'Abdu'l-Bahá in London

Bahá'í Publishing Trust
27 Rutland Gate
London SW7 IPD

Commemorative Edition
Published December 1987 on the 75th
Anniversary of 'Abdu'l-Bahá's second visit to the British Isles

First published in 1912 through the good offices
of Lady Blomfield

ISBN 0 900125 89 6
ISBN 0 900125 50 0 (cased)

Publisher's Note: As certain original materials, upon which this work is based, are now unavailable it is no longer possible to verify some of the translations of 'Abdu'l-Bahá's words

Printed and bound in Great Britain by
Richard Clay Ltd, Bungay, Suffolk

The Travail of the World

WHY are the nations in travail to the utmost ends of the earth?
From the East to the West what signs are these?
What Saviour struggles to birth?
China wakes from her age-long sleep, for the Land of the rising Sun
Has shown the East she may vie with the West for the cargo and the gun;

Yellow and swarthy, Mongol and Moor,
You shall reckon with these, my son,

Who shall bind the East to the West? Who shall make one these twain?
The Buddha LordÐthe Enlightened-One, or He of the Jordan Plain?
Allah's Prophet, or He who of late by the foot of Carmel trod,
Persia's holiest Son who shone forth with the splendour of God?

Never the East Shall cleave to the West
Till the gods share the same abode.

The Moslem from the Koran hears the Truth that he must learn;
The Hindu in the Vedas sees the Way his feet should turn;

In Moses and the Prophets the Jew restores his soul;

The Christian in the Gospel finds the Life which is the Whole;

And all may read the self-same speech,
No matter what the scroll.

That God is one; that men are one; that Faith is ever the same;
That Love is still the nearest word to hint the nameless Name.
This is the Creed of the East and the West when you plumb to the depths, my son,
For the Word of the Lord is unity, and the Will of the Lord shall be done.

Hands are black, white, yellow or brown,
But the hue of the heart is one.

HARROLD JOHNSON
By the courtesy of the Daily News

Contents

Introduction	11
PUBLIC ADDRESSES
At the City Temple (Introduction)	17
At the City Temple	19
At St. John's Westminster (Introduction)	21
At St. John's Westminster	22
At the Theosophical Head Quarters (Introduction)	26
At the Theosophical Head Quarters	27
Meeting of Farewell (Introduction)	31
Meeting of Farewell	33
At the Higher Thought Centre	40
The Christian Commonwealth	42
Discourse at Miss Rosenberg's	44
Discourse at Mrs. Thornburgh-Cropper's	46
Unity Meeting at Miss Jack and Miss Herrick's	48
NOTES OF CONVERSATIONS
The Arrival in London	53
Discourse to an assembly of Theosophists	58
Notes of a Conversation	68
A Bahá'í Wedding	77
The Visit to Bristol	81
At Byfleet	85
Days in London	101
The Farewell	113
An Interview given to the Weekly Budget	114
A Farewell Greeting	122
Greetings from Paris to London	125
Message to the London Bahá'ís	127

Foreword

Over a period of twenty three months in the years 1911 to 1913 what we would nowadays call a "prisoner of conscience" travelled extensively throughout Europe and North America. 'Abdu'l-Bahá 'Abbás had been released from Ottoman captivity in 1901 after more than half a century of exile, imprisonment, and house arrest. He was sixty-five years old, and His health had been impaired by what He had experienced; yet upon His release He planned and undertook this venture, in a spirit to which His very name bore witness.
'Abdu'l-Bahá ("the Servant of Baha") was the eldest son of Mirzá Husayn-'Al’ Nuri, known to history as Bahá'u'lláh, "the Glory of God", founding figure of the Bahá'í faith and believed by Bahá'ís to be the Manifestation, or Messenger, of God for this day. On His Father's passing in 1892 'Abdu'l-Bahá became head of the religion, whose ideals and teachings He was destined to spread.
He visited Britain in 1911, staying most of the time in London, but returned late the following year for a more extensive tour that took Him as far as Edinburgh. In this country as elsewhere He was well received. His dignified bearing and genuinely loving manner won over those who met Him. The sufferings He had undergone without bitterness moved them. The message he gave, of love, unity, the oneness of mankind, and the harmony of religions appealed to all who saw beyond that time's rigid structure of class, creed, and race.
Contemporary accounts and newspaper reports

testify to the extent and the success of 'Abdu'l-Bahá's exertions. Yet to outward seeming the result was short lived, swept away in the frenzy of nationalism and militarism that came upon the world in August 1914, and defeated by the pessimism and cynicism that followed what we still call the Great War.
In fact, by a process of patient development largely guided by 'Abdu'l-Bahá's grandson Shoghi Effendi, who succeeded Him on His passing in 1921 and headed the Bahá'í faith until his own death in 1957, the community grew, expanded, put down roots, and developed the administrative structure that would ensure its survival through later upheavals. As a result there are now Bahá'ís throughout the world, represented by some 150 national and 33,000 local Assemblies, their literature translated into almost 800 languages, and the status of their faith as an independent world religion widely recognised by religious and legal authorities.
Bahá'ís are striving to put into practice the ideals which 'Abdu'l-Bahá exemplified in His life and work. It is therefore fitting that as their faith comes more to public notice this little book should be reprinted. A famous English author once wrote that "The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there." Perhaps they do, but the spirit behind some things is changeless.

IAIN S. PALIN.
September 1987 C.E.

Introduction

COMPARATIVELY few of the faithful in London or in Paris had been blessed by the ability to journey to 'Akká to see 'Abdu'l-Bahá face to face; to hear his voice; to be fed bodily and spiritually by him in his own proper person. Many longed to behold him, to converse with him, but were prevented by varying difficulties. The steadfast believer who had diligently kept the lamp aflame in England was found able to hint that as the Teacher's fetters had at last been unlocked and his prison gates thrown open, he might gain health and solace by travel; might, indeed, visit his people in the West. To them such joy seemed almost beyond belief and when delay occurred they asked one another doubtfully "Where is the promise of his coming?" The fulfillment of joy came to them with his advent. He arrived in London with the quiet of the Most Great Peace, practically unheralded. The primary and ultimate purpose of his coming was the establishment of the quiescence of that Most Great Peace.
Installed under the roof of one whom he has called his "respected daughter," he was immediately and happily "at home," all the day long and every day, to visitors who thronged to pay him homage and receive his benediction. The atmosphere surrounding him harmonized with the perfect tone of 'Abdu'l-Bahá's own untiring

courtesy and benevolence. Professors of differing creeds came and were conquered by the charm of his manner and the conviction of his soul. His message of Unity sank deep into the hearts of his listeners, whatever the faith those listeners adhered to.
Many questions were put to him by many persons. His answers, though perhaps handicapped by necessary interpretation, surprised and delighted his hearers. His grip of their thought; his quick and ardent replies, were wondered at and cordially received. Very occasionally he was persuaded to drive through some of the City's teeming streets or into one or other of the parks, aglow with the sunshine of a splendid summer. Occasionally, also, much to the delight and uplifting of the Bahá'ís, he was conveyed to the group-centres. There he delivered discourses, usually brief, but always to the point, bearing directly upon his mission and his message. His voice was always vibrant with the utterances of unity and peace. Only once or twice did he permit himself the pleasure of visiting friends in the country. A typical village within an easy motor drive; a big town in the westÐBristol; at these he found not only hospitable entertainment but very reverent and heedful gatherings. On certain other memorable days 'Abdu'l-Bahá addressed great audiences in places of worship and of social service. The pastor of the City Temple, the Reverend R. J. Campbell, M.A. introduced him, in most kindly words, to an overflowing congregation who heard 'Abdu'l-Bahá with

intense interest; the address being rendered in English immediately afterwards,
At St. John's Church, Westminster, the venerable Archdeacon Wilberforce, performed a similar office, the congregation, at his desire, kneeling to receive 'Abdu'l-Bahá's blessing. At the Passmore Edwards' Settlement in Tavistock Place, crowded audiences assembled to see and hear.
A profound impression remained in the minds and memories of all sorts and conditions of men and women. The width of 'Abdu'l-Bahá's sympathy proved, in every instance, as helpful as his discrimination and perspicacity in dealing with difficulties whether subtle or obvious. Each person approaching him found himself understood and was astonished and relieved by 'Abdu'l-Bahá's comprehension of religious differences; above all, of religious agreements. By way, sometimes, of brief but masterly monologue; or, at other times, by way of question and reply, themes of individual or universal interest were handled and explained.
Very greatly was 'Abdu'l-Bahá's sojourn in London appreciated; very greatly his departure regretted. He left behind him many, many friends. His love had kindled love. His heart had opened to the West and the Western heart had closed around this patriarchal presence from the East. His words had in them something that appealed not only to their immediate hearers, but to men and women generally. His outlook was so hopeful; his soul so set on the promulgation of the

principles of unity and peace, that his discourses and his answers could not be permitted to remain unrecorded. This attempt to reproduce them for the benefit of all who will read is made in the sure and certain hope that, by virtue of them, the aim and work of the speaker may be grasped and his endeavour be endorsed by the professors of all creeds, the inhabitants of all climes.

ERIC HAMMOND.

Public Addresses