Not Only a Friend but a Real Mother

The ascension of the Greatest Holy Leaf is, indeed, an irreparable loss to us all and will continue to be deeply felt for many, many long years. Her presence among us was such a source of blessings and inspiration! She was to every one of us not only a friend but a real mother, through whose maternal care and love we had learned to feel and experience that consuming love which is born of God and which alone can galvanize the souls of men.

Her departure from our midst, though cruel and heart-rending in its immediate results cannot but ultimately serve the very best interests of the Cause. For this invincible Faith of God has, ever since its inception in darkest Persia, grown and flourished amidst all sorts of tribulations and sufferings and has welcomed all these as providential forces destined to ensure its unity, promote its interests and consolidate its work.

Let us, therefore, not remain disconsolate and hopeless and withstand in a heroic way the shock occasioned by the passing of our beloved Khánum. Her ascension is a challenge to us all, a challenge to our faith, to our sincerity and to our love.

May her memory continue to strengthen and deepen our spiritual insight and enable us to render the Faith as many services as we can.

Source: Letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi, in Bahíyyih Khánum (Bahá'í World Centre, 1982), part IV, no. 3. Text from Project Gutenberg eBook #19242.

Effendi, O. B. O. S.. (1982). *Bahíyyih Khánum*. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/19242/pg19242-images.html