Baha'i Holy Day - November 12th

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Mirza Husayn Ali (Baha’u'llah) was born on November 12, 1817, in Tehran, the capital of Persia (Iran). His ancestry dates back to Abraham through His wife Keturah and to the Prophet Zoroaster.


Baha’u’llah first heard of the Bab at the age of 27, through Mulla Husayn, the first of the Bab’s eighteen disciples, and accepted the Bab’s claims, becoming a Babi. He then traveled continuously to help spread the Teachings of the Bab. Due to His notability; He met great success and became recognized as one of the Babi Faith’s most influential believers.


In 1852 Baha’u’llah was arrested for His involvement in the Babi Faith and was imprisoned in the Siyah-Chal (black pit), an underground dungeon of Tehran. Baha’u’llah revealed that it was during his imprisonment in the Siyah-Chal, that He had a vision from the Maid of Heaven and received His mission as a Messenger of God and as the one whose coming the Bab had prophesied.


In some respects, the Bab’s role can be compared to that of John the Baptist in the founding of Christianity. The Bab was Baha’u'llah’s Herald: His principal mission was to prepare the way for Baha’u'llah’s coming. Accordingly, the founding of the Babi Faith is viewed by Baha’is as synonymous with the founding of the Baha’i Faith–and its purpose was fulfilled when Baha’u'llah announced in 1863 that He was the Promised One foretold by the Bab.



Baha’u'llah later affirmed that the Bab was “the Herald of His Name and the Harbinger of His Great Revelation which hath caused…the splendour of His light to shine forth above the horizon of the world.”



The Bab’s appearance marked the end of the “Prophetic Cycle” of religious history, and ushered in the “Cycle of Fulfillment.”


Celebrating the Births of the Bab and Baha?u?llah – Bahai Faith | Baha'i Faith | United States Official Website
 
Birth of Baha'u'llah

Bahá'u'lláh was born on November 12, 1817, two years before the Báb, Whose revelation set the stage for His own. As with the Báb, there are no elaborate traditions surrounding His birth. He was born Husayn Alíy-i-Núrí in Tehran. His father was Mírzá Abbás Núrí, also known as Mírzá Buzurg, a prominent and wealthy man who had been a minister at the court of Fath-'Alí Sháh and subsequently the governor of Burujird and Luristan. When Fath-'Alí Sháh died in 1834, his son Muhammad Sháh executed a government purge in which Mírzá Buzurg was stripped of his title and his government salary but retained the Núrí family estates.

Bahá'u'lláh's early life reflected his well-to-do circumstances. He received the education typical of a child of the minor nobility: riding, calligraphy, and Arabic (so as to be able to read the Qur'án). Yet unlike many privileged children, He developed no attachment to wealth and ease.

As with Jesus and the Báb, a few stories have been handed down regarding Bahá'u'lláh's childhood, stories that indicate He was no ordinary boy. A number of these were compiled by Hand of the Cause of God 'Alí-Akbar Furútan in his book, Stories of Bahá'u'lláh. One parallels an old Christian tradition about the infant Jesus:
  • "The mother of [Bahá'u'lláh] was so enthralled with Him that she could not contain her amazement at His behavior. 'This child never cries,' she would say; 'He is so unlike other babies who cry and scream and are forever restless while in the nursing stage..."
    (p. 1)
Another story recalls a dream that Bahá'u'lláh related to His father. In His dream, He was in a garden while huge birds attacked him on all sides. Yet the birds were unable to harm Him. He then went to sea, where He was attacked by birds and fish, but again wasn't harmed. His father summoned a famous seer to interpret the dream, and was told that His son would become the founder of a great Cause and would be attacked by the leaders and learned men of the world. But they would be unable to harm Him, and He would be victorious over them all.

Bahá'u'lláh developed a fine sense of justice and fairness at a very young age. Throughout His life He would display these qualities, but perhaps one of the most remarkable demonstrations of this came while He was still a child. He witnessed three confrontations between His father and a tax collector who was "in a cruel and unjust manner" demanding payment. Incensed, Bahá'u'lláh rode to Tehran, a journey of two days, and sought the dismissal of the "tyrannical" tax collector. Incredibly, He was successful in His quest.

Birth of Baha'u'llah
 
Birth and Childhood of Baha'u'llah by David Merrick

Early Life of Bahá'u'lláh
Father, Family, Lineage, Location

Looking north onto the shore of the Caspian Sea, and nestling against the protective rocky peaks to the south, lies the small village of Takur. This village is the ancestral home of one of the most ancient, wealthy and renowned families of Nur, a family honoured by its descent from Abraham, Zoroaster and the ancient Prophets, and through the last Zoroastrian King of Persia. Many members of this family held important Government posts, both in the Civil and the Military.

It was to this illustrious family that Bahá'u'lláh's father was born, and named 'Abbas. As an adult, he was married, and lived within the Persian Capital of Tihran, where he was a favoured minister of the Crown.
Father Named 'Mirza Buzurg'

Bahá'u'lláh's father was distinguished by a special name from the Shah himself. One day the Shah was marvelling at a masterpiece of beautiful writing, wondering if anyone alive could ever create its equal. Bahá'u'lláh's father was suggested, and was sent for. Challenged to match its excellence and beauty, he copied this work of art, adding his own lines, and after illuminating them, he brought the new masterpiece as a present to the Shah.

The Shah was overwhelmed with admiration, and he issued a royal decree giving Bahá'u'lláh's father the name of 'Mirza Buzurg'; he also gave him a robe of honour, which he had himself worn, and exempted his entire village from tax. A few years later, Bahá'u'lláh's father was made a high-ranking advisor to the Shah's own son, and so he prospered in this and many other ways.
Birth of Bahá'u'lláh

Bahá'u'lláh's father had seven wives, and a great many children through them. At dawn, on the second day of the Islamic Year, on 12 November 1817, his wife Khadijih Khanum gave birth to the eldest of her surviving sons.

At that very same moment, Shaykh Ahmad, who announced the coming of the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh, was found fallen upon his face, repeating in wrapt devotion the words, 'God is Great!' and saying, 'That which I have been announcing to you is now revealed. At this very hour the light of the Promised One has broken, and is shedding illumination upon the world.'

Given the name of Husayn-'Ali, as the Child grew from an infant into adulthood, He astounded all who encountered Him, and would later, as Bahá'u'lláh, change the face of history.
Infancy

From His birth, Bahá'u'lláh never cried, always remaining in a most remarkable state of peacefulness. His mother was completely astonished, and before long it became obvious to everyone around, that her Child was entirely different from other children.
Residence

Bahá'u'lláh was brought up on the outskirts of Tihran, close to a moat. Part of every year, typically in the summer months, He would spend in His father's great mansion in their ancestral village of Takur, on the shores of the sea.

In a prominent place of this mansion, there still survives the inscription of Bahá'u'lláh's father, recording, "When you reach the threshold of the Beloved, say 'Yea'; for 'Peace' and 'Upon Thee' find no place there. This is the vale of Love, pause your steps; this is holy ground, cast off your shoes!"
Character and Qualities

Bahá'u'lláh as a child displayed a purity of character quite extraordinary, and a wonderful, innate wisdom and knowledge.

He greatly loved outdoor life, spending most of His time in the garden or fields.

Extremely kind and generous, He had an incredible power of attraction, which was felt by all. People always crowded around Him, children were devoted to Him, and the ministers and people of the Court would gather about Him.
Schooling

As He grew up, Bahá'u'lláh desired no schooling. He received a little customary education at home, in riding, using a sword or gun, good manners, calligraphy, poetries, and the ability to read out the words of the Qur'an.

Despite a lack education, Bahá'u'lláh shone forth in wisdom and ability, and all who knew Bahá'u'lláh were astonished. It was usual for them to say, that such a child will not live beyond maturity.
Letter

To His aunt, when still so young in years, the Child Bahá'u'lláh wrote this remarkable and most literate letter:-

"He is the Well-Beloved! God willing you are abiding restfully beneath the canopy of Divine mercy, and the tabernacle of His bounty. Although to outward seeming, I am little and cannot write, yet because this Illiterate One is clinging to the Divine Lote tree, He can read without knowledge and write without being taught. And this fact is clear and evident in the spiritual realm to those endowed with insight. Those who are outside have been, and still are, unaware of this mystery."

From David Merrick

Birth and Childhood of Baha'u'llah

http://www.paintdrawer.co.uk/david/f...0Bahaullah.pdf
 
Early life of Baha'u'llah continued...

Dream of Swimming in an Ocean

One night Bahá'u'lláh appeared in a dream, which was so very vivid, it awakened its dreamer.
Bahá'u'lláh was in a garden; great birds flew overhead; they attacked Him, yet they were powerless to harm Him. He was bathing in the sea, and began to swim in a vast, limitless ocean; His body shone out, and illuminated the sea! Above the waters, His long, jet-black locks, stood forth, floating in great profusion above the waves in all directions. Large numbers of fish gathered around Him, each fish holding fast to the end of a hair with its mouth. There were every kind of fish: large fish, small fish, white and black: and wherever He swam, they followed the light of His face. Such a vast number of fish clinging so tightly, caused no damage: not even a hair was lost from His head. Free and unrestrained, Bahá'u'lláh moved above the waters, with all the fish following His light.
His father was stunned by this dream, and with the Shah's permission, laid it before his well-known seer. The seer, swept away with amazement, explained how the garden and its birds, and the limitless ocean with its fish, were the world of existence, and its people, and that Bahá'u'lláh would single-handedly triumph over it, unhindered and alone; yet, he declared himself quite unable to imagine how it could ever come to pass. So His father took him to see Bahá'u'lláh, who was just a Child of five, and his praise and admiration of Bahá'u'lláh was so profuse, and so great his concern that He be protected, that His father became yet more passionately devoted to Him.

Short in Size

As Bahá'u'lláh was walking one day, and His parents were watching Him, His mother happened to comment upon His shortness. His father immediately rejoined that such things had no importance: "Just look how intelligent He is!" he said:- "What a wonderful mind He has!"

Tax Collector

During His childhood, Bahá'u'lláh witnessed three confrontations between His father, and a very unjust tax collector, who was cruelly demanding payment. Incensed, Bahá'u'lláh, though merely seven, mounted His horse, and rode for two days to Tihran, where He sought the dismissal of the arrogant tax collector. He succeeded in obtaining the necessary papers ordering his dismissal, and returned successful to His parents.

Banu Qurayza

The story of the execution for treason of a large number of Jews, one day came before Bahá'u'lláh's eyes, and He was so moved, so profoundly filled with sadness and grief. Yet He felt surging before Him the limitless ocean of God's mercy and forgiveness, and He implored God to grant in the world the establishment of unity and love.

Transfiguration

A short while after, suddenly before dawn, Bahá'u'lláh was overcome by a transfiguration, lasting for twelve days, unceasingly, bringing glad-tidings of the highest success and joy. Entirely transforming His manners, thought and speech, from thenafter the ocean of His words began to surge, and the sun of assurance shone forth from Him.

Skill and Renown

By the time he was thirteen, Bahá'u'lláh was renowned for His ability to discuss any matter, and resolve any problem presented before Him.
He was always courteous and patient, and only the disrespectful reference to a Messenger or Chosen One of God was able to arouse His displeasure; even then, He would address the offender with kindliness and calm.
He appeared before large gatherings in discussions with the leading clergy, resolving intricate religious questions, whilst everyone paid deep attention and interest, and His explanations became the authoritative word on every matter.
Despite these abilities, the kulah on His head and the locks flowing over His shoulders meant no one ever suspected a person of such a class would become the fountain of a new Truth and revitalising Spirit.

Political Unambition

Bahá'u'lláh was held in the highest regard by all levels of society, yet He showed no desire for the splendid ranks and positions opening out everywhere before Him; the Prime Minister himself had even offered Him a post in the government. All these very things His ancestors pursued and cultivated, and His relatives held out great hopes for Him. His lack of interest in such things of importance was therefore a cause of great surprise and frequent comment.

Generosity

Whilst declining such wealthy position and income, Bahá'u'lláh showed astonishing generosity. The doors of His home were open to all, and He always had many guests, giving abundantly to all in need. He was a refuge for every weak one, a shelter for the fearful one, kind to the destitute, and lenient and loving to all creatures. This unbounded generosity amazed everyone, as He did not use it to promote His position; rather, it was clear to everyone that such free generosity would quickly cause His wealth to disappear entirely. The more spiritually-minded saw in these acts His attraction to the celestial realm of God and a great destiny to come.

Turbaned Divines on Gabriel

One day, two hugely-turbaned divines were instructing some ladies hidden behind a curtain. They were questioning whether the angel Gabriel was superior to the first Imam's servant; and, whether the brother of the martyred third Imam was superior to a certain companion of Muhammad. Bahá'u'lláh was astonished at the tone of their debate, saying that since the Holy Spirit descended upon the heart of Muhammad through Gabriel, then even the first Imam himself could not remotely reach Him!

Dream of the Promised One (Qa'im)

Distantly related to Bahá'u'lláh, there was a famous religious doctor who taught a thousand scholars, and he would present them with complex questions to resolve.
It was Bahá'u'lláh's custom to stop by. One morning after prayer, this religious doctor told Bahá'u'lláh's mother of a most impressive and powerful dream he had experienced. In this dream, he found himself outside a house. No one was allowed to enter, and the door-keeper told him that the Promised One was inside, in a secret meeting with Bahá'u'lláh. He was very surprised that the son of a government advisor should be so privileged, instead of someone with a religious calling like himself; after a little reflection, he decided that this privilege of a secret meeting with the Promised One must have been given Bahá'u'lláh by virtue of His distant kinship to himself!

Daughters of Fatimih and Mary

On another occasion, Bahá'u'lláh was sitting with this same man, along with other scholars and divines. They asked Bahá'u'lláh to resolve a question, as they had been unable to answer it themselves with any satisfaction. How could Fatimih, they wondered, be the best of all women, except the one born of Mary, when Mary had no daughter? Bahá'u'lláh replied that this was simply in praise of there being no woman comparable to Fatimih. The teacher held a stern silence, and the next day rebuked his disciples for letting an unturbaned youth solve a matter which they, with all their years of training, were unable to resolve.
 
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