Editing ʻAbdu'l-Bahá (section)

==Early life==

ʻAbdu'l-Bahá was born in [[Tehran]], Persia (now Iran) on 23 May 1844 (5th of [[Jumada al-awwal|Jamadiyu'l-Avval]], 1260 AH),<ref name="Qazvini">{{cite web |url=http://bahai-library.com/qazvini_abdulbaha_prominent_iranians |title=ʻAbdu'l-Bahá Meeting with Two Prominent Iranians |access-date=5 September 2007 |author=Muhammad Qazvini |year=1949}}</ref> the eldest son of [[Baháʼu'lláh]] and [[Ásíyih Khánum|Navváb]]. He was born on the same night on which the [[Báb]] declared his mission.{{sfn|Esslemont|1980}} Given the name ʻAbbás at birth,{{sfn|Smith|2000|pp=14–20}} he was named after his grandfather [[Mírzá ʻAbbás Núrí]], a prominent and powerful nobleman.<ref name="Harvnb|Kazemzadeh|2009">{{Harvnb|Kazemzadeh|2009|}}</ref> ʻAbdu'l-Bahá's early years were shaped by his father's prominent role within the Bábí community. As a child, he fondly recalled interactions with the Bábí, [[Táhirih]], describing how she would take him on her knee, caress him, and engage in heartfelt conversations, leaving a lasting impression on him.<ref>{{Harvnb|Blomfield|1975|p=21}}</ref> His childhood was characterized by happiness and carefree moments. The family's residences in Tehran and the countryside were not only comfortable but also beautifully adorned.<ref name="Blomfield 1975 40">{{Harvnb|Blomfield|1975|p=40}}</ref> Alongside his younger siblings – a sister, [[Bahíyyih Khánum|Bahíyyih]], and a brother, [[Mírzá Mihdí|Mihdí]] – he experienced a life of privilege, joy, and comfort.<ref name="Harvnb|Kazemzadeh|2009"/>  ʻAbdu'l-Bahá loved playing in the gardens with his younger sister, fostering a strong bond between them.<ref name="Blomfield 1975 40" /> During his formative years, ʻAbdu'l-Bahá observed his parents' commitment to various charitable endeavors, including the conversion of part of their home into a hospital ward for women and children.<ref>{{Harvnb|Blomfield|1975|p=39}}</ref>

Due to a life largely marked by exile and imprisonment, ʻAbdu'l-Bahá had limited opportunities for formal schooling. In his youth, it was customary for children of nobility, including ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, not to attend conventional schools. Instead, noblemen typically received a brief education at home, focusing on subjects such as scripture, rhetoric, calligraphy, and basic mathematics, with an emphasis on preparing for life within royal courts.

ʻAbdu'l-Bahá spent only a short period at a traditional preparatory school at the age of seven for a single year.<ref>{{Harvnb|Taherzadeh|2000|p=105}}</ref> His mother and uncle took on the responsibility of his early education, but the primary source of his learning was his father.<ref>Blomfield, p.68</ref>{{sfn|Hogenson|2010|p=40}} In 1890 [[Edward Granville Browne]] described ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, saying that "one more eloquent of speech, more ready of argument, more apt of illustration, more intimately acquainted with the sacred books of the Jews, the Christians, and the Muhammadans...could scarcely be found..."{{sfn|Browne|1891|p=xxxvi}}

According to contemporary accounts ʻAbdu'l-Bahá was an eloquent and charming child.<ref>{{cite book |last=Zarandi |first=Nabil |author-link=Nabíl-i-Aʻzam |date=1932 |orig-year=1890 |title=The Dawn-Breakers: Nabíl's Narrative |url=http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/nz/DB/ |edition=Hardcover |translator=Shoghi Effendi |publisher=Baháʼí Publishing Trust |location=Wilmette, Illinois, USA |isbn=0-900125-22-5 }} - complete edition, with illustrations, footnotes in English and French, complete introduction and appendices.</ref> At the age of seven, he faced a severe health challenge when he contracted tuberculosis, and his prognosis suggested death.{{sfn|Hogenson|2010|p=81}} Though the illness abated,{{sfn|Balyuzi|2001|p=12}} this marked the beginning of a lifelong struggle with recurrent bouts of various illnesses that would persist throughout his life.{{sfn|Hogenson|2010|p=82}}

One event that affected ʻAbdu'l-Bahá greatly during his childhood was the imprisonment of his father when ʻAbdu'l-Bahá was eight years old; this circumstance led to a considerable decline in the family's economic standing, subjecting him to poverty and exposing him to hostility from other children in the streets.{{sfn|Esslemont|1980}} ʻAbdu'l-Bahá accompanied his mother to visit [[Baháʼu'lláh]] who was then imprisoned in the infamous subterranean dungeon the [[Síyáh-Chál]].<ref name="Harvnb|Kazemzadeh|2009"/> He described how "I saw a dark, steep place. We entered a small, narrow doorway, and went down two steps, but beyond those one could see nothing. In the middle of the stairway, all of a sudden we heard His [Baháʼu'lláh's]…voice: 'Do not bring him in here', and so they took me back".{{sfn|Balyuzi|2001|p=12}}