Baha’i Justice

The word of God which the Supreme Pen hath recorded on the

of the Most Exalted Paradise is this:

O son of man! If thine eyes be turned towards mercy, forsake the things that profit thee and cleave unto that which will profit mankind. And if thine eyes be turned towards justice, choose thou for thy neighbour that which thou choosest for thyself. Humility exalteth man to the heaven of glory and power, whilst pride abaseth him to the depths of wretchedness and degradation.

O people of God! Great is the Day and mighty the Call! In one of Our Tablets We have revealed these exalted words: ‘Were the world of the spirit to be wholly converted into the sense of hearing, it could then claim to be worthy to hearken unto the Voice that calleth from the Supreme Horizon; for otherwise, these ears that are defiled with lying tales have never been, nor are they now, fit to hear it.’ Well is it with them that hearken; and woe betide the wayward.

Baha’u’llah, Words of Paradise

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The tenderness of Thy mercy, O my Lord, surpasseth the fury of Thy wrath, and Thy loving-kindness exceedeth Thy hot displeasure, and Thy grace excelleth Thy justice. Hold Thou, through Thy wondrous favors and mercies, the hands of Thy creatures, and suffer them not to be separated from the grace which Thou hast ordained as the means whereby they can recognize Thee. The glory of Thy might beareth me witness! Were such a thing to happen, every soul would be sore shaken, every man endued with understanding would be bewildered, and every possessor of knowledge would be dumbfounded, except those who have been succored through the hands of Thy Cause, and have been made the recipients of the revelations of Thy grace and of the tokens of Thy favors.

I swear by Thy might, O my God! Wert Thou to regard Thy servants according to their deserts in Thy days, they would assuredly merit naught except Thy chastisement and torment. Thou art, however, the One Who is of great bounteousness, Whose grace is immense. Look not down upon them, O my God, with the glance of Thy justice, but rather with the eyes of Thy tender compassions and mercies. Do, then, with them according to what beseemeth Thy generosity and bountiful favor. Potent art Thou to do whatsoever may please Thee. Incomparable art Thou. No God is there beside Thee, the Lord of the throne on high and of earth below, the Ruler of this world and of the world to come. Thou art the God of Bounty, the Ever-Forgiving, the Great Giver, the Most Generous.

Excerpt from Baha’u’llah, Prayers and Meditations #LXXXI

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The Four White Roots of Peace Prophesied of by Iroquois Prophet Deganawidah, New JerUSAlem, & Baha’u’llah’s Universal House of Justice with The Davidic King as Executive

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https://www.juneteenth.com/history.htm

The Oneness Of Humanity-First Principle Of The Baha’i Faith

The Removal Of All Prejudice-Seventh Principle Of The Baha’i Faith

The Prophesied Four White Roots Of Peace, New JerUSAlem, & Baha’u’llah’s Universal House of Justice With The Davidic King As Executive

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Lawh-i-Fu’ád

He is the Most Holy, the Most Glorious!

Káf. Zá’.We call unto thee from beyond the sea of grandeur, upon the crimson land, above the horizon of tribulation. Verily, no God is there save Him, the Almighty, the Most Generous. Walk thou steadfastly in My Cause and follow not the ways of those who, upon attaining unto the object of their desire, denied God, the Lord of Lords. Erelong shall He lay hold upon them in His wrath, and He, verily, is the All-Powerful, the All-Subduing.

Know thou that, through the power of His sovereign might, God hath seized him who was the foremost amongst them that passed judgement against Us. When he saw his torment approaching, he fled to Paris to seek recourse to physicians.

“Is there none to help me?” he asked.

He was smitten upon the mouth and told: “There is no escape!”

And when he turned towards the angel of wrath, he well-nigh expired from fear. “I have a house full of riches,” he pleaded. “I have a palace on the Bosphorus, beneath which the rivers flow.”

The angel replied: “No ransom shall be accepted from thee on this day, even shouldst thou offer up all things visible and invisible. Hearest thou not the sighs of the kindred of God, whom thou didst cast into prison without proof or testimony? Thy deed hath provoked the lamentation of the inmates of Paradise, and of those who circle morn and eve round the Throne on high. The wrath of thy Lord hath descended upon thee, and stern is He in His chastisement!”

He made reply: “I held command over the people, and here is the mandate of my authority.”

“Hold thy peace, O denier of the Day of Judgement!”

He implored: “Is no respite possible so that I may send for my family?”

“Far from it, O disbeliever in the verses of God!”

Thereupon the keepers of the fathomless abyss called unto him: “The gates of Hell have opened wide to receive thee, O thou who hast turned away from thy Lord, the Unconstrained! Repair unto its fire, for it yearneth after thee. Hast thou forgotten, O rejected one, when thou wert the Nimrod of the age, how thy tyranny eclipsed the very cruelties of Pharaoh, the Lord of the Stakes?By God! Thine iniquity hath rent asunder the veil of sanctity and caused the pillars of heaven to tremble. Where canst thou find refuge now? Who shall protect thee from the dreadful scourge of thy Lord, the All-Compelling? There is no haven for thee in this Day, O ungodly doubter!” Whereupon the agony of death seized him and he saw no more. Thus did We lay hold on him in Our wrathful anger, and severe is thy Lord in His punishment.

Then an angel from the right hand of the Throne summoned him: “Behold the angel of affliction. Is there any place to flee to save hell, wherein the heartboileth?” And the angel of chastisement received his spirit, and a voice proclaimed: “Enter the bottomless pit which hath been promised in the Book, and whose existence thou didst day and night deny!”

Soon will We dismiss the one who was like unto him,and will lay hold on their Chief who ruleth the land,and I, verily, am the Almighty, the All-Compelling. Be thou steadfast in the Cause of God and extol thy Lord morn and eve. Suffer not the light of thy soul to be quenched by the calumnies of the one who was so blinded by Our bestowals as to turn away from God, the Lord of all names. He inspireth his devoted followers even as the Evil One prompteth his own. Erelong shalt thou behold him in evident loss both in this world and in the world to come. He, indeed, is among those whom an afflictive torment doth await. He dispatched an epistle to someone in that land, a writ of the workers of iniquity, in which he mocked God and recorded that which filled all created things with dismay. Say: Canst thou find anyone to protect thee when the wrath of God, the All-Powerful, the Unconstrained, is visited upon thee?

Thus have We informed thee of that which lieth concealed within the hearts of men. Verily, thy Lord is the Almighty, the All-Knowing. Arise for the triumph of this Cause, and gather together My loved ones. Help them to see the truth in this Day when the feet of men have slipped. Say: It behoveth every true believer to assist his Lord. He, verily, is your helper, while the people have no one to turn to in this Day.

Then We seized Mihdí,to whom We had promised divine chastisement in Our Books and Scriptures. When Our awful majesty encompassed him, he entreated: “May I not retrace my steps?”

A voice exclaimed: “Woe betide thee, O disbeliever in the Day of Resurrection! This is the nethermost fire, and its flames have been made to blaze for thee. Thou didst forsake all righteous deeds in thy vain and futile life, and now thou hast none to shield thee from God. Thou art indeed he who caused all hearts to be consumed and the Holy Spirit to lament.”

He pleaded: “Is there yet no refuge for me?”

“Nay, by my Lord, even shouldst thou seek recourse to every possible means!”

Thereupon he cried out in such distress as to cause the people of the graves to tremble, and was seized by the Hand of invincible power. A voice then proclaimed: “Return unto the seat of wrath in the fire of hell; wretched and evil be thine abode!”

Thus did We lay hold on him as We laid hold on those who preceded him. Behold their houses which We have left to the spiders, and take heed, O ye who are endued with understanding! He it is who opposed God, and for whom the verses of wrath were revealed in the Book. Blessed is he who readeth it and pondereth its contents, for a goodly end doth in truth await him.

Thus have We recounted unto thee the tale of the evil-doers, that thine eyes may be solaced. As for thee, there lieth in store naught but a blissful end.

Baha’u’llah

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Well nigh half a century had passed since the inception of the Faith. Cradled in adversity, deprived in its infancy of its Herald and Leader, it had been raised from the dust, in which a hostile despot had thrown it, by its second and greatest Luminary Who, despite successive banishments, had, in less than half a century, succeeded in rehabilitating its fortunes, in proclaiming its Message, in enacting its laws and ordinances, in formulating its principles and in ordaining its institutions, and it had just begun to enjoy the sunshine of a prosperity never previously experienced, when suddenly it was robbed of its Author by the Hand of Destiny, its followers were plunged into sorrow and consternation, its repudiators found their declining hopes revive, and its adversaries, political as well as ecclesiastical, began to take heart again.

Already nine months before His ascension Bahá’u’lláh, as attested by `Abdu’l-Bahá, had voiced His desire to depart from this world. From that time onward it became increasingly evident, from the tone of His remarks to those who attained His presence, that the close of His earthly life was approaching, though He refrained from mentioning it openly to any one. On the night preceding the eleventh of Shavval 1309 A.H. (May 8, 1892) He contracted a slight fever which, though it mounted the following day, soon after subsided. He continued to grant interviews to certain of the friends and pilgrims, but it soon became evident that He was not well. His fever returned in a more acute form than before, His general condition grew steadily worse, complications ensued which at last culminated in His ascension, at the hour of dawn, on the 2nd of Dhi’l-Qádih 1309 A.H. (May 29, 1892), eight hours after sunset, in the 75th year of His age. His spirit, at long last released from the toils of a life crowded with tribulations, had winged its flight to His “other dominions,” dominions “whereon the eyes of the people of names have never fallen,” and to which the “Luminous Maid,” “clad in white,” had bidden Him hasten, as described by Himself in the Lawh-i-Ru’yá (Tablet of the Vision), revealed nineteen years previously, on the anniversary of the birth of His Forerunner.

Six days before He passed away He summoned to His presence, as He lay in bed leaning against one of His sons, the entire company of believers, including several pilgrims, who had assembled in the Mansion, for what proved to be their last audience with Him. “I am well pleased with you all,” He gently and affectionately addressed the weeping crowd that gathered about Him. “Ye have rendered many services, and been very assiduous in your labors. Ye have come here every morning and every evening. May God assist you to remain united. May He aid you to exalt the Cause of the Lord of being.” To the women, including members of His own family, gathered at His bedside, He addressed similar words of encouragement, definitely assuring them that in a document entrusted by Him to the Most Great Branch He had commended them all to His care.

The news of His ascension was instantly communicated to Sultán `Abdu’l-Hamíd in a telegram which began with the words “the Sun of Bahá has set” and in which the monarch was advised of the intention of interring the sacred remains within the precincts of the Mansion, an arrangement to which he readily assented. Bahá’u’lláh was accordingly laid to rest in the northernmost room of the house which served as a dwelling-place for His son-in-law, the most northerly of the three houses lying to the west of, and adjacent to, the Mansion. His interment took place shortly after sunset, on the very day of His ascension.

The inconsolable Nabíl, who had had the privilege of a private audience with Bahá’u’lláh during the days of His illness; whom `Abdu’l-Bahá had chosen to select those passages which constitute the text of the Tablet of Visitation now recited in the Most Holy Tomb; and who, in his uncontrollable grief, drowned himself in the sea shortly after the passing of his Beloved, thus describes the agony of those days: “Methinks, the spiritual commotion set up in the world of dust had caused all the worlds of God to tremble…. My inner and outer tongue are powerless to portray the condition we were in…. In the midst of the prevailing confusion a multitude of the inhabitants of Akká and of the neighboring villages, that had thronged the fields surrounding the Mansion, could be seen weeping, beating upon their heads, and crying aloud their grief.”

For a full week a vast number of mourners, rich and poor alike, tarried to grieve with the bereaved family, partaking day and night of the food that was lavishly dispensed by its members. Notables, among whom were numbered Shí’ahs, Sunnís, Christians, Jews and Druzes, as well as poets, `ulamás and government officials, all joined in lamenting the loss, and in magnifying the virtues and greatness of Bahá’u’lláh, many of them paying to Him their written tributes, in verse and in prose, in both Arabic and Turkish. From cities as far afield as Damascus, Aleppo, Beirut and Cairo similar tributes were received. These glowing testimonials were, without exception, submitted to `Abdu’l-Bahá, Who now represented the Cause of the departed Leader, and Whose praises were often mingled in these eulogies with the homage paid to His Father.

And yet these effusive manifestations of sorrow and expressions of praise and of admiration, which the ascension of Bahá’u’lláh had spontaneously evoked among the unbelievers in the Holy Land and the adjoining countries, were but a drop when compared with the ocean of grief and the innumerable evidences of unbounded devotion which, at the hour of the setting of the Sun of Truth, poured forth from the hearts of the countless thousands who had espoused His Cause, and were determined to carry aloft its banner in Persia, India, Russia, Iraq, Turkey, Palestine, Egypt and Syria.

With the ascension of Bahá’u’lláh draws to a close a period which, in many ways, is unparalleled in the world’s religious history. The first century of the Bahá’í Era had by now run half its course. An epoch, unsurpassed in its sublimity, its fecundity and duration by any previous Dispensation, and characterized, except for a short interval of three years, by half a century of continuous and progressive Revelation, had terminated. The Message proclaimed by the Báb had yielded its golden fruit. The most momentous, though not the most spectacular phase of the Heroic Age had ended. The Sun of Truth, the world’s greatest Luminary, had risen in the Síyáh-Chál of Tihrán, had broken through the clouds which enveloped it in Baghdád, had suffered a momentary eclipse whilst mounting to its zenith in Adrianople and had set finally in Akká, never to reappear ere the lapse of a full millenium. God’s newborn Faith, the cynosure of all past Dispensations, had been fully and unreservedly proclaimed. The prophecies announcing its advent had been remarkably fulfilled. Its fundamental laws and cardinal principles, the warp and woof of the fabric of its future World Order, had been clearly enunciated. Its organic relation to, and its attitude towards, the religious systems which preceded it had been unmistakably defined. The primary institutions, within which an embryonic World Order was destined to mature, had been unassailably established. The Covenant designed to safeguard the unity and integrity of its world-embracing system had been irrevocably bequeathed to posterity. The promise of the unification of the whole human race, of the inauguration of the Most Great Peace, of the unfoldment of a world civilization, had been incontestably given. The dire warnings, foreshadowing catastrophes destined to befall kings, ecclesiastics, governments and peoples, as a prelude to so glorious a consummation, had been repeatedly uttered. The significant summons to the Chief Magistrates of the New World, forerunner of the Mission with which the North American continent was to be later invested, had been issued. The initial contact with a nation, a descendant of whose royal house was to espouse its Cause ere the expiry of the first Bahá’í century, had been established. The original impulse which, in the course of successive decades, has conferred, and will continue to confer, in the years to come, inestimable benefits of both spiritual and institutional significance upon God’s holy mountain, overlooking the Most Great Prison, had been imparted. And finally, the first banners of a spiritual conquest which, ere the termination of that century, was to embrace no less than sixty countries in both the Eastern and Western hemispheres had been triumphantly planted.

Shoghi Effendi-God Passes By (exc.), ch. XIII-Ascension Of Baha’u’llah

On this date in 1844 AD The Bab (in English “Door” or “Gate”) made His proclamation. The Bab was the biblically prophesied return of John the Baptist who was to come as the Herald of the advent of the second Christ, and both the Qa’im (Ariser) and Mahdi (Rightly Guided One) of Islam. The Bab was also prophesied in both the Holy Bible and the Holy Quran by His Name, His Address (from where He would come forth), and His Mission. To learn all of these Proofs go to Entry By Troops.

The Advent Date of The Bab as witnessed to in the Great Pyramid of Giza and prophesied of in the Holy Bible:

Measuring 1843.217891867748 P” up the Ascending Passageway from the Zero Point, you come to the upper end of the Grand Gallery of Religions at the Altar Stone. (see Figure 19) This junction is at the East – West Center Line, marking the end of the Christian Era and calendar on March 21st, 1844 AD and bringing us into the New Age. The Baha’i Era and calendar were inaugurated by the Bab who made his Proclamation on May 23rd, 1844 AD. This date corresponds exactly with the date given by Daniel in the Bible of 2300 days/years from 457 BC to March 21st, 1844 (Daniel 8:13, 14) for the return of Jesus as the Bab (Door or Gate in John 10:7, 9), for the cleansing of the Sanctuary. The Sanctuary is symbolized by the Ante-chamber in the Great Pyramid and the Altar by the Great Step. The Sanctuary was cleansed by the blood of the Bab on the Altar just inside the Door of the Sanctuary and by the blood of ten thousand of his followers in Glorious martyrdom, during the years represented by the length of the Altar Stone (the Great Step) in the Pyramid.

The Bab, meaning Door or Gate, closed the door to the Prophetic Age and opened the door to the Age of Fulfillment. His Revelation was of the potency of the Sanctuary and he is therefore the return of Jesus to earth in the Sanctuary which he had entered in heaven (Hebrews 9:24). Like John the Baptist, he prepared the way for the Advent of the Glory of the Lord—Baha’u’llah (see the 43rd chapter of Ezekiel).

The calendar instituted by the Bab for the New Age has 19 days to the month and 19 months to the year, plus four and one-quarter intercalary days, with leap years having five (one year = 19 months of 19 days plus four and one-quarter intercalary days). Therefore there are 19.22328763 Baha’i months in one solar year.

From UHJ.net:

The Bab was the Holy Soul promised to come from the line and issue of Muhammad, the son of Ishmael the son of Abraham.

This line of Ishmael was the Holy line of sacrifice, set up and established to protect the line of David throughout all the independent and warring dynasties; if ONLY all Jews, Christians, and Muslims knew this, peace, union and harmony would capture all the hearts of mankind and knit them as one–all would be united as one being upon this divided earth and wars and hatred, poverty, ignorance and prejudice would vanish like the night shade of dusk upon the morning suns brilliantly gleaming rays of light, hope, trust and salvation.

In the Name of God, the Lord of overpowering majesty, the All-Compelling.

Hallowed be the Lord in Whose hand is the source of dominion. He createth whatsoever He willeth by His Word of command “Be,” and it is. His hath been the power of authority heretofore, and it shall remain His hereafter. He maketh victorious whomsoever He pleaseth, through the potency of His behest. He is in truth the Powerful, the Almighty. Unto Him pertaineth all glory and majesty in the kingdoms of Revelation and Creation and whatever lieth between them. Verily, He is the Potent, the All-Glorious. From everlasting He hath been the Source of indomitable strength and shall remain so unto everlasting. He is indeed the Lord of might and power. All the kingdoms of heaven and earth and whatever is between them are God’s, and His power is supreme over all things. All the treasures of earth and heaven and everything between them are His, and His protection extendeth over all things. He is the Creator of the heavens and the earth and whatever lieth between them, and He truly is a witness over all things. He is the Lord of Reckoning for all that dwell in the heavens and the earth and whatever is between them. Verily, He is the Supreme Protector. He holdeth in His grasp the keys of heaven and earth and of everything between them. At His Own pleasure doth He bestow gifts, through the power of His command. Indeed His grace encompasseth all, and He is the All-Knowing.

Say: God sufficeth unto me; He is the One Who holdeth in His grasp the kingdom of all things. Through the power of His hosts of heaven and earth and whatever lieth between them, He protecteth whomsoever among His servants He willeth. God, in truth, keepeth watch over all things.

Immeasurably exalted art Thou, O Lord! Protect us from what lieth in front of us and behind us, above our heads, on our right, on our left, below our feet and every other side to which we are exposed. Verily, Thy protection over all things is unfailing.–The Bab

The sacrifice of the Bab and 10,000 Babi’s, an act of unbridled love for God, illuminates all mankind even up unto this very day. Hagar the Handmaiden and her son Ishmael were chosen by God and sacrificed by Abraham into the wilderness of Arabia. Hagar was an Egyptian princess and Ishmael thereby inherited the rights of a spiritual pharaoh of the line of the great pre-Mosaic dynasties of Egypt united with the seed of Abraham and promised to be a Great Nation with 12 princes, who are the 12 Imams descended in succession from Ali and the daughter of Muhammad the Holy Fatimah. All 12 of these and Muhammad Himself sacrificed and gave their lives as a SHIELD and a TARGET for the arrows of men in protection of the line of King David that continued in their dispensation in the Middle Kingdom of Islam that was ordained by God to come between the dispensation of David of that of Moses and Christ and that of David of the line of Baha’u’llah and ‘Abdu’l-Baha that continues today.

The first Imam, Ali, protected the line of David by insuring the marriage of the Exilarch, (exiled monarch of David), Bostanai to the Sassanian princess Dara, thus uniting the line of David with the greatest of the pre Muslim dynasties descended from Cyrus the Great and Sassan. In the Book of Isaiah it is prophesied that the Messiah would be of the line of Cyrus, as well as that of David, when Cyrus is mentioned as the “anointed” messiah of the Lord. This is accomplished through the FEMALE line of Cyrus and the MALE Line of David–that all prophecy in the Bible that God has spoken is TRUE! Baha’u’llah descends from this union of David and the Persian princess.

The Bab is descended on the other Hand from the Imam Husayn who wed Dara’s sister Shar-banu who is known as the mother of nine Imams, as the rest of the 12 are directly descended from her and Husayn.

When the corrupt killers of God’s Holy Family and the ill-wishers and destroyers of His Cause came to Kill the Davidic King Bostanai, Imam Husayn and about 70 of his followers sacrificed their lives on the plain of Karbila so the line of David should continue, prosper, and live. When asked by what authority the Imams ruled, Husayn replied, shortly before he gave his life in holy sacrifice and martyrdom, following in the footsteps of Jesus and bearing the same cross all were commanded to bear, that “We Imams rule by the authority of the throne of David, and if we lack anything the Holy Spirit sends it to us!”

Thus Muhammad Himself revealed in the Koran that “God exalted some of the prophets above that of the others and to David He gave the Psalms”, showing the exaltation of Christ and the lineage of Baha’u’llah that Muhammad, Ishmael, and the Imams gave and sacrificed their lives for, the line of King David of God’s Justice that all Muslims were to lovingly submit to as Islam means “submission”, and thus these true ones willingly gave their lives for God that His Covenant to David should last for ever.

At the time of the appointed hour in 1844 after the prescribed time allotted of the 2300 evenings and mornings (years) had passed away, the Bab arose from this same Holy Lineage with 10,000 saints (see Jude) and became the shield for the Jewish Kingship Christ had promised and prophesied. The Bab made his death the life for all the world by sacrificing his all, and that of the best that Persia had to offer, so that those Christian brothers of the West should know the Hidden Treasure of Persia, where Daniel and the Davidic King went into captivity, that the throne and lineage of Christ were held safe in the high mountains of that country until today, so all men could be saved from self destruction at this appointed hour!

No pen can adequately write, nor can any tongue recount the greatness of the love, devotion and sacrifice of the true Cause of Islam, Ishmael, Muhammad, the Imams, and the Bab to preserving the line of David to save the Christian West unto this day today. All the people of the world owe a debt of thanks to God and praise and gratitude to those holy souls, the Dawn-breakers, that willingly and knowingly gave their lives; and Shoghi Effendi as well, who was martyred in London on November 4 of 1957, from this same line of sacrifice of the Bab, so that the great grandson of ‘Abdu’l-Baha could be here alive in the world today, so all mankind could elect the Supreme Tribunal, or House of the Lord, and bring peace, as the promised olive BRANCH, to a beleaguered and war weary world.

NOW the light has shined through the HOLY GATE OF GOD–Bahá’u’lláh has COME! BAB means door or Gate and none enter this Kingdom but through the narrow one. Herein follows the precious word of the Master ‘Abdu’l-Baha concerning this Holy Bab (Gate), and how in his sacrifice alone, and his undying, unending servitude and never-ending love, the very breaths and musk-scented breezes and very blood united the East and the West in the eternal and everlasting bonds of affection and cooperation, mutual trust and firmness in the One, the True, the Everlasting Covenant of God. For Paul has written: “That God shall be all and all to everyone!”

As for the Bab–may my soul be His sacrifice!–at a youthful age, that is to say, when He had reached the twenty-fifth year of His blessed life, He stood forth to proclaim His Cause. It was universally admitted by the Shi’is that He had never studied in any school and had not acquired knowledge from any teacher; all the people of Shiraz bear witness to this. Nevertheless, He suddenly appeared before the people, endowed with the most complete erudition. Although He was but a merchant, He confounded all the ulama of Persia. All alone, in a way which is beyond imagination, He upheld the Cause among the Persians [Iranians], who are renowned for their religious fanaticism. This illustrious Soul arose with such power that He shook the supports of the religion, of the morals, the conditions, the habits and the customs of Persia, and instituted new rules, new laws and a new religion. Though the great personages of the State, nearly all the clergy, and the public men arose to destroy and annihilate Him, He alone withstood them and moved the whole of Persia.

Many ulama and public men, as well as other people, joyfully sacrificed their lives in His Cause, and hastened to the plain of martyrdom.

The government, the nation, the doctors of divinity and the great personages desired to extinguish His light, but they could not do so. At last His moon arose, His star shone forth, His foundations became firmly established, and His dawning-place became brilliant. He imparted divine education to an unenlightened multitude and produced marvelous results on the thoughts, morals, customs and conditions of the Persians. He announced the glad tidings of the manifestation of the Sun of Baha [Baha’u’llah, Christ returned in the potency of the Everlasting Father seated upon the Throne of David] to His followers and prepared them to believe [like John the Baptist, who was the forerunner for Jesus Christ that prepared the way for him as well].

The appearance of such wonderful signs and great results; the effects produced upon the minds of the people, and upon the prevailing ideas; the establishment of the foundations of progress; and the organization of the principles of success and prosperity by a young merchant, constitute the greatest proof that He was a perfect Educator. A just person will never hesitate to believe this.

Whatsoever Is Possible Of Accomplishment In Human Government Will Be Effected Through These Principles

The Fourth Taraz/Ornament

The fourth Ṭaráz concerneth trustworthiness. Verily it is the door of security for all that dwell on earth and a token of glory on the part of the All-Merciful. He who partaketh thereof hath indeed partaken of the treasures of wealth and prosperity. Trustworthiness is the greatest portal leading unto the tranquility and security of the people. In truth the stability of every affair hath depended and doth depend upon it. All the domains of power, of grandeur and of wealth are illumined by its light.

Not long ago these sublime words were revealed from the Pen of the Most High:

“We will now mention unto thee Trustworthiness and the station thereof in the estimation of God, thy Lord, the Lord of the Mighty Throne. One day of days We repaired unto Our Green Island. Upon Our arrival, We beheld its streams flowing, and its trees luxuriant, and the sunlight playing in their midst. Turning Our face to the right, We beheld what the pen is powerless to describe; nor can it set forth that which the eye of the Lord of Mankind witnessed in that most sanctified, that most sublime, that blest, and most exalted Spot. Turning, then, to the left We gazed on one of the Beauties of the Most Sublime Paradise, standing on a pillar of light, and calling aloud saying: ‘O inmates of earth and heaven! Behold ye My beauty, and My radiance, and My revelation, and My effulgence. By God, the True One! I am Trustworthiness and the revelation thereof, and the beauty thereof. I will recompense whosoever will cleave unto Me, and recognize My rank and station, and hold fast unto My hem. I am the most great ornament of the people of Bahá, and the vesture of glory unto all who are in the kingdom of creation. I am the supreme instrument for the prosperity of the world, and the horizon of assurance unto all beings.’ Thus have We sent down for thee that which will draw men nigh unto the Lord of creation.”

O people of Bahá! Trustworthiness is in truth the best of vestures for your temples and the most glorious crown for your heads. Take ye fast hold of it at the behest of Him Who is the Ordainer, the All-Informed.

Baha’u’llah-Tablet of Tarazat

Whatsoever Is Possible Of Accomplishment In Human Government Will Be Effected Through These Principles

The American nation, of which the community of the Most Great Name forms as yet a negligible and infinitesimal part, stands, indeed, from whichever angle one observes its immediate fortunes, in grave peril. The woes and tribulations which threaten it are partly avoidable, but mostly inevitable and God-sent, for by reason of them a government and people clinging tenaciously to the obsolescent doctrine of absolute sovereignty and upholding a political system, manifestly at variance with the needs of a world already contracted into a neighborhood and crying out for unity, will find itself purged of its anachronistic conceptions, and prepared to play a preponderating role, as foretold by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, in the hoisting of the standard of the Lesser Peace, in the unification of mankind, and in the establishment of a world federal government on this planet. These same fiery tribulations will not only firmly weld the American nation to its sister nations in both hemispheres, but will through their cleansing effect, purge it thoroughly of the accumulated dross which ingrained racial prejudice, rampant materialism, widespread ungodliness and moral laxity have combined, in the course of successive generations, to produce, and which have prevented her thus far from assuming the role of world spiritual leadership forecast by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s unerring pen—a role which she is bound to fulfill through travail and sorrow.

Shoghi Effendi-Citadel Of Faith-July 28, 1954-American Baha’is In The Time Of World Peril

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Prayer For America

O Thou kind Lord! This gathering is turning to Thee. These hearts are radiant with Thy love. These minds and spirits are exhilarated by the message of Thy glad-tidings. O God! Let this American democracy become glorious in spiritual degrees even as it has aspired to material degrees, and render this just government victorious. Confirm this revered nation to upraise the standard of the oneness of humanity, to promulgate the Most Great Peace, to become thereby most glorious and praiseworthy among all the nations of the world. O God! This American nation is worthy of Thy favors and is deserving of Thy mercy. Make it precious and near to Thee through Thy bounty and bestowal.

Abdu’l-Baha’

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O my Lord! Thou knowest that the people are encircled with pain and calamities and are environed with hardships and trouble. Every trial doth attack man and every dire adversity doth assail him like unto the assault of a serpent. There is no shelter and asylum for him except under the wing of Thy protection, preservation, guard and custody.

O Thou the Merciful One! O my Lord! Make Thy protection my armor, Thy preservation my shield, humbleness before the door of Thy oneness my guard, and Thy custody and defense my fortress and my abode. Preserve me from the suggestions of self and desire, and guard me from every sickness, trial, difficulty and ordeal.

Verily, Thou art the Protector, the Guardian, the Preserver, the Sufficer, and verily, Thou art the Merciful of the Most Merciful.

Abdu’l-Baha’

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Whatsoever Is Possible Of Accomplishment In Human Government Will Be Effected Through These Principles

A Tablet of the Feast of Ridvan

Revealed by Baha’u’llah

HE IS THE ALMIGHTY LORD!

Lo, this is the garden of Paradise wherein is raised the Voice of God, the Dominant, the Strong; Here do the immaculate Maids of Heaven dwell, they whom no eye hath seen save only God’s, the Sanctified, the Well-Beloved; Herein the eternal nightingale singeth on the bough of the sacred Lote-Tree a song that bedazzaleth the minds, and herein are the needy led to the haven of wealth, and all men guided to the Word of God; verily this is a manifest truth.

Here is the song that the nightingale singeth;

IN THY NAME THAT IS GOD,

Thou art verily God!
O sacred Monk, ring out the bells, for the day of God hath come, and the Beauty of the All-Glorious is established on the holy, shining throne.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O prophet of wisdom, Hud, beat thou upon thy drum, in the name of the Lord, the Precious, the Bountiful, for the Temple of Holiness is seated upon His high, unapproachable throne.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O Thou beauty of eternity, pluck with the fingers of the spirit at the strings of Thy lute that is wondrous and Holy, for the Heavenly Beauty hath come in His garment of glimmering silk.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O angel of light, sound thou thy trumpet to herald this appearance, for the letter HA hath mounted above the letter of pre-existent might.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O Nightingale of Praise, sing out upon thy boughs within this garden and land, the well-beloved Name, for the beauty of the red rose hath shone from the impenetrable veils.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O Thou Dove of Paradise, sing upon the boughs in this wondrous day, when the Lord hath cast His rays upon all creatures.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O Thou Bird of Eternity, soar into this firmament, for the bird of faithfulness hath winged his flight to the presence of the merciful Lord.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O Dwellers in Paradise, sing out and chant with melodious voices, for the melody of God is pealing from beyond the high pavilions of holiness.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O denizens of the Kingdom, sing in the name of the Well-beloved, for the beauty of commandment hath gleamed from behind the veils, in the shining mantle of the spirit.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O dwellers in the kingdom of names, adorn the zones of the furthermost heaven, for the Greatest Name is riding on the mighty clouds of holiness.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O people of the realm of holy attributes in the heaven of Abha, prepare to meet your God, for the breezes of sanctity have wafted from the exalted throne, and this is a manifest grace.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O thou Ridwan of the one God, rejoice within thyself, for the Ridwan of God, the Exalted, the Precious, the Wise, is made manifest.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O heaven of the grandeur, thank God within thyself, for the heaven of holiness is raised up in the realm of the sanctified heart.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O Sun of this earth, eclipse thy face, for the sun of eternity hath dawned in the luminous heaven.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O land of knowledge, swallow up thy learning, for the realm of wisdom is unfolding in the self of God., the Exalted, the Mighty, the Bountiful.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O lamp of the world, extinguish thyself, for the light of the Lord is kindled in the lamp of eternity, and hath illumined the denizens of heaven and earth.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O seas of the world, quiet your waves within you, for the crimson sea hath surged with a wondrous Cause.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O cock of everlasting life, crow out on the peaks of the realm of might, for the Herald of God hath sounded His Call from every lofty hill.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O concourse of lovers, give out the glad tidings with all your heart, for the time of waiting is over, and the covenant hath come, and the Beloved hath shone in wondrous beauty.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

O people of knowledge, rejoice within your souls, for the day of parting is gone by, the time of certainty hath come, and the beauty of this Youth hath shone in sacred raiment within the paradise of the steadfast Name.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

Lauded art Thou O my God! I implore Thee by Thy day in which all the prophetic days are resurrected, Thy day whereof a moment comprehendeth all the ages.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

Lauded art Thou O my God! I implore Thee by Thy day in which all the prophetic days are resurrected, Thy day whereof a moment comprehendeth all the ages.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

And I implore Thee by Thy Name which Thou made king of the Kingdom of Names and ruler over all in earth and heaven.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

To make men free of all besides Thyself, and cause them to approach unto Thee and sever themselves from all but Thee. Verily Thou art the Powerful, the Precious, the Compassionate.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

Then kindle, O my Beloved, in their hearts the flame of Thy love, till it shall burn away the memory of all save Thee, that they may testify with themselves that verily Thou hast dwelt from everlasting on the heights of immortality, that nothing hath been joined with Thee, and that Thou ever art as Thou hast been. There is no God save Thee, the Mighty, the Beneficent.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

And those among Thy servants who seek to ascend the heights of Thy singleness, if their souls be set on the remembrance of aught else save Thee, they shall not be true believers in the unity of God, nor will the rank of a follower of the oneness of God be allotted them.
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

The glory be to Thee, O my God, for as long as Thy command endureth. Wherefore send Thou down from the clouds of Thy Mercy that which shall cleanse the hearts of Thy lovers, and sanctify the souls of Thy friends.

Then raise them up in Thy Loftiness, and give them the victory over all on earth; for this is that which “We have desired to bring honor upon those who were brought low in the land, and to make them leaders of men, and to make them our heirs.”
Glory to Thee, O God, O Thou who art God,

O Thou who alone art God!

Of the exact circumstances attending that epoch-making Declaration we, alas, are but scantily informed. The words Bahá’u’lláh actually uttered on that occasion, the manner of His Declaration, the reaction it produced, its impact on Mírzá Yaḥyá, the identity of those who were privileged to hear Him, are shrouded in an obscurity which future historians will find it difficult to penetrate. The fragmentary description left to posterity by His chronicler Nabíl is one of the very few authentic records we possess of the memorable days He spent in that garden. “Every day,” Nabíl has related, “ere the hour of dawn, the gardeners would pick the roses which lined the four avenues of the garden, and would pile them in the center of the floor of His blessed tent. So great would be the heap that when His companions gathered to drink their morning tea in His presence, they would be unable to see each other across it. All these roses Bahá’u’lláh would, with His own hands, entrust to those whom He dismissed from His presence every morning to be delivered, on His behalf, to His Arab and Persian friends in the city.” “One night,” he continues, “the ninth night of the waxing moon, I happened to be one of those who watched beside His blessed tent. As the hour of midnight approached, I saw Him issue from His tent, pass by the places where some of His companions were sleeping, and begin to pace up and down the moonlit, flower-bordered avenues of the garden. So loud was the singing of the nightingales on every side that only those who were near Him could hear distinctly His voice. He continued to walk until, pausing in the midst of one of these avenues, He observed: ‘Consider these nightingales. So great is their love for these roses, that sleepless from dusk till dawn, they warble their melodies and commune with burning passion with the object of their adoration. How then can those who claim to be afire with the rose-like beauty of the Beloved choose to sleep?’ For three successive nights I watched and circled round His blessed tent. Every time I passed by the couch whereon He lay, I would find Him wakeful, and every day, from morn till eventide, I would see Him ceaselessly engaged in conversing with the stream of visitors who kept flowing in from Baghdád. Not once could I discover in the words He spoke any trace of dissimulation.”

As to the significance of that Declaration let Bahá’u’lláh Himself reveal to us its import. Acclaiming that historic occasion as the “Most Great Festival,” the “King of Festivals,” the “Festival of God,” He has, in His Kitáb-i-Aqdas, characterized it as the Day whereon “all created things were immersed in the sea of purification,” whilst in one of His specific Tablets, He has referred to it as the Day whereon “the breezes of forgiveness were wafted over the entire creation.” “Rejoice, with exceeding gladness, O people of Bahá!”, He, in another Tablet, has written, “as ye call to remembrance the Day of supreme felicity, the Day whereon the Tongue of the Ancient of Days hath spoken, as He departed from His House proceeding to the Spot from which He shed upon the whole of creation the splendors of His Name, the All-Merciful… Were We to reveal the hidden secrets of that Day, all that dwell on earth and in the heavens would swoon away and die, except such as will be preserved by God, the Almighty, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. Such is the inebriating effect of the words of God upon the Revealer of His undoubted proofs that His pen can move no longer.” And again: “The Divine Springtime is come, O Most Exalted Pen, for the Festival of the All-Merciful is fast approaching…. The Day-Star of Blissfulness shineth above the horizon of Our Name, the Blissful, inasmuch as the Kingdom of the Name of God hath been adorned with the ornament of the Name of Thy Lord, the Creator of the heavens…. Take heed lest anything deter Thee from extolling the greatness of this Day—the Day whereon the Finger of Majesty and Power hath opened the seal of the Wine of Reunion, and called all who are in the heavens and all who are on earth…. This is the Day whereon the unseen world crieth out: ‘Great is thy blessedness, O earth, for thou hast been made the footstool of thy God, and been chosen as the seat of His mighty throne’ …Say … He it is Who hath laid bare before you the hidden and treasured Gem, were ye to seek it. He it is who is the One Beloved of all things, whether of the past or of the future.” And yet again: “Arise, and proclaim unto the entire creation the tidings that He who is the All-Merciful hath directed His steps towards the Riḍván and entered it. Guide, then, the people unto the Garden of Delight which God hath made the Throne of His Paradise… Within this Paradise, and from the heights of its loftiest chambers, the Maids of Heaven have cried out and shouted: ‘Rejoice, ye dwellers of the realms above, for the fingers of Him Who is the Ancient of Days are ringing, in the name of the All-Glorious, the Most Great Bell, in the midmost heart of the heavens. The hands of bounty have borne round the cups of everlasting life. Approach, and quaff your fill.’” And finally: “Forget the world of creation, O Pen, and turn Thou towards the face of Thy Lord, the Lord of all names. Adorn, then, the world with the ornament of the favors of Thy Lord, the King of everlasting days. For We perceive the fragrance of the Day whereon He Who is the Desire of all nations hath shed upon the kingdoms of the unseen and of the seen the splendors of the light of His most excellent names, and enveloped them with the radiance of the luminaries of His most gracious favors, favors which none can reckon except Him Who is the Omnipotent Protector of the entire creation.”

Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By pg. 153-155

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O DAUGHTER of the Kingdom! Thy letter hath come and its contents make clear the fact that thou hast directed all thy thoughts toward acquiring light from the realms of mystery. So long as the thoughts of an individual are scattered he will achieve no results, but if his thinking be concentrated on a single point wonderful will be the fruits thereof.

One cannot obtain the full force of the sunlight when it is cast on a flat mirror, but once the sun shineth upon a concave mirror, or on a lens that is convex, all its heat will be concentrated on a single point, and that one point will burn the hottest. Thus is it necessary to focus one’s thinking on a single point so that it will become an effective force.