August 31

This heavenly Faith cannot be compared to the transitory things of the world of existence, nor can it be identified with or likened to physical and earthly forces. Its tabernacle has been raised through dire oppression, its advancement and promulgation depend upon spiritual and mysterious agencies, and factors that are awesome, alarming and totally unexpected. The Tongue of the Ancient of Days, the Comforter of the people of the world says: “Naught hath been ordained by the finger of His decree for His loved ones except that which is profitable unto them. We beseech Him to graciously enable them to show forth patience and fortitude that haply trials and ordeals might not deflect them from the path of God, the Almighty, the All-Knowing.” 

- Shoghi Effendi  (Compilation: ‘Fire and Light’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice; The Baha’i World 1979-1983)

August 30

…the way in which believers become members of the elected institutions is democratic. It is, indeed, far more democratic than the methods by which the members of most parliaments are elected. The Bahá’í electoral system is entirely free from the power and bargaining of parties and factions, and from the manipulations of vested interests. Each voter is free to cast his or her ballot for whomever he or she chooses.  

Even in the best democracies nowadays the driving incentive in elections is the wish of each politician to obtain power so as to be able to carry out the program that he particularly favors—an election becomes a competition which the self-promoting candidates either “win” or “lose.” The electorate is treated as a mass to be swayed, by rhetoric and various forms of inducement, to support one or other candidate. In the Bahá’í system, however, the voters are the active force and the motive which impels them is to choose those individuals who are best suited to serve on the institution. The persons elected are passive in the electoral process (except in their role as voters) and accept election as an obligation to serve the community in response to the wish of the electorate. In other words, the systems differ in their essential spirit: one is a seeking for power, the other is an acceptance of responsibility for service. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 18 July 2000 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer)

August 29

To ensure that the spiritual life of the individual believer is continuously enriched, that local communities are becoming increasingly conscious of their collective duties, and that the institutions of an evolving administration are operating efficiently, is, therefore, as important as expanding into new fields and bringing in the multitudes under the shadow of the Cause. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a message to all National Spiritual Assemblies engaged in mass teaching work, 2 February 1966; ‘Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1963-1986’)

August 28

He wishes also to stress the fact that, 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 their Faith recognized and their right to hold their own religious Holy Days acknowledged. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to the American National Spiritual Assembly, dated 7 July 1947 -- Bahá'í News, No. 198; included in a letter from the Universal House of Justice to all National Spiritual Assemblies, dated 28 January 1966; ‘Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1963-1986’)

August 27

The House of Justice ... has instructed us to point out that proclamation, expansion, and consolidation are really three different aspects of teaching which to some degree merge into one another and therefore it is largely for each National Spiritual Assembly to decide how it will allocate these different aspects to committees in light of the volume of the work and the condition in each country. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated February 27, 1975 written on behalf of the Universal House of justice to a National Spiritual Assembly; Compilation:, Lights of Guidance)

August 26

... true consolidation is to ensure that the love of Bahá'u'lláh and devotion to His Faith are firmly rooted in the hearts of the believers; this is the essential foundation for the subsequent addition of increased knowledge of the Teachings and the development of the Bahá'í way of life." 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated November 3, 1974 to a National Spiritual Assembly; compilation: Lights of Guidance)

August 25

Gatherings for reflection are increasingly seen as occasions where the community’s efforts, in their entirety, are the subject of earnest and uplifting deliberation. Participants learn what has been accomplished overall, understand their own labours in that light, and enhance their knowledge about the process of growth by absorbing the counsels of the institutions and drawing on the experience of their fellow believers. Such experience is also shared in numerous other spaces that are emerging for consultation amongst friends intensely engaged in specific endeavours, whether they are pursuing a common line of action or serving in a particular part of the cluster. All these insights are located in a wider appreciation that progress is most easily achieved in an environment imbued with love—one in which shortcomings are overlooked with forbearance, obstacles are overcome with patience, and tested approaches are embraced with enthusiasm. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (Ridvan 2013 message)

August 24

The commotion [1] had assumed such proportions that the Sháh, unable any longer to ignore the situation, delegated the trusted Siyyid Yaḥyáy-i-Darábí, surnamed Vahíd, one of the most erudite, eloquent and influential of his subjects—a man who had committed to memory no less than thirty thousand traditions—to investigate and report to him the true situation. Broad-minded, highly imaginative, zealous by nature, intimately associated with the court, he, in the course of three interviews, was completely won over by the arguments and personality of the Báb. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘God Passes By’)

[1] Due to the Advent of the Báb

August 23

O ye friends of God! Show ye an endeavor that all the nations and communities of the world, even the enemies, put their trust, assurance and hope in you; that if a person falls into errors for a hundred-thousand times he may yet turn his face to you, hopeful that you will forgive his sins; for he must not become hopeless, neither grieved nor despondent. This is the conduct and the manner of the people of Baha’. This is the foundation of the most high pathway! Ye should conform your conduct and manners with the advices of Abdul-Baha. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (‘Tablets of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, vol. 2)

August 22

It behoveth the craftsmen of the world at each moment to offer a thousand tokens of gratitude at the Sacred Threshold, and to exert their highest endeavour and diligently pursue their professions so that their efforts may produce that which will manifest the greatest beauty and perfection before the eyes of all men. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (‘Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Excellence in All Things)

August 21

They must be constantly encouraged and made eager to gain all the summits of human accomplishment, so that from their earliest years they will be taught to have high aims, to conduct themselves well, to be chaste, pure, and undefiled, and will learn to be of powerful resolve and firm of purpose in all things.... 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (‘Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Baha; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Excellence in All Things)

August 20

Inasmuch as the Order of Bahá’u’lláh is an integral part of the divine Revelation that He, as a Manifestation of God, has given us, one could say that this Order is essentially theocratic, but inasmuch as it is entirely devoid of any kind of clergy or priesthood, it is not at all a “theocracy” in the sense in which the term is generally used and understood. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 18 July 2000 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer)

August 19

The people of Shíráz were by that time [1845] wild with excitement. [1] A violent controversy was raging in the masjids, the madrisihs, the bazaars, and other public places. Peace and security were gravely imperiled. Fearful, envious, thoroughly angered, the mullás were beginning to perceive the seriousness of their position. The governor, greatly alarmed, ordered the Báb to be arrested. He was brought to Shíráz under escort, and, in the presence of Husayn Khán, was severely rebuked, and so violently struck in the face that His turban fell to the ground. Upon the intervention of the Imám-Jum’ih He was released on parole, and entrusted to the custody of His maternal uncle Hájí Mírzá Siyyid ‘Alí. A brief lull ensued, enabling the captive Youth to celebrate the Naw-Rúz of that and the succeeding year in an atmosphere of relative tranquillity in the company of His mother, His wife, and His uncle. Meanwhile the fever that had seized His followers was communicating itself to the members of the clergy and to the merchant classes, and was invading the higher circles of society. Indeed, a wave of passionate inquiry had swept the whole country, and unnumbered congregations were listening with wonder to the testimonies eloquently and fearlessly related by the Báb’s itinerant messengers. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘God Passes By’)

[1] Due to the action by one of the followers of the Báb who impelled by His injunction in one of His Tablets “to alter the sacrosanct formula” of the call to prayer.

August 18

Let us also bear in mind that the keynote of the Cause of God is not dictatorial authority but humble fellowship, not arbitrary power, but the spirit of frank and loving consultation. Nothing short of the spirit of a true Bahá’í can hope to reconcile the principles of mercy and justice, of freedom and submission, of the sanctity of the right of the individual and of self-surrender, of vigilance, discretion, and prudence on the one hand, and fellowship, candor, and courage on the other. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated February 23, 1924; ‘Baha’i Administration’)   

August 17

… the friends are conscious that the work of the Cause proceeds at different speeds in different places and for good reason—it is, after all, an organic phenomenon—and they take joy and encouragement from every instance of progress they see. Indeed, they recognize the benefit that accrues from the contribution of each individual to the progress of the whole, and thus the service rendered by each one, in keeping with the possibilities created by a person’s circumstances, is welcomed by all. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (Ridvan 2013 message)

August 16

It is the continuing task of Bahá’ís to increase their understanding of the principles on which the Administrative Order is founded, and to improve the faithfulness with which they implement these principles in their actions.  

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 18 July 2000 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer)

August 15

Exemption from obligatory prayer and fasting is granted to women who are menstruating; they should, instead, perform their ablutions and repeat 95 times a day between one noon and the next, the verse “Glorified be God, the Lord of Splendour and Beauty”. This provision has its antecedent in the Arabic Bayán, where a similar dispensation was granted.

In some earlier religious Dispensations, women in their courses were considered ritually unclean and were forbidden to observe the duties of prayer and fasting. The concept of ritual uncleanness has been abolished by Bahá’u’lláh.

The Universal House of Justice has clarified that the provisions in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas granting exemptions from certain duties and responsibilities are, as the word indicates, exemptions and not prohibitions. Any believer is, therefore, free to avail himself or herself of an applicable exemption if he or she so wishes. However, the House of Justice counsels that, in deciding whether to do so or not, the believer should use wisdom and realize that Bahá’u’lláh has granted these exemptions for good reason. 

The Universal House of Justice  (The ‘Notes’ section of ‘The Kitab-i-Aqdas’)

August 14

…it is important for the National Spiritual Assemblies to work out ways and means of creating a sense of belonging in the hearts of the believers. One of the ways this can be done is to bring to their attention the needs of the Fund. The National Assembly should neither feel embarrassed nor ashamed in turning to the friends, continuously appealing to them to exemplify their faith and devotion to the Cause by sacrificing for it, and pointing out to them that they will grow spiritually through their acts of self-abnegation, that the fear of poverty should not deter them from sacrificing for the Fund, and that the assistance and bounty of the Source of all good and of all wealth are unfailing and assured.... 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 9 February 1967 written by the Universal House of Justice to various National Spiritual Assemblies; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. II, Teaching the Masses)

August 13

Shoghi Effendi was also pleased to learn of the response which his last general communication ['The Dispensation of Bahá'u'lláh' (in 'The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh', pp. 97-161)] addressed to the friends in the West has awakened in your community, It is his hope that the believers will, through their careful and continued study of this important communication, acquire a new vision of the Cause, and will be stimulated to redouble their efforts for the expansion and consolidation of their work for the Faith. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 11 May 1934 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi  to an individual believer; compilation: ‘Studying the Writings of Shoghi Effendi, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, November 1988)

August 12

The House of Justice has not prescribed any set forms to be adopted in a Holy Shrine, whether it be in prayer, meditation or reading of the Holy Scriptures, as long as the practices followed do not disturb the devotions of others who are in the Shrine. It does not favour the adoption of the practice of songs being sung with musical accompaniment in close proximity to the Shrines. As you can well understand, such singing could well disturb those who, within the Shrines, are engaged in their devotions.

There are, of course, special occasions, such as the commemoration of Holy Days at the Bahá'í World Centre, when prayers and devotional readings are recited at a gathering held near a Shrine, and the Tablet of Visitation chanted. A devotional programme, with soloists and orchestral accompaniment, is also planned at the entrance to the Terraces adjoining the Shrine of the Báb, in May 2001. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 6 November 2000, written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to a Local Spiritual Assembly; compilation on ‘Selected Guidance concerning Devotional Gathering’, prepared by the Research department of the Universal House of Justice)

August 11

…in reality both health and sickness are contagious. The contagiousness of disease is rapid and violent, whereas that of health is exceedingly slow and weak. If two bodies are brought into contact with each other, it is certain that microbial particles will be transmitted from one to the other. In the same way that disease is rapidly and violently transmitted from one body to another, the strong health of a healthy person may also alleviate a very slight condition in a sick person. Our meaning is that the contagiousness of disease is rapid and violent, while that of health is very slow and of limited effect, and it is only in minor ills that this modest effect can be felt. In such cases, the strength of the healthy body overcomes the slight weakness of the sick body and brings about its health. This is one kind of healing. 

-‘Abdu’l-Baha  (Table talks in Akka, authenticated by ‘Abdu’l-Baha; ‘Some Answered Questions’ – 2014 revised translation by the Baha’i World Centre)

August 10

…the full meaning of the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, as well as an understanding of the implications of the World Order ushered in by that remarkable document can be revealed only gradually to men's eyes, and after the Universal House of Justice has come into being. The friends are called upon to trust to time and to await the guidance of the Universal House of Justice, which, as circumstances require, will make pronouncements that will resolve and clarify obscure matters. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 9 March 1965; ‘Messages from the Universal House of Justice, 1963-1986’)

August 9

Every Bahá'í, no matter how poor, must realize what a grave responsibility he has to shoulder in this connection, and should have confidence that his spiritual progress as a believer in the World Order of Bahá'u'lláh will largely depend upon the measure in which he proves, in deeds, his readiness to support materially the divine institutions of His Faith. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 17 July 1937 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of India and Burma; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. II, Teaching the Masses)

August 8

There is no prescribed way for the recital of the many other Bahá’í prayers, and all are free to use such non-obligatory prayers in gatherings or individually as they please. In this regard, Shoghi Effendi states that:

...although the friends are thus left to follow their own inclination,... they should take the utmost care that any manner they practise should not acquire too rigid a character, and thus develop into an institution. This is a point which the friends should always bear in mind, lest they deviate from the clear path indicated in the in the Teachings. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (The ‘Notes’ section of ‘The Kitab-i-Aqdas’)

August 7

The Lord of all mankind hath fashioned this human realm to be a Garden of Eden, an earthly paradise. If, as it must, it findeth the way to harmony and peace, to love and mutual trust, it will become a true abode of bliss, a place of manifold blessings and unending delights. Therein shall be revealed the excellence of humankind, therein shall the rays of the Sun of Truth shine forth on every hand. 

- ’Abdu’l-Baha  (‘Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Conservation of the Earth's Resources)

August 6

...the best way in which you can help to save the wildlife and natural condition of the world is to exert every effort to bring the Message of Bahá'u'lláh to the attention of your fellow-men and to win their allegiance to His Cause.

As the hearts of men are changed, and they begin to work in unity in the light of Bahá'u'lláh's teachings, they can begin to implement many practical improvements to the condition of the world. This is already beginning in the efforts at social and economic development in those areas where large Bahá'í communities have been founded. Of course, you can also assist those with whom you come into contact who have an interest in improving the environment, but the fundamental solution is the one that Bahá'u'lláh has brought. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (Department of the Secretariat, from a letter dated 14 June 1984 to an individual believer; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Conservation of the Earth's Resources)

August 5

The Bahá'í Faith recognizes the value of the sex impulse, but condemns its illegitimate and improper expression such as free love, companionate marriage and others, all of which it considers positively harmful to man and to the society in which he lives. The proper use of the sex instinct is the natural right of every individual, and it is precisely for this very purpose that the institution of marriage has been established. The Bahá'ís do not believe in the suppression of the sex impulse but in its regulation and control. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 5 September 1938 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, A Chase and Holy Life)

August 4

Exert every effort to acquire the various branches of knowledge and true understanding. Strain every nerve to achieve both material and spiritual accomplishments. Encourage the children from their earliest years to master every kind of learning, and make them eager to become skilled in every art -- the aim being that through the favouring grace of God, the heart of each one may become even as a mirror disclosing the secrets of the universe, penetrating the innermost reality of all things; and that each may earn world-wide fame in all branches of knowledge, science and the arts. 

Certainly, certainly, neglect not the education of the children. Rear them to be possessed of spiritual qualities, and be assured of the gifts and favours of the Lord. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (From a Tablet, The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Baha’i Education)

August 3

He ... hopes that from now on you will become a regular attendant at all future sessions at Louhelen, or at either one of the two remaining Summer Schools now operating in the States. Faithful attendance at any of these institutions of Bahá'í learning would be indeed the best preparation for all prospective Bahá'í teachers, and should as such be welcomed most heartily by all the believers. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 22 August 1939 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Centers of Baha’i Learning)

August 2

The Guardian thinks the ideal thing would be for the believers to have a Bahá'í Cemetery.... 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 5 September 1950 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Baha’i Burial)

August 1

Just as the world of nature becomes sweet scented and fragrant through the breezes of spring and barren fields bloom anew and grow verdant, so does the celestial power emanating from the quickening breezes of this divine springtime bestow new life on the world of being and prepare it for wondrous progress, both material and spiritual. The effects of the creative and transformative power of this spiritual spring are far reaching; they portend the coming of age of humanity and lead peoples and nations towards a world characterized by unity in diversity. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (Naw-Ruz 2013 message to the Baha’is of Iran)