F. 25 (University Library, Cambridge University)
E. G. Browne Collection
Contents
Summary of Contents: A volume of miscellaneous Bábi documents of different dates, sizes and writings. The contents are as follows: (1) A letter in Persian from Subh-i-Azal's son Ridwán Alí, dated May 27, 1897, accompanying sundry Bábí documents, which immediately follow, viz. three letters from Şubh-i-Azal to unnamed correspondents; a letter from the late Mr Claude Delaval Cobham, dated April 9, 1897; a small tract on the "Names of God, from alif to ya"; prayers and incantations deemed efficacious for alleviating various ailments and misfortunes (pp. 139); names of the nineteen Bábí months; other talismans and letters, including two addressed by Subh-i-Azal to Báqir the enemy," presumably Muḥammad Báqir of Isfahán, who was one of Bahá'u'lláh's followers exiled to Cyprus with Azal, and who died there in 1872; a short Arabic tract by Subh-i-Azal; answer by the same to fourteen questions propounded by M. Nicolas. All these documents were received together from Riḍwán 'Ali on June 7, 1897. (2) Three Bábí tracts copied and sent to me by Mirza Mustafà, and received on June 3, 1913. The first, comprising 94 pp., is described in the scribe's prefatory note as an explanation of the Súratu'l-Hamd, and a full account of its acquisition in 1303/1885-6 is given. It is written in Persian, in a style resembling the Persian Bayán, and is divided into Wahids, but irregularly. The second is a copy of a letter written by the Mutawalli-báshi, or Head Custodian, of Qum to Mírzá Músà, the brother of Bahá'u'lláh, on the Bahá'í-Azalí controversy. The third and fourth are copies of two letters written in 1330-1/1912-13 from Kirmán to Shaykh Muhammad Mahdi, the elder brother of Shaykh Ahmad Rúhí of Kirmán, who was put to death at Tabriz on July 17, 1896. The latter contains several poems, one of which indicates as the successor of Şubh-i-Azal (who died at Famagusta in Cyprus in April, 1912) his grandson Hájjí Mírzá Aḥmad, entitled Misbáhul-Hukamá and originally named Rabu'lláh ("the Spirit of God"), the son of Aqa-yi-Núru'lláh commonly known as Hajji Mirza Muhammad Hasan the physician of Rasht. The following verse is the most explicit: در هزار و سیصد و سی و یکی سازد جلوس قائم صبح ازل آنکو ازل خواندش پسر The implication of these documents is that the Commentary on the Suratul Hamd (or -Fátiḥa) was that known to have been written by the Báb and that it foretells in a very enigmatic manner the future of the church he founded. The fifth document in this group is a photograph of Subh-i-Azal's autograph of a passage to which reference is made in the title of the poem cited above. (3) Extracts from the Báb's Shu'ún-i-Khamsa ("Five Grades ") transcribed by Subh-i-Azal's son Riḍwán 'Ali and sent to me by the late Claude Delaval Cobham in February, 1904, with a letter dated February 4 of that year. (4) A list of Subb-i-Azal's writings, drawn up for me by his son Ridwan 'Ali in March, 1896. (5) An account of the death of Subh-i-Azal in April, 1912, written by his son Ridwan 'Ali for Mr Cobham, followed by a list of twenty of his works, translated by myself into English from the original mentioned in the last paragraph. (6) The original autograph Persian Narrative of the Bábi Insurrection at Zanján written at my request by 'Abdu'l-Ahad of Zanján, one of Subh-i-Azal's followers resident in Cyprus, of which I published an English translation in the J.R.A.S. for 1897, vol. xxix. The original was completed in Ramadán, 1309/ April, 1892, and comprises 26 ff. On the blank leaves at the end are some notes by myself of information verbally imparted. (7) A copy of the Báb's "Seven Proofs" (Dalá'il-i-Saba) made by myself and submitted to Subh-i-Azal, who has marked some corrections on it. I submitted it to him in Cyprus in 1890. Ff. 66, written on one side only. (8) A letter dated Jan. 29, 1891, from Hájji Muhammad; another dated Jan. 22, of the same year, from Bahá'u'lláh's son Mírzá Badí', both accompanying a very well written copy of the "Tablet of Good Tidings" (Law-i-Bisharat) fully described under the class-mark BBA. 5 in my Catalogue and Description, pp. 676- 679. Bound between this and the two letters is the copy of Bahá'u'lláh's Testament (Kitábu Ahdi) to which reference is made at p. 710 ad calc. of the article above mentioned. (9) A list of the descendants of Mirzá Buzurg, the father of Bahá'u'lláh and Subh-i-Azal, communicated to me in June, 1912, by Mirza Mustafa.
5.
Language(s): Persian
7.
Language(s): Persian
11.
Title: Copy of a letter written by the Head Custodian of Qum to Mīrzā Mūsá on the Baḥāʼi-Azalī controversy
Language(s): Persian
12.
Title: Two letters from Kirmān to Shaykh Muḥammad Mahdī, the latter of which includes several verses
Language(s): Persian
13.
Language(s): Persian
16.
Language(s): Eng
21.
Title: Lawḥ-i bishārāt
Title: لوح بشارات
Language(s): Persian
References
See sub classmark BBA. 5 in Browne's "Catalogue and Description of 27 Bābī Manuscripts (Continuation)", in Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland (Oct., 1892): 637-710.
Physical Description
Form: codex
Support: Paper
Extent: Ff. 26
Dimensions: unknown × unknown cm.
Layout
Lines unknown
Hand(s)
Unknown script description
History
Origin: 1314 AH; 1897 CE undated AH; Gregorian CE 1313 AH; 1896 CE 1309 AH; 1892 CE 1307 AH; 1890 CE undated AH; Gregorian CE 1330 AH; 1912 CE
Provenance and Acquisition
Bequest of E. G. Browne.
Record Sources
Summary, physical description and provenance copied from R. A. Nicholson: A descriptive catalogue of the Oriental MSS belonging to the late E.G. Browne. Cambridge, 1932.
Availability
Entry to read in the Library is permitted only on presentation of a valid reader's card for admissions procedures contact Cambridge University Library Admissions). Contact near_eastern@lib.cam.ac.uk for further information on the availability of this manuscript
Funding of Cataloguing
JISC
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