page_title: Baháʼí Faith
section_title: Prohibitions
hierarchical_section_title: Baháʼí Faith / Social practices / Prohibitions
caption_attribution_description: English: Bahá'í gardens in HaifaРусский: Бахайские сады в Хайфе, Израиль
context_page_description: The Baháʼí Faith is a religion teaching the essential worth of all religions, and the unity of all people. Established by Baháʼu'lláh in 1863, it initially grew in Persia and parts of the Middle East, where it has faced ongoing persecution since its inception. It is estimated to have between 5 and 8 million adherents, known as Baháʼís, spread throughout most of the world's countries and territories.
  The religion has three central figures: the Báb, considered a herald who taught that God would soon send a prophet in the same way of Jesus or Muhammad, and was executed by Iranian authorities in 1850; Baháʼu'lláh, who claimed to be that prophet in 1863 and faced exile and imprisonment for most of his life; and his son, ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, who was released from confinement in 1908 and made teaching trips to Europe and America. Following ʻAbdu'l-Bahá's death in 1921, leadership of the religion fell to his grandson Shoghi Effendi.
context_section_description: The following are a few examples from Baháʼu'lláh's teachings on personal conduct that are prohibited or discouraged.
  Backbiting and gossip are prohibited and denounced.
  Drinking or selling alcohol is forbidden.
  Sexual intercourse is only permitted between a husband and wife, and thus premarital, extramarital, or homosexual intercourse are forbidden. (See also Homosexuality and the Baháʼí Faith)
  Abstaining from partisan politics is required.
  Begging as a profession is forbidden.
  While some of the laws from the Kitáb-i-Aqdas are applicable at the present time, others are dependent upon the existence of a predominantly Baháʼí society, such as the punishments for arson or murder. The laws, when not in direct conflict with the civil laws of the country of residence, are binding on every Baháʼí, and the observance of personal laws, such as prayer or fasting, is the sole responsibility of the individual.
caption: Baháʼí gardens in Haifa, Israel
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