Chapter 3

Yet another from amongst that blessed company was Ustad Isma'il, the builder. He was the construction overseer of Farru_kh_ _Kh_an (Aminu'd-Dawlih) in Tihran, living happily and prosperously, a man of high standing, well regarded by all. But he lost his heart to the Faith, and was enraptured by it, till his holy passion consumed every intervening veil. Then he cast caution aside, and became known throughout Tihran as a pillar of the Baha'is.

Farru_kh_ _Kh_an ably defended him at first. But as time went on, he summoned him and said, "Ustad, you are very dear to me and I have given you my protection and have stood by you as best I could. But the _Sh_ah has found out about you and you know what a bloodthirsty tyrant he is. I am afraid that he will seize you without warning, and he will hang you. The best thing for you is to go on a journey. Leave this country, go somewhere else, and escape from this peril."

Composed, happy, Ustad gave up his work, closed his eyes to his possessions, and left for 'Iraq, where he lived in poverty. He had recently taken a bride, and loved her beyond measure. Her mother arrived, and by subterfuge, obtained his permission to conduct the daughter back to Tihran, supposedly for a visit. As soon as she reached Kirman_sh_ah, she went to the mujtahid, and told him that because her son-in-law had abandoned his religion, her daughter could not remain his lawful wife. The mujtahid arranged a divorce, and wedded the girl to another man. When word of this reached Ba_gh_dad, Isma'il, steadfast as ever, only laughed. "God be praised!" he said. "Nothing is left me on this pathway. I have lost everything, including my bride. I have been able to give Him all I possessed."

When Baha'u'llah departed from Ba_gh_dad, and traveled to Rumelia, the friends remained behind. The inhabitants of Ba_gh_dad then rose up against those helpless believers, sending them away as captives to Mosul. Ustad was old and feeble, but he left on foot, with no provisions for his journey, crossed over mountains and deserts, valleys and hills, and in the end arrived at the Most Great Prison. At one time, Baha'u'llah had written down an ode of Rumi's for him, and had told him to turn his face toward the Bab and sing the words, set to a melody. And so as he wandered through the long dark nights, Ustad would sing these lines:

I am lost, O Love, possessed and dazed, Love's fool am I, in all the earth. They call me first among the crazed, Though I once came first for wit and worth.

O Love, who sellest me this wine,(13) O Love, for whom I burn and bleed, Love, for whom I cry and pine-- Thou the Piper, I the reed.

If Thou wishest me to live, Through me blow Thy holy breath. The touch of Jesus Thou wilt give To me, who've lain an age in death.

Thou, both End and Origin, Thou without and Thou within-- From every eye Thou hidest well, And yet in every eye dost dwell.

He was like a bird with broken wings but he had the song and it kept him going onward to his one true Love. By stealth, he approached the Fortress and went in, but he was exhausted, spent. He remained for some days, and came into the presence of Baha'u'llah, after which he was directed to look for a lodging in Haifa. He got himself to Haifa, but he found no haven there, no nest or hole, no water, no grain of corn. Finally he made his home in a cave outside the town. He acquired a little tray and on this he set out rings of earthenware, and some thimbles, pins and other trinkets. Every day, from morning till noon, he peddled these, wandering about. Some days his earnings would amount to twenty paras,(14) some days thirty; and forty on his best days. Then he would go home to the cave and content himself with a piece of bread. He was always voicing his thanks, always saying, "Praise be to God that I have attained such favor and grace; that I have been separated from friend and stranger alike, and have taken refuge in this cave. Now I am of those who gave their all, to buy the Divine Joseph in the market place. What bounty could be any greater than this!"

Such was his condition, when he died. Many and many a time, Baha'u'llah was heard to express His satisfaction with Ustad Isma'il. Blessings hemmed him round, and the eye of God was on him. Salutations be unto him, and praise. Upon him be the glory of the All-Glorious.

NABIL-I-ZARANDI

Still another of those who emigrated from their native land to be near Baha'u'llah was the great Nabil.(15) In the flower of youth he bade farewell to his family in Zarand and with Divine aid began to teach the Faith. He became a chief of the army of lovers, and on his quest he left Persian 'Iraq for Mesopotamia, but could not find the One he sought. For the Well-Beloved was then in Kurdistan, living in a cave at Sar-Galu; and there, entirely alone in that wasteland, with no companion, no friend, no listening soul, He was communing with the beauty that dwelt in His own heart. All news of Him was completely cut off; 'Iraq was eclipsed, and in mourning.

When Nabil discovered that the flame which had once been kindled and tended there was almost out, that the believers were few, that Yahya(16) had crawled into a secret hole where he lay torpid and inert, and that a wintry cold had taken over--he found himself obliged to leave, bitterly grieving, for Karbila. There he stayed until the Blessed Beauty returned from Kurdistan, making His way to Ba_gh_dad. At that time there was boundless joy; every believer in the country sprang to life; among them was Nabil, who hastened to the presence of Baha'u'llah, and became the recipient of great bestowals. He spent his days in gladness now, writing odes to celebrate the praises of his Lord. He was a gifted poet, and his tongue most eloquent; a man of mettle, and on fire with passionate love.

After a time he returned to Karbila, then came back to Ba_gh_dad and from there went on to Persia. Because he associated with Siyyid Muhammad he was led into error and sorely afflicted and tried; but like the shooting stars, he became as a missile to drive off satanic imaginings,(17) and he repulsed the evil whisperers and went back to Ba_gh_dad, where he found rest in the shade of the Holy Tree. He was later directed to visit Kirman_sh_ah. He returned again, and on every journey was enabled to render a service.

Baha'u'llah and His retinue then left Ba_gh_dad, the "Abode of Peace," for Constantinople, the "City of Islam." After His departure, Nabil put on the dress of a dervish, and set out on foot, catching up with the convoy along the way. In Constantinople he was directed to return to Persia and there teach the Cause of God; also to travel throughout the country, and acquaint the believers in its cities and villages with all that had taken place. When this mission was accomplished, and the drums of "Am I not your Lord?" were rolling out--for it was the "year eighty"(18)-- Nabil hurried to Adrianople, crying as he went, "Yea verily Thou art! Yea verily!" and "Lord, Lord, here am I!"

He entered Baha'u'llah's presence and drank of the red wine of allegiance and homage. He was then given specific orders to travel everywhere, and in every region to raise the call that God was now made manifest: to spread the blissful tidings that the Sun of Truth had risen. He was truly on fire, driven by restive love. With great fervor he would pass through a country, bringing this best of all messages and reviving the hearts. He flamed like a torch in every company, he was the star of every assemblage, to all who came he held out the intoxicating cup. He journeyed as to the beat of drums and at last he reached the Akka fortress.

In those days the restrictions were exceptionally severe. The gates were shut, the roads closed off. Wearing a disguise, Nabil arrived at the Akka gate. Siyyid Muhammad and his wretched accomplice immediately hurried to the Governorate and informed against the traveler. "He is a Persian," they reported. "He is not, as he seems, a man of Bu_kh_ara. He has come here to seek for news of Baha'u'llah." The authorities expelled him at once.

Nabil, despairing, withdrew to the town of Safad. Later he came on to Haifa, where he made his home in a cave on Mount Carmel. He lived apart from friend and stranger alike, lamenting night and day, moaning and chanting prayers. There he remained as a recluse, and waited for the doors to open. When the predestined time of captivity was over, and the gates were flung wide, and the Wronged One issued forth in beauty, in majesty and glory, Nabil hastened to Him with a joyful heart. Then he used himself up like a candle, burning away with the love of God. Day and night he sang the praises of the one Beloved of both worlds and of those about His threshold, writing verses in the pentameter and hexameter forms, composing lyrics and long odes. Almost daily, he was admitted to the presence of the Manifestation.(19)

This went on until the day Baha'u'llah ascended. At that supreme affliction, that shattering calamity, Nabil sobbed and trembled and cried out to Heaven. He found that the numerical value of the word "_sh_idad"--year of stress--was 309, and it thus became evident that Baha'u'llah foretold what had now come to pass.(20)

Utterly cast down, hopeless at being separated from Baha'u'llah, fevered, shedding tears, Nabil was in such anguish that anyone seeing him was bewildered. He struggled on, but the only desire he had was to lay down his life. He could suffer no longer; his longing was aflame in him; he could stand the fiery pain no more. And so he became king of the cohorts of love, and he rushed into the sea.

Before that day when he offered himself up, he wrote out the year of his death in the one word: "Drowned."(21) Then he threw down his life for the Well-Beloved, and was released from his despair, and no longer shut away.

This distinguished man was erudite, wise, and eloquent of speech. His native genius was pure inspiration, his poetic gift like a crystal stream. In particular his ode "Baha, Baha!" was written in sheer ecstasy. Throughout all his life, from earliest youth till he was feeble and old, he spent his time serving and worshiping the Lord. He bore hardships, he lived through misfortunes, he suffered afflictions. From the lips of the Manifestation he heard marvelous things. He was shown the lights of Paradise; he won his dearest wish. And at the end, when the Daystar of the world had set, he could endure no more, and flung himself into the sea. The waters of sacrifice closed over him; he was drowned, and he came, at last, to the Most High.

Upon him be abundant blessings; upon him be tender mercies. May he win a great victory, and a manifest grace in the Kingdom of God.

DARVISH SIDQ-'ALI

Aqa Sidq-'Ali was yet one more of those who left their native land, journeyed to Baha'u'llah and were put in the Prison. He was a dervish; a man who lived free and detached from friend and stranger alike. He belonged to the mystic element and was a man of letters. He spent some time wearing the dress of poverty, drinking the wine of the Rule and traveling the Path,(22) but unlike the other Sufis he did not devote his life to dusty ha_sh_i_sh_; on the contrary, he cleansed himself of their vain imaginings and only searched for God, spoke of God, and followed the path of God.

He had a fine poetic gift and wrote odes to sing the praises of Him Whom the world has wronged and rejected. Among them is a poem written while he was a prisoner in the barracks at Akka, the chief couplet of which reads:

A hundred hearts Thy curling locks ensnare, And it rains hearts when Thou dost toss Thy hair.

That free and independent soul discovered, in Ba_gh_dad, a trace of the untraceable Beloved. He witnessed the dawning of the Daystar above the horizon of 'Iraq, and received the bounty of that sunrise. He came under the spell of Baha'u'llah, and was enraptured by that tender Companion. Although he was a quiet man, one who held his peace, his very limbs were like so many tongues crying out their message. When the retinue of Baha'u'llah was about to leave Ba_gh_dad he implored permission to go along as a groom. All day, he walked beside the convoy, and when night came he would attend to the horses. He worked with all his heart. Only after midnight would he seek his bed and lie down to rest; the bed, however, was his mantle, and the pillow a sun-dried brick.

As he journeyed, filled with yearning love, he would sing poems. He greatly pleased the friends. In him the name(23) bespoke the man: he was pure candor and truth; he was love itself; he was chaste of heart, and enamored of Baha'u'llah. In his high station, that of groom, he reigned like a king; indeed he gloried over the sovereigns of the earth. He was assiduous in attendance upon Baha'u'llah; in all things, upright and true.

The convoy of the lovers went on; it reached Constantinople; it passed to Adrianople, and finally to the Akka prison. Sidq-'Ali was present throughout, faithfully serving its Commander.

While in the barracks, Baha'u'llah set apart a special night and He dedicated it to Darvi_sh_ Sidq-'Ali. He wrote that every year on that night the dervishes should bedeck a meeting place, which should be in a flower garden, and gather there to make mention of God. He went on to say that "dervish" does not denote those persons who wander about, spending their nights and days in fighting and folly; rather, He said, the term designates those who are completely severed from all but God, who cleave to His laws, are firm in His Faith, loyal to His Covenant, and constant in worship. It is not a name for those who, as the Persians say, tramp about like vagrants, are confused, unsettled in mind, a burden to others, and of all mankind the most coarse and rude.

This eminent dervish spent his whole life-span under the sheltering favor of God. He was completely detached from worldly things. He was attentive in service, and waited upon the believers with all his heart. He was a servant to all of them, and faithful at the Holy Threshold.

Then came that hour when, not far from his Lord, he stripped off the cloak of life, and to physical eyes passed into the shadows, but to the mind's eye betook himself to what is plain as day; and he was seated there on a throne of lasting glory. He escaped from the prison of this world, and pitched his tent in a wide and spacious land. May God ever keep him close and bless him in that mystic realm with perpetual reunion and the beatific vision; may he be wrapped in tiers of light. Upon him be the glory of God, the All-Glorious. His grave is in Akka.

AQA MIRZA MAHMUD AND AQA RIDA

These two blessed souls, Mirza Mahmud of Ka_sh_an and Aqa Rida of _Sh_iraz, were like two lamps lit with God's love from the oil of His knowledge. Encompassed by Divine bestowals from childhood on, they succeeded in rendering every kind of service for fifty-five years. Their services were countless, beyond recording.

When the retinue of Baha'u'llah left Ba_gh_dad for Constantinople, He was accompanied by a great crowd of people. Along the way, they met with famine conditions. These two souls strode along on foot, ahead of the howdah in which Baha'u'llah was riding, and covered a distance of seven or eight farsa_kh_s every day. Wayworn and faint, they would reach the halting-place; and yet, weary as they were, they would immediately set about preparing and cooking the food, and seeing to the comfort of the believers. The efforts they made were truly more than flesh can bear. There were times when they had not more than two or three hours sleep out of the twenty-four; because, once the friends had eaten their meal, these two would be busy collecting and washing up the dishes and cooking utensils; this would take them till midnight, and only then would they rest. At daybreak they would rise, pack everything, and set out again, in front of the howdah of Baha'u'llah. See what a vital service they were able to render, and for what bounty they were singled out: from the start of the journey, at Ba_gh_dad, to the arrival in Constantinople, they walked close beside Baha'u'llah; they made every one of the friends happy; they brought rest and comfort to all; they prepared whatever anyone asked.

Aqa Rida and Mirza Mahmud were the very essence of God's love, utterly detached from all but God. In all that time no one ever heard either of them raise his voice. They never hurt nor offended anyone. They were trustworthy, loyal, true. Baha'u'llah showered blessings upon them. They were continually entering His presence and He would be expressing His satisfaction with them.

Mirza Mahmud was a youth when he arrived in Ba_gh_dad from Ka_sh_an. Aqa Rida became a believer in Ba_gh_dad. The spiritual condition of the two was indescribable. There was in Ba_gh_dad a company of seven leading believers who lived in a single, small room, because they were destitute. They could hardly keep body and soul together, but they were so spiritual, so blissful, that they thought themselves in Heaven. Sometimes they would chant prayers all night long, until the day broke. Days, they would go out to work, and by nightfall one would have earned ten paras, another perhaps twenty paras, others forty or fifty. These sums would be spent for the evening meal. On a certain day one of them made twenty paras, while the rest had nothing at all. The one with the money bought some dates, and shared them with the others; that was dinner, for seven people. They were perfectly content with their frugal life, supremely happy.

These two honored men devoted their days to all that is best in human life: they had seeing eyes; they were mindful and aware; they had hearing ears, and were fair of speech. Their sole desire was to please Baha'u'llah. To them, nothing was a bounty at all, except service at His Holy Threshold. After the time of the Supreme Affliction, they were consumed with sorrow, like candles flickering away; they longed for death, and stayed firm in the Covenant and labored hard and well to spread that Daystar's Faith. They were close and trusted companions of 'Abdu'l-Baha, and could be relied on in all things. They were always lowly, humble, unassuming, evanescent. In all that long period, they never uttered a word which had to do with self.

And at the last, during the absence of 'Abdu'l-Baha, they took their flight to the Kingdom of unfading glory. I sorrowed much because I was not with them when they died. Although absent in body, I was there in my heart, and mourning over them; but to outward seeming I did not bid them good-by; this is why I grieve.

Unto them both be salutations and praise; upon them be compassion and glory. May God give them a home in Paradise, under the Lote-Tree's shade. May they be immersed in tiers of light, close beside their Lord, the Mighty, the All-Powerful.

PIDAR-JAN OF QAZVIN

The late Pidar-Jan was among those believers who emigrated to Ba_gh_dad. He was a godly old man, enamored of the Well-Beloved; in the garden of Divine love, he was like a rose full-blown. He arrived there, in Ba_gh_dad, and spent his days and nights communing with God and chanting prayers; and although he walked the earth, he traveled the heights of Heaven.

To obey the law of God, he took up a trade, for he had nothing. He would bundle a few pairs of socks under his arm and peddle them as he wandered through the streets and bazars, and thieves would rob him of his merchandise. Finally he was obliged to lay the socks across his outstretched palms as he went along. But he would get to chanting a prayer, and one day he was surprised to find that they had stolen the socks, laid out on his two hands, from before his eyes. His awareness of this world was clouded, for he journeyed through another. He dwelt in ecstasy; he was a man drunken, bedazzled.

For some time, that is how he lived in 'Iraq. Almost daily he was admitted to the presence of Baha'u'llah. His name was 'Abdu'llah but the friends bestowed on him the title of Pidar-Jan--Father Dear--for he was a loving father to them all. At last, under the sheltering care of Baha'u'llah, he took flight to the "seat of truth, in the presence of the potent king."(24)

May God make fragrant his sepulcher with the outpouring rains of His mercy and cast upon him the eye of Divine compassion. Salutations be unto him, and praise.

SHAYKH SADIQ-I-YAZDI

Another of those who emigrated to Ba_gh_dad was _Sh_ay_kh_ Sadiq of Yazd, a man esteemed, and righteous as his name, Sadiq.(25) He was a towering palm in the groves of Heaven, a star flaming in the skies of the love of God.

It was during the 'Iraq period that he hastened to the presence of Baha'u'llah. His detachment from the things of this world and his attachment to the life of the spirit are indescribable. He was love embodied, tenderness personified. Day and night, he commemorated God. Utterly unconscious of this world and all that is therein, he dwelt continually on God, remaining submerged in supplications and prayers. Most of the time, tears poured from his eyes. The Blessed Beauty singled him out for special favor, and whenever He turned His attention toward Sadiq, His loving-kindness was clear to see.

On a certain day they brought word that Sadiq was at the point of death. I went to his bedside and found him breathing his last. He was suffering from ileus, an abdominal pain and swelling. I hurried to Baha'u'llah and described his condition. "Go," He said. "Place your hand on the distended area and speak the words: 'O Thou the Healer!'"(26)

I went back. I saw that the affected part had swollen up to the size of an apple; it was hard as stone, in constant motion, twisting, and coiling about itself like a snake. I placed my hand upon it; I turned toward God and, humbly beseeching Him, I repeated the words, "O Thou the Healer!" Instantly the sick man rose up. The ileus vanished; the swelling was carried off.

This personified spirit lived contentedly in 'Iraq until the day when Baha'u'llah's convoy wended its way out of Ba_gh_dad. As bidden, Sadiq remained behind in that city. But his longing beat so passionately within him that after the arrival of Baha'u'llah at Mosul, he could endure the separation no more. Shoeless, hatless, he ran out alongside the courier going to Mosul; ran and ran until, on that barren plain, with mercy all about him, he fell to his rest.

May God give him to drink from "a wine cup tempered at the camphor fountain,"(27) and send down crystal waters on his grave; may God perfume his dust in that desert place with musk, and cause to descend there range on range of light.

SHAH-MUHAMMAD-AMIN

_Sh_ah-Muhammad, who had the title of Amin, the Trusted One, was among the earliest of believers, and most deeply enamored. He had listened to the Divine summons in the flower of his youth, and set his face toward the Kingdom. He had ripped from his gaze the veils of idle suppositions and had won his heart's desire; neither the fancies current among the people nor the reproaches of which he was the target turned him back. Unshaken, he stood and faced a sea of troubles; staunch with the strength of the Advent day, he confronted those who tried to thwart him and block his path. The more they sought to instill doubts in his mind, the stronger he became; the more they tormented him, the more progress he made. He was a captive of the face of God, enslaved by the beauty of the All-Glorious; a flame of God's love, a jetting fountain of the knowledge of Him.