During the Ten Year World Crusade, [1953-1963] twenty-two
acres of land in New Delhi were acquired as a site for a House of Worship. In
the process of demarcating the boundaries, it was discovered that the land was
part of an ancient village named Bahapur, meaning "the Abode of
Baha". In Hindustani, a dialect of Hindi, Baha means "a channel"
or "a water course". By a happy coincidence, Baha is Arabic for
"light", 'splendour", or "glory" and is a form of
Baha'u'llah's name. Later the government requisitioned the property for use as
a greenbelt area. After several years of
constant negotiation by the National Spiritual Assembly of India, and upon
viewing the beautiful design for the Temple, the government agreed to release
the entire twenty-two acres. (Footnote to a message from the Universal House of
Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of India dated 10
October 1977; ‘Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1963-1986’)
