Peace be upon him that inclineth his ear unto the melody of
the Mystic Bird calling from the Sadratu’l-Muntahá!
- Baha’u’llah (‘The
Kitab-i-Iqan’)
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We perceive none, however, amongst the people of the earth
who, sincerely yearning for the Truth, seeketh the guidance of the divine
Manifestations concerning the abstruse matters of his Faith. All are dwellers
in the land of oblivion, and all are followers of the people of wickedness and
rebellion. God will verily do unto them that which they themselves are doing,
and will forget them even as they have ignored His Presence in His day. Such is
His decree unto those that have denied Him, and such will it be unto them that
have rejected His signs.
By God! All the atoms of the universe groan and lament at
the cruelty perpetrated by the froward among the people of the Bayán. Whither
are gone they who are endued with insight and hearing? We beseech God—blessed
and glorified be He—to summon them and exhort them unto that which will profit
them, and withhold them from that which will harm them. He, in truth, is the
Strong, the All-Subduing, the Almighty.
Every word is endowed with a spirit, therefore the speaker
or expounder should carefully deliver his words at the appropriate time and
place, for the impression which each word maketh is clearly evident and
perceptible. The Great Being saith: One word may be likened unto fire, another
unto light, and the influence which both exert is manifest in the world.
Therefore an enlightened man of wisdom should primarily speak with words as
mild as milk, that the children of men may be nurtured and edified thereby and
may attain the ultimate goal of human existence which is the station of true
understanding and nobility.
I, verily, am a believer in Him, and in His Faith, and in
His Book, and in His Testimonies, and in His Ways, and in all that proceedeth
from Him concerning them. I glory in My kinship with Him, and pride Myself on
My belief in Him.
It is evident unto thee that the Birds of Heaven and Doves
of Eternity speak a twofold language. One language, the outward language, is
devoid of allusions, is unconcealed and unveiled; that it may be a guiding lamp
and a beaconing light whereby wayfarers may attain the heights of holiness, and
seekers may advance into the realm of eternal reunion. Such are the unveiled
traditions and the evident verses already mentioned. The other language is
veiled and concealed, so that whatever lieth hidden in the heart of the
malevolent may be made manifest and their innermost being be disclosed. Thus
hath Sádiq, son of Muhammad, spoken: “God verily will test them and sift them.”
This is the divine standard, this is the Touchstone of God, wherewith He
proveth His servants. None apprehendeth the meaning of these utterances except
them whose hearts are assured, whose souls have found favour with God, and
whose minds are detached from all else but Him. In such utterances, the literal
meaning, as generally understood by the people, is not what hath been intended.
Thus it is recorded: “Every knowledge hath seventy meanings, of which one only
is known amongst the people. And when the Qá’im shall arise, He shall reveal
unto men all that which remaineth.” He also saith: “We speak one word, and by
it we intend one and seventy meanings; each one of these meanings we can
explain.”
The Great Being saith: Human utterance is an essence which
aspireth to exert its influence and needeth moderation. As to its influence,
this is conditional upon refinement which in turn is dependent upon hearts
which are detached and pure. As to its moderation, this hath to be combined
with tact and wisdom as prescribed in the Holy Scriptures and Tablets.
It is clear and evident that, whether this Cause be seen as
right or wrong by the people, those who are associated with its name have
accepted and embraced it as true, and have forsaken their all in their
eagerness to partake of the things of God. That they should evince such renunciation in the path of the love of the
All-Merciful is in itself a faithful witness and an eloquent testimony to the
truth of their convictions. Hath it ever
been witnessed that a man of sound judgement should sacrifice his life without
cause or reason? And if it be suggested
that this people have taken leave of their senses, this too is highly
improbable, inasmuch as such behaviour hath not been confined to merely a soul
or two—nay, a vast multitude of every class have drunk their fill of the living
waters of divine knowledge, and, intoxicated, have hastened with heart and soul
to the field of sacrifice in the way of the Beloved.
O My Son! The company of the ungodly increaseth sorrow,
whilst fellowship with the righteous cleanseth the rust from off the heart. He
that seeketh to commune with God, let him betake himself to the companionship
of His loved ones; and he that desireth to hearken unto the word of God, let
him give ear to the words of His chosen ones.
I beseech Thee, O Thou Who art the Lord of all names, to
guard Thy loved ones against Thine enemies, and to strengthen them in their
love for Thee and in fulfilling Thy pleasure. Do Thou protect them, that their
footsteps may slip not, that their hearts may not be shut out as by a veil from
Thee, and that their eyes may be restrained from beholding anything that is not
of Thee. Cause them to be so enraptured by the sweetness of Thy divine melodies
that they will rid themselves of all attachment to any one except Thee, and
will turn wholly towards Thee, and extol Thee under all conditions, saying:
“Praised be Thou, O Lord our God, inasmuch as Thou hast enabled us to recognize
Thy most exalted and all-glorious Self. We will, by Thy mercy, cleave to Thee,
and will detach ourselves from any one but Thee. We have realized that Thou art
the Beloved of the worlds and the Creator of earth and heaven!” Glorified be
God, the Lord of all creation!
It should be remembered…that the one true God is in Himself
exalted beyond and above proximity and remoteness. His reality transcendeth such
limitations. His relationship to His creatures knoweth no degrees. That some
are near and others are far is to be ascribed to the manifestations themselves.
Meditate on what the poet hath written: “Wonder not, if my
Best-Beloved be closer to me than mine own self; wonder at this, that I, despite
such nearness, should still be so far from Him.”... Considering what God hath
revealed, that “We are closer to man than his life-vein,” the poet hath, in
allusion to this verse, stated that, though the revelation of my Best-Beloved
hath so permeated my being that He is closer to me than my life-vein, yet,
notwithstanding my certitude of its reality and my recognition of my station, I
am still so far removed from Him. By this he meaneth that his heart, which is
the seat of the All-Merciful and the throne wherein abideth the splendor of His
revelation, is forgetful of its Creator, hath strayed from His path, hath shut
out itself from His glory, and is stained with the defilement of earthly
desires.
Behold, how immeasurably exalted is the Lord your God above
all created things! Witness the majesty of His sovereignty, His ascendancy, and
supreme power. If the things which have been created by Him—magnified be His
glory—and ordained to be the manifestations of His names and attributes, stand,
by virtue of the grace with which they have been endowed, exalted beyond all
proximity and remoteness, how much loftier must be that Divine Essence that
hath called them into being?...
No man of wisdom can demonstrate his knowledge save by means
of words. This showeth the significance of the Word as is affirmed in all the
Scriptures, whether of former times or more recently. For it is through its
potency and animating spirit that the people of the world have attained so
eminent a position. Moreover words and utterances should be both impressive and
penetrating. However, no word will be infused with these two qualities unless
it be uttered wholly for the sake of God and with due regard unto the
exigencies of the occasion and the people.
Were man to appreciate the greatness of his station and the
loftiness of his destiny he would manifest naught save goodly character, pure
deeds, and a seemly and praiseworthy conduct. If the learned and wise men of
goodwill were to impart guidance unto the people, the whole earth would be
regarded as one country. Verily this is the undoubted truth. This servant
appealeth to every diligent and enterprising soul to exert his utmost endeavour
and arise to rehabilitate the conditions in all regions and to quicken the dead
with the living waters of wisdom and utterance, by virtue of the love he
cherisheth for God, the One, the Peerless, the Almighty, the Beneficent.
The winds of despair are, alas, blowing from every
direction, and the strife that divideth and afflicteth the human race is daily
increasing. The signs of impending convulsions and chaos can now be discerned,
inasmuch as the prevailing order appeareth to be lamentably defective. I
beseech God, exalted be His glory, that He may graciously awaken the peoples of
the earth, may grant that the end of their conduct may be profitable unto them,
and aid them to accomplish that which beseemeth their station.