According to Abd al-Baha, there are five types of spirits: animal, vegetable, human, faith, and the Holy Spirit. God gives the spirit of faith, and this spirit, added to the human spirit, makes eternal life possible. Faith is essential to Baha’i spiritual life. Faith along with hope is what keeps humanity moving toward God. To the Baha’i followers, eternity of the soul means the eternal journey toward God; they believe in both Heaven and Hell. Both Islam and Baha’i follow the belief that God’s will, or Sharia, which is a comprehensive legal, moral, and social system designed to shape and regulate human behavior at all levels. The Unicersal House of Justice is today responsible for developing this new Sharia for a unified world and unified human race that Baha’i will usher in. The rituals of Baha’i are not very specific; they come from Islam and are based mostly on ritual prayer, annual fasting, and pilgrimage. All of these are obligatory to be faithful; however other practices such as rites of passage (naming ceremonies for babies, marriage, and funeral) are perspective. Prayer is private, and takes place either once a day and has three alternatives, once at noon, or three times a day, but every time must be facing the tomb of Baha Allah in Acre. Fasting takes place once a year from dusk to dawn in the last month of the solar year (March 2-20) unless ill, or pregnant. The pilgrimage is not very well defined. Originally only males were to go to the homes of the Bab in Shiraz, Iran and to Baha Allah in Baghdad. However these have become difficult because Bab’s home has been destroyed, and pilgrimages to other, lesser sites have been started. There are seven temples around the world which are showpieces used for public gatherings.
Much of Baha’i is based on aspects in the religion Islam. Origins Islam is the religion of allegiance to God and his prophet Muhammed, who lived around 570-632 and came from a family of traders at Mecca. Muhammad one night was in a cave on Mount Hira in Mecca when he had a spiritual revelation. Muhammed is said to have received his revelations over a period of 23 years from the Angel Jibreel, or Gabriel, who was relaying the word of God. Eventually Muhammad had his experiences written down in a book called the Quran, and this book became the basis for the new religion called Islam. Islam presents itself as the only way of life for people to achieve salvation in the after-life, it also teaches its followers to live up to high standards in conduct with other human beings, regardless of their religion, ethnicity, race, language or culture. About 21% of all people on earth follow Islam. Origins Islam is the religion of allegiance to God and his prophet Mohammed, who lived around 570-632 and came from a family of traders at Mecca. The religion is currently in a period of rapid growth.
Islam has the Five Pillars which guide followers, and are the basis for the religion. The first pillar states, “witness that the re is no God but Allah and that Muhammad is his Prophet.” This is very similar to Baha’i in that Baha’i accepts all religions as true, but none as the complete and final truth. The second pillar states perform mandatory prayers five times a day. This is also very similar to Baha’i except you pray three times daily, and towards the tomb of Baha Allah. The third pillar says to give alms to the poor. Baha’i similarly disfavors extremes of wealth and poverty. In Islam, fasting occurs from sunrise to sunset during the month of Ramadan, however in Baha’i fasting occurs once a year in the last month of the solar year. Lastly, for Islam it is necessary to make a pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca. Baha’i followers are supposed to make a pilgrimage also, however the pilgrimage is not specific, and there are many different options available to visit. There is an apparent connection between these two religions; after all Baha’i came from Islam, and it is based on many of there beliefs and ideas. There are many similarities, and a few differences where Baha Allah and the Baha’i followers went their own ways, and had their own ideas. I would consider Baha’i to be a branch of Islam, and when they are compared, it is apparent.
In origin, Baha’i belongs to the world of nineteenth century Iran. However at significant stages of its development it has responded positively to many Western ideas and values. Its leader, since about 1920, have faced the dilemmas of institutionalization and have carefully planned and organized in order to make Baha’i a world religion.
