# Bab, Martyrdom of the (July 9)

*Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-20 — 1 clipping.*

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> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Christopher Buck, Bab, Martyrdom of the (July 9), bahai-library.com.
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> 
> Religious Celebrations
> AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF HOLIDAYS,
> FESTIVALS, SOLEMN OBSERVANCES,
> AND SPIRITUAL COMMEMORATIONS
> 
> Volume One
> 
> A–K
> 
> J. Gordon Melton, Editor
> with
> James A. Beverley
> Christopher Buck
> Constance A. Jones
> Báb, Martyrdom of the (July 9)          73
> 
> Lawson, Todd. Gnostic Apocalypse in Islam: The Literary Beginnings of the Babi Move-
> ment. London and New York: Routledge, 2012.
> Momen, Moojan. “Festivals, vi. Bahai.” In Encyclopædia Iranica, edited by Ehsan
> Yarshater. Posted at http://www.iranica.com/articles/festivals-vi-vii-viii. Accessed
> July 15, 2010.
> Nabı́l Zarandı́. The Dawn-Breakers: Nabı́l’s Narrative of the Early Days of the Bahá’ı́
> Revelation. Edited and translated by Shoghi Effendi (condensed). Wilmette, IL: Bahá’ı́
> Publishing Trust, 1932.
> Saiedi, Nader. Gate of the Heart: Understanding the Writings of the Báb. Ottawa
> and Waterloo, Ontario, Canada: Association for Bahá’ı́ Studies and Wilfrid Laurier
> University Press, 2008.
> Walbridge, John. Sacred Acts, Sacred Space, Sacred Time, 217–18. Oxford: George
> Ronald, 1996.
> “Worldwide Adherents of All Religions by Six Continental Areas, Mid-2009.” Encyclo-
> pædia Britannica. Posted at http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1581715/
> religion-Year-In-Review-2009/286517/Worldwide-Adherents-of-All-Religions.
> Accessed July 15, 2010.
> 
> Báb, Martyrdom of the (July 9)
> 
> The yearly commemoration of the Martyrdom of the Báb is one of the nine major
> Bahá’ı́ holy days on which work is suspended. Observed by Bahá’ı́s in the Middle
> East on 28 Sha‘bán—in accordance with the Islamic lunar calendar—the occasion
> is annually observed on July 9 throughout the rest of the Bahá’ı́ world. For many
> participants, it is a deeply moving experience.
> Sayyid ‘Alı́-Muhammad of Shiraz (1819–1850)—known by his spiritual title as
> ˙
> “the Báb” (“the Gate”) and regarded as the precursor and herald of Mı́rzá H.usayn-
> ‘Alı́ Núrı́, known as Bahá’u’lláh (the “Splendor” or “Glory of God,” 1817–1892)—
> was martyred on July 9, 1850, in Tabrı́z, Persia (now Iran). The circumstances of
> the Báb’s martyrdom, and its subsequent commemoration as a Bahá’ı́ holy day, will
> be discussed below.
> The Báb founded the 19th-century movement generally known as Bábism, an
> independent (albeit short-lived) religion that clearly broke from its parent religion,
> Persian (i.e., Twelver Shi‘i) Islam. As Orientalist Edward G. Browne observed
> regarding the Bábı́ phenomenon, “whatever its actual destiny may be, is of that
> stuff whereof world-religions are made.” As Browne predicted, the Bábı́ religion
> emerged as a “new world-religion” through its eventual transformation into what
> is now known as the Bahá’ı́ Faith.
> While the Bábı́ and Bahá’ı́ religions are distinct, they are intimately related both
> historically and doctrinally. The writings of the Báb, for instance, are considered
> sacred scripture by all Bahá’ı́s. A number of the Báb’s religious laws were adopted
> and adapted by Bahá’u’lláh, as was the Badı́‘ calendar (a solar calendar of
> 74    Báb, Martyrdom of the (July 9)
> 
> 19 months of 19 days, each named after godly attributes to foster goodly virtues,
> which the Báb had created. Because the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh are so historically
> and doctrinally related, they are actually called the “Twin Founders” of the Bahá’ı́
> Faith.
> According to Armin Eschraghi, the Báb established a new, post-Islamic faith
> that fulfilled all the criteria of an independent religion. These include a new
> founder, newly revealed scriptures, a new set of metaphysical and theological
> teachings distinct from those of Islam, new religious laws and principles. In
> revealing his new code of laws, the Persian Bayán (1848), the Báb intended to
> pave the way for the advent of the Promised One; to provoke the clerical establish-
> ment and shatter the foundations of their often-abused institutionalized authority;
> and to prove the independence of his own religion as distinct from Islam.
> The Báb declared that he was a messenger from God sent to proclaim the immi-
> nent advent of one greater than himself. Religious and state persecution fell upon
> his followers, leading to the torture and religious martyrdom of thousands. In
> July 1848, the Báb was summoned to Tabrı́z to stand trial before Muslim clerics.
> Ordered by H.ájı́ Mı́rzá Áqásı́, prime minister of Persia, the trial was doubtless
> intended to publicly discredit the Báb. Presiding over the trial was the young
> Crown Prince, who later became the reigning monarch of Persia, Násiri’d-Dı́n
> Sháh. The Báb was pressured to recant his writings and claims.
> Instead, the Báb openly proclaimed that he was the promised Qá’im, the
> expected deliverer in Shi‘i Islam (and, as the Mahdı́, by Sunni and Shi‘i Muslims
> alike). To subject him to public ridicule by exposing his supposed ignorance, the
> Báb was then questioned about abstruse points of Arabic grammar, theology, and
> religious law. Throughout the course of the trial, the Báb staunchly refused to
> renounce his messianic claims and writings. After the trial reached its unsuccess-
> ful conclusion, the Báb was bastinadoed and again imprisoned. In their verdict,
> the clergy pronounced the Báb insane, thinking that a declaration of madness
> would quell the religious furor that the Báb had created.
> However, a series of Bábı́ defensive clashes with the attacking state militias at
> Shaykh Tabarsı́, Nayrı́z, and Zanján persuaded the new prime minister Mı́rzá Taqı́
> Khán that the unrest would endure unless the Báb was put to death. The prime
> minister therefore ordered the execution of the Báb, who was then brought to
> Tabrı́z. When, at the house of Mullá Muhammad Mamaqánı́, the Báb still would
> not recant his claims, a leader of the Tabrı́z Shaykhı́s, Mamaqánı́, issued the Báb’s
> death warrant by public execution at an army barracks in Tabrı́z.
> Imprisoned with the Báb in the barracks cell were his secretaries, the two broth-
> ers Siyyid Hasan and Siyyid H.usayn Yazdı́, along with a young Bábı́ mullá of
> Tabrı́z, Mı́rzá Muhammad-Alı́ Zunúzı́, who was called Anı́s (“Companion”) by
> the Báb. Arrested for openly proclaiming the Báb’s new religion, the young Anı́s
> refused to recant and so was sentenced to death with the Báb. The Báb chose Anı́s
> to die with him together as companion martyrs in a single execution, rather than in
> separate executions.
> Báb, Martyrdom of the (July 9)          75
> 
> At noon, the Báb and Anı́s were brought out into the barracks square, and,
> bound by ropes, suspended from a spike driven into the wall of the barracks. The
> surrounding rooftops were thronged with an estimated 10,000 onlookers.
> The Russian Armenian Sám Khán commanded the Christian Bahádurán Regi-
> ment, which was ordered to carry out the execution. Although accounts of the
> Báb’s execution vary in details, all agree that, after thick smoke—from the volley
> of 750 muskets—had cleared, the Báb had vanished, with Anı́s standing before the
> astonished multitude, unhurt. The Báb’s escape from the first volley of musket fire
> is beyond doubt, as his ropes were cut by the shots. One witness to this extraordi-
> nary event, Sir Justin Shiel, Queen Victoria’s Envoy Extraordinary and Minister
> Plenipotentiary, in Tehran on July 22, 1850, records:
> 
> The founder of this sect has been executed at Tabreez. He was killed by a vol-
> ley of musketry, and his death was on the point of giving his religion a lustre
> which would have largely increased his proselytes. When the smoke and dust
> cleared away after the volley, Báb was not to be seen, and the populace pro-
> claimed that he had ascended to the skies. The balls had broken the ropes by
> which he was bound, but he was dragged from the recess where after some
> search he was discovered and shot. His death, according to the belief of his
> disciples, will make no difference as Báb must always exist. (Momen, The
> Bábı́ and Bahá’ı́ Religions, 1844–1944, 78)
> 
> A frantic search ensued, and the Báb was found back in his cell, evidently com-
> pleting dictation to his secretary that was earlier interrupted. Soldiers swiftly
> cleared the barracks square, and the Báb was once more suspended by ropes for
> execution, with Anı́s placed in front of the Báb. But Sám Khán refused to order
> his troops to fire again and so the Muslim Nádirı́ Regiment was summoned. On
> the second attempt, the Báb and Anı́s were instantly killed. Their bodies, in fact,
> were fused together by the sheer number of bullets that struck them.
> Despite the claims of some two dozen Bábı́s in their rival bids to succeed the
> Báb, the majority of his coreligionists, the Bábı́s, turned to Bahá’u’lláh, who effec-
> tively led the Bábı́ community until such time as he formally established the
> Bahá’ı́ religion in 1863 by his announcement that he was the messianic figure
> the Báb foretold, although the designation “people of Bahá” (i.e., followers of
> Bahá’u’lláh, the Bahá’ı́s), was not current until March 1866. In 1873, Bahá’u’lláh
> subsequently incorporated a number of the laws of the Báb, in modified form, in
> his book of laws, the Kitáb-i-Aqdas (“The Most Holy Book”).
> Although not one of the holy days mentioned in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, the martyr-
> dom of the Báb was observed by Bahá’u’lláh. Two practices are associated with
> the observance of the Martyrdom of the Báb. First, commemorations should take
> place at noon, the time of the Báb’s execution. Second, the “Tablet of Visita-
> tion”—a special commemorative prayer—is usually recited. Typically, it is
> Nabı́l’s narrative of the events surrounding the martyrdom of the Báb that is read
> 76    Babaji Commemoration Day (July 25)
> 
> on this occasion, although it is not a requirement to do so. Nabı́l’s narrative, which
> describes the prophetic passion of the Báb’s martyrdom in detail and is based on
> eyewitness accounts, is remarkably objective in style, yet never fails to stir deep
> emotions in the hearts of participants in this solemnly commemorative holy day.
> Christopher Buck
> 
> See also ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Ascension of; Ayyám-i-Há (Bahá’ı́ Intercalary Days);
> Báb, Festival of the Birth of the; Báb, Festival of the Declaration of the; Bahá’ı́
> Calendar and Rhythms of Worship; Bahá’ı́ Faith; Bahá’ı́ Fast; Bahá’u’lláh, Ascen-
> sion of; Bahá’u’lláh, Festival of the Birth of; Covenant, Day of the; Naw-Rúz, Fes-
> tival of; Nineteen-Day Feast (Bahá’ı́); Race Unity Day; Ridván, Festival of; World
> ˙
> Religion Day.
> 
> References
> Amanat, Abbas. “The Persian Bayán and the Shaping of the Babi Renewal in Iran.”
> Apocalyptic Islam and Iranian Shi‘ism, 111–26. London: I. B. Tauris, 2009.
> Amanat, Abbas. Resurrection and Renewal: The Making of the Babi Movement in Iran,
> 1844–1850. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1989. Reprinted in paperback, Kali-
> mát Press, 2005.
> Báb, the, et al. Twin Holy Days: Birthday of Bahá’u’lláh, Birthday of the Báb: A Compila-
> tion. Los Angeles: Kalimát Press, 1995.
> Browne, Edward G. “Bábı́ism.” In Religious Systems of the World: A Contribution to the
> Study of Comparative Religion, edited by William Sheowring and Conrad W. Thies,
> 333–53. London: Swann Sonnenschein, 1892.
> Eschraghi, Armin. “ ‘Undermining the Foundations of Orthodoxy’: Some Notes on the
> Báb’s Sharı́‘ah (Sacred Law).” In A Most Noble Pattern: Essays in the Study of the
> Writings of the Báb, edited by Todd Lawson. Oxford: George Ronald, 2011.
> Momen, Moojan, ed. The Bábı́ and Bahá’ı́ Religions, 1844–1944: Some Contemporary
> Western Accounts. Oxford: George Ronald, 1991.
> Nabı́l (Nabı́l-i A‘zam Zarandı́). The Dawn-Breakers: Nabı́l’s Narrative of the Early Days
> of the Bahá’ı́ Revelation. Translated by Shoghi Effendi. Wilmette, IL: U.S. Bahá’ı́ Pub-
> lishing Trust, 1932.
> Saiedi, Nader. Gate of the Heart: Understanding the Writings of the Báb. Ottawa, Ontario,
> Canada: Association for Bahá’ı́ Studies/Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 2008.
> Walbridge, John. “The Martyrdom of the Báb.” In Sacred Acts, Sacred Space, Sacred
> Time, 223–31. Oxford: George Ronald, 1996.
> 
> Babaji Commemoration Day (July 25)
> 
> In his autobiography, Paramahansa Yogananda (1893–1952) introduced his read-
> ers to a mysterious Indian saint known only as Mahavatar Babaji. Yogananda,
> one of the founders of Hinduism in North America, had been the student of Sri
> 966    About the Editor and Contributors
> 
> The Contributors
> MARTIN BAUMANN is professor of the Study of Religions at the University of
> Lucerne in Switzerland. His research interests focus on religious pluralism and
> public space, migration and religion, diaspora studies, and Hindu and Buddhist
> traditions in the West. He has published on these topics in both English and
> German, and his most recent coedited book is Eine Schweiz—viele Religionen
> (2007).
> 
> JAMES A. BEVERLEY is professor of Christian thought and ethics at Tyndale
> Seminary in Toronto, Canada, and associate director of the Institute for the Study
> of American Religion. He is a specialist on new religious movements and the rela-
> tionship of Christianity to other world religions. He is author and editor of 10
> books, including Islam (2011), Islamic Faith in America (2011), and Nelson’s
> Illustrated Guide to Religions (2009).
> 
> CHRISTOPHER BUCK is a Pennsylvania attorney and independent scholar. He
> holds a PhD from the University of Toronto (1996) and JD from Cooley Law
> School (2006). He previously taught at Michigan State University (2000–2004),
> Quincy University (1999–2000), Millikin University (1997–1999), and Carleton
> University (1994–1996). His publications include: Religious Myths and Visions
> of America: How Minority Faiths Redefined America’s World Role (2009); Alain
> Locke: Faith and Philosophy (2005); Paradise and Paradigm: Key Symbols
> in Persian Christianity and the Bahá’ı́ Faith (1999); Symbol and Secret: Qur’an
> Commentary in Bahá’u’lláh’s Kitáb-i Íqán (1995, 2004), various book chapters,
> encyclopedia articles, and journal articles.
> 
> EDWARD ALLEN IRONS is the director of the Hong Kong Institute for Culture,
> Religion, and Commerce, a religious studies research facility concentrating on
> Hong Kong and Chinese cultural studies, Chinese religions, and the interaction
> of cultural and religious issues with commerce in contemporary society.
> 
> CONSTANCE A. JONES is a professor of transformative studies at the California
> Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco. She received her PhD in sociology
> from Emory University and was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship at the Center
> for the Study of New Religious Movements of the Graduate Theological Union
> in Berkeley, California. Beginning with her doctoral dissertation on the caste
> system in India, she has pursued a lifelong interest in the cultures and religions
> of the East. As a Fulbright scholar in India, she taught at Banaras Hindu University
> and Vasanta College and conducted research at the Krishnamurti Study Center,
> Varanasi. She is a member of the International Advisory Board for “The Complete
> Teachings of J. Krishnamurti, 1910–1986.” Her publications include: the Encyclo-
> pedia of Hinduism (with James D. Ryan, 2007); The Legacy of G. I. Gurdjieff
>
> — *Bab, Martyrdom of the (July 9) (Used by permission of the curator)*