The Reconciliation of Races and ReligionsCheyne, T. K. (Thomas Kelly)
Religion
The Reconciliation of Races and Religions
Cheyne, T. K. (Thomas Kelly)
Bahais
'There was an old physician at Baghdad who had been called upon to
attend the family, and who had become our friend. He sympathized much
with us, and undertook on his own account to make inquiries for my
father. These inquiries were long without definite result, but at
length a certain traveller to whom he had described my father said
that he had heard of a man answering to that description, evidently of
high rank, but calling himself a dervish, living in caves in the
mountains. He was, he said, reputed to be so wise and wonderful in his
speech on religious things that when people heard him they would
follow him; whereupon, wishing to be alone, he would change his
residence to a cave in some other locality. When we heard these
things, we were convinced that this dervish was in truth our beloved
one. But having no means to send him any word, or to hear further of
him, we were very sad.
'There was also then in Baghdad an earnest Bābī, formerly a pupil
of Ḳurratu'l 'Ayn. This man said to us that as he had no ties and
did not care for his life, he desired no greater happiness than to be
allowed to seek for him all loved so much, and that he would not
return without him. He was, however, very poor, not being able even to
provide an ass for the journey; and he was besides not very strong,
and therefore not able to go on foot. We had no money for the purpose,
nor anything of value by the sale of which money could be procured,
with the exception of a single rug, upon which we all slept. This we
sold and with the proceeds bought an ass for this friend, who
thereupon set out upon the search.
'Time passed; we heard nothing, and fell into the deepest dejection
and despair. Finally, four months having elapsed since our friend had
departed, a message was one day received from him saying that he would
bring my father home on the next day. The absence of my father had
covered a little more than two years. After his return the fame which
he had acquired in the mountains reached Baghdad. His followers became
numerous; many of them even the fierce and untutored Arabs of Irak. He
was visited also by many Bābīs from Persia.'
This is the account of the sister of our beloved and venerated Abdul
Baha. There are, however, two other accounts which ought to be
mentioned. According to the _Traveller's Narrative_, the refuge
of Baha-'ullah was generally in a place called Sarkalu in the
mountains of Turkish Kurdistan; more seldom he used to stay in
Suleymaniyya, the headquarters of the Sunnites. Before long, however,
'the most eminent doctors of those regions got some inkling of his
circumstances and conditions, and conversed with him on the solution
of certain difficult questions connected with the most abstruse points
of theology. In consequence of this, fragmentary accounts of this were
circulated in all quarters. Several persons therefore hastened
thither, and began to entreat and implore.' [Footnote: _TN_,
pp. 64, 65.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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