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Throughout history, many of the world’s religions — Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Sikhism, Islam, and the Baha’i Faith — have all recommended and practiced an annual period of fasting.  Baha’is observe...

The post How the Baha’i Fast Can Improve Our Microbiome appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

Emotionally, I am at peace with my impending death. However, I do have some sadness, because I fear missing my loved ones after my demise. On the other hand, I...

The post Confronting My Prejudice and Unfair Judgments appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

In WW2, Great Britain rationed clothing because all the materials needed to make clothes were being diverted to the war effort. Each person received a ration book of 66 coupons,...

The post International Women’s Day: 9 Creative Solutions From Women appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

“My life’s goal as an artist is to unlock the secrets to the oldest stories and create new ones,” wrote Oletha DeVane, a Baha’i multidisciplinary artist. RELATED: How One Playwright...

The post How Artist Oletha DeVane Honors Our African Ancestors appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

If you’ve ever pondered what to pack for a long trip — and who hasn’t? — you may be wondering how to prepare for your longest and biggest adventure, the...

The post How to Pack for the Afterlife: Seven Steps to Eternity appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

AI and the ethics behind it is a super relevant topic. We’ve shared a little bit about it on Baha’i Blog when Ruha Benjamin asked if technology is our slayer or our saviour and when Matt Weinberg spoke on the BWNS’ podcast about how our values, our aspirations, and our needs are integrated into the […]

My online friend Epignosis (who I’ll call Epi), a Jehovah’s Witness, quickly discovered that when he asked questions or made assertions about my beliefs, I felt perfectly comfortable going to...

The post Is There Only One Holy Book? appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

Many economists have pointed out the importance of global unity and cooperation in solving the ever-increasing economic crises of the world. But there has not been much change, and time...

The post The Only Solution to Our Economic Problems: The Oneness of Humanity appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

The cancer in my liver is telling me, I think, that it’s almost time to go. I’m losing my appetite and have very little desire to eat. I don’t feel...

The post Dealing With the Process of Dying in Hospice appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

Podcast explores efforts of the Association for Bahá’í Studies to enrich the intellectual life of communities through consultative approaches to academic inquiry.

An African American woman, who was born into enslavement, later became a famous public speaker, inspiring suffragist, and devoted Baha’i. Learn about the life of Coralie Franklin Cook. Coralie Cook’s...

The post Coralie Franklin Cook: A Famous Suffragist, Speaker, and Baha’i appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

Every year at about this time, I get asked by friends: “If I wanted to take part in the Baha’i fast, could I do it?” “Sure,” I tell them. One...

The post How to Fast Like a Baha’i appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

I think each of us has a sense, as we near the beginning of the month of Ala or Loftiness, that we are approaching a kind of spiritual threshold. A couple of weeks before the Fast begins I start to ready myself for the blessings and rigours that are latent within every minute, hour and day of the month ahead. Baha’u’llah has told us that “[e]ven though outwardly the Fast is difficult and toilsome, yet inwardly it is bounty and tranquility,” ((Baha’u’lláh, The Importance of Obligatory Prayer and Fasting, XVI)) and “Thou hast endowed every hour of these days with a special virtue, inscrutable to all except Thee.” ((Baha’u’llah, Prayers and Meditations by Baha’u’llah, US Baha’i Publishing Trust, 1987, p. 143)) For me, the 19 days of the month of Loftiness are a yearly rite of passage that give me time to prepare for the demands and opportunities that the new year will undoubtedly place before me as I emerge from my month of fasting, meditation, prayer, reflection and mindful acts of service. It is an invitation to briefly quiet the noise of the outside world and tune into the world of the spirit; a time of gathering of energy and refilling of both individual and collective wells. As Baha’u’llah tells us: 

Have you ever gone, without warning, from perfect calm to absolute terror? Within seconds, your heart starts racing, your blood pressure rises, and you feel sick to your stomach. When...

The post Can Our Thoughts Affect Our Health? appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

When I began an online correspondence with a Jehovah’s Witness who signed himself “Epignosis” (toward knowledge), he did not so much ask questions as issue challenges he wanted me to...

The post There is One God: Many Lamps, but One Light appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

We all have physical ancestors—but do you think we have spiritual ancestors? Meet Pocahontas Pope, the first African American Baha’i of Washington, D.C., and a woman I think of as...

The post Pocahontas Pope: The First Black Baha’i in Washington, D.C. appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

For four days this week, Baha’is around the world will celebrate with festivities, gifts, parties, service projects and charitable humanitarian work. Why? Well, we’re celebrating the Baha’i holidays called Ayyam-i-Ha....

The post Happy Ayyám-i-Há: Days of Gifts, Gatherings and Service appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

This week, Baha’is around the world will celebrate four days of festivities, gifts, parties, service projects and charitable humanitarian work during the Baha’i holidays called Ayyam-i-Ha. That Persian phrase designates...

The post Understanding Intercalary Days and the Baha’i Calendar appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

The Baha’i teachings caution us against fabricating false imaginations of our Creator — and also warn us about visualizing false imaginations of death.  In the Baha’i view, a spiritual existence...

The post Dispelling Our Vain Imaginations About Death appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.

Born on February 23, 1868, in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, Dr. William Edward Burghardt Du Bois was a famous writer and civil rights activist. He made history as the co-founder of...

The post W.E.B. and Nina Du Bois: Lovers of the Baha’i Principles appeared first on BahaiTeachings.org.