CHAPTER 5 PILGRIMAGE TO MECCA: THE HOUSE OF KA`BAH

The Báb embarked for Jiddah, probably on an Arab sailing-boat named Futúḥ-ar-Rasúl—Victories of the Messenger. If so, He had as fellow-passenger a maternal uncle of Muḥammad Sháh, Muḥammad-Báqir Khán, the Biglarbagí[BL] of Ṭihrán, who was attended by Shukru'lláh Khán-i-Núrí, a prominent official of the province of Fárs. We know for certain that two of His fellow-townsmen on the boat were Ḥájí Abu'l-Ḥasan, who pursued the same trade as the Báb's father, and Shaykh Abú-Háshim, brother of Shaykh Abú-Turáb, the Imám-Jum`ih of Shíráz. The former was captivated by the charm and the sublime bearing of his compatriot, the young Siyyid of whose claim he was unaware, and gave Him his allegiance without the slightest hesitation when he learned of His claim. Shaykh Abú-Háshim, however, was already jealous of the respect commanded by the Báb and became His implacable enemy, even though his brother, the Imám-Jum`ih, served the interests of the Báb to the best of his ability.[1]

Ḥájí Abu'l-Ḥasan has related[2] that during the voyage Shaykh Abú-Háshim became daily more arrogant and quarrelsome, molesting the passengers and making the young Siyyid a particular target for his invective. When the Arab captain could no longer tolerate his insolent behaviour, he ordered him to be seized and thrown into the sea. According to Ḥájí Abu'l-Ḥasan, it was the Báb who stepped forward to intercede for him. However, the captain was determined to be rid of the troublesome Shaykh. And when the Báb noticed that the sailors were about to throw Shaykh Abú-Háshim overboard, He hurled Himself upon him, caught hold of him and earnestly requested the captain to pardon the wrong-doer. The Arab captain was astonished, because it had been the young Siyyid who had suffered most from the Shaykh's malice. But the Báb replied that, since people who behaved in that manner harmed only themselves, one should be tolerant and forgiving.

The rites of the Ḥajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) are to be performed on the ninth and tenth days of the month of Dhi'l-Ḥijjah, the last month of the Muslim lunar year. On the tenth day the `Íd-al-Aḍḥá (the Festival of Sacrifices) is celebrated throughout the Muslim world.[BM] It commemorates the sacrifice offered by Abraham of His son. Whenever the `Íd-al-Aḍḥá falls on a Friday, the Ḥajj of that year is termed the Ḥajj-i-Akbar (the Greatest Ḥajj). In the year 1260, the tenth of Dhi'l-Ḥijjah was a Friday (December 20th 1844), and therefore the number of pilgrims was commensurately greater. An Islamic tradition points to the appearance of the Qá'im in a year of the Ḥajj-i-Akbar.

Another particularly notable pilgrim in that year 1260 was a divine of high repute, Siyyid Ja`far-i-Kashfí, whose son Siyyid Yaḥyá (later known as Vaḥíd) was to become one of the most distinguished followers of the Báb.

The journey to Jiddah was long, tedious and exhausting. Seas were rough and storms frequent. An Arab sailing-boat did not afford much comfort. 'For days we suffered from the scarcity of water. I had to content myself with the juice of sweet lemon,' the Báb writes in the Persian Bayán.[3] Ḥájí Abu'l-Ḥasan recounts:

During the entire period of approximately two months, from the day we embarked at Búshihr to the day when we landed at Jaddih, the port of Ḥijáz, whenever by day or night I chanced to meet either the Báb or Quddús, I invariably found them together, both absorbed in their work. The Báb seemed to be dictating, and Quddús was busily engaged in taking down whatever fell from His lips. Even at a time when panic seemed to have seized the passengers of that storm-tossed vessel, they would be seen pursuing their labours with unperturbed confidence and calm. Neither the violence of the elements nor the tumult of the people around them could either ruffle the serenity of their countenance or turn them from their purpose.[4]

At Jiddah the Báb and His companions put on the iḥrám,[BN] the garb of the pilgrim. He travelled to Mecca on a camel, but Quddús would not mount and walked all the way, keeping pace with it. On the tenth day of Dhi'l-Ḥijjah the Báb offered the prescribed sacrifice. The meat of the nineteen lambs which He bought was all given to the poor and the needy; nine of the animals were sacrificed on His own behalf, seven on behalf of Quddús and three for Mubárak.[5]

Ḥájí Mírzá Ḥabíbu'lláh-i-Afnán, quoting Ḥájí Abu'l-Ḥasan, relates in his chronicle that after the completion of the rites of the Ḥajj, at a time when the court of the House of Ka`bah and the roofs of adjoining houses teemed with pilgrims, the Báb stood against the structure of the Ka`bah, laid hold of the ring on its door and thrice repeated, in a clear voice:

Ḥájí Abu'l-Ḥasan recalled, many years later, that a sudden hush fell upon the audience. The full implication of those momentous words must, at the time, have eluded that vast concourse of people. But the news of the claim of the young Siyyid soon spread in an ever-widening circle.

One day in Mecca, the Báb came face to face with Mírzá Muḥammad-Ḥusayn-i-Kirmání, known as Muḥíṭ.[BO] They happened to meet close by the sacred Black Stone (Ḥajar al-Aswad). The Báb took Muḥíṭ's hand, saying:

O Muḥíṭ! You regard yourself as one of the most outstanding figures of the shaykhí community and a distinguished exponent of its teachings. In your heart you even claim to be one of the direct successors and rightful inheritors of those twin great Lights, those Stars that have heralded the morn of Divine guidance. Behold, we are both now standing within this most sacred shrine. Within its hallowed precincts, He whose Spirit dwells in this place can cause Truth immediately to be known and distinguished from falsehood, and righteousness from error. Verily I declare, none besides Me in this day, whether in the East or in the West, can claim to be the Gate that leads men to the knowledge of God. My proof is none other than that proof whereby the truth of the Prophet Muḥammad was established. Ask Me whatsoever you please; now, at this very moment, I pledge Myself to reveal such verses as can demonstrate the truth of My mission. You must choose either to submit yourself unreservedly to My Cause or to repudiate it entirely. You have no other alternative. If you choose to reject My message, I will not let go your hand until you pledge your word to declare publicly your repudiation of the Truth which I have proclaimed. Thus shall He who speaks the Truth be made known, and he that speaks falsely shall be condemned to eternal misery and shame. Then shall the way of Truth be revealed and made manifest to all men.

Muḥíṭ was taken by surprise and was overwhelmed. He replied to the Báb:

My Lord, my Master! Ever since the day on which my eyes beheld You in Karbilá, I seemed at last to have found and recognised Him who had been the object of my quest. I renounce whosoever has failed to recognise You, and despise him in whose heart may yet linger the faintest misgivings as to Your purity and holiness. I pray You to overlook my weakness, and entreat You to answer me in my perplexity. Please God I may, at this very place, within the precincts of this hallowed shrine, swear my fealty to You, and arise for the triumph of Your Cause. If I be insincere in what I declare, if in my heart I should disbelieve what my lips proclaim, I would deem myself utterly unworthy of the grace of the Prophet of God, and regard my action as an act of manifest disloyalty to `Alí, His chosen successor.

The Báb knew how vacillating Muḥíṭ was, and answered:

Verily I say, the Truth is even now known and distinguished from falsehood. O shrine of the Prophet of God, and you, O Quddús, who have believed in Me! I take you both, in this hour, as My witnesses. You have seen and heard that which has come to pass between Me and him. I call upon you to testify thereunto, and God, verily, is, beyond and above you, My sure and ultimate Witness. He is the All-Seeing, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. O Muḥíṭ! Set forth whatsoever perplexes your mind, and I will, by the aid of God, unloose My tongue and undertake to resolve your problems, so that you may testify to the excellence of My utterance and realise that no one besides Me is able to manifest My wisdom.[6]

Muḥíṭ presented his questions and then departed hurriedly for Medina. The Báb, in answer to them, revealed the Ṣaḥífiy-i-Baynu'l-Ḥaramayn, which, as its name 'The Epistle Between the Two Shrines' indicates, was composed on the road to the city of the Prophet (Medina). Muḥíṭ, contrary to his promise, did not remain long in Medina, but received the Báb's treatise in Karbilá. To the end of his days, Muḥíṭ was shifty and irresolute, and the headship of the Shaykhí community did not go to him, but to Ḥájí Muḥammad-Karím Khán-i-Kirmání.

The last act of the Báb in Mecca was to address a Tablet to the Sharíf (Sherif) of Mecca, in which He proclaimed His advent and His Divine mandate. Quddús delivered it together with a volume of the Writings of the Báb. But the Sharíf was preoccupied and ignored the communication put in his hands. Ḥájí Níyáz-i-Baghdádí recounts:

In the year 1267 A.H. [A.D. 1850-51], I undertook a pilgrimage to that holy city, where I was privileged to meet the Sherif. In the course of his conversation with me, he said: 'I recollect that in the year '60, during the season of pilgrimage, a youth came to visit me. He presented to me a sealed book which I readily accepted but was too much occupied at that time to read. A few days later I met again that same youth, who asked me whether I had any reply to make to his offer. Pressure of work had again detained me from considering the contents of that book. I was therefore unable to give him a satisfactory reply. When the season of pilgrimage was over, one day, as I was sorting out my letters, my eyes fell accidentally upon that book. I opened it and found, in its introductory pages, a moving and exquisitely written homily which was followed by verses the tone and language of which bore a striking resemblance to the Qur'án. All that I gathered from the perusal of the book was that among the people of Persia a man of the seed of Fáṭimih and descendant of the family of Háshim, had raised a new call, and was announcing to all people the appearance of the promised Qá'im. I remained, however, ignorant of the name of the author of that book, nor was I informed of the circumstances attending that call.' 'A great commotion,' I remarked, 'has indeed seized that land during the last few years. A Youth, a descendant of the Prophet and a merchant by profession, has claimed that His utterance was the Voice of Divine inspiration. He has publicly asserted that, within the space of a few days, there could stream from His tongue verses of such number and excellence as would surpass in volume and beauty the Qur'án itself—a work which it took Muḥammad no less than twenty-three years to reveal. A multitude of people, both high and low, civil and ecclesiastical, among the inhabitants of Persia, have rallied round His standard and have willingly sacrificed themselves in His path. That Youth has, during the past year, in the last days of the month of Sha`bán [July 1850], suffered martyrdom in Tabríz, in the province of Ádhirbáyján. They who persecuted Him sought by this means to extinguish the light which He kindled in that land. Since His martyrdom, however, His influence has pervaded all classes of people.' The Sherif, who was listening attentively, expressed his indignation at the behaviour of those who had persecuted the Báb. 'The malediction of God be upon these evil people,' he exclaimed, 'a people who, in days past, treated in the same manner our holy and illustrious ancestors!' With these words the Sherif concluded his conversation with me.[7]

The Báb reached Medina on the first day of the year A.H. 1261: Friday, January 10th 1845.[8] It was the first of Muḥarram and the day of His birth. From Medina He proceeded to Jiddah, where He took a boat bound for the port of Búshihr.