The hour has now struck for this continent, on whose soil, more than a
century ago, so much sacred blood was shed, in whose very heart deeds of
such tragic heroism were performed, and in many of whose territories such
brilliant victories have been won, to contribute, in association with its
sister continents, to the progress and ultimate triumph of this global
Crusade, in a manner befitting its unrivaled position in the entire Baha'i
world.
The various Baha'i communities dwelling within the borders of this
continent and those situated to the south of its shores in the Antipodes,
which include the oldest and most venerable among all the communities of
the Baha'i world, and whose members in their aggregate constitute the
overwhelming majority of the followers of Baha'u'llah, are called upon, in
close association with four other Baha'i communities in the Western
Hemisphere, to undertake in the course of the coming decade:
First, the construction of the first Ma_sh_riqu'l-A_dh_kar in
Baha'u'llah's native land, in the city of Tihran, surnamed by Baha'u'llah
"Mother of the World."
Second, the purchase of land for the future construction of three
Ma_sh_riqu'l-A_dh_kars, one in the city of Ba_gh_dad, enshrining the "Most
Great House," the third holiest city of the Baha'i world, one in New
Delhi, the leading city of the Indian subcontinent, and the third in
Sydney, the oldest and foremost Baha'i center in the Antipodes.
Third, the formation of no less than eleven national spiritual assemblies,
one each in Pakistan, Burma and Ceylon, under the aegis of the National
Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of India, Pakistan and Burma; one in
Turkey and one in Af_gh_anistan, under the aegis of the National Spiritual
Assembly of the Baha'is of Persia; one in Japan, under the aegis of the
National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States of
America; one in New Zealand, under the aegis of the National Spiritual
Assembly of the Baha'is of Australia and New Zealand, as well as four
regional national spiritual assemblies, one in the Arabian Peninsula,
under the aegis of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of
Persia; one in southeast Asia, under the aegis of the National Spiritual
Assembly of the Baha'is of India, Pakistan and Burma; a third in the South
Pacific, under the aegis of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is
of the United States of America; and a fourth in the Near East, under the
aegis of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of 'Iraq.
Fourth, the opening of the following forty-one virgin territories and
islands: Andaman Islands, Bhutan, Daman, Diu, Goa, Karikal, Mahe, Mariana
Islands, Nicobar Islands, Pondicherry, Sikkim, assigned to the National
Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of India, Pakistan and Burma; Caroline
Islands, Dutch New Guinea, Hainan Island, Kazakhstan, Macao Island,
Sakhalin Island, Tibet, Tonga Islands, assigned to the National Spiritual
Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States of America; Brunei, Chagos
Archipelago, Kirgizia, Mongolia, Solomon Islands, Tadzhikistan,
Uzbekistan, assigned to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of
Persia; Admiralty Islands, Cocos Island, Loyalty Islands, Mentawei
Islands, New Hebrides Islands, Portuguese Timor, Society Islands, assigned
to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Australia and New
Zealand; Gilbert and Ellice Islands, Marshall Islands, Tuamotu
Archipelago, assigned to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of
Central America; Hadhramaut, Kuria-Muria Islands, assigned to the National
Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of 'Iraq; Marquesas Islands, Samoa
Islands, assigned to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of
Canada; Cook Islands, assigned to the National Spiritual Assembly of the
Baha'is of South America.
Fifth, the translation and publication of Baha'i literature in the
following forty languages, to be undertaken by the National Spiritual
Assembly of the Baha'is of India, Pakistan and Burma, in association with
the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Australia and New
Zealand: Abor Miri, Aneityum, Annamese, Balochi, Bentuni, Binandere,
Cheremiss, Chungchia, Georgian, Houailou, Javanese, Kado, Kaili, Kopu,
Kusaie, Lepcha, Lifu, Manchu, Manipuri, Manus Island, Marquesas, Mentawei,
Mongolian, Mordoff, Mwala, Na-Hsi, Nicobarese, Niue, Ossete, Ostiak, Pali,
Panjabi, Pashto, Perm, Petats, Samoan, _Th_o, Tibetan, Tongan, Vogul.
Sixth, the consolidation of Aden Protectorate, A_dh_irbayjan,
Af_gh_anistan, Ahsa, Armenia, Bahrein Island, Georgia, Hijaz,
Saudi-Arabia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Yemen, allocated to the National
Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Persia; of Balu_ch_istan, Borneo,
Burma, Ceylon, Indo-China, Indonesia, Malaya, Nepal, Pakistan, Sarawak,
Siam, allocated to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of
India, Pakistan and Burma; of China, Formosa, Japan, Korea, Manchuria,
Philippine Islands, allocated to the National Spiritual Assembly of the
Baha'is of the United States of America; of Jordan, Kuweit, Lebanon,
Qatar, Syria, Trucial _Sh_ei_kh_s, Umman, allocated to the National
Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of 'Iraq; of Bismarck Archipelago, Fiji,
New Caledonia, Australian New Guinea, allocated to the National Spiritual
Assembly of the Baha'is of Australia and New Zealand; of Hong Kong,
allocated to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the British
Isles.
Seventh, the incorporation of the eleven above-mentioned national
spiritual assemblies, as well as those of Persia and 'Iraq.
Eighth, the establishment by these above-mentioned eleven national
spiritual assemblies of national Baha'i endowments.
Ninth, the establishment of a national Haziratu'l-Quds in the capital
cities of each of the countries where national spiritual assemblies are to
be established, as well as one in Suva, one in Jakarta, one in Bahrein and
one in Beirut.
Tenth, the establishment of a national Baha'i Court in the capital cities
of Persia, of 'Iraq, of Pakistan and of Af_gh_anistan--the leading Muslim
centers in the Asiatic continent.
Eleventh, the establishment of two national Baha'i Publishing Trusts, one
in Tihran and one in New Delhi.
Twelfth, the formation of Israel branches of the National Spiritual
Assemblies of the Baha'is of Persia, of 'Iraq, and of Australia,
authorized to hold on behalf of their parent institutions property
dedicated to the holy shrines at the World Center of the Faith in the
state of Israel.
Thirteenth, the appointment, during Ridvan 1954, by the Hands of the Cause
in Asia and in Australia of an Auxiliary Board of nine members who will,
in conjunction with the eight national spiritual assemblies participating
in the Asiatic and Australian campaigns, assist, through periodic and
systematic visits to Baha'i centers, in the efficient and prompt execution
of the plans formulated for the prosecution of the teaching campaigns in
the continent of Asia and in the Antipodes.