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Bahá’í Publishing 401 Greenleaf Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois 60091-2844 Copyright © 2013 by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States All rights reserved. Published 2013 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper ∞ 16 15 14 13 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Life after death / compiled by Baha’i Publishing. pages cm. — (Spirit of faith) Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 978-1-61851-047-1 1. Death—Religious aspects—Bahai Faith. 2. Future life— Bahai Faith. I. Bahá’u’lláh, 1817–1892. Works. Selections. 2013. II. Bab, ‘Ali Muhammad Shirazi, 1819–1850. Works. Selections. 2013. III. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, 1844–1921. Works. Selections. 2013. IV. Baha’i Publishing. BP360.L54 2013 297.9’323—dc23 2013020235
Cover design by Andrew Johnson Book design by Patrick Falso
CONTENTS Introduction..........................................................1 From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh...........................7 From the Writings of the Báb.............................. 61 From the Writings and Recorded Utterances of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá..............................................69 Notes................................................................. 155 Bibliography...................................................... 163
INTRODUCTION
Life After Death is the seventh book in Bahá’í Publishing’s Spirit of Faith series, which continues to explore weighty spiritual topics—including the unity of the world’s religions, the importance of sel·ess actions for the bene³t of humanity, and the promise of world peace—by taking an in-depth look at how the writings of the Bahá’í Faith address these issues. It is hoped that meditation on the passages presented here will lead to profound and rewarding conversations. The Bahá’í Faith is an independent world religion that began in 1844 in Persia (present-day Iran). Since its inception, the Bahá’í Faith has spread to
235 nations and territories and has been accepted by more than ³ve million people. Bahá’ís believe that there is only one God, that all the major world religions come from God, and that all the members of the human race are essentially members of one family. Bahá’ís strive to eliminate all forms of prejudice and believe that people of all races, nations, social statuses, and religious backgrounds are equal in the sight of God. The Bahá’í Faith also teaches that each individual is responsible for the independent investigation of truth, that science and religion are in harmony, and that men and women are equal in the sight of God. In the writings of the Bahá’í Faith, the human soul is described as an immortal and everlasting entity. Though our bodies will eventually perish and disintegrate, our souls, which are not made up of
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Introduction
atoms and molecules, will never die and will, upon our death, ascend to the spiritual realms of God. The Bahá’í writings declare that, “man is, in reality, a spiritual being,”* and therefore we are encouraged to view death as “a messenger of joy.”† We are cautioned, however, that we can only know so much about the next world while still alive in this one. Attempting to describe the next world would be similar to attempting to describe the world of the living to a fetus still within the womb of its mother. From a Bahá’í perspective, our progress and state of being in the next world is closely related to and dependent on our conduct in this world. We
* Paris Talks, no. 23.7. † The Hidden Words, Arabic, no. 32.
Introduction
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are therefore encouraged to acquire virtues and strive for spiritual growth in anticipation of our death and eventual ascension to the spiritual worlds of God. Included in this book are the writings of Bahá’u’lláh, the Founder of the Bahá’í Faith, considered by Bahá’ís to be the supreme Manifestation of God for the age in which we live; the writings of His forerunner, the Báb; and the writings and recorded utterances of His son and appointed successor, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. It is hoped that readers of all faiths and backgrounds will ³nd the passages collected here to be thoughtprovoking and inspiring, and that meditation on this subject will lead to new insights and a deeper sense of peace regarding our continued, everlasting existence in all the worlds of God.
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Introduction
FROM THE WRITINGS OF BAHÁ’U ’LLÁH
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t is clear and evident that all men shall, after their physical death, estimate the worth of their deeds,
and realize all that their hands have wrought. I swear by the Daystar that shineth above the horizon of Divine power! They that are the followers of the one true God shall, the moment they depart out of this life, experience such joy and gladness as would be impossible to describe, while they that live in error shall be seized with such fear and trembling, and shall be ³lled with such consternation, as nothing can exceed. Well is it with him that hath qua²ed the
choice and incorruptible wine of faith through the gracious favor and the manifold bounties of Him Who is the Lord of all Faiths.
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nspire then my soul, O my God, with Thy wondrous remembrance, that I may glorify Thy
name. Number me not with them who read Thy words and fail to ³nd Thy hidden gift which, as decreed by Thee, is contained therein, and which quickeneth the souls of Thy creatures and the hearts of Thy servants. Cause me, O my Lord, to be reckoned among them who have been so stirred up by the sweet savors that have been wafted in Thy days that they have laid down their lives for Thee and hastened to the scene of their death in their longing to gaze on Thy beauty and in their yearning to attain Thy presence. And were any one to say unto them
From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh
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on their way, “Whither go ye?” they would say, “Unto God, the All-Possessing, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting!”
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he nature of the soul after death can never be described, nor is it meet and permissible to
reveal its whole character to the eyes of men.
From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh
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ou will readily recognize that the terms sovereignty, wealth, life, death, judgment and
resurrection, spoken of by the scriptures of old, are not what this generation hath conceived and vainly imagined. Nay, by sovereignty is meant that sovereignty which in every dispensation resideth within, and is exercised by, the person of the Manifestation, the Daystar of Truth.
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A
nd now concerning thy question regarding the soul of man and its survival after death.
Know thou of a truth that the soul, after its separation from the body, will continue to progress until it attaineth the presence of God, in a state and condition which neither the revolution of ages and centuries, nor the changes and chances of this world, can alter. It will endure as long as the Kingdom of God, His sovereignty, His dominion and power will endure. It will manifest the signs of God and His attributes, and will reveal His loving kindness and bounty. The movement of My Pen is stilled when it attempteth to be³ttingly describe the loftiness and
From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh
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glory of so exalted a station. The honor with which the Hand of Mercy will invest the soul is such as no tongue can adequately reveal, nor any other earthly agency describe.
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