Iran-Iraq earthquake hits important region in Baha’i history
As news of a magnitude 7.8 earthquake on the Iran-Iraq border reached the world Tuesday morning, Baha’is everywhere felt a communal tug on our hearts. As members of the human family, we are deeply concerned about the hundreds who have lost their lives, thousands who have been injured and lost loved ones, and many more rendered homeless. But also, no matter where we come from, Baha’is have a special bond to the country of Iran and its wonderful people.
Iran is known as the cradle of the Baha’i Faith, birthplace of its Central Figures and many of the brightest stars of its heroic age.
Baha’u’llah was born in Tehran and grew up in a noble family, His father a member of the court of the Shah. Rejecting the power and influence of life as a courtier, in adulthood Baha’u’llah dedicated Himself to serving the poor. Later, as a prominent member of the Babi faith, He was imprisoned in Tehran and then exiled to Baghdad.
In January of 1853, in the middle of a frigid winter, Baha’u’llah, His family and about seventy followers left Tehran to set off on a three-month journey with little more than the clothes they were wearing. Inadequate food and shelter made conditions particularly perilous for His young children.
In a prayer Baha’u’llah revealed at that time, He described the extreme hardships of the journey:
Both bread and water which Thou hast, through Thy all-embracing mercy, allowed unto the beasts of the field, they have, for a time, forbidden unto this servant, and the things they refused to inflict upon such as have seceded from Thy Cause, the same have they suffered to be inflicted upon Me, until, finally, Thy decree was irrevocably fixed, and Thy behest summoned this servant to depart out of Persia, accompanied by a number of frail-bodied men and children of tender age, at this time when the cold is so intense that one cannot even speak, and ice and snow so abundant that it is impossible to move.*
Bahiyyih Khanum, Baha’u’llah’s eldest daughter, was one of the “children of tender age” who traveled with Him. Later in life she recounted her memories of that ordeal:
… we three children were very young, my brother eight, and I six years old. … On the way to Baghdad we sometimes encamped in wilderness places, but … the cold was intense, and we were not well prepared! My poor mother! How she suffered on this journey, riding in a takht-i-ravan [a kind of litter], borne on a jolting mule! And this took place only six weeks before her youngest son was born!
But kind and generous people in that mountainous region relieved some of the misery that Baha’u’llah and His companions felt. Shoghi Effendi, Guardian of the Baha’i Faith, recounted in his book God Passes By:
The journey, undertaken in the depth of an exceptionally severe winter, carrying the little band of exiles, so inadequately equipped, across the snow-bound mountains of Western Persia, though long and perilous, was uneventful except for the warm and enthusiastic reception accorded the travelers during their brief stay in Karand by its governor Hayat-Quli Khan, of the [Muslim] Alliyu’llahi sect. He was shown, in return, such kindness by Baha’u’llah that the people of the entire village were affected, and continued, long after, to extend such hospitality to His followers on their way to Baghdad that they gained the reputation of being known as Babis.*
The village of Karand, or Kerend-e Gharb as it is now known, has been affected by the earthquake and is no doubt the scene of both suffering and heroism today. On behalf of the descendants of those who gave warmth and hospitality to Baha’u’llah and His companions, and on behalf of earthquake victims throughout the region and the brave souls who are at this moment rescuing, healing and comforting those in need, we offer this prayer:
Immeasurably exalted art Thou, O Lord! Protect us from what lieth in front of us and behind us, above our heads, on our right, on our left, below our feet and every other side to which we are exposed. Verily, Thy protection over all things is unfailing. – The Báb***
For more information, including how to donate to relief efforts, click here.
*Shoghi Effendi in God Passes By, pp. 108-109.
**Bahiyyih Khanum, quoted by Lady Blomfield, The Chosen Highway, pp. 45-46.
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