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Shoghi Effendi was the Guardian of the Baháʼí Faith from 1921 to 1957, the grandson and successor of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá. He oversaw the expansion and protection of the religion, translated its writings, and appointed the Hands of the Cause.
Learn about Shoghi Effendi, the eldest grandson of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, who was appointed by Him to guide the Bahá’ís after His passing. Explore his life, work, writings and vision for the future of humanity.
- Higher Education
- Appointment as Guardian
- Early Ministry: The 1920’s
- The Early 1930’s
- Launch of The Divine Plan & Marriage
- The War Years
- After The War
- The Ten Year Crusade
- GeneratedCaptionsTabForHeroSec
Beirut
In August 1913 Shoghi Effendi moved from Beirut to Ramleh, Egypt, where ‘Abdu’l-Bahá was living and served as his secretary until October when he returned to Beirut to begin University studies at the Syrian Protestant College.He enrolled in a Bachelor of Arts degree and began studies in 1913 and he was also active in extracurricular activities participating in drama, serving as secretary of the student union, and competing in declamation contests winning the French language competition in 191...
Oxford
‘Abdu’l-Bahá arranged for Shoghi Effendi to rest to improve his health and sent him to a sanatorium in the Parisian suburb of Neuilly in France in April 1920 where he received medical care with his health improving. In June, 1920, he submitted an application to study at Oxford University from Neuilly desiring to improve his translation abilities,and he also wrote to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá requesting direction on whether he would be able to study in England or if he was required to return to Haifa. On J...
The Ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá took place on November 28, 1921. Wellesley Tudor Pole received a cable with the news at 9:30 am on November 29 and summoned Shoghi Effendi to his office. The cable was on his desk when Shoghi Effendi arrived and Shoghi Effendi read the cable and collapsed before Pole arrived in his office to greet him. He stayed with M...
Opening of Ministry: 1922-1923
Shoghi Effendi soon faced serious challenges in his leadership of the community. On January 30, 1922, supporters of Mírzá Muhammad ‘Alí, his great-uncle and the Arch-Breaker of the Covenant of Bahá’u’lláh, forcibly seized the keys to the Shrine of Bahá’u’lláh from the caretaker of the Shrine preventing the Bahá’í community from visiting the Shrine and ‘Alí's son distributed letters in America calling for the Bahá’í community to recognize Mírzá Muhammad ‘Alí as its leader.Also in early 1922 th...
Early Administrative Developments: 1925-1928
In 1925 Shoghi Effendi gave instructions for the establishment of the International Bahá’í Bureau in Geneva, Switzerland, which he intended to facilitate communications between different international Bahá’í communities as an auxiliary to the World Centre in Haifa, and he attempted to establish an international secretariat in Haifa in 1926 but was unsuccessful due to a lack of human resources. In February 1926 he began correspondence with George Townshendwho was able to begin assisting him wi...
Crisis and Victory: 1928-1929
A major community issue which confronted Shoghi Effendi in 1928 was escalating persecution in the Soviet Union with the Ishqabad Temple being confiscated from the community by the government. Several letters by Shoghi Effendi covering topics including the persecution of the Faith in Russia and Persia and the basic duties and procedures to be followed by National and Local Spiritual Assemblies were published in the compilation Bahá’í Administration in 1928.He visited England in mid-1929 and in...
Shoghi Effendi made several notable achievements in developing the literature of the Faith in 1930 completing his English translation of the Kitab-i-Iqan by April that year. Throughout the year he made progress on finalizing his translation of The Dawn-Breakers, a historical narrative composed by Nabil-i-A’zam, with the assistance of George Townshe...
In 1936 Shoghi Effendi established a formal framework for the expansion and consolidation of the Faith when he issued a Seven Year Plan to the Bahá’í community of North America. This marked the beginning of Shoghi Effendi’s aim to have the community actively make efforts to achieve the goals set by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in His Tablets of the Divine Plan. He...
During the late 1930’s the political situation in the Holy Land began to deteriorate with conflict breaking out between the Arab population and the British authorities with a conflict known as the Great Revolt taking place from 1936 to 1939. Shoghi Effendi disbanded the Spiritual Assembly of Haifa in 1938, and moved to Europe in the spring remainin...
Teaching Plans & Construction
Shortly after the end of World War II, in 1946 or 1947, Shoghi Effendi and Ruhiyyih Khanum visited Scotland so that Ruhiyyih could connect with her Scottish ancestry. They spent time in Loch Lomond, Gleneagles, Stirling, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Aberdeen. Shoghi Effendi began launching efforts to dramatically increase the level of activity across the Baha’i world after the end of the war, expanding the scope of the systematic pursuit of the Divine Plan. In 1946 he developed and launched a seco...
Administrative Development
In late 1950 Shoghi Effendi began to formally develop the administrative structure of the Bahá’í World Center in order to have a framework to assist him in managing the international affairs of the community. In November 1950, during a sojourn in Switzerland, he sent cables summoning several Bahá’ís to the Holy Land. As of January 1951 all those who had been invited had arrived in the Holy Land and Shoghi Effendi announced he was establishing a new administrative body, the International Bahá’...
In 1953 the Ten Year Crusade began. A major feature of the Plan were the goal or virgin territories, places with no Bahá’í residents, which Shoghi Effendi had tasked the community with settling. He established the title of Knight of Bahá’u’lláh which was to be granted to those who settled in goal territories. At the World Center Shoghi Effendi pers...
Shoghi Effendi was the grandson of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and the Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith from 1921 to 1957. He established the administrative systems, translated major works, developed the Holy Land properties, and wrote several messages and books.
Learn about Shoghi Effendi, the appointed Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith, and his writings and correspondence with the worldwide Bahá’í community. Explore his historical reviews, messages, and publications on various topics related to the Bahá’í teachings and the world order of Bahá’u’lláh.
Learn about Shoghi Effendi Rabbānī, the leader of the Bahāʾī faith from 1921 to 1957, who was the grandson of the founder and the interpreter of the teachings. Find out his life, education, achievements, and legacy in this article.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Throughout Shoghi Effendi’s ministry, he guided the Bahá’í community through numerous challenges: the German Bahá’ís were persecuted under Nazi rule; a number of Bahá’ís were arrested and interrogated in Turkey; the highly-developed community in ‘Ishqábád—following sustained persecution by the Soviet authorities in the 1920s ...
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Learn about Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith, who carried out the instructions of Bahá'u'lláh and 'Abdu'l-Bahá for 36 years. Find out his life, work, guidance, translations, and vision for the future.
