Prophet

Prophet is a term used to refer to an individual sent by God to bring a message to humanity. The term is used in the Bahá’í Writings to refer to figures with distinct religious stations with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stating the following in Some Answered Questions:

Prophets are in general of two kinds. Some are independent Prophets Who are followed, while others are not independent and are themselves followers.

In a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi the following is stated regarding the nature and function of Prophets:

The Prophets, unlike us, are pre-existent. The Soul of Christ existed in the spiritual world before His birth in this world. We cannot imagine what that world is like, so words are inadequate to picture His state of being . . .
We find God only through the Intermediary of His Prophet. We see the Perfection of God in His Prophets. Time and space are physical things; God the Creator is not in a 'place' as we conceive of place in physical terms. God is the Infinite Essence, the Creator. We cannot picture Him or His state; if we did, we would be His equals, not His Creatures. God is never flesh, but mirrored in the attributes of His Prophets, we see His Divine characteristics and perfections.

In most Bahá’í literature the term Manifestation of God is used when discussing Prophets who receive Divine Revelation and establish an independent religion although the Bahá’í Writings themselves often use the term Prophet interchangeably.

Types of Prophet

Independent Prophets

Regarding independent Prophets ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stated the following in Some Answered Questions:

The independent Prophets are each the Author of a divine religion and the Founder of a new Dispensation. At Their advent the world is clothed in a new attire, a new religion is established, and a new Book revealed. These Prophets acquire the outpouring grace of the divine Reality without an intermediary. Their radiance is an essential radiance like that of the sun, which is luminous in and of itself and whose luminosity is an essential requirement rather than being acquired from another star: They are like the sun and not the moon. These Daysprings of the morn of Divine Unity are the fountainheads of divine grace and the mirrors of the Essence of Reality.
. . . They establish a new religion, recreate the souls, regenerate the morals of society, and promulgate a new way of life and a new standard of conduct. Through Them a new Dispensation appears and a new religion is inaugurated. Their advent is even as the springtime, when all earthly things don a new garment and find a new life.

In a table talk given in Akka ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stated the following when discussing the distinct types of Prophet using the term Manifestation:

One kind are the universal Manifestations, which are even as the sun. Through Their advent the world of existence is renewed, a new cycle is inaugurated, a new religion is revealed, souls are quickened to a new life, and East and West are flooded with light. These Souls are the universal Manifestations of God and have been sent forth to the entire world and the generality of mankind. . .
. . . the universal Manifestations are all-encompassing: They are like the root, and all others are as the branches; they are like the sun, and all others are as the moon and the stars.

Contingent Prophets

In a talk in Akka ‘Abdu’l-Bahá also stated:

Another kind of Prophets are followers and promulgators, not leaders and law-givers, but they are nonetheless the recipients of the hidden inspirations of God.

Regarding this class of Prophet ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stated the following in Some Answered Questions:

The other kind of Prophets are followers and promulgators, for their station is contingent rather than independent. They acquire divine grace from the independent Prophets and seek the light of guidance from the reality of universal prophethood. They are like the moon, which is not luminous and radiant in and of itself but which receives its light from the sun.
. . . they promulgate the religion of God, spread His Faith, and proclaim His Word. They have no power or authority of their own, but derive theirs from the independent Prophets.

In a quotation included in the publication Directives from the Guardian a letter written by or on behalf of Shoghi Effendi states:

The Prophets ‘regarded as one and the same person’ include the lesser Prophets as well, and not merely those who bring a ‘Book’. The station is different, but They are Prophets and Their nature thus different from that of ours.

Local Prophets

Regarding a third category that can be used when considering Prophets ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has stated the following

Yet another kind are Prophets Whose prophethood has been limited to a particular locality.

Prophecy

‘Abdu’l-Bahá has explained that there are two ways in which Prophets are able to predict the future. The first is through receiving insights from direct Revelation from God:

They foretell certain events through revelation and inspiration, which are the heavenly splendours, the intimations of the heart, and the scattering rays of the light of the Day-Star of Truth. This grace is like the resplendent rays of the sun, and the hearts of the Prophets are even as mirrors. Thus They affirm that Their words have proceeded from revelation and inspiration.

Another mechanism is through inference due to their innate knowledge of the world:

The second kind of discovery is due to the fact that the Prophets are able Physicians and informed of the mysteries of the universe. They have Their finger on the pulse of the world, and They diagnose and foresee the ailments and illnesses which are to come. It is from the appearance, signs, and conditions of the universe itself that They infer these mysteries. Thus, when an able physician notes certain signs and symptoms in the body of a patient, he diagnoses future ailments, illnesses, and conditions. This proceeds from his knowledge, skill, and power of inference.

He further explains that prophecies stem from a combination of both:

But the tidings of the Prophets are all founded upon the scattering rays of the light of truth and proceed from pure inspiration and revelation. For past, present, and future apply only to the world of creation, not to the world of God. In the realm of Truth, past, present, and future are one and the same: The beginning is even as the end and the end even as the beginning. For in the eternal and everlasting realm of God, time holds no sway and no distinction can be made between past and future, as past and future are contrary to that which has neither beginning nor end. In a realm that has no beginning and no end, how can past, present, and future even be imagined? . . .
. . . in the realm of truth, past, present, and future are the same, and future events are even as past and present occurrences. From the perspective of that realm, all events and incidents take place in the present and are witnessed by the Prophets and the chosen ones. And so it is that the Prophets herald events that will transpire two or three thousand years hence, for they abide in the realm of truth, wherein the mysteries of the universe are revealed and laid bare.

For examples of prophecies in the Bahá’í Faith see Prophecies.

Divine Revelation

In Some Answered Questions ‘Abdu’l-Bahá explains that divine revelation is a process by which a Prophet speaks directly what God intends to communicate:

In the same way, the sanctified heart of that blessed Being is free and empty of all save God, is averse to and exempt from attachment to every selfish inclination, and is intimately acquainted with the breath of the Divine Spirit. That which He utters proceeds not from Himself but from the ideal Player and from divine revelation.

Elsewhere in Some Answered Questions he notes that Prophets receive and communicate divine revelation for the purpose of educating humanity:

Our meaning is that the universal Educator must be at once a material, a human, and a spiritual educator, and, soaring above the world of nature, must be possessed of another power, so that He may assume the station of a divine teacher . . .
. . .the world of existence stands in utmost need of an educator, and that its education must be achieved through a celestial power. There is no doubt that this celestial power is divine revelation, and that the world must be educated through this power which transcends human power.

He also notes that there is a distinction between the divine revelations of different Prophets:

Know that the attributes of perfection, the outpourings of divine grace, and the effulgences of divine revelation shine resplendent in all the Manifestations of God, but that the all-encompassing Word of God—Christ—and His Most Great Name—Bahá’u’lláh—have appeared with a revelation beyond all conception. For not only do They possess all the perfections of the former Manifestations, but They also evince beyond those such perfections as to make all others even as Their followers. Thus the Prophets of Israel were all recipients of divine revelation, and so too was Christ, but what a difference between the revelation of Him Who was the Word of God and the inspiration of an Isaiah, a Jeremiah, or an Elijah!

Prophets in the Bahá’í Writings

Below is a list of some of the Individuals explicitly identified as Prophets in authentic authoritative Bahá’í sources. It is important to note that there are additional Prophets not listed in the Bahá’í Writings with a letter written on behalf of the Guardian stating the following:

Regarding your questions: The only reason there is not more mention of the Asiatic prophets is because their names seem to be lost in the mists of ancient history. Buddha is mentioned and Zoroaster in our scriptures—both non-Jewish prophets or non-semitic prophets. We are taught there always have been Manifestations of God, but we do not have any record of their names.

Regarding identification of Prophets not mentioned in Bahá’í scripture a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi states:

Regarding your questions: We cannot possibly add names of people we (or anyone else) think might be Lesser Prophets to those found in the Qur'án, the Bible and our own Scriptures. For only these can we consider authentic Books.

List of Prophets

• Aaron
• Abraham
• Adam
• The Báb
• Bahá’u’lláh
• Buddha
• David
• Elijah
• Founder of the Religion of the Sabeans
• Hud
• Isaac
• Isaiah
• Ishmael
• Jacob
• Jeremiah
• Jesus
• Joseph
• Krishna
• Lot
• Moses
• Muhammad
• Noah
• Salih
• Solomon
• Zoroaster