Baháʼí gardens

The Terraces from above

Cactus garden near the Shrine of the Báb

The Arc gardens, behind the Shrine of the Báb

The Terraces of the Baháʼí Faith, also known as the Hanging Gardens of Haifa, are garden terraces around the Shrine of the Báb on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel. They are one of the most popular destinations for visitors to Israel. The architect is Fariborz Sahba from Iran, the structural engineers are Karban and Co. from Haifa.

Fariborz Sahba began work in 1987 designing the gardens and oversaw construction. The terraces were opened to the public in June 2001.[3] Beginning at its base, the gardens extend almost a kilometre up the side of Mount Carmel, covering some 200,000 square metres of land. The gardens are linked by a set of stairs flanked by twin streams of running water cascading down the mountainside through the steps and terrace bridges.[4]

The gardens have elements of the Persian gardens of Shiraz, Iran, the Nishat Bagh gardens of Jammu and Kashmir, India and English gardens,[5] isolating the site from the noise of the surroundings and connecting the different Baháʼí buildings on Mount Carmel together.[6]

In 2013, 917,031 tourists and 8,000 Baháʼí pilgrims visited the gardens.[7]

The Monument Gardens, set within the Arc gardens at the Baháʼí World Centre on Mount Carmel, are a set of gardens which hold the graves of some of the members of the Baháʼí holy family.

• 
  The grave of Bahíyyih Khánum, Baháʼu'lláh's daughter
• 
  The graves of Ásiyih Khánum (Navváb), Baháʼu'lláh's first wife, and Mirzá Mihdí, Baháʼu'lláh's youngest son
• 
  The grave of Munirih Khánum, ʻAbdu'l-Bahá's wife

Baháʼí gardens at Bahjí

The Mansion of Bahjí (Arabic: delight) is a summer house near Acre, Israel, where Baháʼu'lláh, founder of the Baháʼí Faith died in 1892. His shrine is located next to this house. The whole area was called Al-Bahjá (Place of Delight). The site has since been beautified with paradise gardens, which are called Haram-i-Aqdas (the Most Holy Precincts or Sanctuary) and are intersected by a circular path which serves to circumambulate the shrine. The Mansion, shrine, and surrounding gardens are among the most sacred spots on earth for Baháʼís and are Baháʼí pilgrimage sites.[8][9]

Shrine of Baháʼu'lláh with tree-filled indoor garden

The Shrine of Baháʼu'lláh is composed of a central area that contains a small, tree-filled garden surrounded by paths covered with Persian rugs.[10][11] A glass roof was constructed by Qulám-ʻAlíy-i-Najjár after the death of Baháʼu'lláh.[12] At the northwest corner of the central area there is a small room where Baháʼu'lláh's remains are laid to rest.[13][14]

Garden of Ridván, Akká

The Garden of Ridván (lit. garden of paradise) is a Baháʼí holy place situated just outside Acre. Originally known as the 'garden of Naʻmayn', it was rented by ʻAbdu'l-Bahá (Baháʼu'lláh's son) for Baháʼu'lláh where he enjoyed spending the later part of his life, after years in a desolate prison cell. Although it shares the same name it does not have the same significance of the Garden of Ridván in Baghdad and no connection to the festival of Ridván.

During the 1930s and 1940s the island setting of the garden disappeared, as a result of a draining project against malaria. In 2010 a three-year restoration and conservation project of the garden and the original water canals surrounding it was completed, after which the Ridvan Garden, referred to by Baháʼu'lláh as 'Our Verdant Isle', became an island once again.[15]

Garden of Ridván, Baghdad

The Garden of Ridván or Najibiyyih Garden[16] was a wooded garden in what is now Baghdad's Rusafa District, on the banks of the Tigris river. It is notable as the location where Baháʼu'lláh stayed for twelve days from April 21 to May 2, 1863, after the Ottoman Empire exiled him from Baghdad and before commencing his journey to Constantinople. During his stay in this garden, Baháʼu'lláh announced to his followers that he was the messianic figure whose coming had been foretold by the Báb. These events are celebrated annually during the Festival of Ridván.[16]