Synopsis of the Shared Concepts and Themes in the Persian Bayán and the Kitáb-i-Iqán

Abstract

The Persian Bayán is identified as the "mother book" of the dispensation of Bayán by Bahá'u'lláh, and the Kitáb-i-Iqán has been referred to by Shoghi Effendi as "the most important work of Bahá'u'lláh after the Kitáb-i-Aqdas" and the completion of Persian Bayán. One of the main purposes of this paper is to outline some of shared themes and the common concepts in these two major works of the twin Manifestations of Bahá'í cycle. While the main concentration will be on the common fundamental verities found in these two books, we shall also refer to the other works of the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh that these same themes have been discussed in a lesser extent. Another major objective of this research is to show the mystical unity of the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh through the study of their doctrinal works. These Books upheld, the belief in the sanctity of the personal but unknowable God, the unity of all of Manifestations and their twin stations, the progressive revelations, the importance of individual investigation of Truth, the causes of denial of the new Manifestation by those who continuously await His Coming, the role of clergies in becoming veils between people and the Truth, The misunderstanding of the concept of Finality of the Manifestations of God, the importance of critical, dialectical thinking and insightful attitude in discovering the truth of every matter, and the interpretation and the meaning of certain terms frequently occurring in the previous Dispensations such as Paradise, Hell, Death, Resurrection, the Return, the Balance, the Hour, the Last Judgment, the Angles, the Grave, and the like.