'Abdu'l-Baha
The "Servant of Baha", Abbas Effendi (1844-1921), the eldest son and
appointed Successor of Baha'u'llah, and the Centre of His Covenant.
Abjad
The ancient Arabic system of allocating a numerical value to letters
of the alphabet, so that numbers may be represented by letters and
vice versa. Thus every word has both a literal meaning and a
numerical value.
Bab, The
Literally the "Gate", the title assumed by Mirza 'Ali-Muhammad
(1819-1850) after the Declaration of His Mission in S{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}iraz in May
1844. He was the Founder of the Babi Faith and the Herald of
Baha'u'llah.
Baha
Baha means Glory. It is the Greatest Name of God and a title by
which Baha'u'llah is designated. Also, the name of the first month
of the Baha'i year and of the first day of each Baha'i month.
Baha'u'llah
The "Glory of God", title of Mirza Husayn-'Ali (1817-1892), the
Founder of the Baha'i Faith.
Bayan
The Bayan ("Exposition") is the title given by the Bab to His Book
of Laws, and it is also applied to the entire body of His Writings.
The Persian Bayan is the major doctrinal work and principal
repository of the laws ordained by the Bab. The Arabic Bayan is
parallel in content but smaller and less weighty. References in the
annotations to subjects found in both the Persian Bayan and the
Arabic Bayan are identified by use of the term "Bayan" without
further qualification.
Huququ'llah
The "Right of God". Instituted in the Kitab-i-Aqdas, it is an
offering made by the Baha'is through the Head of the Faith for the
purposes specified in the Baha'i Writings.
Mas{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}riqu'l-Ad{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}kar
Literally "the Dawning-place of the praise of God", the designation
of the Baha'i House of Worship and its dependencies.
Mit{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}qal
A unit of weight, equivalent to a little over 3 1/2 grammes, used in
the Kitab-i-Aqdas with reference to quantities of gold or silver for
various purposes, usually in amounts of 9, 19 or 95 mit{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}qals. The
equivalents of these in the metric system and in troy ounces (which
are used in the measurement of precious metals), are as follows:
- 9 mit{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}qals = 32.775 grammes = 1.05374 troy ounces
- 19 mit{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}qals = 69.192 grammes = 2.22456 troy ounces
- 95 mit{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}qals = 345.958 grammes = 11.12282 troy ounces
This computation is based on the guidance of Shoghi Effendi,
conveyed in a letter written on his behalf, which states "one
mit{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}qal consists of nineteen nak{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}uds. The weight of twenty-four
nak{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}uds equals four and three-fifths grammes. Calculations may be
made on this basis." The mit{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}qal traditionally used in the Middle
East had consisted of 24 nak{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}uds but in the Bayan this was changed
to 19 nak{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}uds and Baha'u'llah confirmed this as the size of the
mit{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}qal referred to in the Baha'i laws (Q and A 23).
Nak{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}ud
A unit of weight. See "mit{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}qal".
Qayyumu'l-Asma
The Bab's commentary on the Surih of Joseph in the Qur'an. Revealed
in 1844, this work is characterized by Baha'u'llah as "the first,
the greatest, and mightiest of all books" in the Babi Dispensation.
Shoghi Effendi
Shoghi Effendi (1897-1957), Guardian of the Baha'i Faith from
1921-1957. He was the eldest grandson of 'Abdu'l-Baha and was
appointed by Him as the Head of the Faith.
Siyah-C{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}al
Literally "the Black Pit". The dark, foul-smelling, subterranean
dungeon in Tihran where Baha'u'llah was imprisoned for four months
in 1852.