None must contend with those who wield
authority over the people; leave unto them that which is theirs, and direct
your attention to men’s hearts.
(Baha’u’llah,
‘The Kitab-i-Aqdas’)
February 14
Let nothing grieve thee, O Land of Tá, [Tihrán] for God hath chosen thee to be the source of the joy of all mankind. He
shall, if it be His Will, bless thy throne with one who will rule with justice,
who will gather together the flock of God which the wolves have scattered. Such
a ruler will, with joy and gladness, turn his face towards, and extend his
favours unto, the people of Bahá. He indeed is accounted in the sight of God as
a jewel among men. Upon him rest forever the glory of God and the glory of all
that dwell in the kingdom of His revelation.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘The Kitab-i-Aqdas’)
February 13
They
that yearn for the abode of the Beloved, they that circle round the sanctuary
of the Desired One, are not apprehensive of trials and adversities, nor do they
flee away from that which is ordained by God. They receive their portion from
the ocean of resignation and drink their fill from the soft-flowing stream of
His mercy. They would not surrender the good-pleasure of the Friend in exchange
for the kingdom of both worlds, nor would they barter that which the
Well-Beloved hath decreed in return for dominion over the realms of the
infinite.
(Baha’u’llah, compilation: ‘Fire
and Light’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House
of Justice; The Baha’i World 1979-1983)
February 12
Busy
thyself in the remembrance of God and unloose thy tongue in celebrating His
praise with utmost joy and radiance. God, the Exalted, the True is with thee.
He is kinder than a father and more compassionate than a son.
(Baha’u’llah,
compilation: ‘Fire and Light’, prepared
by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice; The Baha’i
World 1979-1983)
February 11
O Navváb! O Leaf that hath sprung from My Tree, and been My
companion! My glory be upon thee, and My loving-kindness, and My mercy that
hath surpassed all beings. We announce unto thee that which will gladden thine
eye, and assure thy soul, and rejoice thine heart. Verily, thy Lord is the
Compassionate, the All-Bountiful. God hath been and will be pleased with thee,
and hath singled thee out for His own Self, and chosen thee from among His
handmaidens to serve Him, and hath made thee the companion of His Person in the
day-time and in the night-season.
(Baha’u’llah, quoted by Shoghi Effendi in a letter dated December 21, 1939; ‘Messages to
America’)
February 10
…were they [1] to say, “We are the Servants of God,” this
also is a manifest and indisputable fact. For they have been made manifest in
the uttermost state of servitude, a servitude the like of which no man can
possibly attain. Thus in moments in which these Essences of Being were deep
immersed beneath the oceans of ancient and everlasting holiness, or when they
soared to the loftiest summits of Divine mysteries, they claimed their
utterances to be the Voice of Divinity, the Call of God Himself.
(Baha’u’llah,
‘Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah’)
[1] “...the all-embracing Manifestations of God”
February 9
The first Spirit through which all spirits were
revealed, and the first Light by which all lights shone forth, rest upon thee,
O Most Exalted Leaf, [1] thou who hast been mentioned in the Crimson Book! Thou
art the one whom God created to arise and serve His own Self, and the
Manifestation of His Cause, and the Day-Spring of His Revelation, and the
Dawning-Place of His signs, and the Source of His commandments; and Who so
aided thee that thou didst turn with thy whole being unto Him, at a time when
His servants and handmaidens had turned away from His Face. ...Happy art thou,
O My handmaiden, and My Leaf, and the one mentioned in My Book, and inscribed
by My Pen of Glory in My Scrolls and Tablets. ...Rejoice thou, at this moment,
in the most exalted Station and the All-highest Paradise, and the Abhá Horizon,
inasmuch as He Who is the Lord of Names hath remembered thee. We bear witness
that thou didst attain unto all good, and that God hath so exalted thee, that
all honor and glory circled around thee.
(Baha’u’llah,
quoted by Shoghi Effendi in a letter dated December
21, 1939; ‘Messages to America’)
[1] “the mother of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá”
February 8
It
behoves each one of you to manifest the attributes of God, and to exemplify by
your deeds and words the
signs of His righteousness, His power and glory.
(The
Báb, quoted by Nabil-A'zam in ‘The Dawnbreakers’, translated by Shoghi Effendi)
February 7
Indeed the laws of God are like unto the ocean
and the children of men as fish, did they but know it. However, in observing
them one must exercise tact and wisdom.... Since most people are feeble and
far-removed from the purpose of God, therefore one must observe tact and
prudence under all conditions, so that nothing might happen that could cause
disturbance and dissension or raise clamour among the heedless. Verily, His
bounty hath surpassed the whole universe and His bestowals encompassed all that
dwell on earth. One must guide mankind to the ocean of true understanding in a
spirit of love and tolerance. The Kitáb-i-Aqdas itself beareth eloquent
testimony to the loving providence of God."
(Baha'u'llah, Synopsis and
Codification of the Kitab-i-Aqdas’)
February 6
It
ill-beseemeth men to centre all their efforts on their own selves; rather must
they ceaselessly strive for the betterment of the lives of one another.
(Baha’u’llah, quoted by the Universal House of Justice in a letter dated 11
June 2009 to the Baha’is in Iran)
February 5
At this very moment My son
is being washed before My face, after Our having sacrificed him in the Most
Great Prison. Thereat have the dwellers of the Abhá Tabernacle wept with a
great weeping, and such as have suffered imprisonment with this Youth in the
path of God, the Lord of the promised Day, lamented. Under such conditions My
Pen hath not been prevented from remembering its Lord, the Lord of all nations.
It summoneth the people unto God, the Almighty, the All-Bountiful. This is the
day whereon he that was created by the light of Bahá has suffered martyrdom, at
a time when he lay imprisoned at the hands of his enemies.
(Baha’u’llah, quoted
by Shoghi Effendi in a letter dated December 21, 1939; ‘Messages to America’)
February 4
Know… that He who uttered these words [1] in the realms of glory meant
to describe the attributes of the One Who is to come in such veiled and
enigmatic terms as to elude the understanding of the people of error. Now, when
He saith: “His eyes were as a flame of fire”, He alludeth but to the keenness
of sight and acuteness of vision of the Promised One, Who with His eyes burneth
away every veil and covering, maketh known the eternal mysteries in the
contingent world, and distinguisheth the faces that are obscured with the dust
of hell from those that shine with the light of paradise. [cf. Qur’án 80:41; 83:24] Were His eyes
not made of the blazing fire of God, how could He consume every veil and burn
away all that the people possess? How could He behold the signs of God in the
Kingdom of His names and in the world of creation? How could He see all things
with the all-perceiving eye of God? Thus have we conferred upon Him a
penetrating vision in this day. Would that ye believe in the verses of God!
For, indeed, what fire is fiercer than this flame that shineth in the
Sinai of His eyes, whereby He consumeth all that hath veiled the peoples of the
world? Immeasurably exalted shall God remain above all that hath been revealed
in His unerring Tablets concerning the mysteries of the beginning and the end
until that day when the Crier will cry out, the day whereon we shall all return
unto Him.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘Gems of Divine Mysteries’, ‘Javáhiru’l-Asrár’)
[1] “His eyes were as a flame of fire”, and “brass-like were His feet”,
and “out of His mouth goeth a two-edged sword”. [cf. Rev. 1:14–16; 2:18; 19:15]
February 3
The hour is approaching when the most great
convulsion will have appeared... I swear by God! The promised day is come, the
day when tormenting trials will have surged above your heads, and beneath your
feet, saying: ‘Taste ye, what your hands have wrought.’
(Baha’u’llah, quoted by
Shoghi Effendi in a letter dated July 28, 1939; ‘Messages to America’)
February 2
Upon
thee [1], O Branch of God! be the remembrance of God and His praise, and the
praise of all that dwell in the Realm of Immortality, and of all the denizens
of the Kingdom of Names. Happy art thou in that thou hast been faithful to the
Covenant of God and His Testament, until Thou didst sacrifice thyself before
the face of thy Lord, the Almighty, the Unconstrained. Thou, in truth, hast been
wronged, and to this testifieth the Beauty of Him, the Self-Subsisting. Thou
didst, in the first days of thy life, bear that which hath caused all things to
groan, and made every pillar to tremble. Happy is the one that remembereth
thee, and draweth nigh, through thee, unto God, the Creator of the Morn.
(Baha’u’llah, quoted by Shoghi Effendi in a letter dated December 21, 1939; ‘Messages to America’)
[1] The Purest Branch, ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s younger
brother
February 1
Were any of the all-embracing Manifestations of God to
declare: “I am God,” He, verily, speaketh the truth, and no doubt attacheth
thereto. For it hath been repeatedly demonstrated that through their
Revelation, their attributes and names, the Revelation of God, His names and
His attributes, are made manifest in the world. Thus, He hath revealed: “Those
shafts were God’s, not Thine.” And also He saith: “In truth, they who plighted
fealty unto Thee, really plighted that fealty unto God.” And were any of them
to voice the utterance, “I am the Messenger of God,” He, also, speaketh the
truth, the indubitable truth. Even as He saith: “Muhammad is not the father of
any man among you, but He is the Messenger of God.” Viewed in this light, they
are all but Messengers of that ideal King, that unchangeable Essence. And were
they all to proclaim, “I am the Seal of the Prophets,” they, verily, utter but
the truth, beyond the faintest shadow of doubt. For they are all but one
person, one soul, one spirit, one being, one revelation. They are all the
manifestation of the “Beginning” and the “End,” the “First” and the “Last,” the
“Seen” and the “Hidden”—all of which pertain to Him Who is the Innermost Spirit
of Spirits and Eternal Essence of Essences.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘Gleanings from the
Writings of Baha’u’llah’)
January 31
It behoveth whosoever willeth to journey for the sake of God, and whose
intention is to proclaim His Word and quicken the dead, to bathe himself with
the waters of detachment, and to adorn his temple with the ornaments of
resignation and submission. Let trust in God be his shield, and reliance on God
his provision, and the fear of God his raiment. Let patience be his helper, and
praise-worthy conduct his succorer, and goodly deeds his army. Then will the
concourse on high sustain him. Then will the denizens of the Kingdom of Names
march forth with him, and the banners of Divine guidance and inspiration be
unfurled on his right hand and before him.
(Baha’u’llah, quoted by Shoghi
Effendi in a letter dated July 4, 1939; ‘Messages to America’)
January 30
Meditate then upon the utterance of one
of the Prophets as He intimated to the souls of men, through veiled allusions
and hidden symbols, the glad-tidings of the One Who was to come after Him, that
thou mayest know of a certainty that their words are inscrutable to all save
those who are endued with an understanding heart. He saith: “His eyes were as a
flame of fire”, and “brass-like were His feet”, and “out of His mouth goeth a
two-edged sword”. [cf. Rev. 1:14–16; 2:18; 19:15] How
could these words be literally interpreted? Were anyone to appear with all
these signs, he would assuredly not be human. And how could any soul seek his
company? Nay, should he appear in one city, even the inhabitants of the next
would flee from him, nor would any soul dare approach him! Yet, shouldst thou
reflect upon these statements, thou wouldst find them to be of such surpassing
eloquence and clarity as to mark the loftiest heights of utterance and the
epitome of wisdom. Methinks it is from them that the suns of eloquence have
appeared and the stars of clarity have dawned forth and shone resplendent.
(Baha’u’llah,
‘Gems of Divine Mysteries’, ‘Javáhiru’l-Asrár’)
January 29
…viewed from the standpoint of their oneness and sublime
detachment, the attributes of Godhead, Divinity, Supreme Singleness, and Inmost
Essence, have been, and are applicable to those Essences of Being, inasmuch as
they all abide on the throne of Divine Revelation, and are established upon the
seat of Divine Concealment. Through their appearance the Revelation of God is
made manifest, and by their countenance the Beauty of God is revealed. Thus it
is that the accents of God Himself have been heard uttered by these
Manifestations of the Divine Being.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘Gleanings from the Writings
of Baha’u’llah’)
January 28
…a Voice was raised from the direction of Hijáz, calling
aloud and saying: “Great is thy blessedness, O Akká, in that God hath made thee
the dayspring of His Most Sweet Voice, and the dawn of His most mighty signs.
Happy art thou in that the Throne of Justice hath been established upon thee,
and the Daystar of God’s loving-kindness and bounty hath shone forth above thy
horizon. Well is it with every fair-minded person that hath judged fairly Him
Who is the Most Great Remembrance, and woe betide him that hath erred and
doubted.”
(Baha’u’llah, ‘Epistle to the Son of the Wolf’)
January 27
And when the entire creation was stirred up, and the whole
earth was convulsed, and the sweet savors of Thy name, the All-Praised, had
almost ceased to breathe over Thy realms, and the winds of Thy mercy had
well-nigh been stilled throughout Thy dominions, Thou didst, through the power
of Thy might, raise me up among Thy servants, and bid me to show forth Thy
sovereignty amidst Thy people. Thereupon I arose before all Thy creatures,
strengthened by Thy help and Thy power, and summoned all the multitudes unto
Thee, and announced unto all Thy servants Thy favors and Thy gifts, and invited
them to turn towards this Ocean, every drop of the waters of which crieth out,
proclaiming unto all that are in heaven and on earth that He is, in truth, the
Fountain of all life, and the Quickener of the entire creation, and the Object
of the adoration of all worlds, and the Best-Beloved of every understanding
heart, and the Desire of all them that are nigh unto Thee.
(Baha’u’llah,
‘Prayers and Meditations of Baha’u’llah’)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)