There were three brothers, all from Tabriz: Haji Hasan, Haji Ja'far, and
Haji Taqi. These three were like eagles soaring; they were three stars of
the Faith, pulsing with the light of the love of God.
Haji Hasan was of the earlier day; he had believed from the new Luminary's
first dawning. He was full of ardor, keen of mind. After his conversion he
traveled everywhere, through the cities and villages of Persia, and his
breath moved the hearts of longing souls. Then he left for 'Iraq, and on
the Beloved's first journey, attained His presence there. Once he beheld
that beauteous Light he was carried away to the Kingdom of Splendors; he
was incandescent, he became a thrall of yearning love. At this time he was
directed to go back to Persia. He was a peddler, a vendor of small wares,
and would travel from city to city.
On Baha'u'llah's second journey to 'Iraq, Haji Hasan longed to behold Him
again, and there in Ba_gh_dad was once more bedazzled by His presence.
Every so often he would journey to Persia and then return, his thoughts
centered on teaching and furthering the Cause. His business fell apart.
His merchandise was carried away by thieves, and thus, as he put it, his
load was lifted from him--he was disencumbered. He shunned every worldly
tie. He was held fast as by a magnet; he fell hopelessly, madly in love
with the tender Companion, with Him Who is the Well-Beloved of both
worlds. He was known everywhere for the ecstasy he was in, and experienced
strange states of being; sometimes, with utmost eloquence, he would teach
the Faith, adducing as proofs many a sacred verse and holy tradition, and
bringing sound and reasonable arguments to bear. Then his hearers would
comment on the power of his mind, on his wisdom and his self-possession.
But there were other times when love suddenly flamed within him, and then
he could not remain still for an instant. At those times he would skip,
and dance, or again in a loud voice he would cry out a verse from the
poets, or a song. Toward the end of his days he became a close friend of
Jinab-i-Munib; the two exchanged many a recondite confidence, and each
carried many a melody in his breast.
On the friends' final journey he went to A_dh_irbayjan, and there,
throwing caution to the winds, he roared out the Greatest Name: "Ya
Baha'u'l-Abha!" The unbelievers there joined forces with his relatives,
and they lured that innocent, that man in his ecstasy, away to a garden.
Here, they first put questions to him and listened to his answers. He
spoke out; he expounded the secret verities of the Faith, and set forth
conclusive proofs that the Advent had indeed come to pass. He recited
verses from the Qur'an, and traditions handed down from the Prophet
Muhammad and the Holy Imams. Following that, in a frenzy of love and
longing rapture, he began to sing. It was a _sh_ahnaz melody he sang; the
words were from the poets, to say that the Lord had come. And they killed
him; they shed his blood. They wrenched and hacked his limbs apart and hid
his body underneath the dust.
As for Haji Muhammad-Ja'far, the gently born, he too, like his brother,
was bewitched by the Blessed Beauty. It was in 'Iraq that he entered the
presence of the Light of the World, and he too caught fire with Divine
love and was carried away by the gentle gales of God. Like his brother, he
was a vendor of small wares, always on a journey from one place to the
next. When Baha'u'llah left Ba_gh_dad for the capital of Islam, Haji
Ja'far was in Persia, and when the Blessed Beauty and His retinue came to
a halt in Adrianople, Ja'far and Haji Taqi, his brother, arrived there
from A_dh_irbayjan. They found a corner somewhere and settled down. Our
oppressors then stretched out arrogant hands to send Baha'u'llah forth to
the Most Great Prison, and they forbade the believers to accompany the
true Beloved, for it was their purpose to bring the Blessed Beauty to this
prison with but a few of His people. When Haji Ja'far saw that they had
excluded him from the band of exiles, he seized a razor and slashed his
throat.(73) The crowds expressed their grief and horror and the
authorities then permitted all the believers to leave in company with
Baha'u'llah--this because of the blessing that came from Ja'far's act of
love.
They stitched up his wound but no one thought he would recover. They told
him, "For the time being, you will have to stay where you are. If your
throat heals, you will be sent on, along with your brother. Be sure of
this." Baha'u'llah also directed that this be done. Accordingly, we left
Ja'far in the hospital and went on to the Akka prison. Two months later,
he and his brother Haji Taqi arrived at the fortress, and joined the other
prisoners. The safely delivered Haji grew more loving, more ardent with
every passing day. From dusk till dawn he would stay awake, chanting
prayers, shedding his tears. Then one night he fell from the roof of the
caravanserai and ascended to the Kingdom of miracles and signs.
Haji Taqi, born under a fortunate star, was in every sense a true brother
to Haji Ja'far. He lived in the same spiritual condition, but he was
calmer. After Haji Ja'far's death, he would stay in one room, all alone.
He was silence itself. He would sit there, all alone, properly and
courteously, even during the night. One midnight he climbed up to the roof
to chant prayers. The next morning they found him where he had fallen, on
the ground by the wall. He was unconscious, and they could not tell
whether this was an accident or whether he had thrown himself down. When
he came to himself he said: "I was weary of this life, and I tried to die.
Not for a moment do I wish to linger in this world. Pray that I may go
on."
This, then, is the life story of those three brothers. All three were
souls well-assured; all three were pleased, and pleasing unto God.(74)
They were flames; they were captives of the Faith; they were pure and
holy. And therefore, cut off from the world, turning their faces toward
the Most High Kingdom, they ascended. May God wrap them in the garment of
His grace in the realm of forgiveness, and immerse them in the waters of
His mercy forever and ever. Greetings be unto them, and praise.