On the outspread tablet of this world, ye are the verses of
His singleness; and atop lofty palace towers, ye are the banners of the Lord.
In His bowers are ye the blossoms and sweet-smelling herbs, in the rose garden
of the spirit the nightingales that utter plaintive cries. Ye are the birds
that soar upward into the firmament of knowledge, the royal falcons on the
wrist of God.Why then are ye quenched, why silent, why leaden and dull? Ye must shine forth like the lightning, and raise up a clamouring like unto the great sea. Like a candle must ye shed your light, and even as the soft breezes of God must ye blow across the world. Even as sweet breaths from heavenly bowers, as musk-laden winds from the gardens of the Lord, must ye perfume the air for the people of knowledge, and even as the splendours shed by the true Sun, must ye illumine the hearts of humankind. For ye are the life-laden winds, ye are the jessamine-scents from the gardens of the saved. Bring then life to the dead, and awaken those who slumber. In the darkness of the world be ye radiant flames; in the sands of perdition, be ye well-springs of the water of life, be ye guidance from the Lord God. Now is the time to serve, now is the time to be on fire. Know ye the value of this chance, this favourable juncture that is limitless grace, ere it slip from your hands.
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (‘Selections from
the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’)
