Chapter Ten

The night before Mullá Husayn arrived at the Shrine of Shaykh Tabarsí, the guardian of the Shrine had a dream. He dreamt that the Ímám Husayn, one of the Ímáms descended from Muhammad, arrived at the Shrine with seventy-two soldiers and a large number of companions. He also dreamt that they stayed at this Shrine for some time, took part in many fights against their enemies, and won all those battles. One of the most important parts of the dream was that the Prophet of God Himself came to the Shrine and blessed the company. Later, all these things came true.

When Mullá Husayn arrived at the Shrine on the next day, the guardian immediately recognized him as the Ímám Husayn whom he had seen in his dream. He threw himself at Mullá Husayn's feet and kissed them lovingly. He even joined Mullá Husayn's company,and was later killed by the enemy in one of the battles.

On the very same day that they arrived at the Shrine of Shaykh Tabarsí, Mullá Husayn decided he must build a fort around this shrine to protect his men from their enemies. He therefore gave the plans of the fort to Mírzá Muhammad-Báqir, who had built the Bábíyyih. He immediately started to gather the material to build the fort. But that evening, even before he had started to build, a large number of horsemen arrived to start a fight. The followers of Mullá Husayn wasted no time. They raised the cry of 'Ya Sáhibu'z-Zamán* and in a few minutes they had driven the horsemen away.

Mullá Husayn then ordered that the fort should be built immediately. During the next few days, they were attacked again three times, but each time they drove the enemy away and went ahead with their work of building the fort. As soon as the fort was completed, Mullá Husayn received the news that Bahá'u'lláh had arrived in the nearby village. Bahá'u'lláh said that He was to visit them that afternoon, and then they were all to be His guests in the eveing.

Can you imagine what happiness must have filled the hearts of Mullá Husayn to have Bahá'u'lláh as his guest? And do you remember the dream which the guardian of the Shrine had? The Prophet of God had come to give His blessing to the Fort of Shaykh Tabarsí. nothng could now go wrong with the plan of God.

As soon as Mullá Husayn had learned that Bahá'u'lláh was coming, he set everyone to work to get the fort cleaned and ready. He himself joined them in sweeping the Shrine, and sprinkling water around the ground to keep down the dust. And when Bahá'u'lláh arrived, Mullá Husayn took Him into his arms with such love and   tenderness that everyone present wondered Who this man Bahá'u'lláh was, and why Mullá Husayn gave Him so much loving attention. You see, no one yet knew Who Bahá'u'lláh was. Their love was still for the Báb and none other. But as Bahá'u'lláh began to speak to them, they began to see how wonderful He was. However, none of the men realized that He was to be a Prophet of God.

While Bahá'u'lláh was visiting the fort, He inspected the work, said He was pleased with everything, and then explained some things to Mullá Husayn which would help to make the men more confortable and safe. Then He said, "The one thing this fort and company require is the presence of Quddús." Bahá'u'lláh knew that if Quddús were there, everything would be perfect. So He told Mullá Husayn to send Mullá Mihdí and six men to the town of Sárí to demand the release of Quddús from the home of his relative where he was kept.

Before Bahá'u'lláh left the fort, He spoke to everyone assuring them that, no matter what happened at Shaykh Tabarsí, they nust be patient and accept the will of the Almighty. "If it be His will,"He added, "We shall once again visit you at this same spot, and shall lend you Our assistance. You have been chosen of God to be the vanguard of His host and the establishers of His Faith. His host verily will conquer. Whatever may befall, victory is yours, a victory which is complete and certain." With these words, he left the fort and returned to Tihrán.

* O lord of the Age!