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In Baháʼà cosmology reality is divided into three divisions. The first division is God, who is preexistent and on whom the rest of creation is contingent. The second division is God's Logos, the Primal Will, which is the realm of God's commands and grace. This realm pervades all created things. The Manifestations of God, Messengers from God, are appearances of the Logos in the physical world. The third division is
The Tablet of All Food: The Hierarchy of the Spiritual Worlds and the Metaphoric Nature of Physical Reality
'. Baháʼà Studies Review 16, pp. 43–60. doi: 10.1386/bsr.16.43/1. He views all metaphysical viewpoints as relative, reflecting only the soul or psyche and cultural background of the individual rather than any Absolute Truth. The Baháʼà teachings de-emphasize the importance of metaphysics, while focusing primarily on social and personal ethics. God is manifested in all five realms, the Manifestations of God in all but the first realm, and humans exist between the angelic and physical realms and can choose which to live in. All the divine worlds revolve around this world, and all are interdependent. The divine worlds can only be described by metaphors, and can be compared with the world of dreams. The realms of Nasut and Malakut are parts of the 'world of creation' and are ruled by the same spiritual laws. The
Mysteries of Alast: The Realm of Subtle Entities and the Primordial Covenant in the BábÃ-Baháʼà Writings
'. Baháʼà Studies Review 15. Baháʼu'lláh also wrote of many worlds of God. In the '' Súriy-i-Vafa'', he writes: "Know thou of a truth that the worlds of God are countless in their number, and infinite in their range. None can reckon or comprehend them except God, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise."
Tablet of the Universe (Lawh-i-Aflákiyyih)
'. Baháʼu'lláh explained that while humans should seek knowledge, no human can understand the nature of God's creation or God himself. He stated that while God had given humans a rational mind, humans are unable to comprehend the inner reality.
Realms of Divine Existence as described in the Tablet of All Food
', in Deepen, 3.2.2, pp. 11–17, 1994 Summer. * Mihrshahi, Robin (2013).
A Wondrous New Day: The Numerology of Creation and 'All Things' in the BadÃÊ» Calendar
'. * *
The Loom of Reality
thematic compilations of quotations from the Bahá’à Writings and beyond
compilation
Iscander Tinto: The Worlds of God
(archived)
More articles on Baháʼà cosmology
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on Baháʼà Library (various authors) {{DEFAULTSORT:Baha'i cosmology Bahá'à belief and doctrine Bahá'à terminology Religious cosmologies
In Baháʼà cosmology reality is divided into three divisions. The first division is God, who is preexistent and on whom the rest of creation is contingent. The second division is God's Logos, the Primal Will, which is the realm of God's commands and grace. This realm pervades all created things. The Manifestations of God, Messengers from God, are appearances of the Logos in the physical world. The third division is Creation
Creation may refer to:
Religion
*'' Creatio ex nihilo'', the concept that matter was created by God out of nothing
*Creation myth, a religious story of the origin of the world and how people first came to inhabit it
*Creationism, the belief that ...
, which includes the physical world. Creation is not seen as confined to the material universe, and individual material objects, such as the Earth, are seen to come into being at particular moment and then subsequently break down into their constituent parts. Thus, the current universe is seen as a result of a long-lasting process (cosmological time scales), evolving to its current state. In the Baháʼà Faith, the whole universe is a sign of God and is dependent on him and humanity was created to know God and to serve his purpose.
Realms
Baháʼu'lláh
Baháʼu'lláh (born Ḥusayn-Ê»AlÃ; 12 November 1817 – 29 May 1892) was the founder of the Baháʼà Faith. He was born to an aristocratic family in Persia, and was exiled due to his adherence to the messianic Bábà Faith. In 1863, in I ...
, the founder of the Baháʼà Faith, distinguished five realms of existence. The terminology used can partly be traced back to Islamic Neoplatonism and Sufism
Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, r ...
, but this does not mean that Baháʼu'lláh supports a Neoplatonist or Sufi worldview.Lepain, J.M. (2010) 990
Year 990 ( CMXC) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Al-Mansur, ''de facto'' ruler of Al-Andalus, conquers the Castle of Montemor-o-Velho (mode ...
The Tablet of All Food: The Hierarchy of the Spiritual Worlds and the Metaphoric Nature of Physical Reality
'. Baháʼà Studies Review 16, pp. 43–60. doi: 10.1386/bsr.16.43/1. He views all metaphysical viewpoints as relative, reflecting only the soul or psyche and cultural background of the individual rather than any Absolute Truth. The Baháʼà teachings de-emphasize the importance of metaphysics, while focusing primarily on social and personal ethics. God is manifested in all five realms, the Manifestations of God in all but the first realm, and humans exist between the angelic and physical realms and can choose which to live in. All the divine worlds revolve around this world, and all are interdependent. The divine worlds can only be described by metaphors, and can be compared with the world of dreams. The realms of Nasut and Malakut are parts of the 'world of creation' and are ruled by the same spiritual laws. The
purpose of life
The meaning of life, or the answer to the question: "What is the meaning of life?", pertains to the significance of living or existence in general. Many other related questions include: "Why are we here?", "What is life all about?", or "What ...
in this world is to develop spiritual qualities that are needed in the next world.
Man has a free will to live a material life in the world of Nasut, or a life of detachment in the realm of Malakut, manifesting the names and attributes of God. Baháʼu'lláh explains that the 'realm of subtle entities' (''Ê»alam-i-dharr'', a reference to God's primordial covenant with humanity mentioned in Qurʼán 7:172) refers to the revelation of the Prophets. Before the Word of God is revealed, all people are considered equal in rank. Differences only appear after the Prophet reveals himself, caused by the different responses of each individual's free will.Kazemi, Farshid (2009). Mysteries of Alast: The Realm of Subtle Entities and the Primordial Covenant in the BábÃ-Baháʼà Writings
'. Baháʼà Studies Review 15. Baháʼu'lláh also wrote of many worlds of God. In the '' Súriy-i-Vafa'', he writes: "Know thou of a truth that the worlds of God are countless in their number, and infinite in their range. None can reckon or comprehend them except God, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise."
ʻAbdu'l-Bahá
ʻAbdu'l-Bahá (; Persian language, Persian: , 23 May 1844 – 28 November 1921), born ʻAbbás ( fa, عباس), was the eldest son of Baháʼu'lláh and served as head of the Baháʼà Faith from 1892 until 1921. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá was later C ...
, son and successor of Baháʼu'lláh, writes in the ''Lawh-i-Aflákiyyih'' (''Tablet of the Universe'') that there are infinite Manifestations of God in the infinite worlds of God. 'Abdu'l-Bahá. Tablet of the Universe (Lawh-i-Aflákiyyih)
'. Baháʼu'lláh explained that while humans should seek knowledge, no human can understand the nature of God's creation or God himself. He stated that while God had given humans a rational mind, humans are unable to comprehend the inner reality.
See also
* Arcs of Descent and Ascent * Baháʼà Faith and the unity of religion *Baháʼà Faith on life after death
The Baháʼà Faith affirms the existence of life after death while not defining everything about it. The soul on death is said to recognize the value of its deeds and begin a new phase of a conscious relationship with God though negative experie ...
* Baháʼà Faith and science
* '' Some Answered Questions''
* Cosmology in medieval Islam
* Sufi cosmology
* Religious cosmology
* Rūḥ and Nafs
Notes
References
Further reading
* Lepain, Jean-Marc (2015) 002 ''The Archeology of the Kingdom of God''. * Ma'sumian, Bijan.Realms of Divine Existence as described in the Tablet of All Food
', in Deepen, 3.2.2, pp. 11–17, 1994 Summer. * Mihrshahi, Robin (2013).
A Wondrous New Day: The Numerology of Creation and 'All Things' in the BadÃÊ» Calendar
'. * *
External links
The Loom of Reality
thematic compilations of quotations from the Bahá’à Writings and beyond
compilation
Iscander Tinto: The Worlds of God
(archived)
More articles on Baháʼà cosmology
an
related subjects
on Baháʼà Library (various authors) {{DEFAULTSORT:Baha'i cosmology Bahá'à belief and doctrine Bahá'à terminology Religious cosmologies