"This is the photograph of Baha'u'llah."

The entire pilgrim group of Persians and Westerners entered the center room of the three chambers allocated to the Archives, then turned into a side room. There Dr. Lutfu'llah Hakim, guide for the Pilgrims, stood beside a cabinet. As we approached he drew aside a covering which draped a cabinet, softly announced, "This is the photograph of Baha'u'llah."

I had seen the miniature painting of Baha'u'llah during the dedication of the American House of Worship in Wilmette, lovely, exquisite, a bounty to view. But here before me, inches distant, was the stark reality of a photograph of the Manifestation. I had not known one existed.

I pushed close to the venerable photograph, taken in Turkey when Baha'u'llah as prisoner was exiled to Palestine, taken after the stressful period when he had been poisoned by His envious half-brother, His health depleted, His hands forever after to tremor. A passport photograph, untouched, unflattering.

(The Great Adventure: Chapter 40: Pilgrimage by Florence Mayberry, pp. 135-146, Ottawa, ON: Nine Pines Publishing, 1994)

https://bahai-library.com/mayberry_great_adventure_pilgrimage

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Shoghi Effendi: The Guy Isaiah Was Low-Key Talking About

Who was Shoghi Effendi?

1. Guardian and Interpreter: He is the Guardian of the Baha'i faith and one of the two Interpreters (alongside ‘Abdu’l-Baha).

2. Successorship: He represents the second successorship after Baha'u'llah.

3. Fulfillment of Prophecy: The institution of the Guardianship was anticipated by 'Abdu'l-Baha, and Shoghi Effendi himself was predestined and mentioned in Holy Scriptures. 'Abdu’l-Baha confirmed that he was the "little child" prophesied in Isaiah. His name ("Shi") and the duration of his ministry were predicted.

4. Central Task: His greatest task was to form, to start, and to elaborate and unfold the World Order of Baha'u'llah and the Universal House of Justice.

5. Builder of the World Order: He was the builder of the components of the World Order of Baha’u’llah, including the Arc and the Seat of the Universal House of Justice. The dedication of the twin monuments on Mount Carmel was considered the beginning and prelude to the formation of the Universal House of Justice.

6. Global Impact and Crusades: He announced the Ten-Year Crusade and, through his encouragement and plans, raised pioneers and martyrs whose sacrifices led to the victory of the Baha'i Faith. The fruits of the Ten-Year Crusade, such as Houses of Worship worldwide, are a result of his plans.

7. Ministry's Completion: The duration of his ministry lasted more than thirty-seven lunar years, and he felt assured that he had accomplished his assignments from God before his passing. Otherwise he would not have died!

8. Interpreter of Scriptures: He served as the Interpreter of the Writings, elucidating the meaning of passages regarding the future unfoldment of the Faith.

9. Rarity of the Guardianship: The Revelation of Baha'u'llah occurs only once in every 500,000 years, and only then will there be another Guardian of the Cause.

10. Defining the Bab's Station: Based on a verse in the Bayan, Shoghi Effendi defined the Bab as the Forerunner of the World Order of Baha'u'llah.

11. Wisdom and Capacity: He spoke to people according to their capacity and shortcomings, demonstrating that if he revealed his full power and knowledge, "none could stand it".

12. Symbolic Interpretation of the West: He interpreted Baha’u’llah’s poetic verse, stating that the Sun of miracles, mysteries, majesty, and dignity of the Baha'i Faith will rise from the West (America).

13. Spiritual Unity Achieved: His marriage to Ruhiyyih Khanum was announced via cable as the moment the "UNITY OF THE EAST AND WEST HAS BEEN ACCOMPLISHED".

14. Tireless Dedication: He worked with extraordinary diligence, starting work at 4:00 a.m. every day and finishing after midnight.

15. Defining Glad Tidings: He affirmed that the stories of the sufferings of the Baha'is of Iran were the "great glad tidings" that he instructed believers to deliver to friends in other lands.

16. Mention in Islamic Hadith and Scriptures: Shoghi Effendi was predestined and was mentioned in the Holy Scriptures.

    • The name of the Guardian is there in all these scriptures, specifically cited as the Jafr-i-Jami of Imam-‘Ali.

    • In the Islamic Hadith, the duration of his kingdom is mentioned, predicting how long he and ‘Abdu’l-Baha would live.

17. Predicted Duration of Ministry: These references state that 'Abdu'l-Baha's ministry (thirty lunar years) and the Guardian's ministry (more than thirty-seven lunar years) will reign seventy years when rounded off in the Arab custom (1892-1963). Shoghi Effendi knew the time of his passing because this duration was predicted in Holy Scriptures.

18. Fulfillment of Prophecy (Isaiah): He was confirmed by ‘Abdu’l-Baha to be the "little child" prophesied in Isaiah (11:6). ‘Abdu’l-Baha attested that from him would "appear wondrous things" and that he would be "endowed with the most perfect appearance, supreme capacity, absolute perfection, consummate power and unsurpassed might".

19. Interpreter of Ancient Prophecy: He revealed profound interpretations of ancient scriptures. For example, he stated that the fifty-fourth chapter of Isaiah is addressed entirely to the mother of 'Abdu'l-Baha, a meaning that he noted nobody had known for thousands of years.

(The Beloved of All Hearts: Shoghi Effendi by Zikrullah Khadem, published in The Vision of Shoghi Effendi pp. 117-127, Ottawa, ON: Association for Bahá'í Studies North America, 1984-11)

https://bahai-library.com/khadem_beloved_all_hearts

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Kitab-i-badi - Baha'u'llah's use of severe and abusive words for those who denied or rejected him

In Kitab-i-Badi, Baha'u'llah used many severe and abusive words for those who denied or rejected him, this includes the likes of Mírzá Yaḥyá and his followers and Muḥammad Siyyid and his followers.

The words include:

Terms of Polytheism, Apostasy, and Disbelief:

• مُشْرِك / مُشْرِكِين (Polytheist, Associator)
• انْفُس مُشْرِكَه (Polytheistic souls/selves)
• فَرعونیّه انْفُس مُشْرِكَه (Pharaonic polytheistic souls)
• مُشْرِك بالله (Polytheist in God)
• نَفْس مُشْرِك (Polytheistic soul)
• كفروا و أشركوا (They disbelieved and associated partners)
• كُفَّارٍ أثيم (Sinful disbeliever)
• مُلْحِد (Heretic/Atheist)
• مُرتَد (Apostate - implied in târik, mafqud)

Terms of Denial and Opposition (Rejection):

• مُعْرِض / مُعْرِضِين (Rejecter/Averse one)
• مُنْكِر / مُنْكِرِين (Denier)
• أهل انكار (People of denial)
• جَاحِدَان (Deniers/Apostates - implied in root)
• مُعْتَرِض / مُعْتَرِضِين (Objector/Protester)
• مُحارب (Warrer/Combatant)

Terms of Malice, Falsehood, and Deception:

• ظَالِم / الظَّالِمِينَ (Oppressor/Wrongdoer)
• خَائِن (Traitor/Treacherous one)
• كَاذِب / الْكَاذِبِينَ (Liar)
• مُفْتَرِي / الْمُفْتَرِينَ (Slanderer/Fabricator)
• كذب صِرف (Pure falsehood)
• مفتری خبيث (Malicious slanderer)
• مُجْرِمُون (Criminals/Sinners)
• فَاجِر / فَجَّار (Wicked/Impious one)
• فَاسِقِين (Wicked ones/Impious ones)
• فَاسِقَه (Wicked woman/Impious one - specific application)
• خَبِيث / خَبِيثَه (Malicious/Evil one)
• أَشْرَار (Wicked ones)
• مُفْسِد / مُفْسِدِين (Corrupter/Depraved one)
• مَكَّار (Plotter/Deceiver)
• غَلّ مَنْبَع (Source of malice/rancor)
• بَحْر الغرض (Ocean of motive/self-interest)
• أفّ (Woe/Shame/Contempt)

Terms of Ignorance, Folly, and Mental Delusion:

• غَافِل / غَافِلِين (Heedless one)
• جَاهِل / جَاهِلِين (Ignorant one)
• نَادَانَان (Ignorant ones)
• الْعَوَّام (Common/Ignorant people - implying lack of spiritual status)
• أحْمَق / حمقاء (Fool/Idiot)
• مُتَوَهَّم / مُتَوَهَّمِين (Illusion-monger/Deluded one)
• نُفُوس مُتَوَهِّمَه (Illusory souls)
• أَوْهَام / ظُنُون (Illusions/Vain imaginings/Conjectures)
• أَوْهَام أَصْنَام (Idols of illusions)
• ظُنُونِيَّه هَيَاكِل (Illusory temples/bodies)
• بَصَر بِي (O ye devoid of sight)
• أصمّ باطنی / كر حقيقی (Inward deaf one / Real deaf one)
• رَمَد أوْهَام (Ophthalmia/Sickness of vain imaginings)
• بَرَهُوت (Hellish pit/Abode of foul air)
• هذيانات وهميّه نفسيّه (Illusory, self-generated ravings/delusions)

Terms of Baseness, Wretchedness, and Extremism:

• مُغَلِّين / مُغِلّ (Extremists/Exaggerators)
• أَرَاذِل / أراذِلُنا (Vile/Base ones / Our lowest people)
• رَذِيلَه نُفُوس (Base/Vile souls)
• أَرْذَل وُجُود (Vile of existence/creation)
• أَقْبَح (Ugliest)
• أَشْقِيَاء / شَقِیّ (Wretched/Miserable ones)
• خَائِب (Failing one)
• خَاسِر / الأخْسَرين (Losing one / The most losing)
• نُفُوس پژمرده محرومه (Withered, deprived souls)
• أُجَاج مِلح (Saltish/Bitter water)
• مَرْدُود (Rejected/Reprobate)
• أسفل السّافلين (Lowest of the low/Lowest abyss)
• نِيرَان أَسْفَل (Lowest fires/Hell)
• خُسراناً لكم (Loss/Woe unto you)
• ناراً عليكم (Fire upon you)
• يَلْعَنُهُ كلُّ الذّرّات (Whom every atom curses)

Animalistic and Idol-Related Metaphors:

• شَيْطَان / شَيَاطِين (Satan / Satans)
• مظاهر خنّاس (Manifestations of the Lurking Whisperer/Satan)
• عِجْل / عِجْلٌ جَسَدٌ لَهُ خُوَار (Calf / Calf, a body having a lowing sound/Idol)
• تعبدون البقر (You worship the cattle/oxen)
• جِبْت (Idol/Magic)
• الطَّاغُوت (Tyranny/Idol)
• ذِئَاب / ذِئَابِ النّفس و الهوی (Wolves / Wolves of self and passion)
• طُيُور ظُلْمَانِی (Dark/Obscurantist birds)
• زاغ ارض جرزه (Crow of the barren land)
• طَنِين ذُباب (Buzzing of a fly)
• كَلْب (Dog)
• حَمِير (Asses/Donkeys)
• شِرذِمَة الخنازير (Band of swine)
• جُعَل (Dung beetle)
• حِمارِ يَحمِلُ أسفاراً (Ass carrying books)
• خدع نسناسيّه (Deceits of the Nanâs/ape-like creatures)

Contemptuous Phrases:

• صِبْيَان كَلِمَات / مِثْل كَلِمَات صِبْيَان (Words of children)
• رَنُود (Rascals/Rogues)
• شَبَح (Spectre/Phantom)
• أظلال (Shadows)
• نُباحِ هؤلاء و قُِباعِهِم (Barking/Snarling of these ones)
• عَاصِی (Rebellious one)
• بَاطِل (False/Vain thing)
• مُغْرُور دارالغرور (Arrogant one of the abode of delusion)

https://oceanoflights.org/bahaullah-st-016-fa/

https://oceanoflights.org/file/autogenerated/bahaullah-st-016_fa.pdf

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In the future, UHJ may have to wage war against an opposing country or against an aggressor - Video

...that certain functions are made to be carried forward by men and certain functions by women, and I used the example of giving birth because that's just such a visible, such a distinctive characteristic. And I believe the House of Justice is the same way. Because if we go deep into the Writings—which I haven't been able to do yet, but you know, we can try to do that—we understand the House of Justice will not always be the way that it is now. One day, the House of Justice will be the ruling administrative body for the entire humanity. That's why it is the Universal, not the International or the National House of Justice. It is the Universal House of Justice.

And at that point, we don't know what sort of decisions they will have to make. They may have to wage war against an opposing country or against an aggressor—against someone, you know, a nation or people who arise against another nation and people. And as we read from ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, He doesn't wish for women to acquire those qualities. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá doesn't wish for women to have to give orders to wage war, even against aggressors, because our functions are different. Our function is to be nurturing. We need to have the world—we’ll need to have mothers—forever and ever and ever...

-Baha'i scholar Gloria Yazdani

https://youtu.be/rKh61Nv1ZyM?si=5pMjO3HEPFajTSV-&t=288

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The event of death does not remove from a believer the obligation to pay Huququ'llah.

“Your understanding that the obligation to pay Huququ'llah arises during one's lifetime and is normally to be carried out with lifetime giving is correct, although at the same time it is true that there may be cases where a believer dies without having made provision in his or her will for payment of the unpaid portion of Huququ'llah, if any. The event of death does not remove from a believer the obligation to pay Huququ'llah. Whatever portion is due to be paid is therefore a debt due from the believer's estate at the time of his or her death. The cost of the funeral and burial, the payment of the debts of the deceased, and the payment of whatever portion of Huququ'llah remains due are prior charges on the estate which must be met before arriving at the amount of the property which has to be divided in accordance with the provisions of the law of inheritance. Thus, whether or not a person makes a will or, having made a will, whether he or she makes provision in it for the payment of Huququ'llah, the Huququ'llah should be paid, like all debts, before the rest of the state is divided.”

-The UHJ to an individual believer, July 1 1996

https://www.bahaiquotes.com/subject/will-and-testament

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an American woman knelt to Abbas Effendi

Dr. Henry H. Jessup recounted an incident where an American woman knelt to Abbas Effendi, crying "My Lord, my Lord," believing herself to be "in the very presence of the Son of God, the Christ". Jessup questioned Abbas Effendi about accepting worship "due only to the Creator," to which Abbas Effendi reportedly smiled, seemed disturbed, and deflected the conversation to "theological themes". Speer stated, "This is not an attitude which we, as Christians, can approve".

(Robert Elliott Speer Manuscript Collection; Series II: Correspondence; Box 32, File 32:10)

https://archive.org/details/correspondenceba00unse_1/page/n1/mode/2up

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trademark in the word "Bahá’í"

The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States of America, Inc. ("National Spiritual Assembly") asserted counterclaims for trademark infringement and unfair competition against the Hereditary Guardianship. They claimed they were entitled to the exclusive use of the Bahá’í faith's marks and symbols, including a trademark in the word "Bahá’í" and other specific Bahá’í symbols, names, and phrases.

(Hereditary Guardianship v. Nat. Spiritual Assembly, Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, Citations: 628 F.3d 837, Docket Number: 08-2306)

https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/179728/hereditary-guardianship-v-nat-spiritual-assembly/pdf/

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erasing Azal from history

Subsequent Bahā’ī theologian-historians began the process of erasing Azal from history, denying his popularity among the Bābīs 1854–1865, and finding it implausible that an old-time Bābī like Mukārī could have initially leaned toward Azal. By the time we get to Tāherzādeh in the 1970s, information to the contrary is being actively suppressed in English. Bahā’u’llāh in the view of these later partisans had to have not only won out that September, he had to have always possessed supremacy. That the magnitude of Bahā’u’llāh’s victory can only be diminished by rendering Azal a non-entity did not faze them.

(Juan R. I. Cole, THE AZĀLĪ-BAHĀ’Ī CRISIS OF SEPTEMBER, 1867)

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recognize as friends your enemies

You must praise all the individuals amongst mankind. You must even recognize as friends your enemies; you must consider your evil-wishers as your well-wishers. You must not see evil as evil and then compromise, for to so compromise with the one upon whom you look as an enemy, is hypocrisy, and this is not allowable. For one to treat one's enemy in a smooth way, this is hypocrisy. You must consider your enemies as your friends and your evil-wishers as your well-wishers and then treat them accordingly. You must act in such a way that your hearts may be free from hatred of anyone.

(Abdul Baha. Star of the West, Vol. 5, p. 7.)

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A mutual language - prophecy?

A mutual language will become the mightiest means of a universal progress toward the union of the East and the West. It will make the earth one home, and become the divine impulse for human advancement. It will upraise the standard of oneness in the world of humanity, and make the earth a universal commonwealth. It will be the cause of love between the children of men and create good fellowship between the various creeds.

(Abdul Baha, Divine Philosophy, p. 111)

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How ignorant are the soldiers!

How ignorant are the people! They are willing to forfeit their possessions, honor, wealth, property and even life in the path of their country, but unwilling to perform any sacrifice in the path of God. The battlefields of the world have been crimsoned with the blood of millions of soldiers, all to no purpose. Today no one knows their names. But when one soul sacrifices his life in the path of God, his name becomes eternal. Consider how precious is the blood of the martyrs!

-Abdul Baha, Extract from Ahmad's Diary, July 5, 1914

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Begging and giving to beggars is forbidden

Another meaningful way to look at this is to relate requirements to the gross income of the individual believer. If every adult believer gave $70.00 in the year to the National Fund, we would make the budget. If two thirds of the adult believers gave $100 we would almost make the budget. The latter figure is cited because it is known that many of the believers on the voting lists are completely out of touch with the Faith or inactive, or aged, ill and with very limited resources. To expect an average response of $100 from two thirds, however, seems not at all unreasonable. If the average income of Baha’is in the U.S. should be $5,000, which is below the national family average of over $6,200 at the present time, the amount requested for the National Fund would be only 2% of gross income. If one assumed that an equal amount would be given to the Local, International and Continental Funds and spent directly on unreimbursed Baha’i activities, the total Baha’i expenditures would be only 4% of gross income, on the average. When one considers that this is the Cause of God, the most important force for good in the world today, the Cause for which thousands of martyrs gave their lives and all their worldly goods, and that the immediate progress of this Faith depends to a great extent upon the financial and personal support of a few thousand Americans, the request that we give an average of 4% of gross income to our beloved Faith seems hardly extreme enough to be deemed sacrificial. If true sacrifice were involved we ought to be able to spare several times that. And it certainly seems reasonable to conclude that the higher one’s gross income, the greater the percentage of that gross income one can afford to give without undue hardship and with miraculously effective results. It is our great bounty to have had the opportunity to be of such great service to this magnificent Cause, if we could but realize it.

https://bahai.works/Bahá’í_News/Inserts/Issue_399/Budget_Message_1964-1965/Text

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Few lesser-known facts about the Baha'i faith.

1. The Baha'i faith is primarily focused on self-preservation and growth, with most activities centered around gaining new members.

2. It uses euphemistic language to obscure meaning - censorship is called "review," proselytizing is "teaching," and so on.

3. The religion presents itself as persecuted, but its origins involve violent rebellion and political intrigue, especially in 19th-century Iran.

4. Baha'is historically aligned with imperial powers like Russia, the Young Turks, and the British. Today they co-operate closely with Israel.

5. Membership numbers are inflated, relying on self-reported data that doesn't match independent census figures.

6. Stories of persecution in Iran are selectively told, many Baha'is travel there freely, suggesting the narrative is exaggerated for publicity.

7. The administrative system is authoritarian and male-dominated, with no campaigning, lifetime leaders, and women barred from membership in the UHJ.

8. Leadership excommunicated all of Baha'u'llah’s descendants. The Guardian role ended without a successor, breaking their own succession plan.

9. Failed prophecies are quietly ignored (like world peace by 2000), and older books are retroactively edited to remove inconvenient content.

10. Despite claiming respect for all religions, Baha'is reinterpret or reject core doctrines of others to fit their own theology.

11. Key writings were withheld from translation for decades, likely to shield followers from controversial or problematic content.

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increase of divorce amongst the Western Baha'is

As I started to say, the House of Justice is extremely concerned over the increase of divorce amongst the Western Baháʼís. We often talk about it in Haifa and it's a source of great worry to the members of the House, the House as a body, the Baháʼís in Haifa, the ITC, and so on. But in addition to being a source of worries, it's a downright scandal. How on earth can we Baháʼís lift up our heads and talk about marriage to the people of the world with the extraordinary attitude toward sex and marriage and divorce in the world today if we can't be, say 10% better in our western countries than the ordinary population? The Baháʼí rate of divorce I understand, I don't know about Canada, but I know in the United States it's as high as the national rate of divorce. We should hang our heads in shame. What kind of Baháʼís are we? Are we being affected by that world out there? Corrupt to the bone and falling apart. Or are we reflecting the power and light of the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh which we have access to in our personal lives?

(On Marriage and Family, address at the ABS Annual Conference, 1982 by Ruhiyyih Khanum)

https://bahai.works/Transcript:Ruhiyyih_Khanum/On_marriage_and_family,_1982

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Deliberate policy, not to carry on missionary activity in Israel

Jewish Post & Opinion, a New York City newspaper, recently ran an article entitled “Missionary Agitation in Israel,” referring to efforts to convert Jewish children and adults in the Holy Land. The article included this statement: “A splendid positive example is set by the Bahá’í Faith. Although their world center is in Israel, this religion has made it a matter of deliberate policy not to carry on missionary activity here and not even to accept converts within Israel, in recognition of the hospitality which the Bahá’ís enjoy here.”

(Baha'i News, May 1963)

https://bahai.works/Bahá’í_News/Issue_386/Text

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