ABDUL BAHA, eldest son of Mirza Ali, b. 23 May 1844. He has been, since his father's death in 1892, the spiritual head of the Bahai movement. He was one of the exiles in Aklca, where he shared his father's trials and tribula tions and, in his later years, the burdens of the spiritual and social direction of the Bahai col ony. From his exile he continued the work of spreading a knowledge of the Bahai doctrine which, under his able management, attracted wider and deeper interest than it had under either of his predecessors in office. Carefully educated, widely read in almost every line of thought and study, and trained under his father, Abdul Baha brought to the performance of his duties sympathy, conviction, enthusiasm, able executive ability, a broad liberality and a strange Oriental fascination of character, which has made him a power in the religious life of Persia for a quarter of a century. To him in exile came literally streams of people from all over Asia. He communed with them, advised with them, taught them and sent them forth converts, apostles and teachers of the faith. Born of one of the noblest families in Persia, of the faithful of the faithful, he dis regarded race, and religious prejudice, caste and color. To him came millions of letters in a single year from all parts of the world; and he answered them all personally. He kept a staff of interpreters and secretaries. All kinds of problems he handled, as they troubled his visitors or followers, personal, religious, social, political. His fame reached the western world and he was invited to represent Bahaism at the Universal Race Congress held in London in July 1911. This he was not able to do but he forwarded a paper on Spiritual Unity which attracted much attention and, in general, fa vorable criticism. In this paper he took the po sition that only spiritual unity could solve the many race problems now facing the world.
Before the end of the year he visited England where he was given a warm welcome. There he made addresses before many churches, clubs, associations and societies, among them being the congregaticin of Archdeacon Wilber force, St. John s, Westminister. Even still greater interest was shown in his work and personality in the various other countries of Europe which he visited, more especially by France. One of the most cosmopolitan gath ings ever met together welcomed him to Paris. He also visited Egypt in December 1911. He reached New York in April 1912 where he delivered many addresses, one of them before the congregation of the Church of the Ascen sion. He visited Chicago, Washington and a score of other cities from coast to coast and spoke to Jew and Gentile, Catholic and New Thought, Mormon and Free Mason. After nearly six months on this side of the Atlantic he returned to England where he spent six weeks and another two months in France. Germany and Austria also entertained him on into the following year, .when he returned home to the land of his
Abdul Baha has ever been one of the strong est advocates of the disarmament of nations, which he asserts is the first requisite of inter national peace. This is the natural outcome of his religious dogma of social unity in spiritual thought. °No man,)) he asserts, °except the madman, plots against an unarmed man; and no institution, except the outlaw institution, plots against those institutions devoted to the service of humanity, as, for example, the Sal vation Army, and the Red
Among the works of Abdul Baha are: < The Mysterious Forces of Civilization,' and