- _The Baha'is_. An magazine-format overview
of roughly 80 pages, with many color pictures
(available from any Baha'i community).
- I'd also recommend the article in the
_Encyclopedia Britannica_.
Our scriptures comprise the writings of the Bab,
Baha'u'llah, and 'Abdu'l-Baha (Baha'u'llah's son). This
amounts to between 100 and 200 volumes.
The originals are in Persian and Arabic, and are in the
archives at our world center. Many have been translated
into English--and a host of other languages (802 at last
count), and translation of others is in progress.
Some of the major titles (and a few of my comments) follow.
THE BAB:
The Bayan (Exposition).
The Book of Names.
various tablets and prayers
BAHA'U'LLAH
The Hidden Words. (Baha'u'llah's first work, a
summary of the religious teachings of the past; a
favorite of many Baha'is.)
The Book of Certitude. (a treatise on the nature of
religion and the Messengers of God, plus answers
to questions posed by a Muslim cleric.)
Prayers and Meditations.
The Seven Valleys and the Four Valleys. (mystic
allegories of the soul's progress)
The Book of Laws.
Epistle to the Son of the Wolf. (Baha'u'llah's last
book, unique in that Baha'u'llah not only quotes
from His other works but gives a retrospective of
His own ministry. The "Wolf" was the name
Baha'u'llah gave to a certain cleric notorious for
having Baha'is executed; after this cleric's
death, Baha'u'llah wrote this book to the
successor, his son--hence the title.)
various compilations (the best known is Gleanings)
and tablets, including:
The Tablet of Ahmad
The Tablets of Visitation
The Fire Tablet
The Tablet of Carmel
The Most Holy Tablet
The Tablet of the Holy Mariner
The Ornaments
The Splendors
The Effulgences
The Tablet of Ridvan
The Tablet of the True Seeker
The Tablet of the World
The Glad-Tidings.
ABDU'L-BAHA
Some Answered Questions. (table talks by
'Abdu'l-Baha, taken down by a secretary)
The Promulgation of Universal Peace.
Tablets of the Divine Plan.
various other tablets and prayers (in compilations)
There are also numerous works by Shoghi Effendi, who headed
the Faith until 1957. While his works aren't scriptural,
they're important historical and administrative documents,
and are considered authoritative. They include:
God Passes By. (a history of the first century of
the Faith)
Baha'i Administration, and Principles of Baha'i
Administration.
numerous compilations, including
The World Order of Baha'u'llah.
Citadel of Faith.
High Endeavors (and many more).
Other works that might be of interest to you are:
The Dawn-Breakers (Nabil's Narrative). A compre-
hensive (684 pages) history of the Babi Faith and the
beginnings of the Baha'i Faith, written by one of
the first Baha'is; it includes extensive footnotes
and citations from non-Baha'i sources.
The Baha'i World. An ongoing, detailed, history of
the Faith and its activities world wide. It
currently comprises around eighteen volumes
(typically up to about 1000 pages each);
additional volumes were added about every two to
ten years, but a change was made recently and a
(smaller) new volume now comes out every year.
Good hunting! :-)
Bruce
--- * OLX 2.2 * He who pushes a piano down a mine gets A flat miner.