Visiting Bahá’í Holy Places/House of ‘Abdu’lláh Páshá
House of ‘Abdu’lláh Páshá[edit]
This building derives its name from the governor of ‘Akká who had occupied it in the early decades of the nineteenth century. It was the residence of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá for some thirteen years until he moved to Haifa, and it was here that He received the first pilgrims from the West on 10 December 1898. In the pilgrims’ dining room in the House of ‘Abdu’lláh Páshá, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá gave the explanations which were compiled by Laura Dreyfus Barney during her pilgrimage from 1904 to 1906, and were later published as Some Answered Questions. The eastern end of the upper floor was the part of the house occupied by the members of the Holy Family. Off the large central hall of this wing is the room of Bahíyyih Khánum, the Greatest Holy Leaf, where the remains of the Báb were kept secretly for some years prior to being transferred to Mount Carmel.
During the most troublesome period in the Ministry of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, poignant, dramatic and highly significant events occurred in the House of ‘Abdu’lláh Páshá. It was from here that the Master directed the construction of the Shrine of the Báb on Mount Carmel, issued instructions for the restoration of the Holy House of the Báb in Shíráz, called for the erection of the first Mashriqu’l-Adhkár of the world in the city of ‘Ishqábád, in Russian Turkistan, and built His house in Haifa. During these years He was subjected to the onslaught of the Covenant-breakers and the perils associated with the Committee of Investigation. Here He penned the first two parts of His Will and Testament, the Charter of the Administrative Order of the Faith.
After being out of the control of the Faith for many decades, the House of ‘Abdu’lláh Páshá was acquired by the Universal House of Justice in July 1974.
[Page 22]
“JOYOUSLY ANNOUNCE SUCCESSFUL CONCLUSION LENGTHY DELICATE NEGOTIATIONS RESULTING ACQUISITION BY PURCHASE HOLY HOUSE CENTRE COVENANT ‘ABDU’L-BAHÁ BIRTHPLACE BELOVED GUARDIAN SHOGHI EFFENDI. HISTORIC PROPERTY ADJACENT BARRACKS MOST GREAT PRISON COMPRISES LAND AREA APPROXIMATING SEVEN THOUSAND SQUARE METRES INCLUDES OTHER STRUCTURES WITHIN COMPLEX ASSURING PERMANENT PROTECTION HOUSE VISITED BY MANY PILGRIMS TURN CENTURY SCENE HISTORIC VISIT FIRST GROUP WESTERN PILGRIMS. PLANS BEING PREPARED RESTORATION HOLY HOUSE BEAUTIFICATION GROUNDS AS ADDITIONAL PLACE PILGRIMAGE WORLD CENTRE WHEN CIRCUMSTANCES FUNDS PERMIT. OFFER HUMBLE THANKSGIVING BAHÁ’U’LLÁH THIS GREAT BLESSING.” 35