After Bahā’u’llāh put forth his claim of being the Bab’s successor, he claimed the title of Him Whom God Shall Make Manifest and attracted a number of followers, disagreements arose between him and his brother Ṣubḥ Azal, and their respective followers clashed and shed blood.

Bahā’u’llāh was forced to flee Baghdad and take refuge in the mountains of Sulaymaniyah near Mosul to escape his brother’s followers. Under the alias Dervish Mohammad, he lived with the lifestyle of a dervish there for two years. Bahā’u’llāh uttered the following statements about this journey:

By the Righteousness of God! Our withdrawal contemplated no return, and Our separation hoped for no reunion. The one object of Our retirement was to avoid becoming a subject of discord among the faithful, a source of disturbance unto Our companions, the means of injury to any soul, or the cause of sorrow to any heart. Beyond these, We cherished no other intention, and apart from them, We had no end in view.^[1]

Bahā’u’llāh confesses that the proclamation of his authority had caused conflict among his friends and followers of his creed. Thus, he had no choice but to go into hiding to prevent this and for two years there was no news of him or his claims. Some might claim that these actions were justified and in accordance with the principle that is under consideration, for Bahā’u’llāh, in order to prevent hatred and enmity, refrained from preaching his religion altogether.

This argument is unacceptable, for, even though Bahā’u’llāh himself knew that proclaiming his authority would cause conflicts among his followers, he still returned after two years, even though he had said “Our withdrawal contemplated no return, and Our separation hoped for no reunion.” Why did he once again put forth his claims of being the successor to the Bab and claimant to the title of Him Whom God Shall Make Manifest? Why did he engage in conflicts and quarrels with his brother, until the situation reached the point that they exchanged all sorts of profanities? Didn’t Bahā’u’llāh himself not admit that

In these days, however, such odours of jealousy are diffused, that—I swear by the Educator of all beings, visible and invisible—from the beginning of the foundation of the world—though it hath no beginning—until the present day, such malice, envy, and hate have in no wise appeared, nor will they ever be witnessed in the future. For a number of people who have never inhaled the fragrance of justice, have raised the standard of sedition, and have leagued themselves against Us. On every side We witness the menace of their spears, and in all directions We recognize the shafts of their arrows.^[2]

According to Bahā’u’llāh’s own statements, his claims—instead of bringing about unity and fellowship—brought about such a degree of hatred and jealousy that was unprecedented and will never occur again. Thus according to Bahā’u’llāh and Abdu’l-Bahā that, “if religion is a cause of enmity and a cause of war, its absence is better, and a lack of religion is better than religion,”^[3] it is obvious that having no religion is better than being a Baha’i.

[1] Bahā’u’llāh, The Kitāb-i-Īqān (US Bahā’ī Publishing Trust, 1989 [pocket-size edition]), p. 251.

[2] Bahā’u’llāh, The Kitāb-i-Īqān, p. 249.

[3] `Abdu’l-Bahā, Khaṭābāt (Tehran), vol. 2, p. 146.