Amongst the people are those who allege that this Youth [Baha'u'llah] hath
had no purpose but to perpetuate His name, whilst others claim that He hath
sought for Himself the vanities of the world—this, notwithstanding that never,
throughout all My days, have I found a place of safety, be it to the extent of
a single foothold. At all times have I
been immersed in an ocean of tribulations, whose full measure none can fathom
but God. He, truly, is aware of what I
say. How many the days in which My loved
ones have been sorely shaken by reason of My afflictions, and how many the
nights during which My kindred, fearing for My life, have bitterly wept and
lamented! And this none can deny save
them that are bereft of truthfulness. Is
it conceivable that He Who expecteth to lose His life at any moment should seek
after worldly vanities? How very strange
the imaginings of those who speak as prompted by their own caprices, and who
wander distractedly in the wilderness of self and passion! Erelong shall they be called upon to account
for their words, and on that day they shall find none to befriend or help them.
- Baha'u'llah (Tablet to Nasiri’d-Din Shah, Suriy-i-Haykal [Tablet of Temple];
‘The Summons of the Lord of Hosts’)
