The Báb’s Childhood and Youth

The Qur'an Gate is a famous monument in Shiraz.In a prayer the
Báb said that here He experienced "the evidences of
Thy [God's] boundless grace"

If you want to get a message to a friend, you can easily text, call, or video chat. But sharing news wasn’t always so simple.

In Persia during the early 1800s, there was no electricity. It hadn’t been invented yet. People delivered letters on foot or by horse. And you were lucky if you even knew how to write a letter! Many people lived in poverty and couldn’t afford to go to school. Girls and women usually weren’t taught how to read and write.

Into this culture, a remarkable child was born on October 20, 1819, in Shíráz. His mother, Fátimih, and His father, Muhammad-Ridá, were descendants of the Prophet Muhammad. They named Him ‘Alí-Muhammad, but He later took the name “the Báb," which means “the Gate" in Arabic.

Serene and gentle, even as a baby, the Báb became known for His courteous and sweet character as He grew. His father died when He was young, and His uncle, Hájí Mírzá Siyyid ‘Alí, loved and raised Him like his own son.

When the Báb went to school He showed such extraordinary knowledge that His teacher took Him home and told His uncle, "He, verily, stands in no need of teachers such as I.”

Shining Lamp: Mullá Husayn

Artistic conception of Mullá Husayn;
no known photos are available

"A secret lies hidden in that city," the Báb told Mullá Husayn, referring to Tihrán, Iran. The secret "shall turn the earth into paradise."

The Báb was a Messenger of God Who taught that another Messenger would come to bring an age of peace. He sent Mullá Husayn to teach the Bábí Faith in several cities, including Tihrán.

Mullá Husayn was born in northern Iran in 1813. When he was a young student, his family thought he would become a famous Muslim leader. But Mullá Husayn followed his own path. He found teachers who helped him prepare for the next Messenger of God. He was the first to believe in the Báb.

It was hard for Mullá Husayn to leave the Báb on his journey, but the Báb said that God's angels would be with him. In Tihrán, he learned of a man named Husayn-'Ali, Who was known for His love and service to others. Mullá Husayn sent Him the writings of the Báb, which Husayn-'Ali immediately knew were inspired by God. He sent a gift of sugar and tea in return. Mullá Husayn was filled with joy. Was this the secret the Báb had mentioned? Years later, Husayn-'Ali became known as Bahá'u'lláh, the Messenger of God promised by the Báb.

Mullá Husayn left Tihrán and continued teaching the Bábí Faith. Soon the Báb's enemies, upset about the new ideas He taught, complained to the government. The Báb was sent to Máh-Kú, a remote mountain prison. Mullá Husayn decided to visit Him—a journey of 1,200 miles (1,931 km). Though friends offered him carriages and horses, he answered, "I have vowed to walk the whole distance that separates me from my Beloved." On the way, he met Bahá'u'lláh face-to-face, though no one knows what was said.

The Dervish

A story from The Dawn-Breakers:

Sometimes we don’t say what we mean clearly in our words, but may show what we really mean in another way. When this happens, it takes someone of an unusual gift to understand. See what happened when Bahá’u’lláh met a dervish.

One day after Bahá’u’lláh had received the wonderful message of the Báb, He was riding in the countryside. At this time, no one knew that Bahá’u’lláh was the Great Prophet promised by the Báb. This was God’s secret to protect Bahá’u’lláh in His early years.

As Bahá’u’lláh was riding. He saw a very strange man. He was squatting down beside his fire, cooking. He was a dervish. Bahá’u’lláh greeted him very kindly and courteously and asked the man what he was doing.

The dervish answered, "I am eating God. I am cooking and burning Him.”

Although Bahá’u’lláh knew this was impossible, He didn't laugh. He was pleased. He saw that this man spoke simply and honestly from his own belief and desire to be near to God. Bahá’u’lláh loved this strange man. Gently and lovingly He spoke to him, and told the dervish about the true nature of God.

Although many people might think he was a fool, this dervish had a very pure heart. Bahá’u’lláh, being very wise, saw this. The dervish was deeply touched by the powerful spirit of Bahá’u’lláh. He forgot completely his own silly ideas when looking into the face of Bahá’u’lláh and listening to His words. He straightaway stood up, leaving his things behind him, and followed Bahá’u’lláh.

This dervish alone saw what no one else could see: that Bahá’u’lláh was a Prophet of God. As he followed Bahá’u’lláh on foot, he made up a poem:

Thou art the Daystar of Guidance.

Thou art the Light of Truth.

Unveil Thyself to Men,

O Revealer of the Truth.

As the man wandered in the countryside chanting, his poem became very famous. People from all around would learn it and repeat it. But they never knew his secret: this wonderful love-poem was about Bahá’u’lláh, the messenger of God for this day!

(by Susan Allen; Brilliant Star magazine March-April 1986)

The Wide Wide Universe

Have you ever wondered about how the universe started and where it is going? These are big questions that have puzzled people for thousands of years. These questions are hard to even think about because they involve very large distances and times. Many astronomers are busy studying this question in a special kind of astronomy called COSMOLOGY. And a funny thing is happening: the more the scientists know, the closer science and religion are coming together! This doesn’t surprise Baha’i children since we know you understand what our Faith says about how science and religion agree and are different ways of telling the truth.

Scientists have several different ideas about how the universe began. For a long time, the most popular theory was called “The Big Bang Theory”. The scientists who believe that this idea might be true say that billions of years ago, all the matter in the universe was in one small, closely-packed area. It was heavier than anyone could imagine. All this matter was so tightly packed together that the atoms bumped into each other so much and so fast that the matter was heated to a temperature of trillions of degrees. The mass of matter was so very hot that even the strongest force we know — the force that holds the nucleus of the atom together — was overcome. The nuclei of the atoms were ripped apart by this tremendous heat and motion, and finally this fireball of all the matter in the universe exploded in an event that scientists call “the big bang”. The exploded fireball cast its matter outward. The Big Bang Theory says that galaxies may have formed as the matter cooled, and that the galaxies will continue to fly apart until finally all of the hydrogen—the stuff stars are made of—will be used up and the universe will expand into cold, dark nothingness.

The Káshi

We are told that in the province of Káshán in Persia the people are very peace-loving, and so gentle are they that violence of any kind is enough to make them very frightened.

One day Bahá’u’lláh was making a journey and with Him was a Káshi, as these people are called. They were riding along the road in the dark, their donkeys going as fast as they could to reach the place where they were going to stay for the night. When the place was reached, they cast themselves down and slept, for the journey had been long and they were very tired. 

Next morning when the Káshi awoke, he saw that the donkey on which he had been riding was saddled with a tiger skin. So timid was he that the thought of riding on a tiger skin made him very much afraid, and he would not ride on the donkey again but chose another instead.

When Bahá’u’lláh and the Káshi resumed their journey, news was brought to them that several hundred men were coming to kill them, for as you know, Bahá’u’lláh had a great many enemies. The Káshi was terribly afraid, but Bahá’u’lláh told him to buckle a large sword round his waist. 

"Who, me?" answered the Káshi, shaking with fear, 

"Yes, you, My friend,’’ answered Bahá’u’lláh.

So, although he was very afraid, he buckled on a large sword for who could disobey such a Master? 

The Káshi was very small and the sword very long. When he tried to walk he nearly fell down, for the long sword kept getting between his legs. 

Soon the enemy came in sight, shouting fierce cries and waving their swords and guns.

"What now, Master?" asked the little man, still shaking with fear. 

"You must go and defeat them," he was told.

The Ocean of Knowledge

When Baha’u’llah was twenty-one years old, His father passed away and the Government wanted Him to take up His father’s position in the Ministry, as was customary in Iran. But Baha’u’llah did not accept the offer. The Prime Minister then said : “Leave Him to Himself. Such a position is unworthy of Him. He has some higher aim in view. I cannot understand Him, but I am convinced that He is destined for some lofty career. His thoughts are not like ours. Leave Him alone.”

Once when Baha’u’llah was quite young He travelled to Nur, a district of Mazindaran where His relatives lived. There is a village in Nur, by the name of Takur, and Baha’u’llah's father owned vast property there. It was here that the family spent most of their summers.

In those days, there was a religious teacher named Muhammad Taqi. He was very famous for his knowledge of religion and his students were proud of having him as their teacher.

One day in his class of about 200 students, Muhammad Taqi read an Islamic tradition and asked his students to interpret it. None of them could answer correctly. Baha’u’llah, who was also present, asked permission to explain the tradition and did so in very simple and sweet words. Everyone was astonished. Muhammad Taqi was very upset at the weakness of his own students. When Baha’u’llah left, the teacher told his students that it was a shame that after all these years of study not one of them was capable of answering, and the Youth (Baha’u’llah) who had never attended any school gave the meaning so simple and beautifully. Of course Muhammad Taqi was not aware of the fact that Baha’u’llah was not an ordinary person and therefore His knowledge and understanding were not ordinary either. He had innate divine knowledge.