On 15 October, 1960,
some three years after the passing of Shoghi Effendi, the first beloved
Guardian of the Faith, the former Hands of the Cause in Haifa, who had
upon his passing, publicly declared to the Baha’i world that the
institution of the Guardianship had come to an end with his passing,
notwithstanding, sent a letter to all National Spiritual Assemblies
signed by them: “In the service of the beloved Guardian,
Hands of the Cause in the Holy Land.” This letter is of
considerable historical importance since in making such a declaration
they, in fact, the Hands had thereby ignobly registered publicly their
infidelity to, and betrayal of, both Abdu’l Baha and Shoghi Effendi, in
consequence of which, they had forfeited their rank as Hands of the
Cause, a rank that had been bestowed upon them by Shoghi Effendi during
the closing years of his ministry. Future Baha’i historians will
certainly record their ignominious downfall as one that had reduced the
rank of these Hands to an even lower degree than that to which Judah
Iscariot and Umar had fallen during the respective Dispensations of
Christ and Muhammad. For, instead of remaining faithful to the mandate
contained in the sacred Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Baha that enjoined
them to remain “under his shadow and obey his command.”* [i.e. the
living Guardian of the Cause of God] they had joined the ranks of the
unfaithful who sought to “disobey and seek division,”* an act for
which they would bring down upon themselves “the wrath of
God and His vengeance”*
*(From the Will and Testament, p. 12)
Although their
letter had contained a quotation from the Will and Testament of
Abdu’l-Baha they had taken no heed of the following warning contained in
that same Document:
"Beware, beware, lest the days after
the ascension (of Baha’u’llah) be repeated, when the Centre of Sedition
waxed haughty and rebellious and with Divine Unity for his excuse
deprived himself and perturbed and poisoned others."
And despite of
the strong warnings of Abdu’l Baha in His sacred Will and Testament “they
advanced a pretext, raised the standard of revolt, waxed stubborn and
opened wide the door of false interpretation.”
Shamelessly,
at the end of their letter, they have quoted the following from Abdu’l
Baha:
" ...O God, my God! I call Thee, Thy Prophets
and Thy Messengers, Thy Saints and Thy Holy Ones, to witness that I
have declared conclusively Thy Proofs unto Thy loved ones and set forth
clearly all things unto them, that they may watch over Thy Faith, guard
Thy Straight Path and protect Thy Resplendent Law. Thou art, verily, the
All-Knowing, the All-Wise!" While they had shunned the Guardian of
the Cause of God and disregarded the Will and Testament which
proclaims:
“The mighty stronghold shall remain
impregnable and safe through obedience to him who is the Guardian of the
Cause of God.”
(Abdu'l-Baha, The Will and
Testament, p. 11)
The discussion below shall be confined
only to the false interpretation that the former Hands placed upon the
word ‘branch’ as it appears in the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Baha
and the consequent confusion and misunderstanding that they created
amongst the believers in this regard.
The letter of
the now violating Hands failed to present any rational logic and it
contains statements that are clearly contradictory to the provisions of
the Will and Testament of Abdu’l Baha and the writings of Shoghi
Effendi. Ironically, they themselves wrote:
“It has
become clear during the past months that lack of knowledge of the
meaning of the word "branch" as used in the Master's Will and Testament
has led to great confusion in certain quarters in the West.”
(Ministry of the Custodians, p. 232)
The fact is that there
should have been no confusion. It was the errant Hands themselves, in
their rebellion against and opposition to the continuing Guardianship,
who had created confusion about the meaning of the word ‘branch’ for
they, although clearly lacking any authority to do so, came up with
their own erroneous interpretation as to the meaning of this word as
contained in the following statement:
“The word 'Ghusn'
(plural Aghsan) is an Arabic word, meaning branch. Baha’u’llah used this
word specifically to designate His own male descendants.
It does not apply to any other category of people. He gave the title to
'Abdu'l-Bahá of 'The Most Great Branch,’ His second son, Mehdi, 'the
Purest Branch', etc. The Guardian himself is designated in the Master's
Will as 'the Chosen Branch'. All the male relatives of the Báb. are
invariably referred to as "Afnan", which means "twigs".
“These two
designations are not interchangeable.”
“Over and over in
Baha’u’llah’s Tablets these terms Aghsan and "Afnan" are specifically used in this
sense,
“For instance, in the Tablet of the Branch,
the original word "Ghosn" (i.e. branch), refers to 'Abdu'l-Bahá.”
(Custodians, Ministry of the Custodians, p. 233)
At first
glance the first paragraph in the quotation above seems to be correct,
but it is questionable why they capitalized the first letters of the
words ‘ghusn’ and ‘aghsan’ but then didn’t capitalize the first letter
“b” in its translated meaning of ‘branch’? Later, when their baseless
assertion about the use of caps is made, their reason for doing this
comes to light. Their statement in the second paragraph is an outright
falsehood, because the Arabic word ‘ghusn’ refers to a division or
subdivision of the stem or axis of a tree or shrub, similarly to the
meaning of the word ‘branch’ in English. Whenever this word is used by
itself it carries the original meaning of ‘branch’. In the writings of
Baha’u’llah there will be found several instances of the usage of the
word ‘ghusn’ and its plural ‘aghsan’ which simply means ‘branch’ or
‘branches’ as defined previously.
It must be noted that
similarly to the use of the word ‘branch’ in English to define sections
or subdivisions such as: branches of learning and science, of a library,
a river, etcetera, the word ‘ghusn’ and its plural ‘aghsan’ in its
relationship with other words has been used in the writings of
Baha’u’llah in representational or symbolic ways, but significantly they
have usually been employed to portray spiritual relationships or
intellectual realities, even when used in their negative sense such as
in the term ’aghsan-i-kebr’ which means ‘branches
of haughtiness’ that can be found in one of Baha’u’llah’s
Tablets in its original language in the book:
(Majmuih-yi-Alvah-i-Mubarakih, (Chap-i-Misr, p. 184)
Half a century
has elapsed since this false interpretation was made and publicized by
the errant Hands of the Cause and all of these former Hands have died
without their having presented any evidence from the writings of
Baha’u’llah in support of their false statement that He had “used this
word specifically to designate
all of His male descendants.” Neither has, nor will, the Hands-made
bogus UHJ ever be able to do so either.
Baha’u’llah has
conferred a superlative or comparative appellation upon each of His sons
prefaced by the *Ghusn,* such as *Ghusn-I-Azam* (Greatest Branch),
*Ghusn-I-Athar* (Purest Branch), or *Ghusn-I-Akbar* (Greater Branch).
He never conferred upon anyone other than His sons such titles or never
did He write anything designating His other male
descendants in such a manner.
The former Hands have written:
“The Guardian
himself is designated in the Master's Will as 'the Chosen Branch'.”
It must be
noted that in the Master’s sacred Will and Testament, translated into
English by Shoghi Effendi, contrary to the translation of the terms of
the Will and Testament wherein the former Hands have referred to the
Guardian as the “Chosen Branch,” Shoghi Effendi has used the lower case
form of the letter “b” in reference to the Guardian as “the chosen
branch” who had moreover, been identified by Abdu’l-Baha in this
same document as the ‘sign of God’ and ‘the
Guardian of the Cause of God,’ terms that obviously referred to the
station of Guardianship and not solely to the personage of Shoghi
Effendi (and, therefore, not meant as a personally exclusive title that
pertained only to him). Abdu’l Baha enjoins every believer to obey
Shoghi Effendi “as he is the sign of God, the chosen branch,
the Guardian of the Cause of God, he unto whom all the Aghsan, the
Afnan, the Hands of the Cause of God and His loved ones must turn.”
(Abdu'l-Baha, The Will and Testament, p. 11)
The errant
Hands have written:
“All the male relatives of the Báb. are
invariably referred to as "Afnan", which means "twigs" (i.e. small
branches). These two designations are not interchangeable.”
It must be
understood that the relationship to Baha’u’llah is of two kinds: one is
spiritual and the other biological or genetic, the spiritual
relationship being much more important than the other. This is very
clear in His writings, and the beloved Guardian gives the following
example:
“The following words of Baha’u’llah are to be
found in one of His supplications in the book: PRAYERS AND MEDITATIONS
(translated by Shoghi Effendi). This significant phrase is included in
the following passage quoted in its entirety below as it appears on page
154 of that book:
"I beseech Thee, O Thou Who art my Governor
and the Possessor of all names, to protect them that have branched out
from me (Afnán), whom Thou hast caused to be related to Thyself, and to
whom Thou hast, in this Revelation, shown Thy special favor, and whom
Thou hast summoned to draw nigh unto Thee and to turn towards the
horizon of Thy Revelation."
It should be clear that the
relationship to which Baha’u’llah refers in the above passage is a
spiritual one and it has been their fidelity to Him that has earned them
the designation of spiritual branches. It is such spiritual
relationships in the Faith that have taken precedence in the past and
shall always take precedence in the future over physical relationships.”
http://www.bahai-guardian.com
Similarly, the
following attribute of an Afnan can be seen on page 92 of the book
Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah which has been translated by
Shoghi Effendi as well.
“O Afnan, O thou that hast branched
from Mine ancient Stock! My glory and My loving-kindness rest
upon thee. How vast is the tabernacle of the Cause of God! It hath
overshadowed all the peoples and kindreds of the earth, and will,
erelong, gather together the whole of mankind beneath its shelter.”
Careful study
of the writings of Baha’u’llah makes it clear to the reader that He has
used the word ‘ghusn’ and its plural ‘aghsan’ mostly to indicate a
spiritual relationship to Him and has nothing to do with a physical and
biological relationship or descent. Actually, Baha’u’llah Himself, on
several occasions has clearly and explicitly in unambiguous language
explained this fact, but the errant Hands have ignored this and have
shamelessly asserted the opposite. They and their Hand-made and bogus
UHJ have tried to hide this fact. Those who know Persian can read the
book (Majmuih-yi-Alvah-i-Mubarakih, (Chap-i-Misr, p.343) and the book
(Ma'idiy-i-Asmani (Vol 4, p.42) and see with their own eyes the
statement of Baha’u’llah in the original language in which He explains:
“Since
the affectionate and faithful believers are as the (aghsan) branches
and the leaves of this Holy Tree, therefore whatever hath fallen on this
Mighty Stock; will also befall the (aghsan) branches, twigs and leaves
as well. This is how in every age these tragedies and nuisances have
been and will be for the lovers of the Beauty of the All-Glorious.”
Also they can
see this for themselves in the following translation of the original
text:
“O’ Seeker do not consider reference in The
Holy Scriptures to such attributes and names as: the Tree of
Blessedness, the Divine Lote-Tree, the Forbidden Tree, the Leaves, the
Fruits and the like of that Tree, to be imaginary or fictional. In the
sight of God, He has made reference to these attributes in
distinguishing the devoted believers in God. As long as a believer is
under the shadow of the Divine Lote Tree he will be a branch of the Tree
of Blessedness and be exalted in the presence of God, but upon turning
away will be consigned to the burning bush of Hell. While remaining
faithful, either as an afnan (twigs), as aghsan (branches), as o’ragh
(leaves) and assmar (fruits) of that Tree, their faith will be perceived
as substantiated but upon their opposition all will be considered as
rejected and abandoned”
(Baha’u’llah, Ma'idiy-i-Asmani. Vol
7,p.21)
Similarly while we can see the usage of the word ‘Leaf’ and
its plural ‘Leaves’ as a title for the mother and sister of Abdu’l Baha
in the writings of Baha’u’llah, Abdu’l-Baha and Shoghi Effendi, the same
words without the usage of caps is noticeable when they have addressed
or made reference to other spiritual women. For example,
caps are used when Baha’u’llah addressing or referring to female members
of the Holy Family, such as found in a title in which He has addressed
Bahiyyih Khanum –“The Greatest Holy Leaf” as follows:
“My Leaf!
Hearken thou unto My Voice: Verily there is none other God but Me, the
Almighty, the All-Wise. I can well inhale from thee the fragrance of My
love and the sweet-smelling savor wafting from the raiment of My Name,
the Most Holy, the Most Luminous.”
(Compilations, Bahiyyih Khanum, p. 3) Or as He has
revealed to the Most Exalted Leaf, mother of Abdu’l-Baha:
Oh
thou blessed and sparkling Leaf! Sing and chant on the Twigs of the
Bower of Baha in this exalted Word; Verily there is no God but Him, the
Lord of the Beginning and the End. We have surely ordained thee as the
best of the maid-servants, and have bestowed upon thee such a station
from before Our Presence to which no women have preceded (thee).
(Compilations, Baha'i Prayers 9, p. 9)With reference
to the “question concerning the 54th chapter of Isaiah: This chapter
refers to the Exalted Leaf, the mother of Abdul-Baha.” (Abdu'l-Baha,
Tablets of Abdu'l-Baha v1, p. 107)And, as used
by Shoghi Effendi in the following message:
“The Purest
Branch, the martyred son, the companion, and amanuensis of Baha’u’llah,
that pious and holy youth, who in the darkest days of Baha’u’llah’s
incarceration in the barracks of 'Akká entreated, on his death-bed, his
Father to accept him as a ransom for those of His loved ones who yearned
for, but were unable to attain, His presence, and the saintly mother of
'Abdu'l-Bahá, surnamed Navvab by Baha’u’llah, and the first recipient
of the honored and familiar title of "the Most Exalted Leaf," separated
in death above half a century, and forced to suffer the humiliation of
an alien burial-ground, are now at long last reunited with the Greatest
Holy Leaf with whom they had so abundantly shared the tribulations of
one of the most distressing episodes of the Heroic Age of the Faith of
Baha’u’llah.” (Shoghi Effendi, Messages to
America, p. 31)As an example of the use of the lower
case is found in the following Tablets of Baha’u’llah that denote a
spiritual relationship:
“O MY handmaiden, O My leaf! Render
thou thanks unto the Best-Beloved of the world for having attained this
boundless grace at a time when the world's learned and most
distinguished men have remained deprived thereof.”
(Baha'u'llah, Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 254)“O
My handmaiden and My leaf! Rejoice with great joy inasmuch as thy call
hath ascended unto the Divine Lote-Tree and is answered from the
all-glorious Horizon. Verily, no God is there but Me, the Wronged One,
the Exile.” (Baha'u'llah, Tablets of
Baha'u'llah, p. 251)And, as used by’
Abdu’l-Baha in the following Tablets:“O maid-servant of
God! Be rejoiced for God hath made thee a believing maid-servant in His
Holy Threshold and a leaf of the leaves of the Tree of Life.”
(Abdu'l-Baha,
Tablets of Abdu'l-Baha v1, p. 140)
“Convey my greetings
to the spiritual leaf, the servant of God, thy honored wife, the
esteemed . . . . . . . ., and say unto her: "Serve in the olive garden
of God, that God may help thee by those confirmations by which
intellects are astounded and the perceptions are cleared." (Abdu'l-Baha,
Tablets of Abdu'l-Baha v1, p. 172)How can anyone
who calls her/himself a Baha’i disregard the clear writings of
Baha’u’llah and blindly accept the false interpretation of the former
violating Hands and the bogus organization they have set up or any other
cult which shamefully has concocted and substituted their own false,
alleged and materialistic eligibility qualifications pertaining to the
line of succession.
In the writings of
Baha’u’llah He uses the word ‘Ghusn’ and its plural ‘Aghsan’ when
referring to a physical or biological relationship only when He refers
to His sons either individually which was most often the case and then
He identifies them by their full title such as ‘Ghusn-I-Azam’ (Greatest
Branch), ‘Ghusn-I-Athar’ (Purest Branch), or when He mentions them
collectively as the ‘Aghsan’ (Branches) such as found in the Kitab-i-Ahd
(Book of the Covenant). Whenever, Shoghi Effendi, the first Guardian of
the Baha’i Faith and the sole authorized interpreter of the Word, was
engaged, during his unique and precious service to the Cause of God, in
translating the sacred writings into English in which he made reference
to the ‘Ghusn’ or ‘Aghsan’, it was invariably a reference to the sons
of Baha’u’llah and accordingly Shoghi Effendi would capitalize the first
letter according to the rules of English grammar. Furthermore, he
identified the ‘Aghsan’ or’ Branches’ (with caps) as the Sons of
Baha’u’llah, as can be seen in God Passes By (p.239). In the Gleanings
from the Writings of Baha’u’llah (p.244), and in Baha'u'llah’s Epistle
to the Son of the Wolf (p. 93). This fact has been explained
comprehensively by the third Guardian of the Baha’i Faith in an article
titled “THE AGHSAN MYTH EXPOSED” and it can be
accessed through his site: http://www.bahai-guardian.com
Whenever
‘ghusn’ or ‘aghsan’ has been used in the original meaning of ‘branch’
such as in a division or subdivision of the stem or axis of a tree or
shrub or in a general reference to the faithful and devoted believers or
in any other general references, Shoghi Effendi would in his
translation use the lower case. In the following quotation from the
writings of Baha’u’llah the usage of both the upper and lower cases may
be seen in one paragraph, thereby clearly enlightening the meaning that
is to be given to the word ‘Branches’:
“We pray God to
protect thee from the heat of jealousy and the cold of hatred. He verily
is nigh, ready to answer." Thus hath My tongue spoken unto one of My Branches
(sons), and We have mentioned it unto such of Our
loved ones as have cast away their idle fancies, and clung unto that
which hath been prescribed unto them in the day whereon the Daystar of
Certitude hath shone forth above the horizon of the will of God, the
Lord of the worlds. This is the day on which the Bird of Utterance hath
warbled its melody upon the branches, in the name of its
Lord, the God of Mercy.”
Baha'u'llah, “Epistle to the Son
of the Wolf” ( p. 93)
The errant Hands in the following
section of their letter have exhibited their ignorance, egotism, lack of
logic and laughable reasoning:
“The ordinary English usage of the word
'branch' has caused a great deal of confusion, whereas there is not a
shadow of ambiguity in the Persian and Arabic texts. Because of
ignorance of the Arabic and Persian languages and the use of these two
terms in our sacred texts, spurious arguments have been put forth by
those making the false claim that Shoghi Effendi could have appointed a
successor other than a blood descendant of Baha’u’llah.”
“It should
likewise be pointed out that neither in Persian nor Arabic are there
ever any capital letters, so that it is impossible to deduce any
arguments from a capitalization or lack of capitalization in the English
texts.”
In saying the above, the violating Hands had
the audacity to criticize the interpretive translation of the Master’s
Will and Testament by the Shoghi Effendi in stating that: “The ordinary
English usage of the word 'branch' has caused a great deal of
confusion.” Obviously they were referring to his translation of the
following passage in the Will and Testament:
“O ye beloved
of the Lord! It is incumbent upon the Guardian of the Cause of God to
appoint in his own life-time him that shall become his successor, that
differences may not arise after his passing. He that is appointed must
manifest in himself detachment from all worldly things, must be the
essence of purity, must show in himself the fear of God, knowledge,
wisdom and learning. Thus, should the first-born of the Guardian of the
Cause of God not manifest in himself the truth of the words: -- "The
child is the secret essence of its sire," that is, should he not inherit
of the spiritual within him (the Guardian of the Cause of God) and his
glorious lineage not be matched with a goodly character, then must he,
(the Guardian of the Cause of God) choose another branch to succeed
him.”
(Abdu'l-Baha, The Will and
Testament, p. 12)
By the Hands writing that: “The ordinary
English usage of the word 'branch' has caused a great deal of
confusion,” these inexcusably ignorant Hands were, in effect, claiming
that the word ‘branch’ as used in this passage of the sacred Will and
Testament should have been translated by Shoghi Effendi as ‘Branch’ so
as to confirm their patently false claim that only a male descendant of
Baha’u’llah could inherit the Guardianship!
Shoghi Effendi
knew perfectly Arabic, English and Persian. This is a fact that had
been admitted by the errant Hands too. As the divinely appointed
authorized interpreter of the Writings, he was “under the
care and protection of the Abha Beauty, under the shelter and unerring
guidance of the Exalted One” so there can be no question that when
Shoghi Effendi translated the sacred documents of the Faith into English
he did it very carefully and correctly. Not only did he in his
translations carefully select the proper words of the English language
to correctly convey the closest meaning to the writings in their
original language but he superbly used English grammar and whenever it
was considered necessary he added an explanation or definitions to
prevent any confusion such as, for example: “the Aghsan (His sons)” and
“My Branches (sons)”.
The fact that in Arabic and Persian
writings capital letters are not used has no bearing on their usage in
English writing where capital letters are used and their usage or not
usage does make a lot of differences in the meaning of a sentence. It is
very ridiculous to say that because the original language does not
utilize caps, we must not use caps in English or that we must not care
about it.
Moreover, the errant Hands ignored the fact
that the main purpose of this passage in the Will and Testament of
‘Abdu’l-Baha conveys instructions pertaining to the critical and
mandatory manner in which the Guardian is required to appoint his
successor, as Abdu’l-Baha states: “it is incumbent upon the
Guardian of the Cause of God “to appoint in his own life-time him that
shall become his successor” but He outlines the qualifications that
his successor must possess in stating: “He that is appointed
must manifest in himself detachment from all worldly things, must be the
essence of purity, must show in himself the fear of God, knowledge,
wisdom and learning.” It is obvious from the foregoing
requirement that Abdu’l Baha did not stipulate that the successor
Guardian must be a biological relative or male descendant of
Baha’u’llah.
The third Guardian has written:
“ . . .any
claim that 'Abdu'l-Bahá had restricted the Guardian's choice of a
successor, under the terms of His Will and Testament to an Aghsan, is
completely without foundation and is patently false. Furthermore, there
is no clause in the Will and Testament that requires the Guardian to
appoint only a descendant of Baha’u’llah or a Persian as his successor.
There is no excuse, therefore, for refusing to
accept Shoghi Effendi's
undeniable appointment of a successor "in his own
life-time" in
complete conformity with the provisions of the Will and
Testament of
'Abdu'l-Bahá”.
(Joel B. Marangella, “The Aghsan Myth
Exposed”)
Recently some members of the heterodox
organization have imagined that the letters which appear in the
compilation “The Light of Divine Guidance”(v I, p. 62), allegedly
written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi by his secretary to an individual,
provide evidence for their spurious claim that as: “The word 'Ghusn'
(plural Aghsan) is an Arabic word, meaning branch that Baha’u’llah had
used this word solely to designate His own male descendants.” The
obvious falsehood of this same claim, erroneously produced by the former
violating Hands, has been proven previously above, but before getting
back to this document it is necessary to mention that the said
compilation was not prepared during Shoghi Effendi’s lifetime and its
contents were put together by an NSA under the direction of the bogus
UHJ nearly a quarter of a century after his passing. Therefore due to
the clear possibility of a manipulation of the writings it particularly
cannot be considered a reliable source on matters concerning or
relating to the Guardianship.
Also paying attention to the following
guidance from the first Guardian is necessary:
“Although the
secretaries of the Guardian convey his thoughts and instructions and
these messages are authoritative, their words are in no sense the same
as his, their style certainly not the same, and their authority less,
for they use their own terms and not his exact words in conveying his
messages.”
(Shoghi Effendi, “The Unfolding Destiny of
the British Baha'i Community,” p. 260)
“The exact status
which Shoghi Effendi has intended the friends to give to those
communications he sends to individual believers is explained in the
following statement written through his secretary to the National
Assembly on November 16, 1932:
"As regards Shoghi Effendi's letters to
the individual Bahá'ís, he is always very careful not to contradict
himself. He has also said that whenever he has something of importance
to say, he invariably communicates it to the National Spiritual Assembly
or in his general letters. His personal letters to individual friends
are only for their personal benefit and even though he does not want to
forbid their publication, he does not wish them to be used too much by
the Bahá'í News. Only letters with special significance should be
published there."
(Shoghi Effendi, Extracts from
the USBN)
The letter in question is written by a
secretary to Dr. Muhlschlegel on 25 September 1934.
This secretary
wrote:
“I am directed by the Guardian to acknowledge
the receipt of your letter dated August 29th, and to express his
appreciation of your highly-valued efforts for the translation of the
"Kitab-i-Ahd" into German. He hopes that copies of this precious tablet
will soon be made available to all the friends and that through its
study their knowledge of the Teachings will be deepened, and their zeal
for their spread stimulated and sustained.
The term
"afnan" means literally small branch, and refers to the relatives of the
Báb, both men and women. As the Bab’s only son died while in infancy,
the former had no direct descendants. The "afnan" are, therefore, all
directly related to the Báb.
As to "aghsan", it also means
branch. But it is a bigger branch than "afnan". It refers to
Baha’u’llah’s descendants.”
Apparently, the comment of the
secretary is in response to a question posed by Dr. Muhlschlegel about
the ‘afnan’ and ‘aghsan’ which possibly arrose when he was translating
the Kitab-i-Ahd (Book of Covenant), into German. The question he asked
is not known but it gives the impression that it is not related to the
‘Aghsan’ and ‘Afnan’ mentioned by the Blessed Perfection in His Book of
the Covenant since, in this case, unlike that sacred document ‘aghsan’,
‘afnan’ and ‘branch’ are written in lower case, considering the fact
that the Guardians are ‘aghsan’ i.e. ‘branches’ of the Holy Tree and spiritual
descendants
of Baha’u’llah, and although the answer was not directly provided by
Shoghi Effendi it seems to be correct.
The ‘Aghsan’ mentioned
in the Kitab-i-Ahd (Book of Covenant), are clearly identified by Shoghi
Effendi as sons of Baha’u’llah in the book “God Passes By” of which he
was the author.
My fervent hope is that the Baha’is will
heed the guidance of Abdu’l Baha found in His statement below and
completely discard any semblance of blind imitation and obey the
commandment of Baha’u’llah to investigate the truth for themselves.
“It is evident
that no vital results are now forthcoming from the customs,
institutions and standpoints of the past. In view of this, shall blind
imitations of ancestral forms and theological interpretations continue
to guide and control the religious life and spiritual development of
humanity today? Shall man gifted with the power of reason unthinkingly
follow and adhere to dogma, creeds and hereditary beliefs which will not
bear the analysis of reason in this century of effulgent reality?
Unquestionably this will not satisfy men of science, for when they find
premise or conclusion contrary to present standards of proof and without
real foundation, they reject that which has been formerly accepted as
standard and correct and move forward from new foundations.”
(Abdu'l-Baha, Baha'i World Faith - Abdu'l-Baha Section, p. 224)
By Hand of the Cause Nosrat'u'llah Bahremand