December, 1923: To the Baha'is of India and Burma

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout India, and Burma. Care of the National Spiritual Assembly.

My dearest friends:

It is a great pleasure and privilege for me to renew the bonds of fellowship and affection that have always united our hearts in the service of our beloved Master. I need not recall to your minds the warm and abiding place which that gifted Dominion has always occupied in our Beloved's heart, and the high hopes He cherished for its future 'contribution towards the triumph of the Movement in those distant regions of the earth.

I am sure the hour has struck when those dearly-beloved pioneers of the Master's Cause, scattered throughout the length and breadth of that vast and promising land, should unite, consolidate their forces, and effectively combine for the laying of a firm foundation for the future progress of their noble task. It is my earnest hope and my most cherished desire that at the forthcoming convention the vigour and enlightened efforts of the Bahá'í youth of India, coupled with the generous support and devotion of the old beloved Parsee friends, and reinforced by the vast numbers of the ardent followers of the Faith in Burma, may, by imparting power and brilliancy to its proceedings, herald an era of unprecedented activity for the ultimate recognition of the Cause by the peoples of that country.

I shall welcome with genuine satisfaction every effort which that talented and untiring servant of Bahá'u'lláh, our highly esteemed sister Mrs Stannard, may exert in this connection, and would feel truly gratified to learn of her determination to play a conspicuous part in the presentation of the Cause in the eyes of the enlightened public. May the sustaining grace of God, the power of Bahá'u'lláh, and the loving counsels of our beloved 'Abdu'1-Baha guide you and aid you in your mighty endeavours for the accomplishment of your task.

2 June 1923: To the Baha’is in Mandalay, Daidanaw-Kalazoo, and Tanbingyanng

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Mandalay, Daidanaw-Kalazoo, and Tanbingyanng . Care of Aga Seyed Mustapha, Mandalay, Burma.

Dearly beloved brethren and sisters in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá!

The detailed report I have recently received from the tried and faithful servant of Bahá’u’lláh, Aqa Seyed Mustapha, regarding the progress of your labours in those remote regions of the world has filled my heart with hope and gladness, and has served to fortify the ties of loving fellowship that bind our hearts together in the service of His Cause.

I have read and re-read the account of your activities with profound interest, and have been deeply touched to realize how constantly and fervently you are carrying on the work entrusted to your charge. May His Spirit guide you, sustain you and protect you in all your endeavours, and make of you the vanguard of His Host that shall conquer the world.

I shall await the joyful news of the expansion of your work, the establishment of your Magazine, the consolidation of your Assemblies, the increase of your numbers, with keen interest, and wish to assure you again and again of my readiness and desire to help you and serve you in your efforts to promote the Cause in even the uttermost corners of the world.

By day and by night, in my hours of prayer and meditation, I tenderly remember every one of you, and pray from the bottom of my heart, for your spiritual happiness, material prosperity, and ultimate success in your sacred mission in this world.

I shall be most pleased to receive frequent and direct letters from every Bahá’í locality in Burma, and will not fail to do all I can to stimulate your work, and extend your activities throughout that distant province.

May the day be not far distant when the few and ardent followers of the Faith in that land, will have increased a hundred fold, and the promises of our beloved ‘Abdu’l-Bahá strikingly and speedily fulfilled.

Your brother and fellow-worker,

Shoghi

Haifa, Palestine

(Messages of Shoghi Effendi to the Indian Subcontinent 1923-1957)

1 June 1923: To the Baha’is in Rangoon

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Rangoon.  Care of the members of the Spiritual Assembly.

Dearly beloved brethren and sisters in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá!

Your most welcome letter has rejoiced my heart, and has redoubled my confidence and hope in that little band of earnest and ardent followers of the Bahá’í Faith who labour so devotedly for the diffusion of the Light of Bahá’u’lláh throughout the world.

The glowing account you give me of your recent efforts and activities to extend and consolidate the Campaign of Service in that land has been shared with the resident friends and pilgrims in the Holy Land, and incorporated in the circular letter which the Haifa Spiritual Assembly addresses to the Bahá’í world. It will send, I am sure, a thrill of enthusiasm and courage throughout the body of the friends the world over, and will serve to strengthen the ties that bind us all to you, our beloved co-workers in that far-eastern land!

I am looking forward with the greatest interest, to the time when your high hopes will have been fully realized, your plans fulfilled and your selfless efforts crowned with glorious success. It is my fervent hope and prayer that your endeavours to constitute a Central Council for all Burma, and establish a Bahá’í Magazine, exclusively devoted to the progress of the work in that province, will soon bear abundant fruit, and will stand a testimony to the efficiency, the energy and the zeal of the beloved Burmese friends.

May our loving and ever-watchful Master, guide and protect you in all the services you are so whole-heartedly tendering to His sacred Threshold, and may He enable you to contribute your full share in carrying out His Great Purpose for mankind!  This is my prayer for you all whenever I visit the Three Holy Shrines, and I feel certain that He will not fail to answer it, if we but hold fast to those principles for which He lived, laboured and died.

Awaiting your joyful news, I am your devoted brother,

Shoghi

Haifa, Palestine

(Messages of Shoghi Effendi to the Indian Subcontinent 1923-1957)