O ye that stand fast in the Covenant! When the hour cometh
that this wronged and broken-winged bird will have taken its flight into the
Celestial Concourse, when it will have hastened to the Realm of the Unseen and
its mortal frame will have been either lost or hidden neath the dust, it is
incumbent upon the Afnán, that are steadfast in the Covenant of God and have
branched from the Tree of Holiness; the Hands, (pillars) of the Cause of God
(the glory of the Lord rest upon them), and all the friends and loved ones, one
and all to bestir themselves and arise with heart and soul and in one accord,
to diffuse the sweet savors of God, to teach His Cause and to promote His
Faith. It behooveth them not to rest for a moment, neither to seek repose. They
must disperse themselves in every land, pass by every clime, and travel
throughout all regions. Bestirred, without rest, and steadfast to the end, they
must raise in every land the triumphal cry “Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá!” (O Thou the
Glory of Glories), must achieve renown in the world wherever they go, must burn
brightly even as a candle in every meeting and must kindle the flame of Divine
love in every assembly; that the light of truth may rise resplendent in the
midmost heart of the world, that throughout the East and throughout the West a
vast concourse may gather under the shadow of the Word of God, that the sweet
savors of holiness may be diffused, that faces may shine radiantly, hearts be
filled with the Divine spirit and souls be made heavenly.
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (From
‘The Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’)
