Ayyám-i-Há

The story behind the day

Ayyám-i-Há are the intercalary days of the Bahá'í calendar: four or five extra days set between the eighteenth and nineteenth months, so that nineteen months of nineteen days keep pace with the solar year. They fall from late February to 1 March, just before the nineteen-day Fast. Bahá'ís keep them as a festive season of hospitality, gift-giving, charity and fellowship, though not as one of the holy days on which work stops.^[1–8]

Origins

The Báb is credited with introducing the Badíʿ calendar, which counts nineteen months of nineteen days, a total of 361 days. A scholarly encyclopedia notes that Bahá'ís took over the nineteen-month pattern, with its few extra days, from the Bábís. Bahá'ís hold that Bahá'u'lláh then settled where the extra days belong: in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas he places them ahead of the month of fasting, so that the days of festivity lead into the days of restraint. Under the calendar provisions the Universal House of Justice announced in 2014, the number of days varies from year to year with the timing of the vernal equinox.^{[4, 9–12]}

What it marks

Ayyám-i-Há is a season of the year rather than the anniversary of an event in the lives of the Báb or Bahá'u'lláh. Bahá'u'lláh asked his followers to give the days to good cheer, to joy and to charity, for themselves, their kindred and the poor and needy. A reference work describes it as a season for friendship, gatherings of family, helping the needy and exchanging gifts. Because the days come just before the Fast, they also lead directly into the discipline that follows.^{[6, 13–14]}

How it came to be

The days sit between the eighteenth month and ʿAláʾ, the nineteenth, which is the month of fasting. In the Gregorian calendar they fall from late February to 1 March, and the fast that follows runs from 2 to 20 March and ends with Naw-Rúz. The observance has no fixed ritual of its own; it is a calendar season, set by the year's structure and filled by each community's own customs, which is why the practices described below differ so much from place to place.^{[3, 5, 15]}

How it is kept

gift-giving and a children's party — Gift-giving and a children's partyIllustration · AI-generated

Ayyám-i-Há is not one of the nine holy days, so work continues as usual. Celebrations take different forms in different places. Reports from Bahá'í communities describe a blood donation drive and a family picnic in Singapore, and visits to homes for the elderly elsewhere. The emphasis everywhere is on generosity, welcome and joy. Family gatherings and service to those in need are typical, as is the exchange of gifts.^{[8, 14, 16–17]}

Sources

Each statement above was checked against published sources; the verdict says whether it stood as written, was corrected or was hedged.