O people of the world! When the Mystic Dove will have winged
its flight from its Sanctuary of Praise and sought its far-off goal, its hidden
habitation, refer ye whatsoever ye understand not in the Book to Him ['Abdu'l-Baha] Who hath
branched from this mighty Stock. 
Blessed, doubly blessed, is the ground which His
[‘Abdu’l-Baha’s] footsteps have trodden, the eye that hath been cheered by the
beauty of His countenance, the ear that hath been honoured by hearkening to His
call, the heart that hath tasted the sweetness of His love, the breast that
hath dilated through His remembrance, the pen that hath voiced His praise, the
scroll that hath borne the testimony of His writings.
The Will of the divine Testator is this: It is incumbent
upon the Aghsan, the Afnan and My Kindred to turn, one and all, their faces
towards the Most Mighty Branch. Consider that which We have revealed in Our
Most Holy Book: 'When the ocean of My presence hath ebbed and the Book of My
Revelation is ended, turn your faces toward Him Whom God hath purposed, Who
hath branched from this Ancient Root.' The object of this sacred verse is none
other except the Most Mighty Branch [Abdu'l-Bahá]. Thus have We graciously
revealed unto you Our potent Will, and I am verily the Gracious, the All-Powerful.
O my brother! A divine Mine only can yield the gems of
divine knowledge, and the fragrance of the mystic Flower can be inhaled only in
the ideal Garden, and the lilies of ancient wisdom can blossom nowhere except
in the city of a stainless heart. “In a rich soil, its plants spring forth
abundantly by permission of its Lord, and in that soil which is bad, they
spring forth but scantily.” (Qur’an 7:57)
All this generation could offer Us were wounds from its
darts, and the only cup it proffered to Our lips was the cup of its venom. On
our neck We still bear the scar of chains, and upon Our body are imprinted the
evidences of an unyielding cruelty.
We have consumed this densest of all veils, with the fire of
the love of the Beloved—the veil referred to in the saying: “The most grievous
of all veils is the veil of knowledge.” Upon its ashes, We have reared the
tabernacle of divine knowledge. We have, praise be to God, burned the “veils of
glory” with the fire of the beauty of the Best-Beloved. We have driven from the
human heart all else but Him Who is the Desire of the world, and glory therein.
We cleave to no knowledge but His Knowledge, and set our hearts on naught save
the effulgent glories of His light.
… these Essences of being [Manifestations of God] are
immensely exalted above… and… immeasurably glorified beyond all… vain sayings
and above the comprehension of every understanding heart.
…it behooveth no man to interpret the holy words according
to his own imperfect understanding, nor, having found them to be contrary to
his inclination and desires, to reject and repudiate their truth.
By the righteousness of God! Every morning I arose from My
bed, I discovered the hosts of countless afflictions massed behind My door; and
every night when I lay down, lo! My heart was torn with agony at what it had
suffered from the fiendish cruelty of its foes. With every piece of bread the
Ancient Beauty breaketh is coupled the assault of a fresh affliction, and with
every drop He drinketh is mixed the bitterness of the most woeful of trials. He
is preceded in every step He taketh by an army of unforeseen calamities, while
in His rear follow legions of agonizing sorrows.
Eschew all manner of wickedness, for such things are
forbidden unto you in the Book which none touch except such as God hath
cleansed from every taint of guilt, and numbered among the purified.”
The civilization so often vaunted by the learned exponents
of arts and sciences, will, if allowed to overleap the bounds of moderation,
bring great evil upon men.... If carried to excess, civilization will prove as
prolific a source of evil as it had been of goodness when kept within the
restraints of moderation.
Disencumber yourselves of all attachment to this world and
the vanities thereof. Beware that ye approach them not, inasmuch as they prompt
you to walk after your own lusts and covetous desires, and hinder you from
entering the straight and glorious Path.
Know of a certainty that in every Dispensation the light of
Divine Revelation hath been vouchsafed unto men in direct proportion to their
spiritual capacity. Consider the sun. How feeble its rays the moment it
appeareth above the horizon. How gradually its warmth and potency increase as
it approacheth its zenith, enabling meanwhile all created things to adapt
themselves to the growing intensity of its light. How steadily it declineth
until it reacheth its setting point. Were it, all of a sudden, to manifest the
energies latent within it, it would, no doubt, cause injury to all created
things.... In like manner, if the Sun of Truth were suddenly to reveal, at the
earliest stages of its manifestation, the full measure of the potencies which
the providence of the Almighty hath bestowed upon it, the earth of human
understanding would waste away and be consumed; for men's hearts would neither
sustain the intensity of its revelation, nor be able to mirror forth the
radiance of its light. Dismayed and overpowered, they would cease to exist.
Let not, however, thy soul grieve over that which God hath
rained down upon Us. Merge thy will in His pleasure, for We have, at no time,
desired anything whatsoever except His Will, and have welcomed each one of His
irrevocable decrees. Let thine heart be patient, and be thou not dismayed.
Follow not in the way of them that are sorely agitated.
Recall thou to mind My sorrows, My cares and anxieties, My
woes and trials, the state of My captivity, the tears that I have shed, the
bitterness of Mine anguish, and now My imprisonment in this far-off land. God…
beareth Me witness. Couldst thou be told what hath befallen the Ancient Beauty,
thou wouldst flee into the wilderness, and weep with a great weeping… Be thou
grateful to God, that We have refused to divulge unto thee the secrets of those
unsearchable decrees that have been sent down unto Us from the heaven of the
Will of thy Lord, the Most Powerful, the Almighty.
Say: It behoveth you, O Ministers of State, to keep the
precepts of God…and to be of them who are guided aright. Better is this for you
than all ye possess, did ye but know it. If ye transgress the commandment of
God, not one jot or one tittle of all your works shall be acceptable in His sight.
Ye shall, erelong, discover the consequences of that which ye shall have done
in this vain life, and shall be repaid for them. This, verily, is the truth,
the undoubted truth.
Call Thou to remembrance Thine arrival in the City
(Constantinople), how the Ministers of the Sulṭán thought Thee to be
unacquainted with their laws and regulations, and believed Thee to be one of
the ignorant. Say: Yes, by My Lord! I am ignorant of all things except what God
hath, through His bountiful favor, been pleased to teach Me. To this We
assuredly testify, and unhesitatingly confess it.
That which hath touched this Wronged One is beyond compare
or equal. We have borne it all with the utmost willingness and resignation, so
that the souls of men may be edified, and the Word of God be exalted.
Consider that which the Merciful Lord hath revealed in the
Qur’án, exalted are His words: “Worship ye God, join with Him no peer or
likeness; and show forth kindliness and charity towards your parents...”
Observe how loving-kindness to one’s parents hath been linked to recognition of
the one true God! Happy they who are endued with true wisdom and understanding,
who see and perceive, who read and understand, and who observe that which God
hath revealed in the Holy Books of old, and in this incomparable and wondrous
Tablet.
The religion of God and His divine law are the most potent
instruments and the surest of all means for the dawning of the light of unity
amongst men. The progress of the world, the development of nations, the
tranquillity of peoples, and the peace of all who dwell on earth are among the
principles and ordinances of God.