Iran: Province of Yazd
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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, Iran: Province of Yazd, bahai-library.com.
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Iran: Province of Yazd

Moojan Momen

1994

This city and province is in the eastern part of central Iran situated
on the high, desert plateau that forms much of the country. The climate
is extremely dry and agriculture is only possible with the assistance of
underground irrigation channels that bring water many miles. Yazd itself
was a center for textiles and for the production of glass and other goods.
The people of the area are Persian-speaking Iranians and there is a small
group of Zoroastrians in Yazd itself and in some of the villages around.
It was Mullá Sádiq-i-Muqaddas (q.v) who first openly proclaimed
the cause of the Báb from the pulpit of a mosque in Yazd in 1845.
He was assaulted and had to leave the town immediately; a similar fate
befell Mullá Yúsif-i-Ardibílí. Mullá
Ahmad-i-Azghandí was a nephew of Siyyid Husayn-i-Azghandí,
one of the leading mujtahids of Yazd. He had become a Bábí
in Khurásán and came to Yazd where he managed to assist
Mullá Sádiq and Mullá Yúsif when it became
necessary (DB 183-187). Quddús also passed through Yazd in that
earliest period.

Vahíd-i-Dárábí (q.v.) arrived in Yazd in
early 1850. His presence and his open preaching of the message of the Báb
caused a great commotion in the city, made worse by the fact that the main
leaders of one of the factions in the town Muhammad-`Abdu'lláh who
had risen in revolt against the governent previously now declared himself
a Bábí and supporter of Vahíd. The situation worsened
with an open confrontation between the Bábís and the governor
and eventually Vahíd was forced to leave the town (DB 466-75). Muhammad-`Abdu'lláh
was captured and killed a short time later and there were several executions
of Bábís in 1852 following the attempt on the life of the
Shah (Malmírí 9-15).

When news came that the Bábí leadership had established
itself in Baghdad after 1852, many of the Bábís of the area
travelled there. Several of these stayed while others returned bringing
the news that rather than Mírzá Yahyá, it was Bahá'u'lláh
who had won their respect and admiration in Baghdad. Among those who returned
were Mullá Muhammad-Ridá Radiyu'r-Rúh Manshádí
(martyred 1284/1867) and Mírzá Husayn (brother of Varqá,
d. 1334/1915). The latter brought back the first copy of Bahá'u'lláh's
Hidden Words to the Yazd area while the former brought back the Qasida
`Izz Varqá'iyya (see "Poetical Works of Bahá'u'lláh").
Therefore when Bahá'u'lláh's claim became known, he already
had a strong basis of support in this area. As elsewhere, one of the first
to bring news of Bahá'u'lláh's claim to this area was Nabíl-i-A`zam
and it was not long before the majority of Bábís had become
Bahá'ís.

Of those Bábís who did not become Bahá'ís,
a small group of about half a dozen followed Mírzá Ja`far
Kaffásh who put forward a claim to leadership and called
his group the Kullu-Shay'ís. Mírzá Ja`far later
moved to Karbalá and withdrew his claims. He died in Yazd in 1309/1891
and no trace of his group remained (ZH 6:854-5; Dihají 179-80; Browne
233). The only supporter of Mírzá Yahyá in Yazd was
ShaykhMuhammad. He had been in Shiraz when Nabíl-i-A`zam
first brought the news of Bahá'u'lláh's claim to that city
and had been the only person to raise any objections there. Finding himself
without any support and fiercely opposed in Shiraz he returned to his native
Yazd. Here he debated and disputed with the Bahá'ís to no
avail until 1306/1888 when he moved to Istanbul, which had become a center
of Azalí activity. He returned to Yazd in the early 1890s but, since
he was known as a Bábí, he was unable to live there and moved
to Karbalá. (ZH6:855; BKG 389-97).

Yazd was well-known throughout Iran as being rather fanatical in its
Islam. Therefore there was always a repressive atmosphere towards the Bahá'ís
of the city. At first matters were moderated by the fact that several of
the leading religious figures in Yazd were indifferent to the new religion
while others were supporters, like Mírzá Muhammad-Ridá,
or even secret believers, like Áqá Siyyid Abu'l-Qásim
Mujtahid. However as the older generation of `ulamá died, leadership
of the `ulamá in Yazd fell into the hands of the mujtahid ShaykhMuhammad-Hasan
Sabzivárí and his son

Shaykh Muhammad-Taqí
who together with Sayyid `Alí Mudarris were much opposed to the
Bahá'ís.

From about 1290/1873 onwards the persecutions intensified. The first
culmination of this was the episode of the Seven Martyrs of Yazd in 1891.
Quite apart from the seven Bahá'ís that were killed in that
episode, there was widespread harrassment and looting of Bahá'í
property (Malmírí 32-61; BBR 301-5). Twelve years later there
was the much more serious 1903 upheaval. For one entire month, the mob
went on the rampage through the streets of Yazd and in the nearby villages
killing Bahá'ís wherever they found them and looting and
destroying their property. Over 70 Bahá'ís were killed in
Yazd, Taft, Manshád and other villages (Malmírí
80-591; BBR 385-402). On both occasions the governor Jalálu'd-Dawlih
made no attempt to protect the Bahá'ís.

Despite the persecutions, the Bahá'í Faith spread in Yazd.
Indeed Captain Henry Vaughan who chanced to be in Yazd a few days after
the episode of the Seven Martyrs in 1891 comments that "these persecutions
would give a great impetus to the movement, and that each death caused
numerous converts" (BBR 301). Among those who became Bahá'ís
were the members of the Afnán family resident in Yazd. They were
converted by Hájí Muhammad-Ibráhím Muballigh,
who was a son-in-law of the Báb's younger uncle Hájí
Mírzá Hasan-`Alí. Numerous others from all walks of
life also became Bahá'ís or at least supporters of the religion.
These ranged from government officials, such as the deputy governor for
a time, Iskandar Khán, to religious leaders, such as Áqá
Shaykh Sádiq who taught at the Madrissih Shafí`iyyih.
Several Shaykhís were also converted.

Among the prominent Bahá'ís of Yazd were Mullá
Muhammad-Ridá Radá'r-Rúh (killed 1284/1867); Mullá
Muhammad-Ridá Muhammadábádí (q.v.), one of
the Hands of the Cause; Hájí
Sháh-Muhammad-i-Manshádí
(killed 1297/1879) and Hájí Abu'l-Hasan-i-Ardikání
(q.v.), the first and second Trustees of the Huqúqu'lláh;
Hájí Mullá Mahdí `Atrí (d. 1297/1879)
and his son `Alí-Muhammad Varqá (q.v.); Mírzá
Ahmad (d. 1320/1902) for whom the Arabic Tablet of Ahmad (q.v.) was written;
Hájí Mírzá Muhammad Afshár; Mullá
`Abdu'l-Ghaní (d. 1335/1916); Hájí Muhammad-Táhir-i-Malmírí
(d. 1953); Áqá Muhammad-Husayn Ulfat (d. 1345/1926); and
Fádil-i-Yazdí.

Perhaps the most interesting development was the conversion of large
numbers of Zoroastrians. The first conversion occurred in Káshán
(q.v.). Several other Zoroastrians had become very attracted to the Bahá'í
Faith in Tehran during the time that Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl Gulpaygání
had been working for Manikji Limji Hatari, the first Parsi agent in Tehran.
But real progress in this area of Zoroastrian conversions did not occur
until Mullá Bahrám Akhtar-Khávarí
(d. 1349/ 1930) became a Bahá'í in about 1298/1881. Since
he had a thorough knowledge of Zoroastrian prophecies, he, together with
Hájí Qalandar, developed a successful approach to the Zoroastrians
of Yazd and some of the villages around. Among the more eminent of the
Zoroastrian converts were Ustád Javánmard (d. 1347/1928)
and Arbáb Siyávash Sifídvash. At one
stage, the majority of the Anjuman-i Násirí, the elected
body which led the Zoroastrian community in Yazd, were either Bahá'ís
or very sympathetic to the Bahá'í Faith (Stiles, see also
"Zoroastrianism").

There were also conversions in many of the villages around Yazd. In
Yazd, Maryamábád and Mihdiyábád, Bahá'í
schools were established (BBR 475-6). In `Aliyábád, Husaynábád,
`Izzábád,
Sharafábád and Hurmuzak strong
Bahá'í communities grew up.

Because of the persecutions many of the Bahá'ís of this
town moved to other areas, especially to Ashkhabad. Bahá'ís
from Yazd formed almost one-third of the Bahá'í emigrants
to Ashkhabad (Momen 296) and included such persons as Hájí
Muhammad-Taqí Afnán (see "Afnan Family"), who was one of
the leading merchants of Yazd before he left for Ashkhabad where he spent
much of his wealth in the construction of the Mashriqu'l-Adhkár,
and Ustád `Ali-Akbar-i-Yazdí, who supervised the building
work involved.

Bibliography

On the martyrs in Yazd, the most detailed account is by Mírzá
Abu'l-Qasim-i-Baydá, photocopy of manuscript in Afnan Library; also
Hájí Muhammad Táhir-i-Malmírí, Tárikh-i-Shuhadáy-i-Yazd,
second printing, Pakistan, 135 B.E./1978. Mírzá Muhammad-`Alí
Khán-i-Bahá'í, history of the Seven Martyrs
of Yazd, photocopy of mss in Afnán Library. ZH 3:458-483; 6:726-855;
8:895-978. Also cited: E.G. Browne, Materials for the Study of the Báb
Religion, Cambridge, 1918; Risala of Siyyid Mihdí Dihají,
University of Cambridge Library, Browne mss, F. 59; Moojan Momen 1991,
"The Bahá'í Community of Ashkhabad; its social basis and importance in
Bahá'í history" in Cultural Change and Continuity in Central Asia

(ed. S. Akiner), London: Kegan Paul, 1991; S. Stiles, "Early Zoroastrian
conversions to the Bahá' Faith in Yazd, Iran",
From Iran East
and West (ed. Juan R. Cole and M. Momen), Studies in Báb and
Bahá' History, Los Angeles, 1984, pp. 67-93. "Madrisi-yi-dukhtarániy-i-Húshangíy-i-Yazd
va du madrisih dígar,"
Payám-i-Bahá'í
October 1992, 155:29-31. See also Michael Fischer, "Social change and the
Mirrors of Tradition: the Bahá'ís of Yazd" in The Bahá'í
Faith and Islam (ed. H. Moayyad), Ottawa: Association for Bahá'í
Studies, 1990, pp. 25-55.

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-- Iran: Province of Yazd (Used by permission of the curator)