Bábism
Ideology | Active
1844 CE to 2057 CE
The Bábi Faith is a religious movement that flourishes in Persia from 1844 to 1852, then lingers on in exile in the Ottoman Empire (especially Cyprus) as well as underground.
Its founder is Siyyid `Alí Muhammad Shirazi, who takes the title Báb—meaning "Gate"—from a Shi'a theological term.
Unlike other Islamic messianic movements, the Bábí movement signals a break with Islam and attempts to start a new religious system.
While the Bábí movement is violently opposed and crushed by the clerical and government establishments in the country in the mid 1850s, the Bábí movement leads to the founding of the Bahá'í Faith, which sees the religion brought by the Báb as a predecessor to their own religion, and gives a renewed significance to the Bábí movement.
Related Events
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Iranian Mirza Ali Muhammad of Shiraz, announcing his divine election as the Bab (“doorway to heaven”) in 1844, founds the Babi movement.
The Bahá'í calendar begins on March 21, 1844.
The Báb privately announces his revelation to Mullá Husayn, just after sunset on May 23, 1844, founding the Bábí faith (later evolving into the Bahá'í Faith as the Báb intended) in Shiraz.
Contemporaneously, on this day in nearby Tehran, is the birth of `Abdu'l-Bahá; the eldest Son of Bahá'u'lláh, Prophet-Founder of the Bahá'í Faith, the inception of which, the Báb's proclaimed His own mission was to herald.
`Abdu'l-Bahá himself will later be proclaimed by Bahá'u'lláh to be his own successor, thus being the third "central figure" of the Bahá'í Faith.
He is also considered to be simultaneously the return of Elijah, John the Baptist, and the "Ushídar-Máh" referred to in the Zoroastrian scriptures.
He announces to the world the coming of "He whom God shall make manifest".
He is considered the forerunner of Bahá'u'lláh—the founder of the Bahá'í Faith—whose claims include being the return of Jesus.
Mírzá 'Alí-Muhammad, known as the Bab, is executed by a firing squad in Tabriz, Persia, on July 9, 1850, for claiming to be a prophet.
Babism, emphasizing humankind’s unity, lays the foundation for the Baha’i faith.