# Baha'u'llah and the New Era

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> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: John E. Esslemont, Baha'u'llah and the New Era, Wilmette: Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1980, bahai-library.com.
> ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
> 
> Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era
> 
> John E. Esslemont
> 
> Wilmette: Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1980
> original date
> 
> 1923
> 
> single page
> 
> chapter 1
> 
> Copyright 1950, 1970, 1976, 1980 by the
> National Spiritual Assembly of the
> Bahá'ís of the United States
> 
> All rights reserved
> 
> Library of Congress
> Esslemont, John Ebenezer,
> 1874-1925.
> Bahá'u'lláh and the new era.
> 
> Bibliography:p.
> Includes
> index.
> 1. Bahá'ísm. 2. Bahá Ullah, 1817-1892.
> 
> I. Title.
> BP365.E8
> 1980 ..................297'.89..................80-24305
> 
> First edition,
> George Allen Unwin Ltd., London, 1923
> First revised edition, Bahá'í Publishing
> Committee, New York, 1937
> Second revised edition, Bahá'í Publishing Committee,
> Wilmette, 1950
> Third revised edition, Bahá'í Publishing Trust, Wilmette, 1970
> 
> Fourth revised paper edition, Bahá'í Publishing Trust, Wilmette, 1976
> Fourth
> revised cloth edition, Bahá'í Publishing Trust, Wilmette, 1980
> Fifth revised
> paper edition, Bahá'í Publishing Trust, Wilmette, 1980
> 
> Printed in the
> United States of America
> 
> Contents
> 
> (Click here to jump to a specific page (in a lightly formatted version).)
> 
> Preface
> to 1937 Edition
> vii
> 
> Preface
> to 1950 Edition
> ix
> 
> Preface
> to 1970 Edition
> xi
> 
> Introductionxiii
> 
> CHAPTER1
> The
> Glad Tidings
> 1
> 
> 2
> The
> Bab: The Forerunner
> 11
> 
> 3
> Bahá'u'lláh:
> The Glory of God
> 23
> 
> 4
> Abdu'l-Bahá:
> The Servant of Bahá
> 51
> 
> 5
> What
> Is a Bahá'í?
> 71
> 
> 6
> Prayer
> 88
> 
> 7
> Health
> and Healing
> 101
> 
> 8
> Religious
> Unity
> 116
> 
> 9
> True
> Civilization
> 133
> 
> 10
> The
> Way to Peace
> 156
> 
> 11
> Various
> Ordinances and Teachings
> 175
> 
> 12
> Religion
> and Science
> 197
> 
> 13
> Prophecies
> Fulfilled by the Bahá'í Movement
> 211
> 
> 14
> Prophecies
> of Bahá'u'lláh and Abdu'l-Bahá
> 234
> 
> 15
> Retrospect
> and Prospect
> 252
> 
> Epilogue
> 283
> 
> Basic
> References on the Bahá'í Faith287
> 
> Index289
> 
> Click on any of the numbers below to jump to a specific page of Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era:
> 
> 0
> 0b
> contents Preface:
> 1937
> 1950
> 1970
> Introduction
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> 
> Prefaces
> to Baha'u'llah and the New Era
> 
> Preface
> to 1937 Edition
> 
> With the publication of "Baha'u'llah and the New Era" more than ten years ago,
> the Bahá'í Faith was given its first well- conceived, thorough exposition by a
> student of the teachings. Recognizing its value as the most satisfactory introduction
> to the Cause, Bahá'ís in both East and West have found Dr. Esslemont's book so
> helpful that it has been translated into some thirty different languages. As
> Dr. Esslemont himself recognized, the Faith entered a new phase of its history
> after the ascension of Abdu'l-Baha. The result is that the author's views, some
> of them written prior to 1921, no longer, on certain aspects of the subject, correspond
> to the evolutionary character of the Faith. His treatment of events and social
> conditions then existing, moreover, no longer appears fully relevant. Unavoidably,
> a few errors of fact had entered his text, while his explanation of the stations
> of the Bab and of Abdu'l-Baha have been replaced in the minds of Bahá'ís by the
> authoritative interpretations since made by the first Guardian of the Faith, Shoghi
> Effendi. The
> present edition therefore represents a revision made by the American National
> Spiritual Assembly, acting under the advice and approval of Shoghi Effendi. These
> revisions in no respect alter the original plan of Dr. Esselmont's book, nor affect
> the major portion of his text. Their purpose has been to amplify the author's
> discussion in a few passages by the addition of material representing the fuller
> knowledge available since his lamented death, and newer translations of his quotations
> from Bahá'í Sacred Writings.
> Bahá'í Publishing Committee January, 1937
> 
> Preface
> to 1950 Edition
> 
> With this edition the American Bahá'í Publishing Committee takes over copyright
> and other interests in "Baha'u'llah and the New Era" from Messrs. George Allen
> Unwin Ltd., of London, England, through whom the late Dr. J. E. Esslemont published
> his famous book more than twenty years ago. Under arrangement with the British
> publishers, the Committee has since 1928 brought out eleven printings, in addition
> to the first American edition imported by Brentano's of New York. This
> edition does not displace the text as it has appeared since major revision was
> made in the book under the direction of the Guardian of the Faith in 1937, as
> the time has not come for anything like a thorough recasting of the book to make
> its references to world conditions completely contemporaneous. Dr. Esslemont's
> work endures as a trustworthy introduction to the history and teachings of the
> Bahá'í Faith. Its translation into some thirty different languages attests its
> appeal to students in the East as well as the West. It
> should be added that any further revision of the text in the future is subject
> to approval by Shoghi Effendi. The Committee has no authority to pass upon revisions
> which may be desired by Bahá'ís of other countries for their particular need.
> 
> Bahá'í Publishing Committee December, 1950
> 
> Preface to 1970 Edition
> 
> Since 1937 no revision
> has been made to the text of Dr. Esslemont's book, although in 1950 some minor
> corrections were introduced. On the other hand, the diffusion and development
> of the Bahá'í Faith since that time have been tremendous, and there has been added
> to Bahá'í bibliography a rich legacy of incomparable expositions, translations
> and historical accounts from the pen of Shoghi Effendi, Guardian of the Faith
> and the appointed interpreter of its Sacred Writings. It
> has therefore been deemed necessary to bring the book up to date in order to maintain
> its usefulness for modern readers. This has been done with a minimum of alteration
> to the text, and chiefly by the use of footnotes and of an epilogue giving the
> current statistics and new developments in the organic unfoldment of the Bahá'í
> Faith. Dr. Esslemont's
> book continues to be one of the most widely used introductory books on the Bahá'í
> Faith, as evidenced by the fact that since 1937 the number of its translations
> has increased from thirty to fifty-eight.
> Bahá'í Publishing Trust
> 
> Introduction
> 
> In
> December 1914, through a conversation with friends who had met Abdu'l-Bahá, and
> the loan of a few pamphlets, I first became acquainted with the Bahá'í teachings.
> I was at once struck by their comprehensiveness, power and beauty. They impressed
> me as meeting the great needs of the modern world more fully and satisfactorily
> than any other presentation of religion which I had come across -- an impression
> which subsequent study has only served to deepen and confirm.
> 
> In
> seeking for fuller knowledge about the movement I found considerable difficulty
> in obtaining the literature I wanted, and soon conceived the idea of putting together
> the gist of what I learned in the form of a book, so that it might be more easily
> available for others. When communication with Palestine was reopened after the
> war, I wrote to Abdu'l-Bahá and enclosed a copy of the first nine chapters of
> the book, which was then almost complete in rough draft. I received a very kind
> and encouraging reply, and a cordial invitation to visit Him in Haifa and bring
> the whole of my manuscript with me. The invitation was gladly accepted, and I
> had the great privilege of spending two and a half months as the guest of Abdu'l-Bahá
> during the winter of 1919-1920. During this visit Abdu'l-Bahá discussed the book
> with me on various occasions. He gave several valuable suggestions for its improvement
> and proposed that, when I had revised the manuscript, He would have the whole
> of it translated into Persian so that He could read it through and amend or correct
> it where necessary. The revisal and translation were carried out as suggested,
> and Abdu'l-Bahá found time, amid His busy life, to correct some three and a half
> chapters (Chapters I, II, V and part of III) before He passed away. It is a matter
> of profound regret to met that Abdu'l-Bahá was not able to complete the correction
> of the manuscript, as the value of the book would thereby have been greatly enhanced.
> The whole of the manuscript has been carefully revised, however, by a committee
> of the National Bahá'í Assembly of England1, and its publication approved by that
> Assembly.
> 
> I am greatly indebted to Miss E. J. Rosenberg, Mrs. Claudia S. Coles,
> Mirza Lutfu'llah S. Hakim, Messrs. Roy Wilhelm and Mountfort Mills and many other
> kind friends for valuable help in the preparation of the work.
> 
> As regards the
> transliteration of Arabic and Persian names and words, the system adopted in this
> book is that recently recommended by Shoghi Effendi for use throughout the Bahá'í
> World.
> J. E. ESSLEMONT
> 
> 1 The first publication of Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era was in 1923, and at that
> time there was a National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of England; however,
> the name of the institution was subsequently changed in 1930 to the
> National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the British Isles, and more
> recently to its present designation of the National Spiritual Assembly of the
> Bahá'ís of the United Kingdom.
> 
> single page
> 
> chapter 1
> 
> METADATA
> 
> Views44185 views since posted 2002-07; last edit 2026-04-22 20:14 UTC;
> 
> previous at archive.org.../esslemont_bahaullah_new_era;
> URLs changed in 2010, see archive.org.../bahai-library.org
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> English, Mongolian
> Permission
> © BIC, public sharing permitted. See sources 1, 2, and 3.
> History
> Formatted 1999 by Casper Voogt.
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> Shortlink: bahai-library.com/238
> Citation: ris/238
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> — *Baha'u'llah and the New Era (Used by permission of the curator)*