Warm thanks,
Halallah Moksia

Mr. Minoo Fozdar, a humble man of love, action, wisdom and devotion to the teaching and serving the Cause of God together with his precious wife Marjory Lighthal, who are our close friends, and coworkers in the path of service particularly in Perth and Jeraldton when I served as his Assitant Auxiliary Board in WA. Minoo’s patience and perseverance in fulfilling his commitments in serving the Cause was always exemplary and encouraging. When it came to priorities that entails selecting between chooing “the more-important” over the “important”, he didn’t hesitate. Being the man of high resolve he accomplished tasks with determination, courage, and perseverance. It was a great joy working with him and his high sense of humor.
Stories of Minoo’s desier for teaching the Faith, particularly to Aborigines teaching and consolidation are too many to mention. For the sake of brevity I suffice with relating one or two accounts of travelling with him to the Aboriginal communities in North WA, teaching and consolidation trip when we visited many friendds in Onslow, Karata, Roburn, Portheadland, Lagrange, Brume, Bidiadanga, and the One-Mob Baha’i Aborigines conference in Canarvon.

Mr. Minoo Fozdar, was a humble man of love, action, wisdom and devotion to the teaching and serving the Cause of God which he accomplished together with his precious wife Marjory Lighthal. They were our close friends, and consolidation coworkers particularly in WA including, Perth and Jeraldton when I served as his Assitant Auxiliary Board in WA. Minoo’s patience and perseverance in fulfilling his commitments to serving the Cause was always exemplary and encouraging. And when it came to priorities of selecting between “the more-important” over the “important”.
Being the man of high resolve he accomplished tasks with high determination, courage, and perseverance. It was a great joy working with him as he had a great sense of humor. Among the numerous teaching and consolidation tours that I joined him to the Aboriginal communities particularly in North WA, I suffice with relating the teaching and consolidation trip which we visited the friendds in Onslow, Karata, Roburn, Portheadland, Lagrange and Brume, Bidiadanga, and the One-Mob Aborigines conference in Carnarvon where Minoo emphasised child educations, reciting daily prayers and sharing the Baha’i stories and the Teachings with their fellow aboriginal friends in order to strengthening the foundation of the Faith in their communities.

Firaydun MIthaq
Chieng Mai
Thailand

Your tribute to your grandfather, Mr. Minoo K. Fozdar, is beautifully documented. I trust that every servant of the Blessed Beauty deserves such loving appreciation and recognition.

Reading of his remarkable ninety-five years, one is struck less by any single dramatic turning point than by the quiet, unbroken continuity of a spiritual journey, a journey that began in a Bombay household already steeped in the Cause and never once wavered across seven decades and three continents. From a young man stranded en route to the Cocos Keeling Islands and redirected instead to Brunei, to an elder statesman of the Faith initiating interfaith devotionals in his final year at an aged-care home, his life reads as a single arc of service rather than a series of separate chapters. It is proof that a life given wholly to Bahá’u’lláh acquires its own momentum, carrying the believer forward even through miscommunication, displacement, and old age.

His love for the Blessed Beauty was not an abstraction he professed but a devotion he visibly enacted. That the Hand of the Cause Ṭaráẓu’lláh Samandarí, a figure who withdrew his own hands from the customary gesture of reverence, chose instead to kiss both of Minoo’s cheeks, speaks to a warmth of spirit that radiated outward and was recognized by those closest to the Cause. This was a man who built his personal library around Bahá’í scholarship, who could converse with Hands of the Cause and members of the Universal House of Justice not merely with familiarity but with genuine spiritual kinship, and whose home; first in Brunei, then in Perth became, by his own quiet insistence, a permanent centre of devotion rather than a private residence that occasionally hosted Bahá’í gatherings.

His eagerness to emblazon the Greatest Name found expression not in grand pronouncements but in tireless, often unglamorous fieldwork: chairing the first National Spiritual Assembly of Brunei, mass teaching along the streets and beaches of Perth alongside Hand of the Cause John Robarts’ visiting team, running deepening classes, and facilitating weekly public information evenings at the Bahá’í Centre of Learning well into his later years. That he served as the first resident Auxiliary Board member for Western Australia for nearly two decades, and personally shepherded hundreds of Iranian refugee believers arriving in the 1980s, shows a man who understood proclamation not as a moment of eloquence but as a discipline of daily, patient labour in the vineyard of the Cause.

Perhaps most striking, though, is his complete obedience and surrender to the Will of God; a surrender that asked real sacrifice of him and was given without complaint. He pioneered to remote posts in Brunei, Perth, Geraldton, and Bunbury with no assurance of security, resigned a senior government position after fifteen years of service, and endured the peculiar indignity of receiving, within the same week, a letter naming him a prohibited immigrant and a letter summoning him to receive a Sultan’s medal for that very same service. Through it all, as those who knew him testify, he remained patient, soft-spoken, and unfailingly trusting in Divine Assistance. He was a man for whom the outcome of any test mattered less than the fidelity of his response to it.

It is worth pausing, too, on the singular fact that this was not one man’s isolated devotion but a family’s collective footprint upon the path of Bahá’u’lláh; parents Dr. Khodadad and Shirin Fozdar, brothers Jamshed and Dr. John, and Minoo himself all becoming pioneers, Knights of Bahá’u’lláh, and founding members of national institutions across South and Southeast Asia and Australia. Few families in the history of the Faith in this region can claim so wide and enduring a legacy, and Minoo’s own ninety-five years stand as one luminous thread in that larger, illustrious tapestry of service.

May his radiant soul now find joyous reunion with his stalwart parents and devoted siblings within that promised realm of which Bahá’u’lláh Himself assures the believer, “Thy Paradise is My love; thy heavenly home, reunion with Me.” His life was indeed well lived. Yá Bahá.

With loving Bahá’í greetings,

Vela Gopal

Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Alláh-u-Abhá. Your fascinating story titled Tale of Two Generations highlights how the Bahá’í Faith took root in the Kingdom of Bhutan in a way that is nothing short of extraordinary. It is a quiet yet steadfast unfolding of spiritual destiny in one of the world’s most remote and enchanting Himalayan kingdoms.

This journey began with remarkable courage in 1954, when Mr. Shapoor Rowhani and Mr. Ardeshir Furudi made the arduous trip from Bombay to become the first Bahá’ís to set foot on Bhutanese soil. Though circumstances allowed them to stay for only two months, their sacrifice was immortalized when they were named Knights of Bahá’u’lláh under the Ten-Year Crusade. That brief yet historic visit planted a seed in the mountain soil of Bhutan; a seed that though it would take years to germinate, was never forgotten by the spiritual forces governing the growth of the Faith.

The true blossoming of that seed came with the arrival of Dr. Anayat Soroosh Yaganegi in 1961. A young and highly spirited physician from Bangalore, his original ambition had been agriculture, yet he was mysteriously guided toward medicine, the very vocation that would carry him to the heart of Bhutan. His grueling journey through forests and mountain streams from the border town of Phuntsholing to the capital, Thimphu, was itself a metaphor for the pioneering spirit: full of difficulties and uncertainty, yet driven by unwavering faith.

For over 54 years, Dr. Anayat served the people of Bhutan as both a healer and a spiritual lighthouse, earning the affectionate title of “legendary doctor” from His Majesty the Fourth King. His compassionate treatment of leprosy patients, who were widely shunned by others, stood as a living embodiment of the Bahá’í principle of the oneness of humanity. The legendary Dr. Anayat did not merely teach his Faith; he lived it, breath by breath, patient by patient.

The growth of the Bahá’í community in Bhutan was never loud or dramatic. Instead, it was woven quietly into the fabric of professional service and human friendship. The arrival of Bahá’í doctors, nurses, and engineers; families like the Moriscos, the Kelleys, the Berrys, and the Atashbands in the 1980s added vital momentum to the community. The formation of the first Local Spiritual Assembly of Thimphu in 1983 was a defining milestone, a moment when long years of patient effort bore institutional fruit. Even when those families eventually departed and the Assembly lapsed, the bonds of love and the seeds of spiritual awareness they had sown endured by the grace of the Blessed Beauty.

Furthermore, the story of the Rasaily family drawn to the Faith through a poster of the Lotus Temple spotted at a market stall is a beautiful testament to how the Bahá’í Faith operates through seemingly ordinary moments, guided by a providence that transcends human planning.

What makes this account particularly moving is its generational depth. You, the daughter of Dr. Anayat born in Bhutan, raised in the Faith, and now herself a custodian of her mother and the community your beloved father built embodies the seamless passing of the torch from one generation to the next. The children’s classes organized by the Morisco family, the friendship between Trishna Rasaily and Dechen Morisco as kindergarteners, and the vegetables shared between neighboring families who did not yet know they were already spiritually connected. All of these tender details reveal how the Faith advances not through proclamation alone, but through lived example, human warmth, and the mysterious workings of divine guidance. As Mr. Rasaily himself observed of the Atashband family: “They had not taught by words, but by deeds.” This, perhaps, is the most eloquent summary of how the Bahá’í Faith took hold in Bhutan.

And now, the fruits of more than seven decades of sacrifice, service, and steadfast love have been crowned with a joyous announcement. On 28 April 2026, the Universal House of Justice shared a momentous communication with all National Spiritual Assemblies around the world: the formation of the National Spiritual Assembly of Bhutan, with its seat in the capital city of Thimphu. This is not merely an administrative milestone; it is the fulfillment of Divine Will and a dream that every believing soul who walked those mountain paths carried in their hearts.

The “noble soul” and “stalwart servant of the Blessed Beauty,” as the Universal House of Justice described Dr. Anayat upon his passing, did not live to see this day in this world, but one cannot doubt that his spirit rejoices from the Abhá Kingdom. Bhutan, that “paradise on earth,” has now taken its rightful place in the global order of the Bahá’í Administrative Institutions. It is a testament to what faith, patience, and love can quietly and magnificently accomplish.

Your recollections are a great treat, and I trust it is incredibly timely to read and appreciate their spiritual potency. Please give our utmost love and regards to the friends in Bhutan. May the fervent supplications of the House at the Sacred Threshold, alongside the many prayers of the Bahá’í world, further strengthen and empower this newly formed institution. Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá.

With loving Bahá’í greetings,
Vela Gopal
Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Once again, I am most grateful.

Gunasegar Ramasamy
Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia

Jothee Ramasamy
Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia

Always humble in his posture, soft spoken and generous in sharing his knowledge and wisdom of the Faith. He was a true mentor to many of the Baha’is, young and old.

I got to know of Ganeson better when he moved into Subang Jaya in the early 90’s as he became closely connected with the friends here through the regular meet up during our community activities and events. I also had an opportunity to work with Ganeson for short period while serving in the Baha’i Publishing Trust when he was working on his book ‘The Stalwarts of the Faith’ back in 2016. He gave me signed complimentary copy of the book before the launch of the book. This book holds a very special memory of Ganeson to this day. He was a very pragmatic person when discussing views or exchanging ideas and opinions on a broad range of subjects.

His sudden passing in April 2021 was indeed a big loss to the Malaysian Baha’i Community, who will fondly remember and affectionately call him to mind.

Thanks again Mani for the refreshing article that brought back memories of dear Ganeson throughout his services to the Faith and his great educational endeavours.

Sandran Govindasamy
Subang Jaya
Selangor
Malaysia

It is indeed laudable to read your well written and well researched short biography on Ganesan, who served the Cause since toward the end of the 10 Year Crusade into the 9 Year Plan and all Plans thereafter – striving with devotion and sacrifice till he was called from the Kingdom on High

I wanted to know more on the Bahai Faith and was going to see Vasugi, the younger sister of Ganesan and there she presented me to her elder brother Ganesan and Kanthakumar. The two brothers were on vacation. Vasugi insisted I talk with them. I do not remember of everything they spoke except they were going to a Bahá’í summer school. This was in 1968. I wasn’t very comfortable sitting with two young men. I excused myself and went to Vasugi asking for something to read. I was given the book ‘Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era’ by Dr. John Esslemont. They, the family were not far from the Alor Star Bahá’í Centre and henceforth I continued my research on the
Faith, visiting frequently the Centre.

Sometime in 1970, Uncle Nagaratnam, Ganesan and myself took a bus to Gurun town for a meeting with a couple of Indian background. I guess that was my first teaching trip ever. The next time I met Ganesan and his wife Panja and other members of the family, was when they living upstairs floor of the Alor star
Bahá’í Centre.

God bless you for the write up. I hope the younger Bahá’ís read it and be inspired.

Loving greetings

Kamachee
Lesotho
Africa

I grew up with Ganeson in those early days and studied with him at the same college in Alor Star. He was my very dear friend and co-worker in the Faith, and I can say with full conviction that he proved to be an outstanding Bahá’í teacher, pioneer and writer. He was an exemplary son to his parents and a devoted brother to his siblings, and he remained so throughout his entire life.

What struck me most, even in those early years, was his steadfastness despite real and grinding poverty. I remember vividly when he informed his Christian pastor that he had become a Bahá’í — she told him in no uncertain terms that he would no longer be eligible for a scholarship. Yet he did not waver. To help his family make ends meet, he pedalled nasi lemak and pastries in the neighbourhood, as he had many siblings to support and his father had passed away at an early age.

Later, when our fledgling community had no place to meet and it was decided that we should rent our own centre, Ganeson once again rose to the occasion. He gave tuition classes to help subsidize the rent — quietly, without complaint, turning every hardship into an act of service.
Even in the later part of his life, when he suffered from chronic pain and increasing difficulties, he never stopped teaching and writing. He was, in the truest sense, a great warrior — one who fought not with weapons but with love, knowledge and an unbreakable spirit.

He was, and will remain, a shining star in the firmament of Bahá’u’lláh. May his radiant soul continue to inspire many others, especially the youth, in the service of the Faith.

Yin Hong Shuen
Singapore

Thank you for sharing your thoughts on Mr. Ganesan. I always looked up to him as “Sir,” and his study sessions were a turning point for my spiritual growth. He was a true role model who didn’t just speak about service but led by example.

What stood out most was his kindness; he would always put aside his own tasks to answer a question, doing so with a humility that was truly humbling to witness. I appreciate you sharing this lovely reflection.

Best regards,
Arulnathan
Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia