Mahmud’s Diary: “a reliable account of 'Abdu'l-Baha's travels in the West and an authentic record of His utterances, whether in the form of formal talks, table talks or random oral statements.”

 . . . [the Universal House of Justice] attaches great importance to this work which, as you may know, is regarded as a reliable account of 'Abdu'l-Baha's travels in the West and an authentic record of His utterances, whether in the form of formal talks, table talks or random oral statements. Mirza Mahmud was a careful and faithful chronicler and engaged in assembling and publishing his work with the permission of the beloved Master, as he states in the Introduction. Indeed, Shoghi Effendi drew upon it for details about the Master's visit to the West in writing God Passes By . . . (The Universal House of Justice, letter dated April 30, 1984 to the  National Spiritual Assembly of the United States; Mahmud’s Diary, p. viii)