The Babi and Baha'i Religion — Page 44
THE B Ā B Ī AND BAH Ā ’ Ī RELIGION 44 In 1278 Hijra, during his stay in Baghdad, Ba- h a ’ull a h wrote I q a n , in which his approach is that of a disciple of the B a b. As mentioned earlier, he was, however, preparing himself mentally for a claim superior to that of the B a b, but based initially on a prophecy which the B a b appears to have made in regard to ‘Whom Allah would manifest". This claim had obtained possession of his mind, but he was also hesitant in putting it forth from fear that followers of the movement may not take kindly to it. Another significant fact connected with his stay in Baghdad is that after some time the Government of Iran began to receive unfavourable reports concerning the activities of Bah a ’ull a h, and Teheran began to urge upon the Turkish Government that he should be moved from Baghdad to some other place where he may not be in a position to do any harm to the interests of the Government of Iran. These representa- tions obtained favourable consideration from the Turkish Government, with the result that it was decided to move Bah a ’ull a h to Constantinople. This development had this immediate effect on Bah a ’ull a h that the claim which he had been deliberately holding back, waiting for some favourable moment to make it, he now went ahead in putting it forth. Another circumstance which also might have helped him in this direction was that some followers of the B a b had