1897 1 Mar
189- |
The birth of Shoghi Effendi, in the house of `Abdu'lláh Páshá. [BBD208; BKG359; DH60, 214; GBF2]
He was descended from both the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh: his mother was the eldest daughter of `Abdu'l-Bahá; his father was an Afnán, a grandson of Hájí Mírzá `Abu'l-Qásim, a cousin of the mother of the Báb and a brother of His wife. [CB280; GBF2]
He was the Ghusn-i-Mumtáz, the Chosen Branch. [BBD87]
`Shoghi' means `one who longs'. [CB281]
`Abdu'l-Bahá commanded everyone, even Shoghi Effendi's father, to add the title `Effendi' after his name. [CB281; GBF2]
`Abdu'l-Bahá gave him the surname Rabbání in the early years of his study in Haifa so that he will not be confused with his cousins, who were all called Afnán or Shahíd. The family name "Rabbání" was also used by Shoghi Effendi's brothers and sister. [BBD191–2; DH60–1; PG4]
As a young boy the Master sent him with a nurse named Hájar Khátún to live in Haifa where he was registered in the French Jesuit school, Collège des Frères. By the age of nine or ten his mother had gotten rid of this nurse. He was unhappy at school in Haifa so the Master sent him to a Catholic boarding school in Beirut where he was equally unhappy. He even sent an attendant to rent a house and provide care so he could attend as a day student but still he was not happy so arrangements were made for him to enter the preparatory school associated with the Syrian Protestant College. [PG4; PP15-17]
See also Rabbani, The Priceless Pearl; Rabbani, The Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith; Giachery, Shoghi Effendi: Recollections.
In a letter from the Universal House of Justice dated 1 October 1973 to Elias Zohoori, included on page 83 of his book, Names and Numbers: A Bahá'í History Reference Guide it says:
...we write to advise you that it has not been possible to establish with absolute accuracy the date of the beloved Guardian's birth. Shoghi Effendi's passport gives 3rd March 1896…A note in the Guardian's handwriting indicates 1st March 1897…A further and different date has been noted by Shoghi Effendi's father. Unless further research is able to clarify the matter, it is not possible to make a categorical statement of the Guardian's birth date.
- Shoghi Effendi's registration form for the Syrian Protestant College shows his year of birth as 1899. [PGp14-15]
- The inscription on the column erected at Shoghi Effendi's resting place shows "4 November 1896".
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* Shoghi Effendi (chronology); House of `Abdu'lláh Páshá (Akká); Bahá'u'lláh, Family of; `Abdu'l-Bahá, Family of; Afnan; Aghsan; Hájí Mírzá Abu'l-Qasim; Rabbani (name); Names and titles; - Basic timeline, Condensed; - Basic timeline, Expanded; * Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; Akka, Israel |
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