the Qadiriyyih and _Kh_alidiyyih Orders, thronging
the house of Baha'u'llah, and impelled by racial and sectarian rivalry,
the religious leaders of the city, such as the renowned Ibn-i-Alusi, the
Mufti of Ba_gh_dad, together with _Sh_ay_kh_ 'Abdu's-Salam, _Sh_ay_kh_
'Abdu'l-Qadir and Siyyid Dawudi, began to seek His presence, and, having
obtained completely satisfying answers to their several queries, enrolled
themselves among the band of His earliest admirers. The unqualified
recognition by these outstanding leaders of those traits that
distinguished the character and conduct of Baha'u'llah stimulated the
curiosity, and later evoked the unstinted praise, of a great many
observers of less conspicuous position, among whom figured poets, mystics
and notables, who either resided in, or visited, the city. Government
officials, foremost among whom were 'Abdu'llah Pa_sh_a and his lieutenant
Mahmud Aqa, and Mulla 'Ali Mardan, a Kurd well-known in those circles,
were gradually brought into contact with Him, and lent their share in
noising abroad His fast-spreading fame. Nor could those distinguished
Persians, who either lived in Ba_gh_dad and its environs or visited as
pilgrims the holy places, remain impervious to the spell of His charm.
Princes of the royal blood, amongst whom were such personages as the
Na'ibu'l-Iyalih, the _Sh_uja'u'd-Dawlih, the Sayfu'd-Dawlih, and
Zaynu'l-Abidin _Kh_an, the Fa_kh_ru'd-Dawlih, were, likewise, irresistibly
drawn into the ever-widening circle of His associates and acquaintances.

Those who, during Baha'u'llah's two years' absence from Ba_gh_dad, had so
persistently reviled and loudly derided His companions and kindred were,
by now, for the most part, silenced. Not an inconsiderable number among
them feigned respect and esteem for Him, a few claimed to be His defenders
and supporters, while others professed to share His beliefs, and actually
joined the ranks of the community to which He belonged. Such was the
extent of the reaction that had set in that one of them was even heard to
boast that, as far back as the year 1250 A.H.--a decade before the Bab's
Declaration--he had already perceived and embraced the truth of His Faith!

Within a few years after Baha'u'llah's return from Sulaymaniyyih the
situation had been completely reversed. The house of Sulayman-i-_Gh_annam,
on which the official designation of the Bayt-i-'Azam (the Most Great
House) was later conferred, known, at that time, as the