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The Baháʼí Faith was founded by Baháʼu'lláh among 19th century Iranians who adhered to Islamic views on slavery. Baháʼu'lláh formally abolished the practice of slave trading among Baháʼís in the Kitab-i-Aqdas in 1873.[1] ʻAbdu'l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi, the authoritative interpreters of Baháʼí writings, later saw this as a prohibition of slavery itself.[1]
Baháʼu'lláh on slavery
Baháʼu'lláh wrote in the Kitab-i-Aqdas,
It is forbidden you to trade in slaves, be they men or women. It is not for him who is himself a servant to buy another of God's servants, and this hath been prohibited in His Holy Tablet.[2]
In his letter to Queen Victoria, written to her circa 1868, Baháʼu'lláh had singled out the action of the British government in using its power to stamp out the world trade in slaves for particular commendation:
We have been informed that thou hast forbidden the trading in slaves, both men and women. This, verily, is what God hath enjoined in this wondrous Revelation. God hath, truly, destined a reward for thee, because of this.[3]
ʻAbdu'l-Bahá's talks
When ʻAbdu'l-Bahá traveled and gave talks in the United States in 1912, he said,[4]
Between 1860 and 1865 you did a wonderful thing; you abolished chattel slavery; but today you must do a much more wonderful thing: you must abolish industrial slavery.
Examples
Baháʼu'lláh, the Báb, and some early Baháʼís either grew up in families with Ethiopian slaves or owned them as adults.[5]
Baháʼu'lláh became the owner of his family's slaves on the death of his father in 1839, whereupon he gave each of them the choice of remaining in his service or leaving.[citation needed] All of them chose to take up their freedom in full and leave his household, except one named Isfandíyár, who remained a loyal servant, and later a well known follower of Baháʼu'lláh.[5][6] ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, Baháʼu'lláh son, later said, "I had a servant who was black; his name was Isfandiyar. If a perfect man could be found in the world, that man was Isfandiyar. He was the essence of love, radiant with sanctity and perfection, luminous with light. Whenever I think of Isfandiyar, I am moved to tears, although he passed away fifty years ago. He was the faithful servant of Bahá'u'lláh and was entrusted with His secrets."[7]
The Báb was raised in a household with slaves. In 1842 the Báb purchased an Ethiopian slave named Mubárak from his brother-in-law.[8] Mubárak had been raised since the age of five with the family and received a good education. He was involved with some accounting, and managed communications with several Letters of the Living, the Báb's first followers. He joined the Báb for his pilgrimage to Mecca, along with Quddús. According to a Baháʼí chronicler, Mubárak was a loyal follower of the Báb and the family grieved when he died at the age of 40.[8]
Black Pearls: Servants in the Households of the Bab and Baha'u'llah (1988) by Abu'l-Qasim Afnan, a descendant of the Báb, documents the lives of other slaves/servants and includes commentary on the historical context of slavery in Iran.[9] According to the author, the last slave purchased by his family was in 1870,[10] three years before the practice was formally abolished by Baháʼu'lláh. The Research Department of the Universal House of Justice wrote in 2000 that it is, "the only work on this subject", and that, "the information available is highly fragmentary and anecdotal in nature."[5]
Citations
- ^ a b Smith 2000.
- ^ Baháʼu'lláh 1993, p. 45.
- ^ Baháʼu'lláh 2002, p. 89.
- ^ Esslemont 2006, p. 159.
- ^ a b c Universal House of Justice 2000.
- ^ Blomfield 1940, p. 41.
- ^ ʻAbdu'l-Bahá 1982, p. 426.
- ^ a b Afnan 1988, pp. 3-18.
- ^ Afnan 1988.
- ^ Afnan 1988, p. 3.
References
- ʻAbdu'l-Bahá (1982). Promulgation of Universal Peace: Talks Delivered by Abdu'l Baha during His Visit to the United States and Canada in 1912. Bahai Publishing Trust, 2nd Edition. ISBN 978-0877431725.
- Afnan, Abu'l-Qasim (1988), Black Pearls: Servants in the Households of the Bab and Baha'u'llah, Los Angeles: Kalimat Press, ISBN 0-933770-52-9
- Baháʼu'lláh (1993) [Composed 1873]. The Kitáb-i-Aqdas: The Most Holy Book. Mona Vale, NSW: Baháʼí Publications Australia. ISBN 0-909991-95-2.
- Baháʼu'lláh (2002) [Composed circa 1868]. Summons of the Lord of Hosts. Haifa: Baháʼí World Centre. ISBN 0-85398-976-1.
- Blomfield, Sara Louisa Ryan (1940). The Chosen Highway. Wilmette, IL: Baha'i Publishing Trust.
- Esslemont, John E. (2006) [Composed 1923]. Baháʼu'lláh and the New Era. Wilmette, Illinois, USA: Baháʼí Publishing Trust. ISBN 978-1931847278.
- Smith, Peter (2000). "Slave trade, slavery". A Concise Encyclopedia of the Baháʼí Faith. Oxford, UK: Oneworld Publications. p. 323. ISBN 1-85168-184-1.
- Universal House of Justice (2000-02-02). Research Department (ed.). "Servants in the Households of Baha'u'llah and the Bab". Baháʼí World Center. Retrieved Sep 21, 2016.