- 1863-12-15 —
During this period Bahá'u'lláh made His proclamation to the kings and rulers.
Also during this period the decline and breakdown of the Ottoman Empire continued. It was often referred to as the "Sick Man of Europe." This decline was characterized by administrative inefficiency, territorial losses, and the rise of nationalist movements in many of its provinces.
- Serbia had been taken steps to loosen the Ottoman control since the early 1800s. In 1867 the Turks had to evacuate their fortress there. In 1876, Serbia declared war on the Ottoman Empire, participating in the broader conflict known as the Russo-Turkish War (1877-1878). Following the war the Treaty of Berlin (1878) recognized Serbia's full independence. Its territory was further expanded in the subsequent years.
Muhammad Ali Pasha was taking Egypt out of the Ottoman fold and his dynasty continued until 1952.
- Moldavia and Walachia were united into the autonomous principality of Romania in 1861 or 1862. In 1877-1878, Romania played a significant role in the Russo-Turkish War, and after the Treaty of Berlin it was officially recognized as an independent nation. The country's independence was further solidified in 1881 when Carol I became the first King of Romania.
- The Greek War of Independence (25 March 1821) laid the foundation for the modern Greek state and it was a significant chapter in the broader context of nationalist movements and the decline of the Ottoman Empire in the 19th century.
- Pan-Slavism, supported by Russia and its agents in the region, had become the prevailing ideology in the Balkans during Bahá'u'lláh's time in Adrianople (1863-68). A serious insurrection broke out in Herzegovina in 1875, followed by an uprising in Bulgaria in 1876 and a declaration of war on the Ottoman Empire by Serbia and Montenegro. Russian armies crossed the Ottoman frontiers and occupied Sofia and Adrianople, fulfilling Bahá'u'lláh's prophecy that:
"the day is approaching when the Land of Mystery [Adrianople], and what is beside it shall be changed, and shall pass out of the hands of the king, and commotions shall appear, and the voice of lamentation shall be raised, and the evidences of mischief shall be revealed on all sides, and confusion shall spread by reason of that which hath befallen these captives at the hands of the hosts of oppression..." [The Summons of the Lord of Hosts p143]
[Colonialism, Nationalism and Jewish Immigration to Palestine by Kamran Ekbal p16]
- 1867-09-03 —
Bahá'u'lláh revealed the Kitáb-i-Badí', the Munájátháy-i-Síyám (Prayers for Fasting), the first Tablet to Napoleon III, the Lawh-i-Sultán written to Násiri'd-Dín Sháh, and the Súriy-i-Ra'ís. [BKG245; GBP172]
- The Súriy-i-Ra'ís was published in the Summons of the Lord of Hosts. See Wikipedia for a synopsis of this Tablet.
- See RB2:370–82 for details of the Kitáb-i-Badí'.
- Bahá'u'lláh revealed the Súriy-i-Ghusn (Tablet of the Branch) in which 'Abdu'l-Bahá's future station was foreshadowed. [BBD218; BKG250; GPB177; GWB39]
- See RB2:338–9 for a description of the Tablet.
- It was probably about this time that the first Lawh-i-Salmán was revealed for Shaykh Salmán. [RoB2p281-290; Uplifting Words ]
- 1867-12-15 —
- 1868-00-00 —
During this period Bahá'u'lláh revealed a number of Tablets to rulers including the Lawh-i-Ra'ís to `Alí Páshá, His second Tablet to Napoleon III and Tablets to Czar Alexander II, Queen Victoria and Pope Pius IX. [BBD13]
The writings of Bahá'u'lláh during this period, as we survey the vast field which they embrace, seem to fall into three distinct categories. The first comprises those writings which constitute the sequel to the proclamation of His Mission in Adrianople. The second includes the laws and ordinances of His Dispensation, which, for the most part, have been recorded in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, His Most Holy Book. To the third must be assigned those Tablets which partly enunciate and partly reaffirm the fundamental tenets and principles underlying that Dispensation. [GPB205-206]
- See Wikipedia for a synopsis of Law-i-Ra'ís..
- The Súriy-i-Haykal (Súrih of the Temple) was also revealed in Adrianople, and later recast after His arrival in `Akká. In this version He incorporated His messages addressed to individual potentates -- Pope Pius IX, Napoleon III, Czar Alexander II, Queen Victoria, and Násiri'd-Dín Sháh. Bahá'u'lláh instructed it to be written in the form of a pentacle, symbolizing the human temple. See the Introduction Summons of the Lord of Hosts pgi.
- An Introduction to the Súratu'l-Haykal (Discourse of The Temple) by Mohamad Ghasem Bayat.
- President Grant of the United States was in office when Bahá'u'lláh addressed a Tablet to the `Rulers of America and the Presidents of the Republics therein'. Copied below is a list of other heads of state of the Americas who were contemporary with Bahá'u'lláh in 1872-1873 as compiled by Bahá'í scholar Peter Terry.
[BFA1:80N]
Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, president of Argentina; John A. Macdonald,
prime minister of Canada; Federico Errázuriz Zanartu, president of Chile;
Eustorgio Salgar and Manuel Murillo Toro, presidents of Colombia; Tomás
Guardia Gutiérrez, president of Costa Rica; Buenaventura Báez, president of
the Dominican Republic; Gabriel García Moreno, president of Ecuador; Justo
Rufino Barrios, president of Guatemala; Nissage Saget, president of Haiti;
Benito Juárez and Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada, presidents of Mexico; José
Vicente Cuadra, president of Nicaragua; Francisco Solano López, president
of Paraguay; Manuel Pardo, president of Peru; Ulysses S. Grant, president of
the United States of America; Lorenzo Batlle y Grau and Tomás Gomensoro,
presidents of Uruguay; and Antonio Guzmán Blanco, president of Venezuela.
...some of the most celebrated passages of that Book (Kitáb-i-Aqdas) to the Chief Magistrates of the entire American continent, bidding them "bind with the hands of justice the broken," and "crush the oppressor" with the "rod of the commandments" of their Lord. Unlike the kings of the earth whom He had so boldly condemned in that same Book, unlike the European Sovereigns whom He had either rebuked, warned or denounced, such as the French Emperor, the most powerful monarch of his time, the Conqueror of that monarch, the Heir of the Holy Roman Empire, and the Caliph of Islám, the Rulers of America were not only spared the ominous and emphatic warnings which He uttered against the crowned heads of the world, but were called upon to bring their corrective and healing influence to bear upon the injustices perpetrated by the tyrannical and the ungodly. [MA91]
- 1869-00-00 — Franz Josef, Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary, made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem but failed to enquire after Bahá'u'lláh. [KAN116]
- 1869-00-00 —
The 17-year-old Áqá Buzurg-i-Níshápúrí, Badí`, arrived in `Akká having walked from Mosul. He was able to enter the city unsuspected. [BKG297; RB3:178]
- He was still wearing the simple clothes of a water bearer. [BKG297]
- For the story of his life, see BKG294–297 and RB3:176–179.
- For his transformation see RB3:179–182.
Badí` saw `Abdu'l-Bahá in a mosque and was able to write a note to Him. The same night Badí` entered the citadel and went into the presence of Bahá'u'lláh. He met Bahá'u'lláh twice. [BKG297; RW3:179]
- Badí` asked Bahá'u'lláh for the honour of delivering the Tablet to the Sháh and Bahá'u'lláh bestowed it on him. [BKG297; RB3:182]
- The journey to Tehran took four months; he traveled alone. [BKG298]
- For the story of the journey see BKG297–300 and RB3:184.
- For the Tablet of Bahá'u'lláh to Badí` see BKG299 and RB3:175–176.
- Regarding the tablet to the Sháh
"Bahá'u'lláh's lengthiest epistle to any single sovereign" -- Lawḥ-i-Sulṭán, (the Tablet to Náṣiri'd-Dín Sháh) Of the various writings that make up the Súriy-i-Haykal, one requires particular mention. The Lawḥ-i-Sulṭán, the Tablet to Náṣiri'd-Dín Sháh, Bahá'u'lláh's lengthiest epistle to any single sovereign, was revealed in the weeks immediately preceding His final banishment to 'Akká. It was eventually delivered to the monarch by Badí', a youth of seventeen, who had entreated Bahá'u'lláh for the honour of rendering some service. His efforts won him the crown of martyrdom and immortalized his name. The Tablet contains the celebrated passage describing the circumstances in which the divine call was communicated to Bahá'u'lláh and the effect it produced. Here, too, we find His unequivocal offer to meet with the Muslim clergy, in the presence of the Sháh, and to provide whatever proofs of the new Revelation they might consider to be definitive, a test of spiritual integrity significantly failed by those who claimed to be the authoritative trustees of the message of the Qur'án. [The Universal House of Justice (Introduction to 'The Summons of the Lord of Hosts')]
- See Three Momentous Years in The Bahá'í World for the story of Badí.
- 1869-07-00 —
Badí` delivered the Tablet of Bahá'u'lláh to the Sháh. He was tortured and executed. [BBRXXXIX; BKG300; BW18:383; RB3:184–6]
- For details of his torture and martyrdom see BKG300, 304–7 and RB3:186–91.
- For the account of the French Minister in Tihrán see BBR254–5.
- He is given the title Fakhru'sh-Shuhadá' (Pride of Martyrs). [BKG300]
- Shoghi Effendi listed him among the Apostles of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW3:80–1]
- For the effect on Bahá'u'lláh of the martyrdom of Badí` see BKG300 and GPB199.
- See also BKG293–314; GPB199, RB3:172–203; TN589
- 1873-02-00 —
Bahá'u'lláh completed the revelation of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas in the southeast corner room of the house of `Údí Khammár. [BBD132; BKG351; DH46; GPB213; RB3:275; SA248; BBS145]
- See A Description of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas by Shoghi Effendi.
- There is evidence to suggest that at least some of the work was written earlier as confirmed by the book's reference to the fall of Napoleon III in 1870 and there is further evidence to suggest that parts of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas were revealed as early as 1868. [SA16–17, 248]
- For the significance of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas see BKG351–3, BW15:87–91, GPB213–15 and RB3:275–399.
- For analyses of its significance, content and application, see RB3:275–399 and SA248–52.
- 1941-03-28 —
The publication of The Promised Day is Come. It was, in effect, a survey of the world in relation to the Bahá'í Faith during its first century. [AY305; PG215-217]
- Available at the Bahá'í Reference Library.
- 1967-00-00 — The Universal House of Justice published a compilation of Bahá'u'lláh's messages titled The Proclamation of Bahá'u'lláh to the Kings and Leaders of the World to mark the 100th anniversary of the inception of that proclamation. Bahá'í institutions worldwide were asked to present the book to the leaders of government in their respective countries. Some 140 Heads of State received a copy. [MUHJ63-86p113]
- 1967-10-01 —
A special edition of The Proclamation of Bahá'u'lláh was published by the Universal House of Justice for presentation to 140 heads of state. [BW14:204–6; CB406]
- For a picture of the book see BW14:194.
- For pictures and descriptions of some of the rulers addressed by Bahá'u'lláh see BW14:196–203.
- For responses from present-day leaders to the book, and pictures, see BW14:207–10.
- 1967-10-05 —
Six Intercontinental Conferences were held simultaneously in Panama City, Wilmette, Sydney, Kampala, Frankfurt and New Delhi to celebrate the centenary of the proclamation of Bahá'u'lláh to the kings and rulers of the world in September/October of 1867. [BW 14:221]
- For the message of the Universal House of Justice to the conferences see BW14:221–2.
- For descriptions of each conference see BW14:223–58.
- See CG68-69 for a brief description of the Intercontinental Conference in Kampala.
- The six Hands of the Cause representing the Universal House of Justice at the conferences travelled to Adrianople to visit the House of Bahá'u'lláh before dispersing to the conferences. [BW14:236, 458; VV2]
- 1967-10-29 — The launch of the Centenary of Bahá'u'lláh's proclamation to the kings and the rulers in Toronto.
A 30-minute memorial service for Catherine Huxtable was added to the program that included an eulogy by Michael Rochester. [LNW176-179] - 2002-05-01 —
The publication of The Summons of the Lord of Hosts by Bahá'í World Centre Publications.
- The 272-page book contained authoritative English translations of six major works written by Bahá'u'lláh between 1868 and 1870. Collectively, the works clearly enunciated His claim to prophethood and offered a prescription for peaceful and just leadership in the modern world as offered to the the monarchs and religious leaders of His time.
- Specifically, the book collects the Súriy-i-Haykal [Súrih of the Temple], Súriy-i-Ra'ís [Súrih of the Chief], Lawh-i-Ra'is [Tablet of the Chief], Lawh-i-Fu'ad [Tablet to Fu'ad Pasha], Lawh-i-Sultan [Tablet to the Shah of Iran], and Súriy-i-Mulúk [Súrih of the Kings]. [One Country Vol.14 Issue 1, BWNS163]
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