Abdul Baha's 'eyes of the spirit'

Say that Abdul-Baha has considered every one of the letters with the eyes of the spirit, has read each, and through the valid messenger—that is, through the spiritual susceptibilities—has sent each the message of peace and greeting.

https://bahai9.com/wiki/Apology

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Smoking is not forbidden in the Bahá'í Faith

Smoking is not forbidden in the Bahá'í Faith, but 'Abdu'l-Bahá has discouraged it for the sake of health and cleanliness.

https://d9263461.github.io/cl/Baha%27i/Others/ROB/V3/p433-441Apndx_II.html

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Mirza Abul Fadl was a chain smoker.

The following story recounted by a certain believer, Husayn-i-Rúhí Effendi, who knew Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl, illustrates this point clearly.

When I was in 'Akká, I procured a copy of a Tablet of 'Abdu'l-Bahá known as Lawh-i-Dukhán which is written in honour of Muhammad-Husayn-i-Vakíl...When I arrived in Egypt I shared the contents of this Tablet which disapproved of smoking with Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl.

I had not yet finished the reading of the Tablet for him when he took his cigar case, threw it out in the street and said that this was the end of smoking for him, although he was a chain-smoker. He used to roll his own cigarettes by hand, light a new one with the old, and smoke non-stop from morning till evening. He said to me: 'O Rúhí Effendi, I have been smoking for fifty-five years and I am addicted to it. And, soon you will see that because of the effect of nicotine a member of my body will be paralysed.

It did not take very long until one of his arms was paralysed and he could not move it. This lasted for two years. The doctors strongly urged him to resume smoking but he refused, saying, 'I prefer to die than to disobey 'Abdu'l-Bahá.'

The Revelation of Baha'u'llah, Vol 3. Adib Taherzadeh.
https://d9263461.github.io/cl/Baha%27i/Others/ROB/V3/p433-441Apndx_II.html

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The infallibility of Shoghi Effendi!

The work of writing involved in such a major project was of course itself burdensome to Shoghi Effendi. ‘How many hundreds of hours’, Ruhiyyih Khanum tells us, ‘Shoghi Effendi spent on reading his sources and compiling his notes, how many days and months in painstakingly writing out in long hand – and often rewriting – the majestic procession of his chapters, how many more wearisome days he sat at his small portable typewriter, hammering away with a few fingers, sometimes ten hours on end, as he typed the final copy of his work!

SHOGHI EFFENDI: THE RANGE AND POWER OF HIS PEN - Page 116 - ‘Alí Nakhjávání

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Shaykhism, Babism and the Dreams

From the Dawn-Breakers

1. Siyyid Kázim describes a dream of Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá’í about Imám Hasan
2. Siyyid Kázim’s dream about Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá’í

3. A dream of the Sháh about Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá’í
4. A dream of an Arab shepherd about Siyyid Kázim

1. a dream of Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá’í about Imám Hasan

Inspired by the light that shone within him [Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá’í], he arose with unerring vision, with fixed purpose, and sublime detachment to utter his protest against the betrayal of the Faith by that ignoble people.
Siyyid Kázim, in his book entitled “Dalílu’l-Mutaháyyirín,” writes as follows:

“Our master [Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá’í], one night, saw the Imám Hasan; upon him may the blessing of God rest! His Holiness put in his mouth his blessed tongue. From the adorable saliva of His Holiness he drew forth the sciences and the assistance of God. To the taste it was sweeter even than honey, more perfumed than the musk. It was also quite warm. 

“When he came to himself and wakened from his dream, he inwardly radiated the light of divine contemplation; his soul overflowed with the blessings of God and became entirely severed from everything save God.
“His faith, his trust in God and his resignation to the Will of the Most High grew apace. Because of a great love and an ardent desire which arose in his heart, he forgot to eat or to clothe himself except barely enough to sustain life.”
(A. L. M. Nicolas’ “Essai sur le Shaykhisme,” I, p. 6.)

2. Siyyid Kázim's dream about Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá’í

His [Siyyid Kázim’s] family were merchants of repute. His father was named Áqá Siyyid Qásim. When twelve years old, he was living at Ardibíl near the tomb of Shaykh Safi’u’d-Din Ishaq, the descendant of the seventh Imám Músá Kázim and the ancestor of the Safaví kings.
One night in a dream it was signified to him by one of the illustrious progenitors of the buried saint that he should put himself under the spiritual guidance of Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá’í, who was at this time residing at Yazd.

He accordingly proceeded thither and enrolled himself amongst the disciples of Shaykh Ahmad, in whose doctrine he attained such eminence that on the Shaykh’s death he was unanimously recognised as the leader of the Shaykhí school.”
(“A Traveller’s Narrative,” Note E, p. 238)

3. A dream of the Sháh about Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá’í

The distinguished visitor [Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá’í] and his companions were royally entertained by the Sháh, who visited him in person and declared him to be “the glory of his nation and an ornament to his people.”
The Sháh felt his good will and respect for the Shaykh [Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá’í] grow increasingly from day to day. He felt obliged to obey him and would have considered it an act of blasphemy to oppose him. However, at this time, a succession of earthquakes occurred in Rayy and many were destroyed.

“The Sháh had a dream in which it was revealed to him that, if Shaykh Ahmad had not been there, the entire city would have been destroyed and all the inhabitants killed. He awakened terrified and his faith in the Shaykh grew apace.”
(A. L. M. Nicolas’ “Essai sur le Shaykhisme,” I, p. 21.)

4. A dream of an Arab shepherd about Siyyid Kázim

Standing beneath the shade of a palm which faced the masjid, he joined the congregation, and had just concluded his devotions when an Arab suddenly appeared, approached the Siyyid, and embraced him.
“Three days ago,” he said, “I was shepherding my flock in this adjoining pasture, when sleep suddenly fell upon me. In my dream I saw Muhammad, the Apostle of God, who addressed me in these words:
‘Give ear, O shepherd, to My words, and treasure them within your heart. For these words of Mine are the trust of God which I commit to your keeping. If you be faithful to them, great will be your reward. If you neglect them, grievous retribution will befall you. Hear Me; this is the trust with which I charge you: Stay within the precincts of the Masjid-i-Baratha. On the third day after this dream, a scion of My house, Siyyid Kázim by name, will, accompanied by his friends and companions, alight, at the hour of noon, beneath the shadow of the palm in the vicinity of the masjid. There he will offer his prayer. As soon as your eyes fall upon him, seek his presence and convey to him My loving greetings. Tell him, from Me:
“Rejoice, for the hour of your departure is at hand. When you shall have performed your visits in Kazímayn and shall have returned to Karbilá, there, three days after your return, on the day of Árafih, you will wing your flight to Me. Soon after shall He who is the Truth be made manifest. Then shall the world be illuminated by the light of His face.” ’ ”

 A smile wreathed the countenance of Siyyid Kázim upon the completion of the description of the dream related by that shepherd.
He said: “Of the truth of the dream which you have dreamt there is no doubt.” 
His companions were sorely grieved.
Turning to them, he said: “Is not your love for me for the sake of that true One whose advent we all await? Would you not wish me to die, that the promised One may be revealed?” 
This episode, in its entirety, has been related to me by no less than ten persons, all of whom were present on that occasion, and who testified to its accuracy. And yet many of those who witnessed with their own eyes such marvellous signs have rejected the Truth and repudiated His Message!

https://www.hajir.org/4-d-the-dream-condition/

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Denis MacEoin's opinion about the writings of the Bab, Quddus and Shoghi Effendi

About Quddus' writings MacEoin writes:

"we are, perhaps, fortunate in not having much of Barfurushi's unintelligible outpourings to read" (p. 107).

About the translations produced by Shoghi Effendi and the Baha'i Universal House of Justice, MacEoin states:

"the virtual absence of notes, and the failure to indicate identity, provenance, condition, and location of manuscripts used." (pp. 4-5 and n.)

Regarding the writings of the Bab he states :

He (MacEoin) finds the writings of the Bab to be at times "grotesque...unintelligible...eccentric and puerile" (p. 102)

THE SOURCES FOR EARLY BABI DOCTRINE AND HISTORY : A SURVEY.  By DENIS MACEOIN.

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Bab's renunciation

After his return from Mecca, the Báb was arrested in Bushihr and taken into custody to the residence of Husayn Khan Nazimu’l Dowla the Governor of Fars. On the same Friday, the Báb was pressured by the Ulama particularly the Imam Jum'ih of Shiraz to publicly renounce His earlier claims in the grand Mosque of Vakil in front of a congregation of the faithful. The Báb attended the prayer session and publicly denied his claim to the position of 'Deputyship' of the Hidden Imam.

(Page 223, Sepehr Manuchehri, Australian Baha'i Studies, Volume 2, 2000, ISSN 1442-2875) 

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The Baha'i Technique

"Slanderous Vilification" = The Baha'i Technique - Ad Hominem, Libel, Slander, Demonize, Scapegoat, Ostracize, Shun, Banish, Backbite, Defame, Vilify, Discredit, Smear, Revile, Suppress, Attack, Bully, Intimidate, Threaten, Malign, Blackball, Deceive, Coerce, Silence, Harass... etc., etc....

-Frederick Glaysher (Former Haifan Baha'i)

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Baha'i Tactics & Techniques

1. As far as possible they hold back from responding
2. Then they claim no knowledge [of the given issue] by feigning ignorance
3. After the exposer has exposed they will try to divert to secondary and totally peripheral and irrelevant side-issues
4. The exposer is then painted as someone with an axe to grind, biased, deluded (while they, the Baha'is, still have not responded to the main issue exposed)
5. Next they relate mental instability and insanity to the exposer [i.e. shoot the messenger]
6. Then, the last tactic, is to wheel out several dubious personas on the scene who claim to be neutral non-Baha'i observers who then begin attacking the exposer as well as the issue exposed and supporting the Baha'is and their issues as so-called non-Baha'is.

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Miracles do happen

It was 1942. My father was a fairly new Baha'i. So when Shoghi Effendi sent His pioneering plan to the Baha'is of Iran encouraging them to spread throughout the Arab countries, he did not hesitate and agreed to go to Soleimanieh in the Kurdish region of Iraq together with our family. He sold his stuff very quickly, cancelled his rental agreement, resigned from his job, got his passport, and was ready to go.

There was one problem though! His mother (our grandma) who was a devout Muslim and a widow who lived with us and cried over his son's (my Dad) having become a Baha'i had no interest in such a venture. She did not budge and had no interest in coming with us to Iraq. Dad was desperate and did not know what to do with his mom!

In desperation, he sent a cable to the Guardian: "In obedience to your instructions, I have prepared myself and my family to go pioneering to Iraq. However, my mother who is a widow and lives with us is a Muslim and does not agree to come with us. I am desperate. Please help. What should we do?"

The next day, the Guardian sent a response/cable back to my father, "Tonight, I will pray in the Shrines for your mother, Masoumeh Etemad".... That morning, grandma woke up and immediately asked to see the photo of the "Baha'i prophet; Abdu'l-Baha" that my father was hiding in his drawer for the fear from his Mom!

Upon seeing the photo, she declared, "Last night, I saw Abdu'l-Baha in my dream on the other side of river Tigris while I was standing on the opposite side of the river where there was no bridge. He told me to cross the river and have no fear. I crossed the river, and I woke up.... I am now a Baha'i and will join you on your pioneering post".

We then went pioneering to Iraq, Soleimanieh, in the company of my Dad, grandma, my mother, my sister, and myself..... So miracles do happen!

-Roger K. Doost

https://www.facebook.com/groups/2209644753/permalink/10157509331179754/

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Izziyyih Khanum about Baha'u'llah's 'innate knowledge'

The Mirzā (meaning Bahā’u’llāh)...., from the beginning of his life to when he came of age—because the means were at hand and because of the gathering of the companions—was engrossed in studying and endeavored in homework. He wouldn’t disengage from learning the rudiments for a moment. After studying the rudiments of Arabic and literature he inclined towards the science of philosophy (ḥikmat) and mysticism (`irfān) so that he might benefit from these. It was such that he would spend most of the day and night socializing with high statured philosophers and the gatherings of mystics and Sufis. When it was blown in Seraph’s Trumpet of Appearance (meaning when the Bāb made his claims), he (meaning Bahā’u’llāh) was a man who had seen most of the words and phrases of the mystics and philosophers and had heard and understood most of the signs of the appearance (of the Mahdi) . . . after returning from Badasht and after the Shaykh Ṭabarsī Fort war was over, he was engaged day and night in socializing with great Islamic scholars and followers of mysticism . . .

-'Izziye Khānum (Khānum Buzurg), Tanbīh al-nā’imīn, pp. 4–5

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The Bab designates 'Abdu'l-Baha in His writings!

"He who will appear after Him who will appear." This is a reference to 'Abdu'l-Baha in the Báb's writings.
-Moments with Baháʼuʼlláh: Memoirs of the Hand of the Cause of God By Ṭarāz Allāh Samandarī

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A future Baha'i world government would put covenant breakers in jail!

I don't see what the difference in principle is between that (Khomeinist) and the Baha'i institutions claiming they can never be publicly criticized, and sending counsellors and ABMs around to silence people with threats that they will be shunned or ostracized. If the Baha'is who behave this way controlled a government, they would be just as oppressive as the Khomeinists. UHJ member Hushmand Fatheazam once told me that a future Baha'i world government would put covenant breakers in jail!

We all know where I would be if that sort of person controlled the US government.

-Juan Cole

https://fglaysher.com/bahaicensorship/archives/trb010602-121102.txt

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Abdul Baha watching a Film and Shoghi Effendi 'Paris Opera'.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá repudiated suggestive plays, gross movies. As Louis Gregory told us, the Master had attended a film in the Holy Land with two little boys of the Household, and disapproving of the picture, had taken the boys by the hand and left. We were also told, by other believers, that Shoghi Effendi attended the Paris opera alone, and what he saw on the stage impelled him to rise and walk out.

http://bahairesearch.com/english/Baha%27i/Baha%27i_Studies/Marzieh_Gail/Arches_of_the_Years.aspx

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Wine and other alcoholic drinks were still used by many Baha’is then

As we ate at the pension, outdoors under an arbor, there was wine on the table. Wine and other alcoholic drinks were still used by many Bahá’ís then—'in moderation', as they used to quote: 'Moderation in all things.' The trouble seemed to be, nobody could agree on what moderation was.

http://bahairesearch.com/english/Baha%27i/Baha%27i_Studies/Marzieh_Gail/Arches_of_the_Years.aspx

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Shoghi Effendi was Ayatollah. God's presence is available to whoever turns to Him.

He [Shoghi Effendi] was, as the Will of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá says, the Sign of God (áyatu’lláh), and God's presence is available to whoever turns to Him, including persons so insignificant that in this world they could never get in to see even the pettiest official or the least of company managers.

http://bahairesearch.com/english/Baha%27i/Baha%27i_Studies/Marzieh_Gail/Arches_of_the_Years.aspx

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Why beautification of Baha'i Shrines in Israel?

Since in the Holy Land the Bahá’ís had to teach indirectly, the Guardian said one such way was to beautify the Shrines.

He told us that acquiring the heart of the mountain, which the Bahá’ís owned by 1935, was not easy, because there were many enemies of the Faith in that place, and the Covenant-breaker Muhammad-‘Alí was still active through his son, who was employed in the Land Registry Office, while various other elements were also actively against the Faith.

http://bahairesearch.com/english/Baha%27i/Baha%27i_Studies/Marzieh_Gail/Arches_of_the_Years.aspx

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Claimants to the Office of He-Whom-God-Will-Make-Manifest

Alphabetical list of some of the pretenders who had prior pretensions to be "Him-Whom-God-Will-Make-Manifest" and/or the return of the Imam Husayn is subjoined:

1. Abd-al-Karim-i-Tabrizi
2. Abdullah Gawhar
3. Ali Akbar-i-Shirazi
4. Hashim-i-Kashi-Haji Mulla
5. Husayn-Ali Nuri (Baha'u'llah)
6. Husayn-i-Hindiyani or Hindigani
7. Husayn-i-Milani known as Husayn Jan
8. Ismail-i-Isfahani
9. Mahdi Ardastani
10. Muhammad Karawi
11. Muhammad Nabil Zarandi, author of Nabil's Narrative
12. Musa Sumi, Haji
13. Sayyid Ama
14. Sayyid Ama-i-Hindi Known as Basir
15. Sayyid Uluv

https://bayanic.com/lib/fwd/must/Must2-FWD.html?id=must2

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One of the twelve principles of the Baha'i faith in the early stage.

"the prohibition of destruction of books" was one of the twelve principles of the Baha'i faith in the early stage.

-Todd Lawson

http://wilmetteinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/2012-Lawson-Return-of-Joseph-scan.pdf

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Laws of the Babi Sharia.

It [Kitab-i-Aqdas] also does away with several of the more restrictive measures of the Babi shari'a, including the mass slaughter of non-believers, the destruction of books and shrines, compulsory marriage at the age of 11, the confiscation of the property of unbelievers, and the prohibition on travel except for purposes of trade.

The apparent tolerance shown in the many positive statements made in the Bayan is quite contradicted by a string of very harsh regulations governing relations with non-believers. The latter are forbidden to live in the five central provinces of Iran; the shrines and holy places of previous religions (including the Shi'i shrines in Kufa and elsewhere, together with the Ka'ba) are to be demolished; all non-Babi books are to be destroyed; believers are not to sit in the company of non-believers, nor marry them; the property of unbelievers can legitimately be taken from them by believers.

-Denis MacEoin

https://bahai-library.com/maceoin_deconstructing_sharia

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The Bab and Quddus were both the Qa'im!!

...at Bidasht, Mullā Muḥammad ʿAlī Bārfurūshī Quddūs, claimed to be the return of the prophet Muḥammad, adducing in evidence of this his ability to produce verses, prayers, and homilies; later, at the shrine of Shaykh Ṭabarsi, Quddūs is said to have referred to Bushrūʾī (originally understood to be the return of Muḥammad) as the Imām Ḥusayn. More controversially, the Nuqtạt al-kāf maintains that when, in the year 5, the Bāb laid claim to the rank of Qāʾim, “the Point of Qāʾimiyya manifested itself in the temple of his holiness the Remembrance [i.e., the Bāb], who became the heaven of the (Primal) Will (samāʾ-i mashiyyatī), while the earth of illumination and volition (arḍ-i ishrāq wa irāda) was his holiness Azal (i.e., Mīrzā Yaḥyā Nūrī, Ṣubḥ-i Azal).” In apparent—but not, as will be shown, necessarily real—contradiction to this, the same source elsewhere maintains that Quddūs was himself the Qāʾim and ʿAlī Muḥammad his bāb, the former having advanced his claims in the fourth year after the period during which the latter had summoned men to God. Quddūs, it is said, made his claims independently and became the heaven of will, with the Bāb the earth of volition. Similarly, Quddūs is described as “the origin of the point” (asl-i nuqta), ʿAlī Muḥammad again being his bāb. And, more confusingly, it is stated that the Bāb and Quddūs were both the Qāʾim, in the same way that the Shiʿi Imāms may all be referred to by this title.

(Denis MacEoin, The Messiah of Shiraz)

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Tahiri's "unveiling herself" caused some Babis to recant their new faith or slit their throats!!!

The unveiling caused shock and consternation amongst the men present. Prior to this, many had regarded Táhirih as the epitome of purity... Many screamed in horror at the sight, and one man was so horrified that he cut his own throat and, with blood pouring from his neck, fled the scene. Táhirih then arose and began a speech on the break from Islam.

-Wikipedia

Here is what one ex-Baha'i claimed regarding this incident.

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Tafsir (Exegisis) of Quran by the Bab!

The Báb explains the phrase “By the afternoon” (Va’l-‘asr) by analyzing the meaning of the letter Váv (here meaning “By”) as well as “afternoon” (‘asr) and their mutual connection. Váv is the second letter of the name of God, Huva (He), consisting of the letters Há’ and Váv. Váv (6) is the immediate (succeeding) manifestation of Há’ (5), and they appear successively in the name that refers to the unseen Essence of God. In this way Váv is a reflection of “He.”However,“He” itself, which is equal to 11, is manifested in the name of God, ‘Alí (the Most Exalted), because ‘Alí is equal to 110, which is a reflection of 11, and thus of “He.” “Afternoon,” according to the Báb, refers to the station of Imám ‘Alí because the station of the Prophet Muhammad is that of the sun at its zenith, and the immediate manifestation or successor of the noon is the afternoon; moreover, it was ‘Alí who led the afternoon prayer on behalf of the Prophet.

-Gate of the heart. Nader Saiedi

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"Tablet of Asma alone is about three thousand pages."

I attended the glorious annual (Baha'i sponsored) Persian Arts & Culture conference near Chicago last weekend. Some three to four thousand Baha'is and friends of the Faith attend this glorious conference every year. Among the speakers was our very knowledgeable Dr. Nader Saidi who is one of those rare individuals that I know who has studied carefully all the thousands of pages of Tablets and Writings of the Bab. He stated that the Tablet of Asma alone is about three thousand pages.

-Roger K. Doost (The Largest Baha'i Facebook Group Ever)

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Bigamy in the Baha'i writings

"Beware that ye take not unto yourselves more wives than two. Whoso contenteth himself with a single partner from among the maidservants of God, both he and she shall live in tranquillity."

[Baha'u'llah, Kitab-i-Aqdas]

"Concerning bigamy, this has been promulgated, and no one must abrogate it. ‘Abdu’l Baha has not abrogated this law. These are false accusations and lies (spread by) the friends..."

"You asked about polygamy. According to the text (nass) of the Divine Book, having two wives is permitted ja’iz). This was never (abadan) prohibited, but it is legitimate and allowed (halal wa mubah)..."

[Amr wa Khalq 4: 174f]

According to Sen McGlinn, the Bab allowed this too. (a wife taking a second husband because of the first husband's infertility)

“... it is true that during the ministry of Bahá'u'lláh, and also during that of Abdu'l-Baha, bigamy was practiced to some degree in the Bahá'í communities of the East.”

- written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice

“...[Bahá’u’lláh] outwardly permitted two wives.”

- Universal House of Justice

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Rebelling against an earthly ruler

Asked if it were ever right to rebel against an earthly ruler, Abdul Baha replied: Yes, if he deals unjustly and tyrannically with his people he forfeits the right to govern them.

-Abdul Baha. Notes taken by A. S. D., Acca, Oct. 16, 1907.
https://bahai-library.com/compilation_peace_war_government

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Abuse, hatred and animosity against the Shi'ih Muslims

The Babis and Baha'is show hatred and animosity against the Shiahs of Persia, abuse and revile them, and heap malediction and curses upon them. These evil feelings are shown especially against the rulers and the Mullahs. The Baha'i historians indulge so much in diatribes and maledictions, that Professor Browne wearies of translating them, and omits pages of abuse.

-Samuel Graham Wilson
(BAHAISM : ITS FAILURE IN MORAL CONDUCT)

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Why Baha'i Temples are empty? Why they can never hope to achieve beyond the meagre and often transitory results...?

Divorced from the social, humanitarian, educational and scientific pursuits centering around the Dependencies of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, Bahá’í worship, however exalted in its conception, however passionate in fervor, can never hope to achieve beyond the meagre and often transitory results produced by the contemplations of the ascetic or the communion of the passive worshiper. It cannot afford lasting satisfaction and benefit to the worshiper himself, much less to humanity in general, unless and until translated and transfused into that dynamic and disinterested service to the cause of humanity which it is the supreme privilege of the Dependencies of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár to facilitate and promote. Nor will the exertions, no matter how disinterested and strenuous, of those who within the precincts of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár will be engaged in administering the affairs of the future Bahá’í Commonwealth, fructify and prosper unless they are brought into close and daily communion with those spiritual agencies centering in and radiating from the central Shrine of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár.


(Shoghi Effendi)

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/se/BA/ba-169.html

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The laws of Bahá’u’lláh are not considered binding on the friends in Egypt... there is no objection to a marriage taking place without the permission of either set of parents being obtained.

Should the parents be implacably opposed to the notion of their son or daughter’s marrying another Bahá’í, then, at least in the case of new believers, this need not prove an insurmountable barrier. This is because, as previously mentioned, the laws of Bahá’u’lláh are not considered binding on the friends in Egypt who do not come from Bahá’í families. Therefore, should this person find another soul who also has a pure heart which is already, or can be, attracted to the Cause of God and who, consequently, is not officially registered as belonging to the community, then there would be no objection to a marriage taking place without the permission of either set of parents being obtained.

The UHJ, Letter Dated 31 March 2009
Transmitted by email to the Office of Persian and Arab Affairs

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Bahá'u'lláh Conversed with Moses in the Burning Bush

"...Bahá'u'lláh is the greatest Manifestation to yet appear, the One Who consummates the Revelation of Moses; He was the One Moses conversed with in the Burning Bush. In other words Bahá'u'lláh identifies the glory of the Godhead on that occasion with Himself..."

(From a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer, October 19, 1947)

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...offered up, by his own hand, his life.

Consider his honor Siyyid Ismá’íl—upon him be the peace of God, and His loving-kindness—how, before daybreak he was wont to dust, with his own turban, the doorstep of My house, and in the end, whilst standing on the banks of the river, with his eyes fixed on that same house, offered up, by his own hand, his life.

-Baha'u'llah

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/b/ESW/esw-4.html

One day, they brought the news of the death of Siyyid Ismá‘íl of Zavárih. Bahá’u’lláh said: ‘No one has killed him. Behind many myriad veils of light, we showed him a glimmer of our glory; he could not endure it and so he sacrificed himself.’ Some of us then went to the bank of the river and found the body of Siyyid Ismá‘íl lying there. He had cut his own throat with a razor which was still held in his hand. We removed the body and buried it.

(Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh, Vol 2, p. 112)

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God reveals Himself in the person of His Manifestation

Every time God the True One—exalted be His glory—revealed Himself in the person of His Manifestation, He came unto men with the standard of “He doeth what He willeth, and ordaineth what He pleaseth.” None hath the right to ask why or wherefore, and he that doth so, hath indeed turned aside from God, the Lord of Lords.

-Baha'u'llah

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/b/ESW/esw-4.html

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By My life! This is the truth, and all else naught but error.

By My life! This is the truth, and all else naught but error.

-Baha'u'llah

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/b/ESW/esw-4.html

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Man’s actions are acceptable after his having recognized Baha'u'llah

Man’s actions are acceptable after his having recognized (the Manifestation). He that turneth aside from the True One is indeed the most veiled amongst His creatures.

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/b/ESW/esw-4.html

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The first Baha'i temple in Ashkabad was expropriated by the government and converted into an art gallery in 1938.

The structural design of the first Bahai temple in Ashkhabad was prepared by Ostād ʿAlī-Akbar Bannāʾ and work, which was started in 1902 and supervised by Ḥājī Mīrzā Moḥammad-Taqī, the Wakīl-al-Dawla, was completed in 1919. The temple, which served the community for two decades was expropriated by the government and converted into an art gallery in 1938. Ten years later, violent earthquakes seriously damaged the building and the heavy rains of the following years weakened the structure to the point that the Soviet authorities decided to demolish the remaining edifice and convert the site into a public park.

http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/bahaism-ix

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Baha'u'llah is the Lord of Lords

O Pope! Rend the veils asunder. He Who is the Lord of Lords is come overshadowed with clouds, and the decree hath been fulfilled by God, the Almighty, the Unrestrained.

-Baha'u'llah (The Summons of the Lord of Hosts)

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Baha'u'llah's commandments for his creatures!

He describes His commandments as “the lamps of My loving providence among My servants, and the keys of My mercy for My creatures.”5 He avers:

“The Tongue of My power hath, from the heaven of My omnipotent glory, addressed to My creation these words:‘Observe My commandments, for the love of My beauty.’ Happy is the lover that hath inhaled the divine fragrance of his Best-Beloved from these words, laden with the perfume of a grace which no tongue can describe.​”6

https://www.bahai.org/beliefs/life-spirit/character-conduct/divine-law 

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I am sure the Master told him about His departure from this world and that because of it he threw himself into the sea.

That morning [after the cold] Mirza Abul Hassan Afnan dismissed his servant and said he was going away. He wrote a supplication to the Beloved. Then the Afnan went to the seashore, about two hours walk, and threw himself into the sea. Some fisherman nearby took him out and notified the authorities. Abdul-Baha sent his automobile. I went with the Afnans and Dr. Lotfullah and helped to bring his body home. The next day when we carried the body from his house, the Beloved approached and assisted in carrying the casket to the carriage. I am sure the Master told him about His departure from this world and that because of it he threw himself into the sea.

Mirza Abu'l Hasan Afnán (a noble gentleman from the family of the Báb, for many years living near Abdu'l-Baha), realizing the approach of the most great calamity - the Master's ascension - could not wait to see it, and therefore he drowned himself here, in the sea.

http://bahai-library.com/pdf/m/merrick_abdulbaha_ascension_1921.pdf

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King of England's special love for Abdul Baha

Abdul-Baha had a supreme station in the estimation of the kings of the earth. General Allenby, at the time of his occupation of Haifa on September 23, 1918, received a special order from the King of England to call and inquire about the health of Abdul-Baha. The king also knighted Abdul-Baha, giving him his highest medal and the title of "Sir." But Abdul-Baha accepted it only for the sake of pleasing the king, and not because he cared for anything of that kind.

http://starofthewest.info/viewer.erb?vol=12&page=260

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There are now close to 17,000 clusters (2003) worldwide, out of which 500 clusters have crossed 3rd milestone (in 2019)

"Reports received at the World Centre indicate that there are now close to 17,000 clusters worldwide, excluding those countries where, for one reason or another, the operation of the Faith is restricted."

-The Universal House of Justice, 17 January 2003

https://www.bahai.org/r/532027753

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The punishment for teaching the Baha’i Faith, membership and activity in this religious community is determined based on these articles of the IR law

The verdicts against Baha’is is issued based on articles 498, 499 and 500 of the Islamic Penal Code.

Article 498 of the code states: “Any person with any ideology who forms or leads a group, society or sub-group of more than two people, under any name or title, domestically or abroad, with the goal of disrupting national security, who is not considered a combatant, shall be sentenced to prison for two to ten years.”

According to article 499 of this law: “Any person holding a membership in one of the groups, societies or sub-groups mentioned in article 498 shall be sentenced to three months to five years in prison, unless it is proven that they were unaware of its goals.”

Article 500 also states: “Any person engaged in any way in propaganda activities against the regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran, or in favor of anti-regime groups and organizations, shall be sentenced to three months to one year in prison.”

The punishment for teaching the Baha’i Faith, membership and activity in this religious community is determined based on these articles of the law.

http://iranpresswatch.org/post/20107/22-bahais-began-new-year-prison/

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Baha'i faith cannot solve current problems ecxcept...

The guidance that Baha'i institutions offer to mankind does not comprise a series of specific answers to current problems, but rather the illumination of an entirely new way of life. Without this way of life the problems are insoluble; with it they will either not arise or, if they arise, can be resolved.

https://bahai-library.com/uhj_messages_1986_2001

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UHJ is under the “care and protec­tion” of Baha'u'llah and the “shelter and unerring guidance” of the Bab

The following statements of Baha'u'llah and Abdul Baha are considered to relate solely to the Universal House of Justice: (a) It is under the “care and protec­tion” of Baha'u'llah and the “shelter and unerring guidance” of the Bab (Will and Testament, p. 11) and is “the source of all good and freed from all error” (ibid., p. 14); (b) its membership is confined to men (Selections, p. 80); (c) it can legislate laws and ordinances to cover all areas that are not expressly laid down by Baha'u'llah and may also repeal laws enacted previously by the Universal House of Justice, but it cannot alter the laws laid down by Baha'u'llah (Kalamāt-e ferdowsīya, in Majmūʿa, p. 37, tr. Tablets, p. 68; see also Will and Testament, pp. 14, 19-20); (d) it administers all religious endowments (awqāf: al-Ketāb al-aqdas quoted in Gan­jīna-ye ḥodūd, p. 221); (e) it receives the religious tax of Ḥoqūq Allāh and has full authority over its expenditure (Ganjīna-ye ḥodūd, p. 107); (f) all matters of state (omūr-­e sīāsīya) should be referred to this body (Lawḥ-e bešārat in Majmūʿa, p. 14; tr. Tablets, p. 27); (g) it must promote the “lesser peace” (Lawḥ-e donyā in Majmūʿa, p. 50; tr. Tablets, p. 89); (h) whosoever disobeys or opposes the House of Justice has disobeyed and opposed God (Will and Testament, p. 11).

Contributed by Moojan Momen

http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/bayt-al-adl-house-of-justice-a-bahai-administrative-institution

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Houses of justice are supposed to take care of the old, the weak, and the ill who have fallen into poverty

Among the general functions of the Houses of Justice, as enunciated by Baha'u'llah, are the following: to promulgate the cause of God; to educate the souls of men; to preserve the law; to make the land prosperous; to administer social affairs; to educate the children; to take care of the old, the weak, and the ill who have fallen into poverty (Ganjīna-ye ḥodūd, p. 214).

Contributed by Moojan Momen

http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/bayt-al-adl-house-of-justice-a-bahai-administrative-institution

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The growth of Baha'i Faith has slowed down in the United States (Video)

0:20 - Question: "Do you think there has been a slowdown in the growth of the Faith in the West?...What can be done about it?"

Answer: "It has slowed down...It needs to be accelerated."

-Dallas, TX - Hooper Dunbar - 2017 (Youtube)
https://youtu.be/u-v7hKI29ok?t=20s

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Baha'i is a cult, why ?

1) Baha'u'llah is God. Pray to him, pray facing towards him, ask repentance from him, he is the creator of everything, he is the sender of all prophets, he is the lord of lords, he is the YAHWEH, he is Mahdi, he is Hussayn, he is Mohammed, he is the Father, he is Krishna, he is Buddha, he is what not!

2) All 12 Baha'i principals are marketing slogans. Baha'is don't follow even one of these principals.

3) These people are hypocrites, reason? Because their religion makes them so. It asks them to observe 'tact' and 'wisdom'.

4) These people are liars. They always mislead people when it comes to proving their population numbers.

5) Baha'is will take away your money and spend it on their marketing campaigns.

6) Baha'i scripture is very carefully, selectively translated for the western members. History is re-written, books edited, so call 'scripture' censored, real scholars harassed.

7) The concept of covenant and being 'absolute obedient' to the center of the Cause makes this religion a cult. You are required to be absolute obedient to the UHJ.

8) They want to establish a Baha'i super-state.

9) They want Covenant-Breakers, enemies of faith and non-Baha'is (those who are not enemies but rejected Baha'u'llah) to suffer. They become happy when these people live a miserable life.

10) They will make you blind, deaf and submissive.

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Accepting Baha'u'llah is real paradise!

The purpose of God in creating man hath been, and will ever be, to enable him to know his Creator and to attain His Presence…Whoso hath recognized the Dayspring of Divine guidance and entered His holy court hath drawn nigh unto God and attained His Presence, a Presence which is the real Paradise, and of which the loftiest mansions of heaven are but a symbol.

(Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, XXIX)

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Labib learned Esperanto in 1914 and later taught the language at the Baha'i Tavakkul School in Qazvin

In 1905 he (Muhammad Labib) and his family moved to Tehran, where Labib received an education at a Baha'i school. Labib learned Esperanto in 1914 and later taught the language at the Baha'i Tavakkul School in Qazvin (Iran). He also served as an official representative of the World Esperanto movement.

http://onthisdateinbahaihistory.blogspot.com/2019/03/march-14-on-this-date-in-1981-muhammad.html

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The book contains nothing that might reasonably be called an argument. Instead names of God and invocations are endlessly repeated

The book contains nothing that might reasonably be called an argument. Instead names of God and invocations are endlessly repeated and varied, often in ways unsanctioned by Arabic usage. Syntax is nearly as idiosyncratic. Thus, for example, the first page has Allah used as a superlative in the form a'lah, an infinitive ilhn, participles mu'talih, mu'lah, and so on. To the extent that the book has content, it is not in the form of an extended argument but in enraptured rhapsodies about particular themes. Thus the sermon on the first day rhapsodizes about the first day of Baha—Naw-Ruz—as the "day of God," the name given it by the Bab in the Bayan. In such respects it is similar to the Kitabu'l-Asma', written sometime earlier and also arranged on a calendrical basis.

https://bahai-library.com/walbridge_kitab_panj-shan_commentary

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The Shaikh Tabarsi siege was the most markedly religious, while the Zanjan and Neyriz uprisings were more closely linked to local politics.

It is impossible to identify a consistent pattern in these events. Ivanov’s (1939) Marxist analysis shows serious limitations in its treatment of motives and its portrayal of the Babi participants in the struggles as “peasants, artisans, urban poor, and small trades-people.” More recent studies by Momen (1983), Smith (1982), and MacEoin (1982) reveal a more complex interplay of social, political, and religious factors at work. The Shaikh Ṭabarsī siege was the most markedly religious of the larger incidents, while the Zanjān and Neyrīz uprisings were more closely linked to local politics. It is arguable that, whereas those involved in the Shaikh Ṭabarsī struggle and in the smaller pogroms were convinced Babis, many of those who participated in the fighting at Zanjān, Yazd, or Neyrīz may have been vague about or indifferent to the specific religious issues propounded by the Babi leadership. At Shaikh Ṭabarsī, messianic ambitions were linked to a belief that, through martyrdom, the defenders were reenacting the events of Karbalāʾ; the Qajar state and its forces were condemned as illegitimate and a defensive jehād proclaimed against them. At Zanjān, religious millenarianism was less marked, while puritan and egalitarian ideals were clearly in evidence.

http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/babism-index

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In all, something like 3,000 Babis died in these episodes...

In all, something like 3,000 Babis died in these episodes, or, if we take the lower figure of 1,000 deaths at Zanjān, just over 2,000 in all. Later estimates of 20,000 and more found in some Bahai works do not, in fact, correspond to the more detailed figures given in Bahai historical sources. Similarly, the very high figures for both participants and casualties given in state chronicles like the Nāseḵ al-tawārīḵ are manifestly exaggerated, probably in order to explain away the failure of the government forces to put down the disturbances rapidly.

http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/babism-index

Also check : https://bahai-library.com/uhj_mazandarani_number_martyrs

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Babi law called for the destruction of the shrines and holy places of previous religions and, the universal slaughter of all save those who believed and were faithful...

In the 1840s and 1850s a series of violent incidents involving members of the Babi sect (see babism) and Shiʿites took place in Iran, the most serious of which were four military encounters at Shaikh Ṭabarsī in Māzandarān, Zanjān, and Neyrīz (twice). At the inception of the Babi movement in 1260/1844, an uprising (ḵorūj) against unbelievers was keenly anticipated; it was at first believed that this event would begin in 1261/1845 in Karbalāʾ, when the Hidden Imam would appear to lead the jehād in person. The Bāb’s earliest major work, the Qayyūm al-asmāʾ, contains detailed regulations governing the conduct of jehād (Qayyūm al-asmāʾ, sūras 96-101; see MacEoin, “Holy War,” pp. 101-09). Up to 1264/1848, the sect’s jehād doctrine was essentially that of orthodox Shiʿism, but after that date, with the Bāb’s assumption of the role of Mahdī, a new legal system was promulgated in the Persian Bayān and other works. It appears that the entire Shiʿite population of Iran was now regarded as subject to jehād: non-Babis were to be forbidden to live in any of the five central provinces of Fārs, Iraq, Azerbaijan, Khorasan, and Māzandarān. More broadly, Babi law called for the destruction of the shrines and holy places of previous religions and, as one later Bahai source puts it, “the universal slaughter of all save those who believed and were faithful” (ʿAbbās Effendi, Makātīb ʿAbd-al-Bahāʾ II, Cairo, 1330/1912, p. 266).

Several sources indicate that Babis in different centers were collecting and manufacturing arms in readiness for the postponed ḵorūj on the imam’s appearance (ibid., pp. 111-12; Māzandarānī, Ẓohūr al-ḥaqq, p. 374). The first serious incidents occurred in 1264/1848 in Mašhad, where armed members of the large Babi community clashed on two occasions with local soldiery. Expelled from Mašhad in Šaʿbān, 1264/July, 1848, a party of Babis under the leadership of Mollā Moḥammad-Ḥosayn Bošrūʾī headed into Māzandarān and in October of that year established themselves near Bārforūšī at the shrine of Shaikh Abū ʿAlī al-Fażl Ṭabarsī, which they fortified. From an original total of about 300, the number of insurgents rose to between 540 and 600 (Momen, “Social Basis,” pp. 161-65, esp. table 4). Leadership of the fort was in the hands of Bošrūʾī and another of the Bāb’s original disciples, Mollā Moḥammad-ʿAlī Bārforūšī Qoddūs. Between 14 Ḏu’l-qaʿda 1264/13 October 1848 and 16 Jomādā II 1265/9 May 1849, the Babi defenders and state troops under the overall command of Mahdīqolī Mīrzā engaged in sporadic fighting, with heavy losses of life on both sides. The siege was finally ended by a ruse and the surviving Babis either executed or taken prisoner.

http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/babism-index

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Anyone claiming a Revelation direct from God is a lying imposter.

Whoso layeth claim to a Revelation direct from God ere the expiration of a full thousand years, such a man is assuredly a lying imposter. We pray God that He may graciously assist him to retract and repudiate such a claim. Should he repent, God will, assuredly forgive him. If, however, he persisteth in his error, God will, assuredly, send down one who will deal mercilessly with him. Terrible, indeed, is God in punishing!

- Baha'u'llah (Kitab-i-Aqdas)

http://bahai-library.com/writings/bahaullah/aqdas/aqdas2/K37.htm

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How a faithful Baha'i son treated his Covenant Breaker father?

Mr. Muhibat (Lutfullah Mohebat - son of Jamal-i-Burujerdi) repeatedly related the following event about his own father:

He said after his father was openly expelled from the Bahá'í community he completely cut off from his father. He had not seen his father for quite a long time. He said one day I was passing on Sepah Avenue near Meydan-i-Tupkhanih. Suddenly I noticed that an old beggar was sitting at the roadside asking for money from the passers by. I recognized that the beggar was my father. Muhibat said that his father also recognized him but they did not say anything to each other. Muhibat said that I could not believe my eyes that such an arrogant and highly distinguished figure had fallen from the climax of honor retrograded to such a pitiful perigee, the lowest point of dishonor.

https://bahai-library.com/cole_biography_jamal_burujirdi

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Babi's were ordered to destroy all non-Babi books

As a token of grace from God, the Revealer of this Most Great Announcement, We have removed from the Holy Scriptures and Tablets the law prescribing the destruction of books.

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/b/TB/tb-4.html

Denis MacEoin in his article states :

"the mass slaughter of non-believers, the destruction of books and shrines, compulsory marriage at the age of 11, the confiscation of the property of unbelievers, and the prohibition on travel except for purposes of trade."

https://bahai-library.com/maceoin_deconstructing_sharia

Seena Fazel also write about this here:

https://bahai-library.com/fazel_inheritance_bsr

Todd Lawson also writes about it here:

http://wilmetteinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/2012-Lawson-Return-of-Joseph-scan.pdf

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Baha'is are ordered to serve Israel!

Should any of the kings—may God aid them—arise to protect and help this oppressed people [Baha'is], all must vie with one another in loving and in serving him. This matter is incumbent upon everyone. Well is it with them that act accordingly.

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/b/TB/tb-4.html

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"Ex-Baha'is" will spread the message of Baha'u'llah!

Therefore, my purpose is to warn and strengthen you against accusations, criticisms, revilings and derision in newspaper articles or other publications. Be not disturbed by them. They are the very confirmation of the Cause, the very source of upbuilding to the Movement. May God confirm the day when a score of ministers of the churches may arise and with bared heads cry at the top of their voices that the Bahá’ís are misguided. I would like to see that day, for that is the time when the Cause of God will spread. Bahá’u’lláh has pronounced such as these the couriers of the Cause. They will proclaim from pulpits that the Bahá’ís are fools, that they are a wicked and unrighteous people, but be ye steadfast and unwavering in the Cause of God. They will spread the message of Bahá’u’lláh.

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/ab/PUP/pup-126.html

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"Just a small reminder of what the House wants each and every single one of us to do NOW!"

Allah'u'abha all!

Just a small reminder of what the House wants each and every single one of us to do NOW:

1. Become friends with all of your neighbours on your street and in your neighborhood. Invite them over to cups of tea and get to know them and go and visit them in their house. Take them a food to enjoy together with your cup of tea.
2. Host a children's class in your house and invite your neighbours children to all attend. You do not have to run it, u just have to host it.
3. Host a REGULAR devotional gathering in your house. Invite your neighbours and their kids. Share prayers together from the Faith and from other sacred traditions to make it even more amazing. Try and get chants, kids prayer songs etc
4. Help enthusiastic attendees setup regular devotional gatherings in their own homes AND accompany them in this. Help your friend to help their friends to run regular devotional meetings in their house. This process will multiply until the whole world is in a devotional gathering.
5. Host a Junior Youth Class in your House. Invite the neighbours JYs. Once you are friends with neighbours you can tell them about the JY programme.
6. Once the children and and JY start coming then offer to train their parents to become Childrens class teachers and JY animators.
7. Train the new teachers and animators and help them start a childrens class and JY in their own home (if they are far away enough in the neighborhood).
8. Accompany the new teachers and animators on their path of service towards spiritualising our new generation. Help them to do everything you just did i.e. to get them to eventually also train children class teachers and JY animators AND to accompany their new teachers and animators to setup JY programme and childrens classes in THEIR own homes. This process is now growing exponentially.
9. Repeat Cycle.

This is all we have to do. This is all the house wants us to do. If we do this the whole world will become involved in a core activity. World peace will finally come. The words of God do the work for us. All we have to do is the logistics.

The time is now. Get up stand up for your right to live in a world which is at peace. We can have world peace in ONE generation. How exciting! Are not proud to be blessed with a concrete plan on how world peace can be achieved!? Nobody else is doing this! Only us! So time to get up and stand up for YOUR RIGHT to live in a world at peace.

Allah'u'abha all and may we fill our cups with the blessings which rain down~

https://www.facebook.com/groups/2209644753/permalink/10156990348534754/

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Muslims will suffer for denying Baha'u'llah

March 11. On this date in 1953, Shoghi Effendi said "Just as the Jews have crucified Christ - they suffered 2000 years of persecution - so also will the Moslems suffer a similar fate. The Jews rejected Christ - the Moslems Bahá'u'lláh and His Cause."

https://bahai-library.com/levy_pilgrims_1953

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Siyyid Muhammad Isfahani gave a bad time to Baha'u'llah

Every one of this people well knoweth that Siyyid Muhammad was but one of Our servants. In the days when, as requested by the Imperial Ottoman Government, We proceeded to their Capital he accompanied Us. Subsequently, he committed that which - I swear by God - hath caused the Pen of the Most High to weep and His Tablet to groan. We, therefore, cast him out; whereupon, he joined Mirza Yahya, and did what no tyrant hath ever done. We abandoned him, and said unto him: "Begone, O heedless one!" After these words had been uttered, he joined the order of the Mawlavis, and remained in their company until the time when We were summoned to depart.

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/b/ESW/esw-9.html

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How the Greatest Holy Leaf protected the Cause!?

According to the eyewitness account of Mr. Aziz Yazdi, on the day of the Master's funeral the Greatest Holy Leaf directed all the friends to attend His funeral. She alone remained behind, in the Master's House alone. She arranged for a policeman to be posted at the front gate to the Master's house, and had locksmith come and change the locks on all of the doors, and the keys were brought to her. She instructed Aziz Yazdi's brother, a boy, to ensure that no one entered the holy household without her express permission. Aziz Yazdi was outside in the street in the great thong of mourners in front of the Master's house, when he observed the crowd part, and two men approach the policeman at the gate. It was Mirza Muhammad-Ali and his brother. Feigning sadness, they asked the policeman if they could enter the Master's house to express their condolences to the Greatest Holy Leaf. Mr. Yazdi's brother ran from the gate to the presence of the Greatest Holy Leaf to inform her of this, while Mirza Muhammad-'Ali waited at the front gate with the policeman. The boy returned with her words to the effect, "Today is not the day for such things." Everyone in the crowd saw Muhammad-'Alí turned away at the gate. In this way, the Greatest Holy Leaf protected the Cause, preventing Muhammad-'Alí from seizing the Master's house. He was attempting a kind of a palace coup; and the Greatest Holy Leaf had foreseen that he would attempt just that. The House of the Master was more than a residence; it was the visible administrative center of the Cause. Other than the Shrine of the Bab, it was the only Baha'i edifice in the Holy Land at that time. The Greatest Holy Leaf, who was then 75 years of age, protected it, with a locksmith, a policeman, and a trusted boy from a trusted family.

(Reference: "Remembrances of 'Abdu'l-Bahá by Aziz Yazdi," a videotape available from the National Spiritual Assembly of the Hawaiian Islands, and personal conversations with Mr. Yazdi)

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The veil must in no wise be suddenly rent asunder.

Whosoever and whatsoever meeting becometh a hindrance to the diffusion of the Light of Faith, let the loved ones give them counsel and say: “Of all the gifts of God the greatest is the gift of Teaching. It draweth unto us the Grace of God and is our first obligation. Of such a gift how can we deprive ourselves? Nay, our lives, our goods, our comforts, our rest, we offer them all as a sacrifice for the Abhá Beauty and teach the Cause of God.” Caution and prudence, however, must be observed even as recorded in the Book. The veil must in no wise be suddenly rent asunder. The Glory of Glories rest upon you.


- Shoghi Effendi

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/se/BA/ba-9.html

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A repentance prayer to Baha'u'llah

“I testify, O my God, and my King, that Thou hast created me to remember Thee, to glorify Thee, and to aid Thy Cause. And yet, I have aided Thine enemies, who have broken Thy Covenant, who have cast away Thy Book, disbelieved in Thee, and repudiated Thy signs. Alas, alas, for my waywardness, and my shame, and my sinfulness, and my wrong-doing that have withheld me from the depths of the ocean of Thy unity and from fathoming the sea of Thy mercy. Wherefore, alas, alas! and again alas, alas! for my wretchedness and the grievousness of my transgressions! Thou didst call me into being, O my God, to exalt Thy Word, and to manifest Thy Cause. My heedlessness, however, hath deterred me and compassed me about, in such wise that I have arisen to blot out Thy signs, and to shed the blood of Thy loved ones, and of the dawning-places of Thy signs, and of the daysprings of Thy revelation, and of the repositories of Thy mysteries.”

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/b/ESW/esw-1.html

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Abdul Baha is 'inferior to the animal'

Abdul Baha:

The man who thinks only of himself and is thoughtless of others is undoubtedly inferior to the animal...

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/c/FWU/fwu-10.html

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We have bestowed upon thee such a station from before Our Presence to which no women have preceded (thee)

TABLET REVEALED FROM THE BLESSED PERFECTION TO THE EXALTED LEAF

This Book is from before Us to her who hath heard and attained, and she hath sprung from this Pre-Existent Root, and hath appeared in My Name, and hath tasted My Most Holy and Wonderful Saliva. We have given her to drink from My Sweetest Mouth, and once from the Mighty and Shining Kawther. May My Glory and the Fragrance of My Shining Garment be upon her.

The Greatest

Oh thou blessed and sparkling Leaf! Sing and chant on the Twigs of the Bower of Beha in this exalted Word; Verily there is no God but Him, the Lord of the Beginning and the End. We have surely ordained thee as the best of the maid-servants, and have bestowed upon thee such a station from before Our Presence to which no women have preceded (thee). In this wise We have preferred thee, and have given thee precedence as a Favour from before the Lord of the Throne and the earth. We have surely created thine eye to perceive the Lights of My Face, and thine ears to hear My Verses, and thy temple to stand before the Throne. Thank thy Lord, the Lord of all creatures! How sweet is the witness of The Tree for His Leaf, and the Bower of Singleness for His Fruit! She ought to diffuse the scent of musk with My Remembrance. Blessed is whosoever discoverth it and saith: Praise be unto Thee, oh my Lord, The Behi-ul-Abha! How sweet is thy presence before My Face, and My Regard unto thee, and My Favour unto thee, and My Good-will upon thee, and My Remembrance of thee in this Tablet which we have ordained as the Sign of My Favour unto thee, both secretly and openly.

The Abha

Oh My Leaf, hear My Call! Verily there is no God but Me, the Mighty, the Wise! I discover from thee the breaths of My Love, and the Fragrance of the Garment of My Name, The Most Holy, The Shining. Wave on the tree as thou wilt, then speak in the praise of thy Lord among all the creatures. Be not grieved with the world, and hold to this Tree from which God hath caused thee to spring forth. By My Life, it behooveth the lover to hold to the Beloved! This is the Beloved of all the creatures!

Oh My God and My Lord! Praise be unto Thee for that Thou hast made to appear the Sun of Thy Beauty from behind the clouds, in days whereof the eye of mankind hath not beheld the life. Then, oh My God, make the faces of Thy servants to emerge from behind the calyx, and to behold Thee manifestly on the Throne of Thy Grandeur and Glory. May the Peace of God and His Favour and His Mercy be upon ye!

https://bahai-library.com/getsinger_dodge_hoar_pilgrim-notes

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Comparing Quran with the Bab and Baha'u'llah's writings

The Holy Qur’an was one single volume of 6300 verses. Then in one lightning stroke came the Báb, of whose revealed flood of divine knowledge Bahá’u’lláh Himself writes:

“… the verses which have rained from this Cloud of divine mercy have been so abundant that none hath yet been able to estimate their number. A score of volumes are now available. How many still remain beyond our reach! How many have been plundered and have fallen into the hands of the enemy, the fate of which none knoweth.”[1]

The Báb Himself clarified the scale of His own work, referring to Himself in the third person:

“Now, following His manifestation, although He hath, up to the present, revealed no less than five hundred thousand verses on different subjects, behold what calumnies are uttered, so unseemly that the pen is stricken with shame at the mention of them. But if all men were to observe the ordinances of God no sadness would befall that heavenly Tree.”[2]

[1] The “Kitab-i-Iqan,” pp. 182-3
[2] “Selections From the Writings of the Báb,” pp. 96-97

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If necessary she can become a warrior.

For her greater strength and fierceness, the lioness is more feared by the hunter than the lion. The mere size of the brain has been proved to be no measure of superiority. The woman has greater moral courage than the man; she has also special gifts which enable her to govern in moments of danger and crisis. If necessary she can become a warrior.”

- Abdul Baha

 

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/ab/ABL/abl-57.html

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Tolstoi was completely disenchanted with the doctrine of Baha'u'llah

"Although Bahá’í publications have long quoted the laudatory comments addressed by Tolstoi to Grinevskaia and Badalbekov (item 5), Tolstoi’s attitude toward Bahá’í beliefs fluctuated and at times was completely contradictory. Tolstoi’s earliest reactions until about 1904 tended to be favorable, but upon receiving Bahá’í books from some of his correspondents, Tolstoi found a few of the Bahá’í tenets to be at odds with his own cherished ideals. In his letter to Dreyfus, Tolstoi remarks that his reading has “made me completely disenchanted with the doctrine of Bahá’u’lláh” and that it “confirms ancient superstitions.” And to Nakhjavání (item 62, 1909.11.28) Tolstoi writes: “The more I become acquainted with the Bahá’í teaching, the less I appreciate it.” Yet little more than a month before, he had extolled the “pure and lofty teachings of the disciple of the Báb— Bahá’u’lláh’ in a letter to Zheltov (item 73), and in his letter to Velikova (item 72) earlier in 1909, he had mentioned that the Bahá’í teachings worked toward the goal of eliminating the incrustations and superstitions added to Islam. The contradiction in Tolstoi’s attitudes may have arisen from his inability to distinguish clearly between the Bábí Faith and the Bahá’í Revelation, as evidenced by his usage of Bábí and Bahá’í interchangeably."

https://bahai-library.com/pdf/c/collins_jasion_lev_tolstoy.pdf

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Baha'i teaching work cannot be compared with other social works

"Your work to improve the health of people is a meritorious way of serving mankind, but it can never be compared with the work of illumining the souls and minds of men with the Light of Bahá’u’lláh. The people of the world are teeming millions, the Bahá’ís only a handful, yet they are the precious leaven that must leaven the lump."

(From a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer, May 8, 1942)

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Regarding the one who related the existence of the Qaʼim…

Regarding the one who related the existence of the Qáʼim [1]

In a Tablet to Mírzá Áqáy-i Afnán, the blessed pen of the Ancient Beauty—exalted be His glory—hath revealed:

“The one who related the existence of the Qá’im was a woman. It was asked of Jaʻfar, [2] ‘Does [Imám Ḥasan] ʻAskarí have any living sons?’ That wronged one [3] declined and said, ‘There was a child, but he passed away two years ago.’ Those with ill intentions condemned him as a liar, and they shunned and cursed him. Ignorant and heedless, they accepted and proclaimed as truth the words of that lying woman, which were in agreement with their selfish intentions.”

_________

Notes:

[1] According to the Twelver Shíʻih tradition, the twelfth Imám—known as the Mahdí, or “rightly guided one”—was born to the eleventh Imám, Ḥasan ʻAskarí, in 869 AD. After Ḥasan ʻAskarí died in 874, the Mahdí—who would have been five years old at the time—was purportedly hidden to protect him from the ruling ʻAbbásid caliphate. He would communicate with his followers through a series of four intermediaries. This period, known as the Minor Occultation, ended in 941 with the death of the fourth intermediary. Since that time, Twelver Shíʻihs believe that the Mahdí has continued to exist in hiding, and will eventually reveal himself to battle the forces of evil and firmly establish submission unto God—the literal definition of “Islám”—as the universal religion for mankind.

Moojan Momen refers to this Tablet in his article, “Shi`i Islam” (1995; available online), as evidence that Baha’u’llah rejected the story of the twelfth Imám as a pious fraud.

For more information on the concept of the Mahdí, refer to the following articles in the Encyclopedia Iranica:
“The Concept of Mahdi in Twelver Shiʿism”: http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/islam-in-iran-vii-the-concept-of-mahdi-in-twelver-shiism
“Ḡayba”: http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/gayba

[2] The brother of Imám Ḥasan ʻAskarí, known to Twelver Shíʻihs as “Jaʻfar-i-Kadhdháb” (“Jaʻfar the Liar”). In this tablet, Baha’u’llah dismisses this tenet of Shíʻih eschatology by establishing the truth of Jaʻfar’s reply to the question about his brother’s son. (This is not the same person as Imám Jaʻfar aṣ-Ṣádiq, who lived in the eighth century AD—roughly a hundred years before Jaʻfar-i-Kadhdháb.)

[3] This characterization of Jaʻfar is likely a reference to the fact that generations of Twelver Shíʻihs have considered him a liar, even though he was actually telling the truth.

https://adibmasumian.com/translations/existence-of-qaim/

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A Tablet from ‘Abduʼl-Baha regarding the Twelfth Imam

In a Tablet to Ḥájí Ṣadr-i-Hamadání, the title of which is “O Ṣadruʼṣ-Ṣudúr! The unrolled scroll hath been read aloud,” the Center of the Covenant—exalted be His praise—hath said:

As to the question of the twelfth Imám, there existeth in the ḥadíths an apparent contradiction. In one ḥadíth, Muḥammad ibn Ḥasan [1]—peace be upon Him—is considered the promised Qáʼim, yet in another, it is mentioned that the death of that same Muḥammad ibn Ḥasan will precede the birth of the awaited Qáʼim in the End of Time. [2] One cannot reconcile these two ḥadíths, unless he be certain that the twelfth Imám—the promised Qáʼim—existed spiritually in the Kingdom of God, and was manifested physically, in the form of another person, at the Hour of Revelation. “And no one thing is there, but with Us are its storehouses; and We send it not down but in settled measure” [3]. That which is manifest in the contingent world existed first in the Kingdom of God.

The matter of the twelfth Imám and the promised Qáʼim is mentioned in a chain of highly questionable ḥadíths. Were one to judge the matter fairly, he would not give credence to any of these various narratives that contradict each other. Every one of the holy Imáms was considered by the Shíʻihs of His time to be the Qáʼim, and they awaited His emergence from the occultation. [4] With the passing of Imám Ḥasan ʻAskarí, [5] the leading divines realized that the foundation of hope for Shíʻihs would soon be utterly destroyed, and that they would fall into great despair. As these divines wished to preserve that hope, they made allusions, invoked metaphors, created allegories, and offered interpretations. Consequently, various narratives began to emerge, and the fact of the matter is that, after the passing of Imám Ḥasan ʻAskarí—peace be upon Him—the Shíʻihs had become divided into three groups. One group clung to the ignorant Jaʻfar, [6] and congratulated him on his accession to the Imámate. Another group came to renounce totally their belief in the role of the Imám. The other group attached themselves to belief in the occultation, and every day awaited the Qáʼim’s emergence therefrom. For a thousand years they have anticipated His advent, and to this day they have yet to grow tired of this futile anticipation.

Gracious God! The appearance of His Manifestation is mentioned explicitly in the Qurʼán, without any need for commentary or interpretation: “And thy Lord shall come and the angels rank on rank” [7]. And yet have they regarded this matter with doubt, been unsettled by it, offered tenuous interpretations to explain it, and clung to narratives that have ultimately caused confusion and vacillation. They have deemed these narratives to be the explicit Text, and have used them to oppose anyone who should disagree with them. What foolishness, what folly have seized these people, and what stupidity they demonstrate! How utterly lost they are in their error! Salutations and praise be upon thee.

___________

Notes:

[1] The son of Imám Ḥasan ʻAskarí (the eleventh Imám of Shíʻih Islám), believed by Shíʻih Muslims to be the twelfth Imám.

[2] cf. Encyclopedia Iranica, “The Concept of Mahdi in Twelver Shiʿism”: http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/islam-in-iran-vii-the-concept-of-mahdi-in-twelver-shiism

[3] Qurʼán 15:21.

[4] cf. Encyclopedia Iranica, “Ḡayba”: http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/gayba

[5] The eleventh Imám of Shíʻih Islám.

[6] The brother of Imám Ḥasan ʻAskarí, known to Twelver Shíʻihs as “Jaʻfar-i-Kadhdháb” (“Jaʻfar the Liar”). For more information, refer to this Tablet from Baháʼuʼlláh: https://adibmasumian.com/translations/existence-of-qaim/

[7] Qurʼán 89:22.


https://adibmasumian.com/translations/tablet-abdul-baha-twelfth-imam/

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Regarding Jafar-i-Kadhdhab (“Jafar the Liar”)

In a Tablet to Mírzá Áqáy-i-Afnán, the Pen of the Most High—exalted be His glory—hath revealed:

“O people of God! Inquire ye of the people of the Qurʼán: ‘Where is Jábulqá, and what of Jábulsá? [1] What hath become of those illusory cities?’ They have condemned as a liar that hapless Jaʻfar, [2] who did not speak falsely. For uttering a single truthful remark, he hath been branded a liar from the early days of Islám to the present time. ‘God’s malison (curse) on the head of the people of tyranny!’” [3]

___________

Notes:

[1] cf. Baháʼuʼlláh, Gems of Divine Mysteries, para. 47, note 7: “According to Shiah traditions, the twin cities of Jabulqa and Jabulsa are the dwelling place of the Hidden Imam (the Promised One), whence He will appear on the Day of Resurrection.”

[2] The brother of Imam Hasan ʻAskari, known to Twelver Shias as “Jafar-i-Kadhdhab” (“Jaʻfar the Liar”). For more information, refer to a similar Tablet from Baháʼuʼlláh: https://adibmasumian.com/translations/existence-of-qaim/

[3] Qurʼán 11:18.

https://adibmasumian.com/translations/truthfulness-of-jafar/

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