…among the Prophets was Noah. When He was invested with the
robe of Prophethood, and was moved by the Spirit of God to arise and proclaim
His Cause, whoever believed in Him and acknowledged His Faith, was endowed with
the grace of a new life. Of him it could be truly said that he was reborn and
revived, inasmuch as previous to his belief in God and his acceptance of His
Manifestation, he had set his affections on the things of the world, such as
attachment to earthly goods, to wife, children, food, drink, and the like, so
much so that in the day-time and in the night season his one concern had been
to amass riches and procure for himself the means of enjoyment and pleasure.
Aside from these things, before his partaking of the reviving waters of faith,
he had been so wedded to the traditions of his forefathers, and so passionately
devoted to the observance of their customs and laws, that he would have
preferred to suffer death rather than violate one letter of those superstitious
forms and manners current amongst his people. Even as the people have cried:
“Verily we found our fathers with a faith, and verily, in their footsteps we
follow.” (Qur’án 43:22)
- Baha’u’llah (‘The Kitab-i-Iqan’)
