HOLY DAYS

Ceasing work on Bahá’í Holy Days

While our celebrations and observances may be as varied as our communities, there is one aspect common to all of them (with the exception of the anniversary of the passing of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and the Day of the Covenant), they are days on which all believers - adults, youth and children - must not work.

To find out what the Bahá’í writings say read on ...

In the book of His laws, "The Kitáb-i-Aqdas", speaking of the Holy Days of Naw-Rúz and Ridván, Bahá’u’lláh tells us:

"All Feasts have attained their consummation in the two Most Great Festivals, and in the two other Festivals that fall on the twin days - the first of the Most Great Festivals being those days whereon the All-Merciful shed upon the whole of creation the effulgent glory of His most excellent Names and His most exalted Attributes, and the second being that day on which We raised up the One Who announced unto mankind the glad tidings of this Name, through which the dead have been resurrected and all who are in the heavens and on earth have been gathered together. Thus hath it been decreed by Him Who is the Ordainer, the Omniscient.

"Happy the one who entereth upon the first day of the month of Bahá, the day which God hath consecrated to this Great Name. And blessed be he who evidenceth on this day the bounties that God hath bestowed upon him; he, verily, is of those who show forth thanks to God through actions betokening the Lord’s munificence which hath encompassed all the worlds. Say: This day, verily, is the crown of all the months and the source thereof, the day on which the breath of life is wafted over all created things. Great is the blessedness of him who greeteth it with radiance and joy. We testify that he is, in truth, among those who are blissful." (1)

The Notes of "The Kitáb-i-Aqdas" elucidate the previous passage:

"This passage establishes four great festivals of the Bahá’í year. The two designated by Bahá’u’lláh as "the two Most Great Festivals" are, first, the Festival of Ridván, which commemorates Bahá’u’lláh’s Declaration of His Prophetic Mission in the Garden of Ridvan in Baghdád during twelve days in April/May 1863 and is referred to by Him as "the King of Festivals" and, second, the Báb’s Declaration, which occurred in May 1844 in Shíráz. The first, ninth and twelfth days of the Festival of Ridván are Holy Days (Q and A 1), as is the day of the Declaration of the Báb.

The "two other Festivals" are the anniversaries of the births of Bahá’u’lláh and the Báb. In the Muslim lunar calendar these fall on consecutive days, the birth of Bahá’u’lláh on the second day of the month of Muharram 1233 AH (12th November 1817), and the birth of the Báb on the first day of the same month 1235 AH (20th October 1819), respectively. They are thus referred to as the "Twin Birthdays" and Bahá’u’lláh states that these two days are accounted as one in the sight of God (Q and A 2). He states that, should they fall within the month of fasting, the command to fast shall not apply on those days (Q and A 36). Given that the Bahá’í calendar (see notes 26 and 147) is a solar calendar, it remains for the Universal House of Justice to determine whether the Twin Holy Birthdays are to be celebrated on a solar or lunar basis." (2) "In the Bahá’í calendar the first month of the year and the first day of each month are given the name "Bahá". The day of Bahá of the month of Bahá is thus the Bahá’í New Year, Naw-Rúz , which was ordained by the Báb as a festival and is here confirmed by Bahá’u’lláh (see notes 26 and 147).

"In addition to the seven Holy Days ordained in these passages of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, the anniversary of the Martyrdom of the Báb was also commemorated as a Holy Day in the lifetime of Bahá’u’lláh and, as a corollary to this, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá added the observance of the Ascension of Bahá’u’lláh, making nine Holy Days in all. Two other anniversaries which are observed, but on which work is not suspended, are the Day of the Covenant and the anniversary of the Passing of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. (See the section on the Bahá’í calendar in ‘The Bahá’í World, volume XVIII.’)" (3)

In "God Passes By", Shoghi Effendi describes the factors that contributed to the Persian Bahá’í community’s "gradual and wholly unexpected emergence from obscurity" (4) in the 1920s and 30s. Among these is the believers’ insistence on "adhering to the fundamental spiritual principles, precepts and laws revealed by Bahá’u’lláh, requiring them, among other things, to hold fast to truthfulness, not to dissimulate their faith, observe the ordinances prescribed for marriage and divorce, and suspend all manner of work on the Holy Days ordained by [Bahá’u’lláh]." (5)

Just months before his passing, in his final communication to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Canada, once again Shoghi Effendi drew to our attention the importance of having our Holy Days accorded appropriate recognition in upholding: "The independent character of the Faith they profess and champion must... be fully vindicated through a closer adherence, on the part of the rank and file of the believers, to its distinguishing tenets and precepts, as well as through a fuller recognition by the civil authorities concerned, of the Bahá’í Marriage Certificate and of the Bahá’í Holy Days." (6)

The command to refrain from work on Holy Days is one that calls for conscientious obedience by every individual believer: "...according to our Bahá’í laws, work is forbidden on our nine Holy Days. Believers who have independent businesses or shops should refrain from working on these days. Those who are in government employ should, on religious grounds, make an effort to be excused from work; all believers, whoever their employers, should do likewise. If the government or other employers refuse to grant them these days off, they are not required to forfeit their employment, but they should make every effort to have the independent status of the Faith recognised and their right to hold their own religious Holy Days acknowledged." (7)

Even Bahá’ís who are engaged in essential services such as providing medical care are to cease work except for emergencies: "He thinks it is better for Bahá’í doctors not to work on our nine Holy Days - but, of course, that does not mean they should not attend to very sick people and emergencies on these days." (8) Believers who own their own businesses must also close down during the Bahá’í Holy Days, even though non-Bahá’ís may be members of their staffs.

So important is this aspect of our Bahá’í life that even the functioning of a House of Worship must be confined to providing only essential services to the minimum extent possible on Bahá’í Holy Days:

"It is fully appreciated that the Bahá’í Temple must be open for worship on the Holy Days and therefore it is permitted to provide, to the minimum extent possible, essential services. Those necessary tasks, such as cleaning and other preparation of the building, which can be carried out on the previous day should be so done and only those duties which must be performed should be undertaken on the Holy Day. In the case of the Temple it is immaterial whether the workers are Baha’is or non-Baha’is since it is the duty of the Faith to observe, especially in respect of its own institutions, the command to cease work on the Holy Days." (9) This law of the Faith is one that our children also have the benefit of observing. "Regarding children: at fifteen a Bahá’í is of age as far as keeping the laws of the Aqdas is concerned - prayer, fasting, etc. but children under fifteen should certainly observe the Bahá’í Holy Days, and not go to school, if this can be arranged on these nine days." (10)

As the result of systematic efforts undertaken by the National Spiritual Assembly and by Local Spiritual Assemblies, many School Boards are well acquainted withthe Bahá’í Holy Days and students are routinely excused from school on these days. In addition, while employers are not legally required to pay employees for days taken off work to observe Holy Days, most government human rights legislation places a duty on employers to accommodate such requests for time off. Believers who encounter difficulty either in having their children excused from school or in themselves being excused from work, are encouraged to consult with their Local Spiritual Assemblies to identify possible action that might be taken to enable the believer to fulfill this duty.

Such action continues our ongoing work of vindicating the independent character of the Faith before the eyes of our employers, our colleagues, and the agencies of civil society. Because the Holy Days are such an intrinsic aspect of our community life, their proper observance also makes a direct contribution to our Four Year Plan, (National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Canada) and particularly to Element 3, which calls us to "strive to create local Bahá’í communities that demonstrate the efficacy of Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings to meet the needs of society, that are renowned for their social cohesion, and that are vibrant models of unity in diversity."

Taken from Bahá’í Canada, published September 1997

References:

1. Bahá’u’lláh, The Kítáb-i-Aqdas, 110 & 111, p59-60

2. Ibid, N 138, p224-5

2. Ibid, N 139, p225
3. Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By, p362
4. Ibid
5. Shoghi Effendi, Messages to Canada, p69-70
6. From a letter written on behalf of the Guardian to the National Spiritual Assembly of USA and Canada, 7th July 1947
7. From a letter written on behalf of the Guardian to the National Spiritual Assembly of India, 2nd August 1946
8. From a letter written on behalf of the Universal house of Justice to the NSA of Panama, 12th August 1977

10. From a letter written on behalf of the Guardian to the National Spiritual Assembly of United States, 25th October 1947

"We should feel deeply gratified and thankful to God that at a time when all humanity seems to be struggling in despair we can come together and, with great assurance, feast and be merry over the dawn of a new day; that in the darkness which envelops the world we see the approach of a new light and the breaking of a new era. This is a true blessing and a bounty from God to those who believe in Him and accept His Revelation." (Shoghi Effendi, Light of Divine Guidance Vol 1, p45) For further study see: "God Passes By".

"No more does the ardent nightingale carol its joyous songs, and the sweet and holy melodies of the immortal dove are hushed. That gleaming Moon is hidden now behind the clouds of everlasting life, that Orb of the high heavens sank down at the setting point of glory and rose into the skies of the world that we see not, and above the realm of the placeless He is casting forth His rays." (Shoghi Effendi, Bahíyyih Khánum, pp148-149)

"The Day of the Covenant, 26th November, and the Day of the Ascension, 28th November

anniversaries of the birth and the ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá - must be observed by the friends coming together, but work is not prohibited. In other words the friends must regard observance of these two anniversaries as obligatory, but suspension of work is not to be regarded as obligatory." (Shoghi Effendi, Letters of the Guardian to Australia and New Zealand, p89)

Further study: ‘Abdu’l-Bahá by HM Balyuzi; Bahíyyih Khánum: The Greatest Holy Leaf, a compilation by the Bahá’í World Centre. "It is clear how that most dire of calamities, that most great disaster which was the ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, may our souls be sacrificed for His meekness, has set our hearts on fire and dissolved our very limbs and members in grief. Darkness settled on our souls, of blood were our tears. Even the essences of sanctity cried out in fear, and the gems of holiness moaned and lamented, while our own inner selves fell to ashes, and there was no peace left in the soul, no patience in the heart.

"No more does the ardent nightingale carol its joyous songs, and the sweet and holy melodies of the immortal dove are hushed. That gleaming Moon is hidden now behind the clouds of everlasting life, that Orb of the high heavens sank down at the setting point of glory and rose into the skies of the world that we see not, and above the realm of the placeless He is casting forth His rays." (Shoghi Effendi, Bahíyyih Khánum, pp148-149)

"The Day of the Covenant, 26th November, and the Day of the Ascension, 28th November - anniversaries of the birth and the ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá - must be observed by the friends coming together, but work is not prohibited. In other words the friends must regard observance of these two anniversaries as obligatory, but suspension of work is not to be regarded as obligatory." (Shoghi Effendi, Letters of the Guardian to Australia and New Zealand, p89)

Further study: ‘Abdu’l-Bahá by HM Balyuzi; Bahíyyih Khánum: The Greatest Holy Leaf, a compilation by the Bahá’í World Centre.

Taken from "The American Bahá’í" - Almanac series. Reprinted with kind permission of the Editorial Board.

Photograph from "Bahá’í International News Service" no 438-2, 15.07.99