The Bab revealed that:

"Likewise had the religion taught by Adam not existed, this Faith would not have attained its present stage."

There's also beautiful description of the early relationship of man to God in what is called the Hidden Words revealed by Baha'u'llah:


Have ye forgotten that true and radiant morn, when in those hallowed and blessed surroundings ye were all gathered in My presence beneath the shade of the tree of life, which is planted in the all-glorious paradise? Awe-struck ye listened as I gave utterance to these three most holy words: O friends! Prefer not your will to Mine, never desire that which I have not desired for you, and approach Me not with lifeless hearts, defiled with worldly desires and cravings. Would ye but sanctify your souls, ye would at this present hour recall that place and those surroundings, and the truth of My utterance should be made evident unto all of you.

- Bahá'u'lláh, Hidden Words, Persian #19

A hint as to what kind of religion He taught could be alluded to in this statement by Abdul-Baha:

"The divine Manifestations since the day of Adam have striven to unite humanity so that all may be accounted as one soul. The function and purpose of a shepherd is to gather and not disperse his flock. The prophets of God have been divine shepherds of humanity. They have established a bond of love and unity among mankind, made scattered peoples one nation and wandering tribes a mighty kingdom. They have laid the foundation of the oneness of God and summoned all to universal peace."




While we Baha'is acknowledge that Adam was a Manifestation of God and the scriptures tell about His relationship to God, we don't believe He was the earliest Prophet. Baha'u'llah also revealed there were earlier Prophets...and earlier "Adams":

In the Kitab-i-Iqan p. 168 you will find the following:

"Likewise, strive thou to comprehend the meaning of the melody of that eternal beauty, Husayn, son of ‘Alí, who, addressing Salmán, spoke words such as these: “I was with a thousand Adams, the interval between each and the next Adam was fifty thousand years, and to each one of these I declared the Successorship conferred upon my father.”

And Baha'u'llah responded to this question:

And now regarding thy question, “How is it that no records are to be found concerning the Prophets that have preceded Adam, the Father of Mankind, or of the kings that lived in the days of those Prophets?”

Know thou that the absence of any reference to them is no proof that they did not actually exist. That no records concerning them are now available, should be attributed to their extreme remoteness, as well as to the vast changes which the earth hath undergone since their time.

Notwithstanding the obviousness of this theme, in the eyes of those that have quaffed the wine of knowledge and certitude, yet how many are those who, through failure to understand its meaning, have allowed the term “Seal of the Prophets” to obscure their understanding, and deprive them of the grace of all His manifold bounties! Hath not Muhammad, Himself, declared: “I am all the Prophets?” Hath He not said as We have already mentioned: “I am Adam, Noah, Moses, and Jesus?” Why should Muhammad, that immortal Beauty, Who hath said: “I am the first Adam” be incapable of saying also: “I am the last Adam”? For even as He regarded Himself to be the “First of the Prophets”—that is Adam—in like manner, the “Seal of the Prophets” is also applicable unto that Divine Beauty. It is admittedly obvious that being the “First of the Prophets,” He likewise is their “Seal.”

~ Baha'u'llah

~ pp. 161-162 Kitab-i-Iqan

If this prejudice and enmity are on account of religion (consider that), religion should be the cause of fellowship, otherwise it is fruitless. And if this prejudice be the prejudice of nationality (consider that) all mankind are of one nation; all have sprung from the tree of Adam, and Adam is the root of the tree. That tree is one and all these nations are like branches, while the individuals of humanity are like leaves, blossoms and fruits thereof. Then the establishment of various nations and the consequent shedding of blood and destruction of the edifice of humanity result from human ignorance and selfish motives.

~ Abdul-Baha

Interesting... Some Answered Questions also has an interpretation of the Biblical story of Adam...

Right! Thanks for the post Jafar!

Now consider how far this meaning conforms to the reality. For the spirit and soul of Adam, when they were attached to the human world, passed from the world of freedom into the world of bondage, and His descendants continue in bondage. This attachment of the soul and spirit to the human world, which is sin, was inherited by the descendants of Adam, and is the serpent which is alwys in the midst of, and at enmity with, the spirits and the descendants of Adam. That enmity continues and endures. For attachment to the world has become the cause of the bondage of spirits, and this bondage is identical with sin, which has been transmitted from Adam to His posterity. It is because of this attachment that men have been deprived of essential spirituality and exalted position.
(Some Answered Questions, 124-25)

And before there was this 'opportunity for attachement,' what was there? It seems that the story of Adam is about man's evolution from the animal to the human world - from a place (Eden) where there is no good or evil, or there is only good, to a place where there is a "choice."

And before there was this 'opportunity for attachement,' what was there? It seems that the story of Adam is about man's evolution from the animal to the human world - from a place (Eden) where there is no good or evil, or there is only good, to a place where there is a "choice."


That's an interesting way to look at it.. I have thought myself that man consuming the fruits of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was also very much like a level of consciousness that was needed for people to develope... The Tree could be like a spinal cord and the fruits similar to chakras ..the snake an ancient symbol of wisdom.

The Tree of course is also a symbol of the Manifestation the beyond which there is no passing the Sadratulmuntaha.

The Bible also uses a tree as a place of source of food and animals and insects and so on depend on it and it provides shade and sometimes a water source is nearby...

Thanks for cleaning up the Forum by the way!

- Art

I think there are certainly more than one way to interpret that story - I need to look at SAQ again because 'Abdu'l-Baha gives it a good start and a good example of how to interpret it.

Couldn't agree more with you!

- Art:cool