Abbas Effendi - The Joker Without a Cause (A must read!)
Hussein Ali wrote:
It hath been ordained that obligatory prayer is to be performed by each of you individually. Save in the Prayer for the Dead, the practice of congregational prayer hath been annulled. He, of a truth, is the Ordainer, the All-Wise. (Baha\'u\'llah, The Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 23)
Abbas Effendi himself gives one meaning to the word \"congregational\", though it may be contradictory to the above statement itself:
19. Save in the Prayer for the Dead, the practice of congregational prayer hath been annulled. # 12
Congregational prayer, in the sense of formal obligatory prayer which is to be recited in accordance with a prescribed ritual as, for example, is the custom in Islam where Friday prayer in the mosque is led by an imam, has been annulled in the Baha’i Dispensation. (Baha\'u\'llah, The Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 172)
So it is forbidden to attend an Islamic congregrational prayer, especially to attend the Friday noonday prayer at the mosque. But Shoghi Effendi tells us that Abbas Effendi did attend the Friday noonday prayer at the mosque:
Till the very last day of His earthly life \'Abdu\'l-Bahá continued to shower that same love upon high and low alike, to extend that same assistance to the poor and the down-trodden, and to carry out those same duties in the service of His Father\'s Faith, as had been His wont from the days of His boyhood. On the Friday before His passing, despite great fatigue, He attended the noonday prayer at the mosque, and distributed afterwards alms, as was His custom, among the poor; dictated some Tablets... (Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By, p. 310)
So, here again another contradiction. Abbas Effendi, having understood Husayn Ali\'s words, even going to lengths to elaborate on it, and then he goes to the mosque \"to attend the noonday prayer\" on Friday. But maybe Baha\'is will have another \'allegorical\' explanation for it soon. ;-)
Furthermore, he is the \"perfect examplar\". So Baha\'is should emulate his rebellious ways. Father says no, son does it anyway! Even after understanding and explaining it to others!
Abbas Effendi also has no understanding of the The Holy Quran when he says:
All must abandon prejudices and must even go to each other\'s churches and mosques, for, in all of these worshipping places, the Name of God is mentioned. Since all gather to worship God, what difference is there? None of them worship Satan. The Muhammadans must go to the churches of the Christians and the Synagogues of the Jews, and vice versa, the others must go to the Muhammadan Mosques. (Dr. J.E. Esslemont, Baha\'u\'llah and the New Era, p. 120)
Why does an ordinary man (not Prophet for Baha\'is) tell muslims to worship at the places of the disbelievers, whereas Allah mentions in the Quran:
O ye who believe! Take not the Jews and Christians for friends. They are friends one to another. He among you who taketh them for friends is (one) of them. Lo! Allah guideth not wrongdoing folk. (Quran 5:51)
Also in Surah Al-Kafirun, Allah\'s commandment is clear that Muslims do not to worship what the unbelievers worship, that means what and where the Christians and Jews worship:
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful,
1 Say: O disbelievers!
2 I worship not that which ye worship;
3 Nor worship ye that which I worship.
4 And I shall not worship that which ye worship.
5 Nor will ye worship that which I worship.
6 Unto you your religion, and unto me my religion.
This clearly separates Islamic worship and other worship methods and places, like Churches, Synagogues, Temples and Shrines. But unfortunately, we can see Abbas Effendi leading people astray, to go against the Quran when Allah says that nothing will abrogate the Quran.
Other internal difference among Baha\'is themselves are:
Marriage of a Bahai with non-Baha’is:
Bab has stated in his book Bayan, Vahid 8, chapter 15, \"If both the parties (man and woman) are not the followers of the Bayan, then marriage between them is not permissible. And if one of them happens to be a Babi, and the second a non-Babi, then it is unlawful for the Babi person to marry the non-Babi or to establish any relationship of husband and wife between them\". In short, Bab means to say that inter-caste marriages are not permissible within the Babi Faith
Husayn Ali in his Aqdas (Arabic) while mentioning the laws relating to marriage reiterates Bab\'s stand and did not add any of his views to it. However, surprise of surprises! In the Aqdas published in our times in the English language, this law is omitted.
Why this change? The answer lies with Abbas Effendi, the son of Baha, also known as Abdul Baha. He writes in Badaaiul Aasaar volume 1, page 154, \"It is permissible for Bahais to give their girls to men of any religion and to marry girls of any religion\".
Father says no, son says yes! The question is: whether it is permissible for any person to alter the laws of the prophet, when it is explicitly prohibited? Suddenly the non-prophet Abbas Effendi can alter laws?
Polygamy:
Bab had prohibited his followers from having more than one wife. However Husayn Ali, who was having two wives already changed the law and wrote in Aqdas, \"Surely Allah has made marriage obligatory upon you, but don\'t marry more than two\".
Yet again, on page 206 of the Aqdas published by New Delhi in 1993, it is clearly written that Abdul Baha, \"Know that polygamy is not permitted under the law of God\". Also on page 149 of the same book, under the title of \"Laws of Personal Status\", the Bahais have said that plurality of religion is forbidden.
Firstly Husayn Ali alters Bab\'s laws. Maybe Baha\'is say he\'s got a right but what right does Abbas Effendi have changing the laws that only a sanctioned \'Manisfestation\' can do? So what\'s the difference between a \'Manifestation\' and a normal man? Evidently the answer is: For the Baha\'is, NOTHING.
Zakat - Obligatory yet measurement unknown:
Husayn Ali writes, \"It has been enjoined upon you to purify your means of sustenance and other such things through payment of Zakat. Soon we shall explain to you the measurement of its assessment\".
But he dies before giving the assessment. So now we find an incomplete law. It\'s contradictory to Allah\'s way of doing things. But here again, a non-prophet human, gives its assessment.
Obligatory Prayers - Another contradiction:
Husayn Ali first says regarding the time and the length of the prayers thus, \"We have enjoined obligatory prayers upon you, with nine rakahs (units), three of which are to be offered in the morning, three at noon and three in the evenings\".
Then later on contradicts himself by revealing another tablet on Obligatory Prayers. Here he abrogates himself so quickly? Or did he make a mistake? One wonders, does Allah really make such mistakes that require \'Liquid Paper\'?
Burial:
It is prohibited to take the dead to a distance of over one hour travelling. Husayn Ali says in Aqdas, \"It is forbidden for you to transport the body of the deceased a greater distance than one hour journey from the city\".
How come then Bab\'s body was taken from Tabriz in Iran to Haifa in Israel. Did they transport the body by Concorde? Moreover Bab was buried in Tabriz in 1266 AH and was shifted to Haifa in 1313 AH (Makatib , volume 1, page 292)
Bab says in Bayan (Persian), \"There should be no leader for the prayer of the dead. The people should congregate but each should recite his own prayer\".
Husayn Ali says in \'Adiya-e-Mahboobi\', \"There are six takbeer (Allah-o-Abha) for the prayer for the deceased. Those who intend to recite it, should recite it as it is mentioned before (page 214-215) of the same book. And for those who can\'t may Allah forgive them\".
Eating of Meat - Another contradiction:
Husayn Ali has written in \'Kitab-e-Mubeen\', \"Don\'t abstain from the eating of meat\".
Abdul Baha says in \'Badaaiul Aasaar\', volume 1, page 273, thus, \"Meat is not the food of man because he has not been provided the means of eating and digesting meat.
Here we go again! Father says yes, son says no!
Baha’i Creed - Unclear:
Husayn Ali says:
The first duty prescribed by God for His servants is the recognition of Him Who is the Dayspring of His Revelation and the Fountain of His laws, Who representeth the Godhead in both the Kingdom of His Cause and the world of creation. ...These twin duties are inseparable. Neither is acceptable without the other. (Baha\'u\'llah, The Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 18)
Abbas Effendi says:
\"It makes no difference whether you have ever heard of Bahá\'u\'lláh or not,\" was the answer, \"the man who lives the life according to the teachings of Bahá\'u\'lláh is already a Bahá\'Ã. On the other hand a man may call himself a Bahá\'à for fifty years and if he does not live the life he is not a Bahá\'Ã. (Abdu\'l-Baha, Abdu\'l-Baha in London, p. 105)
Father says all must believe in him to be Baha\'i, son says no need for that stuff, just be good and you are a Baha\'i? What conradiction, what confusion??
The Puzzling Shoghi Effendi
Baha\'is say that Abbas Effendi, or effectionately called Abdul-Baha, is the \"Perfect Examplar\".
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary tells us that \"perfect\" means:
1 a : being entirely without fault or defect : FLAWLESS b : satisfying all requirements : ACCURATE c : corresponding to an ideal standard or abstract concept d : faithfully reproducing the original;
This means that Abbas Effendi\'s lifestyle, the way he dressed, the places he visits, his daily routines, etc are \"perfect\", nothing to be taken away or changed. Also he was faithfully reproducing the original. Being as \"perfect\" as an examplar as he may have been, why does Shoghi Effendi blatantly refuse to follow such \"perfect\" example as seen here:
Shoghi Effendi refused to wear a turban and the long oriental robes the Master had always worn; he refused to go to the mosque on Friday, a usual practice of \'Abdu\'l-Bahá ; he refused to spend hours with visiting Muslim priests, who were wont to pass the time of day with the Master,.(Ruhiyyih Khanum, The Priceless Pearl, p. 54)
Looks like Shoghi Effendi was really a rebel without a cause. Contradictions abound in this religion! Why don\'t Baha\'is just \"refuse\" believing in Husayn Ali and come back to Islam, The Only Straight Way.
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