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{{Short description|Iranian religious leader (1831–1912)}}
{{Infobox religious biography
| image              = SoBhheAzaal.jpg
| alt                = 
| caption            = Subh-i-Azal at the age of 80, Famagusta, circa 1911{{sfn|Lukach|1913|p=264}}
| birth_name         = Mīrzā Yahyā Nūrī
| birth_date         = {{Birth date text|1831}}
| birth_place        = [[Tehran]], [[Qajar Iran|Iran]]
| death_date         = {{Death-date and age|April 29, 1912|1831}}
| death_place        = [[Famagusta]], [[British Cyprus]]
| other_names        = 
| known_for          = Second leader of [[Bábism|Bābism]]
| occupation         = 
| predecessor        = [[Báb|Bāb]] (as Primal Point)
| successor          = Witnesses of the Bayān<br />Yahyā Dawlatābādī (per Browne)
| religion           = Bābism
| notable_works      = Kitab-i-Nur, Ahkam-i-Bayan, Dhil-i-Bayan-i-Farsi
| children           = Nine sons and five daughters
| parents            = [[Mírzá ʻAbbás Núrí|Mirza Abbas Nuri]]<br />Kuchik Khanum
| relatives          = [[Baháʼu'lláh]] (half-brother)<br />[[Sheikh Ahmad Rouhi]] (son-in-law)<br />[[Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani]] (son-in-law)
}}
{{Babism}}

'''Subh-i-Azal'''{{efn|{{langx|fa|صبح ازل|Ṣobḥ-e Azal}}}} (1831–1912, born '''Mīrzā Yahyā Nūrī'''{{efn|{{langx|fa|میرزا یحیی|Mirzā Yaḥyā}}}}) was an Iranian religious leader and writer who was the second head of the [[Bábism|Bābī movement]] after the execution of its founder, the [[Báb|Bāb]], in 1850. He was named the leader of the movement after being the Bāb's chief deputy shortly before its execution, and became a generally-acknowledged head of the community after their expulsion to Baghdad in 1852.{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}}

The Bāb believed Subh-i-Azal had an ability to write divinely-inspired verses and saw him as a mirror, providing the ability to explain the unexplained, in the time before the appearance of the messiah, known in the Bābī religion as He whom God shall make manifest ({{langx|ar|من يظهره الله|man yuẓhiruhu llāh}}). However, not all Bābīs followed his authority, and some of them also made claims of their own, including those to the position of the messiah. After his later conflict with his half-brother [[Baháʼu'lláh]], who became Subh-i-Azal's leading intermediary and later claimed the messianic status, over leadership of the Bābī community, his followers became known as '''Azalis'''.{{sfn|Warburg|2006|p=7-8,146}}

At the time of appointment in 1850, he was just 19 years old. Two years later, a pogrom began to exterminate the Bābīs in Iran, and Subh-i-Azal fled for Baghdad for 10 years before joining the group of Bābī exiles that were called to Istanbul. During the time in Baghdad tensions grew with Baháʼu'lláh, as Bābī pilgrims began to turn to the latter for leadership. The Ottoman government further exiled the group to Edirne, where Subh-i-Azal openly rejected Baháʼu'lláh's messianic claim and the community of Bābīs were divided by their allegiance to one or the other.

In 1868 the Ottoman government further exiled Subh-i-Azal and his followers to Cyprus, and Baháʼu'lláh and his followers to [[Acre, Israel|Acre]] in Palestine. When Cyprus was [[Cyprus Convention|leased to Britain]] in 1878, he lived out the rest of his life in obscurity on a British pension.{{sfn|Mirza Yahya. In Britannica|2024}}

By 1904, Azal's followers had dwindled to a small minority, and Baháʼu'lláh was almost universally recognized as the spiritual successor of the [[Báb|Bāb]].{{sfn|Carus|1904|p=361}} After Azal's death in 1912, the Azali form of Bābism entered a stagnation and has not recovered as there is no acknowledged leader or central organization.{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}}{{sfn|Warburg|2006|p=7-8}} Most Bābīs either accepted the claim of Baháʼu'lláh or the community gradually diminished as children and grandchildren turned back to Islam.{{sfn|Momen|1991}} A source in 2001 estimated no more than a few thousand, almost entirely in Iran.{{sfn|Barrett|2001|p=246}} Another source in 2009 noted a very small number of followers remained in [[Uzbekistan]].{{sfn|Campo|2009b}}

==Name and title==
His given name was [[Yahya (name)|Yahyā]], which is the Arabic form of the English name "John". As the son of a [[Mirza (noble)|nobleman]] in the county of [[Nur County|Núr]], he was known as '''Mīrzā Yahyā Nūrī''' ({{langx|fa|میرزا یحیی نوری}}). His most widely known title, "Subh-i-Azal" (or "Sobh-i-Ezel"; {{langx|fa|صبح ازل|links=no}}, "Morning of Eternity") is derived from an Islamic tradition called the Hadith-i-[[Kumayl ibn Ziyad|Kumayl]], a tradition the Bāb quotes in his book [[Dalá'il-i-Sab'ih|Dalā'il-i-Sab'ih]].

It was common practice for the Bāb to confer titles or new names for his followers. Mīrzā Yahyā Nūrī was granted such titles as al-Waḥīd, Ṭalʻat an-Nūr, and ath-Thamara,{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}} Everlasting Mirror (Mir'ātu'l-Azaliyya), Name of Eternity (Ismu'l-azal), and Fruit of the Bayan (Thamara-i-Bayan).{{sfn|Smith|2000}} The title of Subh-i-Azal appears in the 1853 work of Bahāʼu'llāh titled Tablet of All Food.{{sfn|Lambden|2021}}

==Background==
Subh-i-Azal was born in 1831 to [[Mírzá ʻAbbás Núrí|Mīrzā Buzurg-i-Nūrī]] and his fourth wife Kuchak Khanum-i-Karmanshahi, in the province of [[Mazandaran]].{{sfn|Smith|2000}} His father was a minister in the court of [[Fath-Ali Shah Qajar]]. His mother died while giving birth to him, and his father died in 1839 when he was eight years old, after which he was cared for by his stepmother Khadíjih Khánum, the mother of Baháʼu'lláh.{{sfn|Smith|2000}}

In 1845, at about the age of 14, Subh-i-Azal became a follower of the Bāb after the adoption of the faith by his elder brother.

===Early activities in the Bābī community===
Subh-i-Azal met [[Tahirih]], the 17th Letter of the Living who had, upon leaving the Conference of Badasht, traveled to Nur to propagate the faith. Shortly thereafter, she arrived at Barfurush and met Subh-i-Azal and became acquainted once again with Quddús who instructed her to take Subh-i-Azal with her to Nur. Subh-i-Azal remained in Nur for three days, during which he propagated the new faith.{{sfn|Kashani|1910|p=241}}

During the [[Battle of Fort Tabarsi]], Subh-i-Azal, along with Baháʼu'lláh and Mirza Zayn al-Abedin endeavoured to travel there to assist the Bābīs. However, they were arrested several kilometers from Amul. Their imprisonment was ordered by the governor, but Subh-i-Azal escaped the officials for a short while, after which he was discovered by a villager and then brought to Amul on foot with his hands tied. On the path to Amul he was subject to harassment, and people are reported to have spat at him. Upon arriving he was reunited with the other prisoners. The prisoners were ordered to be beaten, but when it came time that Subh-i-Azal should suffer the punishment, Baha'u'llah objected and offered to take the beating in his place. After some time, the governor wrote to Abbas Quli Khan who was commander of the government forces stationed near Fort Tabarsi. Khan replied back to the governor's correspondence, saying that the prisoners were of distinguished families and should not be harassed. Thus, the prisoners were released and sent to Nur upon orders of the commander.

===Marriages and children===
According to [[Edward G. Browne|Browne]], Mirza Yahya had several wives, and at least nine sons and five daughters. His sons included: Nurullah, Hadi, Ahmad, Abdul Ali, Rizwan Ali (known as Constantine the Persian), and four others. Rizwan Ali reports that he had eleven or twelve wives.{{sfn|Browne|1897}} Later research reports that he had up to seventeen wives including four in Iran and at least five in Baghdad.{{sfn|Momen|1991|pp=87–96}} [[Peter Smith (historian)|Smith]] reports that he had "perhaps twenty-five children in all".{{sfn|Smith|2000}}

His granddaughter, Roshanak Nodust, was later known for starting [[Women's rights movement in Iran#Early publications|Peyk-e Saadat Nesvan]], the first woman's rights magazine in Iran.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Zolghadr |first1=Zohreh |title=Iranian Women You Should Know: Roshanak Nodust |url=https://iranwire.com/en/special-features/67065/ |website=IranWire |access-date=17 September 2024}}</ref>

==Appointment==
Subh-i-Azal first came to the attention of the Bāb after receiving letters from Azal, and the two began corresponding. The Nuqtatu'l-Kaf dates this event to the "fifth year of the manifestation [e.g. of the Bāb]" (1849).{{sfn|Hamadani|1893|p=380-381}}{{sfn|Kashani|1910|p=XXXI (Introduction), 20 (Introduction, in Bayani transcript)}} The amanuensis of the Bāb and a Letter of the Living, Sayyid Ḥusayn Yazdī, described the response of the Bāb to that correspondence in a letter to Subh-i-Azal's amanuensis, Mullā ʿAbd al-Karīm Qazvīnī, as such: "All that might be sent after this after the writings of that Eternity, that peacock of the primal heaven, whether in your hand or the hand of God shall be much appreciated by his holiness the Loved One." The Bāb himself also expressed his appreciation on his own: "Sent me whatever shines forth of the writings of Azal, for we love them." In Kitab-i-Panj Sha'n (Book of Five Modes), a late work of the Bāb, Subh-i-Azal is identified with the return of Imām Husayn and referred to as "the Fruit that ripened in the year six" (that is, 1850).{{sfn|MacEoin|1989|p=97,109}}

Shortly before the Bāb's execution, the Bāb wrote letters and entrusted them to Mullā ʿAbd al-Karīm to deliver to Subh-i-Azal and Bahāʼu'llāh. Both Azalīs and Bahāʼīs later interpreted these letters as proof of the Bāb's delegation of leadership to the two brothers.{{sfn|Amanat|1989|p=384}} In his letter to Subh-i-Azal, the Bāb instructs him to: "preserve himself, then preserve himself, then what has been sent down in the Bayān, then what is sent from him," and to "recite of the verses of his Lord what God will inspire into his heart as a remembrance on His Part." Bahāʼu'llāh is instructed by the Bāb to protect Subh-i-Azal and the "verses treasured up within him."{{sfn|MacEoin|1989|p=109}} According to [[ʻAbdu'l-Bahá]], the Bāb did this to divert attention from Bahāʼu'llāh, and that it was suggested by the latter in an accord with the Bāb.{{sfn|Smith|2000}}{{sfn|Taherzadeh|1976|p=37}} This is a popular explanation of the matter for the Bahāʼīs, though it has faced ethical objections.{{sfn|MacEoin|1989|p=94}}

In the period immediately following the Bāb's execution (1850), multiple various claims to authority emerged, and Bābīs did not initially unite around Subh-i-Azal's leadership. At some point, Azal became the recognized leader, and remained so for about 13 years.{{sfn|Smith|2000}}{{sfn|Warburg|2006|p=446}} Sayyid Ḥusayn Yazdī actively promoted the succession of Subh-i-Azal after the death of the Bāb. In a letter to ʿAbd al-Karīm Qazvīnī, he alludes to the appearance of Azal as "the appearance of your lord in the ripe fruit", and in another letter, he instructs Ḥājj Ṣulaymān Khān Tabrīzī that "whenever verses are revealed from the heaven of ''azaliyyat'', enclose them with your own letters."{{sfn|MacEoin|1989|p=99}}

===Controversy===

The nature of his role has been the subject of debate due to conflicting sources.{{sfn|Smith|2000}} Warburg states that, "It seems likely that Subh-i-Azal was designated to be the Bab's successor",{{sfn|Warburg|2006|p=446}} and MacEoin states that, the Bāb regarded him as "his chief deputy" and the "future head of the movement"{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}} while Cole concludes he was a “first among equals”.{{sfn|Cole|2002}} The nature of that appointment differs according to which sources are believed. In particular, there is a dispute regarding whether Subh-i-Azal was permanently designated as the Bāb’s successor or merely appointed, as the Bahā’īs officially assert, as a protective measure for Bahā’u’llāh.{{sfn|Warburg|2006|p=446}}

The conflicting accusations, claims, and counter-claims of Azalī and Bahāʼī sources make it difficult to reconstruct an objective narrative of the splitting of the Bābī community into these two groups, one of which came to dominate and expand, while the other became almost defunct.{{sfn|Smith|2000}} Academic reviews are generally critical of the official Bahāʼī positions on the split; for example [[Edward Granville Browne]],{{sfn|Browne|1918}} [[Denis MacEoin]],{{sfn|MacEoin|1989}} and [[A. L. M. Nicolas]].{{sfn|Nicolas|1933|p=15}} Notably, Browne and Nicolas both had extensive correspondence with Subh-i-Azal.

===Nuqtatu'l-Kaf===
[[Edward Granville Browne]] studied the Bābī movement in Iran and translated many primary sources from 1890 to 1920. One of these, ''Kitab-i-Nuqtatu'l-Kaf'' (or ''Noqtat al-Kāf''), was of particular interest to the appointment of Subh-i-Azal. Its publication was encouraged by Muhammad Khan Qazvīnī, a Shi'ite scholar, and its authorship was attributed to Hājī Mīrzā Jānī, a Bābī who died in 1852.{{sfn|Wickens|Cole|Ekbal|1989}} A similar manuscript, written by Mīrzā Ḥusayn Hamadānī, claimed to be based on the work of Hājī Mīrzā Jānī and circulating among Bahāʼīs, was ''Tarikh-i-Jadid''. This version lacked extra text supportive of Subh-i-Azal's authority. In his introduction to its publication, Browne attacked the Bahāʼīs for trying to rewrite history.{{sfn|Wickens|Cole|Ekbal|1989}} Later scholarship showed that the ''Nuqtatu'l-Kaf'' was circulating among Bahāʼīs, it wasn't being suppressed, and some material in it postdated the death of its assumed author.{{sfn|Wickens|Cole|Ekbal|1989}}

[[Denis MacEoin]] made a detailed analysis of the question in his ''The Sources for Early Babi Doctrine and History'' (1992),{{sfn|MacEoin|1992}}{{sfn|Warburg|2006|pp=38–39}} summarized here by [[Margit Warburg]]:
{{blockquote|text=In 1892, Browne acquired the Babi manuscript named ''Kitab-i-Nuqtatu'l-Kaf'' from a collection of Babi manuscripts originally owned by [[Arthur de Gobineau|de Gobineau]] and sold to the Bibliotheque Nationale in Paris in 1884. The first portion of the manuscript is laid out as a doctrinal treatise, while the later sections contain what Browne assumed to be an early copy of Mirza Jani Kashani's history. Browne considered his discovery to be of immense importance, since at that time no other copies of this history were known. However, Browne also discovered that the manuscript was at variance with the version of Mirza Jani Kashani's history that made up the core text in the ''Tarikh-i-Jadid''. Although the two texts for the most part are equivalent, several passages in the ''Nuqtatu'l-Kaf'' that refer to Subh-i-Azal and his role in the Babi movement are not included in the ''Tarikh-i-Jadid''. This led Browne to conclude that the discrepancies between the two histories were the result of a deliberate plot of the followers of Baha'u'llah to discredit Subh-i-Azal's claims to leadership. The Baha'is hotly rejected Browne's conclusion and accused the Azalis of distorting the sources. Thus, Abdu'l-Baha suggested that the Azalis had prepared a falsified version of Mirza Jani Kashani's history and had encouraged Browne to publish it. This hypothesis was restated many years later by the Baha'i historian Hasan M. Balyuzi...{{sfn|Warburg|2006|pp=38–39}}}}

Further investigation by McCants and Milani (2004) found another early copy of the manuscript of the Nuqtatu'l-Kaf and concluded that it was written in the early 1850s, though not by Hājī Mīrzā Jānī, and that it was "not markedly different from Browne’s edition".{{sfn|McCants|Milani|2004}} Later, Milani dates the Nuqtatu'l-Kaf to the year 1852, and based on newly found manuscripts that are even earlier, explains the added sections on Subh-i-Azal as being added at some point before that year.{{sfn|Milani|2008}}

==Leadership==
[[File:Subh-i-Azal_Browne_Materials.jpg|thumb|200px|Subh-i-Azal at a younger age, date unknown.{{sfn|Browne|1918|p=56}}]]

===Takur uprising===
The Bābī community was engaged in several pitched [[Bábism#Uprisings and massacres|military confrontations]] with the government from 1848 to 1851. Subh-i-Azal allied himself with a faction led by Azīm, and in 1852 coordinated a new militant uprising in [[Takur]], Iran. This new upheaval was apparently timed to coincide with an attempt to assassinate [[Naser al-Din Shah Qajar|Naser al-Din Shah]], which was organized by Azīm.{{sfn|Smith|2000}}{{sfn|Campo|2009a}}

The uprising failed, and the botched assassination attempt resulted in the entire Bābī community being blamed and severely punished by the government. Many thousand Bābīs were killed. Subh-i-Azal took up a disguise to escape Iran and joined a cohort of exiles in Baghdad.{{sfn|Smith|2000}}{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}}

After Azīm's death in 1852, Subh-i-Azal became the clear head of the remaining militant faction of the Bābīs, which remained wedded to a vision of radical political activism;{{sfn|Amanat|1989|p=414}} representing what [[Abbas Amanat|Amanat]] describes as a preoccupation with, "the Shi'ite vision of a utopian political order under the aegis of the Imam of the age".{{sfn|Amanat|1989|p=365}}

===Baghdad===
In Baghdad, Subh-i-Azal kept his whereabouts secret and lived secluded from the Bābī community, keeping in contact through agents termed "witnesses of the Bayān". According to the Bahāʼī historian, Sayyid Mahdī Dahajī, Subh-i-Azal appointed seven people to this role. Dahajī gives the names of three of them: Sayyid Muhammad Isfahānī, Mullā Muhammad Ja'far Narāqī, and his brother Mullā Muhammad Taqī. According to Shoghi Effendi, there were 18 witnesses overall.{{sfn|MacEoin|1989|p=110}}  Bahā’u’llāh served as Subh-i-Azal's chief promoter and defender, expressed servitude to Subh-i-Azal, and even accused other people of exaggerating his position; this has led to him acquiring the position of leading intermediary between Subh-i-Azal and the Bābīs. This in accordance with the letter of the Bāb mentioned in the previous section, where he is commanded to protect Subh-i-Azal. Bahā’u’llāh encouraged the distribution of Subh-i-Azal's most important work from that era, Kitab-i-Nur.{{sfn|MacEoin|1989|p=115-116}}

The Bābī community in Iran remained fragmented and broken after the pogrom of 1852–3, and new leadership claims developed. The most significant challenger to Subh-i-Azal was Mirza Asad Allah Khu'i, known by the title '''Dayyān''',{{sfn|Smith|2000}} who made a claim to be [[Bábism#He whom God shall make manifest|He whom God shall make manifest]]. Azal wrote a lengthy refutation of Dayyān titled Mustayqiz, in which cites Dayyān saying: "the heavens of the Bayān have been rolled up; regard not its verses also, and regard not its words also." According to Mustayqiz, Dayyān claimed the ability to raise the dead, and challenged Subh-i-Azal to do the same, maintaining that the latter won't be able to do so. The refutation contains passages implying that he wanted both Dayyān and his follower Mīrzā Ibrahīm put to death. Dayyān was killed in Baghdad by Mirza Muhammad Mazandarani in 1856. According to Bahāʼu'llāh, the murder was at the order of Subh-i-Azal.{{sfn|Smith|2000}}{{sfn|MacEoin|1989|p=113}}

Later during the Baghdad period, tensions rose between Subh-i-Azal and Bahā’u’llāh. Bahāʼī sources describe Azal as increasing in jealousy during this time, and Baháʼu'lláh's 2-year sojourn in Kurdistan as an attempt to avoid the growing disunity.{{sfn|Smith|2000}} Bahā’u’llāh says, in his later work Kitāb-i-Īqān, that he has originally not intended to return, and there is a controversy around the exact reason for his return. Bahā’u’llāh states that he returned because of a decree from "the source of command" (maṣdar-i-ʾamr); whether this refers to God or to Subh-i-Azal is unclear. The Bahā’īs understand it as referring to the former, and Shoghi Effendi translates it as "the Mystic Source". However, some researchers, like Browne, interpret it as the latter.{{sfn|MacEoin|1989|p=117-118}}

Subh-i-Azal gradually alienated himself from a large proportion of the Bābīs who started to give their alliance to other claimants.{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}} Bahāʼī sources have attributed this to his incompetence and cowardice. MacEoin disputes this, attributing the isolation to the Shi'a practice of ''[[Taqiyya]]'', drawing a parallel with the hidden twelfth Imam. Furthermore, he notes that Azal was merely acting on instructions given to him by the Bāb, and that the notion of a hidden ''walī'' would not have disturbed the Bābīs.{{sfn|MacEoin|1989|p=108}}

===Edirne===
In 1863 most of the Bābīs were called by the Ottoman authorities to Istanbul for four months, followed by an exile to [[Edirne]] that lasted from 12 December 1863 to 12 August 1868.{{sfn|Smith|2000|pp=129–130}}{{sfn|Campo|2009b}} The travel to Istanbul began with [[Baháʼu'lláh]] privately making his claim to be the messianic figure of the Bayan, which became a public proclamation in Edirne. This created a permanent schism between the two brothers.{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}}{{sfn|Campo|2009b}} Subh-i-Azal responded to these claims by making his own claims and resisting the changes of doctrine which were introduced by Baháʼu'llāh.{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}} His attempts to keep the traditional Bābism were, however, mostly unpopular.{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}}

According to Bahá'í accounts, Subh-i-Azal was behind the poisoning of [[Baháʼu'lláh]] while in Edirne in 1865.{{sfn|Browne|1918|p=16}}{{sfn|Smith|2008|p=24}}{{sfn|Cole|2002}} According to [[Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani]] (a son-in-law of Subh-i-Azal), he poisoned himself while trying to poison Subh-i-Azal.{{efn|Kirmani made this claim later in his ''Hasht-Bihisht''. This book is abstracted in part by [[Edward G. Browne]] in "Note W" of his translation of ''A Traveller's Narrative''.{{sfn|ʻAbdu'l-Bahá|1886}}}} The poisoning had adverse effects on Bahaʼu'lláh throughout the remainder of his life.{{sfn|Smith|2008|p=24}} A Bahāʼī, Salmānī, reported that Azal again attempted to have Baháʼu'llāh killed in the late winter of 1866.{{sfn|Cole|2004a|p=3}} In March 1866, Baháʼu'llāh responded with a formal written declaration to Subh-i-Azal in the ''Sūri-yi Amr'' and referred to his own followers as Bahāʼīs.{{sfn|Smith|2008|p=24}}

This began an approximately year-long separation that ended with a definite schism. The two brothers separated households, and the Bābīs in Iraq and Iran split into three factions: Azalīs, Bahāʼīs, or undecided. In February–March 1867, all three factions gathered in Baghdad for debates, and soon the undecided mostly joined the Bahāʼīs, who were already in the majority.{{sfn|Cole|2004a|p=4}} In Edirne, the group of about 100 Bābīs was still socially intermixed until the summer of 1867, when they lived separately based on their loyalties.{{sfn|Cole|2004a|p=7}}

A crisis erupted in August/September 1867. Sayyid Muhammad Isfahānī, an Azalī, instigated a public debate between the two brothers to settle the disputed claims.{{sfn|Cole|2004a|p=7}} On a Friday morning, Azal challenged Baháʼu'llāh to a debate in the [[Selimiye Mosque, Edirne|Sultan Selim Mosque]] that afternoon. [[Juan Cole|Cole]] describes the communication,
{{blockquote|text=The challenge document envisaged that Azal and Bahā’u’llāh would face each other there and call down ritual curses on one other, in hopes that God would send down a sign that would demonstrate the truth of one or the other. This custom, called mubāhalih in Persian, is a very old one in the Middle East, and appears to have evoked the contest between Moses and Pharaoh’s magicians.{{sfn|Cole|2004a|p=7}}}}

Baháʼu'llāh arrived at the mosque, with a crowd waiting, and sent a messenger to the home of Subh-i-Azal to remind him of the challenge, but Azal told the messenger that the confrontation would have to be postponed. That night, Baháʼu'llāh wrote to Azal, proposing that either Sunday or Monday they would complete the challenge, but Azal never responded to the request and never showed up on those days.{{sfn|Cole|2004a|p=11}} The Bahā’īs interpreted Azal's failure to appear at his own challenge as cowardice, and it caused the further deterioration of Subh-i-Azal's credibility.{{sfn|Smith|2008|p=24}} The news quickly spread to Iran, where the majority of Bābīs still lived.{{sfn|Cole|2004a|p=13}}

===Cyprus===
Subh-i-Azal, along with Sayyid Muhammad Isfanani made accusations against Baháʼu'llāh to the Ottoman authorities, which resulted in both factions being further exiled in 1868; Baháʼu'llāh to [[Acre, Israel|Acre]] and Azal to [[Famagusta]] in [[Cyprus]].{{sfn|Smith|2000}}{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}}

The formal exile of Subh-i-Azal ended in 1881,{{sfn|Smith|2000}} when Cyprus was acquired by Britain in the aftermath of the [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)]], but he remained on the island for the rest of his life until his death on 29 April 1912. He remained elusive and secretive, living off a British pension and being perceived as a Muslim holy man by the people of Cyprus, even receiving a Muslim burial.{{sfn|Smith|2000}} From Cyprus he seemed to have little contact with the Bābīs in Iran.

[[Harry Luke]], an official of the British Colonial Office, commented in 1913 that after Subh-i-Azal's arrival in Cyprus,
{{blockquote|text=Now occurred a curious phenomenon. Although doctrinally there was little to distinguish the two parties, the basis of the schism being a personal question, the one waxed exceedingly while the other waned. Rapidly the Ezelis dwindled to a handful, and soon were confined, almost entirely, to the members of Subh-i-Ezel's devoted family.{{sfn|Lukach|1913|p=265}}}}

On Cyprus, Subh-i-Azal was in contact with Edward Granville Browne, who visited him there during March 1890. Subh-i-Azal provided Browne with copies of some of the works of the Bāb in his possession and with his own succinct account of the history of the Bābī movement. He also exchanged correspondence with A. L. M. Nicolas, a French diplomat in Iran, and for whom he wrote Conduct of The Heads of States ({{langx|fa|سلوک رؤسا با مردم}}), a political treatise referencing events in France of the previous decade.

==Death==

Subh-i-Azal started showing symptoms of an unidentified illness in July 1911. His condition then got worse in September of the same year, and he died on April 29, 1912. He was buried according to Islamic customs outside Famagusta, without the presence of the witnesses of the Bayān.{{sfn|Browne|1918|p=311-312}}

===Succession===
There are conflicting reports as to whom Subh-i-Azal appointed as his successor, and there was confusion after his death. Azal originally planned to appoint his eldest son Ahmad, but a dispute between them caused the appointment to be withdrawn and he instead appointed Hādī Dawlatābādī (d. 1908).{{sfn|Adamson|2009}}{{better source needed|date=March 2025}} After the latter's death, Subh-i-Azal further appointed the man's son, Yahyā Dawlatābādī (d. 1939), but he had little involvement in the religion and any chain of leadership appears to have gone defunct with his appointment.{{sfn|Smith|2000|p=171}}{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}}{{sfn|Campo|2009a}}

Subh-i-Azal's son, Rizwan ʻAli, wrote to C.D. Cobham on 11 July 1912, 
{{blockquote|text=[Subhi-i-Azal] before his death had nominated [as his executor or successor] the son of Aqā Mīrzā Muhammad Hādī of Dawlatābād.{{sfn|Browne|1918|p=312}}}}

[[Harry Luke|H.C. Lukach]] wrote to Browne on 5 September 1912,
{{blockquote|text=It appears that Subhi-i-Azal left a letter saying that he of his sons who resembled him most closely in his mode of life and principles was to be his successor. The point as to which of the sons fulfils this condition has not yet been decided; consequently all the children would appear at present to be co-heirs... No steps have, as far as I am aware, yet been taken to elect a ''walī'' [i.e. successor or executor].{{sfn|Browne|1918|pp=313–314}}}}

[[Shoghi Effendi]] wrote in 1944 that Subh-i-Azal appointed Hādī Dawlatābādī as his successor, and that he later publicly recanted his faith in the Bāb and in Subh-i-Azal.{{sfn|Effendi|1944|p=233}} Hādī was targeted for death by a local cleric, and despite the public recantation, he continued being a leader of the Azalis in secret.{{sfn|Smith|2000|p=171}}

Jalāl Azal, a grandson of Subh-i-Azal who disputed the appointment of Hādī Dawlatābādī, later told [[William McElwee Miller|William Miller]] between 1967 and 1971 that Azal did not appoint a successor.{{sfn|Momen|1991}}{{sfn|Miller|1974|p=107}}

===Shrine===

A small shrine was built in the place of Subh-i-Azal's grave in Famagusta in the 1960s. According to a local Bahá’í, its building was orchestrated by a wealthy Iranian woman, who claimed to be a relative of Subh-i-Azal. Later, in the 1990s, the shrine was in the care of Subh-i-Azal's grandson, Rida Ezel.{{sfn|Warburg|2006|p=177}}

==Impact and legacy==
Subh-i-Azal's leadership of the Bābī movement led to the formation of '''Azalism''' ({{langx|fa|ازلیه}} {{Transliteration|fa|Azaliyye}}), a distinct branch of Bābism that followed his authority as the appointed successor of the Bāb.<ref>{{Iranica|azali-babism|Azali Babism}}</ref>{{sfn|Fisher|Avery|Hambly|1968|p=726}}{{sfn|Sharon|2018|p=263}}{{sfn|Algar|2023|p=150}} His followers, known as '''Azalīs''' ({{langx|fa|ازلیان}} {{Transliteration|fa|Azaliyân}}), continued to uphold the teachings of the Bāb while rejecting the messianic claims of Bahāʼu'llāh and others who claimed to be "[[He whom God shall make manifest]]".{{sfn|Browne|1890|pp=351–352}}{{sfn|Britannica|2011}}{{sfn|MacEoin|2012}}{{sfn|Amanat|1989|p=384, 414}}{{sfn|Barrett|2001|p=246}} The [[Baháʼí–Azali split]] in the 1860s resulted in the majority of Bābīs following Bahāʼu'llāh, who founded the [[Baháʼí Faith]], while a smaller group remained loyal to Subh-i-Azal, forming the Azalī community.{{sfn|Britannica|2011}} By 1890, Edward Granville Browne estimated that only a small fraction—perhaps three or four out of every hundred Bābīs—were Azalīs, with the rest accepting Bahāʼu'llāh.{{sfn|Browne|1890|p=351}}

===Distinguishing characteristics===
Azalīs adhered to a conservative interpretation of Bābism, emphasizing the laws and teachings of the Bāb as outlined in the Bayān. They rejected Bahāʼu'llāh's claim to divinity in 1863 as premature, arguing that the world must first fully accept the Bāb’s laws before the promised messiah could appear.{{sfn|Britannica|2011}} Denis MacEoin described Azalī Bābism as representing "the conservative core of the original Bābī movement, opposed to innovation and preaching a religion for a non-clerical gnostic elite rather than the masses." Unlike the Baháʼí Faith, which adopted a quietist stance, Azalī Bābism retained the Bābī antagonism toward the Qajar state and a commitment to political activism.{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}}

===Involvement in Persian reform movements===
Several Azalīs played significant roles in secular and constitutional reform movements in Iran, particularly during the [[Persian Constitutional Revolution]] of 1905–1911.{{sfn|Warburg|2006|p=177}} Prominent Azalīs, including Subh-i-Azal’s sons-in-law [[Sheikh Ahmad Rouhi]] and [[Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani]], as well as Yahyā Dawlatābādī, his appointed successor, were influential in advocating for constitutional and secular reforms.{{sfn|Amanat|1989|p=415}}{{sfn|Amanat|1994}} Their writings and activities contributed to the push for ending the Iranian absolute monarchy. However, the Azalī community faced suppression as a perceived heresy, and accusations of being an Azalī were often sufficient to discredit individuals in the eyes of the public.{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}} The practice of [[taqiyya]] (dissimulation) among Azalīs, discussed below, further complicated identifying their involvement in these movements.

===Practice of taqiyya===
The practice of taqiyya (dissimulation) was widespread among Azalīs, justified as a response to the violent oppression faced by the Bābī community. While some prominent Bābī leaders discouraged taqiyya and openly declared their faith, often resulting in martyrdom, Azalīs embraced it as an imperative requirement.{{sfn|Manuchehri|1999}} This practice became deeply ingrained, with some Azalī leaders, such as Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani and Shaykh Ahmad Ruhi, openly recanting their faith or altering Bābī teachings and history in their works to conceal their affiliations.{{sfn|Manuchehri|1999}} Azalī literature glorified taqiyya as a virtue, classifying it into various levels of concealment, which allowed the community to operate covertly but also contributed to their obscurity.{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}}

===Decline of Azalism===
Following the Constitutional Revolution, the Azalī community stagnated and gradually disappeared as an organized entity. By the end of the 20th century, their numbers had dwindled to at most a few thousand, primarily in Iran, significantly outnumbered by the millions of Baháʼí adherents worldwide.{{sfn|Barrett|2001|p=246}}{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}}{{sfn|Warburg|2006|pp=8, 177}} The lack of an acknowledged leader or central organization after Subh-i-Azal’s death in 1912 contributed to this decline.{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}} Membership became secretive, often running along family lines, and converts were rare.{{sfn|MacEoin|1987}} Estimates in the 1970s suggested between 500 and 5,000 Azalīs remained in Iran, with a small number in Uzbekistan by 2009.{{sfn|Smith|2000}}{{sfn|Campo|2009b}}

===Notable Azalī figures===
Despite their small numbers, Azalīs included several prominent Iranian political and literary figures. In addition to Rouhi, Kermani, and Dawlatābādī, others such as Jamāl al-Dīn Esfahānī and Malik al-Motakallemīn were associated with Azalī Bābism and influenced constitutional reforms.{{sfn|Amanat|1994}}{{sfn|Smith|2000|p=54}} The seven witnesses of the Bayān who remained loyal to Subh-i-Azal included Sayyid Muhammad Isfahani, Mulla Muhammad Ja'far Naraqi, Mulla Muhammad Taqi, Haji Sayyid Muhammad (Isfahani), Haji Sayyid Jawad (al-Karbala'i), Mirza Muhammad Husayn Mutawalli-bashi Qummi, and Mulla Rajab 'Ali Qahir.{{sfn|MacEoin|1989|p=110}} Baháʼī sources claim that the remaining 11 witnesses later became Baháʼīs.{{sfn|Adamson|2009}}

===Legacy of Subh-i-Azal===
Subh-i-Azal’s leadership and the subsequent formation of Azalism left a complex legacy. While his followers played a role in Iran’s constitutional reforms, their adherence to taqiyya and the lack of centralized leadership after his death limited their lasting impact. Ahmad Bahhāj (1853–1933), one of Subh-i-Azal’s sons, later moved to Haifa and appears to have become a Baháʼī, being buried in a Baháʼī cemetery.{{sfn|Momen|1991|pp=99–100}} Jalal Azal, his grandson, initially showed signs of aligning with the Baháʼí Faith but later opposed ʻAbdu'l-Bahā.{{sfn|Momen|1991|pp=100–102}} The small shrine built at Subh-i-Azal’s grave in Famagusta in the 1960s, cared for by his grandson Rida Ezel in the 1990s, remains a minor testament to his legacy.{{sfn|Warburg|2006|p=177}}

==Works==
One of the best known works of Subh-i-Azal is the Book of Light ({{langx|fa|کتاب نور|kitāb-i-nūr}}), written in Baghdad during the first few years after the death of the Bāb (1852-1853). The Book of [[Nūr (Islam)|Light]] is a book in the style of the [[Quran|Qur'ān]], composed of 77 ''suwar'' consisting of Arabic ''āyāt'', that is, in the first of the five grades of Bābī revelation. Subh-i-Azal describes it as proof of his status of successor (waliyy) to the Bāb, in his later work named Sleeper Awakened ({{langx|ar|مستيقظ|mustayqiẓ}}).{{sfn|Browne|1918|pp=216,218-219}} The opening chapter, titled Chapter of the Bayān ({{langx|ar|سورة البيان|sūrah al-bayān}}), consists of seven verses, in imitation of the [[Al-Fatiha]].{{sfn|Huart|1887}}

Subh-i-Azal wrote multiple works referencing the Bayān. Laws of the Bayān ({{langx|fa|احکام بیان|aḥkām-i-bayān}}) is an Arabic explanation of the laws and ordinances of the Bayān, arranged into Unities (''wāḥid''), similarly to the Bayān itself. Supplement to the Persian Bayān ({{langx|fa|ذیل بیان فارسی|dhīl-i-bayān-i-fārsī}}) is an extension of the original text of the Persian Bayān, from 9th Unity, 11th Gate up to 11th Unity, 19th Gate (the same length as the Arabic Bayān).{{sfn|Browne|1918|pp=211,214}} The Mirror of Bayān ({{langx|fa|کتاب مرات البيان|kitāb-i-mir'āt-al-bayān}}) is composed of 131 Gates (chapters) in four of the five Bayānic modes (verses, prayers, sermons, addresses).{{sfn|Browne|1897|p=764}}

Large collections of Subh-i-Azal's works are found in the British Museum Library Oriental Collection, London; in the Browne Collection at Cambridge University; at the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris; and at Princeton University.{{sfn|Momen|2009}} In the English introduction to "Personal Reminiscences of the Babi Insurrection at Zanjan in 1850," Browne lists thirty-eight titles as being among the works of Subh-i-Azal, citing a bibliography prepared by Subh-i-Azal's son, Rizwān ʿAlī.{{sfn|Browne|1897|p=764}} In "Materials for the Study of the Babi Religion", Browne lists works of Subh-i-Azal collected by him, with a short description of each one of them.{{sfn|Browne|1918|pp=211-220}}

===Political views===
Subh-i-Azal's political views combine esoteric thought with modern ideas in what Juan Cole describes as "a strange amalgam of Isma'ili-like esotericism, approval of monarchy, and radical republicanism." Subh-i-Azal believed that a leader elected by the people should rule collectively, praising the French republican leader, [[Leon Gambetta]]. In a treatise written for A. L. M. Nicolas, Subh-i-Azal states that it is permissible for a tyrannical leader to be removed by a popular revolt, but it should be done without bloodshed if possible. According to Cole, this philosophy brought the interest of the reformist intellectuals of the Persian Constitutional Revolution.

For a leader with a divine mandate, Subh-i-Azal also considers absolute rule to be acceptable, under the condition of being just. The ideal leader, to Subh-i-Azal, is someone who combines temporal and spiritual leadership. Cole considers this possible evidence of his own political ambitions, and notes that some of his followers during the Constitutional Revolution wanted to bring him to Teheran and make him king.{{sfn|Cole|2004b}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==Citations==
{{reflist|24em}}

==References==
{{refbegin|30em}}

*{{cite encyclopedia |title=Mirza Yahya Sobh-e Azal |date=25 April 2024 |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mirza-Yahya-Sobh-e-Azal |access-date=2024-10-01 |ref={{sfnRef|Mirza Yahya. In Britannica|2024}} }}
*{{cite book |author=ʻAbdu'l-Bahá |author-link=ʻAbdu'l-Bahá |date=1886 |orig-date=Reprinted 1975 |title=A Traveller's Narrative: Written to illustrate the episode of the Bab |publisher=Philo Press |location=Amsterdam |isbn=90-6022-316-0 |url=https://bahai-library.com/browne_abdul-baha_travellers_narrative }}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last=Adamson |first=Hugh C. |date=2009 |title=MIRZA YAHYA AZAL |pages=326–327 |series=The A to Z Guide Series, No. 70 |encyclopedia=The A to Z of the Baháʼí Faith |publisher=Scarecrow Press |place=Plymouth, UK |isbn=978-0-8108-6853-3 |url=https://archive.org/details/atozofbahaifaith0000adam |url-access=registration }}
*{{cite book |last=Algar|first=Hamid|year=2023|title=Religion and State in Iran|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2MPLEAAAQBAJ}}
*{{cite book |last=Amanat |first=Abbas |date=1989 |title=Resurrection and Renewal: The Making of the Babi Movement in Iran |url=https://archive.org/details/resurrectionrene00aman |url-access=registration |publisher=Cornell University Press |location=Ithaca, NY |isbn=978-0-8014-2098-6 }}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last=Amanat |first=Abbas |author-link=Abbas Amanat |date=1994 |orig-date=Updated 18 November 2011 |title=DAWLATĀBĀDĪ, SAYYED YAḤYĀ |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Iranica |volume=VII/2 |pages=143–146 |url=https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/dawlatabadi-sayyed-yahya |access-date=2024-10-11}}
*{{cite book |last=Barrett |first=David |date=2001 |title=The New Believers |publisher=Cassell & Co |location=London, UK |isbn=0-304-35592-5 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/newbelieverssurv00barr }}
*{{cite journal |last=Browne |first=E.G. |date=1897 |title=Personal Reminiscences of the Babi Insurrection at Zanjan in 1850, written by Aqa ʻAbdu'l-Ahad-i-Zanjan |journal=Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society |volume=29 |pages=761–827 |url=http://www.h-net.msu.edu/~bahai/diglib/articles/A-E/browne/brznjan1.htm }}
*{{Cite book |last=Browne |first=E.G. |author-link=Edward Granville Browne |year=1890 |orig-year=Republished in 1901 |chapter=Bábism |title=Religious Systems of the World: A Contribution to the Study of Comparative Religion |publisher=Swann Sonnenschein |location=London |url=https://bahai-library.com/browne_babism |pages=333–53}}
*{{cite book |last=Browne |first=E.G. |author-link=Edward Granville Browne |date=1918 |title=Materials for the Study of the Babi Religion |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge, UK |url=http://www.h-net.org/~bahai/diglib/books/A-E/B/browne/material/msbrtoc.htm }}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last=Campo|first=Juan |date=2009a |title=Ṣubḥ-i Azal |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Islam |publisher=Facts on File, Inc. |location=New York, NY }}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last=Campo|first=Juan |date=2009b |title=Babism |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Islam |publisher=Facts on File, Inc. |location=New York, NY}}
*{{cite journal |last=Carus |first=Paul |date=1904 |title=A New Religion. Babism |journal=The Open Court |issue=6 |url=https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1765&context=ocj}}
*{{cite magazine |last=Cole |first=Juan |author-link=Juan Cole |date=January 2002 |title=Baha'u'llah's Surah of God: Text, Translation, Commentary |magazine=Translations of Shaykhi, Babi and Baha'i Texts |volume=6 |number=1 |publisher=H-Bahai |location=East Lansing, MI |url=http://www.h-net.org/~bahai/trans/vol6/surall.htm }}
*{{cite book |last=Cole |first=Juan |author-link=Juan Cole |date=2004a |chapter=The Azálí-Bahá'í Crisis of September, 1867 |pages=227–251 |editor-last=Sharon |editor-first=Moshe |editor-link=Moshe Sharon |title=Studies in Modern Religions, Religious Movements, and the Babi-Bahá'í Faiths |publisher=[[Brill Publishers|E. J. Brill]] |location=Leiden |url=https://bahai-library.com/cole_azali_bahai_crisis }}
*{{cite journal |last=Cole |first=Juan R. I. |author-link=Juan Cole |year=2004b |title=Treatise on Kingship for A.L.M. Nicolas, Translator's Introduction |journal=Translations of Shaykhi, Babi and Baha'i Texts, Vol. 8, No. 1  |url=https://www.h-net.org/~bahai/trans/vol8/azalking.htm }}
*{{cite book |last=Effendi |first=Shoghi |author-link=Shoghi Effendi |year=1944 |title=God Passes By |publisher=Baháʼí Publishing Trust |location=Wilmette, Illinois, USA |isbn=0-87743-020-9 |url=http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/se/GPB/ }}
*{{cite book |title=The Cambridge History of Iran|volume=7|editor-last=Fisher|editor-first=William Bayne|editor-last2=Avery|editor-first2=P.|editor-last3=Hambly|editor-first3=G. R. G.|year=1968}}
*{{cite book |last=Kashani |first=Jani (Attrib.) |editor-last=Browne |editor-first=E.G. |editor-link=Edward Granville Browne |date=1910 |title=Kitab-i Nuqtat al-Kaf: Being the Earliest History of the Babis |publisher=E.J. Brill |location=Leiden, The Netherlands |url=http://www.h-net.org/~bahai/areprint/nk/nuqta.htm }}
*{{cite book |last=Lukach |first=Harry Charles |author-link=Harry Luke |date=1913 |title=The Fringe of the East |location=London |publisher=MacMillan |pages=263–267}}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last=MacEoin |first=Denis |author-link=Denis MacEoin |date=15 December 1987 |title=Azali Babism |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Iranica |volume=III |pages=179–181 |url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/azali-babism }}
*{{cite book |last=MacEoin |first=Denis |author-link=Denis MacEoin |year=1989 |title=Studia Iranica: Divisions and Authority Claims in Babism |url=https://bahai-library.com/maceoin_authority_claims_babism}}
*{{cite book |last=MacEoin |first=Denis |author-link=Denis MacEoin |year=1992 |title=The Sources for Early Bābī Doctrine and History: A Survey |publisher=Brill |location=Leiden, The Netherlands |isbn=978-90-04-09462-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xqV9-zmMxsUC }}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last=MacEoin |first=Denis |author-link=Denis MacEoin |year=2012 |title=Ṣubḥ-i Azal |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopaedia of Islam]] |doi=10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_7112 |edition=Second |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_7112 |access-date=2021-01-04|url-access=subscription }}
*{{cite journal |last=Manuchehri |first=Sepehr |year=1999 |title=The Practice of Taqiyyah (Dissimulation) in the Babi and Bahai Religions |journal=Research Notes in Shaykhi, Babi and Baha'i Studies |volume=3 |issue=3 |url=http://www.h-net.org/~bahai/notes/vol3/taqiya.htm|access-date = 2006-12-29| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20061202141214/http://www.h-net.org/~bahai/notes/vol3/taqiya.htm| archive-date= 2 December 2006 | url-status= live}}
*{{cite journal |last1=McCants |first1=William F |last2=Milani |first2=Kavian S |date=2004 |title=The History and Provenance of an Early Manuscript of the Nuqtat al-kaf dated 1268 (1851-52) |url=https://bahai-library.com/mccants_milani_nuqtat_al-kaf |journal=Iranian Studies |volume=37 |issue=3 |pages=431–449 |doi= 10.1080/0021086042000287523|access-date=2024-12-04|url-access=subscription }}
*{{cite book |last=Miller |first=William M. |author-link=William McElwee Miller |year=1974 |title=The Baháʼí Faith: Its History and Teachings |publisher=[[William Carey Library]] |isbn=0-87808-137-2 }}
*{{cite journal |last=Momen |first=Moojan |author-link=Moojan Momen |year=1991 |title=The Cyprus Exiles |journal=Baháʼí Studies Bulletin |pages=81–113 |url=http://bahai-library.com/momen_cyprus_exiles }}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last=Momen |first=Moojan |author-link=Moojan Momen |year=2009 |encyclopedia=Baháʼí Encyclopedia Project |title=Yahyá, Mírzá (c. 1831-1912) |publisher=National Spiritual Assembly of the Baháʼís of the United States |location=Evanston, IL |url=http://www.bahai-encyclopedia-project.org/index.php?view=article&catid=37%3Abiography&id=71%3Ayahya-mirza&option=com_content&Itemid=74 }}
*{{cite book |last=Nicolas |first=A.-L.-M. |author-link=A. L. M. Nicolas |year=1933 |title=Qui est le successeur du Bâb? |publisher=Librairie d'Amerique et d'Orient |location=Paris |isbn=978-2-7200-0395-0 |url=http://www.h-net.org/~bahai/diglib/books/K-O/N/Succeseur/Succeseur.htm}}
*{{cite book|last=Sharon|first=Moshe|year=2018|title=Studies in Modern Religions|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-JByDwAAQBAJ}}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last=Smith |first=Peter |author-link=Peter Smith (historian) |date=2000 |title=A concise encyclopedia of the Baháʼí Faith |publisher=[[Oneworld Publications]] |location=Oxford, UK |isbn=1-85168-184-1 |pages=53–54}}
*{{cite book |last=Smith |first=Peter |author-link=Peter Smith (historian) |date=2008 |title=An Introduction to the Baha'i Faith |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-68107-0 |location=New York|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z7zdDFTzNr0C }}
*{{cite book |last=Taherzadeh |first=Adib |author-link=Adib Taherzadeh |date=1976 |title=The Revelation of Baháʼu'lláh, Volume 1: Baghdad 1853-63 |publisher=George Ronald |location=Oxford, UK |isbn=0-85398-270-8 |url=http://www.peyman.info/cl/Baha%27i/Others/ROB/V1/Cover.html }}
*{{Cite book |last=Warburg |first=Margit |author-link=Margit Warburg |date=2006 |title=Citizens of the world: a history and sociology of the Bahaʹis from a globalisation perspective |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-474-0746-1 |location=Leiden |oclc=234309958}}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Wickens |last2=Cole |last3=Ekbal |date=15 December 1989 |title=Browne, Edward Granville |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Iranica |volume=IV/5 |pages=483–488 |url=https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/browne-edward-granville |access-date=2024-10-09}}
*{{cite journal |last=Huart |first=Clément |year=1887 |title=Note sur trois ouvrages Bâbis |journal=Journal Asiatique |series=8e série |volume=10 |pages=133–144 |url=https://ia802204.us.archive.org/32/items/in.gov.ignca.26223/26223.pdf }}
*{{cite book |last=Hamadani |first=Mirza Husayn |translator-last=Browne |translator-first=E.G. |translator-link=Edward Granville Browne |date=1893 |title=The Tarikh-i-Jadid, or New History of Mirza 'Ali Muhammad The Bab |contribution=Appendix II |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge, UK |pages=327–396 |url=http://www.h-net.org/~bahai/diglib/books/K-O/M/MirzaHuseyn/TarikhiJadid.htm}}
*{{cite journal |last=Lambden |first=Stephen |year=2021 |title=Baha'-Allah, Lawḥ-i kull al-ta'ām (The Tablet of all Food) |journal=Hurqalya Publications: Center for Shaykhī and Bābī-Bahā'ī Studies |url=https://hurqalya.ucmerced.edu/node/83 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240415100859/https://hurqalya.ucmerced.edu/node/83 |archive-date=15 April 2024 }}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last=Milani |first=Kavian S. |date=2008 |orig-date=Updated July 28, 2008 |title=NOQṬAT AL-KĀF |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Iranica |url=https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/noqtat-al-kaf |access-date=2025-04-04}}

{{refend}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite journal |last=Manuchehri |first=Sepehr |date=2004 |title=The Primal Point's Will and Testament |journal=Research Notes in Shaykhi, Babi and Baha'i Studies |volume=7 |issue=2 |url=http://www.h-net.org/~bahai/notes/vol7/BABWILL.htm |ref=none}}
*{{cite book |last=Ruhi |first=Atiyya |date=7 August 2012 |title=Fragment of Subh-i Azal's Biography |publisher=Harvard University, Qamartaj Dolatabadi Papers, Women's Worlds in Qajar Iran |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |url=http://www.qajarwomen.org/en/items/1141C1.html |ref=none}}

{{wikiquote}}
{{Commons category}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Azal, Mirza Yahya Nuri Subh-I}}
[[Category:1831 births]]
[[Category:1912 deaths]]
[[Category:Iranian religious leaders]]
[[Category:Bábís]]
[[Category:Iranian exiles]]
[[Category:People from Nur, Iran]]
[[Category:Iranian emigrants to the Ottoman Empire]]
[[Category:19th-century Iranian people]]
[[Category:20th-century Iranian people]]