Now concerning the Essence of Divinity: in truth it is on no
account determined by anything apart from its own nature, and can in no wise be
comprehended. For whatsoever can be conceived by man is a reality that hath
limitations and is not unlimited; it is circumscribed, not all-embracing. It
can be comprehended by man, and is controlled by him. Similarly it is certain
that all human conceptions are contingent, not absolute; that they have a
mental existence, not a material one. Moreover, differentiation of stages in
the contingent world is an obstacle to understanding. How then can the
contingent conceive the Reality of the absolute? As previously mentioned,
differentiation of stages in the contingent plane is an obstacle to
understanding. Minerals, plants and animals are bereft of the mental faculties
of man that discover the realities of all things, but man himself comprehendeth
all the stages beneath him. Every superior stage comprehendeth that which is
inferior and discovereth the reality thereof, but the inferior one is unaware
of that which is superior and cannot comprehend it. Thus man cannot grasp the
Essence of Divinity, but can, by his reasoning power, by observation, by his
intuitive faculties and the revealing power of his faith, believe in God, discover
the bounties of His Grace. (‘Abdu’l-Baha, ’Tablet to August Forel’)
