Rúhu’lláh Varqá
Rúhu’lláh | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | c. 1883 Tabriz, Iran |
| Died | 1896 Tehran, Iran |
Rúhu’lláh Varqá (c. 1883 - 1896) was a Persian Bahá’í. He was active in proclaiming and teaching the Bahá’í Faith early in his youth and was martyred at a young age.
Biography[edit]
Varqá was born in Tabriz in the early 1880's. His father was a prominent Bahá’í travel teacher who was granted the title Varqá and his mother was Fatimih, the daughter of Mirza ‘Abdu’llah Khan-i-Nuri who was a Bahá’í who served the Crown Prince of Persia. He had an older brother, ‘Azíz’ulláh, and two younger brothers, Valíyu'lláh, and Badí‘ulláh.[1][2] In 1891 he went on pilgrimage with his father and older brother and met Bahá’u’lláh.[3]
While Varqá's father and grandfather were Bahá’ís his mother and maternal grandmother were not and his grandmother was particularly hostile to the religion and his father. Varqá accompanied his father and older brother when they moved to Zanjan due to his grandmother attempting to have his father murdered with his younger brothers remaining with their mother. Although still a child he was active in teaching the Faith to expand the Bahá’í community of Zanjan.[4]
Some time after the Ascension of Bahá’u’lláh in 1892 Varqá accompanied his father and older brother on a second pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Bahíyyih Khánum became particularly fond of him and she discussed teaching the Faith with him. Varqá noted that he took care when proclaiming that Bahá’u’lláh was a Manifestation of God to ensure that he did not cause offense. He also said to Bahíyyih that he did not feel ‘Abdu’l-Bahá's half brothers were sincere Bahá’ís.[5]
During their pilgrimage ‘Abdu’l-Bahá had asked Varqá's father to transport his Bahá’í archival materials and correspondence out of Zanjan and the family made arrangements to move to Tehran in 1896. Upon departing Varqá and his father were arrested outside of Zanjan, imprisoned and pressured to recant their Faith for several weeks, then transported to Tehran where they were tortured and starved. His older brother had left Zanjan sometime earlier and was not arrested.[6]
In May 1896 Nasiri'd-Din Shah was assassinated and Hajibu'd-Dawlih, who was responsible for the Bahá’í prisoners in Tehran, decided to take retribution on his prisoners as while the Bahá’í community had no involvement in the assassination individual Bábí's acting alone had made an unrelated assassination attempt decades earlier. Hajibu'd-Dawlih summoned Varqá and his father to a room, stabbed Varqá's father and had him torn apart by the limbs by four men, and then offered Varqá an allowance and position in the court of the Shah. Varqá rejected the offer and stated he wished to join his father and was strangled to death with a bastinado. His body reportedly rose from the ground and walked several steps after his death which deeply disturbed Hajibu'd-Dawlih who did not execute the other Bahá’í prisoners in Tehran as he had originally intended to.[7]
References[edit]
- ↑ The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1970). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 13 (1954-1963), Pg(s) 831. View as PDF.
- ↑ H.M. Balyuzi, Eminent Baha'is in the Time of Baha'u'llah, George Ronald: Oxford, 1985, p 77
- ↑ H.M. Balyuzi, Eminent Baha'is in the Time of Baha'u'llah, George Ronald: Oxford, 1985, p 81
- ↑ H.M. Balyuzi, Eminent Baha'is in the Time of Baha'u'llah, George Ronald: Oxford, 1985, p 83
- ↑ Barron Harper, Lights of Fortitude, George Ronald: Oxford, 2007, p 42
- ↑ H.M. Balyuzi, Eminent Baha'is in the Time of Baha'u'llah, George Ronald: Oxford, 1985, pp 89-92
- ↑ H.M. Balyuzi, Eminent Baha'is in the Time of Baha'u'llah, George Ronald: Oxford, 1985, p 96
