where, at all times worthy of trust, he labored for the Cause. His
services were outstanding, and he was a consolation to the believers'
hearts. There was none to compare with him for energy, enthusiasm and
zeal, and no man's services could equal his. He was a haven amidst the
people, known everywhere for devotion to the Holy Threshold, widely
acclaimed by the friends.

He never rested for a moment. Not one night did he spend on a bed of ease,
never did he lay down his head on comfort's pillow. He was continuously in
flight, soaring as the birds do, running like a deer, guesting in the
desert of oneness, alone and swift. He brought joy to all the believers;
to all, his coming was good news; to every seeker, he was a sign and
token. He was enamored of God, a vagrant in the desert of God's love. Like
the wind, he traveled over the face of the plains, and he was restive on
the heights of the hills. He was in a different country every day, and in
yet another land by nightfall. Never did he rest, never was he still. He
was forever rising up to serve.

But then they took him prisoner in A_dh_irbayjan, in the town of
Miyandu'ab. He fell a prey to some ruthless Kurds, a hostile band who
asked no questions of the innocent, defenseless man. Believing that this
stranger, like other foreigners, wished ill to the Kurdish people, and
taking him for worthless, they killed him.

When news of his martyrdom reached the Prison, all the captives grieved,
and they shed tears for him, resigned to God and undefended as he was in
his last hour. Even on the countenance of Baha'u'llah, there were visible
tokens of grief. A Tablet, infinitely tender, was revealed by the Supreme
Pen, commemorating the man who died on that calamitous plain, and many
other Tablets were sent down concerning him.

Today, under the shadowing mercy of God, he dwells in the bright Heavens.
He communes with the birds of holiness, and in the assemblage of splendors
he is immersed in light. The memory and praise of him shall remain, till
the end of time, in the pages of books and on the tongues and lips of men.

Unto him be salutations and praise; upon him be the glory of the
All-Glorious; upon him be the most great mercy of God.

MASHHADI FATTAH

Ma_sh_hadi Fattah was personified spirit. He was devotion itself. Brother
to Haji 'Ali-'Askar--of the same pure lineage--through the latter he came
into the Faith. Like the twins, Castor and Pollux, the two kept t