The Night the Báb Was Taken

In about 1871, on her way to the Holy Land, Munírih Khánum stayed in Shíráz with Khadíjih Bagum, the wife of the Báb, and begged her to tell of her life. After recalling her marriage and the night of the Báb's Declaration, Khadíjih Bagum said:

…I will relate the incident of His capture briefly.

One night we were asleep. [September 23, 1846] Suddenly, the chief of police, the accursed 'Abdu'l-Hamid Khan, entered with his men through the roof of the house and seized the Báb, who was clad only in a thin robe. They took Him away without any explanation. I never saw Him again.

I cannot describe the terrible trials, ordeals, and difficulties that occurred after this. I did not see even one of His friends or followers after His arrest. The doors were shut on all sides, and communications were cut off completely.

One day I saw that Shiraz was in turmoil. [The year was 1850.] The populace was in an uproar and I could hear the loud noises of bugles and trumpets. People were saying that the heads of the martyrs of Nayriz had been brought into the city. The next day, with the same tumult and violence, those captured at Nayriz were paraded through the city. How I longed to meet a relative of one of those prisoners, but it was impossible. Two of the captives came to our house in the guise of beggars, but no one dared speak to them.

But time passed and so did those events. Now you have come to visit us, and we can speak of any matter without fear.

Source: Khadíjih Bagum, as recorded by Munírih Khánum in Munírih Khánum: Memoirs and Letters, trans. Sammireh Anwar Smith (Kalimát Press, 1986), pp. 34–6; via the Baha'i Stories Blog (https://bahaistories.blogspot.com/2015/01/the-sudden-arrest-of-bab-and-its.html).

Various. *Baha'i Stories Blog*. https://bahaistories.blogspot.com/2015/01/the-sudden-arrest-of-bab-and-its.html