The Life of Yahya Najy (Part One)

Yahya Dowlatabadi is one of the most famous figures in the Constitutional Revolution. He also played an important role in establishing modern schools in Iran. Yahya Dowlatabadi’s father was a famous Babi of the era and among the “Martyrs of Expression,” and Yahya himself was introduced by Mirza Yahya Subh-e Azal (Bab’s successor) as the leader of the Azalis after Subh-e Azal. Mirza Yahya settled in Tehran in 1307 AH. This residency coincided with Seyyed Jamal al-Din Asadabadi’s second trip to Iran, which placed him in the circle of Seyyed Jamal’s followers and made him an important member of the Tehran chapter of the Islamic Unity movement. In “The Life of Yahya,” Dowlatabadi refers to members of this movement as the “Tehran Awakened,” mostly comprising anti-Qajar Babi activists. Mirza Yahya, like his teacher Sheikh Hadi Najmabadi and Malek al-Motakallemin, was respected by Seyyed Jamal al-Din Asadabadi and received letters from him. This political activity culminated in the assassination of Naser al-Din Shah Qajar at the end of 1313 AH, who was one of the two major opponents of the Islamic Unity movement. Mirza Yahya wrote a book called “Mostabsir” during this time, defending the Babi faith. Dowlatabadi’s “The Life of Yahya,” one of the seven important sources on the study of the Constitutional Revolution, attempts to narrate his observations of the events leading to the revolution. The book’s prose is fluent and accessible. Those familiar with the Babi movement and Azali activists’ literature will find concepts there that ordinary readers may not perceive. Through reading “The Life of Yahya,” we see that Mirza Yahya refers to his co-religionists or acquaintances using terms such as “Awakened” and “Enlightened.” Examples include Mirza Malek al-Molk Nazem al-Dowleh, Sheikh Hadi Najmabadi, Mirza Abdolkhalegh Khan Esfahani, editors of the Akhtar newspaper, members of Tehran’s Islamic Unity, and Seyyed Jamal al-Din Asadabadi and his companions.