Does the Bahai Faith mention the 1st Noble Path: Right View ?

“The essence of that We have revealed for thee is Justice, is for man to free himself from idle fancy and imitation, discern with the eye of oneness His glorious handiwork, and look into all things with a searching eye.”

~ Baha’u’llah, Words of Wisdom, Tablets, p.157


“He whose sight is illumined with the light of understanding will assuredly detach himself from the world and the vanities thereof… Let not the world and its vileness grieve you.”

~ Abdu’l-Baha, Divine Art of Living, p.66

Does the Bahai Faith mention the Path or the 4th Noble Truth of Buddhism : The Middle Way, the way of moderation that avoid extremes ?

Baha’u’llah also praises the path of moderation and extends it to all matters.

“… the ninth leaf of the Most Exalted Paradise is this: In all matters moderation is desirable. If a thing is carried to excess, it will prove a source of evil.”

~ Baha’u’llah, Tablets, p. 69

Does the Bahai Faith mention the 3rd Noble Truth of Buddhism : How to end the suffering ?

Baha’u’llah also calls in people to detach themselves from the things of this world.

“Rejoice not in the things ye possess; tonight they are yours, tomorrow others will possess them.”

~ Baha’u’llah, Gleanings, no. CLIII, pp. 325-6


“O My Servant! Free thyself from the fetters of this world, and loose thy soul from the prison of self. Seize thy chance, for it will come to thee no more.”

~ Baha’u’llah, Hidden Words, Persian no. 40


“Disencumber yourselves of all attachment to this world and the vanities thereof. Beware that ye approach them not, inasmuch as they prompt you to walk after your own lusts and covetous desires, and hinder you from entering the straight and glorious Path.”

~ Baha’u’llah, Gleanings, no. CXXVIII, pp. 274-5

Does the Bahai Faith mention the 2nd Noble Truth of Buddhism : Attachment to this world causes this sorrow ?

Baha’u’llah sees the world in a similar way. The Bahai teachings identify our attachment to the things of this world as the cause of our sorrows.

“If we suffer it is the outcome of material things, and all the trials and troubles come from this world of illusion. For instance, a merchant may lose his trade and depression ensues. A workman is dismissed and starvation stares him in the face. A farmer has a bad harvest, anxiety fills his mind. A man builds a house which is burnt to the ground and he is straightway homeless, ruined, and in despair.

“All these examples are to show you that the trials which beset our every step, all our sorrow pain, shame and grief, are born in the world of matter…”

~ Abdu’l-Baha, Paris Talks, p. 110


Baha’u’llah likens humankind to a bird that has been attracted to the earth.

“Could ye apprehend with what wonders of My munificence and bounty I have willed to entrust your souls, ye would, of a truth, rid yourselves of attachment to all created things, and would gain a true knowledge of your own selves… Suffer not your idle fancies, your evil passions, your insincerity and blindness of heart to dim the lustre, or stain the sanctity, of so lofty a station. Ye are even as the bird which soareth.. through the immensity of the heavens, until, impelled to satisfy its hunger, it turneth longinly to the water and clay of the earth below it, and, having been entrapped in the mesh of its desire, findeth itself impotent to resume its flight to the realms whence it came. Powerless to shake off the burden weighing on its sullied wings, that bird, hitherto an inmate of the heavens, is now force to seek a dwelling-place upon the dust. Wherefore… defile not your wings with the clay of waywardness and vain desires, and suffer them not to be stained with the dust of envy and hate, that ye may not be hindered from soaring in the heavens of My divine knowledge.”

~ Baha’u’llah, Gleanings, no CLIII, pp. 325-6

Does the Bahai Faith mention the 1st Noble Truth of Buddhism : Change leads to suffering and sorrow ?

“Such is this mortal abode: a storehouse of afflictions and suffering. It is ignorance that binds man to it, for no comfort can be secured by any soul in this world, from monarch down to the most humble commoner. If once this life should offer a man a sweet cup, a hundred bitter ones will follow; such is the condition of this world.”

~ Abdu’l-Baha, Selections, p. 200


“These brief few days shall pass away, this present life shall vanish from our sight; the roses of this world shall be fresh and fair no more, the garden of this earth’s triumphs and delights shall droop and fade. The spring season of life shall turn into the autumn of death, the bright joy of palace halls shall give way to moonless dark within the tomb. And therefore is none of this worth loving at all, and to this the wise will not anchor his heart.”

~ Abdu’l-Baha, Selections, p. 220-I

What is the concept of God in the Bahai Faith ?

“All the people have formed a god in the world of thought, and that form of their own imagination they worship; when the fact is that the imagined concept is comprehended by the mind which is the comprehended, for imagination is accidental (effect), while mind is essential (cause). Surely the essential is greater than the accidental.

“Therefore consider: All the sects and peoples worship their own thought; they create a god in their minds and proclaim him to be "the creator of all things," while that form is a superstition. Thus people adore and worship illusion.

“The Essence of the Divine Entity and the Unseen of the Unseen is holy above imagination and beyond thought. Consciousness doth not reach It. Within the capacity of comprehension of a created reality that Ancient (uncreated) Reality cannot be contained. It is a different world; from it there is no information; arrival thereat is impossible; attainment thereto is inaccessible and prohibited. This much is known: It exists, and Its existence is certain and proven -- but the condition is unknown.

“All the philosophers and sages knew that It is, but they were perplexed in the comprehension of Its existence and were at last discouraged, and left this world in great despair. For the comprehension of the condition and mysteries of that Reality of realities and Mystery of mysteries, there is need for another power and another sense. That power and sense is not possessed by mankind, therefore they have not found any information. For example: If a man possess the power of hearing, the power of tasting, the power of smelling and the power of feeling, but no power of seeing, he cannot see. Hence, through the powers and senses present in man the realization of the Unseen Reality, which is pure and holy above the reach of doubts, is impossible. Other powers are needed and other senses required. If those powers and senses are obtained, then information can be had; otherwise, not.”

~ Abdu’l-Baha, Tablets of Abdu’l-Baha v3, p. 561

Heaven and hell: a Bahá'í view of life after death

As in the world's other religions, the Bahá'í concept of life after death is deeply integrated into teachings about the nature of the soul and the purpose of this earthly life.

Bahá'u'lláh confirmed the existence of a separate, rational soul for every human. In this life, He said, the soul is related to the physical body. It provides the underlying animation for the body and is our real self.

Although undetectable by physical instruments, the soul shows itself through the qualities of character that we associate with each person. The soul is the focal point for love and compassion, for faith and courage, and for other such "human" qualities that cannot be explained solely by thinking of a human being as an animal or as a sophisticated organic machine.

The soul does not die; it endures everlastingly. When the human body dies, the soul is freed from ties with the physical body and the surrounding physical world and begins its progress through the spiritual world. Bahá'ís understand the spiritual world to be a timeless and placeless extension of our own universe--and not some physically remote or removed place.

Entry into the next life has the potential to bring great joy. Bahá'u'lláh likened death to the process of birth. He explains: "The world beyond is as different from this world as this world is different from that of the child while still in the womb of its mother."

The analogy to the womb in many ways summarizes the Bahá'í view of earthly existence. Just as the womb constitutes an important place for a person's initial physical development, the physical world provides the matrix for the development of the individual soul. Accordingly, Bahá'ís view life as a sort of workshop, where one can develop and perfect those qualities which will be needed in the next life.

"Know thou, of a truth, that if the soul of man hath walked in the ways of God, it will, assuredly return and be gathered to the glory of the Beloved," Bahá'u'lláh wrote. "By the righteousness of God! It shall attain a station such as no pen can depict, or tongue can describe."

In the final analysis, heaven can be seen partly as a state of nearness to God; hell is a state of remoteness from God. Each state follows as a natural consequence of individual efforts, or the lack thereof, to develop spiritually. The key to spiritual progress is to follow the path outlined by the Manifestations of God.

Beyond this, the exact nature of the afterlife remains a mystery. "The nature of the soul after death can never be described," Bahá'u'lláh writes.