Human Being in the Writings of the Báb

the mirror of human hearts. From the point of view of the Báb, the truth of everyone is the revelation (tajallí) of God upon our being. Our truth is the divine attributes. This was the main message of the perspective of the heart. Consequently, we are all one, all are sacred, all are beautiful, and all are equal. You remember that the Báb asked us to treat the farmers and kings in the same way because for Him, both the king and farmer have the same true identity, namely both are reflections of divine attributes. It is based on this new conception of identity that the writings of Bahá’u’lláh talk of the oneness of humankind, and a culture of communication, unity in diversity, and global peace. 2. Humans and Independent Thinking Although the Báb’s conception of human identity affirms the oneness of humanity, it is very important to note that this oneness is at the same time oneness of diversity. Humans are one because they are all spiritual beings, and that means that consciousness defines the essential reality of human beings. It is for that reason that the writings of the Báb constantly emphasize the duty and capacity of all human beings to think for themselves, to reject the idea of imitation and blindly following others (taqlíd). From the point of view of the Báb, those who live their lives in accordance with blindly following others, including their clerics, are choosing to renounce their humanity. These people live in the animal realm and they are not yet truly born as human beings. To be a human being, therefore, requires independent thinking and questioning traditions. The ultimate cause of all the problems of the world is that humans refuse to think for themselves. Prejudice and hatred of others are products of human refusal to think independently. The Báb desires to create a culture in which people think for themselves. One of the most important expressions of this new culture is the centrality of the word (kalamih) in the worldview of the Báb. Perhaps the most frequent discussion of the writings of the Báb is the idea to replace miracles with creative words. The Báb emphasizes that the evidence of the truth of a prophet of God is no longer performing strange miracles, rather it is offering words and verses which bring a new spiritual worldview that advances humanity to a higher spiritual level. It is interesting that as the Báb frequently emphasizes that the Qur’án also said exactly the same thing. According to the Qur’án, whenever the Arabs asked for miracles as the proof of the truth of Muḥammad, God refused to bring a miracle. Instead, the Qur’án constantly states that the Qur’án Itself is sufficient evidence of the truth of Muḥammad. Unfortunately, the world of Islám was not yet ready for such a rational and spiritual culture. For that reason, from the very beginning, Islám was a culture of belief in magic and miracles. Thousands of miracles were fabricated and attributed to Muḥammad, the Imáms, and Sufi leaders. It was for that reason that when the Báb appeared, all major Muslim clerics asked Him to make strange miracles as the proof of His truth. The culture of the great high clerics of Islám never advanced beyond the culture of Arabs who were rejecting the Prophet Muḥammad. But the Báb, in all His writings, explains that since this is a time that humans should emerge as humans and enter the realm of the heart, consequently all people should appear as spiritual beings, namely beings who think for themselves. Therefore, the understanding of the word becomes the main evidence of the truth of the Prophet. But if the Báb makes the word the only legitimate cause of accepting or rejecting a prophet, He is affirming a new definition of all human beings. For the first time in human history all human beings are perceived as rational beings who are all equally capable of thinking for themselves, and who are responsible before God to use their independent mind in the investigation of