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the first month of the following year. Hence, the extra days cannot be epagomenal. This calendric question seems to have been fought out in the religious arena, with an appeal to religious text as the deciding authority. Any use of historical material dated in the Baha'i calendar from this period should consider the existence of two separate calendar systems. |
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Baha'Ullah and his family were imprisoned in Acre from 1868 to 1877, living under house arrest at nearby Mazra'a. He moved to Bahji in 1880, where he remained until his death on 29 May 1892. There is a curious calendric coincidence here. The date of 21 April 1863 corresponds to the Islamic date of the second day of the 11th month of the year A.H. 1279, while 29 May 1892 corresponds to the same day and same month in the year A.H. 1309. |
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During this lengthy period of exile, Baha'Ullah wrote extensively, codifying a number of aspects of the Baha'i faith. From 1871 to 1873, he engaged in writing the fundamental scripture of the Baha'i faith, the Kitab-i-Aqdas (most holy book). |
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For our purposes, however, his most interesting achievement was the modification of the Badi calendar. He clarified the position of the Ayyam-i-Ha, placing them between the 18th and 19th months, so that they become intercalary, rather than epagomenal, days. Baha'Ullah abrogated or altered many Badi practices in these years, but also confirmed the Persian origin of the calendar in certain respects. He specified, for example, in one of his clarifications of the calendar, that Naw Ruz (New Year) is the first day of the vernal equinox in the northern hemisphere and fixed other Baha'i holy days in terms of this date. The celebration of Naw Ruz is a traditional Persian holiday dating back to (at least) traditional Zoroastrian practice. |
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The fourth figure is the eldest son of Baha'Ullah, Abbas, later known as Abdu'l Baha (servant of Baha). Abbas Effendi was born in 1844 and accompanied his father in exile. He became the authoritative interpreter of his father's teachings for most Baha'is. A rival party gathered about his brother Muhammad Ali and engineered his arrest and imprisonment in 1908. The revolt of the Young Turks against the Ottoman Empire, however, resulted in a grant of amnesty in 1910. Abbas Effendi promptly embarked on a series of missionary trips to Egypt in 1910, to Europe in 1911, and to America in 1912 and 1913. These journeys spread Baha'i teachings, established the Baha'i faith in the Western hemisphere, and ultimately discredited his brother's organization. Abdu'l Baha was knighted by the British government in 1920 for his philanthropic service during World War One and died the following year in 1921. |
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By this time, many of the days of observance in the Baha'i calendar had been identified and prescribed. |
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The fifth major figure in the history of the Baha'i faith is Shoghi Effendi, the eldest grandson of Abdu'l Baha, who was named in his grandfather's will as Walayi Amr Allah (Guardian of the Cause of God). In 1923, Shoghi Effendi made his home in Haifa, Israel, which has become the principal center of the Baha'i faith. Shoghi Effendi applied provisions for the administrative order outlined by Baha'Ullah, constructed the Shrine of the Bab on Mount Carmel, and built the International Archives |
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