A History of the Bahá'í Faith in Virtual Worlds

The following is part of an on-going attempt to recollect the various ways in which Bahá'ís have sought to use virtual worlds as a platform for spreading the Bahá'í Teachings. We would appreciate any input you can give us to flesh out this account.

The First Bahá'í Island:

The first account we have of Bahá'í activities in a virtual world is that of a group of Bahá'ís who established a Bahá'í Island in Second Life, where regular Bahá'í discussion events were held, created the group "Bahá'í Society of Second Life", and posted the Bahá'í Faith at Spiritgate, a virtual hub for all things spiritual in Second Life. A 2008 post on "Life as a Virtual Baha'i" says, "Come to Baha'i Island! There's a small team of Baha'is preparing this Virtual Reality for full-blown Core Activities. It has the blessing of the International Teaching Center and the backing of the Baha'i Internet Agency. We're still planning the regular events but the Island is there to enjoy and bring friends to."

Visiting an exhibit at Bahá'í Island in Second Life

When this initiative ended, there was a brief lapse in formal Bahá'í events, although several Bahá'ís remained active by attending events organized by others and sharing Bahá'í-inspired thoughts there.

HR Activism at Entre Nous:

In 2010, seeking to create awareness of the plight of the Bahá'í and other prisoners of conscience in Iran, human rights activists on Entre Nous Island created a virtual replica of Tehran's notorious Evin Prison, United4Iran coordinated a "Global Day of Action" solidarity protest, and Memorial displays were set up along a "Path of Honor" spanning the entire island to honor and remember those who lives had been and were still being destroyed by human rights violations, including the seven recently-sentenced Baha'i Amin (Friends).

The Baha'i Memorial Pavilion on the Path of Honor at Entre Nous Island

The "Seven Valleys" Game:
This history would be incomplete if it did not mention the "Seven Valleys". Although not exactly a virtual world, it is an interactive 3D installation inspired by Bahá'í mystical writings, which subverts the original first-person shooter game paradigm to create a 'numinous' experience by engaging players in an experiential journey of inner exploration, questioning and reflection. See a video representation of the "Seven Valleys" here.

Global Peace Chats: 

From approximately 2010 to 2013, a Bahá'í science fiction writer hosted a well-attended event called "Global Peace Chats" at Second Life's Book Island. The event started out reading his book, in which the peoples of two different planets struggled to achieve unity in diversity, and discussing its implications for humanity's global relations.

A Global Peace Chat at the Events Platform on Book Island

In 2012, the group went on to explore some 40 articles, from the blog of another Bahá'í, on the relationship between human nature and a culture of peace. They set up a home in the neighboring Tripsaville Peace Garden, where participants could go after the Global Peace Chats to socialize and discuss the Bahá'í Teachings more directly.

An informal gathering at the Tripsaville Peace Garden home

Mystical Writings of the World:


Seeking to promote direct study of the Holy Texts of the various World Religions, Bahá'ís created another event at the Japanese Tea Garden on Book Island, called Mystical Writings of the World. Here, quotes from the sacred writings of Native American, African, Hindu, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Buddhist, Christian, Islamic, Bahá'í and other faiths were read and discussed, on topics relating to various spiritual qualities and different aspects of human life.

Discussing Mystical Writings of the World at the Japanese Tea Garden

The Bahá'í Center at Jenkin Park:


Also in 2012, Bahá'ís in Second Life decided to organize a regular Bahá'í 'fireside' event to discuss the Bahá'i Teachings more directly. These meetings began at a lovely sky apartment above Jenkin Park at Caledon Oxbridge Village, and attracted a broad diversity of people.

A 'fireside' gathering at the Jenkin Park Bahá'í Center

Unitarian Universalists:


In an effort to reach out to like-minded groups, Bahá'ís sought out interfaith and ecumenical movements in Second Life. This brought them into contact with the First Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Second Life (FUUSL) at the UUtopia region, where they were welcomed warmly and invited to speak at some of the weekly UU services.

A Bahá'í addressing a UU Gathering

There, they also collaborated with the UU Library of World Religions, a venue for promoting interfaith dialog, understanding, harmony, appreciation, and collaboration. This included providing interfaith visuals, increasing the collection of Bahá'í Writings, and leading some of the interfaith discussions at its weekly Life Talks event.

An early version of the UUtopia Library of World Religions

World Religion Day:

Another aspect of this Bahá'í collaboration with the UU Library of World Religions was helping to celebrate World Religion Day on third Sunday of January. The 2013 celebration involved a well-attended panel discussion with eight representatives from different religions in SL, on the topic of "Religion as a Source of Social Change". You can read the Bahá'í contribution to this panel here.

2013 World Religion Day panel at the Library of World Religions

The 2014 World Religion Day celebration featured a panel on "Re-enchanting the Earth" (see the Baha'i contribution here). The event was so well attended that it made the SL "What's Hot Now" listing, and for a couple of hours the region was flooded with impromptu visitors who explored the Library and Baha'i Complex.

2014 World Religion Day Celebration

The 2015 World Religion Day celebration included 10 panelists who presented their "Multi-Faith Reflections on Prayer" to an audience of 50 people. You can see a machinema video of the event here.


The Bahá'í Center at UUtopia:

As a result of this contact with FUUSL, the group decided to purchase a small parcel on the UUtopia region next to the UU Library of World Religions. There, with the kind assistance of the librarian and other neighbors, they built a lovely Bahá'í Center and, once it was ready, moved the weekly Bahá'í discussions there. Little by little, some neighboring parcels were acquired, where formal gardens were built to beautify the surroundings of the Bahá'í Center.

The initial Bahá'í Center at UUtopia

Bahá'í Insights on Spiritual Growth:

In order to offer a more systematic study of the Bahá'í Teachings, permission was obtained from Paul Lample to read and discuss chapters of his book "Bahá'u'lláh's Teachings on Spiritual Reality" at a weekly event named "Bahá'í Insights on Spiritual Growth". These are currently ongoing on Fridays at 6:00 p.m. Second Life Time (SLT = Pacific Daylight Time).

Participants discussing Bahá'í Insights on Spiritual Growth

Baha'i Gardens:

In mid 2013, the UUtopia parcel was doubled, and a formal garden was built in front of the Baha'i Center to beautify it and buffer it from encroachment. It was created in the general style of the formal gardens at the Baha'i World Center and Holy Places in Haifa and Akka, Israel. It has attracted many curious visitors and become a neutral meeting point for friends to gather.

Formal Garden in front of the Baha'i Center

The Baha'i Lotus Temple of SL:

In late 2013, the UUtopia parcel was extended again to make room for the Lotus Temple across the garden from the Baha'i Center. The building is an artistic rendering of the Baha'i Temple in New Delhi, India, by digital 3D designer Jesahel Layli Newton-Bernal.

An Interfaith Prayer Gathering at the Lotus Temple

Here, weekly Interfaith Prayer Circles are held on Fridays at 5:30 pm SLT, where participants share prayers and writings from diverse faith traditions, many taken from multifaith, multilingual prayer books on the center table. The temple streams unaccompanied coral renditions of the Baha'i Writings, from which nine quotes around the inside were also taken.



Invitation:

We hope you will join us in this adventure, and contribute to the next chapters in the history of the Bahá'í Faith in virtual worlds.