Join activities, celebrations, study groups, spiritual empowerment and education programs for young people, and more.
Baha’i beliefs address essential spiritual themes for humanity’s collective and individual advancement. Learn more about these and more.
Baha’is see the young as the most precious treasure a community can possess. In them are the promise and guarantee of the future. Yet, in order for this promise to be realised, children need to receive spiritual nourishment, such as can be found in the children’s classes happening all around the world.
Ridvan, also known as the Most Great Festival, celebrates Baha’u’llah’s time in the garden of Ridvan on the outskirts of Baghdad in 1863 where He publicly declared His station as a Manifestation of God. The Ridvan Festival is 12 days long and is also the time of year where Baha’is elect their local and national governing bodies, and every five years, the international governing body for the worldwide Baha’i community.
Alhan Rahimi, who you may remember from her children’s book about the Declaration of the Bab or her book about the Birth of the Bab, has just released a new work for little ones related to Baha’i history and its holy days. Her latest book, illustrated by Alina Onipchenko, is called Garden of Ridvan: The Story of the Festival of Ridvan for Young Children and it’s a fantastic resource.
Told from the perspective of one of the garden’s nightingales, this book features soft colorful images and repetition. Written with children around 5 years old or younger in mind, this book is sure to help foster an understanding of the beauty and significance of the Festival of Ridvan.
The book describes the Festival of Ridvan, also known as the Most Great Festival, which commemorates an incredible period in history: it celebrates Baha’u’llah’s time in the garden of Ridvan on the outskirts of Baghdad in 1863 where He publicly declared His station as a Manifestation of God. The Ridvan Festival is 12 days long and when it is celebrated changes from year to year within the Gregorian calendar but according to the Badi or Baha’i calendar, it is always held from 13 Jalal (the month of Glory) until 5 Jamal (the month of Beauty).
You can purchase a copy of Garden of Ridvan: The Story of the Festival of Ridvan for Young Children here on Amazon or you can watch a read along of the story (in either English, French, Persian, Arabic, Spanish or Icelandic) on Alhan’s YouTube channel.
You can find our interview with Alhan about one of her other children’s books here: Mulla Husayn: A Book for Young Children by Alhan Rahimi
For more information and resources dedicated to the Festival of Ridvan, please visit this special Baha’i Blog resource page: About Ridvan
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Baha’i beliefs address essential spiritual themes for humanity’s collective and individual advancement. Learn more about these and more.
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