The Kitáb-i-Aqdas is considered the most important and sacred text of the Bahá'í Faith, a religion with some eight million adherents, found in nearly every country of the world. It sets out the laws, teachings, and institutions that shape and influence individual and collective life for members of the Bahá'í community. Despite the Kitáb-i-Aqdas's significance, it has not been extensively researched. Exploring the Kitáb-i-Aqdas: The Laws and Teachings of the Bahá'í Faith now offers a comprehensive academic study of the text.

This important new publication explores and analyzes the significance and history of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas; its language, style, and translation; and its theological and spiritual foundations, including its conceptions of God, religion, and human beings. The book, moreover, examines the Kitáb-i-Aqdas's provisions for succession, interpretation, and administration within the Bahá'í religion; its devotional and other personal laws; its ordinances for promoting unity; its perspectives on justice and law; and its addresses to the world's political and religious leaders. Academically rigorous yet eminently clear and accessible, Exploring the Kitáb-i-Aqdas is an essential read for students of religion and Middle East studies.

Omid Ghaemmaghami is Associate Professor of Middle East Studies at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Binghamton, USA. He is the author of works in Islamic, Bábí, and Bahá'í studies.

Shahin Vafai is an attorney with nearly three decades of experience in law. He is the co-author of a legal treatise on appellate practice and of works in Bahá'í studies.