These holy dawning places [Manifestations of God] are
the Educators of the world of existence and the Teachers of man. They deliver
human beings from the darkness of error and heedlessness and the defects and
vices of nature and lead them to the realm of spiritual virtues and heavenly
perfections. Those who are ignorant become wise, those who are like animals
attain human perfections, the rapacious become angelic, the tyrannical and
proud become just and humble, so that earthly man becomes heavenly, the human
is changed into the divine, the suckling child attains its maturity and the
poor and abased attain wealth and glory.
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (Words of ‘Abdu’l-Baha,
December 4, New York, recorded by Mahmud Zarqani; ‘Mahmud’s Diary’)
