The Covenant of Baha'u'llah
by Adib Taherzadeh
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chapter 8 | start page | single page | chapter 10 |  |
Chapter 9
The Relationship of Bahá'u'lláh and Abdu'l-Bahá
During His Ministry Bahá'u'lláh showered His unfailing bounties upon Abdu'l-Bahá, that Being Whom He had created to be the Centre of His Covenant and the Interpreter of His Word.It must be remembered that the relationship of Bahá'u'lláh and the members of His family who remained faithful to the Cause was not like the relationship which exists between members of ordinary families. Normally, a father and a son at home have a very intimate and informal attitude towards each other. But in the case of Bahá'u'lláh and His faithful children, it was very different indeed, although that intimate relationship of father and son did exist. However, the station of Bahá'u'lláh as the Manifestation of God completely overshadowed His position as a physical father. Abdu'l-Bahá, the Greatest Holy Leaf and the Purest Branch looked upon Bahá'u'lláh not merely as their father, but as their Lord, and because they had truly recognized His station, they acted at all times as most humble servants at His threshold. Abdu'l-Bahá always entered the presence of Bahá'u'lláh with such genuine humility and reverence that no one among His followers could express the spirit of lowliness and utter self-effacement as He did. The humility of Abdu'l-Bahá as He bowed before His Father, or prostrated Himself at His feet, demonstrated the unique relationship which existed between this Father and His faithful sons and daughter.
When Bahá'u'lláh moved to the Mansions of Mazra'ih and Bahji, Abdu'l-Bahá stayed in Akka. Whenever He went to attain the presence of His Father, He dismounted from His steed when He approached the Mansion, because he considered it disrespectful for a servant to be riding when he visited his lord.
While Abdu'l-Bahá showed such lowliness and humility, the outpouring of love and admiration by Bahá'u'lláh for His Son knew no bounds. His pleasure and joy when Abdu'l-Bahá visited Him at the Mansion were evident. So eager was He to receive Abdu'l-Bahá with marks of honour that He would despatch a contingent of the believers, including His sons, to distant fields outside the Mansion as a welcoming party, while He Himself would be standing on the balcony to watch Him arrive.
One of the reasons that Abdu'l-Bahá stayed in Akka and did not move with the Blessed Beauty to the Mansions of Mazra'ih and Bahji was that His half-brother Mirza Muhammad-'Ali, and Mahd-i-'Ulya his mother, were so jealous of Him. By staying away from Bahá'u'lláh, who cherished His eldest Son and extolled His station in glowing terms, Abdu'l-Bahá hoped to somewhat dampen their fires of jealousy. This separation from Bahá'u'lláh was painful to Abdu'l-Bahá, who nevertheless voluntarily deprived Himself of the bounty of the presence of His Lord in order to pacify His unfaithful brothers. There were also times when Bahá'u'lláh missed His Most Great Branch. On several occasions He even wrote in His own handwriting asking Him in tender and loving language to come and visit Him. No pen can describe the true relationship which existed between these two. The outpouring of infinite love and admiration by Bahá'u'lláh, and the manifestation of absolute humility and utter nothingness by Abdu'l-Bahá are beyond the experience and understanding of ordinary men.
In many of His Tablets Bahá'u'lláh writes in glowing terms of the station of Abdu'l-Bahá. The following passages are gleaned from a wide range of His Writings, some of which are written in His own hand.
In the Suriy-i-Ghusn (Surih of the Branch),[1] He exalts the station of Abdu'l-Bahá in these words:
[1 See The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, vol. 2.]
"There hath branched from the Sadratu'l-Muntaha this sacred and glorious Being, this Branch of Holiness; well is it with him that hath sought His shelter and abideth beneath His shadow. Verily the Limb of the Law of God hath sprung forth from this Root which God hath firmly implanted in the Ground of His Will, and Whose Branch hath been so uplifted as to encompass the whole of creation. Magnified be He, therefore, for this sublime, this blessed, this mighty, this exalted Handiwork! ...Render thanks unto God, O people, for His appearance; for verily He is the most great Favour unto you, the most perfect bounty upon you; and through Him every mouldering bone is quickened. Whoso turneth towards Him hath turned towards God, and whoso turneth away from Him hath turned away from My Beauty, hath repudiated My Proof, and transgressed against Me. He is the Trust of God amongst you, His charge within you, His manifestation unto you and His appearance among His favoured servants..." [9-1]
In another Tablet in His own handwriting, Bahá'u'lláh thus addresses Abdu'l-Bahá:
"O Thou Who art the apple of Mine eye! My glory, the ocean of My loving-kindness, the sun of My bounty, the heaven of My mercy rest upon Thee. We pray God to illumine the world through Thy knowledge and wisdom, to ordain for Thee that which will gladden Thine heart and impart consolation to Thine eyes." [9-2]
In yet another Tablet, these verses have been revealed by Him:
"The glory of God rest upon Thee, and upon whosoever serveth Thee and circleth around Thee. Woe, great woe, betide him that opposeth and injureth Thee. Well is it with him that sweareth fealty to Thee; the fire of hell torment him who is Thine enemy." [9-3]
And again:
"We have made Thee a shelter for all mankind, a shield unto all who are in heaven and on earth, a stronghold for whosoever hath believed in God, the Incomparable, the All-Knowing. God grant that through Thee He may protect them, may enrich and sustain them, that He may inspire Thee with that which shall be a wellspring of wealth unto all created things, an ocean of bounty unto all men, and the dayspring of mercy unto all peoples." [9-4]
When Abdu'l-Bahá was on a visit to Beirut, Bahá'u'lláh expressed sorrow because of separation from Him in these words:
"Praise be to Him Who hath honoured the Land of Ba (Beirut) through the presence of Him round Whom all names revolve. All the atoms of the earth have announced unto all created things that from behind the gate of the Prison-city there hath appeared and above its horizon there hath shone forth the Orb of the beauty of the great, the Most Mighty Branch of God — His ancient and immutable Mystery — proceeding on its way to another land. Sorrow, thereby, hath enveloped this Prison-city, whilst another land rejoiceth... Blessed, doubly blessed, is the ground which His footsteps have trodden, the eye that hath been cheered by the beauty of His countenance, the ear that hath been honoured by hearkening to His call, the heart that hath tasted the sweetness of His love, the breast that hath dilated through His remembrance, the pen that hath voiced His praise, the scroll that hath borne the testimony of His writings." [9-5]
The bounties which Bahá'u'lláh showered upon Abdu'l-Bahá were not confined to these and the other Tablets which streamed from His Pen. Innumerable were the occasions both public and private in which He poured out His praise upon Abdu'l-Bahá, described His divine attributes in glowing terms, and paid tribute to His noble deeds among the people. Haji Mirza Haydar-'Ali,[1] that Spiritual giant immortalized by the title 'The Angel of Carmel', has recorded the following reminiscences of one of his memorable audiences when Bahá'u'lláh spoke about the important role Abdu'l-Bahá played in shielding Him from the pressures of the outside world.
[1 For his story see The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, vol. 2. These are not to be taken as the exact words of Bahá'u'lláh; they are only recollections of His utterances by Haji Mirza Haydar-'Ali. ]
"During the days of Baghdad We ourself used to visit the coffee house[1] and meet with everyone. We associated with people whether they were in the community or outside, whether acquaintances or strangers, whether they came from far or near.
[1 See The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, vol. 3, pp. 250-51. (A.T.)]
"We considered those who were distant from us to be near, and the strangers as acquaintances. We served the Cause of God, supported His Word, and exalted His Name. The Most Great Branch [Abdu'l-Bahá] carried out all these services, withstood all the difficulties, and endured the sufferings and calamities to a great extent in Adrianople, and now to a far greater extent in Akka. Because while in Baghdad, to all appearances We were not a prisoner, and the Cause of God had hardly enjoyed a fame it does today. Those who opposed it and the enemies who fought against it were comparatively few and far between.
"In Adrianople We used to meet with some of the people and gave permission to some to attain Our presence. But while in the Most Great Prison We did not meet with anyone[1] and have completely closed the door of association with the people. Now the Master has taken upon Himself this arduous task for Our comfort. He is a mighty shield facing the world and its peoples, and so He has relieved Us [from every care]. At first He secured the Mansion of Mazra'ih for Us and We stayed there, then the Mansion of Bahji. He is so occupied in the service of the Cause that for weeks He does not find the opportunity to come to Bahji. We are engaged in meeting with the believers and revealing the verses of God, while He labours hard and faces every ordeal and suffering. Because to deal and associate with these people is the most arduous task of all." [9-6]
[1 Non-Bahá'Ãs (A.T.]
Mirza Mahmud-i-Kashani,[1] a trusted follower of Bahá'u'lláh who was in His service from the days of Baghdad and accompanied Him to Adrianople and Akka, has recounted in his memoirs his recollection of the words of Bahá'u'lláh as He spoke to a number of believers about the exalted station of Abdu'l-Bahá. Following is a summary translation of his notes:
[1 See The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, vol. 1, p. 288.]
"...The word Aqa (The Master) was a designation given to Abdu'l-Bahá.
I recall that one day when Bahá'u'lláh was in the Garden of
Vashshash which was a delightful place situated outside Baghdad, which
He occasionally used to visit, someone referred to certain individuals as
the Aqa.[1] On hearing this Bahá'u'lláh was heard to say with a commanding
voice: 'Who is the Aqa? There is only one Aqa, and He is the Most
Great Branch.'
[1 As a common noun the word 'Aqa' in the Persian language is used as a title before a name. It is similar to 'Mr' in English. But if it is used on its own as a proper noun it signifies the exalted position of a person.]
"Bahá'u'lláh said the same thing again in the Garden of Ridvan in Akka... On that occasion, someone addressed Mirza Muhammad-'Ali as Aqa, whereupon Bahá'u'lláh admonished him saying: 'There is one and only one Aqa and He is the Most Great Branch, others should be addressed by their names'...
"Many a time I was in the presence of Bahá'u'lláh when the Master was also present. Because of His presence Bahá'u'lláh would be filled with the utmost joy and gladness. One could see His blessed countenance beaming with delight and exultation so lovingly that no words can adequately describe it. Repeatedly He would laud and glorify the Master, and the mere mention of His name would suffice to evoke an indescribable feeling of ecstasy in the Person of the Blessed Beauty. No pen is capable of fully describing this. In many of His Tablets Bahá'u'lláh has extolled the station of Abdu'l-Bahá..."
Haji Mirza Habibu'llah-i-Afnan, a younger son of Aqa Mirza Aqa entitled Nuru'd-Din,[1] one of the distinguished members of the Afnan family, has written in his memoirs some interesting stories of his pilgrimage in 1891. The following is an extract from his notes summarized and translated:
[1 For a detailed account of his life and services see The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, vol. 4.]
"One evening we were informed that the Beloved of the World [Bahá'u'lláh] intended to visit the Garden of Junaynih[1] and had directed that all the pilgrims and resident Bahá'Ãs accompany Him in the morning. That night we could not sleep because we were so excited ... that we should have the bounty of being in His holy presence for several hours the next day. At the hour of dawn we faced His blessed room and engaged in prayers and devotions. Before sunrise we all assembled outside the gate of the Mansion. It took about one hour until His Blessed Person came downstairs and mounted a white donkey... All the believers followed Him on foot to the garden. One of the local believers, Haji Khavar, was a tall man. He walked alongside Bahá'u'lláh and held an umbrella over His head as a protection against the heat of the sun. The air was refreshing as we arrived in the garden... His Blessed Person was extremely happy that day and each one of the friends received his share of the bounties from His presence. We had lunch in the garden, then we assembled together and attained His presence.
[1 A garden situated in the north of Akka, near the Mansion of Mazra'ih.]
"It was at that time that Abdu'l-Bahá arrived from Akka. The Blessed Beauty said, 'The Master is coming, hasten to attend Him'... On those days Bahá'u'lláh used to sow the seeds of loyalty and servitude toward 'Him Whom God hath purposed' [Abdu'l-Bahá] in the hearts of the believers and explained the lofty station and hidden reality of the Master to all.
Attended by everyone, Abdu'l-Bahá came with great humility into the presence of the Blessed Beauty. Then the Tongue of Grandeur uttered words to this effect, 'From morning until now this garden was not pleasant, but now with the presence of the Master it has become truly most delightful.' Then, turning to the Master, He remarked, 'You should have come in the morning.' Abdu'l-Bahá responded, 'The Governor of Akka and some residents had requested to meet with Me. Therefore I had to receive and entertain them.' Bahá'u'lláh, with a smiling face, said, 'The Master is our shield. Everybody here lives in the utmost comfort and peace. Association with the outside people such as these is very, very difficult. It is the Master who stands up to everything, and prepares the means of comfort for all the friends. May God protect Him from the evil of the envious and the hostile.'"[1]
[1 These are not to be taken as the exact words of Bahá'u'lláh or Abdu'l-Bahá. (A.T.)]
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