In this day whosoever attaineth the good pleasure of the one
true God, magnified be His glory, shall be remembered and accounted among the
inmates of the all-highest Heaven and the most exalted Paradise, and shall
partake of its benefits in all the worlds of God. By Him Who is the Desire of
all men! The pen is powerless to portray this station or to expound this theme.
How great the blessedness of him who hath attained unto the good-pleasure of
God, and woe betide the heedless!
(Baha’u’llah, ‘The Tabernacle of Unity,
Bahá’u’lláh’s Responses to Mánikchí Sáhib and Other Writings’)
September 9
Say: Is there any doubt concerning God? Behold how He hath
come down from the heaven of His grace, girded with power and invested with
sovereignty. Is there any doubt concerning His signs? Open ye your eyes, and
consider His clear evidence. Paradise is on your right hand, and hath been
brought nigh unto you, while Hell hath been made to blaze. Witness its
devouring flame. Haste ye to enter into Paradise, as a token of Our mercy unto
you, and drink ye from the hands of the All-Merciful the Wine that is life
indeed.
Drink with healthy relish, O people of Bahá. Ye are indeed
they with whom it shall be well. This is what they who have near access to God
have attained. This is the flowing water ye were promised in the Qur’án, and
later in the Bayán, as a recompense from your Lord, the God of Mercy. Blessed are
they that quaff it.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah’)
September 8
Another of his questions: “In the Mahábád and Zoroastrian
religions it is said: ’Our faith and religion is superior to every other. The
other Prophets and the religions they have instituted are true, but they occupy
different stations before God, even as, in the court of a king, there is a
gradation of ranks from the prime minister to the common soldier. Whosoever
wisheth, let him keep the precepts of his religion.’ Nor do they impose upon
any soul…”
Regarding their statement that “our faith and religion is
superior to every other”, by this is meant such Prophets as have appeared
before them. Viewed from one perspective these holy Souls are one: the first
among them is the same as the last, and the last is the same as the first. All
have proceeded from God, unto Him have they summoned all men, and unto Him have
they returned.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘The Tabernacle of Unity, Bahá’u’lláh’s Responses
to Mánikchí Sáhib and Other Writings’)
September 7
We testify,
O my Lord, that Thou art God and that there is none other God besides Thee.
From everlasting Thou wast enthroned on the inaccessible heights of Thy power,
and wilt unto everlasting continue to exercise Thy transcendent and
unrestrained dominion. The hosts of the world are powerless to frustrate Thy
will, nor can all the dwellers of the earth and all the inmates of heaven annul
Thy decree. Thou truly art the Almighty, the Most Exalted, the Most Great.
(Baha’u’llah,
‘Prayers and Meditations of Baha’u’llah’)
September 6
In Mázindarán a vast number of the servants of God were
exterminated. The Governor, under the influence of calumniators, robbed a great
many of all that they possessed. Among the charges he laid against them was
that they had been laying up arms, whereas upon investigation it was found out
that they had nothing but an unloaded rifle! Gracious God! This people need no
weapons of destruction, inasmuch as they have girded themselves to reconstruct
the world. Their hosts are the hosts of goodly deeds, and their arms the arms
of upright conduct, and their commander the fear of God. Blessed that one that
judgeth with fairness. By the righteousness of God! Such hath been the
patience, the calm, the resignation and contentment of
this people that they have become the exponents of justice, and so great hath
been their forbearance, that they have suffered themselves to be killed rather
than kill, and this notwithstanding that these whom the world hath wronged have
endured tribulations the like of which the history of the world hath never
recorded, nor the eyes of any nation witnessed. What is it that could have
induced them to reconcile themselves to these grievous trials, and to refuse to
put forth a hand to repel them? What could have caused such resignation and serenity?
The true cause is to be found in the ban which the Pen of Glory hath, day and
night, chosen to impose, and in Our assumption of the reins of authority,
through the power and might of Him Who is the Lord of all mankind.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘Epistle to
the Son of the Wolf’)
September 5
I swear by the Daystar of God’s Testimony that hath shone
from the horizon of certitude! This Wronged One, in the daytime and in the
night-season, occupied Himself with that which would edify the souls of men,
until the light of knowledge prevailed over the darkness of ignorance.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘Epistle to the Son of the Wolf’)
September 4
…a man should make ready his heart that
it be worthy of the descent of heavenly grace, and that the bounteous Cup-Bearer
may give him to drink of the wine of bestowal from the merciful vessel. “For
the like of this let the travailers travail!” [Qur’án 37:59]
(Baha’u’llah, ‘The
Four Valleys’)
September 3
On this plane, [“the dwelling of
the Praiseworthy”] the traveler meeteth with many a
trial and reverse. Now is he lifted up to heaven, now is he cast into the
depths. …
(Baha’u’llah, ‘The Four Valleys’)
September 2
Say:
Would ye worship him who neither heareth nor seeth, and who is of a
truth the most abject and wretched of all God’s servants? Wherefore have ye failed to follow the One Who
hath come unto you from the Source of Divine Command bearing the tidings of
God, the Most Exalted, the Most Great? O
people! Be not like unto those who
presented themselves before Our throne, and yet failed to perceive or
comprehend; these are indeed a contemptible people. We recited unto them verses that would
enrapture the dwellers of the heavenly Dominion and the inmates of the Kingdom
on high, and yet they departed veiled therefrom, and hearkened rather unto the
voice of him who is but a servant of God and a mere creation of His Will. Thus do We impart unto you that which shall
guide you towards the path of God’s favoured ones.
(Baha'u'llah,
‘Suriy-i-Haykal, ‘The Summons of the Lord of Hosts’)
September 1
O people!
Fear God, and disbelieve not in Him Whose grace hath surrounded all things,
Whose mercy hath pervaded the contingent world, and the sovereign potency of
Whose Cause hath encompassed both your inner and your outer beings, both your
beginning and your end. Stand ye in awe
of the Lord, and be of them that act uprightly.
Beware lest ye be accounted among those who allow the verses of their
Lord to pass them by unheard and unrecognized; these, truly, are of the
wayward.
(Baha'u'llah, ‘Suriy-i-Haykal,
‘The Summons of the Lord of Hosts’)
August 31
This is the Day whereon the
All-Merciful hath come down in the clouds of knowledge, clothed with manifest
sovereignty. He well knoweth the actions of men. He it is Whose glory none can
mistake, could ye but comprehend it. The heaven of every religion hath been
rent, and the earth of human understanding been cleft asunder, and the angels
of God are seen descending. Say: This is the Day of mutual deceit; whither do
ye flee? The mountains have passed away, and the heavens have been folded
together, and the whole earth is held within His grasp, could ye but understand
it. Who is it that can protect you? None, by Him Who is the All-Merciful! None,
except God, the Almighty, the All-Glorious, the Beneficent. Every woman that
hath had a burden in her womb hath cast her burden. We see men drunken in this
Day, the Day in which men and angels have been gathered together.
(Baha’u’llah,
’Gleanings form the Writings of Baha’u’llah’)
August 30
Speed out of your sepulchers. How long
will ye sleep? The second blast hath been blown on the trumpet. On whom are ye
gazing? This is your Lord, the God of Mercy. Witness how ye gainsay His signs!
The earth hath quaked with a great quaking, and cast forth her burdens. Will ye
not admit it? Say: Will ye not recognize how the mountains have become like
flocks of wool, how the people are sore vexed at the awful majesty of the Cause
of God? Witness how their houses are empty ruins, and they themselves a drowned
host.
(Baha’u’llah, ’Gleanings form the Writings of Baha’u’llah’)
August 29
People for the most part delight in superstitions. They
regard a single drop of the sea of delusion as preferable to an ocean of
certitude. By holding fast unto names they deprive themselves of the inner
reality and by clinging to vain imaginings they are kept back from the
Dayspring of heavenly signs. God grant you may be graciously aided under all
conditions to shatter the idols of superstition and to tear away the veils of
the imaginations of men. Authority lieth in the grasp of God, the Fountainhead
of revelation and inspiration and the Lord of the Day of Resurrection.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘Words of Paradise’; ‘Tablets of Baha’u’llah revealed after the
Kitab-i-Aqdas’)
August 28
This
Wronged One hath, at all times, aimed and striven to exalt and advance the
interests of both the government and the people, not to elevate His own
station. A number of men have, now, gathered others about them, and have arisen
to dishonor this Wronged One. He, nevertheless, beseecheth God—hallowed and glorified
be He—to aid them to return unto Him, and assist them to compensate for that
which escaped them, and repent before the door of His bounty. He, verily, is
the Forgiving, the Merciful.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘Epistle to the Son of the Wolf’)
August 27
Honesty, virtue, wisdom and a saintly character redound to
the exaltation of man, while dishonesty, imposture, ignorance and hypocrisy
lead to his abasement. By My life! Man’s distinction lieth not in ornaments or
wealth, but rather in virtuous behaviour and true understanding.
(Baha’u’llah,
‘Words of Paradise’; ‘Tablets of Baha’u’llah revealed after the Kitab-i-Aqdas’)
August 26
It hath been revealed and is now
repeated that the true worth of artists and craftsmen should be appreciated,
for they advance the affairs of mankind. Just as the foundations of religion
are made firm through the Law of God, the means of livelihood depend upon those
who are engaged in arts and crafts. True learning is that which is conducive to
the well-being of the world, not to pride and self-conceit, or to tyranny,
violence and pillage.
(Baha’u’llah; memorandum from the Research Department of
the Universal House of Justice dated 13 March 1988)
August 25
Were I to recount all the verses that have been revealed in
connection with this exalted theme, it would weary the reader and divert Us
from Our purpose. The following verse shall therefore suffice Us; may thine
eyes be solaced therewith, and mayest thou attain unto that which hath been
treasured and concealed therein: “It is God who hath reared the heavens without
pillars thou canst behold; then mounted His throne, and imposed laws on the sun
and moon: each travelleth to its appointed goal. He ordereth all things. He
maketh His signs clear, that ye may have firm faith in the presence of your
Lord.” [Qur’án 13:2]
Ponder then, O My friend, the words “firm faith” that have
been mentioned in this verse. It saith that the heavens and the earth, the
throne, the sun and the moon, all have been created to the end that His
servants may have unswerving faith in His presence in His days. By the
righteousness of God! Contemplate, O My brother, the greatness of this station,
and behold the condition of the people in these days, fleeing from the
Countenance of God and His Beauty “as though they were affrighted asses”. [Qur’án
74:50] Wert thou to reflect upon that which We have revealed unto thee, thou
wouldst undoubtedly grasp Our purpose in this utterance and discover that which
We have desired to impart unto thee within this paradise. Perchance thine eyes
may rejoice in beholding it, thine ears take delight in hearing that which is
recited therein, thy soul be enthralled by recognizing it, thy heart illumined
by comprehending it, and thy spirit gladdened by the fragrant breezes that waft
therefrom. Haply thou mayest attain unto the pinnacle of divine grace and abide
within the Ridván of transcendent holiness.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘Gems of Divine
Mysteries’, ‘Javáhiru’l-Asrár’)
August 24
Know then that the paradise that appeareth in the day of God
surpasseth every other paradise and excelleth the realities of Heaven. For when
God—blessed and glorified is He—sealed the station of prophethood in the person
of Him Who was His Friend, His Chosen One, and His Treasure amongst His
creatures, as hath been revealed from the Kingdom of glory: “but He is the
Apostle of God and the Seal of the Prophets”, [Qur’án 33:40] He promised all
men that they shall attain unto His own presence in the Day of Resurrection. In
this He meant to emphasize the greatness of the Revelation to come, as it hath
indeed been manifested through the power of truth. And there is of a certainty
no paradise greater than this, nor station higher, should ye reflect upon the
verses of the Qur’án. Blessed be he who knoweth of a certainty that he shall
attain unto the presence of God on that day when His Beauty shall be made
manifest.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘Gems of Divine Mysteries’, ‘Javáhiru’l-Asrár’)
August 23
O Temple of Holiness! We, verily, have made
Thine inmost heart the treasury of all the knowledge of past and future ages,
and the dawning-place of Our own knowledge which We have ordained for the
dwellers of earth and heaven, that all creation may partake of the outpourings
of Thy grace and may attain, through the wonders of Thy knowledge, unto the
recognition of God, the Exalted, the Powerful, the Great. In truth, that
knowledge which belongeth unto Mine own Essence is such as none hath ever
attained or will ever grasp, nor shall any heart be capable of bearing its
weight. Were We to disclose but a single word of this knowledge, the hearts of
all men would be filled with consternation, the foundations of all things would
crumble into ruin, and the feet of even the wisest among men would be made to
slip.
(Baha'u'llah, ‘Suriy-i-Haykal, ‘The
Summons of the Lord of Hosts’)
August 22
…consider the people unto whom the Gospel was given. Having
no access to the apostles of Jesus, they sought the pleasure of the Lord in
their churches, hoping to learn that which would be acceptable unto God, but
they found therein no path unto Him. Then when God manifested Muhammad as His
Messenger and as the Repository of His good-pleasure, they neglected to quicken
their souls from the Fountain of living waters which streamed forth from the
presence of their Lord and continued to rove distraught upon the earth seeking
a mere droplet of water and believing that they were doing righteous deeds.
They behaved as the people unto whom the Qur’án was given are now behaving.
(The
Báb, an excerpt from the Kitáb-i-Asmá [Book of Names]; ‘Selections from the Writings
of the Báb)
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