“The sun of Baha has set.” These were the opening words of the telegram announcing the ascension of Baha’u’llah, the Prophet and Founder of the Baha’i Faith, Who passed from this earthly life in the early hours of May 29, 1892. As the news traveled, throngs of mourners from all walks of life descended upon the fields surrounding the Bahji compound where He had spent His final years on earth as a prisoner of the Ottoman Empire. Within twenty-four hours His sacred remains had been interred in a modest building that was to be the Point of Adoration, the Qiblih, toward which millions of His followers continue to turn in daily prayer.
In the pages of this book historian Michael V. Day takes the reader through the last years of Baha’u’llah’s life—in ‘Akka, Mazra‘ih, and Bahji—highlighting pivotal moments and texts associated with the establishment of His shrine. Drawing upon a wide range of sources, including eyewitness accounts, the author paints vivid pictures of the daily life of the Manifestation and of those in His orbit; of His final days and illness; of His ascension and funeral, and of the period of mourning that followed. While there are many details that remain beyond our reach as we peer through the lens of history at these momentous events, the accounts pieced together here offer us a great deal to ponder and invite deep, meditative reflection.