''The Dawn-Breakers: Nabíl's Narrative of the Early Days of the Baháʼí Revelation'' (''Maṭāle al-anwār'') or ''Nabíl's Narrative'' (''Táríkh-i-Nabíl'') is an account of the early Bábí and

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...

s written in

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

Nabíl-i-Aʻzam Mullá Muḥammad-i-Zarandí (29 July 1831 – 1892), more commonly known as Nabíl-i-Aẓam ( fa, نبيل أعظم "the Great Nabíl") or Nabíl-i-Zarandí ( fa, نبيل زرندي "Nabíl of Zarand"), was an eminent Baháʼí historian ...

in 1887–88. The English translation by

Shoghi Effendi Shoghí Effendi (; 1 March 1897 – 4 November 1957) was the grandson and successor of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, appointed to the role of Guardian of the Baháʼí Faith from 1921 until his death in 1957. He created a series of teaching plans that over ...

was published in 1932. The book relies mainly on the memoirs of surviving early Bábís, and Nabíl himself was a participant in many of the scenes which he recounts. Many of the photographs of the Baháʼí historical sites in Iran that illustrate the book were made by Effie Baker. She was requested to do so by Shoghi Effendi in the early 1930s, and travelled to Iran alone by car from Haifa,

Mandate Palestine Mandatory Palestine ( ar, فلسطين الانتدابية '; he, פָּלֶשְׂתִּינָה (א״י) ', where "E.Y." indicates ''’Eretz Yiśrā’ēl'', the Land of Israel) was a geopolitical entity established between 1920 and 1948 i ...

, wearing a

chador A chādor (Persian, ur, چادر, lit=tent), also variously spelled in English as chadah, chad(d)ar, chader, chud(d)ah, chadur, and naturalized as , is an outer garment or open cloak worn by many women in the Persian-influenced countries of Ira ...

for safety purposes. Shoghi Effendi's intention for publishing the English translation was to inspire greater dedication and self-sacrifice in its readers. He gave importance to the study of ''The Dawn-Breakers'' and describes the Baháʼís as "spiritual descendants of the dawn-breakers". William P. Collins states that the narrative reflects, in addition to history, a universal sacred story or

monomyth In narratology and comparative mythology, the hero's journey, or the monomyth, is the common template of stories that involve a hero who goes on an adventure, is victorious in a decisive crisis, and comes home changed or transformed. Earlie ...

as described by

Joseph Campbell Joseph John Campbell (March 26, 1904 – October 30, 1987) was an American writer. He was a professor of literature at Sarah Lawrence College who worked in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work covers many aspects of the ...

(e.g. the story of

Mullá Husayn Mullá Husayn (1813 – 2 February 1849) ( fa, ملا حسين بشروئي Mulláh Hossein Boshru'i), also known by the honorific ''Jináb-i Bábu'l-Báb'' ("Gate of the Gate"), was a Persian religious figure in 19th century Persia and the fir ...

The narrative

The part of the book that has been published in English tells the story of the early Baháʼí history and is set in 19th-century

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

until around 1853. The narrative focuses on

Shaykh Ahmad Sheikh (pronounced or ; ar, شيخ ' , mostly pronounced , plural ' )—also transliterated sheekh, sheyikh, shaykh, shayk, shekh, shaik and Shaikh, shak—is an honorific title in the Arabic language. It commonly designates a chief of a ...

and

Sayyid Kazim Rashti Sayyid Kāẓim bin Qāsim al-Ḥusaynī ar-Rashtī (1793–1843) ( ar, سيد كاظم بن قاسم الحسيني الرﺷتي), mostly known as Siyyid Kázim Rashtí ( fa, سید کاظم رشتی), was the son of Siyyid Qasim of Rasht, a to ...

, the life of the

Báb The Báb (b. ʿAlí Muḥammad; 20 October 1819 – 9 July 1850), was the messianic founder of Bábism, and one of the central figures of the Baháʼí Faith. He was a merchant from Shiraz in Qajar Iran who, in 1844 at the age of 25, claimed ...

, the

Letters of the Living The Letters of the Living ( ar, حروف الحي) was a title provided by the Báb to the first eighteen disciples of the Bábís, Bábí Religion. In some understandings the Báb places himself at the head of this list (as the first letter). In ...

, among whom are

Quddús Jináb-i-Quddús ( ar, قدوس)(c.1820–1849), is the title of Mullá Muḥammad ʻAlí-i-Bárfurúshi, who was the most prominent disciple of the Báb. He was the eighteenth and final Letter of the Living. Background Quddús was born some ...

Táhirih Táhirih (Ṭāhira) ( fa, طاهره, "The Pure One," also called Qurrat al-ʿAyn ( "Solace/Consolation of the Eyes") are both titles of Fatimah Baraghani/Umm-i Salmih (1814 or 1817 – August 16–27, 1852), an influential poet, women's rights ...

, and further

Dayyán The great Dayyan ( ar, میرزا أسد الله), often referred to as Dayyán, was a Bábí follower, a religion founded by the Báb in Persia in 1844. The Báb wrote numerous tablets of praise to Dayyán recognising his devotion to the new r ...

Hujjat Mullā Muḥammad-ʿAlī al-Zanjānī (), surnamed Ḥujjat (1812 - 1851), was an early leader of the Bábí movement of 19th-century Persia. He is regarded by Baháʼís as part of their own religious history, and is highly featured in the two ...

and

Baháʼu'lláh Baháʼu'lláh (born Ḥusayn-ʻAlí; 12 November 1817 – 29 May 1892) was the founder of the Baháʼí Faith. He was born to an aristocratic family in Persia, and was exiled due to his adherence to the messianic Bábí Faith. In 1863, in I ...

Translations

The work was first edited, partially translated into English and printed in 1932 by Shoghi Effendi, great-grandson of Baháʼu'lláh and then head of the religion. This translation covers roughly the first half of the original narrative. The original text has never been published in full, though there are Persian and Arabic translations of Shoghi Effendi's English version. The book, either the complete edition or the abridged one, has been translated in several other languages as well. The original manuscript is held in the International Baháʼí Archives in Haifa, Israel.

H.M. Balyuzi Hasan M. Balyuzi (7 September 1908 – 12 February 1980) was a prominent Iranian member of the Baháʼí Faith.Mírzá Asadu'lláh Fádil Mázandarání in the late 1930s and early 1940s and has been published in Persian online.

Influence

The book had a great impact on the Western Baháʼís' understanding of their religion and its links to Bábism.

Bahiyyih Nakhjavani __NOTOC__ Bahiyyih Nakhjavani is an Iranian writer who grew up in Uganda in the 1960s. She was educated at Dr Williams School, Dolgellau, United Kingdom and the United States. She taught European and American literature in Belgium, and later mov ...

uses the story of the theft of the Báb's saddlebag during his pilgrimage to Mecca, in chapter VII of ''The Dawn-Breakers'', as the focal point for her novel ''The Saddlebag — A Fable for Doubters and Seekers''. Many groups and organizations have been named after it, most notably the

Dawn Breakers International Film Festival Dawn Breakers International Film Festival (DBIFF) was an international travelling film festival held in various cities throughout the world from 2007-2015. The festival debuted in Phoenix, Arizona and was later held in San Diego, Houston and Zuric ...

, Dawn Breakers High School in India and the Los Angeles-based music group Dawnbreaker Collective, London based Dawnbreakers (b-boy dance crew), 1966 music group by Seals and Crofts called "Dawnbreakers" and the German-based publishing company, "DawnBreakers Publisher."

Editions

*\ - complete edition, with illustrations, footnotes in English and French, complete introduction and appendices. * - abridged, without illustrations. * - abridged, with illustrations.

References

External links

Compendium of the Dawn-Breakers
including the illustrations (archived)
Translation of French Footnotes of the Dawn-BreakersStudy OutlineSummaryLittle Badasht Materials
aids for the study of Nabíl's Narrative (archived) {{DEFAULTSORT:Dawn-breakers, The Bábí texts Bahá'í texts 1888 non-fiction books