Shrine Of Baháʼu'lláh
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The Mansion of Bahjí (, Qasr Bahjī, ''Mansion of Delight'') is a summer house in
Acre, Israel Acre ( ), known in Hebrew as Akko (, ) and in Arabic as Akka (, ), is a List of cities in Israel, city in the coastal plain region of the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. The city occupies a strategic location, sitting ...
where
Baháʼu'lláh Baháʼu'lláh (, born Ḥusayn-ʻAlí; 12 November 1817 – 29 May 1892) was an Iranian religious leader who founded the Baháʼí Faith. He was born to an aristocratic family in Iran and was exiled due to his adherence to the messianic Báb ...
, the founder of the
Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...
, died in 1892. He was buried in an adjacent house, which became the Shrine of Baháʼu'lláh, a place of pilgrimage and the Baháʼí Qiblih. The whole area was called ''Al-Bahjá'' (''Place of Delight'').


Mansion of Bahjí

Baháʼu'lláh's son
ʻAbdu'l-Bahá ʻAbdu'l-Bahá (; Persian: , ;, 23 May 1844 – 28 November 1921), born ʻAbbás (, ), was the eldest son of Baháʼu'lláh, founder of the Bahá’í Faith, who designated him to be his successor and head of the Baháʼí Faith from 1892 un ...
first rented, and then purchased, the mansion for his father and the Baháʼí holy family to live in, and Baháʼu'lláh moved from Mazra'ih to Bahji and resided in the building until his death. In 1890 the Cambridge orientalist
Edward Granville Browne Edward Granville Browne FBA (7 February 1862 – 5 January 1926) was a British Iranologist. He published numerous articles and books, mainly in the areas of history and literature. Life Browne was born in Stouts Hill, Uley, Gloucestershire, ...
met Baháʼu'lláh in this house; after this meeting he wrote his famous pen-portrait of Baháʼu'lláh. When Baháʼu'lláh died in 1892 he was interred in one of the surrounding buildings. The site has since been beautified with paradise gardens, which are termed ''Haram-i-Aqdas'' (the Most Holy Precincts or Sanctuary) and are intersected by a circular path that serves to circumambulate the shrine of Baháʼu'lláh. The Mansion, shrine, and surrounding gardens are among the most sacred spots on earth for Baháʼís and are
Baháʼí pilgrimage A Baháʼí pilgrimage currently consists of visiting the holy places in Acre, Israel, Acre and Haifa at the Baháʼí World Centre in Northwest Israel. Baháʼí Faith, Baháʼís do not have access to other places designated as sites for pilgri ...
sites.


Shrine

The Shrine of Baháʼu'lláh is composed of a central area that contains a small, tree-filled
garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate bot ...
surrounded by paths covered with Persian rugs. A glass roof was constructed by Qulám-ʻAlíy-i-Najjár after the death of Baháʼu'lláh. At the northwest corner of the central area there is a small room containing Baháʼu'lláh's remains. The central area has doors to a number of other rooms that have, in recent years, been opened to accommodate the growing number of pilgrims and visitors. During obligatory prayers Baháʼís face the Qiblih, which is the Shrine of Baháʼu'lláh, comparable in practice to Muslims facing the
Kaaba The Kaaba (), also spelled Kaba, Kabah or Kabah, sometimes referred to as al-Kaba al-Musharrafa (), is a stone building at the center of Islam's most important mosque and Holiest sites in Islam, holiest site, the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Sa ...
during daily prayer, or Christians/Jews facing Jerusalem. The Báb changed the direction of prayer to
He whom God shall make manifest He or HE may refer to: Language * He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads * He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English * He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana) * Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...
, a role claimed by Baháʼu'lláh. Baháʼís during his lifetime prayed facing the person of Bahá'u'lláh, until the spot became fixed when he was buried. A Tablet explaining this existed but had been stolen by Covenant-breakers. The shrine and its surrounding gardens, as well as the Mansion of Bahjí, were inscribed on the
World Heritage List World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural heritag ...
in July 2008.


History

The area was originally a garden planted by Sulayman Pasha, who was the ruler of Acre, for his daughter Fatimih, and he named it Bahji. Later the area was further beautified by ʻAbdu'llah Pasha, and in 1831 when Ibrahim Pasha besieged Acre he used the property as his headquarters. The property was well known for its beautiful gardens and pond fed by an aqueduct. The property then fell into the possession of a Christian family, the Jamals. In 1870 ʻUdi Khammar, a wealthy merchant from Acre who also originally owned the House of ʻAbbúd, bought some of the land from the Jamals close to the mansion of ʻAbdu'llah Pasha and built the Mansion of Bahji, over an earlier and smaller building, which Abdu'llah Pasha had built for his mother. Udi Khammar placed an Arabic inscription over the door in 1870 which reads: "Greetings and salutation rest upon this Mansion which increaseth in splendour through the passage of time. Manifold wonders and marvels are found therein, and pens are baffled in attempting to describe them." ʻUdi Khammar had built the house for his family, and when he died was buried in a tomb in the south-east corner of the wall directly around the building. In 1879 an epidemic caused the inhabitants to flee and the building became vacant. The shrine, after
ʻAbdu'l-Bahá ʻAbdu'l-Bahá (; Persian: , ;, 23 May 1844 – 28 November 1921), born ʻAbbás (, ), was the eldest son of Baháʼu'lláh, founder of the Bahá’í Faith, who designated him to be his successor and head of the Baháʼí Faith from 1892 un ...
's death, was occupied by Mírzá Muhammad ʻAlí and his supporters, who forcibly took the keys to the shrine in January 1922. The governor of Acre ordered the keys to be returned to the authorities and a guard was posted at the shrine. In early 1923 the keys were returned to
Shoghi Effendi Shoghí Effendi (; ;1896 or 1897 – 4 November 1957) was Guardian of the Baháʼí Faith from 1922 until his death in 1957. As the grandson and successor of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, he was charged with guiding the development of the Baháʼí Faith, in ...
. In the 1950s, Shoghi Effendi had made plans for a future superstructure, which would surround the whole area and would include a platform with 95 marble columns, each 6 meters high. Shoghi Effendi has called the shrine the Daryá-yi-Núr (Ocean of Light), which has taken the Kúh-i-Núr (Mountain of Light, the
Shrine of the Báb The Shrine of the Báb is a structure on the slopes of Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel, where the remains of the Báb, founder of the Bábí Faith and forerunner of Baháʼu'lláh in the Baháʼí Faith, are buried; it is considered to be the sec ...
) under its shadow. At the entrance to these gardens stands a wrought iron decorative gate called "Collins Gate" named after Amelia Collins.


Image gallery

File:Shrine of Bahá'u'lláh air 2022 2.jpg, Aerial view (2022) File:PikiWiki Israel 16270 Shrine of Bahaacute;ullaacute;h.JPG, Gardens near the Shrine of Baháʼu'lláh File:PikiWiki Israel 14856 BAHAI garden ACCO.jpg, Baháʼí gardens at Bahjí File:Mansion of Bahji 2.jpg, Mansion of Bahjí File:Collinsgate.jpg, Collins Gate at the entrance of the pathway towards the shrine File:PikiWiki Israel 15669 Geography of Israel.jpg, The larger building on the left is the mansion, and the shrine is on the right File:The Shrine of Baha'u'llah.jpg, Main entrance to the Shrine of Baháʼu'lláh


See also

* Burial places of founders of world religions * Baháʼí gardens *
Baháʼí pilgrimage A Baháʼí pilgrimage currently consists of visiting the holy places in Acre, Israel, Acre and Haifa at the Baháʼí World Centre in Northwest Israel. Baháʼí Faith, Baháʼís do not have access to other places designated as sites for pilgri ...
*
Baháʼí World Centre The Baháʼí World Centre is the name given to the spiritual and administrative centre of the Baháʼí Faith, representing sites in or near the cities of Acre and Haifa, Israel. Much of the international governance and coordination of the ...
*
Haram (site) Haram () is one of several similar words originating from the triliteral Semitic languages, Semitic Root (linguistics), root Ḥ-R-M. The word literally means "sanctuary", commonly used by Muslims to refer to Masjid al-Haram, Al-Masjid Al-Haram ...
* Religious significance of the Syrian region *
Shrine of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá The Shrine of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá is the location in Israel wherein the remains of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, one of the central figures of the Baháʼí Faith, will be reinterred. Since his death in 1921, ʻAbdu'l-Bahá's remains have been located beneath one of ...


Notes


References

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Further reading

*


External links


The Baháʼí Gardens - official websiteBaháʼí Pilgrimage - Shrine of Baháʼu'lláh
- photo gallery
Interior view
- from Bahá'í World, Volume 3 Bahá'í pilgrimages Bahá'í shrines in Israel Gardens in Israel Baháʼu'lláh Bahá'í gardens Buildings and structures in Northern District (Israel) Tourist attractions in Northern District (Israel) {{Baháʼí-stub