ur and bring to a final consummation the Mission with which it
has been entrusted is the deepest yearning of my heart and the object of
my unceasing prayers."

Shoghi

THE SEEDS ARE TENDED
1922-1944

Letter of 5 March 1922

5 March 1922(1)

Dear Fellow-workers in the Cause of Baha'u'llah,

It is with words of regret and disappointment that I desire to open this
letter because of my inability, in view of my manifold and pressing
duties, to respond individually and in writing to the many messages of
love and sympathy and of hope that you have so affectionately sent me
since our Beloved's passing from this World. I am sure I am voicing the
sentiments of the bereaved ladies of the Household when I say that however
desirous we may be to correspond separately with every one of you, the
grave responsibilities and manifold duties now devolved upon us make it
regrettably impossible to express in written messages to every friend what
we constantly feel in our hearts, and pray for when visiting His sacred
Shrine.

At this grave and momentous period through which the Cause of God in
conformity with the Divine Wisdom is passing, it is the sacred duty of
every one of us to endeavour to realise the full significance of this Hour
of Transition, and then to make a supreme resolve to arise steadfastly for
the fulfilment of our sacred obligations.

Great as is the love and paternal care which our beloved Master is
extending to us from on High, and unique as is the Spirit that animates
today His servants in the world, yet a great deal will depend upon the
character and efforts of His loved ones on whom now rests the
responsibility of carrying on His work gloriously after Him. How great is
the need at this moment when the promised outpourings of His grace are
ready to be extended to every soul, for us all to form a broad vision of
the mission of the Cause to mankind, and to do all in our power to spread
it throughout the world. The eyes of the world, now that the sublime
Personality of the Master has been removed from this visible plane, are
turned with eager anticipation to us who are named after His name, and on
whom rests primarily the responsibility to keep burning the torch that He
has lit in this world. How keenly I feel at this challenging hour in the
history of the Cause the need for a firm and definite determination to
subordinate all our personal likings, our local interests, to the
interests and require