…the stages that mark the wayfarers’ journey from their
mortal abode to the heavenly homeland are said to be seven. Some have referred
to them as seven valleys, and others, as seven cities. [1] And it is said that
until the wayfarer taketh leave of self and traverseth these stages, he shall
never attain the ocean of nearness and reunion nor taste of the matchless wine.
The first is the Valley of Search. The steed of this valley
is patience; without patience the wayfarer on this journey will reach nowhere
and attain no goal. Nor should he ever become downhearted: If he strive for a
hundred thousand years and yet fail to behold the beauty of the Friend, he
should not falter. For those who seek the Kaaba of “for Us” rejoice in the
tidings “In Our ways shall We assuredly guide them.” [2] In their search, they
have stoutly girded up the loins of service and at every moment journey from
the plane of heedlessness into the realm of search. No bond shall hold them
back and no counsel deter them.
It is incumbent upon these servants to cleanse the heart,
which is the wellspring of divine treasures, of every marking; turn away from
imitation, which is following the traces of their forefathers; and shut the
door of friendship and enmity upon all the people of the earth.
- Baha’u’llah ('The Seven Valleys', revised translation by the Baha’i World Center included in
‘The Call of the Divine Beloved’)
[1] ‘Attár (ca. 1119–1230) in his Mantiqu’t-Tayr (The
Conference of the Birds) has elaborated seven valleys through which the birds
pass in search of their king. Bahá’u’lláh refers to ‘Attár’s scheme of the
valleys. Rúmí (1207–1273) alludes to the “seven cities of love” crossed by
‘Attár.
[2] Qur’án 29:69