Ridván

[4] Riḍwān is named for the Garden of Ridván, Baghdad, where Bahá'u'lláh stayed for twelve days after the Ottoman Empire exiled him from the city before he journeyed to Constantinople.

The Báb's writings introduced the concept of "He whom God shall make manifest", a Messianic figure whose coming, according to Bahá'ís, was announced in the scriptures of all of the world's great religions.

[6][7] Bahá'u'lláh claimed that his mission as the Promised One of the Báb, was revealed to him in 1852 while imprisoned in the prison known as the Black Pit of Qajar Iran.

[6] After his release from the Black Pit, Bahá'u'lláh was banished from Qajar territory and he settled in Baghdad, which became the centre of Bábí activity.

[8] Bahá'u'lláh's rising prominence in the city, and the revival of the Persian Bábí community, gained the attention of his enemies in the ulema and the Qajar government.

[5][10] After he arrived in the garden, Bahá'u'lláh announced his mission and station for the first time to a small group of family and friends.

The festival properly starts at two hours before sunset on that day, which symbolises the time that Bahá'u'lláh entered the garden.

[12][13] The festival is significant because of Bahá'u'lláh's private declaration to a few followers that he was "Him Whom God shall make manifest" and a Manifestation of God, and thus it forms the beginning point of Bahá'ism distinct from Bábism It is also significant because Bahá'u'lláh left his house in Baghdad, which he designated the "Most Great House", to enter the Garden of Ridván.