# New History of Mirza Ali-Muhammed Bab, The

*Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-19 — 1 clipping.*

---

> EDWARD G. BROWNE
> 
> SUBH-I-EZEL,
> FROM A PHOTOGRAPH BY CAPTAIN YOUNG.
> 
> THE NEW. HISTORY
> (TARiKH-I-JADiD)
> OF MfRZA ALI MUIjAMMED, THE BAB
> BY MiRZA HUSEYN, OF HAMADAN, COMPOSED A.D. i88o,
> BEING AN ACCOUNT
> OF THE ORIGINS AND GROWTH OF THE BABI RELIGION
> AND ITS FOUNDER
> TRANSLATED FROM THE PERSIAN AND EDITED WITH EXPLANATORY
> NOTES, AND APPENDIXES,
> CONTAINING SUBH-I-EZEL'S NARRATIVE, PERSIAN AND ENGLISH,
> MfRZ,k JANi'S HISTORY, AND
> OTHER DOCUMENTS, PRECEDED BY AN HISTORICAL INTRODUCTION,
> AND AN INDEX
> WITH A BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE BY MICHAEL BROWNE
> 
> PHILO PRESS
> AMSTERDAM
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> First published Cambridge 1893
> Reprinted 1975
> with a biographical note by Michael Browne,
> by arrangement with
> Cambridge University Press, London
> ISBN 90 6022 315 2
> ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
> 
> I
> 
> E. G. BROWNE:
> 
> BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.'
> 
> Edward Granville Browne was born in Glouces-1,
> tershire in 1862 and passed his -youth in New-
> castle-upon-Tyne. He was educated at _Et , on,
> (where he found the classical curriculum then.
> in force boring and impossible), ~ Glenalmond
> and Pembroke College Cambridge. His interest
> in Oriental matters was first aroused -by the
> Russo-Turkish war of 1877 and at Cambridge
> he read Oriental languages as well as% medicine.
> His father, a successful engineer.. insisted t a
> Oriental languages was . too hazardous i as a
> profession and that he must qualify as a doctor;
> this he did between going down from Cambridge
> in 1884 and undertaking his only long visit to
> Persia in 1887-8.
> It is this visit which was the subject of A Year
> amongst the Persians and, as appears from that
> book, one of his main purposes was to make
> contact with the Bdbis and to obtain any of their
> books which he could; the present volume is one
> of those he obtained.
> He returned to Cambridge to take up a fellow-
> ship at Pembroke and, except for comparatively
> short visits to Turkey, Egypt and North Africa,
> never left Cambridge again.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> E. G. BROWNE: BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.
> However, he remained in very close touch with
> Persia through a host of friends and correspon-
> dents, and not only produced the Literary History
> of Persia but was also closely concerned in the
> events following the Persian revolution of 1905.
> There was a real threat that Persia might be
> partitioned between Great Britain and Russia,
> and it was widely believed that his Persia Com-
> mittee was the decisive factor in the preserva-
> tion of Persian independence. His private fortune
> enabled him to help many Persian and other
> political exiles.
> He married in 1906 and died in 1926, leaving
> two sons. His memory is still green in Persia,
> and within the last decade one of his grand-
> daughters who spent a year there received much
> kindness, not only from his old friends and
> pupils, but also from strangers who felt for him
> the same kind of affection that the Greeks feel
> (or till recently felt) for Lord Byron. His statue
> in Teheran is said to have been the only statue
> of a European which was spared during the rule
> of Dr Mossadeg.
> 
> London 1974.
> MICHAEL BROWNE.
> 
> CONTENTS.
> 
> ~NTRODUCTION, BY THE TRANSLATOR
> TRANSLATION OF THE AUTHOR'S PREFACE
> TRANSLATION OF THE NEw HISTORY .
> APPENDIX L  Abridgement of omitted digressions
> APPENDIX II. Hhji Mirzh Jhni's History
> APPENDIX III. Translation of Subh-i-Ezel'B Narrative
> APPENDIX IV. Texts and Translations of Original Documents
> published in fac-simile
> INDEX
> PERSIAN TEXT OF SUBH-i-EZEL's NARRATIVE
> N. H.
> PAGE
> Vii
> 1
> 31
> 320
> 327
> 397
> 420
> 443
> ILLUSTRATIONS.
> Portrait of Subh-i-Ezel  FroWispiece.
> Plans and Sketches of the Castle of Sheykh Tabarsi  56
> North Gate of Zanjhn 146
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Fac-simile of Letter from the 136b to MulIA Sheykh
> 'Ali 424
> Nomination of Subh-i-Ezel as the B~b's successor
> (fac-simile of Subh-i-Ezel's transcript) 426
> Fac-simile of Letter from Seyyid Huseyn of Yezd
> to Hhji Seyyid 'Ali 427
> Fac-simile of Letter from Kurratu'l-'Ayn to MullA
> Sheykh 'Ali .
> 434
> b
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> INTRODUCTION.
> HALF a century has not yet elapsed since MÕrzà 'Ali
> Muhammad, the young Seer of Shfrdz, first began' to preach
> the religion which now counts its martyrs by hundreds and
> its adherents by hundreds of thousands'; which seemed at,
> one time to menace the supremacy alike of the- KAjAr
> dynasty and of the Muhammadan faith in Persia, and may
> still not improbably prove an important factor in the history
> of Western Asia; and which, within the memory of, men
> not yet arrived at an age in any way unusual, has passed-
> successively through the Prophetic and Apostolic periods,
> and entered on that phase of intestinal dissensioii and
> political opportunism whither, sooner or later, every religion
> I
> (be the Idea which gave life and strength to the teaching
> of its Founder never so pure and lofty, and the devotion,
> self-abnegation, and brotherly concord subsistingg amongst
> his early disci ples never so perfect) inevitably comes. . Thus
> it is that, quite apart from the political significance whichg-
> it may acquire in the future, and the influence which it
> may exert over the destinies of Persia and the neighbouring
> states, the BAbi movement cannot fail to attract the atten-'
> See Curzon's Persia, vol. i, p. 499. The lowest estimate
> says he, 11 places the present number of BàbÕs in Persia at half a
> million. I am disposed to think, from conversations with persons
> well qualified to judge, that the total number is nearer one
> m i oil.
> b 2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> +viii
> INTRODUCTION.
> tion and awaken the curiosity of every student of the Comparative History of Religions.
> Now the study of the origin and evolution of any religion, ancient or modern, especially of one which aiiihis at
> effecting a great change in the thought, life, or political organisation of the people amongst whom it arises, is,
> though invested with a singular charm, fraught with peculiar difficulties. For, at the outset, such religion finds
> arrayed against itself every vested interest and every deep-rooted prejudice of the dominant dynasty and hierarchy,
> as well as of all who are, whether by conviction, habit, or considerations of personal advantage, attached to these;
> and, whether or no it be called upon to face the sword of a tyrant, the sentence of an inquisition, or the rack, the
> stake, and the axe of the headsman, it is certain to be exposed to the misrepresentations of court-chroniclers and
> ecclesiastical historians, who will spare no effort to pourtray it under the most sombre and lurid colours with which
> their imaginations can invest it. Facts will be suppressed or distorted; vague rumours and unfounded slanders will
> be recorded as assured and indisputable facts; charges of communism, anarchy, free-love, and worse, will be
> hurled against the innovators. and while, on the one side, occasional excesses and casual acts of violence are
> represented as the natural and logical outcome of doctrineas subversive alike of morality and humanity, on the
> other, deeds of treachery and cruelty are passed over in silence, elevated to the dignity of righteous reprisals for
> inexpiable iniquities, or condoned as measures which, though harsh indeed, were rendered not Only excusable but
> inevitable by the exigencies of the time. Should the nasceut faith lack strength to outlive this stormy period of
> probation and persecution, the name of its founder and his adherents will almost certainly be branded with a stigma
> of infamy froin which oblivion alone will free
> i
> p
> p
> I
> INTRODUCTION.
> +ix
> them. How different a complexion might the life of Moseylima or the teaching of Mazdak wear if we could but hear
> the case for the defence, or learn aught about them save that which their triumphaint opponegnts have recorded!
> But even should the young religion survive this fiery ordeal, and secure for itself a permanent footing amongst the
> theological systems of the world, new dangers and new sources of misrepresentation of a yet more subtle kind than
> any to which it has been heretofore exposed spring into being. Hithe'rto these have been wholly or chiefly from
> without. That whole-hearted devotion to the founder which alone could induce his early disciples to disregard wealth,
> position, ease, family ties, and even life itself for
> sake, and that unquestioning faith in his teachings and unhesitating obedience to his commands which is the
> natural and necessary outcome of this devotion, maintain the community, at least during his lifetime, in concord,
> harmony, and- fraternal love. Persecution from withoutl the sense of common danger, and the still fresh
> remembrance of the beloved Master's words and wishes, expressed or implied, may combine to prolong this period
> for a time, even for a consideraW time, after his death; but, sooner or later, dissensions, schisms, and internecine
> strifes are sure to arise. A cessation or abatement of the persecutions which have hitherto compelled the members
> of the community tocombine all their powers in resisting the common foe, and to present a united front towards their
> oppressors, now at length gives them leisure to examine more, minutely and critically the doctrines bequeathed to
> them ; attempts are made to weld these doctrines into a logical and coherent system ; differences of temperament,
> training, and aspira-, tion, hitherto latent, become manifest; ambitions, hithertQ held in check, burst forth; rival
> claimants arise to contest the supremacy; new circumstances and altered relations
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I  t
> +x
> i
> INTRODUCTION.
> to the environment suggest to the bolder and more active spirits modifications and developments of the primitive
> doctrine, of which, perhaps, the founder never dreamed; and an energy and tenacity of purpose which were
> developed by the need of uniting the young church against a common foe are expended in dividing it against itself.
> Now, alas! the golden age of the new religion is past, or all but past ; the heaven-inspired proplict, the loving,
> untiring, undoubting apostle, and the pale martyr, who, with the smile of victory on his lips, and widely opened eyes
> fixed on the far distance, as though to discern through the lurid flames of the bale-fire some glimpse of the
> promised Utopia, fade from the page of its history, which henceforth is filled with pitiful tales of dissension and
> disruption; of anathemas and accusations of heresy and apostasy reiterated and reciprocated with increasing
> bitterness; of suppressions of unwelcome records and corruptions of inconvenient textas ; of fratricidal
> assassinations and persecutions.
> Of this golden age of faith the records are usually scanty, but, in their primitive forin, simple, truthful, and worthy of
> credence in the main, though not improbably 01le-sided, exaggerated, coiifua-,ed, and rude in style. The eneiiiies
> of a new religion do not corrupt its records, they destroy them; and what escapeas destruction at their hands, and
> subsequent corruption at the hands of partisans, may be trusted to give a tolerably faithful narrative of its early
> history. For the earliest historians of a religion are, as a rule, so full of faith, so lacking in critical or sceptical habits,
> so ready to accept whatever new ideals may be set before them, so prone to discover a hidden wisdom in every
> act, not only the most trivial, but the inoast questionable, which emanates from their Master and his immediate
> disciples, that they will chronicle with scrupulous fidelity inci
> idelity inci
> +xi
> dents which a later and more critical generation of believers would be strongly tempted to suppress or to
> transfigure. When Ibn HishAm came to re-write Ibn Is-h6k ) s biography of the Prophet Muhammad, he judged it
> expedient to omit certain details which appeared to him unedifying and likely to cause scandal to the faithful; and -
> when a modern MusulmAn, like Syed Ameer Ali, composes a history of Islim for English readers, he is tempted to
> touch very lightly on certain matters which Ibn HishAm saw no cause to include in this category. To take another
> instance h alto_ gether, might not a modern Buddhist, especially if he were an European, feel disposed to allow the
> fact that Buddha's death was accelerated by eating pork to sink into oblivion, although this fact casts no reflection
> on the life of that great and virtuous teacher, but only contravenes our ideas of what is graceful and artisti6 ?
> " But," it will be asked, " does it often happen that these earliest records of a religious movement, supposing them to
> be written witgh this perfect candour, and to escape destruction at the hands of foes, retain for long their primitive
> form ? If the doctrines of the teacher whoseh lifel deeds, and words they chronicle prevail, and so the records
> survive, what guarantee can we have that they have not wliiidergone mutilation or received embellishment at the
> hands of his later followers, from whom almost necessarily we must receive them?" Generally, from the very,nature
> of the case, such assurance is difficult to obtain, ~and, indeed, can only be obtained in its most satisfactory form
> when the early records pass within a short time, after their compilation into the hands of strangers, who, while
> interested in their preservation, have no desire to alter them for better or worse. That this should happen at all
> obviously requires a very unusual combination of circumstances. 9 So far as my knowledge goes, it never has
> happened save in
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> +xii 
> the case of the Bibf religion; and this is one of the facts which invest the history of this religion with so special an
> interest.
> Fifty years ago Persia be ' longed to all intents and,purposes (as, indeed, she still belongs, notwithstanding the
> attempts recently made, to the huge delight of certain nostrum-mongers and vendors of universal panaceas, to
> overlay the court and capital of her present rulers with a thin veneer of tawdry European civilisation) to the ancient
> world. There hardly anything is impossible, and not very many things even grossly improbable. That a young
> visionary should arise proclaiming a new religion designed to replace and supersede all existing creeds; that many
> persons of learning, virtue, and position should eagerly embrace and boldly proclaim his doctrines that gorgeous
> but unsubstantial visions of a New Creation wherein there should be neither injustice nor discord, of a Reign of
> God's Saints on earth, and of a Universal Theocracy conformed in every detail to a mystical Theosophy (wherein
> are blended, under the guise of an ultra-Shi'ite nationalism, theories of numbers more fantastic than those of
> Pythagoras or Plotinus, with theories of the Divine Names and Attributes more intangible than those of the Cabbala
> or of Spinoza) should exercise so powerful an influence, not only over philosophers and scholars, but over peasants
> and artisans, as to make them ready and eager to meet death in its most terrible forms not by scores, but by
> hundreds; that this new faith, set forth, for the most part, not in the language of the people, but in Arabic treatises of
> interminable length, at once florid and incorrect in style, teeming with grammatical errors the nioa-,t glaring,
> iterations the most wearisome, and words the rarest and most incomprehensible, should have power to inspire its
> votaries with a courage so stubborn as to threaten for several years the very existence
> +xiii
> of the es ' tablished religion and the reigning dynasty, and should stir up an iiisurrectioihi which all the armed forces
> of the Persian king, all the anathemas of the Muhammadan clergy, all the tortures which an Asiatic tyrant could
> devise or his myrmidons execute ' could, by dint of ruthless and repeated massacres, only check for a while, but
> not permanently subdue - all this, however strange it may seem to an European, is in the history of the East not
> much more remarkable than is the accession of a new dynasty, the partition of a principality, or the annexation of a
> province in the history of the West. The doctrines of the BAb, it is true, formed together a system bold, original,
> and, to the Persian mind, singularly attractive; but, taken separately, there was hardly one of which he could claim
> to be the author, and not very many which did not remount to a remote antiquity. The title of Ba'b ("Gate") had been
> already assumed, not only by the four intimates of the Twelfth ImAngi, but by a heresiarch who was put to death in
> the tenth century of our era by the Caliph er-RAdhf Bi'llAh. The theories advanced by Mirzi 'Ali Mul ' iammad
> concerning the successive incarnations of the Universal Reason, thb allegorical interpretation of Scripture, and the
> symbolism of every ritual form and every natural phenomenon, differ in no essential particular from those hel& by
> the Isma'flfs. Even the virtues of the number nineteen, the mysterious " Number of the Unity," had been already
> signalized, and that, probably, not for -the first time, by Sheykh Muhiyyu 'd-Din ibnu'l-'Arabf, a renowned Sftff
> teacher who flourished in tghe twelfth century of our era!. The personal influence of the BAb ; the extraordinary
> steadfastness and devotion of his followers under perse
> See Traveller's iYarrative, vol. ii, p. 229. See J. R. A. S. for 1889, pp. 909, n. 2, and 919-920.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> xiv  INTRODUCTION.
> INTRODUCTION.  XV
> cution of a severity almost unparalleled in modern times ;
> the dramatic circumstances attending the earlier history of
> the sect, from its foundation in A.D. 1844 till the martyrdom
> of its Founder in A.D. 1850, and of all but a very few of
> his original apostles in A.D. 1852, were indeed exceptional;
> yet, notwithstanding all this, it might easily have happened
> that the materials for a continuous and authentic history
> of the movement should have been wanting, in which case
> we should have had to trust the inaccurate and garbled
> accounts of the court-historians, LiS621117-14fulk and Rizi-
> Kulf KhAn', till such time as the scarcely more impartial
> .Traveller's Narrative%" written anonymously (as I have
> learned only since its publication) by the son of one aspirant
> to the supreme authority in the now divided Church to
> discredit the perfectly legitimate claims and to disparage
> the perfectly blameless character of his less successful rival,
> came to increase our mystification and plunge us into
> further uncertainties-
> Fortunately for science a happy combination of circum-
> stances averted a too probable, but none the less deplorable,
> contingency. Amongst the early disciples of the Bdb was
> a certain merchant of KAshAn, HAjf MÕrzà Jdnf by name,
> who, together with two of his three brothers, HAjf MÕrzà
> IsmAT and HAjf MÕrzà Ahmad', was remarkable for his
> enthusiastic devotion to the new religion. When, in the
> year 1847, the BAb passed by KAshdn on the way to his
> prison at MAk* ' MÕrzà JAnf bribed the escort to allow their
> illustrious captive to be a guest in his house for two days
> I Cf. Traveller's Narrative, vol. ii, pp. 173-4, 186-8, and 192.
> 2 Presented to me by the author during my visit to Acre in
> April 1890; published in fac-simile, with EDglish translation,
> Introduction, and Notes, by the Cambridge University Press
> in 1891.
> 3 See Traveller's Narrative, vol. ii, p. 332.
> I
> f
> i
> and nights'. While the MizandarAn insurrection 'was in
> progress (A.D. 1848-9), he, in company with BehAV114h,
> Subh-i-Ezel, and several other prominent BàbÕs', at-
> tempted, but failed, to join the garrison of Sheykh Tabarsf,
> fell into the hands of the enemy, and was imprisoned for
> some while at A'mul. We find him, always impelled, as it
> would appear, by religious zeal, now at BArfurAsh, now at
> Mash-had, now at TeherAn. He appears to have been
> personally acquainted not only with the BAb, Subh-i-Ezel,
> and BehA'u'llAh, but with HAjf SuleymAn KhAn, MullA
> Muhammad 'Alf of Zauj An, Seyyid YahyaA of DArAb, MullA
> Sheykh 'Alf " Jena'b-i-'Az11'M," Kurratu'l-,Ayii, " ffa;rat-i-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Kudd,(ts," and almost all the early apostles of the BàbÕ
> religion. Finally, in company with twenty-seven -of his
> co-religionists, he suffered martyrdom for the faith at
> TeherAii on September 15th, 18521. He was therefore
> heart and soul a BàbÕ ; lie had the best possible oppor-
> tunities for obtaining detailed and accurate - information
> about every event connected with the movement during
> the first eight years of its existence (A.D. 1844-1852);
> ZD
> and lie enjoyed a high reputation for truthfulness, intelli-
> gence, and integrity4. Most fortunately, also, he occupied
> his leisure moments during the two years which elapsed
> between the martyrdom of his Master (July 9th, 1850) and
> his own death (Sept. 15th, 1852) in composing a voluminous
> work, to which, from considerations of a mystical and not
> very comprehensible character, lie gave the rather fanciful
> name of Nuktatu'l-Kdf ("The Point of KAf," i.e., as it
> would appear, "of KAshAn")1, on the doctrines and hiastory
> I See pp. 213-216 infra, and footnotes.
> 2 Cf. pp. 64-5 and 378-9 infra.
> 3 See Traveller's Narrative, vol. ii, pp. 323-334.
> 4 Of. pp. xxxix and 57 infra.
> 6 See n. I on p. 391 infra. The passage in which the title of
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> F
> xvi INTRODUCTION. INTRODUCTION. xvii
> of the religion for which, probably only a few months after
> the completion of his labours, he shlifrered death.
> It is superfluous to say that MÕrzà JAni's work never
> existed save in manuscript,, and that any copies which
> passed into the hands of the royalist or orthodox party
> were without doubt at once destroyed. For there was
> nothing of caution, compromise or concealment about the
> honest KAshAnf merchant. The BàbÕs of his time looked
> rather for an immediate triumph over all existing powers,
> culminating in the universal establishment of the True
> Faith and the Reign of God's Saints on Earth, than for
> the book is given occurs near the beginning of the work and runs
> Z3
> as follows:-
> 
> 
> 
> a Heaven of Glory, a far-distant Millennium, or " the Most
> Great Peace" on which BehA and his followers love. to
> dilate'. They did not make any profession of loyalty to,
> or love for, the reigning dynasty; nor did they attempt to
> exonerate the ShAh from the responsibility of the perse-
> cutions -which they suffered at the expense of his ministers
> or tghe MusnImAn divines, as later BàbÕ historians have
> doDe'. They hated the Muhammadan clergy, it is true,
> with an intense and bitter hatred, and MÕrzà JAnf antici-
> pates with exultation a day whereon the KA'im, or Messiah,
> of the Family of Muhammad shall behead seventy thou-
> sand mull4s "like clogs"; but they entertained for the
> KAjAr rulers an equal hatred, which MÕrzà JAnf is at no
> pains to disguise. To N6siru'd-Din, the present ShAh,
> and to his father, Muhammad ShAh, such terms as "tyrant"",.
> L&JU), "scoundrel" unrightful king"'
> (J.61y :)Uo.U), and "progeny of Abfi SofyAn (,~j I J I
> are freely applied. Teherin is compared- to.-
> Daulaasevis, the capital of the wicked Mu'iviya and his yet
> more wicked son Yazid; while Mul1A Huseyn is likened to
> the martyred ImAm Huseyn, Sheykh Tabarsf to the immortal
> plain of KerbelA, and BArfurAsh, whither the BàbÕ captives,
> were brought after the conclusion of the siege, to I(Afa.
> ZD
> The battle-cry of the royalist soldiers, " Y6 N6siru'd-Dlhi
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Sh'A i described as " a foul watch-word
> a 8
> the death of Muhammad ShAh is noted in the
> words when Muhammad Sh6h went to hell3"; and the
> unbelievers are flouted with scorn because they suppose
> that the Promised Deliverer whom they expect will confirm
> I Cf. Traveller's Narrative, Vol. ii, pp. A
> 2 Cf. Traveller's Narrative, Vol. ii, pp. xlv-xlvi; and, amongst
> many other similar passages in this book, pp. 172, 180-182,
> 189-190, 278-279, 291-293, and 315-316.
> 3 See n. I on p. 291 infra.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> xviii INTRODUCTION. INTRODUCTION.  xiX
> the authority of the existing rulers and governors, aiid recognition and homage of the whole BàbÕ community'.
> will subdue the world for the benefit of NAsiru'd-Dfn Till the catastrophe of September 1852, which proved fatal,
> ShAh. not only to MÕrzà Jinf, but to nearly all the principal
> Now if this were all, MÕrzà JAnf's history, though it apostles of the new faith -who bad survived the earlier
> would certainly have been destroyed as far as possible by persecutions, he remained for the most part in the neigh-
> rAn in the summer, and in the district of
> the Muhammadans and the royalists, might well, with bourhood of Tehe
> sundry emendations and expurgations, have been preserved NAr in MdzandarAn in the winter, actively occupied in
> almost intact, like many other proscribed books, in the iDg, transcribing, and eirculg ing the BàbÕ books,
> arrang at
> bosom of the BA-bf Church. But it is not all. Events preaching and expohlinding the BàbÕ doctrine, and com-
> which I have elsewhere discussed at length', and shall here, forting and edifying the BàbÕ Church'. It was during this
> period, and, as internal evidence renders probable, during
> for the benefit of the general reader, briefly recapitulate, 3
> brought about the seemingly strange result that a lar(Te the year A.H. 1267 (Nov. 1850-Oct. 1851) that Mirzi
> majority of the BAbias themselves carne to have a direct Jdn' composed his work, in which, as was only natural, he
> interest in the suppression of this precious record. One inserted a long notice on Subh-i-Ezel4, whom he most
> of the chief doctrines of the BAb, one which lie never certainly, and his contemporaries in the faith most probably,
> wearies of repeating and emphasising, is that his revelation believed to be none other than " He whom God shall
> is not final; that he is not the last of the Theophanies manifest'." The evidence that at this period, and for
> which, at longer or shorter intervals shine- forth in the some considerable time afterwards, Subh-i-Ezel, now living
> Phenomenal World for the guidance of mankind; and in almost solitary exile at Famagusta in Cyprus, a pensioner-
> that after him a greater Revealer, whom lie calls Man
> I Cf. Gobineau's Iteligions et Pljilosophies dans IAsie, Centrale,
> yudli-Airulitt'1161i" ("He whom God shall nhianifest "), shall
> pp. 277-8~
> appear for the consolation of his followers. Now a year 2 See Traveller's Xarrativc, Vol. ii, p. 374.
> before his martyrdonhi, on the fall of Sheykh Tabarsf and 3 The clearest allusion in Mfrzi idnif's work to the date of its-
> the death of H4rat-i-Kuddits (July or August, 1849)1, composition is contained in the words (occurring on f. 48r of
> the BAb nominated Mfrzi YahyA (then a lad of nineteen3)
> Suppl. Pers. 1071, and f 335 2- of StTpl. Pers. 1070) 4-r=
> to succeed him under the title of 8ubh-i-Ezel ("the Morn-
> ing of Eternity"), or Ilazrat-i-Ezel ("His Holiness the
> "To day, when one thousand two hundred and seventy-seven
> Eternal"). The nomination was explicit and notorious,
> years have elapsed since the  Mission
> and, on the death of the Founder in July 1850, the youth- of God's Apostle  " The BàbÕs generally date not from the hijra
> b
> ful vicegerent at once received the almost unanimous
> or Flight of the Prophet, but from his Call (ba'that), which they
> p
> place ten years earlier. Hence this date corresponds to A.H.
> I Traveller's Yarrative, Vol. ii, pp. xv-xviii and 349 et seq. 1267.
> 4 See pp. .374-394 infra.
> I See pp. 380-2 infra.
> 3 See Traveller's Narrative, Vol. ii, p. 373 and note. 5 See pp. 381-2 infra.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> xx INTRODUCTION. INTRODUCTION. xxi
> of the British Government, held undisputed and absolute
> sway over the BàbÕ Church is absolutely conclusive.
> Immediately after the great persecution and massacre
> of 1852, Subh-i-Ezel fled to Baghdad, so as to be beyond
> the reach of the Persian Government. Hither a few
> months later (at the end of 1852 or beginning of 1853')
> lie was followed by his half-brother, MirzA Huseyn 'Alf
> BeWt'u'116h, who was thirteen years his senior, and -who,
> p
> arrested on suspicion of complicity in the attem t made
> by the BàbÕs on the Sh6h's life .. had just been acquitted
> and released from an imprisonment of four montlis' dura-
> tion. At this time and for some years later (at any rate
> till 1858) Behi'ii'lldh was, as liias own writings prove',
> to all appearance as loyal a follower of Subh-i-Ezel as he
> had previously been of the Bdb. The BàbÕ Church was
> still, in spite of the attempts made by sundry ambitious
> persons to advance claims to the supreme autliority3, united
> tinder Subh-i-Ezel, and its members no doubt continued
> to read with edification the pages of Mirz6 JAni's history.
> About 1862 the Turkish Government, acting, as it
> would appear, on the representations of the ShAh's minis-
> ters, decided to transfer the BAbi exiles from Baghdad to
> Adrianople, whither, it would seem, they were actually
> brought in December 1863 4. Here they remained till July
> or August 1868, when signs of renewed -and increased
> activity amongst them attracted the notice of the Ottoman
> authorities, who, learning that a schism had divided them
> 1 See J. R. A. S. for 1892, pp. 304-6.
> 2 See J. R. A. S. for 1892, pp. 304-6 and 436-8.
> 3 See Tgi,az,elle?,'s Narrative, vol. ii, pp. 356-8 and 365.
> 4 The chronology of these events is less certain than that of
> the earlier ones. I have done my best to reconcile and combine
> the various and sometimes conflicting data at pp. 306-8 of the
> .1. R. A. S. for 1892.
> I
> into two hostile sections, the one headed by Behi'u'lhih,
> the other by ~ubh-i-Ezel, packed them off without more
> ado, and probably without troubling to enquire much into
> the rights and wrongs of the matter, the former to Acre,
> the latter to Famagusta in Cyprus.
> About the subsequent history of the Bdbfs, of which
> full accounts will be found, by such as it may interest, in
> the Traveller's Narrative, I do not propose to say any-
> thing in this place. Concerning the schism itself, however,
> a few words are necessary. A community like that which
> had existed at Adrianople, consisting almost entirely of
> actual exiles and potential martyrs, and in large part of
> religious enthusiasts, revolutionary visionaries, and specu-
> lative mystics, whose grestless activity, debarred from ex-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ternal action, is pent up within limits too narrow for its
> free exercise, requires a firm hand to control and direct
> its energies. Such firmness Subh-i-Ezel, a peace-loving,
> contemplative, gentle soul, wh~olly'devoted to the memory
> of his beloved Master, caring little for authority, and in-
> capable of self-assertion, seems to have altogether lacked.
> Even while at Baghdad he lived a life of almost complete
> seclusion, leaving the direction of affairs in the bands of
> his half-brother Behi'u'llAh', a man of much more resolute
> and ambitious character, who thus gradually became the
> most prominent figure and the moving spirit of the sect.
> For a considerable time BehAVIIAh continued to do all
> that he did in the name, and ostensibly by the instruc-
> tions, of Subh-i-Ezel; but after a while, though at what
> precise date is still uncertain, the idea seems to have
> entered his mind that he might as well become actually,
> as he already was virtually, the Pontiff of the Church
> wlioa,3e destinies he controlled. It was not, however, till
> 1 See Traveller's Narrative, vol. ii, pp. 356-8.
> N. If.
> 0
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> a  I
> xxii
> INTRODUCTION.
> the BàbÕs had been for two or three years at Adrianople
> that, most probably in the summer of 1866', lie threw off
> all disguise, publicly proclaimed himself to be " Him whom
> God shall manifest," and called upon Subli-i-Ezel and -all
> the BàbÕ Churches throughout Persia, Turkey, Egypt and
> Syria to acknowledge his supreme authority, and to accept
> as God's Word the revelations which he forthwith began to
> promulgate, and continued till his death on May 16th of
> last year (1892) to publish.
> Amongst the BàbÕs the effect of this announcement (for
> which, no doubt, the way had been already prepared) ivaas
> little short of stupendous. From Constantinople to KirmAn
> and from Cairo to KhurAsAn the communities of the faith-,
> ful were rent asunder by a schism which every subsequent
> year has rendered wider and more permanent, and which
> nothing short of the complete extinction of one of the two
> rival factions can possibly heal. At Adrianople itself the
> struggle was short and the triumph of BehA complete.
> Subh-i-Ezel was so completely deserted that, as lie himself
> informed me, he and his little boy had to go themselves to
> the bazaar to buy their food. Elsewhere, though active
> and astute emissaries' were at once despatched in all
> directions by BeliA, the conflict, though its issue was from
> the first hardly doubtful, was longer maintained. For the
> question at issue was not merely whether one leader should
> be replaced by another, whether certain doctrines should
> be understood in this way or in that, or whether the ethics,
> practices, or forms of worship of the sect should be re-
> formed or modified (all of which things, as we well know,
> have again and again in the history of religions proved
> sufficient to create the fiercest enmities, the profoundeast
> I See J. R. A. S. for 1892, p. 304.
> 2 Cf. J. R. A. 8. for 1892, pp. 311-312.
> h
> p
> h
> b
> INTRODUCTION.
> XXIII
> heart-searchings, and the bitterest dissensions), but~l whether
> the doctrines and writings of the beloved Master, for which
> his followers had been ready to suffer death or exile, were
> to be regarded as abrogated and cancelled in favour of, a
> new revelation; whether his chosen vicegerent, whom they
> had so long regarded as their Supreme Pontiff and as the
> incarnation of all purity, virtue, and heavenly wisdom,
> was to be cast down from this high position, and branded
> as " the First Letter of Denial " of the New Dispensation ;
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> and whether the BAb himself was henceforth to be looked
> upon, not as the " Point of Revelation," a veritable Mani-
> festation of the Divine, but as a mere harbinger and pre-
> cursor of a more perfect Theophany. BàbÕs who remember
> that time cannot easily be induced to speak of it ; -only
> once, so far as I can remember, did I hear a follower of
> Behi explicitly allude to it. " I was long torn with doubts,"
> said he, "which were finally removed by this verse on
> which one day I chanced in the Beyan: 'Thou takest
> Divinity from whomsoever Tlwu pleasest, and givest Di-
> villity to whomsoever Tliou pleasest: verily Thou art the
> Almighty, the Wise."'
> How long the contest was maintained by the Ezelfs, or
> old Bibfs, against the innovators it is impossible to say,
> for on no portion of the history of the sect is our infor-
> mation so scanty or our light so dim. At first not a few
> prominent BàbÕs, including even several " Letters of the
> Living" and personal friends of the BAb, adhered faithfa~ly
> to Subh-i-Ezel. One by one these disappeared, most of
> them , as I fear cannot be doubted, by foul play on the
> part of too zealous BebA'fs. Hiji Seyyid Muhammad of
> IsfahAn, one of the BAb's " Companions " (aq-~db), MÕrzà
> RizA-Kulf and his brother MÕrzà Naqru'llAh of Tafrfsh) .46
> JAn Beg of KAshAn, and other devoted Ezelis,,were stabbed
> or poisoned at Adrianople and Acre. Two of the Letters
> 2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> s
> xxiv INTRODUCTION. INTRODUCTION.  XXV
> of the Living," Seyyid 'Alf the Arab, and Mulhi manifest" to abrogate, change, can eel, and develop the earlier
> Rajab 'Alf lCahh-, were assassinated, the one at Tabriz, doctrines. ' His chief aim seems to have been to introduce
> the other at KerbelA. The brother of the latter, A' kA 'Alf a more settled order, to discourage speculation, to direct
> Muhammad, was also murdered in Baghdad; and, indeed, the attention of his followers to practical reforms pursued
> in a prudent and unobtrusive fashion, to exalt ethics at
> of the more prominent 134bis who espoused the cause, of
> Ezel, Seyyid JawAd of KerbelA (who died at KirmAn about the expense of metaphysics, to check mysticism, to con-
> 1884)1 seems to have been almost the only one, with the ciliate existing authorities, including even the ShAh of
> exception of Ezel himself, who long survived what the Persia, the Nero of the BàbÕ faith, to abolish useless, un-
> practical, and irksome regulations and restrictions, and)
> Ezelfs call " the Direful Mischief " (fihia-i-saylanz). From
> in general, to adapt the religion at the head of which he
> that time forwards, while the Belid'fs have been ever waxing
> now found higmself to the ordinary exigencies of life, and
> in power and influence, so that their numbers now probably
> reach or even exceed half a million souls, the Ezelis have to render it more capable of becoming, what he intended
> been ever waning, until at the present time it is doubtful to make it, a universal system suitable to all mankind'. A
> whether in all they amount to more than a few hundreds. remembrance of all the wrongs which he and his co-religi-
> It is even doubtful whether the recent death of BeliA will onists had suffered at the hands of the Musulmins further
> contribute in any sensible measure to the restoration of caused him gradually but steadily to eliminate the tinge
> their failing fortunes, though Ezel still lives, and numbers of Muhammadan, and more especially of Shi'ite, thought
> amongst his supporters at least one or two men of energy which the BàbÕ doctrine still maintained, while ever seek-
> and ability. ing a better understanding with the -Christians, Jews, and
> Zoroastrians with all of whom he recommended his fol-
> At the present day, therefore, the vast majority of I
> BAbis are Behi'fs, whose doctrines, sentiments, and ideals lowers to consort on friendly tern-is.
> Now once admitting Behi's right to assume this posi-
> are already far removed from those of the primitive BàbÕs tion of supremacy at all, there can be no question that
> or modern Ezelfs. No sooner was BehA. firmly established these changes were beneficial and salutary. The original
> in his authority than lie began to make free use, of the
> privilege accorded by the BAb to " Him whom God shall See especially the summary of contents of the Kitdb-i- Akdas
> at pp. 972-981 of the J.R.A.S. for 1889; and the Lawh-i-
> Cf. J. R. A. S. for 1892, pp. 443-4 and 684; and Traveller's Bashdrdt, of which the text (with the exception of the 15th and
> Al'arrative, vol. ii, p. 342, n. 2. That Seyyid Jawaid was a follower last clause, recommending constitutional government, which the
> of Ezel is, however, categorically denied by Mfrzi AbA'I-Fazl of BehA'is appear to have thought it expedient to suppress in the
> copy of the tract forwarded to Russia) has been published by
> GuIpAyagAn in a letter addressed to M. Touniansky, the text of
> which will be found on pp. 44-5 of vol. viii of the Zapisski of Baron Rosen with a Russian translation at pp. 183--192 of vol.
> the Oriental Section of the Imperial Russian Archaeological vii of the Zapisski of the Oriental Section of the Imperial Russian
> Societ . As, however, this is affirmed equally positively by ~ubh_ Archaeological Society (St Petersburg, 1893). The substance
> y of this latter document has been stated in English by myself at
> i-Ezel and Sheykh A- the Ezelf, I have allowed these words
> to stand. pp. 678-9 of the J. R. A. & for 1892.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I
> xxvi  INTRODUCTION.
> doctrine of the BAb, fascinating as it was to Persians of a
> certain disposition, was utterly unfitted for the bulk of
> mankind, and could never by any possibility have taken
> any root outside Persia. In the sacred books wherein it
> was set forth, precept bore but a small proportion to
> dogma, and dogma a still smaller proportion to doxologies
> and mystical rhapsodies of almost inconceivable incompre-
> hensibility. Not only were the positive precepts few, but
> they were generally quite unpractical, and not rarely
> extremely inconvenient. What, for instance, could be
> more unpractical than the adoption of the number 19 as
> the basis of all measures and calculations; the command
> that all books when they had been in existence for 202
> years should be copied out afresh, and the originals de-
> stroyed or given away; or the elaborate ceremonies pre-
> scribed for the interment of the dead ? What more incon-
> venient than the exclusion of all unbelievers from five of
> the chief pr ovinces of Persia,- and, save in the case of
> merchants and others following a useful profession, from
> all lands in which the BàbÕ faith prevailed; the discourage-
> ment of sea-voyages and of the acquisition of foreign lan-
> guages ; and the command to destroy all works treating of
> Logic, Jurisprudence, and Philosophy ? Great conceptions,
> noble ideals, subtle metaphysical conceptions, and splendid,
> though ill-defined, aspirations do, indeed, exist in the
> BeyAn; but they are so lost in trackless mazes of rhapsody
> and mysticism, so weighed down by trivial injunctions and
> impracticable ordinances, that no casual reader, but only a
> student of considerable diligence and perseverance, can
> hope to find them'.
> That the development of BehA's doctrines proceeded
> 1 For a summary account of the teachiDgs of the Persian
> Beydn, the most systematic and comprehensible of the BAb'aa3
> many works, see pp. 911-933 of the J. R. A. S. for 1889.
> 'Y
> INTRODUCTION. xxvii
> h
> gradually there can be little doubt, for a system such as
> he elaborated could not be worked out, much less imposed
> on a scattered church not always remarkable for docility,
> in a brief space of time. From the moment that his claims
> were generally recognized by the BàbÕs, however, the whole
> of the earlier literature of the sect, including the writings
> of the Bib himself, began to suffer neglect and to sink
> into oblivion. Without admitting the assertion made by
> the Ezelfs, that BehA and his followers deliberately de-
> stroyed, or fraudulently tampered with, the books belonging
> to the older dispensation on a large scale, it is clear that
> the conditions which could alone secure the - continual
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> transcription and circulation of these books had ceased to'
> exist. They were, for the most part, voluminous, hard to
> comprehend, uncouth in style, unsystematic in arrange-
> ment, filled with iterations and solecisms) and not un-
> frequently quite incoherent and unintelligible to' any
> ordinary reader.- Hitherto, less on their own merits than
> by reason of the enthusiastic devotion inspired by their
> authors, they had been regarded by all the BAbis as price-
> less gems. Of this enthusiastic devotion BehA now became
> the object; and to his writings (which, at any rate in
> comparison with those of his predecessors, were terse, lucid,
> vigorous, and eloquent) was this sentiment of admiration
> diverted. The energies of the Behi'f scribes were fully
> occupied in transcribing the new revelations; and the
> older books, no longer regarded as the final expression of
> Divine Truth and Wisdom, ceased to be renewed, and for
> the most part reposed undisturbed and forgotten. in the
> shelves and boxes to which they had been consigned. All
> this, of course, applies only to the BehA'fs; but the Ezelfs,'
> to whom the old books still retained their pristine value,
> were few in number, isolated, fearful alike of the Mu-
> hammadaus and the Behi'fs, and altogether incapable of
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> xxviii
> INTRODUCTION.
> maintaining the currency of the discarded literature. Be-
> sides this, many of the older writings at the time of the
> schism were probably preserved only at the BàbÕ head-
> quarters in Adrianople, where, as we have seen, Subh-i-
> Ezel was left entirely without supporters. What he could,
> he saved, and bore with him to Cyprus; but there can be
> no doubt that the lion's share fell to BehA, and was con-
> veyed by him and his followers to Acre. And, from my
> own experience, I can affirm that, hard as it is to obtain
> from the BehA'fs in Persia the loan or gift of BàbÕ books
> belonging to the earlier period of the faith, at Acre it ias
> harder still even to get a glimpse of them. They may be,
> and probably are, still preserved there, but, for all the
> good the enquirer is likely to get from them, they might
> almost as well have suffered the fate which the Ezelfs
> believe to have overtaken them.
> The history composed by Hiji MÕrzà JAnf, however,
> belongs to a different category from the writings which
> we have hitherto been discussing. Without sharing the
> sacred character of these, it was incomparably more dan-
> gerous to the pretensions and plans of Behi, as any one
> may see by referring to Appendix 11 of this volume. Its
> to-ne towards all beyond the pale of the BàbÕ Church, and
> more especially towards the ShAh of Persia and his govern-
> ment, was irreconcilably hostile. The doctrines set forth
> in it, though undoubtedly those held by the early BàbÕ.9,
> were eminently calculated to encourage mysticism and
> metaphysical speculation of the boldest kind, and to main-
> tain in full activity that pantheistic fermentation which
> BehA was so desirous to check. Worst of all, it supplied
> the Ezelfs with a most powerful weapon not of defence
> only, but of attack. And withal it was interesting, pro-
> foundly and intensely interesting; the most interesting
> book, perhaps, in the whole range of BàbÕ literature. To
> i
> I
> I
> INTRODUCTION.
> I
> xxiX
> suppressit and withdraw it from circulation, at any rate
> while thoser on whom had been thrown the glamour of the
> young ShirAzf Seer and of the beautiful Kurratu'l-'Ayn, the
> martyred heroine and poetess of Kazvfn, constituted the
> majority of the faithful, was almost impossible; to let it
> continue to circulate in its present form would be dis-
> astrous. Only one plan offered any chance of success.
> Often in the literary history of the East has the disappear-
> ance and extinction of works both valuable and of general
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> interest been brought about, either accidentally or inten-
> tionally, by the compilation from them of a more concise and
> popular abridgement which has gradually superseded them.
> As the Biography of the Prophet Muhammad composed by
> Ibn Is-hAk was superseded by the recension of Ibn Hish6m.,
> so should MÕrzà J&nf's old history of the Bib and his
> Apostles be superseded by a revised, expurgated, and
> emended 11NEw HISTORY" (Tdrikh-i-Jadid), which, while,
> carefully omitting every fact, doctrine, ahnd expTeSSiOn calcu-
> lated to injure the policy of BehA, or to give offence to his
> followers, should preserve, and even supplement with new
> material derived from fresh sources, the substance of the
> earlier chronicle.
> 0 nly by the merest accident, so far as our present
> knowledge goes, did this scheme fail of complete success.
> Most fortunately for science, there resided at TeherAn in
> the years 1855-8 a French diplomatist, the Comte de
> Gobineau, who, animated by a keen and insatiable curiosity,
> devoted himself with rare success to the study of the BàbÕ
> religion, which was at that time still in its primitive state,
> neither rent asunder by the schism which now divides it,
> nor modified by the policy which that schism has intro-
> dneed. The results of his labours, so far as the B6bfs are
> concerned, were a masterly sketch of their history and
> doctrines in his classical Religions et Philosophies daus
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> xxx  INTRODUCTION.
> I'Asie Centrale, and a small but most precious collection
> of BàbÕ manuscripts; this, after his death, was bought
> by the Biblioth~que Nationale at Paris, where, since the
> year 1884, it has been deposited. Of these volumes one
> (Suppl. Persan, 1,071) contains the whole, and another
> (Suppl. Persan, 1,070) the first third, of HAjf MÕrzà JAnf's
> invaluable history, of which, so far as I know, no other
> copy is extant in Europe or Asia. It is not too much to
> say that but for M. de Gobineau's exertions in the cause
> of science it would have been impossible to reconstruct
> faithfully and in detail the early history of BàbÕism.
> At this point I shall perhaps do well to answer two
> questions which may suggest themselves to the reader.
> 11 Why," he may ask in the first place, " have you
> chosen to translate this later 'New History' in preference
> to Mfrzd JAnfs contemporary record, to which you evidently
> attach a much greater importance ? "
> This question can be answered in very few -words. I
> did not discover the existence of the Paris manuscripts of
> MÕrzà JAW's history till this translation of the New His-
> tory had been completed, and the arraDgements for its
> publication finally concluded. That there was such a
> work, I had learned from the New History itself; and, as
> may be supposed, I made many efforts to procure a copy,
> or to discover whether any still existed. After repeated
> disappointments, I finally came to the conclusion that the
> work was probably lost. When, in the Easter Vacation
> of 1892, 1 finally chanced on it in the Biblioth6que Na-
> tionale during a short stay in Paris, it was too late to
> substitute a translation of it for the present history. It
> only remained for me to procure a transcript of it (from
> the complete manuscript, SuppL Pers. 1,071), to compare
> this carefully with the New History, and to epitomize in
> an appendix the results yielded by this comparison. The
> INTRODUCTION.
> xxxi
> transcript was made for me by my friend Ahi~ed Beg
> Agaeff, to whom I here tender my sincere thanks -, and the
> variants and additional matter obtained by the comparison
> of this with the New History will be found fully stated in
> Appendix II (pp. 327-396) at the end of this volume.
> For the present this must suffice; but, if the history of
> BàbÕism. is to be seriously studied, the text of MÕrzà JAnfs
> history will, sooner or later, have to be published in ex-
> tenso. For this reason I now deem it a most fortunate
> circumstance that the Syndics of the University Press,
> when they accepted the present translation, were re-
> luctant to incur t ' he great expense which the publica-
> tion of the text of the TdrUk-i-Jadid would have
> involved.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> The second question which may be asked is this.
> C(What relation exists between the history of the BàbÕ
> religion entitled 'A Traveller's Narrative written to
> illustrate the Episode of the B(tb,' of which you published
> the text and translation rather more than a'year ago;
> and these two histories which you have just been discuss-
> ing ? "
> This question also I must answer very briefly. The
> Traveller's Narrative, composed by BehA'ullAh's son 'AbbAs
> Efendf so recently as A.D. 1886, represents a further de-
> velopment of the tendency, to which 1 have already alluded,
> to glorify BehAu'llAh and his Neo-BàbÕ doctrine at the
> expense of the BAb and the primitive BAbl theology. In
> the New History it is still the BAb and his apostles, and
> the early martyrs of the cause, whose'words and deeds
> form the subject-matter of the work. In the Traveller's
> Narrative this is no longer the case; it is Bebi'u'llih who
> is the hero, and it is his words and precepts which are
> quoted with admiration and reverence, while the BAb has
> been reduced from his high station of I Point, " I I KA'im, "
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> xxxii  INTRODUCTION.
> and " ImAm Malidi " to that of a more precursor and
> harbinger of a more perfect dispensation'.
> Having now, as I trust, made sufficiently clear the
> relations which subsist between these three histories, to
> wit, the Nuktatu'I-K(if composed by MÕrzà JAnf in A.D.
> 1851; the irtrikh-i-Jadi'd, or "New History," composed
> (as will presently be set forth in greater detail) -under the
> supervision of MAnakjf the Zoroastrian by Mfrzi Huseyn
> of HamadAn, assisted by TAlfrzA Abii'l-Fazl of GulpAyagAii,
> in A.H. 1297-8 (A.D. 1880); and the 14fakaila-i-shaklist'
> 'k or "Traveller's Narrative," coniposed by BehA'u
> sayya. ,
> 'llAh's son 'AbbAs Efendi in or about the year A.D. 1886,
> I shall now discuss iihiore minutely the date and author-
> ship of the second of these works, here offered in transla-
> tion to the English-reading public, and describe the manner
> in which I first became acquainted with it, the manu-
> scripts which I have had at my disposal, and my labours in
> re-establishing and translating the text.
> First, as regards the date and authorship. Concerning
> these something can be gleaned froiigi internal evidence.
> As to the date, the allusion to the Jkabi. on p. 26 proves
> that the New History was written subsequently to that
> work, which was composed in A.D.,18582; the allusion to
> BehAVIIAWs " Manifestation " on p. 64 carries the date
> down to A.D. 1866; while the reference to the ShAh's tour
> in Europe (presumably the first) on p. 181 brings it down
> to A.D. 1873. This last date would in any case be the
> earliest admissible, for on p. 174 the BàbÕs are said to
> have endured nearly thirty years of persecution, while on
> 1 For further details as to the peculiar features of this latter
> history, see the Introduction to vol. ii of the Traveller's Narrative,
> pp. xlv-xlvi.
> 2 See J. R. A. S. for 1892, p. 305.
> INTRODUCTION.
> xxxiii
> p. 321 this number is raised to thirty-five byh one manu-7
> script. As to the internal evidences of authorship, they
> are somewhat conflicting and misleading. In some pas-
> sages the author implies that he is a Christian (p. 3), -an
> European (p. 17) and not a Persian (p. 23), and a French-
> man (p. 318). Certain expressions on pp. 2-3 would
> suggest that he was a believer in the BàbÕ religion; certain
> others on p. 30 would seem to imply that he was only a
> sympathetic onlooker; while the verse cited on p. 17 would
> lead us to suppose that he was a free-thinker. Several
> passages (e.g. on pp. 323, 324, and 326) indicate familiarity
> with Zoroastrian ideas and writings; others (e.g. on pp.
> 6-7, and 308-9) show a strange ignorance of the history
> and customs of Europe with which-he professes to be so
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> familiar. Lastly, there are several passages and episodes
> (some of them occurring in one manuscript only) which
> have evidently been added to the original work by other
> hands; e.g. the paragraph on p. 48 beginning, "The reviser
> of this history says. . ."; the rationalistic remarks on p.
> 89 by "the writer (or transcriber) of these pages"; and
> the narratives of the second Nfrfz war (pp. 128-131) and
> the ZanjAii siege (pp. 139-168) attributed respectively to
> Nabil and Zabfh.
> Fortanately-we have, something better than internal
> evidence to go upon. Thanks to Lieutenant Toumansky
> of the Russian Artillery, to whose energetic and successful
> researches amongst the BàbÕs of 'IslikdbAd science owes
> so much, a full account of the circumstances whichgave
> rise to the composition of the New History, and gthe
> manner in which its composition was effected, has beeir
> obtained from one of the -three persons (the only one
> still living) concerned therein, to wit,, MirzA AbU"I-Fazl
> Muhammad ibn Muhammad RizA of GulpAyagAn, whose
> acquaintance M. Toumansky made at 'IshkAbAd. The
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> xxxiv
> INTRODUCTION.
> ,substance of what M. Toumansky learned from Mfrzi
> Abfi'I-Fazl he most kindly communicated to me through
> Baron Rosen, with full permission to make use of it. Of
> this permission I availed myself in describing my manuscript
> of the Trtri'kh-i-Jadid in my Catalogue and Description of
> 27 Baibi'MSS. published in the July and October numbers
> of the J. R. A. S. for 1892, where, at pp. 442-3, Baron
> Roseii'as words will be found cited.
> A little while before the conclusion of my Catalogue
> went to press, I received certain books and letters (Cat.
> and Des., pp. 663-5 ' , and 701 et seq.) from a Persian Jew
> of Mash-had named AkA 'Azfzu'llAli, a BàbÕ, and a friend
> of MirzA Abu"I-Fazi. In answering one of his letters I
> asked several questions, one of which referred to the com-
> position of the TrtrW-i-Jadi'd. He promised to refer this
> question to Mirzi Abu"I-Fazl, and there for the time the
> matter dropped.
> It now appears, however, that my questions were duly
> transmitted to Mfrzi AbA'I-Fazl, who thereupon composed
> in reply to them a treatise which lie entitled Rist'W'li-
> likandariyya (" the Epistle of Alexander") in lionour of
> M. Alexander Touniansky, to whom, in virtue of a long-
> standing friendship, the book was dedicated. Of this
> treatise, as he himself says, he wrote four copies with his own
> hand: one for transmission to Acre, one for M. Toumansky,
> one for himself, and one for me. The last was sent to
> Bombay to be thence forwarded to me, but has not yet
> reached me. This, however, is of the less consequence
> inasmuch as M. Toumansky is publishing an account of
> thip important treatise at pp. 33-45 of the forthcoming
> (eighth) volume of the Zopisski of the Oriental Section of
> the Imperial Russian Archaeological Society. Of this
> article Baron Rosen, with his usual kindness, has sent me
> the proofas, from which I shall now tradaslate what MÕrzà
> INTRODUCTION.
> xxxv
> 0 nd authorship of
> Abfi'l-Faz says about the comp sition a'
> the Tdri'kh-i-Jadi'd.
> The copy of the treatise in question forwarded to
> M. Toumansky bears the following inscription: "TIM
> Epistle of Alexander was compiled and composed as a
> gift to His .116st flonottrable -Excelle2icy Mirza' Alexander
> Toumansky (may God Almighty prolong the days of his
> glory and his fortune P). " The cause of its compilation
> is thus stated:-
> " The immediate cause of the composition of this his-
> torical pamphlet was as follows. When I was in HamadAn
> in the yearA.H. 1305 (A.D. 1887-8), 1 wrote, at the request
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> of certain elders of the Jews, a treatise entitled Risdhr-i-
> Ayy7ibiyya1 ('The, Epistle of Job'), copies of which were
> disseminated everywhere. Some while ago, when Ak4
> 'Azfzu'll;ih was in Bombay, a copy of this treatise fell into
> the hands of Mr Browne, who wrote to .44 'Azizu'llih,
> saying, 'Since you are in correspondence with MÕrzà_Abfi'l-
> Fazi, ask of him three questions. Firstly, in this treatise
> he has fixed the date of the second restoration of the Holy
> Temple at four hundred and thirty years, whereas other
> chronologists have stated it to be about six hundred years'.
> Secondly, let him make known the chronological data
> which he possesses touching the life of His Holiness Behi'-
> r
> 1 Zapisski,'loc. cit., p. 33, n. 1.
> 2 This is tb e work described on pp. 701--- 5 of the J. R. A. S.
> for 1892 under the title IstidIdliyyd
> 3 The objection which I raised to MÕrzà Abu'l-Fazl's chrono-
> logy is neither very clearly nor very accurately stated here. His
> contention was that the 2300 days (ie. years) during which the
> sanctuary shall be trodden under foot, as mentioned in the book
> of Daniel (ch. viii, v. 14), came to an end at the time of Behi'-
> li'llah's "Manifestation" in A.H. 1285 (A.D. 1868), and the question
> raised bore reference to the terminus a quo.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I
> xxxvi  INTRODUCTION.
> u'llili (may the life of all the delliZeIIS Of the world be his
> sacrifice!); for the date wliiQli lie asasigiis in his treatise
> to the Blessed Theophany is A.H. 1285, whereas in the
> Traveller's Ncirrative it is given as A.H. 12691. Tkirdly,
> who is the author of the T6rgrkli-i-Jadid ("New History"),
> for some ascribe it to Mirzi Ab-h'I-Fazl, others to MAnakjf?'
> In short, it became necessary to compose in reply to him
> this treatise, which consists for the most part of such
> facts connected with the Blessed Theophany from first to
> last as have come within my own knowledge. Now al-
> though this treatise is addressed to AkA 'Azfzu'llAh, and
> was written in consequence of the enquiries of Mr Browne,
> yet was it primarily composed in accordance with a promise
> which I made to M. Toumansky when I was present with
> him, and therefore is it named after his name. And the
> cause of this delay 
> was that, in the absence of an assistant, I was obliged to
> write four copies with my own hand ; one for transmission
> to the Supreme Horizon'; one for transmission to Bombay,
> that it might thence be forwarded to Mr Browne; and
> one for M. Toumansky; while one must needs remain in
> my possession.
> The text of the reply to the third question (touching
> the authorship of the Trtrikh-i-Jadi'd) is given in full by
> M. Toumansky (loc. cit., pp. 36-8); and, before proceeding
> to translate it, it only remains to observe that the tran-
> scription of his manuscript by MirzA AbA'I-Fazl was con-
> eluded on the 11th of JumAdA 11, A.H. 1310 (=Dec. 31st,
> A.D. 1892)-
> I See Traveller's Narrative, vol. i, pp. 71 and 80-81 ; vol. ii,
> P. 55 and n. 3, and p. 63. See also the J. R. A. S. for 1892, p. 703,
> D. 1.
> 2 ie. to Behi'u'llah at Acre.
> I
> INTRODUCTION.
> 11 T14rd Question.
> xxxvii
> " Enquiry was made touching the author of the Tdrtkh-i-
> Jadid (New History). The writer and author of the
> Tdrikh-i-Jadi'd was the late MÕrzà Huseyn of HamadAn.
> He was -a youth of the kinsfolk of Riz6 Khdn the son of
> Muhammad KhAn the Turcoman, who is reckoned amongst
> the martyrs of the Castle of Sheykh Tabarsf, and whose
> name is recorded in the T(irikh-i-JadU . The aforesaid
> author, in consequence of the calligraphic and epistolary
> skill which he shewed in drafting letters, was at first
> secretary to one of the ministers of the Persian Govern-
> ment. At the time of His Majesty Nisiru'd- Dfn Shdh's
> first journey to Europe he too visited those countries in
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> the Royal Suite. On his homeward journey lie remained
> for some time at Constantinople. After his return to Persia,
> he was amongst those imprisoned in consequence of the
> troubles of,the year A.H. 1291 (A.D. 1874), when His
> Reverence AkA JemAl of Burujird was committed to the
> prison of His Majesty the King after his dispute with the
> clergy of Tellerin'.
> " After his release from the prison of Teherin, he ob-
> tained employment in the office of MAnakjf the Zoroaastriail,
> well known as an author and writer'. Mdiiakjf treated
> I See pp. 96-101, and 365 iTVra.
> 2 A full account of this discussion will be found at pp. 170-
> 180 infra. This account, as appears from 1). 172, last paragraph,
> was originally written by -W Jemil himself in Arabic, and trans-
> lated by MÕrzà Abd'l Fazl of GulpAyagin into Persian. The
> conjecture which I hazarded in n. I on p. 170 as to the identity
> of " the Letter J " proves to be correct.
> 3 The full name of Minakjf, late Zoroa8trian Agent at TeherAD,
> was Minakji' the son of Lfmjf H~ishang Hftaryirf Kiy6nf, sur-
> named Darvish-i-Fdni (a)~!Jkjb 'a.
> &U L;!-j._9jJJ  Tbusitisgiven by himself in
> N. If. d
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I
> Xx Vill
> Sith great respect, for had he not become notorious him as a BàbÕ, he would never have engaged in this work. Now
> it chanced one night that he and Muhammad Isma'fl KhAn the Zend, who was a writer skilful in Persian composition,
> were MAnakjf's guests at supper ; and MAnakjf requested each one of them to write a book (for be was most
> zealous in book-collecting, and whomsoever he deemed capable of writing and composing lie would urge to write a
> book or compose a treatise). So on this night he requested Muhammad Isma'fl Khdn to write a history of the kings
> of Persia, and begged MÕrzà Huseyn to compile a history of the BàbÕs.
> " To be brief, Muhammad Isma'fl KhAn wrote the book called _Viraizisfifn, on the ancient empire of Persia from
> Mah-AbAd till the fall bf the SAsAnians, in pure Persian, which, as a matter of fact, he made a veritable ragbag of
> legends and myths from the Slia'hwilma, the Cliah(tr Chiman, and the Dasaitt'r. But Mimi Huseyn came to the writer
> and asked his assistance, saying, 'Since hitherto no full and correct history has been written treating Of the events
> of this Theopliany, to collect and compile the
> INTRODUCTION.
> the preface which he wrote to the Farh ang-i-Anjuman-dr(t-yi
> Mtsiri of RizA-Kulf KhAn Ld1dt-bdshi,, and at the beginning of the
> Persian translation of theaccount of his travels in Persia published
> under the title ;tVJ61 -dJL~; at Bombay
> in A.H. 1280 (A.D. 1863). He appears to have come to Persia
> from India in 1854, for the German missionaries Petermann and
> Briffil travelled with him, his son Ormazdjf, a Mulbad or Zoroas-
> trian priest, a secretary named Key Khusraw, and a cook named
> ShApArjf, from Shfriz to Yezd in July of that year. (See an
> article by F. Justi on the dialect of Yezd in the Z. A M. G. for
> 1881, vol. xxv, pp. 327-8, and a foot-note on p. 328, according
> to which MAnakjf acted for a while as French consul at Yezd.)
> He died a year or two ago.
> INTRODUCTION.
> xxxix
> various episodes thereof in a fitting manner is a very difficult matter. For what Sipihr and Hiddyatl have written
> touching its circumstances is, by reason of their extreme, obsequiousness  and their utter error,
> altogether sheer calumny and downright falsehood. And the accounts given by narrators, too, are so diverse and
> different that the reconciliation of them is not free from difficulty-'
> " To this I replied, 'There is in the hands of the Friends a history by the late HAjf Mfrz;A Jilif of KishAn, who was
> one of the martyrs of TeherAn, and one of the best men of that time. But be was a man engaged in business and
> without skill in historiography, neither-did he record the dates of the years and months. At most he, being a God-
> fearilig man, truthfully set down the record of events as he had seen and heard them. Obtain this book, and take the
> episodes from it, and the dates of the years and months from the Ndsikhu't-Tawairikh and the appendices of the
> Rawzatu's_A~af(t,; and, having incorporated these in your rough draft, read over each sheet to His Reverence Hijf
> Seyyid JawAd of KerbelA (whose name has been repeatedly mentioned in these pages), for he, from the beginning
> of the Manifestation of the First Point [i.e. the Balb] until the arrival of His Holiness Behi'ullAh in Acre, accompanied
> the Friends everywhere in person, and is thoroughly informed and cognizant of all events. Thus diligently correct
> the history, in order that this book may, by the will of God, be well finished, and may win the approbation of the
> learned throughout the world.'
> "Then he requested the writer to indite the introduc
> 1 Concerning Sipihr (better known as Lisdme-1-3fulk) and Hiddyat (Rizi-Kulf KhAn Ldld-bashi), and their histories,
> the Ndsikhu't- Tawdrikh and the supplement to the Rawzatzes- Safei, see Vol. ii of my Traveller's.Yarrative, pp. 173-
> 192.
> d 2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> X1  INTRODUCTION.
> tory preface, and so open for him the path of composition.
> So 1, agreeably to his request, wrote two pages at the
> ginning of that book, and embellished this introduction
> th prefatory exhortations a ' nd incitements to strive after
> truth'. Now it was his intention to compose this book
> in two VoluMeS2, the first volume about the events con-
> nected with the Manifestation of the First Point [i.e. the
> BAb], and the second volume about the circumstances of
> the Most Holy and Most Splendid Dawn'. But after he
> had completed the first volume, fate granted him no further
> respite, for lie died in the city of Resht in the year A. H.
> 1299 [= A.D. 1881-2].
> " But MAnakjf would not suffer this history to be
> finished in the manner which the writer had suggested,
> but compelled the chronicler to write what lie dictated.
> For MAnakJVs custom was ti) bid his secretary write down
> some matter and afterwards read the rough draft over to
> him. So first of all the secretary used to read over to
> him the rough draft which lie had made in accordance with
> his own taste and agreeably to the canons of good style;
> and then, after Mdiiakjf had made additions here and
> excisions there, and had docked and re-arranged the matter,
> he used to make a fair copy. And since MAnakif had
> no great skill or science in the Persian tongue, the style
> of most of the books and treatises attributed to him is
> discolginected and broken, good and bad being mingled
> together. In addition to this defect, ignorant scribes and
> 1 Cf. .1. R. A. S. for 1892, p. 442. According to Baron Rosen's
> letter there cited, the portion of the Preface of the New History
> composed by Mfrza' AbA'I-Fazl extends from the beginning to 1. 3
> of p. 3 infra.
> 2 See pp. 318-319 infra.
> ession (,.~l
> 3 By this expr 4JJo) the Manifestation
> of Bebi)_~IlAh is meant.
> i
> INTRODUCTION.
> illiterate -writers have, in accordance with their own fancies,
> so altered the Tiriklk-i-Jadid' that at the present day
> every copy of it appears like a defaced portrait or a restored
> temple, to such a degree that one cannot obtain a correct
> copy of it, unless it were the author's own transcript; other-
> wise no copy can be relied upon.
> " As for Hiji MÕrzà JAni of KAshAn, he was ODe Of the
> most highly respected merchants of that town, and believed
> in the blessed mission of the First Point [i.e. the BAbJ at
> the very beginning of the Theophany. He was brother to
> Jewltb-i-Zab~k (who is mentioned in the Lawk-i-Ra't's',
> and was honoured with the title of Ant's). He it was who,
> when the First Point (exalted be his Supreme Name 1) was
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> being conveyed, by command of Muhammad ShAh, from
> lsfahd,n to TeherAn, entertained His Holiness for three
> nights in his house at KAshdn'. Some while afterwards he
> came froin KishAn to TeherAn, and abode in ShAh 'Abdu'l-
> 'AzfM4, where he wrote his history. He was involved in
> the catastrophe of the year A.H. 1268 (A.D. 1852, Aug.-
> Sept.), and in prison shared the same cell with His Holiness
> Belid'u'llih, and was bound by the same iron chain. Some
> days later 'he was put to death, an innocent victim, in
> this massacre5, and attained to the rank of martyrdom.
> 1 The multitude of variants and divergences in the two MSS.
> of which I made use in preparing this translation fully bears out
> this statement.
> 2 See indei., s.v. Zabih - and the J. R. A. S. for 1892, p. 311,
> where my conjecture as to the identity of Zabih seems to have
> been erroneous.
> 3 See pp. 213-214, and 349 infra.
> 4 The celebrated shrine and city of refuge, distant about 5 or
> 6 miles from Teherin to the south.
> 5 On September 15th, A.D. 1852. See Traveller's Narrative,
> vol. ii, p. 332.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> x1ii
> INTRODUCTION.
> But of his history 1, the writer, cannot now procure a copy;
> for from Samarkand to Teherin is very far, and fortune
> frowns on the People of BehA, and is beyond measure
> jealous of them.
> " God Alm lity best knoweth the truth of all matters.
> " Written tin the twenty-first day of the month of'
> Rabru'th-thainf A.H. 1310, corresponding to the thirty-first
> of Tashrin-i-avval [October]' A.I). 1892, by the pen of the
> author of this treatise, Abft'I-Fazl Muhammad ibn Mu-
> hammad 1146 of GulpAyagin."
> This full and detailed account of the authorship and
> composition of the T6rikh-i-Jadt'd, for which both Mfrz6
> AbA'I-Fazl and M. Toumansky are entitled to our warmest
> gratitude-, the one for writing and the other for publishing
> it, renders it unnecessary for me to say much more on this
> head. We cannot but regret that one capable of writing
> so clear, succinct, and pertinent a statement had not a
> larger share in the compilation of the Rig-rkh-i-Jadid '
> which would undoubtedly have gained much more from
> the co-operation of MÕrzà Abu'l-Fazl than it has from that
> of MAnakjf. One point, however, I must again briefly
> allude to : I mean the share iing the work here ascribed to
> Seyyid JawAd of Kerbeli. In my Catalogue and Descrip-
> tion of 27 Bdb11'H8S. (J. R. A. S. for 1892, pp. 443-4 and
> 683-5) 1 expressed a doubt as to the correctness of this-
> portion of MÕrzà Abu"I-Fazl's statement, my grounds for
> this doubt being the ascription to Seyyid JawAd of the
> Hasht Kihisht, a controversial work of strongly-marked Ezelf
> proclivities, and assurances given to me by ~ubl ' i-i-Ezel to
> the effect that Seyyid JawAd was one of his staunchest
> This date is given according to the old style prevalent in
> Russia. The corresponding date according to our style ias No-
> vember 12th.
> INTRODUCTION.
> xliii -
> adherents'. What I wrote on this matter was shown by
> M. Toumansky to MÕrzà Abft'l-Fazl, who, in letters pub-
> lished in the article in the Zapisski already cited, cate-
> gorically and absolutely denies that Seyyid JawAd was
> an Ezelf, or was other than a most devoted and loyal
> adherent of BehA. I have not space to quote either the
> interesting biographical details about this illustrious man,
> nor the epistle addressed to him by BehA'u'lldh, nor the
> denial of his sympathy with the Ezelfs made by Mirzi
> Ab,h'I-Fazl to M. Toumansky, and published by the latter
> in Vol. viii of the Zapisski (pp. 41, ahnd 43-5), to which
> I refer such as desire fuller information. The sum of the
> matter is this: Seyyid JawAd was a man equally re-
> markable for his illustrious descent, his learning, and his
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> piety; he was brought up in the Sheykhf doctrines, followed
> the lectures of Seyyid KAzim, and was one of the earliest
> believers in the BAb, whom he knew personally. His
> nature was so gentle and temperate that, according to
> MÕrzà AbiYI-Fazl, 11 he would speak ill of no one, mentioning
> all religious opinions, whether of Hindoos, Jews, Christians,
> MusulmAns, Ezelfs, or BehA'fs, with respect." BoththeEzelfs
> and the BehA'fs claim him; and, as I think, we have not
> yet sufficient evidence to enable us to decide between them,
> for against the clear and explicit testimony of Mfrz&
> AhA'l-Fazl is the equally clear and equally explicit testi-
> mony of Subh-i-Ezel and his partisan Sheykh A -.
> I now pass to my own connection with the Tdrikh-i-
> Jadi'd. I was first made aware of its existence by Mr Sidney
> Churchill (to whose unrivalled knowledge of Persian biblio-
> graphy I seize this occasion of once more bearing testimony)
> on December 14th, 1887. He told me that he had obtained
> a manuscript of this history of the BàbÕs for the British
> I Traveller8 Narrative, Vol. ii, p. 342, n. 2.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Xliv INTRODUCTION. INTRODUCTION. xlV
> Museum Library, and advised me, if I was interested in
> this subject, to work at it on my return to England. H e,
> did not inform me of the author's name, but said that he
> was a member of the sect. I made a note of his communi-
> cation in my diary, and, for the time being, did nothing
> more.
> I next heard of the TdrWi-i-Jadid at SlifrAz on March
> 30th, 1888, from some of my BA]f friends. They described
> it as a history of the events of1the 'Manifestation' from
> the beginning, and the author as a Persian who had
> travelled much, and who, having begun to write the book
> as an impartial observer, had been convinced by the results
> of his enquiries, if not by his own eloquence, during the
> progress of his labours. One of my informants, a BàbÕ
> missionary, admitted that he knew the name of the author,
> but said that lie did not feel justified in divulging it
> to me. At the asaiigie time a promise w . as given that a
> copy of the book should be lent-to me. This promise was
> fulfilled two days later; and during my stay at ShfrAz
> I read a considerable portion of it. When I left ShfrAz
> hurriedly for Yezd, expecting to return thither before
> leaving Persia, I was permitted to take the manuscript
> with me, and finally it was bestowed upon me as a gift.
> It is now in my possession, and is described in full in my
> Catalogue a2id Description of 27 Bdbi' 0188. (J. R. A.
> for 1892, pp. 440-444) under the press-mark BBP. 5. In
> this volume I designate it simply as C. (Cambridge Codex).
> On my return to England in the autumn of 1888, 1
> again read this manuscript through, this time more care-
> fully, making marginal references and annotations ; and
> I made considerable use of it in the compilation of the two
> articles on the BàbÕs which I published in the July and
> October n'Liinbers of the .1. -B. A. S. for 1889. This reading
> I concluded on December 8th, 1888.
> When the conclusion of the two articles above referred-
> to left me free to take up fresh work, I resolved to prepare
> a text and translation of the T6rikh-i-Jadid. I did not
> at first make any use of the British Museum Codex (Or.
> 2942), as I could not at that time go to London to consult
> it. I therefore transcribed my manuscript in a fair legible
> hand, such as could be easily read by an European com-
> positor, marking the passages which seemed corrupt, or
> writing them in pencil with a query in the margin, and
> sometimes a conjectural emendation. At the same time I
> made the rough draft of a literal English translation, which,
> however, I discontinued when I had transcribed about
> half the book. The transcript I finished on February 8th,
> 1890.
> During the following Easter Vacation (March 4tb-
> May 3rd) I visited the two rival BàbÕ chiefs, Subh-i-Ezel
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> at Famagusta in Cyprus, and BehA'u'llAh at Acre in Syria.
> From the latter place I brought back the -manuscript of
> 'AbbAs Efendi's Traveller's Narrative (referred to at pp. xiv
> and xxxi-ii slTra), which, in accordance with the pleasure
> of the Syndics of the University Press, I published in
> f
> ae_Sifijile a with an English translation and notes. Till the
> appearance of these volumes in February 1892, 1 had little
> leisure to give to the T6rrkh-i-Jad-rd, but nevertheless in
> the Easter vacation of 1891 1 spent about three weeks in
> London, and, by dint of hard work, finished collating my
> transcript of the text with the British Museum Codex
> (Or. 2942), hereinafter designated as L. (London Codex),
> on April 11th of that year. This collation was more
> laborious than I had anticipated, for the variants between
> the two manuscripts were numerous and important, and
> several long episodes contained in L. but omitted in C.
> had to be transcribed. Finally, however, the work was
> accomplished, and a satisfactory text established.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> p
> xlvi INTRODUCTION,
> INTRODUCTION.  x1vii
> aid, to publish
> My original intention was, as T have s, to bear the expenses of publishing the translation, but
> both text and translation of a work which I regarded as of i
> expressed a disinclination to undertake the text as well.
> capital importance for the proper understanding of the
> BàbÕ religion. It was clear, however, that the partial This decision, although it did not surprise me, caused me
> translation which I had made would have to be entirely at the time some little disappointment; for it is not in
> rewritten in the fuller light of the collated and corrected human nature, when one has laboured long and diligently
> text. The work of translating the Traveller's Narrative at the reconstruction of a text, to learn without a shadow
> had somewhat modified my views as to the manner in of regret that it will never be anything more than a manu-
> which Eastern bookai should be done into English. I had script. Yet I deem it now a most fortunate circumstance
> made that translation as literal is possible, and, owing that the Syndics arrived at this decision, for the discovery
> of H&jf MfrJA JAnf's history in the Biblioth'que Nationak
> to the concise and clear style of the original, this was not
> so difficult as in the case of the diffuse, wordy and dis- puts an entirely new complexion on the matter, and it is
> evident that it has a far stronger claim to publication than
> cursive New History, which abounded in re-iterations, the T&z'kk-i-Jadzd.
> digressions, and irrelevant diatribes. Yet even the trans- The -determination arrived at by the Syndics decided
> lation which I had made of the Traveller's Narrative did
> not wholly satisfy me, for I felt that, notwithstanding all me on two points. I had learned from Baron Rosen that
> an incomplete manuscript of the TdrWW-Jadt'd had been
> my pains, it was at best laborious and wearisome reading obtained at 'IshkAbad and forwarded to St Petersburg by
> in English. How, then, would- it be with the New Lieutenant Touinansky in the summer or autumn of 1890'.
> History ? Had it been decided to publish the text, I should- have
> Before finally decidin on the course which I should
> 9 had to make a further collation of this manuscript with
> adopt, I again applied to the Syndics of the University my restored text. As the translation only was to be pub-
> Press with a view to ascertaining whether they were lished, this'seemed to me no longer absolutely necessary,
> disposed to accept the text and translation of the book, my text being sufficiently good for this purpose. I was,
> or either of them, for publication. I ventured to urge the ignoreover, enabled to form a clearer conception of the lines
> publication- of the translation, but did not feel justified in on which my new translation must be made. Of the plan
> insisting very strongly on the importance of printing the which I elaborated and have carried out in the following
> text as well ; for to print so extensive a text in the Arabic pages I shall now proceed to speak.
> character would, I knew, be a very costly undertaking, The facts with which I had to reckon were these : a
> and, seeing that of such texts the total number which work wherein historical matter of great interest and im-
> can be published in Europe is necessarily limited, it portance was mingled with prolix digressions of little value;
> is incumbent on the scholar to consider what text is a text based on two manuscripts each of which contained
> most indispensable, lest haply lie fail to use to the
> I See Collections Scientifiques de Unstitut de8 Langues Orien-
> best advantage the facilities placed at his disposal. In
> reply to my application, the Syndics enerously consented tales de St Pe'tersbo urg, Vol. vi, p. 244 and the J. R. A. S. for
> 9 1892, pp. 318-'319.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I
> x1viii INTRODUCTION.
> INTRODUCTION.
> xlix
> several important and lengthy passages omitted in the being actually introduced by the words "thus says ~ the
> other; and a style generally concise and clear in the reviser of this history," or "thus says the transcriber'."
> narrative portions of the book, but florid, redundant, and It was evidently most important to preserve all these
> diffuse in the digressions, The object which I had in view narratives, to indicate at the saine time the Codex in
> was to produce a readable rendering of this work in English, which they occurred, and, in the case of episodes differently
> which, while embodying everything in the least degree narrated in the two Codices, to give the two versions for
> calculated to throw lialit on the history and development comparison one beside the other.
> of the Bibf religion, a,31iould oiiiit most of the irrelevant The way in which I have done this is as follows. Pas-
> matter mixed up with it in the original, preserving only sages occurring only in L. (the London Codex) are enclosed
> such specimens of the digressions, diatribes, and somewhat in single square brackets and passages occurring
> trite reflections of the author as might suffice to give a only in C. (the Cambridge Codex, i.e. my own MS.) in
> correct idea of his style. double brackets When such passage is a simple
> Now in the case of a classical or ancient text, which insertion, and, has nothing corresponding with it in the
> has an interest mainly literary, our endeavour must evi- other manuscript, no further mark is added. , When, how-
> here is a parallel passage in the other manuscript
> dently be to find out, so far as possible, what the author ever, t
> wrote, and to eliminate and discard all interpolations made (whether this consist of a few words only, or of a different
> by later hands. No one, for instance, who proposed to narrative of almost equal length), the two versions are
> edit the Jlasnavl' would wish to retain in the text the placed one above the other (the longer, as a rule, in the
> many spuriotia-, lines which have been added by iiigeniouas body of the page, the shorter at the foot), and the same
> copyists in the course of ages; therefore, having satisfied typographical mark (an asterisk, a dagger, or the like) is
> himself that a given passage reposed on no good manu- placed outside the enclosing brackets of both, so that their
> script authority, lie would without compunction excise correspondence may be at once apparent. In this way
> it. But this does not apply to a book like the T6r~kh-i- both versions are preserved, and the translation of either
> Jadid, which was written only thirteen or fourteen years
> ago) -which is essentially a cOngipilati0ii made by two or As instances I will only cite K~ichak 'Ali Beg's-narrative of
> the entry of the Nfrfz captives into ShfrAz (pp. 124-8 infra),
> three persons acting in coihicert, and which, moreover, ia3
> which is much fuller in L. than in C.; the different accounts of
> interesting less from a literary than from a historical point the second Nfrfz insurrection in the two MSS. (pp. 128-131) ;
> of view. In this case the interpolations may be just as the extensive particulars of the ZanjAn siege given in L. on the
> valuable as the original text, for no one but a BàbÕ would
> copy the book, and such an one might well add from his owl, authority of Haydar Beg, the son of Mulli Muhammad 'Alf's
> lieutenant Din Muhammad (pp. 136-161, and 163-8); ~,abfh's
> knowledge new and important facts of which the autlioras narrative of Mir 'Abdu'l-BAkf's meeting with the BAb at K6shAn
> were not cognizant. Indeed, as a matter of fact, some of (pp. 214--216) in L.; the text of MÕrzà Muhammad 'Ali's letter
> the most interesting portions of the Tdrikh-i-Jadrd are to his brother (pp. 301-3) in C.; and SuleymAn Kh6n's account
> evidently interpolations of this sort, several of them of the Nib's execution in L. (pp, 309-311).
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> INTRODUCTION. INTRODUCTION.
> text can be easily restored. Suppose, for example, one of
> my readers sees reason to think that the L. text is the,
> more correct one, and wishes to deal with this only, he
> will delete everything enclosed in double brackets, and
> transfer the parallel passages in single brackets from. the-
> foot of the page into the body of the text; and vice versa'.
> In some cases passages occurring in one manuscript only
> (but generally passages of small extent) have been rele-
> gated to the foot of the page because they appeared to me
> to be either redundant, or incorrect. In this case their
> position in the text is indicated by the insertion at the
> point where they occur of the same typographical sign
> (asterisk, dagger, or the like) which is prefixed and ap-
> pended to the brackets enclosing them.
> Of the two manuscripts oil which my text is based, the
> London Codex (L.) is described at pp. 192-7 of vol. ii
> of my Traveller's Narrative, and my own manuscript (C.)
> at pp. 440-4 of the J.R.A.S. for 1892, so that I need say
> no more about them in this place, save that the former,
> transcribed in Rajab A.H. 1298 (June, 1881), was written,
> as appears from MÕrzà Abii'l-Fazl's statement, during the
> author's lifetime (for he died in A.H. 1299), and may even
> have been made under his supervision. In any case it
> is the better manuscript of the two. My inability to
> publish the text has made me feel a greater responsibility
> about the translation, since my readers will not be able to
> check the accuracy of my renderings by reference to the
> original; and I can conscientiously say that I have taken
> more pains with this book than with the Traveller's
> Narrative, though I have not followed the idiom of the
> Persian quite so closely, especially in the noil-historical
> portions, where I felt that a greater latitude in treatment
> was admissible.
> It now only remains for me to speak of the supple-
> mentary, matter with which I have striven, to enrich this
> volume, and to tender my thanks to those to whom I am
> most indebted for help. This supplementary matter con-
> sists of three illustrations; four fac-similes of letters; and
> three Appendices', numbered II, III, and IV.
> Of the illustrations, one, a portrait of Subh-i-Ezel,
> forms the frontispiece. For this I am indebted to my
> friend Captain Arthur Young, lately Commissioner at
> Famagusta in Cyprus, to whose kind help I owe so much.
> The photograph, which, as I can testify, is an extremely
> faithful likeness, was taken, so far as I remember, about
> the end of 1889 or the beginning of 1890, and the negative,
> which was necessary for the preparation of the copper-plate,
> was sent to me last year. The plans of Sheykh Tabarsf and
> the sketch of the ZanjAn gate were drawn by my sister,
> Miss Helen Browne, from rough sketches made by myself
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> on the spot in 1887-8.
> For the autograph letters of the Bib, Seyyid Huseyn,
> MullA Sheykh 'All Jena&i-'Aztm) and Kurratu'l-'Ayn
> I aign indebted to the kindness of Subh-i-Ezel. Fac-similes
> of these, with their translations and reproductions in the
> printed character, form Appendix 111, to which the reader
> is referred for further information. All these illustrations
> and fac-similes have been executed by the Cambridge
> Engravillg Company under the supervision of my friend
> Mr A. G. Dew-Smith of Trinity College, to whom I here
> offer my warmest thanks for the pains which he has taken
> to make them as perfect as possible.
> For the facilities afforded ine for working at the Paris
> manuscript of HAjf MÕrzà JAnf's history, an account of
> which forms Appendix II of this volume, I owe a great
> I Appendix I is not included, because it merely contains an
> abstract of certain portions of the Tdrikh-i-Jadid which did not
> seem to me worth translating in full.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> iii
> INTRODUCTION.
> debt of gratitude to the ,Liitlioritica3 of the Biblioth6que
> Nationale, especially to M. Delisle and M. Zotenberg, as
> well as to my friends M. Barbier de Meynard and M.
> Michel Br6al. For the transcript of the text on which
> 1 have chiefly had to rely, my thanks are due to Ahmed
> Beg Agaeff, who, at considerable personal inconvenience,
> exerted himself to the utmost to complete it in the shortest
> possible space of time.
> The "Succinct Account qf the B(ibll' Jfovement," of
> which the English translation forms Appendix IV of this
> volume, and of which the Persian text stands at the end
> of the book after the Index, was written for me by ~ubh-i-
> Ezel in November--December 1889 in reply to sundry
> questions which I had addressed to hini a little while pre-
> viously. On the importance of such an account coming
> from such a source it is unnecessary to dwell : it is almost
> as though we had a narrative of the first beginnings of
> Islim told by 'Ali ibn Abf Talib. That so valuable a
> document deserved publication will, I should think, be
> questioned by no one.
> Last of all my warmest thanks are due to the Syndics
> of the University Press for their liberality in bearing the
> cost of publication of a work little likely, I fear, to prove
> remunerative; to my friend Mr R. A. Neil of this College
> for undertaking, notwithstan ding the many claii-nas on his
> time, the labour of reading through the proof-sheets; and
> to Baron Rosen and Lieutenant Toumansky for keeping
> me continually informed of their latest discoveries, and
> for supplying me with proofs of papers not yet published.
> That my book may not be found unworthy of the generous
> help received from so many different quarters is my earnest
> hope.
> I
> I I  I
> THE TARIKH-I-JADID,
> OR
> NEW HISTORY
> OF
> I
> MIRZA 'ALf MUIJAMMAD THE BA'B.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> N. H.
> I  I
> PREFACE.
> THAT in matters of faith and g religion a slavish sub.-
> servience to authority and custom is improper and unseemly;
> that problems of such vital importance cannot be solved by
> passion, prejudice, and idle guesses ; and that we canihiot
> soar into a region so vast on the wings of baseless'con-,
> jecture or blind conformity, are statements which allwise
> and impartial judges will readily admit. For it -was
> through naught else than such blind -imitation of --their
> ancestors and unreasoning submission. to the. authority -of
> their priests that former peoples rejected the prophets, sent
> unto them, seeking to justify their unbelief by such words
> as, "Verily we found our fathers practising a religion, and
> we follow their footsteps'." Neither is this enquiry one
> on which we should enter heedlessly or unreflectingly,,
> inasmuch as even those best qualified to undertake it do
> humbly entreat Him who is the Guide of Wanderers to
> keep them from erring or stumbling, while the, very pro-
> phets and apostles exclaim in their sense of utter helpless-g
> ness, " Place me not with the g wicked people One
> cannot, therefore, in a quest so perilous, follow the foot-
> steps of such as pretend to take philosophy as a guide of
> life while they are themselves still entangled in the bonds
> of passion; nor of those who acquire learning only with A
> 1 Kur'àn, x1iii, 22.
> 2 Kur'àn, vii, 149.
> 1
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> PREFACE. 3
> 2 THE NEW HISTORY. I
> view to obtaining power, and who make their austere and enquiry to his fellow-men, that they also may be delivered
> ascetic life a snare wherewith to delude the ignorant. [For from doubt and uncertainty. For this reason did the
> the Prophet bath said, "All men shall perish save the writer of this book deem it incumbent on himself to set
> wise, and all the wise shall perish save such as make uase of forth in these pages in a concise and narrative form such
> their wisdom, and all such as make use of their wisdom information as he acquired during his travels in Persia
> shall perish save those who are sincere, and even the concerning the different sects of the MusulmAns, hoping
> sincere are in dire peril." This is also implied in the that thereby certain current misapprehensions may be
> saying, "The true believer is rarer than the philosopher's dissipated, and that sundry baseless calumnies and false
> stone, and harder to find than pure gold" ; while the same accusations which lead men to deem their fellow creatures
> fact is eloquently aset forth by Christ where he, says that infidels meet only to be slain and despoiled, whose very
> men of every kind shall assemble at the wedding-feast, but touch is a contamination, may be disproved. In this way
> that the chosen are few.] the enmity and discord which are the ruin of this people
> But inasmuch as the Merciful God bath made every may perchance be abated, so that they may meet and
> soul a mirror capable of illumination by the Sun of discuss amicably with a view to the removal of their
> Wisdom, in such wise that whosoever will inay thereby differences, and may no longer continue to regard each
> apprehend divine verities, and so become endowed with other as infidels and unbelievers without having clearly
> true humanity and unselfishness, it behoves every one to apprehended that wherein they are at variance.
> renounce all self-seeking and egotism, to avert his gaze To be brief, after travelling for some time in all parts -of
> from passion and desire, and earnestly to endeavour to Europe and India and observing the races and religions of
> follow the path of God, looking to Him and trusting in those regions, I chanced to visit Persia. Although I had
> Him. So with stedfast feet shall he pursue the path of not meditated a long sojourn in that country, nevertheless
> righteousness, and enter with all sincerity and singleness of events so shaped themselves that I remained there for a
> heart into the highway of enquiry, until lie at length win considerable period, mixing in familiar conversation with
> to a state where God shall be gracious unto him and shall all sorts of people, and making friends and acquaintances
> guide him unto the recipient of divine revelation and the amongst every class. Some of these invited me to ex-
> saint of that age. Thus may the seeker realize the pro- change the Christian faith for the religion of Muhammad;
> mise of the blessed word, "Those who strive for us we will others regarded me as one of themselves; others again
> assuredly direct into our ways'." received me not. Yet such was the divergence of opinions
> Now whosoever bath been brought to this state and led and such the multiplicity of sects which I beheld in this
> to apprehend this truth is bound by the gratitude which so religion- Sheykhfs, Mutasharri's, SAffs, Sunnfs, mystics,
> signal a blessing ashould inspire, as well as by the dictates metaphysicians, dervishes, Nuseyris', devotees, and BàbÕs-
> of common humanity, to communicate the results of his that, though my inclination prompted me to advance, my
> reason bade me stand still. For if the Kur'-An be one and
> Kur'a'n, xxix, 69. contain the commands of God, whence come all these
> 1-2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 4 THE NEW HISTORY.
> differences of opinion and contradictory judgements ? Seek
> as I might, I could discover no agreement between the
> treatises of two vmll6s, or the decisions of two muitallids.
> What I heard was ever, "My humble opinion is this," or
> "the view held by So-and-so is this," the command of God
> being altogether disregarded amongst them.
> Alas that they have by their disagreements and dif-
> ferences so marred this holy Law that little is left of it
> save the name and appearance, and that nothing wise or
> intelligible is any longer heard, but only vain discussions
> touching legal uncleanness and purification It is as
> though God, in His infinite bounty, ahould cause to fall
> the rain of mercy, purposing thereby to satisfy all mankind
> with sweet streams of wisdom, and to deliver them from
> the thirst of ignorance and inadvertence; that thereupon
> a host of foul reptiles should gather round the spot where
> it had collected pure and sweet, battening, breeding, and
> each after his own fashion asserting his supremacy and
> claiming undisputed possession ; that in the course of ages
> these should so befoul and pollute that pure sweet water
> that it waxeth loathsome and abominable; that notwith-
> standing this they should still continue with those melodious
> voices wherewith they are endowed to invite all inen from
> far and near to enter in and drink, crying out "This is the
> pure Water of Life and the Fount of Immortality " ; that
> pilgrims athirst in the desert of enquiry should approach
> with eager hope ; but that on their arrival they should
> behold the contrary of what they had expected, and should
> turn away in bitter disappointment, saying,
> If indeed the faith of IslAni be what in the world appears,
> Well may sceptics mock the faith of Islaim with a thousand
> sneers ! "
> And yet, by striving to exercise a little candour and to
> banish dissension, they might still hope to purify and
> PREFACE.
> reform this holy religion. But if they desire to please God
> and His prophets, regenerate their faith, restore to their
> creed its pristine lustre, and render their country and state
> once more free, prosperous, and powerful, they must in the
> first place abandon certain habits which are at present
> rooted and engrained in their very nature. To these
> habits they have grown so accustomed that not only have
> they become almost a second nature, but the hatefulness
> thereof is not even suspected by them. Their condition is
> like that of a certain priest who said to a friend, " If you
> notice in me any objectionable habit of which I myself may
> not be aware, pray inform me of it, that I may strive to
> relinquish it." " I perceive no fault in you," answered his
> friend, "save a habit of using abusive language." "Abusive
> language!" cried the other, " What rascally knave calls me
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> abusive? What shameless ruffian have I abused that he
> should dare to prefer such a charge against me?"
> Now the principal vice of the Persians (and it is the
> worst of faults, and, indeed, the source of all) is falsehood,
> which has gained such universal ascendancy and become so
> customary and so familiar that truthfulness and integrity
> are entir6ly abandoned and ignored. And it is this vice
> which has brought about the decay of religion and law and
> the enfeeblement of Church and State. For falsehoods
> uttered by ministers of state in diplomatic transactions
> by destroying the dignity of the Crown and the reputation
> of the government, bring about the ruin of the empire ;
> falsehoods proceeding from ministers of religion dishonour
> the Sacred Law and overthrow the edifice of faith; while
> falsehoods uttered by the common folk prevent progress
> and tend to bring about the decline and fall of the nation.
> For this reason political and religious liberty and national
> wealth and prosperity are in all other countries and amongst
> all other races and creeds, whether in Europe or India,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 6 THE NEW HISTORY.
> daily on the increase ; while with this unfortunate people,
> by reason of this same perverse untruthfulness and lack of
> integrity, they are continually on the decline, though the
> prevalent corruption, disorder, and mental preoccupation
> do not suffer the cause of this to be discerned.
> The people of Italy were till within recent years similarly
> afflicted. Eventually a number of their men of learning
> assembled together to investigate the cause of this. "Since
> we dwell in the fairest portion of Europe," said they, "and
> are skilled in all arts, trades, manufactures, and sciences,
> what can be the reason that we are continually deteriorating
> while our neighbours are perpetually making progress in
> every direction ? " After due thought and deliberation
> they discovered that this was wholly traceable to the
> influence of the Pope, who in their country represented
> the supreme spiritual authority, declaring himself to be the
> vicar of Christ. He, like the divines of Persia, withheld
> men from acquiring iia-,efiil arts and accomplishments or
> amassing wealth by senseless injurictions, in proof of which
> lie would adduce sayings of great and holy men whereof
> he had wholly failed to apprehend the true purport, sue
> as, " The world is carrion and such aas desire it are dogs"
> " Love of the world is the source of all error "; " Provision
> is appointed and the covetous are disappointed." These
> aphorisms, and others like unto them, had been so dinned
> into men's ears that they had ceased to care for art,
> commerce, agriculture, or wealth, and had been brought to
> regard this ancient and enduring world as a thing im-
> permanent and unstable as a spider's web, saying, for
> example,-
> "Naught in tb e world shall endure ;
> Naught shall abide 'neath the sun;
> Earth is a mansion as frail
> As the web which the spider hath spun."
> I
> PREFACE.
> 7
> Yet in this " spider's web " the wise men of , Europe,
> by means of the astronomical instruments and tables which
> they possess, behold one of those celestial orbs whereof
> some are so remote that the light proceeding from them
> must travel for thirty thousand years ere it reach this
> globe, notwithstanding that light travels two hundred
> thousand miles a second! We speak here of orbs which
> the wise men of those parts have actually beheld with the
> eye of sense, for as to those far more distant orbs which
> cannot be seen without special appliances, but which still
> exercise attraction on other celestial bodies, they extend
> unto wheresoever God pleaseth, and He alone knoweth
> their number, the distances which intervene between them,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> the fashion of their formation, and the kind of creatures
> which inhabit them. Compared to these this globe is like
> a ball encircled by the bat of Divine Might, and so moved
> and rolled by the sun's attraction.
> To be brief, however, when the wise men of Europe
> and the people of Italy had proved the extent of His
> Holiness the Pope's hypocrisy, guile, and deceit, they
> exerted all their energies, and, notwithstanding all his
> power and the subjection in which he had hitherto held
> all the sovereigns of Europe, so effectually deposed him
> and his children and grandchildren that naught remained
> of him but the name and appearance, nor did anyone
> thenceforth pay the slightest heed to a single word
> which he wrote. After this they employed themselves
> in spreading the triumphs of Art, Commerce, and Political
> Reform, until in a little while they became objects of
> emulation to all their fellows and contemporaries.
> Now, although the Persians have witnessed and com-
> prehended the consequences of falsehood, they still refuse
> to relinquish this evil habit-
> I know not how such as in evil delight
> See nothing but evil in virtue and right."
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 8
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> Yet in their books of tradition it is stated on good
> authority that certain persons demanded of the ImAin
> Ja'far-i-SAdik, "Will your followers commit crimes and
> do unlawful actions?" He answered, "Yes." "Will they
> be guilty of fornication alid sins against nature?~' they
> asked. "It is possible," lie replied. "Will they drink
> wine and do murder?" they inquired. , it is likely
> enough," said he. " Will they utter falsehoods ?" they
> asked. " That," said lie, "is impossible! "
> Notwithstanding this, the Persians astill claim to be
> Shi'ites, and, although God has called liars accursed in
> all the sacred books, refuse to abandon their mendacious
> habits. Nor do they confine themselves to minor false-
> hoods affecting only the things of this world, for in
> matters relating to religion also they have shewn them-
> selves to be ready liars and shameless -forgers, as will be
> duly set forth in its proper place.
> Now the principal evil of falsehood is, that when it
> has entered- into a man's nature -aii(hl there established
> itself, it generates a host of other evils. Amongst these
> is hypocrisy, which is a kind of unbelief. Hypocrites
> have ever been the chief cause of the downfall of re-
> ligion, even as the Seal of the Prophets, Muhammad,
> hath said, " I fear for this faith neither unbeliever nor
> believer, but I fear - the hypocrite who makes a show of
> faith and harbours unbelief in his heart." Now the ori-
> ginal meaning of the word kit
> ,fr (unbelief) is the con-
> cealing of h-uth or right in any way whatsoever, though
> it be but to the extent of a mustard-seed or mote, without
> its being restricted to the truth or right of God or man.
> Indeed it is evident that none can conceal God, who is
> more evident and manifest than the visible sun. So a
> k6fir (unbeliever) is one who refuses to recognize the
> rights of God or of his fellow-men; and this unbelief, as
> I imagine, exists to some extent in every one. And so
> i
> PREFACE.
> 9
> likewise the devout Musulm.An is he who recognizes God
> and all 'such as have just claims on him, and who dis-
> charges the duties which he owes to others in a right
> manner, injuring none either in word or deed. But as for
> such as devour the wealth of great and small alike, dis-
> honour their fellow-men, lay violent hands on the property
> of this one or that one, give unjust decisions, and de-
> nounce as infidels and doom to death God's servants, I
> know not how they can hope or believe that they are
> devout Musulmins! Could some men but regard them-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> selves impartially and discern their own inward unbelief,
> they would never again ascribe infidelity to another 1
> As it has now been shewn that disregard and neglect
> of the rights of our fellow-men is a kind of unbelief, it is
> evident also that hypocrisy is a species of latent infidelity,
> and Muhammad hath said, Infidelity is more difficult
> of detection amongst my people than a black ant crawling
> in the dark night over hard rock." Now hypocrites are
> those whose hearts and tongues are not in accord, -whose
> words and deeds are inconsistent, who are inwardly repro-,
> bate and outwardly devout, and who, clothing themselves
> in the garb of a spurious asceticism and simulated piety,
> seek to deceive God and man by their guile and cuniiing-
> "Without fair-seeming as the pagan's shrine;
> Wi thin o'ershadowed by the wrath divine;
> The life of Bdyazfdl their lips defame -,
> Their hearts Yazfd2 himself might blush to claim."
> Now should anyone, while admitting that it is possible
> by guile and falsehood to deceive men, demand how it,is
> possible to deceive God, we reply that, albeit this is im-
> 1 BAyazid of Bistim, a celebrated SAff saint who flourished in
> the third century of the hijra.
> 2 Yazid b. Muliviya, the second 0mayyad caliph and mur-
> derer of the Imim Huseyn. He reigned from A.H. 60 to 64. ,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> i
> 10 THE NEW HISTORY.
> possible, these foolish itgicii do nevertheless attempt to
> cheat Him who is " the Bost Deviser of Stratagems'," and
> to explain away the ordinances and commandinents of
> Muhammad, the Seal of the Prophets. Have you, not
> yourself seen and heard of how many estates and fortunes
> persons ostensibly devout obtain possession, persuading
> themselves by their casuistry that these are tgheir lawful
> right and just due? Judge by this of the thousand other
> species of traffickings, barterings, and pleadings whereby,
> in diverse fashions, they compel rightful claimants to effect
> settlements and partial compromises. With such phrases
> as " I compromise," " I agree," which have now become
> universal technicalities, do they defraud God and man,
> trampling under foot the rights of their fellows, and
> shutting their eyes to equity and justice. This is the
> real meaning of infidelity, and these are the true infidels.
> Consider fairly: if a woman be entitled to receive a. thou-
> sand tu'm6nis dowry from her husband, or a sister the like
> sum as a legacy from her brother, and if, after the, con-
> clusion of the legal formalities and proceedings, she be
> unabl-I to enforce her just claims and be compelled to
> effect a compromise at one hundred tu'vzains, have those
> other nine hundred ta'mdns become the lawful due of
> those who constitute themselves her creditors, and are
> their consciences clear? Though the doctors of law and
> divinity have now given their sanction and authority to
> such decisions, yet are they none the less repugnant to
> God's good pleasure, and inconsistent with true piety and
> virtue.
> So, in like manner, if a hundred tfinza'ns of tithe' be
> So is God termed in two passages in the Kur'6n: iii, 47; and
> viii) 30.
> 2 In the original kliums, which signifies a proportion of one
> fifth of wealth acquired in war, commerce, or the like, to which
> PREFACE.
> 11
> due from one of these pious believers, they will place that
> sum in a vessel containing oil, honey, or curdled milk,
> and offer it instead of the tithe to some poor Seyyid.
> Then for a small sum they buy back the vessel with the
> hundred tu'ma'??s concealed therein from the Seyyid, who,
> poor fellow, is quite unconscious of the way in which he
> has been defrauded. Or sometimes they will give one
> tt'im(g't~t to a poor Seyyid on condition that he accept it
> as a hundred tq'tnubis. By such quibbles do they mock
> God, and account themselves free of blame in their usurpa-
> tion of men's wealth. By the more utterance of the phrase
> " I compromise," they divest themselves of all anxiety as
> to the questioning of the Day of Reckoning, although they
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> profess to believe in the holy precept "Contracts follow
> intentions," which, indeed, they are unable to deny. Yet,
> fraudulent and sophistical hypocrites that they are, they
> consider the wealth which they have amassed by their legal
> quibbles and artifices just as lawfully obtained as did the
> thief the shroud for his mother.
> For they relate that the mother of a certain thief when
> at the point of death besought him to obtain for her a
> lawful shroud'. lie assented, and sallying forth from his
> house at midnight lay in wait at the end of a road. By
> chance lie presently fell in with a poor solitary traveller
> who had-lagged behind the caravan, and at once took from
> him by force his ass and his saddle-bags. Amongst the
> various articles contained in the latter lie discovered
> several yards of linen, whereat lie rejoiced and gave thanks,
> saying, "Praise be to God who hath not suffered me
> to return disappointed and ashaiiied to my mother!"
> Then he fell to beating the owner of the linen with all his
> might, crying, "Make this linen lawful to ngie with thy
> the descendants of the Prophet are entitled. See Querry's Droit
> Musulman, vol. i, p. 175 et seq.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 12 THE NEW HISTORY.
> whole heart 1 " On his return lie described to his mother
> all that had taken place, saying, "I gave the owner of the
> linen such a drubbing that he cried out with all his might,
> 'I make it lawful to thee,' repeating more than a thousand
> times with tears and groans, 'May it be lawful to thee!"'
> Now this hypocrisy, with the envy, frowardness, guile,
> and jealousy which are, as it were, the fourfold elements of
> which it is compounded, has become so engrained in this
> people as to be almost a second nature. Their miserable
> and degraded condition is entirely due to this cause, for no
> two individuals can unite or combine in any enterprise
> without quarrelling; and, should they enter into partner-
> ship for six months, for six years they will be wholly
> occupied with litigation. In short they so vex, oppress,
> and harass one another in every possible way that the very
> name of charity and courtesy would seem to be forgotten.
> Another offspring of this hypocrisy is injustice, which
> drinks milk from the breast of the false mother and draws
> instruction from the I in,, father, until, when it is well
> y t,
> matured and has learned to walk alone, it goes abroad to
> destroy the welfare of every land where it plants its foot-
> steps. Such is the injustice which holds absolhlite sway
> over this country, and to which the people (through ancient
> habit and long subserviency, and because, as the proverb
> says, "Men follow the, faith of their kings") have becoiihie
> as much attached as is the nightingale to the rose or the
> moth to the candle. Though their wings are scorched by
> this fire, they still whirl recklessly around it, as though
> eager for immolation. To adopt another simile, this in-
> justice is like a chronic wasting disease which is continually
> sapping and undermining the health of this people, who are
> notwithstanding so heedless of their condition that they
> fancy themselves better every day, and refuse to follow the
> advice of those wise physicians who bid them avoid that
> PREFACE.
> 13
> lying and hypocrisy which generate it. Such spiritual
> pliysiciana~ were the prophets and saints sent for their
> guidance and healing, to whom, out of inere cruelty and
> lust of oppression, they did such things as the pen is
> ashamed to record.
> Now just as these vile qualities of which we have
> spoken are the cause of temporal and eternal loss and
> ignominy, so do kindliness, charity, and concord conduce to
> the welfare and progress of states and nations, and secure
> peace and happiness for great and small. It is impossible
> to do justice here to the beneficial results of these qualities,
> and we will only remark that true affection and charity is
> not that a man should love his wife, children, and kindred,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> or his fellow-citizens and compatriots only. He is indeed
> worthy of the name of man who loves all his fellow-
> creatures, withholds his charity from no human being,
> refrains from injuring by word or deed aught that has life,
> and neither scorns nor regards as unclean anything -which
> breathes, however lowly, remembering that it too stands in
> some relation to the Lord of the Universe, and would -not
> exist but for some beneficent purpose. And so the wise and
> humane man will not regard as accursed aught which exists,
> nor spurn it, nor speak evil of it, even as the Lord Jesus
> was once walking with some of his disciples when they
> came suddenly upon a dead and putrid dog, at the stench
> of whose corruption the disciples expressed their disgust.
> But he rebuked them, saying, "Why take ye heed but of
> the corruption of its body, and regard not its white teeth
> nor ponder on its defence of its master's rights and con-
> tentment with its lot ? Regard but what is good, if ye be
> of the spirit."
> , How far from this are some, who, instead of striving to
> see naught but good in all around them, occupying them-
> selves with the amendment of their own characters, and
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 14
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> endeavouring to remove their own faults, seek only in their
> folly to discover blemishes in others 1 " Such an one," say
> these, " is unsound in his religio'Lis beliefs " ; " So-and-so is a
> reprobate and accursed"; "The to-Lich of Zeyd is a, pollu.-
> tion"; "It were a meritorious action to slay 'Amr." Only
> the most extravagant self-approbation and conceit can
> lead them to speak thus, and of all vices these are the ligiost
> detestable. To them is traceable in no small measure the
> deterioration of the Persians, their refusal to accept new
> idea,s, and their complete indifference -to the progress and
> well-being of their country, And so, in spite of all their
> self-esteem, they are continually going back while all other
> nations are advancing. Yet they themselves relate, a well-
> known tradition of how God bade Moses seek out some
> creature of less account than himself and bring it into the
> Divine Presence, After searching for a while Moses dis-
> covered the putrid carcase of a dog. Thinking that this
> would serve his purpose, lie attached a cord to its leg and
> began to drag it after him, but ere he had proceeded many
> steps the thought came upon him, "How dare 1 prefer
> myself even to this?" Even as he dropped the cord from
> his hand he beard a voice rebuking him and saying,
> "0 son of 'lmrAn, hadst thou brought that dog one
> step further thou wouldst have forfeited thy rank of pro-
> phet 1 "
> Far removed froin this humility of Moses (who, not-
> withstanding his prophetic rank and the privilege of com-
> muning with God which he enjoyed, dared not prefer
> himself to the putrid carease of a dog) is the arrogance of
> those who regard tliemaselves as superior to all the rest of
> mankind, and do not even lieasitate to rank themselves
> above Moses, quoting in support of their presumption the
> tradition, "The doctors of my church are more excellent
> than the prophets of the children of Israel." As to the
> i
> PREFACE.
> rest of God's servants, they hold them in less account than n
> the carcase of a dog !
> In strong contrast with these are the people of Europe,
> who have truly apprehended the meaning of affection and
> concord, and have reaped from these a wondrous harvest.
> For, solely by reason of g the love which they bear towards
> their fellow-creatures, the wise men of modern Europe have
> devoted themselves to the devising of such appliances as
> may serve to lessen the sufferings of God's creatures or
> conduce to their prosperity and comfort, whereby also the
> glory of the State is increased. Thus was the power of
> steam discovered, whereby thousands of factories of different
> kinds were set in motion, many precious and wonderful
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> goods produced, and prodigies of workmanship hitherto
> undreamed of accomplished. The land was delivered from
> the thraldom. of desolation and disorder ' the people were
> freed from sloth and poverty, the nation waxed rich and
> the state strong. Governments ceased to depend - on
> oppression and injustice as a means of acquiring revenue,
> and the practice of extorting money by threats and promises
> fell into d,isuse. Every effort was made to secure equal
> Justice for all, and every exertion put forth to perfect the
> mechanism of the administration. The people, thus. freed
> from anxiety, began to seek after education and culture,
> and to make rapid progress in humanity and virtue; and,
> since each bad his allotted share in the common work and
> was indispensable to the common weal, all became United
> in intent and purpose. Thus they made progress in every
> direction and became objects of emulation to all around
> them.
> Amongst these numerous inventions was the railroad,
> which was originally devised with the object of alleviating
> the sufferings endured by beasts of burden and increasing
> the comforts of travellers. Consider the benefits which
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> i I ~
> 16 THE NEW HISTORY.
> have resulted from this invention, and observe how, where-
> ever it goes, it furthers the prosperity of the country and
> the freedoiigi of the people, leaving none within the sphere
> of its influence poor or unemployed, and furnishing each
> with work suited to his capacity. How largely has it
> conduced to national progress, wealth, and consolidation 1
> How well it shelters its patrons from the depredations of
> robbers, the keenness of the winter's cold, and the fierce
> heat of summer!
> Not long ago the Prime Minister of Persia, actuated
> solely by a desire for the welfare of his nation, sought to
> introduce into his country that which had elsewhere proved
> so beneficial. In this design, however, lie was vigorously
> opposed by the doctors of religion, who stirred up the
> people against him by telling them that the increased
> influx of Europeans which would result from the proposed
> iniiovatioigi would infallibly bring about the spread of in-
> fidelity and the downfall of religion. They were really
> actuated by a fear lest in course of time the eyes of the
> people might be opened and they should refuse any longer
> to obey them blindly. So they set themselves to discover
> objections and obstacles to the proposed scheme, to fabricate
> cc authentic" traditions, and to cast imputations of atheism
> on the Minister. Thus, because of their selfishness and
> craving for power, they would not suffer this people after a
> thousand years of abasement and misery to obtain peace
> and happiness.
> A certain Persian of sense and discernment wrote a
> pamphlet to expose the true motives of these doctors.
> Unfortunately, however, it was not published or circulated,
> for "truth is bitter," and its contents would have been so
> uupalatable to his antagonists that, had they seen it, they
> would, without stopping to consider the arguments con-
> tained in it, at once have declared its author an infidel. It
> r
> PREFACE.
> 17~
> is not.unlikely that they would pronounce the same judge-
> ment on the author of the present work; but he, thank
> God, is not of this people, and cares naught for the appro-
> bation or resentment of any one.
> "I neither hearken to the Sheykh, nor hold the parson's
> creed ;
> From every sect and every faith, thank heaven, I am
> freed I I"
> Now if I have strongly and repeatedly insisted on the
> defects apparent in the religion of certain persons, the
> injustice of the government, the ignorance of the people,
> or the total absence of moderation and fairness in the
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ministers of church and state, God is my witness that I
> have no personal spite against any individual or class. My
> sole object is to arouse their zeal by bringing these matters
> before their notice, and to shew them the hatefulness of
> certain of their vices in a true light, so that they may
> cease to regard them as trivial, and may learn to abhor
> and avoid them. So also when I instance the practices of
> European nations in exemplification of such virtues as
> justice, magnanimity, charity, uprightness, and culture,
> and dwell on their praises, it is from no mere desire to
> extol my compatriots', but in the hope that'thereby I may
> arouse the spirit of emulation in this people, incite them to
> acquire these good qualities, and induce them to desist
> from injuring and destroying their fellow-countrymen.
> To return, however, to the tract of which I spoke. The
> author maintains that the Persians are endowed with a
> 1 This verse and the words immediately preceding it are
> noticed by Baron Rosen (Coll. Sci., vol. vi, p. 244) as affording
> some evidence that Minakjf, the late Zoroastrian agent at
> TeherAn, wrote, or caused to be written, this history.
> 2 It must be borne in mind that throuohout this work the
> 0
> author maintains the fiction of his European nationality.
> 2
> N. H.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 18 THE NEW HISTORY.
> high degree of intelligence and aptitude, and are fully
> capable of improvement, but that unfortunately their
> rulers, fearing to lose the authority which they enjoy, will
> not stiffer them to open their eyes and ears, or learn to
> discriminate between good and evil. After establishing
> this thesis by conclusive arguments, lie puts forward the
> following allegory, observing that, as each of the ministers
> of state is charged with special duties, the Minister for
> Foreign Affairs may be likened to the sentinel who keepas
> guard over the citadel of the empire. And so, when one
> comes in the early morning and knocks at the gate of this
> citadel, the Minister for Foreign Affairs demands, " Who
> art thou, and what dost thou seek?"
> " I am Justice and Progress," answers the other, " and
> I come to establish equity, inaugurate an era of progress,
> and root out disorder and oppression."
> " Thanks be to God," answers the Minister, " that our
> land already enjoys the fullest measure Of justice and
> progress. We need you not."
> The other then proves to the Minister by conclusive,
> evidence that he is JhListice and Progress, after which he
> continues :-
> " Long ago I went forth from this country and took up
> my abode iigi Europe. For more than a thousand years I
> have not beheld this land or its people, nor set my footsteps
> on its soil. Learning, however, that a fraudulent impostor
> claiming to be myself has formed a league with Discord to
> lay waste the land, I have now returned, for charity's sake,
> to effect its regeneration. Open the door!"
> Z)
> Quoth the Minister, bolting the door more securely,
> Our country needs not your help. Thanks be to God, we
> have strong and lofty buildings."
> I bring from Europe," rejoins the other, "all manner
> of new and wonderful inventions and appliances, that I
> PREFACE.
> 1, 4.1, :  :
> 19
> y tic on, ee e peop e from misery and
> poverty, and make them rich, prosperous and happy like
> the people of Europe."
> "We want not your gifts," replies the Minister, "for
> such of these things as we need men bring from Europe,
> and we buy them. Besides, if our people were to become
> rich, they would rise in rebellion."
> After much discussion and argument, the Minister,
> unable to raise any further objections, says in a soft and
> wheedling tone, "Your remarks are perfectly just. Through
> your influence countries prosper, peoples are made free, and
> nations become great. But what can I do? With you here
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I could neither govern nor subsist, but must at once re-
> linquish my power, limit myself to the exercise of my
> proper authority, and content myself with the fixed salary
> paid to ine by the state. An annual income of two hundred
> thousand t6mrins and an annual expenditure of one hun-
> dred thousand would be no longer possible, inasmuch as I
> should be prevented from accepting gifts and bribes, and
> could no longer arrest, imprison, condemn, and acquit as~ I
> please. In spite of my lofty rank 1 should be compelled to
> abide by the law, nor should I be permitted even to apply
> a simple abusive epithet to one of my subordinates without
> causa. These things being -so, I cannot, so -long as I -live,
> admit you. But even if I were to withdraw my opposition,
> there is not one of the administrators of the state who would
> stiffer you to remain here for a single instant. They would
> all unite in representing you to the Privy Council as an
> enemy to His Majesty the King, and would forthwith issue
> orders for your execution. But even leaving this out of
> account, the doctors of religion, on becoming aware of your
> arrival, would at once assemble and produce a thousand
> well-authenticated and accredited traditions against you.
> That they would kill you is a mere nothing, for they regard
> 2-2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 20 THE NEW HISTORY. PREFACE. 21"
> i
> it as obligatory on every MusuhnAn to drink your blood abasement is the prevailing lack of justice and absence
> and eat your flesh, and if one should so much as mention of generous feeling. Not that they have not a certain
> your name they declare him an infidel deserving of death. kind of justice of their own, but it is like the piety of
> That they would not suffer~ you to remain in this country the Hindoos and Jews', which doth but conduce to their
> for a single moment is also nothing, for wherever they greater error. Nor are they devoid of all social instincts
> recognize one of your friends and admirers they slay him and power of combination, but their concord is the concord
> without a moment's respite. They regard all Europeans as, of wolves, who appear friendly while face to face,'but, so
> enemies who inay be lawfully plundered and slain solely soon as one relaxes his attention in the least degree and
> because of the love which these bear you. The massacres suffers sleep to overcome him, they tear him in pieces. So
> and persecutions of the BàbÕs-a sect so remarkable for do they combine to plunder, but afterwards quarrel over
> their steadfastness and earnestness of purpose-were also the spoil.
> brought about entirely by their devotion to you; else why How much better have the people of Europe ap-
> do the MusulmAns refrain from interfering with the Nu- prehended the true ideal of friendship! Some years ago
> aseyrfs and GhAlis (whom their clergy regard as utter they announced in all their newspapera-, that in the opinion
> heretics), the KhArijfs, the eleven unorthodox sects of of experts all the coal-miDes in the world would be ex-
> ImAmites, the SAdikfs and Ni'u'sfs (who hold that the hausted in a thousand (or, as others maintained, in less
> linAmate ceased with the ImAm Ja'far-i-SAdik, and regard than four hundred) years; that then all the railways and
> him as the promised Mahdf), and the MukhtArfs' (who factories in the world which are worked with coal would
> assert that Muhammad ibiih Hanafiyya was the expected be brought to a standstill and rendered useless; and that
> ImAm), all of w,hom are a hundred thousand times worse any one who should succeed in devising some substitute
> than the BàbÕs?" It for coal would confer a benefit upon his own and all
> What the learned author of this tract wished to shew nations, and would receive a pension for himself and his
> was that these people have neither care nor compassion for heirs in perpetuity. Such people, who concern themselves
> their agiibor(linates, being concerned only about the pre- about the welfare of those who shall come into the world
> servation of their own power, and not at all about the several hundred years hence, may indeed be said to have
> protection of those committed to their charge. Had it grasped the true meaning of affection 1 This is why they
> been otherwise, the people would never have sunk into have made, and still continue to make, countless dis-
> ago degraded a condition nor have become so despicable coveries in the application of electricity, compressed air,
> in the eyes of foreign states, for the cause of this national and the like.
> Accounts of these sects will be found as follows i When I was on my way to Persia I met in Alexandria
> n
> one of my friends who had reasided for some while in that
> Shabrist~ufs Ifit(ibit'l-9nilal (ed. Cureton):-the Nuseyriyya, p.
> 143; the Ghulit or Ghiliya, p. 132; the Khirijiyya, p. 85; the
> Iminiiyya, p. 122; the S6dikiyya or Ja'fariyya, 1). 124; the C. reads "'Alagians," but it seems unlikely that Aldnakjf
> MYlsiyya, p. 126; the Mukhtiriyya, p. 109. would have gone out of his way to speak ill of his own people.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 22 THE NEW HISTORY. PREFACE.  23
> country, and lie remarked to me, " Persia has great natural the people toiadopt this custoin, it is best that they should'
> resources, but the people are devoid of kindliness." Thia3 observe the second condition, and, by means of fair- dis-
> was exactly what I ngiyself afterwards observed. it is this cussioD, remove dissent from their religion, so that concord
> lack of kindliness which causes them to hold alooffrom may be established and peace succeed all this dissension
> their fellow-men, and thereby to cut themselves off from and strife.
> the possibility of happiness and progress. So, in course of Now although there are amongst the Muhannuadans
> time, these misunderstandings and differences which have more than seventy different sects, each of which is further
> ar
> brought about their ruin C ose, and *Ttlie government was split up into several subdivisions, these, though they may
> thus enabledl* to usurp a tyrannous sway. Now until hold aloof from each other, are not at enmity and strife;
> they make the recovery of this concord and harniony the for ages have elapsed since their differences first appeared.
> object of their endeavours it is impossible for them to But in the case of the Bdbis, who are of recent origin, they
> make any progress in civilization. And the conditions make the most strenuous and persistent efforts to harass
> under which the attainment of this end is possible are and hurt them in every way, seizing, imprisoning, and
> two. The first is that they should follow the example of slaying them with unremitting enery and this notwit -
> 0y)
> European nations, and refrain from interfering in any way standing that they know nothing of their beliefs, and
> with the religious opinions of their fellows, regarding all as declare them infidels solely on the misrepresentations of
> God's creatures, and acting towards all with kindlinesas certain ignorant and malicious persons. Wherefore since
> and charity. For the people of Dirope became civilized the writer, during his travels in Persia, became - fully
> when they abandoned all attempts to constrain any man III cognizant of the history and doctrines of this sect, he felt
> matters concerning himself alone (of which matters is the himself impelled by sympathy and common humanitygto
> choice of a creed and the manner of its observance), and compose this book, that perchance by its instrumentality
> confined themselves to the suppression of actions hurtful these discords and blind enmities may be removed, andh
> to the community, such as lying, breach of contract, and men be led to pursue the paths of amity and concord,
> evil-doing. So in matters of conscience they compel no whereby they shall become generous, huniane, earnest,
> one, nor do they say, "You must accept such-and-such a magnanimouas, and noble; cease to appear vile and con-
> creed and obey such-and-stich a divine." Indeed in Europe teinptible in the sight of other nations ; and be no longer
> people who claim to be civilized never question anyone as a by-word throughout the world for lack of virtue, misery,-
> to his religion, nor do they consider themselves entitled to folly, and uncharitableness. As God is my witness, though-
> make such an enquiry, lest their own taste be questioned I be not of this nation', whenever I reflect on the former
> by people of culture. As, however, it appears impossible greatness of this people and their present abasement my
> that the ecclesiastical authorities in Persia should suffer eyes involuntarily overflow with tears and my heart is filled
> with sorrow.
> * rthose wolves in sheep's clothing who are the heads
> of church and state were enabled]* -1 1 Cf. n. 2 at the foot of p. 17, supra.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 24
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> About the time of the appearance of Seyyid 'Alf
> Muhammad the BAb, when all Persia was convulsed, I
> arrived by way of Constantinople and Trebizonde at Tabriz.
> Here I saw with my own eyes and heard with my own ears
> how the BAbis were everywhere hunted down, and, where-
> ever found, doomed to death, without enquiry or exami-
> nation, by the ecclesiastical or civil authorities. Some
> were sawn asunder, some strangled, some shot, or blown
> from the months of cannons. This period of massacre and
> plunder endured for a long while, and in Yezd, ShfrAz,
> Tabriz, Nfrfz, MAzandarAn, and ZaiijAn there was strife,
> bloodshed, massing of troops, and slaughter of the people.
> None were spared. Those who bore a grudge against any-
> one, as well as bands of scoundrels bent on plunder, had
> now their opportunity, for whomsoever they pointed out
> to the fm-raishes as a BàbÕ was put to death without
> more ado.
> The object of my travels in Persia was to visit and
> examine the different towns and describe their geographical
> features. In every city, village, or hamlet which I entered,
> 1 beheld the saine strife and turngioil, whereat I marvelled
> much, saying to myself, "What can these people see in
> this new faith, and what manner of men has it made them,
> that they recoil in fear neither from death nor bondage,
> mutilation nor imprisonment? Rather will they consent to
> abandon their riches, their wives and children, yea, even
> life itself, than this belief, though already nigh upon ten
> thousand of them have drenched the earth with their
> blood, or gone forth as exiles into foreign lands. How
> many ancient families have perished! How many notable
> and esteemed persons, divines, doctors, and other men of
> learning and virtue, have abandoned wealth and life and
> made the earth their couclil Yet withal they neither
> repent) nor dissimulate, nor seek to preserve themselves,
> I
> I
> I
> I
> ~ I -
> f
> PREFACE.
> 25
> nor shrink from the arrests, imprisonments, and executi ons
> which are of daily occurrence."
> I enquired of sundry doctors and men of learning
> amongst the Shi'ites concerning the nature of this people's
> belief and the sources whence they drew their inspiration.
> The answer which I received was that they believed the
> BAb to be the ImAm Mahdf ; held their wives and posses-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> sions in common, regarding both alike as belonging to
> God alone; accounted lawful the drinking of wine and
> every kind of immorality, as well as other things pro-
> hibited by IslAm; and asserted that one woman might,
> and indeed should, have nine husbands.
> Hearing of such follies, I was disposed to regard these
> people as madmen, until at length I became acquainted
> with certain learned men belonging to this sect, and heard
> that every one of those who had been taken and put to
> death had been a master of eloquence and discernment,
> an authority on matters of learning, and an object of
> general esteem and respect, as, for example, were MU-114
> Uuseyn of Bushraweyh, A'kA Seyyid YahyA of DArib, MU114
> Muhammad 'Alf of ZaniAn, and the rest. My astonishment
> was increased by finding such persons amongst the BàbÕs,
> " for," thought I with myself, "it cannot be that men so
> wise and so gifted should believe in the absurdities with
> which they are credited by the ignorant and vulgar, neither
> would they so freely and joyfully forego their position,
> wealth, families, and even their very lives unless they had
> apprehended something of moment."
> Now in every age two classes are inwardly antagonistic
> to the spirit of a new dispensation-statesmen and priests.
> These, because they love authority and dominion, stand
> firmest in the ranks of denial, and are conspicuous for the
> obstinacy with which they reject the new truth. This is
> more especially so in the case of the clergy, because they
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 26
> THE NEW IIISTORY.
> run a greater risk of losing their power; and, indeed,
> unless the prophet of the age, perceiving in thein some
> latent merit and virtue, should constrain theign by his
> attractive influence, it is scarcely possible for them to
> enter in.
> 1Dasmuch as I was most eager to apprehend correctly
> and record in writing the doctrines and principles of every
> religion and cult, I strove to acquire precise information
> as to the tenets of this new sect also, in order that I
> might give some account of tlieign in my journal of travel
> in Persia. After seeking for some while, I obtained several
> of their books, including the Bey('02, the I'k('tgii, and sundry
> epistles, treatises, and fornhis of prayer. On examining these
> I perceived them to be written with eloquent fervour, and
> to contain nought but precepts of virtue and piety, com-
> mands to love God and man, and exhortations to seek
> after wisdom and purity of morals. Brotherly love, equal
> participation of wealth, chastity, and charity towards all
> were likewise enjoined. Amongst the precepts contained
> in their books one which specially won my approval and
> led me to prosecute my enquiries with renewed zeal was in
> substance as follows:-
> "0 servants of God, it behoveth you to be so weaned
> fi-oni all save God, and so endow'ed with divine qualities,
> that your works may be a proof to such of God's creatures
> as are still in darkness, and may rend asunder the veils
> of doubts, vain iiuaginiiigas, and promptings of devils which
> hinder them from this Law of Wisdom revealed by the
> All-merciful Lord, so that they may become partakers in
> the pure water of Eternal Life and the everlasting wine of
> Salsabil."
> To be brief, after prosecuting my enquiries for some
> while, and ascertaining somewhat about the matter, I be-
> came acquainted with aseveral men of learning belonging
> i
> i
> i
> I
> f
> i
> PREFACE.
> 27,
> to this sect. One day in the course of confidential con-
> versation I enquired of one of these, " What have you
> perceived in this new faith that no kind of suffering will
> induce you to relinquish it? Already not fewer than ten
> thousand of you have been laid low in blood-stained graves
> or driven forth into distant countries as exiles from their
> native land, neither is any abatement yet apparent in the
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> persecutions to which you are subjected. Why have you
> no compassion for yourselves, your wives, and your children?
> Who and what was this BAb? Had he been. gifted with
> supernatural powers, lie ought assuredly to have saved
> himself from a miserable death, and not suffered men to
> crucify and slay him, or the wild beasts to devour his
> body."
> 0 n hearing these words my companion became affected
> with a sorrow strange to witness, and replied,  .. .. . ; .
> it 'And darest thou question those whom God hath given
> Power to control the treasure-house of heaven?"'
> Seeing him so affected, I strove with all my tact to
> conciliate him, saying, " Men ignorantly utter many foolish
> words and baseless assertions wh ' ich in no wise prove the
> falsity of the religion iii question. My enquiry was not
> intended to imply either denial or affirmation, and I de-
> sire but to arrive at the truth of the matter as an *un-
> prejudiced historian, who is not concerned with anyone's
> creed, but wishes only to obtain accurate information as
> to the circumstances, practices, and doctrines of any sect
> having a claiin to advance, so that he may commit to
> writing the facts which lie has aaseertained. This is my
> sole object, and I therefore pray you to give me a true
> account of the matter."
> Thereupon my friend gave me some account of that
> illustrious Seyyid, and of the persecutions suffered by his
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 28
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> followers, whereof that which I myself had seen afforded
> ample corroboration. So my heart began to burn within
> me as I reflected on the patient fortitude and endurance
> of these people, the sufferings which they had undergone,
> and the total absence of justice in Persia. For in other
> countries many erring sects whose practices are abominable
> in the eyes of all, such as the different kinds of Hindoos
> (who are adorers of beasts, idolaters, cow-worshippers,
> Manicheans, fire-worshippers, and even downright atheists)
> live peacefully under the protection of just rulers, neither
> is it permitted to any one to question the religion of
> another. And although the Bdbfs are no -worse than
> these, nor than the Nuseyrfs, GhAlis, KhArijfs, Nisibfs',
> materialists, and sceptics, but are, on the contrary, re-
> inarkable for their superior huiihiaiiity, culture, and in-
> telligence, yet, because of the total absence of justice in
> Persia and the misrepresentations to which they have
> been exposed, they have been subjected to the most cruel
> treatment, albeit those things which are alleged in proof
> of their infidelity are utterly false and devoid of founda-
> tion. Therefore, being moved by love of mankind and a
> desire to dispel the misconceptions entertained concerning
> this sect, I felt myself constrained to set forth in a sepa-
> rate treatise somewhat concerning thein and their beliefs,
> so that those who read these pages may be rightly informed
> concerning them, and may cease to treat with such cruelty
> those who are not only God's creatures but their own
> fellow-countryi-neii.
> I therefore requested my friend to visit me at my
> I See note at the foot of p. 20, supra. The Nisibis (ahlu'n-
> nasb, ndsibiyga) are a sect who make it a matter of religious
> obligatioii to bear a violent hatred to 'Alf b. Abi TAlib, the first
> IniAm. of the Shi'ites. See Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon, vol.
> viii, p. 2800, third column.
> PREFACE.
> 29
> abode twice a week during his hours of leisure', and to
> describe from the beginning all the events of this dis-
> pensation as they actually occurred, together with the
> doctrines in which he believed, so that what I proposed
> to write might be a true and correct statement of facts.
> He, when he perceived me to be free, from prejudice, eager
> for discussion, and unwilling to accept anything on hear-'
> say, was kind enough to introduce me to one of his co-
> religionists who was remarkable alike for his learning and
> virtue telling me that I might rely on whatever 1 should
> hear from this man, since he had personal knowledge of all
> things connected with this matter.
> I soon -found opportunities of holding frequeigit and
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> prolonged conversations with my new acquaintance, whose
> virtue and learning proved fully equal to what I had'been
> led ' to expect. Even before he adopted the new creed he
> was notable for his piety and godliness, and, notwith-
> standing the fact that he was in easy circumstances and
> possessed of ninch wealth, was reported to have made a
> pilgrimage on foot to the shrine of the ImAin Rizi at
> Mash-had in company with HAjf Mir 'Abdu'l-Wisi' the
> dervish, who, for thirty-five years, had withdrawn himself
> entirely from the world. The hardships and privations of
> that jourDey bore fruit, for on reaching KburAsdn he met
> with MullA Ni'lliatu'llAh of Ardabfl, Mulli-Yihsuf 'Alf of
> Khiiy, and MullA 'Abdu'l-KhAlik of Yezd, all wise and
> holy men, by whom he was directed to the truth. The
> full and detailed accounts vouchsafed to me by this man,
> enhanced as they were in interest by his agreeable manners
> and evident sincerity, confirmed me in the resolution which
> I had formed to write this treatise.
> My original intention was to confine myself to a state-
> ment of the history and doctrine of this sect, avoiding all
> controversial matter. My friend, however, pointed out to
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I
> I
> 30 THE NEW HISTORY.
> me that if I desired to render real service to the cause of
> truth and to remove existing misapprehensions, I shoitili
> certainly fail, if I did not even make matters worse, by
> omitting all reference to the arguments and proofs adduced
> in support of the doctrine. About this time, moreover, it BEGINNING OF THE NARRATIVE.
> so happened that a long discussion took place in my
> lodging between him and a certain divine, wherein the *EI -visited the holy shrines of Kerbeli and Nejef
> latter was signally worsted, though lie continued as long shortly after the death of H.Iji Seyyid KAzim, and learned
> as possible to raise objections and demand further proofs, from his disciples that during the last two or three years
> and was finally reduced to silence rather by necessity than of his life he had spoken in lecture-room and pulpit of
> by a sense of justice. little else but the approaching advent of the promised
> 1 am now convinced that my friend is right, and that Proof, the signs of his appearance and their signification,
> my book could serve no good purpose if I excluded from and the attributes by which he would be distinguished,
> it all reasonings and arguments. Neither could these be declaring that he would be a youth of the race of 116shim,
> kept apart from the historical portion of the work and set untaught in the learning of men. Sometimes he used to
> down in order as they came up in the discussions between say, "I see him as the rising sun." During his last pil-
> him and the divine, else would the book be unduly en- grimage to Surra-man-ra'a, while lie was returning thence
> larged. In accordance with his wish I have therefore in- to Baghdad by way of Kdzimeyn, he was, entertained by
> serted such of them as appeared most pertinent in the one of his friends and disciples, about a dozen others
> course of my narrative. Furthermore, whenever I have being present. All of a sudden an Arab entered, and,
> had occasion to mention that illustrious Seyyid', I have, still standin , said, "I have seen a vision touching your
> ,g
> for several reasons, alluded to him in terms of the iitugiost Reverence." Permission to speak having been accorded
> respect, making use of the titles used by his own followers. to him, he related his dream; whereupon Seyyid KAzim
> For, in the first lace, the claim which lie advanced was appeared somewhat disturbed, and said, " This dream sig-
> p
> a great one, and lie was of an illustrious descent and a nifies that my departure from the world is near at hand."
> Seyyid of the people; secondly lie suffered martyrdom by Hearing this, his friends were greatly troubled, but he
> reason of his love for his nation and his attempts to ad- turned to them, saying, " Why are ye grieved and troubled
> monish and regenerate them. And in Europe the name at my approaching death? Desire ye, not that I should
> of such a man is not mentioned slightingly, but is ac- depart and that the Truth should appear?"
> counted worthy of all lionour. EThis is the account which I have heard from Miji
> Here follows what my learned friend narrated to me. 'Abdu'l-Muttalib of IsfahAn and HAjf SuleymAn KhAn',
> I i.e. the PjaM
> C. has, "Suleyma'n KhAn Afshir of SA'in-Kal'a," an evident
> error, as Suleymin KhAn Afshir was one of the most determined
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 32
> who were present on the occasion alluded to. The latter
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> further added, " Seyyid KAzini specially promised me that I
> should myself participate in the new Manifestation, saying,
> Thou shalt be there and shalt apprehend it."
> EThat the late h Seyyid actually gave utterance to these
> words, and announced these good tidings as above de-
> scribed, is a matter of notoriety, and a thing universally
> admitted amongst those who were intimate with him.
> The fact, moreover, is further authenticated by several
> letters from well-known persons to others who also be-
> lieved in the new Manifestation'. - Indeed, some who
> were present on the occasion above described are still
> alive, and these adignit that they heard this announce-,
> ment made by Seyyid KAzim.
> EMul1A H-Useyn of Bushraweyli, a most eminent divine
> who enjoyed great intimacy with Seyyid KAziin, urgently
> besought him to enlighten them further as to the manner
> in which the Manifestation would take place, but he only
> replied,3 ' " More than this I am not permitted to say,
> but from whatever quarter the Sun of Truth shall arise,
> *[I visited the holy shrines of KerbelA and Nejef
> shortly after the death of H6jf Seyyid K6zim, and learned
> from his disciples that the late Sey.-yid had, a few days
> before his journey to Surra-man-ra'a and death, said, "This
> is the last time that I shall visit Surra-man-ra'a, for the
> days of my sojourn in this world are ended, and it is time
> for me to depart." His friends thereat displayed much
> sorrow, but lie replied, "Grieve not, but rather be thankful
> and rejoice, for after I am gone you shall be permitted to
> behold the Promised ProoUT
> a
> h
> w
> w
> persecutors of the BAbis. Haijf Suleymin Khan of Tabriz, the
> son of Yabyi Kh-An, is without doubt intended. See my
> Traveller's A'arrative, p. 239 and foot-note.
> 1 Cf. Traveller'sYarrative, p. 240, note 1.
> DEATH OF SEYYID KkZIM.
> 33
> it will illuminate all hearts which are receptive 'of Divine
> Grace."
> On his return from Surra-man-ra'a the venerated Seyyid
> departed this life, even as he had foretold; and I, after a
> while, repaired to the mosque of K-ftfa, and there abode for a
> time engaged. in the performance of certain spiritual exercises
> which I had undertaken. Here I saw MullA Huseyn of
> Bushraweyh, Mulli 'Alf of Bistim, HAjf Mul1A Mu-
> hammad 'Alf of Bdrfur6sh, AW 'Abdu'l-Jalfl the Turk,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Mimi 'Abdu'l-Hidf, MÕrzà Muhammad HAdf, AkA Seyyid
> Huseyn of Yezd, Mul1A Hasan of NajistAn, MU114 Bashfr,
> Mulli BAkir the Turk, and MullA Ahmad AbdAll, with
> many other learned and devout men who bad retired into
> seclusion to undergo as severe a spiritual discipline as can
> well be imagined. On the completion of these exercises I
> proceeded to visit Nejef, while the others departed each on
> his own way.
> Now as it has been said,
> "Whate'er man seeks as surely he obtains,
> If he but seek it with sufficient pains ;
> God's shadow falls upon His servant's mind,
> And he who striveth in the end shall fi I nd2,"
> aso God did direct their steps in the path of search until
> they came to ShfrAz. To Mulli Huseyn of Bushraweyli
> I L. is corrupt here, interrupting the continuity of the narra-
> tive with a verse of poetry bearing reference to Seyyid Ka'zim's
> death, and omitting the list of names given above. Probably
> the scribe intended to write them in afterwards with red ink, as
> two lines are left blank.
> 2 Both these couplets are from the third book of the ffasnavi,
> but they do not belong to the same context. The first will be
> found at p. 229, 1. 13, and the second at p. 319, 1. 13 of the
> Teherin edition of 'AIA'ud-Dawla.
> N. H.
> 3
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> f  I
> 34 THE NEW HISTORY.
> CONVERSION OF MULL~k I-IUSEYN. 35
> was granted the happiness of first coming to His Supreme Then he opened the door. [It did not at the time, strike
> me ]low strange it was that without havi he
> Holiness, and he became " the first who believed'." ing seen me
> The late H6jf MÕrzà JMif, one of the most respected of ashould know I was there.] When he *[had opened'the
> the inhabitants of K6sh6n, who was remarkable for his self- 4loor]* he smiled and said, 'All day I have felt disinclined
> devotion, virtue, and purity of heart, who had with his own to 90 to the caravansaray, and now I know that it was
> eyes witnessed all the most important events of the Mani- because of your coming.2 So we entered the house and sat
> festation, and who for his zeal finally siiffered martyrdom down, and after we had exchanged the customary enquiries
> (whereof he foretold all the circumstances a-,oiigic while before liesaid, 'Do not you Sheykhfs believe that soine one must
> take the place occupied by the late Seyyid KAzim? Five
> their occurrence to certain of his acquaintance), wrote a inoiithas have now elapsed since his death. Whom do you
> book describing the coiirase of events and setting forth argu- now recognize as you
> ments in support of the faith. In this work lie recorded r Master? ' 'As yet,' I replied, 'we
> have recognized no olle.2 'What manner of man,' as
> all that lie was able to ascertain [from firast to last, by ked
> diligent enquiries iigiost carefully conductedd about each of lie, 'must the Master be?' Thereupon I enumerated some
> the chief disciples and believers. Concerning MullA Hu- of the requisite qualifications and characteristics. 'Do you
> observe these in me?' he asked. Now during the two
> seyn s conversion he writes as follows :-
> " I igiiyself heard directly from MÕrzà 'Abdii'l-WallhAb of I months he abode at KerbelA I bad not observed in him any
> KliurAa-,Aii, a inoast endlient' divine, the following narrative signs of special knowledge, and I knew that he had not
> (f this event:- astudied in the colleges nor attended the lectures of any
> I enquired' (said lie) 'of Mulli Iltiaseyii concerning teacher, so I anaswered, 'I see in you none of these quali-
> the manner of his conversion. He replied, " After the tieas.' To this he replied nothing. After a while I observed
> death of Seyyid KAziln I became afflicted with great per- aseveral books lying on a shelf. I picked up one of them,
> turbation of mind, an'd, in the course of my iihieiital struggles, and found it to be a commentary on the Sfiratit'l-Bakaral.
> went from KerbelA to Shfrdz in the hope of benefiting a After reading a little I perceived it to be a commentary of
> palpitation of the heart from which I suffered. And since remarkable merit, and demanded in astonishment who the
> the Seyyid 'Alf Muhammad had lionoured me with his author might be. 'A mere youthful beginner,' answered
> friendship during a journey which we made. together to the he, 'who nevertheless lays claim to a high degree of know-
> Holy Shrines , I at once on reach- ledge and greatness.' I again asked who and where the
> ing ShfrAz sought out his abode. As I approached the writer was. 'Thou seest him,' be replied; but I did not
> door I desired inwardly to tarry there some few days. So at the time apprehend his meaning, and continued to read
> I knocked at the door. *[Before he had opened it or seen *~had seen and recognized mej*
> mej heard his voice exclaiming,'Is it you,MullAHuseyn?']*
> *T.As it chanced he came to the door in persoii.j*
> I See Traveller's ill"arrative, vol. ii, pp. 241, 250.
> I See my Catalogue of 27 Betbi X88. in the J. R. A. S. for
> 1892, where the text of this passage is quoted in a description of
> the work in question.
> .3-2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 36 THE NEW HISTORY.
> on till I came to a passage where it was written, 'the expla-
> nation of the inmost of the imnost.' This appeared to me to
> be an error, and I remarked, 'Here it should be " the in-
> most," and " the inmost of the i n9nost " is written.' I What
> can I say?' he answered, 'the author of this Commentary
> lays claim to more even than this of greatness and know-
> ledge. Consider the passage attentively.' I did so, and
> said, 'It is quite correct. But I am wearied. Do you read,
> and I will listen.' He read for a time, and then, as men
> are wont, I said, 'It is enough. Do not trouble yourself
> further.' Towards evening tea was brought, and several
> learned Sheykhis and merchants who had been informed of
> my arrival came to see me. In the course of conversation
> they, supported by MÕrzà'Alf Muhammad, made me promise
> to deliver a lecture, and arranged to assemble on the morrow
> in the IlkhAuf mosque to hear it. Next morning, agreeably
> to this arrangement, they assembled in the mosque, whither
> I also repaired. - When, however, 1 desired to -begin my dis-
> course, I found that in place of the ready flow of language
> and easy delivery generally at my command I was as
> though tongue-tied and unable to speak. This filled me
> with amazement, for I was persuaded that so unusual an
> occurrence must be due to some unusual cause, and won-
> dered much who it was that exercised this secret control
> over me, and what might be his object. Such was the
> astonishment and emotion which took possession of me that
> I was obliged to make the best excuses I could for cutting
> short my discourse. Thereupon the assembly broke up,
> and I returned to my lodging deeply meditating. Next
> day when I wished to preach precisely the same thing
> happened, and so again a third time. On this last occasion
> I came out from the mosque in a state of the utmost
> misery and astonishment. Mfrzd 'Ali Muhammad said,
> 'Let the rest of our friends go to their own houses, and do
> C.ONVERSION OF XULU HUSEYN, 37
> you alone accompany me.) When we reached his house he
> ,said, 'By what sign canst thou recognize the Master, and
> what proof dost thou deem most effectual to convince thee
> that thou hast attained the object of thy search ? ' 1
> answered, 'The possession of the Point f Knowledge, which
> wisdom of past and
> is the source and centre of all the 0
> future prophets and saints.' 'Do you perceive this in me?'
> he asked; 'How if I were so endowed?' 'That you are
> devout, godly, and holy of life,' I answered, 'is true; but
> only knowledge derived directly from God can admit to
> this lofty rank.' At this he was silent for a while as
> though in wonder, while I thought to myself, 'What idea
> can this devout youth be harbouriDg in his mind that he so
> persistently introduces this topic ? I must at all events
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ask some question of him which he has never heard dis-
> cussed and cannot answer, so that he may be turned aside
> from his vain imaginings.' I therefore put to him a ques-
> tion which appeared to me very difficult of solution, and
> which had always been in my mind during the life-time of
> the late Seyyid --
> Amongst the garrison of the Uastle was another person
> named Murshid, a notable scholar and mystic, remarkable
> alike for his intellectual and moral excellence, who had
> visited all parts of the world, associated with every class
> and circle of society, and was familiarly acquainted with
> the most distinguished men of the capital. On the day
> when the royal troops took captive and massacred the
> garrison of the Castle, violated their oath and covenant,
> and made manifest their infidelity and disbelief in the
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 1~ur'An, Murshid was amongst those whom they brought
> bound before the Prince. Now SuleymAn KhAn' was an
> old and intimate friend of Murshid's, and, as soon as his
> eyes fell upon him, he said, "How came you to be involved
> in this perit? Thank God that I was here, else you would
> certainly not have escaped.," Murshid answered, "If you
> desire to do me a friendly service such that I may bear you
> eternal gratitude, do not intercede for me and thereby
> deprive me of the glory of martyrdom." Suleymin KbAn,
> overcome with astonishment, strove by every means to dis-
> suade him from this course, but he only replied, "I have
> tasted to the full the bitter and sweet of life, its hot and
> cold,-its ups and downs. I have trodden every path, held
> converse with every claass, associated with men of every
> I ie. Suleym6n KhAn Afshdr, who was sent to supersede
> Prince Mahdf-Kulf Mirzi in the actual command of the besieging
> force. See p. 85 supra.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> f
> 102 THE NEW HISTORY.
> sort and condition, and -
> ,,olight to fitthoin, every creed, but
> i_^i, m +Iia Tnitli save ill this supreme
> nownere -nave I
> station) where I have seen with mine eyes and heard w
> mine ears things passing description. For a while I have
> walked with these in the path of love and with them have
> trod its stages, and I would not leave them now. Suffer
> me, then, to bear them company, and set me free from the
> trammels of this life.
> (I know for sure that this my life is death;
> My true life opens at ngiy closing breath."'
> So he would not stiffer himself to be moved by Suleymin
> KhAn's Persuasions, but continued looking towards the exe-
> cutioner and awaiting the death-blow ; wherefore, seeing
> him so eager for the draught of martyrdom, they quenched
> his thirst with the bright sword. And SuleymAn KhAn
> and the other officers were amazed beyond description at
> his asteadfastness.
> So in like manner there was anotlier, a mere youth,
> whom the a-,ol(liers had hidden to save frorigi death, [that
> advantage might accrue to them from his family.] But
> ('b
> when his eyes fell on Jen t -i-Kuddiis, whom they were
> leading away in fetters and chains, he was overcome with
> e and cried Out, Would that I were
> uncontrollable motion, ,
> blind, that I might not see you thus Then he began to
> weep and cry out, saying, " Lot me go to my master; " and
> though they bade him hold his peace and not make known
> his connection with the BàbÕs, he did but cry the, more,
> " Do ye not see that I am one of them ? " until at length
> the others perceived the true state of the case, and bore
> him away to death. r-:4-1-ful -41- were. le
> Now as to the remnant ot the
> alive, they brought them in fetters and chains to BArfurAsh.
> Some of them they sold, such as *EMullA Muhammad
> BIOGRAPHIES OF ILLUSTRIOUS MARTYRS. 103
> ~idikj* of Kliurdsin, AkA Seyyid 'Aem the Turk, HAji
> [MÕrzà] Nasfr of Kazvfn, and MÕrzà Huseyn of Kum'.
> Several were sent to Sirf, and there suffered martyrdom ;
> others were put to death at BArfurfisli; while two more
> Of these latter, ne was Mull.4 Ni'-
> were sent to AmuL 0
> iiiatu'llAh of Amul, a man skilled in philosophy and science,
> and endowed with singular virtues; the other was MÕrzà
> Muhammad BAkir Tof KA'inj of KhurAsAn, Nvho, apart
> from his learning, was a man of many arts and resources
> and very brave and valorous, and who had planned most
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> of the strategical movements of the garrison. MullA Ni'-
> iiiatu'11411 was first slain with every circumstance of cruelty
> and indignity, but when the headsman would have killed
> MÕrzà BAkir and began to mock and revile him, his anger
> blazed forth, and, calling to mind the Beloved of the worlds,
> lie broke the bonds which confined his arms, plucked the
> knife from the headsmaii's hands, and smote him so sharply
> on the neck that his head rolled away some ten or fifteen
> paces. The bystanders rushed upon him, but he despatched
> several of them to the hell whence they originally came,
> and wounded some others, until at length they shot the
> brave youth from afar off. Men and women marvelled at
> his courage and manhood, wondering how he was able thus
> to burst asunder those strong links of iron and oppose so
> fierce a resistance to a thousand foes all thirsting for his
> blood. When lie had fallen, they searched his pockets and
> found therein a little roasted horse-fiesh +[which had be-
> come too dry for him to eatj t and many a heart was moved
> at the thought of his courage and his afflictionS2.
> * [JenAb-i-Mukaddas] *
> t ~wliich he had not be"en able to eatj t
> 1 Cf. my Traveller's Narrative, p. 129, n. 2.
> 2 In the notes taken during one of my interviews with Subh-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 104 THE NEW HISTORY.
> f
> [Account of Akd Se id Alimad of Semnin and his
> yy a
> circumstances.]
> Of the number of those brave warriors of truth who
> were most eminent for their attainments was AkA Seyyid
> Ahmad of SeminAn, a preacher of incomparable eloquence
> and rare powers of diction and delivery, well known
> throughout all Mizandarin for his godliness, simplicity of
> life, virtue, and piety. When lie saw the faithful belea-
> guered in the Castle of Tabarsf, and ascertained them to be
> for the most part learned, wise, and virtuous beyond the
> generality of their fellows, he was convinced by his natural
> acuteness of apprehension that they would not have em-
> barked on so hazardous an enterprise or have thus impe-
> rilled their lives unless they had clearly recognized -_ in the
> new doctrine > -something --worthy of their self-devotion:>.
> This was in the early days of the siege, be-fore the garrison
> of the Castle were subjected to a rigorous blockade. And
> the inhabitants of Sh,,gth-Mirzi and Dasak-sar, two consi-
> derable villages situated near to the Tomb of Sheykh
> i-Ezel at Famagusta I find the following entry, which in some
> measure confirms what is here related:-" Mirz6 Bikir, who had
> been balf-starved, and had had his nose cut off, was shot on the
> bridge at ~mul, but not till he had -wounded several of his foes
> with a kDife."
> I I am uncertain as to the correct spelling of this name,
> which is not clearly written in either MS. In C. it appears to
> stand as j- tL,3; in L. as a_j; but in either case the first
> letter may be a 5 instead of a ,. Perhaps it is the same village
> as that called in the Rawzatu's-6afd in the Ndsikhu't-
> Taw6rikh and by Gobinean (p. 202) Daskk In the
> TraveZle?s Narrative (vol. ii, pp. 177 and 190) 1 have trans-
> literated this name as Vdsaks, but this is merely conjectural.
> 1310GRAPHIES OF ILLUSTRIOUS MARTYRS. 10
> Tabarsf, moved by the same. considerations as had influ
> enced AkA Seyyid Ahmad, resolved to enquire into th
> matter, and waited upon him to unfold their views. "I also,?
> replied he, " am filled with wonder at their behaviour, an
> am much disposed to examine their doctrine, and discove
> what object they have in view." To this the others replie4
> " We entertain no doubt concerning your piety and wisdom,
> and if you, having visited them, affirm the truth of their
> claims, we too will join ourselves to them and help them,
> so far as lies in our power, with men and supplies."
> Now although at this time none dared so much as
> speak of the BàbÕs, much less go to their stronghold and
> converse with them, AkA Seyyid Ahmad, actuated solely
> by his natural goodness and sincerity, manfully set out for
> the Castle to ascertain the truth of the matter. And it
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> had been agreed that, so soon as he should have satisfied
> himself, he should return and inform the others of the state
> of the case, so that, if they held to their promise, they
> might all join the defenders of the Castle, and furnish them
> with supplieas. So Ak6 Seyyid Ahmad, shutting his eyes
> to all worldly considerations, and impelled by zeal to dis-
> cover the truth, set his feet within that vortex of affliction.
> And when he was come thither, and had met and conversed
> with Je)za'b-i-Kuddfts and others of the believers, the veil
> of doubt fell from his eyes, and he saw plainly that which
> he sought transcending the understandings of the wisest
> amongst mankind. So he believed with his whole heart,
> and thereafter turned not back from the path on which he
> had entered.
> Then he sent word to the inhabitants of the two villages,
> saying,
> That which my heart hath long essayed to find
> Is found at length, concealed this veil behind.'
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 106
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> So the villagers began to make preparations to go to the
> Castle, but just at that time the troops hemmed it in on all
> sides, closing every avenue of approach, so that they were
> unable to reach it. Surely, men care, naught for religious
> truth, and are held back by the bonds of passion and self-
> interest from taking thought of spiritual things, for of
> those, whether wise or simple, who set themselves to en-
> quire into the matter not one but was convinced.
> "The physician of Love hath the healing breath of Christ, and
> is prone to heal,
> But how can he undertake the cure of a pain which thou
> dost not feel?"
> Yet more wonderful than the events above described is
> the account of them given by 'Abbia-,-Kulf KhAn, with
> many expressions of admiration, to Prince Ahmad MÕrzà.
> The late HAji MÕrzà JMif writes :-" About two years after
> the disaster of Sheykh Tabarsf I heard one, who, though
> not a believer, was honest, trathful, and worthy of credit,
> relate as follows:-'We were sitting together when some
> allusion was made to the war waged by some of those pre-
> sent against Hazrat-i-Kudd~isl and Je)?a'b-i-Ba'bu'1-Ba'b.
> Prince Ahmad MirzA and 'AbbAs-Kulf Kli6igi were amongst
> the company. The Prince questioned 'Abbis-Kulf Khdn
> -about the matter, and he replied thus :-" The truth of the
> matter is that anyone who had not seen Kerbeli would, if
> he had seen Tabarsf, not only have comprehended what
> there took place, but would have ceased to consider it';
> and had lie seen MullA Huseyii of Bushraweyh lie would
> 1 See n. 1 on p. 95 mpra.
> 2 ie. the courage displayed by the Ba'bfs at Sheykh Tabarsf
> and the afflictions endured by them resembled, but far surpassed,
> the fortitude and the sufferings of the Imirn Ijuseyn and his
> followers at Kerbeli.
> A TRIBUTE OF PRAISE FROM THE FOE.' 107
> have been convinced that the Chief of Martyrs' had
> returned to earth; *Tand had lie witnessed my deeds he
> would assuredly have said, 'This is Shinir come back
> with sword and lance.'J* I swear by the sacred plume 2
> of His Majesty the Centre of the Universe that one day
> Mulld Huseyn, having on his head a green turban, and
> over his shoulder a shroud, came forth from the Castle,
> stood forth in the open field, and [leaning on a lance which
> he held in his hand] said,' 0 people, why, without enquiry,
> and under the influence of passion and prejudiced misre-
> presentation, do ye act so cruelly towards us, agnd strive
> without cause to shed innocent blood ? Be ashamed before
> the Creator of the universe, and at least give us passage,
> that we may depart out of this land [to Europe, or Turkey,
> or India.]' Seeing that tglle soldiers were moved, I opened
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> fire, and ordered the troops to shout so as to drown his
> voice. Again 1 saw t[him lean on his lance and cry, 'Is
> there any who will help me?' three times],t so that all
> heard his cry. At that moment all the soldiers were silent,
> land some beran to weep], and many of the horsemen were
> 0
> visibly affected. Fearing that th ' e army might be seduced
> from their allegiance, I again ordered them to fire land
> shoutI. Then I saw MOR Huseyn unsheath his sword,
> raise his face towards heaven, and exclaim, '0 God, I have
> completed the proof to this host, but it availeth not.' Then
> lie began to attack us on the right and on the left. I swear
> by God that on that day lie wielded the sword in such
> *PA bbris-lCuli' Kluin's descrigion of 111.11116 Rusey2z's
> entry into the field of balile.]*
> t Ithat his voice was raisedl f
> I ie. the ImArn Vuscyn.
> 2 Jika, properly the aigrette worn by the Shah in the front
> of his kuldh.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 108
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> f
> wise as transcends the power of man. Only the horsemen
> of MAzandarAn held their ground and refused to flee. And
> when MullA Huseyn was well warmed to the fray he over-
> took a - to austeri-
> *[knowing it to be the blow of Iiias hand]*
> I i.e. be cut each of them in two.
> 2 (Ali b. Abf Tdlib, the first Imim.
> REFLECTIONS ON THE SIEGE OF TABARSf. 109
> ties, but strangers to the roar of cannon, the rattle of mus-
> ketry, and the field of battle. During the last three months
> of the siege, moreover, they were absolutely without bread
> and water, and were reduced to the extreme of weakness
> through lack of even such pittance of food as is sufficient
> to sustain life. Notwithstanding this, it seemed as if in
> time of battle a new spirit was breathed into their frames,
> insomuch that the imagination of man cannot conceive the
> vehemence of their courage and valour. They used to
> expose their bodies to the bullets and cannon-balls not
> olgily fearlessly and courageously, but eagerly and joyously,
> seeming to regard the battle-field as a banquet, and to be
> bent on casting away their lives'." ' "
> In short, seldom has the eye of time beheld or the his-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> torian been called upon to record events so wondrous or
> afflictions so dire as those which befell these devoted be-
> lievers in Mizandarin. And withal these men were for
> the most part lionourable amongst their people, delicately
> nurtured in the lap of luxury, accustomed to comfort if not
> to splendour, highly considered and esteemed by their
> neighbours, and in the enjoyment of fame, influence, and
> high authority. Yet they manfully severed all worldly
> ties, abandoned every hope and ambition of their own, and
> for nine months were exposed to all manner of afflictions,
> suffering sudh long stress of hunger that they were content
> to eat grass and the flesh of horses and to drink each day 4
> single cup of warm water. Yet, so far from complaining or
> *ubh-i-Ezel informed me that on one occasion, when some
> P
> of the cle~gy of Mr began to revile Mullh Huseyn in the resence
> of 'AbbAs-J~ulf Khdn, he said-
> ..U ..tr ~ :~ ,y. J6~_' ijla;  U
> "There is no occasion for reviling: he was a brave man, who
> slew and was-slain."
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 110
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> sorrowing, they endured patiently and even joyfully, not
> swerving aside by so much as a hair's breadth from the path
> which they so steadfastly followed, and attaining to heights
> of constancy whereof the lowest degree transcends the
> imagination of saints and apostles. The pen is powerless
> to describe the full measure of their high-souled devotion
> and heroism, but a sufficient hint of it has been given
> in this brief narrative to prevent the uninformed from re-
> garding this episode as a matter of small consequence, or
> imagining that it was but men of mean position who,
> misled by idle dreams, suffered themselves to be slain.
> Let this much at least be known and recognized, that these
> were men of consequence aihid the best of every class, and
> that they, disregarding all worldly considerations, did,
> being of full knowledge and understanding, voluntarily
> and cheerfully lay down their lives in the way of the
> Beloved.
> Now these events took place in the fifth' year of the
> Manifestation, corresponding to the year A.H. 12642 , and
> the period of their duration [from first to last] was nine
> months [or even more].
> C. has "third". The fifth year of the Manifestation beoan
> on the Nawr~iz Of A.H. 1264 (about March 21St, A.D. 1848). Cf.
> Traveller's Yarrative, p. 425.
> 2 C. has "A.H. 1263". The troubles in Mizandarin began
> towards the end of the year A.H. 1264 (autunin Of A.D. 1848)
> and lasted till Ramaz'n or Sbawwa' A.H. 1265 (July or August
> a
> 1849).
> CONVERSION OF SEYYID YAHY-k OF Mkltill. Ill
> [Account of the Episode of the learned, virtuous, and incom-
> ' I
> parable Aka Seyyid Ya~ya', the possessor of divine
> gifts of the highest order, the strenuous striver ater
> knowledge, who went to Feirs to seek after the truth,
> and proved His Supreme Holiness, until at length he
> reached the haven of faith ; and how he went thenice
> to Yezd, and there set up the standard, and thence to
> Ni`r'~; and of the circumstances incidental to all this.]
> Yet more wonderful than the MAzandardn episode is
> that which befell AkA Seyyid YahyA of Ddrgb, son of the
> late AkA Seyyid ia'far-i-Kashff. And he was eminent
> amongst divines and thinkers, divinely gifted with super-
> natural faculties, notable for his sanctity, and unrivalled in
> austerity of life and piety. Now when lie heard the report
> of the Manifestation, he went to Shfriz expressly to enquire
> into the matter. There he met with a certain eminent and
> illustrious divine who is in truth learned in Divine Know-
> ledge and wise in the wisdom of the Eternal, one whose
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> being is an ever-stirriDg sea harbouring ideas bright as
> pearls. But men know him not by this name < of BàbÕ >,
> for the All-Wise hath till now kept him under the shadow
> of His protection for the - perfecting and training of His
> servants, the guidance of such as wander in the wilderness
> of search into the straight highway of knowledge, and the
> deliverance from error of such as seek after truth. With
> this illustrious personage and several other, learned and
> pious believers did this thirsty pilgrim in the path of
> enquiry meet on his arrival at ShfrAz. He was eager to
> obtain forthwith an interview with the BAb, but per-
> mission was for sundry reasons deferred, and Seyyid
> YahyA spent this interval in examining some of the sacred
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 112
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> writings. Finding in them no ground for objection or de-
> nial, he said in confidence to the illustrious divine already
> referred to, " These luminous words bear witness to the
> truth of the claim, and leave no room for doubt ; yet were
> it permitted to me to behold some miracle or sign beyond
> this, I should gain a fuller assurance." To this the other
> answered, " For such as have like us beheld a thousand
> marvels stranger than the fabled cleaving of the moon to
> demand a miracle or sign from that Perfect Truth would
> be as though we should seek light from a candle in the full
> blaze of the radiant sun:
> In presence of the sun's effulgence bright
> Should we from lamp or candle seek for light,
> 'T would surely be an act as vain as rude,
> A proof of folly and ingratitude.
> The sun, in sooth, requires no further sign
> Than the slant sun-beam's long-protracted line.""
> So AkA Seyyid Yahyi set down in writing several hard
> questions of his own devising, and one night, about five
> hours after sun-set, sent this paper by means of the eminent
> divine afore-mentioned to His Supreme Holiness. In the
> morning the messenger brought the answer, wherein were
> nearly three thousand verses of texts and explanations
> sufficient to dispel all doubts. No sooner had AkA Seyyid
> YahyA glanced at these than be was filled with wonder, and
> said to that illustrious divine, " I have beheld a marvel a
> hundred-thousand-fold beyond what I sought, for, with all
> my learning and scholarship, I spent nine whole days in
> writing one single page of questions containing not inore
> than twelve lines. Most wonderful, therefore, does it seem
> to me that over two thousand verses and illustrations of
> such exceeding eloquence and beauty of style should be
> revealed and written down during five or six hours of the
> I This quotation is from the .1fasnavi.
> I
> shipl*
> CONVERSION OF SEYYID YAHYk OF DkRkB. 113
> latter part of the night, which is the time for His Holigne a ss'
> repose.
> When, therefore, AkA Seyyid Yal~yA had well consi-
> dered that writing, *[and the solutions therein offered of
> the hard questions which he had propounded, his doubts
> were completely removed];* and, after a sojourn of some
> little while, during which the honour of an interview was
> accorded to him, he received permission to depart, and set
> out for Yezd. The late HAjf MÕrzà JAnf writes, " A'kA
> Seyyid YahyA, agreeably to the behest of His Supreme Holi-
> ness, came from Yezd to TeherAn, and it was during this
> Journey that I had the honour of meeting him. It was at a
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> season when snow had covered the earth, the air was bitter
> cold, and snow and rain threatened travellers with destruc-
> tion and rendered locomotion almost impracticable. Never-
> theless I beheld in him a blitheness and content which knew
> no limit. I once demanded of him in the course of conver-
> sation what had been the means of his conversion, and how
> he had come to believe. His answer was as follows:-'After
> the report of the Manifestation had been spread abroad,
> men would ask of me, " What say you of him'? " to which
> I was for~ed to reply, " Not having seen him, what can
> I say? When I have seen him, and ascertained somewhat
> about him, I shall be able to impart to you what I have
> -understood." After a while I -set out for ShfrAz to enquire
> into the matter. In the first interview with His Holiness
> wherewith I was honoured, I spoke, after the manner of
> divines, in a somewhat arrogant fashion, asking numerouas
> questions, and conducting myself haughtily, as men of
> learning are wont to do. His Holiness answered ine; but,
> * Jhe at once believed and prostrated himself in wor-
> 1 i.e. the BAb.
> N. 11.
> 8
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 114 THE NEW HISTORY.
> my eyes being still covered with a veil of egotism and self-
> approval, his words found no favour in my sight. 1 began to
> be somewhat sorry that I had troubled myself to no purpose,
> and fruitlessly undertaken so long and tedious a journey,
> though His Holiness smiled upon me, and treated ine very
> graciously. On returning to my lodging, I said to some of
> his disciples who were profoundly versed in knowledge,
> " You are far wiser and more learned than this youth ; for
> what reason do you acknowledge the truth of hisg claim. and
> admit the cogency of his proofs?" "If you will but be
> patient," answered they, " for a little while, you too will
> confess and yield." I wished to return to my home, and
> was actually iDtending to start, but my companions pre-
> vented me, saying, " You too will be fully convinced."
> I enquired on what grounds they based their belief. They
> replied, " Experience has taught us that anyone whom His
> Holiness receives graciously, and to whom he shews affec-
> tion, is in the end invariably -persuaded, even though lie be
> filled with antagonism and aversion ; while, on the other
> hand, anyone on whom His Holiness looks not favourably
> turns aside, even though at first he incline to believe."
> " 'To be brief, one night His Holiness summoned ine,
> and, after receiving me. very graciously, said, 1, What dost
> thou. desire of ine ? " I replied, " I aiii a man of learning,
> and learning is my daily bread. I have in mind several
> questions, the which should you be able to solve I shall
> know that the Point of Knowledge is yours." " Write
> down your questions," said lie, " that I may answer thein
> in writing." Now I had in inind three questions. Two of
> these I wrote down and handed to His Holiiie,-,as, who It
> once took a pen, and, without reflection or hesitation, wrote,
> as fast as pen could travel, answer-, of agurpassing inerit.
> Then lie took another sheet of paper and wrote, "The third
> question which you have in your inind is this, and this is
> s
> SEYYID YAHYk GOES TO YEZD. 115
> its answer." When 1 had considered these full and sufli-
> cient answers, and the reply given to the question which
> I had in my mind (which I regarded as more weighty and
> important than the other two, but deemed unanswerable),
> I submitted so entirely to the power of attraction and influ-
> ence which he possesses that at a mere hint on his part I am
> proud and glad to undertake a journey in tghis cold winter
> weather, my only hope being that he will of his grace and
> favour accept me as the servant of his servants, and that
> I may be permitted to shed even a drop of my blood in the
> furtherance of his cause.'
> " When, after the lapse of some time, I again had the
> honour of meeting AkA Seyyid YahyA in Teherin,'I ob-
> served in his august countenance the signs of a glory and
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> power which I had not noticed during iny first journey
> with him to the capital, nor on other occasions of meeting,
> and I knew that these signs portended the near approach
> of -his departure from the world. Subsequently lie said
> several times in the course of conversation, 'This is my
> last journey, and hereafter you will see me no more,' and
> often, explicitly or by implication, he gave utterance to the
> same thought. Sometimes when we were together, and the
> conversation took an appropriate turn, he would remark,
> 'The saints of God are able to foretell coming events, and
> I swear by that Loved One in the grasp of whose power my
> soul lies that I know and could tell where and how I shall
> be slain ' and who it is that shall slay me. And how glorious
> and blessed a thing it is that my blood should be shed for
> the uplifting of the Word of Truth 1
> So AkA Seyyid YahyA, after he had believed and made
> submission, took leave of the Bib, and set out from Shiriz
> 1 Some reflections of the author, which merely serve to
> interrupt the continuity of the narrative, are here omitted.
> 8-2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I
> 116
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> for Yezd. For a while during the earlier period of lii,,-
> mission lie expounded the BAb's doctrines only in gather-
> ings of such as were prepared and fitted to hear tlieligi-
> But afterwards, according to the purport of the verse-
> 11 Prudence and love can ne'er walk hand in hand,"
> and the Yerse-
> "Love htiid fair fai-ne nitist waue eternal war;
> 0 10A,er, halt not at the loved one's door
> lie began openly to proclaiiii the truth, and converted a
> great multitude, besides leading many who -had not reached
> the stage of conviction and the haven of assurance to
> profess devotion and agyinpatliy. At length, through the
> officiotisigiess of certain lihieddlesome and mischievous per-
> sons, the governor of Yezd was informed of what was taking
> place. He, fearing for himself, sent a body of men to arrest
> Seyyid Yal~yA. A trifling collision occurred between the
> two parties, and thereupon the governor prepared to effect
> his capture by force of arms.
> Seyyid YaliyA retired with a number of his followers
> and friends into the citadel of Yezd, while the myrmidons
> of the governor surrounded it and commenced hostilities.
> At length the matter came to actual warfare, in the course
> of which some thirty or more Jof the governor's men and
> the roghlies and vagabonds of the city who had joined them
> were killed, while sevenj of AkA Seyyid Yahy6's followers
> [were also slain. and the rest were besieged for soi-ihie time,
> till some], unwilling to endure ffirther disaster, dispersed.
> Seyyid YahyA therefore determined to set out for ShfrAz,
> and said one night, " If one of you could manage to lead
> out my liorase, so that I might escape this disaster, and
> convey myself to some other place, it were not amiss."
> One Hasaii by name, who bad been for some time in
> I
> i
> I
> I
> I
> I
> i
> I
> I  i
> SEYXID YAHYX RETURNS TO NfRfZ. 117
> attendance on Seyyid Yahya4, and had displayed in his
> service the utmost faithfulness and devotion (having wit-
> nessed on the part of his august master inany a display of
> miraculous and supernatural faculties), made answer, saying,
> "With your permission, I will lead out the horse." "They
> will capture and slay you," replied Seyyid Ya~y& " That,"
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> rejoined Hasan, "is easy to bear, if it be for I love of YOU2
> and I have no ambition beyond it." So Seyyid YahyA
> .suffered him to go, and, even as he had announced,;they
> took the youth captive outside the citadel and brought him
> before the governor, who ordered him to be blown from the
> mouth of a cannon. When they would have bound him
> with his back towards the gun, lie said, " Bind me, I pray
> you, with my face towards the gun, that I may see it fired."
> The gunners and those who stood by looking on were all
> astonished at his composure and cheerfulness, and indeed
> one who can be cheerful in such a plight must needs have
> ,great faith and fortitude.
> Seyyid YaliyA, however, succeeded in effecting his
> escape from the citadel with one other, and set out gfor
> .SllirAz, whence he proceeded to Nfriz. After his departure
> his followers were soon overcome by the governor. Several
> of them were taken captive and put to death, wbile from
> the rest, after they had suffered divers torments, fines of
> money were exacted.
> Now when Seyyid YahyA was come to Nfriz, where was
> the abode of his family, and where lie had many adherents
> (some of the country-folk being believers, others deniers,
> and many halting undecided), the governor of that district,
> though lie had formerly professed the most devoted attach-
> ment, no sooner perceived that a struggle was imminent,
> and that the government would pass out of his hands, than
> lie sent word to Seyyid Yahyi saying, " I do not consider
> it expedient that you should continue any longer in this
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> i
> 118
> province. It is best that you should depart with all speed
> to some other place." To this Seyyid Yahy& made reply,
> " I have returned hither, after a prolonged absence, to learn
> how matters fare, and to see my wife and family, neither. do
> I wish to interfere with anyone. What makes you order
> me to quit illy house, instead of affording me protection,
> and observing towards me the respect which is my due?
> Do you not fear God, and have you no sliame before His,
> apo stle "
> aw that Seyyid YaliyA heeded.
> So when the governor s(
> not his words and answered him sharply, lie was filled with
> obstinate spite, and strove to raise a popular tumult, in-
> citing si-icgli men of every class and kind as were most,
> ,vicked and mischievous to make a disturbance and drive
> out Seyyid YahyA, who, perceiving this, repaired to the
> mosque, and, after performing his devotions, entered the.
> pulpit formerly occupied by his grandfather, and spoke asg
> follows.
> " Am I not lie whose opinions and prescriptions ye were,
> wont to follow in all religious questions ? In your need&
> and trials, as well as in all matters of doctrine and practice,
> 'used ye not to prefer illy word to that of any other ? Waas~
> not lily belief, and the judgement which illy studies had led
> me to form, the criterion of all your actions ? What has-,
> collie to you that you meet iiie now with opposition and
> eninity? What forbidden thing have I sanctioned, or what
> lawful thing have I forbidden, that you thus without reasoiia
> charge me with heresy and error ? I stand liere anioligst,
> you wronged and oppressed for no other cause than that I
> have, for your awakening and enlightenment, spoken true~
> words and held faithful discourse, and that I have, out
> of sympathy for you and desire for your welfare, made
> known to you the way of salvation. This being so, let
> each who slights or supports me know for a surety that,
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> i
> I
> I
> BEGINNING OF THE NfRfZ WAR.
> whatsoever lie does, lie does in regard to illy illustrious
> ancestor'."
> When he had spoken to this effect, some were sorry,
> and some wept*bitterly, saying, "We still continue in our
> former allegiance and devotion to you, and all that you
> say we hold true and right."
> Then Seyyid YahyA came forth from the mosque,
> quitted the city, and alighted in a ruined castle hard by,
> those friends who bore him company being not more than
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> seventeen in number. But even after lie had left the city
> his malicious and ngiischievous persecutors ceased not from
> their evil designs, for they followed bim with a great inulti-
> tude, scouring the country in all directions until they dis-
> covered his retreat. Thereupon they laid siege to the castle
> and opened hostilities. Then Seyyid Ya~iyA commanded
> seven of his men to go out and drive them away, and gave
> them full instructions as to the ordering of the sally, adding
> that whoever should occupy a certain station would be slain
> by a wound in the breast, and that such as went in a certain
> direction would return unhurt. One amongst those present,
> a young lad of Yezd, good of heart and comely of coun-
> teiiance, arose and said, "I pray you suffer igne to be the
> pioneer of this nhiucli-wronged band and to precede illy
> comrades in martyrdolu." And Seyyid YahyA kissed him
> on the clieek, and breathed a prayer for him. Then the
> defenders of the castle sallied swiftly forth, and attacked
> that godless host of hypocrites, and ere long scattered them
> and put them to flight. But the Yezdi lad, even as hiai
> master had foretold, and lie had himself desired, drained
> the draught of martyrdom, escaped from the bonds of earth'as
> deceits, and gained the everlasting world and the life eter-
> iial, But the rest returned victorious, having learned the
> 1 (Alf b. Abf Talib the first lm,,im.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 120
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> meaning of "verily we belong to God, and unto Him do we
> return.)y
> At the very time when these events were in progress,
> Prince Firitz MirzA' came to assume the government of
> ShfrAz, and was informed of what had taken place. He at
> once collected a considerable force, which he despatched
> under the command of Mihr 'All KhAn
> soil of HAjf Shukru'llAh KhAii of Nfir, and Mustafi-Kuli
> KhAn KAragtizlfi, colonel, to subdue and take captive the
> insurgents. When this force reached the castle, the number
> of Seyyid Ya~yA's followers had increased to seventy.
> Several encounters took place. between the two forces, and
> on each occasion the BàbÕs routed and dispersed their oppo-
> nents and obtained possession of a goodly spoil. And all
> this while the devotion, faith, and love of Seyyid YahyA's
> companions were much increased by the many prodigies
> which he wrought, so that each was fully prepared to lay
> down his life. And when Seyyid YahyA had repeatedly
> described to his COMPaDiOnS the circumstances of his ap-
> proaching end, and all had, for the good pleasure of the
> Beloved, washed their hands of life, and, quit of earthly
> ties, were awaiting martyrdom, those who had come to take
> them, being unable, notwitlistandina all their efforts, to
> n
> prevail by force of arms, and despairing of the final issue,
> had recourse to treachery, and wrote to Seyyid Yahy6
> expressing perplexity as to his mission, making excuses
> for the past, declaring themselves to be desirous of enquir-
> ing into the matter, and begging for instruction. They
> further pledged them, with oaths plighted on the Word of
> * [DfvAn-Begfl *
> I Both C. and L. have 11 Prince Farbdd Mfrza'," an obvious
> error. Cf. my Traveller's Narrative, vol. ii, pp. 183, and 257--8.
> i
> I
> I
> SURRENDER OF SEYYID YA1-IYA. 121
> God, that if he would be good enough to come out to them,
> they would agree to whatever terms he might propose.
> So Seyyid YaVyA, out of respect for the Kur'àn , prepared to go forth. But his
> followers surrounded him on every side, saying, " We are
> fearful and anxious about your outgoing, for this host is
> more faithless than the men of Kdfa'. No reliance can be
> -placed on their oaths and promises, neither ought you to
> believe their asseverations." To this Seyyid YahyA replied,
> ic By God, I clearly perceive their perfidy, faithlessness, and
> treachery, and I know it as well as my saintly ancestor'
> knew the perfidy of the men of Ku'fa. But how can I resist
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> their wiles, these being in accord with divinely-appointed
> destiny ? Because of what they have written and pledged
> themselves on the Kur'Aii to perform, it is incumbent on
> me to go and complete the proof Do you abide here till
> you receive my written instructions." +TThen, having
> wept a while with them, he mounted his horse and rode
> forth.j+
> So Seyyid Ya~yA came to the royalist camp, and there
> alighted. And at first they treated him with all respect
> and deference, [such respect as Ma'm-hn observed towards
> the holy lm4,m 'Alf ibn Mfisi er-RizA while inwardly bent
> on his death.] And they agreed to postpone all discussion
> t[I'lien lie mounted his horse and took a last farewell
> .of his companions, saying, " Verily we belong to God, and
> verily unto Him do we return." And his followers wept
> bitterly.] t
> 1 The people of KUM by their promises of support induced
> the ImAni Huseyn to take up arms, but failed him in the day of
> need.
> 2 ImAni Huseyn, from whom, as a Seyyid, Seyyid YahyA
> claimed descent.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 122
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> I
> of teriihis till the morrow, a,,iiid spent that night in conversing
> on various topics. But when morning was come, and
> Seyyid YahyA would have gone forth from his tent, the
> sentinels prevented him, saying, " It is not permitted to
> you to go out." So he remained a prisoner in the tent.
> No sooner had tidings of this reached Seyyid Yah.),A's
> faithful followers than, unable to restrain themselves, they
> emerged from their castle, hurled themselves upon the
> centre of the army, and, in the space of one hour, threw
> the whole camp into confusion. The officers, seeing this,
> hastened into Seyyid YahyA's presence, saying, "Was it
> not agreed between us last night that there should be peace
> and concord?" "Aye," said lie, "but your conduct this
> morning provoked this reprisal." "It was done without
> our knowledge," answered they, " and without our sanction.
> Some of our men, who have lost kinsmen and relatives in
> this warfare, offered you this insult ignorantly and without
> our knowledge. You, who are merciful and generous, must
> overlook their fault." "What", quoth he, "would you
> have me do?" "Write", said they, "to these men of
> yours, bidding them evacuate the castle and return to their
> own homes, that the minds of our soldiers may be re-
> assured; and we will then arrange matters as you may deter-
> nhiiiie, and act agreeably to your suggestions."
> So S eyyid YahyA had no resource but to write to his
> followers, " Come what may, you must submit to divinely-
> ordered destiny; aihid meanwhile there is nothing for it but
> that you should gather up your own gear, leaving the spoils
> you have won exactly as they are, and return to your own
> homes. Let us wait and see what God wills." So these
> poor people, being constrained to obey his behest, departed
> to their homes. But no sooner were they coiihie thither
> than their foes attacked their houses, captured them singly,
> carried off their goods as spoil, destroyed their dwellings,,
> I
> i
> EXECUTION OF SEYYID YAHY~k. 123
> and brought them in chains, bound hand and foot, to'the
> camp.
> Now there was with Seyyid YahyA a certain believer of
> Yezd who had served him faithfully both at Yezd and
> .L\'Irfz, renouncing all and suffering much for his,sake.~ And
> when word was brought that the headsman was on his way
> from the city charged with the execution of Seyyid YahyV,
> this man began to make great lamentation. But his illus-
> trious master said, " It is thee, not me, whom this heads-
> man shall slay; he who shall slay me will arrive to-morrow."
> When the morrow was come, about an hour after the time
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> of the morning prayer, he said again, "He who is to slay
> .1) as-;
> me is now come Shortly after this, a party offarr' he.
> arrived and led out Seyyid YahyA and the Yezdf from the
> tent. Then the headsmaii, just as Seyyid Yahyi had fore-
> told, administered to the youth the draught of martyrdom
> but, when his glance fell on Seyyid Yal.iyA, he said, " I am
> asharned before the face of God's Apostle, and will -never
> lift my hand to slay his offspring," neither would he, for all
> their importunity, consent to do their bidding. Then one
> who had lost two brothers in the earlier part of the war,
> and therefore cherished a deep resentment, said, "I will
> kill him." And he loosed the shawl wherewith Seyyid
> Yahyi was girt, cast it round his neck, and drew it tight.
> And others beat his holy body with sticks and stones,
> dragging it hither ahd thither over the plain, till his soul
> soared falcon-like to the branches of paradise. Then they
> severed his head from his body, skinned it, stuffed it with
> straw, and sent it, with other heads, along with the captives
> to ShirAz. And they sent an announcement of their, victory
> I L. has ein wqjh-i-_Rabb, "that Face of the Lord," ie. "that
> apparition of the Divine." Wajlb (face, ngiask, apparition) was a
> title assumed by the BAb, Ml'rzA YahyA &bli-i-Ezel, and, I think,,
> others of the chief Bibis.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 124
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> and triumph to Prince Nusratu'd-Dawlal, and fixed a day
> for their entry . And when oil the appointed
> day they drew near, the city was decorated, and the people
> were busy enjoying themselves ai ' id making merry, most of
> them having come out froin the town to iihieet the victorious
> troops and gaze oil the captives.
> The late HAji Mfrzi Jilif writes :-" One Kfichak 'Alf
> -', the head-man and chief of the Bisirf' tribe of
> ShfrAz, related as follows :-'After they had slain AkA
> Seyyid YahyA, they came to take camels from our people,
> intending to set the captives on bare-backed camels. I was
> distressed at this, but could not resist the governor's order.
> I therefore rode away fToin iigiy tribe at night and came to
> SlifrAz, that at least I might not be amongst my people and
> have to endure the insolence of the soldiers. When 1 was
> come within half a parasang of SlifrAz, I lay down to sleep
> for a while and so get rid of my weariness. When I again
> mounted, I saw that the people of Shfriz had come out in
> troops with minstrels and musicians, and were sitting
> about in groups at every corner and cross-road, feasting
> and making merry with wanton women. Oil every side I
> noted with wonder drunken broils, wine-bibbing, the savour
> of roasted meats, and the astrains of guitars and lutes.
> Thus wondering I entered the city.
> "'After a while, unable to endure the suspense, I de-
> termined to go out and see what was taking place. [As I
> 1 The same Ffruz Alfrzi previously mentioned. L., constant
> in its error, substitutes " Jfu'tamadn'd-Daula ", the title of
> Prince Farhid AlfrzA, but this, as already observed, is a mistake.
> 2 L. omits, and C. reads "Nik", but this seems to be a mistake
> for "Beg". The name occurs a little further on (in a passage
> -omitted in C.) as here given in the text.
> r5
> 3 The BAsirf is one of the Xhamsa (Arab) noniad tribes of
> Fars and LdristAn. See Curzon's Persia, vol. ii, p. 114.
> i
> THE MkBf CAPTIVES ENTER SHfRAZ. 125
> came forth from the gate, I heard an old man asking anotherp I
> " What has happened to-day that the people have thus left
> their houses and gone out of the -town as though to see
> some great sight, and why do -they thus make merry? "
> The other, a youth, replied, " You must surely be a stranger
> not to know about the heretic who renounced our faith and
> creed and rebelled against His Majesty the King, and how
> a great force of troops was sent against him. Well, they
> have taken and slain him, and made captive his family and
> his followers, whom they will bring into the city to-day."
> " By which gate," asked the old man, will they ellter?"
> "By Sa'di's gate," answered the other.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ["'He was a wise old man,' continued Klhchak 'Alf Beg,
> and had seen the world and read its history!' As soon
> as I had heard what passed between him and the youth,
> it at once recalled to me the story of Sahl ibn Si'id, how
> he questioned the man of Damascus, and how just such a
> dialogue ensued, and how the latter said, " They will enter
> Damascus by the gate of SA'At'." I was much struck by
> I The narrator means, I suppose, to imply that the old man,
> struck by the resemblance between the episodes of Nfrfz and
> Kerbela', intentionally asked this question to bring out this
> resemblance more clearly.
> 2 In illustration of this narrative, I subjoin the translation of
> a passage occurring in a manuscript collection of ta'ziya8 belong-
> ing to the University Library of Cambridge (Add. 423, f. 631):-
> "It is related on the authority of Ibn 'AbbAs that Sahl-i-Silidf
> related as follows:-'I had gone on business to Damascus. One
> day I arrived at a village in the neighbourhood of Damascus. I
> found that orders had been issued for the village to be decorated,
> and that the people were flocking out as though to see some
> sight, with rejoicings and beatings of drams and kettle-drums. I
> said to myself, " Surely these people must have some festival not
> common to other men." I asked one what was toward. 'He
> replied, "0 Sheykh, art thou then an Arab of the desert?" I
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 126
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> the coincidence, and my wonder increased. When I had
> gone asompwliat further,] I saw such feastings and rejoicings
> as I had never before witnessed. Most of the men were
> engaged in sports and games, making merry and toying
> with their lemans. After a little while I saw approaching
> the camels, whereon there were set some forty or fifty
> women. TMany of the soldiers bore on their spears the
> severed heads of the men they had slain.J And till this
> time the, towns-folk had been busy with their nierry-
> makings, but no sooner did their eyes fall on the severed
> heads borne aloft on spears and the captives-set on bare-
> backed carnels than they incontinently biirast into tears.
> cc C So they brought the captives thus into the bazaars,
> which had been decorated and adorned, and though it was
> no great distance from the bazaars to the citadel, yet such
> was the throng of spectators (who purposely retarded the
> passage of the captives) that it was after mid-day when
> they reached the governor's palace. The Prince was hold-
> im, a pleasnre-party in the surnmer-liouse called KuNih-i-
> Firangt` and the garden adjoining it, lie sitting on a chair,
> and the nobles and magnates of the city standing. On one
> [Aiid by the side of each camel and captive was a
> severed head stuck on the point of a spear.]
> ,ans am Salil-i-Silid' , m an our
> , wered, " I i, and one of the co p ions of
> Holy Prophet." The man heaved a sigh and began to weep and
> make lhlmentation, saying, " It is wonderful that the heavens
> do not rain down blood at this calamity." Then said 1, "Speak
> more clearly." Then quoth lie, " The people of Damascus are
> rejoicing and making merry over the blessed head of Irn-6tin
> HLiseyii which they of 'Indtk have sent to Yizfd." I said, " From
> which gate of the city will they bring forth that head?" He
> answered, "From the Gate of S6'At."...'"
> I "The European's bat." This surnmer-house was still stand-
> ino, when I was at Shfriz in the Spring of 1888.
> n
> a
> THE B~klif WOMEN BEFORE THE PRINCE  127
> side was drawn a curtain, behind which hthe women of the
> a,
> Prince's household were ensconced. And the captives [all
> bound to one chain] were led in this sad plight into the
> garden and brought before the Prince. Then Mihr 'Alf
> Khin, MÕrzà Na'im', and the other officers recounted their
> exploits and their glorious victory, with various versions
> and many embellishments, to the Prince, who on his part
> kept enquiring the names, rank, and family of the captives,
> and throwing in an occasional, "Who is this?" and "Which
> is that?" And all the captives were women, with the ex-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ception of one child four or five years of age who was with
> them. "[And that sickly child was in truth a partaker of
> the sufferings of these unfortunate women.
> [" 'Now when the conversation had,been protracted-
> for a long while, suddenly a very tall woman who was
> amongst the captives cried out, " 0 son of MarjAna', hast
> thou no fear of God and no shame before my ancestor'
> that thou thus lookest on -his offspring before all these
> strange men?"" Here K-ftchak 'Alf Beg would add an
> oath as lie continued, 'The woman's words produced such
> an effect on the hearts of those who were present that had
> *JThen they dismissed the captives from the Prince's
> presence, and, as it would seem, appointed them lodgingsg
> in a caravansaray.1
> 1 See Traveller's Narrative, vol. ii, pp. 259-261.
> 2 i.e. Shimar ibn Jawshan, one of the murderers of IMAM
> ]Uuseyn. See Sir Lewis Pelly's Miracle Play of Hasan and
> Huseyn, vol. ii, p. 258, and Tabarf's Annales, series ii, vol. i, p.
> 377,1. 6.
> 3 The Prophet Muhammad, or his cousin and son-ih-law 'Alf
> b. Abi Talib, from whom the woman, as belonging toa family of
> Seyyids, claimed descent.
> 4 ie. men beyond the circle of those whose nearness of
> kinship to a woman eigititles them to look on her unveiled.'
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 128 THE NEW HISTORY. I THE SECOND NfRfZ WAR. 129 g
> the sight-seers and townsfolk been there and witnessed.
> what took place there would assuredly have been a dis-
> turbance and revolt. The Prince first ordered the woman
> to be killed, but afterwards, seeing the temper of the
> bystanders greatly changed, he grew apprehensive, and-
> ordered the captives to be diiinissed.]*"'
> On the night when the raid had been made oil ther
> houses of the faithful  and they were taken
> captive, twelve persons had succeeded in effecting their
> escape. These, however, were subsequently captured in
> Ithe neighbourbood ofj Isfaliki and brought to Shfriz,
> where they suffered martyrdom.
> But besides all this, tTas it would seem two years
> later,lt they again waged a strangely protracted mountain
> warfare with the believers , who, because of the
> cruelties and exactioDs to which they were subjected, were
> for a long while in hiding in the mountains with their
> wives and children. -
> jThis struggle lasted for a long while ; and that little
> band, hemmed in as they were in their mountain fastness,
> succeeded in holding their ground until a mighty host of
> regular troops and volunteers from far and near bad been
> gathered against them, and they had fought many a hard
> fight, and won many a gallant victory. Often would a
> company of seven or nineteen men come down with cries
> of " Y6 8611 ib it'z-zamcitn 1 attack a battery, cut down all
> who opposed them, capture the gun, and bear it away with
> them to the mountain, where they would mount it oil a
> t . ' '
> ,~after a tim(
> Plie BAbis ~~,o)Tjlallt most gallantly and were always
> victorious, until it 0 length, after a desperate resistance,
> they were overcome, and suffered martyrdom. Their perse-
> 1 11 0 Lord of tihieAge!"Cf.j)j).69and7d4,s?ip?,a.
> tree trunk and fire it morning and evening against the
> camp. At other times they would make night-attacks on
> certain suburbs of Nfriz inhabited by God's enemies, num-
> bers of whom they would send to the abyss of hell-fire.
> At such times none could withstand thein, or do aught but
> choose between submission and flight.
> t
> TNOW Zeynu'l-'Abidfn Khin the governor of Nfriz had
> taken the chief part in bringing about all these troubles.
> He it was who had compassed the death of the much-
> wronged Seyyid Ya~yA in the first war; he it was who
> devised most of the stratagems, tactics, dispositions, and
> arrangements of the army; lie it was who, both in the first
> and the second war, provoked strife for the sake of securing
> his position as governor and winning approval from the
> government; he it was, in short, who had driven away the
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> BAbis from their homes and possessions, and caused them
> with their wives and families to be beleaguered in the
> mountains. So one day when this honourable governor
> had gone to the bath, the insurgents attacked the baffi and
> slew him.
> TBut reinforcements of men and guns sent in rapid
> succession by Prince TalimAsp MÕrzà (at that time governor
> of FArs) continued to arrive and occupy the rising ground
> adjoining the mountain. Yet, notwithstanding the great-
> ness of their host and the -small number of the-besieged,
> they did not venture to ascend the mountain and attack
> cutors, having captured and killed the men, seized and
> slew forty women and children in the following manner.
> They placed them in the midst of a cave, heaped up in the
> cave a vast quantity of firewood, poured naptitha over the
> faggots strewn around, and set fire to it. One of those
> who took part in this deed related as follows:-" After two
> or three days I ascended that mountain and removed the
> door from the cave. I saw that the fire had sunk down
> N. H.
> 9
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 130
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> them. Even in their camp they were ill at case because of
> the night-attacks and sudden onslaughts made UPOD them
> by parties of their antagonists ten or twenty strong. These,
> as is related, would oft-times rush into the camp, attack
> the artillery, slay the gunners, and return, pushing the
> guns with their shoulders, till they reached the mountain.
> Then, because the gun-carriages would go no further, they
> would dismount the guns, and, with shoulders and ropes,
> push and drag them up the mountain. There they would
> remount them on tree-trunks in place of carriages.
> JSo when the royalist troops saw that they could effect
> nothing, they sent into SAbAuAt, DArAb, and the other
>  saying, " I t will ,
> come to you there." One night one of the believers had spoken ill of the clergy in his own house. The neighbours
> came by night and strangled him, and left him for dead; but lie was not dead. Din Muhammad was informed of this.
> He at once went to the man's house, taking with him thirty of his followers. They found the man still living, and in the
> morning brought him before 111ajdit'd-Dawla, who, however, paid no heed to their suit. So the BAbis went to Mulli
> Muhaiigiiiiad 'Alf and said, "Because you remain within your house and go not to the mosque, our eneinies have
> waxed bold." He answered, "Tell the believers to muster in force tomorrow, that I may eoihnplete the proof, and
> afterwards go to the mosque." So his friends asseiiibled. Then lie addressed them as follows:-" You wish me to go
> to the mosque. Do you not know that there will be a disturbance, that our enemies will make a riot, that there will be
> slaughter and spoiling, that they will send word to TelierAii, and that guns and mortars will be brought against you ?
> " All replied, " We are ready to lay down our lives." So he took from them an oath of allegiance, and said, " Bid all
> the people of the city and those of the neighbouring villages come to the mosque on Friday, for
> of the Manifestation, and these too came true. So they were convinced that this was the Truth become manifest,
> and begged to be excused from taking part iii the war, which thing they declared themselves unable to do. And  they said, " In siibsequent conflicts, when the framework of your religion sliall have gathered strength,
> we will help you." In short, when the officers of the army perceived in their opponents naught but devotion,
> godliness,
> WAR BREAKS OUT AT ZANJIN. +143 g
> public prayer on Friday is obligatory."' So they bade them ; and about four or five thousand asa-,embled and
> sacrificed about a hundred head of beasts'. Thus hoiiourably did MullA Muhammad 'Alf come to the mosque. And
> when prayers were concluded he preached to them, - and then returned to his house. And His
> Excellency0fajdu'dDawla and the'clergy were filled with apprehensions. h
> [One day one 'Abdu'l-'Alf by name, a Bibi, had a quarrel in the market-place with certain of the enemy. These
> complained to the governor, who sent and arrested him, and cast him into prison, contrary to the agreement  taking with him nineteen men, went to'the rampart of the
> continue to act with the other officers, lest hurt come to Akliu'nd's Mosque. Ascending the minaret lie cried out,
> you. Act with prudence : God will cause you to attain to Bring pick-axes, and let us destroy this." One Huseyn
> His Supreme Grace." by name went up on to a roof, took aim at '
> Akal Ahmad) and
> [On the following night  ngiade an attack
> on all four sides, and fought on until the morning, the still for a long while (six month.-, according to one account,
> strife continuing into the day until noon ; but at length e inonths after another version) the, citadel held out,
> they were defeated, and fell back. In that day and night'a,3 though its defenders were only three hundred and, sixty
> fighting twenty-eight of the friends fell martyrs, and three
> A similar device is mentioned by Ferrier (Journeys in
> hundred of the opposite side perished. A 1'ersia and Afglianistan, London, 1857, p. 156) as follows:-6'He
> [Again  applied to Teherdn for re inforce [Yir Muhammad Khan] mentioned, however) in high terms ~the
> ments, and for three or four days abstained from fighting.
> bravery of the [Persian] troops, and furnished me with much
> On the fifth of the blessed month  I they curious information respecting the siege [of Herit]; his mode of
> ascertaining the direction in which the besiegers were carrying
> made a mine under the ramparts. 2~kA Fathu'llih, who
> was in an upper room, informed Din Mu'~ainiiiad, who came the galleries of their mines to reach the ditch of the place was
> very ingenious. Plates were filled with as much small seed as
> they would hold and placed upon the ground in those spots
> set out, brincyinu with him fierce soldiers and murderous under which it was presumed the sappers were at work; and, in
> guns. But tfiough the besiegers had now more than thirty
> thousand horse and foot and nineteen pieces of ordnance, spite of all their precautions, the least concussion or blow from a
> spade or pick brought down a few grains from the heap, and
> I Ramaz6n 5thl A.H. 1266=July 15tb, A.D. 1850. discovered their position."
> DEATH OF AKi ARMAD.
> 149
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> t
> 150
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> shot him, so that he fell from the minaret. The foe charged,
> but the friends also charged, and the attack was repelled.
> AkA Ahmad's bones were broken . The BàbÕs,
> with a thousand difficulties, succeeded in obtaining posses-
> sion of his body, which they buried. But Din Muhammad
> rejoiced greatly, and the other BàbÕs congratulated him ;
> for it was their custom when any one of the friends fell a
> martyr to congratulate his relations.
> [A few days only had elapsed  when Suley-
> mAn KhAn arrived with five regiments of infantry, four guns,
> and six thousand cavalry. The cavalry remained outside,
> while the  regiments entered the city. Eii-
> counters took place daily ; and if, for example, a hundred
> BàbÕs attained the rank of martyrdom, five hundred men fell
> oil the other side. One day a woman came out- with a black
> pitcher in her hand to sprinkle water . The
> BàbÕs seized her, and then discovered that she was really
> a man . They asked him what lie was doing.
> He answered, " The clergy of the town have repeated spells
> over this water for forty days, and have given me twenty
> tu'nzeins to sprinkle it, so that  people may be dis-
> persed." Then they brought him before Mul1A Muhaiiiignad
> 'Ali, to whom lie said, " Six of the clergy have, read prayers
> over this water for forty (lays and given it to me to bring
> and sprinkle here." Said MullA Muhammad 'Ali, " Their
> wickedness stands revealed, but no blame attaches to a
> messenger." Then lie gave the mail a present, and dis-
> missed him.
> [The clergy daily sent letters sayiDg, " Come, let 11.9
> make peace." MullA Muhaiiiiigiad 'Ali's reply to these was,
> men, all divines or artizans, who had never before seen a
> battle-field, and to whom the very name of strife, much
> more actual war, was most distasteful. Yet, in spite of
> I
> a
> ARRIVAL OF MUHAMMAD KHkN. ' 151
> My answer is the sword." The clergy and thegovernor
> wrote to Teher6ii bringing malicious accusations against
> Z3
> KAsim. KhAii, whom they accordingly summoned. thither.
> On his arrival they secretly put him to death. But his
> two regiments continued to render services P
> and to send them word when the besiegers intended to
> make a night attack.
> [At length one day it was arranged that the whole be-
> sieging force should, in a combined attack, strive to capture
> the BAbi positions. The attack was made simultaneously
> on twelve different points. Several officers and nearly a
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> thousand soldiers, horse and foot, were slain, while of the
> BàbÕs sixty-seven men fell, and the besiegers were utterly
> routed. They again wrote to- TeherAn saying, They have
> finished us." Muhainmad KhAn, Brigadier-General, was
> sent to their assistance, and came bringing with him eight
> regiments of soldiers, four guns, and two mortars. He
> encamped outside the city, and fired on it daily to destroy
> the towers. On the other side also they maintained a con-
> tinual fire with cannons and camel-guns, and inflicted
> great loss on the soldiers.
> [one day the besiegers made an attack and captured
> olgie of the towers, on which they planted a standard.
> Haydar Beg had remained beneath the tower. The BAhis
> made a charge and drove down the enemy from the top of
> the tower. Din Muhammad was wounded in -the thigh,
> and was confined to his house for some days, when, being
> somewhat recovered, he again came out.
> [One day Din Muhammad made intercession with Mulli
> .Muhammad 'Ali for some aged men of the enemy who were
> this, they fought so bravely throughout this long struggle
> as to leave on the page of time a lasting record of their
> valour, which must fill with wonder all discerning men,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 152 THE NEW HISTORY. RESCUE OF THE HOSTAGES.  153
> in prison, and lie let them go. When they were gone, one. put the Kur'in in their hands, and sent them,to thegcamp,
> of them, by name Kalb 'Alf, went to the camp, waited on ordering the ramparts, meanwhile, to be well guarded.
> the Brigadier-General, talked with him, and obtained his [Aas soon as the old men were come to the camp they
> consent to conclude a truce. Then he came back to Mulli seized them, thinking them to be the chiefs of the BàbÕs,
> Muhammad 'Alf and submitted to him :-" You shall give  five crores ', and some of your old men, with a few chil- shots, to which they replied with guns and camel-guns.
> dren, shall take the Kur'àn, and go and sit beneath one of The fight was fierce, but at length the troops were forced
> the guns'. Then the Brigadier- General will send a de-
> spatch to the Government to say that these have thrown to beat a retreat. It was ascertained that ~ on that day
> a
> themselves on its clemency. Then they will carry the nine hundred soldiers were slain.
> vizier' before His Majesty the King, and the common [But the old men whom they had taken captive they
> woun
> folk can go their own way. Dfn Muhammad carried ded and cast intog the  sun ' and
> this proposal before MullA Muhammad 'Alf, who replied, there they lay, crying out continually for the thirst which
> "You are a free agent; act in whatever way you think was upon them. When MullA Muhammad'Alf heard this, he
> best." So Dfn Muhammad chose out sixty old men Of summoned D'D Muhammad and said, " I require of you the
> eighty or ninety years of age and a few children, and i hostages." " With all my heart," answered he. So when
> was night he took four hundred men, removed the earth
> and ap ears little short of miraculous. For, while they with which they had stopped up the gates, opened the
> p
> thus triumphed, an incomparable cavalr , trained to war- gate, issued noiselessly forth,' and made a sudden attack
> y
> fare, and accustomed to victory, was continually put to
> on three different points. When the besiegers became
> aware of what was taking place, they loaded their cannon
> i.e. 250 Mondns, or about X76, according to the present
> 0 with small shot and fired. The BàbÕs lay down, and, -when
> rate of exchange. It seems incredible that five crores (two and the shot had passed, sprang to their feet and rushed for-
> a, half millions) of any larger unit than the dind?, could even be
> demanded by the royalist general. wards,  scattering an army of thirty thousand. - They gave
> ary (bast) are still accorded in
> 2 The privileges of sanctu, water to the hostages, set them free, seized all the weapons
> Persia to wrong-doers of any class who take refuge either in a and provisions on which they could lay their hands) and
> holy city or shrine (such as Kum or Shih 1Abdu'l-1Az1'm), in the returned . Seyyid RamazAn suc-
> royal stables, or in certain 'other places and objects specially
> ceeded in carrying off a cannon, which he mounted on a
> associated with royalty. A certain large gun which stands in gun-carriage lie had made. They also I brought back many
> one of the squares of Teberain is "bast." The same virtue Muskets.
> appears to be attributed here to the royal artillery in general.
> 3 It is not clear who is meant by "the vizier," but presumably
> the BAbi chief MullA Muhammad 'Ali', or his lieutenant Dfn flight, although its leader was a soldier inured to battle,
> Mubanimad is intended. brave, experienced, and capable, who had control over the
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 154
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> again applied to TeherAn, and continued
> [The enemy ,
> to devise schemes for the capture of the BàbÕs, until one
> night Farrukh KhAn (the son of YahYA KhAn ,
> and the brother of  SuleymAn KhAn) Lieutenant-
> Colonel, resolved to come and take captive MullA Muham-
> mad 'Alf. So he took with him two others clad in helmets
> and coats of mail, and two of the enemy, who had been in
> prison  and had escaped, as
> guides. And about twenty thousand soldiers, whom Farrukh
> KhAn and the other officers had maddened with drink,
> took part in the attack. They first attacked HAjf Bann.4's
> barricade, drove him into a corner of it, and surrounded
> him' There were five men at that barricade, who, seeing
> this, abandoned it and fell back on a house behind it.
> [Ijaydar Beg relates as follows:-" While we were going
> the rounds with MullA Muhammad 'Alf he said, 'I am
> going home; do you go and win some good, and then come
> to me.' So I went off. Then I saw that they had taken.
> the barricade and were preparing to set fire to it. At that
> moment MÕrzà Jalfl came up with nineteen men, and my
> father also with a number of others. We besieged that
> house, where a number  were in a room,
> and cut them off, so that no more from the army could
> come to their assistance. Then I entered the room, and
> with fair words induced them one by one to come forth,
> and our men stripped them of their weapons, saying, 'We
> will take you before the Master,' until two and twenty of
> them had come out, and Farrukh KhAn alone remained.
> Notwithstanding all we could do, he would not come out.
> treasury of His Holiness the Eighth ImAill', and lavished
> money on the soldiers as though it had been but sand.
> But no great while elapsed ere he suddenly fell from favour,
> 1 The Imim RizA, to whom Alash-had owes its sanctity.
> CAPTURE AND DEATH OF FARRUKH KHkN. 155
> One of the faithful named 'Alf Akbar entered the room.
> Farrukh Kh6n fired at him with a pistol and killed him.
> My father said, 'Do you stand still?' Thereupon I entered
> the room. He fired at me, but hit my shield, so that no
> harm befell me. Then I seized him tightly, and my com-
> rades came, and took him, and led him out, and brought
> him before Mulli Muhammad 'Alf. 'By gcommand of
> what prophet,' said he, 'do you madden  with
> drink, and attack the houses of God's servants, and kill
> several?' Then he ordered him and the'twenty-two other
> prisoners to be put to death'. My father and I, taking a
> company of our men, also attacked a great bastion on which
> were seven guns, and set fire to it. We likewise captured
> and destroyed six barricades besides it, and came -back
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> and presented ourselves before MullA Muhammad 'Alf, who,
> rewarded us with increase of rank and robes of honour.
> ["Two days after this, Mull6 Muhammad 'Alf ordered
> tile to go to the Castle of 'Alf MurAd KhAn and bring to
> him KerbelA'f HaYdar and.&k6 Fath-'Alf. So I went and
> brought them. Then he said to them' ' You have betrayed
> the people's possessions to the enemy for money, intending
> to take flight yourselves. Why have you not gone? And
> why have you given the people's possessions to the enemy?'
> For a while they answered nothing; then they said, 'We
> 7
> wished to know whether you would discover it or not.' - So
> was disgraced, and met with the unishment which his
> actions merited. And these three tundred and odd men,
> who were no soldiers, who had neither treasure, nor artil-
> 1 According to Subh-i-Ezel, Farrukh KhAn was, or pretended
> to be, a BAW ; and it was, no doubt, for this reason that he was
> put to death so cruelly, being first skinned alive and then
> roasted. (Cf. Kazeni-Beg, ii, pp. 217-220). His horse and
> sword were brought to his brother YahyA KhAn, by whorn they
> were offered to Subh-i-Ezel.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 156
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> Mulli Muhammad 'Alf commanded them to be imprisoned;
> and there were thirty-five of them'. Then he placed ten
> other believers in the Castle . With
> them were his wife' and children, several old men, and
> their own wives. The rest of the BAbis were in their own
> houses. The soldiers poured into the houses, stripped the
> men, and carried off the women which these had with them.
> HaydaT Be, relates:-" I and my father Din Muhammad
> were in a room tin which was an ice-cellar wherein the
> BANS had stored all the money and goods which they had
> securechlt'. The women they had assembled in the house
> of Huseyn PisliA. A regiment of soldiers surrounded them,
> veiled as they were, and bore them off to the house of Mfrzi
> Abu'l-KAsim. the nutitakid, to whose custody they coni-
> rilitted them. Another regiment marched Din Mtihtiigima(l
> with fifteen others out of the city to the caravansaray of
> in most cases burned their bodies, all save some few ii'lioiii
> they led forth in chains and fetters to be carried before the
> Ami'?-. Then they fell upon their houses and seized all
> that they had as spoil, took captive their women and chil-
> dren, whom they sold for a small price, and exhumed the
> corpse of His Holiness the Proof from the spot where it was
> i.e. the HamadAni woman who alone survived of the three
> wives.
> 2 The text is here so corrupt as to be almost unintelligible,
> and I offer the translation enclosed between daggers as a mere
> guess at the sense. The text stands as follows in the AIS.
> UA ;j .1,1L A_,~ L5j 45- LSy.1 5 &A 4s- ,~j~, a!J,
> .9 lj4.z yLl 5 aL eS' J  + 11
> 6~ 44;J_ ~)L. ;.)L, L 1j101 CjS~ 5 U 4
> I
> EXHUMATION OF THE MkBf LEADER'S CORPSE. 165;
> His Holiness MullA Muhammad 'Alf, stripping them,' so
> that they had nothing but their shirts and drawers. The
> rest of the, BàbÕs they left in the city, maakilig them find
> sureties -.
> [" Next day at sundown they sent and brought Din
> Muhammad before the Brigadier- General, who said to him,
> 'Tell me where they have buried the corpse  " but told him nothing till the night
> when he met His Holiness, who had exchanged his turban
> for a lamb-skin hat, and ceded the corner-seat to his com-
> Panions, Jeiia'b-,i-'Azgl'?n', ikA Seyyid Huseyn the amanu-
> ensis, and Mull.4 Muhammad 'Hu'allim'. In-consequence
> of this, Mir 'Abdu'l-B.Aki failed to recognize him, walked
> straight to the corner of the room, and seated himself by
> the side of Jena'b-i-8heykh-i-'A_tM'. After the customary
> greetings had been interchanged, His Holiness turned to-
> wards Mir 'Abdu.'1-134~f and said, 'I hear that you believe
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> in the author of these doctrines, and publicly expound them
> in the mosque.' On receiving an answer in the affirmative,
> he continued, 'By reason of what sign have you believed
> in him?' 'By reason of his verses, I answered the other.
> I I too,' replied His Holiness, 'can write verses.' ' By reason
> of his commentaries and supplications and homilies,' said
> the divine. 'These too I can write.' I By reason of his
> exegetic knowledge, then,' said Mir 'Abdu'l-BAlki. - 'You
> may ask of me what you please,' said His Holiness, 'and I
> will answer you.' The learned doctor was overcome with
> amazement, but did not fall down in adoration saying,
> 'Thou art'the man!' All he said was, 'I know of none
> under heaven more learned than myself, and I know not
> who amongst those here present wieldas that spiritual power
> which has taken from me what I had'.' For since His
> Holiness had said, 'He shall not know me', he departed
> without having recognized him, notwithstanding all the
> hints whereby we, ignoring the fact that this Word had
> 9 days and nights during which the BAb was in KAshAn, lest
> it should result in prolixity. And during those two days
> ie. Mulli Sbeykh 'Alf.
> milar experience of Mulld Huseyn's, p. 36,
> 2 Compare a si
> suprcit.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 216 THE NEW HISTORY. THE BkB AT KHkNLIK. 217
> been created an active force, strove to apprize him of the
> truth. on his way home, however, the truth suddenly
> flashed upon him. He wished to return, but decided not
> to do so, because of the lateness of the hour, Next morning
> he came as soon as he had left the mosque, but our visitors
> had already departed. Then was he very sorry when sorrow
> was of no avail. And he was a man of great learning and
> ascetic life, thoroughly versed in the doctrines of Sheykh
> Ahmad Alisd'f,
> C' Now since that Holy Being was, as it runs in the tra-
> dition, 'a dark, dreadful, dire calamity',' on the day of his
> arrival at KAshdu he had said, 'If one could deliver me
> from these guards it were not amiss.' So after the two
> days, when lie was about to depart, 7,abi'li said to him, 'It
> would be possible to bring you forth from lience - we pray
> you therefore to accord us permission,] and you can go
> whithersoever you please, and we will attend and accom-
> pany you wherever it be; for we will thankfully and gladly
> giv - e up our lives, our wealth, our wives, and our children
> for your sake.' But he answered, 'We need the help and
> support of none but God, and His will only do we re-
> gard. ' " ~
> After leaving KAsliAn, the BAb came to KhAnlik', a
> village distant about Tfive or~ six parasangs frorn TeherAn
> which had belonged to the, late 310amadu'd-Dawla.
> Thence the escort sent word of their arrival to HAJI Mfrzd
> AkAsf. Now the late king Muhammad ShAh was desirous
> and nights they repeatedly entreated His Holiness to flee,
> saying, ' It is now possible,J
> 2 A quotation from the Jfasnavi is here omitted.
> 3 Sitppl. Pers. 1071, f. 96". KhAnlik is there described as
> ((near KinAr-i-gird".
> I
> of an interview with His Holiness, but the-114ji, influenced
> by certain absurd fancies (for he regarded the BAb 'as ~a
> magicianj skilled in gaining sway over men's hearts), and
> actuated by considerations of self-interest, would not suffer
> it. For he feared that in a single interview the BAb might
> bewitch the King, or that his followers might determine on
> revolt and raise an insurrection. He therefore appointed
> twelve horsemen to conduct him to *TAzarbaij4nJ*. But
> while he was still at KhAnlik many persons of note visited
> him. Amongst these were His Holiness BEiik (may the
> lives of all beside him be his sacrifice 1), RizA KhAn the, son
> of Muhammad KhAn the Turcoman, and many others.
> A full account of all that took place on this occasion would
> form a narrative of surpassing strangeness, but would tran-
> scend the comprehension of common folk, besides involving
> undue prolixity'.
> The late HAjf Mirzi JAnf writes :-" The chief of the
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> twelve horsemen appointed to conduct His Holiness - to
> MAkfi was Muhammad Beg Cha'Pairchi4a'sht", whom I sub-
> sequently met on his return from that journey. He was I a
> man of kindly nature and amiable character, and so sincere
> and devoted a believer that whenever the name of His
> Holiness was mentioned he would incontinently burst into
> tears, saying,
> I scarcelv reckon as life the days when to me thou wert all
> unkno~vn,
> But by faithful service for what remains I may still for the
> past atone.'
> *[M,iku']*
> 1 L. here inserts some verses from Jlfasnavi.
> 2 Chief postman or courier. This narrative occurs on f. 966
> et seq. of Suppl. Pers. 1071, and corresponds almost word for
> word with that here given.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 218
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> In the course of conversation I enquired concerning what
> passed during the journey, whereupon he related as follows.
> " ' When I received orders to escort His Holiness to
> Tabriz under guard of a company of horsemen, 1 was very
> reluctant to undertake the duty, for, though I had not as
> yet recognized the truth of his claim, I had heard that he
> was a Seyyid of distinguished merit. I therefore feigned
> illness for two or three days, hoping that perhaps this duty
> -in truth a blessing, though in appearance an affliction-
> might be delegated to another. For I little know how
> signal a blessing the Divine Bounty had apportioned to one
> so unworthy as myself. My excuses, however, did not
> meet with acceptance, and 1, much against my will, was
> compelled to set out.
> ["' The horsemen placed at my disposal had already
> gone to take charge of His Holiness the night before
> I joined them. And since such men, inured to deeds of
> violence, are accustomed, -especially at the outset, to adopt
> a harsh manner, calculated, in their opinion, to inspire
> respect, they acted on this occasion with undue rigour.
> One of them locked the door of the room occupied by His
> Holiness on the outside, lest perchance that Central Point
> of the universal circle might effect his escape. In the
> morning he saw the door which he had locked standing
> open, and the BAb tranquilly performing his ablutious by
> the brink of the stream, whereupon he cried out angrily
> and discourteously, "By what means did you open the
> door which I locked ? " " I did but lay my hand upon it,"
> answered the BAb, " and it opened." The other then
> began to behave witl) violence, when all of a sudden he was
> attacked with so sharp a pain at the heart that even he
> was admonished, and rolled in the dust demanding pardon.
> Thereupon His Holiness consented to overlook his fault,
> and he was at once restored to health. On iigiy arrival
> THE BIB AT ZANJIN.
> 219
> I heard of this event, andj' according to the measure of my
> insight, I perceived the signs of the glory and greatness of
> His Holiness, towards whom I continued to act deferentially
> until the day when we reached the Estonel caravansaray
> fEatjt ZanjAn, where we halted. For our instructions
> were to avoid bringing His Holiness into any city; theTe-
> fore did we halt at that caravansaray outside the town.
> We were wearied after a long day's march, and I had
> many matters to attend to, when a messenger came from
> the governor of ZanjAn [bringing word that he wished to
> see the BAb. I was so busy that I omitted to convey
> this message, and. it subsequently passed from my mind.
> 11" As soon as the people of Zanj An became aware of the
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Bib's arrival]" they began to approach in companies, with
> a reverence and respect which baffle description, to wait
> upon His Holiness. [His Reverence Mulli Muhammad
> 'Ali had addressed to him a letter, and concealed it inside
> a cucumber, which he placed in a basket full of cucumbers.
> His messeDger brought the cucumbers to deliver them ~ to
> His Holiness. The guards would have taken them from
> him, but he refused to give them up. While they were
> disputing, His Holiness cried out from his cell, " Give up
> the basket of cucumbers, and come hither." g So the mes-
> senger surrendered the basket to the guards and was ad-
> mitted to the presence of His Holiness, who had written
> an answer as follows :-" It is not expedient. This very
> night a horseman will come to take you to Teher&n. Such
> is your affair."]'.
> t[outside the town oflt
> I C. omits this passage, which, however, occurs in HAjf Mfrzi
> JAnf (Suppl. Pers. 1071, f. 96b).
> 2 C., by an evident slip, omits these words.
> 3 This incidentl omitted in C., has been already related some-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 220 THE NEW HISTORY.
> "' Now the guards, with a view to their own profit,
> were contesting the entrance of' all who approached, and
> these  were giving ungrudgingly
> such sunis of money, copper, silver, and thmins, as they
> had u on them. And when the press and throng of people
> p  n
> had waxed very great, the governor, being alarmed, sent a
> U  '7'
> inessa- e to ine, saying, " You must proceed on your journey
> 0
> at once, for if you remain here to-night a general rising
> will assuredly take place." Hard upon this messenger came
> another, urging us to mount with all speed. I was therefore
> obliged to inform His Holiness that, although neither he
> nor the guards were yet rested from the fatigues of the
> road, there was no choice but to go oil. He arose, saying,
> " 0 God, be Thon witness of ]low they are dealing with the
> descendant of Thy Prophet! " Then lie repeated the mes-
> sage which 1 had forgotten [to give Jilin], saying, " This,
> notwithstandino- the niessaae which lie sent oil in first
> zn 0  y
> arrival! What is his present action, and what does it
> mean ? 11 Thereat was I exceedingly ashanied and con-
> fused, because I had neglected to deliver the message ; and
> thenceforth, perceiving that lie knew all iiien's thoughts
> and could read their minds, 1 continually exercised the
> most unremitting vigilance lest I should be guilty of any
> overt or covert disrespect towards him.
> "' So we mounted and rode oil till we came to a ~brickj
> caravansaray distant two parasangs from the city. Thence
> we proceeded to MflAn, where iigiany of the inhabitants
> came to see His Holiness, and were filled with wonder at
> the majesty and dignity of that Lord of mankind. [In the
> morning, as we were setting out frorn Mfl6n, -in old woman
> brought a scald-headed child, whose head was so covered
> what more clearly and circumstantially in connection with the
> siege of Zanjin. See pp. 137--8 suy)ra,
> THE B-kB HEALS A CHILD AT Mfl,,~N. 221
> with aseabs that it was white down to the neck, and entreated
> His Holiness to heal him. The guards would have for-
> bidden her, but His Holiness prevented them, and called
> the child to him. Then he drew a handkerchief over its
> head and repeated certain words ; which he had no sooner
> done than the child was healed.] And in that place about
> two hundred persons believed and underwent a true and
> sincere conversion. In short [our object in entering into so
> prolonged and detailed all account was to narrate how, on
> leaving Mildii, while we were oil the road His Holiness
> suddenly urged his horse into so swift a gallop that all the
> horsemen composing the escort were filled with amazement,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> seeing that his steed was the leanest of all. We galloped after
> him as hard as we could, but were unable to come up with
> him, though the horsemen were filled with apprehension lest
> lie should effect his escape. Presently he reined in his
> horse of his own accord, and, so soon as we came up to him,
> said with a smile, " Were I desirous of escaping, you could
> not prevent me." And indeed it was even as lie said; had
> he desired in the least degree to escape, none could have
> prevented him, and] under all circumstances he shewed
> himself endoWed with more than human strength. For ex-
> ample, we were all practised horsemen inured to travel,
> yet, by reason of the cold and our weariness, we were at
> times hardly able to keep our saddles, while he, on the
> other hand, during all this period shewed no sign of faint-
> ness or weariness, but, from the time when lie mounted till
> he alighted at the end of the stage, would not so much as
> cliallgO his posture or shift his seat. s
> " ' The instructions which I had received were to convey
> His Holiness to Tabrfz, whence Prince Bahman Mfrz6 was
> to send him to Aldkii. Now I hoped that the Prince would
> keep him at Tabrfz, and that, should he decide to send him
> to M6ku', I inight be permitted to attend him thither.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 222 THE NEW HISTORY.
> I made known this inward desire to His Holiness, who
> replied, " I do not wish that you should accompany me
> beyond Tabriz. I did desire inwardly that you should
> come from the capital to Tabriz, but from thence to MAU
> I desire it not, for it will be a journey of wrong, and I like
> not that you should enter into the company of the wrong-
> doers. 1" Then he continued, "I On our arrival within one
> stage of Tabriz Tdo thou go on before us and explain the
> matter to the Prince, for if he can keep me in Tabriz it is
> better, while, if he will send me to MAU, God will take
> vengeance on him." Now when we were come within one
> stage of Tabrfz~' I had a severe attack of fever, and while
> I was thus prostrate His Holiness summoned me and said,
> "Go on to Tabriz. " I replied, "I cannot move while the
> fever in me runs so high." His Holiness, who was drinking
> tea, handed me his cup, saying, "Drink this." No sooner
> had I drunk it than I was restored to health. So I went
> that very night to Tabriz, and laid the whole matter before
> Prince Bahman MÕrzà, who replied, " It has nothing to do
> with me; you must act according to the orders which you
> received in the capital." I therefore turned back to meet
> His Holiness with a heart exceeding sorrowful, and told
> him all that had happened. He heaved a deep sigh and
> said, " I acquiesce in God's decree, and submit to His com-
> mand."
> "' I brought His Holiness to my own house, situated
> outside the town, and there he tarried for some days. On
> the day fixed for his removal to MAkfi the horsemen ap-
> pointed to attend him thither came to him, saying, " Come,
> mount! " He answered, " Let Muhammad Beg go once
> again to the Prince and complete the proof to him, telling
> leuton.
> I L. omits, probably by a mere slip resulting from homceote-
> THE Bill REMOVED FROM TABRfZ TO XiKi~. 223
> him that I do not wish to go to MAk-6, Eand bidding him fear
> God and not persist in this determinationl.  " I accord-
> ingly went as he bade me, and represented the state of the
> case, but the Prince again refused to incur any responsibility,
> and I returned so grieved at heart that on reaching home
> I was once more prostrated with fever. The horsemen
> continuing to press for an immediate departure, His Holi-
> ness came into my private apartment to bid me farewell,
> and then mounted. I wept much at his departure, and was
> ill for two months.
> " ' After this I went to M.Aku' for the express purpose of
> visiting His Holiness. On entering his presence I fell at
> his feet to ask for pardon, for I had seen how both Ashraf
> KhAn the -Governor of Zanj An and Prince Bahman MÕrzà,
> because they had been guilty of some slight disrespect
> < towards him >, had in a little time been visited with
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> severe punishment. Therefore was I much troubled, and
> entreated His- Holiness, saying, " If I have inadvertently
> been guilty of any shortcoming in my service, or committed
> any fault by reason of which I merit reprobation and chas-
> tisement, forgive me!" He replied, "Muhammad ShAh
> and his minister' have dealt with me thus unjustly, yet
> have I not cursed them. I desire not evil for mine enemies,
> much less for my friends."
> " 'He then questioned me concerning Ashraf KhAn the
> Governor of Zanjin, and I related to him in detail the
> indignities to which he had been subjected by the people
> of ZanjAn. In brief, the history of these is as follows.
> Ashraf KhAn had conceived a passion for a certain woman
> of ZanjAn, and sent men to carry her to a place which he
>  [and let him press his suit urgently, and threaten him
> with God's vengeance]. 
> ie. HAjf Ilfrz6 AkAsi.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> i
> 224 THE NEW HISTORY.
> had appointed. Her husband, being apprized of this, in-
> foriihied his relations and friends, who assembled in full
> force, attacked Ashraf KhAn's house, and carried off as
> plunder the furniture and ornaments. Ashraf Khdn him-
> self, who was fair of skin and smooth of cheek, they en-
> treated most foully, even ngiakidg use of sticks;' then they
> blackened his face, put a paper cap on his head, mounted
> him on a bare-backed ass, and thus ignominiously expelled
> hiiihi from the city. When His Holiness had heard this, he
> said, " 1 (lid not wish that it should be thus, or that he
> should be so grievously shanied." Then I related to him
> the punishment which had overtaken Bahman MÕrzà, and
> his disgrace, whereon lie remarked, " The True Avenger will
> sooner or later, as His wisdom determines, take vengeance
> on such as contemn the Truth and slight or injure God's
> servants." ' "
> MÕrzà 'Abdu'l-Wahhdb related as follows:-" During
> the journey to Aizarbaijdnl, together with Mulld Mu-
> hammad 'Jht'allim', and Akd Seyyid Hasan, the brother
> of AkA Seyyid Huseyn the amanuensis, accompanied His
> Holiness with circumspection, following him, according to
> his instructions, at a distance of some two tlioua,~and paces.
> [And when we reached our halting-place, we used to take
> up our quarters near to his, but elsewhere.] But AkA
> Seyyid Huseyn and Akd- Seyyid Murtazi with the twelve 2
> 1 This passage, which differs somewhat in the two texts, I have
> slightly modified in my translation. The text of L., which is the
> more explicit, runs as follows :-'ICk(ob safid-anddign va sd&-
> rukhsdr bfid, ba'd az lizodit kardan bd islidn, bi-'aldva ekkbi ham
> bi-qnak'ad-aA firri kardand " . . . &c. Hijf Mfrzi JAnf's version,
> substantially identical with that here given, occurs on ft.
> 1006-10111 of Suppl. I'ae2-s. 1071.
> 1 C. has the absurd and obviously erroneous reading 11 twelve
> thousand".
> THE B.~B'S JOURNEY TO MkKU". 225
> mounted guards always rode by him. And we, on reaching
> the end of our day's journey, used always to contrive some
> fresh excuse or pretext for approaching hii-D, so that Mu-
> a Z_ Z
> hammad Beg the Cka'P,rch'bdsh' and the other horsemen
> composing the escort might not notice it or perceive that
> we were the devoted followers of His Holiness. When we'
> were within two or three stages of Tabriz, however, Mu-
> hammad Beg, who had charge of the escort, discovered by
> divers indications, both overt and covert, our deep de-
> votion to the Master. One day, therefore, in the course of
> conversation he observed, 'During this journey 1 have come
> to regard myself as worse than Shinir and Yazfd.' 'Why,'
> I asked, 'do you think thus, and *~in what connection do
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> you say it?~*' 'Because,' said lie, 'they have commis-
> sioned me to do their work, and because I have witnessed
> on the part of this holy man things so passing strange that
> they cannot be uttered or heard.' ['What new tliiDg have
> you seen,' I demanded, 'to cause you such astonish m-ent V
> He replied, 'Amongst other things which I have witnessed
> during these days was this. When we set out from the
> capital he entrusted to my keeping a box of gezl, which I
> consigned to the care of one of my men. Every morning
> he asks for it, and gives a piece to each of the escort, and
> to his own companions, and to my servants, in addition to
> which he generally bestows a piece on each of you. i And
> throughout the whole journey that same box has been in
> my keeping 1"'
> [AkA MÕrzà Muhammad 'Ali the martyr, who consum-
> mated his martyrdom in the presence of His Holiness at
> Tabriz, related as follows :-" When His Holiness reached
> *[why do you say what you should not. say?]*
> A sweetmeat made from the manna yielded by the tamarisk.
> The best quality is manufactured at IsfahAn.
> N. H.
> 15
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> i
> 226 THE NEW HISTORY.
> Tabriz he took up his abode in the house of Muhammad
> Beg, whose next-door neighbour had a garden adjoining
> his dwelling. One day His Holiness desired to take his
> afternoon tea in this garden., When, in accordance with
> the permission readily granted to him by the proprietor,
> he had gone thither, one Mash-hadf 'Ali by name entered
> the garden in a state of great trouble, saying, 'Three of my
> family are sick, and I despair of the lives of two of them,
> since there is no hope of their being restored to health;
> but the third, whose recovery appears possible, I pray you
> to heal.' 'Be of good cheer,' answered His Holiness, 'all
> three will get well.' After a while the man departed, but
> next morniDg he came to me, saying, 'On arriving at my
> house I beheld all three sitting up in perfect health, as
> though they had never been ill.' This man became a
> sincere believer, :ii-id was converted, and set himself to
> perform. humble and devoted service. So likewise others
> who heard and understood were amazed at the -might and
> spiritual virtues of His Holiness."
> [In short, we wish to make it clear that though in ap-
> pearance His Holiness was compelled to go to Tabriz and
> M&kft, in reality he only did so of his own free will for the
> ,accomplishment of God's plan and purpose, being fully able
> to effect his escape had he so pleased. We have already
> mentioned' how on the way he- put his horse into a gallop,
> how the horsemen of the escort pursued him, how not one
> of them could come near him, and how he could without
> difficulty have got away had he desired. Again, when, as
> we have described', he arrived at KhAnlik, RizA Kh4n and
> MirzA KurbAn-'Alf, both men of unrivalled courage, each of
> whom was equal to a hundred horsemen, waited upon him
> with several brave and skilful mounted men, saying, "We
> I See p. 221 supra.
> 2 See pp. 96 and E16-7 s?Tra.
> ESCAPE POSSIBLE TO THE BAB. 227
> will convey you to whatever place you please, as you may
> command." But he refused their offer, saying, " The
> mountain of Azarbaij.4n, too, has its claims." So likewise
> on the road five of his most trusty followers, whose names
> have been mentioned, bore him company; and it is evident
> that five such persons are equal to a hundred others, and
> could, at the merest hint from His Holiness, have so utterly
> annihilated and destroyed those twelve guards that no
> trace of them should be seen and no tidings heard in the
> world.] So, too, had he made the least sign to the believers
> of ZanjAn, MflAn, and other places, they would not have
> given the guards time, even to draw breath; for, as we
> have mentioned, three hundred and sixty of them held
> their own for nine months against thirty thousand regular
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> soldiers and nineteen guns, continually inflicting defeat
> and coming off -victorious.
> [But apart from all this, what need of outward means
> has one endowed with inward power and spiritual virtue
> so perfect that, as has been mentioned', a door bolted
> and locked could not prevent his entrance or exit, but
> opened and shut at his slightest command ? Such an one
> is able to do what he wills, for his will is identified with
> God's will, and, in all essential respects, he mirrors the
> Divine Essence, and shews forth the Names and Attributes.
> When you look at his outward appearance he is "a man
> lgike unto you'," but when you regard him truly he is
> < one of whom it may be said > " I have times with God
> wherein neither angel of the Presence nor~ prophet of
> plenary authority can approach me,"'. . . But better than
> all the proofs which we have mentioned is the fact that]
> I See p. 218 supra.
> 2 Kura'n, xxiii, 34, 36.
> 3 A well known traditional saying of Muhammad. Three
> couplets from the Masnavi which follow here are omitted.
> 15-2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I
> 228 THE NEW HISTORY.
> the very horsemen who were his guards actually beheld in
> him during the course of the journey Proofs of so wonderful
> 4-1, + ncf nf thpIll sincerelv believed in him, and,
> a powel It III
> like Muliaminad Beg their chief, shewed him every service
> which was in their power. They even declared that they
> would readily riask their lives to convey him to any part of
> the world which he might choose, but lie refused their
> offer, saying, " Your readiness is in itself ail accepted
> offering." And now not only those horsemen, but many of
> their children and grandchildren, are so clad in the raiment
> of faith that not eveigi the hope of sovereignty could tempt
> them to lay it aside. This is the meaning of " the humblest
> of you shall be the most exalted, and the most exalted shall
> be brought low."
> For men are divisible into three classes. The first
> includes kings, courtiers, governors, and their retainers, all
> of whom the clergy regard as men of violence, and call
> tyrants. These have no thought save for maintaining and
> extending their sway, and are engrossed in love of power
> and pleasant living; neither do they greatly heed the ordi-
> nances of religion. For men of this class to believe and to
> disregard all worldly ties-wealth and life, child and wife-
> is a wonderful thing. If one should carefully CODSider the
> circumstances of the heroic *[deaths]* of HAjf SuleymAli
> 1-~'-Ii,An t [and Rizi KhAii, both of whom were nobles] t of
> high position, he will easily perceive that thus readily to
> abandon all that men do most prize, and eagerly to court
> a martyr's death, is a thing transcending human capacity.
> And it is evident that had not their eyes clearly beheld
> the object of their search, they would not thus readily have
> laid down their live i. When they arrested Suleyinin KhAn,
> and strove, in consideration of his faithful service and
> a noblel t
> TdeatU t Twho was
> -MARTYRDOM OF SULEYMkN KIIkN. 229
> loyalty, to induce him by promises of rewards from the
> King to abandon the creed which he had adopted, he would
> not consent, but answered firmly, "His Majesty the King
> has a right to demand from his servants fidelity, loyalty,
> and uprightness; but he is not entitled to meddle with
> their religious convictions." In consequence of this bold-
> negs of speech it was ordered that his body should be
> pierced with wounds, and that into each of these wounds a
> lighted candle should be inserted as ail example to others.
> [Another victim' was similarly treated. In this state,
> with minstrels and drummers going in advanceJ they led
> him through the bazaars, and he, meanwhile, with smiling
> countenance, kept repeating this verse-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Happy he whom love's intoxication
> So hath overcome that scarce he knows
> Whether at the feet of the Beloved
> It be head or turban which he throwsl2l'
> Whenever one of the candles fell from his body, he would
> with his own hand [pick it upJ light it from the others
> T, and replace itJ. The executioners, seeing in him such
> exaltation and rapture, said, " If thou art so eager for
> martyrdom, why dost thou not dance ?" Thereat lie began
> to leap, and to sing, in verses appropriate to his con-
> dition,-
> An ear no longer dulled with ignorance
> And self subdued entitle one to dance.
> Fools dance and caper in the market-place;
> I Mulli Fatliu'lla'h of Kum, one of the three Bibfs who
> made the attengipt on the ShAh's life.
> 2 See the account of the "Seven Martyrs" given a little
> further on, where this verse is, with much greater probability,
> placed in the mouth of Mfrzi Kurbin-'Alf the dervish. For an
> account of Suleymin XhAn's martyrdom, see my Travellers
> Yarrative, Vol. ii, pp. 332-334, where the verses recited by him
> at his execution are given.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 230 THE NEW HISTORY.
> Men dance the while their life-blood flows apace.
> When self is slain they clap their hands in glee,
> And dance, because from evil they are free."
> [In such fashion did they lead these two forth through the
> gate of ShAh 'Abdu'l-'Azfm.] When they were preparing
> to saw that brave man asunder, he stretched out his feet
> without fear or hesitation, while lie recited these verses :-
> I hold this body as of little worth;
> A brave man's spirit scorns its house of earth.
> ]Dagger and sword like fragrant basil seem,
> Or flowers to deck death's banquet with their gleam'."
> Is it possible that, such heroism and self-devotion, such
> readiness to forsake the world and all that is therein,
> should be vain and causeless ? Rather what better proof
> could be adduced for the reality of the cause ? And more-
> over this man was by birth and training one of those whom
> the clergy and common folk are wont to call "tyrants
> and "men of violence" I
> The second class consists of divines, doctorag, philoso-
> phers, scholars, and the like. Of these such as were wise
> and earnest in the search after truth, and possessed true
> religious feeling, sought without prejudice to distinguish
> the true from the false. To these, agreeably to the pro-
> mise " Fear God, and God will teach you'," the Lord
> opened the gates of Eternal Wisdom and made known the
> I These two couplets are from the Jfasnavi, and will be found
> on P. 101 of 'AIA'ud-Dawla's TeherAn edition, 11. 26 and 27. C.
> adds two more, which appear to be improvised for the occasion.
> These are as follows:-
> 2 Kur'àn, ii, 282.
> ENUMERATION OF EMINENT BELIEVERS. 231
> truth ; for " Knowledge is a light which God putteth into
> the heart of whomsoever He pleaseth." gand when the Sun
> of Wisdom dawned within them, and Divine Ideals became
> mirrored in their souls, they ascended from the abyss of
> doubt, and, with the wings of renunciation, soared aloft to
> the heights of certainty, even as it is written, " 0 peaceful
> soul! -Return unto thy Lord well pleased and well pleas-
> ing . So they aspired to trample under foot all worldly
> considerations, and to proclaim without fear or reserve the
> manifestation of God's truth. And inasmuch as they re-
> garded their earthly frames but as a barrier withholding
> them from union with the object of their hopes and long-
> ings, they were eager to divest themselves of the cloak of
> corporeal form, and continued to press on towards martyr-
> dom, until at length they obtained that which they sought.
> For " Whosoever strenuously seeketh aught assuredly
> findeth it." Of this class more than four hundred ac-
> cepted the New Dispensation, and attained the lofty rank
> of martyrdom. Amongst these were:-Mulli* Huseyn of
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Bushraweyh, and AkA Seyyid YahyA of DArlb' (both
> divines of uncontested eminence); Mulli Muhammad 'Alf
> of ZanjAn [whoin men used to call 'the Proof of Zslam';
> MullA Muhammad 'Alf of MAzandarin, on whom the title
> of Jenrtb-i-Kuddiis was conferred]; MullA 'Alf of Bistim;
> Mulli Sa'fd of BArfuru'sh; MullA Ni'matu'llAh of Mizan-
> darAn; [Mulli `Abdu'l-KhAlik of Yezd, one of the dis-
> *[Muhammad]*
> I Kur'àn, lxxxix, 28, 29.
> 2 L. adds, It commonly known as Kashfz (the expounder)", but
> this is an error, the title in question belonging to Seyyid Ya~yA's
> father Seyyid Jalfar. See my Travelle?s Narrative, vol. ii, pp.
> 7, 8, 183, and 254; and p. Ill supra.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 232 THE NEW HISTORY.
> ciples of Sheykh Ahinad, and a most illustrious theologian;]
> MullA Ylisuf of Ardabil; Mulld Mahdf of KhAy; AkA
> Seyyid HUseyn of Turshiz; MullA Miihaihihimad of Ma-
> liallit'; Multi Mahdf of Kan', Mulld BAkir *[his brother]*;
> Sheykh Abu TurAb of Ashtah6rd [, who was unique in his
> time]; JHAjQ Mulli 'Abdu'l-Biki of KAslidn , [A'kA MirzA
> 'Abdii'l-BAkf, Head of the College]; MullA Jafar of K6shAn;
> Mulla Muliaininad Sidik of KhurAsAn'; TMullA 'Alf of
> Burkin ;1' MullA YAsuf 'Alf of Khfiy; t [Mf rzi Muliammad
> Bikir]t of KhurisAn; HAjf Mulli Isi-na'il of Kuni; MÕrzà
> Kurbin-'Alf [the philosopher]'; Mfrzi Muliamniad Huseyn
> [the philosopher]' of KirinAn; Mfrz,,'t Muliaiiiiigiad 'Alf Nehrl'
> of IsfaliAn; Mulli MulPaminad Tal~-f of IsfahAn; Mulli Jalfl
> of Ur~nniyya; A'ki Seyy1d Alimad of Seinnin; 1,~ki Soy-
> yid Huseyn of Tabrfz]; Mulli Sa'id of Zirili-KinAr; MÕrzà
> Mullaminad BAkir of Herit; the Sheykli ~Ahmad~ of
> Ma'nlu'ra; Mirzi Alimad of Azghand; TMÕrzà Muliammad
> 73
> Bikir of Kin in KhurisJuil; Mulli Al.~i of Herit; IIAjf
> MÕrzà Hasan Rizavl'; MÕrzà Miihaiigimad of Juveyn ; MÕrzà
> 'Abdu'l-BAkf of GfUn; [MirzA 'Abdu'l-WahliAb of Kliu-
> rAsinJ HAjf [MÕrzà] 'Abdu'l-Mijfd of Nfshipu'r; [HAjf
> Mirzi JAW of K~ta~Iiin and his brother ZaUhl Multi
> *Tof KanI
> t THis Reverence Mulli -NInly-tininad SAdik~ t
> Both MSS. have
> 2 C. j-~-; L. s
> 3 C. here inserts the name of Mulli 'Abdu'l-KIi-Mik of Yezd.
> 4 Kurratu'l-'Ayn's uncle. See my Traveller's Narrative, vol.
> ii, pp. 197, 310.
> 5 " ~ .
> 1, The title j~ or j~ is added after Zabfh, but as I am un-
> certain as to the true readiiia I omit it.
> 0
> i
> OBSTINACY OF UNBELIEVERS. 1 233
> Alimad of HisAr ; Mulli 'Abdu'llih of MahallAt';' JMulIA
> Muhammad of Mal alhit'; MUIIA Muhammad 'Alf the son
> of MullA Ahmad of Mahallit'j; MullA Hasan of MaliallAt'
> Tthe son of MullA Muliammad RizAJ; MullA Hasan Tthe
> son of Mulli Muharnmadj; Jen6b-i-8heyk1i-i-'Az1'M'; MullA
> Najaf-'Alf of Tabas; MÕrzà Muliammad Taki of KirmAn];
> and more than four hundred such others, including many
> whose names, since they are still alive, I have not con-
> sidered it expedient to mention.
> It seems a strange thing that, whereas in the eyes of
> the ecclesiastical and civil law any case is (teemed to be
> sufficiently proved by the evidence of two righteous men,
> while on the testiinolgiy of four veracious witnesses the
> administrators of these laws -LinhesitatiDgly pronounce asen-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> tence-even of death-on one charged with heresy or
> brought within the operation of the Lex talionis, these
> same people are so steeped in heedlessness and prejudice
> that in this matter they disregard -the testimony of four
> hundred witnesses of such virtue, integrity, and learning.-
> Great heaveDs! More than four hundred eminent divines,
> remarkable alike for the soundness of their judgement and
> the extent of their learning, bear witness to the truth of
> His Holiness the First Point', and, for the awakening of
> their fellow-men, sever all worldly ties, and willingly quaff
> the draught of martyrdom ; and still thease perverse and
> froward inen continue to demand a sign, saying, " By what.
> evidence can you shew that this man was the promised
> As before, both MSS. have j i  'iN In 11 'i Muhammad
> IMahallAt has been already mentioned.
> 2 ie. Mulli Sheykh'Alf. L. adds "of KhurAsin". C. herein-
> serts "46 Mfrzi 'Abdu'l-WahhAb of Turshiz", who would seem
> to be identical with the I'Mfrz~i 'Abdu'l-WabhAb of Khurds6n"
> before mentioned in L.
> 3 Jla~rat-i-Xukta-i- 67d, one of the titles of the Bab.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 234 THE NEW HISTORY.
> Proof ?" Why, what evidence could be more conclusive
> than the mere existence of such witnesses ? Whoever shall
> consider without prejudice the circumstances of these
> people, their earnest strivings after truth, the sublimity of
> their heroism and self-devotion, and what they wrought
> and suffered in MAzandarAn, at Nfriz, and at ZanjAn,
> will be convinced that there could be no testimony more
> conclusive, no argument more eloquent. Any unbiassed
> seeker after truth who will but meditate on these things
> in the spirit of the tradition, "Seek a decision from thy
> heart, even though he who is in error condemn thee," will
> unfailingly be illumined by the light of God. . . 1 But
> such divines as sought only preferment and authority, and
> were blinded by their own vain imaginings, refused to
> recognize the promised Proof, demandilIg why a face had
> not appeared in the disc of the asiin to announce the Mani-
> festation, or why the ass of Antichrist had not come forth
> from the well in Within ; and these, in their blind preju-
> dice and self-conceit, failed to apprehend alike the mean-
> ing of the signs and the trite nature of the thing signified.
> ... So, ngierely because the ass of Antichrist had not
> appeared, they denied the Manifestation of God Most
> High; and, on no better ground than the unfounded calum-
> iiies fabricated by froward and perverted men to the effect
> that the BàbÕs allowed nine husbands to one woman, and
> accounted things prohibited by the religion of IslAm as
> lawful and right, pronounced virtuous and holy men to be
> sinners and heretics without further enquiry. Thus did
> they remain in darkness themselves, and ala-,o keep back
> the common folk from participating in the grace of God'.
> I Here follows a page or so of eulogies on the afore-mentioned
> 0
> martyrs, which, as it does but repeat what has been already said,
> I omit.
> 2 Three couplets froni the Masnavi are here omitted.
> THE BSB ANTICIPATED'MARTYRDOM. 235`
> . The third class comprises the common folk, of whom
> such as considered the matter with even a little intelligence
> became convinced that one who, alone and unfriended,
> dared proclaim God's message to all with such unwavering
> courage and steadfastness, while well knowing that he was
> destined to fall a martyr to the malice of his adversaries
> in the very prime of manhood, must assuredly be sent and
> supported by God. For he himself foretold his own mar-
> tyrdom in the following words':-" It is as though, I heard
> one crying within my soul, 'The most pleasing of all things
> is that thou shouldst become a ransom in the way of God,
> even as Huseyn (ugpmt whom be peace) became a ransom
> in my way.' And were it not that I have regard to this
> mysterious truth, by Him in whose hand is my soul, were
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> all the kings of the earth to unite together they could not
> take from me a single letter, much less could my servants,
> who are of no suck account that they could attempt this,
> and who are indeed rejected . .," until he says, ". . that
> all may know the extent of my patience, and contentment,
> and seV-sacrifice in the way of God." For, were it other-
> wise, so great a multitude of expert doctors and devout
> seekers after truth would assuredly not have accepted him
> as a Divine Manifestation, nor rapturously laid down their
> lives for love of his surpassing beauty and longing for union
> with him. For all must admit that these pious divines
> occupy the position of a touchstone or measure for the
> proving of his words, which touchstone or measure dis-
> tinguishes base metal from true with unswerving and un-
> This passage is also quoted in the I~dn as occurring in one
> of the Covinientaries written by the Bib, and will be found in the
> description of that work published by Baron Rosen in vol. iii of
> the Collections Scientifiques de l'Institut des Langues Orientales,
> pp. 43-44. The text as there given, however, differs slightly
> from that which is here translated.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I
> 236 THE NEW HISTORY.
> biassed fidelity. So men of this class, influenced by such
> considerations, fell to making enquiry, and, according to
> the verse-
> Who seeks with diligence shall surely find,"
> were ere long brought to a knowledge of that for which
> they sought. For God guideth such as enquire after truth
> and delivereth them from doubt, according to His promise,
> " Those who strive streaitoitsly fo?- Us, We will assared~y
> direct them bito Oug- ways'." And such as have once been
> brought to embrace this wondrous faith do forthwith per-
> ceive for a surety that all the caluinnies which they were
> wont to hear igre devoid of foundation and originate solely
> in the inalice of eneinies, awl that the Bibis, are reniark-
> able only for their devotion, charity, kindliness, purity,
> godliness, rectitude, sincerity, integrity, generosity, chas-
> tity, and strict avoidance of all forbidden things and
> actioiis -injurious to their f'ellow-iigieii. Thus it is that no
> one who hath once entered on this path can be diverted
> from it, even though all men should combine against him,
> or all the kiii,,dorns of the world should be offered him as
> an equivaleiit. But such as slavishly follow formalist
> divine.-,, and ignorantly await the fanciful appearance in
> the sun's disc of a forin which shall cry, " 0 believers, be
> gladdei?ed with the tidii?gs oj' the Xahdf's - advent ! " wot
> not that while they lie lapped in careless slumber the Sun
> of Truth liath arisen and liath reached the zenith. Even
> so was it when the Sun of Jesus had filled the whole world
> with light, and such of the Jews as had eyes to see had
> followed and confessed lliiihi, while others, learned and
> i(Mormit, rejected Him, sayiric,, " Not so did Moses foretell
> In
> the signs of his return ; for lie said, 'I will come down to
> you froitgi the roof-top on a Friday night, and if I bid you
> 1 Kur'iii, -xxix, 69.
> PRETEXTS FOR UNBELIEF ALWAYS THE SAME. 237
> not observe the eve of Saturday, receive me not."'.! So,
> c
> because of the non-'appearance of the expeted tokens,
> they remained cut off from the knowledge of him betokened,
> and continue till this (lay to wander erringly in the abyss
> of careless denial, while their exceedin., wickedness and
> folly prompted them to inflict on that Incarnation of the
> Spirit cruelties too notorious to stand in need of enuncia-
> tion. And so in like manner when the Sun of Muhammad's
> Truth shone forth froni the heaven of Divine Grace, and
> all in whose hearts gleamed even a spark of the light of
> wisdom advanced to welcome him, the majority of the
> priests and laymen of that time rejected him, and de-
> inanded a sign, saying, " The Lord Jesus liath declared in
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> the Gospel that He will descend from heaven " (after a
> certain fashion which they defined and coDditioned), "and
> He must come riding on a cloud, and in His hand there
> will be a spear of light, and His head will be of gold, and
> His feet of inolten metal ;" and these are -still expecting
> Christ to appear in such fanciful fashion as has just been
> described. So, in like iigianner, these clergy and laymen of
> the present day expect the appearance of the Ass of Anti-
> christ and a~undry other things which they have fondly
> imagined, thus remaining, like their predecessors, veiled
> from the appearance of the Sun of Truth by a parcel of
> folid superstitious, even as Mawldni Jaldlu'd-Dfn Rfimf
> says'-
> 110 foolish man! Herein the mischief lies:
> Grod's saints appear mere mortals in thine eyes.
> Fen as accursed Iblfs thou dost say,
> 'I am of fire, and Adam naught but clay!"'
> I The imperfect St Petersburg MS. of the Tdrikh-i-Jadid
> ends abruptly here. See vol. vi of Baron Rosen's Collections
> Scientijiques de 172istitut des Langues Orientales, p. 244, and my
> Travellei-'s Narrative, vol. ii, p. 192, n. 1.
> 2 Of the four couplets here quoted I translate only the first
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> i
> 238
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> To pursue this topic further would, however, unduly
> prolong our history, so we must return from the digression
> into which we, were led by a consideration of the sin-
> cere devotion and faith of certain of the horsemen Who
> formed the escort of His Holiness. To continue, then.
> The guards who conveyed His Holiness to MAk-h re-
> turned as soon as they had accomplished their duty.
> 1TAjf MÕrzà A~Asf had written to 'Ali KhAn the warden of
> MAku' charging him to keep His Holiness the Bib in the
> closest custody, and not to suffer him to communicate or
> correspond with anyone. His Holiness was therefore lodged
> in the Castle of MAkh, which is situated on a mountain,
> and none were permitted to approach him. Yet, notwith-
> standing this, whenever His Holiness desired to see anyone,
> sentinels and gaolers were alike powerless to thwart the
> accomplishment of his wishes, and numbers who flocked in
> from every quarter were honoured by admission to his pre-
> sence. Even 'Ali KhAn, who was remarkable for his dulness-
> and lack of apprehension, used to wait on him.daily, though
> the steepness of the ascent from his house to the Castle was
> such that it was necessary to go on foot. And whenever
> he was questioned about the BAb, lie would answer, " I
> am too dull to comprehend his words fully, but I am filled
> with wonder at his dignity, for whenever I go to see him
> the majesty and glory of his presence so profoundly affects
> me that, though he is a prisoner committed to my charge, I
> am involuntarily compelled to withdraw."
> So great multitudes continued to come from all quarters
> to visit the Bib, and the writings which emanated from his
> inspired pen during this period were so numerous that they
> amounted in all to more than a hundred thousand verses.
> two. The verseai will be found at p. 252 of 'Ala"u'd-Dawla's
> Teher6n edition of the Masnavi, 1. 20 et sey.
> I
> THE BkB REMOVED TO CHIHRfK. ~  239
> ~Mfrzi 'Abdu'l-WahhAb of Khurdsin, who was `subse'que~tly
> known as MÕrzà 'Abdu'l-JawAd, made the following state-
> I
> ment:-" While His Holiness was dwelling at MAku we
> reckoned up the verses, epistles, prayers, supplications,
> homilies, treatises in Arabic and Persian, commentaries on
> the Kur'àn, and forms of visitation, and found that they
> exceeded a million verses."I
> For nearly three years the Bib abode at MAkA'. But
> at length HAjf MirzA Akisf discovered that he was still
> visited by his followers, and that his writings (comprising
> exhortations, admonitions, proofs of the truth of his doc-
> trines, homilies, and prayers) continued to circulate,~some
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> of them even finding their way to himself and to the king.
> ln some of these last, moreover, complaints were made of
> his attempts to suppress the preaching of the Word. One
> of these complaints is known as " the Sermon of Wrath ","
> and whoever shall peruse it will apprehend the true meaning
> ,of spiritual power.
> So, to be brief, HAjf Mfrzi AkAsf wrote to 'Alf KhAn
> strictly enjoining him to keep a most diligent watch over
> the BAb and not to allow him to send out any more of his
> writings. Bi-It all attempts to prevent this proved futile,
> and at length 'Alf KhAn wrote to Hijf MÕrzà Akisf
> declaring his inability to carry out his instructions. So
> orders were issued by the Minister of His Majestyg the
> Vicar of God for the removal of His Holiness to the Castle
> of Chihrfk and the custody of its warden YahyA Khin.
> Just as the Bib was mounting the ho ' rse provided for his
> conveyance thither, 'Alf KhAn came out to make his apo'-
> logies. " I never desired this change," said he, " for I am
> I This is certainly a mistake. The, Bib seems to have re-
> mained atMikd for only six months.- See my Traveller's.Xarra-
> tive) Vol. ii, p. 277.
> 2 IfAutba-i-kaltrinla.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 240 THE NEW HISTORY.
> loth to be debarred from the privilege of waiting upon Your
> Holiness." " Wherefore dost thoil seek to deceive me
> answered the BAb, "thou didst thyself write , and dost thou, now seek to excuse thyself 2
> Then he set out for the Castle of Chihrfk.
> The Castle of Cliitirfk is situated not far from the town
> of UrAmiyya, of which place Yahyi KhAn was at this time
> the governor. Some time before his renhioval thither was
> decided upon, the BAb had instructed  Sheykh
> 'Alf (better known as -:~Jendb-i-> 'A;Z)n) to proceed to
> Urlimiyya, and there to abide. After it had been arranged
> that His Holiness should be transferred to Chihrik, on the
> very night which preceded the day of his arrival, YaliyA
> KhAn saw His Holiness in a dream. Next morning lie
> made known this matter to Sheykh-l-'Azim, adding, " If
> when. I see His Holiness I find that his appearance and
> visage correspond with what I behold ill my dream, I shall
> be convinced that lie is in -truth the promised Proof." His
> Holiness chanced to arrive that very day, and, at the
> first glance, Yah i 17"liiii instantly recognized him as
> r3 y  V
> identical witti the saint whom lie had belield in. his
> dream. Involuntarily lie bent down in obeisance and
> kissed the knee of His Holiness, whom lie then brought ill
> to his own tiouase. Thenceforth he wohlilcl iieveraieat himself
> in the BAb's presence until lie had received permission, and
> when His Holiiieass had been to the bath lie bought the
> water in which lie had washed for eighty G'On&ns.
> Notwithstanding the rigorous prohibition of 114jf Mfrz6
> A~6sf, the followers and ftiends of His Holiness continued
> to hold communication with him, even after his removal to
> Chihrfk, and many persons in the surrounding district were
> converted to his doctrines. And Yahyd KhAn, so long as
> lie was warden, maintained towards him all attitude of
> unvarying respect and deference.
> THE BkB CLAIMS TO RE THE K~k'IM. 241
> It was during his sojourn at Chihrik, too, that the BAb)
> havino, due regard to the exigencies of the time, the dic-
> tates of expediency, and the capacity of men, declared him-
> self to be the KtViml; though some think that he made this
> declaration during the latter days of his residence at Mikfi.
> At all events, this announcement was proclaimed through
> the region of Turkistdn' by the " Indian believer," con-
> cerning whom HAjf Mirzi J6nf has written a long account',
> whereof the substance is in brief as follows. He belonged
> to a noble Indian family, and was remarkable alike for his
> sober and abstemious habits, his piety, and his manifold
> virtues. He was diligent in all good works enjoined in
> sacred tradition, and at length, in the course of his sear ch
> after truth, came to Persia. - No sooner did lie hear tidings
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> of the Manifestation of His Holiness than lie set out for
> Cllihrik to enquire into the matter. This occurred at the
> time when the BAb had declared himself to be the K6 im,
> and when such radiance of might and majesty streamed
> from his countenance that none could bear to look upon
> the effulgences of his glory and beauty. &kA Seyyid
> Hasan, the brother of AkA Seyyid Huseyn, was unable to
> gaze upon the splendours apparent in the visage of His
> -Holiness, while. even Seyyid Huseyn himself would not
> eat before him nor enter the blessed Presence without first
> asking permission. Nor was it an uncommon occurrence
> .even for -unbelievers involuntarily to bow down in lowly
> obeisance on beholding His Holiness ; while the inmates of
> I i.e. the ImAm MAR
> 2 It seems hardly possible that what is ordinarily called
> Turkistin can be here intended. The term probably denotes in
> this case the Turkish-speaking provinces of Persia, that is to say,
> Jkzarbaijin and its dependencies. Cf. my Traveller's Yarrative,
> Vol. ii, p. 89, n. 2.
> 3 Suppl. Pers. 1071, f. 1536 et seq.
> N. H.
> 16
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 242 THE NEW HISTORY. THE "INDIAN BELIEVER."  243
> the caastle, though for the most part Christians' or Sunnfs,
> reverently prostrated themselves whenever they saw the Now when the " Indian believer" returned to his
> visage of His Holiness appear resplendent over the walls of lodging in this state of rapture and exaltation, his com-
> panions saw that-
> the building. In short, at no previous time had the serene
> and awful beauty of that noble countenance exercised so "An atom to a radiant sun was changed,"
> irresistible an attraction over all who came within the whereat they marvelled much, and sought to do him service
> Sphere of its influence. No sooner, then, did the " Indian in all humility. In his company they went to Salm4s;
> believer," as lie approached the building, catch sight of the and to so lofty a degree of spirituality did they attain that
> face of His Holiness, than lie involuntarily exclaimed, " This they found themselves able to dispense with solid food,
> is my Lord!" and fell swooning on the ground. On coming and, for a period of forty days, took no nutriment save a
> to his senses lie wept much, and, the glory of that divine little rose-water and sugar. He, meanwhile, continued to
> apparition irradiating a heart clear and receptive as a expound the most ' subtle mysteries of the Divine Unity,
> inirror, began to chaunt the words, " I am the Kd'i7n be- and the nature of the KeFim, in so transcendental a man-
> come manifest," and, like Mans~ir-, to cry out, " I arn the ner that the keenest intellects were unable to follow hias
> Truth 1 thought. Not only mystics, but learned scholars, over-
> Fen as the ruby, which, at first a, stone, come with wonder at his condition, submitted to the in-
> Sunlike by drinking in the sun bath grown. fluence of his attraction.
> It grows in light; its stony nature goes; When tidings of this reached the governor of Khfiy, he,
> Throughout its substance light and sunshine floWS4.1'
> fearful of a popular tumult, and the censure which -such an
> The text has Aramina (Armenians), a term often loosely
> i event would bring down on him from the king, caused the
> applied by Musulthnin Persians to other Oriental Christians,
> such as the Nestorians of Urilmiyya, who axe probably intended 'aIndian believer" to be arrested and brought before him,
> here. Compare M. Moclienin's nienioir, quoted by Kazeni-Beg together with two of his companions, Sheykh SAlih the
> (i, p. 371), and Traveller's -Yarrative, Vol. ii, p. 276. Arab and MullA Huseyn of KliurAsAn, both of wh, oin- *were
> 2 Kur'àn, vi, 76, 771, 7 8. disciples of His Supreme Holiness. Yet astill the " Indian
> believer," like Mansiir ceased not to cry, "I am the Truth
> 3 Ijuseyn ibn Mans~ir-i-Hull(~j (the wool-carder), called also
> AbO-Mughfth, who was born at Bey~a in FArs, and, after a life and to declare his intention of preachin and proclai
> 9 MIDg
> spent in teaching the most exalted mysticism, was put to death
> is commonly believed in the East that rubies and cornelians are
> for crying out in one of his raptures "I am the Truth" (ie. God),
> by command of the Muhamrnadan doctors of religion. His execti- 
> 
> slowly formed from common pebbles by the action of the Sun.
> tion took place at Baghdad oigi the 24th of Zfl-Kalda, A.H. 309 Thus the '%vell-known verse:
> (March 26th, A.D. 922).
> L; -S~ tL 6
> 4 These verses will be found on p. 484 of 'Ali'u'd-Dawla's
> Teberin edition of the.Jfasnavi, lines 10 and 11. L. substitutes
> j-d Jax- jj
> another quotation of three couplets from the same poem. C.
> It needs ages ere one primitive stone can, by the action of the
> adds another verse occurrino, a few lines lower, which I omit. It
> sun, become a ruby in Badakbsbin or a cornelian in Yanian."
> 16-2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 244 THE NEW HISTORY. SEYYID BASfR THE INDIAN.  245
> the new faith. At length, by order of the governor, these of Aki Seyyid Jalil the Indian, an eminent and-11oly
> upright men were cast down in the dust of tribulation, and mystic, to whom the DAghd4rV dervishes (who are repre-
> blows were rained on the feet which had walked so stead- sented even within the confines of Persia) trace back their
> fastly with the rods which are the portion of faithful lovers, order. This family enjoys a high degree of consideration
> until Slieykll SAlih the Arab yielded up his spirit to Him in India, for from of old the saints of the aforesaid order
> who is the Creator of souls. But though they continued have always sprung from them, and the number of their
> to beat the others in hopes of making them deny the faith,  disciples is enormous.
> which they had coiifea3a-,ed, they persistently ref i ed to do From his childhood Seyyid Basfr sliewed sians of the
> so, saying, " We are not such hypocrites that suffering and wonderful faculties which he afterwards manifested. For
> torture call make us deny the truth." So at length they seven years* he enjoyed the blessings of sight, but then,
> sha ved the heads of those chiefs of the children of wisdom, even as the viasioii of his soul became clear, a veil of dark-
> mounted them oil asses, and paraded them through the i ness fell on his outward eyeas. From his infaii he had
> town, crying, "This is the recompense of seekers after  cy
> displayed his good disposition and aiiiiable character both-
> truth, and of such as would attain to union with the True in word and deed ; lie now added to this a singular piety
> Beloved, who shut their eyes to all other considerations, and soberness of life. At length [at the age of twenty-one]
> and erase name and fame from the tablet of their being lie set out with great pomp and state (for lie had much
> be admonished, therefore, 0 people of discernment wealth in India) [to perform the pilgrimage]; 'and on
> reaching Persia, began to associate with every sect and p ) arty
> [Account of Jewitb-i-Base'l-, a sah?t~ mid noble mystic of (for lie was well acquainted with the doctrines and tenets
> India, endowed with wonderful and vii7-aegitlotts powers. of all), and to give away large suins of money in charity
> andfaculties.] to the poor, submitting himself the while to the most
> I
> rigorous religious discipline. And since Iiiai ancestors had
> Another Indian convert was Seyyid Basfr, a man of' foretold that ill those days a Perfect Man should appear
> unequalled virtue and learning, endowed with many won- Perasia, lie was continually engaged in making enquiries.
> derful gifts and miraculous faculties. -Many were the souls, He visited Mecca, and, after performin the '
> 9 rites of the
> whom lie awoke to life and directed into the right way, pilgrimage, proceeded to the holy shrines of KerbelA and
> and many the perverted scoffers whom he persuaded to Nejef, where he met with the late HAjf Seyyid KAzim, for
> accept the truth and raised to the degree of perfection ; whom he conceived a sincere frieildaship. He then re-
> for lie drew to him like a magnet all such as were sus-g  turned to India; but, oil reaching Bombay, lie heard that
> ceptible to his holy influence. Although the late HAjf
> MirzA JAW has written but a brief summary of his virtues, *[for seven is the number of action]
> even one telith part of what lie has written would suffice,
> to form a separate volume. The substance of the matter, The name of the order is uncertain, this reading being a
> conjecture of mine. L. has apparently  and C.
> however, is as follows. His Reverence was of the family the word being indistinctly written in both cases.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 246
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> one claiming to be the Bib had appeared in Persia, where-
> upon he at once turned back thither.
> On reaching Persia -, he found
> that His Holiness had gone to Mecca'. Impatient of
> further delay he followed him thither, and at lengthen-
> joyed the privilege of meeting him in the Holy Sanctuary.
> Blind as he was, the eye of his heart saw for a surety that
> the Bib's claim to be. the Kd'im was a true one, and he
> ascended . to the most sublime heights of faith and as-
> surance.
> After a while he returned by sea to Persia, through
> which he travelled, preaching God's Word with due circum-
> spection and caution, perfecting the defective, and directing
> the erring. His words went home to the hearts of all
> seekers after truth, for he was as remarkable for his learn-
> ing as lie was for his virtue, and was well versed in
> Medicine, Astronomy, Divination, and other science-, ". He
> was also thoroughly acquainted with the doctrines of the
> mysticas, and proficient in several languages. So, in every
> town and hanilet which lie visited, his influence brought
> many learned and pious persons into the way of asalvatioii,
> for lie exercised a marvellous power of attraction over all
> with whom lie came in contact [including the author] ;
> and so numerous were the prodigieas and miracles which he
> wrought that one may say without exaggeration that his,
> every action was in some sort a miracle. [Tliiias, amongst
> other things, he paid no heed to the attempts made to
> *[In spite of his blindness, if lie wanted any passage
> found in the Kur'àn, and if the seeker failed to find it
> quickly, he would take the Kur'àn from him, open it, find
> the verse, and give it back to him; or he would himself
> repeat it. I*
> I See pp. 198-9 snpra.
> SEYYID BA~SfR THE INDIAN.
> 247
> win over the faithful to Ezel, who was a mute', and be-
> lieved in BehA' (the soul of the universe be his sacrifice!)
> before he revealed himself.]'
> When the strife waxed hot in MAzandarain, Seyyid
> Basfr proceeded to the district of NAr, intending to j oin
> *[the martyrs ; but, because of the close investment of -the
> Castle, and because, moreover, his time to die was not yet
> come, he was unable to carry out his design. After the
> catastrophe he went to 'Irik, preaching the doctrine every-
> where, until lie was arrested in Burfijird by the Prince-
> Governor, who, because he was so ready of speech and
> eloquent in discourse, first ordered his tongue to be cut
> out, and then put him to death. ] ""
> In such devoted and faithful believers as these one
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> may indeed say that the blessed verse, "Invoke death
> then, if ye be faithful"' finds its fulfilment; for they, being
> at the time of their capture no more than 313 in number,
> saw the whole power of the King directed, with the sanc-
> tion of the clergy, towards the extermination of all who
> professed the faith which they held; saw themselves girt
> about by thousands of blood-thirsty soldiers provided with
> death-dealing artillery and all munitions of war; saw every
> avenue of escape closed, and themselves made targets for
> *~the defenders of the Castle; but, since it was other-
> wise ordained, he failed to accomplish his desigDj.
> the opposite of .5L4, ie. one who does not utter reve-
> lations. Cf. de Sacy's Religion des Drums, voL i, pp. ciii, n. 1;
> and civ, n. 1.
> 2
> 3 C. omits this remarkable passage, which is very probably an
> interpolation by some ardent BehV scribe. It is rather corrupt,
> but I believe that the above translation correctly represents its
> general sense.
> n
> 4 Kur'àn, ii, 88; 1xii, 6.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 248 THE NEW HISTORY. LACK OF DEVOTION IN 'ALf'S FOLLOWERS. 249
> the shots of their ruthless enemies ; and yet continued
> without abatement or remission to hurl themselves on de-
> struction, and to court the fate which had already over-
> taken their comrades. Such courage, steadfastness, devotion,
> and eager striving after martyrdom appear to some persons
> easy enough, so long as it is only a question of talking
> about them; and those whom prejudice has blinded regard
> this heroic episode ,is they would a mere idle tale or childish
> game ; whereas, could they have actually witnessed the
> deeds of these men, it would have been clear and evident
> to them that such courage and endurance transcend the
> power of all men save the greatest prophets and saints.
> The illustrious companions of the Prophet, seeing 'Alf
> wronged and robbed of his rights, repeatedly urged him
> to assert his claims, saying, " Why, in spite of your signal
> courage and brilliant abilities, do you suffer others to usurp
> the Caliphate, and to do injury to the faith and the law,
> while you sit quietly at home?" 'Alf answered, "As you
> have determined to devote yourselves to God's cause and
> to give me your help, come to me to-i-norrow with your heads
> shaven and your drawn swords over your shoulders, that
> we may fight with unflinching courage for God's cause and
> our own rights." His companions, who were the very best
> of the people of that time, were ready enough in word, and
> were so full of hope and confidence that they declared
> themselves ready to die for one before whom they accounted
> themselves as nothing. But when it came to deeds and
> they were put to the proof, all their pretensions proved
> vain, and it became apparent that their devotion was only
> verbal, not actual. Four of them, however, did actually
> come in obedience to 'Alf's command. Of these, three had
> shaved off a little of the hair at the sides of their heads,
> and concealed the rest under their turbans; while Salm4n,
> though lie had shaved his whole head, had girded on his
> sword under his cloak. When 'Alf saw this, he said, "How
> can you, who would not even 'give up the hair on your
> heads, forsake life, possessions, wife, and children? The
> reason why I sit silent in my house and bear all -these
> slights and injuries while others usurp the Caliphate is
> that I have no friend on whom I can rely, and see devotion
> and constancy in none of my adherents. In word they are
> ready enough; but when it comes to deeds they flee as
> they have done to-day, and will not sacrifice even a hair of
> their heads!" Yet these same disciples regarded them-
> selves as incontestably superior to all peoples and nations,
> even accounting themselves more excellent than the pro-
> phets of olden time. Anyone who will put aside prejudice,
> and fairly weigh their deeds with those of the BAbis, will
> perceive that they differ as earth from heaven, or truth
> from fiction. Of such persons 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> it may indeed be said, " The doctors of Inzy ckurck are
> more excellent than the prophets oJ' the C141dren of Israel,"
> for they are the very crown of creation, bright gems of
> God, the desire of the saints, the elect of the prophets,
> such as were intended by the holy Imims when they said,
> " Had we but seven (or, according to other traditions,
> seventeen) helpers, we would publicly advance our claim!"
> *[But let us proceed to narrate the history of the
> Seven Martyrs, each of-whom represented a different class,
> to which his martyrdom was the completion of the proof,
> and all of whom were conspicuous for their piety and
> virtue.]
> * JA full account of the circumstances of Seyyid Basfr
> and the manner of his martyrdom would here result '*'I
> undue prolixity. Should fortune favour us we will, please
> God, insert it in the second volume.1 *
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 250 THE NEW HISTORY. THE SEVEN MARTYRS. 251
> < I'lie Seven. 31'artyrs. >
> The death of the Seven Martyrs' took place after the
> episode of the Indian Believer, and blotted out from' the
> hearts of friends all recollection of Tpreviousj events.
> 11 Love's sorrow came and swept away the sorrow of the world."
> Their faithfulness, constancy, and devotion, apart from all
> other proof or evidence, was a worthy and sufficient de-
> monstration of the truth of that for which they suffered ;
> by their actions the very essence of love was made manifest
> in the world ; and in their martyrdom the true meaning of
> faith and devotion was revealed to all discerning persons.
> In pure spite the enemies of God would have quenched
> the lamp of believers and friends by means of the blasts of
> persecution, but, according to the verse, " They desire to
> put out the light of God with their inouths, but God will
> not have it-but that we should perfect His light, averse
> though the misbelievers be'," their devilish designs had the
> opposite effect to what they intended.
> "A foemaD's act may turn to good, if such be God's design."
> So God, in despite of these malicious enemies, made these
> men as it were a candle of guidance and wisdom, which
> burned but the brighter for decapitation', and was pre-
> served by extinction'; for the drops of their blood were as
> I Suppl. Pers. 1071, f. 15611, et seq.
> 2 Kur'àn, ix, 32.
> 3 The snuffing of a candle is often compared by the Persians
> to decapitation.
> 4 Literally "by killing". "To kill a candle" is the ordinary
> expression in Persian for "to put out a candle." The writer
> means to say that just as a candle burns the brighter for being
> " beheaded " (snuffed) and lasts the longer for being "killed" (ex-
> tinguished), so it is with the persecuted faith of the BAK
> seed for the extension of the faith, and from each drop
> which fell to the ground sprung forth a tree, whose leaves
> were the children of wisdom, and its fruit believers in the
> Divine Unity.
> "Still, however ngiany be the lovers
> His incomparable beauty slays,
> Ever there appears another cohort
> Ready from the dust their heads to raise."
> To proceed with our narrative. Certain malicious and
> evilly-disposed persons represented to MÕrzà Muhammad
> Taki KhAn the Prime Minister that the BAN s were medi-
> tating a fresh rebellion. He, remembering the MdzandarAn
> insurrection and the stubborn courage which the BAbis
> then displayed, was filled with apprehensions, and ordered
> suspected persons to be arrested. His myrmidons poured
> forth in every direction on their cruel errand, and, after
> infinite exertions, succeeded in capturing thirty-eight
> persons, some of whom were only suspected of sympa
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> thizing with the BàbÕs. Without stoppin t 're ect t at
> so small a number of men could not possibly raise an
> insurrection, the Minister cast them all into prison. I _.
> After some days it was decided, by his command, that
> such of the prisoners as would renounce the BàbÕ faith and
> speak evil of its Founder should be released, while such as
> confessed it should forthwith suffer death. Whenwordofthis
> was brought to the prisoners, HAjf MullA Ismalil of Kum,
> a divine of KerbelA conspicuous for his virtue and learning,
> who was accounted one of the chiefs of the faithful and
> had been most strenuous in the service of God's cause, on
> whose part, moreover, many strange matters had been
> witnessed at the Meeting of Badasht', thus addressed his
> companions :-" I, for my part, am resolved to confess my
> I See Gobineau, pp. 180-4; and Travellers iVarrative, vol. ii,
> pp. 176, 189, 212, and 312.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> r
> 252 THE NEW HISTORY.
> faith and lay down my life; for if we fail to proclaim the
> advent of the K,~t'igni, who else will proclaim it g? And
> if we fail to direct men into the right way, to tear asunder
> the veils of their heedlessness, to arouse them front the
> ,slumber of sloth, to demonstrate to them the worthlessness
> of this transitory world, and to give active testimony to
> the truth of this most high and most ineffable faith, who
> else will do so ? Let everyone, then, who is able to acquit
> himself of this obligation come forth in all steadfastness
> and bear me company; while such as are hindered by
> private reasons, and such as are falsely suspected  are excused, and may act as seems to them
> right." Therefore six, who were faithful believers, said,
> We will bear you company on this Journey; " while the
> rest, some of whom were not perfect in faith, and some of
> whom, being falsely suspected, were excused, determined to
> adopt a course of concealment'. And these seven faithful
> lovers and loyal friends [, who were the 
> goats of the inuch-wronged Lord of the Agej  HAjf
> Mulli 1sma'fl. of Kum, HAjf MÕrzà Seyyid'.Alf, the maternal
> uncle of 'His Supreme Holiness, Mfrzi KurbAii-'Alf the
> dervish, AkA Seyyid FlUseyn ~the majtakid~ of Turshfz,
> [HAjf] MullA Takf of KirmAn, MÕrzà Mulianiniad *TUu-
> seynj* of Tabrfz, land another, a native of Marlgha.~
> So t [those who recanted were set free, while those who
> made confession of their faith] t were led forth on the
> morrow to the square' to die. On their way thither the
> * [Ijasaii] I'- t ~tbeyj t
> 1 Ketmdn3 the word applied especially to the concealment of
> religious opinions dictated by prudential motives, also called
> takiya. See Gobineau, Religions et Philosophies clans l'Asie
> Centrale, pp. 15-21.
> 2 Their execution took place either in the Meyda'n-i-Sabz or
> THE SEVEN MARTYRS.
> 253
> -spectators reviled them and cast stones at them, 'Saying,
> " These are Bibfs and madmen 1 " MullA Isma'fl answered,,
> Cc Yes, we are BàbÕs, but mad we are not. By A116,h, 0
> people, it is to awaken and enlighten you that we have
> forsaken life, wealth, wife, and child, and have shut our
> eyes oil the world and such as dwell therein, that perchance
> ye may be admonished, may escape from confusion and
> error, may be led to make enquiry, may rightly apprehend
> the truth, and may no longer remain veiled." -
> Now when they were ready to begin their  de-
> capitation and slaughter, and it was HAjf , the
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> z
> nutjtakid.]
> Now as to AkA Seyyid Huseyn Ithe muitahidl, he
> had but recently returned from KerbelA; and all the
> divines of that place had testified ill writing that he had
> duly qualified himself for the rank of 9nuitahid. So, after
> an absence of several years, he set out  for his
> native land to visit his'relations and family. In Teherin,
> however, he met with the "Brethren of Purity'," became
> their fellow-traveller, returned to his true home in the
> Eternal World, forsook all hope of revisiting his home and
> kindred, and eagerly quaffed the draught of martyrdom.
> [Accoant oj' < the death of> Afka Sevilid 'AU, who was the
> maternal uncle of His Supreme Holiness, and who laid
> down his life in Teheran.]
> Now as to the BAb's uncle, he, with his aged bands,
> removed the turban from his head, and, raising his face
> 1 See p. 229 supra.
> a
> . fd
> 2 1khwdint's-s . This title is not unfrequently a,pplied by
> the BAbis to such as hold their faith.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> i
> f
> 256 THE NEW HISTORY. THE SEVEN MARTYRS. 257g
> towards the heaven of God's justice and glory, said, " 0
> God, Thou art witness how they are about to slay the asoii
> of Thy most noble Prophet [, and how they kill Thy faith-
> ful servants as infidels, themselves claiming to be the
> votaries of religion]."
> A certain ngierchant offered to give three hundred t~t-
> inans if they would spare his life and set him free, but he
> would not consent, saying, " My sole desire is martyrdom,
> and the attainment of this happiness. The bonds of our
> service and devotion are too firm to be severed by the
> swords or the threats of tyranny, and the chain of our
> steadfast love is too strong to be snapped by such jerks as
> these." Then he turned his face towards the headsman
> and said,
> "I am already dead with parting's pain;
> Kill me, that love may make me live again!",
> [Account of the slaughter of the other three, and how 'AU
> Kh6n the Y,4jibu'd-Dawla soaght to persuade that
> comely youth  ~?f the promise of apension
> and the ofer of his daughter's hand.]
> Then they caused the other three victims to attain
> their desire in like manner. HAif 'Ali Klidn the llajibu'd-
> Dawla' thus described what took place to one of hias
> intimate friends, with many expressions of astonishment:-
> His Majesty the King, in view of certain contingen-
> cies, instructed me to be present at the execution of tbease
> persons. When I reached the spot appointed for the exe-
> 1 This quotation is from the Masnavi, and is quoted in the
> original, with reference, at 1). 215, vol. ii, of my Travelle7"s
> Xarrath7e.
> 2 Concerning this atrocious wretch, see Polak's Persien, vol. 1,
> p. 352, and my Traveller's Yarrative, vol. ii, p. 52, n. 1.
> cution, I noticed amongst the seven prisoners a 1 young
> Seyyid of comely and pleasing countenance'. So fair- of
> face and attractive of aspect was he, that my heart was
> moved to pity at his plight, and I fell to wondering whether
> it were possible in any way to save him, from death, and,
> for God's sake, to prevent him from being -thus cut off in
> the prime of his youth. ~So, when four or five of the
> others had been put to death,J I called him to my side and
> whispered in his ear, 'Come, recant; for I swear by the
> crown 2 of His Majesty the King that  naught that you can desire or hope for shall be with-
> held from you. I will present you to His Majesty the
> King and will obtain for you  a pension and
> allowance of five hundred Wmains a year.' I saw him look
> wonderingly at me,,and I continued, 'If you will instantly
> forsake this path, I will buy for you ~ a fine house, and
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> will give you my daughter in marriage, together with much
> riches.' Having listened to all these inducements, he-
> answered, 'Tempt me not with your beautiful daughter
> and the perishable wealth of this world; we readily relin-
> quish the world and the things thereof to you and such
> others as seek after them. For us it sufficeth to drain this
> draught, of martyrdom in the way of the Belovedh-
> "The thought of the Beloved fills my Spirit,
> There is not left for aught beside a place;
> Let the foeman take the Here and the Hereafter;
> Enough for me to see the Loved One's face!"'
> 'TWben I heard him speak thus, andJ* saw that he
> *[I could not but admire the boy's spirit and courage,
> yet, since 1] *
> 1 Subh-i-Ezel informed me that the name of this young BàbÕ
> was Mulli $Adik-i-Turk.. He would therefore appear to be
> identical with the "man of MarAgha" mentioned at p. 252 supra.
> 2 '~Bi-jika-Alld-Hazrat-i-IiCibla-i-'Alant" literally "by the
> N. H..
> 17
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 258
> THE NEW His,rORY.
> was not to be persuaded, I smote him oil the mouth, and
> bade them kill him before the rest."
> Now , and all men~
> of learning admit his scholarship, which, indeed, can no
> more be denied than his virtue.  that he might be a witness to the clergy, and
> that they should not be able to say, " He was but a com-
> mon man, who., through ignorance and lack of judgement,
> fell into error and heresy." [He likewise shewed a degree
> of disinterested devotion which plunged all thoughtful
> persons in amazemeigit, in that, after years of study, he
> disregarded love of home, worldly ambition, authority,
> wealth, and position, and willingly quaffed the draught of
> martyrdom.]
> HAJf Seyyid 'Alf, the maternal uncle , was
> an aged merchant who had seen the world and enjoyed
> universal respect, for he was famed for his piety and godli-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ness, lbesides being a descendant of the Prophet, and the
> -uncle of His Supreme Holiness. When lie decided to set
> out from SlifrAz and Yezd to lay down his life for the sake
> of God and for love of the Beloved of the World, he ex-
> amined all his accounts, and went in person to the houses
> of all to whom he owed money to pay them their dues,
> demand quittance and absolution, and bid them a last
> farewell. So, in like manner, did he take leave of all his
> friends and relatives one by one, after which he set out for
> the capital, intending to proceed to AzarbaijAn to -wait oil
> His Holiness.1 So he sacrificed life and wealth in the
> service of His Holiness, [and in his old age suffered death
> for the Beloved's sakeJ that his act 'might - serve as a
> witness to all merchants, and that they might know that he,
> having watched over and tended the BAb from infancy to
> boyhood, and thence onwards until the Manifestation was
> vouchsafed, had beheld in him virtues and powers never
> before seen in man, whereby he was led to devote himself
> to his service, and lay down life for his sake : else would
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 262
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> he never have courted death with such readiness, or inet
> it with such fortitude. It is, therefore, certain that lie
> was irresistibly drawn to His Holiness by beholding the
> miraculous faculties which lie ' constantly displayed.
> [Thus at the moment of his birth he exclaimed, " The,
> Kingdom is God's'". And in his boyhood they sent him
> to be taught his lessons by Sheykh 'Abid, an accomplished
> scholar and a godly man, who was one of the disciples of
> Slieykh Alimad , and subsequently became an
> ardent believer in His Holiiieags. Amongst other anecdotes
> of the BAb's boyhood which lie used to relate, one was as
> follows. " The first day that they brought him to me at
> the school, I wrote down the alphabet for him to learn, as
> is customary with children. After a while I went out on
> business. On my return, I heard,. as I approached the
> room, someone reading the Kur'àn in a sweet and plaintive
> voice. Filled with astonishment, I entered the room and
> enquired who had been reading the Kur'àn. The other
> children answered  'He was.'
> 'Have you read the Kur'All ?' I asked. He was silent.
> 'It is best for you to read Persian books,' said 1, putting
> the Hdkku'1-Yakhi' before him, 'read from this.' At
> whatever page I opened it, I saw that lie could read it
> easily. 'You have read Persian,' said 1; 'Come, read
> some Arabic; that will be better.' So saying, I placed
> 1 4 a-I.
> 2 Two celebrated works bear this title. One is a compendium
> of Shi'ite doctrine composed by the eminent theologian Muham-
> rnad Bikir Jfajlisi in the year A.H. 1109 (A.D. 1698) in the reign
> of SultAn Huseyn the Safavf, and it is probably to this work that
> reference is here made. The other Hakku'l-Yakin was written
> in the 8th century of the hijra by Sheykh MahmAd Shabistari
> (better known as the author of the Gulshan-i-kdz); and treats
> of S~iff doctrine.
> THE BU'S CHILDHOOD.
> 263
> before him the 81iar7w_a7ntjjjja,!. When I began to ex-
> plain the meaning of the Bismi'lltih to the pupils in the
> customary manner, he asked, 'Why does the word Rahmain
> include both believers and infidels, while the word Raht'n
> applies only to believers?' I replied, 'Wise men have a
> rule to the effect that  2 ex-
> tension of meaning', and _Rahma'n contains one letter more
> than Raltz'M.' He answered, 'Either this rule is a mistake,
> or else that tradition which you refer to 'All is a lie.'
> 'Wbat tradition?' I asked. 'The tradition, ) replied he,
> ' wh ich declares that King of Holiness to have said : -" The
> meanings of all the Sacred Books are in the Kur'àn,-and
> the meanings of the whole Kur'6ii are in the 8~69-cttu'l-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 144tilia, and the meanings of the -whole 862-atu'l-Ritiha
> are in the Bismi'lVik, and the whole meaning of the Bis-
> mi'llrth is in the  B, and the meaning of
> the B is in the point , and the point is inex-
> plicable."' On hearing -him reason thus -subtilely I was
> speechless with amazement, and led him back to his home.
> His venerable grandmother came to the door. I said to
> her, 'I cannot undertake the instruction of this young
> gentleman,' an4 told her in full all that had passed. Ad-
> dressing him, she said, 'Will you not cease to speak after
> this fashion ? What business have you with such matters 2
> Go and learn your lessons.' ' Very well,' he answered, and
> came and began to learn his lessons like the other boys.
> Commentary on Grammatical forms. There is a work of
> this name by Surilrf (see Cat. Cod. Orient. Hus. Brit., par8 ii '
> Cod. Arab., p. 235, top of first column), but I am not sure
> whether this is the one here intended.
> 2 These words are not in the original, having evidently been
> omitted accidentally. They are necessary to complete the sense.
> 3 UL~  See Palmer's Arabic Grant-
> ,:*jl j.,L) jp jS . LjI 3,g'.
> Mar, p. 33, n. 1.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> i
> 264 THE NEW HISTORY.
> He even began with the alphabet, although I urged him
> not to do so. One day I saw lifin talking in a whisper to
> the boy who sat next him, but when I would have listened
> he was silent. Then I pretended to pay no he6d to
> what he was saying, though in reality I listened at-
> tentively, and I heard him say to the other boy, 'I am
> so light that, if I liked, I could fly up beyond the Throne';
> would you like me to go?' So saying, he made a move-
> ment from the ground. As he said 'would you like me
> to go V and made this niovemeDt, I smiled in wonder and
> bewilderment, and as I did so lie suddenly ceased speaking.
> So likewise, before lie had begun to practise writing, I
> observed that every day lie used to bring with him a pen-
> case and engage in writing something. I thought to my-
> self, 'He sees the other boys writing, and, wishing to write
> too, draws lines like them, and scribbles on the paper.'
> For several days lie continued to act thus, until one day
> I took the paper from him to see what he was doing. On
> glancing at it I saw that he had actually written something.
> Wondering how, without having practised, he could write,
> I proceeded to examine what he had written, and found
> it to be a dissertation on the mystery and knowledge of
> the Divine Unity, written in the purest and most eloquent
> style, and so profound that the keenest intellect would
> fail to penetrate its  meaning." A' ~A Seyyid
> Yahyd and Je)z('tb-i-A;919n' saw these writings in the pos-
> session of the aforesaid  as
> thus willingly and joyfully to forego life, wealth, fame,
> naine, wife, and child, unless they had observed in that
> Proof of God the clearest evidences of Divine powers and
> qualities. This especially applies to the , who, though filled with wonder
> at the miraculous powers which he observed in His Holi-
> ness even as a child, did nevertheless pause to make earnest
> and diligent enquiry after the Manifestation took place
> ere be became fully convinced of its truth. But this con-
> viction, once attained, was so firm that, as has been men-
> tioned, his steadfast resolve to devote his life to the cause
> could not be shaken, though one would have given three
> hundred tu'ma'ns to save him from death ; but he would
> Dot consent, and said, " I regard martyrdom as the greatest
> happiness and honour to which it is possible for me to
> attain, and my utmost ambition is to lay down my life in
> the way of the Beloved
> HAji MullA Taki, who was both a merchant and a
> scholar, was a man of remarkable piety and a native of
> KirmAn, where his godliness, integrity, intelligence, virtue,
> and wisdom were admitted by all, and where he had not a
> few devoted admirers. His testimony, therefore, appeals
> especially to all devout and godly persons.
> As for the two others, one *[was MÕrzà Huseyn of
> I Two beyts from the ffasnavi here inserted by L. are omitted.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 266 THE NEW HISTORY.
> Tabriz, the comely and devoted youth whom 1-16ji 'Alf
> KhAn sought to tempt', and his testimony was a proof to
> courtiers and government officials;]' and the other be-
> longed to the class of tradespeople, and was a witness to
> all such. And one cannot assert that these seven were
> madmen devoid of understandii)g and sense; or that they
> aimed at the supreme power; or that they were entrapped
> without means of escape ; for, had they not -voluntarily
> confessed, they would have been spared, and, even after
> they had made confession, each one, as has been described,
> was offered a chance of deliverance, and all alike refused it.
> So they wrought a deed such as human endurance had
> never before compassed ; yet, notwithstanding this, men
> blinded by prejudice and passion charge them with heresy
> and error, not reflectiDg that no one abandons life and
> wealth, and disregards fame, repute, consideration, wife,
> and children without good cause and reason ! The disci-
> ples of 'Alf 2 , as has been already mentioned, were not
> willing to abandon the hair of their heads, much less their
> lives. Wherein did these men, who had for five consecutive
> years striven after truth, fall short in endeavour ? Did
> they not go from town to town, seeking knowledge of that
> promised Proof ? Did they not endure the hardships of
> exile, and the persecution of foes ? Did they not bear
> patiently every kind of affliction, trouble, and sorrow ?
> And, when they had learned the truth, did they not,
> unlike those who would not give up so much as the hair
> upon their heads, sacrifice all, even life itself, for the
> % lbelonged to the class of government officials and
> servants of the state~*
> I See, however, note I at the foot of p. 257 supra.
> 2 See pp. 248-9 sitpra. C. repeats the whole story in full,
> and I therefore follow L. without further notice of the variants.
> THE "SEVEN HORNLESS GOATS." 267
> Beloved of the World ? If these were not rightly guided
> by God's grace, then no one in the world deserves to re-
> ceive guidance; and if God did not direct seekers so strenu-
> ous and so sincere as these, then (God forgive us for speaking
> thus!) He would have broken His promise, and "God
> breaketh not His promise"'. For it is incumbent on His
> grace and mercy to deliver souls so strenuous in the search
> after truth from doubt and error, to guide them into the
> way of salvation, and to raise them to the highest degree
> of certainty and knowledge. So, after the death of these
> Seven Martyrs, all wise and discerning persons, who heard
> what fortitude and steadfastness they had shewn in their
> captivity and martyrdom, clearly perceived that devotion
> such as this could not exist without a sufficient reason,
> and that an event of such magnitude could not be regarded
> as a trivial matter. Such persons, therefore, fell to making
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> enquiry ; and a great number of them crossed the bridge"
> of doubt, reached the haven of assurance, were invested
> with the robe of faith and right guidance, and, in turn,
> effected the conversion and salvation of many others. But
> in others, by reason of their lack of fairness, was realized
> the meaning of the verse, " They recognize the favours of
> God, and yet they deny them"'.
> Now these seven saints were the seven hornless goats
> which, agreeably to a well-accredited tradition, are to
> appear in Mecca before His Holiness .
> I Kur'àn, xxx, 5.
> 2 ~irdt, the bridge "finer than a hair and sharper than a
> sword" w hich, according to the Muslim belief, spans the gulf
> which surrounds Paradise. The allegorical meaning of this
> image is treated of in the twelfth chapter of the second VdAid of
> the Persian BeyAn. Cf. B. ii, p. 930; and n. I at the foot of p.
> 46 supra.
> 3 Kur'* xvi, 85.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 268 THE NEW HISTORY.
> And, since those are a sign of the TAIlanifestation, there-
> fore astieli as were anxiously expecting its advent truly and
> sincerely believed with great joy. For the holy liuAms
> (upon whom be peace) have said, "Nabyzet'r-r6"I" wa,
> shP6tu9id ghananz," that is to say, " We are the shepherd,
> and our followers are the flock, which we. pasture in the
> spacious meadow of wisdom, and preserve froign the claws of
> the wolf of ignorance and fally." [Now the interpretation
> of this saying, that His Holiness the JCrt'im sliall cause his
> flock to appear in the land of Mecca, is that by Xecca the
> land of Belief in the Divine Unity is intended ; for this it
> is which especially appertaineth to God. And the source
> and home of this belief is the heart, even as God says :-
> " Neither my earth nor my heaven sufficeth for me, but
> Only the heart of my faithful servant." So the true I-louse
> of ()'rod is the heart ; it is the mirror of God, and in it
> Divine Inspiration appears. This subject requires a lengthy
> explanation, which will be given in its proper place.] And
> what is meant by their saying " the goats have no horns "
> is, briefly, that they suffer wrong, that is to say that they
> neither struggle nor resist. The sayings of the Im6ms
> contain many meanings which these formalist doctors are
> unable to penetrate, even as they have failed to coinpre-
> hend this tradition ; wherefore, through lack of sense and
> discerniihient, they do both keep the unfortunate laity in
> expectation, and themselves expect that His Holiness
> Q11A n nav ;1, +1 n A +P AT
> A
> KURRATU'L-'AYN.
> 269
> contrary to their preconceived ideas. For their pride and
> arrozoD,ance make it seem to them a hard thing to prefer the as-
> sertion of another to their own vain fancies, and, even though
> they be inwardly compelled to assent, and to allow that his
> words accord with reason and truth, their self-conceit
> makes it impossible for them to admit this explicitly.
> Thus 116ji MuIlA SAlih, for all his piety, sanctity, scholar-
> ship, and show of religion, repeatedly said to his daughter
> Jenaib-i- Ttikii-a, better known as lCurratu'l-'A Y. 2P*, " If
> you, with all the learning, scholarship, and intelligence
> which you possess, were to claim to be the BAb, or even
> more than that, I would readily admit and allow your
> claim; but what can I do when you choose to follow this
> SlifrAzilad?" Greatheavens! Such is the arrogance and
> prejudice of these persons that the imagination can scarcely
> conceive the least of its developments! Here was one who
> saw that his daughter, notwithstanding her talents and
> accomplishments, regarded herself but as dust in compari-
> son with that Sun of Truth, and publicly said, " With the
> knowledge which I possess it is impossible that I should be
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> mistaken in the recognition of Him who is the Lord of the
> World, whom all peoples anxiously expect : I have duly
> recognized Him by the proofs of reason and the evidences
> of knowledge, though this knowledge and these attainments
> of mine are but as a niinute drop beside that vast and all-
> pp I eser o ecca, in the guise of a *~as did also her uncle HAjf MullA 
> shepherd driving seven goats, which are devoid of Ta'kf 'the murdered,' who was a learned scholar, and,
> rason, before him. A fine and honourable occupation do
> e, indeed, in his own opinion, the most learned doctor of his
> they assign to their Master! Yet they themselves are til-nel*
> entirely unconscious of the evilness of their assertions and
> beliefs: and if some poor fellow would explain the true 1 Concerning 
> Qurratu - T'Ayn, her father Hdjf Mulli Sdlih,
> meaning of such traditions, they dub him an infidel, be- and her ancle 
> H6jf Mulli Muhammad Takf (called by the Shi'i'es
> cause he interprets the words of the ImAm in a manner Shahid-i- Pidlith ") 
> see my Traveller's Narrative, vol. ii, pp. 309
> -316.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 270 THE NEW HISTORY.
> embracing ocean, or as an iiiagigiiificaiit mote beside that
> mighty and radiant luminary ; " yet, notwithstanding this,
> lie answered, "Though you regard your excellence and
> learning as of such small Account in comparison with - that SlifrAzf lad, still, had you been my son
> , and had you put forward this
> claim, I would have accepted it." . . .
> "Wine still is wine, the rose is still the rose,
> Where e'er that ripens, and where e'er this grows.
> Though from the West its course should be begun
> The sun's the sun, and nothing but the sun."
> ZI)
> ] *
> I "The Pure."
> 2 As the Bib is often styled " The Tree of Truth " (Shajara-i-
> tlakikat), so those who believe in him are sometimes called
> " Leaves". The title of Waraka-i-'Ulyd ("The Supreme Leaf")
> was conferred by Bebi'u'116h on one of his wives. See Traveller',,;
> Narrative, vol. ii, p. 361.
> N. H.
> 18
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 274
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> lad?" To such speeches, however, she refused to listen;
> nor, do what they might, would she consent to be recon-
> ciled with her husband MullA Muhammad, who was the
> son of HAjf Mulli , land was accounted
> her cousinj.  she answered, " He, in that he rejects God's religion,
> is unclean, while I am I Pure": between us there can be
> naught in common Tnor any equality~." So she refused to
> be reconciled to her husband.
> After this befell the catastrophe of HAjf MullA  Takf's murder. Now the cause of this was that
> lin every assembly and gathering~ he was wont to curse
> and revile the late Sheykh Ahmad , displaying
> herein the most obstinate pertinacity. A certain MÕrzà
> Sd,lih, Twho was a native of Slifrdz andl one of the BAb's
> followers, formerly devoted to the late Sheykh Ahmad, had
> heard lin Kazvfnl that HAjf Mulld [Muhammad] Takf
> regarded the late Slieykh as an apostate and a heretic, and
> waa-, in the habit of Cursing him-. He therefore waited
> upon the HAjf *Jafter the performance of public prayer~,*
> and enquired his opinion of Sheykh Ahmad. The HAjf
> chlirsed and reviled him Texceedingly~. Thereupon MÕrzà
> SAlih (agreeably to the tradition handed down from the
> linAms " whosoever curseth our followers liath cursed us,
> and whosoever curseth us hath ciirased the Apostle of God,
> and whosoever hath curased the Apostle of God is an
> infidel") knew him for an evil man and an apostate, and,
> in accordance with the tradition above quoted, became
> assured of his infidelity, and deemed it incumbent on
> himself to slay him. So, without communicating his
> *[in the place of prayer]*
> 1 Tdthira. See the end of the preceding paragraph.
> I
> I
> I
> I
> MURDER OF MULI,Jk MUHAMMAD TAKf. 2 7 at'
> design to anyone, he went by night, and, by the ~ altar' '
> inflicted on him several  wounds. And this
> thing was the consequence of the HAji's conduct on the
> occasion of the BAb's passing through Kazvfn. For His
> Holiness, as he passed through 1~azvfn, had, with the
> design of proving others and admonishing them by this
> transaction, written  to him, saying, "I am
> of the offspring of the Prophet; I am wrongfully en-
> treated; and I have come to your city. How would it be
> if you were to afford me some succour ? " But the Hijf
> tore the letter in fragments and made several unseemly
> remarks. When'they reported this to His Holiness, lie
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> said, " Was there no one to smite him on the mouth??'
> Wherefore the Lord brought it to pass that he was smitten
> in the mouth with a spear-head, that he might no more
> speak insolently of the saints of religion2.
> Now after the attack on Hiji Mullk Muhammad Takf,
> a great disturbalice arose in, Kazvfn. For the people attri-
> buted this deed to Jen6b-i-TdItira, and suspected her fol-
> lowers, though neither she nor they were privy to it. So
> they arrested *[Dearly seventy]* persons, and, though H6jf
> ' said of each one brought before
> him, " It was not he," cast them into prison and tormented
> them in divers ways. Amongst others they beat Sheykh
> SAlih the Arab with inany stripes, and would have branded
> him. TThey also brought Jenaib-i-Tdhira to the govern-
> *Ja great number oQ*
> Xilirdb, properly the niche or alcove in the mosque which
> shews the direction of Mecca.
> 2 Some verses from the Xasnavi) differently given in and
> L., are here omitted.
> 3 The wounds inflicted on H6ji MullA Muhammad Takf did
> not at once prove fatal. According to the Kismm'I-Wla"01 be
> 8urvived the attempt on his life by several days.
> 18-2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> i
> 276
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> melit house, along with one of her servants, and fell to
> tormenting her, thinking that perhaps she might make
> some statement; neither would they believe her, though
> she declared on oath that she had absolutely no knowledge
> of this event. For the heirs of the murdered man, amongst
> whom was Jena'b-i-T(iltira's husband Mulli Muhammad,
> persisted in affirming that this deed bad been committed
> by her followers and with her consent. And she meanwhile
> was engaged in tearful and humble prayer to Him who is
> the Fulfiller of all needs.~
> Suddenly Mf rzA S411h of Slif rAz T, seeing the torments to
> which a number of innocent and virtuous persons were
> being subjected, could no longer maintain silence, but,
> impelled by common fairness and uprightness, devotedlyl
> advanced the foot of manful courage, and made full con-
> fession, setting forth in detail the motives which had
> impelled him to commit the murder, and adding, " I con-
> sidered myself obliged by the duty which I owe to Reli-
> gion and the Sacred Law to do this deed." In such wise
> did lie express himself that  the governor of Kazvfn
> applauded his eloquence and boldness. JWhen they re-
> proached him, saying, " Why didst thou act thus towards
> so learned a divine ? " he replied, " Who, then, was he but
> a, I
> one who had culled fronhi the garden of Abu Hanffa' a
> single nosegay, in virtue of which he claimed to be a learned
> divine?" The people were, amazed at the readiness of his
> replies ; but the heirs 
> and those who were specially prejudiced against Kurratu'l-
> 'Ayn and the others arrested on this charge, and who bore
> them an invincible hatred, not anticipating such truth,
> loyalty, fairness, and courage from an assassin, refused to
> 1 AbA Hanffa, Milik, Shifi'if, and Ibn Hanbal were the
> founders of the four orthodox schools or sects of the Sunnites ;
> learned theologians, no doubt but of little account in Shilite,
> much less in BAbi eyes.
> CONFESSION OF THE ASSASSIN. 277
> credit this confession, or to pay any heed to it. But the
> youth adhered to his statement, and, on their refusing U
> believe it, described in detail the manner in which he had
> done the deed, adding, " If you desire to verify my state-
> ment, go, and take out the spear-head wherewith 1 slew
> him from beneath the stool' under which I cast it, that you
> may know that my account is a true one." So they went
> and took out the spear-head from under the stool, and the
> truth of his statement was  conclusively proved.
> They therefore cast him into prison and put him in fetters,
> and the sons of the murdered Hdjf Mull.4 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Takf went to the prison to vex and revile him. Mirzi
> ~Alih, losing control of his temper, cried out, " I have sent
> him to liell, and I will now send you- after him." Sosaying
> 0)
> lie sprang forward with such energy that he dragged his
> chain, wrenched out from the ground the long iron staple
> to which it was attached, and hurled it at them with such
> Yigour that they fled ill terror in all directions. The long
> staple struck the door of his cell and pierced it; whereat
> the prison warders were so greatly alarmed that they shut
> the door upon him and locked it.
> TNotwitlistanding all this' they would not release those
> others , but, anxious only to
> establish a reputation for filial piety, continued to account
> them accomplices and accessories.1 And although -HAjf
> < MullA Muhammad Takf >had declared with his dying
> breath that he forgave his murderer', *[MullA Muhammad]*
> *Tstilll*
> I This word is doubtful. It appears to read &,,S~ to which I
> call assign no suitable sense. I therefore, conjecture
> 2 ie. the confession of Mfrz6 SAlih.
> 3 HAjf MÕrzà JAnf adds that Mulli Muhammad himself
> made this statement.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 278 THE NEW HISTORY.
> his son caused *[five]* of the prisoners to be sent in fetters
> and chains from Kazvfn to TeherAn in the bitter cold of
> the winter season. Amongst these *[five]*, one was an old
> man of ailing health ~named HAjf Asadu'IlAh~; whom,
> though he was perfectly innocent, and ignorant , they dragged from a bed of
> sickness and led away; and who, on reaching Teherdn, ex-
> pired Tin prisonI from his illness and the fatigues of the
> road. But MÕrzà SAlih, the actual murderer, Twho had
> himself confessed, and whom Hdjf MÕrzà AkAsf had con-
> signed to the custody of MÕrzà ShafV the S4hib-d,~vdq?.J
> escaped from prison by night, Tand, making straight for the
> Castle of  Tabarsf, joined himself to the people of
> God, amongst whom lie attained to inartyrdom'.I
> Those tTthreelt innocent persons remained in prison,
> but though the son of HAjf Mulla [Muhammad] Takf made
> the most strenuous efforts to obtain from the administrators
> of the Sacred Law in TeherAn an order for the execution of
> one of the prisoners, he was not successful. Then he accused
> the BàbÕs of being this and that; and His Majesty TMu-
> hammadI ShAh ordered the learnednzitjtakgidAkA Mahnifid
> of TeherAn, -1-Tthe son of AkA Muhammad 'Alf of Kirmin-
> shAhAnJ+ to investigate and ascertain their tenets. So
> 11 [they brought them' before him, and when he had]JI nhiet
> *~sixj* t[fourJt  [Ndsirti'd-Dfn]~, 2
> ,[who was unrivalled in his time]++
> JJJheJJJ
> See p. 82 supra. That the Sheykh Silih there mentioned
> is identical with this Mfrzi SAlih is clearly shewn by Haif
> Mfrzi Jinfs account of his death, in which he is described
> as "the murderer of HAjf Mulki Mul ' iammad Takf of Kazvfn."
> 2 This appears to be an anachronism. Haijf Alfrzi Ja'nf only
> says "the King."
> 3 ie., as it would appear, the three remaining prisoners.
> I  i
> INNOCENT PERSONS PUNISHED. 279
> land conversed much with] them* the falsity of Mulli Mu--
> hammad's assertions [concerning this sect] becalne evident.
> Finally  went before His Majesty the
> King, and rent his shirt, and began to weep, saying, "They
> have slain HAjf Mulli [Muhammad] Taki, t1and shall no
> one's blood be shed  ?It" The King an-
> swered, " The murderer, who has himself confessed, has
> escaped [from prison]. If thou desirest the lawful applica-
> tion of the lex talionis, then no administrator of the Sacred
> Law will sentence an innocent man to suffer death instead
> of the escaped murderer. But if thou seekest for illegal
> retaliation, then why dost thou introduce the name of law?
> Go, kill one ." So they took Sheykh Sdlih the
> Arab, a godly man, endowed, as was proved in several ways,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> with a pure heart', and consummated his martyrdom Jby
> blowing him from a gunI.
> Then < Mullal Muhammad> prayed that he might be
> permitted to take the TtwoJ other prisoners T, one of whom
> was Sheykh Tihir of Shirk the preacher, and the other
> Mulli IbrAhfm of MahallitJ to Kazvfn, in order that he
> might do honour to his father's memory by causing them
> to walk round his grave, after which he would let them go.
> To this His Majesty the King agreed [,not guessing the
> extent of his godlessness and priestly cunning]. So < MulIA
> Muhammad> took Itheml I with him to Burka4n, and on
> *Tandl*
> t[how can it be right that his murderer should not
> be slain? ] t
> [three] t[the three men]t
> Haji Mirz6 JAnf says that Sheykh ~dlih was believed
> by some (of the Bdbfs) to be (a re-incarnation of) "the Pure
> Soul concerning whom see el-Fakhri (ed. Ahl-
> wardt), p. 195 et seg.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 280
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> t e way thither inflicted on them all manner of hurts and
> torments. After this lie took them to Kazvfn T. On the
> day when lie was taking theml to make them walk round
> his father's grave,* he made known Ihiis intentiont to the
> whole populace, +[that they might mahe]+ a general attack
> [. So, as soon as they brought them
> forth to make them walk round the grave, Sheykh TAhir]
> and MullA lbrilifm 11[were]ll done to death with a cruelty
> surpassing all imagination. ~Sheykh TAhir was bound
> to a tree and tortured to death by his assailants, and a
> number of the mob brought leaves and set fire to the foot
> of the tree.1 And the body of the poor victim was con-
> sumed with fire. ~Then they bore both the bodies out of
> the city gates and cast them into a hollow, and only after
> some days did they allow a grave to be dug in that place
> and the corpses to be laid therein.1
> So the heirs  known as
> 1 It was) apparently, only after the fall of Sheykh Tabaraf
> that she was given up to the authorities by the people of Nfir '
> where she (together with Subh-i-Ezel, as HAjf Mimi JAni states in
> his history) had taken refuge. Cf. Traveller's Narrative, vol. ii,
> pp. 312-3. It is worth noting that HAjf MÕrzà JAnf calls her
> "the Mother of the World" (, real object was not to ascertain the
> truth or sift the matter, [else lie would have suigiiiiioiiecl
>  to TelierAii and caused him to be examined in
> Jenaib-i-Veluii) and the wisdom and excellence whereunto
> by his help she attained, may become kDOW11 to all persoiia3
> of discernment.J*
> I A p--llace in Teheran built by Fath-'All Shih. It derives
> its name from the pictures and portraits wherewith the walls of
> several of its rooms are ornameDted, and is situated in the north-
> ern quarter of the city, not very far from the English Embassy.
> 2 Cf. my Traveller's J'arrative, vol. ii, pp. 313-4.
> EXAMINATION OF THE BAB AT TABRIZ. 285
> his own presence]. For he was certainly well aware that
> the clergy would never relinquish their material authority;
> that their overweening arrogance and clerical Pride would
> never suffer them to acknowledge the truth of the Bib's
> claim or the reality of his mission; and that it was im-
> possible for them  to abandon their mastery
> and to adopt an attitude of submission and obedience,
> more especially since he had heard how most of them
> regarded  ,is a madihnan. For some of them
> declared that his brain was disordered, and that his writings
> consisted of 'fables of t7te ancients" set forth in incoherent
> words;* while others asserted that His Holiness did not
> really claim to be the Bib, but that MullA Uuseyn of
> Busliraweyh, a man of unrivalled scholarship and virtue,
> was the actual claimant, and that all these teachings and
> writings emanated from him'.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> So they summoned His Holiness to Tabrfz', and con-
> vened an assembly , which was attended-by
> MU114 Muhammad MAmaghAiif, HAjf MuIIA MahmAd Mulld-
> baisU, a number of divines of the Sheykhf party, and a few
> state functionaries. They  in such wise that
> astonishment overcame me and 1 could find no ground for
> objection. But again I -doubted, aand another test occurred
> to me. I said to him, 'I desire you to repeat again what
> you have just now recited.' Again he was silent for a
> while; then, pronouncing the  'Bism~116h,'he
> proceeded with the repetition of the verses. Once more I
> made a sign to the secretary to take down in writing what
> was uttered, until the B4b again paused and was silent.
> Then I asked for this copy, and, on comparing it with the
> first, perceived that the latter verses were not identical
> &ra-i-NAr, the twenty-fourth chapter of the Ku?An.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I
> 296
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> with the earlier ones. . . I said, 'Sir, I asked you to repeat
> what you recited before, and this is not identical with that,
> but differs from it.' He  replied, 'Thus was it
> revealed'.'
> ~" Now since this plan and idea of mine had 1-nis-
> carried, I  began to doubt; so, not being clear
> as to how I ought to act, I said to the Bib, 'Go now to
> your lodging, and rest.' Thereupon lie got up, and again I
> accompanied him as far as the door of the room.
> Next morning I said to the delegate , I will in no wise meddle further in this affair;
> it is for you to decide ; act as you think best, and in
> -accordance with the instructions which you have received,
> and apply to the clergy in this matter.' So the delegate,
> with a great throng and crowd of people, dragged the Bib,
> with every circumstance of indignity, to the houases of two
> or three well-known members of the clergy. These reviled
> him; but to all who questioned him he declared-, without
> any attempt at denial, that he was the Kti'im. At length
> Mulld Muhammad Mdmaglidnf, one of the Sheykhf party,
> and -sundry others, assembled together in the porch of
> a house belonging to one of their number, questioned him
> fiercely and insultingly, and, when he had answered them,
> explicitly condemned him to deatli."J'
> Subh-i-Ezel admitted that the verses were given differently
> on the second recital; "for, said he, "they flowed forth ever
> fresh, like the water from a fountain frongi which the same jet
> cannot issue twice."
> 2 The whole of this narrative, which appears to have been
> added to the original text by its reviser Nab4l, is lacking in L.
> I am not sure whether the last three sentences really form part
> of Prince Hamz6 MÕrzà's account of this transaction, but have
> thought it best on the whole to include them in the inverted
> commas.
> i
> THE BkB'S LAST NIGHT ON EARTH. 297
> So they imprisoned him who was athirst for the draught
> Of martyrdonil for three days, along with A'kA Seyyid
> Huseyn , the amanuensis, and AkA Seyyid
> ftasan, which twain were brothers, wont to pass*their time
> for the most part in the Bib's presence.
> Now befon- w~. I-]-
> even e Bib had, to complete th
> proof, sent to the clergy of Tabriz by means of Aki S yyi
> 1 e "'), Mirzd Muhani
> Ahmad of Tabr'z (known as " the Scrib is
> mad 'Ali of Tabriz, and two other persona3, sundry epi* tles
> containing exhortations, admonitions, and declarations ol
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> his truth. When these epistles were presented, one of the
> clergy had wished to express his contempt and scorn for
> the blessed writirig. These forerunners of the field of
> courage advanced the foot of fortitude to prevent this, and,
> their dispute ending in strife, were incarcerated in the
> prison of His Highness Prince Hainzd MÕrzà. There, as is
> currently reported, two of them would seem to have been
> poisoned, though according to another account the Prince
> released them without the cognizance of the clergy. But
> Mfrzi Muhammad 'Alf remained in the prison till such
> time as His Supreme Holiness was brought thither, and
> there enjoyed the honour of meeting him.
> On the night before the day whereon was consummated
> the martyrdom of that Gem of created essences') lie said to
> 1 ie. the Bib. This passage will be found translated at pp.
> 319-321of vol. ii of my Traveller's Aarrative.  h I .
> 2 In the footnote on p. 320 of nhiy Travellers Xarrative
> I have suggested that this title of I the scribe' is here wrongly
> ~gipplied to Aki Seyyid Ahmad of Tabriz, whom the author
> may have confounded with Mulli 'Abdu'l-Karfm of Ka7vfn,
> known amongst the Bibfs as " Mfrzi Ahrnad-i-lfdtib". HAjf
> Mfrz,i JiDf, however, agrees with the lVtrikh-i-Jadid, for be
> speaks of  -j< tjg.,,u a-f- is-~ " a.,
> 3 ie. the ~hb.
> r, U
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> t
> 298 THE NEW HISTORY.
> his companions, " Tomorrow they will slay me shamefully
> land with boundless indignityl. Let one of you now arise
> and kill me, that I may not have to endure this ignoMin3r
> and sharne from  enemies; for it is Ifarl pleasanter
> to me to die by the hands of friends than of foes." His
> companions, with expressions of grief and sorrow, sought to
> excuse themselves, with the exception of MÕrzà Muhammad
> 'Alf, who at once made as though he would obey the
> command. His comrades, however, anxiously seized his
> hand, crying, "Such rash presumption ill accords with an
> attitude of devoted service 1 " " This act of mine," replied
> he, " is not prompted by presumption, but by unstinted
> obedience, and desire to fulfil  companions agreed , with the excep-
> tion of Mfrzd Muhammad 'Alf, who fell at the feet of His
> Holiness and began to entreat and implore, thus praying
> I
> *[Ilow the disciples, especially Akeit Se~yyid flUseyn and
> A~d Seyyid Hasan, were bidden to deny tkeirf2th]*
> f [after  this action of MÕrzà Muhammad 'Alijt
> I i.e. the Bib's last words and instructions.
> MARTYRDOM OF THE B~k&
> 299
> with utmost self-abasement :-"Debar not this thy faithful
> servant from the blessing of thy presence, and graciously
> accord permission to me, who am but an insignificant mote
> or a handful of dust, to lay down my life ." So earnestly did he urge his entreaties that His
> Holiness, though  he strove to dissuade him,
> at length graciously acceded .
> Now when a little while had elapsed after the rising of
> the sun, they brought them, without cloak or coat, and
> clad only in their under-coats and nigbt-caps', to the
> Government House, where they were sentenced to be shot.
> AkA Seyyid Huseyn the amanuensis, and his brother Ak6
> Seyyid Hasan, recanted, as they had been bidden-to do,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> and were set at liberty; and AkA Seyyid Huseyn bestowed
> the gems of wisdom treasured in his bosom'upon such
> as s
> a ought for and were worthy of them, and, agreeably
> to his instructions, communicated certain secrets of the
> faith to those for whom they were intended.. He  attained to the rank of martyrdom in the Catas-
> trophe of Teherdn'.
> But since MÕrzà Muhammad 'Alf, athirst for the draught
> of martyrdom, declared  in the most explicit
> manner, they dragged him along with that  Point
> of the Universal Circle to the barracks situated by -the
> citadel', and, oppoa,,ite to the cells on one side of the
> Cf. n. 2 on p. 201-3upra. The night-cap (shab-kuldh), which
> is of such shape and size as to adapt itself closely to the head,
> is often worn by itself in the house, even during the day-
> time, the turban, which at other times is wound round it, beino,
> laid aside.
> 2 Here ends the portion of this account translated at pp. 319
> -321 of vol. ii of my gtravellei,'s Narrative.
> 3 1 visited the citadel (arg) of Tabriz on November 4tb, 1887.
> It is of great height, and formerly criminals condemned to death
> used sometimes to be thrown from the summit into the moat
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 300 THE NEW HISTORY.
> barrack, suspended  from  lie might renounce his
> faith.  lie  said,
> Ilegone, and bait your snares for other quarry ;
> The 'Ankd's2 nest is hard to reach and high."1]3
> below. The building appears to have been originally a mosque,
> '7
> ,_1
> and the spacious vzilirdb is still visible in the wall facing the
> barrack-square. On the left of one entering this square is the
> staircase which leads to the summit of the citadel, while on the
> right are the barracks and store-roonis (ankir), which were pro-
> bably originally designed for a college.
> I Three more lines are emitted.
> 2 A mythical bird similar to the plicenix.
> 3 C. omits this touching incident, which, however, is men-
> tioned by Gobineau. (p. 269), though not by HaJf Mfrza' Jini.
> E
> MARTYRDOM OF THE B_kB.
> 301 -
> . So they shot him in the presence of his master', and laid
> his faithful and upright form in the dust, while his pure'
> and victorious spirit, freed from the prison of earth and the
> cage of the body, soared to the branches of the 'Lote-tree
> . 21
> beyond wkich there is no passing , and there rested with
> the Beloved. *~Thus did lie attain to peace after travail,
> and enjoy the fruits of his heroism.
> *TSays the reviser':-Proof of the devotion and stead-
> fastness of this noble man (upon whom be the splendour of
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> God' and His approbation) is afforded by a letter in~ his
> own blessed writing which was in the possession of, his
> brother Mulli 'Abdu'llih, who still lives in Tabriz. - :This
> It is clear from this,- as well as frongi HAjf Mfrza' JAnf's
> account, that the first volley of the firing-party was aimed
> at Mfrz' Muhammad 'Alf alone, and not, as Gobineaug(p. 270)
> a
> and the Traveller's Yarrative (Vol. i, pp. 55-56; Vol. ii,'
> pp. 43-44) imply, at the BAb also. Three volleys were fired
> in all (as appears from SuleyrnAn KhAn's narrative on p.~ 310
> infra), but only two at the Bib. Hence the erroneous state-
> ment (opposed to HAjf MÕrzà JAnf's accou ' nt) on pp. 306~7
> infra that the Bib twice escaped the shower of bullets.
> 2 Kur'àn, iiii, 14. Ha'j*i Mfrzh Jinf adds that the Bib, as the
> body of his disciple fell bleeding, at his feet, smiled, and said,
> "Then shalt be with me in Paradise" a;C j 1  :41
> Traveller's Narrative, Vol. ii, p. 322.  -~b
> 3 The reviser who supplies us with this interesting addition
> to the original history may not iniprobablyg be in -this case also
> Nabil. See pp. 131 and 293 supra.
> 4 This forniula-"aleyhi behd'u'lldh'-was and is the common
> form of benediction amongst the BàbÕs for absent or deceased
> believers. I am not certain, however, whether it is still used by
> the Ezelfs, who, though they declare that the title Beltd,'u'lld/i,
> originally belonged to Mfrzi Yahvi Subh-i-Ezel (see my Travel-
> lei-Is Yarrative, p. 353), cannot but associate it now with his
> great rival MirzA 1juseyn 'Alf.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 302 THE NEW HISTORY.
> letter he wrote from the prison three days or two days
> before his martyrdom in reply to his brother, who had
> written to him counselling him to turn aside from his
> devotion and thraldom; and therein he makes his apology.
> And since the martyr was the younger , therefore he adopts a respectful tone in his letter.
> The text of this letter of reply is as follows :-1
> " He is the Compassionate.
> 0 my _~Cibla' I
> Thanks be to God, I have no fault to find with my
> circumstances, and 'to every travail rest succeeds.' As to
> what you wrote, that this matter hath no end, what matter,
> then, hath an end? We, at least, have no discontent
> therein ; being, indeed, unable sufficiently to express our
> gratitude for this blessing. At most we can but be slain
> for God's sake, and 0, what happiness were this! The
> Lord's will must be accomplished on His servants, neither
> can prudence avert predestined fate. What God wills
> : there is no strength save in God.
> T" 0 my Kibla ! The end of  the world
> is death: 'every soul shall taste of death'.' If the, ap-
> pointed destiny which the Lord (mighty and glorious is
> He) hath decreed should overtake me, then God is the
> guardian of my family, and thou art. my trustee; act in
> such wise as accords with God's good pleasure. Forgive
> any failure in the respect or duty owed to an elder brother
> I Both the text and translation of this letter I published in
> the Octoter number of the J. R. A. S. for 1889. The former will
> be found at p. 938, the latter at p. 992.
> 2 Kibla, the point towards which one turns to pray. tUbla-
> gdlb (1~ibla-place) is a formula often used in letters in addressing
> elder relatives.
> 3 Kur'àn, iii, 182 ; xxi, 36; xxix, 57.
> MARTYRDOM OF THE B-kB.
> 303
> of which I may have been guilty, seek pardon for me from
> all those of my household, and commend me to God. God
> is my portion, and how good is He as a guardian!"
> TIf anyone will rightly consider the contents and pur-
> port of this letter, he will not fail to appreciate the nobility
> of the writer's character, and the true sublimity of his
> devotion.l*
> Now after this, when they had suspended His Holiness
> , the ShakAkf regiment received orders to
> fire, and discharged their pieces in a single volley., -But of
> all the shots fired  two bullets
>  struck the two ropes by which
> His Holiness was suspended on either side, and severed
> them. The BAb fell to the ground Tand took refuge in the
> - roomll. As soon as the smoke and dust of the
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> powder had somewhat cleared, the spectators  did not find, that Jesus of the age on the -cross.
> . *[Suspension of the Blessed Appearance.]*'
> I The barracks in the citadel at Tabrfz, like all similar build-
> ings in Persi~, consist of a series of rooms or cells (4ujra), exactly
> like those in a caravansaray, opening by a single door on to the
> platform (sakft) which fronts the building. From the description
> of the execution here given, it appears that the Bib and his com-
> panion were suspended by double ropes (attached, probably, to
> either arm) from the parapet or rain-gutter running along the
> face of the building over these doors. When, therefore, the Bkb
> was thus unexpectedly released by the breaking of the ropes, he
> would naturally fall on the stone platform on which the cells
> opegn, and a few steps at most would enable him to reach one
> of them.
> 2 By "the Blessed Appearance" (Tal'at-i-Hubdrak) the Bib
> is meant. So Behd'u'llih is called Tal'at-i-Abhd. Cf n. I on
> p. 139, and n. 2 on p. 247, supra.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 304 THE NEW HISTORY.
>  a great clainour brake forth amongst them.
> Some said, "He has disappeared!" Others, "Ile haas
> gone up to heaven ! " Search being made, they  perceived him in the cell [writing this verse on
> the wall with a fragment of charcoal
> I bid thee not be moth or salamander,
> But, an thou 'rt beDt on burning, be a man
> Such, however, was their heedless presumption and
> folly that they did not so much a-, perceive *[that no sign
> or marvel could be imagined transcending this]* that of all
> those bullets not one a-,hould touch the ~blessedj body of
> His Ifoliness, but that they should  strike those
> slender cords. tJGod was pleased  to manifest
> HisIt sovereign power to those foolish men. TFor if His
> will and purpose ordain not martyrdom and affliction for
> His saints and for such as manifest His Spirit, to prove the
> hard-heartedness, sinfulness, obduracy, and rebelliousness
> of the wicked, or the patience and meel~nesa-, of just and
> aintly men and their resignation to whatsoever the Pen of
> Destiihly may award; if  the purpose of man-
> kind accord and agree not with  Grace con-
> strained him to endorse and give effect to the choice of
> which not -:~ even > one touched his blessed form, because
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> on -that occasion he was pleased to exert his  power. But when he rea-,igned himself , Harmala' took aim, at his fore-
> head, and his shot missed not its mark; and this- thing was
> a proof of < ImAm Huseyn's >- perfect service < to God >, not
> I ie. God's word (1~ur'An, lxxvi, 30). It is impossible to de-
> termine at what previous point the pronouns cease to refer to the
> Bdb and begin to refer to God. But after all, since the B6.b
> is regarded as a I Manifestation' of the Divine Essence, the ques-
> tion would to a B6bf be of trivial import.
> 2 1 cannot find in the Kur'àn such words as these.
> 3 Kur'dn, iv. 115.
> 4 Harmala b. el-KAhin. In none of the histories or Shilite
> martyrologies which I have consulted do I find this man credited
> with a direct share in the death of Huseyn. He it was, however,'
> who shot Huseyn's little nephew 'ibdu'llAh b. el-Hasan (Tabarl,
> series ii, vol. i, p. 387, 11. 8-9), also called 'Alf As har, the cir-
> .9
> cumstances of whose death are detailed in the Rawzatu's-Shuhadd,
> and in Ockley's Histw~y of the Saracens, vol. ii, p. 175. Hijf
> MÕrzà Jinf makes a more correct allusion to the incident in a
> different connection.
> N. H.
> 20
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 306
> THE NEW HISTORY.
>  his servants. The Will of God
> accepted what they willed and do will, and that happened
> which happened. But men, in their exceeding folly and
> blind heedlessness, did not then apprehend this point,
> andl-I were not warned, and did not recognize  that a bullet struck and severed that slender
> rope,  how it could be, and what might be the
> reason, that, notwithstanding its proximity to all those
> bullets, that Blessed Figure was not struck by one. So,
> notwithstanding this , they again sus-
> pended His Holiness, and gave orders to fire another volley.
> The MusulmAn soldiers, however, made their excuses and
> refused. Thereupon a Christian regiment' was ordered to
> fire the volley, and  they were obliged to
> comply. According to the account written by the late
> Haijf MirzA JA-nf, on this second occasion also no hurt
> accrued to the Blessed Figure of His Holiness'; but at the
> of his powerlessness . But those men,
> by reason of their exceeding folly, did not at that time
> recognize so signal a manifestation of power just as in this
> time also they]++
> I
> I
> I
> Cf. Gobineau, 1). 270, and the Traveller's .11-arrative, vol. j,
> pp. 55-57, and vol. ii, pp. 43-45. HAjf Mfrzi Jdnf confirms
> this detail.
> 2 This is incorrect, for Ha'jf Mimi Ja'nf says that the second
> volley proved fatal to the B6b. His words are as follows :-
> jI
> , 5 J)
> a~it, :-I :. Y_9 &f--, ~.L~ 4s, "L,
> J
> Cf. n. I on 1). 301 mpra.
> MARTYRDOM h OF THE BIB. 307.
> third volley three bullets *Istruckl* him, and that holy
> spirit, escaping from its gentle frame, t1ascended to the
> Supreme Horizon.1t
> EThis event took place on Thursday the 27th of the
> month of ShaUn, in the year one thousand two hundred
> and sixty-six of the hijra', being the seventh year of-the
> "Manifestation,"'; and thus did these  seek to cleanse and purify themselves for entering
> upon the blessed month of RamazAD, and to secure the
> acceptance of their daily fastings and devotions and their
> nightly services by the murder of an heir of the Prophet,
> the darling of our Lady of Grace'! Cursed be that people
> which slew the son of their Prophet's daughter in his  month, and their promised and expected deliverer
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> in his time, after they had long awaited him; and which
> made this deed a preparation for prayer for the month of
> God, and a meaiia,3 of approach and access ! May
> *[were permitted to strike]*
> f [ascended to the zenith of the Realms of Holiness, and
> to the station of 'two bow-shots or less'lt
> I
> July 8th, A.D. 1850, which, however, appears to have fallen
> on a Monday. In the Traveller'i Narrative (vol. i, p. 57 ; vol. ii,
> p. 44) the date is given as Sha'bAn 28th, but ~ubh-i-Ezel's state-
> ment corroborates the New History.
> 2 The Biblas "Manifestation" took place on Jemddf-ul-tig
> 5th, A.H. 1260 (May 23rd, A.D. 1844), but the BàbÕ era, as I have
> shewn at p. 425 of vol. ii of my Travelle?8 Narrative, is reckoned
> u
> from the preceding Nawr'z (Wednesday, March 20th, A.D. 1844).
> 3 Sey9ida-i-Batfil, ie. FAtima, the daughter of the Prophet
> and wife of 'Ali. Al-Baffil is the name given by Ambic-speakiDg
> Catholics to the Virgin Mary.
> 4 These words, occurring in Kur'in, iiii, 9, describe 2NIubam-
> mad's near approach to God on the occasion of his night-journey
> to heaven (2ni'rCy).
> 20-2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 308 THE NEW HISTORY. SULEYMkN KH~kNls NARRATIVE. 309
> their predecessors ciirase them even as they curse their
> predecessors' 1~
> 0 wonderful! The Kings of Europe in. general, and
> ~as runs in my rnindl those of England in particular,  when the worst imaginable crime has
> been proved against and brought home to a criminal in the
> most conclusive and indubitable manner, and when, in
> accordance with the laws of justice, he is ordered to ' be
> hanged, if the bolt' fail to do its work in the first instance,
> they not only pardon the convict, but entreat him respect-
> fully, saying, "Since God spared him and was not willing
> f
> This, I think, is the proper rendering of the words V51 &-1;
> id) the meaning being that as they curse those
> who slew the Imim Vuseyn in the early days of IslAm, such as
> Shinir and Yazfd, so may these in turn curse them for their
> greater obduracy and wickedness.
> 2 Literally, 11 if the shot first fired at him niisses". I have
> here attempted, by an equivoque which could not be maintained
> in the next sentence, to bring the author's idea of the method of
> inflicting capital punishment employed in England into closer
> correspondence with the reality. I-To evidently supposes that it
> is customary to suspend the condemned inaliand then shoot him,
> exactly as was done in the case of the BAb. The whole passage
> affords a curious example of the strangely distorted though par-
> tially true conceptions formed by the Persians of things Euro-
> pean. Many of those who read this passage will, however, call
> to mind the case of John Lee, convicted of the Babbicombe
> murder, which created so great a sensation at the time. Three
> times in siiecesa,3ion was the condemned man placed on the drop,
> but in each case it remained fixed after the withdrawal of the
> bolt, i1or could the stampings of the executioner effect its dis-
> placement. In coiia3oqiieiiec of this, and the awful suspense and
> mental agony which the unfortunate man must have suffered, a
> reprieve was granted, and the capital sentence was finally coi-n-
> inuted to penal ser6tude for life.
> that he should be slain, how should we kill him And
> supposing that the bullet should strike the rope wherewith
> he is bound and sever it, and he should fall , if he has suffered any hurt by his ' fall, they will
> at once procure a doctor, and set about the alleviation of
> it. And, even though he be not hurt, still they will Ithen
> and therel summon a medical man '
> on the part of the State, who will administer to him a
> cordial, so that, should he have been afraid, no harm may
> come to him from excessive terror. Such are the generosity,
> wisdom, and jtiastice of those who, in the opinion of the
> doctors of IslAm, are infidels; while as for the justice of
> these devout and religious MusulmAns, it is so self-evideiit
> as to need no comment.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ['What need of explanation for a thing already plain?']
> [HAji Mf rzA JAnf writes:-" 114jf SuleymAn Khin, con-
> cerning whom somewhat has  -been said, related
> :-'Six months before this culminating
> catastrophe took place, His Supreme Holiness (the souls of
> all beside him be his sacrifice!) graciously favoured me with
> a letter. On opening the letter, I saw inside it an envelope
> sealed and fastened down. In the letter he had written,
> " Thou art not permitted to open the enclosed writing
> Until such time as some sorrow and affliction, than which
> thou canst conceive none more grievous, shall befall thee..
> At that time open the writing, and act in accordance with
> what is therein contained." Being so strongly enjoined not
> to open this document, I did not venture to do so, but kept
> it till the time when His Holiness made his second journey
> from Chilirik to Tabrfz. On his arrival 1 enjoyed the
> honour of waiting upon him. No sooner had I entered his
> presence than he said, " Do thou go at once to thy house
> and there remain ; thou art not permitted to corne forth
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 310
> THE NEW HISTORY.
> from thence, nor to hold intercourse with any one. Come
> not to me either ; and whatsoever thou may'st hear of
> hurts and injuries inflicted upon me, thou art not per-
> mitted to utter a word, much less to attempt a rescue."
> Thus peremptorily did he send me to my house, where,
> agreeably to his orders, I remained, and whence I came not
> forth; though I continued in a circumspect manner to
> acquaint myself with his condition. At length one day I
> was told that that very day they would make His Holiness
> a target for their cruel bullets. In extremity of anguish I
> paced up and down my house, sometimes ascending to the
> roof and straining my -eyes in all directiotia-,, till suddenly I
> hoard the report of a volley of many iihi(iskets. This was
> repeated three times. Then I knew that they had done
> that which they ought not to have done, and I was over-
> come with a grief and sorrow so great that none could
> possibly be conceived as surpassing it. At that moment
> the contents of that blessed Epistle passed through my
> mind, and I said to myself, " No grief call be greater than
> this, and no affliction more grievous." I withdrew to a
> private chamber and opened the sealed letter, wherein I
> read as follows :-" Six month,-, from the time of writing
> this, on such-and-such a day, I shall suffer martyrdom in
> Tabriz along with one named MÕrzà Mulianimad 'Ali. Be
> it incumbent on thee  patience
> and self-restraint, neither must thou contend with anyone.
> Two nights after my martyrdom thou must go, and, by
> some means or other, buy my body and the body of MÕrzà
> Mutiaininad 'Ali from the sentinels for four hundred M.-
> nuins , and keep them in thine house for six months. After-
> wards lay A'kA Muhammad 'Alf with his face upon my
> face, place  in a strong chest, and asend it
> with a letter to Jen(itb-i-Beh(l' (great is his iiiajeasty!).
> I That Allfrzi Huseyn 'Alf Behd'u'lldh should be digni fied only
> __I~ -
> t
> DISPOSAL OF THE BAB'S REMAINS. 311
> There is nothing else for thee to do. The clothes which
> 1 wore are thine." When 1 looked at the date, I saw that
> it was exactly six months past that very day, just as he
> had written."']
> To be brief, two nights later, when they cast the most
> sacred body ~of His Holinessl and that of MÕrzà Muham-
> mad 'Alf into the moat, and set three sentries over them,
> HAjf Suleymin KhAn* and three others, having provided
> themselves witah arms, came to the sentries and said, " We
> will ungrudgingly give you any sum of money you ask,
> if yo u will not oppose our carrying away these bodies; but
> if you  hinder us, we will kill you." The
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> sentinels, fearing for their lives, and greedy for gain, con-
> sented, and  received
> a large sum of money. [But, as would appear, they ob-
> tained another dead body, and cast it down in the same
> place, so that others might not perceive .]
> So HAji SuleymAn KhAn bore those holy bodies to his
> house, a-,hrouded them in white silk, placed them in a chest,
> and, after a while, transported them to TeherAn, where
> they remained in trust' till such time as instructions for
> their interment in a particular spot were issued by the
> _* ~concerning whom somewhat has 4 III
> ,ptJI JAI L*.W
> )U 6.1"J1 _ALt-t-:-3 4.~L, L5J
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 3J,J L
> .-U.o
> LO a-~J, 3 6~.J_tjl .3  ~~7
> The f~dn (from which, indeed, nearly all these arguments
> are taken) is referred to explicitly-What is meant by
> the, " sun rising in the west "-Accomplishment of other
> signs, such as the appearance of a redness in the sky, the
> outbreak - of a grievous famine) the " brin ging together of
> distant lands" by means of the railroad and the telegraph-
> The InhiArn Ja'far-i-Sddik foretold that the appearance of
> the promised Deliverer would be "in the year '60
> and the Bib actually appeared in the
> year A. H. 1260-Another traditional saying of the same
> ImAm runs as follows
> 6POW1 L5-0 jpj~.
> L:)u
> L5
> U
> F. 16 ga. Other similar traditions are quoted-The
> Bib was not 24 years of age when he proclaimed his
> MiSSiOD, and was only 31 [L.] or 32 [C.] when he suffered
> martyrdom at Tabrfz in A.H. 1266-The following tradition
> is quoted from the BiMru'1-Anvair:--
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 326 THE NEW HISTORY.
> L4
> A
> -k:05-0 J40i
> As foretold in this tradition, the BAb did produce "verses
> like the Kur'àn," to wit the Beydin, which "sums up all
> sacred books."
> Ff. 169b_175a. The mulld returns to the subject of
> miracles-The "cleaving of the moon "-MAnakjf explains
> the ideas as to the nature of the sky and heavenly bodies
> which prevail in Europe, scouts those entertained by the
> mulld on the same subject, and pours contempt on the so-
> called science of his class-The mallei asserts his scepticism
> as to the value of the telescope-MAnakjf defends European
> science and lauds its results, and condemns the supersti-
> tions prevalent in Persia as to eclipses and the like-
> He pronounces a panegyric on the industry, enterprise, and
> learning of Europe, to which so many wonderful and bene-
> ficial discoveries and inventions are due ; and laments the
> decay of learning and enterprise in Persia, and the miser-
> able and enfeebled condition to which it is now reduced-
> He returns to his astronomical explanations, and proves the
> absurdity of the orthodox Muslim conceptions of the
> heavenly bodies-He mentions certain signs foretold by
> Zoroaster and Christ as heralding the new dispensation,
> declares the literal accomplishment of these to be impossible,
> and suggests the theory that, unless such prognostications
> are to be understood g allegorically, they were merely in-
> tended to act as a deterrent to vain pretenders -He
> concludes by telling the mull(i that, inasmuch as every one
> of the prophets has described such miraculous portents as
> the concomitants of the next dispensation, and inasmuch as
> no such portents have ever appeared, he has logically but
> two courses open to him : either to revert to the oldest
> extant religion, that of the Hindoos; or to accept the
> APPENDIX II. MfRZk J~W'S HISTORY.327
> latest, that of the BAbhs-The mulld cries out that he has
> " foreg~lathered with two infidels, who strive to make good
> their infidelity by proofs and arguments "-The BàbÕ
> triumphantly points out to MAnakji that his assertion as to
> the behavio~r of the clergy when worsted in discussion is
> proved.
> The translation is resumed in the middle of f. 1754 (p.
> 315 supra).
> APPENDIX II.
> ON HAW MI'RZk JAW'S HISTORY, WITH ESPECIAL REFERENCE
> TO THE PASSAGES SUPPRESSED OR MODIFIED IN THE
> TAR&H-I-JAWD.
> THEgeneral relations which subsist between the Tdrikh-
> i4ad&, or " New History," and the older, more faithful,
> and much more instructive work composed by HAjf MÕrzà
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> JAnf of KdshAn, and called by him Yuktatu'l-KV, have
> been already pointed out in the Introa*uction. In' this
> appendix I propose to give a full account of those portions
> of his work *hich the author or authors of the "New
> History" have, for reasons generally not hard to divine,
> deemed it expedient to suppress, as well as of other
> passages which appear to have been omitted accidentally.
> In so doing, I shall follow the order of narration observed
> by HAji MÕrzà JAW, not merely as a matter of convenience,
> but because it is chronologically more accurate than that
> which the authors of the "New History" have seen fit to
> introduce; and, taking the different episodes in this order,
> 1 shall include under each the additional particulars with
> which the older history supplies us.
> It is, unfortunately, impossible for me to discuss fully
> within the limited space of an appendix the doctrinal
> portion (more than a third of the whole) of Hiji Mfrzi
> JAnf's work, which, though of singular interest and value,
> and calculated to throw quite a new. light on the early
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 328 APPENDIX 11. MfRZ! J~kNFS HISTORY.
> theology of the Bibfs, affords materials too copious, and
> raises questions too complicated, to be thus perfunctorily
> disposed of. Nevertheless, with a view to supplying the
> reader with an outline of the more salient features of the
> Bibi doctrine, and rendering more apparent the very
> intimate relations subsisting between it and the Sheyklif
> school of theology, I shall here attempt to sketch in as
> concise and summary a manner as possible the theory of
> Divine Manifestations or Theophanies laid down by HAjf
> MÕrzà JAnf.
> "I was a Ilidden, Treasure and I desired to be known,
> therefore I created creation that I might be kiiown." In
> these well-known and oft-quoted words does God declare
> His purpose in calliDg into existence this Phenomenal
> World. He was a " Hidden Treasure," and He desired
> that others a-,houlcl participate in that Treasure h; herein lies
> His Bounty, and herein is contained the Mystery of Crea-
> tion. Wherefore it is said:-
> W  W
> " The first Bounty was Being, and Being is the Known,
> and the Known, is identical with Knowledge', and Know-
> ledge is lVill, and Will is Love." Love, therefore, is the
> cause of creation, and its fruit is knowledge; love im-
> pelled God to exercise His creative power, and His creaturea-,
> fulfil the purpose of their being only in learning to love
> and adore Him. Now adoration of the Beloved cannot
> exist without knowledge of His Beauty and know-
> ledge of His Majesty and of knowledge there are
> four kinds, to wit, (1) when the knower transcends and
> excels the known; (2) when the knower and the known are
> equal in station; (3) when the knower and the known are
> united ; (4) when the known transcends and excels the
> knower. This last is called "the Shadow-plane" (_oULD
> -1414
> a.k6), because it is typified by the relation subsisting
> I This is one of the doctrines especially insisted on by MuM
> Sadri. See my Travellers Yarrative, vol. ii, p. 270.
> I
> PRIMITIVE B~kBf DOCTRINE.
> 329
> between the shadow and the light which casts it, and it
> is this relation -which man bears to God.
> Now although certain knowledge is essential to happi-
> ness, its attainment is of all things most difficult, even to
> the favoured companions of God's sainta,3. Thus Kumeyl
> ibn ZiyAd', One of 'Ali's chosen disciples, once demanded
> of his Master, behind whom he was seated on a dromedary,
> "What is Truth?" "What hast thou to do with the Truth?"
> answered 'Ali, "for verily it is one of God's mysteries, and
> a jewel out of His treasure-house." Then said Kumeyl,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> when 'Ali had spoken for some while after this fashion,
> "0 my Master, am I not worthy to share thy secret?"
> "Yes," answered 'Alf, "but the matter is a great one."
> "0 my Master," said Kumeyl, "dost thou desire those
> who beg at the door of thy bounty to be turned away?"
> "Nay, verily," answered 'Alf, "I will answer the call of
> such as are troubled, and will sprinkle upon thee somewhat
> of the overflowing fulness of the Station of the Truth;
> receive it from me according to thy capacity, and conceal
> it from such as are unworthy to share it. 0 Kumeyl, the
> Truth is the revelation of the splendours of Digviiie Jlajesty
> withoUt a sign." " 0 my Allaster," said Kumeyl, "I under-
> stand not thy meaning; explain it to me further." "The
> e ment of the conjectured, and the clearing of the
> J4ce
> know,??," continued 'Alf. "Explain more fully," demanded
> Kunieyl. "The ?-ending of the veil by the triumph, of the
> mystery," said 'Alf. "0 my beloved Master," rejoined
> Kumeyl, "tell me more." "The attraction of the Divine
> U711 through the nature of the apprehension of its One-
> ness, added 'Alf. " Tell me more clearly," repeated
> Kumeyl. Then said 'Alf, "A light shining forth from the
> Alorning of Eternity and irradiating the temples of the
> Unity."
> I have given this tradition in full because the BAbis
> attach a special significance to it, regarding each of these
> five obscure utterances of 'Alf as typifying one of the first
> five years of the BAb's "Manifestation." The text of the
> tradition, taken from the Bib's "Seven Proofs" (Dald'il-i-
> sab'a) will be found in the footnote on p. 352 of the second
> 1 See Ibn Wadhilt (ed. Houtsma), vol. ii, pp. 242-4,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 330 APPENDIX 11. MfRZ~k JiNf'S HISTORY.
> volume of my Traveller's Narrative. Its application is
> given by MÕrzà JAiif himself in describing the strange out-
> burst of wild pantheism and antinomian ecstasy which
> characterized the gathering at Badasht, and proved, as it
> would appear, a cause of offence to not a few of the
> brethren. " The revelation, of the splendours of Divine
> Alajesty without a sign" denotes the first year (A.H.
> 1260-1) of the "Manifestation," wherein the BAb revealed
> himself, and declared mysteries transcendental and in-
> effable. " T'he ey4cement of the conjectured, and the clear-
> ing of the known" indicates the second year, wherein the
> doctrine was proclaimed in a simpler and less transcen-
> dental manner, because of the weakness of mankind, and
> wherein orders were issued by the BAb for the effacement
> or obliteration of the Commentary on the Sqira-i- Yiisuf
> which lie had written'. " Tlie rending of the veil ~?/ the
> triziniph oj' the mystery" describes the third year, remark-
> able for the Badaslit conference above alluded to, and the
> sovereign claims advanced by t1a;rat-i-,k_uddiis (and
> evidently admitted by many of the BàbÕs, including HAji
> MÕrzà JAnf) which are adverted to on p. 282 supra. "The
> (tttractgion of the Divine Unit~y throagh, -the nature of the
> apprehension oj* its Oneness," which denotes the fourth year
> of the "Manifestation," is not, I think, explained by Mfrzd
> JAnf, but perhaps we may associate it with the appearance
> of the "Indian Believer" (pp. 242-4 supra). As for the
> fifth year, therein appeared MÕrzà YahyA to console the
> faithful for the loss of Ilazrat-i-Kuddiis and Jen6b-i-
> a  * ~lie position of vicegerent to
> Xibu'l-BM, and to assume
> the "Point," by whom, in allusion to the promise connected
> with this year, he was entitled SUbh-i-Ezel, "the Morning
> of Eternity"." In this cycle of five years, also, there is a
> mystery, for 5 is the numerical value of the word Bdb, and
> also of the letter h (A) which stands for 11itwiyyat
> I Cf. J. R. A. S. for April, 1892, pp. 267-8.
> 2 Cf. Traveller's Narrative, vol. ii, p. 352, and note I thereon.
> The fact that Mfud YahyA was a native of Yfir in MaizandarAn,
> and that Nfir means " Light," certainly did not escape the BAb's
> notice.
> PRIMITIVE BkBf DOCTRINE.
> 331
> the Divine Ipseity or Unmanifested Unity, to a knowledge
> of which man may attain only through such Bib or
> a
> "Gate," as it is said, "Enter houses by their gates'."
> For, as has been said, man cannot know the Eternal
> Essence of God, but only the "Manifestation" of the
> Divine Will, which, from time to time, arises in the spiritual,
> as the sun in the material, firmament, to dispel the dark-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ness of ignorance and separation. For knowledge implies
> the establishment of a relation between the knower and
> the thing known, and for man to attempt to establish such
> relation between himself and God, as the Slhffs do, is sheer
> presumption, rendering him guilty of the sin of shirk (at-
> tributing a partner to God). Wherefore, whenever in the
> Kur'Au or elsewhere:mention is made of "the meeting with
> God" (d U I W.), and the like, what is meant is the meeting
> with one of the "Manifestations" or embodiments of the
> Divine Will This Primal Will, from time to time
> incarnating itself, now in Abraham, now in Moses, now in
> Jesus, now in Muhammad, forms, as it were, an inter-
> mediary between man and God. It can be known by man,
> and It knows God: indeed in One sense It is identical with
> God, wherefore it is said in a tradition, " Whosoever visiteth
> Huseyn in his tomb is as one who hath visited God on His
> Pliron'e." So likewise the Bdb said," 0 'Ali! Nonehath
> known God'save 1and thou; and none hath known me save
> God and thou; and none hath, known thee save God and.["
> Now all these Theophanies, as I shall henceforth call
> them, are identical in essence, and differ only in cir-
> cumstance, just as the sun which shines to-day is the
> same as that which shone yesterday, or that which - will
> shine to-morrow. We, for the sake of convenience, and
> having regard only to the accidents of time and place, may
> speak of Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad as dif-
> ferent persons, but they are in fact not less identical than
> the sun which shines to-day and the sun which shone
> yesterday. These lights of the firmament of Prophethood
> and Saintship, like the celestial luminaries, have a rising
> and a setting, a "Manifestation" and an "Occultation."
> I Cf. Traveller's Narrative, vol. ii, pp. 227-8.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 332 APPENDIX If. MfRZi AM'S HISTORY.
> Violent transitions from light to darkness or from darkness
> to light are, however, contrary to God's plan, alike in the
> spiritual and the material worlds. Just as dawn forms a
> transition between day and night, and twilight between
> night and day; just a,s spring ushers in summer, and
> autumn heralds winter, so in each Divine "Manifestation"
> two barzakhs or " intervals " separate the full blaze of the
> Theophany from the comparative darkness of the period of
> Occultation. The period in each cycle during which the
> Propbet and the lm4ms or Saints who succeed him are
> visible to mankind constitutes the theoplianic day,
> Kubr('t, or "Major Manifestation." This day is separated
> from the night of the Gheybat-i-Kitbq-a' or "Major Occul-
> tation " by the twilight of the Gheybat-i-Sughra or Minor
> Occultation, during which the last Saint or lindin. of the
> though invisible to his followers, still lives amongst
> in concealment, and communicates with them by means
> of the "Gates" or "Baibs" (Abw6b) whom he appoints to act
> as intermediaries between 'himself and his church. When
> the faithful have become aceiiaitomed to receiving the com-
> mands of the TmAm thns in-directly, and to being debarred
> from seeing him, the series of "Gates" is terminated, and
> the full. night of the "Major Occultation" supervenes. As,
> however, the time for a new "Manifestation" approaches,
> one or more of the "Gates" reappears or "returnsilp to
> prepare maiil(ind for the fuller light which is soon to
> burst upon them. The period of these precursors or liar-
> bingers of the Theopbany is called Zlth4r-i-Sughr(i, "the
> Minor Manifestation," corresponding to the "True Dawn"
> (~Ubh-i_86dik), when, though the sun has not yet risen, its
> light is apparent in the sky. The "Minor Manifestation"
> of the Christian cycle was John the Baptist; of the Mu-
> hammadan, Waraka ibn Nawfal and the other Hanffs; of
> ihe BàbÕ or BeyAnic, Slieykh A~mad of AhsA aid Seyyid
> KAzim of Resht.
> Now let us pass from the general to the particular. The
> "Major Manifestation" of the IsIdmic cycle, heralded, as
> above said, by the appearance of the Hanifs, was main-
> tained during 262 years by fourteen "Suns of Purity" (the
> 1 Cf. Traveller's Narrative, Vol. ii, pp. 232-3.
> i
> PRIMITIVE BkBf DOCTRINE.
> Prophet, his daughter FAtima, and the twelve ImAms),
> called " the fourteen Immaculates" ~chahdrdah ma'qu'm).
> The last of these, Muliammad ibn Hasau el-'Askari,
> generally called the ImAin Malidi or KXim, was born, ac-
> cording to IlAjf MirzA Jinf% in A.H. 256, which, as he
> points out, is numerically equivalent to the word N~kr
> (Light) The period of the "Minor Occultation" began
> when he was in his seventh year (i.e. in A.H. 262-3), and
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> lasted for seventy years, during which time four "Gates" 3
> maintained communications between him and his followers,
> who were thus provided with a ineans. of solving their
> doubts and difficulties. But when this series of "Gates"
> came to an end, and the faithful were overtaken by the
> night of the "Major Occultation," schisms began to appear,
> and by the time that, after the lapse of more than nine
> centuries, the dawn of the "Minor Manifestation"- of this
> cycle (that is, the teaching of Sheykh Ahmad and Seyyid
> Kizim) had begun to brighten the spiritual horizon, the
> sect of the Shf'a, Ithna'-'ashariyya, or Church of the Twelve
> lmdms, was divided as regards the essentials or principles
> of religion (usm'l) into three main parties besides the
> Sheyklifs, to wit, the Bdld-sarl's 4 or ordinary Shi'ites, the
> philosophers (gitkamai), and the SAfis or mystics ('Urafa);
> while, in matters of practice, or application of principles
> (f,itrgz't'), the Akhbdr~3, Usul,~s, FukaM, and Isliraiki's made
> another four-fold division.
> Now this multiplication of sects and schisms is one of
> the signs that a new "Manifestation" is at hand, for it is
> just before the dawn that the night is darkest. Other
> signs, too, were not wanting: even the year of the " Mani-
> festation " had been foreshadowed in certain poems of the
> I Cf. Traveller's Narrative, Vol. ii, p. 297 and n. L'
> 2 C.)=50; .3=6;.j=200. Total, 256.
> 3 The names of these Abwdb, and soma account of one of
> them, Huseyn ibn Rdb, will be found at pp. 298 and 301-2 of
> the second volume of my Traveller's Narrative.
> 4 So called because, in performing the " visitation" to the
> shrines of the ImAms they stand " over the head " of the tomb
> (bdld-yi-sar), and not like the Sheykhfs at a respectful distance.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I
> 334 APPENDIX II. MfRZ! J,~Nf'S HISTORY.
> Sulffs', and was contained, for such as had eyes to see it, in
> the very words 11 Yd Zuh?'Ara'1-Hakk" (" 0 Manifestation of
> the Truth")!' Moreover there gare traditions to the effect
> that the " Occultation " will not last longer than the
> period of Noah's prophetic mission, which has been fixed
> by some historians at 950 and by others at 1000 years,
> wherefore the new Tbeopliany could not be long deferred.
> Indeed since the "Minor Occultation" of the Twelfth
> 1mAm began, according to many theologians, in A.H. 260,
> exactly a thousand years had elapsed when, in A.H. 1260,
> the Bdb appeared'.
> So much for the general doctrine of Prophetic Cycles
> held by the BAbis. It remains to advert to one develop-
> ment of this doctrine which plays a large part, not only in
> HAjf MÕrzà JAiif's history, but in all the earlier writings of
> the sect; I mean the views held by them concerning the
> "Resurrection" (Kiydmat) or "Return" (_Rij'al), which
> have caused them ~o be likened by some to the Sadducees,
> and to be credited by others with a belief in the transmi-
> gration of souls. Thus of the first vdkid, or group of 19
> chapters, in the Persian BeyAn, 18 chapters are devoted to
> this doctrine of the "Return" or "Rii'at," and it is asserted
> that Muhammad, FAtima, the Twelve ImAms, and the Pour
> "Gates" "have returned to the Life of the World with
> such as believed in them, and such as did not believe";
> while in the second v6hid it is taught that by the Resur-
> rection is meant the Dew "Manifestation," or arising of the
> Sun of Truth; by the "Questioning of the Tomb," the
> tidings of it brought by its "angels" or messengers to those
> who slumber as the dead in the tombs of i-morance and
> heedlessness; by the "Raising of the Dead" the awakening
> of those who lie thus dead in ignorance; by the sharp
> narrow "Bridge" over which only true believers can pass,
> 1 Cf n. I at the foot of p. 141 supra.
> 10
> 2 L;_S_jl  L~ = (10+ 1 +900+ 5 + 6 + 200 + 30+8+ 100)
> 1260. The alifu'l-wasl in L;aJ1 is not counted because it is not
> pronounced, else its enumeration would raise the total to 1261.
> 3 Cf. Travelle7Js Narrative, Vol. ii, pp. 297-8, and n. I on
> the former.
> t
> PRIMITIVE BkBf DOCTRINE.
> 330"
> the difficulty of accepting the new "Manifestation" 'and so
> passing over into the "Paradise" of belief; and so on. It
> is further laid down definitely and explicitly that these
> terms have no real meaning apart from this; and that the
> ideas which prevail concerning a corporeal resurrection, a
> material heaven and hell, and the like, are mere figments
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> of the imagination.
> Now all this, though it may entitle anyone whom it so
> pleases to compare the Bdbfs to the Sadducees, does not
> by any means prove that the BAb taught, or that his fol-
> lowers held, the doctrine of Metempsychosis (tan(tsukh-i-
> aruiaih), a doctrine so vehemently repudiated even by those
> Muhammadan sects who appear to approach most closely
> to it. The essence of the man ~ is the Idea which he
> (imauifests" or incarnates, just as the essence of the
> mirror is the image which it reflects. An unpolished plate
> of steel reflects nothing: let the same plate be polished and
> purified, and it will reflect star, moon, or sun. The
> prophet of a cycle is naught but a reflection of the "Primal
> Will" the same sun with a new horizon;
> wherefore it is perfectly correct to say that Moses is
> identical with Jesus, or Jesus with Muhammad. - More-
> over, as the same mirror may at different times reflect
> different objects, so the saine individual may successively
> become the "return" of different prototypes. This point
> comes Out very clearly in certain parts of HAJf Mirz.4 JAilf's
> history. It has been a,3aid that the four " Gates " returned
> durhig the "Minor Manifestation" of this cycle: Sheykh
> Ahinad and Seyyid KAzim were the first and second, but
> wlio were the third and iburth ? This was a quest-ion which
> I was unable to solve in the note on the meaning of the
> term B(ib which I appended to the second volume of my
> Ti-aveller's Narrative (pp. 226-234, especially p. 233).
> The solution is made plain by HAjf Mirzi JAnf. Mfrz&
> 'Alf Muhammad himself was the third Ba'b or "Gate," and,
> while he thus continued, Mull.1 Huseyn of Bushraweyh was
> the B4bu'1-Ba'b or "Gate of the Gate." But when MÕrzà
> 'Alf Muhammad, speaking more freely as his followers
> became more receptive of divine mysteries, declared him-
> self to be the Nukta or "Point" (i.e. the Manifestation of
> the Primal Will), Mulli Huseyn ceased to be only the
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 3.36 APPENDIX H. MfRzk TkNfS HISTORY.
> " Gate of the Gate " and became the actual " Gate " or Bib;
> and, when lie was killed, his brother, Mimi Muhammad
> Hasan, in turn received this title'. But this is not all.
> MÕrzà 'Alf Mul.tammad was first of all B(ib or "Gate";
> then Zikr or " Reminder "'; then Nukta or I Point." g F or
> a while, however, MullA Muliainmad* 'Alf of Birfuru'sl!ll
> called by the BàbÕs Hazrat-i-kztdd?~s, became the "Point,
> and MÕrzà 'Alf Muhammad relapsed into beiDg his B(tib or
> "Gate," and, during this period, wrote nothing! This
> extraordinary and novel doctrine is clearly set fortl) by
> HAjf NlirzA Jdnf as follows:-
> "So the Religion of God is One, though the Theo-
> phanies differ: and the 'Point' is at all times one indi-
> vidual, while the other Theophanies are its 'Letters of the
> Living.' Sometimes it happens that the 'Point' becomes
> quiescent in effulgence, and that this effiiglgeuce becomes
> manifest in its 'Gate,' just as the Apostle of God did not
> in appearance wield the sword, but his wrath was made
> manifest in tile form of 'Alf. But after the death of God's
> Apostle, 'Alf became tile 'Point' and the Heaven of Will,
> and Hasaii becarrie the 'Gate' and the Earth of Devotion,
> while Huseyn and SahnAn and the rest were the 'Letters
> of the Living.' Now in this cycle the original 'Point' was
> Hazrat-i-K~tddiis, and the 'Reminder' [,~ikr, i.e. the B6b]
> I The passage in Hiji Mfrzi Jilif's history which is here
> alluded to runs as follows:-
> 0  0
> Jug,.. A..O~k&
> W
> J W 46
> -91 yl~C
> JU-JI U$j
> .1
> -AU-4 ciu-0 j, jaxe 3.
> 2 Cf. J. R. A. S. for April, 1892, p. 303, n. 1. Hijf Mfrzi
> JAnf constantly calls the Bib Zikr or Zikru'lldh.
> PRIMITIVE B-kBf DOCTRINE.
> 337
> was his 'Gate'; but inasmuch as it was the 'Cycle,-of
> Return' [dawra-i-ri .1 t], and Saint p [pi t] took pre-
> .) a shi  16ya
> cedence of Prophet-hood [nubuvvat 1 in manifestation,
> therefore the 'Reminder' first; J, and for three years,
> according to the number of the letters in 'Alf, summoned
> men to God
> So likewise, in speaking of the IslAmic cycle, H&jf
> Mfrzi JAnf says that, so long as Muhammad was alive,
> 'Alf declared himself to be only "a servant amongst his
> servants"; but that " so soon as the Prophetic Mirror (by
> which is meant the sovereign form of Muhammad) was
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> shivered in pieces, in less time than the twinkling of an eye
> it [i.e. the Sun of Truth] arose in the Mirror of Saintship,"
> so that -Alf, thus become the " Mirror " or " Manifesta-
> tion " of the Primal Will, and the ,Proof" of God upon
> earth, was able to say, -1 am Adam, and Noah, and
> Abraham, and Moses, and Jesus, and Muhammad."
> Hence it is that HAjf MÕrzà Jinf, in describing the
> events of this cycle, speaks of Teherin as " Damascus,"
> the Kijir rulers as 11 the family of Abih SofyAn," Barfurihsh
> as " Kfda," MullA Huseyn as " the Chief of Martyrs "
> -(Segyida'sh-shuhadd), and Tabarsf as "Kerbeli"; "for,"
> says he, 11 wherever the banner of the Truth is set up,
> summoning men to defend it, and the people of Truth are
> gathered together, and the word of Love and Emancipation
> (fena') is spoken, there is the land of KerbelA." This
> 4(return," he, adds, may be conceived of in many different
> ways, to explain which would require a long dissertation.
> He defines it negatively, as being " neither incarnation
> (~ulQ), nor absorption (ittih6d), nor transmigration (tand-
> sukh)," but it appears doubtful whether he ' himself exactly
> understood its nature, for he says :- ,
> I The Saint or vali (typified in Khizr or 'Alf) represents the
> e8oteric, as the Prophet or nabi (typified in Moses or Muhammad)
> represents the exoteric aspect of religion. In this cycle the inner
> preponderated over the outer, the spirit over the form : hence,
> says MÕrzà JAnf, the Bib, who first appeared, was named 'Ali
> Muhammad, while Hazrat-i-KuddO (whom, as we have seen,
> he regards as the " Point," or representative of the Prophetic
> Function) was named Muhammad 'Ali.
> N. H.
> 22
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 338 APPENDIX II. MfRZi J~W'S IIISTORY.
> La~ .9A .9A Ju -)6.51 4 .5 C7'w ju
> "it is as it is, and none knoweth it save those who have
> returned."
> Yet after we have well considered all these illustrations,
> these theories of "Mirrors," "Manifestations," and the like,
> there remains a residuum of facts which makes it very
> difficult to believe that the BàbÕ doctrine of " returns " did
> .not at times approach very closely indeed to what we
> understand by transmigration of asotils, or metempsychosis.
> Whatjor instance, can we make of the following illustration
> of Seyyid Basir's spiritual insight and knowledge of hidden
> mysteries given by HAjf MirzA JAnf?-
> --j u
> .3J~ .3 *-s-!, LOO jU vzj - C)l j1 WW
> zu
> OA5,.; yj.V_* 31 0 E:) &6~, J_tj
> ;~u C)~W ijls
> "After that lie [i.e. Seyyid Basfr] went to the land of K6f
> [Kuni or Kazvfn], where a number of persons were at-
> tracted by his influence, and heard from him secret
> mysteries. Thus, amongst other things, one night a dog
> was howling, and he said, 'This dog is the "return" of
> such an one, whom God has thus punished for his sins.'
> Then he indicated the house which had been his, saying,
> 'It is seventeen doors off this lodging of ours ; and he has
> several children: by such and such tokens ye may know
> that I speak truly.' They subsequently made enquiries,
> and those tokens were verified."
> I
> I
> I
> I
> I
> I
> t
> I
> SHEYKII ARMAD AND SEYYID K-kzim..339
> If this be not transmigration, it is hard to,say what is.h
> Here, however, I must leave the matter for the present,
> and, without further discussing the doctrines of the B6bfs,
> return to the record of new facts connected with their
> history wherewith H.Iji Mfrzi JAW supplies us.
> 1. Sheykh Ahmad and Seyyid Kdzim.
> (Cf. pp. 31-33 supra; Trav. Nam, vol. ii, pp. 234-244;
> and B. ii, pp. 888-892.)
> Sheykh Ahmad Zeynu'd-Din Ahsi ' i (or, as H.Iji Mfrzi
> JAnf, in common with - Subh-i-Ezef and other authorities,
> has it, La~sd'i), whose apV ,earance marked the beginning of
> the "Minor Manifestation 'of the Bey.4nic cycle, was chosen
> out from amongst the Shi'ites by God to prepare men's
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> hearts for the reception of the new Truth shortly to be
> divulged, and to expound the mysteries of the Doctrine of
> the Divine Unity (tawhid). Therefore was it that he came
> from his own country to Persia, visiting its chief towns,
> and expounding the doctrines which he was commissioned
> from on high to teach; therefore also was it that he used
> repeatedly to say, " Thus and thus have I heard from the
> Proof " (1.L16 , 1.k_16 aza.~l He composed
> numerous works on philosophy and other sciences, amongst
> them the 8harh-i-Ziya'rat-i*-Jdmi1; but although he knew
> that he was the "Gate" to the ImAm. Mahdf, whose re-
> turn was now at hand, he did not openly declare -this-,
> the time being not yet ripe, and men still unprepared.
> He gathered round himself many disciples, encountered
> fierce opposition from the unregenerate, and, when about
> to die, nominated HAjf Seyyid I(Aziin of Resht as his
> successor and vicegerent.
> Seyyid KAzim, the "Second Gate," carried on the work
> begun by his predecessor, disputed with the orthodox clergy
> at Baghdad, answered the questions addressed to him by
> enquirers of all classes, and composed numerous works, in-
> cluding the Sharh-i-Kasida (wherein, by implication, he
> made known the doctr'ine' of the 11 Gatehood " or B(ibigyat)
> 22-2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 340 APPENDIX
> II. MfRZI JAW'S HISTORY.
> and the ffujjat-i-Beiligha or " Conclusive Proof," wherein
> he treated of the signs whereby the representative or vice-
> gerent of the ImAm might be recognized-signs, adds Mfrzi
> JAW, which found their realization only in "the Sun which
> rose in the Land of the FArs," i.e. MÕrzà 'Alf Muhammad.
> He also hinted at the youth of his successor in some of his
> poems, as in the following verse:-
> U
> 0 tender in years, 0 fiesh of body, 0 scarcely weaned
> from the drinking of milk'." He even designated Mfrz6
> 'Alf Muhammad more specifically as the expected "Proof."
> "One of his disciples," says Mf rzA JAnf, " a man deserving
> of all reliance, related as follows. 'One day we were in
> the company of the late Seyyid when some one asked
> about the manner of the Manifestation which was to
> succeed him. "After my death," replied he, 'there will be
> My transcript has
> _j.k in the second misrd', but 43 and
> are so constantly interchanged and confounded throughout the text
> that I have not hesitated to make an emendation which appears
> to be necessary. This somewhat exaggerated description of
> extreme youthfulness is common in Persian: e.g. Firdawsf says,
> in speaking of SohrAb's tender age :-
> A
> Tke -smell of milk (i.e. his mother's milk) still comes
> from his mouth."
> So also HAfiz:-
> a
> -3,3
> 0 sweet boy, what creed hast thou adopted that our blood
> appears more laiqlW to thee than thy mother's milk? "
> The first misrCt' of the verse here attributed to Seyvid KAzim.
> occurs near the beginning of the second book of the Masnavi (ed.
> 'AhVu'd-Dawla, p. 106,1. 13).
> h
> I
> 4
> a
> SEYYID KAZIM AND THE BIB.
> 341.
> a schism amongst my followers, but God's affair will be
> clear as this rising sun." As he spoke he pointed to the
> door, through which streamed a flood of sunlight; and, at
> that very moment, MÕrzà 'Alf Muhammad crossed the
> threshold and entered the room. We did not, however,'
> continued the narrator, 'apprehend his meaning until His
> Holiness was manifested'."
> Another of Seyyid KAzim's disciples related as follows:-
> One day I entered the Seyyid's private apartment, and
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> saw His Holiness the Pole of the Universe, generally known
> as 'the Most Great Gate of God' [Bdbu'11dhu'1-a'zam],
> seated in the place of honour, while the Seyyid was over-
> shadowed by the shadow of His Holiness, who was saying
> to him, 'Have you communicated the matter to mankind?'
> 'Yes,' answered he, humbly and deferentially, 'I have com-
> municated what you commanded, and composed treatises
> thereon.' He was further describing what lie had done
> when I entered, whereupon he at once changed his manner.
> But I marvelled greatly at this reverence which he shewed
> to his Holiness, whom I had repeatedly seen enter his
> presence without receiving any special mark of attention."
> So likewi se MullA Yfisuf 'Alf, who subsequently " burned-
> himself like a moth in the flame of Love in the Land of B."
> (i.e. Bdrfuru'sh), addressed a letter to his master Seyyid
> Kdzim requesting him to specif I y some of the 'aligns whereby
> S
> the " Gate 6f the ImAm" might be known. eyyid Kizim.
> in response to this request wrote a long list of these signs,
> and sealed it with his seal. This document remained in
> Mulli Yfisuf 'Alf's possession for three years, till the
> I I Manifestation" -of Mirzi 'Alf Muhammad; whom, be-
> cause in him these prognostications were fulfilled, P MulU
> Y-hsuf 'Alf accepted as, the promised Proof. 1 In Medina
> also Seyyid K64ini promised one' who questioned him on
> the matter that he should meet the "Gate of the ImAm,
> mentioning his name and the tokens whereby he might be
> known, and adding, " Convey my salutations to him."
> 1 Probably Suleymin Kh6n. Cf. the bottom of p. 31 and
> top of p. 32 supra, where allusion seems to be made to the same
> tradition. HAjf MÕrzà JAnf says that he had this from the person
> to whom this promise was given.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 342 APPENDIX II. MfRZI JINf'S RISTORY.
> Seyyid KAzim, like Sheykh Ahmad, met with much
> hostility and opposition from the " BAlAsarf " Shi'ites.
> Once his turban was plucked from his head while he was at
> his prayers. On another occasion, aa-, he was walking in
> the street, a fanatic spat in his face; an insult which he
> only noticed by wiping his face with his hand and saying
> with a smile "I have attained to the Lord
> of the Ka'ba"; for tfiere is a'tradition to the effect that no
> one attains to the highest degree of faith ere lie is spat on
> and cursed as a heretic by seventy persons. His followers,
> too, were continually exposed to insults and annoyances of
> one sort and another. Thus MullA 'Abdu'l-KhAlik of
> Yezd', notwithstanding his undisputed learning and piety,
> was forbidden to preach in Mesh-hed, was regarded by the
> fanatical " BAlAsarfs " as unclean, and was forbidden to go
> to the public baths or visit the tomb of the 1mAin RizA.
> HAjf MÕrzà JAnf adds that he saw one fanatic in Mesh-1;ed
> who refused to perform the "visitation" of the shrine be-
> cause he considered that it had been contaminated by the
> approach of MullA 'Abdu'l-KhAlik; while an acquaintance
> of his was treated- as unclean by another equally unreason-
> able "BAIdsarf " because he had listened with pleasure to a
> discourse on the woes of the Holy Family delivered by the
> aforesaid Mulli.
> To what extent MÕrzà 'Alf Muliammad studied under
> Seyyid KAzim is, says MÕrzà Jinf, a debateable point. He
> remained for about a year in the neighbourhood of KerbelA
> and Nejef, of which three months were passed at the
> former place; and during this time he used occasionally to
> frequent the lectures of Seyyid KAzim. That this was
> not for purposes of study MÕrzà JAW is careful to explain,
> 1 Concerning Mul16 'Abdu'l-Kh6lik we learn the following
> particulars from Mfrzi J4nf. His father was a Jew who was
> converted to IslAm. He himself followed the Sheykhf school
> till, on the appearance of the 136b, he became a Bibf. His son
> Sheykh 'Alf, a youth twenty years of age, was killed amongst
> the Bibfs (apparently at Sheykh Tabarsf), whereupon MullA
> 'Abdu'l-Khdlik seems to have grown lukewarm in the faith, if
> he did not actually forsake it.
> I f
> I a
> I
> THE B.&S YOUTH.
> I
> 343
> for Seyyid KAzim, says he, was 11 helped " by his mere
> presence; "and this," he adds, "is a thing whereof men
> Wot not."
> The substance of what is related in the New History
> concerning Seyyid KAzim's death, and the prophecies there
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> uttered by him, is also given by Mfrza4 JAnf, but he omits
> the narrative from the C.-codex which occupies the greater
> part of pp. 31-2 supra, and adds a few unimportant par-
> ticulars. The retirement of his disciples for forty days'
> prayer and fasting to the mosque of Khftfa (p. 33 supra) is
> also mentioned, but while on the one hand MÕrzà Jinf
> records the substance, if not the form, of their prayer for
> help and guidance, he suppresses their names, probably
> because he did not wish to mention needlessly the -names
> of persons most of whom were still living when he wrote.
> 2. The Buib's youth, and the earlier period of his
> Mission.
> (Cf. Trav. Narr., vol. ii, pp. 249-251; and supra,
> pp. 33-39.)
> Concerning the BAb's career previously to his " Mani-
> festation " H.1jf Mfrz.A JAnf gives some particulars which
> are wanting in the other histories. Allusion is made to
> the miraculous faculties which he possessed even as a child,
> and the story of his having exclaimed at his birth I' El-
> mulk li'lldh " (" The Kingdom is God's"), given at p. 262
> supra, is noticed. Mfrz6 J6nf further relates that one day
> when he was at the bath with his father he- exclaimed
> suddenly, "Arise, and let us depart, for the earth is going
> to move, and such-and-such a bazaar will be destroyed,"
> which thing actually came to pass. Of his childhood no
> further particulars are given, but it is stated that he was
> ( I "' (illiterate) and had no right knowledge of Arabic
> umml
> grammar (cf. pp. 262-4 supra). He left Shiriz for
> Bfishire at the, age of 17, and remained there for 5 years
> engaged in commercial pursuits. During this time he won
> the esteem of all the merchants with whom he was brought
> in contact by his integrity and piety. He was extremely
> attentive to his religious duties, and gave away large sums
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 344 APPENDIX IL mfRzk jkNf'S HISTORY.
> in charity. On one occasion he gave 70 Wmdns (about
> X22) to a poor neighbour. On another occasion a customer
> came to negotiate for the purchase of a quantity of indigo
> which had been consigned to him. He happened at the
> time to be engaged in his devotions, and so told the intend-
> ing purchaser to wait for a while till he should be free to
> attend to him. The customer at first consented - but
> afterwards, being tired of waiting, departed without buying
> the indigo. The price of indigo fell within the next few
> days, and MÕrzà 'Alf Muhammad had to sell his stock at a
> loss of 70 Wmains, all of which he bore himself. The
> stories of his having practised austerities and put himself
> under the guidance of a spiritual director (murshid) are
> flatly contradicted by MÕrzà JAnf, who characterizes them
> as "absolute calumnies and sheer falsehoods."
> When Mfrzi 'Alf Mul ' iamngiad had been engaged in com-
> merce for 5 years (according to the nuiliber of the letter
> M and the word BW), and had sufficiently demonstrated
> his capacity for the conduct of practical affairs, that men
> might not afterwards be able to say that he was a mere
> dreamer, he left Bushire to visit the Holy Shrines of Nejef
> and KerbelA, remaining for about a year at the former, and
> for about three months at the latter. It was during this
> time that, as has been already mentioned, he foregathered
> with Seyyid KAzim of Resht. Having completed these
> visitations," he returned to Shfrdz.
> On the death of Seyyid Kizim and the dispersion of his
> disciples, MullA Huseyn of Bushraweyh came to ShfrAz.
> The account of his conversion given by MÕrzà JAnf agrees
> substantially, and often word for word, with that given in
> the New History (pp. 33--39 supra)~ AsMullAHuseynis
> universally called " the First who believed J31),
> there seems to be no doubt that it was in ShfrAz that the
> Bib first declared himself; indeed MÕrzà JAnf expressly
> I See p. 330 supra.
> 2 It is worth noting, however, that HAji MirzA JAnf does not
> give the isndd, or channel by which Mulla' Huseyn's account of
> his conversion reached him, as the New History does (p. 34
> supra).
> i
> THE BSB AT MECCA AND SHfRSZ. 345
> i
> states that " he concealed the mystery of his mission from
> mankind till such time as Seyyid Kdzim passed away to
> God's mercy, and Mulli Muhammad Huseyn of Bushraweyh
> came to the La)igd of F4 " (i.e. Shlrdz, the capital of Firs).
> The only thing added by MÕrzà JAW in this place is that
> the Bdb cured Mulli Huseyn of the palpitation of the
> heart from which he su6red with a spoonful of sherbet.
> 3. History of the Bdb from the time of his pilgrimage
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> to Mecca till the death of Alfinu'chihr Khan.
> (Cf. pp. 198-213 supra; and Trav. Narr., vol. ii,
> pp. 249-253, and 262-8.)
> Having made several important converts in ShfrAz, and
> despatched missionaries provided with copies of the new
> sacred books, oil the verses or " signs " ((~y(tt) of which he
> based his claim, to the King and clergy of Persia, as well
> as "to all parts of the Muhammadan world," the BAb set
> out for Mecca. It appears from MÕrzà JAnf's explicit state-
> ment that his original intention was, as asserted by the
> Muhammadan historians, to " make known his affair at the
> back of Kilfa," that is to say, to declare himself as the
> long-expected ImAm Mahdf. As, however, the Muslim
> world shewed,no great readiness to respond to such a call,
> while many of the missionaries sent out to proclaim the
> "Manifestation" met with disrespectful and even cruel
> ~reatment, he changed his plan, and declared himself
> instead at Mecca, where his-claim soon became generally
> known. MirzA JAW here gives the narrative of one who
> saw him there, cited from his work in the New History
> (pp. 199-200 supra). The narrator is described by MÕrzà
> JAnf in the text as "a fellow-townsman," but a marginal
> note added in another hand gives his name, and a brief
> sketch of his career (see ii. I at the foot of p. 199 supra).
> The account of the B.4b's history after his return from
> Mecca to ShfrAz given by MÕrzà JAW runs very closely
> parallel to the version of the New History, and I shall
> therefore only notice the divergences. The arrest of the
> BAb on the road between Bushire and Shfrdz, his confine-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 346 APPENDIX 11. MfRZJ- JkNf'S HISTORY.
> nient to his house, the attack oil his house on Raiiiazdn
> 21st and the punishment inflicted bythe governor Huse*yn
> Kh& on his uncle Seyyid 'Alf (known as flazrat-i-Habib,
> "the Friend") and his missionaries Mu!14' Muhammad
> Sddik of KhurAsAn and Mulli,'Alf Akbar of ArdistAn are
> ihe same in both histories, except that MÕrzà JAW has not
> got the narrative of the L.-text translated at pp. 200-202
> supra. The account of the circumstances which enabled
> the Bib to escape from ShfrAz is evidently copied almost
> verbatim from MÕrzà Jitif, as also are the miracles related
> on the authority of .44 Muhammad Huseyn of ArdistAn
> at pp. 205-207 supra, and the account of his martyrdom.
> The price paid by him for the three horses is, however,
> given as fifty-five instead of fifty tftmdns. Two other
> incidents of the journey to Isfahin, related by Mfrzd Jdnf
> on the same authority, are omitted by both mss. of the
> New History. To whichever of the three liorsea-, the Bib
> rode, says MÕrzà JAnf, a peculiar virtue seemed to be com-
> municated, so that it went more smoothly and swiftly than
> the other horses, and, so long as it bore him, forbore from
> voiding its excreta. Again, as MÕrzà Jainf relates) at one
> stage where they halted an old tribesman met them, and,
> on beholding the Bib (though he knew not who it was),
> became affected with so strong an emotion that lie wept
> till he was like to die. In the account of the death of Aki
> Seyyid KAzim, as a result of the awe produced in him by
> witnessing the Bib's transfiguration, MÕrzà JAnf says that
> MullA Muhammad Takf of HerAt read the prayers over his
> body, which was subsequently- sent -to KerbelA for in-
> terment.
> Concerning the Bib's residence at Isfahin, MÕrzà JAnf
> adds the following particulars. The Jmdm-Jum'a, whose
> guest the Bib was for a time, at first shewed so much
> respect to his visitor that lie would bring the basin for him
> to wash his hands at meals. The naine of the son of
> MullA 'Alf of NAr (p. 209 supra) was MÕrzà Hasan. The
> tribesmen whose services Minftchilir KhAu o6red to place
> at the Bib's disposal in case he was disposed to make
> war with Muhammad ShAh were BakhtiyAris, not Slidh-
> sevans (p. 21i), and their number is given as 5000, not
> 50)000. The New History seems to be guilty of another
> I
> h
> a
> SEYYID YAHYJk OF D1RIB.
> 347
> similar exaggeration with regard to the speed wherewith
> the Bib wrote down his "verses"; a thousand verses in
> six, not in three hours, being twice mentioned by MirzA
> JAni. The transmutation of a metal pipe-cover to gold at
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> the Bib's touch, as well as his foretelling Minfichilir
> KhAn's death 19 days before its occurrence to Seyyid
> YahyA of DArAb, is referred to in n. 2 on p. 212 supra.
> Minwdchihr Klidn's sincere devotion to the Bib is brought
> out even more strongly by MirzA JAuf than in the New
> History, and, according to him, the Bib used repeatedly to
> say after his death, " Khudd rahmat kunad Mu'tamad-ra`
> (" May God shew mercy to the Mib'tamad "). MÕrzà JAnf
> also adds that after his death the Bib wrote to the
> prime minister, HAjf Mimi Akisf, stating that the late
> H,Wtamadu'd-Dawla' had made over to him all his goods
> and possessions, and demanding that these should accord-
> ingly be handed over to him; a request to which the
> minister paid no attention whatever.
> 4. Conversion of Seyyid Ya6y' o ara
> a f D i &
> -(Cf. pp. 111-115 supra; and Trav. Narr., vol. ii, p. 254.)
> The account of Seyyid YahyA's conversion, cited in the
> New History in connection with the Nfrfz war, is intro-
> duced by Mirzi JAnf in this place. The narrative, which
> MÕrzà JAnf heard directly from Seyyid Yahyi, is correctly
> quoted in the New History, except that the following
> passage, which concludes it, is suppressed. " I enquired of
> him , writes MÕrzà Jinf, "saying, '0 Unique One' of the
> Age! What says your noble father concerning His Holi-
> ness the Truth (gazrat-i-Hakk)?' He answered, 'Ile pro-
> fesses himself undecided.' Then he added, confirming his
> words with an oath, 'By the Truth of God's Holy Essence,
> should my father deny this most luminous Manifestation, I
> would assuredly, notwithstanding his conspicuous virtues
> and eminent position, slay him with my own hand for the
> I I have elsewhere pointed out that Wahid is numerically
> equivalent to YahYA. Hence not only Mfrzi YahvA Subh-i-Ezel,
> but also Seyyid Yahyi of Dirib enjoyed this title.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 348 APPENDIX II. MfRZ! JlkNf'S HISTORY.
> sake of the Beloved; and this although such a father as he
> and such a son as I are soldonhi met with under the Heaven
> of the Moon."'
> 5. History of the Bab, contivued till his E,,ra?niiiatiogn
> at Tabrfz.
> (Cf. pp. 213-228, 238-240, and 284-288 spr,.)
> The points wherein MÕrzà J6nf corrects or shlipplements
> the passages of the New History above referred to are as
> follows. On the death of Minu'chihr KhAn, Gurgfn KhAn,
> the acting governor, sent a message to the Bib expressing
> his intention of calling on him ; but afterwards sent a
> second message, saying that he was prevented frorn
> carrying out this intention, and requesting the Bib to
> visit hiin. When, agreeably to this invitation, the Bib
> came to his abode, he thus addressed him. " Seeing that
> the people have become aware of your being in this place,
> they, and' especially the clergy, will assuredly make soine
> attempt to molest you. Should I deliver you over to
> them, I should be acting as a traitor towards my bene-
> factor, inasmuch as I should be injuring one whom he held
> dear. If, on the other hand, I should refuse to surrender
> you, they will write to TeherAn, the HAjf [i.e. HAjf Mfrzi
> AkAsf] will demand you at my hands, and I shall be
> obiiged to submit, since I have not the strength of the late
> J[Wtamadu'd-Dawla. It is therefore best that you should
> depart, to Telierdn, if it so please you, or, according to
> your original intention, to KhurAsAn." The Bib at once
> expressed his willingness to accede to this proposal. "You
> must start to-night," continued Gurgfn KhAn. The Bib
> objected that he bad made no preparations for so sudden a
> departure. " I have men ready to escort you," said Gurgfn
> KhAn; " and you must set out at once." The Bib was
> accordingly obliged to mount, all unequipped for travel as
> he was, and was not even permitted to bid farewell to the
> wife whom. he had recently married in Isfalidn. So in-
> censed was he at this treatment that he determined to eat
> nothing til ' I he arrived at KAshAn (a journey of five stages),
> and in this resolution he persisted, in spite of the renion-
> MULL.k MUHAMMAD 'ALf OF ZANJIN. 349 .
> strances of the six horsemen composing his escort, till he
> reached the second stage, MArch6-KhAr. There, however,
> he met Mulli Sheykh 'Alf, called "Jena'b-i-'Azfm"' and
> another of his missionaries, whom he had commissioned
> two days previously to proceed to TeherAn; and these, on
> learning from his guards how matters stood, succeeded in
> prevailing on him to take some food.
> Concerning the Bib's stay at KishAn, it is very re-
> markable that MÕrzà JAnf, whose guest he was, says
> nothing beyond what is given in the footnote on p. 214
> supra, notwithstanding the assertion of the New History
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> that he "gives in his book a full description of all the
> wonderful thinas which they witnessed in those two days
> and nights." The only other reference to this halt occurs
> in the narrative of Muhammad Beg Chdpairchi'-baishi' who
> remarks incidentally that both in the journey to Khinlik
> and in the journey thence to Tabriz, the Bib's escort as far
> as possible avoided all large towns, such as Kum and
> Kazvfn, and that the Bib's entry into KAshAn was only
> "by reason of the sincere devotion of one of his friends
> and servants, who desired to give himself this honour."
> The halt at KhAnlik is briefly noticed by MÕrzà JAnf as in
> the New History, except that he says nothing about Behi
> having visited the Bib there. HAjf MÕrzà Akdsf he bitterly
> describes as " the Haman of the age'j
> The narrative of Muhammad Beg Ch6paircht'-b6ishil'
> stands almost exactly the same in both histories, except
> that, in describing the halt at Zanjin, it is interrupted by
> the following account given to Mirzi JAW by MullA Mu-
> hammad 'Alf of Zanjin ("Jendb-i-t1,ujjat") of his con-
> version. "I met him," says Mirzi Jinf, "in Teherain, in
> the house of Mahinfid KhAn the kal4ntar, where he was
> confined because of his devotion to His Holiness. He
> said, 'I was a mu114, so proud and masterful that I would
> abase myself to no one, not even the late HAjf Seyyid
> BAkir of Resht, who was regarded as the " Proof of IslAm.
> and the most learned of doctors. My doctrines being after
> the Akhbirf school, I differed in certain questions with
> the mass of the clergy. People complained of me, and
> Muhammad Shdh summoned me to TeherAn. I came, and
> he perused my books and informed himself of their purport.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 1 350 APPENDIX 11. mfRzk J_iNf'S 11ISTORY.
> I asked him to summon the Seyyid [i.e. Seyyid BAkir of
> Resht] also, that we might dispute. At first he intended
> to do so, but afterwards, having considered the mischief
> which might result, suspended the proposed discussion.
> To be brief, notwithstanding all this self-sufficiency, so
> soon as news of the Manifestation of His Holiness reached
> me, and I had perused a small page of the verses of that
> Point of the FurkAn, I became as one beside himself, and
> involuntarily, ye~ with full option, confessed the truth of
> his claim, and became his devoted slave; for I beheld in
> him the most noble of the Prophet's miracles, and, had I
> rejected it, I should have rejected the truth of the religion
> of IslAm. Therefore did I make confession of faith, take
> upon my neck the yoke of his service, and devote myself
> to the furtherance of the religion of that Lord of the
> World. Amongst other things, 1 circulated his "Seven
> Works" (-Ath(ir-i-sab'a 1) ' and forbade the smoking of the
> ~alyain. Many followed me; and the True Religion
> waxed so strong that the unbelievers no longer dared to
> smoke the kalydn in the bazaars. So my support of the
> Bibf doctrine became notorious, and was represented to
> the King and his Minister, who, knowing my-power and
> influence, and that two or three thousand families in the
> Khamsa' were wholly devoted to me, feared lest 1 might
> deliver His Holiness out of the hands of the escort'. They
> therefore sent fifty horsemen, who, ere I was aware of it,
> surrounded my house. These brought a royal mandate
> bidding me, in the most absolute and peremptory terms, to
> come to TeherAn, whatever might be my condition. Being
> at the time in bad health, I considered with myself whether
> I should do better to go to TeherAn, or to resist them.
> His Holiness, however, bade me go, so I came, and it is
> now some while that I have been in confinement. As soon
> 1 4
> as His Holiness reached MAh-ku , he honoured me with one
> I I do not know whether the work generally called the 11 Seven
> Proofs " (Dald'il-i-sab'a) is here intended, or simply seven of
> the Bib's earlier works.
> 2 The district of which ZaniAn s the capital.
> 3 Cf. pp. 137-140 supra.
> 4 So MÕrzà JAnf generally writes Mikii, as though he would
> I
> THE BIB'S JOURNEY TO TABRfZ. 351
> of his most blessed Epistles, wherein he wrote) " I swear by
> the Truth of God that thy questioning me in the Land of
> Zanj6n concerning the duty incumbent on thee was more
> excellent than the worship of the two grosser races'." 2 P)
> The continuation of Muhammad Beg Cha'pdrchi-bdsht`s
> parrative as given by Mfrz~ JAnf differs from the version
> in the lVew History only in a few points of any conse-
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> quence. Thus (p. 220 supra, 1. 3) the BAb says, am so
> tired! " a remark which is probably su ressed in the New
> History as conflicting with the conclu ing sentence of the
> first paragraph on p. 221. Again, after the account of the
> healing of the scald-headed child at Mflin, and the con-
> version of 200 of the inhabitants of that place (p. 221 supra,
> 1. 8), MÕrzà JAnf adds:-"And His Holiness remarked.,
> 'Mfldn is one of the regions of Paradise.' Now when we
> were come nigh to Tabrfz, one day he said while on the
> road, 'It would be, very nice if we could have somg e roast
> lamb to-day.' No sooner had we reached our halting-place
> than one brought a lamb, which we roasted. ' The mounted
> guards, having heard some remarks about the wealth of
> His Holiness, one day seized him by the collar and de-
> manded money. He replied, 'I have no money.' When
> those accursed ones importuned him yet more, he at length
> produced a purse of dollars amounting in value to ten or
> twenty Nmains (I do not at this moment recollect the
> exact sum),and angrily cast them on the ground. I was
> much astonished, knowing that His Holiness had no
> money." " It would appear," adds Mirzi JAnf, as a paren-
> thesis to Muhammad Beg's narrative, 11 that this took place
> between Teherin and Kazvfn." Again, at the end of the
> first paragraph on p. 2~2, MÕrzà JAW makes the BAb add,
> "0 God, do Thou judge between me and these creatures of
> Thine! " A few lines lower, Muhammad Beg, in speaking
> of the BAb's sojourn in his house', adds that they were in
> the habit of using the water in which he had washed hias
> hands as a cure for divers maladies, and that it proved
> make it signify ','the dwelling of the Moon"; for he frequently
> speaks of the Bib as "that Moon of Saintship"
> ' ie. Men and genies.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 352 APPENDIX 11. M.fRZk JkNf'S HISTORY. EXAMINATION OF THE RiB AT TABRfZ.  353
> most efficacious. Again, in the instructions which the Bib As regards the BAb's sojourn at Chibrik (p. 240 supra),
> gives to Muhammad Beg at the bottom of p. 222, he is it is worth noticing, though natural, thai MullA Sheykh
> made by MfriA JAnf to say, "Tell him [i.e. the Prince] that 'Alf of Khur4sAn, entitled Jendib-i-'Azzm, is spoken of by
> 1 will not move unless they kill me and then take me"; MirzA JAnf as still living. He is also entitled Ba'b-i-
> and it is further stated that actual violence was resorted to
> Khaitam, and it is stated that the BAb wrote a treatise
> by the new escort ere he could be induced to leave Tabriz. explaining why his name 'Alf was equivalent to 'Az in. It
> i f
> Muhammad Beg also adds, in describing his visit to MAkfi, appears from Mirzi JAnf that Yah A KhAn, when removed
> V
> thai the BAb kissed him oil the face as he raised him from from the wardenship of Chihrik, was imprisoned at Tabriz,
> the ground, on which he had cast himself in supplication. but it is not quite clear whether this was brought about
> if isoner, or
> The account of Ashraf KhAn's disgrace is, as already by his devotion to his pri by some other cause.
> remarked in the foot-note on p. 224, substaDtially the same We now come to the BAb's examination before the
> in Mfrzal Jinf, but a marginal note adds that he " reached Crown-Prince at Tabriz, the account of the " Indian
> hell through the malady of insanity." The remark made believer," inserted here the New History, being placed
> by the BAb on hearing of Bahman MirzA's disgrace is also later in MirzA Jinf's work. In the account of this exami-
> somewhat differently reported, as follows:-" Yes, since be iiat'on it is worth noting that every
> I expression of Mirzi
> would not help the Truth [or God, "Hakk"], and consented JA . nf's which reflects on the conduct of the Crown-Prince
> to the abasement thereof, God naturally brought about his (the present Shih) is carefully suppressed in the New
> abasement. History. Thus MÕrzà JAnf remarks with evident disap-
> The narratives of MÕrzà 'Abdu'l-Walih6b and Mirzi proval that the Crown-Prince sat in the place of honour
> Muhammad 'Alf, together with the long dissertation on the (which he clearly thinks should have been left for the
> di6rent classes of believerag, the list of eminent converts to BAb); calls him a " wretch " (~araimzaida) for disrespect-
> the BàbÕ faith, the account of SuleymAii Klidn's martyrdom,
> fully rolling a globe towards the Bib and bidding him
> &c. (pp. 224.-239 supra), are all entirely omitted by explain its structure (p. 288, n. 1, supra); and makes it
> MÕrzà JAnf, the last for the obvious reason that he and clear that it was in the first instance he, not the clergy,
> SuleymAn KhAn suffered death on the same day. The who ordered the bastinado. Concerning the actual discus-
> account of the BAb's confinement at MAkft is substantially
> sion, the following passage is the only thing of importance
> the same in both histories, but the following additions and added by MÕrzà JAW. "' What,' said Mulld Muhammad
> variants occur in the older narrative. The BAb used to (there is no mention of the "scornful smile" with which
> descend from the hill on which stood the castle in which the narrative is embellished in the New History), " 'does
> he was confined to go to the bath, and on these occasions ~iBdb" mean?' 'How' replied the Bdb, 'dost thou under-
> he would also visit the warden 'Alf KhAn, whose family stand the holy saying  "I am the City of
> shewed him many attentions. The number of the. BAb's Knowledge, and 'Alf is its Gate"? Hast thou not con-
> cc " in circulation at this time is estimated by MirzA sidered thine own face, how it has four organs of perception
> verses
> J6nf at a hundred thousand, not a million. It is also situated on one surface, which makes five in all, according
> stated that when one day the principal nuilld of MAkA to the number  Bb', which accords also
> a
> came to see the BAb, and, in the course of their conversa- with the number of the hei in Huwiyyat'? Now these
> tion, behaved somewhat disrespectfully, the BAb struck four organs of perception are the Eye, which tells of the
> the unclean form of that foul creature " so violently with "Station of the Heart" (Makim-i-Fit'rid), is maintained
> a
> his staff that it broke in two. He is also made to address by the " Support of the Divine Unity" (Rukn-i-Tawh~d),
> 'Alf KhAn in his parting speech as " 0 accursed one
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Ey mal'u'n See pp. 330 and 344 supra.
> N. H.
> 23
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 354 APPENDIX 11. mfRzl ikNf'S HISTORY.
> and is the location of flic, Will (J1ash,iyyat); the Ear,
> l ~) 'i), is maintained
> which tells of the, "Station of Reasol ('Ak-
> by the "Support of Prophetliood " (,Rukn-i-Nubavvat), and
> a Oro-all of Smell, which tells
> typifies Devotion (Irdda); the
> of the, "Station of the Soul" (J1ak(im-i-.ATq/s), corresponds
> to the, ,Support of Saintship" (Rukn-i- ViNyat), and holcla,3
> tile position of Providence (Kadar), and tile Month, which
> tells of the "Station of the iWy " (Aak(tm-i-Jism) and the
> Support of the Perfect Believer" (Ritkn-i-SVa)', and corre-
> sponds to Predestination (Kaz(t).' One of those present (it
> would appear to have been'H~jf Mulld Mahmfid) said, 'Sir
> Seyyid, the eyes, the nostrils, and the ears are each
> double; why do you count them as one?' He replied, ' 0
> my dear friend, they are each reckoned as one. Yea,
> though the ear has two channels, it hears but one voice.'
> Then he added, 'Give ear.' For it appears that at the
> beginning of the conference they had agreed that not more
> than one person should speak, and that that one should be
> MwLillA Muliammad. Therefore it was that His Holiness
> said, 'Give ear ' ' intending thereby to signify two things ;
> firstly, 'You agreed to be as the ear, not as the tongue, so
> you have contravened your agreement' ; seco?ld~y, ' Open
> the ear of the heart, and -understand the things of Truth;
> thus, and not by argument, will your cravings be ful-
> filled."' Mfrz6 JAni further adds that the BAb requested
> that a physician might be allowed to feel his pulse and
> 1 The extent to which the classification of things into groups
> of four prevails throughout Mfrza' Jinf's work is very noticeable.
> Indeed this number is brought much ngiore prominently forward
> in his book than the number 19, probably owing to the predomi-
> nant influence of the Sheykhf doctrine of the " Four Supports "
> (Ark6n-i-arbala) here alluded to. It will be seen that these
> 11 Four Supports" are given by Mfrz6 J6nf (and this holds good
> throughout his work) as
> above, viz.
> 9.3, " , and
> a'
> the or C,.,j ently,
> tj (these two being, appar
> only different views of the same not as on p. 243 of
> Vol. ii of my Traveller's Narrative.
> MAIFIDf-KULf MfRZ~k'S DREAM. 355
> certify to his perfect sanity, which (p. 285 supra) had been
> called in question.
> To the account of these proceedings Mfrzal JAnf append
> as
> the following curious narrative. About forty days before
> the death of Mullammad ShAh, Prince Mahdi-Kulf Mirzi
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> dreamed that he was attending a levee at the court, when
> suddenly a young Seyyid entered and rapidly approached
> the royal throne. As soon as the King saw him, he shewed
> signs of extreme disquietude, and cried out, "0 my lords,
> this is the Seyyid BAb; seize him, for he purposeth my
> destruction!" No one paid any heed to his words, and
> the young Seyyid continued to approach the King, till,
> when lie waas close to him, he suddenly drew forth a pistol
> and shot him dead. The levee at once broke up in dis-
> order; "and," continued the Prince, "if any harm befall
> the King in these days, I shall know for a surety that the
> BAb is of a truth from God."
> 6. Kurratu'l-'Ayn, and the Sluihru'd or Badasht
> Conference.
> (Cf. pp. 43-44, and 270-282 supra.)
> Haviihl(, carried the history of the Bib to- this point,
> Mfrz.A JAW, obser i g a truer chronological sequence than
> vln
> the New flistor ' y, proceeds to speak of the events which
> immediately preceded the MdzandarAn insurrection. In
> the course of this lie relates the history of -Kurratu'l-Ayn
> (0111ittil1g, of course, all reference to her martyrdom, which
> had not taken place when his book was composed), and
> describes. with some fullness of detail the Badasht or
> SliAbr,dd Conference. As before, 1 shall only notice the
> points wherein MÕrzà Jini corrects or supplements, the
> New History.
> The passage cited from MÕrzà JAW in the New History
> (from p. 43, 1. 5 to the word " KhurisAn " at the beginning
> of 1. 18 on p. 44) agrees very closely with the original, the
> only additional items of information contained in the latter
> being that MullA Mithammad Huseyn of Busbraweyh
> (thus he is always named by MÕrzà JAW) stayed with
> tta;rat-i-Kudd4s at BArfurdsh ; that the commentary g on
> 23-2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 356 APPENDIX It. MfRZX JkNf'S HISTORY.
> the words "God the Eternal " written by the latter coin-
> prised. not 3000, but 20,000 verses ; that the fOrIlgler, just
> before his departure into KliurAsAn, received from the latter
> (not, as stated on p. 44 of the lVen, History, from the 136b)
> the epistle known as " the Eternal 18" itness, " together' with
> a white robe (kab(t) and a turban; and that Ha-rat-i-
> Kuddi'ts was expelled from Barfurftsh by the
> Ulam6.
> Having reached this point, Mirzk Ani, as a preliminary
> to his very remarkable account of what took place at
> Badasht, introduces Kurratu'l-Ayn to the reader. The
> author of the New History has evidently considered it
> desirable to suppress the Badasht episode altogether, and,
> there being no other reason for mentioning Kurratti'l-'Ayn
> at this point of the story than the prominent part which
> she took in this conference, continues the narrative of the
> MAzandarAn insurrection without inteyruption.
> Concerning Kurratu'l-Ayn, MÕrzà JAnf adds the follow-
> ing particulars to those given on pp. 270-282 supra. Her
> lectures at KerbelA (p. 271) were attended by women as
> well as inen, the former being admitted within the curtain
> which separated her from the male portion of her audience.
> It appears that it was not so much the scruples entertained
> by her and her followers as to the legality of meats pro-
> chlired from the bazaars (p. 272) that attracted the attention
> and called down the disapprobation of the TuTkish Govern-
> Ifflent, as the claim advanced by Kurratu'l-'Ayn that she
> was a " manifestation " (mazhar) of the Prophet's daughter
> FAtima, and that any unclean thing was rendered pure by
> being submitted to her gaze. It appears also that (pro-
> bably in consequence of' these pretensions) the chief Muftf
> of Baghdad nearly determined to put her to death. That
> she received the title of Tcihira (" the Pure") from the
> BAb (p. 273) and was included amongst the " Letters of
> the Living " is also stated by Mirz& J411f.
> MÕrzà JAnVs description of the meetitig of Kurratu'l-
> 'Ayn with Hazrat-i-ICudd~s at ShAhr~id or Badas~lit (which
> latter MÕrzà JAnf in one place fancifully calls e-i
> " the Land of the Plain of Innovation ") is chiefly re-
> markable for a long homily on certain points of BAN doc-
> THE BADASHT CONFERENCE.
> 357
> trine, Of which the tradition of Kumeyl referred to at pp. 329
> -330 supra forms the text. Unfortunately the ms. is rather
> corrupt at this point, so that itgis not quite clear whether
> this is intended to be a report of the address actually
> delivered by Kurratu'l-'Ayn (see Gobineau, p. 181), or of
> an address defivered by Hazrat-i-Kuddiis, or whether it is
> merely one of MÕrzà JAni's 'Own di-ssertations on doctrine.
> Its length, and the amount of commentary which would be
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> required to make clear certain obscure points of doctrine
> which it raises, render it impossible for me to attempt a
> full translation of it here, but certain points demand notice.
> The doctrine of "Return " (rij'at) is treated of at some
> length, and the manner in which it is explained ives at
> least some colour to the oft-repeated allegation t1lat the
> B,Ibfs believe in Metempsychosis (see pp. 334- 9 supra).
> The outward forms of religion (prayer, fastin,~, pilgrimage,
> and alms) are explained allegorically, after t e fashion of
> the Isma'flfs. All men's goods are declared to be the
> property of the " Point" (i.e. the BAb). The abrogation
> of the laws of the previous dispensation is announced, and
> laws in general are declared to be necessary only till such
> time as men have learned to comprehend the " Doctrine of
> the Unity " (Tawhid), by which is meant the recognition
> of the true nature of the " Point," or Divine Manifestation
> of the age. Here is a translation of a typical passage from
> the concluding pOrtiOD of the homily:-
> " It is declared in many traditions touching the religion
> of the Kd'im that it shall abrogate all [previous] religions,
> for ' the perj~ction o the doctrine of the Divine Unity is
> )f
> the negation of [all] predicates from Him,' and 'Mankind
> shall become a single church,' and He will make all religions
> one. Now His ordinances are esoteric ordinances, and
> when the esoteric comes, the exoteric order must needs
> depart. Thus it is to be understood from certain tra-
> ditions that, tinder the rule of Him who is to arise of the
> Family of Muhammad, men will go to the bazaars, invoke
> blessings, and take ~as an equivalent] whatever they please
> from the shops; which thing should one do now, he would,
> according to the Law of the Prophet of God, forfeit his
> hand. In short, the ordinances of the religion of the Kd'im
> (upon whom be peace) are the ordinances of Unit~: all
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> :358 APPENDIX II. MfPZ-k JkNf'S -HISTORY. I THE BADASHT CONFERENCE.  359
> goods are His goods; all men are His servants; and -ill
> women are His handmaidens, whom He giveth to whom-
> soever He pleasetb, and taketh from whomsoever He
> pleaseth, according to the plhirport of the holy text, 'Say,
> " 0 God, Lo?-d of the Kingdo?n ! Yliou givest the Khigdom
> to whontsoever 7`kou pleasest, and strippest the Kingdom
> from whomsoever I'liou pleasest'.` There is likewise a
> tradition to the effect that His Holiness [the K(Vivz] will
> change wives and husbands, even as the Master', who hath
> given his aservaiit and his handmaid' to one another [, hath
> done]. And this is assuredly sanctioned by the Holy Law,
> for our Master hath certainly as much authority as every
> Master liath over his slaves and his handinaidens. The
> essence of His religion is the Doctrine of Unity, and Wis-
> dom, and Love all around us is the !Cibla', and this is
> the meaning of IVItitkersoever ye turn, there is the Pace
> Of God',' and the realization of Vle it is who is mainfest in
> everit qnainj~station',- although His manifestation will be
> the last, as, for instance, ' 0 God, vei-ily 1pray 7'liee of Thy
> Spleadour [Beh(i], whereof the Gate is HV, in which is
> all Thy Splendour; 0 God, 1pra ' y Thee by all Thy Splen-
> dour' ... to the end of the prayer, is nineteen Gates [.B4b]',
> which is the number of the Unity And should
> men not be able to receive the doctrine of the Unity at the
> beginning of the Manifestation, ordinances and restrictions
> will again be prescribed for them, till they acquire such
> power, when these in turn will be abolished. But during
> the continuance of the Return" the veils will gradually be
> lifted, till the verities [of religion] be established, and men
> learn to explore the Prophetic Mystery, which is the
> Paradise of Primal Unity [Jannat-i-Ahadiggat]. Of this
> there is no occasion to speak at prese~t, and 1 have only
> submitted to you these remarks that, when people say,
> 'A company [of Bibis] went to Badaslit and conducted
> 1 Kur'dn, iii, 25.
> 2 :
> Le. the Bib.
> 3 i.e. I zrat-i-Kuddfts and Kurratu'l-'Ayn.
> , as it would seem, Ia.
> 4 The point towards which one turns in prayer.
> 5 Kur'in, ii, 109.
> 7 Or I clauses.'
> 6 See pp. 330 and 353 supra.
> 8 See pp. 334-8 supra.
> I
> themselves in an unseemly fashion',' you may know that
> they were persons of no mean quality, but the elect of the
> world; that they did a great work; and that when men
> heap curses and censures on them, it is because of their own
> benighted condition. For there is a tradition that, 'when
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> the standard of the Truth appearas, the people of the East
> and of the West shall curse it. - "'
> MirzA JAnf then alludes to another tradition about the
> four standards " which shall represent the Truth, to wit,
> the " Standard of the South " or " of Yaman " (Reiyat-i-
> Yanzainz'), which is the Bib or " Zikr ".,- the " Standard of
> Huseyn " (Rdyat-i Huseyni'), which is Hazrat-i-Kuddiis;
> the " Standard of KhurAsin " (Rdyat-i-khurdseini), which
> is Mulli Huseyn of Bushraweyh; and the "Standard of
> TilikAn " (R4yat-i-T(ilik6ni), which is Kurratu'l-'Ayii.
> osed to these stands the " Standard of' Ab' Sofydn
> (pp,
> (Jedyat-i-Sqfy(ini), which is the royal ensign of NA~iru'd-
> Din ShAh.
> It was at Badasht, as would appear from MÕrzà Jinf's
> narrative, that MuIR Muhammad 'Ali of BArfurAsh took
> the title of 'Wuddhs," by which, as is explained, he ifitended
> to signify that he was a "return" of the Prophet Mullanimad.
> This announcement, together with other " sprinklings from
> the Ocean of the Doctrine of Unity," and, as it would
> seem, a certain apparent lawlessness which characterized
> the assembly, proved a cause of agtumbling to no few of the
> Bibfs, some of whom withdrew. The continually increasing
> noise and clamour presently attracted a number of the
> inhabitants to the spot, and these attacked the BàbÕs (who
> offered no resistance) and plundered them. The assembly
> then broke 'Lip in disorder; some of the BàbÕs, as has been
> said, withdrew; while the remainder made their way in
> small bands to Ashraf, Amul, BArfurdsh, and other places
> in MAzandardn'. Rumours of what had taken place at
> 2 A great deal of what Mimi JAnf says concerning the
> Badasht conference agrees pretty closely with the account given
> in the Ndgsikliu't-Tazvdrikh. The expression "the Sun and Moon
> are in conjunction," wherewith the BàbÕs bailed the meetiDg Of
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 360 APPENDIX 11. MfRZk J~kNf'S HISTORY.
> Badasht, "partly true and partly 'false," had, however,
> preceded them, and from most places where they desired
> to halt they were expelled by the inhabitants. Hazrat-i-
> Kudd~s made his way secretly to BArfur*sh, but his
> inveterate enemy the 8a'?&u'1-'U1ama', becoming aware of
> his arrival, informed the governor of SA,rf, who sent far-
> r6shes to arrest him and bring him thither. Kurratu'l-
> 'Ayn, meanwhile, withdrew to NAr, taking with her, as
> we learn from another passage of MirzA Jini's history,
> Mfrzi YahyA Subh-i-Ezel.
> 7. The siege of Sheykli Tabarst'
> (Cf. pp. 44-110 supra.).
> MÕrzà Jainf's narrative now re-unites with the Nev7
> History (p. 44 supra), which omits all the details above
> recorded. Of MullA Huseyn's expulsion from Mash-had,
> however, a somev~nhat fuller account is given. After the
> departure of Hazrat-i-Kuddiis from that city, he continued
> there for some while. One day he visited the shrine of the
> ImAm RizA in company with seventy of his followers, in-
> tending afterwards to leave Mash-had for MAzandardn. A
> collision occurred between his followers and some of the
> townsfolk. Prince Hamz6 Mirz6, who was then encamped
> at RAdagAD, being informed of this, sent and brought
> MullA Huseyn to the camp, and there detained him for
> several aays, treating him, however, respectfully. After a
> few days MullA Huseyn was released, whereupon he collected
> his followers (amongst whom a certain major of artillery
> named 'Abdu'l- Muhammad KhAn subsequently distin-
> guished himself by his devotion and faithful service), and
> set out westwards. At MiyAml he was reinforced as
> described at pp. 44-5 supra.
> On reaching the confines of MAzandarAn, MullA Huseyn
> and his companions fell in with a body of troops unaer ille
> command of the Prince-Governor of the province, who
> stopped the BàbÕs, and enquired whence they came and
> VaFrat-i-KVdd,Cm and Kurratu'l-'Ayn, occurs, for instance, in
> both versions. Cf. Traveller's Narrative, vol. ii, p. 176.
> THE mkZANDARkN INSURRECTION. 361
> whither they were going. " From KhurAsan," replied they,
> ('and we are going to KerbelA." The Prince was at first
> inclined to dispute their passage, but they presented him
> with a sum of two hundred tiimains, whereupon he suffered
> them to proceed. A few days later came the news of
> Muhammad ShAh's death (p. 45 supra), on receiving which
> Mulli Huseyin halted his followers at Ffrfizkfih, and de-
> livered to them the address which, in a somewhat em-
> bellislied and expanded form, occupies pp. 45-47 supra.
> It appears that at this time MullA Huseyn was disposed to
> censure the conduct of the BàbÕs at Badasht (not knowing,
> y, that Hazrat-i-Kuddfts had been responsible for
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ok place), for he expressed his intention of chastising
> them.
> The entry of MullA Huseyn and his Bibfs into BAr-
> furAsh, their -skirmishes witgh the Musulmins, -and the
> events which led them to take up their quarters in Slieykh
> Tabarsf, are described by Mfrzd JAW as in the New History,
> with the following additions. In the first affray, seven
> MusulmAns, including the baker whom Mulli Huseyn
> C' sliced in two like a fresh cucumber " (see p. 49, supra,
> and footnote), were killed. - It is not true, says Mirz&
> JAW, that the BàbÕs, as asserted by their enemies, de-
> liberately slew several children, but one child was killed
> accidentally with its father, a dervish, whom they slew be-
> cause he purposely gave them a misleading answer to a
> question which they put to him. as to their road. One of
> the BAbis who was taken by the townsfolk was buried alive
> by them in a well. 'AbbAs-Kulf KhAn is described as
> having- been on bad terms with the Sa'fdu'l'U1ami, and
> disposed at first to look favourably on the Baibfs and their
> doctrine ; and even after ambition and self-interest, as well
> as unwillingness to adopt the principles of fraternity' which
> prevailed with them, had caused him to abandon the idea
> of joining them, he was very unwilling to -fight against
> I Certain remarks of Mulli Huseyn's concerning the com-
> munity of property recommended to the garrison of Tabarsf,
> taken in conjunction with this passage, and certain passages in
> the address at Badasht, certainly do suggest some ground for the
> 0
> ascription of communistic principles to the early BàbÕs.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 362 APPENDIX 11. MfRZ~_ JINVS HISTORY.
> 1 See footnote on p. 53 supra.
> them. His son-in-law, Sa'Adat-Kulf Beg, is described as
> being actually a believer'.
> The askirmish described at pp. 58-59 sitpra, which
> resulted in the sack of a village called Dili-i-Nazar KhAn,
> wherein the enemy had entrenched themselves, concluded,
> according to MÕrzà JAnf, with a massacre of the soldiers
> and villagers alike to the number of a hundred and thirty.
> This severity on the part of the BAbis, explains the author,
> was due to the fact that the villagers bad previously made
> professions of friendship, if not of actual faith; for which
> reason they were punished as renegades.
> The letter written by tla~rat-i-KuddAs to the Prince,
> as reported by Mfrz6 JAnf, is in~ch shorter and more
> forcibly worded than the version given in the New History
> (pp. 59-63 supra), and indications of a most uncompro-
> mising attitude towards the establislied government on the
> part of the Bibf leader are not waiihng. " We," says lie,
> 4C are the rightful rulers, and the world is set under our
> signet-ring." " Be not thou, 0 Prince," he says in the
> concluding passage of his letter, " misled by worldly glory
> and the pride of thy youth; know that NAsiru'd-Din ShAh
> is no true king, and that such as support hilli shall be
> tormented in hell-fire." The capture of Mulli Ylisuf 'Alf
> of KhAy and another by the royalists at BArfurfish (p. 64
> sitpra) is duly recorded by MirzA JAnf, but the passage
> relating to lilas arrest with BehA, cited as from his work by
> the New History (pp. 64 -65), appears to be a forgery,
> as no trace of it exists in the original. In MÕrzà JAnf's
> account of the night attack on Mahdf-Kulf MÕrzà's quarters,
> AkA -Rasfil is called, as in the C.-codex of the 714rikh-i-
> J~drd, "Bahmfzi" (see footnote on p. 67 supra), and it
> is added that the MAzandarAni patois in which lie and his
> comrades conversed served to put the royalist troops off
> their guard by making them imagine that their visitors
> were a detachment of 'Abb(ts-Kulf KhAn's troops. Prince
> Malidf-Kuh MÕrzà is reported ~for what purpose does not
> clearly appear) to have shot his own servant before effeCtiDg
> his escape from the burning building.
> The death of MullA Huseyn is said by MÕrzà JAnf to
> THE M~kZANDAR~kN INSURRECTION. - 363'
> have taken place on RabiNt'l-aveal 9th [A.H. 1265 = Janu-
> ary 2nd, A.D. 18491, and it is stated that he died in his
> asaddle as his horse entered the gates of Sheykh Tabarsf.
> His death appears to have profoundly discouraged the
> Bdbfs : "the back of their courage was broken," says MÕrzà
> JAnf, "and many of them dispersed from the Castle into
> the surrounding country." We ca n- hardly wonder at this,
> for, judged from an external standpoint, Hazrat-i-Kudd~s
> seems to have been in every respect his iuf~rior. *Of the
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> boastful tone which he adopted several instances have been
> already given. Of his egotism the following anecdote
> recorded by MÕrzà JAnf affords evidence. A few days
> ~efore Mull& Huseyn's death, Hazrat-i-Kguddgs was walk-
> ing with him in the enclosure 4 the Nstle, resting his
> hand on his shoulder. 1n the enclosure were some lambs
> whose mothers had been carried off by the enemy,- and
> tbese, deprived of milk, were bleating piteously. One of
> the BàbÕs, moved to pity by their evident distress ' ap-
> proached Ha;;rat-i-Kuddfts and said, " These accursed inen.
> have wronged these poor beasts, and how great is the w-rong
> done them 1 " Thereupon the eyes of lfazrat-i-Kudd~ts
> filled with tears,_ -and he replied ' " No, by God, it is not
> they who are wronged so much as we." Then he raised
> his hand and clapped Mu11A Huseyn on the shoulder,
> adding, "By God, this is Huseyn the much-wronged, and
> no Antichrist." The narrator adds that he subsequently
> came across a tradition in the Bibe'lru'l-Anva'r to the effect
> that the ImAin Huseyn will one day return to KerbelA in
> company with the Mahdf or Kd'im; that the army of the
> unbelievers will also return, and will declare the former to
> be Antichrist; that the Kd'im will deny this with an oath;
> that the unbelievers will pay no heed to this, but will kill
> ImArn Huseyn; that the Kd'im will demand his blood at
> their hands; and that forty days after his martyrdom all
> things will be plunged into confusion.
> Grievous as was the loss incurred by the Bibfs in the
> death of Mulli Huseyn, its full results did not at once
> become apparent. His younger brother, Mimi Muhammad
> Hasan, a youth of 18 or 19 years of age, was made*captain
> in his g place. ' (His biography, which MÕrzà JAnf inserts
> here, will be found at pp. 93-95 sapra.) The royalists,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 364 APPENDIX II. MfRZ~k J-kNf'S HISTORY.
> moreover, did not discover for some while that the heavy
> losses which they had sustained on the night of Rabf'u'l-
> Avval 9th had not been without their equivalent. At
> length, however, when the stores of the garrison ' were
> running low, and they were reduced to eating horse-flesh,
> as recorded at pp. 80-82 sul)ra, one of them named MÕrzà
> Muliammad Huseyn of Kum, finding his courage and his
> faith failing Iiiin, asked *permission of Hazrat-,i-A7,udd,6s to
> withdraw. " Very well," answered he, " depart if you call."
> So the deserter went forth frolhn the Castle to the royalist
> canip, at the outskirts of which lie halted and called out,
> cc 1 am asucli an one ; take me before the Prince." 'Phis
> was done, and the Prince accorded him a gracious reception;
> whereupon lie gave full information as to the distressed
> condition of the BàbÕs and the death of MullA Huseyn.
> Subsequently he seems to have repented of his disloyalty,
> for at times lie -would praise his late companions and curse
> his own weakness in abandoning them, so that the Prince
> becaine suspicious as to his real sentiments, and, thinking
> that lie might be a spy, sent him as a prisoner to S6ri.
> Shortly after this occurred the desertion of ~kd RasAl
> of Balimfz, together with thirty of his MAzandarAnf BAbis.
> He too was at first received graciously by the Prince, but
> 'Abbds-Kull KhAn ordered hiiii tobe shot, and caused his
> followers to be beheaded, ten at Amul, ten at SAri, and
> ten at BA-rfurdshl. " God curse Aki llasAl," exclaimed
> these, as they were led out to die, '; who has deceived us,
> and debarred us from the service of Hazrat-i-1Cuddfts."
> But the latter said, when tidings came to him of AkA
> Rasu'l's fate, "We have forgiven him his fault, and God
> hath pardoned him."
> It is after the capitulation that Hazrat-i-lCudd,(ts ap-
> pears in his worst light. When questioned by the Prince
> as to his object in foinenting so great a disturbance, lie,
> "knowing that the purpose of that accursed one was not to
> enquire but to find fault, spoke in a manner calculated to
> prove a stumbling-block (bi-nalw-i-fitizfl, and this was
> what lie said:-'The cause of all this disturbance was
> I Cf. Gobineau, pp. 225--6, where a different accounb of ~,ka'
> -Rasu'l's death is given.
> THE MIZANDARkN INSURRECTION. 360'
> Mulli Muhammad Huseyn, not 1: 1 went thither only to
> make enquiries, and so fell into his clutches."' " It is
> even said," adds MÕrzà JAnf, "that he cursed Mulli Huseyn.
> Such as have understood the secret of what passed between
> ga~rat-i-Kudd~ks and Jen6b-i-Tdhira at Badasht, and their
> real natures, and what they meant, may understand the
> true meaning of this saying also, but not otherwise."
> It appears from what MÕrzà JAnf says that the BàbÕs, so
> far from laying aside their weapons "cheerfully and willingly"
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> (p. 86 supra), were very loth to part with them. Hazrat-i-
> tCudd,~s had said to them before setting out for the Piince's
> quarters, " If a message comes from me bidding you lay down
> your arms, do just as you feel inclined : ' if you like, cast
> them away; if not, keep them." When, therefore, such
> a message came, some of the BàbÕs laid down their arms,
> while some retained them. Word of this was brought to
> the Prince, who again urged Hazrat-i-Kudd?is to command
> his followers to disarm. Another message was accordingly
> sent by MullA Yu'suf 'Alf of Khu'y, who, supposing that
> Hazrat-i-Kuddi~s really wished the Bdbfs to lay down their
> weapons, prevailed upon them with some difficulty- to do sol
> whereupon ensued the massacre described at p. 87 supra.
> It appears, however, that all this took place on the day
> after the surrender, and that supper had been provided for
> them on the previohlis night, so that they did not die fasting
> as asserted, in the New Historg. Their bodies were left
> unburied, and were eaten by wild beasts or disintegrated
> by the elements. The fate of the BàbÕ chiefs, and the
> accounts of RizA KhAn, Murshid, and the youth who volun-
> tarily gave himself up to death (pp. 96-103 sttpra) are
> given by MÕrzà JAnf as in the New History with a few
> additional particulars. It is uncertain whether MÕrzà1 Mu-
> hammad Hasan (the brother of MullA Huseyn of Bushra-
> weyh), H~jf MÕrzà Hasan of KhurAsAn, and MullA Mu-
> bammad of NAr entitled "JI[Wallim" ("the Teacher")
> were slain in the camp or afterwards. Concerning RizA
> KhAn, MirzA JAnf adds that he was present at the Badasht
> conference, "but," says he, "I have beard that he did
> somewhat backslide on that occasion, so that Ha_~rat-i-
> Kuddiis wounded him on the head, but afterwards forgave
> ~im.,,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 366 APPENDIX 11. mfiitz~, ikNf'S HISTORY.
> The execution of Hazrat-i-KuddAs took place, accord-
> ing to MirzA J6nf, on tfie last night of JemAdf-uth-thAnf
> [A.H. 1265 =May 22nd, A.D. 1849], agreeably to a saying
> ascribed to 'Alf ibn Abi T41ib:-
> TVonder, and yet more wonder between Jumdd6 and
> Rajab."
> Some curious particulars, wanting in the New History,
> are given about his life. Tliua-, it, is said that when his
> mother married his reputed father AkA Silih she was three
> months gone with child, and that she gave birth to her son
> six months after her marriage, wherefore his enemies subse-
> quently questioned his legitimacy, but his friends inter-
> preted the matter in a favourable manner ' recalling the
> circumstances of the birth of Christ. Again, while Prince
> Mahdf-Kulf MÕrzà was besieging the Castle of Sheykh
> Tabarsf, and could in no wise prevail against it, it occurred
> to him to summon AkA SAlih and his wife and daughter
> to the camp. When they were come, he said to AkA SAlih)
> "What is all this disturbance which this son of yours is
> making, and what is the claim which lie advances?" The
> father answered with an oath, "I know not, and I am
> filled with amazement at his conduct." " Go then," said
> the Prince, "and adin0DiSh thy SOU." So AkA SAlili went
> to the BàbÕ stronghold, but when lie was brought in before
> his son he was so overwhelmed with awe that lie could not
> speak. Hazrat-i-Kuddfts, however, treated him with the
> utmost 2ndness, and gradually elicited froni him an ac-
> count of what the Prince had done, and the message be
> had sent. Then lie said, "As for the wrong done you,
> God will recompense you for it, and to be wronged is a
> high dignity. But as for your admonitions to me, know
> that I am not your son, and that your son lost his way
> behind a stack of fire-wood on such-and-suclia day whereon
> you sent him on an errand, and ia-, now in such-and-such a
> city, while I am the Lord Jesus who have appeared in the
> form of your son, and, for a wise purpose, have elected you
> as my reputed father. Go, and tell this to the Prince."
> k
> THE mkZANDARkN INSURRECTION. 367 ~
> .I
> Aki SAlih did as he was directed, and, after a few more
> days of detention, was set free.
> The following anecdote is also related by MÕrzà JAnf.
> On the eve of the festival of the Naw-rfiz or Persian New
> Year's Day (March 19th, A.D. 1849) it was represented to
> Hazrat-i-A-udd?is by some of his followers that their gun-
> powder was all used up. He replied, " To-morrow 1 will
> give you a New Year's present of gunpowder." The BàbÕs
> supposed that be had promised them a victory over their
> enemies whereby they should obtain possession of the
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ammunition stored in the camp, and accordingly were filled
> with joy at the anticipated triumph; but Hazrat-i-Kuddgs
> smiled to himself. Next day they were subjected to an
> unusually heavy bombardment from the enemy, and showers
> of bombs and cannon-balls fell amongst them. In the
> midst of this Hazrat-i-Kuddiis came out from- his -quarters
> and said, "My men, this is God's New Year's gift, which
> He hath sent down from the heaven of glory and trial for
> you much-suffering ones." Then he added, "Affliction
> is love's portion," and recited the following verses
> ~J31 j - LA" 4_46 U
> tiox. ,,~ Lo
> tia-a VJ:J 1J)U, LA
> We vouchsafe affliction to none till we have inscribed
> him 4mongst the saints.
> This affliction is the jewel of our treasure-house : we
> do not bestow jewels on every one."
> Then he instructed them to pour water over the shells
> as soon as they touched the ground, and ' having thus
> extinguished the fuses, to extract the powder with which
> they were filled. "This," added he, "will suffice you,
> for soon you will need no more powder." These words
> were understood by those most advanced in faith as signi-
> fying that their martyrdom was' at hand; but the weaker
> brethren imagined that a speedy triumph was promised to
> them.
> MÕrzà JAnf adds a good deal more concerning the
> spiritual rank occupied by tlaz~rat-i-Kuddiis, making it
> 1 My. transcript has_,*~,,%-.J, which the rhyme forbids.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 368 APPENDIX IL MfRZ~_ JANf'S HISTORY.
> quite clear that he regards him as the K(Vim, and as
> supreme in the spiritual hierarchy, even above the BAb
> himself, who, as is further stated, refrained from writing or
> circulating anything during the period of the 'Manifesta-
> tion' of Yazrat-i-Kztddi~s, and only after his death claimed
> to be himself the K(t'inz.
> It was on the death of H4rat-i-Kuddets also that
> MÕrzà YahyA Subli-i-Eyzel fir;t rose to prominence, this
> being the fulfilmen't of the sign of the fifth year of the
> Theophany "a Light shining forth from the Morning of
> Eternity'." For nineteen days after the tidings of the~
> death of Hazrat-i-Kuddets came to him, the B6b mourned
> unceasingly for him and the other martyrs of MdzandarAn,
> weeping night and day, and hardly tasting food. Then he
> wrote a form of "visitation" to be used by pilgrims visit-
> ing the scene of their sufferings', and, being Iiimaself a
> prisoner, sent one of his followers called "Say?161V ("the
> Traveller'T to perform lifs visitation by proxy, requesting
> him to bring back a handful of earth from the spot as a
> present, and adding that in a short while lofty buildings
> would be erected there in honour of the martyrs, and that
> from all-quarters of the world crowds of believers would
> flock to visit Sheykh Tabarsf.
> The Ba-b as K(Virn; the "Indian Believer"; and the
> "Seven Aartyrs-"
> (Cf. pp. 241-244; 250-262, and 265-268 supra.)
> According to MITZ6 J&nf, the BAb first ann0UDCeC1
> himself as the K(t,janZ4 in a letter which he addressed to
> 1 See pp. 329--330 supra.
> 2 A copy of this is in my possession. See my Catalogue and
> Description of 27 Bdbi MSS. in the J. R. A. S. for 1892, pp.
> 474-6.
> 3 perhaps the same Sheykh 'Alf Sagyah who was subse-
> quently exiled to Cyprus, and there died. See Traveller's Nar-
> ra6ve, vol. ii, pp. 352, 361, 380-2, and 386-7.
> 4 This is inconsistent with the accounts of the Bdb's exami-
> THE SEVEN MARTYRS.
> 1 369
> s
> MullA Sheykh 'Alf (better known as "Jena'b-i-'Azz`m") at
> about this time in the following words --
> LpW Wo JLjjtm. 9 .0 JUA~J .0 61
> U L51r.
> au~ "te _-V5W I a-we
> .0 VJ
> - I zX::..La A.U I
> ~J~ -V$-W LJ
> " 0 'A If, verily we have chosen thee for our work, and have
> made thee an angel to cry before the Kd'im that he hath
> appeared, by the Permission of his -Loid: this is of God's
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> grace towards thee and towards inagiikigid, that perchance
> they may be thankful."
> Here follows the history of the " Indian Believer,"
> which agrees very closely with the account given in the
> New 11istory (pp. 241-4 supra), save that he is stated to
> have said, wlien brought before the Prince-Governor of Khu'y,
> f' I am one who with the blows of my sword will do thus
> and tliiias," and to have subsequently gone to Turkey and
> there gathered round himself many disciples.
> In the account given, of the "Seven Martyrs" MÕrzà
> JAW corrects or supplements the New History in the
> following points. A rising of some sort was actually
> meditated by the BàbÕs of TelierAn, thoughg not on so
> extensive a scale as was believed by the crovernment (cJ:
> p. 251, supra), The project, whatever it w~s, was betrayed
> by one of themselves, and thirty-seven persons were arrested
> and cast into prison. The names of the seven who deter-
> mined to die rather than renounce their faith are given as in
> the New II-istory, save that the mujtahid of Turshiz is called
> I
> AkA Seyyid Muliammad Huseyn. The prisoners remained
> in confinement for a week, and during this time MullA
> Isma'il of Kum ate scarcely anything till the night before
> his execution, when, though most of his companions could
> hardly touch the food set before them, "some for fear, some
> for bewilderment, and some for ecstasy," he made a very
> hearty supper.
> nation at Tabrfz (see pp. 286-7 supra, and Trav. Narr., vol, ii,
> pp. 20, 24, and 288-9), which took place during Mubanimad
> Shah's life-time.
> N. IFL
> 24
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 370 APPENDIX II. MfRZ~k JiNf'S HISTORY.
> As regards the execution of the "Seven Martyrs,"
> MÕrzà JAnf adds the following particulars. As HiJf Mulli
> Isma'il was led out from the prison, he heard some of the
> bystanders saying to one another, "This is one of the
> BàbÕs," whereat he laughed, and said, "Yes, I am a Bdbf,
> and I am going to die for you." The second misrii of the
> verse which he recited just before he was killed is given
> somewhat differently as follows
> MÕrzà KurbAn-'Alf's dying words are also given some-
> what differently as follows :-"Know that this man [i.e.
> the BAb] is He who is to arise of the family of Muhammad,
> and we are his servants. Were I possessed of a thousand
> lives, I would sacrifice them all for him. I will return in
> the Returns of that Lord of men, and for us is reserved
> everlastiDg dominion and an eternal mansion, while your
> dominion and glory shall pass away, and the end thereof
> shall be sorrow and remorse." HAif 'Alf KhAn's account
> of one incident of the execution (pp. 256-8) does not
> occur in MÕrzà JAnf's history. The reflections on the
> whole episode whic occupy pp. 258-26.1 and 265-268
> supra agree almost exactly with the text of MÕrzà JAnf,
> but the account of the BAb's precocious wisdoin contained
> in the L.-codex of the T6rikh-i-Jad,[d (pp. 262-5 supra)
> is wanting. MÕrzà JAnf adds that the BAb was not
> informed of the matter at all, inasmuch as lie had declared
> the very mention of painful and distressing occurrences to
> be unlawfigil amongst believers.
> 9. The Nt'riz Episode.
> (Cf. pp. 115-124, and the second paragraph on p. 128.)
> The account of Seyyid YahyA's conversion given by
> MÕrzà JAnf has been already compared with that given in
> the New Histog (pp. 111-115 supra) at pp. 347-8 supra.
> His account of the TNfrfz war, properly inserted in this
> place, presents the following points of divergence from the
> version contained in the 7,Irt'kh-i-Jadid. On his arrival
> I
> i
> f
> I
> I
> f
> I
> I
> THE NfRfZ AND ZANJ~kN EPISODES. 371
> at SbfrAz on his way from Yezd to Nfri Seyyid Yahyi
> z,
> received by the hand of Seyyid 'Abdu'l-!Azfm of Mariglia
> a letter from the BAb, together with a talismanic figure
> (heykal) of remarkable size. When requested by the
> governor to leave Nfrfz, he answered in less moderate
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> fashion than is implied in the first paragraph on 118
> sgitpra, and only withdrew from the town, "because Le saw
> the outward might and power of his enemies, and the
> weakness of his followers." In his address to the congre-
> gation in the mosque he warns all who refrain from helping
> him that they will be deprived of the intercession of his
> ancestor ImAm Huseyn in the Day of Judgment. KU'chaJc
> 'Alf Beg's narrative, quoted in the New History (pp. 124-8
> supra) as from Mfrzi JAnf, is wanting in the text before
> me, as, of course, is the account of the second Nfrfz war,
> which did not take place till about the time of Mfrzi Jinf's
> death (A.D. 1852). The Only other toints worth noticing
> are that the confusion between Far .4d Mfrzi and FfrAz
> MÕrzà already exists in MÕrzà JAW (c.f p. 120 supra, and
> n. 1), and that in place of the expression "had lost two
> brothers in the earlier part of the war" on p. - 123 supra he
> has "whose brother had gone to hell."
> 10. The Zaniain Episode.
> Of Mull6 Muhammad 'Alf of Zaniin himself, an account
> given by Mfrzi Jinf in an earlier part of his work has been
> already noticed at pp. 349-351 supra. His narrative of the
> ZanjAn- siege, though comparatively brief, differs widely
> from that given in either codex of the -TdrikA-i-Jad&.
> The gist of it is as follows. The -Bib wrote to Mulli
> Muhammad 'Alf authorizing him to perform public prayer
> on Friday in the mosque, which he had .-for a while ceased
> to do on learning that the Bib had declared it unlawful
> for any one to. officiate at public worship without his
> express permission. But when MullA Muhammad 'Alf,
> agreeably to these instructions, repaired to the mosque, his
> entry was opposed by the orthodox. Thereupon a conflict
> ensued between the Bibfs and the Musulmins, in which
> the former finally prevailed over the latter, and installed
> 24-2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I
> 372 APPENDIX 11. MfRZ-k JJ~NfS HISTORY.
> their leader in the pulpit. The matter was reported to the
> governor, who invited MullA Muhammad 'Ali to confer
> with him at his residence. As they could not come to an
> agreement, the latter presently rose to depart, but was
> prevented by the governor'as myrmidons. The BàbÕs, hear-
> ing of this, and knowing at if their leader were sent to
> TeherAn he would be put to death for having returned to
> ZanjAn in spite of the ShAh's prohibition, attacked the
> governor's house and rescued MullA Muhammad 'Alf i who
> thereupon occupied the citadel and the adjacent quarter of
> the town, where his followers entrenched themselves as
> described in the secoiid paragraph on p. 157 supra. Troops
> soon began to arrive from TeherAn, and, as the position of
> the Bibfs grew more critical, soiihie of the weaker ones
> began to desert, till only about three hundred and odd were
> left; but these were all men of proved courage "ewh one
> of whom," as MÕrzà JAnf says, "could have held his own
> against forty." Their wives and children also took part in
> the war, crying out, " Y6 8rihibu'z-zamdn," and attacking
> the foe with slings and the lil~e. The refusal of Mir Seyyid
> Vuseyn KhAn of Ffru'z-K11h and Ja'far-Kulf KhAn, brother
> of the Ttinzadit'd-Dawla, as well as of some of the tribes-
> men belonging to the 'Alf 114hf sect, to act against the
> BAbis is recorded by Mfrz4, JAnf as in the New History.
> The number of troops finally brought against the BAbis is
> estimated at 30,000, with 19 pieces of artillery.
> That MullA Muhammad 'Alf did actually during the
> course of the siege address a letter to MÕrzà Takf KhAn,
> the Prime -Minister, is confirmed by Mirzi JAnf, but the
> tone of this letter, as reported by him, is by no means so
> conciliatory as is that of the version given at pp. 169-170
> supra, though the substance is the same. But MÕrzà JAnf
> adds that when the Amfr replied " There is nothing for it
> but to kill you," Mulli Muhammad 'Alf addressed several
> letters to the ambassadors of foreign powers resident in
> TeherAn, requesting their good offices on his behalf. These
> accordingly remoiiastrated with the Prime Minister, but to
> no purpose. " I have heard," adds MÕrzà JAnf, " that one
> of the things for which the Emperor of Russia found fault
> with the Amfr, and which resulted in his dismissal, was
> this same massacre of this much-wroDged people. The
> t
> I
> I
> f
> i
> I
> MULL,i MUHAMMAD 'ALI OF ZANJkN. 373
> ambassadors of Russia and Turkey subsequently came to
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> see His Holiness 'the Proof,' and conversed with him ; and
> he made the following explanation to them :-'We have no
> political contention, but only apprize the Muslim world of
> the appearance of that ImAm who vanished from us, and
> whose return we expect. We say that he has now appeared,-
> and they answer that we are liars. We reply, " By that
> same proof for which you have accepted IslAm, the proof of
> which is the Kur'àn, accept this person also." This they
> refuse to do. We further say, "Examine the traditions
> concerning his Manifestation handed down from the ImAms,
> and accept them." Still they heed us not. We further
> say, " Consider the multitude of those who have believed,
> and their godliness, piety, and self-renunciation." They
> return us no answer. We further say, " Come, let us curse
> one another'." They reply that this is not permitted -in
> their law. We a-,ay, "Come, let us kindle a fire, and, go
> together into the midstthereof'." They answer, "You are
> mad." We say, "We have witnessed miracles on the part
> of this man." They retort, " He is a sorcerer." In short,
> whatever we say, they answer beside the point."'
> The death of MullA Muhammad 'Alf thirty days after he
> had been wounded on the ramparts, whither, contrary to his
> usual custom, he had ascended, and his burial in a deep
> ffrave, by a well, are briefly recorded. His followers, how-
> ever, though deeply afflicted by his loss, did not lose heart,
> and continued to fight with a courage which amazed -their
> enemies, " who knew not," says MÕrzà Anf, "that Almighty
> God Hima-,elf was their Captain, nor had read [to any good
> purpose the text] ' Verity God is with the well-doer$'."'
> The treacherous promises whereby the BàbÕs were induced
> to capitulate, and the fate which they thereby incurred, are
> very briefly described. The men were killed, some few
> being sent to " Damascus " (i.e. TeherAn) to suffer death;
> the women and children were sold into slavery,; the houses
> and property of the Bdbf s were given over to plunder; and
> their dead were exhumed and burned. The elaborate
> details of the siege given by Haydar-Beg in the L.-codex
> of the T(tr-~kk-i-Jadid are entirely wanting in MÕrzà JAnf.
> I Cf. p. 61 supra.
> 2 Kur'* xxix, 69.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 374 APPENDIX 11. MfRZk i~kNf'S HISTORY.
> 11. Subli-i-Ezel and Beh6.
> We now come to what is without doubt the most interest-
> in and most important portion of MÕrzà JAnf's history, to wit'
> tl!e account of the appearance of MÕrzà YahyA Subli-i-Ezel,
> his election as successor and vicegerent to ihe BAb, . and his
> relations to his half-brother and subsequent rival Mfrz.4
> 1juseyn 'Alf Beha"u'lldh- This portion, needless to say,
> has been entirely suppressed by the compilers of the
> Tdrikh-i-Jadid, whose sympathies, as has been already
> shown, were entirely with Behi ; and it more than any
> other cause has probably conduced to the extreme rarity of
> MÕrzà JAnf's -most precious history, even amongst the
> BàbÕs; for we can hardly doubt that the BehA'fs would do
> all in their power to suppress a book which would place so
> formidable a weapon in the hands of their opponents the
> Ezelfs. This portion, then, I propose to translate in full,
> with as much accuracy as the occasional corruptness of the
> transcript on which I am compelled to work will admit of
> 11 Now the remainder of the history of His Holiness
> the Reminder' [Z~ikr, ie. the BAb] (may my life be his
> sacrifice) is as follows. After the martyrdom of Hazrat-i-
> Kuddgits and his companions, the Master was filled with
> sadness, until such time as the writings of Jenaib-i-Ezel
> met his gaze, when, through the violence of his delight,
> he rose up and sat down several times, pouring forth his
> gratitude to the God whom he worshipped. As for Jenaib-i-
> Ezel, the following is a brief epitome of much that might be
> said. He is a scion of one of the noble families of Persia.
> His father was accomplished, wealthy, and much respected,
> and enjoyed the high consideration of the King and nobles
> of Persia. His mother died when be was a child, she being
> also of distinguished parentage'. His father tliereihipon
> entrusted him to the keeping of his honourable spouse',
> W
> So I understand the words A-oLd- CjV-~l  .3,
> though they may perhaps signify that she was the first, chief,
> or favourite wife of Subh-i-Ezel's father.
> I-
> 2 &IA.-6J;ft C,:A L:jl i.e. his second wife, or rather, as
> 6W
> *UBH-I-EZEL AND BEHS.
> I
> i
> saying, 'Do you take care of this child, and, see that
> your handmaids attend to him properly.' 1 The concubine,
> actuated by a sense of her own importance', paid no atten-
> tion to this ; until one night in the World of Actuality"
> she saw His Holiness the Apostle of God and the King of
> Saintship [i.e. 'Alf ibn AN TAR] enter her house with all
> dignity and majesty, and bia her bring the child to them.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> When she had brought him, they kissed him and placed
> him in her hands, saying, 'This child is ours : guard him
> well, that he may come to the hands of our Kd'im.' This
> believing woman thus continued the narrative. 'When it
> was morning, and I arose from this dream of bliss' and
> sought the child, 1 perceived that such a love for him had
> arisen in my heart as I had never experienced towards my
> own children. So 1 continued to minister to the child
> with the utmost faithfulness and reverence, until he reached
> his fourteenth year, when the Manifestation of His Holiness
> (the BAb] took place.'
> " This woman'.-, beatified spirit in that same year was
> joined to God's mercy, and this narrative [above given] was
> related by ga~rat-i-Ezel's brother, who was her son. He
> too is a man of excellence, thoroughly versed in the
> Doctrine of the Divine Unity, endowed with all good
> qualities and laudable attributes, and entitled Jendb-i-
> BeIU. In brief he related as follows. 1 1 busied myself
> with the instruction of Jendb-i-Ezel. The signs of his
> natural excellence and goodness of disposition were ap-
> parent in the mirror of his being. He ever loved gravity
> of demeanour, silence, courtesy, and modesty, avoiding the
> society of other children, and their behaviour. - I did not,
> however, know that he would become the possessor of [so
> high] a station. He studied Persian, but made little,
> progress in Arabic. He wrote, however, a good nasta'lik
> appears from what immediately follows,his lawful concubine
> 1 So ~ I translate the words C)LL  Zqtj j 1.
> 2 ie. the World of Dreams (Axilj _,*Ra).
> 3 6y. Gobineau, p. 277.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 376 APPENDIX II, MfRZ~k JlkNf'S HISTORY.
> hand, and was very fond of the poems of the mystics and
> initiates of the Doctrine of the Divine Unity.'
> " 1, the author of this book, once met him. He appeared
> to me an amiable child. I subsequently enquired his
> experiences, and asked him, 'How was it that you were
> first drawn towards this society?' He replied, 'The an-
> nouiieeignent of the mission of His Holiness took place when
> I had just reached the age of puberty. Not liking to follow
> blindly any one of the doctors of religion, I made enquiries
> about Iiiiii. At the time when my lionoured brother used
> to bring the followers of His Holiiiesag to the house, and
> converse with thern by night, and read his writings, I too
> used to listen to what passed, till one time when they were
> reading a prayer of his in which the expression " Igia'a'k 6h,
> ye"i _114/1" ". occurred very frequently, the attraction of the
> spirit of this word enthralled my heart, and love for hirri
> [whose words these were] established itself firmly within
> me. Afterwards I saw his [explanations of the] Traditioris
> of the ImAms and other perspicuous signs, and believed
> with full assurance.' Although at the time when I met
> him he had no very evident learning or excellence, yet his
> love was very beautiful. So great, indeed, was it, that
> when the order was issued by His Holiness the Supreme
> Lord, that is to say the 'Reminder',' for his followers to
> proceed to KliurAgAn, lie i.e. Ezel] also resolved to go
> thither. So, having made ~or himself a knapsack, and got
> together a few necessaries, lie advanced the foot of emanci-
> pation from the realin of Plurality into the plain of Unity, and
> set out. Although lie was not then more than fifteen years
> of age, and had never travelled, and was ignorant of all
> the customs of the road, he went forth with perfect trust
> in his Beloved, and in obedience to his command. But
> when his brother' was informed of this, he sent and pre-
> vented him.
> " After a little time had elapsed, his relations journeyed
> into MAzandarAD, and he too Set Out in their company, and
> 1 (40, 0 iny God!." (Udl U. al 6U).
> 2 A~ YL;g~., ie. the Bib.
> 3 i.e. BehA.
> a
> SUBH-I-EZEL AND HAZRAT-I-KUDDts.  377
> went to Mizandarin, that perchance he might proceed
> thence to KhurAsAn, though he had no equipment for such
> a journey. After this his brother [i.e. Behi] set out for
> the Most Holy Land [i.e. Mash-had], and on the way thither
> met with Jen(ib-i-T614ral, with whom he tarried, doing
> her much service both there and at TeherAn, and, indeed,
> providing her and her coinyanions with the means of con-
> tinuing their journey, an bearing all their expenses,
> which certainly did not amount to less than five hundred
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> tig~ma',iis. In short, he remained in SabzawAr till Hazrat-i-
> Kuddqis came thither, on whom he. had the honour of
> waiting, and for whom he entertained the truest devotion.
> Ile became one of the most illustrious of the believers, was
> present at the disturbance at Badaslit, stood firm in his
> love, expended large sums of money, and helped the faith-
> ful in every way.
> " After the collapse of the Badaslit conference, which
> we have already briefly described, Jenaib-i-Ezel came to
> BArfurAsh, and on the way thither had the honour of being
> admitted to the presence of HaV-at-i-Kudd7is. The nar-
> rator says:-'No sooner did Hazi-at-i-Kuddiis see him
> than he rejoiced exceedingly, and, taking with him Jenaib-
> i-Ezel, for whom he manifested much kindness and affection,
> he withdrew some little distance apart from the crowd to
> converse with him, addressing to im an exhortation in
> those sweet tones by the spirit of which the breath of Jesuas
> was inspired so that it was able to restore the dead to life.
> Thus did Hazrat-i-Kuddfts sow the seed of his love, which
> * ~dise d the Doctrine of the Divine Unity in
> was the Par  y
> Ezel's heart, inscribe on the tablet of his spirit the image
> of devotion and emancipation, constrain and attract him by
> the breaths of his inward and outward influences, and
> intoxicate him with a wine of alchemic virtue~ which made
> him glorious in his tiMe2. Yes,
> It is worth noting the expression in the orig nal,
> _~W~-, as it shews that in Mfrzi Jinfs eyes
> #'urraht'l-'Ayn heid higher rank than BehA. Cf. p. 283 supra.
> 2 1 arn not certain as to the correctness of these last few
> words of the sentence. The original has
> 0> X, 0 3  21 L
> t.*j '% A.)>5j*JL ').4 L;
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I
> 378 APPENDIX II. mfRzk jkNf'S HISTORY.
> 'It needs a substance pure to be receptive of the light;
> Not every stone or clod can change to pearl or coral
> bright.'
> At all events he filled him to his fullest capacity with sus-
> tenance of light, and Ezel attended him to B6rfurfish, and
> there was presented to Jenaib-i-Tdhira, whom, at the com-
> mand of ffazrat-i-Kttddi~s, lie 'conducted to a place ap-
> pointed, ~Aer* which he did not, to outward appearance,
> again enjoy the lionour of meeting ga~rat-i-lDtddiis,
> though the palate of his affection was continually refreshed
> by the sweet breatlis of his influence-,, while the eye of his
> holy heart was so illuminated by the efftilgences of his
> secret splendours that from that day forth the signs of
> Beauty and Majesty became apparent in his august coun-
> tenance, so that all the believers understood.
> " 1n short lie was often with Jen0ib-i-T6thh-a, and that
> Mother of the World fed the child Elzel fike a iiwlirse with
> ' milk whereof the savour altereth not',' rocked him. in the
> cradle of godly conversation and laudable qualities, and
> taught him to walk in the garb of conduct assuigned by
> people of' upright disposition, until his frame gathered
> strength. When Hazrat-i-Kuddws, being then [besieged]
> in the Castle [of T~barsfl,* demanded help, Jenaib-i-Ezel
> with his brother rBehaj and several otlieras' set out in
> response to this summons. On their way, however, they
> were arrested by the governor of Amul, and brought thither.
> One of the faithful known as HAjf KAshAnP related as fol-
> lows :-'I was with them. Th~tnightHazrat-i-Ezeldisap-
> peared. They brought us to Amul and de,,poiled us of ohtir
> goods. Next morning they captured Hazrat-i-Ezel and
> brought him to the city. The townsfoll~ o#ered him many
> I 1~ur'611, X]Vi, 16.
> 2 Qf. pp. 64-5 supra, where, of course, all mention of Subli-
> i-Ezel is suppressed.
> 3 This allusion might tempt some to doubt whether this his-
> tory, though unquestionably the work quoted as Mfrzi JAnfs in
> the Tdrikh-i-Jadid, was really composed by him. But I think
> it probable on the whole that Mfrzi JAnf either chooses to speak
> of himself in the third person, or that lie alludes to his brother
> HAjf MÕrzà, Isma'fl of KAshin.
> i
> i
> t  i
> 379
> ARREST OF ~UBH-I-EZEL AT iMUL.  , .
> insults as he passed through the streets and bazaars. ~When-
> he arrived I beheld him joyous and wreathed in smiles.
> I enquired how it had gone with him. He replied, "As
> they were capturing you I concealed myself in a certain
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> place. I did not sleep till morning, and when morning was
> come the people of a neighbouring hamlet found me out
> and captured me. They took me to a certain artilleryman
> who was the head-man of that village, changed my clothes
> for others, frightened me a little, and threatened to kill me.
> 4t length he [i.e. the artilleryman] said, 'Take him to
> Amul.' I beguiled the way to the city, a distance of two
> parasan 'gs, now with prayers in the Arabic language, now
> with the recitation of poems in Persian; and so ardent was
> I in communion and supplication with my Beloved that
> I heeded not a whit my bondage in the hands of the
> foe. When we reached the city, the people cursed me,
> threw stones at me, and spat on me, while I looked on
> indifferent."'
> "At all events, they brought him and his brother [Behd
> before the mull6s, who, according to their belief, inflicte~
> the legal castigation, besides which they suffered all manner
> of annoyances at the hands- of the townsfolk, all of which
> they welcomed for the Beloved's sake. But Jena'b-i-Ezel
> and HAjf KAshdnf were not beaten. They were imprisoned
> for a while, but subsequently God, the Gracious and Loving,
> brought about the deliverence of each by some means.
> They continued for a while after this in the confines of
> MAzandarAn, and then returned to their own homes.
> " HAjf KAshAiif says :-'I was in attendance on Jenaib-
> i-Efzel in MAzandarAn, night and day, for- four months or
> more, both before and after his imprisonment. He shewed
> me particular kindness, and I was one of his most intimate
> friends, and had full knowledge of all that concerned him.
> As for what I certainly knew of him, he was filled with
> ardour and ecstasy, and I found him ever disposed by
> nature to devotion and emancipation such that he utterly
> disregarded the world and its circumstance, g being wholly
> absorbed in love and self-annihilation, and occupied with
> praise. He shewed a wonderful attachment to Hazrat-i-
> Kuddils, and used often to read aloud with sweet utterance
> ihe homilies and prayers of that Master of the World,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 380 APPENDIX 11. MfRZA JkNf'S HISTORY.
> intoxicating his hearers with frequent life-giving draughts
> from the cup of his influence. He himself uased also to
> repeat and write original verses and prayers, but lie ad-
> vanced no claim to be a " Proof." Soignetiiiies he would
> Wu~stion igile about matters relating to the Doctrine of the
> nity, or enquire the inner meaning of certain verses of
> the Holy Kur'Aii ; but he loved brevity and subtlety in
> explanation, and his delicate nature was distressed by any
> tendency to elaboration and prolixity, so restless was the
> steed of his understanding, and so swift in its sure and
> steadfast course.'
> " To be brief, his brother [B,46] fell under suspicion,
> and it was said that lie not improbably harboured designs
> of setting up a standard [on his own account], and so
> creating further disturbances in those regions. Therefore
> the notables of the district, such as MÕrzà Hasan the
> 1'tinziida'd-Dawla's brother, considered it expedient to
> send him to the capital. About forty days after his de-
> parture the iiewas of the martyrdom of J[az9-at-i-Kudd?is
> came to Jenrib-i-Efzel. I have heard that after receiving
> this news he suffered for three days from a violent fever,
> induced by the burning heat of the fire of-separation ; and
> that after the three days the signs of holiness (rithair-i-
> Ptdsl') appeared in his blessed form', and the mystery of the
> ' Return' was 1011ce more] manifest. This event took place
> in the fifth year of the Manifestation of the Truth, so that
> Jen(ib-i-Eyzel became the blessed Earth of Devotion, and
> His Holiness 'the Reminder' [i.e. the BAb] appeared as the
> Heaven of Volition. And it was under tl)is dispensation
> that the catastrophes of ' the Seven Martyrs,' of Hazrat-i-
> IgVahi'd [i.e. Seyyid YahyA of DArAb]', and Of ZaDjdn took
> place.
> I By the appearance of these Cithdr-i-kudsi (L-5--ki Jur)
> the writer mean"s that the virtues and gifts of the martyred saint
> 0
> Hazrat-i-Ifhu,ldgs were transferred, according to the doctrine of
> the " return " or rijlat, to Suhh-i-Ezel.
> 2 The title of IValtid (" the One ") is numerically equivalent
> to Ya~tyd (=28), and was consequently bestowed both on W
> Seyyid YahyA of DArAb (called " the first Wahid," 11 Tf'altid-i-
> I  i
> NOMINATION OF EZEL AS THE B.&S succEssoR. 381
> "Now when the letters of Jendb-i-Ezel came to His
> Holiness 'the -Reminder' [i.e. the BAb], he rejoiced ex-
> ceedingly, and thenceforth began the decline of the Sun of
> 'the Reminder' and the rising of the Moon of Ezel'. So
> lie [i.e. the BAb] sent of his own personal effects, suchas
> pen-cases, paper, writings, his own blessed rainient, and his
> holy rings, according to the 'Number of the Unity' [ V(iligid
> =19], that the outward form might correspond with ihe
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> inward reality'. He also wrote a testamentary deposition,
> explicitly nominating him i.e. -Ezel] as his successor
> JValfl, and added, 'Write t~ie eight [unwritten] Viihids
> of the BeyAn', and, if "He whom God shall manife4"
> should appear in His power in thy time, abrogate the
> BeyAn; and put into practice that which we shall inspire
> into thineheart.' Now the mystery of his bestowing his
> effects on Ezel according to the 'Number of the Unity' is
> perfectly evident, namely that he intended the inner
> meaning thereof, that it might be known to all his followers
> that after himself Ezel should bear the Divine influences.
> And his object in explicitly nominating him as his successor
> also was to re-assure the hearts of the weak, so that they
> might not be bewildered as to his real nature, but that
> enemies and friends alike might know that there is no
> intermission in God's grace, and that God's religion is a
> thing which must be made manifest. And the reason why
> [the Bib] himself refrained from writing the eight [un-
> written] va'Aids of the BeyAn, but left them to Ezel, was
> that all men might know that the Tongue of God is one,
> and that Ile in Himself is a sovereign Proof. And what he
> meant by 'Him whom God should manifest' after himself was
> Hazrat-i-Ezel and none other than him, for there may not
> be two 'Points' at one time. And the secret of the Bib's
> saying, 'Do thus and thus,' while. Ezel, was himself also a
> avval ") and on Mirzi Yahyi, A~ubA-i-Ezel (called 11 the second
> Waliid," " lVaIdd-i-thani").
> I W I  W
> O.A44 4j ~5 t -5 d.~A~ " Y.3,*b-
> 2 Cf. Gobineau, pp. 319-322.
> 3 Cf. Travelle?s Narrative, vol. ii, pp. 353-4, and n. 4 on
> the former.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I  I
> I
> 382 APPENDIX II. Mf RZA' JA'Nf'S HISTORY. 383
> THE BAB'S MARTYRDOM.
> 'ProoV was that at this time His Holiness I the Reminder' previously to his execution. MÕrzà Muhammad A~lf was
> was the Heaven of Volition, and Efzel was accounted the
> Earth of Devotion and the product of purified gifts, where- first tied up to be shot, and, just after this first volley was
> fired, the BAb exclaimed, as the body of his faithful disciple
> fore was he thus addressed. W ~
> 11 In short, as soon as the gtime had come when the fell at his feet, L5 x4 Z;.ftJl ui "Thou art with me in
> 'Eternal Fruit' [Thamara-i-Ezeliyyo~] had reached ma- Paradise'." Three volleys were fired in all; the first was
> turity, the Red Blossom of Reminder-hood [i.e. the Bib], not aimed at the Bib; the second severed the ropes by
> casting itself from the branch of the Blessed Tree of the which he was bound without injuring him ; the third
> Kei'imate (which is ' neither of the Fast nor of the West") proved fatal, three bullets ("according to the  name 'Alf, which bears the 'Support of
> and prepared to ascend from the outward and visible Saintship "') entering his body. According to MÕrzà Jiiif,
> the Bib exclaimed, when he was seized by his executioners
> 'World of Dominion' to the Inward realiihi of the Mystery
> of Godhead. Wherefore it was that the accessories of his after his almost miraculous escape from the first volley,
> martyrdom appeared in the world; for it is sufficiently a[ " 0 people, am I not after all the son of God's Apostle ?
> obvious that, had he not himself been content with martyr- Do not approve such injustice and cruelty towards me!
> dom, none would have had power to harm him " Fear God, and have some shame before His Apostle! What'
> is my crime, save that I have invited you to the knowledge
> of God, and called you from the world of Plurality to the
> 12. The BaWs martyrdom. Kingdom of Unity, and cast myself into affliction and
> (C sufferiDg for your sake?" " And," adds MÕrzà JAW,
> .f pp. 293, 297-312 supra.) lie, uttered many such pathetic and moving words: for
> Here follows the account of the Bib's martyrdom, which the completion of the Proof; but they produced no effect
> differs from that given in the New History in the following on the hearts of those cruel men."
> pts. The Ion, narrative of "a certain man of position The bodies of the two victims were exposed for two
> oin ~ 0 days, after which they were buried. Some of the BàbÕs
> and probitv who waas the confidential attendant of Prince
> Sal (not named by MÕrzà JAnf) exhumed thein, -wrapped them
> Hamzd MÕrzà" (pp. 293-296 tpra) is omitted by Mfrzi
> in white a,~il~, and, according to the Bib's own instructions,
> JAW. Concerning the four Bdbfs imprisoned at Tabriz brought them to Subh-i-E~_zel [" Hazrat-i- Wahi'd-i-Thainf"
> (p. 297 supra) before the BAb and his two intimate dis-
> see 380 supra, n. 2], who, with his own hands,
> ciples, ~,kA Seyyi4,Jfuhammad Huseyn, called 'Azz'z ("the
> buriesIthem in a certain spot mentioned in a tradition
> Dear One"), and AkA Seyyid Hasan of Yezd, were brought
> handed down from the ImAms as the last resting-place'of
> thither from Chilirik, Mirzi jAnf thinks that all except
> MÕrzà (or MulIA) Muhainmad 'Ali of Tabriz (the, BAb's the Kd'im-*. "This matter' adds MÕrzà JAnf, "is' at
> fellow-martyr) were liberated, and not, as asserted by some, resent kept secret, and it is unlawful for anyone who haa,,
> poisoned in the prison. The Bib's request to his fellow- tnowledge of it to divulge it till such time as the Lord
> prisoners that they should kill him, and the manner in may see fit to make it known."
> which the request was received by them is described as in Cf. Traveller's Sarrative, vol. ii, p. 322, and n. 2 on p. 301
> the New History, but no mention is made of the letter
> written by MÕrzà Muhammad 'Ali to his brother. The sztpra.
> Bib, it is added, was paraded through the town on an ass 2 Cf. Traveller's Narrative, vol. ii, p. 46, n. 1; and p. 110, n. 3.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 3 ie. the site of the Bab's grave.
> Kur~An, xxiv, 35.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 1
> 384 APPENDIX II. MIRZ! JkNf'S HISTORY.
> 13. Events of the period intervening between the BaWs
> death and the 31assacre of Teherain.
> Of the attempt on the Shili's life and the fearful perse-
> cution of the BAbis to which it gave rise Mfrz& JAnf, S
> history naturally contains no account , since the author
> himself was one of the victims of the fatal summer of 1852.
> But of the two years~ period of transition-I had almost
> said of cliaos-which intervened between the Bib's death
> and this, and of the numerous claimants to supreme au-
> thority in the BàbÕ church which it produced, he gives
> a most valuable notice, which contains numerous data of
> great interest, omitted, so far as I know, by all other
> histories, save the ffasht Bihisht, which alludes briefly to
> certain of the pretenders about to be noticed, -Amongst
> these is Seyyid Basir the Indian, whose history, shorn of
> those details deemed unedifying, occurs at pp. 244-7
> supra. Of this portion of MÕrzà JAnfs history I shall
> translate the more interesting passages, and give an abstract
> of the remainder.
> 9~ After the setting of the Sun of Unity," continues
> MirzA Jinf, after a digression of one or two pages the
> Sun of Eternity [8h(uns-i-A:;e1iyyat, i.e. rose
> to the meridian ; the illumination of the rays of his bounty
> beamed on the Temples of the Unity [i.e. the believers in
> the BàbÕ doctrine] ; sturdy branches grew forth from that
> Blessed Trec'; si~iia3 of manifestations fructified - writings
> of new verses were inscribed on its leaves; melodious birds
> circled round it with warblings of ecstasy; the face of the
> earth of existence was decked and adorned; and the stain
> of ignorance was cleansed from hearts endowed with natural
> capacity. And in the year '67' occurred the conjunction
> of the Seven Stars in one sign', and the fiery blaze of
> sedition appeared in the world. The full detail of these
> 'Manifestations' is more than much, but the following is
> a brief epitome.
> I See n. 2 on p. 273 supra.
> 2 i.e. A.R. 1267 (A.D. 1850-1).
> 3 The death of the " Seven Martyrs" is probably allud
> to. Cf. p. 258 and n. 1.
> I  I
> J
> I
> Z~Allfll AND SUBH-I-EZEL.
> 385
> "The first 'Manifestation' which took place~in the
> seventh year [of the Bib's mission, i.e. A.H. 1267 ~ and
> which was a branch growing forth from the b ~ com-
> munion of Ezell, was a youtli seventeen or eighteen years
> of age, whose narne was Zabih', and whose trade was that
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> of a confectioner [~amultd], from the reed-bed of whose
> wisdom grew sugar-canes of affection, and by whose sweet
> qualities the palates of the Children of the Spirit were
> gratified. So far as outward knowledge went, however,
> lie was quite illiterate. The means whereby his 'Mani-
> festation' came about were such as he thus described.
> 'One day I was passing along a road when my eyes fell
> on a youth whose beauteous countenance was wonderfully
> charming and life-inspiriDg. I knew not who he was, nor
> what his sweet name might be, but this much I knew, that
> he was a saint of high degree and a prince of noble cha-
> racter. His cypress-l'ke form was a manifestation of the
> Alif of Unity3; his majestic eyes were as God's all-seeing
> Eye, which discriminates between every good and evil
> thing; his eyebrows were a noose to ensnare pilgrims
> on the Path of Truth; his delicate ears had received the
> attribute of God's Hearing, that they should hear no voice
> but his own; and his- sweet tongue might be called the
> Speaking Tongue of God, that it mig lit judge rightly as to
> the right. By his sweet smile he introduced a new joy
> into the vqry Essence of Heavenly Bliss, while by the,
> angry contraction of his brows the seven g stories of hell
> were set ablaze. Each hair of his head was a fetter for the
> heart of one of his subjects, and a hope at which a sinner
> might clutch. His walking was--the Glory -of God, his
> looking the Influence of God, his silence Wisdom, his
> speech Mercy. By his rising up he established a Resur-
> rection, and by his movement he accomplished the creation
> W
> In the original, 4jl A_,*=.jL-o  by which, I sup-
> pose, is meant the band of Ezel's chosen and intimate disciples.
> 2 Cf. pp. 139, and 213, n. 2, and Traveller'31Varrative, vol. ii,
> p. 332.
> 3 The letter alif stands for 1 in the abjad notation, and is
> also the initial of the word Ahad (one).
> N. H.
> 25
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> i
> 386 APPENDIX 11. MfRZhi JkNf'S HISTORY.
> of a New World. I said to myself, "Glory be to God!
> Who is this youth, beside whom the youths of the world
> would be as aged men, and before whose beauty the Sun
> in heaven would flee away in shame; whose best description
> is in refraining from description, and whose praise is ac-
> ceptable only in his absence?" This much I knew, that
> he had taken from me whatsoever I had in the hand of my
> being, and vouchsafed to me a draught of the wine of
> Annihilation. In this world of Annihilation I knew that
> he was [GodJ the Self-Subsisting, and he the Manifestation
> of the Everlasting; the Mystery Uncreate; the Eternal
> Essence; that he it was whose will was the Will of God,
> that "when He willetli aught, Ile doth, but say 'BE,' and
> it is'." In short, after the moist mist of my selfhood had
> been dried up by the heat of that Effulgence, and I had
> won to the mystery of his Emancipation and Perfect
> Service, the signs of his Eternal Godhead became manifest
> in the mirror of my being; my tongue was loosed in verses
> and supplications at his Court; and from him to him I
> continued to cry, " Verity I am God! There is no God
> but me! " '
> "When the other brethren heard this cry they were
> vexed and distressed, for, because of the benighted condition
> of their own souls and the duality of their standpoint,
> they heard it as the voice of another', and so opened their
> lips in repudiation of his [i.e. Zabth's] words, and carried
> their complaint of him before his Holiness [i.e. _Ezel], who
> said, 'I know him not,' that is to say, 'There is no Truth
> but me, and I am all the Truth. Wherever the voice of
> the Truth arises, I am be who crieth, since I behold none
> save myself. Therefore do I say, " I know him not."'
> For in the beginning of his 'Manifestation' he [i.e. Fzel]
> had said, 'Ask me not concerning aught, for this is for-
> bidden unto you,' that is to say, 'It is the Cycle of Mani-
> festation : open Truth-seeing eyes, and, wherever the Truth
> becomes manifest, there prostrate yourselves in adoration,
> and understand the meaning of "Ile it is who is manifest
> I Kur'AD, ii, 111 ; iii, 42 &c.
> 2 ie. as the voice of one who still abode in his own selfhood
> and had not reached the state of "Annihilation in the Beloved."
> ZABfH AND !~UBH-I-EZEL.
> 387
> in everi fflani/~station," and know that the root [of the
> matterTiss in the Theophany itself, and in the claim " Verily
> -1 am God " on the part of every soul. For the sign of
> the Unity and the exemplification of " I" will make thee
> like unto myseV" is in all things; whosoever perforineth
> faithful service, the tongue of his Godhead will be loosed,
> while whosoever is veiled must continue afflicted with his
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> own sickness. . . "'
> In short, MÕrzà Jini considers that Subh-i-Ezel, though
> outwardly disavowing the several 'Manifestations' which
> took place in his time, really approved of them, regarding
> them as enhancing the glory of the Theophany centred in
> himself "'He advances a claim,"' says MÕrzàJAnf speak-
> ing for Subh-i-Ezel "' and we love such as advance claims,
> provided 6at they' be sincere in their claims. And the
> proof of such sincerity is that if the claimant be not a
> " Point " Wukta], but only one of the " Letters of the
> Living," he must take upon his shoulders the yoke of
> service of the " Point " and of the Manifestation superior
> to himself in excellence, and speak only of his love towards
> them."' " Certain of the brethren, however," continues
> MÕrzà JAni, " who lacked understanding, not apprehending
> Hazrat-i-Ezel's meaning, again complained to him of
> Yaz*rat-i-7,abih. He again said 'I know him not;' where-
> upon the breihren began to speak ill of him. Then
> Ha;2*at-i-E,1zel wrote three mi'ms for Jendb-i-Zabih, who
> said, 'He means "Speak not [ma-gifl, write not [ma-nivfs],
> and consort not [ma-nishi'n] with the brethren." I consent,
> and shut the door of my grace in the faces of mankind,
> because of the perversion of the perverted.' This was the
> first wrong that the people of the Beydn did to the Mani-
> festations of the Blessed Tree of the Eternal', not under-
> standing that the more branches and leaves a tree bears,
> the greater is its perfection, and the more abundant its
> fruitfulness, and supposing, poor unfortunates, that a tree's
> perfection is in the lack of branches and leaves. Such
> wrongs, at all events, are more grievous than the injustice
> of foes, since the injustice of foes conduces to the exal,
> I Shajara-i-niubdraka-i-Ezeliyye, i.e. Subh-i-Ezel* See n. 2
> at the foot of p. 273 supra.
> 25-2
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 388 APPENDIX IT. MfRZ! J~kNf'S HISTORY.
> tation of the Word of Truth, while the injustice of friends
> causeth its extinction ....
> " Now the second of the Manifestations of the Blessed
> Tree of the Eternal which took place in the seventh year
> was the Manifestation of the -Indian Seyyid, whom Rd- -at-
> i-Ezel inamed Jendb-i-Baszr. A full account of his history
> would require much space, but the gist of it is as follows."
> Here ensues an account of Jena'b-i-Bash- which agrees
> very closely with that given at pp. 244-7 supra. My
> conjecture as to the name of the dervish order (DAgliddri)
> with which he was connected is confirmed by MÕrzà JAnf.
> His age at the time he quitted India is given as twenty.
> There is no other material divergence between the two
> accounts till we reach the point where the L.-codex of the
> T6ri'kh-i-Jadid (pp. 246-7 supra) inserts an evidently
> spurious passage describing Jen(tb-i-Basir's disregard of
> Subh-i-Elzel and devotion to BeliA, which passage is, of
> course, wanting in MÕrzà J6nf. Jenaib-i-Basi'r's journey
> to NAr in MAzandarAn, and his unsuccessful attempt to
> join the BàbÕs besieged at Sheykh Tabarsf are briefly de-
> scribed by MirzA JAnf. At this point -the two accounts
> diverge entirely, for while on the one hand MÕrzà J6uf
> omits the account of Jen6b-i-Basir's death given in the
> L.-codex of the Tdrikh-i-JadU, on the other hand he gives
> a long description of his conduct and the claims he ad-
> vanced which has been suppressed, evidently not by a
> mere oversight, in the later history. This account runs
> as follows.
> " For some while [after his failure to reach Sheykh
> Tabarsi] Jeneitb-i-Bash- was in the company of the -Name
> ~f the Olost ffighty, the 141ost High'. In his blessed form
> he beheld the si~ns of love, wisdom, and annihilation of self ;
> and, having apprehended the effulgences of the lights of
> Godhead from that Essence of the Light of Apprehension,
> he was attracted to him, quaffed successive draughts of
> love from the bowl of his regard, and continued thus
> intoxicated with the wine of gladness till such time as the
> banquet of the garrison of the Castle [of Tabarsf] was
> 1 Ism-i-'Azam-i-A'1d) or 'Ism-i-'Azim was the title borne by
> Mulli Sheykh 'Alf.
> JENAB-I-BA~fll.
> 389
> broken up in confusion, and the thread whereby that little
> knot of believers was bound together was broken asunder.
> Then Jenrtb-i-Ba~i'r, in company with Mfrz6, MustafA the
> Kurd (who was habited in the garb of a Kalandar, and
> claimed to belong to the World of Emancipation; beside
> whom Majnfin would have appeared the sanest of men;
> whose tongue was ever rapturously reciting new and
> wondrous poems; who wandered continually in the deserts
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> and mountains seeking for his Leyldl; and who had be-
> come the devoted admirer of Jenrtb-i-Bas~i-, and girded
> his soul with the girdle of a sincere attachment to him),
> set out for the province of GflAn, from the inhabitants
> of which they suffered much harsh treatment, so that the
> people of Enzelf' thrust them forth violently by night
> from their town, and none would give them bread or water.
> So their burning sighs flew forth as sparks and in a little
> while many of the people's houses were utterly destroyed
> in a conflagration wherein much of their wealth perished.
> Then they [i.e. Jendb-i-Basi'r and MÕrzà MustaR the
> Kurd] came to the land of Kazvln, where they ma~e many
> disciples, as well as many enemies, for these, like the
> darkness of- night, penetrate everywhere . . . . Then
> 'they set out for the 'Land of Holiness' [Arz-i-.K~uds, i.e.
> TeherAn], so as to be near Hazrat-i- Wah& , and he [i.e.
> Jendb-i-_Basi'r] obtained the honour of admission to the
> 10orious presence of the 'Splendour of the World' [Beha`u'l-
> imkain, i.e. BeliA'u'lldhl. On his arrival, Hazrat-i-Behd,
> to try him, began to display his fire and his wrath, osten-
> sibly shut the door of regard in his face, and absolutely
> forbade his admission. But as he, placing the foot of
> sincerity on the carpet of intercession, drained with affec-
> tion the goblet of affliction without suffering one sigh of
> complaint to rise from his patient heart, Beb.4, seeing him
> thus sincere in the path of love, and thus observant of the
> rule of constancy, removed the veil from the face of his
> compassion, and disclosed the countenance of his mercy.
> I The maiden for love of whom Majnuln became 11 the Mad."
> 2 The chief Persian port on the Caspian, and the harbour of
> the town of Resht.
> 3 i.e. Subh-i-Ezel. See n. 2 on p. 380 supra.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 390 APPENDIX II. MfRZ~k i_kNf's HISTORY.
> And the effulgences of Godhead from that 'Splendour of
> Paradise' [Behai-i-Rizvain, i.e. BehAVIIAh] became reflected
> in his [i.e. Jendb-i-Basir's] body of servitude.
> "Thereafter Hazra't-i-Zabilt. one day entered his pre-
> sence, and, though they were to all outward appearance
> unacquainted, and Zabrli was but a man of the people,
> nevertheless lie had no sooner entered and spoken a few
> words than the breath of his influence so played upon the
> palate of Jen6b-i-Baszir's heart that it took possession alike
> of his spirit and body, seized him in the grasp of the
> power of its loveliness, cleansed the mirror of his being
> from every stain of not-being, and cast thereon the image
> of its sublime beauty, so that Jentib-i-Basib- recognised
> with the Eye of God the Glory of God and knew Him
> through Himself, according to the purport of-
> I I see the Loved One with the Loved One's eyes,'
> and of ' 0 thou whose Essence sheweth Tltine Bssence, and
> who art exempt fi-om all community of nature with TIql
> creatures.'
> In short, Jewitb-i-Basllr, impelled by his perfect jus-
> tice, took his stand in the station of Annihilation Lof Self]
> and transmuted the poisons of affliction by the alchemy of
> love, till lie was able to pour the honey of PermaiieDce [iii
> God] from the brimming bowl of the Theophanies into the
> mouth of Union, and the Essence of 7,abih.'s Godhead be-
> came manifest in the alembic of his 8erviiude. Then lie
> announced himself to be a'return' of [the Iiii6m] 1juseyn,
> which claim was substantiated by the production of verses,
> homilies, and prayers; and he wrote letters to Hazrat-i-
> Ezel and Jendb-i-Beha' concerning his ma14esiation.
> Hazrat-i-Efzel in reply lionoured him with an epistle ex-
> ~res*sing his regards and his pleasure, as the superscription
> of which he wrote '1n His name, the Most Discerning, the
> Most Discerning' &-o ), and in the course
> of which he said, ' 0 Friend, we have elected thee fi-om
> amongst mankind' (,,aLJI Cj~ JL;tAl, I xi
> Here follows the passage already quoted at p. 338 supra,
> describing how Jendb-i-Bash-, while in the I Land of K6f '
> (Kazvi'n. or Kum), whither he went on leaving Teherin,
> JEN.kB-I-BM5fR AND THE NUKTA-I-K~kFf. 391
> pretended to recognize in a dog which was howling outside
> the house the 'return' of a certain unbeliever. "After
> that," continues MÕrzà JAnf, " he went to the 'Land of
> A7(if' (K6shAn), where he alighted at the house of Jendb-i-
> Nukta-i-K6fi ('His Excellence the Point of Kif,' i.e. 'of
> K6s!~An')', because for four months they had [both] been
> gladdened by attendance on Hazrat-i-Wahid [i.e. Subh-i-
> Ezel] and Jendb-i-Behd in iheland of Mr [in MAza'n-
> dar6n], had tasted of the wine of one another's affection,
> and bad so intertwined the cords of friendship that no
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> sword of deceit could sever them.
> Now 'His Excellence the Point of KAV had supposed
> himself to be superior in station to Jendb-i-Basir, but
> when he came within the sphere of his influence he was
> attracted by him. And the symptoms of such attraction
> and illumination are as follows. Firstly, that when [two
> believers] ~ome to speak of the subtle points of the Doctrine
> of the Divine Unity, his rank is highest whose range has
> ~een greatest. Another way is that they should engage
> in a competition of affection, wherein whichever attracts
> the other has the greater force of spirit. A third way is
> that they should become angered one with the other, when-
> he who is subdued is proved the weaker. To be brief,
> although 'His Excellence the Point of KAV was by far the
> more eminent and learned as regards outward accomplish-
> ments and,power of exposition, yet so fair-minded was he
> that so soon as he recognized the illumination and superior
> I I confess that I am unable at present to identify this I Point
> of Kdf.' Since KishAn is called 11 the Land of KAf " (Arz_i-Kdf),
> it would seem probable that he was a native of that town; and since
> Mfrza' Jinf entitles his book Nuktatu'I-Kdf, " the Point of Kif," it
> would appear probable that some relation existed between the two.
> I-lAjf Mfrzi J6nf had two brothers who were Bhbfs, Hijf Mfrzi
> Ismalil (Trav.Nan,., vol. ii, p. 332) entitled Zabih (p. 213, n. 2 8upra),
> who died in TeherAn ; and 116ji MirzA Ahmad the Ezelf, who
> was killed at Baghdad by the Behi'fs. It seems possible that
> the former may here be intended, in which case he is identical
> with the Zabih whose manifestation is described at pp. 385-390
> supra.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> .192 APPENDIX 11. MfRZ! JSNf'S HISTORY.
> station of Jriia'b-i-B(isgi'r lie became. entirely aa-inihilated in
> him, although many of his actions were [in appearance] of
> an extremely mischievous character, and the very essence
> of 'dark, dreadful, dire calamity" was apparent in his
> words and deeds, inasmuch as he was a type of 'the Gate
> which is inwardly Xlercy and outwardly of the nature of
> Torinegitt.' For this reason most of the brethren fled from
> him, notwithstanding which 'His Excellence the Point of
> KAV was steadfast in devotion to him, by God's help,
> shutting his eyes to the strictures of the benighted, especi-
> ally on the occasion of the quarrel between Jenlib-i-'Azz'M '
> and Jenrib-i-Bast'r, whereby the hearts Of the brethren
> were torn [with conflicting sentiments].
> cc Now the cause of this difference was that Jen6b-i-
> A'-am (sic) said, 'I am the Gate of the two Masters', and
> the friend of "the Fruit of the Eternal" (i.e. Subh-i-Ezel%
> and King Man~ftr', and this by many explicit declarations
> [on their part]; wherefore 1 should be obeyed by you and
> all the brethren, and it is incumbent upon all in every
> case to humble themselves before me.' To this Jena'b-i-
> Basir replied, 'You speak truly and rightly, but those
> thi~gs which form the basis -of your greatness before His
> Holiness 'the Point' are two : firstly, that you claim the
> position of Perfect Service and Proximity to him; secondly,
> that you assert that the true signs of the Sun of his
> Godhead are manifest in the Mirror of Service in your soul.
> Both of these claims of yours are true, and you have,
> See p. 216, supra, and n, 1.
> i.e. Mullh Sheykh 'Alf.
> 3 C),
> I suppose that the Bib and Subh-i-Ezel are
> meant.
> 4 1 do not know who is meant by "King Mansu'r
> I suppose that there is an allusion to Nansro-i-Hallay
> the SAff, who suffered death for his words "And-'1-Hakl,"
> ('IT a *in the Truth"), and that this title was given to one of th~o`se
> who clainied to be Divine Manifestations after the Bib's death.
> I think that I heard Subh-i-Ezel once allude to " SultAn Man-
> u'r," and it runs in my mind that Huseyn of Milin (see Trav.
> Yarn, vol. ii, p. 357) was so designated.
> JENJkB-I-'AZfM AND JENkll-I-IlAf~f& 393
> nioreover, explicit declarations [in support of your claim
> but 1 advance the same claim, and this standard hoNs
> good [in my case also], and I think that I recogDize my
> service and self-annihilation before the Glory of that Sun
> of Might as superior to yours. Therefore the signs of His
> Godhead, to wit verses spontaneously uttered [dydt-i-fitr'l
> which are the greatest of all signs, flow from my lips.'
> ,'Je?dib-i-'Azz`m, however, hesitated to admit his claim,
> either from considerations of expediency, or as a trial [to
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> test the faith of the brethren], or because the contest was
> left undecided. At all events, as the conduct of Jenaib-i-
> -Basz'r was the greater stumbling-block (it being inwardly
> inspired by the Doctrine of the Unity, but oastensibly op-
> posed thereunto), therefore some of the bret-hren complained
> of him to Ha-rat[-i-j0_-e1], saying, 'The blind Seyyid' has
> put forward certain claims, and -acted thus and thus.' So
> Hazrat[-i-_&e1], seeing that in a time of apparent impo-
> ienc'e' it was his duty to make 'apportionment to every
> claimant of his rights',' issued a manifesto designed to put
> men to the trial, so that the state of every soul might
> become -known to him, whether they possessed spiritual
> vision, or were impelled by a mere blind conformity. No
> sooner was this manifesto issued than differences arose
> amongst the brethren, especially in the 'Land of 86d,'
> where many believed, but some few remained veiled. Ana
> these differences endured for a space of six months, after
> which they passed away, and the brethren were greatly
> By  the blind Seyyid," Seyyid Basir is of course
> meant, for we learn from p. 245 supra that he lost his sight in
> his youth. He was called Bagir, " the Seeing " or " Discerning,"
> because of his spiritual efflightenment, and it was no doubt
> because the Ba'bfs regarded the claim which he now advanced
> as the sign of a benighted condition of soul that they thus
> renamed him.
> 2 i.e. during a period of 'Minor Occultation' when the I Sun
> of the Theophany I was no longer visible.
> W W  W
> 411. L;91b-Ls~
> 4 i.e. Isfalia'11.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 394 APPENDIX 11. MfRZ-,k JkNf'S HISTORY.
> edified, having appreliended the mysteries of the Doctrine
> of the Unity, and understood the Essence of the Trial.
> " And besides these two 'Manifestations' which His
> Holiness 'the Reminder' [Jen6b-i-7,ik7-, i.e. the BAbj and
> Jena'b-i-'AzfM had foretold, saying, After me there will
> be two Manifestations, one the Manifestation of Huseyn,
> and the other the Manifestation of YahyA, and neither
> will remain in the womb more than six months,' there,were
> many other 'Manifestations,' one in the 'Land of TA'
> [i.e. Tabrfzll; Olle in the 'Land of FA' [i.e. FArs]; one
> in Baghdq(f, to wit lie whom they call 8eyyid-i-'U1uv
>
> — *New History of Mirza Ali-Muhammed Bab, The (Used by permission of the curator)*