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Imprisonment in ‘Akká |
At that time ‘Akká (Acre) was a prison city to which
the worst criminals were sent from all parts of the Turkish
Empire. On arriving there, after a miserable sea journey,
Bahá’u’lláh and His followers, about eighty to eighty-four in
number, including men, women and children, were imprisoned
in the army barracks. The place was dirty and cheerless in the
extreme. There were no beds or comforts of any sort. The food
supplied was wretched and inadequate, so much so that after
a time the prisoners begged to be allowed to buy their food
for themselves. During the first few days the children were
crying continually, and sleep was almost impossible. Malaria,
dysentery and other diseases soon broke out, and everyone in
the company fell sick, with the exception of two. Three succumbed
to their sickness, and the sufferings of the survivors
were indescribable.
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During the imprisonment in the barracks, visitors were
rigidly excluded. Several of the Bahá’ís of Persia came all the
way on foot for the purpose of seeing their beloved leader, but
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were refused admittance within the city walls. They used to
got to a place on the plain outside the third moat, from which
they could see the windows of Bahá’u’lláh’s quarters. He would
show Himself to them at one of the windows and after gazing on
Him from afar, they would weep and return to their homes, fired
with new zeal for sacrifice and service.
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1. | In order to bury two of those who died, Bahá’u’lláh gave His own carpet to be sold for the expenses of their burial, but instead of using this money for that purpose the soldiers appropriate it, and thrust the bodies into a hole in the ground. [ Back To Reference] |