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. 
I beseech Thee, by Thy Most Great Name, to open the eyes of
Thy servants, that they may behold Thee shining above the horizon of Thy
majesty and glory, and that they may not be hindered by the croaking of the
raven from hearkening to the voice of the Dove of Thy sublime oneness, nor be
prevented by the corrupt waters from partaking of the pure wine of Thy bounty
and the everlasting streams of Thy gifts.
Say: O servants! Let not the means of order be made the
cause of confusion and the instrument of union an occasion for discord. We fain
would hope that the people of Bahá may be guided by the blessed words: ‘Say:
all things are of God.’ This exalted utterance is like unto water for quenching
the fire of hate and enmity which smouldereth within the hearts and breasts of
men. By this single utterance contending peoples and kindreds will attain the
light of true unity. Verily He speaketh the truth and leadeth the way. He is
the All-Powerful, the Exalted, the Gracious.
Verily I say, fear of God is the greatest commander that can
render the Cause of God victorious, and the hosts which best befit this
commander have ever been and are an upright character and pure and goodly
deeds.
…when, as bidden by Thee, [God] I arose and called out, by
Thy leave, all Thy creatures, the wayward among Thy servants opposed me. Some
turned away from me, others disowned my claim, a few hesitated, while others
were sore perplexed, notwithstanding that Thy testimony was set forth before
the followers of all religions, and Thy proof demonstrated unto all the peoples
of the earth, and the signs of Thy might so powerfully manifested as to
encompass the entire creation.
This is the Chief of all days and the King thereof. Great is
the blessedness of him who hath attained, through the sweet savor of these
days, unto everlasting life, and who, with the most great steadfastness, hath
arisen to aid the Cause of Him Who is the King of Names. Such a man is as the
eye to the body of mankind.
O Son of Spirit! The time cometh, when the nightingale of
holiness will no longer unfold the inner mysteries and ye will all be bereft of
the celestial melody and of the voice from on high.
Please God, the peoples of the world may be led, as the
result of the high endeavors exerted by their rulers and the wise and learned
amongst men, to recognize their best interests. How long will humanity persist
in its waywardness? How long will injustice continue? How long is chaos and
confusion to reign amongst men? How long will discord agitate the face of
society?... 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.
It is incumbent upon them who are in authority to exercise
moderation in all things. Whatsoever passeth beyond the limits of moderation
will cease to exert a beneficial influence. Consider for instance such things
as liberty, civilization and the like. However much men of understanding may
favorably regard them, they will, if carried to excess, exercise a pernicious
influence upon men...
Our hope is that the world’s religious leaders and the
rulers thereof will unitedly arise for the reformation of this age and the
rehabilitation of its fortunes. Let them, after meditating on its needs, take
counsel together and, through anxious and full deliberation, administer to a
diseased and sorely-afflicted world the remedy it requireth...
The Great Being saith: O ye children of men! The fundamental
purpose animating the Faith of God and His Religion is to safeguard the
interests and promote the unity of the human race, and to foster the spirit of
love and fellowship amongst men. Suffer it not to become a source of dissension
and discord, of hate and enmity. This is the straight Path, the fixed and
immovable foundation. Whatsoever is raised on this foundation, the changes and
chances of the world can never impair its strength, nor will the revolution of
countless centuries undermine its structure.
Verily God will raise up Him Whom God shall make manifest,
and after Him Whomsoever He willeth, even as He hath raised up prophets before
the Point of the Bayán. He in truth hath power over all things.
Great is your blessedness, inasmuch as ye have forsaken your
homes and wandered the land for the love of your Lord, the Almighty, the
Ancient of Days, until ye entered the Land of Mystery at a time when the fire
of oppression was ablaze and the croaking of the raven of discord had been
raised. Ye are My partners in My tribulations, for ye were present with Us
during the darksome night in which the hearts of those who testify to the unity
of God were agitated. Ye entered this land for the sake of Our love, and
departed therefrom through Our command. By the righteousness of God! Because of
you the earth itself glorieth over heaven. How excellent is this most sublime,
this glorious and exalted bounty! Ye have been deprived of your nest, O birds
of eternity, for the sake of your Lord, the Unconstrained, but your true abode
is beneath the wings of the grace of the All-Merciful. Blessed are they that
understand.
O Son of Justice! Whither can a lover go but to the land of
his beloved? and what seeker findeth rest away from his heart’s desire? To the
true lover reunion is life, and separation is death. His breast is void of
patience and his heart hath no peace. A myriad lives he would forsake to hasten
to the abode of his beloved.
The Will of the divine Testator is this: It is incumbent
upon the Aghsán, the Afnán 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. Verily God hath ordained the station of the Greater Branch [Muḥammad
‘Alí] to be beneath that of the Most Great Branch [‘Abdu’l-Bahá]. He is in
truth the Ordainer, the All-Wise. We have chosen ‘the Greater’ after ‘the Most
Great’, as decreed by Him Who is the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.
O Son of Him that Stood by His Own Entity in the Kingdom of
His Self! Know thou, that I have wafted unto thee all the fragrances of
holiness, have fully revealed to thee My word, have perfected through thee My
bounty and have desired for thee that which I have desired for My Self. Be then
content with My pleasure and thankful unto Me.
Say: This Youth hath departed out of this country and
deposited beneath every tree and every stone a trust, which God will erelong
bring forth through the power of truth. Thus hath the True One come and the
command of Him Who is the Ordainer, the All-Wise, been fulfilled. The hosts of
earth and heaven are powerless to resist His Cause, nor can all the kings and
rulers of the world ever frustrate His purpose. Say: Adversity is the oil which
feedeth the flame of this Lamp and by which its light is increased, did ye but
know. Indeed, the repudiation of the froward serveth but to proclaim this Faith
and to spread the Cause of God and His Revelation throughout the world.
Was it in Pharaoh’s power to stay the hand of God from
exercising His sovereignty when he acted wantonly in the land and was of the
transgressors? From within his own house
and in spite of his will We brought forth Him Who conversed with God. Well able
are We to achieve Our purpose. Recall, moreover, how Nimrod kindled the fire of
impiety that its flames might consume Abraham, the Friend of God; We delivered
Him, however, through the power of truth and seized Nimrod with the fury of Our
wrath. Say: The Oppressor [Muhammad Sháh] put to death the Beloved of the
worlds to quench the light of God amongst the people and to debar them from the
wellspring of life eternal in the days of thy Lord, the Gracious, the Most
Bountiful.
The aim of this Wronged One in sustaining woes and
tribulations, in revealing the Holy Verses and in demonstrating proofs hath
been naught but to quench the flame of hate and enmity, that the horizon of the
hearts of men may be illumined with the light of concord and attain real peace
and tranquillity.