On 23 May, 2025, Bahá’í Communities around the world will commemorate the 181st Anniversary of the
Declaration of “The Báb” (meaning “The Gate” in Arabic), who was the
Forerunner of Bahá’u’lláh and the Prophet-Herald of the Bahá’í Faith.
The actual event itself took place on May 23, 1844, but the observation begins at about two hours and 11 minutes after sunset on the 22 May, 2025.
In the middle of the 19th century— one of the most turbulent periods in the world’s
history—a young merchant announced that He was the bearer of a Message
destined to transform the life of humanity. At a time when His country, Iran, was
undergoing widespread moral breakdown, His Message aroused excitement and
hope among all classes, rapidly attracting thousands of followers.
It may astound us to know that until the exact day 23 May 1844, when the Báb first
proclaimed His Mission to Mulla Husayn, the speed of human communication and
transportation had not increased since the dawn of history and was limited to the
speed of a fast horse. (Though steam locomotives had just become a reality, they
could not excel the speed of a horse.)
On that very day, exactly twelve hours after the Báb’s momentous announcement
of a New Era, an American scientist, Samuel Morse, tapped out the first message
to be transmitted by electromagnetic waves travelling at the speed of light and it
read, “What Hath God Wrought”. Thus precisely fulfilling the Scriptural
Prophecy. It was hardly coincidence that the Báb’s revelation should be
accompanied by a quantum leap in the speed of human communication. Rather, it
was one more demonstration of the inexorable working of the Destiny.
With the Báb’s call for spiritual and moral reformation, and His attention to
improving the position of women and the lot of the poor, the Báb’s prescription for
spiritual renewal was revolutionary.
The Declaration of the Báb is one of nine holy days during the year on which
Bahá’ís suspend work.
A Shi’a Muslim named Mulla Husayn was on a quest to search for the Promised One — a Messiah pdescribed in the holy scriptures.
Mulla Husayn described that the Báb did not pause once until the entire Surih of Mulk was completed. Finally when he begged leave to depart he recounted the following:
“This night,” He (the Báb) declared, “this very hour will, in the days to come, be celebrated as one of the greatest and most significant of all festivals. Render thanks to God for having graciously assisted you to attain your heart’s desire, and for having quaffed from the sealed wine of His utterance.” (The Dawn-Breakers, p.62)
From that day forward, Siyyid Ali Muhammad referred to Himself as the Báb (the Gate) and Mulla Husayn became His first disciple. Although the Báb was indeed the Promised One foretold by Shaykh Ahmad and Siyyid Kazim, He taught that He was but the Herald of another Messenger (Bahá’u’lláh) who would appear very soon after Him, and the power of whose revelation would far exceed any previously sent down by God. The day the Báb declared His mission is now, as He had promised, celebrated by Baha’is around the world as “one of the greatest and most significant of all festivals.”
Mullá Husayn was on a quest. He had studied religion for many years and believed it was time for the next Messenger of God to appear. When his teacher said it was time to search far and wide for the Promised One, he set out to find Him. Guided only by his heart, Mullá Husayn, along with his brother and nephew, travelled throughout Persia (now Iran). On May 22, 1844, their search took them to the city of Shíráz.
His name was ‘Alí-Muhammad, and He invited Mullá Husayn to His home to rest after the long journey. Mullá Husayn didn’t realize then that his search was over. He had found the Báb (“the Gate”)—the next Messenger of God. At first, Mullá Husayn declined the invitation, saying his companions would expect him. But the Báb gently convinced him to accept, so he agreed, hoping it might help him on his quest.
Mullá Husayn told his companions to enter without him, agreeing to join them later. As he stood alone outside the city gates, he saw a radiant young man wearing a green turban. Though they had never met, the man approached and gave him a loving smile and hug.
Once inside, Mullá Husayn was moved by the kindness of his host. The Báb served him tea, poured water to clean his hands and feet, and invited him to stay for prayers.
The Báb then asked him how he would recognize the new Messenger of God. Mullá Husayn described the characteristics his teacher had told him to search for. Among other traits, the Promised One would be a descendant of Muhammad between 20 and 30 years old and would have exceptional knowledge without studying.
After a pause, the Báb declared in a vibrant voice, “Behold, all these signs are manifest in Me!” Then He revealed holy verses and answered spiritual questions that Mullá Husayn had carried in his heart. Mullá Husayn sat in awe as the words flowed from the Báb, uninterrupted, with a powerful force.
Mullá Husayn described the Báb’s declaration as a thunderbolt—dazzling and overwhelming, stirring his soul with joy and excitement. The Báb said, “This night, this very hour will, in the days to come, be celebrated as one of the greatest and most significant of all festivals.”
Mullá Husayn left, filled with wonder. He spent the rest of his life sharing the Báb’s teachings. He helped people prepare for the next Messenger of God, Bahá’u’lláh, Who would bring a message of peace for the entire world.
The arrival of the Promised One was anticipated decades before Báb’s Declaration. A man named Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá’i started to preach the arrival of a great day when the Promised One will come with his message for the world. A group of students were keen followers of the Shaykh, and one of them became his successor, Sayyid Kázim-i-Rashti. He had his own students, among whom was Mulla Hussayn — the one who discovered the Báb.
When he set out to search for the Promised One, Husayn met a young man in Persia. Welcoming him graciously, the young man — named Siyyid Ali-Muhammad — and Husayn had a conversation over a cup of tea. During this conversation, Muhammad revealed that he was the Báb that Husayn was searching for. Astonished by this revelation, Husayn intensely questioned and tested the man, ending at the conclusion that he indeed, was the Promised One.
In 19th century Persia, the Baháʼí Faith emerged with the advent of two successive prophets, the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh. Their combined revelations revolutionized the world.
Each of these two divine messengers, who the Baháʼí teachings refer to as manifestations of God, founded a distinct religion – the Bábi and the Baháʼí Faiths. The Báb, however, said that the primary purpose of His new Faith was to prepare the way for “Him Whom God shall make manifest” – to act as a herald and forerunner of the second of these Twin Manifestations, Bahá’u’lláh.
In much the same way that John the Baptist preceded and paved the way for the advent of Jesus Christ.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, the son and successor of Bahá’u’lláh, explained that dual revelation in the book “Some Answered Questions:”
All the peoples of the world are awaiting two Manifestations, Who must be contemporaneous. This is what they all have been promised. In the Torah, the Jews are promised the Lord of Hosts and the Messiah. In the Gospel, the return of Christ and Elijah is foretold. In the religion of Muhammad, there is the promise of the Mahdi and the Messiah. The same holds true of Zoroastrians and others.
Our meaning is that all have been promised the advent of two successive Manifestations. It has been prophesied that, through these twin Manifestations, the earth will become another earth; all existence will be renewed; the contingent world will be clothed with the robe of new life; justice and righteousness will encompass the globe; hatred and enmity will disappear; whatever is the cause of division among peoples, races, and nations will be obliterated; and that which ensures unity, harmony, and concord will be promoted.
New religions begin when a prophet of God receives a revelation, a mystical transference of inspiration, knowledge and spiritual power from the Creator. Then a few visionary early disciples begin to respond with their hearts and souls, and a new religion is born. With Buddha, with Abraham, with Jesus, with Muhammad, this same basic pattern applied.
The Bahá’í Faith’s precursor the Bábi Faith began that way, too, but with one difference – we have an eyewitness account.
When the Báb, the young herald of the Baha’i Faith, declared His Mission to the first of His believers during the fateful evening of May 22, 1844, the world’s newest global Faith began. Bahá’ís all around the world believe that the Báb, a title which means the Gate, ushered in a new era destined to establish the unity of humanity, in which “the cause of division among peoples, races, and nations will be obliterated.”
A young man named Siyyid Ali Muhammad, from Shiraz, Persia, born in 1819 into a family of merchants and traders, raised by his maternal uncle after the premature death of his father in 1826, a mystic descended from many generations of mystical Sufis, known from childhood for His wisdom, intelligence and humility, The Báb’s teachings.
The Báb promised Mulla Husayn that:
Like a spiritual wildfire, the news spread quickly. The Báb’s magnetic appeal, based not only on his new principles and writings, but also on the kindness, compassion, and spiritual intensity he radiated, won over many thousands of people. Those people became Bábis, creating an uproar in traditional Persian Islamic society and among its Shiite power structure.
The Bab’s teachings challenged the corrupt practices of the Persian clergy, boldly defied tradition by doing away with the laws of the past, and declared that The Báb had come, like John the Baptist, as the herald for a subsequent prophet of God, the promised one that all religions awaited. The Báb’s Mission, He told His followers, was to prepare the way for the founder of a universal and unifying world religion – Baha’u’llah, the prophet and founder of the Baha’i Faith, who would declare his mission nineteen years later in 1863.
So every year in May millions of Baha’is around the world celebrate the Declaration of the Bab – which has become, exactly as the Bab promised, “one of the greatest and most significant of all festivals.”
The Báb is seen as a Messenger of God who paved the way for the coming of Bahá’u’lláh.
The Bahá’í Faith emphasizes the concept of progressive revelation, where God reveals Himself uthrough successive messengers throughout history.
In Baha’i teachings, the number 9 is considered sacred and symbolic of completeness and perfection, especially in relation to the ninth manifestation of God, Bahá’u’lláh. The number 19 is also significant, particularly in relation to the Baha’i calendar, the 19-day fast, and the 19 years between the Báb’s declaration and Bahá’u’lláh’s declaration.
The Bahá’í Faith is the ninth in a line of progressive religions, and Bahá’u’lláh is considered the ninth manifestation of God.
The numerical value of the title “Bahá”, which refers to Bahá’u’lláh, is 9.
The Bahá’í calendar consists of 19 months, each with 19 days, and the 19th month is the fasting period.
The number nine, which in itself is the number of perfection, is considered by the Bahá’ís as sacred because it is symbolic of the perfection of the Bahá’í Revelation.
In Islam, God has 99 names, and in some Muslim traditions it is believed that there is a special hidden 100th name, which is the greatest.
In the Baháʼí Faith, this ‘Greatest Name’ is Baháʼ, translated as “glory, splendour.
Baháʼu’lláh often referred to Baháʼís in His writings as “the people of Baháʼ”.
The Báb sent a tablet to Baháʼu’lláh with 360 derivatives of the word Baháʼ.
We, verily, believe in Him Who, in the person of the Báb, hath been sent down by the Will of the one true God, the King of Kings, the All-Praised.
— Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, XXX
As soon as the Báb became manifested, Bahá’u’lláh said, “This great Man is the Lord of the righteous, and faith in Him is incumbent upon all.”
— Reported by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 27-8
O Ahmad! Bear thou witness that verily He is God and there is no God but Him, the King, the Protector, the Incomparable, the Omnipotent. And that the One Whom He hath sent forth by the name of ‘Alí was the true One from God, to Whose commands we are all conforming.
Say: O people be obedient to the ordinances of God, which have been enjoined in the Bayán by the Glorious, the Wise One. Verily He is the King of the Messengers and His book is the Mother Book did ye but know.
— Tablet of Ahmad
If His Holiness The Báb had not manifested love for mankind, surely he would not have offered his breast for a thousand bullets.
— Foundations of World Unity, p. 90
The appearance of such wonderful signs and great results; the effects produced upon the minds of the people, and upon the prevailing ideas; the establishment of the foundations of progress; and the organization of the principles of success and prosperity by a young merchant, constitute the greatest proof that He was a perfect Educator. A just person will never hesitate to believe this.
— Some Answered Questions, section 8
Consider how the Báb endured difficulties and tribulations; how He gave His life in the Cause of God; how He was attracted to the love of the Blessed Beauty, Bahá’u’lláh; and how He announced the glad tidings of His manifestation. We must follow His heavenly example; we must be self-sacrificing and aglow with the fire of the love of God. We must partake of the bounty and grace of the Lord, for the Báb has admonished us to arise in service to the Cause of God, to be absolutely severed from all else save God during the day of the Blessed Perfection, Bahá’u’lláh, to be completely attracted by the love of Bahá’u’lláh, to love all humanity for His sake, to be lenient and merciful to all for Him and to upbuild the oneness of the world of humanity.
— The Promulgation of Universal Peace
Compiled by
Jaya Raju Thota
Greater Visakhapatnam
Andhra Pradesh
India
