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Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era: An Introduction to the Bahá'í Faith
In this compact work, Esslemont comprehensively yet succinctly sets forth the teachings of Bahá'u'lláh, the Prophet and Founder of the Bahá'í Faith. He outlines the religion's early history; explains the religion's theology; incorporates extracts from Bahá'í scripture; and provides information on Bahá'í spiritual practices. This is essential reading for students of comparative religion.
Paperback
First published January 1, 1949
About the author
J.E. Esslemont
8 books2 followersJohn Ebenezer Esslemont (1874 – 1925), was a prominent British Bahá'í from Scotland.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
March 20, 2008
This book changed my life for the better! It took me about a month or two to read it, which at that time was very slow for me, but when I finished it, I became a Baha'i and that was the best thing that ever happened to me.
July 12, 2014
Having been exposed to the Baha'i faith while in graduate school, I selfishly took the opportunity to share my religious beliefs with my friend and advisor but never took the opportunity to learn more about this faith from them. I missed that window of opportunity so decided to redeem myself and explore a religion that I knew nothing about. As I mentioned this journey to a colleague of mine, he was somewhat familiar with the religion and summarized it as: "All roads lead to the top of the mountain". When I heard his summary I was even more excited to learn more. The authors of this book take the reader on a journey of how the religion began, evolved and how it continues to this day. I found the approach to be user friendly and for the novice beginner, those within the religion probably have texts that explore topics in much more depth. One of the attractions of the religion is the acceptance of all truth and the push to have religion be unifying rather than divisive. This goal seems appealing to me, as religious people often promote the idea of all of humanity being children of God so why would God want people to fight over who is "right" with the implication that others are wrong? I did find differences between what I believe and what is promoted within the religion though I found myself underlining quite a bit due to insights gained. Since I am in a profession that promotes science I found the following quote helpful:
"It cannot fly with one wing alone. If it tries to fly with the wing of religion alone it will land in the slough of superstition, and if it tries to fly with the wing of science alone, it will end in the dreary bog of materialism."
I enjoyed reading the book and wish that I would have visited with my friend about his beliefs (he passes away a few years ago). He was a person who lived his religion, an uplifting kind man who was a joy to be around.
So do I recommend the book? Sure, understanding what others believe may lead us to being more accepting and if you are comfortable and firm in your own beliefs then this book will not be a threat to those beliefs, it will complement them. And if you are looking for a religion that promotes all truth then this might just pique your interest.
"It cannot fly with one wing alone. If it tries to fly with the wing of religion alone it will land in the slough of superstition, and if it tries to fly with the wing of science alone, it will end in the dreary bog of materialism."
I enjoyed reading the book and wish that I would have visited with my friend about his beliefs (he passes away a few years ago). He was a person who lived his religion, an uplifting kind man who was a joy to be around.
So do I recommend the book? Sure, understanding what others believe may lead us to being more accepting and if you are comfortable and firm in your own beliefs then this book will not be a threat to those beliefs, it will complement them. And if you are looking for a religion that promotes all truth then this might just pique your interest.
March 11, 2018
While this book is an introduction, it is a little dense and quote heavy.
I think the Baha’i faith is so interesting, and I really enjoyed learning what I could on my own. I think I would have enjoyed this book more had I had someone with more expertise to explain details to me and give me some more real life examples. But what an intriguing and lovely religion!
I think the Baha’i faith is so interesting, and I really enjoyed learning what I could on my own. I think I would have enjoyed this book more had I had someone with more expertise to explain details to me and give me some more real life examples. But what an intriguing and lovely religion!
July 15, 2022
This is an evangelical sort of book, but it tells some good, important stories. I'm most impressed with the discussion of the greatest female leader of the Babist movement, Fatemeh Baraghani (ca. 1815–1852), who took the title of Tahereh Qorrat al-Ayn. As Edward G. Browne argued, “had the Babi religion no other claim to greatness, this were sufficient—that it produced a heroine like Qorrat al-Ayn." Bahiyyeh Nakhjavani wrote a novel based on Tahereh’s life called "The Woman Who Read Too Much." People called her a saint, a scholar, a sorceress, a martyr, a dangerous lunatic, a female messiah, a whore, “the leader of emancipation for women of the Orient.”
August 21, 2007
this book provides a good introduction to the Baha'i faith. both it's history and teachings. it was the first book i read on the topic and it was while reading this i felt myself become converted to the Baha'i faith. probably the most profound and intense spiritual experience i have ever had occurred while reading this book, which i took as a sign of it's truthfulness.
February 9, 2011
This is the best possible introduction to the Baha'i faith. If you find yourself wondering more about the Baha'i faith, I highly recommend this book to you. It's concise and full of detail and will always hold a place on my shelf of inspirational books.
February 17, 2021
I read this in 1972. It was the beginning of a life long journey... of learning, tests, of progression of my understanding of the writings and teachings of Bahá'u'lláh.
This journey has strengthened my belief in Christ and His teachings, and it's connection to biblical history.
Written in clear, easy to understand language.
This journey has strengthened my belief in Christ and His teachings, and it's connection to biblical history.
Written in clear, easy to understand language.
December 26, 2021
2 1/4 stars
January 8, 2014
This book lives up to its title and is a great introduction to the Baha'i faith. If one is already familiar with the basic tenets of the faith it can get a bit dry and slow. It's main failure is the prophecy chapter in which it describes several times that either Baha'u'llah or Abdul-Baha made predictions that came to pass - these "proofs" were tenuous at best and since the book was written in the early 20th century, many have now been shown to be incorrect. The strength of this book is its index which allows a quick search of specific questions or topics which might be particularly useful to someone from another faith who wants to make comparisons.
February 19, 2018
This is a great book for those who want to be introduced to the Bahá'í faith and want more details of the faith's history and beliefs than the faith in a nutshell. There are many quotes by Bahá'u'lláh and other important figures woven throughout this book so readers aren't left with the author's interpretations and no context.
March 18, 2008
This book was the doorway to a whole new view of the world and my place in it. It was written in the 1920s and carries that formal style of the time, but is still highly accessible.
Want to read
April 24, 2011I read this about 9 years ago and think it deserves a re-read.
November 10, 2014
Nice book on the history of the Baha'i faith.Great for beginning and new Baha'is.
Read
December 26, 2014A great introduction to the Baha'i faith
September 4, 2017
Too much explanation and not enough revelation. If you want to bring me a prophet show me the prophesy and revelation and it must be something new or what is the point?
October 31, 2017
amazing, informative, thought-provoking book about the Bahai Faith.
January 15, 2018
Solid introduction to the Baha'i Faith. I've read it several times--rewarding on each round.
June 25, 2018
This was a solid introduction to the Baha'i Faith. I like that it had lots of quotes from the Baha'i scriptures and leaders of the faith, but also a good amount of summary and analysis.
February 27, 2021
I was given this book in 1968 by a friend whilst I was at high school and I read it from cover to cover. It helped me to understand why there were many religions in the world and that they were all connected - after all if here is only one God religions really can not be in competition with each other.. so began my spiritual quest. The book was originally compiled in the 1920s when there was a lack of source material and has been revised between times and many others have written more modern introductions to the Baha'i Faith but this still remains a valuable introduction.
August 7, 2022
I didn't like this introduction to the Faith. I'm an ex- Bahai whose been away from the Bahai Faith for almost 30 years. Reading this book reminded me of the reasons I left the Faith. Actually, stopped reading half-way through it.
June 24, 2024
Good introduction to the Bahai Faith. Covers almost all basic essential information one would wish to know, although I think it does spend more time than it ought to discussing the administrative aspects.
November 7, 2019
مقدمة عن الديانة البهائية، ليس فيها كثيرا عن تعاليم الديانة ذاتها، ولكنها تسرد نشأة الديانة وما رافق مؤسسيها من اضطهاد، ، من وجهة نظر بهائي
March 15, 2021
Really clear and convincing introduction to the Bahai Faith - covers a brief history, some areas of significance of the faith, and how and why it is relevant and crucial to society today.
March 21, 2021
The best intro to the bahai faith
October 8, 2021
Great introduction to the Bahá'í Faith.
August 17, 2022
A great introduction to the Baha’i faith. Not always a very exciting read, but that was never to be expected. It made me curious to read more of their literature, so ultimately it is a success.
February 14, 2023
I never have heard of Baha’i before but what lovely principals :-) happy to learn about it but the last couple chapters were boring loved the first half
June 28, 2023
some passages had me wishing for less Esslemont and more scripture
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May 2, 2017It's important to note ahead of time that this book was written in the 1920s by a British Bahai. This has a couple implications. First, the book is closer to the founding of the faith than the present day (with some updates from future editors). I don't know enough about changes in the Baha'i faith to say whether this means the introduction is dated. It certainly reads in a dated way. Muslims are termed "Muhammadans", and there is a pre-occupation for the Great War and its implications for faith.
One wonders then, why this book is still one of the most available sources. One answer may be that portions of the book were approved/edited/re-written by abdu'l-baha during his life. This lends a credence to its theological and historical accuracy.
Those issues aside, this was a reasonably informative overview of Baha'i theology. It's very striking to me how similar their thought and story of religious growth parallels that of the faith tradition I grew up in, The Unification Church (founded and theologically centered around Sun Myung Moon). It also features a Messiah figure who has declared himself the culmination of all other faith traditions, the great unifier, and generally preaches within a Judeo-Christian framework. The ethical and political directions of the two faiths are also very similar. In some ways, this removed some of the sheen of both faiths in my mind, insofar as they present themselves as exclusive culminating pathways of the worlds religion. If two independent figures can both declare themselves the figurative second coming of Jesus and the messiah to come for all the worlds faiths', one questions their self-declared monopoly on the ideas they present. On the other hand, they provide two separate examples of how the idea that all faiths and all races ought to unite has a unique and viral appeal to people of faith converting from other traditions, at least in the 20th century context in which these new religions bloomed. This is fascinating and heartening given the nationalist strain consuming our current politics.
One wonders then, why this book is still one of the most available sources. One answer may be that portions of the book were approved/edited/re-written by abdu'l-baha during his life. This lends a credence to its theological and historical accuracy.
Those issues aside, this was a reasonably informative overview of Baha'i theology. It's very striking to me how similar their thought and story of religious growth parallels that of the faith tradition I grew up in, The Unification Church (founded and theologically centered around Sun Myung Moon). It also features a Messiah figure who has declared himself the culmination of all other faith traditions, the great unifier, and generally preaches within a Judeo-Christian framework. The ethical and political directions of the two faiths are also very similar. In some ways, this removed some of the sheen of both faiths in my mind, insofar as they present themselves as exclusive culminating pathways of the worlds religion. If two independent figures can both declare themselves the figurative second coming of Jesus and the messiah to come for all the worlds faiths', one questions their self-declared monopoly on the ideas they present. On the other hand, they provide two separate examples of how the idea that all faiths and all races ought to unite has a unique and viral appeal to people of faith converting from other traditions, at least in the 20th century context in which these new religions bloomed. This is fascinating and heartening given the nationalist strain consuming our current politics.
April 18, 2020
This book is the best teaching tool I have ever read. Period. Beautifully written and touching. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews