CHAPTER XXIII MARTYRDOM OF THE BÁB |
|
1 |
THE tale of the tragedy that marked the closing
stages of the Nayríz upheaval spread over the
length and breadth of Persia and kindled a startling
enthusiasm in the hearts of those who heard it. It
plunged the authorities of the capital into consternation and
nerved them to a resolve of despair. The Amír-Nizám, the Grand
Vazír of Násiri'd-Dín Sháh, was particularly overawed by these
recurrent manifestations of an indomitable will, of a fierce and
inflexible tenacity of faith. Though the forces of the imperial
army had everywhere triumphed, though the companions of
Mullá |
2 | Bestirred to action, he summoned his counsellors, shared with them his fears and his hopes, and acquainted them with the nature of his plans. "Behold," he exclaimed, "the storm which the Faith of the Siyyid-i-Báb has provoked in the hearts of my fellow-countrymen! Nothing short of his public execution can, to my mind, enable this distracted country to recover its tranquillity and peace. Who dare compute the forces that have perished in the course of the engagements at Shaykh Tabarsí? Who can estimate the efforts exerted to secure that victory? No sooner had the mischief that convulsed Mazindarán been suppressed, than the flames of another sedition blazed forth in the province of Fárs, bringing in its wake so much suffering to my people. We had no sooner succeeded in quelling the revolt that had ravaged the south, than another insurrection breaks out in the north, sweeping in its vortex Zanján and its surroundings. If you are able to advise a remedy, acquaint me with it, for my sole purpose is to ensure the peace and honour of my countrymen." |
3 |
Not a single voice dared venture a reply, except that of
Mírzá Áqá Khani-i-Nuri, the Minister of War, who pleaded
[Illustrations: THE BÁB'S PRAYER BEADS AND SIGNET RING; QURÁN BELONGING TO THE BÁB] |
4 |
Disregarding the advice of his counsellor, the Amír-Nizám
despatched his orders to Navváb |
5 |
Forty days before the arrival of that officer at Chihríq,
the Báb collected all the documents and Tablets in His
possession and, placing them, with His pen-case, His seals,
and agate rings, in a coffer, entrusted them to the care of
Mullá Báqir, one of the Letters of the Living. To him He
also delivered a letter addressed to Mírzá |
6 |
Mullá Báqir departed forthwith for Qazvín. Within
eighteen days he reached that town and was informed that
Mírzá |
7 |
Faithful to the instructions he had received from Navváb
|
8 | The prince expressed his consternation to the bearer of the farmán, Mírzá Hasan Khán, the Vazír-Nizám and brother of the Grand Vazír. "The Amír," he told him, "would do better to entrust me with services of greater merit than the one with which he has now commissioned me. The task I am called upon to perform is a task that only ignoble people would accept. I am neither Ibn-i-Ziyad nor Ibn-i-Sa'd [9] that he should call upon me to slay an innocent descendant of the Prophet of God." Mírzá Hasan Khán reported these sayings of the prince to his brother, who thereupon ordered him to follow, himself, without delay and in their entirety, the instructions he had already given. "Relieve us," the Vazír urged his brother, "from this anxiety that weighs upon our hearts, and let this affair be brought to an end ere the month of Ramadán breaks upon us, that we may enter the period of fasting with undisturbed tranquillity." Mírzá Hasan Khán attempted to acquaint the prince with these fresh instructions, but failed in his efforts, as the prince, pretending to be ill, refused to meet him. Undeterred by this refusal, he issued his instructions for the immediate transfer of the Báb and those in His company from the house in which He was staying to one of the rooms of the barracks. He, moreover, directed Sám Khán to despatch ten of his men to guard the entrance of the room in which He was to be confined. |
9 |
Deprived of His turban and sash, the twin emblems of
His noble lineage, the Báb, together with Siyyid |
10 |
I have heard Siyyid |
11 |
Early in the morning, Mírzá Hasan Khán ordered his
farrásh-báshí
[11]
to conduct the Báb into the presence of the
leading mujtahids of the city and to obtain from them the
authorisation required for His execution.
[12]
As the Báb was
leaving the barracks, Siyyid |
12 |
When Mírzá |
13 |
The Báb was, in His turn, brought before Mullá |
14 |
From thence the Báb was conducted to the house of
Mírzá Báqir, the son of Mírzá |
15 | Mullá Murtadá-Qulí, following in the footsteps of the other two mujtahids, had previously issued his own written testimony and refused to meet face to face his dreaded opponent. No sooner had the farrásh-báshí secured the necessary documents than he delivered his Captive into the hands of Sám Khán, assuring him that he could proceed with his task now that he had obtained the sanction of the civil and ecclesiastical authorities of the realm. |
16 |
Siyyid |
17 |
Sám Khán was, in the meantime, finding himself increasingly
affected by the behaviour of his Captive and the
treatment that had been meted out to Him. He was seized
with great fear lest his action should bring upon him the
[Illustration: THE BARRACK-SQUARE IN TABRIZ, WHERE THE BÁB SUFFERED MARTYRDOM. PILLAR ON THE RIGHT MARKED X IS THE PLACE WHERE HE WAS SUSPENDED AND SHOT] |
18 |
Sám Khán ordered his men to drive a nail into the pillar
that lay between the door of the room that Siyyid |
19 |
As soon as the cloud of smoke had cleared away, an astounded
multitude were looking upon a scene which their
eyes could scarcely believe. There, standing before them alive
and unhurt, was the companion of the Báb, whilst He Himself
had vanished uninjured from their sight. Though the cords
with which they were suspended had been rent in pieces by
the bullets, yet their bodies had miraculously escaped the
volleys.
[16]
Even the tunic which Mírzá |
20 |
I was privileged to meet, subsequently, this same Mírzá
Siyyid Muhsin, who conducted me to the scene of the Báb's
martyrdom and showed me the wall where He had been
suspended. I was taken to the room in which He had been
found conversing with Siyyid |
21 | Sám Khán was likewise stunned by the force of this tremendous revelation. He ordered his men to leave the barracks immediately, and refused ever again to associate himself and his regiment with any act that involved the least injury to the Báb. He swore, as he left that courtyard, never again to resume that task even though his refusal should entail the loss of his own life. |
22 | No sooner had Sám Khán departed than Áqá Ján Khan-i-Khamsih, colonel of the body-guard, known also by the names of Khamsíh and Nasiri, volunteered to carry out the order for execution. On the same wall and in the same manner, the Báb and His companion were again suspended, while the regiment formed in line to open fire upon them. Contrariwise to the previous occasion, when only the cord with which they were suspended had been shot into pieces, this time their bodies were shattered and were blended into one mass of mingled flesh and bone. [17] "Had you believed in Me, O wayward generation," were the last words of the Báb to the gazing multitude as the regiment was preparing to fire the final volley, "every one of you would have followed the example of this youth, who stood in rank above most of you, and willingly would have sacrificed himself in My path. The day will come when you will have recognised Me; that day I shall have ceased to be with you." [18] |
23 |
The very moment the shots were fired, a gale of exceptional
severity arose and swept over the whole city. A
whirlwind of dust of incredible density obscured the light
of the sun and blinded the eyes of the people. The entire
city remained enveloped in that darkness from noon till
night. Even so strange a phenomenon, following immediately
in the wake of that still more astounding failure of
Sám Khán's regiment to injure the Báb, was unable to move
the hearts of the people of Tabríz, and to induce them to
pause and reflect upon the significance of such momentous
events. They witnessed the effect which so marvellous an
occurrence had produced upon Sám Khán; they beheld the
consternation of the farrásh-báshí and saw him make his
irrevocable decision; they could even examine that tunic
which, despite the discharge of so many bullets, had remained
whole and stainless; they could read in the face of
the Báb, who had emerged unhurt from that storm, the expression
of undisturbed serenity as He resumed His conversation
with Siyyid |
24 | The martyrdom of the Báb took place at noon on Sunday, the twenty-eighth of Sha'bán, in the year 1266 A.H., [19] thirty-one lunar years, seven months, and twenty-seven days from the day of His birth in Shíráz. |
25 | On the evening of that same day, the mangled bodies of the Báb and His companion were removed from the courtyard of the barracks to the edge of the moat outside the gate of the city. Four companies, each consisting of ten sentinels, were ordered to keep watch in turn over them. On the morning following the day of martyrdom, the Russian consul in Tabríz, accompanied by an artist, went to that spot and ordered that a sketch be made of the remains as they lay beside the moat. [20] |
26 |
I have heard |
27 |
On the afternoon of the second day after the Báb's martyrdom,
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28 |
|
29 |
I was myself in Tihrán, in the company of Mírzá |
30 |
The first in Tihrán to hear of the circumstances attending
that cruel martyrdom, after the Grand Vazír, was Mírzá
Áqá Khán-i-Núrí, who had been banished to Káshán by |
31 | When the news of the Báb's martyrdom reached him, he had already been promoted, had received the title of I'timádu'd-Dawlih, and was hoping to be raised to the position of Grand Vazír. He hastened to inform Bahá'u'lláh, with whom he was intimately acquainted, of the news he had received, expressing the hope that the fire he feared would one day bring untold calamity upon Him, was at last extinguished. "Not so," Bahá'u'lláh replied. "If this be true, you can be certain that the flame that has been kindled will, by this very act, blaze forth more fiercely than ever, and will set up a conflagration such as the combined forces of the statesmen of this realm will be powerless to quench." The significance of these words Mírzá Áqá Khán was destined to appreciate at a later time. Scarcely did he imagine, when that prediction was uttered, that the Faith which had received so staggering a blow could survive its Author. He himself had, on one occasion, been cured by Bahá'u'lláh of an illness from which he had given up all hope of recovery. |
32 | His son, the Nizamu'l-Mulk, one day asked him whether he did not think that Bahá'u'lláh, who, of all the sons of the late Vazír, had shown Himself the most capable, had failed to live up to the tradition of His father and had disappointed the hopes that had been reposed in Him. "My son," he replied, "do you really believe him to be an unworthy son of his father? All that either of us can hope to achieve is but a fleeting and precarious allegiance which will vanish as soon as our days are ended. Our mortal life can never be free from the vicissitudes that beset the path of earthly ambition. Should we even succeed in ensuring, in our lifetime, the honour of our name, who can tell whether, after our death, calumny may not stain our memory and undo the work we have achieved? Even those who, while we are still living, honour us with their lips would, in their hearts, condemn and vilify us were we, for but one moment, to fail to promote their interests. Not so, however, with Bahá'u'lláh. Unlike the great ones of the earth, whatever be their race or rank, he is the object of a love and devotion such as time cannot dim nor enemy destroy. His sovereignty the shadows of death can never obscure nor the tongue of the slanderer undermine. Such is the sway of his influence that no among his loves dare, in the stillness of night, evoke the memory of the faintest desire that could, even remotely, be construed as contrary to his wish. Such lovers will greatly increase in number. The love they bear him will never grow less, and will be transmitted from generation to generation until the world shall have been suffused with its glory." |
33 | The malicious persistence with which a savage enemy sought to ill-treat and eventually to destroy the life of the Báb brought in its wake untold calamities upon Persia and its inhabitants. The men who perpetrated these atrocities fell victims to gnawing remorse, and in an incredibly short period were made to suffer ignominious deaths. As to the great mass of its people, who watched with sullen indifference the tragedy that was being enacted before their eyes, and who failed to raise a finger in protest against the hideousness of those cruelties, they fell, in their turn, victims to a misery which all the resources of the land and the energy of its statesmen were powerless to alleviate. The wind of adversity blew fiercely upon them, and shook to its foundations their material prosperity. From the very day the hand of the assailant was stretched forth against the Báb, and sought to deal its fatal blow, to His Faith, visitation upon visitation crushed the spirit out of that ungrateful people, and brought them to the very brink of national bankruptcy. Plagues, the very names of which were almost unknown to them except for a cursory reference in the dust-covered books which few cared to read, fell upon them with a fury that none could escape. That scourge scattered devastation wherever it spread. Prince and peasant alike felt its sting and bowed to its yoke. It held the populace in its grip, and refused to relax its hold upon them. As malignant as the fever which decimated the province of Gílán, these sudden afflictions continued to lay waste the land. Grievous as were these calamities, the avenging wrath of God did not stop at the misfortunes that befell a perverse and faithless people. It made itself felt in every living being that breathed on the surface of that stricken land. It affected the life of plants and animals alike, and made the people feel the magnitude of their distress. Famine added its horrors to the stupendous weight of afflictions under which the people were groaning. The gaunt spectre of starvation stalked abroad amidst them, and the prospect of a slow and painful death haunted their vision. People and government alike sighed for the relief which they could nowhere obtain. They drank the cup of woe to its dregs, utterly unregardful of the hand which had brought it to their lips, and of the Person for whose sake they were made to suffer. |
34 |
The first who arose to ill-treat the Báb was none other
than |
35 |
The next who sought to challenge the Faith of the Báb
and to stem its progress was |
36 | As to the regiment which, despite the unaccountable failure of Sám Khán and his men to destroy the life of the Báb, had volunteered to renew that attempt, and which eventually riddled His body with its bullets, two hundred and fifty of its members met their death in that same year, together with their officers, in a terrible earthquake. While they were resting on a hot summer day under the shadow of a wall on their way between Ardibíl and Tabríz, absorbed in their games and pleasures, the whole structure suddenly collapsed and fell upon them, leaving not one survivor. The remaining five hundred suffered the same fate as that which their own hands had inflicted upon the Báb. Three years after His martyrdom, that regiment mutinied, and its members were thereupon mercilessly shot by command of Mírzá Sádiq Khán-i-Núrí. Not content with a first volley, he ordered that a second one be fired in order to ensure that none of the mutineers had survived. Their bodies were afterwards pierced with spears and lances, and left exposed to the gaze of the people of Tabríz. That day many of the inhabitants of the city, recalling the circumstances of the Báb's martyrdom, wondered at that same fate which had overtaken those who had slain Him. "Could it be, by any chance, the vengeance of God," a few were heard to whisper to one another, "that has brought the whole regiment to so dishonourable and tragic an end? If that youth had been a lying impostor, why should his persecutors have been so severely punished?" These expressed misgivings reached the ears of the leading mujtahids of the city, who were seized with great fear and ordered that all those who entertained such doubts should be severely punished. Some were beaten, others were fined, all were warned to cease such whisperings, which could only revive the memory of a terrible adversary and rekindle enthusiasm for His Cause. |
37 | The prime mover of the forces that precipitated the Báb's martyrdom, the Amír-Nizám, and also his brother, the Vazír-Nizám, his chief accomplice, were, within two years of that savage act, subjected to a dreadful punishment, which ended miserably in their death. The blood of the Amír-Nizám stains, to this very day, the wall of the bath of Fín, [25] a witness to the atrocities his own hand had wrought. [26] |
1. ["It was only too well known that Bábí's were to be found everywhere. Persia was full of them and, if the minds concerned about transcendental questions, if the philosophers in search of new formulas, if the bruised souls shocked by the injustices and weaknesses of the present day--had given themselves up eagerly to the thought and to the promises of a new and more satisfactory world order, one could properly think that the turbulent imaginations eager for action, even at the price of failure, the brave and militant hearts, and finally the daring and ambitious would easily be tempted to throw themselves in with an army which revealed itself so well supplied with soldiers fit to constitute dauntless battalions. "Mírzá Taqí Khán, cursing the laxity with which his predecessor
2. ["In the meantime,
3. ["The prime minister, having summoned Sulaymán Khán, the Afshar, asked him to carry to Tabríz, to the Prince
4. [June 12-July 11, 1850 A.D.]
5. [According to "A Traveller's Narrative" (p. 42), the Báb had produced no less than three hundred and sixty derivatives from the word "Bahá."]
6. [Title by which Bahá'u'lláh was designated in those days.]
7. ["The end of the Báb's earthly Manifestation is now close upon us. He knew it himself before the event, and was not displeased at the presentiment. He had already `set his house in order,' as regards the spiritual affairs of the Bábí community, which he had, if I mistake not, confided to the intuitive wisdom of Bahá'u'lláh.... It is impossible not to feel that this is far more probable than the view which makes Subh-i-Azal the custodian of the sacred writings and the arranger of a resting-place for the sacred remains. I much fear that the Azalí's have manipulated tradition in the interest of their party." (Dr. T. K. Cheyne's "The Reconciliation of Races and Religions," pp. 65-6.)]
9. [Persecutors of the descendants of
10. ["It is no doubt a singular coincidence that both
11. [See Glossary.]
12. ["On the following day, early in the morning, the people of
14. ["Proof of the devotion and steadfastness of this noble man is afforded by a letter in his own blessed writing which was in the possession of his brother Mullá `Abdu'lláh, who still lives in Tabríz. This letter he wrote from the prison, three days or two days before his martyrdom, in reply to his brother, who had written to him counselling him to turn aside from his devotion and thraldom; and therein he makes his apology. And since the martyr was the younger of the two brethren, therefore he adopts a respectful tone in his letter. The text of this letter of reply is as follows: `He is the Compassionate. O my Qiblih! Thanks be to God, I have no fault to find with my circumstances, and "to every travail rest succeeds." As to what you wrote, that this matter hath no end, what matter, then, hath an end? We, at least, have no discontent therein; being, indeed, unable sufficiently to express our gratitude for this blessing. At most we can but be slain for God's sake, and, oh, what happiness were this! The Lord's will must be accomplished through His servants, neither can prudence avert predestined fate. What God wills comes to pass: there is no strength save in God. O my Qiblih! The end of the life of the world is death: "every soul shall taste of death." If the appointed destiny which the Lord (mighty and glorious is He) hath decreed should overtake me, then God is the guardian of my family, and thou art my trustee; act in such wise as accords with God's good pleasure. Forgive any failure in the respect or duty owed to an elder brother of which I may have been guilty, seek pardon for me from all those of my household, and commend me to God. God is my portion, and how good is He as a guardian!'" (The "Tarikh-i-Jadid," pp. 301-3.)]
15. ["When the condemned are shot in Persia, they are bound to a post looking away from the spectators so that they are not able to see the signals for execution given by the officer." (Journal Asiatique, 1866, tome 7, p. 377.)]
16. ["An intense clamor arose from the crowd at this moment as the onlookers saw the Báb freed from his bonds advancing towards them. Amazing to believe, the bullets had not struck the condemned but, on the contrary, had broken his bonds and he was delivered. It was a real miracle and God alone knows what would have happened without the fidelity and calm of the Christian regiment on this occurrence. The soldiers in order to quiet the excitement of the crowd which, being extremely agitated, was ready to believe the claims of a religion which thus demonstrated its truth, showed the cords broken by the bullets, implying that no miracle had really taken place. At the same time, they seized the Báb and tied him again to the fatal post. This time the execution was effective.
17. [According to "A Traveller's Narrative" (p. 45), "the breasts [of the victims] were riddled and their limbs were completely dissected, except their faces, which were but little marred."]
18. ["Praise be to God who manifested the Point [the Báb] and caused to proceed therefrom the knowledge of all that was and shall be.... He is that Point which God hath made to be an Ocean of light unto the faithful among His servants, and a Ball of Fire unto the deniers among His creatures and the impious among His people." (Bahá'u'lláh, the "Ishráqát," p. 3.) "In His interpretation of the letter `Ha,' He craved martyrdom, saying: `Methinks I heard a voice calling in My inmost being: "Do Thou sacrifice the thing which Thou lovest most in the path of God, even as . l'Asie Centrale," pp. 224-225.) Such a prophet," writes the Rev. Dr. T. K.Cheyne, "was the Báb; we call him `prophet' for want of a better name, `yea, I say unto you, a prophet and more than a prophet.' His combination of mildness and power is so rare that we have to place him in a line with super-normal men.... We learn that at great points in his career, after he had been in an ecstasy, such radiance of might and majesty streamed from his countenance that none could bear to look upon the effulgence of his glory and beauty. Nor was it an uncommon occurrence for unbelievers involuntarily to bow down in lowly obeisance on beholding His Holiness-- while the inmates of the castle though for the most part Christians and Sunnis, reverently prostrated themselves whenever they saw the visage of His Holiness. Such transfiguration is well known to the saints. It was regarded as the affixing of the heavenly seal to the reality and completeness of [the] Báb's detachment." ("The Reconciliation of Races and Religions," pp. 8-9.) "Who can fail to be attracted by the gentle spirit of Mírzá
20. ["`The Emperor of Russia,' he [
21. [See Glossary. . "Following an immemorial custom of the Orient, usage exemplified at the siege of Bethulie as well as at the tomb of our Lord, the sentinel is a soldier who sleeps, to his heart's content, at the post which he is expected to guard." (Comte de Gobineau's "Les Religions et les Philosophies dans l'Asie Centrale," p. 166.) "We have been able to see throughout this history what the Persian guards are; their functions consist principally in sleeping by the trust that they are given to watch over." (A. L. M. Nicolas' "Siyyid
22. ["M. de Gobineau, in agreement with the authors of the Nasikhu't-Tavarikh, of Rawdatu's-Safa, of Mir'atu'l-Buldan, in a word with all the official historians, relates that after the execution the body of the Báb was thrown in a moat of the city and devoured by dogs. In reality it was not so, and we shall see why this news had been spread by the authorities of Tabríz (little eager to draw upon themselves a rebuke of the government for a favor dearly sold) and by the Bábí's, desirous to prevent any further investigation by the police. The most reliable testimony of the actual witnesses of the drama or of its actors do not leave me any doubt that the body of Siyyid
23. ["Tihrán is thus endowed in respect of the mausoleum and sanctuary of Sháh `Abdu'l-`Azím. Reposing beneath a golden-plated dome, whose scintillations I had seen from afar while riding towards the city, the remains of this holy individual are said to attract an annual visitation of 300 thousand persons. I find that most writers discreetly veil their ignorance of the identity of the saint by describing him as `a holy Musulman, whose shrine is much frequented by the pious Tihránís. It appears, however, that long before the advent of Islám this had been a sacred spot, as the sepulchre of a lady of great sanctity, in which connection it may be noted that the shrine is still largely patronised by women. Here, after the Musulman conquest, was interred Imám-Zádih
24. [A local shrine in Tihrán.]
25. ["It is true," writes Lord Curzon, "that his [Násiri'd-Dín Sháh's] reign has been disfigured by one or two acts of regrettable violence; worst among which was the murder of his first Prime Minister, Mírzá Taqí Khán, the Amír-Nizám.... The brother-in-law of the Sháh, and the first subject in the kingdom, he owed the vindictiveness of court intrigue and to the maliciously excited jealously of his youthful sovereign, a disgrace which his enemies were not satisfied until they had fulfilled by the death of their fallen, but still formidable victim." ("Persia and the Persian Question," vol. 1, p. 402.)]
26. ["Every one knew that the Bábís had foretold the death of the prime minister and predicted the manner of his going. It happened precisely, it is said, as the martyrs of Zanján, Mírzá Ridá,