The firmness and steadfastness of the person will become
evident and manifest. How could the disciples of His Holiness (Christ) attain
to any spiritual development if they did not undergo trials and tests!
O thou who art kindled by the Fire of Guidance which blazed
and burnt in the Tree of Sinai! By the life of God, I am moved with joy by the
mention of the beloved and delighted in the love of the elect! And now, with a
heart clear from aught else save God and overflowing with the love of God, I
mention thee, supplicating God to make thee a lamp of guidance in those
districts, that out of thee the spirit of knowledge may be spread upon the
hearts and spirits until thou becomest a spring of fresh and sweet water
whereto the thirsty and earnest desirers will come to drink, and thus be
satisfied with the sweetness thereof.
I told him of a letter which I had received from Chicago
during the week, stating that two houses belonging to colored Baha’is had been
bombed with dynamite.
" ... If the races do not come to an agreement, there
can be no question or doubt of bloodshed. When I was in America, I told the
white and colored people that it was incumbent upon them to be united or else
there would be the shedding of blood. I did not say more than this that they
might not be saddened. But, indeed, there is a greater danger than only the
shedding of blood. It is the destruction of America. Because aside from the
racial prejudice there is another agitating factor. It is that of America's
enemies. These enemies are agitating both sides, that is, they are stirring up
the white race against the colored race and the colored race against the white
race. But of this the Americans are submerged in the sea of ignorance. They
will regret it. But of what use will their regret be after the destruction of
America? Will it be of any use then?"
The development and progress of a nation is according to the
measure and degree of that nation’s scientific attainments. Through this means
its greatness is continually increased, and day by day the welfare and
prosperity of its people are assured.
Child education is a matter of the utmost importance. The
infant, while yet a suckling, must receive Bahá'í training, and the loving
spirit of Christ and Bahá'u'lláh must be breathed into him, that he may be
reared in accord with the verities of the Gospel and the Most Holy Book.
Verily, I hope from God that ye may become my associates in
servitude to His Holy Threshold and my partners at the entrance of the Door of
His Oneness; so that ye may equally serve in His great vineyard. Then thank ye
your Lord, for He hath favored you with this manifest success. By God, the True
One! this cannot be equalled either by the dominion of the world or by the gift
of ruling over all regions with pomp, glory and power! Reflect ye upon the
chosen ones of God in the earlier ages! How their worth was unknown during
their days; how they were known by people as but ordinary individuals and
unimportant persons! Afterwards, their arguments appeared, their lights
scintillated, their stars beamed, their trees became lofty, their mysteries
gleamed forth, their fruits were praised, their reservoirs became overflowing,
their gardens adorned, their birds warbled and their joy became perfect in the
Kingdom of their Beneficent Lord.
O ye beloved of God and His chosen ones! Trust ye in the
divine confirmation, the merciful bounty and the supreme bestowal. Verily, He
will confirm your hearts, dilate your breasts, make your tongues fluent and
will rejoice your souls by a grace from the Compassionate Merciful One!
In this day, any deed, however infinitesimal, when not
performed for the sake of God, is manifest loss; and any word, when not uttered
for the sake of God, can cause a conflagration.
Rest not, even for an instant, and seek not comfort, even
for a moment; rather labour with heart and soul that thou mayest render devoted
service to but one amongst the friends and bring happiness and joy to but one
luminous heart. This is true bounty, and by it the brow of 'Abdu'l-Baha is
illumined. Be thou my partner and associate therein.
Science is the first emanation from God toward man. All
created beings embody the potentiality of material perfection, but the power of
intellectual investigation and scientific acquisition is a higher virtue
specialized to man alone. Other beings and organisms are deprived of this
potentiality and attainment. God has created or deposited this love of reality
in man.
All the Manifestations of God came with the same purpose,
and they have all sought to lead men into the paths of virtue. Yet we, their
servants, still dispute among ourselves! Why is it thus? Why do we not love one
another and live in unity?
All those who seek truth in the Heavenly Kingdom shine like
the stars; they are like fruit trees laden with choice fruit, like seas full of
precious pearls.
…you who are in Europe, do not be discouraged because you
are few or because people think that your Cause is of no importance. If few
people come to your gatherings do not lose heart, and if you are ridiculed and
contradicted be not distressed, for the apostles of Christ had the same to
bear. They were reviled and persecuted, cursed and ill-treated, but in the end
they were victorious and their enemies were found to be wrong.
O ye [1] longing ones! O ye cheered ones! O ye attracted
ones! O ye who are beseeching the Kingdom of God! Blessed are ye, for ye have
removed the covering; witnessed the lights of the Sun of Truth which is shining
from the horizon of bestowal; are attracted by the fragrances sent forth from
the garden of the Kingdom; have arisen to praise the Lord of Grandeur and
Might, and have resolved to disseminate the teachings of God in those vast and
extensive regions!
A friend asked: “How should one look forward to death?
The Word of God may be likened to the life-giving breezes of
the divine springtime. When chanted in spiritual tones, it bestoweth the breath
of life and granteth true salvation. It bringeth forth a garden of roses from
the pure soil, and wafteth its musk-laden fragrance throughout the world.
Indeed, all on earth know that an upright character is
praiseworthy and acceptable and that baseness of character is blameworthy and
rejected, that justice and fairness are favoured and agreeable whilst cruelty
and tyranny are unacceptable and rejected. Notwithstanding this, all people,
but for a few, are devoid of a praiseworthy character and bereft of a sense of
justice.
…verily, the angels of the Kingdom pray for the
maid-servants of the Merciful; the possessors of brilliant hearts, spiritual susceptibilities,
godlike feelings, heavenly attributes, holy characteristics, confident souls,
perfection of humanity and sanctified and pure souls who are striving to spread
the spirit of harmony—holy above qualities (pertaining to) nature and passion—spreaders
of the fragrances of God severed from all else save God, banners of union and
peace—signs of love and accord!
O ye loved ones of God! See how the Exalted One —may the
souls of all on earth be a ransom for Him—for this high purpose made His
blessed heart the target for affliction’s spears; and because the real intent
of the Ancient Beauty—for Him may the souls of the Concourse on high be offered
up—was to win this same supernal goal, the Exalted One bared His holy breast
for a target to a myriad bullets fired by the people of malice and hate, and
with utter meekness died the martyr’s death. On the dust of this pathway the
holy blood of thousands upon thousands of sacred souls gushed out, and many a
time the blessed body of a loyal lover of God was hanged to the gallows tree.
Whensoever holy souls, drawing on the powers of heaven,
shall arise with such qualities of the spirit, and march in unison, rank on
rank, every one of those souls will be even as one thousand, and the surging
waves of that mighty ocean will be even as the battalions of the Concourse on
high. What a blessing that will be—when all shall come together, even as once
separate torrents, rivers and streams, running brooks and single drops, when
collected together in one place will form a mighty sea. And to such a degree
will the inherent unity of all prevail, that the traditions, rules, customs and
distinctions in the fanciful life of these populations will be effaced and
vanish away like isolated drops, once the great sea of oneness doth leap and
surge and roll.
In this day, true power and strength reside in the Supreme
Elixir, which transformeth darkened realities into illumined souls and changeth
the quintessence of ignorance into a sign of the All Merciful. The Supreme
Elixir is none other than the Word of God, which hath shed divine illumination
upon the contingent world and wafted the fragrances of holiness throughout the
earth.
There is no doubt
that the tests are severe. The more a soul resists and shows firmness and
steadfastness, the greater will be his progress, and he shall soar to the
sublimest heights of the Kingdom.
O thou who art attracted to the fragrances of God! Endeavor
thou as far as thou canst to become the cause of the unity and harmony amongst
the believers of God…
If thou desirest eternal life, inhale the heavenly
fragrance; and if thou seekest life everlasting, abide beneath the shelter of
the Word of God.
O thou whose eyes are fixed upon the Abha Kingdom! In this
grievous day, when dire adversities have shaken the pillars of the earth, and
the tests and trials sent by God have rocked the foundations of the world,
remain thou firm and staunch in His Cause through the power of the Kingdom and
the confirmations from on high. Be thou as steadfast as an immovable mountain,
an impregnable stronghold, a solid bulwark, and an impenetrable barrier. Be not
perturbed by the winds of tribulations or dismayed by grievous calamities. The
splendours of divine assistance are shed abroad from the Kingdom of God, and
the hosts of heavenly confirmation are continually descending from the throne
of the Most High. Rest thou assured and be thou confident.
A friend interested in healing quoted the words of
Bahá’u’lláh: “If one is sick, let him go to the greatest physician.”
It is incumbent upon you [1] to have union and harmony and
love and uprightness, and to be characterized with the morals of your Lord, the
Clement; to walk in the highway of equity and beneficence. Be ye manifestations
of the mercy of God, dawning-places of the light of His great bounty, and arise
with all steadfastness, truthfulness, trustworthiness, compassion, modesty,
love and accord with the people of the world, no matter of what community they
may be; inasmuch as it behooveth the light to shine even upon the rocks in the
field, and the soul is qualified for quickening individuals, even though they
be of the ugliest and most disagreeable form, and a pure tree is adapted to
bestow a blessed fruit even upon those who throw stones at it.
Thank ye [1] God! for He hath guided you unto His Kingdom
and hath chosen you from among the called ones of nations! Your Lord hath
indeed crowned you with the diadem of eternal glory (which will continue)
throughout cycles and ages! Truly I say unto you, verily, the angels of heaven
repeatedly bless you, for ye have advanced toward God and turned unto His Great
Kingdom. Ye shall surely see in this effulgence a flash which will pervade all
regions. At that time, all nations and communities will arise to praise and
glorify you, and they will bless themselves with your commemoration in
gatherings, temples of worship and in exalted assemblies. Is there any gift
greater than this?
O ye beloved of the Lord! This day is the day of union, the
day of the ingathering of all mankind. ‘Verily God loveth those who, as though
they were a solid wall, do battle for His Cause in serried lines!’ [Qur’an
61:4] Note that He saith ‘in serried lines’—meaning crowded and pressed
together, one locked to the next, each supporting his fellows. To do battle, as
stated in the sacred verse, doth not, in this greatest of all dispensations,
mean to go forth with sword and spear, with lance and piercing arrow—but rather
weaponed with pure intent, with righteous motives, with counsels helpful and
effective, with godly attributes, with deeds pleasing to the Almighty, with the
qualities of heaven. It signifieth education for all mankind, guidance for all
men, the spreading far and wide of the sweet savours of the spirit, the promulgation
of God’s proofs, the setting forth of arguments conclusive and divine, the
doing of charitable deeds.