Resting place of Shoghi Effendi

Resting place of Shoghi Effendi.

The resting place of Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith, is a memorial located in New Southgate Cemetery, in the London Borough of Barnet. As the Guardian passed away in London, he therefore had to be buried within an hour's travel of that spot, and the present site was selected. The site is a place of prayer and reflection for Bahá’ís.

The whole site is administered by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United Kingdom, on behalf of the Universal House of Justice. The National Spiritual Assembly has a special fund for the maintenance of the site, and has recently established an endowment fund to put maintenance finances on a more permanent footing. Bahá'ís can donate to either, or both, of these special funds.

Design

The site includes the grave itself, marked by a vertical Corinthian column which is surmounted by a stone globe and a golden eagle. The grave is contained within a low decorative wall, with paths of red crushed tiles, and adjacent flower beds. The eagle atop the globe was stolen at one point, presumably for its metal resale value, but it was replaced soon thereafter. In 2014, it was announced that raised plantings of flowers have been added, to beautify the site.

The design of the single pillar topped by an eagle astride the globe was conceived by Amatu’l-Bahá Rúḥíyyih Khánum shortly after the Guardian's burial, who recalled:

“ ...when I was driving away from his grave (I went and visited it just before I left London with Mrs Collins) and the car was driving away from the grave - of course there was nothing but flowers there - in front of my eyes, I saw the whole thing - I saw the foundation and the column, and the globe and the eagle just like that, and I made a little sketch... ” — Rúḥíyyih Khánum, August 1981

Rúḥíyyih Khánum later presented her sketch at the first Conclave of the Hands of the Cause, proposing it be built at the Guardian's resting place, and the plan was accepted. The impromptu design incorporates several different elements connected to Shoghi Effendi. For instance, he had previously stated his appreciation of Corinthian columns. The globe on top of the pillar shows the shape of Africa towards the visitor, because the victories won there had brought him so much joy in the last year of his life. The eagle atop the globe, a "symbol of victory", was fashioned after a Japanese sculpture that was bought by Shoghi Effendi at a "very famous antique shop" in Edinburgh's Princes Street, and which he kept in his home in Haifa.

Visiting

The site can be reached by public transport, using the Piccadilly line of London's Underground railway or "Tube". The destination station is called Arnos Grove, from which there is a long walk, first westwards along Bowes Road, and then, from the roundabout, along Brunswick Park Road. More detailed instructions are available from the national Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds, at 27, Rutland Gate, London SW7 1PD.

In the same cemetery, the graves of other Bahá'ís can be found. At a discreet distance from the site is a hut, occupied by a sitekeeper, who greets visitors and has a small stock of books for sale.