Early in youth, Muhammad-'Ali Sabbaq became a believer while in 'Iraq. He
tore away hindering veils and doubts, escaped from his delusions and
hastened to the welcoming shelter of the Lord of Lords. A man to outward
seeming without education, for he could neither read nor write, he was of
sharp intelligence and a trustworthy friend. Through one of the believers,
he was brought into the presence of Baha'u'llah, and was soon widely known
to the public as a disciple. He found himself a corner to live in, close
beside the house of the Blessed Beauty, and mornings and evenings would
enter the presence of Baha'u'llah. For a time he was supremely happy.
When Baha'u'llah and His retinue left Ba_gh_dad for Constantinople, Aqa
Muhammad-'Ali was of that company, and fevered with the love of God. We
reached Constantinople; and since the Government obliged us to settle in
Adrianople we left Muhammad-'Ali in the Turkish capital to assist the
believers as they came and went through that city. We then went on to
Adrianople. This man remained alone and he suffered intense distress for
he had no friend nor companion nor anyone to care for him.
After two years of this he came on to Adrianople, seeking a haven in the
loving-kindness of Baha'u'llah. He went to work as a peddler, and when the
great rebellion(34) began and the oppressors drove the friends to the
extreme of adversity, he too was among the prisoners and was exiled with
us to the fortress at Akka.
He spent a considerable time in the Most Great Prison, after which
Baha'u'llah desired him to leave for Sidon, where he engaged in trade.
Sometimes he would return and be received by Baha'u'llah, but otherwise he
stayed in Sidon. He lived respected and trusted, a credit to all. When the
Supreme Affliction came upon us, he returned to Akka and passed the
remainder of his days near the Holy Tomb.
The friends, one and all, were pleased with him, and he was cherished at
the Holy Threshold; in this state he soared to abiding glory, leaving his
kin to mourn. He was a kind man, an excellent one: content with God's will
for him, thankful, a man of dignity, long-suffering. Upon him be the glory
of the All-Glorious. May God send down, upon his scented tomb in Akka,
tiers of celestial light.
'ABDU'L-GHAFFAR OF ISFAHAN
Another of those who left their homeland to become our neighbors and
fellow prisoners was 'Abdu'l-_Gh_affar of Isfahan. He was a highly
perceptive individual who, on commercial business, had traveled about Asia
Minor for many years. He made a journey to 'Iraq, where Aqa Muhammad-'Ali
of Sad (Isfahan) brought him into the shelter of the Faith. He soon ripped
off the bandage of illusions that had blinded his eyes before, and he rose
up, winging to salvation in the Heaven of Divine love. With him, the veil
had been thin, almost transparent, and that is why, as the first word was
imparted, he was immediately released from the world of idle imaginings
and attached himself to the One Who is clear to see.
On the journey from 'Iraq to the Great City, Constantinople,
'Abdu'l-_Gh_affar was a close and agreeable companion. He served as
interpreter for the entire company, for he spoke excellent Turkish, a
language in which none of the friends was proficient. The journey came
peacefully to an end and then, in the Great City, he continued on, as a
companion and friend. The same was true in Adrianople and also when, as
one of the prisoners, he accompanied us to the city of Haifa.
Here, the oppressors determined to send him to Cyprus. He was terrified
and shouted for help, for he longed to be with us in the Most Great
Prison.(35) When they held him back by force, from high up on the ship he
threw himself into the sea. This had no effect whatever on the brutal
officers. After dragging him from the water they held him prisoner on the
ship, cruelly restraining him, and carrying him away by force to Cyprus.
He was jailed in Famagusta, but one way or another managed to escape and
hastened to Akka. Here, protecting himself from the malevolence of our
oppressors, he changed his name to 'Abdu'llah. Sheltered within the
loving-kindness of Baha'u'llah, he passed his days at ease, and happy.
But when the world's great Light had set, to shine on forever from the
All-Luminous Horizon, 'Abdu'l-_Gh_affar was beside himself and a prey to
anguish. He no longer had a home. He left for Damascus and spent some time
there, pent up in his sorrow, mourning by day and night. He grew weaker
and weaker. We despatched Haji Abbas there, to nurse him and give him
treatment and care, and send back word of him every day. But
'Abdu'l-_Gh_affar would do nothing but talk, unceasingly, at every hour,
with his nurse, and tell how he longed to go his way, into the mysterious
country beyond. And at the end, far from home, exiled from his Love, he
set out for the Holy Threshold of Baha'u'llah.
He was truly a man long-suffering, and mild; a man of good character, good
acts, and goodly words. Greetings and praise be unto him, and the glory of
the All-Glorious. His sweet-scented tomb is in Damascus.
'ALI NAJAF-ABADI
Also among the emigrants and near neighbors was Aqa 'Ali Najaf-Abadi. When
this spiritual young man first listened to the call of God he set his lips
to the holy cup and beheld the glory of the Speaker on the Mount. And
when, by grace of the light, he had attained positive knowledge, he
journeyed to the Most Great Prison, where he witnessed the substance of
knowledge itself, and arrived at the high station of indubitable truth.
For a long time he remained in and about the sacred city; he became the
proverbial Habibu'llah the Merchant, and spent his days relying upon God,
in supplication and prayer. He was a man meek, quiet, uncomplaining,
steadfast; in all things pleasing, worthy of praise. He won the approval
of all the friends and was accepted and welcome at the Holy Threshold.
During his latter days, when he felt that a happy end was in store for
him, he again presented himself at the holy city of the Most Great Prison.
Upon arrival he fell ill, weakened, passed his hours in supplicating God.
The breath of life ceased within him, the gates of flight to the supreme
Kingdom were flung wide, he turned his eyes away from this world of dust
and went onward to the Holy Place.
'Ali Najaf-Abadi was tender and sensitive of heart, at all times mindful
of God and remembering Him, and toward the close of his life detached,
without stain, free from the contagion of this world. Sweetly, he gave up
his corner of the earth, and pitched his tent in the land beyond. May God
send upon him the pure savors of forgiveness, brighten his eyes with
beholding the Divine Beauty in the Kingdom of Splendors, and refresh his
spirit with the musk-scented winds that blow from the Abha Realm. Unto him
be salutation and praise. His sweet and holy dust lies in Akka. Ma_sh_hadi
Husayn and Ma_sh_hadi Muhammad-i-A_dh_irbayjani
Ma_sh_hadi Husayn and Ma_sh_hadi Muhammad were both from the province of
A_dh_irbayjan. They were pure souls who took the great step in their own
country: they freed themselves from friend and stranger alike, escaped
from the superstitions that had blinded them before, strengthened their
resolve, and bowed themselves down before the grace of God, the Lord of
Life. They were blessed souls, loyal, unsullied in faith; evanescent,
submissive, poor, content with the will of God, in love with His guiding
Light, rejoicing over the great message. They left their province and
traveled to Adrianople. Here beside the holy city they lived for quite a
time in the village of Qumruq-Kilisa. By day, they supplicated God and
communed with Him; by night, they wept, bemoaning the plight of Him Whom
the world hath wronged.
When the exile to Akka was under way, they were not present in the city
and thus were not arrested. Heavy of heart, they continued on in that
area, shedding their tears. Once they had obtained a definite report from
Akka, they left Rumelia and came here: two excellent souls, loyal bondsmen
of the Blessed Beauty. It is impossible to tell how translucent they were
of heart, how firm in faith.
They lived outside Akka in Ba_gh_-i-Firdaws, worked as farmers, and spent
their days returning thanks to God because once again they had won their
way to the neighborhood of grace and love. But they were natives of
A_dh_irbayjan, accustomed to the cold, and they could not endure the local
heat. Furthermore, this was during our early days in Akka, when the air
was noxious, and the water unwholesome in the extreme. They both fell ill
of a chronic, high fever. They bore it cheerfully, with amazing patience.
During their days of illness, despite the assault of the fever, the
violence of their ailment, the raging thirst, the restlessness, they
remained inwardly at peace, rejoicing at the Divine glad tidings. And at a
time when they were offering thanks with all their heart, they hurried
away from this world and entered the other; they escaped from this cage
and were released into the garden of immortality. Upon them be the mercy
of God, and may He be well pleased with them. Unto them be salutations and
praise. May God bring them into the Realm that abides forever, to delight
in reunion with Him, to bask in the Kingdom of Splendors. Their two
luminous tombs are in Akka.