June 25, 2016

1835: Bahá'u'lláh’s Marriage with Asiyih Khanum

In about October 1835, at the age of eighteen, Bahá'u'lláh married Asiyih Khanum, described as remarkably intelligent, winsome, vivacious, and exceedingly beautiful. She was the younger sister of Bahá'u'lláh’s brother-in-law, who had married His older sister Sarih Khanum about three years earlier. Asiyih Khanum, like Bahá'u'lláh, came from a noble and wealthy family. It is reported that her wedding treasures were so extensive that forty mules were needed to carry them to His home.

In the early years of their married life Bahá'u'lláh and Asiyih Khanum devoted themselves to charitable activities. Their daughter, Bahiyyih Khanum, recounts that they "took part as little as possible in State functions, social ceremonies, and the luxurious habits of ordinary highly-placed and wealthy families in the land of Persia." They "counted these worldly pleasures meaningless, and preferred rather to occupy themselves in caring for the poor, and for all who were unhappy, or in trouble." Their acts of service earned them widespread renown as "The Father of the Poor" and "The Mother of Consolation." 
(Adapted from ‘Call to Remembrance’, by Geoffry Marks, ‘Bahá'u'lláh – A Short Biography’, by Moojan Momen)

June 18, 2016

An example of how Bahá'u'lláh during His youthful years chastised a famous religious leader for showing disrespect towards Christ

Mirza Abu'l-Fadl, a famous Baha’i scholar, relates in one of his works what he himself heard from a divine. 

In a gathering where Bahá'u'lláh was present a famous high-ranking Sufi religious leader who was highly esteemed by Muhammad Shah, was holding forth on the station that a human being can attain. Referring to himself, he said, 'Should my servant come to me and say that Jesus the Christ was at the door, asking for me, my detachment is such that I would express no wish to see Him.' Some of those present kept silent, while others out of flattery murmured assent. Only Bahá'u'lláh spoke up. He turned to the boastful divine who had expressed such disrespect for a Manifestation of God, and said: 'You are very close to the person of the sovereign and he is very devoted to you, but if the chief executioner with ten of his men were to come to this door and tell you that the monarch wanted to see you, would you take it calmly or would you be perturbed?' The arrogant religious leader paused for a while before replying, 'In truth, I would feel anxious.' 'In that case,' said Bahá'u'lláh, 'you should not make such an assertion.' 

Bahá'u'lláh's authoritative statement, according to Mirza Abu'l-Fadl, left them all speechless. 
(Adapted from “Baha’u’llah, the King of Glory’, by H.M. Balyuzi)

June 14, 2016

A mujtahid’s dream about Bahá'u'lláh during His youthful years – recalled by ‘Abdu’l-Baha

'Abdu'l-Baha has described how His own grandmother, who lived in Yalrud (a village near Takur) went one day at dawn to the house of a famous mujtahid to pray. This mujtahid (a doctor of Islamic law) was Shayk Muhammad-Taqi, a distant relative of the family. After the morning prayer he told ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s grandmother that he had some excellent news for her. He had had a dream in which he had found himself outside a house which no one was allowed to enter, because, said the door-keeper, within it the Qa'im of the House of Muhammad (the Promised One of Shi’ih Muslims) was closeted with Mirza Husayn-'Ali of Nur [Bahá'u'lláh]. At first the mujtahid had expressed his surprise that the son of a vizier should be so privileged; but on remembering their distant kinship, he had ascribed the privilege to this fact. 
(Adapted from ‘Bahá'u'lláh, The King of Glory’, by H.M. Balyuzi)

June 11, 2016

An example of Bahá'u'lláh’s great sagacity and insight as a youth

In the village of Yalrud which is near Bahá'u'lláh’s ancestral home in Takur, in northern Iran, there lived a mujtahid by the name of Shaykh Muhammad-Taqi who was well-famed throughout the land. He had a thousand scholars of divinity around him, whom he taught and, from time to time, presented with a complex question to resolve.

Whenever Bahá'u'lláh returned to His home in Takur, He would usually stop for a while in Yalrud, and here He would visit the mujtahid, who was distantly related to His family.

During a visit to Yarud, when Bahá'u'lláh was sitting in the company of Shaykh Muhmmmad-Taqi and other scholars and divines, He was asked to resolve a question they had been unable to answer to the mujtahid's satisfaction.

The problem was this:

An Islamic tradition states that ‘Fatimih is the best of the women of this world, but for the one born of Mary’. But since Mary had no daughter, what did this conundrum mean?

Bahá'u'lláh replied that the initial statement emphasized the impossibility of its alternative, since there could be no other woman comparable to Fatimih. It was like saying that a certain monarch is the greatest of the kings of this world, except for the one who comes down from Heaven; since no king has or will come down from Heaven, the uniqueness of that one monarch is stressed.

Bahá'u'lláh’s explanation left the great mujtahid silent, but next day he upbraided his disciples for having let him down badly. 'I have taught and trained you for years on end,' he complained, 'but when the need arises, I find you wanting in understanding, whereas an unturbaned youth has brilliantly explained the problem I had presented to you.' 
(Adapted from ‘Bahá'u'lláh, The King of Glory’, by H.M. Balyuzi)

June 8, 2016

Bahá'u'lláh was keenly affected by and opposed to all manifestations of injustice

While still young [possibly early teens], the Blessed Beauty [Bahá'u'lláh] watched as a government tax-collector, on three separate occasions, accosted His father and demanded, in a cruel and unjust manner, the payment of taxes. Unable to bear the injustice of it all, He, though still young, mounted His horse and rode for two days until He arrived in Tihran. There, He sought the dismissal of this unjust and tyrannical tax-collector. He succeeded in obtaining the necessary papers ordering the dismissal, and returned to His parents.
(Adapted from Memoirs of Dr. Diya Baghdadi, unpublished, reporting words heard from 'Abdu'l-Baha in ‘Stories of Bahá'u'lláh’, compiled by Hand of the Cause Ali-Akbar Furutan)

June 5, 2016

As a youth Bahá'u'lláh became well known for His unparalleled powers of exposition, yet He was courteous and non-argumentative

By the time Bahá'u'lláh was fourteen, His rare understanding, His complete mastery of argument, and His unparalleled powers or exposition were remarked in all circles. Yet He was never assertive nor argumentative; rather, always courteous and patient. Only one thing aroused His ire, and that was any disrespectful reference to the Messengers or God and His Chosen Ones. Even then He would admonish the offender with kindliness and calm. 
- Balyuzi  (‘Bahá'u'lláh, The King of Glory’)

June 3, 2016

The room Bahá'u'lláh was born in

This is the room Bahá'u'lláh was said to be born in, appropriately between dawn and sunrise, November 12, 1817. It was the main parlor of the house of His father in Tihran. Panes in the upper window are colored red, blue, yellow and green. (source: 'Land of Resplendent Glory', by the International Baha'i Audio-Visual Centre, 1971)

June 1, 2016

Seeing a puppet show at a young age and its marked effect on Bahá'u'lláh

In the Lawh-i-Ra'ís which was “revealed shortly after Bahá'u'lláh's incarceration in the citadel of 'Akká and includes a chilling denunciation of the character of the [Ottoman Prime] Minister”, Ali Pasha (The Universal House of Justice, Introduction to ‘Summons of the Lord of Hosts’), Baha’u’llah describes a puppet show that He saw during His older half-brother’s marriage and its effect on Him:

When I was still a child and had not yet attained the age of maturity, My father made arrangements in Tihran for the marriage of one of My older brothers, and as is customary in that city, the festivities lasted for seven days and seven nights. On the last day it was announced that the play "Shah Sultan Salim" would be presented. A large number of princes, dignitaries, and notables of the capital gathered for the occasion. I was sitting in one of the upper rooms of the building and observing the scene. Presently a tent was pitched in the courtyard, and before long some small human-like figures, each appearing to be no more than about a hand's span in height, were seen to emerge from it and raise the call: "His Majesty is coming! Arrange the seats at once!" Other figures then came forth, some of whom were seen to be engaged in sweeping, others in sprinkling water, and thereafter another, who was announced as the chief town crier, raised his call and bade the people assemble for an audience with the king. Next, several groups of figures made their appearance and took their places, the first attired in hats and sashes after the Persian fashion, the second wielding battleaxes, and the third comprising a number of footmen and executioners carrying bastinados. Finally there appeared, arrayed in regal majesty and crowned with a royal diadem, a kingly figure, bearing himself with the utmost haughtiness and grandeur, at turns advancing and pausing in his progress, who proceeded with great solemnity, poise and dignity to seat himself upon his throne.