And what of the other tribulations which, before and
immediately after this dreadful episode, touched Him [Baha’u’llah]? What of His
confinement in the home of one of the kad-khudás of Tihrán? What of the
savage violence with which He was stoned by the angry people in the
neighborhood of the village of Níyálá? What of His incarceration by the
emissaries of the army of the Sháh in Mázindarán, and His receiving the
bastinado by order, and in the presence, of the assembled siyyids and mujtahids
into whose hands He had been delivered by the civil authorities of Ámul? What
of the howls of derision and abuse with which a crowd of ruffians subsequently
pursued Him? What of the monstrous accusation brought against Him by the
Imperial household, the Court and the people, when the attempt was made on the
life of Násri’d-Dín Sháh? What of the infamous outrages, the abuse and
ridicule heaped on Him when He was arrested by responsible officers of the
government, and conducted from Níyávarán “on foot and in chains, with bared
head and bare feet,” and exposed to the fierce rays of the midsummer sun, to
the Síyáh-Chál of Tihrán? What of the avidity with which corrupt
officials sacked His house and carried away all His possessions and disposed of
His fortune? What of the cruel edict that tore Him from the small band of the
Báb’s bewildered, hounded, and shepherdless followers, separated Him from His kinsmen
and friends, and banished Him, in the depth of winter, despoiled and defamed,
to ‘Iráq?
- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated 28 March 1941; ‘The Promised Day
Is Come’)
