The Cold Prison Floor

Writing about the unpleasant but [I'm hoping] relatively sanitary conditions for the Baha'is currently imprisoned in Iran for their beliefs, reminds me of another cold prison floor; the imprisonment of Baha'u'llah in Iran when He was a follower of the Bab, over 150 years ago. There was an outbreak of violence against the Babi's; knowing He was sought by the authorities, Baha'u'llah surrendered Himself and was locked into a prison in Tehran with appalling conditions. It was known as the Black Pit.

This dungeon, a cistern previously used to store water, was a stone room far underground with only one exit; the entrance, a flight of stairs leading upwards to the only light; light which never entered that cavern. Together with murderers and thieves, the Babi's were chained together in two rows. Baha'u'llah wore a chain weighing over one hundred pounds which encircled His neck, and which had to be supported by a Y-shaped device. He wore the scars from this mighty chain the rest of His life. There was no provision for the disposal of human waste, and food was provided only rarely. Nearly every day, one Babi would be called by the guards, would say their goodbyes, and leave for an appointment with execution for their Faith.

Baha'u'llah taught the Babi's to chant a verse which He revealed, the sound of which, because of the underground tunnels, reached to the palace of the Shah. One row would chant:
"God is sufficient unto me.
He, verily is the All-sufficing,"

whereupon the second row would reply,

"In Him let the trusting trust."

It was in this place, at this time, that the Manifestation of God for this day received His Revelation from God.

Post-script: what terrible beliefs did the Babi's and the Baha'is hold which caused then, and still causes, such a response on the part of the government and clergy in Iran?

"So powerful is the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth."

~Baha'u'llah