According to this sect, authentic revelation is only obtained by the world of ecstacy or similitude, called _Mánistán_; but from the time of _Máhábád_, all the prophets who were sent were in accordance with his faith; not one of them being opposed to his law. After _Máhábád_, appeared thirteen apostles who, with him, were styled the fourteen _Máhábáds_: they were called by the common name of _Abád_, and acted on every occasion in conformity to their ancestor and his Celestial Code: and whatever revelation was made to them tended to corroborate the faith of _Máhábád_.[245] After them, their sons in due succession obtained sovereign power, after their fathers, and devoted themselves to justice. The followers of this sect also believe that all the prophets and kings were selected from the heads of the most distinguished families. Next to this dynasty, known as the Mahabadian, comes _Abád Azád_, who withdrew from temporal power and walked in the path of devotion and seclusion. It is recorded, that in their time, the realm was highly cultivated; treasures were abundant; lofty palaces, ornamented with paintings and exciting admiration; colonnades attracting the heart; the Mobeds celebrated, profoundly learned, worshippers of God, undefiled, equally eminent in good words and deeds; soldiers, well-appointed and disciplined, with corresponding trains of attendants and officers; mountain-resembling elephants; chargers like fragments of _Alburz_,[246] rapid in their course; swift-paced animals for riding; numerous camels and dromedaries; well-trained cavalry and infantry, and leaders who had experience in the world; precious stuffs; vases of gold and silver; thrones and crowns of great price; heart-delighting tapestries and gardens with other such objects, the like of which exists not at present, and were not recorded as being in existence in the treasures or reigns of the _Gilsháíán_ monarchs.