History of Master’s Life

‘Abdu’l-Baha’s Innate Knowledge

Source:`Abdu’l-Baha: Speaking in America

THE LIFETIME of diverse circumstances that led to ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s unusual tour of America began with His birth on May 23, 1844, in Persia. All of the records of His childhood reflect extraordinary ability from His earliest years. Bahiyyih Khanum wrote about her brother, “During these years Abbas Effendi was accustomed to frequent the mosques and argue with the doctors and learned men. They were astonished at his knowledge and acumen, and he came to be known as the youthful sage.” They would ask him, “Who is your teacher – where do you learn the things which you say?” His reply was that his father had taught him. Although he had never been a day in school, he was as proficient in all that was taught as well-educated young men, which was the cause of much remark among those who knew him. His Father, acknowledged in written records as His only teacher, was Himself totally unschooled in any formal sense.

In the same year of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s birth, 1844, a man titled the “Bab,” meaning “Gate” in Persian, indicated that he had the mission of “opening the way for another “Messenger from God” Who would imminently reveal teachings to unite the world. …the number of the Bab’s followers grew rapidly and widely. The government and clergy responded by inciting the populace to kill them by the thousands and by maneuvering the execution of the Bab Himself in 1850.

One of the Bab’s followers, Baha’u’llah, Whose title means “the Glory of God,” emerged as the center of leadership of the decimated Babí community. In 1863 He proclaimed that He was the One foretold by the Bab… Persecution descended on Him and His family, and they were exiled several times. In each instance, His influence grew to such proportions, and His teachings of the unification of all religions, races, and nations drew such an enthusiastic following, that He was exiled to another place… These events bear directly on the life of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, for Baha’u’llah was His Father.

‘Abdu’l-Baha’s sister recalled their early childhood days in Persia: “… we heard each day the cries of the mob as a new victim was tortured or executed, not knowing but that it might be my father…I spent the long days… afraid to unlock the door lest men should rush in and kill us.” She also recalled how, they had been sent out of the country in exile, over the mountains in winter without adequate provisions or clothing: “It was bitterly cold … My brother in particular was very thinly clad…his feet, ankles, hands, and wrists were much exposed to the cold, which was so severe that they became frostbitten and swollen and caused him great pain.”

During the more peaceful periods of the exile, ‘Abdu’l-Baha became his father’s closest companion. “Although a mere youth,” an early believer, J. E. Esslemont wrote, “He already showed astonishing sagacity and discrimination, and undertook the task of interviewing all the numerous visitors who came to see His Father.” In His will, His Father named ‘Abdu’l-Baha the Center of His Covenant, indicating that He was the “perfect interpreter” of His Word, When the Young Turks revolution overthrew the existing government in 1908, all religious and political prisoners of the Ottoman regime were freed, including ‘Abdu’l-Baha, after more than half a century of exile and imprisonment. Such was His background when, at the age of sixty-seven, He embarked for America.