O bird that singeth sweetly of the Abhá Beauty! In this new
and wondrous dispensation the veils of superstition have been torn asunder and
the prejudices of eastern peoples stand condemned. Among certain nations of the
East, music was considered reprehensible, but in this new age the Manifest
Light hath, in His holy Tablets, specifically proclaimed that music, sung or
played, is spiritual food for soul and heart.
The musician’s art is among those arts worthy of the highest
praise, and it moveth the hearts of all who grieve. Wherefore, O thou Shahnáz,
[1] play and sing out the holy words of God with wondrous tones in the
gatherings of the friends, that the listener may be freed from chains of care
and sorrow, and his soul may leap for joy and humble itself in prayer to the
realm of Glory.
- 'Abdu'l-Baha ('Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Baha')
[1] Shahnáz, the name given to the recipient of this
Tablet, is also the name of a musical mode.
