The Bahá'í Faith is based on the teachings of Bahá'u'lláh. In more than a hundred volumes of writings, he laid out the beliefs and principles which he said were needed for the spiritual and material development of humanity at this stage in our history.

Bahá'u'lláh's teachings cover not only subjects like God, the progress of the human soul, morality, and similar subjects which are commonly thought to be "religious". He also wrote a great deal about the practical reforms needed in the world so as to overcome poverty, prejudice and war.

Significantly, Bahá'u'lláh set out a blueprint for the organization of the Bahá'í Faith after His passing. In effect, he set up the worldwide Bahá'í community as a model for demonstrating his teachings in practice.

The centre of Bahá'u'lláh's teachings is the oneness and wholeness of the human race. The mission given to him by God was to bring about the unity of all the peoples of the world. He wrote:

We, verily, have come to unite and weld together all that dwell on earth. He also wrote:

The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens.

And he wrote:

So powerful is the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth.

The idea of the oneness of the human race has many implications. The teachings of Bahá'u'lláh therefore:

• Highlight the need to eliminate prejudice of all kinds,
• Encourage individuals to search after truth for themselves,
• Advocate that an international auxiliary language be adopted throughout the world,
• Promote the equality of men and women,
• Call for all children to have full access to education,
• Emphasise the harmony of science and religion,
• Abolish extremes of wealth and poverty,
• Provide mechanisms to prevent war and to create lasting peace,
• Stress the importance of cultural diversity.