‫ِْﺴ ِﻢ ا ِ ا ٔ ْﻣ ﻊ ِ ا ٔ ْﻗﺪَ س‬

“Verily I Am God” (‫) ٕاﻧ ّﲏ ٔ ﷲ‬

Linguistic Theosis and Theurgical Apotheosis
in the writings of the Bāb

Siyyid ʿAlī
Alī Muḥ
Muḥammad Shī
Shīrāzī, the Essence of the Seven Letters, the Bāb (d. 1850)
Meaning of the Symbolism of the
Pentagram and Circle in Bābism
The Pentagram represents Hūwa (‫( )ﻫﻮ‬the ipseity), whose
numerical value is 11.
5 outer perspectives represents the letter Hāʾ (‫)ه‬, Hebrew
‫ה‬, and the Divine Name ‘the Manifest’ (‫ )اﻟﻈﺎﻫﺮ‬with each of
these perspectives representing one of the Five
Companions of the Cloak, i.e. Muḥammad, ʿAlī, Fāṭima,
Ḥasan and Ḥusayn.
6 inner perspectives represents the letter Wāw (‫)و‬,
Hebrew ‫ו‬, and the Divine Name ‘the Hidden’ (‫)اﻟﺒﺎﻃﻦ‬.
In the Bayān the symbol is related to men and so men are
referred to as the “possessors of the pentagrams” (‫) ٔوﻟﻮ اﻟﻬﻴﺎﰻ‬.
While to women is related the circle, who are referred to
as the ‘possessors of the circles’ (‫ﺮ‬+‫ّ وا‬,‫) ٔوﻟﻮ ا‬, which in the
Bayān is the representation of the word Allāh or God,
which represents the infinity. The circle encompasses the
pentacle, and as the representation of the word Allāh it
instances the all encompassing Divine Name.
The Ḥādīth Kumayl/Ḥādīth al-Ḥaqīqa
Kumayl: O Commander of the Faithful, what is Ultimate Reality?
ʿAlī: What have you and Ultimate Reality to do with each other?
Kumayl: Is it not the case that I am already sharing your secrets as a
compansion?
ʿAlī: Yes, indeed. But that which sprinkles unto you is billowing
through me unto you!
Kumayl: So what is Ultimate Reality?
ʿAlī: 1. Ultimate Reality is the disclosure of the Majesties of
Glorification without indication!
Kumayl: Please explain further.
ʿAlī : 2. The apophatic negation of all speculation and the
realization of that which can be realized.
Kumayl: Please tell me more.
ʿAlī: 3. The nullificative annihilation of the secret by the victorious
rending of the veil off the mystery of the secret!
Kumayl: Please explicate further.
ʿAlī: 4. The attraction of the Divine Oneness by the attributive
apprehension of the Divine Unicity.
Kumayl: Please explicate futher.
ʿAlī: 5. A Light Illuminating from the Dawn of Pre-Eternity and
shedding its traces upon the Tablets of the Talismanic-Temples of
Unicity!
Kumayl: Please disclose more.
ʿAlī: 6. Extinguish the lamp for the dawn hath indeed arisen!

As above, so below!
The Bābī Movement: Year1
(‫ﲑ اﺷﺎرة‬1 ‫ﺎت اﳉﻼل ﻣﻦ‬6‫ﺒ‬7‫“ );ﺸﻒ ﺳ‬The Disclosure of the Majesties of
Glorification without indication” represents the first year
(1260-61 AH/1844-5 CE) of the Bāb’s ministry with his
declaration and acceptance by Mullā Ḥusayn Bushrūʾī
(d. 1849), the bāb al-bāb, and the “revelation” of his
first major public work, the Commentary on the Sūrah
of Joseph (12) (‫)ﺗﻔﺴﲑ ﺳﻮرة اﻟﻴﻮﺳﻒ‬, the “Best of Stories” ( ‫اﺣﺴﻦ‬
‫)اﻟﻘﺼﺺ‬, the Peerless Names (‫ﺳﲈء‬D ‫ّﻮم‬F‫ ;)ﻗ‬the composition of
the eighteen Letters of the Living (‫اﳊﻲ‬ ّ ‫)ﺣﺮوف‬, i.e. his first
eighteen disciples; his hājj. In his own independent
commentary on the Ḥadīth Kumayl/Ḥadīth al-Ḥaqīqa,
regarding this theophanic sequence, the Bāb states
“…the ‘glorifications’ are the pure veils [of absoluteness]
(‫ )ﲩﺐ اﻟﺒﺤﺖ‬and the unadulterated/transcendental Hidden
Cloud of Unknowing (‫اﻟﴫف‬ ّ ‫ ;)ﻋﲈء‬and this is the station of the
Names and the Attributes whereby ‘ [the divine] Majesty’
represents the station of the Named [i.e. God] from which
all attributes are negated…”
The Bābī Movement: Year 2
(‫“ )ﳏﻮ اﳌﻮﻫﻮم و ﲱﻮ اﳌﻌﻠﻮم‬The negation of all speculation and the
realization of what can be realized” represents the
second year of the Bāb’s ministry (1261-2 AH/1845-6
CE) wherein the Bāb returned from the hājj journey;
was arrested en route to Shīrāz in Bushihr; was
brought back to Shīrāz under escort; placed under
house arrest by its governor and then publicly made
to recant his claim to bābīyat (i.e. gateship and
exclusive deputyship to the Hidden Twelfth Imām) at
the Masjid al-Wakīl whereby in this period a less bold,
or “less transcendental” (as Browne characterizes it),
and somewhat more orthodox doctrine was set forth
that would not antagonize mainstream Shiʿi religious
sensibilities. In his commentary on the Ḥadīth
Kumayl/Ḥadīth al-Ḥaqīqa, regarding this theophanic
sequence, the Bāb states “…the ‘negation of all
speculation’ denotes ‘the glorifications’ (‫ﺎت‬6‫ﺒ‬7‫ )اﻟ ّﺴ‬and the
‘realization of what can be realized’ is ‘the [divine] Majesty’
(‫)اﳉﻼل‬, and this is the singular reality (‫ﺪة‬U‫ﻘﺔ اﻟﻮا‬F‫ )اﳊﻘ‬but with
[its] expressed locutions [occurring instead] within [the
world of] multiplicity (‫”…)ﻛﱶة‬
The Bābī Movement: Year 3
(‫اﻟﴪ‬ ّ ‫“ )ﻫﺘﻚ‬The nullificative annihilation of the secret by
ّ ‫اﻟﺴﱰ ﻟﻐﻠﺒﺔ‬
the victorious rending of the veil off the mystery of the secret”
represents the third year of the Bāb’s ministry (1262-3
AH/1846-7 CE) wherein, following the outbreak of a
cholera epidemic, the Bāb fled Shīrāz, first, to Isfahān,
briefly finding patronage and protection under its
Georgian governor Manūchehr Khān Gurjī Muʿtamid al-
Dawlih (d. 1847); but after Manūchehr Khān Gurjī’s death
in early 1847, the new governor instead handed the Bāb
over to an imperial escort ordered by the premier (and
Bābī antichrist) Hājjī Mīrzā Āqāsī (d. 1848) who had the
Bāb diverted from his route to the capital Tehrān to
imperial banishment instead at a mountain fortress in
the Western Azerbāijānī town of Mākū (which the Bāb
dubbed ‫)ﺟ`ــﺎل اﻟﺒﺎﺳـﻂ‬. This is also the year where the Bāb
outright declared himself to be the Mahdī and Twelfth
Imām in person. In his commentary on the Ḥadīth
Kumayl/Ḥadīth al-Ḥaqīqa, regarding this theophanic
sequence, the Bāb states “…and the primary and secondary
meaning/signification of this is that whosoever has
apprehended it, apprehended it, and whosoever is ignorant of
it, is ignorant of it (‫ﻠﻬﺎ‬b ‫ﻠﻬﺎ ﻣﻦ‬b ‫”…)ﻋﺮﻓﻬﺎ ﻣﻦ ﻋﺮﻓﻬﺎ و‬
The Bābī Movement: Year 4
(‫ﺪ‬F‫ﺪﻳﺔ ﻟﺼﻔﺔ اﻟﺘﻮﺣ‬UD ‫ﺬب‬g) “The attraction of the Divine Oneness by
the attributive apprehension of the Divine Unicity” represents
the fourth year of the Bāb’s ministry (1263-4 AH/1847-8
CE) and marks the “revelation” of both the Arabic and
Persian Bayāns at Mākū and the elevation of the Bāb’s own
claims from maḥdawīya to divinity (and it was here when
the Bāb first began using for himself the title “the Primal
Point” ‫وﱃ‬D ‫)ﻧﻘﻄﺔ‬. This is also the year when Qurra’t’ul-ʿAyn
was expelled by Ottoman authorities from the Shīʿi shrine
center of the ʿAtabāt in Irāq back to Irān; the year when
the Badasht conference in Māzāndārān occurred (i.e. the
Bābī dramaturgy of Alamūt) wherein the assembled Bābīs
under the leadership of Qurra’t’ul-ʿAyn and Quddūs made
their public proclamation claiming the end of the exoteric
dispensation of Islam; the beginning of the Qājār state
versus Bābī showdown/armed conflict at the fort of
Shaykh Ṭabarsī led by Mullā Ḥusayn Bushrūʾī and Quddūs
following the conference of Badasht; and the independent
theophanic claims advanced by Quddūs during the siege of
Shaykh Ṭabarsī as the Qāʾim (Ariser). In his commentary on
the Ḥadīth Kumayl/Ḥadīth al-Ḥaqīqa, regarding this
theophanic sequence, the Bāb states, “…O Kumayl, the
Exclusive Oneness (‫ﺪﻳﺔ‬UD) is your magnetizing attraction (‫ﺎذﺑﻚ‬g)
towards the Divine Unicity (‫ﺪ‬F‫ )اﱃ اﻟﺘّﻮﺣ‬because your visionary
witnessing (‫ )ﻣﺸﺎﻫﺪك‬is in/by God (mn), disclosing therein the
coverings and the veils; and the Reality of the Majesty is in the
primal [station], the Known is in the second, the Secret in the
third, and the Exclusive Oneness in the fourth…”
The Bābī Movement: Year 5
(‫رﻩ‬pٓ ‫ﺪ‬F‫ﲆ ﻫﻴﺎﰻ اﻟﺘﻮﺣ‬s ‫ﻠﻮح‬F‫زل ﻓ‬D ‫ﻧﻮر اﴍق ﻣﻦ ﺻﺒﺢ‬
ٌ ) “A Light illuminating from the Dawn
of Pre-Eternity and shedding its traces upon the tablets of the Talismanic-
Temples of Unicity” represents the fifth year of the Bāb’s ministry
(1264-5 AH/1848-9 CE) wherein occurred his trial in Tabrīz and, on
Russian diplomatic insistence to the central government in
Tehrān, his banishment from Mākū to a mountainous prison
fortress in a remote part of north-western Azerbāijān known as
Chihrīq (which the Bāb dubbed ‫)ﺟ`ﺎل اﻟﺸّ ﺪﻳﺪ‬. In this year the Bābī
insurrection and siege at the fort of Shaykh Ṭabarsī was brutally
suppressed by Qājar government troops with the majority of its
participants, including its two leaders Mullā Ḥusayn Bushrūʾī and
Quddūs, massacred. Most significantly in this year (following the
death of Quddūs and “in order to console the believers,” as Hājjī
Mīrzā Jānī Kāshānī puts it) was the appearance or “theophanic
manifestation” (‫ )ﻇﻬﻮر‬of Mīrzā Yaḥyā Nūrī Ṣubh-i-Azal (the Dawn of
Pre-Eternity) (d. 1912) and his appointment as the Bāb’s ‘Mirror’
(‫ )ﻣﺮ ٓت‬and successor (‫)وﴆ‬. In his commentary on the Ḥadīth
Kumayl/Ḥadīth al-Ḥaqīqa, qa, regarding this theophanic sequence, the
Bāb states, “…his (i.e. ʿAlī’s) intention, upon Him be peace, is that he
(i.e. Kumayl) apprehend the appearance/elucidation (‫ )ﺑﻴﺎن‬of the stations
of the theophanic manifestation (‫ )ﻇﻬﻮر‬of the [divine] activity (‫ )ا ل‬and
its traces. The Dawn of Pre-Eternity is ʿAlī, upon Him be Peace, and the
Sun of Pre-Eternity (‫زل‬D ‫ )اﻟﺸّ ﻤﺲ‬is Muḥammad, peace be upon Him, and
what pertains to Ḥusayn, upon Him be peace; and what illuminates (‫)اﴍق‬
indicates the Imāms, upon Them be peace, and the Light (‫ )اﻟﻨّﻮر‬is Fāṭima,
upon Her be peace; and the Talismanic-Temples of Unicity (‫)ﻫﻴﺎﰻ ا ّ و د‬
indicates the prophets and the inheritors (‫وﺻﻴﺎء‬D ‫ﺎء و‬F•‫ﻧ‬D); and its traces (‫رﻩ‬pٓ )
is your station and the station of the Shiʿi (‫ﻴﻌﺔ‬7‫”…)ﻣﻘﺎﻣﻚ و ﻣﻘﺎم اﻟﺸ‬
The Bābī Movement: Year 6
(‫اﻟﺼﺒﺢ‬ ّ ‫“ )ﻓﺎﻃﻒ‬Extinguish the lamp for the Dawn
ّ ‫اﻟﴪاج ﻓﻘﺪ ﻃﻠﻊ‬
hath indeed Arisen!” represents the sixth and final
year of the Bāb’s ministry (1265-6 AH/1849-50 CE)
and is marked by the rise and establishment of the
vicegerency ( ‫ )و‬of Ṣubh-i-Azal over the Bābīs and
the “martyrdom” (or execution) of the Bāb by firing
squad in Tabrīz on 8 July 1850. In his commentary on
the Ḥadīth Kumayl/Ḥadīth al-Ḥaqīqa, regarding this
theophanic sequence, the Bāb states, “…the intent here
is in this, O Kumayl, that in extinguishing the lamp which
your mind, your soul and your spirit treads within the
darkness there may dawn upon you the subtilised heart-
flux (‫)ﻓﺆاد‬, for it [i.e. the subtilised heart-flux] is the
Dawn (‫اﻟﺼﺒﺢ‬ ّ )…”
Some of the Doctrines, Laws and Ordinances of the
Bayān
The Essence of the Godhead is absolutely transcendent and beyond
comprehension yet there are infinite Divine Theophanies or
‘Manifestations’ of the Primal Will (‫وﱃ‬D ‫ )ﻣﺸ†…ﺔ‬of the Divine (which is the
level of the Creator proper) wherein each successive one in the
material plane (even though in principle the Theophany or
Manifestation of the same pre-eternal Primal Will) is superior to the
last and so abrogates the outer elements (i.e. laws and ordinances) of
the previous one. As such in principle every theophany and
dispensation arising therefrom represents a successive expansion into
the depths of the knowledge of Reality, i.e. a sort of progressive
collective initiation from one level to the next. The Bayān itself is to be
succeeded by the Manifestation of ‘He whom God shall make Manifest’
(‫) َﻣ ْﻦ ﻳُﻈﻬﺮﻩ ﷲ‬, the central doctrine of the Bayān. The ciphers given in the
Persian and Arabic Bayāns for this event are the Divine Names ‘the
Succouring Aid’ (‫)ﻏﻴﺎث‬, with a numerical value of 1511, and the ‘Aid
Invoked’ (‫ﺘﻐﺎث‬7‫)ﻣﺴ‬, which holds a numerical value of 2001.
The meaning of the Day of Resurrection (‫ﺎﻣﺔ‬F‫ )ﻳﻮم اﻟﻘ‬is the appearance in
each age of the Tree of Reality, i.e. the appearance of the Human
Pentagrammic Talisman Who is the Manifestation of the Primal Will.
The plane of history moves within the trajectory of cycles (‫ )ادوار‬and epi-
cycles (‫ )ا‹ﻮار‬punctuated by these Theophanic Manifestations where the
period of the Manifestation represents the Dawn (‫ )ﻃﻠﻮع‬with its
disappearance the Dusk (‫)ﻏﺮوب‬. Within this trajectoral plane, everything
occurs within the greater dialectic of either the Reality of Affirmation
(‫ )اﺛﺒﺎت‬and Light (‫ )ﻧﻮر‬or that of negation (‫ )ﻧﻔﻲ‬and fire (‫ ) ر‬which is a
meaning of ‘there is no god but God’ (‫)ﻻ إ• ا ّٕﻻ ﷲ‬.
Muḥammad, Fāṭima, ʿAlī, their two sons, the other nine Shiʿi Imāms,
plus the 4 gates to the 12th Imām, returned to the life of the world and
were the first to believe in the Bāb as the Qāʾim and Mahdī. These first
18 individuals, as the Bāb’s first disciplines , compose the eighteen
Letters of the Living (‫اﳊﻲ‬ ّ ‫ )ﺣﺮوف‬who together with the Bāb form the First
Unity (‫ول‬D ّ ‫ﺪ‬U‫ا‬‫و‬ ) of All-
All-Things (•7‫)ﳇّﺸ‬.
The Doctrines, Laws and
Ordinances of the Bayān (continued)
19 month, 19 day (loosely lunar) calendar replaces the Islamic
hijrī one. 361 days in total (to the numerical value of All-Things
•7‫ )ﳇّﺸ‬without the calculation of leap years or any intercalary
days. The names of the months based on the famous duʿā al-saḥar
(Dawn Prayer) of the 5th Shiʿite Imām, Muḥammad al-Bāqir.
Present year is 172.
The form of the Islamic ṣalāt (ritual 5x prayer) abrogated by the
Bayān and instead replaced by dhikr (invocation of the Names of
God) to specified numbers.
30 day fasting during Ramaḍān abrogated and replaced instead
with 19 days of fasting (from sundown to sunset) during the final
Bayānī month of Alʿā (The Supreme).
The 4 elements (Air, Fire, Water and earth) as well as the Sun
and the Moon considered to be divine agents of purification; and
so the trade and commercialization of the 4 elements is
prohibited and made ḥarām. Believers to face the Sun at noon on
Fridays as the qibla (point of adoration) and the moon on the Full
Moon. Otherwise the qibla of the Bayān is the Iranian city of
Shīrāz (rather than Mecca).
The practice of letterism (i.e. the science of the letters,
Gematria/numerology) as well as knowledge of the occult in
general (meaning theurgy) and the making of talismans and
amulets is made into a religious obligation. Believers are to make
talismans and amulets which they are to carry with them
throughout their lives.
The Doctrines, Laws and Ordinances of
the Bayān (continued 3)
Women and men deemed equal in the Bayān but with different,
complimentary functions. Yet under the legal philosophy of the
Bayān (rather than that of Islam) men and women are accorded the
same equal rights whether in marriage, inheritance, employment,
social duties, etc. Women also enjoy exemptions (such as the duty
for pilgrimage) that men do not. No mandatory veiling for women.
Physical violence against other believers is prohibited. Physical
violence and abuse against children strictly prohibited and
considered a sin. Abuse of animals and burdening them is prohibited.
Highest sin in the Bayān considered to be driving someone out of
their home/place of residence and making them homeless.
The Islamic-Abrahamic law of punishing adulterers with death is
abolished.
Flatulence, doubt and human or animal hair (as in Islam) does not
invalidate prayer and worship. Menses nor semen (as in Judaism and
Islam) is not considered impure. Question of male circumcision left
open-ended and not mandatory, nor is the consumption of pork
addressed. However, alcohol remains ḥarām (as in Islam) as is the
consumption of onions and garlic.
Marriage with believers advised and divorce possible following 19
Bayānī months after separation. Recommendation that believers
remarry within 90-95 days after the death of a spouse.
The Doctrines, Laws and Ordinances of
the Bayān (continued 4)
The forced mutilation of any human being, even in times of war, is
prohibited (i.e. cutting anyone’s limbs or beheadings, etc).
Aggressive methods of open proselytization prohibited. Instead an
initiatic method of proselytizing is pursued.
Jihād and the carrying of weapons is allowed in the Bayān but is governed
by strict rules and circumstances which are contingent on the existence
of a Bayānī state and the word of either the Mirrors of the Bayān and/or
the word of ‘He whom God shall make Manifest’ when he appears upon
whose word the entirety of the Bayān revolves.
Encouragement of technological advance as long as it does not become a
spiritual veil.
The destruction of books is a sin and prohibited. However, per the
doctrine of progressive theophanies, in each successive theophanic
revelation scriptures of previous religious dispensations should cease
from exercising any pivotal function. In other words, the Bible, the
Qur’an, etc., are abrogated scriptures and should therefore not be
considered the final word on anything since they have, per the doctrine
of the Bāb, been superseded by the Bayān which in turn will be succeeded
by the Book of ‘He whom God shall make Manifest’ whose own scripture
will eventually be superseded as well, ad nauseum.
Theoretically, the Bayān leaves open the possibility for the existence of
homosexual believers as well as the future advent of female
Manifestations of the Divinity (i.e. prophet-messengers, divine law-givers
or Avatars) in the Abrahamic line.
 The
Book of the(kitkitāNames
āb-i-asmā
asmāʾ kullu-
of
kullu-shayʾ
shayʾ)
All-Things
Also known as the Commentary on the Names (‫ )ﺗﻔﺴﲑ ٔﺳﲈء‬and the
Four Grades (‫)ﭼﻬﺎر ﺷ“ٔن‬, the Book of the Names of All-Things is a
massive and complex work of invocatory and doxological depth
devoted to the secrets of 361 Names of God to which each true
believer becomes a theophanic instantiation and, what scholar
Stephan Lambden has characterized as, ‘the messianic urgency
around the appearance of He whom God shall make Manifest’. These
361 names are also held to be the Divine Names instantiating
each of the days of the 19x19 Bayānī calendar, and so are
programmatic of a prayer and invocation cycle during each day
of a 361 day year.
Most likely written some time between 1848 and 1850. 38 MSS.
are known to exist. Incomplete and defective MSS. are the norm,
and the first four chapters are missing in all extant MSS.
collections.
The work consists of 19 chapters (unities) of 19 sections (gates)
divided into four sub-sections (19 x 19 x 4 = 1444).
1444
All the Divine Names given are permutated and conjugated,
sometimes in rare forms.
Next page are two folio pages from a MSS originating in Cyprus
transcribed by the hand of the Bāb’s Mirror (mirāʾt) and
successor Ṣubḥ-i-Azal (d. 1912) from the 1st sub-section of the 1st
section of the fifth chapter.
 The

Book of the Five

(kitāb-i-panj shaʾn)
Grades

One of the Bāb’s final works. Written between the 19th of

March to the 4th of April 1850. A work very similar to the Book
of the Names of All-Things but with more specific thematic
content.
17 chapters in total divided into five specific sections, each in
one of the five modes of the Bāb’s writing: 1. āyāt (Arabic
verses like the Qurʾān), 2. munājāt (prayers, supplications and
doxologies), 3. khuṭba (sermons), 4. tafsīr (commentary) and 5.
fārsī (Persian).
These 17 chapters each addressed to sixteen specific
individuals among the Bāb’s leading disciplines (among them
Ṣubḥ-i-Azal and Qurra’tu’l-ʿAyn who was deemed the ‘return’
of Fāṭima), with the first chapter devoted to the messianic
figure of ‘He whom God shall make Manifest’.
Defective and incomplete MSS. are also the norm with this
work. An incomplete lithograph edition was published by the
Iranian Bayānī community in Iran during the late 1940s, early
1950s.
Mīrzā
rzā Yaḥ
Yaḥyā Nūrī Ṣubḥ
ubḥ-i-Azal (d. 1812)
 “Verily I Am God” (‫ﷲ‬ ٔ ‫) ٕاﻧ ّﲏ‬

Linguistic Theosis and

Theurgical Apotheosis in the
writings of the Bāb

N. Wahid Azal
https://independent.academia.edu/NimaAzal
wahidazal66@gmail.com

FSO © 2019