Jináb-i-Áqá Siyyid Naṣru’lláh, may the Glory of God be upon him!
O thou who hast held fast unto the unbreakable Handle!1 Render thanks unto God that thou hast quaffed from the cup of steadfastness and constancy and clung unto the sure handle of perseverance. Thou hast been inebriated with the wine of true knowledge; thou hast proceeded from the habitation of ruin to the abode of prosperity. Wherefore, seize the chalice of the Covenant, exhilarate the friends with the wine of the Divine Testament, and frustrate the purpose of those who waver. Tear off the robe of stillness, drink deep from the pure chalice, and hasten to embrace the true Friend. By the grace and bounty of God, souls have been raised that stand immovable as a mountain of iron in the Covenant and are as firm and strong as an impregnable foundation. They are like unto a steel barrier in the face of the Gog of vacillation, a strong wall before the Magog of confusion, a shelter amidst the whirlwind of sedition, and a safeguard against the tempest of trials. I fain would hope that through the bounties and bestowals of the Ancient Beauty—may My soul be a sacrifice for His faithful lovers—this exquisite robe may befittingly adorn the figure of that servant of the Abhá Beauty, and thou mayest be so firm and steadfast that all the friends in that land may too become steadfast and firm.
The Glory of God rest upon thee and upon all them that have held fast unto the Covenant!
With regard to the late King’s assassin, His Excellency the Prime Minister2 informed all the consuls in the surrounding regions that, after careful investigation and inquiry, it had become clear that the contemptible assassin was an anti-monarchist and an atheist who had no affiliation with other groups.3 Indeed, the establishment of the truth of the matter was due to the competence, discernment, capacity, fairmindedness, and justice of the Prime Minister. Praised be God that the truth of this treason and the partisanship of that arrogant outcast were made clear and evident. This is for no other reason save the confirmations of the Kingdom. All the friends of God must pray continuously, by day and by night, for the glory of His Majesty, the new just king,4 and should also value the fairness and justice of the Prime Minister and pray for his well-being.
The Glory of God rest upon thee.
Ibn-i-Abhar—upon him be the effulgent Glory of God—highly praised the steadfastness and constancy shown by thee and by all the friends in that land. Blessed, doubly blessed, are ye, O servants of the All-Merciful!
Deliver thou the enclosed letters. Among them is a letter to Nabíl-i-Musáfir, that is, Ḥájí Muḥammad-Báqir-i-Hamadání, which must be delivered to his son Ḥájí Muḥammad-Taqí, who hath returned from the Holy Land. Be sure to deliver it.
Following the assassination of Náṣiri’d-Dín Sháh on 1 May 1896, it was assumed, in the atmosphere of all-pervasive fear, and in light of the previous attempt on the life of the Sháh in 1852, that his murderer, Mírzá Riḍáy-i-Kirmání, was a Bábí. Only later did the government acknowledge the fact that Mírzá Riḍá was an adherent of Siyyid Jamálu’d-Dín-i-Afghání, a political activist and an enemy of the Cause.
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