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Adasiyyih: The Story of 'Abdu'l-Baha's Model Farming Community
In 1901, 'Abdu'l-Bahá purchased land in what is now Jordan that would become the village of 'Adasíyyih. Through His guidance and unending inspiration, Bahá'í pioneers from Iran would soon settle there and transform a degraded parcel of land--which 'Abdu'l-Bahá reportedly described as the most inhospitable place on Earth--into the site of a thriving farm and prosperous community whose residents embodied the Bahá'í teachings.
The story of 'Adasíyyih is offered within the context of the extensive agricultural activities of the Central Figures of the Bahá'í Faith and the early Bahá'í communities They nurtured. It was this farming village--along with several others in the region of the Galilee--that produced a surplus of crops, which enabled 'Abdu'l-Bahá to keep famine at bay for so many people during World War I, a feat that would earn Him a knighthood from the British Empire and a title that He would never use. In time, 'Adasíyyih would become a model village for Jordanians, and Jordan's royalty would become frequent guests.
Author Paul Hanley's extensive research, along with his deep interest in agricultural systems, provides a fascinating glimpse of this remarkable history and the lessons that can be gleaned from it and applied to current community building and agroecological efforts.
The story of 'Adasíyyih is offered within the context of the extensive agricultural activities of the Central Figures of the Bahá'í Faith and the early Bahá'í communities They nurtured. It was this farming village--along with several others in the region of the Galilee--that produced a surplus of crops, which enabled 'Abdu'l-Bahá to keep famine at bay for so many people during World War I, a feat that would earn Him a knighthood from the British Empire and a title that He would never use. In time, 'Adasíyyih would become a model village for Jordanians, and Jordan's royalty would become frequent guests.
Author Paul Hanley's extensive research, along with his deep interest in agricultural systems, provides a fascinating glimpse of this remarkable history and the lessons that can be gleaned from it and applied to current community building and agroecological efforts.
336 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 26, 2024
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November 29, 2024
I began reading this book as a case study to get information on an intentional agricultural community as background for a science fiction novel we are writing at Knowetix (see patreon.com/knowetix). What I learned was much richer than I expected.
Adasiyyih, by Paul Hanley, preserves the record of a remarkable farming village in the Jordan valley that operated from 1901 to 1968. Beyond its historical account the book examines the village practices alongside the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) recommendations for world leaders published in 2018. This comparison helped me appreciate the contemporary relevance of Adasiyyih whose agricultural and community practices were decades, if not centuries, ahead of its time. Students and practitioners of sustainable agriculture would do well to study this book, ponder and then emulate the practices these villagers developed during their 60 years of operation. Many of the cultivation techniques they devised, such as crop diversification, soil regeneration, modest scale irrigation, crop rotation, and livestock integration are today fairly well understood. What is not so common are the cultural habits developed by the families, institutions and community to steadily advance their knowledge, skills and insights to produce abundant harvests in the face of formidable obstacles.
The people of Adasiyyih invested in the education of children, girls and boys alike from the outset. In 1924 they elected a Spiritual Assembly, the community governing council, by secret ballot and devoid of any personal campaigning for factions. They managed crop surplus to allow them to feed a large region in a time of famine. Their systematic deepening in spiritual principles formed the foundation of their personal ethic of cooperation and service as true expressions of religious faith. They were open to science and acquisition of knowledge from others. They achieved efficiency through self-reliance. They emphasized learning in systematic ways. Their reverence for beauty and the dignity of work as a form of worship was always manifest. These and many other elements offer lessons that go well beyond contemporary wisdom. We don’t have to learn everything the hard way! Studying what the farming families did at Adasiyyih and applying their learning techniques in ways that fit today’s circumstances could improve the processes and happiness of any community - especially those interested in sustainable agriculture.
By way of background, the village of Adasiyyih was located in the Jordan valley near the confluence of the Yamouk and Jordan rivers. It was about 1km due west of the modern city Al Adassiyah. The farming village began in 1901, during the waning years of the Ottoman empire. After a tenuous beginning it began to thrive and became the most advanced farming community in all of Jordan. Its location, right on the border between modern day Israel and Jordan proved to be problematic and families left under duress in the conflict of 1948 and thereafter. The last Baha’i families left in 1968 due to the military fighting in the area. What a shame that one of the brightest spots of harmony and sustainable development in the region was brought to an end by the crude and cruel forces of religious and national prejudice!
A second gift contained in this book is the author’s well researched and compelling account of the rapport between the Founders of the Baha’i Faith and the rural populations in Persia (modern day Iran), Iraq and Palestine. While I cannot speak for everyone, as a practicing Baha’i of some 50 years, my engagement with these Founders (Baha’u’llah, The Bab and ‘Abdu’l-Baha) has been through Their writings, and to a lesser extent the voluminous historical accounts of each one. These histories, perhaps because of how I read them, gave me a great understanding of the macro forces at work in the persecutions, banishments and the expansion of the Baha’i Cause.
Paul Hanley’s account of agriculture in the lives of the Baha’i Central figures was introduced to help the reader understand the background of the village of Adasiyyih. Beyond that it has helped me see an aspect of my religion for which I had only a cursory and diffuse understanding. Why was Baha’u’llah known as the “Father of the poor?” Why did He call on His followers to pay special attention to agriculture and tell them it ranked first among the principles required for mankind’s advancement? Why did ‘Abdu’l-Baha’ emphasize the role of the farmer? How did whole villages in Iran adopt the Baha’i Faith, despite the Islamic clergy’s opposition? What really went on there?
Hanley does a masterful job of filling in context and showing his readers the interactions between these great spiritual teachers of our age and rural folk. It is easy to forget that such people composed the vast majority of the world’s population at that time. Whether you are a long-standing member of the Baha’i community or simply a student of religions and how they form, Hanley’s account will expand your appreciation for Baha’u’llah’s vision and the grassroots nature of the movement He inaugurated.
I hope others read this book and get as much out of it as I have.
Adasiyyih, by Paul Hanley, preserves the record of a remarkable farming village in the Jordan valley that operated from 1901 to 1968. Beyond its historical account the book examines the village practices alongside the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) recommendations for world leaders published in 2018. This comparison helped me appreciate the contemporary relevance of Adasiyyih whose agricultural and community practices were decades, if not centuries, ahead of its time. Students and practitioners of sustainable agriculture would do well to study this book, ponder and then emulate the practices these villagers developed during their 60 years of operation. Many of the cultivation techniques they devised, such as crop diversification, soil regeneration, modest scale irrigation, crop rotation, and livestock integration are today fairly well understood. What is not so common are the cultural habits developed by the families, institutions and community to steadily advance their knowledge, skills and insights to produce abundant harvests in the face of formidable obstacles.
The people of Adasiyyih invested in the education of children, girls and boys alike from the outset. In 1924 they elected a Spiritual Assembly, the community governing council, by secret ballot and devoid of any personal campaigning for factions. They managed crop surplus to allow them to feed a large region in a time of famine. Their systematic deepening in spiritual principles formed the foundation of their personal ethic of cooperation and service as true expressions of religious faith. They were open to science and acquisition of knowledge from others. They achieved efficiency through self-reliance. They emphasized learning in systematic ways. Their reverence for beauty and the dignity of work as a form of worship was always manifest. These and many other elements offer lessons that go well beyond contemporary wisdom. We don’t have to learn everything the hard way! Studying what the farming families did at Adasiyyih and applying their learning techniques in ways that fit today’s circumstances could improve the processes and happiness of any community - especially those interested in sustainable agriculture.
By way of background, the village of Adasiyyih was located in the Jordan valley near the confluence of the Yamouk and Jordan rivers. It was about 1km due west of the modern city Al Adassiyah. The farming village began in 1901, during the waning years of the Ottoman empire. After a tenuous beginning it began to thrive and became the most advanced farming community in all of Jordan. Its location, right on the border between modern day Israel and Jordan proved to be problematic and families left under duress in the conflict of 1948 and thereafter. The last Baha’i families left in 1968 due to the military fighting in the area. What a shame that one of the brightest spots of harmony and sustainable development in the region was brought to an end by the crude and cruel forces of religious and national prejudice!
A second gift contained in this book is the author’s well researched and compelling account of the rapport between the Founders of the Baha’i Faith and the rural populations in Persia (modern day Iran), Iraq and Palestine. While I cannot speak for everyone, as a practicing Baha’i of some 50 years, my engagement with these Founders (Baha’u’llah, The Bab and ‘Abdu’l-Baha) has been through Their writings, and to a lesser extent the voluminous historical accounts of each one. These histories, perhaps because of how I read them, gave me a great understanding of the macro forces at work in the persecutions, banishments and the expansion of the Baha’i Cause.
Paul Hanley’s account of agriculture in the lives of the Baha’i Central figures was introduced to help the reader understand the background of the village of Adasiyyih. Beyond that it has helped me see an aspect of my religion for which I had only a cursory and diffuse understanding. Why was Baha’u’llah known as the “Father of the poor?” Why did He call on His followers to pay special attention to agriculture and tell them it ranked first among the principles required for mankind’s advancement? Why did ‘Abdu’l-Baha’ emphasize the role of the farmer? How did whole villages in Iran adopt the Baha’i Faith, despite the Islamic clergy’s opposition? What really went on there?
Hanley does a masterful job of filling in context and showing his readers the interactions between these great spiritual teachers of our age and rural folk. It is easy to forget that such people composed the vast majority of the world’s population at that time. Whether you are a long-standing member of the Baha’i community or simply a student of religions and how they form, Hanley’s account will expand your appreciation for Baha’u’llah’s vision and the grassroots nature of the movement He inaugurated.
I hope others read this book and get as much out of it as I have.
Displaying 1 of 1 review