Mirza Husayn Yazdi

Mirza Husayn Yazdi

Mirza Husayn Yazdi (d. 1915) was an early Persian Bahá’í who helped establish the Bahá’í community of Miyandu’ab, a city in Iran.

Biography

Yazdi was born in Yazd and his father was Mirza Mahdi ‘Atri Yazdi who became a Bábí during one of Vahíd's teaching trips to Yazd in 1850. In 1858 Yazdi visited Baghdad where he met Bahá’u’lláh and Mírzá Yaḥyá, and while Yaḥyá was considered the leader of the Bábí community Yazdi had been more impressed by Bahá’u’lláh and expressed dissatisfaction with Yaḥyá and his hostility towards Bahá’u’lláh. He was given a copy of the Hidden Words while in Baghdad which he distributed to the Bábí's after returning to Yazd.

Yazdi and his family became Bahá’ís at some point after Bahá’u’lláh declared Himself to be a Manifestation of God in 1863 and his father continued actively teaching the Bahá’í Faith despite being arrested multiple times. As a result the clergy in Yazd sent a request that his father be sentenced to death to a mujtahid in Ardikan which was denied. For the families safety Yazdi's father, Yazdi, and his younger brother Varqá left Yazd and settled in Tabriz in 1873.

In 1876 Yazdi moved to Miyandu’ab where he began teaching the Faith and by 1877 four people had declared. In 1879 he went on pilgrimage with his father and brother, with his father passing on the journey, and met with Bahá’u’lláh. As of 1880 Miyandu’ab had a large active Bahá’í community in which Yazdi was a leading figure.

Yazdi's brother Varqá was martyred in 1896 and in 1900 his son Valíyu'lláh Varqá, who had been raised by his maternal grandmother to have a hostile opinion of the Faith, moved to Miyandu’ab and lived under Yazdi's care. Valíyu'lláh became a Bahá’í through Yazdi and went on to be appointed a Hand of the Cause.

Yazi passed away in 1915.