Baha’is, in Guyana and around the world, are (currently) celebrating a
three-day festival in more than 200 countries and territories with their
friends and families

The festival, which commences from the evening of February 25 and ends at
sunset on March 1, serves as a spiritual preparation for a fasting
period which occurs during the last month of the Baha’i calendar. That
month begins on March 2 and ends on March 20.

The celebrations during Ayyаm-i-Hа, as the festival is named, may vary
from community to community, and may involve service and charity, social
gatherings, the giving of gifts and showing of hospitality.

The Baha’i calendar comprises 19 months of 19 days. The Ayyаm-i-Hа
Festival occurs during the four days (five in a leap year) between the
18th and 19th month of the Baha’i calendar year.

Of this festive period, Baha ‘u’llаh (1817 – 1892) writes, “It
behoveth the people of Baha throughout these days to provide good cheer
for themselves, their kindred and beyond them, the poor and needy, and
with joy and exultation to hail and glorify their Lord, to sing His praise
and magnify His name.”

During the Fast that follows, Bahа‘is abstain from food and drink
between sunrise and sunset. The Fast is a period of meditation and prayer
during which Bahа‘is refresh and reinvigorate themselves spiritually.
The Fasting period ends with the joyous Naw-Rщz (New Year) festival,
which begins at sunset on March 20.