Codex of FaithsAn illustrated atlas of belief

Bahá’í

Riḍván

When is Riḍván in 2027, the twelve-day Bahá’í festival: Bahá’u’lláh’s declaration of his mission in the Garden of Riḍván in Baghdad in 1863, its holy days and the election of Bahá’í assemblies.

Next date

21 April – 2 May 2027

Holy days, on which work is suspended, are the first, ninth and twelfth days: 21 April, 29 April and 2 May.

In brief

  1. I.Riḍván, “paradise”, is the most holy Bahá’í festival, the “King of Festivals”.
  2. II.It recalls the twelve days Bahá’u’lláh spent in the Garden of Riḍván in Baghdad in 1863.
  3. III.There he declared to his companions that he was the one foretold by the Báb.
  4. IV.Bahá’í local and national assemblies are elected during the festival.

Chapter I

What it celebrates

In April 1863, before setting out on a further exile, Bahá’u’lláh camped with his family and companions in a garden outside Baghdad, which they named Riḍván. There he announced that he was the messenger of God promised by the Báb. Bahá’ís regard this declaration as the founding moment of their faith.

The festival celebrates God’s renewed revelation and the joy that filled the garden.

Chapter II

How it is kept

Bahá’ís gather for prayers, readings and celebrations, especially on the three holy days. Elections of Local Spiritual Assemblies take place on the first day, and national conventions are held during the festival. Every five years the Universal House of Justice is elected in Haifa.

Chapter III

Around the world

Bahá’í communities in more than two hundred countries and territories hold Riḍván gatherings, often in homes and community centres, open to friends and neighbours.

Questions people ask

Why was Bahá’u’lláh in Baghdad?

He had been exiled from Iran. In 1863 the Ottoman authorities ordered him to move on to Constantinople, and before leaving he stayed twelve days in the garden on the bank of the Tigris.

What are the elections?

Bahá’í communities elect their nine-member Local Spiritual Assemblies on the first day of Riḍván, without candidates or campaigning, by secret ballot.

Sources and further reading

  1. Toronto Metropolitan University, “2027 Calendar of Religious, Indigenous and Spiritual Observances”
  2. Wikipedia, “Baháʼí Naw-Rúz” (table of dates)
  3. Peter Smith, An Introduction to the Baha’i Faith (Cambridge University Press, 2008)

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