- 1823-00-00 — Bahá'u'lláh's father dreamed that his son was swimming in a sea with multitudes of fish clinging to the strands of His hair. He related this dream to a soothsayer, who prophesied that Bahá'u'lláh will achieve supremacy over the world. [DB199–20]
- 1831-00-00 — Birth of Mírzá Yahyá (Subh-i-Azal), half brother of Bahá'u'lláh.
- 1839-00-00 — Passing of Mírzá Buzurg. His body was taken to Najaf, Iraq where he was interred. [BBD49; BKG17; BNE23–4]
- In 1957 the remains of Mírzá Buzurg were located and transferred. [MBW175]
- 1848-00-00 — The birth of Mírzá Mihdí, `the Purest Branch', the son of Bahá'u'lláh and His wife Ásíyih Khánum (Navváb) in the family's rented house near the Shemiran Gate (Darvázih Shimrán) in northern Tehran. [BBD155]
- He was named after Mihdí, Bahá'u'lláh's elder full brother, who was dear to Him and who had recently died. In later years Bahá'u'lláh gave Mírzá Mihdí the title "the Purest Branch."
- In January of 1853 Bahá'u'lláh and His family left Tehran on the first stage of their exile. Mírzá Mihdí, who was unwell at the time and unfit to undertake three months of hard travel across the Iranian Plateau and the Zagros Mountains in severe winter weather, had to be left behind in the care of relatives. The Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, which has no definitive information on the topic, suggests that it is possible that more than one relative may have cared for Mírzá Mihdí over the seven years before he rejoined his parents in Baghdad. RoL165 says that he was left with his maternal grandmother, CH45 says it was his maternal great-grandmother, BKG13 says it was his paternal aunt, Hadrat-i-Ukht, identified as Sárih Khánum.
- He was reunited with his parents in 1860 after Bahá'u'lláh's return from the mountains of Sulaymaniyah and the family remained in Baghdad for another three years, until April 1863.
- Mírzá Mihdí accompanied Bahá'u'lláh in His successive exiles to Istanbul, Edirne, and, finally, to Akka.
- Despite his youth, Mírzá Mihdí was accustomed to hardship and was recognized as "a pillar of strength" among the exiles during the difficult period after their departure from Baghdad. He resembled 'Abdu'l-Bahá in appearance and character and was noted for his piety, gentleness, dignity, courtesy, and patience. Throughout his brief adult life, Mírzá Mihdí was Bahá'u'lláh's companion and served as one of His secretaries, recording the sacred tablets that He revealed. Many such manuscripts in Mírzá Mihdí's excellent handwriting are extant." [Bahá'í Encyclopedia]
- See also Mírzá Mihdí: The Purest Branch by Boris Handal published by George Ronald Publisher, 2017
- See 22 June 1870 and 23 June 1870
- 1853-04-09 — Birth of Mírzá Muhammad-'Alí, first son of Bahá'u'lláh and His second wife, Mahd-i-'Ulyá. [CB 125]
- He was born in the first year of Bahá'u'lláh's arrival in Baghdád. CB125]
- 1856-00-01 — Birth of Samadíyyih Khánum, first daughter of Bahá'u'lláh and His second wife, Mahd-i-'Ulyá (Fatimih).
- 1862-03-00 — Birth of Sádhijíyyih, second daughter of Bahá'u'lláh and His second wife, Mahd-i-'Ulyá (Fatimih).
- 1863-04-30 — Bahá'u'lláh's family joined Him in the Garden. [BKG175; RB1:281; SA235]
- This initiated the holy day of the Ninth Day of Ridván, to be celebrated on 29 April. [BBD 196]
- 1863-08-30 — Death of Sádhijíyyih, 18-month-old daughter of Bahá'u'lláh and Mahd-i-'Ulyá. Her body was buried in a plot of land outside the Ádirnih Gate of Constantinople. [BKG203]
- 1864-08-15 — Birth of Mírzá Díyá'u'lláh, the third son of Bahá'u'lláh and Mahdi-'Ulyá. [BKG222]
- 1867-00-00 — Birth of Mírzá Badí'u'lláh, fourth son of Bahá'u'lláh and Mahd-i'Ulyá in Adrianople. [BKG247]
- 1879-00-01 — Sárih Khánum, the faithful sister of Bahá'u'lláh, passed away in Tihrán. She was buried a short distance from the city. [RB1:49–50]
- 1897-03-01 — The birth of Shoghi Effendi, in the house of `Abdu'lláh Páshá. [BBD208; BKG359; DH60, 214; GBF2]
- He was descended from both the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh: his mother was the eldest daughter of `Abdu'l-Bahá; his father was an Afnán, a grandson of Hájí Mírzá `Abu'l-Qásim, a cousin of the mother of the Báb and a brother of His wife. [CB280; GBF2]
- He was the Ghusn-i-Mumtáz, the Chosen Branch. [BBD87]
- `Shoghi' means `one who longs'. [CB281]
- `Abdu'l-Bahá commanded everyone, even Shoghi Effendi's father, to add the title `Effendi' after his name. [CB281; GBF2]
- `Abdu'l-Bahá gave him the surname Rabbání in the early years of his study in Haifa so that he will not be confused with his cousins, who were all called Afnán or Shahíd. The family name "Rabbání" was also used by Shoghi Effendi's brothers and sister. [BBD191–2; DH60–1; PG4]
- As a young boy the Master sent him with a nurse named Hájar Khátún to live in Haifa where he was registered in the French Jesuit school, Collège des Frères. By the age of nine or ten his mother had gotten rid of this nurse. He was unhappy at school in Haifa so the Master sent him to a Catholic boarding school in Beirut where he was equally unhappy. He even sent an attendant to rent a house and provide care so he could attend as a day student but still he was not happy so arrangements were made for him to enter the preparatory school associated with the Syrian Protestant College. [PG4; PP15-17]
- See also Rabbani, The Priceless Pearl; Rabbani, The Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith; Giachery, Shoghi Effendi: Recollections.
- In a letter from the Universal House of Justice dated 1 October 1973 to Elias Zohoori, included on page 83 of his book, Names and Numbers: A Bahá'í History Reference Guide it says:
...we write to advise you that it has not been possible to establish with absolute accuracy the date of the beloved Guardian's birth. Shoghi Effendi's passport gives 3rd March 1896…A note in the Guardian's handwriting indicates 1st March 1897…A further and different date has been noted by Shoghi Effendi's father. Unless further research is able to clarify the matter, it is not possible to make a categorical statement of the Guardian's birth date.
- Shoghi Effendi's registration form for the Syrian Protestant College shows his year of birth as 1899. [PGp14-15]
- The inscription on the column erected at Shoghi Effendi's resting place shows "4 November 1896".
- 1959-04-21 — The Custodians announced that the resting place of the remains of the father of Bahá'u'lláh had been identified. [MC144]
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