'Abdu'l-Baha signing a Tablet outside His house in Haifa

Lady Blomfield

Given the name “Sitarih Khanum” by ‘Abdu’l-Baha, Lady Sara Louisa Blomfield was an eminent early (1907) British Baha'i who is perhaps best remembered for her memoire detailing her meetings with 'Abdu'l-Baha (The Chosen Highway) and her assistance in the compilation of 'Abdu'l-Baha's talks while in Paris (Paris talks).

Born in Ireland in 1859, she married a distinguished architect, some 30 years her senior, Sir Arthur William Blomfield. They had two daughters, Mary Esther and Rose Ellinor Cecilia. When Sir Arthur died in 1899, Lady Blomfield and her two daughters moved from their London house. Later she began to develop a deep respect for Christianity as taught by Basil Wilberforce, then archdeacon of Westminster, and would take her daughters every Sunday to St. John's, Westminster, to hear him preach. Some eight years after the death of Sir Arthur, Lady Blomfield and her daughter Mary were in Paris, where they attended a reception at the home of Madam Lucien Monod. It was here that she met Miss Bertha Herbert, who introduced her to the Baha'i Message, saying, "If I look happy it is because I am happy. I have found the desire of my heart." Asked to say more, Miss Herbert said, "It is true! True! We have been taught to believe that a great Messenger would again be sent to the world. He would set forth to gather together all the peoples of good will in every race, nation, and religion on the earth. Now is the appointed time! He has come! He has come!" Miss Herbert explained that there was a woman in Paris who had recently visited 'Abdu'l-Baha and said that a meeting could be arranged for her to hear more. The woman was Miss Ethel Jenner Rosenberg, who had, in the summer of 1899, become the second Baha'i to enroll in the British Isles. The Blomfields met with Miss Rosenberg and the first French Baha'i, the scholar Hippolyte Dreyfus. During this meeting Lady Blomfield embraced the Baha'i Message. On returning to London the Blomfields contacted Ethel Rosenberg and Mrs. Thornburgh-Cropper and dedicated themselves to spreading the Faith in England. They were then living at 97 Cadogan Gardens, London, and in early August 1911 when 'Abdu'l-Baha visited Great Britain, she invited Him to stay at her house. 'Abdu'l-Baha left London for Paris on 3 October 1911, and Lady Blomfield, her daughters, and a friend, Miss Beatrice Marion Platt, followed Him, took notes of His talks, and published them under the title  “Paris Talks”.

First issue of US Baha’i News

In December 1924 a publication came into being which was originally conceived by Horace Holley as a means of communications between the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States and Canada and its local communities. The first issue of the “Baha’i News” appeared on December 24, 1924 as the “Baha’i News Letter”. It was published in New York with Horace Holley as the editor. 

(Adapted from the Baha’i World, vol. 10 and ‘Some Baha’is to Remember’, by Whitehead’)

First Local Spiritual Assembly was formed in Australia

The first Local Spiritual Assembly in Australia is formed in Melbourne during December 1923. 

(A Basic Baha'i Chronology, by Glenn Cameron)

December 1921: Shoghi Effendi arrives in Haifa from England a month after the passing of ‘Abdu’l-Baha

Owing to passport difficulties Shoghi Effendi cabled Haifa he could not arrive until the end of the month. He sailed from England on 16 December, accompanied by Lady Blomfield and Rouhangeze, and arrived in Haifa by train at 5.20 P.M. on 29 December from Egypt where his boat from England had docked. Many friends went to the station to bring him home; it is reported he was so overcome on his arrival that he had to be assisted up the steps. Awaiting him in the house was the only person who could in any measure assuage his suffering - his beloved great-aunt, the sister of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. She had already - so frail, so quiet, so modest at all times - shown herself in these past weeks to be a strong rock to which the believers clung in the midst of the tempest that had so suddenly burst upon them. The calibre of her soul, her breeding, her station, fitted her for the role she played in the Cause and in Shoghi Effendi's life during this extremely difficult and dangerous period. 

- Ruhiyyih Khanum  (‘The Priceless Pearl’)

‘Abdu’l-Baha left America for a six-month visit to Europe

… He [‘Abdu’l-Baha] sailed, on the S.S. Celtic, on December 5, [1912] from New York for Liverpool; and landing there He proceeded by train to London. Later He visited Oxford, Edinburgh and Bristol, and thence returning to London, left for Paris on January 21, 1913. On March 30 He traveled to Stuttgart, and from there proceeded, on April 9, to Budapest, visited Vienna nine days later, returned to Stuttgart on April 25, and to Paris on May first, where He remained until June 12, sailing the following day, on the S.S. Himalaya from Marseilles bound for Egypt, arriving in Port Said four days later, where after short visits to Isma'iliyyih and Abuqir, and a prolonged stay in Ramleh, He returned to Haifa, concluding His historic journeys on December 5, 1913. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘God Passes By’)

December 1863: Baha’u’llah and His family were banished from Constantinople for Adrianople (Edirne in European Turkey)

In one of the coldest Decembers that Turkey had seen for years, Bahá'u'lláh and, His family -- including His two faithful brothers Mirza Musa, entitled Aqay-i-Kalim, and Mirza Muhammad-Quli, together with Mirza Yahya -- set out on their journey to the city of Adrianople. The officer commissioned to take charge of the journey was 'Ali Big Yuz-Bashi. According to a statement by Mirza Aqa Jan, it appears that Bahá'u'lláh was accompanied by 12 of His companions. Among them was the notorious Siyyid Muhammad-i-Isfahani, whose evil spirit was increasingly casting its shadow upon the exiles. Through his satanic influence he brought much pain and anguish to their hearts and created severe tests and trials for them. (Adib Taherzadeh, ‘The Child of the Covenant’)

Here is how Shoghi Effendi describes this very sad and inhumane event:

Professor E. G. Browne visits ‘Abdu’l-Baha in London

Professor Edward Granville Browne visited 'Abdu'l-Bahá on December 18th [1912]. It is certain that they had not met during 'Abdu'l-Bahá's previous visit to England. A letter from 'Abdu'l-Bahá to Edward Browne, preserved in Cambridge University Library, provides the definite evidence. Zarqani's Diary mentions only two meetings during 'Abdu'l-Bahá's second visit to London, whereas Lady Blomfield writes: 'Professor Edward Granville Browne, who had written much concerning the Bábís and the Bahá'ís, came from time to time, speaking in Persian with the Master, Who was delighted to see him, and talked over many things, especially the momentous occasion when that intrepid Cambridge Orientalist succeeded in obtaining permission to enter the presence of Bahá'u'lláh.' (H.M. Balyuzi, ‘Abdu'l-Bahá - The Centre of the Covenant’)

... Mirza Mahmud-i-Zarqani -- 'Abdu'l-Bahá's secretary in the course of His travels, and the chronicler of those memorable years in the West -- has recorded, Browne during his first visit wished to broach the subject of his writings in the past and offer apologies, but 'Abdu'l-Bahá drew away from this topic and said: 'Let us talk of other matters which would be conducive to amity' (H. M. Balyuzi, ‘Edward Granville Browne and The Baha'i Faith’)

From Childhood Baha’u’llah was “gifted in every way, and adorned with purity and nobility”

…There was in Tihrán… a Youth of the family of one of the ministers and of noble lineage, gifted in every way, and adorned with purity and nobility. Although He combined lofty lineage with high connection, and although His ancestors were men of note in Persia and universally sought after, yet He was not of a race of doctors or a family of scholars. Now this Youth was from His earliest adolescence celebrated amongst those of the ministerial class, both relatives and strangers, for single-mindedness, and was from childhood pointed out as remarkable for sagacity, and held in regard in the eyes of the wise. He did not, however, after the fashion of His ancestors, desire elevation to lofty ranks nor seek advancement to splendid but transient positions. His extreme aptitude was nevertheless admitted by all, and His excessive acuteness and intelligence were universally avowed. In the eyes of the common folk He enjoyed a wonderful esteem, and in all gatherings and assemblies He had a marvelous speech and delivery. Notwithstanding lack of instruction and education such was the keenness of His penetration and the readiness of His apprehension that when during His youthful prime He appeared in assemblies where questions of divinity and points of metaphysic were being discussed, and, in presence of a great concourse of doctors and scholars loosed His tongue, all those present were amazed, accounting this as a sort of prodigy beyond the discernment natural to the human race. From His early years He was the hope of His kindred and the unique one of His family and race, nay, their refuge and shelter. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (‘A Traveler’s Narrative’)

Some impressions about the Báb by His schoolmaster Shaykh ‘Abid

There are left for posterity some overall recollections about the Bab’s personality by His schoolmaster many years after he became aware that the Báb was the Founder of a new religion for humanity. These impressions were in addition to his shock and amazement concerning the Báb’s depth of intelligence and knowledge at such a young age.

One of the qualities that he noticed about the Báb was the nobility of His character and the charm of His personality. He recalled that the Báb was always very dignified, serene and calm. Although He was very handsome He did not show much interest in pursuing those activities that were common to boys His age.

Shaykh ‘Abid also remembered that every now and then the Báb used to come late to the school. When asked why He was late, the Báb would typically remain silent. On some occasions he would become worried about His absence and would end up sending some of His classmates to go and check on His whereabouts. They would come back and tell him that they had found the Báb at His own home engaged in prayers. This wasn’t commonly expected of children his age – He was about ten years old then.

Bahá’u’lláh is a descendant of Abraham, Zoroaster, Jesse, and King Yazdigird

He derived His descent, on the one hand, from Abraham (the Father of the Faithful) through his wife Katurah, and on the other from Zoroaster, as well as from Yazdigird, the last king of the Sasaniyan dynasty. He was moreover a descendant of Jesse, and belonged, through His father, Mirza Abbas, better known as Mirza Buzurg -- a nobleman closely associated with the ministerial circles of the Court of Fath-'Ali Shah -- to one of the most ancient and renowned families of Mazindaran. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘God Passes By’)

‘Abdu’l-Baha’s younger brother, Mirza Mihdi, known as the Purest Branch, was about 12 years old when he was reunited with the Holy Family in Baghdad in 1860

Mirza Mihdi was taken to Baghdad to join the Family in the year AH 1276 (circa AD 1860). It was in that city that this pure and holy youth, noted for his meekness, came in touch with the Divine Spirit and was magnetized by the energizing forces of Bahá'u'lláh's Revelation. From that time on, he devoted every moment of his life to the service of his heavenly Father. He was Bahá'u'lláh's companion in Baghdad, Adrianople and 'Akká, and served Him as an amanuensis [It must be noted that although Mirza Aqa Jan was Bahá'u'lláh's amanuensis, there were also others who were engaged in this task from time to time] towards the end of his life, leaving to posterity some Tablets in his handwriting. The last ten years of his life were filled with the hardship and suffering inflicted on Bahá'u'lláh and His companions in the course of the three successive banishments from Baghdad to 'Akká.

The Purest Branch resembled 'Abdu'l-Bahá, and throughout his short and eventful life he displayed the same spiritual qualities which distinguished his illustrious Brother. The believers loved and venerated him as they did 'Abdu'l-Bahá. 

- Adib Taherzadeh  ('The Revelation of Baha'u'llah, vol. 3')

Mid-July 1920: Shoghi Effendi arrived in the United Kingdom

Shoghi Effendi arrived in the United Kingdom in mid-July 1920 and was welcomed by a community of devoted believers and admirers of the Faith who had been nurtured by their loving Master. Prominent among the believers and admirers of the Master were Lady Blomfield, Major Tudor-Pole and Lord Lamington.

Lady Blomfield, one of the pillars of the Cause in England, had been among the first to recognize the new revelation. She was a woman whose considerable influence traced back to her father-in-law, Dr Charles James Blomfield (1786-1857), the Bishop of London and the tutor of Queen Victoria. Lady Blomfield and her daughter Mary had been introduced to the Faith at a reception in Paris in 1907. Their teacher was Miss Bertha Herbert. Both had embraced the Faith upon their return to England and were nurtured by a Baha'i community comprising two people: an American believer living in London, Mrs. Thornburgh-Cropper, and Miss. Ethel Rosenberg, the first British woman to accept the new Earth of God.

Symbolic representation of the stages in the Administrative Order by means of a monument designed by Shoghi Effendi

This love the Guardian had for the Greatest Holy Leaf, who had watched over him for thirty-five years as far more than a mother, continued to be demonstrated for the remainder of his life. When the news of her death [15 July 1932 at the age of 86] reached him in Switzerland his first act was to plan for her grave a suitable memorial which he hastened to Italy to order. No one could possibly call this exquisitely proportioned monument, built of shining white Carrara marble, anything but what it appears - a love temple, the embodiment of Shoghi Effendi's love, he had undoubtedly conceived its design from buildings of a similar style and, under his supervision, an artist now incorporated his concept in the monument he planned to erect on her resting-place. Shoghi Effendi used to compare the stages in the Administrative Order of the Faith to this monument, saying the platform of three steps was like the local Assemblies, the pillars like the National Assemblies, and the dome that crowned them and held them together like the Universal House of Justice, which could not be placed in position until the foundations and pillars were first firmly erected. After the Greatest Holy Leaf's monument had been completed in all its beauty he had a photograph of it sent to many different Assemblies, as well as to a special list of individuals to whom he wished to present so tender a memento.  

- Ruhiyyih Khanum  ('The Priceless Pearl')

Fate of Those Who Persecuted the Bab, Who Opposed the Construction of His Shrine and Threatened Its Destruction

• Muhammad Shah, who disregarded the appeal of the Bab to meet Him in person and plead His Cause, sustained a sudden reverse of fortune, and succumbed, at the age of forty, to a complication of maladies.

• Nasiri’d-Din Shah, during whose reign the Bab was executed, and under whose aegis the greatest massacre of the Babis took place, was, in the plenitude of his power, dramatically assassinated on the eve of his jubilee. The Qajar dynasty, to which he belonged, was subsequently brought to an ignominious end.

• Haji Mirza Aqasi, the Grand Vazir of Muhammad Shah and chief instigator of the outrages perpetrated against the Bab, was disgraced by his sovereign, lost his fortune, was expelled to Karbila, and became a victim of disease and poverty.

• Miza Taqi Khan, the Amir Nizam, the Grand Vazir of Nasiri'd-Din Shah, who was directly responsible for the execution of the Bab, was disgraced and put to death by royal order in the bath of the Palace of Fin, near Kashan.

• Mirza Hasan Khan, who carried out the execution of the Bab, was subjected, two years after, to a dreadful punishment which ended in his death.

Shoghi Effendi – ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s Eldest Grandson & His Chief Secretary

Shoghi Effendi was the eldest son of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s daughter Diya’iyyih Khanum (d. 1951) and Mirza Hadi Shirazi Afnan (d. 1955). He was born in ‘Akka on 1 March 1897, the eldest of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s grandsons, named in the Master’s Will as His successor when he was still a child. Educated at first at home with other children of the household, he was later sent to Catholic school in Haifa and Beirut and then to the Syrian Protestant College (the predecessor of the American University) in Beirut, spending his summer holidays as one of his grandfather’s assistants. He gained an arts degree from the college in 1918, and became ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s chief secretary. Then in 1920, he went to Oxford University (Balliol College), where he studied political science and economics, and also sought to perfect his English so as to be better able to translate Baha’i literature into that language. He was still in the midst of his studies when summoned to return to Haifa at the news of his grandfather’s death. 

- Peter Smith  (A Concise Encyclopedia of the Baha’i Faith)

‘Abdu’l-Baha’s commentary on this well-known Islamic tradition concerning God and His creation: “I was a Hidden Treasure. I wished to be made known, and thus I called creation into being in order that I might be known.”

“O wayfarer in the path of the Beloved! Know thou that the main purpose of this holy tradition is to make mention of the stages of God’s concealment and manifestation within the Embodiments of Truth, They who are the Dawning-places of His All-Glorious Being. For example, before the flame of the undying Fire is lit and manifest, it existeth by itself within itself in the hidden identity of the universal Manifestations, and this is the stage of the “Hidden Treasure”. And when the blessed Tree is kindled by itself within itself, and that Divine Fire burneth by its essence within its essence, this is the stage of “I wished to be made known”. And when it shineth forth from the Horizon of the universe with infinite Divine Names and Attributes upon the contingent and placeless worlds, this constituteth the emergence of a new and wondrous creation which correspondeth to the stage of “Thus I called creation into being”. And when the sanctified souls rend asunder the veils of all earthly attachments and worldly conditions, and hasten to the stage of gazing on the beauty of the Divine Presence and are honoured by recognizing the Manifestation and are able to witness the splendour of God’s Most Great Sign in their hearts, then will the purpose of creation, which is the knowledge of Him Who is the Eternal Truth, become manifest.” 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (Quoted in the ‘Notes” section of the Kitab-i-Aqdas, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice)

1953: Enoch Olinga with Elsie Austin, Knight of Baha’u’llah for Morocco

Enoch Olinga, later to be appointed a Hand of the Cause of God (second left), and Elsie Austin (right) with other Baha'is at the African Intercontinental Baha'i Conference, Kampala, Uganda, 1953. 

(Baha’i World News Service)

Baha’u’llah’s "Most Great Tablet" - the "Crimson Book"

To direct and canalize these forces let loose by this Heaven-sent process, and to insure their harmonious and continuous operation after His ascension, an instrument divinely ordained, invested with indisputable authority, organically linked with the Author of the Revelation Himself, was clearly indispensable. That instrument Bahá'u'lláh had expressly provided through the institution of the Covenant, an institution which he had firmly established prior to His ascension. This same Covenant He had anticipated in His Kitáb-i-Aqdas, had alluded to it as He bade His last farewell to the members of His family, who had been summoned to His bed-side, in the days immediately preceding His ascension, and had incorporated it in a special document which He designated as "the Book of My Covenant," and which He entrusted, during His last illness, to His eldest son 'Abdu'l-Bahá. Written entirely in His own hand ... this unique and epoch- making Document, designated by Bahá'u'lláh as His "Most Great Tablet," and alluded to by Him as the "Crimson Book" in His "Epistle to the Son of the Wolf," can find no parallel in the Scriptures of any previous Dispensation, not excluding that of the Báb Himself. For nowhere in the books pertaining to any of the world's religious systems, not even among the writings of the Author of the Báb' Revelation, do we find any single document establishing a Covenant endowed with an authority comparable to the Covenant which Bahá'u'lláh had Himself instituted. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘God Passes By’; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, The Covenant)

1989: Hand of the Cause of God Collis Featherstone and his wife, Madge, with some friends in Thailand

The Hand of the Cause of God Collis Featherstone and his wife, Madge, are pictured with some of the friends at a refugee camp in Thailand during their tour of Southeast Asia in 1989. Mr. Featherstone was taken ill while visiting Nepal in September and passed away on September 29 in Kathmandu. 

(Baha'i News, September/October 1990)

Worldwide Plans by the Guardian and the Universal House of Justice

... we should never forget that the beloved Guardian's Ten Year Crusade, the current Nine Year Plan, other plans to follow throughout successive epochs of the Formative Age of the Faith, are all phases in the implementation of the Divine Plan of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, set out in fourteen of His Tablets to North America. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (Ridvan 1971 message to the Baha’i World; ‘Messages from the Universal House of Justice, 1963-1986’)

The resting place of the Hand of the Cause of God Sutherland Maxwell

The resting place of the Hand of the Cause of God Sutherland Maxwell, Montreal, Canada.

May 2001: Official Opening of the Terraces of the Shrine of the Báb

The “Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá and of the Tablets of the Divine Plan” are “the two charters provided by the Master for the administration and the teaching of the Cause of God.”

As we contemplate the fruits of the Master's Ministry harvested during the first fifty years of the Formative Age, a period dominated by the dynamic and beloved figure of Shoghi Effendi, whose life was dedicated to the systematic implementation of the provisions of the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá and of the Tablets of the Divine Plan -- the two charters provided by the Master for the administration and the teaching of the Cause of God - we may well experience a sense of awe at the prospect of the next fifty years. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From Ridvan 1971 message to the Baha’i World; ‘Messages from the Universal House of Justice, 1963-1986’) 

Dr. Furutan - One of the Principals of Tarbiyat School, Secretary of Iranian National Spiritual Assembly for 24 years, One of the Nine Custodial Hands of the Cause

Hand of the Cause Dr. 'Ali-Akbar Furutan

In the face of sustained persecution, Dr. Furutan's family left their native city of Sabzivir in Khurasan, Persia, in 1914 and settled in Ashkhabad, Russia. As a youth he became an active member of the local Baha'i community and, whilst still in his teens, became a teacher in its school. In 1926 he won a scholarship to the University of Moscow to study education and child psychology. In 1930 he returned to Iran where he established a school for Baha'i children in one of the villages. Dr. Furutan was appointed as principal of the Tarbiyat School for boys until its closure in 1934, and wrote study books for Baha’i children’s classes which are still in use. In April 1934 he was elected to the newly formed National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Iran and served as its secretary until the passing of Shoghi Effendi in November of 1957. Dr. Furutan was appointed a Hand of the Cause by Shoghi Effendi, in the first contingent of Hands, in December 1951. In 1957 he became one of the nine custodial Hands of the Cause in Haifa. Dr. Furutan’s Persian publications are extensive, and several have been translated into English. 

(Adapted from ‘A Concise Encyclopedia of the Baha’i Faith’, by Peter Smith)

November 12, 1817: Bahá'u'lláh is born

There was born a Child in an ancient and noble family of Núr, whose father was Mirzá Abbás, better known as Mirzá Buzurg, a favoured minister of the Crown. That Child was Bahá'u'lláh. At the hour of dawn, on the second day of Muharram, in the year 1233 A.H. [12 November 1817 A.D.] the world, unaware of its significance, witnessed the birth of Him who was destined to confer upon it such incalculable blessings. 

- Nabil  (‘The Dawn-Breakers’, translated. and edited by Shoghi Effendi)

Shoghi Effendi - A unique figure in history who has had an impact on the entire planet over a third of a century

Shoghi Effendi's divine and indefeasible right to assume the helm of the Cause of God had been fully vindicated through thirty-six years of unremitting, heartbreaking toil. It would be hard indeed to find a comparable figure in history who, in a little over a third of a century, set so many different operations in motion, who found the time to devote his attention to minute details on one hand and on the other to cover the range of an entire planet with his plans, his instructions, his guidance and his leadership. He had laid the foundations of that future society Bahá'u'lláh had fathered upon the mind of the Master, and which He in turn had gestated to a point of perfection, passing it upon His death into the safe hands of His successor. 

- Ruhiyyih Khanum  (‘The Guardian of the Baha'i Faith’)

Nabil submits the finished portions of the Dawn-Breakers to Baha’u’llah in December 1888

Nabil wrote The Dawn-Breakers for Bahá'u'lláh. He started the chronicle in 1888 and finished it in about a year and a half. Mirza Musa helped him with it; some parts of the manuscript were reviewed by Bahá'u'lláh, and some by the Master.

Nabil lived in 'Akká then, and when he had brought his narrative down to the point where the story of the Seven Martyrs was ended, he submitted the finished portions to Bahá'u'lláh, Who sent for him on December 11, 1888, a date Nabil records as one he will never forget. On that occasion, his Lord gave him an account of various historical episodes, including the gathering at Badasht.

He wrote: ‘At this stage of my narrative I was privileged to submit to Bahá'u'lláh such sections of my work as I had already revised and completed. How abundantly have my labours been rewarded by Him whose favour alone I seek, and for whose satisfaction I have addressed myself to this task! He graciously summoned me to His presence and vouchsafed me His blessings. I was in my home in the prison-city of 'Akká, and lived in the neighbourhood of the house of Aqay-i-Kalim, when the summons of my Beloved reached me. That day, the seventh of the month of Rabi'u'th-Thani in the year 1306 A.H., [December 11, 1888 A.D.] I shall never forget.’ (‘The Dawn-Breakers’)

December 1843: Siyyid Kazim-i-Rashti passes away

He was a disciple and the chosen successor of Shaykh Ahmad, who together were referred to by Baha’u’llah as the “twin resplendent lights” (Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 65) – both were forerunners of the Báb.

Siyyid Kazim was born in Rasht, Iran, in 1793, and as a boy showed great intellect and spirituality. At the age of twenty-two he went to Yazd, became a disciple of a Shaykh Ahmad and was designated to succeed him and continue the work of preparing his disciples to recognize the Promised Qa'im. After Shaykh Ahmad's death, the tide of opposition to Shayhi doctrines rose and Siyyid Kazim was attacked and denounced by the 'ulama.

Siyyid Kazim knew the identity of the Promised One and alluded to it clearly when Siyyid 'Ali-Muhammad (the Báb) attended his lecture one day in Karbila. Seeing Him, Siyyid Kazim fell silent. When asked to continue his discourse he said: 'What more shall I say? . . . Lo, the Truth is more manifest than the ray of light that has fallen upon that lap!" But none understood his meaning.

Towards the end of his life, feeling that the advent of the Qa'im was at hand, he charged his disciples to scatter and search for the Promised One. One of those who arose in response was Mulla Husayn, the first to find the Báb. Siyyid Kazim died on 31 December 1843, less than six months before the Declaration of the Báb. 

(Adapted from ‘A Basic Baha’i Dictionary’ by Wendi Momen)

Entrance to Bahá’u’lláh's ancestral House in Takur, Persia

Entrance to Bahá’u’lláh's ancestral House in Takur, which was destroyed after the 1979 revolution in Iran. 

(Baha'i Media Bank)

1912: ‘Abdu’l-Baha in New York

'Abdu'l-Baha with His entourage and Arthur P. Dodge walking along Riverside Drive, New York