There are Prophets mentioned in the Qur’án, such as Húd and
Sálih, about whom the Bible is silent. Idrís, whom the Qur’án states was a
Prophet, is identified with Hermes by Bahá’u’lláh, Who states "In every
tongue he hath a special name." It is clear that He must have lived in
very ancient times. Bahá’u’lláh made no mention of Buddha, and if it had not
been for ‘Abdu’l-Bahá's statement we would not have been in a position to state
definitely that Buddha had been a Manifestation of God. There are a myriad
traditions in the legends of peoples that point back to some sort of divine
revelation but, as the beloved Guardian's secretary pointed out on his behalf
in a letter written to an individual believer on 13 March 1950, ". . . We
cannot possibly add names of people we (or anyone else) think might be Lesser
Prophets to those found in the Qur’án, the Bible and our own Scriptures. For
only these can we consider authentic Books." We must just accept that
there are undoubtedly many prophetic figures of whom all authentic record has
been lost. As to the future, the Research Department knows of no Text which
states explicitly in which country Manifestations of God will appear.
- The
Universal House of Justice (From a message dated 27 October 1986 written on behalf
of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer; ‘Messages from the
Universal House of Justice 1986-2001’)
