"Verily,
I say, I am the Báb, the Gate of God..." ~ The Báb
(R-54)
Hand crafted gates ornament many of the gardens surrounding
sacred Bahá'í architecture. |
Youthful
Siyyid 'Alí-Muhammad had been a honorable merchant from Shiraz, Persia. In 1844, at
age 23, He declared that He was the Promised Qá'im of Islam and had come to prepare
people for another Divine Teacher whose Revelation would be greater than His. Siyyid
'Alí-Muhammad's title was the Báb, meaning "the Gate." His religious
dispensation, the Bábí Faith, was the gate between the Islamic dispensation and the
dispensation of the One the Báb promised would soon come (D-28).
The rapid spread of the Bábí Faith
alarmed many of the ecclesiastic and political rulers of the time, much as the Jews were
alarmed with the growing number of Christ's followers. Though the Báb preached of
peace and harmony, these leaders wanted to eliminate the Bábí Faith. Just six
years after His declaration they publicly martyred the Báb by firing squad in Tabriz,
Persia. His followers kept His sacred remains hidden from the rulers for many years
until there was a safe place to erect a shrine (D-29).
Over 20,000 Bábís were martyred for
embracing the Báb's message. Ablaze with the love of God, the Bábís kept on
sharing His message and watching for the time when the new Divine Teacher from God,
promised by the Báb, would be made manifest (D-30).
Bahá'u'lláh |