# The Babis

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> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Edward Sell, The Babis, bahai-library.com.
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> 
> The Babis
> 
> Edward Sell
> 
> published in The Church Missionary Intelligencer47:21, pp. 324-335
> 
> London: Church Missionary Society, 1896-05
> 
> 1. Text
> 
> "HE DECLARED PARTICULARLY WHAT THINGS GOD HAD WROUGHT AMONG THE
> GENTILES.
> 
> AND WHEN THEY HEARD IT, THEY GLORIFIED THE LORD."
> 
> -Acts xxi. 19, 20.
> 
> [p. 324]
> 
> THE modern sect of the Babis is closely connected with the teaching of
> the Shi'ahs on the Imam, his position and functions, and with the mystical
> modes of thought of the Sufis. It is not strictly correct to call them a Muslim
> sect, for they practically discard the Quran and supersede Muhammad. But the
> close connexion of Babiism with Muhammadan dogmas, its present-day importance
> and the devotion of its followers claim for it more than a passing notice. No
> non-Christian sect in modern days has suffered such persecution and survived.
> The movement is one which illustrates the mystical tendency of Persian thought,
> the fanaticism of the Mullas, and the barbarity of the rulers; but all the
> efforts of the Muslim Church and State have hitherto failed to suppress
> Babiism, or to lessen the veneration in which the Bab is held by all who accept
> his teaching.
> 
> Abu'l-Qasim (Al-Mahdi), the twelfth Imam, disappeared in the year 329 A.H., but
> for a period of sixty-nine years he is said to have held intercourse with his
> followers through a successive number of men, who were called the Doors or
> mediums of communication. Abu'l-Hasan, the last of these Doors, refused to
> appoint a successor, saying that "God hath a purpose which He will accomplish."
> Many centuries passed by, and it was not until the beginning of the present one
> that this curious theory of intermediaries between the concealed Imam and the
> Faithful again took definite shape. Shaikh Ahmad (1753-1826 A.D.), the
> founder of the Shaikhi sect, was a devout ascetic and a man of independent
> thought. He had a profound belief in 'Ali, and was devoted to the memory of the
> Imams, whom he looked upon as creative forces, arguing from the text, "God the
> best of creators" (Surah, xxiii. l4), that, if He be the best, He cannot be the
> only one. The special point of his teaching was that "God is immanent in the
> universe which proceeds from Him, and that all the elect of God, all the Imams,
> and all just persons are personifications of the divine attributes."[1]
> 
> [1] Journal Asiatique, 6me Serie, tome vii. p. 458.
> 
> [p. 325]
> 
> Shaikh Ahmad was succeeded by a man who soon commanded much respect
> and influence. His name was Haji Syed Kazim. He died in the year 1843 A.D., and
> left no successor. After fastings, vigils, and prayers for guidance, the
> Shaikhis began to consider what was to be done in the matter of a spiritual
> director. Mulla Husain proceeded to Shiraz, and, there met with Mirza 'Ali
> Muhammad, who produced before him the signs of his call to his divine mission.
> For several days Mulla Husain pondered over these matters, and, after a long
> and severe struggle, became convinced that he had found in the young and ardent
> enthusiast before him the "True One," to whose advent Haji Syed Kazim had
> pointed. "He wrote to his friends at Karbala that neither he himself nor any
> other of them was worthy of the high dignity of Murshid (or leader), and that
> that "Illuminated One" to whom their late master had referred was alone
> worthy." He also said, "I have found him at Shiraz, and he is worthy to be the
> Murshid."[1]
> 
> As the connexion between the Babis and the Shaikhis is thus so close, we must
> now see what was the special dogma of the latter sect. The orthodox Shi'ah
> creed consists of five articles, which are called "the pillars" or supports of
> the Faith (irkan-i-din). They are belief (1) in the unity of God (tauhid), (2)
> in the justice of God ('adl), (3) in prophetship (nabuwat), (4) in the imamate
> (imamat), (5) in the resurrection (ma'ad). The Shaikhis set aside the articles
> two and five as already implied in the belief in God and the prophets. To take
> the place of the rejected articles and to bring the number up to four, they
> added a new one which they called the Fourth Support or Pillar (rukn-i-rabi').
> The meaning of this is that there must always be amongst believers one perfect
> man (Shi'ah-i-Kamil) who can be the channel of grace (wasita-i-faiz) between
> the absent Imam and his people. The term "fourth support" is primarily applied
> to the dogma that the concealed Imam must always have on earth some one who
> possesses his entire confidence, to whom he gives special spiritual
> instruction, and who is thus qualified to convey to the believers the wishes
> and wisdom of their invisible head. The term has, however, come to be applied
> to the person who fulfils this office. At first the Bab claimed to be this
> "fourth support," and so to occupy the place held by the "Doors," who were the
> earlier intermediaries between the Imam and his followers. Thus it is that
> Babiism is connected with the very central doctrine of the Shi'ahs, though in
> many other ways it has so far departed from accepted Muhammadan ideas as to
> form a new sect altogether.
> 
> Mirza 'Ali Muhammad, the Bab, was born at Shiraz on the 9th of October, 1820.
> When quite young he lost his father. For a time the youth assisted his uncle in
> mercantile pursuits, but as his mind was more inclined to religious meditation
> and speculative thought than to business affairs, he proceeded to Karbala,
> where he was brought into contact with Haji Syed Kazim, the Shaikhi leader,
> whose lectures he occasionally attended. At Karbala he was distinguished by his
> zeal for learning and by his remarkably austere life. Visitors to
> 
> [1] Journal Asiatique, 6me Serie, tome vii. p. 465.
> 
> [p. 326]
> 
> Karbala, especially those from Shiraz, showed him much consideration,
> and so his fame was spread abroad. He now composed a commentary on
> Suratu'l-Yusuf. The Babi historian[1] says of this work, that therein he sought
> help in the disposal of his affairs and showed his readiness to give up his
> life. He addresses the Imam thus: — "O residue of God,[2] I am wholly sacrificed
> to Thee; I am content with curses in Thy love."
> 
> Thus it came to pass that on the 23rd of May, 1844, when he was about
> twenty-four years of age, Mirza 'Ali Muhammad more definitely formulated his
> views and announced himself as a duly authorized teacher and guide. He then
> assumed the name of the Bab. He said, "Whosoever wishes to approach the Lord
> his God and to know the true way that leads to Him ought to do it through me."
> Of this period of his career Mirza Kazim Beg says: "The number of his adherents
> increased day by day, and when they demanded that he, like the ancient
> prophets, should give them a sign in proof of his mission, he relied on this,
> that he could write a thousand inspired lines in one day. By his peculiarities
> and by his austere life, oven when still at Karbala, he was called the
> "Illuminated." When the inhabitants of Shiraz returned from Karbala they used
> to say, "Have you heard of our Syed 'Ali Muhammad? He is no longer as we are;
> he has become famous and has merited the name of the 'Chosen of God.' All
> people, small and great, flock around him." He also adds that dreamers and
> mystics, and evil-disposed persons from self-interest joined him. No doubt some
> did so from mixed motives; but Mr. E. G. Browne, who is now the best European
> authority on this subject, seems to me to give the fairest account. He divides
> the Bab's first adherents into several classes. Firstly, rigorous and pious
> Muhammadans, who really believed that the signs of the twelfth Imam were
> fulfilled in him; secondly, all those who desired reform in Persia, and thought
> that Babiism would conduce to that end; thirdly, the mystics, who considered
> Babiism to be similar to their own pantheistic system; fourthly, those who were
> drawn by the personal influence and character of the Bab.[3]
> 
> [1] Maqalah-i-Shakhsi Saiyah, p. 4.
> 
> [2] The expression residue (or remnant) of God — Baqiyat Ullah — is a very
> peculiar one. It is connected with a curious belief of the Shi'ahs, viz. that
> God allowed some part or fraction of Himself in some way or other to be
> connected with the Imam. As soon then as Mirza 'Ali Muhammad was raised by his
> followers to the dignity of the Bab, or as soon as the idea became present to
> his own mind, he could address the Imam as the Baqiyat Ullah, and set forth his
> complete devotion to him. His followers then gave him the titles of the servant
> of Baqiyat Ullah, the mystery of Baqiyad Ullah, the friend of Baqiyat Ullah.
> Gradually as, during his imprisonment, he became more and more invisible to his
> followers, and when he became credited with the power of working miracles and
> more or less a mythical being, he was no longer called the servant, or the
> mystery, or the friend of Baqiyat Ullah, but himself was esteemed to be the
> Baqiyat Ullah — the true Imam so long looked for. Mirza Kazim Beg says that
> under the term "mystery" they understood one who shared the secrets of the
> Imam, "The name Sirr-Ullah, Mystery of God, was given to 'Ali, as to one
> who knew the secrets of divine revelation; and so, in its new application, the
> title Sirr-i-Baqiyat Ullah, now a name of the Bab, would mean the one
> who knew all that was in the mind of the concealed Imam, who himself was the
> remnant (or residue) of God." (Journal Asiatique, 1866, vol. viii. p.
> 486.)
> 
> [3]Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1889, p. 504.
> 
> [p. 327]
> 
> On his return from Karbala he was heartily welcomed. Until then, it is
> said, he looked upon himself only as one who had made some progress in the
> divine way (tariqat), but he soon began to consider himself a master,
> appointed. by heaven to regenerate his country. There is some difference of
> opinion as to what he exactly meant by the title of Bab which he had assumed.
> Mirza Kazim Beg says: "I do not know whether he was acquainted with the words
> of Christ, 'I am the door,' but he doubtless knew that Muhammad had said, 'I
> am the city of knowledge, and 'Ali is the gate of that city.'" A Muhammadan
> historian, an enemy of the Bab, says "that the Bab, having gathered some
> Shaikhis together, said, 'I am the "door" of God. Whosoever desires to come to
> God, and to know the religion of God, cannot do so till he sees me and receives
> permission from me". His followers have now, however, discarded that name, and
> he is known amongst the Babis by several titles, such as His Highness, His
> Highness the Point of Revelation. More recently the Beha'is call him His
> Highness the Evangelist. Gobineau, a good authority on the subject, says:
> "Mirza Muhammad 'Ali said that he was not the Bab in the sense in which they
> (his followers) had believed and as he himself had thought — that is to say,
> the 'door' of the knowledge of truth — but that he was the Point, or the
> originator of truth, a divine appearance, a powerful manifestation," and so
> goes on to show that the title Bab was set free, and could henceforth reward
> the pious devotion of one of the Bab's followers. As a matter of fact, it was
> bestowed on Mulla Husain, who is sometimes called His Excellency the Gate of
> the Gate (Hazratu'l Babu'l-Bab).
> 
> The Bab performed the pilgrimage to Mecca, in November, 1844, where he stayed a
> short time and completed all the rites incumbent on pilgrims, returning early
> in the following year to Bushire. He soon gathered together a large body of
> disciples and aroused the hostility of the ulama. The matter then acquired such
> importance that the reigning Shah sent one of the most learned Doctors of the
> age, Syed Yahya, to interview the Bab and report the result. He held three long
> conferences with him, but the result was that he was so charmed with the Bab
> that he accepted him as a leader and admitted all his claims. About this time
> Mulla Muhammad 'Ali, a leading teacher, sent a person to Shiraz to ascertain
> the facts of the case. This messenger returned with some of the Bab's writings,
> which so impressed Mulla Muhammad 'Ali that he, too, became a follower of the
> Bab, and urged all his disciples to become Babis. The Mullas complained to the
> Shah, and Mulla Muhamm 'Ali was summoned to Teheran, but he was able to meet
> successfully all his opponents in debate, and nothing came of this action.
> 
> The cause of the Bab was now very much strengthened by the support of such
> famous teachers, who were most earnest and active in propagating the new
> faith. The orthodox Mullas soon perceived that they must attack the Bab direct.
> The result of this hostility was that the Bab, after undergoing a strict
> examination at Tabriz, was kept in confinement.[1]
> 
> [1] A full account of this examination is given in the Episode of the
> Bab, pp. 277-290.
> 
> [p. 328]
> 
> All this time the Bab's followers were most active in spreading his
> Doctrines throughout the land. It was now that his most famous convert was
> made. This was a woman called Kurratu'l-'Ayn (Lustre of the Eye). She went
> everywhere preaching and making converts to the Babi faith. Some of the Babis
> looked with disfavour on this preaching by a woman; but the Bab supported her,
> applauded her zeal, and bestowed on her the title of Janab-i-Tahira (Her
> Excellency the Pure). From that time all acknowledged her position. She was put
> to death in the massacre at Teheran which followed on the attempt to kill the
> Shah in 1852. Kurratu'l-'Ayn was the most remarkable of the Bab's disciples.
> She was a person of marvellous beauty; possessed of high intellectual gifts,
> eloquent, devoted, and fearless. She threw her whole soul into the cause she
> advocated, and her martyrdom sheds a halo of glory round her short and active
> career. A Babi historian says: "Such fame did she acquire, that most people who
> were scholars or mystics sought to hear her speech, and were eager to become
> acquainted with her powers of speculation and deduction. She wrested
> pre-eminence from stalwart men, and continued to strain the feet of
> steadfastness, until she yielded up her life at the sentence of the mighty
> doctors in Teheran." Mirza Kazim Beg, a most sober writer, waxes eloquent over
> the charms of Kurratu'l-'Ayn, thus: "This woman had an influence over her
> hearers wholly spiritual. thShe knew how to inspire them with perfect confidence;
> She was well educated and very beautiful. Everything retired before her. She
> raised the veil which covered her face, not to set at nought the laws of
> chastity and modesty, so deeply graven on the tables of the orthodox law and in
> popular prejudice, but much rather in order to give by her look more force to
> the inspired words she spoke. Her speeches stigmatized that gross tyranny
> which for so many centuries had imprisoned liberty. She preached not, as some
> have said, to abolish the laws of modesty, but to sustain the cause of liberty.
> The eloquent words which fell from her mouth captivated the hearts of her
> hearers, who became enthusiastic in her praise." Her romantic career, her
> marvellous power, and her tragic end, will continue to give for a long time to
> come strength to the Babi cause and the spirit of endurance to its
> followers.
> 
> In the year 1848 Nasiru'd-Din Shah, the present ruler of Persia, was crowned at
> Teheran, and the position of the Babis became most critical. The Prime Minister
> hated and persecuted them. A civil war broke out, and the Babis suffered a
> great deal; but no persecution, however severe, could restrain the ardour of
> the Babi teachers or the devotion of their followers. It became plain to the
> authorities that the Bab himself must be put out of the way. He was then
> condemned to death.[1] A young disciple, Aka Muhammad 'Ali, who belonged to a
> noble family of Tabriz, was also condemned at the same time. Great pressure was
> brought on him by his relatives to induce him to recant and thus to save his
> life, but he remained quite firm,
> 
> [1] Full details of the execution are given in the New History of the
> Bab, by E. G. Browne, pp. 299-306.
> 
> [p. 329]
> 
> and shared the martyrdom of his beloved master. It is a remarkable
> witness to the power which the Bab had over his disciples, a power which could
> lead this youth, with so promising a future before him, to give up home and
> life, to face death and its terrors, rather than be separated from the master
> he loved so truly." It may be well at this point to give a summary of the
> character of the Bab, as portrayed by Mirza Kazim Beg, always remembering that
> the critic, though eminently fair, does not believe in the claims the Bab: — He
> had some characteristics truly great and noble, and was a man of firm and
> settled convictions. His moral character was high, and he aimed in his
> preaching to bring all his countrymen into a community united by intellectual
> and moral ties. He spoke with much earnestness on the necessity for a religious
> and social reform in Persia, a cessation of religious persecution, and the
> amelioration of the lot of women. It is said that much of what he preached on
> these points had an esoteric meaning, known only to his disciples; but whether
> that is the case or not, the veneration they felt for him was profound, and
> there can be no doubt that the teaching of the Bab was in the direction of
> freedom, and that he personally was in favour of reform. Mirza Kazim Beg sums
> up his reflections thus: "We neither consider him an adventurer nor a fanatic,
> but an eminently moral man, a dreamer brought up in the school of the Shaikhis,
> and possessing some touch of Christianity. We regard him also as a man troubled
> by the direct influence of some of his devoted and ambitious disciples. In any
> case, we believe that the appearance of the Bab will be more or less of use in
> time to the cause of civilization in Persia."[2] In the year 1852 an attempt was
> made by some Babis to assassinate the Shah. It does not appear to have been the
> result of a plot made by the Babi leaders, but rather the independent action of
> a few men who had in themselves, or in their families, suffered wrong. A bitter
> persecution followed. "The Babis," says Mirza Kazim Beg, "were tortured in the
> most odious manner, with an unheard-of refinement of cruelty." An English
> traveller says: "Tow steeped in oil was inserted between their fingers and
> behind their shoulder-blades, leaving portions hanging down which were lighted,
> and in this condition the unhappy wretches were led, as long as they could
> walk, through the principal streets of the capital. A furious proscription
> followed. No time was lost between apprehension and execution, death was the
> only punishment known, the headless bodies lay in the streets for days, the
> terrified relatives fearing to give them burial, and the dogs fought and
> growled over the corpses in the deserted thoroughfares." Renan speaks of the
> massacre thus: "The day of the great slaughter of the Babis in Teheran was
> perhaps a day unparalleled in the history of the world."[3] He quotes
> from M. le Comte de
> 
> [1] For a very touching letter by Aka Muhammad 'Ali see New History of the
> Bab, p. 202, or R.A.S. Journal, October, 1889, p. 382.
> 
> [2] Journal
> Asiatique, 6me Serie, tome vii. p. 384
> 
> [3] Les Apotres; p. 378.
> 
> [p. 330]
> 
> Gobineau's work, "Les Religions et les Philosophies dans l'Asie
> Centrale," to the following effect: "Children and women with lighted candles
> stuck into the wounds were driven along by whips, and as they went along they
> sang, 'We came from God, to Him we return.' When the children expired, as many
> did, the executioners threw the corpses beneath the feet of their fathers. Life
> was offered if they would recant. An executioner told one father that if he did
> not recant, his two sons, the elder of whom was fourteen years old, should be
> slain on his breast. The father, lying down, said that he was ready, and the
> elder boy claimed by right of birth to be the first to have his throat cut. At
> last night fell on a mass of shapeless flesh, and the dogs of the suburbs came
> in troops to the place." So ended one important period in the history of the
> Babis.
> 
> There has been since then no formal outbreak of Babi revenge, nor has there
> been any persecution like it. Even this altogether failed of its purpose, for
> it gave to the movement a vigour and vitality which otherwise it might have
> lacked. It is said that half a million Persians are Babis, but the Hon. G.
> Curzon considers the total to be nearer one million. He says: "They are to be
> found in every walk of life, From the ministers and nobles of the court to the
> scavenger or the groom, not the least arena of their activity being the
> Musalman priesthood itself. It will have been noticed. that this movement was
> initiated by Syeds, Hajis, and Mullas." Whilst it is true that there has been
> no persecution so terrible as the one in 1852, yet now and again the hostility
> of the 'Ulama shows itself. In 1878, 1888, and in 1889 Babis were put to death.
> The heroism and the devotion of the Babis is something very wonderful. It is
> said that there is only one instance of a Babi having recanted under pressure,
> and he returned again to his faith, and was afterwards put to death for his
> renewed devotion to the Bab.
> 
> After the death of the Bab, the chief interest in the movement circles round
> Mirza Yahya, and his half-brother Beha'ullah, who became the respective
> leaders of the two sects, into which the Babis are now divided — the Ezelis and
> the Beha'is. There seems no doubt that the Bab in the year 1849 nominated the
> former,[1] whom he named Subh-i-Ezel (Morning of Eternity), as his successor,
> and. that for a short time he really held an undisputed position as head of the
> Babi Church.
> 
> In 1852, when the attempt on the life of the Shah was made, the Babis were
> bitterly persecuted, and Subh-i-Ezel retired to Baghdad, which then became the
> headquarters of the sect, and was for many years recognized, at least
> nominally, as its head. Mirza Husain 'Ali Beha'ullah, who was Subh-i-Ezel's
> senior by thirteen years, and had just been released from imprisonment, joined
> him in 1853. The Persian Government, at length, objected to their residence
> there, and prevailed on the Turkish authorities in 1863-64 to deport them to
> Constantinople, from whence a few months later on they were sent to Adrianople.
> Subh-i-Ezel led a very secluded life, and the corre-
> 
> [1] A copy of the original letter is given in the New History of the
> Bab, p. 426.
> 
> [p. 331]
> 
> spondence and other matters were carried on by Beha, who acted for
> him. The influence of Beha then grew, and at last he began to advance claims
> which afterwards, in the years 1866-67, culminated in the assertion that he
> was the person to whom the Bab referred as "Him whom God shall manifest." To
> this claim the Ezelis replied that before the person of whose advent the Bab
> had spoken could come, Babism must obtain general currency, and the laws laid
> down by the Bab in his books must be accepted by most of the nations in the
> world. The Beha'is, who admitted that Subh-i-Ezel was the first viceregent of
> the Bab, to all the objections alleged replied that his rule was only to last
> until the manifestation of the new leader, who was to come suddenly, and the
> time of whose advent was known only to God. They also used an argument well
> known amongst Muhammadans, an argument based on the literary style of the books
> given by means of a divinely appointed messenger, and urged that the
> Lauh-i-Nasir, in which Beha announced his mission, fulfilled this condition of
> a divine revelation by its eloquence of diction and the wonderful knowledge,
> unacquired by study, displayed by the writer. Anyhow, the conflicting claims to
> the leadership led to quarrels and the Turkish Government then determined to
> separate the disputants. Beha and his followers were sent to Acre, and Mirza
> Yahya and his people were exiled to Famagusta in Cyprus. Since then the
> followers of Beha have increased very much, while those of Subh-i-Ezel, or
> Yahya, have decreased. This is an unlooked-for development of the work of the
> Bab, for Beha claims to be the messenger of a new dispensation altogether.
> 
> The question at issue now became something more than a mere struggle for
> leadership, for Beha's claim virtually deposed the Bab from his position as the
> "Point of Revelation" and made him the forerunner of "Him whom God shall
> manifest." The Ezelis are, however, nearly extinct, and it is not likely that
> they will ever attain to power again. Assuming that Beha had right on his side,
> it is stated that the changes he made were in a practical direction and
> beneficial.
> 
> The Babi doctrines are to be found in the writings of the Bab called the Beyan,
> a name sometimes apparently applied to them collectively, but more generally to
> a particular book. Many of the dogmas are very mystical, but the following is a
> brief summary:- God is eternal and unapproachable. All things come from Him and
> exist by Him. Man cannot approach Him except through some appointed medium. So,
> distinct from God there is a Primal Will[1]
> 
> [1] There is an evident connexion between this dogma of the Babis and the
> Sufi system, in which the "First Intelligence "or "Primal Element" is
> represented as a manifestation of God. To the Sufi, as to the Babi, God is
> "sterile in His inaccessible height." Men can never be more than slaves,
> nearness to Him is impossible. But men longed for communion with some one or
> something above them. They felt the need of some intermediary; and found it in
> a revival of the old Gnostic notions of the Æons, forms of manifestation
> of the Ineffable and Incomprehensible. Neander thus describes the Gnostic view:
> "Self-limitation is the first beginning of a communication of life from God -
> the first passing of the hidden deity into manifestation: and from this
> proceeds all further self-developing manifestation of divine essence. Now, from
> this primal link in the chain of life there are evolved, in the first place, the manifold powers or attributes inherent in
> the divine essence, which, until that first self-comprehension were all hidden
> in this abyss of His essence." This intermediary is the Primal Will of the Babi
> and the Primal Element of the Sufi, who also calls it by the names of the Pen,
> the First Principle, the spirit of Muhammad, Universal Reason ('aql-i-kull).
> God's voice is heard through it, by it material things were brought into
> existence. It works in Prophets and Saints. The Imam is closely connected with
> it. I am not able to find out whether the Bab taught that the Primal Will was
> created or not. In Sufi theology it certainly is, for in the
> Akhlaq-i-Jalali it is written: "It is admitted, equally by the masters
> of perception and conception, that the first Principle, which, at the mandate,
> 'Be and it is,' issued, by the ineffable power and will, from the chaotic ocean
> of inexistence, was a simple and luminous essence, which, in the language of
> philosophy, is termed the Primary Intelligence, and the great fathers of
> mysticism and investigation call it the Muhammadan Spirit." It is to this, and
> not to the inaccessible and incomprehensible God, that the Imam seeks to
> return. When his work in life is done, then "his end is joined to his
> beginning" (Ba aghaz girdad baz anjam). It is a curious phase of human thought,
> which the Sufis evidently borrowed from the Gnostics and the Babis from the
> Sufis. This earnest longing for communion with a manifestation of God we can
> sympathize with, and only regret that, in their ignorance or repudiation of the
> Christian doctrine of the Incarnation, both Sufi and Babi have so sadly missed
> the mark.
> 
> [p. 332]
> 
> who becomes incarnate in the prophets. This Primal Will spoke in the
> Bab and will speak in "Him whom God shall manifest," a position Beha assumed
> for himself. His followers, therefore, claim for him a very high office and
> dignity, and say that he has come to perfect the law of Christ; whilst some,
> indeed, say that he is Christ returned again to earth.Each dispensation of the
> Primal Will thus become incarnate supersedes a preceding one, and so Islam has
> ceased to be the true religion for this age. Since it is impossible for created
> beings to know the Divine Essence, the Primal Will has, for their guidance and
> instruction, incarnated itself from time to time in a human form. These
> incarnations are known as 'Prophets.' That which spoke in all the Prophets of
> the past now speaks in the Bab, and will speak through "Him whom God shall
> manifest," and after him through others, for there is no cessation in these
> manifestations. "That which spoke in Adam, Noah, Moses, David, Jesus, and
> Muhammad was the one and the same Primal Will. In each manifestation news has
> been given of the following one. Thus the Jews were told to expect a Messiah,
> but they rejected him; the Christians to expect Muhammad, but, as a rule, they
> did not accept him; so the Muhammadans are taught to look out for Imam Mahdi.
> Yet now he has come (i.e. in the Bab) they persecute him."[1] Another point on
> which the Beyan lays much stress is that no revelation is final. This is
> entirely opposed to the ordinary Muhammadan view, which is that, as Muhammad
> was the Seal of the Prophets (Khatamu'l-anbiya), his revelation closed the
> series. The Bab taught that, as the human race progresses, the Primal Will, the
> teacher of men, speaks in each new revelation more fully and more clearly. All
> these successive and progressive revelations and dispensations are simply to
> prepare the world for the fuller teaching of "Him whom God shall manifest."
> 
> [1] Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, vol. xxi. p. 914.
> 
> [p. 333]
> 
> The revelation given by a prophet remains in force only so long as it
> meets the needs of the race. It can, as the race progresses, be abrogated and
> set aside in favour of a later one. These manifestations and revelations are
> not opposed to each other, for the real teacher is one and the same.[1]
> 
> "A new prophet is not sent until the development of the human race renders this
> necessary. A revelation is not abrogated till it no longer suffices for the
> needs of mankind. There is no disagreement between the prophets: all teach the
> same truth, but in such measure as men can receive it. As mankind advance and
> progress they need fuller instruction. The instruction given by Abraham was
> suitable and sufficient for the people of his day, but not for those to whom
> Moses was sent, while this in turn had ceased to meet the needs oft hose to
> whom Christ was sent. Yet we must not say that their religions were opposed to
> one another, but rather that each manifestation is more complete and more
> perfect than the last."[2] The great point in the Babi theology is that the
> teacher is one and the same, though he manifests himself according to the
> capacity and needs of those to whom he is sent. The outward form changes but the Universal Spirit remains. The Beyan speaks with confidence of the future
> success of Babism, the government of which is to be tolerant. The Muhammadan
> doctrines of the examination in the grave, the resurrection, s'rat, heaven and
> hell, are all treated allegorically.[3] The views of the Bab on future
> state are not very clear. In any case, the hope of a future reward was not
> placed before his followers as an inducement to follow him.This is in direct
> contrast to the practice and teaching of Muhammad. In the Beyan, as translated
> by Mr. E. G. Browne, we find the following striking words of the Bab: — "So
> worship God that, if the recompense of thy worship of Him were to be the fire,
> no alteration in thy worship of Him would be produced. If you worship from
> fear, that is unworthy of the threshold of the holiness of God, nor will you be
> accounted a believer; so also, if your gaze is on Paradise and if you worship
> in hope of that; for then you have made God's creation a partner with Him." By
> a very large number of Babis, Beha, was during the latter part of his life
> looked up to as a divinely appointed guide.[4] Before he assumed that position
> he wrote a book called the Ikan, which is held in great esteem. In this book he
> seems to acknowledge the then superior position of Subh-i-Ezel, but writes
> bitterly of some who were hostile to himself. Two years after the Turks had
> banished him to Adrianople he boldly asserted his claim and called on all the
> Ezelis to submit to his direction. He then wrote other treatises, in which his
> position is dogmatically set forth. Some of the expressions
> 
> [1] For an excellent account of Babi dogmas, see New History of the
> Bab, pp. 337-883.
> 
> [2] A Year amongst the Persians, by E. G. Browne, p. 108.
> 
> [3] I am informed that the miracles of our Lord are also explained away
> by the Babis in a similar way.
> 
> [4] He died in exile on May 16th, 1892.
> 
> [p. 334]
> 
> he uses in his writings are very beautiful, and inculcate
> unworldliness, simplicity, and trust. He reminds his followers that conquest
> over self is the first victory to be gained by those who hope to pass through
> life successfully.
> 
> A good many changes in religious ceremonies are made. Prayer is said three
> times a day instead of five, and the worshippers no longer turn towards Mecca.
> The fast of Ramazan is discarded, and the last month of the Babi year is
> substituted for it. The traffic in slaves is forbidden. Legal impurity is
> abolished and intercourse with persons of all religions is enjoined. Music is
> permitted; wine and opium are prohibited. The furniture of houses should be
> renewed every nineteen years. No one must carry arms except in times of tumult
> or war. All are to read the sacred books regularly, to be kind and courteous in
> their conduct, to approve for others what they would like themselves, — and to
> forgive their enemies.[1] Religious warfare, or Jihad, is abolished, and friendly
> intercourse with all sects is enjoined.[2]
> 
> The result of Beha's death has yet to be seen. He had marvellous influence over
> his followers, and seems to have been a person who commanded much real
> reverence. When Cyprus was handed over to the English Government, Mirza Yahya,
> with other political exiles, was transferred, and still remains there as a
> political prisoner. He, too, is a man of venerable appearance. [3]
> 
> From what has now been stated, it will be seen that Babiism is not a political
> movement, though in its early days it was brought into conflict with the civil
> power; but that it is a religious revolt against orthodox Islam, so far as that
> is represented by the Shi'ah sect. It raises women to a higher level, it
> professes to limit many of the social evils of Islam, it tends to give liberty
> of thought and to develop a friendly spirit to others. "Brotherly love,
> kindness to children, courtesy combined. with dignity, sociability,
> hospitality, freedom from bigotry, friendliness even to Christians are
> included, in its tenets." If men are sometimes better than their creed, they are
> sometimes worse, and not every Babi lives up to this ideal. It is perhaps too
> soon to speculate on the future of the movement. Those who think
> 
> [1] For a fuller account see Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society,
> October, 1892, pp. 678-799.
> 
> [2] I am indebted to a well-known missionary, now in Persia, for the following
> additional facts: — (1) "The Beha'is admit that the Lord Jesus Christ was
> the incarnate Son; but, claim that Beha was the incarnate Father — each
> incarnation being greater than the preceding one."
> (2) "Some of the Beha'is
> have said to me, 'We are Christians '; others, 'We are almost Christians';
> others, 'The only difference between us is that we accepted Christ when He came
> to us fifty years ago (i.e. in Beha) and you rejected Him."
> (3) "They
> constantly invite the Christian missionary to their houses, and are most
> hospitable and kind."
> (4) "The Beha'is admit that the New Testament is the
> uncorrupted Word of God."
> (5) "Many Jews in Persia have become Babis, and,
> on the other hand, some Babis have become Christians."
> 
> [3] The personal appearance of both of these men is given in an account
> of an interview which Mr. E. G. Browne had with them on two separate occasions.
> The account will be found in the Episode of the Bab. pp. xl., xxiv.
> 
> [p. 335]
> 
> it will gradually take the place of Islam in Persia base a strong
> argument on the fact that its "recruits are won from the best soldiers of the
> garrison it is attacking." It certainly appeals to the traditionary instincts
> of many Persians. The Sufi needs a Pir or living guide; the Shi'ah meditates on
> the Imam, and the high position accorded to that person in Babism is at least
> attractive. The life and death of the Bab, and the magnificent heroism of his
> followers, all help forward the movement. Whether, when the victory is won, the
> Babis in the day of power will be as gentle and as liberal as they are in the
> night of adversity is perhaps doubtful. To all who take an interest in
> Christian Missions in Persia, the movement is one of great interest. It betrays
> a longing for a real, living, loving, personal guide, the revealer of God to
> man, which can be best met by the acceptance of the Eternal Word. In any case,
> if only liberty of conscience can be secured, there seems to be a wide and open
> door.
> 
> 2. Image scans (click image for full-size version)
> 
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> 
> Views14084 views since posted 2003-10-12; last edit 2025-07-06 23:35 UTC;
> 
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