Nabíl-i-Akbar
| Nabíl-i-Akbar | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | March 29, 1829 Nawfirist, Iran |
| Died | July 6, 1892 Bukhara, Uzbekistan |
| Other names | Áqá Muḥammad-i-Qá’iní Fadil-i-Qá’iní (Learned One of Qa’ín) |
| Title(s) | Hand of the Cause Apostle of Bahá’u’lláh |
| Appointed by | ‘Abdu’l-Bahá |
Áqá Muḥammad-i-Qá’iní (March 29, 1829 - July 6, 1892), granted the title Nabíl-i-Akbar (Arabic: نبيل الأكبر) by Bahá’u’lláh, was a Persian Bahá’í. He was posthumously named a Hand of the Cause by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and an Apostle of Bahá’u’lláh by Shoghi Effendi.
Nabíl was notably a highly qualified Islamic scholar enabling him to teach the Faith utilizing Islamic theology. The Lawh-i-Hikmat, a Tablet of Bahá’u’lláh, was revealed for him.[1]
Biography[edit]
Nabíl was born in the village of Nawfirist in the Qa’in region of Iran in 1829. His family was prominent in the local clergy and he was related to mujtahids in the area. He excelled in his studies and composed an Arabic commentary on Arabic grammar when he was fifteen. He pursued formal studies in Birjand and at a Madrasih in Mashhad before moving to Tehran where he continued his studies. Due to his interest in mystical philosophy he was accused of being a Bábí and he was arrested in 1852 during a period of widespread violent persecution of the Bábí community however the director of the Madrasih he was studying at secured his release.[2]
After Nabíl's arrest and release Siyyid Ya‘qub, a Bábí studying at the same Madrasih as Nabíl, gave him some Bábí literature which he studied aiming to produce a refutation, however he instead decided that the Báb's claims were true. Although he considered himself a Bábí Nabíl moved to Iraq where he completed his studies of Islam in Najaf and secured a formal clerical qualification, as he felt that this would enable him to debate the Bábí religion with clerical authorities without being dismissed.[2]
In January 1858 Nabíl began travelling back to Iran from Najaf. During his journey he stopped in Baghdad where he met with Bahá’u’lláh and he was extremely impressed by his theological knowledge.[3] When he arrived in Iran he settled in Tehran where he began teaching at a religious college. He then moved to Birjand where he participated in public debates facilitated by the governor of the city and as he performed well he was given a mosque to teach at, met with the governor twice a week, and became regarded as a religious authority in the area.[4]
Nabíl taught the Faith to people he felt were receptive which resulted in a Bábí community becoming established in the area.[4] In 1861 Islamic clerics threatened by Nabíl's success in teaching petitioned clerics in Isfahan and Najaf to try and obtain a fatwa for Nabíl's death and spread rumors falsely alleging the Bábí religion promoted immorality which prejudiced the governor against the community. This resulted in the governor launching a campaign of persecution against the Bábí community in the area in 1861. Nabíl was visiting Mazan at the time where he was arrested and marched on foot to Sarchah and held for two months. He was then marched on foot to Birjand and then Nawfirist and whipped during the journey.[5]
Complaints regarding the situation were sent to the governor of Mashhad who summoned Nabíl to the city and treated him as a guest of honor. Nabíl moved to Tehran in 1862 but returned to Mashhad in 1864. After returning to Mashhad he was granted a large yearly allowance by the acting governor who met with him weekly and he began teaching at a Madrasih. Nabíl-i-A‘ẓam visited Mashhad around this time and announced that Bahá’u’lláh had claimed He was the Manifestation of God prophesied by the Báb and Nabíl accepted the claim, became a Bahá’í, and contacted the Bábí's of Birjand to encourage them to become Bahá’ís.[6]
In 1869 Nabíl moved back to Tehran and married Maryam who was a daughter of Mirza Farajullah Tafrishi. As he was well known as a Bahá’í he had to move his residence in the city often to avoid persecution by the religious authorities and the household of his wife was raided one week after their wedding by which time he was already staying in another residence. His wife, mother-in-law, and brother-in-law were imprisoned and questioned on his whereabouts and their home was frequently raided afterwards in attempts to capture him.[6]
In 1873 Nabíl undertook a tour of Iran and then went on pilgrimage to the Holy Land.[7] He visited Tehran during the 1870's and actively taught the Faith, assisting with teaching Mírzá Abu’l-Faḍl in 1876.[8] In 1879 he received news of the martyrdom of the Núrayn-i-Nayyirayn while visiting Yazd and he returned to Tehran then traveled to Tabriz with the intention of appealing to officials in other countries to protest the martyrdoms and condemn the Persian government however he received a Tablet from Bahá’u’lláh while in Tabriz advising patience.[7]
In 1882 Nabíl began an extended period of travel in order to avoid imprisonment visiting Bahá’í communities in Isfahan, Yazd, Shiraz, and Adhirbayjan. By 1885 he was traveling across the province of Khurasan and he was arrested in Sabzivar however he befriended the governor of the town while imprisoned and was able to secure his release.[1] He later moved to Central Asia establishing his residence in Ishqabad in 1890,[9] and then Bukhara where he passed away in July, 1892.[7][1] ‘Abdu’l-Bahá posthumously named him a Hand of the Cause in Memorials of the Faithful and memorialized him writing the following:
"He excelled not only in theology but in other branches of knowledge, such as the humanities, the philosophy of the Illuminati, the teachings of the mystics and of the Shaykhí School. He was a universal man, in himself alone a convincing proof. When his eyes were opened to the light of Divine guidance, and he breathed in the fragrances of Heaven, he became a flame of God. Then his heart leapt within him, and in an ecstasy of joy and love, he roared out like a leviathan in the deep."[10]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Hasan Balyuzi, Eminent Bahá’ís in the time of Bahá’u’lláh, George Ronald: Oxford, 1985, p 115
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Moojan Momen, The Baha’i Communities of Iran 1851-1921, Volume 1: The North of Iran, George Ronald: Oxford, 2015, p 227
- ↑ Moojan Momen, The Baha’i Communities of Iran 1851-1921, Volume 1: The North of Iran, George Ronald: Oxford, 2015, p 228
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Moojan Momen, The Baha’i Communities of Iran 1851-1921, Volume 1: The North of Iran, George Ronald: Oxford, 2015, p 229
- ↑ Moojan Momen, The Baha’i Communities of Iran 1851-1921, Volume 1: The North of Iran, George Ronald: Oxford, 2015, p 230
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Moojan Momen, The Baha’i Communities of Iran 1851-1921, Volume 1: The North of Iran, George Ronald: Oxford, 2015, p 232
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Moojan Momen, The Baha’i Communities of Iran 1851-1921, Volume 1: The North of Iran, George Ronald: Oxford, 2015, p 232
- ↑ Moojan Momen, Mirza Abu'l-Fadl Gulpáygání, published at Bahá’í Library Online, 1995, accessed 28 November 2022
- ↑ ed. Shirin Akiner, Cultural Change and Continuity in Central Asia, London: Kegan Paul, 1991, p 286
- ↑ ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Memorials of the Faithful, Baha'i Reference Library pdf edition, p 2
External links[edit]
- Nabíl-i-Akbar - From Memorials of the Faithful
