Ponder Thou upon the Martyrdom of Hájí Muhammad-Ridá Nineteen Historical Accounts Introduced and Translated by Ahang Rabbani Volume 5 Witnesses to Bábí and Bahá’í History Ponder Thou upon the Martyrdom of Hájí Muhammad-Ridá Nineteen Historical Accounts Introduced and Translated by Ahang Rabbani Volume 5 Witnesses to Bábí and Bahá’í History Copyright and Distribution © 2007, Ahang Rabbani This book was prepared for print publication by Ahang Rabbani. This electronic edition has been produced to facilitate widespread distribution and use of this study. This monograph may be freely redistributed in electronic form so long as the following conditions are met: 1. The contents of this file are not altered. 2. This copyright and redistribution notice remains intact 3. No charges are made or monies collected for the redistribution In addition, this electronic version may be printed for redistribution as a printed document or as a book for non- commercial purposes, such as, personal or educational use, so long as the above conditions are met with the following qualifications and additions: 1. Charges may be made or monies collected only to recover the actual costs of printing and distribution. No profit may be made, or surcharge assessed, for the distribution of this work in printed formats. 2. If printed in book form, five copies must be submitted for archival purposes to the International Bahá’í Library in Haifa, Israel (http://library.bahai.org/). Any other reproduction or redistribution in any format is forbidden without the expressed written consent of Dr. Ahang Rabbani or his designated heirs. For the latest version of this study, visit: http://ahang.rabbani.googlepages.com/ Witnesses to Bábí and Bahá’í History The Witnesses to Bábí and Bahá’í History series is a multi-volume on- going project of Ahang Rabbani. A list of current projects and forthcoming research monographs is available at: http://ahang.rabbani.googlepages.com/ Published Volumes 1 In the Land of Refuge: The Genesis of the Bahá’í Faith in Shiraz 2 The Bábís of Nayriz: History and Documents 3 Eight Years Near ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: The Diary of Dr. Habíb Mu’ayyad 4 Memories of the Báb, Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: Recollections of Mírzá Habíbu’lláh Afnán 5 Ponder Thou upon the Martyrdom of Hájí Muhammad-Ridá: Nineteen Historical Accounts 6 Bahá’í Martyrdoms in Manshad in 1903: Three Historical Accounts 7 Memoirs of a Bahá’í in Rasht: 1889-1903 8 Witness to Shaykh Tabarsi: The Narrative of Hájí Nasír Qazvíní 9 A Lifetime with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: Reminiscences of Khalíl Shahídí 10 ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s Year in Egypt: A Compilation of Eyewitness Accounts 11 With ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: The Diary of Mírzá ‘Isá Isfahání 12 With ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: Diaries of Drs. Habíb Mu’ayyad and Zia Baghdadi 13 With ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: The Diary of Dr. Núru’lláh Hamadání 14 With Bahá’u’lláh: The Narrative of Áqá Husyan Áshchí 15 The Voice of the Heroes: The Genesis of the Bahá’í Faith in Khurasan … ponder thou upon the martyrdom of Hájí Muhammad-Ridá in the City of Love (‘Ishqabad). The tyrants of the earth have subjected that wronged one to such trials as have caused many foreigners to weep and lament for, as reported and ascertained, no less than thirty-two wounds were inflicted upon his blessed body. Yet none of the faithful transgressed My commandment, nor raised his hand in resistance. Come what might, they refused to allow their own inclinations to supersede that which the Book hath decreed, though a considerable number of this people have resided, and still reside, in that city. Bahá’u’lláh Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 77 Dedication As a token of love and remembrance, this book is dedicated to these ten Bahá’ís, who were executed in Shiraz on 18 June 1983 on the charge of teaching Bahá’í children’s classes. Contents Foreword ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1 A Historical Overview -------------------------------------------------------- 4 Bahá’í Settlement in ‘Ishqabad ---------------------------------------------- 9 A Brief Biography of Hájí Muhammad-Ridá ----------------------------- 17 A Glossary of Russian Terms ----------------------------------------------- 20 Documents Background Materials 1 – The Founding of ‘Ishqabad ------------------------------------ 21 2 – Expansion of the Bahá’í Community of ‘Ishqabad -------- 25 Eyewitness Accounts 3 – Remembering Hájí Muhammad-Ridá ----------------------- 36 4 – Mírzá Abú’l-Fadl, 9 September 1889 ------------------------ 42 5 – Mírzá Abú’l-Fadl, 16 September 1889 ----------------------- 46 6 – Mírzá Abú’l-Fadl, 18 September 1889 ----------------------- 50 7 – Mírzá Abú’l-Fadl, 31 October 1889 -------------------------- 59 8 – Mírzá Abú’l-Fadl, 25 November 1889 ----------------------- 63 9 – Mírzá Abú’l-Fadl, 21 January 1890 --------------------------- 68 10 – The Martyrdom of Hájí Muhammad-Ridá ------------------ 96 11 – Mírzá Abú’l-Fadl, 25 February 1903 ------------------------- 121 12 – Mírzá Abú’l-Fadl, 28 December 1911 ----------------------- 127 13 – Mírzá Abú’l-Fadl, Undated ------------------------------------ 130 Secondary Sources 14 – A Report by the British on 17 December 1889 ------------ 132 15 – Mírzá Abú’l-Fadl, Undated ------------------------------------ 135 16 – A Report by Victor Rosen in 1891 --------------------------- 137 17 – A Biography of Hájí Muhammad-Ridá ---------------------- 140 Oral Histories 18 – Recollections of ‘Ishqabad ------------------------------------- 151 19 – The Rise of the Bahá’í Community of ‘Ishqabad ---------- 158 Appendix – Biography of Principle Authors Ustád ‘Alí-Akbar Banná Yazdí -------------------------------------- 172 Mírzá Abú’l-Fadl Gulpaypání --------------------------------------- 175 Bibliography -------------------------------------------------------------- 181 Foreword Great is the blessedness of those whose blood Thou hast chosen wherewith to water the Tree of Thine affirmation, and thus to exalt Thy holy and immutable Word.1 The Báb The facts of this incident are simple and well-known. In 1889, the Bahá’í Faith came to public attention in ‘Ishqabad as the result of an appalling crime that involved the taking of the life of a prominent, elderly Bahá’í by two assassins who had been hired by a group of Muslims resentful of the commercial success of Bahá’í businessmen in their city and the rapid spread of the Faith in the region. The Russian authorities arrested the murderers and those suspected of involvement in the crime and, subsequent to an official military trial held in ‘Ishqabad, they sentenced most of them to death or long incarceration in Siberia. The Bahá’ís petitioned the Governor to spare the lives of the perpetrators. The plea was submitted to Czar Alexander III, who asked the Senate to consult on it. The Senate decided to honor the request of the Bahá’ís for clemency and the Czar agreed. It was publicly announced that a reduction in the sentences was granted at the request of the Bahá’ís. From that time, the Bahá’í community won all the unfettered right to practice their religion without restriction and under the government’s protection. The importance of this incident was profound. For the first time in the history of the nascent Bahá’í community, persecutors of its members had been publicly tried, found guilty and subjected to punishment under the law. Further, for the first time, the independence of the Faith from its Islamic roots had been clearly established and proclaimed by governmental officials acting on behalf of the state. While it appears that the incident of the martyrdom specifically, and the success of the Bahá’ís in ‘Ishqabad more broadly, had been 1 Selections from the Writings of the Báb, p. 90 2 The Martyrdom of Hájí Muhammad-Ridá anticipated by Bahá’u’lláh, it also appears that the actions of the Bahá’í community of ‘Ishqabad in the course of events immediately after the martyrdom, first in collaborating closely with the authorities towards ascertaining the truth of occurrences, and then in their effective presentation at the trial and their ensuing magnanimity in pleading on behalf of the convicts, were a source of great joy to Bahá’u’lláh. In a number of Tablets during the final years of His life, Bahá’u’lláh made mention of this incident and praised the Bahá’ís for the manner in which they had conducted themselves. He was also exceedingly pleased with the government of Russia and the impartial attitude of her officials in administering justice. The purpose of this monograph is to bring a number of primary source documents about this incident to the attention of English language readers. It is hoped that a close study of these documents will provide a basis for a more thorough analysis of this singularly important chapter in the Bahá’í history. Translations from the Bahá’í writings contained in this monograph are provisional, except where they are attributed to sources which have been authorized by the Bahá’í World Centre. Occasionally it was necessary to include certain comments or insert subheadings to assist with flow and transition. All of these are placed in square brackets, [ ]. Unless specified otherwise, all footnotes are by the present translator. Several Russian terms transliterated incorrectly by various authors have been corrected. In the course of this study, I received gracious help from a number of colleagues to whom I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude and whose assistance I wish to hereby record: • Ruhu’llah Mehrabkhani and Adel Shafipour were most generous with his unceasing encouragements throughout this project; • Farshid Kazemi, Firooz Oskooi, Iskandar Ha’i, Juan Cole and Houshang Rafat assisted with providing copies of various documents beneficial to this study; Ponder Thou upon the Martyrdom of Hájí Muhammad-Ridá: Nineteen Historical Accounts, Witnesses to Bábí and Bahá’í History, vol. 5, © 2007 Ahang Rabbani The Martyrdom of Hájí Muhammad-Ridá 3 • Omid Ghaemmaghami and Khazeh Fananapazir each translated a Tablet of Bahá’u’lláh for this project; and • Phillip Tussing and Mark Costine patiently and with care read the manuscript and offered a number of important suggestions. Any errors or shortcomings in this monograph are to be ascribed solely to myself.