ABD AL-BAHA? (1844–1921)

?Abd al-Baha? ?Abbas, also known as ?Abbas Effendi, was the son of Baha?allah (Mirza Husayn ?Ali, 1817–1892), the founder of the Baha?i religion. In his final will and testament, Baha?allah designated him as his successor and authoritative expounder of his teachings. Born in Tehran on 23 May 1844, he grew up in the household of a father committed to the teachings of the Babi movement and consequently shared his father's fate of exile and intermittent imprisonment until the Young Turk revolution of 1909.

As a result, ?Abd al-Baha? received little formal education and had to manage the affairs of his father's household at a very early age. Despite these setbacks, he demonstrated a natural capacity for leadership and a prodigious knowledge of human history and thought.

?Abd al-Baha? corresponded with and enjoyed the respect of a number of the luminaries of his day, including the Russian author Leo Tolstoy and the Muslim reformer Muhammad ?Abduh. He left behind a small portion of what is a large corpus of still-unexplored writings that include social commentaries, interpretations, and elaborations of his father's works, mystical treatises, and Qur?anic and biblical exegeses.

Upon his release from house imprisonment in 1909, ?Abd al-Baha? traveled to North Africa, Europe, and North America advocating a number of reforms for all countries, including the adoption of a universal auxiliary language, global collective security, mandatory education, and full legal and social equality for women and minorities. He also warned of a coming war in Europe and called for a just system of global government and international courts where disputes between nations could be resolved peacefully.

?Abd al-Baha? died on 28 November 1921. According to his will and testament, his eldest grandson, Shoghi Effendi Rabbani, became the head of the Baha?i community and the sole authorized interpreter of his grandfather and great-grandfather's teachings.

See alsoBaha?allah ; Baha?i Faith .

William McCants