One religion to embrace them all

Mumbai's Bahá'í community is currently celebrating four days of Ayyám-i-Há

MUMBAI: “When I went to London for my studies, I was like any other girl,” says 28-year-old Ichha Rupani. “In the first year, I used to party three nights a week, drink and have plenty of fun.

It was in the second year that I found myself leaning towards Bahá'í activity,” Ichha reveals. The visual merchandiser is among the 350-odd Mumbaikars who have chosen to follow Bahá'ísm — a religion that bows to Krishna with as much reverence as it does to Mohammed.

Bahá'ísm was founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 19th Century Iran, its central tenets being oneness of God, oneness of religion and oneness of mankind. It hopes to achieve this magical, almost utopian unification by borrowing teachings from all religions including Christianity, Islam and Hinduism.

Bahá'ís believe that there is a single, imperishable God, who periodically sends down messengers to deliver his teachings. Bahá'u'lláh is said to be the latest of the messengers, but by no means the last one. The faith believes that everyone from Moses and Jesus to Krishna, Buddha and Mohammed have been messengers sent by the same entity, with the purpose of conveying a similar message.

It's this basic principle that often puts the religion beyond the grasp of conventional minds.

“Initially, it was a bit of a battle,” admits Ichha, talking of her time in England when she found herself drawn towards Bahá'ísm. “I had to make time for my Bahá'í friends while juggling my regular pals. Eventually, I called all of them over and introduced them to each other,” recounts the Pedder Road resident who was born into a Sindhi family. “Some of my regular friends couldn't quite appreciate my choice and I had to leave them behind. It helped me realise who my friends were.”

But not everyone has had to make such tough choices. “It helped that I was born into a Bahá'í family,” says Marine Lines resident Mona Gaur. “But that did not make me a Bahá'í by default,” she adds in the same breath. Unlike most other religions, children born into Bahá'í families don't inherit the religion. The Bahá'í religion insists on independent investigation of the truth. It allows you to read holy writings from across faiths before you make your choice of faith.

“As children, we had moral education classes, where we learned about the various religions and their teachings. I read from the Bhagvad Geeta, the Koran and the Bible,” says Mona, who decided to adopt the path of the Bahá'u'lláh by the time she turned 18.

Adding to the open-source nature of the religion is the fact that it does not ask you to give up your previous faith. Also, unlike other religions, Bahá'ísm does not recognise any clergy class and as such, there is no one to dictate the equation between you and God, as long as your actions don't harm the community.

Essentially, you can be a Bahá'í and visit a temple or church or mosque, or all of them, if you so desire. The religion and its teachings are easily accessible through literature, which has been translated into several languages, including the many local ones in India.

“Bahá'ísm's influence goes beyond cities. Several villages in Solapur and Sangli have youngsters who are part of study circles, which are exploring the teachings of Bahá'u'lláh,” says Mona, who at 24, is the secretary of the Regional Bahá'í Council of Maharashtra and Goa.

The six million odd Bahá'ís spread across 200 countries are currently celebrating the Ayyám-i-Há - a period of four (or five) intercalary days, which fall between the eighteenth and nineteenth month of the Bahá'í calendar. In Western countries, this period is often termed as the Bahá'í Christmas as followers celebrate by exchanging gifts and indulging in charity.

“The Bahá'í calendar is made of 19 months, with 19 days adding up to make one month. The intercalary period is a prelude to the final month [which begins on March 2] and is marked by fasting and prayer — the two pillars of Bahá'í spirituality,” says Nargis Gaur, the secretary of the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Mumbai.

One would imagine that conflicts are inevitable when a religion born barely 150 years ago interacts with ones that are thousands of years old. But that hardly seems to be the case. Philosophy aside, how does that work in real life? “My husband Shyamal is from a Hindu background and is very supportive of my beliefs as I am of his,” says Ichha. “If I chose to impose my beliefs on others and create any kind of disharmony within my family, I would only be defeating the purpose of being Bahá'í.”

d_salil@dnaindia.net