With the Báb’s return to Shíráz the initial collision of
irreconcilable forces may be said to have commenced…The people of Shíráz were
by that time wild with excitement. A violent controversy was raging in the
masjids, the madrisihs, the bazaars, and other public places. Peace and
security were gravely imperiled. Fearful, envious, thoroughly angered, the
mullás were beginning to perceive the seriousness of their position.
- Shoghi Effendi (‘God Passes By’)
