Bicentenary Poems and Prose

Alphabet of Faith: To The Bab

Alphabet of Faith:
To The Bab

Ali-Muhammad, on May 23, 1844, announced that He had received a new revelation from God. He took the title "Bab", which means "Gate". because he was also the forerunner of someone who would bring a much greater Revelation from God.1

Bábu’l-Báb, "Gate of the Gate, was the title The Bab gave to Mullá Husayn Bushrú’í the first person to declare his belief in The Bab.2

Commentary on the Surih of Joseph was the first of the scripture revealed by the Bab. It was revealed on the night The Bab declared his mission to Mullá Husayn Bushrú’í.

Dawn of a new day! The Bab is an independent Manifestations of God and the Dawn of the day of unity. His appearance indicated the maturity of humanity and the coming of God's kingdom on Earth.

Each one of the divine Manifestations or Prophets, has declared the existence of God, while representing the God Head to humanity. The Bab is the bridge between the Prophetic Cycle, which ended with Muhammad, and the cycle of fulfillment, which begin with the appearance of the Bab and Baha'u'llah.

Fort Tabarsi was constructed at the Shrine of Shaykh Tabarsi by Mulla Husayn and other Babi's who were being attacked by the Army of `Abdu'lláh Khán, who was intent on executing every Babi he encountered. When 'Abdu'lláh Khán'a troops attacked, the Babi's defended themselves without returning the attack to Khan's troops.

Guidance, the Bab tells us, is through "love and compassion".3

Husayn Ali, Baha'u'llah (the Glory of God), was born in Tehran on November 12, 1817.4 Baha'u'llah, the one who the Bab referred to as "Him Whom God Will Make Manifest"5 declared his mission in 1863 in a garden outside of Baghdad.

I contemplate the titles of the Bab the Primal Point, the Mystic Fane, and other given Him by Baha'u'llah and 'Abdu'l-Baha6. I wonder how I can include them in poems dedicated to His Holiness the Bab.

July 9, 1850, at noon in the town square of Tabriz, Persia (Iran) The Bab, along with Anis, a young follower who requested to be at the Bab's side, was executed by a regiment of 750 rifles.7

Khadijih Begum was the wife of The Bab. They were married on August 25, 1842, and a year later she gave birth to a son, who lived a few months.8

Letters of the Living are the first eighteen believers in The Bab.

Maku and Chiriq the mountain fortresses in which the Bab was imprisoned before his trial and execution.

Nabil's Narrative: The Dawn Breakers is the history of the Babi and early years of the Baha'i Faith. It was written by Nabíl-i-Zarandí aka Nabíl-i-A’ẓam, who is also known as Mullá Muḥammad-i-Zarandí.9

October 20, 1819: I meditate on the Birth of the Bab. I wonder if His mother, Fátimih, knew that He would sacrifice Himself for the unity of humanity.

Persian Bayan was revealed by the Holy Spirit to the Bab in 1847-1848 when He was imprisoned in Maku. It is the Bab's book of laws to the Babi community.

Quddús10, one of the Letters of the Living, was the title given to Mullá Muhammad-‘Alí Bárfurúshí, who accompanied The Bab on His pilgrimage to Mecca.11

Revelation is progressive. Each religion has been revealed through a prophet-manifestation who reflects to humanity the attributes of the Almighty and Unknowable Creator. The Bab was a lamp light by the Hand of God to guide humanity into a new age of unity.

Son of the Bab, Ahmad Shirazi. After his death he was buried under a cypress tree.12

Táhirih, the Pure One, was the only woman among the Letters of the Living. This title was given to her at the Conference in Badasht, which marked the demarcation of the Babi faith from that of Islam. At this conference, Tahirih removed her veil and walked across the compound, shocking most of the men there.13

Umm’ul-Ká’inát, is the title given to Ásíyih Khánum Baha'u'llah's wife. She is the mother of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Bahá’iyyih Khánum, and Mirzá Mehdi, as well as two children who died very young. Another title of Asiyih Khanum was Mother of Consolation.14

Vahid Akbar, also known as Siyyid Yahya-i-Darabi, was appointed by Muhammad Shah to determine the truth of the Bab's claim. As a results of several meeting with the Bab, Vahid became a Babi.15

Xenophilia, "an attraction to foreign peoples, cultures, or customs."16 In its inmost essence, Xenophilia demonstrates the oneness of humanity.

Youth, young men and women full of zeal, proclaimed the message of the Bab and shed their blood for the propagation of His faith.

Zanjan is a province in Iran. It was also the home of Hujjat-i-Zanjáni, whose given name was Mullá Muhammad-`Alí. He was one of the martyrs at Fort of ‘Alí-Mardán Khán, Zanján, Iran on January 8, 1851.17

Poet's Note: ▼

Poem 32 of 200 I am writing to commemorate the Bicentenary of the Birth of the Bab "I Blog Poetry and Prose"  "Alphabet of Faith: To The Bab" .

Footnotes
1  http://bahaichronicles.org/bab/
2  http://bahaichronicles.org/mulla-husayn-bushrui/
3  Selections from the Writings of The Bab, 3. Excerpts from the Persian Bayán.
4  https://www.bahaullah.org/iran/bahaullah-childhood
5  See Selections from the Writings of The Bab 5 Excerpts from the Kitáb-i-Asmá’ (The Book of Names).
6  https://www.bahaiblog.net/2014/10/bab-harbinger-great-light/
7  https://bahaiteachings.org/why-do-we-kill-our-prophets-the-martyrdom-of-the-bab
8  http://bahaichronicles.org/khadijih-baghum/
9  http://bahaichronicles.org/nabil-i-zarandi/
10  Means the Most Holy.
11  http://bahaichronicles.org/quddus/
12  http://bahaichronicles.org/ahmad-shirazi/
13  http://bahaichronicles.org/tahirih/
14  http://bahaichronicles.org/asiyih-khanum/
15  http://bahaichronicles.org/siyyid-yahya-darabi-vahid/
16  https://www.dictionary.com/browse/xenophilia
17  http://bahaichronicles.org/hujjat-i-zanjan/