Glossary
| ‘Abdu’l-Bahá | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The "Servant of Bahá", AbbásEffendi (1844-1921), the eldest son and appointed Successor ofBahá’u’lláh, and the Centre of HisCovenant. | ||||||
| Abjad | ||||||
| The ancient Arabic system of allocating a numericalvalue to letters of the alphabet, so that numbers may be representedby letters and vice versa. Thus every word has both a literal meaningand a numerical value. | ||||||
| Báb, The | ||||||
| Literally the "Gate", thetitle assumed by Mírzá ‘Alí-Muḥammad(1819-1850) after the Declaration of His Mission in S̱ẖírázin May 1844. He was the Founder of the Bábí Faith andthe Herald of Bahá’u’lláh. | ||||||
| Bahá | ||||||
| Bahá means Glory. It is the Greatest Name of Godand a title by which Bahá’u’lláh isdesignated. Also, the name of the first month of the Bahá’íyear and of the first day of each Bahá’í month. | ||||||
| Bahá’u’lláh | ||||||
| The "Glory of God", title of MírzáḤusayn-‘Alí (1817-1892), the Founder of the Bahá’íFaith. | ||||||
| Bayán | ||||||
| The Bayán ("Exposition") is the titlegiven by the Báb to His Book of Laws, and it is also appliedto the entire body of His Writings. The Persian Bayán is themajor doctrinal work and principal repository of the laws ordained bythe Báb. The Arabic Bayán is parallel in content butsmaller and less weighty. References in the annotations tosubjects found in both the Persian Bayán and the Arabic Bayánare identified by use of the term "Bayán" withoutfurther qualification. | ||||||
| Ḥuqúqu’lláh | ||||||
| The "Right of God". Instituted in theKitáb-i-Aqdas, it is an offering made by the Bahá’ísthrough the Head of the Faith for the purposes specified in theBahá’í Writings. | ||||||
| Mas̱ẖriqu’l-Aḏẖkár | ||||||
| Literally "the Dawning-place of the praise ofGod", the designation of the Bahá’í Houseof Worship and its dependencies. | ||||||
| Miṯẖqál | ||||||
A unit of weight, equivalent to alittle over 3 1/2 grammes, used in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas withreference to quantities of gold or silver for various purposes,usually in amounts of 9, 19 or 95 miṯẖqáls. Theequivalents of these in the metric system and in troy ounces (whichare used in the measurement of precious metals), are as follows:
This computation is based on theguidance of Shoghi Effendi, conveyed in a letter written on hisbehalf, which states "one miṯẖqál consists ofnineteen náḵẖuds. The weight of twenty-four náḵẖudsequals four and three-fifths grammes. Calculations may be made onthis basis." The miṯẖqál traditionally used inthe Middle East had consisted of 24 náḵẖuds but in theBayán this was changed to 19 náḵẖuds andBahá’u’lláh confirmed this as the size ofthe miṯẖqál referred to in the Bahá’ílaws (Q and A 23). | ||||||
| Náḵẖud | ||||||
| A unit of weight. See "miṯẖqál". | ||||||
| Qayyúmu’l-Asmá | ||||||
| The Báb’s commentary on the Súrih ofJoseph in the Qur’án. Revealed in 1844, this work ischaracterized by Bahá’u’lláh as "thefirst, the greatest, and mightiest of all books" in the BábíDispensation. | ||||||
| Shoghi Effendi | ||||||
| Shoghi Effendi (1897-1957), Guardian of the Bahá’íFaith from 1921-1957. He was the eldest grandson of ‘Abdu’l-Baháand was appointed by Him as the Head of the Faith. | ||||||
| Síyáh-C̱ẖál | ||||||
| Literally "the Black Pit". The dark,foul-smelling, subterranean dungeon in Ṭihrán whereBahá’u’lláh was imprisoned for four monthsin 1852. |