Tea at the Holy Tomb

A retelling based on The Diary of Juliet Thompson (Kalimát Press; diary entry for 4 July 1909). The narrative is retold in our own words; the lines in quotation marks are verbatim from the Diary. Read the full text for Juliet's own account.

In the summer of 1909 Juliet Thompson, a painter from New York, was a pilgrim in 'Akká. On the morning of 4 July 'Abdu'l-Bahá took her and her fellow pilgrims to the Tomb of Bahá'u'lláh at Bahjí. Among them were Mr Kinney and his two small sons, Sandy and Howard. The Master came to the carriage and watched them set off, and at the house in Bahjí He joined them in a whitewashed room with blue door and window trimmings.

Tea was brought in the little clear glasses always used in 'Akká, and 'Abdu'l-Bahá served the pilgrims with His own hands. Then He called the four children who were with them: the two Kinney boys and two of His own grandsons, Shoghi Effendi and Rúhí. He drew all four to His knees and held them in His arms. Then He set them down on the floor, rose, and brought them their tea Himself. He sat on the floor among them, put sugar into their tea, stirred it and fed it to them, smiling all the while. In a corner an old Persian believer sat with his head bowed and tears running down his cheeks.

Afterward the Master spoke to the pilgrims about the gifts of God, which cannot be fully realized in this world but become clear in the next. Then He gave each of them a handful of jasmine and led them one by one to the jasmine-strewn threshold of the Tomb. As they knelt there He anointed their foreheads with attar of rose and lifted each of them to their feet. Then He chanted, and afterwards asked Mr Kinney to chant; then, at His request, the pilgrims sang "Nearer, My God, to Thee."

When they left the Tomb He said, "Come and I will show you My garden." He led them out over a stony field, with Sandy pressed close to one side and Howard to the other. After about a quarter of a mile He stopped and pointed out over the Mediterranean. "Look," He said, "the sea, the sea!" Mr Kinney said, "America lies beyond." The Master answered:

America and this land are one. The world is one—is one! America and this land are one. The five continents of the world are one. All the nations are one, through the Power of Bahá'u'lláh.

A retelling based on The Diary of Juliet Thompson. For the fuller account, see the original.

Thompson, J.. (1947). *The Diary of Juliet Thompson*. Kalimát Press. https://bahai-library.com/thompson_diary