Against War: An Open Letter to World Leaders

By Majdeddin bin Moussa Irani

This originally untitled document by the nephew and son-in-law of Baha’u’llah, dated September 18, 1944, was included in a chapter called “The Two Younger Branches, the Leaves, and Their Spouses” in Shua Ullah Behai’s book manuscript.

Mr. Behai described this open letter as “his [i.e. Mirza Majdeddin’s] recent message to the world.” Written near the end of World War II, it is a short but forceful essay about Baha’u’llah’s teachings of peace, the dangers of excessive industrialization and the decline of religion.

According to Mr. Behai, the letter was “forwarded through the office of the High Commissioner of Palestine to His Majesty King George of Great Britain. Also a copy was sent by registered mail to His Excellency Franklin Delano Roosevelt, President of the United States.” The letter received a polite, brief reply from the British government, which stated that “your message has been laid before His Majesty the King but that the Secretary of State was unable to advise His Majesty to take any action on it.”

Letter:-

To Their Majesties the Kings and Honorable Leaders of State:

I do hereby lay before you an urgent plea that you soften your hearts and agree to decide on a general armistice for the establishment of peace. The wails of suffering humanity are loud and unto the heavens crying “it is enough.” The whole of this planet earth has become as one fierce flaming volcano spilling death and destruction all around. If there is a little corner somewhere that has escaped the fire, it has not escaped the scorching blinding smoke of its burning sides.

The underlying intention of all nations is peace. Had they not formed in the League of Nations a tribunal for the solution of interna­tional problems? This was what Baha’u’llah willed and advised long be­fore its formation. There is no doubt that if all the sister nations, to­gether and in agreement, solved the world’s problem, the waking fire of war would have been safely lulled back to sleep.

Thus spoke Baha’u’llah unto the kings:

Settle ye your disputes amicably among yourselves and ye shall have no need to equip and keep huge armies. For order and peace in your cities and kingdoms ye shall need but litde. Unite, all ye mighty sovereigns, and the storm of dissension will abate: Unite so that your people may live and prosper in peace and comfort.

He also says:

Blessed is the ruler that hath ruled his own self. Blessed is the king that hath mastered his temper. For he that is thus blessed is a lover of peace and a friend to equity; he is an enemy to all that is unjust and tyrannous. The finest fruit that the tree of wisdom hath ever borne is this celestial word: “Ye are all the fruits of one tree, and unto each other like the leaves of one branch. The glory is not to him who loveth his own land only, but to him who loveth the whole world.”

The Divine and Holy Pen to you hath writ: O ye kings and sul­tans, O ye partners of fate, ye princes, sages, and leaders of state, revere and uphold religion. For religion is the cause of all that is just and orderly on the face of the earth. Without it ye shall have no peace. Uphold it with all your might for if its pillars tremble, the wicked multiply and breed, its weakness lends them courage, its absence feme. I tell you in truth that ye may have faith in me, that the little that religion loseth from itself, the evildoers and sin­ners gain a hundredfold. Hearken unto me, [the] All-Seeing and mark my words, for if ye heed them not, there will be nothing save turmoil and the discord of chaos.

Taking away the life of a useless cumbersome old man is a crime the whole world abhors and severely punishes. But on the other hand we witness all around the merciless slaughter of millions of men in the bloom of their youth. Their pure and sacred blood is shed, the hearts of their weeping mothers are wrung and bled, their ldn scattered, their children starved and homes destroyed. We witness an endless chain of misery and suffering but the world seems to stand aside as if in wonder.

No matter what the outcome of war may be, does it balance the cost? The aims of wars are in fact mere hopes and illusions, that are indefinite at best and so grossly vague in themselves. One outcome and one end only is certain: it is misery, destruction and suffering on a grand scale, a heart-rending epic in so eloquent a style. Is this what the Father, Son, and The Holy Spirit ordain?

The tide of this unebbing sea is overflowing with the corpses of the guiltless and the rotting food of the starving and homeless. At the bot­tom of the sea lies the shattered framework of the world’s construction. And yet there is no shimmer of hope to reflect the radiance of peace. Whither from here and when is the end?

There is hardly a spot on the face of the earth that has not felt the guns of the sea, or the bombs of the air; hardly a plot that has not suf­fered, from mountain or plain. The aim is bent and energies focused on one sole object, which is the mass destruction of civilization and hu­manity.

If you have lost the track of truth and become blind to the light of peace, do not forget temperance in your every action. Of temperance Baha’u’llah in one of his tablets says:

The process of civilizing that is being followed by the sages of the industrial countries, if carried to excess and made to overstep the limits of temperance, will lead the people of the world to ruin. Thus speaketh the All-Knowing. For in its excess it doth become a process of vice and sin as much as it was in its temperance a way of new life and betterment. Ponder over these words, ye people, and reflect lest ye be followers in the footsteps of the rash and per­ish. With temperance follow it [i.e. industrial development], for if ye run after it your cities shall bum with the fire of its speed. The Tongue of Omnipotence hath spoken that sovereignty is God’s, the Merciful and Almighty.

How bitterly true these words have been. The cities now burn over the heads of their builders.

It gives me great pain to see the world’s leaders of state who are the most civilized indulge in wars with one another. Though they know the policies and intentions of one another, from the dawn of history until now they have not ceased this interminable stmggle for mutual de­struction. This has come as a result of their own man-made laws along which they are trying to run the universe. Their misery and that of their peoples increases day by day and generation after generation in spite of their professed intention of peace for all on the earth. Even now, though they are rich with the experience of thousands of years, they have not as yet changed what they have become used to. It is time for them who hold the right of life and death over their people to return to the Law of God—that divine law which He has given us so that we may enjoy His gifts and adore His works and so live in peace in happiness.

Listen, O ye mighty Icings, to this my call to you. I am but one of the weak and powerless. I send you this plea, in the eyes of God, seeking no recompense. Hearken unto it, for it embodies the hopes of the suf­fering millions that like me are weak and powerless.

Hoist unto the heavens the banner of armistice; unfold on the earth the healing wing of peace. May you in justice long rule and prosper.

This is from a supplicant that boasts nothing for himself save the power to plead unto God that He may have mercy on him. I humbly pray unto His Almighty Throne that you feel with the weak like me, and may He touch your hearts with the compassion that is His. And may His will be done.

Courtesy:- “A Lost History Of The Baha’i Faith”

Download the soft copy of the book ” A Lost History Of The Baha’i Faith” from the below link:- http://bahai-lost-history.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html

Majdeddin bin Moussa Irani – Nephew & Son in law of Bahaullah

  Majdeddin bin Moussa Irani (before 1945 -1955), usually known to Baha’is as Mirza Majdi’d-Din, was a nephew and son-in-law of Baha’u’llah. He was the son of Baha’u’llah’s brother Moussa, known as Aqay-i- Kalim, who was a strong supporter of the Baha’i cause.

He was married to his cousin Samadiyya, the second daughter of Baha’u’llah. Majdeddin Irani was one of the inner circle of Baha’is until Baha’­u’llah’s passing, and is reported to have been given the honor of reading Baha’u’llah’s will to a group of relatives and important believers.

Later, he became one of the most significant opponents of ‘Abdu’l-Baha and sided with Mohammed Ali Bahai in the schism. He lived to be over 100 years old and continued to support Unitarian Baha’ism until the end.

Reference:- ‘A Lost History Of The Baha’i Faith’

 

 

Open Letter to ‘Abdu’l-Baha

During the winter of 1910-11 I was visited by Mrs. L[ua] Getsinger and Dr. Ameen Fareed, while they were touring the States as Baha’i missionaries. The object of their visit was to guide me to the path which both of them believed then to be the right one. However they were un­successful in their mission.

In X9X2 while my uncle Abdu’l-Baha was visiting the United States, by the authority of my father I humbly wrote him a letter and asked him for a conference to settle the existing differences in our cause. I hereby reproduce the copy of the same:

To His Excellency Abbas Effendi Abdu’l-Baha.

 Dear Sir:

Inasmuch as your views and doctrines in our religion are rad­ically different from those of my father, your younger brother, Mohammed Ali Effendi, who was chosen in the “Book of My Cove­nant,” the Last Will of Baha’u’llah, to occupy after you the same position you occupy now;

And inasmuch as this difference between both of you spread among the followers of Baha’u’llah and divided them into two par­ties, one following you and believing in your personal teachings, and the other party which joined your brother believing in the teachings of Baha’u’llah only and considering them final as He de­clared;

And, inasmuch as we were all commanded in the “Most Holy Book,” Kitab-i-Aqdas, to bring our differences to the utterance[s] of Baha’u’llah, which sufficed the world, whereby they should be settled;

And, inasmuch as our duty is to establish peace at home, among ourselves first, before we preach others to do so;

I hereby beg your Excellency to appoint a conference of peace and spirituality to hold its meetings at the city of Chicago, or some other place, at a certain time, in order to discuss with the language of love and kindness the differences between the said two parties and settle them in accord with the utterances of Baha’u’llah and His commandments.

If it please you, said conference would be composed of your Excellency with some learned ones of your followers, myself and Dr. I. G. Kheiralla, who introduced Baha’ism into America and Christendom, with a few of our party.

My father, Ghusn-i-Akbar, authorized me to state that he will accept and sanction whatever your Excellency would establish with me and with his representative Dr. I. G. Kheiralla.

The official language of said conference shall be the U.S. lan­guage; a neutral interpreter should be hired to translate from the Arabic language all that you would like to say and in the meantime to translate to you all the discussions of the conference. Also to ask the Associated Press to send a reporter to write the minutes of the conference; and to invite three American savants to attend the meetings and act as witnesses and judges.

I suggest the questions and discussions to be the following:

 First: Why your Excellency concealed a part of the “Book of My Covenant,” the Will of Baha’u’llah? That will was entrusted to you that you might give all of it to the followers of Baha’u’llah.

 Second: Ghusn-i-Akbar was chosen to occupy after you the same position you occupy, but your Excellency claimed that he was cut off and fell. How is it possible that he fell from the said position before having had a chance to occupy it?

 Third: What grounds have you to claim that you are the Cen­ter of the Covenant? God only is the Center of the Covenant.

 Fourth: Why do you claim to be the Interpreter of the utter­ances of Baha’u’llah? He declared in the Book of Wisdom that there is no Interpreter to them save Himself.

 Fifth: How could it be that you are the manifestation of servi­tude and Baha’u’llah declared it to Himself only? Also He taught there are no manifestations after Him until one thousand years have passed from His appearance.

 Sixth: Why do you claim the great infallibility, calling your let­ters sacred tablets and revelations? Baha’u’llah said: “Whosoever claimeth a mission before the completion of one thousand years (from His Manifestation) is a lying impostor.”

 Seventh: Why do you teach that this greatest Manifestation has three chiefs, the Bab, Baha’u’llah and yourself? Baha’u’llah said: “There is no one else beside Me in the Kingdom.” Likewise the Bible taught that at the latter days we shall have one shep­herd, only one chief and not three. Also Baha’u’llah said: “He hath no agent, no successor, and no son.”

 Eighth: Why do you claim and in the same breath deny that which you claim?

 Ninth: Why do you not teach and spread the teachings of Baha’u’llah as you were commanded to do, instead of spreading your own?

 I close this open letter, appealing to your Excellency by justice, love and unity to grant my request.

Your humble servant,

The grandson of Baha’u’llah,

Shua Ullah

I forwarded the above letter to ‘Abdu’l-Baha in Chicago, Illinois, where he was staying, but unfortunately I did not receive a reply. When I heard of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s arrival in California I addressed him the same letter again, this time through the press as an open letter, a copy of which appeared in several newspapers throughout the United States.

 A reporter from the Los Angeles Examiner interviewed ‘Abdu’l- Baha and the following reply appeared in that newspaper, October 20, 1912:

“Would you listen to the talk of the drunkard in the street?” [said ‘Abdu’l-Baha]

“Do you class your nephew as one no better than a drunkard?” he was asked.

“Worse,” he benignly replied.

Reference:- ‘A Lost History Of The Baha’i Faith’

Shoghi Effendi Orders Mass Emigration or Excommunication

There are over seventy persons, Baha’i-born men, women and children, residing at Acre and Haifa who are excommunicated.

 Most of the excommunicated persons who live at Acre and Haifa are offspring of those faithful followers who migrated with Baha’u’llah from Baghdad to Adrianople and from there to the great prison of Acre, and the manner of their excommunication is thus:

 A few years ago while Shoghi Effendi was in Europe, through his brother Hussein Effendi, he ordered a few of his followers and their families who had no business connections in Acre and Haifa and were mostly a burden on him financially, to leave for Iran, Syria, Lebanon, or Egypt, with the promise that they should be taken care of by the Baha’i Assemblies at their destinations. Those who left for Iran were to be paid P.L.50, equivalent to $200 traveling expenses and those who left for Syria, Lebanon, and Egypt were to be paid P.L. 20, equivalent to $80.

 Some of the families obeyed and left Palestine. Those who mi­grated to Iran received no assistance as promised and were left des­titute. When they applied for help from the Assemblies, they were informed that they had been banished from Palestine and under the circumstances, what did they expect! Finally, after severe hardship, a few of them secured employment and are earning a simple living. Oth­ers pleaded by mail to Shoghi Effendi to be permitted to return to Pal­estine, but were refused.

 After a few months, another order came, for more families to leave Acre and Haifa. This time the order affected those who were in busi­ness, shopkeepers of old standing, some who had inherited their busi­nesses from their fathers. A few of the faithful followers obeyed the orders, disposed of their merchandise at a loss and left. But a few fam­ilies made excuses and pleaded for mercy, explaining that they were born and bred here, and could not go to a foreign land and make a liv­ing. But their pleadings were rejected and they were threatened with excommunication if they disobeyed; and so, they were all excommuni­cated.

 After a while came the turn of the rest of Shoghi Effendi’s followers, who were property owners and government employees. This time the majority revolted and disobeyed; and so they were all excommunicated.

Reference:- ‘A Lost History Of The Baha’i Faith’

Shoghi Effendi Excommunicates His Family

Another occurrence was the excommunication and the expulsion of the members of the household of ‘Abdu’l-Baha and the majority of the followers in the cities of Acre and Haifa, Palestine.

 A few years after the departure [i.e. death] of the Holy Leaf Bahiyyih Khanum, sister of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, and after Shoghi Effendi was in­vested with the supreme and infallible power by the above-mentioned Declaration of Trust and By-Laws, by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States and Canada, the air of dissension appeared among the members of the household of ‘Abdu’l-Baha. His twin daughters Touba Khanum and Ruha Khanum with their families took up residence in Beirut, Lebanon, and the youngest daughter Munawar Khartum with her husband Aqa Ahmad Yazdi resided mostly in Europe and Egypt.

 When the war [i.e. World War II] started, they were all obliged to return to Palestine, and ever since they have made their homes in Naz­areth and on Mount Carmel, and none of them associate with Shoghi Effendi.

 Practically all the family of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, including the two broth­ers and sisters of Shoghi Effendi and their husbands and wives, are ei­ther excommunicated or expelled from the community circle by Shoghi Effendi.

Reference:- ‘A Lost History Of The Baha’i Faith’

The Beliefs and Allegations of Ruth White

Shua Ullah Questions Mohammed Ali Effendi

 Q. Mrs. Ruth White, a rebel member of the [Baha’i organization led by] the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States and Canada, in her published book entitled The Bahai Religion and Its Enemy, the Bahai Organization, emphatically denies the authenticity of the will of ‘Abdu’l-Baha Abbas, and with firm conviction states that your Excellency assisted Shoghi Effendi in fabricating the said will?

 Ans: Shoghi has never been in my presence, and I do not know him personally. Mrs. Ruth White’s accusations are untrue. It is in-deed surprising to observe that progressive Occidentals satisfied themselves with hearsay, and passed judgment without investigation.

Indeed the name of the said book is very appropriate, but I regret that I cannot agree to all it contains. I personally sympathize with Mrs. White in her allusions [i.e. regarding the danger of the Baha’i organization to the religion itself], but she should have exercised the law of investigation before passing judgment. No court of law, whether judicial or theological, would render judgment without a hearing.

Independent investigation of truth is one of the great Baha’i principles, but unfortunately it is not practiced.

Referance:- “A Lost History Of The Baha’i Faith”

 

Avarih Leaves The Faith

ern‘Abdu’l-Husayn Ayati, known to Baha’is as Avarih (also spelled Avareh or Avara), was an Iranian Baha’i missionary, writer, and secondary school teacher. ‘Abdu’l-Baha appointed him to the position of Hand of the Cause of God and commissioned him to write an authorized history of the Babi and Baha’i faith in Persian, which was published in 1923. He later renounced his Baha’i faith and was designated as a “Covenant-breaker” by Shoghi Effendi. In a book he wrote explaining his apostasy, Mr. Ayati claimed that ‘Abdu’l-Baha had in­structed him to distort some historical facts in his earlier book in order to con­form with ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s preferred account of events. Baha’is have attempted to expunge the memory of Avarih’s important position and contributions to the faith, as documented by Vance Salisbury in “A Critical Examination of 20th- Century Baha’i Literature” (available online at http://bahai-library.com/ salisbury_critical_examination_literature).

Hasan Niku was a leading Iranian Baha’i missionary who, after leaving the Baha’i faith, published a book explaining why he became disillusioned with the movement. Among other things, he accused ‘Abdu’l-Baha of excessive worldly ambition and desire for money, and criticized him for writing flattering epistles to wealthy and powerful people whom he hoped to win as disciples.

Reality was a commercial magazine founded by liberal Baha’is in 1919, which covered the Baha’i faith and other topics of interest to spiritual progressives of the day such as metaphysics and socialism. The magazine grew increasingly critical of some of the beliefs and leadership of the organized Baha’i community, especially when Shoghi Effendi Rabbani became the Baha’i Guardian in the early 1920s. After 1926, the magazine shifted its attention away from Baha’i issues and towards other subjects, and in 1929 it ceased publication.

Reference:- “A Lost History Of The Baha’i Faith”

The Shocking Appointment of Shoghi Effendi

Shoghi Effendi Rabbani was the son of Mirza Hadi Alban and Zia’iyya Khanum, eldest daughter of His Excellency ‘Abdu’l-Baha.

Shoghi Effendi was appointed in the will of ‘Abdu’l-Baha as su­preme leader of the Baha’is, in defiance of the commands of the Great Baha’u’llah in his will entitled Kitab-i-‘Ahdi (i.e. the Book of My Cove­nant), wherein the second son of Baha’u’llah, Ghusn-i-Akbar, Moham­med Ali, is designated as successor to Ghusn-i-A‘zam, ‘Abdu’l-Baha.

Baha’u’llah says: “Verily God hath ordained the station of the Mightiest Branch (Ghusn-i-Alcbar) after the station of the former [i.e. Ghusn-i-A‘zam]. Verily He is the Ordainer, the Wise. We have surely chosen the Mightiest (Akbar) after the Greatest (A’zam) as a command from the All-Knowing, the Omniscient.”

It appears that the will of ‘Abdu’l-Baha was written when Shoghi Effendi was only ten or eleven years of age.

Many unfortunate events took place since Shoghi Effendi has presided over the Baha’i affairs. Dissatisfaction prevailed among the Baha’is everywhere, in the East as in the West. Numerous prominent Baha’i teachers severed their connections with the Baha’i centers. Baha’ism was suppressed by the governments of several countries, namely Iran, Turkey, and Germany.

Two Iranian Baha’i teachers, ‘Abdu’l-Husayn Avara  and Hasan

Nilcu,left the cause entirely. The former even changed his surname to Ayati, and both of them wrote several books and pamphlets against this movement, and flooded the Eastern Hemisphere with their antagonistic propaganda.

In the United States of America, the Reality magazine  was the first Baha’i publication that revolted against the supremacy of the Baha’i organization, and finally the dispute was ended with an unfortunate decision, namely the excommunication of the members of that publication.

Reference:- Extract taken from the book ‘A Lost History Of The Baha’i Faith’

The Baha’i Faith Under Shoghi Effendi Rabbani

By Shua Ullah Behai

This chapter is reproduced from a chapter in Shua Ullah Behai’s book manuscript called simply “Shoghi Effendi Rabbani.”

Shoghi Rabbani, usually called Shoghi Effendi by Baha’is, was the eldest grandson of ‘Abdu’l-Baha. He was born in 1897 and died in 1957, more than ten years after Shua Ullah Behai’s manuscript was written. Even though Mr. Rabbani’s leadership of the Baha’i faith continued for a considerable time beyond the scope of this chapter, the major themes of his “Guardianship” as perceived by the Unitarian Baha’is are all addressed: his appointment to the office in violation of Baha’u’llah’s appointment of Mohammed Ali Bahai to succeed ‘Abdu’l-Baha; the clash between, on the one hand, his loyal followers who created a more tightly regulated Baha’i organization, and on the other hand, various liberal Baha’is who resisted this development; his expulsion of all his relatives and numerous other Baha’is from the faith community; and his organization’s failed attempt to sue dissenting Baha’is into silence or submission.
Reference:- ‘A Lost History Of The Baha’i Faith’

Read the full chapter online. Visit blog:- http://bahai-lost-history.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html

Article by Giladi in Ma’ariv

In its issue No. 1353 dated June 6,1952, the evening Hebrew newspaper Ma’ariv published a lengthy article by the well-known writer N. Giladi  on the Baha’i movement and the history of its founder and its leaders, in which he discusses the existing dissensions between the members of the family. I quote hereunder for information a verbatim translation of the article for the particular attention of the Baha’i family and the Baha’is all over the world.

Some Parts of the Article:-

The Baha’i religion, called religion of brotherhood, religion of light or Persian religion, will celebrate shortly the centennial anniversary of its founder Baha’u’llah (the Light of God).

This event is to be celebrated in the midst of a great schism besetting the Baha’i family, whose sixty members oppose the self- imposed leadership of Shoghi Rabbani.

While the nature of the dispute within the sect is spiritual, yet it has a material and social aspect as well.

While his antagonists contend that in the founder’s will his son, Abbas Effendi is nominated as successor to be followed by his second son Mohammed Ali Effendi, they claim that Shoghi Rabbani violated the succession order and unjustly took the crown to himself.

The dissension in the prophet’s family has been lately brought before the law courts. Only a fortnight ago the public cherished the hope that the Ministry of Religious Affairs might reconcile the opponents.

The [Baha’i] community has property considered holy by all the adherents of this religion. In northern Acre there exists the house where the founder lived and his tomb. The house has been turned into a museum but is also being utilized as a shelter for pilgrims from overseas. This property, six-sevenths of which is registered in the name of the Baha’i family opposing the leader-ship of Shoghi Rabbani, forms a bone of contention which may be settled by litigation. But matters relating to spiritual values where principles of faith are involved cannot be solved or determined by human judgment. For this reason the opponents had resort to the law courts when Shoghi Rabbani ordered the demolition of a part of the said property.

When the demolition was started the opponents obtained a court’s order for the stoppage of work. Consequently the head of the [Baha’i] community approached the Ministry of Religious Affairs in the matter, and a notice served by the Deputy Minister declared the property to be considered as a holy place and accordingly the dispute fell outside the jurisdiction of civil courts. Under the circumstances the opponents lodged a case in the High Court against the Deputy Minister for Religious Affairs on the basis that the declaration of the place as holy was made without their knowledge.

At this juncture when the Deputy Minister foresaw the serious developments that might arise, [he] began taking steps in order to reach a reconciliation. The main argument of the opposition was that they were not permitted access to the property, which although partially their own by right yet was wholly theirs spiritually.  Mediation bore fruit as Rabbani agreed to permit his

opponents both to use the house where the founder lived and to visit his tomb.

The lifting of the prohibition has reverted the dispute to its initial point and fresh developments are expected to ensue. 

Courtesy:- “A Lost History Of The Baha’i Faith”

Download the soft copy of the book ” A Lost History Of The Baha’i Faith” from the below link:- http://bahai-lost-history.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html