Mírzá Áqáy-i-Kashani

Mírzá Áqáy-i-Kashani

Mírzá Áqáy-i-Kashani (d. 1868), granted the title Ismu'llahu'l-Munib by Bahá’u’lláh, was a Persian Bábí and Bahá’í who accompanied Bahá’u’lláh on His exile from Baghdad to Istanbul. He was given the responsibility of sharing Bahá’u’lláh's claims to be a Manifestation of God with the Bábí community and was the first to proclaim Bahá’u’lláh's station in Tehran.

Biography

Munib was from Kashan where his father was a prominent merchant. He received an education and became a talented calligrapher and poet in his youth. He also became a Bábí in his youth and was denounced by the clergy of Kashan. As a result his father abducted him with the assistance of some others and took him into some isolated fields intending to murder him. His father attacked him, standing on his chest wielding a knife, but Munib stated that the Bábí community of Kashan would seek retribution if he was killed and his father allowed him to return to Kashan on the condition he left the family home.

After the incident with his father Munib moved to Baghdad and met Bahá’u’lláh and established his residence in the city with Bahá’u’lláh's permission residing in a small house and transcribing Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh. In 1859 Bahá’u’lláh sent him back to Persia and he visited the Bábí communities of Tehran, Qazvin, and Tabriz, distributing the copies of Bahá’u’lláh's writings he had produced, before returning to Baghdad. When Bahá’u’lláh was exiled from Baghdad to Istanbul Munib accompanied Him traveling on foot next to Bahá’u’lláh's howdah with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and carrying a lantern in front of the howdah at night. Bahá’u’lláh declared Himself to be the Manifestation of God foretold by the Báb in Baghdad immediately before His journey to Istanbul which Munib accepted becoming a Bahá’í. Later in 1863 he also accompanied Bahá’u’lláh on His exile to Adrianople.

Around 1864 Bahá’u’lláh instructed Munib to visit Persia to share His claim with the Bábí community. He traveled to Tehran and began discreetly sharing Bahá’u’lláh's claim. Shortly after his arrival in the city he received the Súriy-i-Aṣḥáb, a Tablet revealed by Bahá’u’lláh addressed to him in which Bahá’u’lláh proclaimed Himself to be a Manifestation of God, instructing His followers to share His claim and forbidding the use of violence or force. After a period travel teaching across Persia and being an active member of the Bahá’í community of Tehran Munib returned to Adrianople.

In 1868 Bahá’u’lláh was exiled to Akka. Munib was suffering a severe illness at the time but asked to be allowed to accompany Bahá’u’lláh. His condition became worse during the journey and after arriving in Gallipoli he had to be carried onto the steamship which was to travel to Akka. When the ship arrived in Smyrna the captain forced him to leave the ship and he was hospitalized, with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá assisting with carrying him to the hospital as he was too weak to walk. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stayed with him in the hospital until the steamship departed Smyrna.

Munib passed away in the Smyrna hospital. Bahá’u’lláh honored him in a Tablet after his passing and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá later asked the Bahá’ís of Smyrna to locate his grave so it could become a pilgrimage site for Bahá’ís.