Shaykh Abid, [a tutor] known by his pupils as Shaykhuna, was
a man of piety and learning. He had been a disciple of both Shaykh Ahmad and
Siyyid Kázim. “One day,” he related, “I asked the Báb to recite the opening
words of the Qur’án: ‘Bismi’lláhi’r-Rahmáni’r-Raḥím.’ He hesitated, pleading that unless He were
told what these words signified, He would in no wise attempt to pronounce them.
I pretended not to know their meaning. ‘I know what these words signify,’
observed my pupil; ‘by your leave, I will explain them.’ He spoke with such
knowledge and fluency that I was struck with amazement. He expounded the
meaning of ‘Alláh,’ of ‘Rahmán,’ and ‘Raḥím,’ in terms such as I had neither
read nor heard. The sweetness of His utterance still lingers in my memory. I
felt impelled to take Him back to His uncle and to deliver into his hands the
Trust he had committed to my care. I determined to tell him how unworthy I felt
to teach so remarkable a child. I found His uncle alone in his office. ‘I have
brought Him back to you,’ I said, ‘and commit Him to your vigilant protection.
He is not to be treated as a mere child, for in Him I can already discern
evidences of that mysterious power which the Revelation of the Sáhibu’z-Zamán
[1] alone can reveal. It is incumbent upon you to surround Him with your most
loving care. Keep Him in your house, for He, verily, stands in no need of
teachers such as I.
- Nabil ('The Dawn-Breakers'; translated and edited by Shoghi
Effendi)
[1] “The Lord of the Age,” one of the titles of the promised
Qá’im.
