Intercalary Days
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Intercalary days are specific days inserted into a calendar to ensure that the calendar functions properly. As the day is defined by a rotation of the Earth, and a year is defined by the Earth's circuit of the sun, any solar calendar needs to use the relationship between these two figures. In practice, the Earth takes approximately 365.25 days to circle the sun. The 0.25 days, which do not allow the calendar to fit exactly into a certain number of days each year, add up, over a period of time, to days rather than hours. If left untouched, the calendar would move through the seasons. (This actually was happening in the Christian world, until the time of Pope Gregory, who sanctioned a reform of the system, but without getting the agreement of the Eastern Orthodox churches.) The Gregorian calendar now solves this problem by adding a day (February 29th) every four years. (0.25 x 4 = 1 day). February 29th, therefore, is an intercalary day.
In the Badi (Bahá'í) calendar, the Ayyám-i-Há are the intercalary days which make the calendar work. Interestingly, the Ayyám-i-Há period covers the end of February, so the Bahá'í calendar is not upset by the insertion of February 29th in a leap year! The Ayyám-i-Há are to be a period of visiting, of parties and the giving of gifts. Over time, having this special period should prevent the commercial exploitation of the Holy Days, which has happened in some religions.
Since the above text was written, there has been a further implementation of the Bahá'í calendar, clarifying the time of Naw-Ruz in each annual cycle.
