The Bab forbade His followers to ask questions of Him Whom God will make
manifest (Baha'u'llah), unless their questions were submitted in writing
and pertained to subjects worthy of His lofty station. See Selections from
the Writings of the Bab.
Baha'u'llah removes this prohibition of the Bab. He invites the believers
to ask such questions as they "need to ask", and He cautions them to
refrain from posing "idle questions" of the kind which preoccupied "the
men of former times".
147. The number of months in a year, appointed in the Book of God, is
nineteen. #127
The Baha'i year, in accordance with the Badi calendar, consists of
nineteen months of nineteen days each, with the addition of certain
intercalary days (four in an ordinary year and five in a leap year)
between the eighteenth and nineteenth months in order to adjust the
calendar to the solar year. The Bab named the months after certain
attributes of God. The Baha'i New Year, Naw-Ruz, is astronomically fixed,
coinciding with the March equinox (see note 26). For further details,
including the names of the days of the week and the months, see the
section on the Baha'i calendar in The Baha'i World, volume XVIII.
148. the first hath been adorned with this Name which overshadoweth the
whole of creation #127
In the Persian Bayan, the Bab bestowed the name "Baha" on the first month
of the year (see note 139).
149. The Lord hath decreed that the dead should be interred in coffins
#128
In the Bayan, the Bab prescribed that the deceased should be interred in a
coffin made of crystal or polished stone. Shoghi Effendi, in a letter
written on his behalf, explained that the significance of this provision
was to show respect for the human body which "was once exalted by the
immortal soul of man".
In brief, the Baha'i law for the burial of the dead states that it is
forbidden to carry the body for more than one hour's journey from the
place of death; that the body should be wrapped in a shroud of silk or
cotton, and on its finger should be placed a ring bearing the inscription
"I came forth from God, and return unto Him, detached from all save Him,
holding fast to His Name, the Merciful, the Compassionate"; and that the
coffin should be of crystal, stone or hard fine wood. A specific Prayer
for the Dead (see note 10) is ordained, to be said before interment. As
affirmed by 'Abdu'l-Baha and the Guardian, this law precludes cremation of
the dead. The formal prayer and the ring are meant to be used for those
who have attained the age of maturity, i.e. 15 years of age (Q and A 70).
With regard to the material from which the coffin is to be made, the
spirit of the law is that coffins should be of as durable a material as
possible. Hence, the Universal House of Justice has explained that, in
addition to the materials specified in the Aqdas, there is no objection to
using the hardest wood available or concrete for the casket. For the
present, the Baha'is are left free to make their own choices in this
matter.