1941
1941
— 202 —
FEBRUARY 24, 1941
[TO DELHI][pg 195]
PRAYING FERVENTLY SIGNAL SUCCESS SYMPOSIUM. LOVE
SHOGHI
— 203 —
FEBRUARY 24, 1941
[TO SURAT]
ASSURE PRAYERS SUCCESS SYMPOSIUM.
SHOGHI
— 204 —
April 19, 1941
[To N.R. Vakíl]
Dear Bahá’í Brother,
Shoghi Effendi has instructed me to answer your letters to him dated February 25th and March 21st and 23rd
He was happy to receive your news and to learn that a number of[pg 196] the dear friends have arisen to actively promulgate the teachings in new fields in India.
He was also very pleased to hear that now Mr. Mani Mehta is feeling better and is on the road to recovery; he will continue to pray for both his health and for his services to the Holy Faith.
Whenever the Guardian receives news of the spread of the Cause it brings him such hope and helps to lighten his heavy burden. This is the greatest need of the present hour in India: More teachers in new fields! His prayers are always being offered for the advancement of this all-important work and the fulfilment of the Six Year Plan.
Shoghi Effendi deeply values your untiring efforts for the welfare and spread of the Cause, and he is happy to hear that your daughters are increasingly able to aid you in this noble work. You and your dear family are remembered in his prayers at the Holy Shrines.
Please convey his loving appreciation of the services that our dear Bahá’í brother Prof. Pritam Singh, Mr. ‘Abdu’lláh Vakíl, and Mr. Qulam Muḥammad Sani are rendering through their travels and lectures.
The Cause in India year by year grows stronger, and as the Indian Bahá’ís have the great advantage of being free to spread the Message, they should work night and day to establish it in every part of that great land. Today so many of the Bahá’ís in different parts of the world are unable to teach, and thus the responsibility is greater for those remaining Bahá’í Communities which are still able to openly spread the Faith. His prayers are with you all.
Dear and prized co-worker:
I wish to add a few words and reaffirm my deep sense of gratitude for all that you have done and are now accomplishing for the spread and administration of the glorious Faith. The seeds you have so patiently been sowing will no doubt germinate and yield an abundant harvest. Persevere in your great work. I pray that your dear daughters may be blessed and aided to reinforce and carry on the work you are so energetically and devotedly advancing.
Your true and grateful brother,
Shoghi
— 205 —
April 30, 1941
[To: Bombay Bahá’í Service Committee][pg 197]
Dear Bahá’í Brother,
Shoghi Effendi has instructed me to answer your letter to him of April 21st,
He was very pleased to receive the annual report of your committees work, and to witness how active the Bombay Bahá’ís have been during the past year.
He hopes that during the coming Bahá’í year your committee, in cooperation with the Bombay Assembly, will accomplish even more in the service of the Holy Faith.
He has noted those friends who passed away during the last Bahá’í year, and he will remember them in his prayers.
He will also pray for you and all the members of the service committee, that you may render the Cause great services during the coming year.
May the Almighty bless you and your co-workers, guide and sustain at all times your deliberations, remove every obstacle from your path, deepen your understanding of the fundamental verities of His Faith, and aid you to proclaim them far and wide.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
— 206 —
June 6, 1941
[To The Bahá’í Youth Group of Bombay]
Dear Bahá’í Friends,
The Guardian has instructed me to acknowledge the receipt of your letter, together with your annual report, dated May 5th,
He was very pleased to note how active your group has been during the past year, and he hopes and prays that during the coming year, at a time when the world is convulsed with suffering, the Bahá’í Youth of Bombay will arise to greater heights of service than ever before and become an example to their fellow youth, wherever they may be.
The responsibility of young believers is very great, as they must not only fit themselves to inherit the work of the older Bahá’ís and[pg 198] carry on the affairs of the Cause in general, but the world which lies ahead of them — as promised by Bahá’u’lláh — be a world chastened by its sufferings, ready to listen to His divine Message at last; and consequently a very high character will be expected of the exponents of such a religion. To deepen their knowledge, to perfect themselves in the Bahá’í standards of virtue and upright conduct, should be the paramount duty of every young Bahá’í.
They should also undertake as much teaching work as possible, both local and of a pioneer nature, and thus hasten the fulfilment of India’s Six Year Teaching Plan.
The Guardian assures you of his most loving and ardent prayers for your success and welfare.
May the all-powerful spirit that animates this Faith be your guide and sustenance in these days of ever increasing peril and turmoil, and enable you to hold aloft the banner of its principles and teachings and proclaim befittingly its truths and distinguishing features.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
— 207 —
June 19, 1941
[To The Bahá’í Youth Committee of India]
Dear Bahá’í Friends,
Shoghi Effendi has instructed me to thank you for your greeting sent to him on the occasion of your annual Bahá’í Youth Symposium for
He has been most encouraged by the increasing evidences of the activity of the Bahá’í youths of India, and their determination to play their part in the great teaching campaign which the believers of that country have undertaken. The responsibility of the Bahá’í youth is very great indeed, as they constitute the generation of Bahá’ís who will be called upon to help reconstruct the world after this devastating war is over. They should devote their lives to the supreme objective of perfecting themselves as members in Bahá’u’lláh’s divine World Order. The Guardian hopes that during the coming year an ever-increasing number of young believers will devote themselves to teaching the Cause and helping the Six Year Plan to be fulfilled.
The Guardian will offer his ardent prayers on your behalf in the[pg 199] Holy Shrines, that Bahá’u’lláh may bless your work and enable you each and all to render the Faith great services.
May the blessings of Bahá’u’lláh be constantly showered on your labours, and may His all powerful spirit inspire, stimulate, and guide your newly initiated undertaking and enable it to expand, and fulfil its high purpose.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
— 208 —
June 19, 1941
[To The Bahá’í Youth Committee Of India]
Dear Bahá’í Brother,
Shoghi Effendi has instructed me to answer your letter to him of June 5th, and to acknowledge the receipt of the five greetings sent him by the Bahá’í Youth Symposium, held in various Indian cities, as well as the general letter and information circulated by your Youth Committee.
He was very happy to see that the work of the Bahá’í Youth Committee of India is progressing so well, and that each year a greater number of Bahá’í young people are taking an active part in the teaching work of that vast country.
The Guardian feels that the role of Bahá’í Youth in these days is becoming increasingly important, and that your committee, as well as all local youth Committees, should do all in your power to encourage the Bahá’í young people to a greater activity and sense of responsibility.
In the field of teaching, in pioneer service and settlement, in the administration of the Cause, they must increasingly take an active part, as upon these same youth will devolve the many and heavy responsibilities of the future when the Bahá’ís will be called upon to demonstrate to their fellow men the perfection of Bahá’u’lláh’s laws and world order in such a manner that bewildered humanity will turn to them as their only refuge.
He will continue to offer his ardent prayers on your behalf and for the success of your Committee’s undertakings throughout the coining year.[pg 200]
Dear and valued co-workers:
I was greatly cheered and heartened by the expression of devotion, determination, loyalty conveyed in the welcome message enclosed in your letter, attesting the magnificent spirit that animates the Bahá’í Youth of India. They are indeed the object of my unfailing solicitude and of my ardent and constant prayers. I feel proud of the work which they are so strenuously promoting. Bahá’u’lláh is indeed well pleased with them, and our beloved Master will no doubt reinforce their labours. May their work prosper, and their numbers increase and their influence extend, and their highest hopes be fulfilled.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
— 209 —
June 19, 1941
[To N.R. Vakíl’s Daughters]
Dear Bahá’í Friends,
Shoghi Effendi has instructed me to write and thank you for your greeting sent to him on the occasion of the Bahá’í Youth Symposium — for
Though as yet your youth group is small in number he hopes that through your efforts during the coming year it will grow and become a strong and vital one and play an important part in helping the youth of India to better serve the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh.
The field of work open to Bahá’í young people is very great, and they must increasingly bear their share of the all-important teaching campaign which the Indian Bahá’ís have embarked upon.
Assuring you of the prayers of the Guardian for your work, and of his loving remembrance in the Holy Shrines.
May the almighty spirit of Bahá’u’lláh guide and sustain you both, and enable you to lay a firm foundation for future Bahá’í youth activity, and fulfil the hopes and wishes of your dear parents for your future service in the Divine Vineyard.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
— 210 —
JUNE 25, 1941
DEPLORE LULL PROSECUTION TEACHING ENTERPRISE SIX[pg 201] YEAR PLAN. OPPORTUNITY PRICELESS TIME SHORT FIELD IMMENSE RIPE. SISTER COMMUNITIES EUROPE ÍRÁN EGYPT ‘IRÁQ HOLY LAND IMPERILLED RESTRICTED CONTRASTING FREEDOM SECURITY INDIAN BELIEVERS. APPEAL ASSEMBLIES INDIVIDUALS COORDINATE EFFORTS EXPLORE FULLY POSSIBILITIES PRESENT GOLDEN HOURS. CABLING TWO HUNDRED POUNDS NUCLEUS SPECIAL TEACHING FUND DEDICATED INTENSIFICATION CAMPAIGN DESIGNED INITIATION PIONEER SETTLEMENT MULTIPLICATION BAHÁ’Í CENTRES. ARDENTLY PRAYING ABHÁ BLESSINGS.
SHOGHI
— 211 —
June 29, 1941
[To ‘Abbás ‘Alí Butt]
Dear Bahá’í Brother,
Shoghi Effendi has instructed me to acknowledge the receipt of your welcome letter to him of June 5th, together with the enclosed financial reports, as well as the report of the 13th annual Bahá’í Convention and the National Spiritual Assembly’s report presented to the delegates at the Convention.
He was very happy to note the spirit of true and profound dedication to their holy task of spreading the Faith in India and Burma which the members of the National Spiritual Assembly manifest, and he feels sure that, if they exert the utmost effort, they will, through the confirmations of Bahá’u’lláh, succeed in fulfilling what is required of them under the Six Year Plan. He regrets very much that circumstances have prevented any active furtherance of the teaching work during the past Bahá’í year. Because of this the Guardian felt impelled, after reading your Assembly’s letter, to transmit by cable the sum of two hundred pounds sterling to be set aside by your Assembly as the nucleus of a special fund to be established for the specific purpose of furthering the all India teaching campaign of the Six Year Plan. He trusts that this will stimulate the body of Indian Bahá’ís to also contribute to this fund generously and by providing the necessary means to enable them to speedily fulfil the task they have vowed to carry out.[pg 202]
Concerning the methods to be adopted for the realization of your urgent task, Shoghi Effendi approves of the suggestion that some business firms open branches in new districts and thus provide Bahá’í settlement by this means. However, he feels that this will not be enough, and that all the Spiritual Assemblies, as well as each individual believer, should rally to this great opportunity which, indeed, may not again be presented to them, of spreading the Faith through the length and breadth of India while they are still in a position to do so. The world is day by day becoming increasingly involved in this cataclysmic struggle, but so far the Bahá’ís of India, Australia, New Zealand and the American continents have not felt either the dangers or the restrictions imposed on less fortunate communities which find themselves either over run and temporarily eclipsed, or in the actual theatre of war. Therefore the believers of India should not allow these truly priceless days to slip by without exerting themselves to the utmost and sacrificing comfort, home, and money, to the great duty of giving the Divine Message to the people of their vast country.
Smallness of numbers, lack of skilled teachers, and modesty of means should not discourage or deter them. They must remember the glorious history of the Cause, which, both in East and West, was established by dedicated souls who, for the most part, were neither rich, famous, nor well educated, but whose devotion, zeal and self-sacrifice overcame every obstacle and won miraculous victories for the Faith of God. Such spiritual victories can now be won for India and Burma by the friends. Let them dedicate themselves — young and old, men and women alike — and go forth and settle in new districts, travel, and teach in spite of lack of experience, and be assured that Bahá’u’lláh has promised to aid all those who arise in His Name. His strength will sustain them; their own weakness is unimportant.
In reading your annual Convention report the Guardian has noted the request made that the National Spiritual Assembly should lay down certain rules of procedure. He has already informed the American National Spiritual Assembly that they should henceforth refrain from laying down any further rules and regulations, as these would tend to rigidify the affairs of the Cause and ultimately obscure its spirit and retard its growth. He feels that your Assembly should exercise the same care, and avoid introducing any rules of procedure not already in existence. Every case coming before the Assembly should be judged on its own merits, and be decided individually without any recourse to new rulings. The Guardian will constantly pray[pg 203] for the success of all your undertakings, as well as for the welfare and progress of all the dear believers in India and Burma. Particularly will he remember in his prayers the members of the National Assembly who are called upon to direct, coordinate, and carry out the Indian Bahá’ís’ great and noble teaching enterprise.
Dear and valued co-workers:
The Six Year Plan, which you have so nobly conceived and so enthusiastically initiated, must, during these crucial years, when the first century of the Bahá’í Era is drawing to a close, be prosecuted with Unremitting energy, and unshaken determination. The vastness of the field, the smallness of your numbers, the indifference of the masses, must neither discourage nor appal you. You should at all times fix your gaze on the promise of Bahá’u’lláh, put your whole trust in His creative Word, recall the past and manifold evidences of His all-encompassing and resistless power, and arise to become worthy and exemplary recipients of His all sustaining grace and blessings. I appeal to every Indian and Burmese believer, however modest his position, however limited his knowledge, however restricted his means, to rise to the height of this great opportunity which if missed will not recur again. To disperse, to settle, to teach by word and deed, to persevere rind sacrifice are the requirements of the present hour. May the Almighty, Whose Cause you are labouring to advance, endow you and your fellow workers with all the wisdom, the strength, and guidance that you need to acquit yourselves worthily of this task.
Shoghi
— 212 —
July 3, 1941
[To N.R. Vakíl]
Dear Bahá’í Brother,
Shoghi Effendi has instructed me to answer your letter to him of June 2 1st.
He was very sorry indeed to learn that you are in such poor health, and he wishes to assure you that he will pray most ardently for your complete recovery. He feels that for the present time you should devote yourself entirely to taking care of yourself and regaining the[pg 204] balance of your health. For this purpose you should give up both your professional activities and your Bahá’í work, if necessary, and place the regaining of your health above all else.
Your services are greatly needed in the Cause at this time — the Guardian is fully aware of this — but he believes the best way you can at present serve it is to take care of yourself, so that you may all the sooner resume your valuable services to the Faith in India.
He will also remember in his prayers your dear family, and hopes that they will hasten the recovery of your health and assist all they can in the teaching work.
With the assurance of his loving thoughts and prayers.
P.S. The Guardian trusts that the detailed wire he sent to ‘Abbás ‘Alí Butt, through your address, has reached you safely. He has cabled the sum of two hundred pounds direct to ‘Abbás ‘Alí Butt as a nucleus for a special teaching fund to be used for the furtherance of the teaching activities of the Indian and Burmese believers under the Six Year Plan. He will specially pray for you all from the depths of his heart.
Dear and prized co-worker:
I grieve to learn of your illness, and I have hastened to assure you in my wire of my special prayers for your recovery. You should subordinate everything to this primary issue, even your activities for the Faith. I will continue to supplicate the Beloved to enable you to render still greater in the days to come, and to preserve you and your dear family, and extend to you always His protection.
Your true and grateful brother,
Shoghi
— 213 —
August 1, 1941
[To N.R. Vakíl’s Daughters]
Dear Bahá’í Friends,
The Guardian has instructed me to answer your letter to him of July 13th, which he was happy to receive.
The great devotion which you two sisters have for our beloved Faith pleases the Guardian very much. You must seek to follow in the[pg 205] footsteps of your dear father and to become outstanding maidservants in the Cause of God in India.
To study Persian is excellent, and next to this make every effort to master the English language, as it will enable you to speak to people of all races and to read the wide literature on the Faith and allied subjects which is available in that tongue.
He would also advise you to aid in the advancement of the Bahá’í youth activities as much as possible; to write, lecture, hold meetings, and prepare yourselves and others for future responsibilities.
Kindly assure your dear father of the Guardian’s continued prayers on his behalf. He hopes he is daily improving in health. You must take the best care of him.
He will pray for you both, that Bahá’u’lláh may bless and guide you and lead you to render great services to His Faith.
With the renewed assurance of my constant prayers for your spiritual and material advancement under the shadow, and through the power, of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
— 214 —
October 5, 1941
[To N. R. Vakíl]
Dear Bahá’í Brother,
The Guardian has instructed me to answer your letters to him dated June 27th, July 8th, and September 18th.
The Guardian was very happy to see from your last letter that your health is sufficiently improved for you to resume your work. He would advise you, however, to not overdo and to continue to act in accordance with the advice of your doctor. He himself will continue to pray for you, that Bahá’u’lláh may give you strength to render His Cause many outstanding services in the years to come. Shoghi Effendi was also very happy to hear from you that you consider the Faith is making substantial progress in India, due to the tireless and devoted efforts of our Bahá’í brothers and sisters in that land. He would, however, urge the friends to follow the example of the American believers by sending out more pioneers to work in territories where there are no Bahá’ís. This is in accordance with the idea[pg 206] expressed by the beloved Master in the Divine Plan Tablets, and should be followed by all Bahá’ís.
The Guardian will pray for the success of the Summer School to be held in Surat. He is delighted that the Indian friends are so well organised and are, year by year, strengthening the administrative institutions of their Faith.
In closing, he assures you of his loving prayers for yourself, your wife, and daughters, that God may bless you all and aid you to render His Faith great and historic services.
Dear and prized co-worker:
I am eagerly and hopefully awaiting to witness fresh evidences of the renewed determination of the believers throughout India and Burma, to carry aloft and into virgin territories the torch of Divine Guidance, despite the dark clouds that threaten on the horizon. In these days of stress and peril, every effort expended, every victory achieved, every sacrifice made, will be rewarded a hundredfold. I will pray earnestly and continually that the friends may evince such zeal and perseverance as to ensure the complete success of the Six Year Plan which they, of their own accord, have so splendidly initiated.
Your true and grateful brother,
Shoghi
— 215 —
October 5, 1941
[To an individual believer]
Many are the souls who, in this Holy Cause, without either worldly means or knowledge, have set ablaze the hearts of others with the divine love and rendered the Faith imperishable services.
— 216 —
October 5, 1941
DECEMBER 12, 1941
WIRE NEWS SAFETY FRIENDS RANGOON MANDALAY PARTICULARLY DISTINGUISHED BELOVED SIYYID MUSTAFA ASSURE THEM FERVENT PRAYERS.
SHOGHI
— 217 —
December 16, 1941
[To N. R. Vakíl][pg 207]
Dear Bahá’í Brother,
Your letter of October 27th was recently received, and the Guardian has instructed me to answer you on his behalf. He was very happy to receive so much good news of the progress of the Bahá’í teaching work in India, as well as the success of the Summer School.
The fact that the friends of India, and also of Írán, are now finding themselves in a position where they can arise and teach the Cause far and wide, greatly cheers the Guardian’s heart. He hopes that the Bahá’ís of India, in spite of the fact that the war is now so close to their native land, with all its attendant dangers and problems, will allow nothing to deter them in their prosecution of their Six Year Teaching Plan for India and Burma.
Now is the time of true test and trial — the time when the friends must follow in the footsteps of the first Persian believers, who, heedless of comfort and even life itself, raised the Banner of Bahá’u’lláh’s Faith aloft, for all the world to see and follow.
He feels confident that the believers, led by their National Spiritual Assembly, and aided and inspired by their Local Spiritual Assemblies, will arise to new heights of service, and distinguish themselves in the eyes of the Bahá’í world. His constant prayers will be offered on their behalf, and he will remember them in the Shrines with love and yearning for their success.
He wishes to assure you he will continue to pray for your health and strength and that you may render the Cause even greater services in the future than those you have already rendered in the past. He will also pray for Mr Fozdar and his teaching work, as well as for all the other dear teachers and friends you mention in your letter.
With his loving greetings to you, your wife, and daughters, for whom he will also pray.
Dear and valued co-worker:
I wish to add a few words in person and appeal to you, and through you to the dear friends in Burma and India, not to allow, despite the increasing gravity of the international situation and the dangers that threaten the East, the work, which has been so enthusiastically initiated, to suffer through any relaxation of effort, or any deflection of purpose, on[pg 208] the part of any individual or Assembly. These perils, sufferings and commotions are blessings in disguise, which pave the way and prepare the hearts of those who face and sustain them for a deeper realization and an earlier and fuller acceptance of the Divine Message of Bahá’u’lláh. The opportunities are manifold and priceless. Every effort should be exerted, every sacrifice should be made, every obstacle should be surmounted.
Shoghi
— 218 —
December 27, 1941
[To The Bahá’í Youth Group Of Delhi]
Dear Bahá’í Friends,
Your letter of July 25th has just recently been received by the Guardian, and he has instructed me to answer you on his behalf.
He is very happy to hear that the Bahá’í Youth Group of Delhi are so intent on preparing themselves to face the hard days ahead of them, and ahead of the whole world, in the true Bahá’í spirit of dedication to their great task of laying the spiritual foundation for the glorious future awaiting mankind after the days of its ordeal are past.
He hopes that, in view of the increased range of the war, you will face your task of self-preparation with even greater seriousness and devoutness than you have already done.
The young Bahá’ís of India must take part in all the work of the Indian Bahá’í Community, whether it be in teaching the Cause, pioneering in new territory, attending the Summer School, or aiding in the administrative work of the Faith. Only in this way can they prepare and train themselves for all that they will have to do in the future.
Rest assured that the Guardian takes the deepest interest in your development, and that he often prays for you in the Holy Shrines.
May the almighty Spirit of Bahá’u’lláh guide, sustain, and protect you, and enable you, together with your fellow youth in India and Burma, to promote the interests, and prepare yourselves for cm effective furtherance of the Faith in the days to come.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
— 219 —
December 27, 1941
[To the National Spiritual Assembly][pg 209]
Dear Bahá’í Brother,
The Guardian has instructed me to acknowledge the receipt of your letters dated August 17th, and December 1st, as well as their enclosures.
He read with great interest the report of the progress of the teaching work in Kashmir, as well as the wonderful news of the departure of Mr. Yaganagi and family for Bangalore…
It rejoices his heart to see that the Indian believers are now rising to such noble heights of self sacrifice and utter devotion to the Faith of God, and that they are, despite the great difficulty of these wartimes we are living through, determined to fulfil their Six Year Plan of teaching the Bahá’í Cause in India and Burma, and complete the spread of its divine and healing message to her peoples before the end of the first Bahá’í century.
He was very sad to hear of the persecution of the Bahá’ís of Kadwai by the fanatical Muslim population. Please convey to the friends there the assurance of his most loving prayers for their protection, and tell them that, though they are suffering for their Faith, this very persecution is a blessing to the believers of India, as we know that wherever the Cause has suffered it has always grown stronger and attracted more attention and more adherents.
He was also very pleased to hear of the success of the Summer School this year. The Indian Bahá’ís have every reason to feel encouraged by the marked progress of their activities in all fields.
Regarding your question as to the use of A’rabs on the Arabic texts of the Tablets; The Guardian feels that this is a matter which concerns the entire Bahá’í world, and requires to be worked out by a highly specialized group of qualified people at some future date. He, therefore, wishes you not to print the A’rabs on the Holy Tablets except on rare occasions where it is absolutely necessary in order to distinguish the word from some other word just like it.
In regard to the numbered questions in your August 17 letter:
#1 2,3. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’ is the one who has interpreted the reference of the Báb concerning David, by saying that there were two Davids, one of them was the author of the Psalms. The Tablet in which the Master states this is absolutely authentic, but at the[pg 210] moment the original is not available.
#4. The Báb said that whenever “He whom God will make manifest” appears, accept Him. He never said don’t accept Him until after the lapse of 1000 years. Also Bahá’u’lláh says that in the year 9 of the Bábí Dispensation the time was ripe for the Revelation of “He whom God will make manifest.” As the Báb was not only a Manifestation but a Herald of this Bahá’í Faith, the interval between His Revelation and that of Bahá’u’lláh was of shorter duration. His Dispensation in a sense will last as long as Bahá’u’lláh lasts.
#5. There are no doubtful verses in the Holy Book, the Aqdas. The reason it is not circulated amongst all the Bahá’ís is, first, because the Cause is not yet ready or sufficiently matured to put all the provisions of the Aqdas into effect and, second, because it is a book which requires to be supplemented by detailed explanations and to be translated into other languages by a competent body of experts. The provisions of the Aqdas are gradually, according to the progress of the Cause, being put into effect already, both in the East and the West.
#6. No vowel points, as A’rabs, should be published with any part of the text of the Aqdas. Certain of the Tablets may be translated in Urdu, but not the Aqdas itself, for the reasons mentioned above.
#10. The books of the Báb have not as yet been printed in the original. Except for the Bayán, the Seven Proofs, and Commentary on the Súrah of Joseph, we cannot be sure of the authenticity of most of His other works as the text has been corrupted by the unfaithful.
#11. Nabíl refers to the works of S̱hayḵh Aḥmad and Siyyid Káẓim in his book.
#12. The Universal House of Justice is elected by the members of the National Houses of Justice. At this time when the National Assemblies in the Cause are not yet functioning sufficiently or fully representative of all the various important elements within it, and when some of the Bahá’ís are not even free to practice their faith, despite their numbers, it is quite impracticable to seek to establish the Universal House of Justice. Whenever conditions permit, it will be established…
The Guardian wishes the members of your Assembly to persevere, in spite of the dangers of the war now raging near to India, in the all-important task of fulfilling the Six Year Plan.
He is confident that the friends of India and Burma like their Bahá’í brothers and sisters of other lands, will surmount every obstacle, overcome every difficulty, and emerge victorious at the end of the[pg 211] first Bahá’í Century.
He assures you all of his loving and ardent prayers for the progress of your work, your protection, and guidance in these difficult and momentous days.
Dear and valued co-workers:
The news conveyed by your latest communication has rejoiced my heart. The manner in which the friends have arisen to promote the teaching work throughout their country merits the highest praise. By their enthusiasm, their self-abnegation, the determination and vigour they display, they have lent a fresh impetus to the onward march of the Faith and the expansion of its institutions and the multiplication of its administrative centres. The perils of the present hour, the repercussions of this tremendous world ordeal on their native land, must, in no wise, alarm or discourage them. Their purpose must never be deflected, their enthusiasm never dimmed, their vision never obscured, their exertions never discontinued. Adversity prepares the hearts of men, and paves the way for a wholehearted and general acceptance of the tenets and claims of our beloved Faith. Challenged by the obstacles in their path, encouraged by work already initiated, assured of the Divine Promise of Bahá’u’lláh, let them forge ahead until their goal is attained. My prayers will ever surround them.
Shoghi
— 220 —
DECEMBER 29, 1941
IRRESPONSIBLE SISTER MEHRANGIZ FOLLOWED EXAMPLE MUHSIN ‘S DAUGHTER HER EXPULSION INEVITABLE INFORM FRIENDS
SHOGHI