Central Principles

The oneness of God (Unity of God)

Who is the single creator of the universe.

There is only one God and He is the author of all peoples of the earth and the whole creation. Some languages call Him Allah, Yahweh, Dios, God or Brahma – nevertheless, in the Bahá’í view, they refer to the same unique Being. God is the Creator of all things and the reason behind our creationis love. Baha’u’llah wrote:

All-praise to the unity of God, and all-honour to Him, the sovereign Lord, the incomparable and all-glorious Ruler of the universe, Who, out of utter nothingness, hath created the reality of all things, Who, from naught, hath brought into being the most refined and subtle elements of His creation, and Who, rescuing His creatures from the abasement of remoteness and the perils of ultimate extinction, hath received them into His kingdom of incorruptible glory. Nothing short of His all-encompassing grace, His all-pervading mercy, could have possibly achieved it.

The Oneness of Religion (Unity of Religion)

Because all creeds and faiths emanate from the same God.

The Bahá’í Faith teaches the concept of Progressive Revelation. All the world’s great religious traditions have come throughout history to guide humanity. Hinduism, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam share the same spiritual foundation since they originated from the same God. The difference among religions is their social teachings as these are given according to the needs of the time. According to Baha’u’llah:

It is clear and evident to thee that all the Prophets are the Temples of the Cause of God, Who have appeared clothed in diverse attire. If thou wilt observe with discriminating eyes, thou wilt behold Them all abiding in the same tabernacle, soaring in the same heaven, seated upon the same throne, uttering the same speech, and proclaiming the same Faith. Such is the unity of those Essences of Being, those Luminaries of infinite and immeasurable splendor!

The Oneness of Humanity (Unity of Mankind)

The unification of the human race as the world of humanity is like a tree with different branches and fruits.

Bahá’ís strongly believe in the oneness of humanity as we are all created by the same God. The Bahá’í Faith promotes the principle of unity in diversity where our cultural differences are more a strength than a weakness, like flowers with different colours and fragrances adding collectively more beauty to a single garden. As Baha’u’llah said:

Ye are the fruits of one tree, and the leaves of one branch. Deal ye one with another with the utmost love and harmony, with friendliness and fellowship.

O CHILDREN OF MEN! Know ye not why We created you all from the same dust? That no one should exalt himself over the other. Ponder at all times in your hearts how ye were created. Since We have created you all from one same substance it is incumbent on you to be even as one soul, to walk with the same feet, eat with the same mouth and dwell in the same land, that from your inmost being, by your deeds and actions, the signs of oneness and the essence of detachment may be made manifest.

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