# Central Figures of the Baha'i Faith

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

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> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Moojan Momen, Central Figures of the Baha'i Faith, bahai-library.com.
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> Discovering Sacred Texts
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> Central figures of the Baha’i Faith
> • Article written by: Moojan Momen
> • Theme: The Baha’i Faith [/web/20201023090707/https://www.bl.uk/sacred-texts/themes/
> the-bahai-faith]
> • Published: 23 Sep 2019
> Dr Moojan Momen explores life of the founder of the Baha’i Faith, as well as
> the lives of his forerunner and successor. He delves into the key events
> concerning their beliefs and teachings and reflects on their legacy.
> The Baha’i Faith [/web/20201023090707/https://www.bl.uk/sacred-texts/articles/an-
> introduction-to-the-bahai-faith] has three central figures. The most important of these is
> Baha’u’llah who is regarded by Baha’is as the founder of the religion. His writings [/web/
> 20201023090707/https://www.bl.uk/sacred-texts/articles/bahai-sacred-texts] are regarded
> as the latest revelation of the Word of God and thus are the ones that are most relevant for
> humanity today. He was preceded by the Bab, whom Baha’is regard as having paved the
> way for Baha’u’llah. According to Baha’i theology both the Bab and Baha’u’llah are termed
> ‘Manifestations of God’, the intermediaries between God and humanity, who reveal God’s
> Will for the age in which they come. These two figures are considered to be of equal station
> to the central figures of other religions such as Muhammad [http://web.archive.org/web/
> 20201023090707/https://www.bl.uk/sacred-texts/articles/prophecy-and-revelation-in-islam],
> Jesus Christ, Moses, Zoroaster [http://web.archive.org/web/20201023090707/https://
> www.bl.uk/sacred-texts/articles/an-introduction-to-zoroastrianism], Krishna [http://
> web.archive.org/web/20201023090707/https://www.bl.uk/sacred-texts/articles/hindu-
> deities] and the Buddha [http://web.archive.org/web/20201023090707/https://www.bl.uk/
> sacred-texts/articles/the-buddha-and-buddhist-sacred-texts]. The third of these central
> figures of the Baha’i Faith is ‘Abdu’l-Baha, who was appointed by Baha’u’llah to succeed
> him as leader of the Baha’i community and as the sole authorised interpreter of Baha’u’llah’s
> writings.
> 
> The Bab
> The Bab began life as Sayyid ‘Ali Muhammad Shirazi (1819–1850), a merchant from Shiraz.
> The title ‘Sayyid’ at the beginning of his name denotes that he was a descendent of the
> Prophet Muhammad, and in his early life he followed Twelver Shi‘ism, the branch of Islam
> that is prevalent in Iran. In 1844 he experienced a series of revelatory visions after which he
> pronounced himself to be the bab (the gate) to the Mahdi, the Hidden Imam of Twelver
> Shi‘ism. The first book that the Bab wrote after he put forward his claim is the Qayyūm al-
> asmā [/web/20201023090707/https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/the-qayyum-al-asma-
> maintainer-of-the-names] .
> 
> The Qayyum al-asma' (‘Maintainer of the names’), the
> first major work of the Bab
> 
> The Qayyūm al-asmā: This is the first book that the Bab wrote after he put forward his claim.
> Although his formal claim in this book is to be the representative of the expected Imam
> Mahdi, those who were able to read the book discerned that he was in fact making a far
> higher claim – that this book was Divine Revelation and therefore that he was a Messenger
> of God. 19th century.
> 
> Usage terms
> 
> Public Domain [http://web.archive.org/web/20201023090707/http://creativecommons.org/
> publicdomain/mark/1.0]. Please consider cultural, religious & ethical sensitivities [~/
> link.aspx?_id=A76A0A28A38C4D4297BCF91E03CDF94D&_z=z] when re-using this material.
> 
> The Bab dispersed his leading disciples from Shiraz to various parts of Iran, India and what
> is now Iraq, to spread news of his movement, and thus gained many followers. This rapid
> spread was met with hostility from the religious leaders of Islam. Within eight months, senior
> Shi‘i and Sunni clerics were calling for the death of the founder of the movement and
> anyone who was spreading it. On his return from a pilgrimage to Mecca the Bab was
> arrested and confined to house arrest until 1846, when he left for Isfahan. There he was
> befriended by a powerful governor who eventually became a follower of his. This governor
> died in February 1847 and the Prime Minister ordered the Bab’s confinement in a fortress in
> the remote north-west corner of the country. As the Prime Minister found that the Bab was
> still able to communicate with his followers, he was transferred to another fortress after nine
> months.
> Imprisonment and persecution
> In July 1848 the Bab was brought to Tabriz and put on trial before the Crown Prince and the
> senior clerics of the city. At this trial, the Bab openly declared himself to be the Imam Mahdi,
> the one that Muslims were awaiting. After the trial, he was tortured and returned to his place
> of imprisonment. In September 1848, this Crown Prince became Naser al-Din Shah (r. 1848–
> 1896) on the death of his father, the previous shah. Up until this point, the opposition to the
> movement was confined to religious debate and denunciations from the pulpit. However,
> with the accession to the throne of a new shah, and the installation of a new prime minister,
> the persecution intensified. It was during this period of incarceration that many of the Bab’s
> most important books were written, in particular the Persian Bayān, in which are the laws
> and major teachings of the new religion. Also in this book are frequent references to ‘Him
> Whom God shall make manifest’, a messianic figure foretold by the Bab.
> 
> The Persian Bayan (‘Explanation’)
> 
> The Bayān. This book contains the laws and major teachings of the new religion. In this
> book are frequent references to ‘Him Whom God shall make manifest’, the messianic figure
> foretold by the Bab.
> 
> Usage terms
> 
> Public Domain [http://web.archive.org/web/20201023090707/http://creativecommons.org/
> publicdomain/mark/1.0]. Please consider cultural, religious & ethical sensitivities [~/
> link.aspx?_id=A76A0A28A38C4D4297BCF91E03CDF94D&_z=z] when re-using this material.
> 
> Between 1848 and 1850 there were three major episodes of armed conflict between military
> forces and the Babis. In July 1850, the Bab was brought from his confinement and publicly
> executed in Tabriz. Two years later in August 1852, a small group of Babis who had been
> meeting in Tehran tried to assassinate the shah. The attempt was poorly planned and failed,
> but it unleashed a further wave of persecutions throughout Iran. After this, the Babi
> movement was suppressed and went underground.
> Baha’u’llah
> Baha’u’llah (‘the Glory of God’) was the title taken by Mirza Husayn ‘Ali Nuri (1817–1892),
> who is regarded as the founder and central figure of the Baha’i Faith. He was born in Tehran
> and was a member of a family of important government and court officials. His father was a
> minister to one of the royal provincial prince governors.
> 
> Album of Baha’i calligraphy
> Album of Baha’i calligraphy
> Calligraphic exercises done by Baha’u’llah as a child. 19th century.
> 
> Usage terms
> 
> Public Domain [http://web.archive.org/web/20201023090707/http://creativecommons.org/
> publicdomain/mark/1.0]. Please consider cultural, religious & ethical sensitivities [~/
> link.aspx?_id=A76A0A28A38C4D4297BCF91E03CDF94D&_z=z] when re-using this material.
> 
> Baha’u’llah, however, rejected the life of a courtier and instead joined the Babi movement
> shortly after its commencement. He played a leading role in the movement, converting a
> large number of people in his home district of Nur in Mazandaran, as well as in Tehran. His
> home in Tehran was a centre of activity and he himself helped to finance the movement.
> With the attempt on the life of the shah in 1852 and the persecutions of the Babis that
> followed, Baha’u’llah was thrown into the Siyah Chal (Black Pit), the shah’s underground
> dungeon in Tehran. Most of the Babis who were captured at this time were handed over to
> sections of the government and population and put to death on the streets of Tehran. It was
> while in this dungeon that Baha’u’llah had the spiritual experience that is regarded as the
> birth of his prophetic mission. Because no evidence could be found of his involvement in the
> assassination attempt, he was released but sent into exile. He chose Baghdad, which was
> at that time part of the Ottoman Empire, as his place of exile. After a year he left that city
> and spent two years living as a religious ascetic in the mountains of Kurdistan. He then
> returned to Baghdad, where he set about reviving the Babi community. It was during this
> period of residence in Baghdad that Baha’u’llah wrote a number of important works on
> mysticism and ethics (such as the Seven Valleys and the Hidden Words [/web/
> 20201023090707/https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/the-hidden-words-bahaullahs-mystical-
> sayings] ) as well as his major book of proofs, the Kitāb-i Īqān [/web/20201023090707/
> https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/kitab-i-iqan-book-of-certitude-a-major-bahai-work] (the
> Book of Certitude).
> 
> Kitab-i Iqan (‘Book of Certitude’), a major Baha’i work
> by Baha’u’llah
> The Kitāb-i Īqān (The Book of Certitude) is Baha’u’llah’s book of proofs. In this book,
> Baha’u’llah explains how the prophecies regarding the Day of Judgement and the Day of
> Resurrection have been fulfilled spiritually, not literally. 19th century.
> 
> Usage terms
> 
> Public Domain [http://web.archive.org/web/20201023090707/http://creativecommons.org/
> publicdomain/mark/1.0]. Please consider cultural, religious & ethical sensitivities [~/
> link.aspx?_id=A76A0A28A38C4D4297BCF91E03CDF94D&_z=z] when re-using this material.
> 
> Exile and the founding of the Baha'i Faith
> Although Baha’u’llah advocated peace and reconciliation, the Iranian government still
> perceived a threat. At the insistence of the government, he was summoned to Istanbul. Just
> as he was leaving Baghdad, he made a private declaration to a small group of Babis that he
> was the figure of ‘Him whom God shall make manifest’ that the Bab had promised. After
> three months in Istanbul, during which he refused to pander to the officials of the Ottoman
> court, he was further exiled to Edirne. In 1866 he openly announced his claim to be not only
> the one promised by the Bab, but also the promised one of all religions. He wrote to a
> number of major world rulers and leaders to declare his mission and called for the
> establishment of world peace.
> 
> Baha’u’llah’s letter to Queen Victoria
> Baha’u’llah’s letter to Queen Victoria, in which he commends her for having acted against
> the slave trade and also for the system of parliamentary democracy in Britain. He urges
> elected representatives in every land to look only to what benefits the whole of humanity
> when they consult together. He calls on the monarchs and rulers of the world to turn to
> peace and reduce the armaments that they have amassed, thus relieving the burden of
> taxes they have laid on their peoples.
> 
> Usage terms
> 
> Public Domain [http://web.archive.org/web/20201023090707/http://creativecommons.org/
> publicdomain/mark/1.0]. Please consider cultural, religious & ethical sensitivities [~/
> link.aspx?_id=A76A0A28A38C4D4297BCF91E03CDF94D&_z=z] when re-using this material.
> 
> While in Edirne, his younger half-brother, Mirza Yahya, who had the title Azal, challenged
> Baha’u’llah with the claim that he had been appointed leader of the Babis. However,
> Baha’u’llah was not claiming leadership of the Babis, but the founding of a new religion. By
> the 1870s an estimated 95% of Babis had become Baha’is and soon there were many
> conversions from other groups such the Shi‘is, Jews and Zoroastrians of Iran.
> 
> When did he write his most important social
> teachings?
> In 1868, Baha’u’llah was exiled by the Ottoman government to the walled city of Akka (then
> part of Ottoman Syria, now Acre in Israel), where he was at first imprisoned in the citadel of
> the city and then, after two years, kept in the city under house arrest. During this time he
> handed over much of the task of organising the movement to his son, ‘Abdu’l-Baha, and
> focussed on his writing and meeting Baha’i pilgrims. At this time, he produced what would
> be his most important work: the Kitāb-i Aqdas [/web/20201023090707/https://www.bl.uk/
> collection-items/kitab-al-aqdas-and-other-tablets-by-bahaullah] (the Most Holy Book).
> 
> Kitab al-aqdas and other Tablets by Baha’u’llah
> o _15729, folio 1 verso. Manuscript copy of Baha’u’llah’s most important
> book, the Kitāb-i Aqdas (The Most Holy Book)
> 19th-century manuscript of the Kitāb al-aqdas: Baha’u’llah’s most important work
> containing the laws and some of the most important new social teachings of the Baha’i
> Faith.
> 
> Usage terms
> 
> Public Domain [http://web.archive.org/web/20201023090707/http://creativecommons.org/
> publicdomain/mark/1.0]. Please consider cultural, religious & ethical sensitivities [~/
> link.aspx?_id=A76A0A28A38C4D4297BCF91E03CDF94D&_z=z] when re-using this material.
> 
> In 1877, Baha’u’llah moved outside the walls of Akka and after two years he took up
> residence in a mansion called Bahji, near Akka. During this time, he produced a series of
> major writings in which he expanded on his social teachings and centred on the need for a
> new social structure that would be conducive to peace and harmony in society and in the
> world as a whole. He directed the expansion of his religion by instructing his followers to
> spread the religion in areas such as Egypt, the Caucasus, Central Asia and India.
> 
> Baha’u’llah died in Bahji in 1892. His shrine at Bahji is considered the holiest place in the
> world by Baha’is. It has become a shrine for pilgrims and is the direction of prayer for
> Baha’is. The remains of the Bab were rescued and after being secretly kept in Iran for fifty
> years, they were transferred to Akka. Eventually in 1909, they were interred in a shrine on
> the slopes of Mount Carmel in the city of Haifa across the bay from Akka.
> 
> ‘Abdu’l-Baha
> ‘Abdu’l-Baha (‘the servant of the Glory’, 1844–1921) was the title taken by ‘Abbas Effendi,
> the eldest son of Baha’u’llah. He was born in Tehran and was eight years old when he went
> into exile with his father and family to Baghdad, and then to Istanbul, Edirne and Akka. From
> an early age, he showed a remarkable degree of wisdom and intelligence. Although after
> they left Tehran he ceased to attend school, at the age of eighteen he composed a treatise
> in commentary on an Islamic Tradition for an Ottoman official, in which he showed himself to
> have mastery of Islamic mysticism and philosophy. When he was twenty-seven years of
> age, an English missionary doctor, Dr Thomas Chaplin, wrote in The Times newspaper (of 5
> October 1871, p. 5) that ‘Abdu’l-Baha ‘showed a minute and accurate knowledge of the Old
> and New Testaments.’ In Akka, ‘Abdu’l-Baha took care of the relations of the exiles with the
> local government and population, leaving Baha’u’llah free to concentrate on meeting with
> pilgrims and composition of books and letters.
> 
> How did ‘Abdu’l-Baha add to the faith?
> Baha’u’llah made ‘Abdu’l-Baha his successor and the sole authorised interpreter of his
> writings. Baha’is also regard him as the perfect exemplar of the Baha’i ethical teachings.
> During ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s leadership, the Baha’i Faith spread to North America, Europe,
> Australia, China, Japan and many other countries. ‘Abdu’l-Baha himself played a major role
> in this expansion by travelling to North America and Europe in 1911–1913, during which he
> attracted large numbers to his addresses in halls, universities, churches, mosques and
> synagogues and was given, particularly in North America, a great deal of attention by
> newspapers.
> 
> ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s treatise on the establishment of a just,
> progressive and divinely-based government
> ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s book The Secret of Divine Civilization (Asrār al-Ghaybīyyah fī Asbāb al-
> Madanīyah). This is a work written by ‘Abdu’l-Baha in 1875 in response to the reforms
> initiated in Iran by Mirza Husayn Khan Mushir al-Dawleh Sipahsalar. However, the general
> principles that it propounds are considered by Baha’is to have universal relevance. It was
> distributed anonymously (so as to avoid the prejudice that would face a Baha’i work in Iran)
> and contributed to the debate about reform. It was the second Baha’i book to be printed.
> This manuscript is dated 1911.
> 
> Usage terms
> 
> Public Domain [http://web.archive.org/web/20201023090707/http://creativecommons.org/
> publicdomain/mark/1.0]. Please consider cultural, religious & ethical sensitivities [~/
> link.aspx?_id=A76A0A28A38C4D4297BCF91E03CDF94D&_z=z] when re-using this material.
> 
> • Written by Moojan Momen [/web/20201023090707/https://www.bl.uk/sacred-texts/articles?
> authors_sorted=Moojan%2AMomen]
> •
> Dr. Moojan Momen was born in Iran, but was raised and educated in England, attending the
> University of Cambridge. He has a special interest in the study of Shi`i Islam, the Baha'i
> Faith, and more recently the study of the phenomenon of religion. His principal publications
> in these fields include: Introduction to Shi`i Islam; The Phenomenon of Religion (republished
> as Understanding Religion); Understanding the Baha’i Faith; and The Baha'i Communities of
> Iran (1851–1921). He has contributed articles to encyclopaedias such as Encyclopedia
> Iranica and Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World as well as papers to many academic
> journals.
> 
> The text in this article is available under the Creative Commons License. [http://
> web.archive.org/web/20201023090707/http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/]
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> — *Central Figures of the Baha'i Faith (Used by permission of the curator)*