The Roots of the Baha’i Faith The Bab and Baha’u’llah
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Just as all the world's major
religions have dawned in the east,
the Baha'i faith had its roots in Iran,
which once was known as Persia.
It was the middle of the 19th century
an air of religious fervor permeated
Christian, Jewish, and Islamic
countries around the world.
Predictions by Bible scholars
sparked a new wave of evangelism.
And the birth of
Adventist denominations.
Thousands flocked to the middle east
to await the appearance
of the messiah.
Meanwhile in Shiraz Iran,
a young merchant quietly proclaimed
that he was the bearer
of a revelation from God…
… referring to himself as the Báb,
meaning the gate.
He explained that
he was the forerunner
of a divine teacher
greater than himself
who would soon appear and bring
about a new age of unity and peace.
The Bab's spiritual and moral teachings
spread rapidly throughout
Persian society.
He promoted the upliftment
of women and the poor,
and encouraged universal education
and the study of science,
themes considered radical
in a society still steeped
in centuries old traditions.
Perceiving the progressive
new faith as a threat,
religious and civil authorities
imprisoned and killed
thousands of the Bab's followers.
In 1850, the Bab himself
was executed by firing squad
in this public square in Tabriz
and his remains were
hidden away by his followers.
In 1852 in Tehran, one of the most
courageous supporters of the Bab,
a nobleman named
Mirza Hossein Ali was arrested,
tortured and cast into a subterranean
dungeon known as the Black Pit.
While in prison through the foul air,
filth and pitch black darkness
came the first intimations
of a divine revelation within him.
He later described,
“The breezes of the all glorious
were wafted over me
and taught me the knowledge of all that hath been.
This thing is not from me,
but from one who is almighty
and all knowing
and he bade me lift up
my voice between
Earth and Heaven."
When finally released
and banished to Baghdad,
he began to revive the dispirited
followers of the Báb.
In 1863, he publicly declared that
he was the promised one
of whom the Bab had spoken.
He took the name Baha’u'llah,
meaning glory of God
and his followers became
known as Baha'is.