Kitab-I-Aqdas (thing)

CST Approved Copyright details included at the end of the writeup

In Brief

The Kitab-I-Aqdas (or 'Most Holy Book') is the central law book of the Baha'i faith. Revealed by Baha’u’llah around 1873, it is seen by the Baha'i as expressing God's will for humanity. The hardcopy published by the Baha'i Publishing Trust includes comment from Shogi Effendi, Baha’u’llah's great-grandson and authorised interpreter; which I reproduce at the end of this writeup. The full text of the Kitab-I-Aqdas is available by the following links.

Verses 1-50
Verses 51-100
Verses 101-150
Verses 151-190
The Tablet of Ishraqat The Eighth Ishraq: Considered part of the Kitab-I-Aqdas

Origins

The Kitab-I-Aqdas is believed to have been revealed to Baha’u’llah in the House of `Udi Khammar, in Akka, in about 1873, a date supported by its reference to the fall of Napoleon III. There is some evidence, however, that at least part of the book may have been written even earlier. In the tablet called Ishraqat, a verse of the Kitab-I-Aqdas is stated to have been revealed "upon Our arrival in the Prison City" ie. Akka), which would imply a date perhaps as early as 1868. In another tablet, Bahá'u'lláh states that after completing the Kitab-I-Aqdas, he kept it back for some years before releasing a copy. As copies of the book reached Iran in 1873-74, this would again point to a date a few years before 1873 for its revelation. Thus although the completion of the Aqdas may have occurred in 1873, it seems clear that it was being revealed for several years prior to this.

The work was dictated as it was revealed to Baha’u’llah and recorded by a scribe. Once recorded Baha’u’llah would check the document, correct any errors and, when satisfied; stamp the final document to indicate his approval and validation. The style of many of his works including much of the Kitab-I-Aqdas show the same flowing, poetic pattern that lends the texts to being read aloud. This style is shared with many other sacred texts including the Torah and Qur’an and highlights the communal nature of central to so much of religion.

Contents

The Kitab-I-Aqdas is often refered to as simply ‘the Law-Book’, this can be misleading to those who have not themselves read the Tablet. Far from being a simple codex of civil and criminal laws the Kitab-I-Aqdas concerns itself primarily with the operation of the community, detailing ways that the local community can work together democratically, resolve conflicts, and operate with the wider national and international community. In all of this the governance is overseen by elected individuals, there are no priests in the Baha’I faith. The Kitab-I-Aqdas in this sense resembles less a law book and more a constitution for a democratic, community based global state.

The Kitab-I-Aqdas does include ‘personal laws’, laws that are of an individual, devotional nature and are solely between the believer and God. These include the reading of sacred scripture, the saying of prayers and fasting. There is no secular punishment for failing in these laws, indeed these activities are largely to be carried out in private. The laws are for the individual, for the benefit of the individual and therefore not for the community to enforce.

Perhaps more recongnisable by many as laws are those relating to the following areas: marriage, divorce, inheritance, murder, manslaughter, arson, theft, and adultery. In general Baha’u’llah preferred to rely on general exhortations to moral behaviour (exemplified by the Golden Rule “Wish not for others what ye wish not for yourselves; fear God, and be not of the prideful” K148) but in areas of great importance clear laws are set out to be overseen by elected bodies.

Marriage laws in particular raise the most questions among interested readers. Baha’u’llah’s ruling is (to summarise) that the couple must only marry of their own free will and that they must gain the blessing of their parents. This often shocks people, but for very different reasons. Many from eastern countries disapprove of the banning of arranged marriages, while many westerners are shocked that parents should have any say in who their children marry. Baha’i see this as a compromise between western and eastern practices designed to encourage harmony within the family. (In modern practice couples may be allowed to marry without parental blessing but only in exceptional circumstances)

Finally, the Kitab-I-Aqdas includes a few lines of prophesy – that the "Banks of the Rhine" will be "covered with gore, inasmuch as the swords of retribution were drawn against you"; that this will occur twice and the "lamentations of Berlin" will be heard. As with any prophesy it is up to the reader to interpret.

Comment by Shogi Effendi on the Kitab-i-Aqdas

Alluded to in the Kitab-i-Iqan, the {Kitab-I-Aqdas is the} principal repository of that Law which the Prophet Isaiah had anticipated, and which the writer of the Apocalypse had described as the "new heaven" and the "new earth", as "the Tabernacle of God", as the "Holy City", as the "Bride", the "New Jerusalem coming down from God", this "Most Holy Book", whose provisions must remain inviolate for no less than a thousand years, and whose system will embrace the entire planet, may well be regarded as the brightest emanation of the mind of Baha’u’llah, as the Mother Book of His Dispensation, and the Charter of His New World Order.

Revealed soon after Baha’u’llah had been transferred to the house of Udi Khammar (circa 1873), at a time when He was still encompassed by the tribulations that had afflicted Him, through the acts committed by His enemies and the professed adherents of His Faith, this Book, this treasury enshrining the priceless gems of His Revelation, stands out, by virtue of the principles it inculcates, the administrative institutions it ordains and the function with which it invests the appointed Successor of its Author, unique and incomparable among the world’s sacred Scriptures. For, unlike the Old Testament and the Holy Books which preceded it, in which the actual precepts uttered by the Prophet Himself are non-existent; unlike the Gospels, in which the few sayings attributed to Jesus Christ afford no clear guidance regarding the future administration of the affairs of His Faith; unlike even the Qur’an which, though explicit in the laws and ordinances formulated by the Apostle of God, is silent on the all-important subject of the succession, the Kitab-i-Aqdas, revealed from first to last by the Author of the Dispensation Himself, not only preserves for posterity the basic laws and ordinances on which the fabric of His future World Order must rest, but ordains, in addition to the function of interpretation which it confers upon His Successor, the necessary institutions through which the integrity and unity of His Faith can alone be safeguarded.

In this Charter of the future world civilization its Author—at once the Judge, the Lawgiver, the Unifier and Redeemer of mankind—announces to the kings of the earth the promulgation of the "Most Great Law"; pronounces them to be His vassals; proclaims Himself the "King of Kings"; disclaims any intention of laying hands on their kingdoms; reserves for Himself the right to "seize and possess the hearts of men"; warns the world’s ecclesiastical leaders not to weigh the "Book of God" with such standards as are current amongst them; and affirms that the Book itself is the "Unerring Balance" established amongst men. In it He formally ordains the institution of the "House of Justice", defines its functions, fixes its revenues, and designates its members as the "Men of Justice", the "Deputies of God", the "Trustees of the All-Merciful"; alludes to the future Centre of His Covenant, and invests Him with the right of interpreting His holy Writ; anticipates by implication the institution of Guardianship; bears witness to the revolutionizing effect of His World Order; enunciates the doctrine of the "Most Great Infallibility" of the Manifestation of God; asserts this infallibility to be the inherent and exclusive right of the Prophet; and rules out the possibility of the appearance of another Manifestation ere the lapse of at least one thousand years.

In this Book He, moreover, prescribes the obligatory prayers; designates the time and period of fasting; prohibits congregational prayer except for the dead; fixes the Qiblih; institutes the Huququ’llah (Right of God); formulates the law of inheritance; ordains the institution of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkar; establishes the Nineteen Day Feast, the Baha’i festivals and the Intercalary Days; abolishes the institution of priesthood; prohibits slavery, asceticism, mendicancy, monasticism, penance, the use of pulpits and the kissing of hands; prescribes monogamy; condemns cruelty to animals, idleness and sloth, backbiting and calumny; censures divorce; interdicts gambling, the use of opium, wine and other intoxicating drinks; specifies the punishments for murder, arson, adultery and theft; stresses the importance of marriage and lays down its essential conditions; imposes the obligation of engaging in some trade or profession, exalting such occupation to the rank of worship; emphasizes the necessity of providing the means for the education of children; and lays upon every person the duty of writing a testament and of strict obedience to one’s government. Apart from these provisions Baha’u’llah exhorts His followers to consort, with amity and concord and without discrimination, with the adherents of all religions; warns them to guard against fanaticism, sedition, pride, dispute and contention; inculcates upon them immaculate cleanliness, strict truthfulness, spotless chastity, trustworthiness, hospitality, fidelity, courtesy, forbearance, justice and fairness; counsels them to be "even as the fingers of one hand and the limbs of one body"; calls upon them to arise and serve His Cause; and assures them of His undoubted aid. He, furthermore, dwells upon the instability of human affairs; declares that true liberty consists in man’s submission to His commandments; cautions them not to be indulgent in carrying out His statutes; prescribes the twin inseparable duties of recognizing the "Dayspring of God’s Revelation" and of observing all the ordinances revealed by Him, neither of which, He affirms, is acceptable without the other. The significant summons issued to the Presidents of the Republics of the American continent to seize their opportunity in the Day of God and to champion the cause of justice; the injunction to the members of parliaments throughout the world, urging the adoption of a universal script and language; His warnings to William I, the conqueror of Napoleon III; the reproof He administers to Francis Joseph, the Emperor of Austria; His reference to "the lamentations of Berlin" in His apostrophe to "the banks of the Rhine"; His condemnation of "the throne of tyranny" established in Constantinople, and His prediction of the extinction of its "outward splendour" and of the tribulations destined to overtake its inhabitants; the words of cheer and comfort He addresses to His native city, assuring her that God had chosen her to be "the source of the joy of all mankind"; His prophecy that "the voice of the heroes of Khurasan" will be raised in glorification of their Lord; His assertion that men "endued with mighty valour" will be raised up in Kirman who will make mention of Him; and finally, His magnanimous assurance to a perfidious brother who had afflicted Him with such anguish, that an "ever-forgiving, all-bounteous" God would forgive him his iniquities were he only to repent—all these further enrich the contents of a Book designated by its Author as "the source of true felicity", as the "Unerring Balance", as the "Straight Path" and as the "quickener of mankind".

The laws and ordinances that constitute the major theme of this Book, Baha’u’llah, moreover, has specifically characterized as "the breath of life unto all created things", as "the mightiest stronghold", as the "fruits" of His "Tree", as "the highest means for the maintenance of order in the world and the security of its peoples", as "the lamps of His wisdom and loving-providence", as "the sweet-smelling savour of His garment", and the "keys" of His "mercy" to His creatures. "This Book", He Himself testifies, "is a heaven which We have adorned with the stars of Our commandments and prohibitions." "Blessed the man", He, moreover, has stated, "who will read it, and ponder the verses sent down in it by God, the Lord of Power, the Almighty. Say, O men! Take hold of it with the hand of resignation... By My life! It hath been sent down in a manner that amazeth the minds of men. Verily, it is My weightiest testimony unto all people, and the proof of the All-Merciful unto all who are in heaven and all who are on earth." And again:

"Blessed the palate that savoureth its sweetness, and the perceiving eye that recognizeth that which is treasured therein, and the understanding heart that comprehendeth its allusions and mysteries. By God! Such is the majesty of what hath been revealed therein, and so tremendous the revelation of its veiled allusions that the loins of utterance shake when attempting their description." And finally: "In such a manner hath the Kitab-i-Aqdas been revealed that it attracteth and embraceth all the divinely appointed Dispensations. Blessed those who peruse it! Blessed those who apprehend it! Blessed those who meditate upon it! Blessed those who ponder its meaning! So vast is its range that it hath encompassed all men ere their recognition of it. Erelong will its sovereign power, its pervasive influence and the greatness of its might be manifested on earth."

Copyright details

Information on the dating of the Kitab-i-Aqdas was drawn from an article by John Walbridge Available from : http://bahai-library.com/?file=walbridge_encyclopedia_kitab_aqdas.html

With regards to the actual text of the Kitab-i-Aqdas and the introduction by Shogi Effendi, both are covered by the Collective Copyright statement included below:

The entire contents of the Baha'i World Centre Etext Server are copyrighted by the Baha'i International Community, Copyright (c) 1994, All Rights Reserved, as a collective work (compilation copyright). They may be freely redistributed in their entirety provided that this copyright notice is not removed. These documents may not be sold for profit or incorporated in commercial documents without the written permission of the Baha'i International Community.

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