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STAR OF THE WEST
PUBLISHED NINETEEN TIMES A YEAR
In the Interest of the BAHAI MOVEMENT
By the BAHAI NEWS SERVICE, 515 South Dearborn Street, Chicago, Ill., U. S. A.
Publishers: ALBERT R. WINDUST — GERTRUDE BUIKEMA — DR. ZIA M. BAGDADI
Entered as second-class matter April 9, 1911, at the post office at Chicago, Ill., under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Terms: $3.00 per year; 20 cents per copy.
Two copies to same name and address, $5.00 per year.
Make Money Orders Payable to BAHAI NEWS SERVICE, P. O. Box 283, Chicago, Ill., U. S. A.
To personal checks please add sufficient to cover the bank exchange.
Address all communications to BAHAI NEWS SERVICE, P. O. Box 283, Chicago, Ill., U.S.A.
WORDS OF ABDUL-BAHA.
"Great importance must be given to the development of the STAR OF THE WEST. The circle of its discussion must be widened; in its columns must be published the essential problems pertaining to the Bahai life in all its phases. Its contents must be so universal that even the strangers may subscribe to it. Articles must be published, dealing with the universal principles of the Cause, the writers proving that this Cause takes a vital interest in all the social and religious movements of the age and is conducive to the progress of the world and its inhabitants. In short, the STAR OF THE WEST must promote the aspirations and the ideals that will gather little by little around these general Tablets, bringing into the light of day all the historical, religious and racial knowledge which will be of the utmost value to the Bahai teachers all over the world."
From Unveiling of the Divine Plan.
| Vol. 11 | CONTENTS | No. 3 |
| PAGE | |
Photograph of ABDUL-BAHA taken inside the gateway to house occupied by Occidental pilgrims | |
"The Doors of the Kingdom are Open" Address by WILLIAM H. RANDALL. | |
The Servant of God Address by ALBERT VAIL. | |
Diary Letters of Shoghi Rabbani—February 12th to 18th, 1919, inclusive |
IMPORTANT—The STAR OF THE WEST is mailed direct to subscribers from the office in Chicago to all parts of the world, except Persia, where it is distributed from the city of Teheran through Dr. Susan I. Moody. This procedure will be followed until further notice.
Photograph of ABDUL-BAHA taken in 1919, inside of gateway to house occupied by Occidental pilgrims.
"We desire but the good of the world and the happiness of the nations; that all nations shall become one in faith and all men as brothers; that the bonds of affection and unity between the sons of men shall be strengthened, that diversity of religion shall cease and differences of race be annulled. So it shall be; these fruitless strifes; these ruinous wars shall pass away, and the 'Most Great Peace' shall come."—BAHA'O'LLAH.
| Vol. 11 | Jalal 1, 76 (April 28, 1920) | No. 3 |
"The Doors of the Kingdom are Open"
Address by WILLIAM H. RANDALL, of Boston, delivered at the Ninth Session of the Bahai Congress, held in Hotel McAlpin, New York City, Wednesday evening, April 30th, 1919. Stenographically reported.
ABDUL-BAHA once said, "Never talk about God to a man with an empty stomach. Feed him first." Surely in the past three days he has fed us, and in this hour that draws this wonderful and marvelous Convention and Congress to a close, it certainly seems befitting that we should turn our hearts to the Kingdom of the Covenant, and with the deepest reverence for this great opportunity and great service that is before us in giving his methods to the whole world of humanity.
For nineteen centuries the Kingdom of Heaven has been largely considered by man merely a parable, but this seed of the Kingdom, unobserved by mankind, has been growing and growing through the centuries until in this day it has become a tree of fruitage, and through these wonderful Tablets of Abdul-Baha the fruit of this Kingdom is offered to you now in the heavenly banquet that he has served during these four days, and its life, its sustenance, its strength are eternal. This is the hour of faith, the day of miracles, the century of light, and in this wonderful epoch two worlds have met and embraced in the heart of Abdul-Baha, the world of God and the world of humanity; and how glorious, how wonderful that he should come to us in the station of servitude and call to the whole world, "Come, ye people, unto the Kingdom of God, for today the doors are open, and the station of servitude is the highway thereto."
Someone asked Abdul-Baha once why the rivers and the streams all flowed into the ocean, and he replied, "Attraction, because the ocean places itself lower than all else in the world." This is the supreme quality of the station of servitude, and I think if we lift our eyes to the portals we shall find written above in letters of light, "radiant acquiescence." Who can fail to make every effort to reach this doorway, which is the pathway unto the Kingdom of Glory?
Kingdom naturally implies organization. How is it that there can be organization in a kingdom that we call the kingdom of the Spirit? In the world of affairs, organization in itself is power, yet inharmony flows from it; but in the world of the Kingdom, where love is the law of organization, unity radiates from its power. In the world of hearts, the heart is an organ, but when the breath wings its flight with love, the organic heart turns its way back to the mineral kingdom. The heart that seeks only the center of self has never left the kingdom of nature, but the heart that is enkindled with the love of humanity is already on its way to the worlds of God.
This Kingdom that draws us, and irresistibly
draws us on through the ages,
what is its power? With man, power is
effort; but with God power is attraction.
It holds atoms and worlds in one embrace
and impels them through the great
universe of search, search for the center
of that attraction. It draws forth from
the common soil and clothes with the [Page 44]
substance of light the form of flowers
and fruit. As love, it persuades man
through the various courts of attraction
until his soul reaches the court of the placeless,
indrawn by the Center of the
Covenant, and therein does man find the
heaven and the paradise of the preordained
command of God that is the potential
unfolding of his greatest capacity,
his greatest happiness, his greatest
service, that makes him one of the drops
in the ocean of the unity of God's love.
My dearest, dearest friends: We have had revealed to us in these sublime Tablets, a whole new world order of life. We have had presented to us with its great opportunity the chance to rise and to serve God in His world. I believe in this day that disciples choose themselves, that all may be disciples, that we are all called to the station of discipleship in this new and glorious kingdom; that God Himself has incarnated in the world, and founded the great Spiritual Magna Charta and its laws, its joys and its happiness, and has placed them in the hands of the friends of America. He has given to America the station of the illumination of the world, and now, we must build deep that it may be high, we must build outside of time that it may withstand time. Peter and Paul built beyond the empire of Rome, they built beyond the time of the life of all emperors because they built deep and they built high. It is our greatest privilege, it is our greatest joy, it is the supreme happiness now of our lives to dedicate them to this service to the Kingdom.
Do not think I am too solemn—I never was happier in my life; but the magnitude of this vision is so great that I seem almost lost even in the contemplation of it. We must arise, we must become organized through that organizing power of love which is the magnet of the spirit and we must go forth with heart and mind illumined with the living light, with the substance of these great and universal Tablets. A few years longer, and eternity beyond; God calls at this very hour. Can we fail? Have we any choice but to obey?
To love is a wondrous thing; to be loved is a miracle. Sometimes we falter when we love, but it seems to me when we know we are loved our steps are firm; and Abdul-Baha loves us, every soul, his eye is upon every soul gathered in this Convention tonight and he loves us with the encircling burning power of love. Can we fail to respond to that love? Can we when he has spent every hour from childhood to the present moment, forty years of it in prison, in hardships, going through the pathway of every possible self-denial, surrendering the human spirit with which he contacts with the world, can we feel that at this hour we can do greater than to turn our eyes to the call of this Kingdom and to arise and to serve and follow in the pathway of his blessed feet?
Oh, my dear friends, I know you feel the urge; I know that you realize the magnitude of the task, and Abdul-Baha has said to us that he who will arise to be the herald of the glad tidings of this day will be sustained by the Holy Spirit, will be received with an acclamation of joy into the Kingdom of God. We will arise to this commanding spirit, and go forth as the heralds of light; we will spread this wondrous message of glad-tidings throughout the whole world, until every heart is touched, until every ear has heard, and every mind enkindled with the Supreme Spirit which composes the world in the harmony of living.
There is one splendor of the spirit that unites mankind in the service of brotherhood. There is another glory that is celestial that transforms the heart from the image of the earthly into the image of the heavenly. This is the pathway, the severed highway to the portals of light and His Word is the sign: "The love of the Word of God is the magnet of heavenly beauty and glory."
Allaho'Abha!
The Servant of God
Address by ALBERT VAIL, of Chicago, delivered at the Ninth Session of the Bahai Congress, held in Hotel McAlpin, New York City, Wednesday evening, April 30th, 1919. Stenographically reported.
THE doors of the Kingdom are open; the Sun of Truth is shining upon the world; the daysprings of mercy have appeared." What does this mean? Evidently it means that this little world in which we live, in the sight of God is like a tiny ball floating in a universe of infinitely wonderful light. In the sight of God, this handful of dust, the world, is but one home and all the prayer of the eternal world is that this world may be in unity. Now when the darkness and the storm spread over the earth, it seems very dark to us who are underneath the clouds. But if we can rise a little in the altitude of the spirit and see the Sun of Truth eternally shining from the heaven of God's presence, no cloud which ever came over the world would be more than a temporary passing mist.
The God who made this little world also made all the heavenly and divine worlds. He evidently has a clear purpose for this world on which we dwell, and that purpose is that, after the thousands of years of war, it should enter into a millennium of peace. The world could have no other meaning than that this strife and confusion would at last prepare the hearts of men for the sweetness of the kingdom of universal peace.
Now, when the King begins to send His light into the world the people catch only a few rays of the dawning Sun of Reality as it rises over the horizon of man's limitation and breaks through the clouds of his suspicion, his ignorance and his prejudice. The first few rays in this new day, are the desire for a League of Nations, the longing for democracy; the prayer for woman's suffrage, for equality between men and women, the longing for universal education, for science, for civilization, for new arts, that great yearning that touches the hearts of all men all over the world and, stirring in their hearts, tells them that the new day is here, the divine world is breaking into the human world.
What we want to know is the next step toward the realization of this universal prayer. Is there a soul on this globe today who is not praying in his heart for the dawn of the Most Great Peace amongst the nations? How can it be brought about? That is the one problem around which all other problems revolve. Politically, the League of Nations is the first great step. We need a society of nations, a democracy of the world. We also need woman's suffrage so that women, tender, loving and intuitive, may more completely direct the operations of the nation. But the fundamental problem goes deeper than any political, democratic, economic or educational organization. Abdul-Baha in his classic story has put the world situation like this: He says that the governments of the world are much in the state of three men who went out sailing in a boat. One was a Christian, one was a Mohammedan and one was a Jew. The Mohammedan bowed down as a storm approached over the water and he said, "O Allah, drown in the depths of the water this infidel of a Christian." The Christian said, "O God, sink in the depths of the sea this infidel of a Mohammedan." The Jew remained silent. They said, "Are you not praying in this moment of calamity?" He replied, "Oh yes, I was praying that both of your prayers might be answered." (Laughter.)
That is the world situation which we
need to transform today. That is the [Page 46]
world's heart which needs to be made
into a new heart. Now, how is this to
be done? The only way is to teach
these people who look at each other so
bitterly to see something in each other
which is supremely beautiful and glorious.
If that Christian there in the boat
could have looked into the Mohammedan's
heart and seen that he was worshipping
the same God as he, only under another
name, the Mohammedan and the
Christian could have become brothers;
and if the Jew could have looked into
both of their hearts and said, "O blessed
Christ, you made the Torah celebrated
all over the world; you made Moses celebrated,
you made all Hebrews celebrated;
you are the prophet of Israel," then
there could be peace. If the Mohammedan
could see the good in the Christian,
if the Christian could see the good
in the Mohammedan, if the Jew could
see that every great prophet in the world
is one of God's messengers; if all could
look into each other's hearts and see
there the love of the Eternal Father,
then there would begin on earth the Most
Great Peace.
When you meet a stranger, says Abdul-Baha, say, "Yonder is coming to me a letter sent me by God." The outside of the envelope may be dirty, and torn and broken, but if we could open the envelope of the life that comes before us and look within the envelope and learn to read the writing, we would find in every human soul which crosses our threshold or which is yonder over the man-made national border, a message from God, and if we could understand the message it would be God's benediction to us. There is only one hope for humanity today and that is to see all human beings as rays of the one divine sun which is God, as pearls of the one ocean which is God, flowers of the one garden whose Gardener is God, and to see all as potentially the light of the one sun which shall be diffused, waves of the one sea which shall overflow the world. This is the foundation of peace upon the earth, to realize, as Paul said from Mars Hill, that "God made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, if haply they might feel after Him and find Him, though He be not far from any one of us." Abdul-Baha says that God, the divine Gardener, looking over the garden of humanity, sees that it would be a monotonous garden if He made us all white, like white roses, and so, in His love of beauty and variety He made some of the roses yellow like the Mongolians and some brown like the Hindus and others red like the red men and others black like the colored people. God in His universal vision loves all the varieties, and for this reason He put these different colored roses, His children, in the garden of humanity. If we could see that they all come from one garden and they all diffuse one fragrance and they are all under the sun of one God, then would these fruitless strifes, these ruinous wars pass away and upon this little planet the Most Great Peace of God would come.
How can we gain a belief in God vivid
enough really to make this come about?
There is only one way and that is to find
someone who manifests all that our divinest
spirit wants to see of God. Now
when we look within ourselves we find
our divine nature is like a tiny flickering
candle. When we look at the faces
of most of our neighbors we know that
their faces are sometimes dark and
sometimes bright, like the passing of
clouds and of sunshine, and we are never
quite sure of our neighbor, whether he
will be on his good behavior today, or
tomorrow. We all vacillate and the divine
side comes and goes. How can we
be sure that the divine is the real thing
in the world, in ourselves and in our
neighbor? The only way is to know
some being in whom the light of God's
life is always shining, in whom the glory
of God's presence is always resplendent,
on the altar of whose sacrificed human
self the eternal fire of God is always[Page 47]
burning. There are human beings who
are more than beings. There are human
beings who are simply temples of flesh
in which is manifest the eternal glory
of God.
Jesus said, "Have I been so long a time with you, yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayesth thou, then, show me the Father?"
Abdul-Baha says that God in His boundless mercy wishing the Kingdom on earth to be established sends these Messengers, these Manifestations of the Kingdom that in a temple of human flesh the glory of God may be made manifest and in the human heart the love of the Eternal Father may shine with all its sweetness and its beauty. By sending the many Manifestations of His light does God make manifest within our scope and our horizon His eternal love, His being, His reality and His glory. When Jesus shone forth from the horizon of Palestine reflecting, like a mirror, the Sun of Reality, he united many nations for a time. And then the mirror was obscured by traditions and clouds and darkness and men no longer saw the Father in His pure glory shining in the heart of this Messenger and Manifestation. God had to send another Manifestation to make His truth apparent, for we forget, in this world, Oh, so easily, we forget about God. We forget what God is like. He had to send a long succession of Messengers to India. He had to send Zoroaster to Persia, and then Mohammed to the Arabian villages. And in this twentieth century, when the world is ready at last for the descent of the full splendor of the Kingdom, it is necessary, if we are to have a vision of God in the world, that there should appear again One in whom God's spirit can be seen so clearly that all the veils are stripped away, that all the doubts are burned away, and then we shall see face to face.
This has been the promise of the centuries: "Behold there will come a great Messenger, a Manifestation of the Eternal, the promised One at the end of the age." The Bible translators called this "the end of the world." And it is the end of the old world of prejudice, of war, of confusion. Then the Sun of the eternal Word will appear. The light of God will become manifest again and, shining from the horizon of a human heart there will dawn this bright light of God's love and His truth so that all can see and no one can doubt, so that all over the world men can behold His glory and enter into the consciousness of God.
BAHA'O'LLAH brought this great revelation to the world, but it came in him with such sublime light that people were almost dazzled by its splendor. His splendor is so bright we can hardly look upon it. And so the next great Herald of the Kingdom takes the form of a servant, the humblest form a human being can assume. He lays aside his title; he calls himself simply, The Servant of the Glory of God.
He comes down right into the midst of men, living their life. He plants his garden; he cooks the meals for the sick people; he makes them broth in the prison; he goes up and down the country like a ministering angel of God's mercy; he is the tenderest, the simplest, the lowliest of beings in the world. When he is put in prison for teaching universal peace and universal brotherhood he counts this imprisonment the joy of his life. Abdul-Baha tells us how when he was one day in the streets of Acca and the chains were around his waist and his neck, the jailor, his tender-hearted jailor, said, "Why don't you put a robe over those chains so the boys won't throw stones at you?" Abdul-Baha, turning to him, replied: "These chains are my badges of honor, my badges of glory, I could not conceal them."
Now it is this quality of service, in annihilation of self, that makes God's
STAR OF THE WEST
TABLET FROM ABDUL-BAHA
O thou STAR OF THE WEST!
Be thou happy! Be thou happy! Shouldst thou continue to remain firm and eternal, ere long, thou shalt become the Star of the East and shalt spread in every country and clime. Thou art the first paper of the Bahais which is organized in the country of America. Although for the present thy subscribers are limited, thy form is small and thy voice weak, yet shouldst thou stand unshakable, become the object of the attention of the friends and the center of the generosity of the leaders of the faith who are firm in the Covenant, in the future thy subscribers will become hosts after hosts like unto the waves of the sea; thy volume will increase, thy arena will become vast and spacious and thy voice and fame will be raised and become world-wide—and at last thou shalt become the first paper of the world of humanity. Yet all these depend upon firmness firmness, firmness!
(Signed) ABDUL-BAHA ABBAS.
O ye apostles of BAHA'O'LLAH—May my life be a ransom to you!
. . . . Similarly, the Magazine, the STAR OF THE WEST, must be edited in the utmost regularity, but its contents must be the promulgator of the Cause of God—so that both in the East and the West, they may become informed of the most important events.
(Signed) ABDUL-BAHA ABBAS.
Editorial Staff: ALBERT R. WINDUST—GERTRUDE BUIKEMA—DR. ZIA M. BAGDADI
Honorary Member: MIRZA AHMAD SOHRAB| Vol. 11 | Jamal 1, 76 (April 28, 1920) | No. 3 |
Written to Mirza Ahmad Sohrab in America
(Continued from Vol. 10, page 220)Haifa, Palestine.
February 12, 1919.
Dear Ahmad:
This morning, some of the recently arrived supplications were answered in the form of short yet effective Tablets. The second supplication from India is signed by a certain influential person, a khajeh, who has been recently attracted to the Movement and is craving to attain the court of Abdul-Baha's presence. As emanating from a soul that has been entangled in superstition and prejudice and immersed in a sea of imagination, his words embodied in his supplication are indeed significant: "Thy generosity is the elixir and thy bounty the solace for the weak heart of this humble servant, and the near prospect of attaining to the holy presence sustains his breath. O most beloved Lord, look not at the failings, short comings and weakness of this humble beseecher and entreater, but towards the boundless ocean of thy love, mercy, bounty and grace. Grant the fervent prayer of this humble one to approach thy holy self, keep him not far away and separate from thee and confer upon him the high privilege of viewing thy beautiful, illumined face." The prayer of this soul has been answered for soon he shall present himself at the Holy Land, shall view the beautiful face of his beloved Lord and shall quaff from the inexhaustible fountain of his love. The Tablet revealed to this friend this morning is a model of the sweetest and most gentle expressions that a beloved can reveal to his loving ones.
News reaches us to the effect that the
friends of God in the different parts of
Persia, devastated by famine, pestilence
and internecine war, have been miraculously
protected and saved. With this
gratitude is coupled the sense of extreme
rejoicing and heartfelt gratitude for the
news of peace, for the restoration of
communications and for the possibility
of a long awaited pilgrimage to the
land of desire. Letters have been received
so far from Teheran, Shiraz, and[Page 49]
tonight from Najafabead, in the province
of Isphahan, Persia, the same
note is sounded as it was written just
at the time when the armistice bells
were ringing. It expressed the anticipation
of the friends of God to see
universal peace, as forecast so many
years ago by BAHA'O'LLAH, firmly and
securely established. However, one
thing brought gloom and depression into
this lively and clear atmosphere. One
incident, revealing the still prevailing
grudge and antipathy of the ulemas and
mullahs for the friends of God, was the
cause of grief. A certain friend, buried
with respect and ceremony by his beloved
and relatives, was disinterred, his
coffin was smashed to pieces, his corpse
was taken out and buried directly with
no wooden case whatever, this being
counter to the creed and law of their
faith. From what may be judged and
inferred, such sad incidents are still prevailing
and causing more or less trouble
and complication. One thing is sure,
however, that as the Sun of Truth gains
in splendor and brilliancy, the bats and
owls proportionately double their vain
and fruitless activities until they are assured
of their helplessness and incompetence.
February 13, 1919.
My dear Ahmad:
The call of Abdul-Baha bidding the friends of God to arise in one accord, to fling away the garb of concealment and to deliver the divine message has resounded throughout all regions and has propagated its waves to countries hitherto the bulwark of conservatism. The city of Damascus, upon which a new era has dawned has shaken off her somnolence and, thanks to the activity of a few enthusiastic friends, has awakened to the spirit of the new age. The prominent figure among its friends has attained the court of Abdul-Baha's presence and has brought with him many a good news. When the permission to visit the holy sites was granted to our eager visitor, Haji Mohammed Yazdi the means of facility were miraculously provided. Within an exceptionally short period of time he secured his pass, was assigned a comfortable and uncrowded compartment in the train, enjoyed splendid weather and sunshine all throughout his travel, the latter lasting only ten hours—an exceptionally swift and comfortable journey.
This morning he was ushered into Abdul-Baha's presence and the first thing he did was to offer a supplication from an erudite Arab, a native of Medina, an influential and responsible personage in Damascus, an authority in the Moslem creed, who had been attracted and moved to write to Abdul-Baha as a result of the interview and discussions with Sheikh Aliasqae, that seemingly cold, indifferent and powerless soul. The believers are stirred with this appeal to spread the message and to be engaged in the diffusion of divine fragrances. The able and well-versed sons of Sheikh Morad who has had the matchless honor to visit the Blessed Beauty (BAHA'O'LLAH), are all well and busily engaged in the furtherance of the Cause of God. Sheikh Bedreddine and Abdul-Haijh in Homs, and Sheikh Said, the eldest, in the function of deputy-assistant of the governor of the village of Zabadaneh, not far from Damascus, are each in their respective spheres trying to promote the ideals of the Kingdom.
In short, the news of our dear visitor,
Agha Haji Mohammed Yazdi, was refreshing,
numerous and significant. With
a smile and a nod of appreciation Abdul-Baha
greeted every bit of news and was
glad to know that a reaction from the
passiveness and inactivity of the past
had set in. "Deliver the divine message
with prudence and wisdom", was
his recommendation to the teachers who
are serving in these regions. Having
said this he arose, again welcomed our
guest and regained his room to correct[Page 50]
the Tablets that had been revealed, leaving
us with our friend whose source of
news and glad tidings seemed inexhaustible.
Abdul-Baha remained in doors until 3 P. M., when Major Nott came and motored him to the house of the Commander-in-chief, Sir Edmund Allenby. This was the second time Abdul-Baha had called on the General and this time the conversation centered around the Cause and its progress. Interest seems to have been stimulated and eagerness to learn more of the Truth intensified. This time, as well as last, was particularly noted for the warmth, the reserve and the respect which characterized the conversation of General Allenby with the Master. He is a very gentle, modest and striking figure, warm in affection, yet imposing in his manners.
Tonight a telegram received from Ahmed Lafonat in Jerusalem, fixing Major Tudor-Pole's arrival at Jerusalem on the 14th inst. and his departure the 17th. We will be delighted to meet again this young and active friend who is doing what he can to bring about the comfort and the satisfaction of the Beloved.
February 14, 1919.
Dear Ahmad:
Abdul-Baha spent the whole forenoon in correcting and signing the sixty Tablets that had been made ready during the past days and as I am dropping you these lines he is having his fortnightly hot bath which ameliorates so much his health and strengthens his physical constitution.
Tonight we had another concrete evidence
of the merit and value of Major
Tudor-Pole's article in the Palestine
News. Indeed, inquirers and seekers
multiply with astonishing rapidity, a
keen interest is aroused and a wide demand
is being pressed more and more.
The contributor of the article, Miss Hiscox
in Cairo and Miss Rosenberg in London,
are in correspondence with many
souls, most of them in active service,
who desire to learn more about the
Cause than this introductory article
of Major Tudor-Pole presents. Abdul-Baha
was weary, tired and sleepy as
a result of the heat of his bath and was
intending to sleep when a slight knock
at the door revealed the presence of
a non-commissioned officer at the door
seeking an interview. Admittance was
cordially granted and there was Private
Sinclair, a Britisher, working as an assistant
at the Red Cross Egyptian hospital
in Haifa. During his sojourn in
Cairo, when visiting its reading room,
he had come across Bahai literature and
had thereby caught the first glimpse of
the Cause. The perusal of Major Tudor-Pole's
article raised his interest to its
highest pitch and henceforth he became
an ardent inquirer. From what could
be gathered from his countenance, he was
so lowly, so respectful, so gentle and so
modest that the first words of the Beloved
were to this effect: "I am glad
to meet thee for thy face is illumined,
thy brow is pure, thy heart is clear and
thy purpose is right." He then took
from his pocket a letter of introduction
from Major Tudor-Pole, referring him
to Miss Hiscox for information about
Bahai literature and giving the address
of Miss Rosenberg in London, inviting
him to quaff from the fountain-head.
A search so sincere, an interest so lively,
an earnestness of tone so genuine has
hardly been remarked in any of the previous
callers and inquirers. In view
of his earnest inquiry and his lack of
any preconception, the Master spoke in
detail of the main purpose of the Bahai
teachings, the idea of peace and reconciliation,
the most immediate need of
mankind. He told him the futility of
men's effort, to establish a lasting peace,
resting on secure foundations, through
material means. Whenever such efforts
have been exerted they were doomed to
failure. History affords a striking illustration.
"From what I can gather from
the events during my life", said Abdul-Baha,[Page 51]
"history clearly shows the wars
that have been waged, the peace measures
that were subsequently adopted, have
proved inevitable failures. The Crimean
war and the Treaty of Paris in 1856,
the Austro-Italian war of 1859; the Danish
war of 1864; the Austro-Prussian
war of 1866; the Franco-Prussian war
of 1870; the Russo-Turkish war of 1877
and the Congress of Berlin, the Balkan
war and subsequently this world war
with its present Universal Peace Conference.
Wars will succeed, peace
measures and pacific documents will remain
dead letters unless the Word of
God and His supreme power comes to
exercise its influence. Not until this is
attained may lasting peace be realized."
Our attentive visitor listened and was absorbed. He was glad to listen to this remarkable talk and was furthermore grateful to receive a copy of Mr. Remey's Some Vital Bahai Principles which Abdul-Baha put in his hands. When he retired, he was inwardly moved and outwardly satisfied and assured.
February 15, 1919.
My dear Ahmad:
My head is in a whirl so busy and so eventful was the day. No less than a score of callers from prince and pasha to a simple private soldier have sought interview with Abdul-Baha.
Tonight again, our attracted friend, Private Sinclair of the Red Cross hospital, called. His eyes sparkled as he shook hands with the Beloved. He had read the pamphlet which had been given to him and was glad to receive another different one, published and edited by Mr. Remey, entitled The Message of Unity. He expressed his firm intention to correspond with the different booksellers in London, as soon as he is demobilized and thus to be able to gather more detailed information. When he rose to take his leave, he seemed full of the spirit of BAHA'O'LLAH, absorbed in meditation, and ablaze with His love. "Thou art my son, my dear son, I love thee, and I pray for thee," were the farewell words as the Beloved embraced him and patted him on his shoulders. . . .
Letters, or rather parcels, were today received from Port Said, London and America. Enclosed in Mr. Lotfullah's letter from London, were two supplications that had been received last year from Teheran. They contained good news. The Bahai school in Teheran is advancing by leaps and bounds. The Israelite Bahais have established schools which are rapidly widening. The school of Tarbiat in Teheran, Miss Kappes describes as by far the greatest establishment among the 430 schools in Teheran; their public exercises were unequalled by any that have been so far held. A pavilion was pitched and everybody, high and low, nearby and distant, heard of its fame and responded to its call. In Yezd meetings of different character, each of no less than 60 to 70 attendants were organized. A great deal of effort has been expended of late to help the descendants and relatives of the glorious martyrs of Yezd. Vast contributions have been gathered and the tombs of the martyred are being beautifully erected, immune from any further aggression or danger and becoming the object of the pilgrimage of many a soul. In Yezd also the maid-servants of God have risen and are overshadowing (or rather have foreshadowed) the men in their spiritual activities. Of Kashan, the writer relates, "I had thought of it a mount of snow but later on I found it an active volcano. The friends were aflame with the fire of the Word of God."
From Jaffa has come a devoted friend, by the name of Ali Effendi, who brings with him the news of the welfare of Abdul Sammad who has moved to Jaffa and is now settled. Both of them are enkindled and both are favored by the Beloved.
Tonight, around the Master's table
for supper sat Messrs. Ahmed Yazdi,[Page 52]
Haji Mohammed Yazdi, Mirza Hussein
Yazdi, Agha Mohammed Taghi, three of
the Parsee friends of Adassish who
have recently arrived, Badi Effendi and
my father. The Master was tired and
did not converse long.
Major Tudor-Pole, due to a slight indisposition has had to postpone his departure from Cairo, but, thank God, his illness is accidental and not at all serious.
February 16, 1919.
My dear Ahmad:
From among the supplications recently received is one that is most significant and of particular interest as it emanates from a Greek friend who is one of the few, if not the only of her race, that has responded to the call of the Kingdom. Let me share with you its contents: "Our father, I am very glad because I am the first of the Greeks to believe in your name. Many years ago my heart was broken because my life was full of bitterness. I don't know why fortune is so sad for me. Perhaps sometimes I am very whimsical, and of course the good Father sends punishment; however, I think otherwise with so much bitterness that I have every day. But I make my sweet prayers and then my feelings are at rest. I love God and I believe in the Father and I believe in the Apostles of God. O dear Father, how could I do otherwise than believe in you because many times my mind is so tired, but when I take your picture, and I read one of your prayers, I feel just like a bird when it rains, and its feathers are wet and it cannot fly, but when the sun's rays come out, is happy and flies from tree to tree—exactly I feel every minute when I make my prayers in your name. I shall not stop all my life, until I am an apostle for your name, to my people. (Signed) Aspasia Diamesis, Chicago."
Behind this broken language and this urbane style is revealed a heart loving, compassionate and full with the joy of faith and the gratitude of assurance. She begs enlightenment and guidance for her people and appreciates the supreme favor that divine Providence has bestowed upon her. What the response of the Beloved will be, or rather how far the Lord's favor and blessing will surround her, is one that we can hardly venture to forecast, but one thing is sure, that the Tablet that will be revealed to this soul will act as a mighty impetus in awakening the Greek people to this call.
This morning Abdul-Baha went out for a long walk and returned an hour before noon, when he resumed his work which consisted mainly of the perusal of detailed supplications from Persia. I had a long interview this morning with Agha Mohammed Taghi covering a wide range of topics which were mostly related to the activity of the Egyptian friends and the news he had received from abroad during the war. From Ishkabad, in Russian Turkestan, letters had come which revealed the safety of the friends in that tumultuous region. He had been in constant correspondence with the Indian friends whose activity he highly commented upon and whose services he praised. It was on the whole a very profitable and interesting hour.
February 17, 1919.
My dear Ahmad:
A day of jubilee is ahead of us. The
arrival of a group of the Parsee friends
of Adassieh, including men and women,
has not been without a definite purpose.
Another marriage festivity is to take
place between Shahrey, the son of Tamshid
the Parsee, and the daughter (the
eldest) of a Tamal, who has been living
for many years in the vicinity of Abdul-Baha.
The circle of the Adassieh friends
is ever widening and the experiences
along such lines has proved to be of
great value and benefit. Preparations
are now being made for that day and
everybody is looking forward to the[Page 53]
celebration, the first of that kind since
the extinction of the fire of war.
This morning Agha Ahmed Yazdi, his elder brother and Agha Mohammed Taghi Esfahani were called to the Beloved's presence. Tea was served and everybody assumed almost an uninterrupted silence for Abdul-Baha was all throughout perusing the supplications of the Egyptian friends, which had recently arrived. Supplications from every corner of the globe, of different length and character, written in different languages, enclosing clippings of papers, pamphlets, typewritten reports, petitions, etc., are ceaselessly pouring in and the time for their perusal is sufficient to exhaust all the time that one might possibly have at his disposal. Although the ways have not yet fully opened and communication with all parts has not yet been restored, one is baffled at the amount of letters, books and magazines that the postoffice daily delivers.
A joint supplication from a group of the Alexandria friends has been received today. The same note is struck and the same chorus is repeated—namely, rejoicing at the news from the Beloved and begging his confirmation. Although these friends have not multiplied as fast as their fellow brethren in Port Said yet they have maintained all throughout these trying times an esprit de corps necessary to give them the initiative in their future activities.
A letter from Mirza Mahmood Zarkani from Bombay to Haji Mirza Haider Ali reveals the great longing of the Parsee friends to meet Abdul-Baha, whether this takes place in the Holy Land or in India. The writer, who has been recently granted the permission to visit the holy sites, and has been journeying throughout the center of India, had been in Rangoon and was there confirmed in manifold services to the Kingdom of Abha. His letter, however, contained sad and unexpected news, namely, the passing away of Agha Seyed Mehdi Rangoon and his son, who were both active and tireless workers in the Cause. Assuredly their station in the realm beyond is a lofty one and their reward abundant and glorious.
Bahjeh, Acca.
February 18, 1919.
My dear Ahmad:
Greetings with sweetest remembrances
to you, my far-off friend, from this hallowed
spot! From this solitary plain
of Bahjeh, in this solemn solitude, away
from life's tumult and bustle, I take
the pen in remembrance of a friend
with whom I passed many days in this
quiet, yet inspiring region. The Beloved
has again decided to tarry for a
time at the vicinity of the tomb of his
father. Here he is, in the adjoining
room, sitting by the candle
light, viewing from his window the solitude
from afar, the silent surroundings,
which nothing breaks save the distant
roar of the waves which die away in
the immensity of space. He is engaged
in his meditations, absorbed in his
prayers, thinking of his friends across
the seas, remembering their prayers and
their supplications and communing with
his heavenly Father on behalf of such
souls. What a vivid contrast does this
vicinity of the Holy Tomb represent with
the increasing activity of the life in
Haifa. The air over there was filled
with gases and vapors which steam and
motor engines continuously discharge,
while the atmosphere here is as pure, as
clear and as fragrant as it can be. The
traffic accompanied with its deafening
noise and bustle, gives way here to a
stillness, a calmness and a quietude
which nothing interrupts but the stillness
of nature. The dazzling lights
of the city are gone and nothing but a
flickering taper's light cheers this cold
and starless night. The constant movement
and circulation witnessed in the
Beloved's house has stopped, and tonight
everything s at a stand still, everything
quiet and at rest. The morning hour
of prayer is maintained and even lengthened[Page 54]
for twice a day, the Beloved visits
the holy shrine, kneels in reverence and
devotion, orders communes to be chanted
and often spends an hour or more in
silent prayer. His attendants, friends
and relatives are absent and no one save
Kosro, Esfandiar and myself, the two
vigilant guardians of the Tomb, and Ali
Eff, a friend who will leave tomorrow
for Beirut, form his small retinue.
Everything, the environment, the atmosphere, the view, the stillness, all are uplifting, elevating and inspiring. One feels to have forgotten his cares and his concerns, his mind is refreshed and his burden alleviated. No matter how long the Master will tarry in this sanctified place, no feeling of monotony, and ennui overcomes the soul. It is the Spot which so many souls crave to attain and long to visit. Particularly is it magnificent at such a time when nature is smiling, the sky above is no more gloomy and threatening with clouds but serene and blue, the plains and meadows as if covered with a multicolored carpet, the shrubs sparkling with roses, jasmins, lilies, narcissus embalming the pure and refreshing air; the grass growing luxuriantly everywhere and the breeze wafting in every direction. Often is the Beloved seen in the open air, majestically walking to and fro upon the verdant plains and amid the wild flowers that abound in this gifted region. He treads the same ground that the blessed feet of his heavenly Father have trodden, circumambulates the shrine where for many years He has lived, waters the flowers and plants, many of which have been blessed by His hands and lives and moves and has his being in an atmosphere which fully reminds him of His manners and His conduct. What a dear and blessed spot to be privileged to live in!
Shoghi Rabbani.
(To be continued)
JEAN MASSON
To the maid-servant of God, Miss Jean Masson, Chicago, Illinois—Upon her be BAHA'O'LLAH El-Abha!
He Is God!
O thou faithful maid-servant of the Blessed Beauty!
The article thou hadst previously sent was highly acceptable, accomplished, well prepared and well presented. Verily, it was a very eloquent article. At present whoever among the friends may write an article and may wish to publish it, it is better that he should submit it to the Executive Board and, after its approval, give it publicity. Assuredly, the articles thou writest are suitable, correct and valuable for publication, but nevertheless the purpose of the approval of the Executive Board is to preserve order, for, otherwise, others may print and publish articles which may be not conforming with truth. That is why I write that articles should be first submitted and approved by the Executive Board and then be published.
Dr. Wilson, the missionary in Persia, is heedless and detests the Cause of God, and has written a book in order to lead the people to error. His book is likened to those books that have been written, during the time of Christ and subsequent to him, by the Pharisees and the Roman philosophers, in order to refute his truth. He has published that book and it is preferable that at present thou shouldst write, print and publish a refutatory book written in the utmost eloquence and perfection.
Exercise thou, in my behalf, the utmost kindness to thy sister. I ask for her—healing.
Upon thee be Baha-el-Abha!
(Signed) ABDUL-BAHA ABBAS.
(Translated by Shoghi Rabbani, Bahjeh,
Acca, Palestine, July 22, 1919.)[Page 55]
Holy Spirit manifest. When we visited Abdul-Baha in Chicago and he met us there with all the freshness and joy of this eternal morning shining through his human spirit in its brightness and its beauty, and our hearts were thrilled with the consciousness that here was one who saw God face to face, nay, that made God's love manifest right in our midst. And he said to us, "You know it doesn't make any difference what happens to one in the physical world. I was a prisoner in a Turkish prison for forty years." Then he told us how he slept upon the ground or upon the stone floor, how he was starved and chained and put into dungeons. "And yet," he said, "every day when I awoke in the morning I praised God that another day was before me in which I could serve Him in His prison. And every night when I lay down on the stone floor of the prison I thanked God that He had allowed me to serve His Kingdom one more day in His prison."
Then Abdul-Baha, turning to us with a light in his face and a joy that was almost overwhelmingly beautiful said, "I was in prison for forty years, and every day was a day of perfect joy." As he said "joy" his spirit shone so bright that in our hearts we thought we had never before known what joy and happiness meant. The people who were in the room said, "Isn't it amazing; when we are talking here with this Servant of God, all we can think of is God; we do not even see Abdul-Baha." And one woman said: "I do not even know he is here; all I see is the Spirit of God shining in him as in a crystal or a diamond." When she went away she did not think anything about Abdul-Baha the human personality; all she knew was that for one-half hour she had been in the presence of the eternal world. Like a door into the Kingdom was Abdul-Baha, transmitting the light of eternity. As she left his presence she said for the first time in her life she knew that God was King, and that there was no God but the God of this universe, and we could trust our lives to Him, our fortunes to Him, everything to Him because God is the Reality of realities.
What Abdul-Baha brings to us is this consciousness of God. Some people are troubled about the thought of his personality. Those who see Abdul-Baha's spirit cannot understand why they are troubled, for they never see his personality as a limitation. It is just a mirror reflecting the light, and the light of God's presence shines so beautifully that after a while they do not even see the mirror. They see only the light which is the Sun of Truth shining into this world, made manifest through this human Manifestation.
This, then, is the station of servitude
and this is the station also of transfiguration.
"He took the form of a
servant: wherefore God highly exalted
him, and gave him a Name that is above
every name." That is the way in which
this Manifestation comes into the world
today. The wonderful thing, however,
is this, that when we see the great Servant
of God, the perfect One, then we
are inspired with a new and irresistible
power to walk in his pathway. Abdul-Baha
with the sweetest humility can say,
"Look at me; be as I am; take no
thought for yourself, what ye shall eat
or what ye shall drink, whether ye shall
sleep, whether ye are comfortable,
whether ye are with friends or foes,
whether ye receive praise or blame; for
all these things must ye care not at all.
Look at me and be as I am, and so shall
ye die, to yourself and to the world, and
be born again into the Kingdom of
God."[Page 56]
The great Servant, the great Messenger, the promised One brings to us so vivid a consciousness of God that this consciousness begins to dominate and sway our life, makes us know that these fruitless strifes, these ruinous wars shall pass away and the Kingdom of Peace shall come. He conveys his certainty to us by contagion, he conveys his humility to us, he conveys to us his purity, he conveys to us his holiness, he conveys to us his love, he becomes like the mirror of the eternal One reflecting into our receptive hearts the love, the light, the holiness of God. When we turn our faces toward that eternal Sun, then petty, selfish things are melted away and the lower nature is burned away, and we say, "How little have we to give up, a few human ambitions and comforts and the things of this transitory earth—how little, if we may reflect just a few rays of this Kingdom into the hearts of the men and the women of this nation and the world."
In a word, God is again sending forth His angels with a great sound of a trumpet and they are calling: "Arise ye! O ye people, arise ye from the graves of your bodies, the graves of yourselves, the graves of limitation, of fear, of hatred; arise, O ye people. Lo! the light of life hath come, the Beloved of the heart hath come, the most great Servant of God hath come, and His is the trumpet of the resurrection ringing through the world. He has really come upon this planet; the Twentieth Century is the great resurrection day for all nations, and peoples and races of the world.
"The spirit of Christ is risen again. The trumpet of resurrection calling today from Palestine is the voice of this wondrous Servant of God, Abdul-Baha, humble, lowly, nothing in his outward personality, just the Voice through which the eternal God speaks. O ye people, the hour of reconciliation is here, the hour of the most great federation of nations is here, the hour when all races are to become as one race has dawned, the hour when religions will become one religion, has now struck upon the clock of the eternal world."
And with his divine voice calling, crying, pleading and triumphantly urging, this Center of the Covenant, this Center of light is able to raise a multitude of people from all lands and races. Think of us, here in America, on the other side of the world, hearing that voice raised in Palestine and finding in that voice the melody of God and in that heart the love of God! Think of the people in India, in Burmah, in Persia, in Russia, in Egypt, in China, in Japan—from all over the world—they are rising from the graves of their limitations and of their bodies because the trumpet of unity, the trumpet of universal light, the trumpet of the Kingdom has sounded from Palestine. There again, the voice of God rings with a clear, bell-like tone summoning all nations to climb the mountain which is above the valleys of their separation, above the vales of exclusiveness and sectarianism, and ascends to the bell that is ringing there on the top of the mountain. And as they draw near to the summit of transfiguration all the people, Mohammedans, Christians, Jews, Buddhists, and all religions, look into each other's faces and there on the mountain top of unity behold they are one, as their God is one!
Now God's great message, which is so clear that every one of us hears it and feels it in his heart, is this, that those who know the glad tidings of the light made manifest must go forth through this country and through the world and proclaim the news of its manifestations. The people are perishing for lack of this Water of Life. They are dying of thirst; and the fountain of the Water of Life eternal is now flowing. Whoever has the cup, whoever has found the fountain and whoever dips the cup into the crystal fountain he becomes the cup-bearer of unity, he becomes a servant of the oneness of the human world.
