'Abdu'l-Bahá at Niagara Falls

A retelling based on Mahmúd's Diary: The Diary of Mírzá Maḥmúd-i-Zarqání.

Mahmúd's Diary records that 'Abdu'l-Bahá reached Buffalo late on the night of September 9, 1912, after a tiring train journey from Montreal by way of Toronto. On the way He had said that He was exhausted. "We have not gone far," He remarked, "yet we feel tired. How will the great distance to California be traversed?" In the path of God, He added, troubles must be regarded as blessings.

The next day, Tuesday, September 10, the friends in Buffalo hastened to meet Him once they heard He had come. Journalists came one after another, and a great number of visitors called in the morning. In the afternoon, after a short walk, and at the request of some of His companions, He took the trolley out to Niagara Falls. It was a long way, Mahmúd notes, and the round-trip fare was fifty cents a person.

The Persian companions had never seen anything like it. Mahmúd describes the great river with its lakes, fields and woods on either side, the height from which the water fell, the spray thrown up by the crashing water like a great sandstorm, and the boats and sailboats on the water below.

'Abdu'l-Bahá went to the edge, admired the falls and recalled the days of Bahá'u'lláh. There were small waterfalls in Mázindarán, He said, which the Blessed Perfection loved so much that He would camp near them for several days. Then He remarked on the power of the water before Him: so much electricity could be generated from it, He said, that it would suffice the whole town, and it was also very good for the health.

He sat on the bank of the river and ate some pears and grapes, and then walked for a while in the park. His companions suggested that He stay there a few days. He replied that even half a day was not possible: "We have no time for amusement. We must keep ourselves engaged in our work."

Sitting on a bench in the middle of the park, He told them He had washed His hair with warm water and no soap, and invited them to see how clean and soft it was. They touched it, Mahmúd writes, and found it soft as silk. Using a Persian expression, he adds that the Master's loving friends were sorely missed at that moment.

On the trolley ride back, newspaper articles about His arrival in Buffalo were read to Him, and at the hotel more journalists were waiting. That evening He spoke on unity and amity between the peoples of the East and the West, and on the degrees of love that bring creation into being. Later He walked with His companions along the lighted storefronts, and where several poor people had gathered He gave a sum of money to each. For dinner He ate a little bread and cheese.

He remained in Buffalo the following day, receiving visitors, before continuing west toward Chicago.

A retelling based on Mahmúd's Diary: The Diary of Mírzá Maḥmúd-i-Zarqání (George Ronald, 1998), entries for September 9–11, 1912. For the fuller account, see the original.

Maḥmúd-i-Zarqání, M.. (1998). *Mahmúd's Diary: The Diary of Mírzá Maḥmúd-i-Zarqání*. George Ronald.