TheBab
From Bahai9
(Note: This page needs to be adapted to follow the site rules and to be reconciled with the page, The Báb)
History (source: Balyuzi, The Bab)
a. arrival date
d. departure date
Shiraz I (1819 - 1835-1836)
The Bab was born in Shiraz on October 20th, 1819 with the birthname Ali-Muhammad. He attended school in Shiraz until his mid teens at which time he joined the family business (merchanting). Shortly after becoming a merchant the Bab moved to Bushir.
Bushir (1835-1836 - 1841)
The Bab moved to Bushir to work in the family trading house and assumed complete management of it at the age of twenty.
Pilgrimage to Iraq (1841)
The Bab left for pilgrimage in 1841 and visited the holy cities of Iraq. The trip lasted about seven months. While in Karbila the Bab met both Siyyid Kazim and MullaHusayn. The former recognized the Bab's station but did not disclose this fact because the time was not yet right.
Route: Bushir, Najaf, Karbila, Kazimayn, Samarra, Shiraz
Shiraz II (1841 - Sept. 9 1844)
After returning from pilgrimage the Bab lived in Shiraz. While there he married Khadjih Bagnum in August 1842 and they conceived a son, Ahmad, but he died shortly after birth. The Bab apparently was a merchant during this time, but his connection with the family business is unknown. During this stay in Shiraz, the Bab declared his Mission to MullaHusayn and the remainder of the LettersOfTheLiving, including Quddus, found the Bab.
Pilgrimage to Arabia (Sept. 9 1844 - early July 1845)
After all the Letters of the Living found the Bab, he gave each Letter a mission and then departed for pilgrimage, accompanied by Quddus, to Medina and Mecca. While in Mecca the Bab publicly and dramatically proclaimed himself to be the Promised One (Qa'im) while standing infront of the Ka'ba, the focal point of the Hajj, the Islamic pilgrimage. He was largely ignored. The Bab also sent a letter via Quddus to the Sharif of Mecca declaring himself the Qa'im but this letter was ignored as well. Shoghi Effendi, in the epilogue to the Dawn Breakers, states: "The plan He (the Bab) had, at the very outset of his career, conceived of inaugurating His Mission with a public proclamation in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina failed to materialise as He had hoped." From this statement one thinks the Bab hoped to start a major religious movement in Mecca. If so, this effort failed miserably.
Route: Bushir (d. Oct. 2, 1844 by sail), Jiddah, Mecca (a. Dec 12, 1844), Medina (a. Jan. 10, 1845, d. Feb. 12, 1845), Jiddah (d. Feb. 27, 1845), Bushir (a. Feb-Mar 1845), Dalaki
Shiraz III (Summer 1845 - Late Aug-Early Sept 1846)
Upon returning to Bushir, the Bab sent Quddus to Shiraz. While in Shiraz, Quddus managed to inflame the hatred of the Shirazi divines. Quddus, along with the first Shirazi Bab'is who were not Letters of the Living, were tortured and expelled from the city. Husayn Khan, the governor of Shiraz, ordered his guards to Bushir to arrest the Bab and bring him back to Shiraz. The Bab's activities in Bushir while Quddus was in Shiraz is unknown. The Bab eventually began the journey back to Shiraz, and was met by the guards in Dalaki, to whom the Bab surrendered willingly. The Bab was brought to Shiraz, and while there interrogated by Husayn Khan. Eventually Husayn Khan agreed to release the Bab on condition he leave Shiraz. The Bab's total time in Shiraz was about fifteen months.
Isfahan (Late Aug-Early Sept 1846 - Feb-Mar 1847)
The Bab after Shiraz chose to go to Isfahan. Manuchir Khan, the governor of Isfahan, became a Babi after meeting the Bab and kept the Bab in hiding under his protection. While in Isfahan Manuchir Khan protected the Bab but Manuchir Khan died and Manuchir Khan's nephew Gurgin Khan, who was an enemy of the Bab'is, became governor. Gurgin Khan immediately informed the Muhammad Shah, the "king" of Persia, the Bab was in Isfahan and the Shah ordered the Bab be brought to Tehran under armed escort immediately. The Bab stayed in Isfahan a total of four months.
Mah-Ku (Feb-Mar 1847 - April 9, 1848)
As the Bab approached Tihran, in the vicinity of the fortress of Kinar-Gard, Haji Mirza Aqasi, the Grand Vizier (roughly equivalent to Prime Minister) of Persia ordered the Bab taken to the village of Kulayn to prevent the meeting of the Shah and the Bab. Eventually the party reached the fortress and village of Mah-Ku, which began the Bab's incarceration. While in Mah-Ku, the Bab won over the prison warden, Ali Khan, as well as the townpeople. This devlopment disturbed Aqasi as well as the Russian Envoy, who feared disturbances because Mah-Ku was close to the Russian border. The Bab stayed in Mah-Ku nine months.
Route: Kashan, Qumrud, Kinar-Gird, Kulayn, Tabriz, Mah-Ku
Chiqriq (April 9, 1848 - June 1850)
At the instigation of Aqasi and the Russian Envoy the Bab was transferred to Chiriq. In July-August 1848 the Bab was brought to Tabriz (a. last week of July 1848), interviewed, and returned to Chiqriq (a. first days of August 1848).
Tabriz (June 1850 - July 9, 1850)
The Bab arrived in Tabriz June 29, 1850. He was martyred on July 9, 1850.
