February 27

…the attributes of the people of faith are justice and fair-mindedness; forbearance and compassion and generosity; consideration for others; candor, trustworthiness, and loyalty; love and loving-kindness; devotion and determination and humanity. If therefore an individual is truly righteous, he will avail himself of all those means which will attract the hearts of men, and through the attributes of God he will draw them to the straight path of faith and cause them to drink from the river of everlasting life. 

- 'Abdu'l-Baha  (‘The Secret of Divine Civilization’)

February 25

We understand that the Holy Spirit is the energizing factor in the life of man. Whosoever receives this power is able to influence all with whom he comes into contact.

The greatest philosophers without this Spirit are powerless, their souls lifeless, their hearts dead! Unless the Holy Spirit breathes into their souls, they can do no good work. No system of philosophy has ever been able to change the manners and customs of a people for the better. Learned philosophers, unenlightened by the Divine Spirit, have often been men of inferior morality; they have not proclaimed in their actions the reality of their beautiful phrases.

The difference between spiritual philosophers and others is shown by their lives. The Spiritual Teacher shows His belief in His own teaching, by Himself being what He recommends to others.

A humble man without learning, but filled with the Holy Spirit, is more powerful than the most nobly-born profound scholar without that inspiration. He who is educated by the Divine Spirit can, in his time, lead others to receive the same Spirit. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (From a talk; ‘Paris Talks: Addresses given by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in Paris in 1911-1912’)

February 23

To the Members of the Spiritual Assembly, upon them be the Glory of God, the Most Glorious.

He is God.

O ye who are chosen! O ye who are firm! O ye who are calling! O ye who are sincere! Verily, I praise my supreme Lord for choosing you to call in His Name among the people, for attracting you to the beauty of the All-Glorious, and for strengthening you to render His Cause victorious.

I trust in Him to make your faces shine forth with a glorious light in that clime, radiant as the face of heaven at early dawn, casting its light upon all regions.

Verily, I announce the glad-tidings of the confirmations which will sustain you, by the mercy of your Lord. For ye have arisen with all your powers to serve God’s Cause in that vast land. Ponder this great bounty, this wondrous attainment! 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (From a Tablet; ‘Additional Tablets, Extracts and Talks’; Online Baha’i Reference Library, Baha’i World Centre)

February 21

With all joy and great happiness I send you the good news of the beginning of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár in ‘Ishqábád. The friends of God assembled together with great rejoicing, and carried the stones themselves, upon their backs, attracted by the love of God and for the sake of the glory of God. Soon shall that great Temple be completed and the voice of prayer and praise ascend to the sublime Kingdom.

I rejoiced to hear of the momentous undertaking upon which ye have embarked with such joy, ardour, and manifest zeal. I beseech the Lord to aid you in the promotion of His Word, and to assist you, by His ancient grace and favour, to lay the foundation of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár. Ye, who are the first in that great land to set about this mighty task, shall see erelong how the renown of this undertaking will spread throughout all regions, and how the tidings of its fame will thrill the ears of the people in every land.

Exert your energy to accomplish what ye have undertaken, so that this glorious Temple may be built, that the beloved of God may assemble therein, that they may be constant in their supplication, their glorification and praise, and that they may pray and offer glory unto God for guiding them to His Kingdom. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (From a Tablet; ‘Additional Tablets, Extracts and Talks’; Online Baha’i Reference Library, Baha’i World Centre)

February 19

Trust in God in all matters and lead the people unto the solid faith, the way of the Kingdom; so that they may be ushered into the canopy of peace and abide in the strong castle of the mercy of thy Lord, the Clement; that they may hoist the standards of the love of God in the highest mountain summits, promulgate the revelation of strength on the Ark of Safety and immerse in the seas of the mercy of thy Lord, the Clement. 

- 'Abdu'l-Baha  ('Tablets of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, vol. 2')

February 17

Through the maidservant of God, Lua, to the maidservant of God, Corinne True, upon her be the Glory of God

He is God.

O thou whose heart is turned to the Kingdom of God! I was informed of the contents of thy letter to the maidservant of God, Lua, and found it to be a most wondrous message, a call to the true path, and freed from all doubt and uncertainty. Indeed the day hath come whereon the divine edifice, the merciful sanctuary and the spiritual Temple must be raised in America.

I ask God to strengthen His faithful friends in a great service and enable them to exert endeavours adequate to the erection of this great edifice, for which there will be a resounding call in all countries. By it shall the Lord grant confirmation to His loved ones in that land. How great is the endeavour! How sublime the undertaking! For this is the first House of Worship that shall be established in those regions for the commemoration of His praise—a praise which shall reach the Kingdom of divine mysteries. And from that Temple shall be heard the anthems of glorification throughout all regions.

Of those who arise in the service of this edifice there shall be no soul but shall be imbued by God with a power emanating from His mighty Kingdom, and upon him shall rain such spiritual, heavenly blessings as shall fill his heart with a wondrous light and illumine his eyes to behold the glory of the Ancient of Days.

Convey my greetings to thy revered husband and say to him: There shall appear in that great continent, a sign. Turn thy attention to it, so that thereby thy luminous heart may attain confidence. Verily, thy Lord is All-Powerful. Upon thee be salutation and praise. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (From a Tablet; ‘Additional Tablets, Extracts and Talks’; Online Baha’i Reference Library, Baha’i World Centre)

February 15

O thou who art advancing unto God! Thank God for that He taught thee the word of guidance, illuminated thy heart by the light of the Kingdom in this world, destined to thee eternal life, everlasting salvation, progress and prosperity in the world of spirit.

Hold to the garment of glory, grasp the firm rope and loosen thy tongue in praise of the Beloved Abha. Neglect not praying and communing in the gloomy midnights and morn and eve, and offer glory unto thy Lord, the Supreme. 

- 'Abdu'l-Baha  (Tablets of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, vol. 2)

February 13

The vegetable spirit, the animal spirit, and the human spirit—the rational soul, that is—do not return after death to this world of the “first creation”. [1] As for that spirit of faith by which is meant the light of guidance, and that Holy Spirit, the reality of divine revelation, these both return, in every dispensation and cycle, to this the realm of the “first creation”. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (From a Tablet; ‘Additional Tablets, Extracts and Talks’; Online Baha’i Reference Library, Baha’i World Centre)

[1] Cf. Qur’án, 56:62; also 29:20 and 53:47.

February 11

It is therefore evident that the Manifestations of God have three stations: the physical station, the station of the rational soul, and the station of divine manifestation and heavenly splendour. The corporeal station will inevitably perish. As to the station of the rational soul, despite having a beginning, it has no end and is endowed with everlasting life. But as to that holy Reality of which Christ says “the Father is in the Son”,[1] it has neither beginning nor end: Its “beginning” refers merely to His revelation of His own station. Thus, by way of analogy, He likens His silence to sleep: A man who is silent is like one who is asleep, and when he speaks, it is as though he has awakened.[2] And yet the sleeping and the wakeful man are one and the same person: No change has taken place in his station, his loftiness, sublimity, inner reality, or innate nature. It is merely that the condition of silence has been likened to sleep, and that of manifestation to wakefulness. A man, whether sleeping or awake, is the same man: Sleep is simply one possible state, and wakefulness another. And so it is that the period of silence is compared to sleep, and the period of manifestation and guidance to wakefulness. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (Table talks in Akka, authenticated by ‘Abdu’l-Baha; ‘Some Answered Questions’ – 2014 revised translation by the Baha’i World Centre)

[1] Cf. John 14:11 and 17:21.

[2] ‘Abdu’l-Bahá here anticipates a question about the beginning of Bahá’u’lláh’s Revelation

February 9

O maid-servant of God! Verily thy letter indicated thy faith in the Oneness of God. I ask God to make thee firm in His Religion, to confirm thee through the breath of the Holy Spirit, so that thou mayest speak the teachings of God and guide the people unto the Kingdom.

O maid-servant of God! Verily the bounty of God upon thee is great, great! If thou remainest firm in the path of the love of thy Lord, thou shalt behold the doors of success and progress open before thy face from all sides. Verily this is not far from the mercy of thy Lord! 

- 'Abdu'l-Baha  (Tablets of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, vol. 2)

February 7

…the reality of prophethood, which is the Word of God and the state of perfect divine manifestation, has neither beginning nor end, but its radiance varies like that of the sun. For example, it dawned above the sign of Christ with the utmost splendour and radiance, and this is eternal and everlasting. See how many world-conquering kings, how many wise ministers and rulers have come and gone, each and all fading into oblivion—whereas even now the breezes of Christ still waft, His light still shines, His call is still upraised, His banner is still unfurled, His armies still do battle, His voice still rings sweetly, His clouds still rain down life-giving showers, His lightning still streaks forth, His glory is still clear and indisputable, His splendour is still radiant and luminous; and the same holds true of every soul that abides beneath His shade and partakes of His light. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (Table talks in Akka, authenticated by ‘Abdu’l-Baha; ‘Some Answered Questions’ – 2014 revised translation by the Baha’i World Centre)

February 5

Know that, although human souls have existed upon the earth for a myriad ages and cycles, the human soul is nonetheless originated. And since it is a sign of God, once it has come into being it is everlasting. The human spirit has a beginning but no end: It endures forever. Likewise, the various species found upon the earth have an origin in time; for it is acknowledged by all that there was a time when these species existed nowhere on the face of the earth, and indeed a time when the earth itself did not exist. But the world of existence has always been, for it is not confined to this terrestrial globe.

Our meaning is that, although human souls are originated, they are nevertheless immortal, enduring, and everlasting. For the world of things is a world of imperfection in relation to that of man, and the world of man is a world of perfection in relation to that of things. When imperfect things reach the stage of perfection, they become everlasting. This is meant as an example: Seek to grasp the true intent. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (Table talks in Akka, authenticated by ‘Abdu’l-Baha; ‘Some Answered Questions’ – 2014 revised translation by the Baha’i World Centre)

February 3

O maid-servant of God! I ask God to open before thy face the doors of wisdom, to give thee a drink of the chalice overflowing with the wine of certainty, and to inspire thee with the mysteries of the Holy Book, so that thou mayest know the significances of vision and the reality of revelation, and all the hidden symbols of prophetic Scripture, such as those of Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. 

- 'Abdu'l-Baha  (Tablets of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, vol. 2)

February 1

Praise be to God, within the sheltering grace of the Blessed Beauty, here in the lands of the West, a breeze hath blown from over the rose-gardens of His bestowals, and the hearts of many people have been drawn as by a magnet to the Abhá Realm.

Whatever hath come to pass is from the confirmations of the Beloved; for otherwise, what merit had we, or what capacity? We are as a helpless babe, but fed at the breast of heavenly grace. We are no more than weak plants, but we flourish in the spring rain of His bestowals. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (From a Tablet; ‘Additional Tablets, Extracts and Talks’; Online Baha’i Reference Library, Baha’i World Centre)