The attributes of God
Nineteen attributes, one Creator.
Every month, every day of the month and every year of a Váḥid in the Badíʻ calendar is named after an attribute of God — Splendour, Glory, Beauty, Grandeur, Light, Mercy and thirteen more. Each day invites us to reflect on one of these qualities of the Creator.
What are the attributes of God?
The Baháʼí writings teach that God's own Essence is beyond all human understanding. What we can come to know are His attributes — reflected in everything He has created, and most of all in the human soul.
“Upon the inmost reality of each and every created thing He hath shed the light of one of His names, and made it a recipient of the glory of one of His attributes. Upon the reality of man, however, He hath focused the radiance of all of His names and attributes, and made it a mirror of His own Self.”
ʻAbdu'l-Bahá explains that even the highest human understanding reaches only as far as the signs and attributes of God in creation, and that these appear most fully in His Manifestations — like the sun reflected in a clear mirror.
“No matter how far human minds may advance, even attaining the highest degree of human comprehension, the uttermost limit of this comprehension is to behold the signs and attributes of God in the world of creation.”
“We affirm these names and attributes not to affirm the perfections of God, but to deny that He has any imperfections.”
The nineteen attributes of the calendar
The same nineteen attributes, in the same order, name the months and the days of each month. The site groups the days as the Days of the Báb, of Baháʼu'lláh and of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá.
1 · Days of Báb
Bahá
Splendour
2 · Days of Báb
Jalál
Glory
3 · Days of Báb
Jamál
Beauty
4 · Days of Báb
ʻAẓamat
Grandeur
5 · Days of Báb
Núr
Light
6 · Days of Báb
Raḥmat
Mercy
7 · Days of Báb
Kalimát
Words
8 · Days of Baháʼu'lláh
Kamál
Perfection
9 · Days of Baháʼu'lláh
Asmáʼ
Names
10 · Days of Baháʼu'lláh
ʻIzzat
Might
11 · Days of Baháʼu'lláh
Mashíyyat
Will
12 · Days of Baháʼu'lláh
ʻIlm
Knowledge
13 · Days of Baháʼu'lláh
Qudrat
Power
14 · Days of Baháʼu'lláh
Qawl
Speech
15 · Days of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá
Masáʼil
Questions
16 · Days of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá
Sharaf
Honour
17 · Days of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá
Sulṭán
Sovereignty
18 · Days of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá
Mulk
Dominion
19 · Days of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá
ʻAláʼ
Loftiness
Frequently asked
About the attributes of God.
What are the Baháʼí months named after?
Can we know God through His attributes?
Why does the calendar have nineteen attributes?
Which attribute of God is today?
See also: Today's attributes
