# Archives, Baha'i: Guidance Regarding

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> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Bahá'u'lláh, Archives, Baha'i: Guidance Regarding, bahai-library.com.
> ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
> 
> Archives, Bahá'í:
> 
> Guidance Regarding
> 
> Bahá'u'lláh
> 
> Shoghi Effendi
> 
> Universal House of Justice
> 
> Bahá'í International Archives
> 
> , compiler
> 
> n.d.
> 
> Extract from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh
> 
> Thou shouldst alert the company of the
> faithful to the need for all to exert every effort and to spare no pains in
> preserving and honouring the Tablets and Holy Writings. Blessed the regions in
> which the fragrance of the Pen of the Most High is spread abroad. The
> preservation of the peerless, incomparable and blessed Tablets is highly
> requisite and beloved in the sight of God, lest either the pages of which they
> are composed or the ink in which they are inscribed should lose their pristine
> quality. Do thou guide and instruct the friends in the method of preservation.
> All that hath been said in this regard was at His sacred and exalted behest.
> Blessed are those who do His bidding.
> 
> This Tablet is in the
> form of a letter from Áqá Ján Khádim'u'lláh quoting words of
> 
> Bahá'u'lláh, and dictated in its entirety by Him.
> 
> Extracts from the Writings of Shoghi Effendi and letters
> written on his behalf
> 
> ...undertakings of great institutional
> significance were initiated by these newly founded Assemblies, among which the
> institution of the Hazíratu'l-Quds—the seat of the Bahá'í National Assembly and
> pivot of all Bahá'í administrative activity in future—must rank as one of the
> most important. Originating first in Persia, now universally known by its
> official and distinctive title signifying “the Sacred Fold,” ... this
> institution, still in the early stages of its development, has already lent its
> share to the consolidation of the internal functions of the organic Bahá'í
> community, and provided a further visible evidence of its steady growth and
> rising power. Complementary in its functions to those of the Mashriqu'l-Adhkár—an
> edifice exclusively reserved for Bahá'í worship—this institution, whether local
> or national, will, as its component parts, such as the Secretariat, the
> Treasury, the Archives, the Library, the Publishing Office, the Assembly Hall,
> the Council Chamber, the Pilgrims' Hostel, are brought together and made jointly
> to operate in one spot, be increasingly regarded as the focus of all Bahá'í
> administrative activity, and symbolize, in a befitting manner, the ideal of
> service animating the Bahá'í community in its relation alike to the Faith and to
> mankind in general.
> 
> God Passes By
> (Wilmette: Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1974,
> 1999 printing), pages
> 339
> -
> 340
> )
> 
> Reference should, moreover, be made to the
> establishment of National Archives for the authentication, the collection, the
> translation, the cataloguing and the preservation of the Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh
> and of ‘Abdu'l-Bahá and for the preservation of sacred relics and historical
> documents…
> 
> God Passes By
> , page
> 342
> 
> Finally a reference should be made to the
> establishment of the international Bahá'í archives on Mount Carmel occupying the
> two chambers adjoining the Shrine of the Báb.  Here have been collected,
> arranged and preserved the relics, articles of clothing, writings and
> photographs of the Báb, Bahá'u'lláh and the Master, as well as a mass of
> invaluable documents and manuscripts, consisting mostly of unpublished and
> untranslated and authenticated Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh, some of them beautifully
> illuminated and mounted. Some of these have been so arranged that the pilgrims
> visiting the Holy Land will be able to view these priceless relics.  This
> institution, Shoghi Effendi hopes, will serve as a model and stimulus to the
> National Spiritual Assemblies in the different parts of the world to establish
> similar institutions which will serve to collect, arrange and preserve for
> posterity any documents, sacred or otherwise, connected with the Bahá'í Faith.
> 
> From a letter dated 16 January 1932 to a National Spiritual
> Assembly
> 
> He trusts that his gift, offered to your
> National Archives through the kind care of Miss ___ will serve to remind the ...
> believers of the importance and sacred character of that institution, and to
> encourage them to help in contributing their full share towards its further
> development and expansion. The institution of the National Bahá'í Archives,
> which all the National Assemblies have already established, is, indeed, highly
> important, the significance of which will be increasingly realized as years go
> by. It is now that so many precious sacred relics are still in the possession of
> individual believers, that steps must be taken in order to ensure their safe
> preservation in the National Archives. The friends must be encouraged to
> co-operate with their National Spiritual Assembly for the attainment of this
> objective.
> 
> From a letter dated 5 July 1935 to an individual
> 
> National archives are in the process of
> formation in Egypt, Persia, Germany, America and India. As soon as these
> national archives are established, local archives will be formed under the
> direct supervision of the Local Assemblies.
> 
> From a letter dated 10 June 1936 to a National Spiritual
> Assembly
> 
> Regarding the preservation of relics
> associated with ‘Abdu'l-Bahá, the general principle should be that any object
> used by Him in person should be preserved for posterity, whether in the local or
> the national archives. It is the duty and responsibility of the Bahá'í
> Assemblies to ascertain carefully whether such objects are genuine or not, and
> to exercise the utmost care and caution in this matter.
> 
> 28 July 1936 to a National Spiritual Assembly
> 
> The importance of the institution of Bahá'í
> Archives is not due only to the many teaching facilities it procures, but is
> essentially to be found in the vast amount of historical data and information it
> offers both to the present-day administrators of the Cause, and to the Bahá'í
> historians of the future. The institution of Bahá'í Archives is indeed a most
> valuable storehouse of information regarding all the aspects of the Faith,
> historical, administrative as well as doctrinal. Future generations of believers
> will be surely in a better position than we are to truly and adequately
> appreciate the many advantages and facilities which the institution of the
> Archives offers to individual believers and also to the community at large.
> 
> Now that the Cause is rapidly passing through so many
> different phases of its evolution is the time for the friends to exert their
> utmost in order to preserve as much as they can of the sacred relics and various
> other precious objects that are associated with the lives of the Founders of the
> Faith, and particularly the Tablets They have revealed.
> 
> Every believer should realize that he has a definite
> responsibility to shoulder in this matter, and to help, to whatever extent he
> can, in rendering successful the valuable work which National and Local Bahá'í
> Archives Committees are so devotedly accomplishing for the Faith in America.
> 
> From a letter dated 25 September 1936 to a National Spiritual
> Assembly
> 
> He thinks that when things are collected for
> the archives as much information as possible should be given about them. It is
> easier now, while the old Bahá'ís dating from the early days of the Cause in
> America are still living, to collect accurate information than it will be later
> on, and every attempt should be made to amplify local records and accumulate
> historical data.
> 
> From a letter dated 25 November 1948 to an individual
> 
> It is very important that the old Bahá'ís
> should accurately record their experiences with the Master, and events in the
> Cause's progress, for these things form data for future histories of the Cause.
> They have not, however, the authority of the revealed Word or the Tablets, etc.
> 
> From a letter dated 23 October 1949 to an individual
> 
> As regards the things you have, associated
> with the beloved Master, he feels that, unless you have some objection to the
> suggestion, the best thing you could do would be to entrust them to the Bahá'ís
> of France....
> 
> He is trying to assist the friends to build up, in a modest
> way, National Archives; and any object associated with the Master is naturally a
> very prized possession. Also it seems to him befitting that you, as one of the
> older “French” Bahá'ís, should be associated with this institution, which in the
> future will no doubt grow to be of considerable importance.
> 
> From a letter dated 26 March 1956 to an individual
> 
> Extracts from letters written by or on behalf of the Universal
> House of Justice
> 
> It was the wish of the beloved Guardian that
> both national and local archives be instituted as one of the component parts of
> every Hazíratu'l-Quds.
> 
> From a letter dated 5 July 1973 from the Universal House of
> Justice to an individual
> 
> When friends offer sacred relics for
> preservation in the International Archives they are invariably asked to give any
> and all information they have about each relic, specifying the manner in which
> it came into their possession. If the information they give is complete and
> reliable, the relic is included in the Archives, properly identified, and
> usually together with the information which has been provided about its
> authenticity. The House of Justice suggests that this is what you ought to do
> with the hair now received by you.
> 
> From a letter dated 25 April 1977 written on behalf of the
> Universal House of Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly
> 
> The organization of your archives and the
> extent to which archival material is shared with individual believers is within
> the discretion of your National Spiritual Assembly. However, those responsible
> for the archives should be sure that material released in response to requests
> of individual believers is not of a nature which, if disclosed at the time,
> would harm the interests of the Faith. Also, personal items, particularly if the
> individuals concerned are still living, should only be made available to
> researchers after the most careful consideration, even referring back to the
> National Spiritual Assembly if necessary.
> 
> From a letter dated 16 June 1982 written on behalf of the
> Universal House of Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly
> 
> The archives of the Faith at the World Centre
> and in Iran, and indeed in most national communities, are as yet in no condition
> to permit access to just anyone who wishes to study them. Most of these archives
> still need to be studied, sorted, preserved and catalogued by competent
> archivists so that vital historical evidence is not lost and so that easy access
> will be possible in future.
> 
> From a letter dated 23 March 1983 written on behalf of the
> Universal House of Justice to an individual
> 
> The Universal House of Justice has received
> your letter ... concerning the precious relics which are in the possession of
> your Assembly...
> 
> Each of these relics should be preserved with the utmost
> reverence in a safe place, together with a meticulous record of its provenance
> to ensure that, in future, no question of its authenticity will arise. A
> separate list of the relics owned by your Assembly should also be kept in
> another location, describing them and stating where they are being held.
> 
> As to the actual preservation of the relics themselves, the
> House of Justice suggest that you consult a local authority ... such as one of
> the museums, which will have expertise not only in the preservation of such
> objects, but also concerning the conditions in ... or wherever they are being
> held.
> 
> From a letter dated 19 October 1983 written on behalf of the
> Universal House of Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly
> 
> The archives of a Spiritual Assembly are its
> responsibility and are held in trust for the Cause. Their confidentiality is an
> element of the confidentiality with which a Spiritual Assembly must deal with
> the personal problems of the members of its community. To give or deny access to
> the archives lies within the authority of the Assembly...
> 
> From a letter dated 23 July 1985 written on behalf of the
> Universal House of Justice to an individual
> 
> While the House of Justice requests your
> National Spiritual Assembly to give every encouragement to ... in spearheading
> the collection of such materials from the children of early believers in your
> country, you should impress upon them that ultimately such archival material
> should be deposited in your National Archives. Time is of the essence, and the
> sooner a systematic effort is undertaken to collect material such as tablets to
> the early believers, diaries, old photographs properly identified, and
> correspondence with the prominent early believers, the more productive it will
> be. Many of the important historic documents may have already been destroyed by
> the descendants of early believers who do not realize their importance.
> 
> From a letter dated 6 August 1985 written on behalf of the
> Universal House of Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly
> 
> As you can understand, it is very important
> for such details of the provenance of any relic to accompany it so that doubts
> of authenticity which might arise in future will have reliable information
> against which the matter can be checked.
> 
> From a letter dated 28 November 1985 written on behalf of the
> Universal House of Justice to an individual
> 
> The House of Justice understands that much
> has already been done to collect in note form or on tape recordings the
> recollections of the older faithful believers in.… These recollections will be
> of great value to the history of the Faith there, and you have, no doubt, given
> Mr. ___ access to whatever is not of a confidential nature. In his efforts to
> collect additional recollections or to obtain access to documents still in
> private hands, Mr. ___ may find that some of the friends are reluctant to
> divulge their memories to a young researcher, especially if some of them are
> painful. It is, however, most important that as many as possible be recorded
> while there is still time, so that there will be numerous sources of information
> for future historians.  The House of Justice therefore suggests that the
> committee or individual whom your Assembly has made responsible for collecting
> and preserving such historical archives and information, could collaborate with
> Mr. ___ and could arrange for friends who would be acceptable to the older
> believers to approach them and obtain tape recordings or other records of their
> reminiscences, as well as alerting them to the need to preserve for the Faith
> whatever historically valuable documents they may have in their possession.
> 
> From a letter dated 3 December 1985 written on behalf of the
> Universal House of Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly
> 
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> — *Archives, Baha'i: Guidance Regarding (Used by permission of the curator)*