arthra

Some years later [1] the Báb was united in wedlock with the sister of Mirza Siyyid Hasan and Mirza Abu'l-Qasim.[2]

The child which resulted from this union, He named Ahmad.[3] He died in the year 1259 A.D.,[4] the year preceding the declaration of the Faith by the Báb.

The Father did not lament his loss. He consecrated his death by words such as these:

"O God, my God! Would that a thousand Ishmaels were given Me, this Abraham of Thine, that I might have offered them, each and all, as a loving sacrifice unto Thee.

O my Beloved, my heart's Desire! The sacrifice of this Ahmad whom Thy servant Ali-Muhammad hath offered up on the altar of Thy love can never suffice to quench the flame of longing in His heart. Not until He immolates His own heart at Thy feet, not until His whole body falls a victim to the cruelest tyranny in Thy path, not until His breast is made a target for countless darts for Thy sake, will the tumult of His soul be stilled.

O my God, my only Desire! Grant that the sacrifice of My son, My only son, may be acceptable unto Thee.

Grant that it be a prelude to the sacrifice of My own, My entire self, in the path of Thy good pleasure.

Endue with Thy grace My life-blood which I yearn to shed in Thy path. Cause it to water and nourish the seed of Thy Faith.

Endow it with Thy celestial potency, that this infant seed of God may soon germinate in the hearts of men, that it may thrive and prosper, that it may grow to become a mighty tree, beneath the shadow of which all the peoples and kindreds of the earth may gather.

Answer Thou My prayer, O God, and fulfil My most cherished desire. Thou art, verily, the Almighty, the All-Bountiful."[5]

[1 According to Haji Mu'inu's-Saltanih's narrative (p. 37), the Báb's marriage took place when He was twenty-two years of age.]

[2 The Báb refers to her in his commentary on the Surih of Joseph (Surih of Qarabat). The following is A. L. M. Nicolas' translation of the passage in question:

"In truth I have become betrothed before the throne of God with Sara, that is to say, the dearly beloved, because 'dearly beloved' is derived from Dearly Beloved (the Dearly Beloved is Muhammad which signifies that Sara was a Siyyid). In truth I have taken the angels of heaven and those who dwell in Paradise as witnesses of our betrothal.

"Know that the benevolence of the Dhikr Sublime is great, O dearly beloved! Because it is the benevolence which comes from God, the Beloved. Thou art not like other women if thou obeyest God with regard to the Dhikr Sublime. Know the great truth of the Holy Word and glory within thyself that thou art seated with the friend who is the Favorite of the Most High God. Truly the glory comes to thee from God, the Wise. Be patient in the command which comes from God concerning the Báb and his family. Verily, thy son Ahmad has a refuge in the blessed heaven close to the great Fatimih!"

(Preface to A. L. M. Nicolas' "Le Bayan Persan," vol. 2, pp. 10-11.)]

[3 The Báb refers to his son in his commentary on the Surih of Joseph. The following is A. L. M. Nicolas' translation: "In truth, thy son Ahmad has a refuge in the Blessed Paradise near to the Great Fatimih." (Surih of Qarabat.) "Glory be to God Who in truth has given to the 'Delight of the Eyes,' in her youth, a son who is named Ahmad. Verily, we have reared this child toward God!" (Surih of Abd.) (Preface A. L. M. Nicolas' "Le Bayan Persan," vol. 2, p. II.)]

[4 1843 A.D.]

[5 "He left Shiraz for Bushihr at the age of 17, and remained there for five years engaged in commercial pursuits. During this time he won the esteem of all the merchants with whom he was brought in contact, by his integrity and piety. He was extremely attentive to his religious duties, and gave away large sums to charity. On one occasion he gave 70 tumans [about 22] to a poor neighbour." (Appendix 2 of Tarikh-i-Jadid: Haji Mirza Jani's History, pp. 343-4.)]

~ Shoghi Effendi, The Dawn-Breakers, pp. 76-77

For information on the wife of the Bab see:

Khadíjih-Bagum - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

LordOfGoblins

Heres a tough question.
What if a non-messenger of Gods son dies. How is that really different that it does not make it a sacrifice? Unless the Bab agreed to have his son sacrificed or something..

tonyfish58

The prophets if needed have, I will say Influence, but it may be control over life & death.

They are able to usher in life, sustain it and even hasten it IMHO.

This is my current take on it from my minute study of the writings - That is why I say Current

The wife of Abdul'baha was the direct result of the intercession of the Bab to enable a couple to have a baby that were unable to conceive and had tried for a long time. (bring forth a life)

Many are healed by the prophets (Sustain Life)

A man drowned himself when Baha'u'llah gave Him a glimpse of the next world & Prophesy brought down many a ruler (Hasten the end)

To me Abdul'baha was also a sacrifice. Abdul'baha's life was total service to Baha'u'llah and humanity, a living sacrifice for us all to learn from.

It will be a good topic to discuss I would say

Regards Tony

LordOfGoblins

Fair enough about Abdul'Baha. However noone can be like Abdul'Baha he was a unique person. On the other hand my point is peoples children die all the time from calamity. If a prophet wants to emphasise that they sacrificed their son, then it begs the question of whether all these children who die are also sacrificed. After all the children and just children. Even the same thing happened to Mirza Mehdi. Baha'u'llah could have saved him but he chose not to. On the other hand a normal man does not have Baha'u'llahs power and is impelled to make the sacrifice. I dont see any difference though as in both cases we are powerless to God. Both would feel the same pain of fatherhood at loss.

Also sacrificing someone else doesnt really make sense. How can you sacrifice something which does not belong to you... I do not consider myself my earthly fathers property. I guess they must be talking from the perspective of God. But you might see how normal people who have had tragity in their family might look at it strangely, I think...

tonyfish58

I think that is the difference, the Prophets are not powerless, they were able to prolong the lives of their Offspring. They chose not to & sacrificed that soul.

We have little choice, though in the writings it says you can prolong life through prayer, but it is not adviseable to do so. We should submit to the will of God.

Regards Tony

arthra

Don't you see a parallel of the loss of Ahmad to the loss of Mirza Mihdi...The Purest Branch?:

To the galling weight of these tribulations was now added the bitter grief of a sudden tragedy -- the premature loss of the noble, the pious Mirza Mihdi, the Purest Branch, 'Abdu'l-Bahá's twenty-two year old brother, an amanuensis of Bahá'u'lláh and a companion of His exile from the days when, as a child, he was brought from Tihran to Baghdad to join his Father after His return from Sulaymaniyyih. He was pacing the roof of the barracks in the twilight, one evening, wrapped in his customary devotions, when he fell through the unguarded skylight onto a wooden crate, standing on the floor beneath, which pierced his ribs, and caused, twenty-two hours later, his death, on the 23rd of Rabi'u'l-Avval 1287 A.H. (June 23, 1870). His dying supplication to a grieving Father was that his life might be accepted as a ransom for those who were prevented from attaining the presence of their Beloved.

In a highly significant prayer, revealed by Bahá'u'lláh in memory of His son -- a prayer that exalts his death to the rank of those great acts of atonement associated with Abraham's intended sacrifice of His son, with the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and the martyrdom of the Imam Husayn -- we read the following:

"I have, O my Lord, offered up that which Thou hast given Me, that Thy servants may be quickened, and all that dwell on earth be united."

And, likewise, these prophetic words, addressed to His martyred son: "Thou art the Trust of God and His Treasure in this Land. Erelong will God reveal through thee that which He hath desired."

~ Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By, p. 188