In the early days of the year 1265 A.H., I set out, at the
age of eighteen, from my native village of Zarand for Qum, where I chanced to
meet Siyyid Ismá’íl-i-Zavari’í, surnamed Dhabíh, who later on, while in
Baghdád, offered up his life as a sacrifice in the path of Bahá’u’lláh. Through
him I was led to recognise the new Revelation. He was then preparing to leave
for Mázindarán and had determined to join the heroic defenders of the fort of
Shaykh Tabarsí. He had intended to take me with him, together with Mírzá Fatḥu’llah-i-Hakkak,
a lad of my age, who was a resident of Qum. As circumstances interfered with
his plan, he promised before his departure that he would communicate with us
from Tihrán and would ask us to join him. - Nabil ('The Dawn-Breakers; translated and edited by Shoghi Effendi)
