This distinguished man, Mulla Muhammad-'Ali,(28) was one of those whose
hearts were drawn to Baha'u'llah before the Declaration of the Bab; it was
then that he drank the red wine of knowledge from the hands of the
Cupbearer of grace. It happened that a prince, who was the son of Mir
Asadu'llah _Kh_an, prince of Qa'in, was commanded to remain as a political
hostage in Tihran. He was young, far away from his loving father, and
Mulla Muhammad-'Ali was his tutor and guardian. Since the youth was a
stranger in Tihran, the Blessed Beauty showed him special kindness. Many a
night the young prince was Baha'u'llah's guest at the mansion, and Mulla
Muhammad-'Ali would accompany him. This was prior to the Declaration of
the Bab.
It was then that this chief of all trusted friends was captivated by
Baha'u'llah, and wherever he went, spread loving praise of Him. After the
way of Islam, he also related the great miracles which he had, with his
own eyes, seen Baha'u'llah perform, and the marvels he had heard. He was
in ecstasy, burning up with love. In that condition, he returned to Qa'in
with the prince.
Later on that eminent scholar, Aqa Muhammad of Qa'in (whose title was
Nabil-i-Akbar) was made a mujtahid, a doctor of religious law, by the late
_Sh_ay_kh_ Murtada; he left, then, for Ba_gh_dad, became an ardent
follower of Baha'u'llah, and hastened back to Persia. The leading divines
and mujtahids were well aware of and acknowledged his vast scholarly
accomplishments, the breadth of his learning, and his high rank. When he
reached Qa'in, he began openly to spread the new Faith. The moment Mulla
Muhammad-'Ali heard the name of the Blessed Beauty, he immediately
accepted the Bab. "I had the honor," he said, "of meeting the Blessed
Beauty in Tihran. The instant I saw Him, I became His slave."
In his village of Sar-_Ch_ah, this gifted, high-minded man began to teach
the Faith. He guided in his own family and saw to the others as well,
bringing a great multitude under the law of the love of God, leading each
one to the path of salvation.
Up to that time he had always been a close companion of Mir Alam _Kh_an,
the Governor of Qa'in, had rendered him important services, and had
enjoyed the Governor's respect and trust. Now that shameless prince turned
against him in a rage on account of his religion, seized his property and
plundered it; for the Amir was terrified of Nasiri'd-Din _Sh_ah. He
banished Nabil-i-Akbar and ruined Nabil of Qa'in. After throwing him in
prison and torturing him, he drove him out as a homeless vagrant.
To Nabil, the sudden calamity was a blessing, the sacking of his earthly
goods, the expulsion into the desert, was a kingly crown and the greatest
favor God could grant him. For some time he remained in Tihran, to outward
seeming a pauper of no fixed abode, but inwardly rejoicing; for this is
the characteristic of every soul who is firm in the Covenant.
He had access to the society of the great and knew the condition of the
various princes. He would, therefore, frequent some of them and give them
the message. He was a consolation to the hearts of the believers and as a
drawn sword to the enemies of Baha'u'llah. He was one of those of whom we
read in the Qur'an: "For the Cause of God shall they strive hard; the
blame of the blamer shall they not fear."(29) Day and night he toiled to
promote the Faith, and with all his might to spread abroad the clear signs
of God. He would drink and drink again of the wine of God's love, was
clamorous as the storm clouds, restless as the waves of the sea.
Permission came, then, for him to visit the Most Great Prison; for in
Tihran, as a believer, he had become a marked man. They all knew of his
conversion; he had no caution, no patience, no reserve; he cared nothing
for reticence, nothing for dissimulation. He was utterly fearless and in
terrible danger.
When he arrived at the Most Great Prison, the hostile watchers drove him
off, and try as he might he found no way to enter. He was obliged to leave
for Nazareth, where he lived for some time as a stranger, alone with his
two sons, Aqa Qulam-Husayn and Aqa 'Ali-Akbar, grieving and praying. At
last a plan was devised to introduce him into the fortress and he was
summoned to the prison where they had immured the innocent. He came in
such ecstasy as cannot be described, and was admitted to the presence of
Baha'u'llah. When he entered there and lifted his eyes to the Blessed
Beauty he shook and trembled and fell unconscious to the floor.
Baha'u'llah spoke words of loving-kindness to him and he rose again. He
spent some days hidden in the barracks, after which he returned to
Nazareth.
The inhabitants of Nazareth wondered much about him. They told one another
that he was obviously a great and distinguished man in his own country, a
notable and of high rank; and they asked themselves why he should have
chosen such an out-of-the-way corner of the world as Nazareth and how he
could be contented with such poverty and hardship.
When, in fulfillment of the promise of the Most Great Name, the gates of
the Prison were flung wide, and all the friends and travelers could enter
and leave the fortress-town in peace and with respect, Nabil of Qa'in
would journey to see Baha'u'llah once in every month. However, as
commanded by Him, he continued to live in Nazareth, where he converted a
number of Christians to the Faith; and there he would weep, by day and
night, over the wrongs that were done to Baha'u'llah.
His means of livelihood was his business partnership with me. That is, I
provided him with a capital of three krans;(30) with it he bought needles,
and this was his stock-in-trade. The women of Nazareth gave him eggs in
exchange for his needles and in this way he would obtain thirty or forty
eggs a day: three needles per egg. Then he would sell the eggs and live on
the proceeds. Since there was a daily caravan between Akka and Nazareth,
he would refer to Aqa Rida each day, for more needles. Glory be to God! He
survived two years on that initial outlay of capital; and he returned
thanks at all times. You can tell how detached he was from worldly things
by this one fact: the Nazarenes used to say it was plain to see from the
old man's manner and behavior that he was very rich, and that if he lived
so modestly it was only because he was a stranger in a strange
place--hiding his wealth by setting up as a peddler of needles.
Whenever he came into the presence of Baha'u'llah he received still more
evidences of favor and love. For all seasons, he was a close friend and
companion to me. When sorrows attacked me I would send for him, and then I
would rejoice just to see him again. How wonderful his talk was, how
attractive his society. Bright of face he was; free of heart; loosed from
every earthly tie, always on the wing. Toward the end he made his home in
the Most Great Prison, and every day he entered the presence of
Baha'u'llah.
On a certain day, walking through the bazar with his friends, he met a
gravedigger named Haji Ahmad. Although in the best of health, he addressed
the gravedigger and laughingly told him: "Come along with me." Accompanied
by the believers and the gravedigger he made for Nabiyu'llah Salih. Here
he said: "O Haji Ahmad, I have a request to make of you: when I move on,
out of this world and into the next, dig my grave here, beside the Purest
Branch.(31) This is the favor I ask." So saying, he gave the man a gift of
money.
That very evening, not long after sunset, word came that Nabil of Qa'in
had been taken ill. I went to his home at once. He was sitting up, and
conversing. He was radiant, laughing, joking, but for no apparent reason
the sweat was pouring off his face--it was rushing down. Except for this he
had nothing the matter with him. The perspiring went on and on; he
weakened, lay in his bed, and toward morning, died.
Baha'u'llah would refer to him with infinite grace and loving-kindness,
and revealed a number of Tablets in his name. The Blessed Beauty was wont,
after Nabil's passing, to recall that ardor, the power of that faith, and
to comment that here was a man who had recognized Him, prior to the advent
of the Bab.
All hail to him for this wondrous bestowal. "Blessedness awaiteth him and
a goodly home... And God will single out for His mercy whomsoever He
willeth."(32)