Declaration of the Báb and Ascension of Bahá’u’lláh
National Spiritual Assembly
nsa@bahai.org.uk
20 May 2016
5 ‘Aẓamat 173 B.E.
To all believers in the United Kingdom,
Dearly loved Friends,
In the coming days we will be blessed with the opportunity to commemorate two of the Holy Days of our beloved Faith: the Declaration of the Báb and the Ascension of Bahá’u’lláh.
Around two hours after sunset on 22 May 2016 marks the commemoration of that most wondrous moment when the Báb, in declaring His Mission and revealing Himself as a Manifestation of God, ushered in a new era for humankind and set it on the path to its Golden Age. As the friends celebrate in remembrance of the Declaration of the Báb, they will no doubt call to mind Mullá Ḥusayn’s stunning testimony of that night:
This Revelation so suddenly and impetuously thrust upon me, came as a thunderbolt which, for a time, seemed to have benumbed my faculties. I was blinded by its dazzling splendour and overwhelmed by its crushing force. Excitement, joy, awe, and wonder stirred the depths of my soul. Predominant among these emotions was a sense of gladness and strength which seemed to have transfigured me.
(The Dawn-Breakers: Nabíl’s Narrative of the Early Days of the Bahá’í Revelation, p. 64)
A week later, believers the world over will commemorate the Ascension of Bahá’u’lláh, remembering the moment when the Redeemer of Mankind, His glorious Mission completed and His Covenant unshakeably established, departed from this earthly realm. In accordance with the Guardian’s instructions, and with adjustments for UK summer time, this should be commemorated, if feasible, at 4 a.m. on 28 May, and it is hoped that the friends may be able to give homage and remembrance to the Beloved of our hearts at this time.
As you prepare to give fitting expression to these commemorations, including abstaining from work, we wish to draw your attention to the following words of the Universal House of Justice in its letter dated 29 December 2015 to the Counsellors’ Conference, which were offered in speaking of the spiritual potency of the new Five Year Plan:
Holy Day commemorations hold a special position in this regard. The Tablets recited, and the prayers, stories, songs, and sentiments voiced—all of them expressions of love for those sacred Figures Whose lives and missions are being remembered—stir the heart and fill the soul with awe and wonder.
The National Spiritual Assembly sends you its love, best wishes, and its assurance of prayers on your behalf, that the Abhá Beauty may ever sustain and guide you in all your endeavours to glorify His Faith.
With loving Bahá’í greetings,
Patrick O’Mara,
Secretary