In Memoriam 1992-1997/Hassan Safa Baghdadi

In Memoriam 1992-1997 Hassan Safa Baghdadi

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HASSAN SAFA Baghdadi 1901–1996

His purpose, however, is to enable the pure in spirit and the detached in heart to ascend, by virtue of their own innate powers, unto the shores of the Most Great Ocean. 195 Bahá’u’lláh

Hassan Safa, beloved friend of the France, attained the shores of the Most Great Ocean on Thursday, the sixth day of Kalimat 153 (July 18, 1996). The last person in France to have met ‘Abdu’l-Bahá is now gone from our sight. Those who were fortunate enough to know Hassan Safa will recall how his face lit up whenever someone asked him to recount yet again his memories of the Master. He became young, illumined by the presence of our Exemplar. And he conducted us into that Presence. Happily a tape of his recollections is in the archives of the National Spiritual Assembly of France, accompanied by a text written

195 Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, sec. XXIX.

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Hassan Safa

by Hassan. Thus future generations will be able to hear the tones of his enthusiasm as he relived with us his moments spent with the Center of the Covenant.

Should all those who met Hassan Safa, during his long life of service to the Cause, gather together to compile their evaluations of his character, it is unlikely that they would be able to encompass the essence of a spirit, beneath whose open, natural appearance lay hidden riches which long friendship could not exhaust. With Hassan, there was always more to discover.

Hassan’s Bahá’í roots reached toward the very inception of the Faith; his great-grandfather, Shaykh Muhammad-i-Shibl, a noted Siyyid and scholar, was a disciple of Siyyid Kázim-i-Rashtí. His grandfather, Muhammad Mustafa Baghdádí,¹⁹⁶ while yet a child, served as translator between Táhirih and the ‘ulamá when this poetess-martyr visited Baghdád, and later he was among the first to believe in Bahá’u’lláh and to promote His Cause.

With the ascension of Bahá’u’lláh the services of Muhammad Mustafa and those of his wife, Sakineh, were dedicated to the Center of the Covenant. Their home in Beirut was a haven for pilgrims to the Holy Shrines and a point of passage for the remains of the Báb, when these sacred relics were transferred to Haifa. Shoghi Effendi designated Muhammad Mustafá an apostle of Bahá’u’lláh. ‘Alí Ihsán Baghdádí and his wife, Fatemeh, the father and mother of Hassan, moved to Turkey at ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s bidding at the outbreak of World War I in 1914. Fatemeh returned to Beirut with her children after the war, where she rented a room for Shoghi Effendi and served him during his schooling in that city.

Hassan Safa was named by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, during one of many visits the family made to Haifa. The last visit, from December 28, 1919, to January 15, 1920, when Hassan was eighteen, was the most memorable.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá had said, “Let this century be the sun of previous centuries, the effulgences of which shall last forever, so that in times to come they shall glorify the twentieth century, saying the twentieth century was the century of lights, the twentieth century was the century of life, the twentieth century was the century of international peace, the twentieth century was the century of divine bestowals, and the twentieth century has left traces which shall last forever.”¹⁹⁷

Born at the dawn of the twentieth century,¹⁹⁸ Hassan’s life paralleled the fortunes of his epoch. He came to manhood in the Near East, but his life bridged westward. A student in Paris from 1924 to 1935, he met and married his wife, Suzanne, there. She accompanied him to Bahá’í meetings, though she did not become a Bahá’í until 1936 in Baghdad.¹⁹⁹

At the Conference of Palermo in 1968 Marion Little presented the needs of France during the Nine Year Plan to Hassan and Suzanne, in such wise that at Ridván 1969 they moved from Iran to install themselves as pioneers in Tours. Hassan was a member of the Spiritual Assembly of Tours until the last days of his life.

The experience of meeting ‘Abdu’l-Bahá that so profoundly confirmed Hassan in his Faith remained vivid throughout his life,

Notes

¹⁹⁶ Memorials of the Faithful (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1997), pp. 131-34.

¹⁹⁷ The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 174.

¹⁹⁸ April 1, 1901, in Iskenderun (Alexandretta), Turkey.

¹⁹⁹ Dr. Kamran Ekbel adds that Hassan was a member of the National Assembly of Iráq 1936-1937. In 1946 he and his family settled in Țihrán, and he served for many years as the treasurer of the Spiritual Assembly at Qulhak (Gholhak). [Page 332]

Hassan Safa Baghdadi

aiding him in many difficulties. We who endeavor to live the Master’s injunction to “Look at Me, follow Me, be as I am” can appreciate how much the direct memory of that Face might help. Hassan’s life was not lacking in difficult periods. Without evoking them all let us recall the loss of his beloved Suzanne on July 1, 1973, during a voyage to Beirut, where her grave is located. Two years later his brother ‘Abbás ‘Ihsán Baghdadi was martyred in a Baghdad prison. Then in 1984 the passing of Miriam, their adopted daughter, was another test. Nevertheless cach difficulty spurred our friend to greater efforts. His multiple contributions to the French Bahá’í community included service on the National Booksales Committee, precursor to the present Bahá’í Bookstore. Serving the Committee for Teaching by Correspondence, his assiduity in finding the quotations that best responded to each seeker’s questions and his intuition that addressed, not only the written queries, but also unexpressed spiritual needs, helped great numbers of correspondents.

And then there were his translations, many of them texts not previously put into French, including his grandfather’s as yet unpublished documents in Arabic. From this treasure Hassan created an exceptional cultural interface. These documents are in the French national archive as well as the Research Department in Haifa.

However, it is possible that his deepest contribution, certainly the one most appreciated by the youth who so loved him, was his enthusiasm, the gift of himself, a joyous herald of the Kingdom of Abhá. The terrestrial envelope of Hassan Safa was buried on Thursday, 13 Kalimát 153 (July 25, 1996) at Tours, in the presence of a goodly number of friends. A message from the Universal House of Justice dated July 22 was read to them:

We were deeply grieved at the news of the passing of dearly loved, highly motivated servant of the Blessed Beauty, Mr. Hassan Safa Baghdadi. His devoted services and unremitting efforts to promote the Faith over a period exceeding seven decades, in the Middle East and in France, will always be remembered with deep affection. Kindly convey to his relatives the assurance that loving prayers will be offered in the Holy Shrines for the progress of his radiant soul in the Abhá Kingdom.

The prayers and the thoughts of the community of France accompany this beloved tie with the Master. From Hassan’s devoted life, may benefits continue to shower upon this country and the world.

David Ned Blackmer