The two visitors could not recover from their surprise, for it was widely
known that this personage was unique among mujtahids and was the most
favored disciple of the renowned _Sh_ay_kh_ Murtada.
Later, Nabil-i-Akbar left for Persia and went on to _Kh_urasan. The Amir
of Qa'in--Mir Alam _Kh_an--showed him every courtesy at first, and greatly
valued his company. So marked was this that people felt the Amir was
captivated by him, and indeed he was spellbound at the scholar's
eloquence, knowledge, and accomplishments. One can judge, from this, what
honors were accorded to Nabil by the rest, for "men follow the faith of
their kings."
Nabil spent some time thus esteemed and in high favor, but the love he had
for God was past all concealing. It burst from his heart, flamed out and
consumed its coverings.
A thousand ways I tried
My love to hide--
But how could I, upon that blazing pyre
Not catch fire!
He brought light to the Qa'in area and converted a great number of people.
And when he had become known far and wide by this new name, the clergy,
envious and malevolent, arose, and informed against him, sending their
calumnies on to Tihran, so that Nasiri'd-Din _Sh_ah rose up in wrath.
Terrified of the _Sh_ah, the Amir attacked Nabil with all his might. Soon
the whole city was in an uproar, and the populace, lashed to fury, turned
upon him.
That enraptured lover of God never gave way, but withstood them all. At
last, however, they drove him out--drove out that man who saw what they did
not--and he went up to Tihran, where he was a fugitive, and homeless.
Here, his enemies struck at him again. He was pursued by the watchmen;
guards looked everywhere for him, asking after him in every street and
alley, hunting him down to catch and torture him. Hiding, he would pass by
them like the sigh of the oppressed, and rise to the hills; or again, like
the tears of the wronged, he would slip down into the valleys. He could no
longer wear the turban denoting his rank; he disguised himself, putting on
a layman's hat, so that they would fail to recognize him and would let him
be.
In secret, with all his powers he kept on spreading the Faith and setting
forth its proofs, and was a guiding lamp to many souls. He was exposed to
danger at all times, always vigilant and on his guard. The Government
never gave up its search for him, nor did the people cease from discussing
his case.
He left, then, for Bu_kh_ara and I_sh_qabad, continuously teaching the
Faith in those regions. Like a candle, he was using up his life; but in
spite of his sufferings he was never dispirited, rather his joy and ardor
increased with every passing day. He was eloquent of speech; he was a
skilled physician, a remedy for every ill, a balm to every sore. He would
guide the Illuminati by their own philosophical principles, and with the
mystics he would prove the Divine Advent in terms of "inspiration" and the
"celestial vision." He would convince the _Sh_ay_kh_i leaders by quoting
the very words of their late Founders, _Sh_ay_kh_ Ahmad and Siyyid Kazim,
and would convert Islamic theologians with texts from the Qur'an and
traditions from the Imams, who guide mankind aright. Thus he was an
instant medicine to the ailing, and a rich bestowal to the poor.
He became penniless in Bu_kh_ara and a prey to many troubles, until at the
last, far from his homeland, he died, hastening away to the Kingdom where
no poverty exists.
Nabil-i-Akbar was the author of a masterly essay demonstrating the truth
of the Cause, but the friends do not have it in hand at the present time.
I hope that it will come to light, and will serve as an admonition to the
learned. It is true that in this swiftly passing world he was the target
of countless woes; and yet, all those generations of powerful clerics,
those _sh_ay_kh_s like Murtada and Mirza Habibu'llah and
Ayatu'llah-i-_Kh_urasani and Mulla Asadu'llah-i-Mazandarani--all of them
will disappear without a trace. They will leave no name behind them, no
sign, no fruit. No word will be passed down from any of them; no man will
tell of them again. But because he stood steadfast in this holy Faith,
because he guided souls and served this Cause and spread its fame, that
star, Nabil, will shine forever from the horizon of abiding light.
It is clear that whatever glory is gained outside the Cause of God turns
to abasement at the end; and ease and comfort not met with on the path of
God are finally but care and sorrow; and all such wealth is penury, and
nothing more.
A sign of guidance, he was, an emblem of the fear of God. For this Faith,
he laid down his life, and in dying, triumphed. He passed by the world and
its rewards; he closed his eyes to rank and wealth; he loosed himself from
all such chains and fetters, and put every worldly thought aside. Of wide
learning, at once a mujtahid, a philosopher, a mystic, and gifted with
intuitive sight, he was also an accomplished man of letters and an orator
without a peer. He had a great and universal mind.
Praise be to God, at the end he was made the recipient of heavenly grace.
Upon him be the glory of God, the All-Glorious. May God shed the
brightness of the Abha Kingdom upon his resting-place. May God welcome him
into the Paradise of reunion, and shelter him forever in the realm of the
righteous, submerged in an ocean of lights.