Tabernacle of Unity

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The Tabernacle of Unity is the German translation of a collection of five letters that Baha'u'llah , the founder of the Baha'i religion , addressed to Zoroastrians and former Zoroastrians.

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Plaque at Mánikchí Sáhib (Lawh-i-Mánikchí Sáhib)

This first letter was sent in 1878 to Mánikchí Limjí Hataria, who is also known as Mánikchí Sáhib and was born to Zoroastrian parents in India (1813–1890) and was appointed emissary of the Parsees of India in 1854 to support his fellow believers in Iran. Mánikchí Sáhib asked questions about the Abrahamic and non-Abrahamic religions. This includes the nature of creation, the relationship between faith and reason, the explanation of the differences between the laws of the various religions, their claims to exclusivity and their varying degrees of striving to win new followers. In the letter, Baha'u'llah, as he himself writes in the second letter, does not respond directly to the questions for reasons of prudence, but nevertheless answers them "with excellent conciseness and clarity". The letter, which was revealed in pure Persian at the request of Mánikchí Sáhib, emphasizes the universal prophetic claim of Baha'u'llah and proclaims some central doctrines of his faith. In this letter Baha'u'llah reveals for the first time his much-quoted sentence: “You are the fruit of a tree, the leaves of a branch.” Although Mánikchí Sáhib did not become a Bahai, he remained a sympathetic friend.

Answers to questions by Mánikchí Sáhib, From a plaque to Mirza Abu'l-Fadl

As can be seen from the content of this second missive, Mánukchí Sáhib was not entirely satisfied with the replies to the first one; he had expected a more detailed discussion of certain questions. Baha'u'llah's second answer is the content of a long letter dated July 1, 1882 to Mirza Abu'l-Fadl , who at that time was employed as a secretary at Mánikchí Sáhib; but most of it relates to the latter's questions. In the missive, the above questions from Mánikchí Sáhib are quoted in turn and answered in detail.

The Tablet of Seven Questions (Lawh-i-Haft Pursish)

This third letter was addressed in pure Persian to Ustád Javán-Mard, who is an early, outstanding Baha'i of Zoroastrian origin and a former student of Mánikchí. The letter must have been revealed after August 1868, since it mentions Baha'u'llah's work Suratu'r-Ra'i, which was published in Claims and Annunciation . The questions answered in the missive deal with the language and direction in prayer, faith and religion, opposition, Sháh Bahrám, Sirat Bridge, paradise and hell, the soul, as well as ancestry and origin of Baha'u'llah.

Third and fourth letters

The third and fourth letters only comprise four and five printed pages respectively and are also addressed to believers of Zoroastrian origin. In these letters, believers are encouraged to act, not to speak.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Adib Taherzadeh: The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh Volume 3 . Ed .: George Ronald. Oxford 1983, ISBN 0-85398-143-4 , pp. 170-171 .
  2. ↑ Adib Taherzadeh: The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh Volume 3 . Ed .: George Ronald. Oxford 1983, ISBN 0-85398-143-4 , pp. 172-174 .

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