Baha'u'llah & the New Era
by
J. Esslemont
5 Paragraphs

Abbas Effendi, Who afterwards assumed the title of 'Abdul-Baha (i.e. Servant of Baha), was the eldest son on Baha'u'llah. He was born in Tihran before midnight on the eve of the 23rd of May, 1844, the very same night in which the Bab declared His mission. (51:2)

He was nine years of age when His father.. was thrown into the dungeon in Tihran. A mob sacked their house, and the family were stripped of their possessions and left in destitution.. one day He was allowed to enter the prison yard to see His beloved father.. Baha'u'llah was terribly altered, so ill He could hardly walk, His hair and beard unkempt, His neck galled and swollen from the pressure of a heavy steel collar, His body bent by the weight of His chains, and the sight made a never-to-be-forgotten impression of the mind of the sensitive boy. (51:3)

"I am the servant of the Blessed Perfection.. As soon as He proclaimed to me the Word, I threw myself at His Holy Feet.. Sacrifice! How sweet I find that word! There is no greater Bounty for me than this! What greater glory can I conceive than to see this neck chained for His sake, these feet fettered for His love, this body mutilated or thrown into the depths of the sea for His Cause! If in reality we are His sincere lovers-if in reality I am His sincere servant, then I must sacrifice my life, my all at His Blessed Threshold." ('Abdul-Baha-Diary of Mirza Ahmad Sohrab) (52:1)

About this time (1853) He began to be called by His friends "The Mystery of God," a title given to Him by Baha'u'llah.. (52:2)

When His father went away for two years in the wilderness, 'Abbas was heartbroken. His chief consolation consisted of copying and committing to memory the Tablets of the Bab, and much of His time was spent in solitary meditation.. (52:3)

End of Quote

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