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In 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 ...

, the Qiblih (, "direction") is the location to which Baháʼís face when saying their daily obligatory prayers. The Qiblih is fixed at the

Shrine of Baháʼu'lláh The Mansion of Bahjí (, Qasr Bahjī, ''Mansion of Delight'') is a summer house in Acre, Israel where Baháʼu'lláh, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith, died in 1892. He was buried in an adjacent house, which became the Shrine of Baháʼu'lláh, ...

, near

Acre The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area, United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one Chain (unit), ch ...

, in present-day

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

; approximately at . In

Bábism Bábism () is a Messianism, messianic movement founded in 1844 by Báb, the Báb ( 'Ali Muhammad). The Báb, an Iranian merchant-turned-prophet, professed that there is one incorporeal, unknown, and incomprehensible GodEdward Granville Browne ...

the Qiblih was originally identified by the

Báb The Báb (born ʻAlí-Muḥammad; ; ; 20 October 1819 – 9 July 1850) was an Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbai ...

with " the One Whom God will make manifest", a messianic figure predicted by the Báb.

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 Prophet-founder of the Baháʼí Faith claimed to be the figure predicted by the Báb. In the

Kitáb-i-Aqdas The ''Kitáb-i-Aqdas'' () is the central religious text of the Baháʼí Faith, written by Baháʼu'lláh, the founder of the religion, in 1873. Though it is the main source of Baháʼí laws and practices, much of the content deals with other ...

, Baháʼu'lláh confirms the Báb's ordinance and further ordains his final resting-place as the Qiblih for his followers.

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 ...

describes that spot as the "luminous Shrine", "the place around which circumambulate the Concourse on High". The concept exists in other religions. Jews face Jerusalem, more specifically the site of the former

Temple of Jerusalem The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. Accord ...

. Muslims face 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 ...

in Mecca, which they also call the ''

Qibla The qibla () is the direction towards the Kaaba in the Great Mosque of Mecca, Sacred Mosque in Mecca, which is used by Muslims in various religious contexts, particularly the direction of prayer for the salah. In Islam, the Kaaba is believed to ...

'' (another transliteration of Qiblih). Baháʼís do not worship the Shrine of Baháʼu'lláh or its contents, the Qiblih is simply a focal point for the obligatory prayers. When praying obligatory prayers the members of the Baháʼí Faith face in the direction of the Qiblih. It is a fixed requirement for the recitation of an obligatory prayer, but for other prayers and devotions one may follow what is written in the Qurʼan: "Whichever way ye turn, there is the face of God."

Burial of the dead

"The dead should be buried with their face turned towards the Qiblih. This also is in accordance with what is practiced in

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

. There is also a congregational prayer to be recited. Besides this there is no other ceremony to be performed" (From a letter written on behalf of

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 ...

to an individual believer, July 6, 1935).

Citations

References

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External links

Excerpts from the Kitáb-i-Aqdas regarding the QiblihFind the direction to Bahji with Google Maps
{{Baháʼí Bahá'í prayer Orientation (geometry) fr:Qiblih

Burial of the dead

See also

Citations

References

External links