But with the arrival of a new Governor, 'Abdu'r-Rahman Pasha, the situation changed. For he proved to be one of the most hostile Governors towards Bahá'u'lláh and His companions. He was very covetous and when his designs to extract money from the company of exiles failed, he submitted an inflammatory report to the authorities in Istanbul. He complained that instead of imprisonment, all the Bahá'ís in 'Akká were free and working. The response from the Sublime Porte -- the office of the Grand Vizir in Istanbul -- was that the edict of the Sultan must be obeyed, that they were prisoners and had no right to work.
Husayn-i-Ashchi, who was one of Bahá'u'lláh’s sincere followers and would daily go to His house as a cook has given a detailed account of this episode in his memoirs. The following is a summary of his notes:
When 'Abdu'r-Rahman Pasha received the note from the Sublime Porte condemning the exiles to imprisonment, it boosted his arrogance. He decided to use it as a means of extracting some money for himself... Having failed to do this, one evening he called on Shaykh 'Aliy-i-Miri, the Mufti [1] of 'Akká who was an admirer of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, and shared with him his plan of arresting the Bahá'ís in the morning. His plan was to arrest them as they came to open their shops and send them to prison. He also planned to restrict 'Abdu'l-Bahá's freedom of movement in the city. He solicited the support of the Mufti in this plan...
That same night the Mufti went to 'Abdu'l-Bahá, told him the news and strongly urged the Master to bribe the Governor, as otherwise everyone would be arrested in the morning. Disapproving the Mufti's solution, 'Abdu'l-Bahá assured him that God was compassionate and merciful, and that He would leave this matter in the hand of God. He advised him to go home and to rest assured of the outcome.
It was late and Bahá'u'lláh had just retired. Nevertheless, 'Abdu'l-Bahá went to Him and gave Him the news. Bahá'u'lláh ordered that the believers be advised not to go to work in the morning. Everyone was informed and they all assembled in the reception room of 'Abdu'l-Bahá in the morning...
On that morning, on my way to the House of Baha’u’llah, I
noticed that the shop of Aqa Muhammad-Ibrahim, the coppersmith, was closed and
so were other shops belonging to the believers. I was very surprised and
wondered what had happened. I hastened to the house of Bahá'u'lláh where I
found all the shopkeepers assembled in the reception room. I was told the news
and went into the kitchen to work.
It was approximately two hours after sunrise when a man pushed aside the curtain in front of the door with his walking stick. I looked up and it was Iskandar Effendi, the head of the telegraph office. He was in great haste but signs of joy could be detected in his appearance. He wanted to see the Master who was upstairs at the time. I went up and found that He was in the presence of Bahá'u'lláh. I told the Master that Iskandar Effendi had come to see Him and he was in a happy mood. The Blessed Beauty smiled and said 'Go downstairs, Aqa! [2] He has good news. No one can frustrate God in His purpose.'
'Abdu'l-Bahá went to the reception room where He was shown a telegram just received containing the order of dismissal of 'Abdu'r-Rahman Pasha.[3] After a few minutes He went hurriedly upstairs. Halfway up, I asked Him if he could tell me the news. He smiled and said in a loud voice, 'God has struck a severe blow at the Pasha.' He then went to convey the news to Bahá'u'lláh.
As to 'Abdu'r-Rahman Pasha, in the morning, accompanied by a few soldiers, he went to arrest the believers at their shops and send them to prison. To his surprise he found the shops were closed. At first he thought the late opening was perhaps due to the month of Ramadan when people were going late to work. Soon after, he went to the Police Station where he waited for the shops to open up. During this time he was unaware of God's intervention...
The above telegram was addressed to Shaykh 'Aliy-i-Miri, the Mufti of 'Akká, who communicated its content to the Pasha... The Mufti had been truly astonished by this event. For it was late in the evening when the Governor's scheme had come to light, and in the morning the telegram arrived. He considered this incident to have been a miracle. He said to the Master, 'I am almost on the verge of losing my mind over this episode. Please tell me, what did Bahá'u'lláh say late that evening when you informed Him of the plot?' 'Abdu'l-Bahá responded by saying that the Blessed Beauty ordered the believers not to open their shops in the morning and advised them to leave their affairs in the hand of God. Bahá'u'lláh also declared that when a person leaves his affairs to God, he ought not to take any other measures himself, otherwise he could frustrate the plan of God.
In a Tablet Bahá'u'lláh describes 'Abdu'r-Rahman Pasha as an embodiment of Satan, one who ruled over God in 'Akká. He asserts that God assisted him in his evil schemes for some time, until suddenly He took hold of him with might and power. Admonishing the ousted Governor, Bahá'u'lláh states that he was unable to prevent God from executing His will, and reminds him that men greater than him did not succeed in frustrating His purpose. He also refers to the fate of other hostile governors and officials who were either dismissed or stricken with disease through the power of God.
(Adapted from ‘The Revelation of Baha'u'llah vol. 3’, by Adib Taherzadeh)
Notes
[1] The religious leader of the city who usually wielded
greater influence and authority than a governor.
[2] The Master, one of 'Abdu'l-Bahá's titles given to Him by
Bahá'u'lláh. He usually addressed 'Abdu'l-Bahá as Aqa.
[3] It was not unusual for a telegraph office to share such
news with people, as there were no other news media. The fact that 'Abdu'l-Bahá
received the news before the Governor shows the deep regard some officials had
for the Master.
