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The word Baha' : in the writings of the Bāb and leading Bābīs.

 

Kitab-i panj sha`n -Pentad VI.

In the Name of God,

the All-Glorious (al-abha), the Most Beautiful (al-abha).

In God is God, the All-Glorious (al-bahiyy), the Splendid (al-bahiyy). God, no God is there except Him, the All-Glorious (al-abha), the Most Beautiful (al-abha).  In God is God, the Luminous (al-bahiyy), the Splendid (al-bahiyy).  God, no God is there except Him, (One) Radiating Splendor (al-mubtaha), (One) Manifesting Glory (al-mubtaha).  God, no God is there except Him, the Beauteous  (al-mubahiyy) the Beauteous (al-mubahiyy). God, no God is there except Him, the One (al-wāḥid), the Glorification (al-buhyān).  And unto God is the Luminosity (al-bahiyy) of the Glorification (al-buhyān) of His Glory (al-bahā') throughout the heavens and the earth and whatsoever lieth between them. And unto God belongs the Splendour (al-bahā') of the Glorification (al-buhyān) of the Glory (al-bahā')  of the heavens and the earth and whatsoever lieth between them. God is [indeed] the Glory of the Glorifying of the Luminous Glory (baha' al-bāhiyy al-bahiyy)....(Kitab-i Panj sha`n :138f)

The word Baha' and its Arabic derivataves in the Arabic and Persian  writings of the Sayyid `Ali Muhammad Shirazi, the Bāb (d. 1850) and select leading Bābīs or followers in the religion of the Bayan.

Stephen Lambden UCMerced.
In progress 1980s-2017. Under revision, correction and supplementation - 15-02-2017.
 

Sayyid `Ali Muhammad the Bāb and the Mightiest Name  of God.

1.0  Sayyid `Ali Muhammad the Bāb and his writings.

1.1 On the significance and translation of the word baha' in the writings of the Bab.

1.2  The theology of the Bab.

1.3  The Names of God in the writings of the Bāb.   

1.4   The Mightiest Name in the writings of the Bāb.

1.5  The word bahā’ in the writings of the Bāb.

The word bahā' and derived forms roted in B-H-W/A of it as its superlative abhā'  are quite frequent in the scriptural Tablets and writings of the Bāb. From the early Tafsīr Sūrat al-Baqara  ("Commentary on the Sūrah of the Cow"; early 1844) and Qayyūm al-asmā'  (mid-1844) until his last major work the Haykal al-dīn ("The Temple of Religion" ; written shortly before his martyrdom in 1850), it is theologically significant in a variety of contexts. There can be little doubt that the Bāb attached a special significance to  the word bahā'. As will be evident below, its frequency is related to his deep devotional, theological and ritualistic re-revelation of the Shi`i Islamic Ramadan Dawn Prayer and ther related Du`ā al-Mubāhala ascribed to the fifth and sixth Shi`i Imams Muhammad al-Baqir and Ja`far al-Ṣādiq.

 The word bahā' in the Qayyūm al-asmā'  (= QA; 1260 AH = mid. 1844 CE).

In the first major revelation of the Bāb, the Qayyūm al-asmā'  the word bahā'  occurs some 14 times -- bahiyya  ("luminous") occurs at least once. [30]  Here, as in other works of the Bāb,  it is cosmologically, theologically and for Bahā'īs, prophetically significant. It indicates, for example, an exalted and radiantly splendid celestial realm.  On occasion, it characterizes the most-elevated mystical heights, the radiance of the elevated Sinai. It describes the glorious splendour of the celestial Sinaitic sphere which emanates from the "fire" of the "Burning Bush" or "Tree".

 It is in the 20th Sūra of the QA., the Sūrat al-Nur (The Surah of Light) on Qur'ān 12: 19 that the first occurrence of bahā'  is found. Mystically interpreting the Qur'ānic form of the Joseph story, QA 20 refers to the "Remembrance" (dhikr  = the hidden, messianic Imām) as one protected and concealed at the  qutb al-bahā' ("Pole of Splendour") situated above Mount Sinai (al-ṭūr  al-sīnā') cf. Joseph's being cast into the pit by his brothers Gen 37:24; Qur'ān 12:10f.  

Two Sūras later in QA 22 mention is made of the celestial "water" which extends around the quṭb  nuqṭat  al-bahā' ("Pole of the Point of bahā’"). 

 Surat al-Huriyya (QA 29)

QA 29 is designated the "Sūra of the Maiden (sūrat al-huriyya)". Here, in the course of addressing the "people of the earth", the Bāb (speaking with the voice of God)  claims to be a "Maiden" (al-ḥūriyya)  begotten by al-Bahā’: "..I am the Maid of Heaven (al-ḥūriyya)  begotton by [the Spirit of] Bahā (waladtanī al-bahā')..."  (QA XXIX trans. SWB:54).   In various Tablets including the Sūrat al-Bayān ("Sūra of the Exposition" c. 186?) Bahā’-Allāh refers to QA 29 and claims to be this heavenly Maiden: "[By God!] I am the Maid of Heaven (al-ḥūriyya),  the Offspring begotton by the Spirit of Bahā (al-Bahā’; trans. Shoghi Effendi, GWB CXXIX:283).

While in QA 38 the Bāb appears to be addressed as the "The Radiant Light of God (nūr Allāh al-bahiyy)",  there exists a complex rewrite of select verses of the Qur'ānic Sūra of the Cave in QA 54 in which the phrase, "the midst of the Fire in the Beauty of  Bahā'"  (khilāl al-nār fī jamāl al-bahā')  occurs (cf. Qur'ān 18:80 and context).

It is at QA 57 that the Bāb refers to the "people of Bahā'" who sail in "Arks of ruby, tender, crimson-coloured". The phrase "people of Bahā’"  occurs hundreds of times in Bahā'ī scripture and usually indicates the followers of Bahā’-Allāh. The "Crimson Ark" is symbolic of the Bahā'ī religion, the vehicle of salvation. [31] 

 The "Remembrance" (Dhikr)   is described in QA 75 as a "Blessed Tree on Mount Sinai sprung up from the Land of Bahā’". 

 In QA 76 reference is made to a mysterious "Watercourse of Bahā’ (majrā al-bahā)  above Mount Sinai" and QA 77 identifies the "Light of Bahā'" as the vehicle of the divine theophany on Sinai experienced by Moses (see Lambden, Sinaitic, 101).

 The Bāb claims in QA  79 to be both the "Indubitable Word" (al-kalimat al-ḥaqqah)   and the "Calamitous Word" (al-kalimat al-qāri`at)   situated about the mystic "Fire" nigh unto "the pivot of the sphere of Bahā'"..

 While in QA 93 the Bāb claims to be the "throne of Bahā'" (al-`arsh al-bahā ')  in QA 100 he claims to have planted with his own hands "Trees bearing the semblances of Bahā'" (hā'it al-bahā'). 

 Not only does the Bāb in QA 107 claim to be the Cherubic Being who appeared to Moses on the "Mount of Bahā’" (ṭūr al-bahā';  cf. Lambden, Sinaitic, 99) he, speaking with the Voice of God in the following chapter (QA 108), bids the "Solace of Mine Eyes" (Qurrat al-`ayn = the Bāb himself or Bahā’-Allāh?) proclaim "I am al-Bahā'".

 The final occurrence of the word bahā' in QA 109, is related to the observance of obligatory prayer before the setting of the sun in the "sphere of Bahā'".   

The Shi`i Dawn Prayer and its influence on the Bab.

The traditions of the Twelver Shi`i Imams are viewed positively and often cited by the Bab and Bahā’-Allah.  Among the most important occurrences of the word Bahā’ in Shi`i Islÿmic literatures is in an Arabic invocatory prayer attributed to Imÿm Muammad al-Baqir (677--732 CE) the fifth of the Twelver Shi`i  Imams.  The eighth Shi`i  Imam, Rida' (d. 818 CE.), who transmitted this prayer, reckoned that it contained the "Greatest Name" of God (al-ism al-a`am).  It is a prayer to be recited at dawn during Ramadan (Du`a Sahar), the Muslim month of fasting. The word baha' or a derivative of the same root is contained some five times within it's opening words;

"O my God! I beseech Thee by thy Bahā’ in its supreme splendour (abhÿ')  for all Thy Bahā’ is truly luminous (bahÿyy). I, verily, O my God, beseech Thee by the fullness of Thy bahÿ  !" [21] 

This prayer continues in like manner, substituting the word Bahā’ and its derivatives with all the other of the 19 Divine Attributes utilized by the Bab in the Babi-Baha'i  calendar -- pparentlyfirst set forth in the (Bab's) Kitab al-asma' ("Book of Names" c.1849) and later ratified by Bahā’-Allah in the his al-Kitab al-aqdas or (Per.) Kitab-i aqdas ("Most Holy Book" c. 1873). The scheme of names within it, directly or indirectly, lies behind a good many Babi-Baha'i scriptural uses of Bahā’ -- frequently, for example, in the Bÿb's Kitab-i-panj sha'n ("The Book of the Five Grades"). It is quoted in the (Persian) Dala'il-i sab`a ("The Seven Proofs" c. 1848/9?) where its first five lines are regarded as an allusion to the Prophet Muhammad and the other "people of the cloak" (ahl al-kisa' see Qur'a n 33:32; namely,`Ali, Fatima, Hasan and Husayn; see pp. 58-9).

The following passage from the Bab's writings is closely related to the above quoted Dawn Prayer  and to the Bÿbÿ messiah Man yuzhiruhu'llÿh  ("Him Whom God shall make manifest" = Bahā’-Allah);

"The glory of Him Whom God shall manifest is immeasurably above every other glory, and His majesty is far above every other majesty. His beauty excelleth every other embodiment of beauty, and His grandeur immensely exceedeth every other manifestation of grandeur. Every light paleth before the radiance of His light, and every other exponent of mercy falleth short before the tokens of His mercy. Every other perfection is as naught in face of His consummate perfection, and every other display of might is as nothing before His absolute might. His names are superior to all other names. His good‑pleasure taketh precedence over any other expression of good‑pleasure. His pre‑eminent exaltation is far above the reach of every other symbol of exaltation. The splendour of His appearance far surpasseth that of any other appearance. His divine concealment is far more profound than any other conceal ment. His loftiness is immeasurably above every other loftiness. His gracious favour is unequalled by any other evidence of favour. His power transcendeth every power. His sovereignty is invincible in the face of every other sovereignty. His celestial dominion is exalted far above every other dominion. His knowledge pervadeth all created things, and His consummate power extendeth over all beings." (SWB:I57 tr. text 110-111).

Persian and Arabic Expositions (Bayāns)

The word bahā' not only designates the first month of the new Bābī-Bahā'ī calendar but the ninth 19 year cycle or "Unity" (Vaīd); the 17th of these 19 year cycles being Bahīyy (= "Luminous" a derivative of bahā')  and the 18th Abhā.  Among the many significant uses of bahā' and abhā' in the Bāb's writings -- many of which are regarded by Bahā'īs as allusions to the person of Bahā’-Allāh -- is the following "prophetic announcement" from the Persian Bayān,

"Well is it with him who fixeth his gaze upon the Order of Bahā’-Allāh , and rendereth thanks unto his Lord. For He will assuredly be made manifest. God hath indeed irrevocably ordained it in the Bayān" [GPB:25].

 In another passage we read,

 “The Bahā' of Him Whom God shall make manifest is immeasurably above every other Bahā'.." (SWB:156).

 Bahā’-Allāh, as the Bābī messiah figure man yuẓhiru-hu Allāh  is here allocated a superlative measure of "glory", of bahā'. While in Persian Bayān 3:14 it is stated, "All the Bahā’ of the Bayān is man yuẓhiru-hu Allāh”  at 3:15  the "Primal Will" (Reality of the Manifestation of God), in each "Dispensation", is said to have been Bahā’-Allāh ("the Glory of God"),  besides whose bahā' all else hath even been, and will ever remain as naught.

The Arabic Bayān

 In his Arabic Bayān  the Bāb links the moment of the dawning of the "Sun of Bahā'" (shams al-bahā')  with the expected divine Manifestation. He states that in the Book of God, the period from the beginning of the rise of the "Sun of Bahā'" until its setting, is better than every period of night (see texts cited in  Ma’idih 7:32/ Rahiq 1:364). [32]      

The Kitāb al-asmā'  (= K. Asmā’ , 1849/50) (“The Book of Names”). 

 Dating from the last year of his mission (1849/50) the massive and very little studied or appreciated  wholly Arabic Kitāb al-asmā' (“The Book of Names”) of the Bāb has been reckoned a work unworthy of serious attention. Both Edward G. Browne (d.1926) and more recently Denis MacEoin adopted a dismissive and high-handed orientalist judgment of this important work - they give the impression that they had no taken thr trouble to examine it thoroughly!  The former

 This lengthy Arabic work exists in numerous, often variant  mss. and contains many occurrences of the word bahā' and various derivatives from the same root. A good many of these occurrences are closely related to the Shi`i fasting Du`ā al-sabah or the related challenging devotional Du`ā al-mubāhala (Supplication for Mutual Execration). One mss. of the Kitāb al-asmā' (or "Four Grades") included in the INBMC vol. 29 spans no less than 665 pages. Its opening section (1/1)  commences as follows, focusing on the root R-SH-D (= `to guide', guidance...) :

بسم الله الارشد الارشد

In the Name of God, the Supreme Guide, the Supreme Guide

 الله لا اله الا هو الارشد الارشد

God, no God is there except Him, the Supreme Guide, the Supreme Guide

 قل الله ارشد فوق  كل ذا ارشاد لن يقدر ان يمتنع عن مليك سلطان ارشاده من احد لا فی السموات ولا فی الارض ولا ما بينهما يخلق ما يشاءِ بامره انه كان رشادا راشدا رشيدا

Say: God is the Supreme Guide,  beyond all possessed of the ability to guide (irshād) for it can in no wise be implied that His would withhold  the Monarch of the Sovereignty of His Guidance from anyone whether in the heavens or upon the earth or  betwixt these twain.  He creates whatsoever He wills through His Command for He is indeed  a Source of Guidance (irshād an),  a Guiding Reality (rāshid an),  a Guidance  (rashīd an).

A page or so further on this opening section (1/1 pp.4-5) we read following a few short verses commencing with the imperative qul  we have twenty-one (or so short verses  partially based upon and mirroring the succession of divine attributes spelled out in the Du`ā al-sabah  and/or the related Du`ā al-mubāhala.  

 [0] 

  ولله ماخلق ويخلق واليه كل يرجعون

  • [1]  ولله بهاءِ  ما خلق ويخلق واليه كل يبعثون
  • ولله جلال  ما خلق ويخلق واليه كل ينقلبون    [2]
  • و لله جمال ما خلق و يخلق وان اليه كل يبعثون [3]
  • ولله عظمة ما خلق و يخلق وكل بامره قائمون [4] 
  • ولله نور ما خلق و يخلق وان اليه كل ينقلبون [5]
  • ولله رحمة ما خلق ويخلق وكل برخمته يشرحون [6]
  • ولله اسماءِ ما خلق ويخلق وكل با سمائه ليسميون[7]
  • ولله عز ما خلق ويخلق وكل بعززه يتعززون[8]
  • ولله مجد ما خلق ويخلق وكل بمجده يتمجدون [9]
  • ولله علم ما خلق ويخلق وكل بعلمه يتعلمون [10]
  • ولله قدرة ما خلق و يخلق وكل بقدرته يتقدرون [11]
  • ولله  قوة ما خلق ويخلق و كل بقوته يتقويون [12]
  • ولله رضاءِ ما خلق ويخلق وكل برضائه يسترضوه [13]
  • [ولله شرف ما خلق و يخلق و كل بشرفه يتشرفون [14
  • [ولله سلطان ما خلق و يخلق وكل بسلطانه يتسلطون [15
  • ولله ملك ما خلق و يخلق وكل بملكه يتملكون [16]
  • ولله علو ما خلق ويخلق وكل بعلوه يستعليون [17]
  • ولله ايات ما خلق و يخلق وكل باياته يستكرمون [18]
  • ولله غناءِ ما خلق و يخلق وكل بغنائه يستغنيون [19]
  • ولله  فضل ما خلق و يخلق و كل بفضله يستفضلون [20]
  • ولله عدل ما خلق و يخلق وكل بعدله يستعللون [21]

 [0]

And unto God belongs what was created and what He will create  for unto Him shall all return

  • [1] And unto God belongs the Bahā' (Splendor) of what was created and what He will create  for unto Him will everything be raised up.
  • [2] And unto God belongs the Jalāl ("Glory") of what was created and what He will create  for through Him will everything be turned upside down.
  • [3] And unto God belongs  the Jamāl (Beauty) of what was created and what He will create  for unto Him will everything be raised up.
  • [4] And unto God belongs the `Azimat (Grandeur) of what was created and what He will create  for through His Command will everything be upraised (qā'imūn).
  • [5] And unto God belongs the Nūr ("Light") of what was created and what He will create  for through Him will everything be turned upside down.
  • [6] And unto God the Raḥmat ("Mercy") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Mercy are judged mercifully.
  • [7]  And unto God are the Asmā'  ("Names") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Names (asmā') are indeed named.
  • [8] And unto God belongs the `Izz  ("Might") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Mightyness  are rendered mighty.
  • [9] And unto God belongs the Majd  ("Radiance") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Radiance  are rendered radiant.
  • [10] And unto God belongs the `Ilm  ("Knowledge") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Knowledge  are informed.
  • [11] And unto God belongs the Qudrat  ("Might") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Might, are made mighty
  • [12] And unto God belongs the Quwwat  ("Power") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Power are empowered
  • [13] And unto God belongs the Ridā' ("Felicity") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Felicity will be made content
  • [14] And unto God belongs the Sharaf ("Nobility") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Nobility, are made noble.
  • [15] And unto God belongs the Sulṭān ("Sovereignty") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Sovereignty, express sovereignty
  • [16] And unto God belongs the Mulk ("Dominion") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Dominion, express dominance. 
  • [17] And unto God belongs the `Uluww ("Sublimity") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Sublimity, become sublime. 
  • [18] And unto God belong the Āyāt ("Verses") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His verses are ennobled [19] And unto God belongs the Ghinā' ("Independence") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Independence, become independent. 
  • [20] And unto God belongs the Faḍl ("Bounty") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Bounty, are made bountiful. 
  • [21] And unto God belongs the `Adl ("Justice") of what was created and what He will create  for all, through His Justice, become just. 

The first occurrences of word bahā'  -  as a blessing upon the first Bābī "Unity" (abjad = 19), al-Wāḥid al-Awwāl ("The First Unity") and of the messianic  title man yuẓhiru-hu Allāh (Him Whom God shall make manifest) in ms. INBMC 29 are found in section 4/4 (pp. 8-9) where we read:

  الرابع فی الرابع

بسم الله الارشد الارشد

الحمدلله الذی لا اله الا هو الارشد الارشد وانما البهاءِ من الله علی الواحد الاول ومن يشاهد ذالك الواحد حيث لا يری فيه الا الواحد الاول وبعد فاشهد ان لا مرشد الا الله سبحانه ولا مراد سواه ولا هادی غيره ان استرشدت بارشاد من يظهره الله جل ذكره فاذا انه جل جلاله مرشدك وهذا لا تقدر عليه من سبيل الی يوم

In the Name of God, the Supreme Guide (al-arshad), the Supreme Guide(al-arshad). Praised be to God, Who, no God is there except Him, the Supreme Guide, the Supreme Guide.  And al-Baha' (the Glory-Beauty) from God  be upon the al-Wāḥid al-Awwāl ("The First Unity") and whose testifies unto that Wāḥid and who seeth naught therein save al-Wāḥid al-Awwāl ("The First Unity").  So Bear witness now that there is no Guide (murshid) except God. So praised be unto Him! No  Intended One (murad) is there aside from Him and no Guidance (hādi) other than He. Then beseech ye guidance (R-SH-D from X) in the Guidance (bi-irshād) of man yuẓhiru-hu Allāh (Him Whom God shall make manifest), exalted be His remembrance..." (K-Asma, 8-9).

Elsewhere in this ms. (INBMC 29) of the Kitāb al-asmā' there are a very large number of references to both the word  bahā' - and its known and unused forms or derivatives from the same triliteral Arabic root, B-H-A-` - and to the messianic title من يظهره الله man yuẓhiru-hu Allāh. Something like no less than   XXX uses of bahā' in a variety of contexts and genitive and other phrases are found and perhaps  XXX references to  man yuẓhiru-hu Allāh.   

Kitāb-i panj sha'n  (= K-Panj-S) ("The Book of the Five Grades")

Written a few months prior to the Bāb's martyrdom, this fairly lengthy Arabic and Persian work contains quite a few paragraphs may be viewed as creative re-revelations of the opening section of the Shī'ī Dawn Prayer (Du`ā saḥar; see above). At KPS:88 the Bābī Messiah "Him whom God will make manifest" (man yuzihiru-hu Allah)  is said to be God's "servant, Word and Glory" (Bahā') and much else besides. The KPS contains quite a number of occurrences of the words bahā'  and abhā  as well as the phrase/title  Bahā’-Allāh;   "Say: Yea! We have all been glorified in Bahā’-Allāh" (see p.71).  One section (pp.172-212) is believed to have been specially dedicated to Mīrzā Ḥusayn `Alī Nūrī, Bahā’-Allāh.

 In KPS III:3 [16], (as Adib Taherzadeh noted), the question is posed, "Do ye know Bahā’-Allāh or not? For He is the glory of Him Whom God shall make manifest" (trans. Taherzadeh, Covenant, 44). As in the QA the Bāb, speaking with the Voice of God, claims identity with Bahā’-Allāh. In this important and largely unstudied work, he seems to write in the light of the essential oneness of the Manifestations of God and speaking prophetically with the Voice of God?,

 "Say: This is Bahā’-Allāh unto such as are in the heavens and in the earth and whatsoever is between them." (p.71 cf. GPB: 28).

The Beautiful Joseph (Yūsuf al-Bahā') and the name of God al-Bashīr  ("the Herald")

 In that section of the Kitāb al-asmā  commenting upon the name of God al-Bashīr  ("the Herald") reference is made to robe or "garment of the Joseph of Bahā'" which has been understood relative to Bahā’-Allāh as the Bābī messiah figure man yuẓhiru-hu Allāh
  (see Ishrāq Khāvarī, QI 4:1870ff).  The use of the word bashīr ("bearer/herald of good tidings") in Q.12:93 should be noted here is rooted in the episode of Joseph's garment being placed on the face of the patriach Jacob/Israel and restoring his vision, "But when the bearer of good tidings [bashīr] came to him, and laid it [the qamīṣ , "robe, garment") on his [Jacob's] face [wajh], forthwith he saw once again..". [33]

            It is this Qur'ānic verse (12:93) which lies behind the Bāb's exegetical rewrite of it in the Kitāb al-asmā.   The Bāb exhorts his readers to "hearken" then take firm hold of the "garment of the Joseph of Bahā'" (qamīṣ yūsif al-bahā') from the hand of the "Exalted, Transcendent Herald of Glad-Tidings" (mubashshirihi al-`alī al-a`lā). The "garment" should be placed upon thy head in order that one might be endowed with insight' (li-tartadda baṣīr an)  (text cited QI 4:1875).

Wasiyyat-Nāmih ("Will and Testament")

Finally, in connection with the Bāb's writings it may be noted that in his undoubtedly authentic Wasiyyat-Nāmih ("Will and Testament") the Bāb refers to himself as "one who liveth in the Abhā Horizon" (INBMC 64:96). According to Shoghi Effendi in his God Passes By  this was an allusion to Bahā’-Allāh as the Abhā Horizon  wherein He "lived and dwelt" (GPB:97). The essential oneness of the twin manifestations of this era is implied in this mystical cosmology.

The  Haykal of 365 derivitaves of the word  بهاء 

At Chihrīq, before his martyrdom in July  1850, the Bāb  entrusted Mullā Bāqir, a Letter of the Living, with a box containing a piece of blue paper inscribed with some 360 derivatives of the word bahā' in fine  calligraphic  script. Written in the form of a pentagram this, according to Bahā’ī  historical sources, was ultimately delivered to Bahā'-Allāh (see DB. 370+fn. `Abdu'l-Bahā’, Travellers Narrative,  26-6). [34] While this pentagram appears to be lost [35] something of the nature of such derivatives as it might contain (i.e. buhyān  and mubti[a]ha)   can be gathered from certain sections of such of his works as the Kitāb-i-panj sha'n  ("Book of the Five Grades"; see above)  which is reckoned a work in which "the name Bahā’-Allāh" is prophesied (GPB:28).

 In his account of this matter `Abdu'l-Bahá' writes in A Traveller's Narrative ,

"Now the Siyyid Báb had disposed all His affairs before setting out from Chihríq towards Tabríz, had placed His writings and even His ring and pen-case in a specially prepared box, put the key of the box in an envelope, and sent it by means of Mullá Báqir, who was one of His first associates, to Mullá `Abdu'l-Karím of Qazvín. This trust Mullá Báqir deliv¬ered over to Mullá `Abdu'l-Karím at Qum in presence of a numerous company. At the solicitations of those present he opened the lid of the box and said, "I am commanded to convey this trust to Bahá'u'lláh: more than this ask not of me, for I cannot tell you." lmportuned by the company, he produced a long epistle in blue, penned in the most graceful manner with the utmost delicacy and firmness in a beautiful minute shikastih hand, written in the shape of a man so closely that it would have been imagined that it was a single wash of ink on the paper. When they had read this epistle [they perceived that] He had produced three hundred and sixty derivatives from the word Bahá. Then Mullá `Abdu'l-Karím conveyed the trust to its destination." `Abdu'l-Bahá', A Traveller's Narrative.. pp.25-6.

In L. Albee Mathews book, Not Every Sea Hath Pearls (Add details), reference is made to this author's viewing and having a photograph taken in the British Museum [Library] of "The Star Tablet" of the Báb . She wrote to Shoghi Effendi about this and apparently later (in 1944) viewed the Báb's "authentic" "Star Tablet" (pp.63-4). What she thought "The Star Tablet" of the Báb however, may merely have been one of the numerous haykals (pentacles or star-shaped Tablets / talismans) of the Báb or his followers.

The word Bahā' in the writings of leading Bābīs

  In one of his Tablets of the Adrianople-Edirne period, the Lawḥ-i Sarrāj  ("Tablet to Alī Muhammad Sarrāj", c.1867) Bahā’-Allāh has cited prophetic intimations of the "greatest name" in the writings of leading Bābīs. Muhammad `Alī entitled Quddūs (= "the Most Holy") is said to have written Tablets at Badasht (see above) and referred to a time when the Lord will cause a secret to be made manifest `from the horizon of Bahā' in the land of "or even nearer"' (aw ādnā see Qur'ān 53:9 ), shining resplendent from the "Point of Bahā'" (see Ma'idah 7:97).

The word Bahā' in the writings and poetry of Fatima Baraghani (d.1852 CE) known as Tahira (The Pure One). 

In cerftain of his scriptural Tablets, Baha'-Allah refers to intimation or predictions of himelf as the al-ism al-a`zam as the greatest Name Baha'. A Persian couplet of Fatima Baraghani better known as Tāhirih or Qurrat al-`Ayn ("Solace of the Eyes") (d. 1852 CE) containing the word bahā'  is  cited in his Lawḥ-i Sarrāj (in Ma'idah 7:98). In her Arabic and Persian writings and poems this learned female `Letter of the Living' occasionally used the words bahā’, abhā or other derivitives from the same Arabic root. The Baha'i `Hand of the Cause of God', Abu'l-Qasim Faizi (d. XXXX CE) has translated the following passage from one of Tahira's "epistles”:

O my God! O my God! The veil must be removed from the face of the Remnant of the Lord. O my God! Protect  Ḥusayn the mystery of Muhammad and advance the day of reunion with him... Make the point of Bahā, O my God, to circulate....  (cited Faizi, 9)

 

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND ABBREVIATIONS

Ar-Bayan    =   al-Bayān al-`arabī.   

  • [1] INBMC 43:1.68;

  • [2] Ḥusaynī, al.Bābiyyūn, 82.107  ADD

Ar-Dala'il  =

  • in Dalā'il-i sab`ih. np.nd.  [Azal ī ed. Tehran, 196?] [pp.](alif. nūn );

  • [1] IBA (? = Nicolas ms.106),102a..104b.

  • [2]

K- = Kitab = Book ...

  • K-Asmā’ =  al-Kitāb al-asmā' . [1] INBMC 29. [2] Uncat. mss. Marzieh Gail Coll. Bosch Bahā’ī Library (USA)

  • K. Fihrist = Kitāb al.fihrist INBA. Ms 6007C:339.348.

  • K. Panj.S = Kitāb.i panj sha'n. np.nd. [Tehran Azali ed. 196?]

  • K. Haykal= Haykal al.dīn. np.nd [Tehran, Azalī ed. 196?]

  • K. `Ulamā’ = Kitāb al.`ulamā' INBMC 67:206.16; Afnan 2000:107.111.

  • K. Rūḥ = Kitāb al.rūḥ [incomplete]. Haifa mss.

Kh- = Khutbah = Sermon/Oration ...

  • Kh.Ḥuruf = Khuṭba on `ilm al.ḥurūf INBA 91; INBA6004C: 209.213.
  • Kh. Jidda = Khuṭba at Jeddah. INBA 91: 61.81
  • Kh .Qahriyya. = Khuṭba.yi qahriyya. INBMC 64:127.150.

P. Bayan. = Bayān-i farsī np. nd.  [Tihran, Azali ed.]

QA = Qayyūm al.asmā’.  Afnān Lib. ms.5

Q. Maḥfuz = Su`āl `an al-lawḥ al-maḥūẓ. (Q.85:22) , TBA. mss. 6006C:79.80.

Q. Zavarih = Reply to the three questions of Mīrzā Muhammad Sa`īd Zavārih on Basīṭ al.ḥaqīqa and other matters INBMC 69:419.437.

R- = Risalih = Treatise ...

  • R. Dhah. = Risāla Dhahabiyya. (cf. Afnān, 2000:449). INBMC 86:70.98.

  • R. Jasad. = Risāla fī’l. jasad al.nabī (= Sharḥ kayfiyyat al.mi`rāj)  INBMC 69:416.418.

  • R. Nubuwwat = Risāla fī' al-nubuwwa al-khāṣṣah INBMC 14:385.

  • R. Sulūk = Risāla fī al-sulūk. TBA., Ms. 6006C: 73.74..

S. B-al-Haramayn = Ṣaḥīfa bayn al-ḥaramayn.

  • [1] Camb. Univ. Lib. Browne Or. Ms. F 7(9):1.125;

  • [2] TBA. ms. 6007C, 348.413.

S. Ja`far = Sāḥīfa.yi Ja`fariyya. INBMC 98:48.108; INBMC 60:57.154.

Shu'unK = Shu`ūn.i khamsa al.fārsī (= Persian K.Panj.?) INBMC 82:78.133.

T- = Tafsir = Commentary...

  • T. Akhi = Tafsīr ḥadīth `allamanī akhī rasūl.Allāh. INBAMC 14:410.417.

  • T-`Ama’ = Tafsīr, ḥadīth al.`amā’.

  • [1] TBA. Ms 6007C:1.16..

  • T-`Asr = Tafsīr sūra wa'l.`aṣr. (Q.110) INBMC 69:21.119

  • T-Baqara = Tafsīr sūrat al.baqara (Q.2 ) INBMC 69: (1ff) 157.294+377.410.

  • T-Basmala = Tafsīr (ḥurūf ) al.basmala. TBA ms. 6014C: f. 301.370..

  • T-Ha’ (1) = Tafsīr al.Hā’ (1) INBMC 14:221.283; INBMC 67:4.52.

  • T-Ha’ (2) = Tafsīr al.Hā’ (2) INBMC 14:284.320. INBMC 67:53.85

  • T-Hamd = Tafsīr Sūrat al.ḥamd (Q.1). INBAMC 69:120.153.

  • T-Kawthar = Tafsīr Sūrat al.kawthar. EGB Coll. Ms. Or. F10 [7].

  • T-LaylatQ.= T.Laylat al.qadr, (Q.97) INBMC 69:14..21.

  • T-Kumayl = Tafsīr Ḥadīth Kumayl ibn Ziyād al-Nakhā’ī.   [1] INBMC 53:63.8.

  • T-Man = Tafsīr ḥadīth man `arafa nafsahu faqad ` arafa rabbahu. INBAMC 14:468.477; [2] INBMC 40:46.53.

  • T-Wajh = Tafsīr Naḥnu wajh Allāh. TBA 6006C: f.69.70; INBMC 53:56.8.

Wasiyya =

  • Waṣiyyat.nāma. INBA 64:95.102; BWC: Haifa Ms. (unpaginated)

Azalī editions of writings of the Bāb.

  • Per-Bayan = Bayān.i Fārsī. Tehran, n.d.

  • Per-Dala’il     = Dalā’il.i Sab`ah. Tehran: n.d.

  • Qismati   = Qismati az alwāḥ.i khaṭṭ. i nuqṭa.yi ūlā wa Sayyid Ḥusayn Kātib (n.p. [Iran] n.d.).

Translations of A. L. M. Nicholas (1864-1939)

  • P. Béyan = Le Béyan Persan, trans. A. L. M. Nicolas, 4 vols. Paris: Librarie Paul Geuthner, 1911.14

  • Ar. Béyan = Le Béyan Arabe, Le Livre Sacré Bábyse. Paris: Ernest Leroux, 1905

  • S. Prev. = Le Livre des Sept Preuves de la mission du Bab. Paris: Maisonneuvre, 1902

Translations of the Baha'i World Centre (Haifa, Israel).

  • SWB = Selections from the Writings of the Bab ([= SWB] trans. by Habib Taherzadeh ( et al.). Haifa: BWC,1976.

  • SWB* = Muntakhabati az athar-i hadrat-i Nuqtih-i ula. Wilmette: BPT, 1978.