The Ruling on the Bahais and Their Membership

All praise and thanks be to Allah, Alone and may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him after whom there is no other Prophet. As for what follows:

The Committee of the Fiqh Academy has examined the Bahai sect which appeared in Persia (Iran) in the second half of the last century and which is professed by a number of people who spread throughout the Muslim and non-Muslim countries until today.

The Committee looked at numerous publications of the scholars and writers and others who know the truth of this sect, its origins, its teachings and its published works, along with the biography of its founder, whose name was Mirza Husain 'Ali Al-Mazindrani, who was born on the 20th of Muharram 1233 A.H. (12th November 1817), the behavior of his followers and then his successor and son, 'Abbas Afandi, who was known as 'Abdul-Baha', and the religious organizations which carry out the works of this group and its activities.

After lengthy consideration and study of authentic references, and some of the publications of the Bahais themselves, the following became clear to the Committee:

1. Bahaism is a new, invented religion which is based upon Babism, which is also a new, invented religion, whose founder was named 'Ali Muhammad, born on the 1st of Muharram 1235 A.H. (October 1819) in the city of Shiraz. At the beginning of his life, he turned towards Sufi philosophy, following the path of Shaikhism, which was invented by his misguided Shaikh, Kazim Ar-Rashti, successor to one called Ahmad Zain Ad-Deen Al-Ahsa'i, the leader of the Shaikhism sect, who claimed that his body was, like the bodies of the angels, made from light, who professed sophistry and other baseless superstitions, and 'Ali Muhammad professed the same beliefs as his Shaikh, then later, he abandoned him.

After some time, he appeared before the people in a new guise, claiming to be 'Ali bin Abi Talib, reporting directly from the Messenger that he said:

"I am the city of knowledge and 'Ali is its gate. After this, he began calling himself the 'Gate'. Then he claimed to be the Gate of the awaited Mahdi, after which he claimed to be the Mahdi himself. Towards the end of his days, he even claimed to be a deity and called himself Al-A'la. When news of this came out, the aforementioned Mirza Husain 'Ali Al-Mazindrani (known as Al-Baha') followed the 'Gate' in preaching his message. After he was tried, sentenced and executed for his Kufr and spreading Fitnah, Mirza Husain 'Ali announced that he was the successor to the 'Gate' in the leadership of the Babites, and in this way, he became their leader and called himself Baha' Ad-Din. The situation continued to develop in this way, until he declared: That all previous religions were a preparation for his coming and that they were incomplete, and nothing completed them except his religion; and that he possessed the Attributes of Allah; and that he was the origin of Allah's Actions; and that the most mighty Name of Allah was his; and that he was the Lord of the Worlds; and that just as Islam had abrogated the previous religions, so Bahaism now abrogated Islam.

The 'Gate' and his followers began to falsely interpret the Verses of the Noble Qur'an with the aim of making it hard to understand and claiming hidden meanings which supported his evil teachings, He claimed that he had the authority to alter the Divine Rulings of Islamic law and he introduced innovated acts of worship by which his followers worshipped him.

It became clear to the Fiqh Academy, based upon the evidence of the texts concerning the beliefs of the Bahais, that they were intended to destroy Islam, in particular its firm stance against the worship of mankind, with the Bahai claims of Divinity and the authority to alter the Law of Islam. Therefore, the Figh Academy is in complete agreement on its determination that the Bahais and the Babis are outside the fold of Islam and that they are considered to be at war with it, and that the disbelief of their followers is clear and obvious, without any ambiguity.

The Academy warns the Muslims in all corners of the world against this criminal, disbelieving sect and appeals to them to oppose them and to take precautions against them, especially since it is evident that they enjoy support from the colonialist nations whose aim is the destruction of Islam and the Muslims... and Allah is the Granter of success.