Light which He possessed in the radiance which moved over His fine and noble face. It was an amazing experience. We four visitors from the Western world felt that our voyage, with all its accompanying inconvenience, was a small price to pay for such treasure as we received from the spirit and words of the Master, Whom we had crossed mountain and seas and nations to meet. Thus began our work to 'spread the teachings', to 'mention the Name of Bahá'u'lláh, and acquaint the world with the Message'." [21-2]
During their short visit these pilgrims became galvanized by the soul-stirring words of the Master. They were utterly devoted to Him and longed to serve Him and the Cause He represented with unflinching loyalty and faithfulness. These souls showed such radiance and heavenly joy as a result of meeting Abdu'l-Bahá that the Covenant-breakers became inflamed with rage and envy; their gloom and disappointment knew no bounds. They had to find a way to counteract these developments and to devise a plan to impede the progress of the Cause in the West. At last Mirza Muhammad-'Ali discovered a means whereby he could attempt to disrupt the unity of the believers in America.
Among the party from the West which came to visit the Master was a man by the name of Ibrahim Khayru'llah. He was a Lebanese Christian who had embraced the Cause in Egypt during Bahá'u'lláh's lifetime and had moved to the United States in 1892. Two years later he succeeded in converting Thornton Chase, the first western Christian to embrace the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh, and the Master referred to Khayru'llah as 'Baha's Peter'. For a few years Khayru'llah taught the Faith to several souls in various parts of the United States. He was the only teacher to whom the believers turned for enlightenment in that vast country.
During the time that Khayru'llah was turning to Abdu'l-Bahá and was loyal to Him, he had succeeded in converting several people to the Faith. In one of his letters to the Master he expresses profound loyalty to Him and gives the news of the conversion of several souls in America. The following is a translation of this letter, which he wrote in 1897.
"To the sacred court of my Master and the Master of the entire world ... may my soul be a sacrifice unto the dust of His pathway; After offering obedience and servitude unto the sacred threshold of my Master, I beg to state that the believers in these regions and I greet the morn immersed in the sea of your bounties, and meet the night with the grace of your mercy which encompasses the East and the West of the earth, because you have turned unto them and unto me the glances of your favour. You have revealed of divine verses three Tablets: one for the believers in America, one for Antun Effendi Haddad, and the last one for your servant, who forever and ever, lowly and poor, awaits the generous dispensations of his bountiful Lord... Enclosed with this petition are seventy-four petitions from those who have recently come into the Faith of God, and shall soon send other petitions. Seekers who wish to hear the Word of God and come into the knowledge of truth arrive in large numbers..." [21-3]
But here is an example of how pride and ambition can extinguish the fire of faith which burns in the heart of a believer. There is nothing more vital for a follower of Bahá'u'lláh who becomes successful in teaching the Cause than genuine humility, utter self-effacement and complete servitude toward the loved ones of God. But alas, Khayru'llah was vain and egotistical. As the years went by and he saw the fruit of his teaching work multiply, he became proud and entertained the thought of dividing the Bahá'à world into two parts, he becoming the leader of the Bahá'Ãs of the West, and Abdu'l-Bahá that of the East!
While nurturing these selfish ambitions in his heart, he arrived in Akka and met the Master for the first time. He felt His majesty and authority as well as His love and compassion. For a short while He showed his subordination to Abdu'l-Bahá who one day took him to Mount Carmel and there laid the foundation stone of the mausoleum of the Bab on the site purchased by Him and chosen by Bahá'u'lláh Himself.
In the meantime, Mirza Muhammad-'Ali had discovered signs of ambition and egotism in Khayru'llah which he exploited to the full. Soon a clandestine relationship was established between the two and Khayru'llah became a tool in the hand of Mirza Muhammad-'Ali. He joined the infamous band of Covenant-breakers, rose up in opposition against Abdu'l-Bahá, disseminated his misgivings among the friends, and published far and wide some of his own ideologies. His defection brought great tests for the believers in the West, but the vast majority of the American Bahá'Ãs remained faithful to the Cause.
The news of Khayru'llah's defection brought sorrow to the heart of Abdu'l-Bahá, who tried to save him as he was heading toward his spiritual downfall. In 1901 the Master asked Abdu'l-Karim-i-Tihrani, a merchant from Cairo who had taught the Faith to Khayru'llah, to go to the United States especially to make this faltering soul realize the error of his ways. When his mission failed Abdu'l-Bahá sent Haji Mirza Hasan-i-Khurasani in that same year for the same purpose. He also could not help. When Haji Mirza Hasan returned, Mirza Asadu'llah-i-Isfahani was despatched to the United States. He was the one who had previously been commissioned by Abdu'l-Bahá to transport the remains of the Bab to the Holy Land, a task which he had carried out with great success. He had a link with the Holy Family since he had married a sister of Munirih Khanum, the wife of Abdu'l-Bahá. Although he tried to help Khayru'llah remain faithful to the Covenant, sadly, a few years later, he himself and his son Dr Farid (Fareed) likewise became Covenant-breakers.
It is interesting to note that in spite of all Khayru'llah's attempts to mislead those whom he had earlier helped to embrace the Faith, he did not succeed in bringing about a schism in the community. As in Persia, the believers remained loyal to the Covenant of Bahá'u'lláh, and thereafter refused to associate with their teacher. This can be credited to a great extent to the arrival in the United States of the celebrated Bahá'à scholar Mirza Abu'l-Fadl in 1901. The visit of this eminent teacher, which was undertaken at the behest of Abdu'l-Bahá, lasted for about two years. During this period, Mirza Abu'l-Fadl dedicated himself fully to the task of deepening the believers in verities of the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh. He spent many hours, day and night, discussing various aspects of the Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, its history, its teachings, its laws and its Covenant, which he pointed out was the guarantor of the unity of the Community. In the course of these discussions he was able to clarify those subjects which had hitherto been obscure to the American Bahá'Ãs. In this he was assisted by Ali-Kuli Khan, who acted as his interpreter. Thus, as a result of Mirza Abu'l-Fadl's teaching work, the believers in America became filled with the spirit of faith and vitality, and many among them were transformed into spiritual giants of this Dispensation.
Khayru'llah, who craved power and continued to struggle to become the leader of the Bahá'à community in the West, was being continually urged by the Arch-breaker of the Covenant to foment discord and contention among the believers, and the efforts of prominent Bahá'à teachers to purify his heart and mind from the poison of Covenant-breaking failed. Abdu'l-Bahá expelled him from the community and commented that as a result of his violation of the Covenant he would be reckoned as dead, and that soon the repugnant odour of his deeds would repel people everywhere. In 1917 Khayru'llah wrote a letter to Professor Edward Browne of Cambridge which is indicative of his despair:
"The Bahá'à movement in America became slow and dull since the sad dissension reached the West nineteen years ago. I thought then that to call the people to this Great Truth was equivalent to inviting them into a quarrel. But the visit of Abbas Efendi Abdu'l-Bahá to this country, his false teachings, his misrepresentation of Bahá'Ãsm, his dissimulation, and the knowledge that his end is nigh, aroused me to rise up for helping the work of God, declaring the Truth, and refuting the false attacks of theologians and missionaries. Now I am struggling hard to vivify the Cause of God, after its having received by the visit of Abbas Efendi a death-blow." [21-4]
On the other hand, as the years went by, the Message of Bahá'u'lláh spread throughout the United States and Canada. It reached the continent of Europe, where a nucleus of Bahá'à communities was established in several countries including Britain, France and Germany. When Abdu'l-Bahá was freed from His forty-year confinement He travelled to the West and openly proclaimed the Message of Bahá'u'lláh to the people of Europe and America. So powerful was the influence He exerted on the hearts of the people that great numbers flocked to churches and public halls to gaze upon His countenance and hear Him speak. The believers in the West who came into contact with the person of Abdu'l-Bahá were transformed spiritually and magnetized by His all-encompassing love. Abdu'l-Bahá laid such a solid foundation, specially in North America, that a few years later He conferred upon that community a measure of primacy in the execution of His Tablets of the Divine Plan.[1]
[1 A series of fourteen Tablets addressed to American believers, which constitute a charter for the teaching work throughout the world.]
Shoghi Effendi describes the significance of Abdu'l-Bahá's travels to the West and the power of the Covenant in these words:
"Abdu'l-Bahá's historic journeys to the West, and in particular His eight-month tour of the United States of America, may be said to have marked the culmination of His ministry, a ministry whose untold blessings and stupendous achievements only future generations can adequately estimate. As the day-star of Bahá'u'lláh's Revelation had shone forth in its meridian splendour at the hour of the proclamation of His Message to the rulers of the earth in the city of Adrianople, so did the Orb of His Covenant mount its zenith and shed its brightest rays when He Who was its appointed Centre arose to blazon the glory and greatness of His Father's Faith among the peoples of the West.
"That divinely instituted Covenant had, shortly after its inception, demonstrated beyond the shadow of a doubt its invincible strength through its decisive triumph over the dark forces which its Arch-Breaker had with such determination arrayed against it. Its energizing power had soon after been proclaimed through the signal victories which its torch-bearers had so rapidly and courageously won in the far-off cities of Western Europe and the United States of America. Its high claims had, moreover, been fully vindicated through its ability to safeguard the unity and integrity of the Faith in both the East and the West. It had subsequently given further proof of its indomitable strength by the memorable victory it registered through the downfall of Sultan Abdu'l-Hamid, and the consequent release of its appointed Centre from a forty-year captivity. It had provided for those still inclined to doubt its Divine origin yet another indisputable testimony to its solidity by enabling Abdu'l-Bahá, in the face of formidable obstacles, to effect the transfer and the final entombment of the Bab's remains in a mausoleum on Mt. Carmel. It had manifested also before all mankind, with a force and in a measure hitherto unapproached, its vast potentialities when it empowered Him in Whom its spirit and its purpose were enshrined to embark on a three-year-long mission to the Western world — a mission so momentous that it deserves to rank as the greatest exploit ever to be associated with His ministry." [21-5]
Abdu'l-Bahá's success in proclaiming the Cause to multitudes in the West, and the tributes which were paid Him by people of power and influence likewise came as the most paralysing blow to Mirza Muhammad-'Ali and his associates. In one of His Tablets written in this period, Abdu'l-Bahá refers to the Covenant-breakers, who were on the retreat, as 'blind creatures that dwell beneath the earth'. The following is part of this Tablet:
"O ye loved ones of God! Praise be to Him, the bright banner of the Covenant is flying higher every day, while the flag of perfidy hath been reversed, and hangeth at half-mast. The benighted attackers have been shaken to their core; they are now as ruined sepulchres, and even as blind creatures that dwell beneath the earth they creep and crawl about a corner of the tomb, and out of that hole, from time to time, like unto savage beasts, do they jibber and howl. Glory be to God! How can the darkness hope to overcome the light, how can a magician's cords hold fast 'a serpent plain for all to see'? 'Then lo! It swallowed up their lying wonders.'[1] Alas for them! They have deluded themselves with a fable, and to indulge their appetites they have done away with their own selves. They gave up everlasting glory in exchange for human pride, and they sacrificed greatness in both worlds to the demands of the insistent self. This is that of which We have forewarned you. Ere long shall ye behold the foolish in manifest loss." [21-6]
[1 Qur'an 26:31; 26:44; the reference is to Moses's rod, and the enchanters.]
In many of His Tablets Abdu'l-Bahá assured the believers that in the end the Covenant-breakers who rose up against Him during His Ministry would fail utterly and perish in disgrace. For instance, in a Tablet we find this prophecy:
"The case of all of them resembleth the violation of the Covenant by Judas Iscariot and his followers. Consider: hath any result or trace remained after them? Not even a name hath been left by his followers and although a number of Jews sided with him it was as if he had no followers at all. This Judas Iscariot who was the leader of the apostles betrayed Christ for thirty pieces of silver. Take heed, O ye people of perception!
"At this time these insignificant violators will surely betray the Centre of the Covenant for the large sum which by every subtle means they have begged. It is now thirty years since Bahá'u'lláh ascended, and in that time these violators have striven with might and main. What have they achieved? Under all conditions those who have remained firm in the Covenant have conquered, while the violators have met defeat, disappointment and dejection. After the ascension of Abdu'l-Bahá, no trace of them shall remain. These souls are ignorant of what will happen and are proud of their own fancies." [21-7]
Shoghi Effendi briefly describes the doom of those few individuals who struggled with all their might to wrest the reins of the Cause from the hands of Abdu'l-Bahá, and to subvert the Divine Edifice which the Lord had reared for all mankind.
"... he [Mirza Muhammad-'Ali] who, from the moment the Divine Covenant was born until the end of his life, showed a hatred more unrelenting than that which animated the afore-mentioned adversaries of Abdu'l-Bahá, who plotted more energetically than any one of them against Him, and afflicted his Father's Faith with a shame more grievous than any which its external enemies had inflicted upon it — such a man, together with the infamous crew of Covenant-breakers whom he had misled and instigated, was condemned to witness, in a growing measure, as had been the case with Mirza Yahya and his henchmen, the frustration of his evil designs, the evaporation of all his hopes, the exposition of his true motives and the complete extinction of his erstwhile honour and glory. His brother, Mirza Diya'u'llah, died prematurely; Mirza Aqa Jan, his dupe, followed that same brother, three years later, to the grave; and Mirza Badi'u'llah, his chief accomplice, betrayed his cause, published a signed denunciation of his evil acts, but rejoined him again, only to be alienated from him in consequence of the scandalous behaviour of his own daughter. Mirza Muhammad-'Ali's half-sister, Furughiyyih, died of cancer, whilst her husband, Siyyid Ali, passed away from a heart attack before his sons could reach him, the eldest being subsequently stricken in the prime of life, by the same malady. Muhammad-Javad-i-Qazvani, a notorious Covenant-breaker, perished miserably. Shu'a'u'llah who, as witnessed by Abdu'l-Bahá in His Will, had counted on the murder of the Centre of the Covenant, and who had been despatched to the United States by his father to join forces with Ibrahim Khayru'llah, returned crestfallen and empty-handed from his inglorious mission. Jamal-i-Burujirdi, Mirza Muhammad-'Ali's ablest lieutenant in Persia, fell a prey to a fatal and loathsome disease; Siyyid Mihdiy-i-Dahaji, who, betraying Abdu'l-Bahá, joined the Covenant-breakers, died in obscurity and poverty, followed by his wife and his two sons; Mirza Husayn-'Aliy-i-Jahrumi, Mirza Husayn-i-Shiraziy-i-Khurtumi and Haji Muhammad-Husayn-i-Kashani, who represented the arch-breaker of the Covenant in Persia, India and Egypt, failed utterly in their missions; whilst the greedy and conceited Ibrahim-i-Khayru'llah, who had chosen to uphold the banner of his rebellion in America for no less than twenty year, and who had the temerity to denounce, in writing, Abdu'l-Bahá, His 'false teachings, His misrepresentations of Bahaism, His dissimulation', and to stigmatize His visit to America as 'a death-blow' to the 'Cause of God', met his death soon after he had uttered these denunciations, utterly abandoned and despised by the entire body of the members of a community, whose founders he himself had converted to the Faith, and in the very land that bore witness to the multiplying evidences of the established ascendancy of Abdu'l-Bahá, Whose authority he had, in his later years, vowed to uproot.
"As to those who had openly espoused the cause of this arch-breaker of Bahá'u'lláh's Covenant, or who had secretly sympathized with him, whilst outwardly supporting Abdu'l-Bahá, some eventually repented and were forgiven; others became disillusioned and lost their faith entirely; a few apostatized, whilst the rest dwindled away, leaving him in the end, except for a handful of his relatives, alone and unsupported. Surviving Abdu'l-Bahá by almost twenty years, he who had so audaciously affirmed to His face that he had no assurance he might outlive Him, lived long enough to witness the utter bankruptcy of his cause, leading meanwhile a wretched existence within the walls of a Mansion that had once housed a crowd of his supporters; was denied by the civil authorities, as a result of the crisis he had after Abdu'l-Bahá's passing foolishly precipitated, the official custody of his Father's Tomb; was compelled, a few years later, to vacate that same Mansion, which, through his flagrant neglect, had fallen into a dilapidated condition; was stricken with paralysis which crippled half his body; lay bedridden in pain for months before he died; and was buried according to Muslim rites, in the immediate vicinity of a local Muslim shrine, his grave remaining until the present day devoid of even a tombstone — a pitiful reminder of the hollowness of the claims he had advanced, of the depths of infamy to which he had sunk, and of the severity of the retribution his acts had so richly merited." [21-8]
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