The privilege of meeting ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s glorious sister, Bahiyyih Khanum: A pilgrim recalls

It is now thirty-three years since that never-to-be-forgotten first pilgrimage to the Most Great Prison was undertaken by a group of believers from the West and, while many details of the visit have faded into the background, there are certain events and personalities that remain clear and vivid in my memory, and which time seems powerless to efface. Next to meeting the Beloved Master Himself was the privilege of meeting His glorious sister, Bahiyyih Khanum, known as the Greatest Holy Leaf.

Her personality is indelibly imprinted upon my memory. Tall, slender and of noble bearing, her body gave the impression of perfect poise between energy and tranquility, between wiry endurance and inward composure, imparting to the beholder a sense of security, comfort and reliance, impossible to describe.

Her beautiful face was the feminine counterpart of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s the lines of suffering and privation softened by the patient sweetness of the mouth; the dominating brow, bespeaking intellect and will, lighted by the wonderful understanding eyes, in form like those of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, but deep blue rather than hazel. Watching their expressive changes—as one moment they darkened with sympathy or pain, the next moment sparkled with laughter and humor—only served to deepen the impression of her irresistible spiritual attraction. 

- Ella Goodall Cooper  (‘Bahiyyih Khanum – an Appreciation’; Star of the West, vol. 23, no. 7, October 1932)

The unique relationship between Bahá’u’lláh and the Greatest Holy Leaf

The writings of Bahá’u’lláh set out the uniqueness of His relationship with His daughter and disclose the dual aspects of that bond. For example, on the physical plane the Greatest Holy Leaf is described as “a leaf that hath sprung from this preexistent Root,” and the tenderness of the father’s love for His daughter is conveyed in the following testimony: 

“How sweet thy presence before Me; how sweet to gaze upon thy face, to bestow upon thee My loving-kindness, to favour thee with My tender care, to make mention of thee in this, My Tablet—a Tablet which I have ordained as a token of My hidden and manifest grace unto thee.”[1]

Beyond the ties of physical relationship, Bahá’u’lláh underlines a transcendent purpose for her physical being, a purpose that relates to her recognition of His station as Manifestation of God and the fulfillment of her purpose in life. He states, "We have created thine eyes to behold the light of My countenance, thine ears to hearken unto the melody of My words, thy body to pay homage before My throne. Do thou render thanks unto God, thy Lord, the Lord of all the world."[2] 

Bahá’u’lláh likewise expresses pleasure at the manner in which she exemplified the spiritual qualities embodied by the Manifestation of God when He states: 

"I can well inhale from thee the fragrance of My love and the sweet-smelling savour wafting from the raiment of My Name, the Most Holy, the Most Luminous." [3]

“the towering grandeur of her spiritual life”

Only future generations and pens abler than mine can, and will, pay a worthy tribute to the towering grandeur of her spiritual life, to the unique part she played throughout the tumultuous stages of Bahá’í history, to the expressions of unqualified praise that have streamed from the pen of both Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, the Centre of His Covenant, though unrecorded, and in the main unsuspected by the mass of her passionate admirers in East and West, the share she has had in influencing the course of some of the chief events in the annals of the Faith, the sufferings she bore, the sacrifices she made, the rare gifts of unfailing sympathy she so strikingly displayed—these, and many others stand so inextricably interwoven with the fabric of the Cause itself that no future historian of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh can afford to ignore or minimize.

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 17 July 1932; ‘The Baha’i World 1932-1934)

1931: A pilgrim’s impression of the Greatest Holy Leaf

The face of the sister of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Bahiyyih Khanum, although shadowed by age, was so full of love and a genuine interest in life and people that we did not think of her as old, but rather as ageless and eternal. The freshness of the beauty of love radiating from her captivated us. 

- Sylvia Paine (Star of the West, vol. 23, no. 12, March 1933)

1909 Akka: Juliet Thompson sees the Greatest Holy Leaf for the first time

…we went to the Holy Household to visit the Holy Leaves. I shall never forget that little procession as they entered the room with the dignity of queens, led by the Greatest Holy Leaf. She was all in white: the Greatest Holy Leaf, the daughter of the Blessed Perfection. Her face had the look of one who had passed through crucifixion and was resurrected in another world. In it shone great blue eyes, eyes that had looked upon many sorrows and now were ineffably tender… Behind her came Túbá Khánum and Munavvar Khánum (two of the daughters of ‘Abdu’l-Baha and Munirih Khanum)...

Juliet Thompson (‘The Diary of Juliet Thompson)

Condition of women in the Middle East in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and the unparalleled role of the Greatest Holy Leaf in religious history

The Greatest Holy Leaf’s role in Bahá’í history is unparalleled in religious history. To assess this role, it is necessary to take into consideration the constraints under which women in the Middle East lived in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Women in the Islamic world were largely invisible. They enjoyed few rights and had no status in the community. They were veiled and led a cloistered existence separated from all men except the members of their immediate family. Deprived of the opportunity for education and confined to the home, they tended to be illiterate. They were not permitted to participate in public affairs and had no role in religion. In addition, the historical record of the era contains few references to women, since it was considered unethical and im- proper for historians, who were mostly male, to invade the privacy of women by inquiring into their lives.

While the sources of information about Bahíyyih Khánum are scattered and sometimes sparse, it is particularly significant that Bahá’u’lláh Himself chose to withdraw "the veil of concealment” [1] from His daughter, thereby opening the way for historians to study her life, to rescue her from invisibility, to appreciate her role in society, and to assess her contribution to history. 

- Janet Khan  (‘Prophet’s Daughter’)

[1] Shoghi Effendi  (‘Bahíyyih Khánum, The Greatest Holy Leaf’, a compilation by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, 1982)

1903: The Greatest Holy Leaf, Munirih Khanum and her four daughters

Middle row, those sitting on chairs, left to right: Munawar and Touba (daughters of ‘Abdu’l-Baha and Munirih Khanum), the Greatest Holy Leaf, Munirih Khanum (wife of ‘Abdu’l-Baha), Diya’iyyih (daughter of ‘Abdu’l-Baha and Munirih Khanum, mother of Shoghi Effendi), and Ruha (daughter of ‘Abdu’l-Baha and Munirih Khanum). The other ladies in the picture are pilgrims and believers from Haifa-Akka area.

“her sleepless vigilance, her tact, her courtesy, her extreme patience and heroic fortitude” dealing with “the fierce onslaught of the forces of disruption that followed” the passing of Bahá’u’lláh

With the passing of Bahá’u’lláh and the fierce onslaught of the forces of disruption that followed in its wake, the Greatest Holy Leaf, now in the hey-day of her life, rose to the height of her great opportunity and acquitted herself worthily of her task. It would take me beyond the compass of the tribute I am moved to pay to her memory were I to dwell upon the incessant machinations to which Muhammad-‘Alí, the arch-breaker of the Covenant of Bahá’u’lláh, and his despicable supporters basely resorted, upon the agitation which their cleverly-directed campaign of misrepresentation and calumny produced in quarters directly connected with Sulṭán ‘Abdu’l-Hamíd and his advisers, upon the trials and investigations to which it gave rise, upon the rigidity of the incarceration it reimposed, and upon the perils it revived. Suffice it to say that but for her sleepless vigilance, her tact, her courtesy, her extreme patience and heroic fortitude, grave complications might have ensued and the load of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s anxious care would have been considerably increased. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 17 July 1932; ‘Baha’i Administration’)

After the passing of Bahá’u’lláh she served as the head of Abdu’l-Bahá’s household

Following the death of her Father, the Greatest Holy Leaf lived in the household of Abdu’l-Bahá. Because of the high station conferred upon her by Bahá’u’lláh and her unique qualities, she served as the head of Abdu’l-Bahá’s household. She cultivated social relationships to shield her Brother and acted as the honored hostess to the increasing numbers of pilgrims from the East and the West. In all things she was His loyal partner and trusted confidant. Finally, when the sultanate was overthrown in 1908 and all political and religious prisoners of the Ottoman state were freed, Abdu’l-Bahá was able to embark on his historic travels to the Western world. During His two-year absence from the Holy Land, Abdu’l-Bahá left the running of the affairs of the Cause in the hands of Bahíyyih Khánum. She was, according to Shoghi Effendi, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s “competent deputy, His representative and vicegerent, with none to equal her.” 

- Janet Khan  (‘Prophet’s Daughter’)

“The very elements of this frail being were leavened with her love, refreshed by her companionship, sustained by her eternal spirit.”

After the ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Baha to the realm of the All-Glorious, that Light of the Concourse on High enfolded me, helpless as I was, in the embrace of her love, and with incomparable pity and tenderness, persuaded, guided, and urged me on to the requirements of servitude. The very elements of this frail being were leavened with her love, refreshed by her companionship, sustained by her eternal spirit. Never for a moment will her kindnesses, her favours, pass from my memory, and as the months and the years go by, the effects of them on this mourning heart will never be diminished.

O Liege Lady of the people oj Baha! Broken is our circle by thy going— 

Broken our circle, broken too, our hearts.

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘Bahíyyih Khánum, The Greatest Holy Leaf’, a compilation by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, 1982)

‘Abdu’l-Baha had entrusted her with the sacred remains of the Báb which were housed in her room for some ten years in the house of 'Abdu'llah Pasha

The Greatest Holy Leaf also had a mystic bond, as Shoghi Effendi describes the relationship, with her brother, 'Abdu'l-Baha, the Centre of the Covenant -- One Who not only knew her station and appointed her to be in total charge of His household, but Who entrusted her with the sacred remains of the Báb which were housed in her room for some ten years in the house of 'Abdu'llah Pasha, Who entrusted her with His last will and testament and Who realized that after His passing she would play a central role in the community, as He knew that Shoghi Effendi was not present at the time of His passing. We can be sure that 'Abdu'l-Baha passed away with His mind at rest, because He knew that Shoghi Effendi would soon be there, and that the Greatest Holy Leaf was there. 

- ‘Ali Nakhjavani  (From an address presented during the World Centre seminar commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the passing of the Greatest Holy Leaf, held in the reception concourse, permanent Seat of the Universal House of Justice, 17 July 1982; The Baha’i World 1979-1983)

The impact of the Ascension of Bahá’u’lláh and “the dust and heat of commotion which that faithless and rebellious company engendered”

Great as had been her [the Greatest Holy Leaf’s] sufferings ever since her infancy, the anguish of mind and heart which the Ascension of Bahá’u’lláh occasioned, nerved her, as never before, to a resolve which no upheaval could bend and which her frail constitution belied. Amidst the dust and heat of the commotion which that faithless and rebellious company engendered she found herself constrained to dissolve ties of family relationship, to sever long-standing and intimate friendships, to discard lesser loyalties for the sake of her supreme allegiance to a Cause she had loved so dearly and had served so well. 

The disruption that ensued found her ranged by the side of Him Whom her departed Father had appointed as the Center of His Covenant and the authorized Expounder of His Word. Her venerated mother, as well as her distinguished paternal uncle, Áqáy-i-Kalím—the twin pillars who, all throughout the various stages of Bahá’u’lláh’s exile from the Land of His Birth to the final place of His confinement, had demonstrated, unlike most of the members of His Family, the tenacity of their loyalty—had already passed behind the Veil. Death, in the most tragic circumstances, had also robbed her of the Purest Branch, her only brother besides ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, while still in the prime of youth. She alone of the family of Bahá’u’lláh remained to cheer the heart and reinforce the efforts of the Most Great Branch, against whom were solidly arrayed the almost entire company of His faithless relatives. In her arduous task she was seconded by the diligent efforts of Munírih Khánum, the Holy Mother, and those of her daughters whose age allowed them to assist in the accomplishment of that stupendous achievement with which the name of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá will forever remain associated. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 17 July 1932; ‘Baha’i Administration’)

Varaqiy-i-‘Ulya is the original Arabic title Bahá’u’lláh bestowed on Bahíyyih Khánum’s mother. After Ásíyih Khánum passed away, He bestowed the title on their daughter, Bahíyyih Khánum

Shoghi Effendi gives 1846 as the year of Bahá’íyyih Khánum's birth. When exactly during that year she was born is uncertain but she was born in Tihrán. The name given her at birth was Fátimih. Later, Bahá’u'lláh bestowed upon her the feminine form of His appellation ‘Bahá‘, meaning glory. Confirming this in a Tablet revealed in her honour, He says: “Verily she is a leaf that hath sprung from this preexistent Root. She hath revealed herself in My name and tasted of the sweet savours of My holy, My wondrous pleasure” [1] The full text of that Tablet is inscribed in golden letters around the base of the circular dome of her monument. She sealed the letters that she wrote to Bahá’í institutions and individuals with a seal bearing the name Baha’iyyih. The seal is on display in the International Archives Building. Bahá’u’lláh also bestowed upon her, after her mother passed away, the title of Greatest Holy Leaf. 

Varaqiy-i-‘Ulya is the original Arabic title Bahá’u’lláh bestowed on Bahíyyih Khánum’s mother. After Ásíyih Khánum passed away, He bestowed the title on their daughter, Bahíyyih Khánum. To avoid confusion, Shoghi Effendi translated the title as the Most Exalted Leaf for Ásíyih Khánum, and the Greatest Holy Leaf for Bahíyyih Khánum. 

- Baharieh Rouhani Ma’ani  (‘The Greatest Holy Leaf’s unparalleled role in religious history and the significance of the Arc, the site of her resting place’; presented at the Irfan Colloquia Session #121 [English], Louhelen Bahá'í Center: Davison, Michigan, USA, October 10–13, 2013 published in Lights of Irfan, volume 15)

[1] ‘Bahíyyih Khánum, The Greatest Holy Leaf’, a compilation by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, 1982

A letter from the Greatest Holy Leaf

O Leaf of Paradise!

Loose your tongue at all times in gratitude for the blessings of the Beloved of the Worlds, for you are always mentioned in His Glorious and Sanctified Presence, and you are ever in the hearts of His maidservants. The pen is unable to describe the depths of our longing, nor can the tongue recount the love concealed within our hearts. Should you look into the mirror of your own heart, which is free from the defilements of this world of dust, you would clearly see the truth of what has been set forth.

From the time of your departure no day passes without mention being made of your name. Please God you may in your days and nights hold fast to the sure handle of detachment, and be occupied in the remembrance of God, the Wondrous, the All- Glorious.

There is no blessing greater than attainment unto His Holy Presence. Thank God you attained this bounty.

May the spiritually-minded son, Mirza Badí’u’lláh, God willing, be always safe in the stronghold of God’s care and protection. 

- ‘Bahíyyih Khánum (‘Bahíyyih Khánum, The Greatest Holy Leaf’, a compilation by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, 1982)

Facsimile of Bahíyyih Khánum’s handwriting

(‘Bahíyyih Khánum, The Greatest Holy Leaf’, a compilation by the 

Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, 1982)

See the translation

The amazingly high station of the Greatest Holy Leaf

O thou Greatest Holy Leaf! If I cry at every moment out of a hundred mouths, and from each of these mouths I speak with a hundred thousand tongues, yet I could never describe nor celebrate thy heavenly qualities, which are known to none save only the Lord God; nor could I befittingly tell of even the transient foam from out the ocean of thine endless favour and grace.

Except for a very few, whose habitation is in the highest retreats of holiness, and who circle, in the furthermost Sanctuary, by day and by night about the throne of God, and are fed at the hand of the Abhá Beauty on purest milk—except for these, no soul of this nether world has known or recognized thine immaculate, thy most sacred essence, nor has any befittingly perceived that ambergris fragrance of thy noble qualities, which richly anoints thy brow, and which issues from the divine wellspring of mystic musk; nor has any caught its sweetness.

To this bear witness the Company on High, and beyond them God Himself, the Supreme Lord of all the heavens and the earths: that during all thy days, from thine earliest years until the close of thy life, thou didst personify the attributes of thy Father, the Matchless, the Mighty. Thou wert the fruit of His Tree, thou wert the lamp of His love, thou wert the symbol of His serenity, and of His meekness, the pathway of His guidance, the channel of His blessings, the sweet scent of His robe, the refuge of His loved ones and His handmaidens, the mantle of His generosity and grace. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘Bahíyyih Khánum, The Greatest Holy Leaf’, a compilation by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, 1982)

Baha’u’llah and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá prepared her “to face the storm which the treacherous conduct of the Covenant-breakers had aroused”

Armed with the powers with which an intimate and long-standing companionship with Bahá’u’lláh had already equipped her, and benefiting by the magnificent example which the steadily widening range of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s activities afforded her, she was prepared to face the storm which the treacherous conduct of the Covenant-breakers had aroused and to withstand its most damaging onslaughts. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 17 July 1932; ‘Baha’i Administration’)

Prayer by the Greatest Holy Leaf

All praise to the omnipotent Lord, that in this auspicious day He Who is the Sun of bounty has shone out so fair and bright as to light up the world of the hearts. He has burned away the veils of waywardness and ignorance. He has struck off the fetters of baseless myths and ignoble concepts that chained the people hand and foot. He has cleansed and burnished the mirrors of men’s souls, sullied by the dust and rust of this dark world. He has opened wide the door to that Celestial Tavern of matchless wine, and He is freely pouring out the immortal draught of knowledge and perception and love. He has hoisted the banner of oneness, and destroyed the foundations of estrangement. Under the sway of His unity, the many-coloured races and diverse religions have tasted the rose-red wine of His love, and are aliens no more. Those pure in spirit who have set eyes upon Him, and approached the place He dwells in, reflecting Him have shone out like mirrors, and cleaving to Him alone, they have detached their hearts from all else but Him. They have heard, with their inner ears. His words, and they have noted His ways, and forgotten all else. They are ever soaring upward, out of the lower world to the world above, and they are fit to be told the mysteries, and they understand them.

Such a day, then, is a day for praise and thanks, a time of benedictions and blessings, a time to wash away the stains of earth’s defilement.

Let us turn our hearts to the world aloft, and cup our hands and supplicate our matchless Loved One, and urgently entreat Him, saying:

O Thou Kind Bestower, O Nourisher of our souls and hearts!

We have no aim, except to walk Thy path; we have no wish, except to bring Thee joy. Our souls are united, and our hearts are welded, each to each. In offering Thee our thanks and praise, in following Thy ways and soaring in Thy skies, we are all one.

We are helpless, stand Thou by us, and give us strength.

Thou art the Protector, the Provider, the Kind. 

- Bahíyyih Khánum; (‘Bahíyyih Khánum, The Greatest Holy Leaf’, a compilation by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, 1982)

Unique contribution to the development of the Baha'i Faith

Bahíyyih Khánum was the eldest daughter of Bahá’u’lláh, the Prophet and Founder of the Baha i Faith, a religion that had its origins in Iran in the middle of the nineteenth century. She witnessed firsthand the momentous events surrounding the birth of this new Revelation and subsequently played a major role in its emergence as an independent world religion. Bahíyyih Khánum's contribution to the development of the Baha i Faith is unique. Indeed, a systematic study of the exploits and achievements of this relatively unknown Persian woman is long overdue. Furthermore, the example of her life is of enduring importance, and her personal qualities have special relevance to the issues confronting contemporary society. 

- Janet Khan  (‘Prophet’s Daughter’)