…in this Dispensation, not one amongst the renowned divines,
in the grasp of whose authority were held the reins of the people, hath
embraced the Faith. Nay, they have striven against it with such animosity and
determination that no ear hath heard and no eye hath seen the like. 
It would be wholly untrue to maintain that this faculty [the
rational faculty in a human being] is the same as the power of vision, inasmuch
as the power of vision is derived from it and acteth in dependence upon it. It
would, likewise, be idle to contend that this faculty can be identified with
the sense of hearing, as the sense of hearing receiveth from the rational
faculty the requisite energy for performing its functions.
O Son of Man! Many a day hath passed over thee whilst thou
hast busied thyself with thy fancies and idle imaginings. How long art thou to
slumber on thy bed? Lift up thine head from slumber, for the Sun hath risen to
the zenith; haply it may shine upon thee with the light of beauty.
The highest faculties which the learned have possessed, and
whatsoever truths they, in their search after the gems of Thy [God’s]
knowledge, have discovered; the brightest realities with which the wise have
been endowed, and whatever secrets they, in their attempts to fathom the
mysteries of Thy wisdom, have unraveled, have all been created through the
generative power of the Spirit that was breathed into the Pen which Thy hands
have fashioned. How, then, can the thing which Thy Pen hath created be capable
of comprehending those treasures of Thy Faith with which, as decreed by Thee,
that Pen hath been invested? How can it ever know of the Fingers that grasp Thy
Pen, and of Thy merciful favors with which it hath been endowed? How can it,
already unable to reach this station, be made aware of the existence of Thy
Hand that controlleth the Fingers of Thy might? How can it attain unto the
comprehension of the nature of Thy Will that animateth the movement of Thy
Hand?
The source of all glory is acceptance of whatsoever the Lord
hath bestowed, and contentment with that which God hath ordained.
Glory be to Thee, O my God! The power of Thy might beareth
me witness! I can have no doubt that should the holy breaths of Thy
loving-kindness and the breeze of Thy bountiful favor cease, for less than the
twinkling of an eye, to breathe over all created things, the entire creation
would perish, and all that are in heaven and on earth would be reduced to utter
nothingness. Magnified, therefore, be the marvelous evidences of Thy
transcendent power! Magnified be the potency of Thine exalted might! Magnified
be the majesty of Thine all-encompassing greatness, and the energizing
influence of Thy will!
O King!... I was indeed as one dead when His behest was
uttered. The hand of the will of thy
Lord, the Compassionate, the Merciful, transformed Me. Can anyone speak forth of his own accord that
for which all men, both high and low, will protest against him? Nay, by Him Who taught the Pen the eternal
mysteries, save him whom the grace of the Almighty, the All-Powerful, hath
strengthened.
…I bear witness with my soul, my spirit, my entire being,
that should They Who are the Day-Springs of Thy [God’s] most holy unity and the
Manifestations of Thy transcendent oneness be able to soar so long as Thine own
sovereignty endureth and Thine all-compelling authority can last, they will
fail in the end to attain unto even the precincts of the court wherein Thou
didst reveal the effulgence of but one of Thy most mighty Names. Glorified,
glorified be, therefore, Thy wondrous majesty. Glorified, glorified be Thine
unattainable loftiness. Glorified, glorified be the préeminence of Thy kingship
and the sublimity of Thine authority and power.
Glorified, immeasurably glorified art Thou, my Best-Beloved!
Inasmuch as Thou hast ordained that the utmost limit to which they who lift
their hearts to Thee can rise is the confession of their powerlessness to enter
the realms of Thy holy and transcendent unity, and that the highest station which
they who aspire to know Thee can reach is the acknowledgment of their impotence
to attain the retreats of Thy sublime knowledge I, therefore, beseech Thee, by
this very powerlessness which is beloved of Thee, and which Thou hast decreed
as the goal of them that have reached and attained Thy court, and by the
splendors of Thy countenance that have encompassed all things, and by the
energies of Thy Will whereby the entire creation hath been generated, not to
deprive them that have set their hopes in Thee of the wonders of Thy mercy, nor
to withhold from such as have sought Thee the treasures of Thy grace.
Man is the supreme Talisman. Lack of a proper education
hath, however, deprived him of that which he doth inherently possess. Through a
word proceeding out of the mouth of God he was called into being; by one word
more he was guided to recognize the Source of his education; by yet another
word his station and destiny were safeguarded.
The essence of religion is to testify unto that which the
Lord hath revealed, and follow that which He hath ordained in His mighty Book.
Hearken, O king, to the speech of Him that speaketh the
truth, Him that doth not ask thee to recompense Him with the things God hath
chosen to bestow upon thee, Him Who unerringly treadeth the straight Path. He
it is Who summoneth thee unto God, thy Lord, Who showeth thee the right course,
the way that leadeth to true felicity, that haply thou mayest be of them with
whom it shall be well.... He that giveth up himself wholly to God, God shall,
assuredly, be with him; and he that placeth his complete trust in God, God
shall, verily, protect him from whatsoever may harm him, and shield him from
the wickedness of every evil plotter.
The essence of understanding is to testify to one’s poverty,
and submit to the Will of the Lord, the Sovereign, the Gracious, the
All-Powerful.
The verses are sent down at one time in a form that is
untroubled by the rules of grammarians, transcending what the minds of men have
yet conceived; and at another time they are sent down in a style that
conformeth to the standards of men. Thy Lord, verily, is potent over whatsoever
He willeth by virtue of His words "Be, and it is." Wert thou to view
them with Mine eyes thou wouldst see that they are in conformity with the most
consummate rules, and wouldst give thanks to the Lord, the Almighty, the Best-Beloved.
Wert thou to ponder in thine heart, from now until the end
that hath no end, and with all the concentrated intelligence and understanding
which the greatest minds have attained in the past or will attain in the
future, this divinely ordained and subtle Reality [the rational faculty in a
human being], this sign of the revelation of the All-Abiding, All-Glorious God,
thou wilt fail to comprehend its mystery or to appraise its virtue. Having
recognized thy powerlessness to attain to an adequate understanding of that
Reality which abideth within thee, thou wilt readily admit the futility of such
efforts as may be attempted by thee, or by any of the created things, to fathom
the mystery of the Living God, the Day Star of unfading glory, the Ancient of
everlasting days. This confession of helplessness which mature contemplation
must eventually impel every mind to make is in itself the acme of human
understanding, and marketh the culmination of man’s development.
True remembrance is to make mention of the Lord, the
All-Praised, and forget aught else beside Him.
O King!... This [Baha'u'llah] is but a leaf which the winds of the will of
thy Lord, the Almighty, the All-Praised, have stirred. Can it be still when the
tempestuous winds are blowing? Nay, by
Him Who is the Lord of all Names and Attributes! They move it as they
list. The evanescent is as nothing
before Him Who is the Ever-Abiding. His
all-compelling summons hath reached Me, and caused Me to speak His praise
amidst all people.
Fear ye God, O concourse of kings, lest ye remain afar from
Him Who is His Remembrance [the Báb], after the Truth hath come unto you with a
Book and signs from God, as spoken through the wondrous tongue of Him Who is
His Remembrance. Seek ye grace from God, for God hath ordained for you, after
ye have believed in Him, a Garden the vastness of which is as the vastness of
the whole of Paradise.
The essence of love is for man to turn his heart to the
Beloved One, and sever himself from all else but Him, and desire naught save
that which is the desire of his Lord.