Task Urgent, Vast and Sacred
[From the Guardian:]
The task facing the members of the Indian Baha'i community in these days of stress and trial, is urgent, vast and sacred. The responsibilities they shoulder are growing in number and complexity. The obstacles in their path are numerous and seemingly insurmountable. The victories, however, which they have won during the concluding years of the first Baha'i century, augur well for the future, and constitute only a preliminary stage in the great work they are destined to accomplish in the years that lie ahead. A unity that is truly unshakable, a consecration to their task which no trial or test can impair, a resolve that no force, however inimical, can shake, a united and systematic endeavour to proclaim and firmly establish their Faith which enemies neither from within nor from without can undermine-all these are vitally required to enable them to achieve their high destiny. To you as their national elected representatives I desire to appeal in particular to exercise the utmost forbearance, care and vigilance, to exert the utmost endeavour, to deliberate, cooperate and carry out with exemplary vigour the necessary measures which the urgency of the task and the criticalness of the hour imperatively demand. That their glorious mission may be crowned with signal success is the object of my constant and fervent prayers at the holy Shrine.
August 9, 1945
Shoulder Heavy Responsibilities
He was very sad to read of the sufferings of the beloved Burmese friends, of the death of that bright star of the Faith, Siyyid Mustafa, and of the murder of many other of the friends! At the same time his heart swelled with pride when he saw that already the believers have re-assembled, elected an Assembly, and started their school again. This shows how deep their faith is, and presages a glorious future for the Cause there.
As you already know he has sent you a sum to be devoted to rebuilding the Baha'i institutions, teaching the Faith, and assisting the friends who are in desperate need. He has also invited other National Assemblies to contribute to this fund, and thus assist your Assembly to carry out this very important task of re-establishing a flourishing Community in Burma.
The Indian believers are finding themselves increasingly called upon to shoulder heavy responsibilities; they are becoming more numerous, have spread to many new centres, undertaken a large publishing program, increased the number of their institutions, and are gradually becoming known to their fellow-Indians as followers of a new and glorious Faith. In view of this he feels your Assembly should constantly exhort the friends to be more conscious of their duties, and to be very careful of having differences of opinion which are so strong as to lead to disputes and thus humiliate our beloved Faith in the eyes of non-Baha'is. The public is beginning to observe them, and they must therefore conduct themselves at all times as befits those who bear the glorious Name of Baha. They must be forgetful of self, but ever mindful of the Cause of God!
[From the Guardian:]
The rehabilitation of the community of the sore-stricken believers throughout Burma constitutes the most urgent task of the Indian believers, and is a direct challenge which they cannot ignore or neglect. The reconstitution of dissolved assemblies, the extension of relief to the needy, the promotion of the teaching work, the dissemination of Baha'i literature, the construction of the Haziras, the re-establishment of schools and committees are all vitally urgent, and should be carried out fully, systematically, and with the utmost speed. I long to hear of the progress of your labours in this important field, upon which the future welfare of the Burmese community depends, and with which the destinies of the Indian believers are closely interwoven. I will pray from the depths of my heart that your meritorious efforts may soon be crowned with magnificent success.
December 18, 1945
Threefold Task
There is no objection to permitting the name of a Baha'i or his relative, to be placed on a stone incorporated in some Baha'i building he has donated to the Faith.
He is delighted with the progress your work is making in every field, and he urges you all to continually stimulate and inspire the friends to make ever greater effort and sacrifice in the service of their beloved Faith.
The opportunity is unique and the rewards of Baha'u'llah inestimably glorious.
[From the Guardian:]
My heart swells with joy, pride, and gratitude as I contemplate the range of the services rendered in recent years by the Indian believers to the Cause of Baha'u'llah. I particularly rejoice at the splendid initiative, the magnificent zeal, the unconquerable spirit that have characterised their recent understanding associated with the new Plan which they have audaciously conceived, and which, I feel confident, they will prosecute with exemplary vigour and constancy. Simultaneous with the united efforts that must be strenuously exerted to ensure its success, a systematic endeavour must be made to proclaim the verities of our glorious Faith to the masses, and to disseminate far and wide its literature. This threefold task requires the concentrated and sustained attention of the rank and file of the believers, the subordination of every consideration to its paramount interests, the extension of generous financial assistance to the agencies designed for its promotion. The believers in India have set an inspiring example to their fellow-believers throughout the East, and even to the great mass of their co-religionists in Baha'u'llah's native land, and have abundantly demonstrated to them all, what organized activity, boldly conceived and soundly and energetically conducted, can achieve when directed and animated by the ennobling influences and the generative spirit of the Faith of Baha'u'llah. Their exploits are indeed unsurpassed by those of any community throughout the Baha'i world except those which stand associated with the community that may well claim to be the standard-bearer of the Cause of God in the West. That these exploits may be the forerunners of still mightier and nobler achievements is my fervent hope and prayer.
March 20, 1946 Baha'is Can Accept Grants-in-aid From The Government
Your question about whether Baha'is can accept grants-in-aid and free plots from Government....
There is no objection, the beloved Guardian says, to the Baha'is receiving this type of help from the Government and civic authorities.
March 24, 1946
Baha'i Holy Days
He thinks it is better for Baha'i doctors not to work on our 9 Holy Days-but, of course, that does not mean they should not attend to very sick people and emergencies on these days.
Voting Rights
As he already told you in a previous communication he feels that your Assembly should not deprive people of their voting rights unless the matter is really very grave; this is a very heavy sanction, and can embitter the heart if lightly imposed, and also make people think we unduly resort to pressure of a strong nature. The friends must be nursed and assisted, for they are still mostly immature spiritually, and their "sins" are those of immaturity! Their hearts are loyal to the Cause, and this is the most important thing.
Responsibilities Immense
[From the Guardian:]
The responsibilities confronting the Indian and Burmese Baha'i Communities, in these days of stress and turmoil, are immense and inescapable. The task facing them is urgent, complex and rich in possibilities. The Plan which they are now striving to carry out demands the utmost vigilance, care, vigour and perseverance. All must arise to lend their assistance, and ensure its unqualified success in all its aspects. An intensification of effort aimed at increasing the number of pioneers who are labouring throughout the length and breadth of that land; a more vigorous and systematic endeavour to ensure the speedy publication of Baha'i literature in all the languages that have already been determined upon and its immediate dissemination as an adjunct to the all-important teaching work; the elimination of every trace of inharmony, misunderstanding and ill-will so detrimental, at this juncture, to the interests of the Plan; the initiation of measures designed to give greater publicity to the aims and purposes of the Faith and its fundamental teachings, through the Press and radio; the adoption and enforcement of whatever measures are required to increase the number of Indian and Muslim converts to the Faith, on whom its ultimate triumph and recognition must depend; the steady consolidation and expansion of newly-established institutions, such as the Summer School, the hostel and the local Haziras; a more liberal and widespread contribution of funds to the National Treasury for the support of these institutions, and for the promotion of the general interests of the Faith-these stand out as the primary duties and obligations of both the participants of the Plan and of those who conduct its operation.
A special effort must simultaneously be exerted to provide whatever is required to re-establish the long-suffering and dearly-loved Burmese community on a secure foundation.
The despatch of competent teachers and visitors to that sorely-tried land; the extension of the necessary relief to those who are still in need; the reconstruction of the administrative headquarters and the re-establishment of the Baha'i school; the construction of the memorial to the beloved and unforgettable pioneer and martyr Siyyid Mustafa; the formation of Assemblies and Groups in as many localities as possible-these constitute the immediate tasks confronting your Assembly in addition to the responsibilities you are called upon to discharge under the new Plan.
No sacrifice can be deemed too great for the achievement of this dual purpose, no effort should be spared in order to carry out in its entirety this twofold objective. May the Beloved grant you the strength you require for the accomplishment of your historic task.
August 2, 1946
Answer to Various Matters
Concerning ... divorce: He has no right to demand from his wife a refund of the marriage expenses he incurred. In the Aqdas it is quite clear that the husband must not only give the dowry but must support his wife until the time when the divorce is completed. In view of this she is not required to repay expenses of the marriage, etc.
The paying of the Huquq is a spiritual obligation; the friends must not be obliged by the Assemblies to pay it, but they should be encouraged to fulfil this spiritual obligation laid upon them in the Aqdas.
He is very pleased to note the list of literature the publishing committee is forwarding to him, and urges you to persevere in pressing the translation and publishing of the New Era in the important languages already chosen for the purpose, as he attaches the greatest importance to this work.
He was also delighted to see that the Srinagar Assembly held its elections. These new Assemblies must receive every aid and encouragement from your Assembly and every effort must be made to carry the Faith to new Centres, and to stimulate pioneering amongst the friends.