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BAHA'I CALENDAR Sample Article posted by "Facts on File" Excerpt from 2016 "Facts on File" ebook for high school students: Baha'i Faith: A Quick Reference Christopher Buck Copyright 2016 Facts On File. All rights reserved. BAHA'I... more

BAHA'I CALENDAR
Sample Article posted by "Facts on File"

Excerpt from 2016 "Facts on File" ebook for high school students:

Baha'i Faith: A Quick Reference
Christopher Buck
Copyright 2016 Facts On File. All rights reserved.

BAHA'I CALENDAR

The Baha’i calendar, like all calendrical systems, charts physical time; yet the Baha’i calendar also inspires spiritual progress by associating time with reminders of human nobility. The new year begins on the vernal equinox (which is astronomically determined and falls on March 19, 20, or 21 on the Gregorian calendar); it consists of 19 months, each month of which is comprised of 19 days. The calendar, called the "Wondrous (Badi) Calendar," invests time with spiritual significance by naming weekdays, days of the month, months, years, and cycles of years after godly perfections that can be translated into goodly virtues. In this way the Baha’i calendar transforms time into opportune moments for reflection on matters of the spirit.

For example, Sunday, March 21, 2010, on the Gregorian calendar may be expressed as follows on the Baha’i calendar: the weekday of Beauty (Jamal, i.e., Sunday), the (first) day Splendor (Baha’) in the (first) month of Splendor (Bahá’) in the year (15th) of Affection (Vidad), in the cycle (19 years) of Unity (Vahid) of the first Grand Cycle (361 years) of All Things (Arabic, Kullu Shay’; Persian, Kull-i Shay’).

In the Baha’i calendar, the names represent far more than simple designations of units of time. They connect to the timeless progress of the soul. The calendar was originally created by the Bab, Baha’u’llah's predecessor and herald, who compared the souls of human beings to mirrors. These mirrors, once burnished and polished by spiritual efforts, are potentially reflections of all divine names and attributes of God that are capable of expression in human existence. To the extent that a person is a bearer of one of the names (i.e., qualities or powers) of God, that individual is empowered to express that quality in human action. (Buck and Melton have called this process "theophoric metamorphosis.") Through the progressive spiritualization of all persons—and, indeed, of all things—the Bab wished to transform all of reality into “mirrors” reflecting the perfections represented by these divine names.

In this unique calendric system, each and every unit of time gives pause for spiritual reflection. This is part of the Bab's comprehensive system of precepts and practices, all calculated to keep the believer in a constant spiritual frame of mind. Each of these dynamic names of God highlights a distinctive quality of sterling character and human nobility; they may not only be invoked, but they may be evoked. At every moment, a person, noting the present time, takes time to reflect on a godly perfection that can be translated into a goodly virtue expressed in thought and deed. By doing so, the mirror of the human heart, or soul, may reflect a ray of the spiritual sun.

The Baha’i Nineteen-Day Feast—when the local Baha’i community meets for worship, consultation, and fellowship—takes place at the beginning of each of the 19 Baha’i months. The Feast begins with devotions, is followed by consultation on community affairs, and ends with food and fellowship. The devotional portion has a spiritualizing effect; passages from the Baha’i Writings and prayers are read. Consultation takes place in a forum similar to a town hall meeting, but conducted with civility and respect. The purpose of consultation is to reach consensus. Consensus is not always possible, but a recommendation may be conveyed to the Local Spiritual Assembly (LSA) by way of a majority vote; even individual suggestions may be passed on to the LSA for consideration. Ideally, the LSA's decisions on prior Feast recommendations should be reported back to the community at a later Feast, both as a courtesy and as evidence of the importance the LSA places upon the consultative process. Finally, the community shares food with the goal of refreshing and further uniting the local community.

Further Information

Christopher Buck and J. Gordon Melton, "Baha’i Calendar and Rhythms of Worship," in Religious Celebrations: An Encyclopedia of Holidays, Festivals, Solemn Observances, and Spiritual Commemorations, ed. J. Gordon Melton (Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, 2011), Vol. I, pp. 79–86.

Christopher Buck, "Nineteen-Day Feast (Baha’i)," in Religious Celebrations: An Encyclopedia of Holidays, Festivals, Solemn Observances, and Spiritual Commemorations, ed. J. Gordon Melton (Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, 2011), Vol. 2, pp. 641–645.

Gerald Keil, Time and the Bahá’í Era: A Study of the Badí‘ Calendar (Oxford: George Ronald, 2008).

Edward M. Reingold, and Nachum Dershowitz, "The Bahá’í Calendar," in Calendrical Calculations: The Millennium Edition (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001), pp. 223–231.

Nader Saiedi, Gate of the Heart: Understanding the Writings of the Báb (Ottawa, Ont.: Association for Baha’i Studies and Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 2008).

Entry Author: Buck, Christopher.

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Excerpt from:

Summary

One of the world's youngest and fastest-growing religions, the Baha'i Faith's adherents believe there is one infinite God who sent divine messengers—including the founders of all the major world religions—to teach people about God and to help move humanity toward greater truths. Baha'i Faith: A Quick Reference covers all the basic information about the religion in an accessible A–Z format. This useful guide comes complete with full-color photographs, a timeline, and further readings for each entry to aid research.

About the Author(s)

Christopher Buck, Ph.D., is the author of God & Apple Pie: Religious Myths and Visions of America. An independent scholar, attorney, and former university professor, Dr. Buck has published numerous articles, essays, and books in religious studies, Baha'i studies, Islamic studies, African-American studies, and Native American studies.

Table of Contents
Cover
Copyright
Introduction
Entries
‘Abdu’l-Baha
Bab, The
Baha'i Administrative Order
Baha’i calendar
Baha'i community life
Baha'i eschatology
Baha'i ethics
Baha’i houses of worship
Baha'i laws
Baha'i prayer
Baha'i principles of unity
Baha'i Writings
Baha'u'llah
Table of Contents
Cover
Copyright
Introduction
Entries
‘Abdu’l-Baha
Bab, The
Baha'i Administrative Order
Baha’i calendar
Baha'i community life
Baha'i eschatology
Baha'i ethics
Baha’i houses of worship
Baha'i laws
Baha'i prayer
Baha'i principles of unity
Baha'i Writings
Baha'u'llah
Book of Certitude
Declaration of the Bab, Festival of the
God in Baha'i Faith
Hidden Words, The
Naw-Ruz
persecution of Baha’is in contemporary Iran
Ridvan, Festival of
Shoghi Effendi
Shrine of Baha'u'llah
Shrine of the Bab
Twin Birthdays, Festival of the
Universal House of Justice
Support Materials
Timeline
About the Author