?Today is a very special Holy Day for Baha'is all over the world. It is the anniversary of the birthday of the Herald of the Baha'i faith, whose title was the Bab, which, when translated, means "the Gate." The Bab foretold the coming of Baha'u'llah, (the Glory of God), who was the founder of the Baha'i faith. The Bab was born in the city of Shiraz in Persia (now called Iran), in 1819. His real name was Ali Mohammad. As a child he displayed outstanding qualities of innate wisdom and knowledge. His schoolteacher brought him home from school declaring that his knowledge was greater than any other and that he had no need of a teacher. The uncle, with whom he had lived after the death of his father when he was very young, knew of this child's amazing potential; nevertheless he insisted that he be returned to school. Later the Bab became a merchant in his uncle's business until he began his mission.
The Bab declared his mission for the first time on April 23, 1844, in Shiraz. He was then 26 years old. The task God had given him was to prepare the way, like a gate, for mankind to pass from the old world order into the new. The holy book, containing his teachings is called the Bayan. The Bab's mission lasted six years during which time, thousands of people grew to love him and followed his teachings. They were called Babis. More than 20,000 of those devoted followers were later cruelly tortured and martyred for their faith. The Bab himself was persecuted and imprisoned, because the religious leaders in Persia at the time were afraid of his influence. He was finally martyred on July 9, 1850, in miraculous circumstances. After many years His bodily remains were brought to Haifa, Israel, where they are now entombed in a Shrine on Mount Carmel, which is visited by thousands of pilgrims from all over the world, every year.
Baha'is regard the Bab as a messenger of God on a par with other great religious leaders such as Moses, Krishna, Jesus and Mohammad. The Holy Spirit of God spoke through the Bab to reveal God's will for the time in which he came, just as the other manifestations of God received their inspiration from the same omnipotent source during the time of their ministry. The Bab taught the people that they should prepare themselves for another messenger from God, (Baha'u'llah), whose appearance was imminent and whose revelation was to lead mankind into a new era in history–the age of maturity–the establishment of the kingdom of God on earth. The anniversary of the birthday of the Bab is a Baha'i Holy Day on which Baha'is should not go to work and Baha'i children have permission to stay away from school. Baha'is commemorate this Holy Day with joyful, spiritual gatherings in their communities.