Bahais

Adherents of a religion of nineteenth-century origin that prophesies a nonsectarian, cosmopolitan future.
The Bahai faith is based on a revelation that occurred in two stages. In 1844, Mirza Ali Mohammed, a young resident of Shiraz in the southwest of Persia (now Iran), declared himself to be a manifestation of God. He assumed the title of Bab—Arabic for “gate”—and predicted a further manifestation yet to come, when someone greater than himself would usher in a new era. This future leader would be called Baha-Ullah, Splendor of God.
“Bab” was a recognized title in the Shiite division of Islam, and this one attracted a large following, helped by his descent from the Prophet Muhammad through both parents. He opposed polygamy and the slave trade. Orthodox Muslim divines were hostile, and the movement had to endure persecution. The Bab was imprisoned, then sentenced to be executed. On July 9, 1850, being about thirty years old, he confronted a firing squad. He was suspended by ropes, and the volley of bullets only severed the ropes, so that he fell unharmed. The officer in charge refused to repeat the order, but a subordinate did so, and this time, the Bab died. His remains were later transferred to Mount Carmel, near Haifa in Israel.
The new leader whom the Bab had foretold, Baha-Ullah, duly made his appearance. Aristocratic in his family background, he was named Mirza Hussain Ali. He embraced the Bab’s teachings. During a fresh wave of suppression, he was exiled to Baghdad, then in the Turkish empire, and in 1863, at the age of forty-six, he declared himself to be the prophesied Baha-Ullah. The garden where he made this announcement became a sacred place in the Bahai religion that grew from it. Trouble with the Turkish authorities led eventually to Baha-Ullah’s imprisonment at Acre, where he died in 1892.
He had put his essential doctrines on record. According to the Bahai theology, God is unknowable, but he communicates with humanity through manifestations adapted to the context in which they occur. These have included the founders of several other major religions—Zoroaster, Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad. Baha-Ullah is the manifestation for the present age.
Since the religious founders have all been manifestations of the One God, who is the God of all humanity, there is really only one religion, which they taught in forms suitable to their time; differences have arisen through later misinterpretation. The coming of Baha-Ullah is a sign that the human race has matured to a point where social and ideological unity can be realized. This unity is confidently predicted. The outgoing Bahai mission that spread to various countries was largely the work of Baha-Ullah’s son Abdul-Baha (1844–1921).
Bahais recognize that the great step forward will not simply happen. They must work for it. They aim at the abolition of all forms of prejudice, whether based on race, nationality, class, or creed. This will pave the way to the “World Order of Baha-Ullah.” Men and women will be equal and there will be equal educational opportunities for all children. There will be a world currency and a universal language, both perhaps auxiliary to existing ones rather than replacing them.
The Bahai faith has no clergy. Its adherents seek to influence others by exemplary conduct. They meet in “spiritual assemblies” that are subordinated to a “Universal House of Justice” in an imposing domed building on the side of Mount Carmel, where the Bab’s remains are enshrined.
Further Reading
Cavendish, Richard, ed. Man, Myth and Magic. London: BPC Publishing, 1970–1972. Article “Bahais.”