It is a great happiness to be here this evening, especially for the reason
that the members of this Association have come from the region of the
Orient. For a long time I have entertained a desire to meet some of the
Japanese friends. That nation has achieved extraordinary progress in a
short space of time--a progress and development which have astonished the
world. Inasmuch as they have advanced in material civilization, they must
assuredly possess the capacity for spiritual development. For this reason,
I have an excessive longing to meet them. Praise be to God! This pleasure
is now afforded me, for here in this city I am face to face with a revered
group of the Japanese. According to report the people of the Japanese
nation are not prejudiced. They investigate reality. Wherever they find
truth, they prove to be its lovers. They are not attached tenaciously to
blind imitations of ancient beliefs and dogmas. Therefore, it is my great
desire to discourse with them upon a subject in order that the unity and
blending together of the nations of the East and the nations of the West
may be furthered and accomplished. In this way religious, racial and
political prejudice, partisan bias and sectarianism will be dispelled
amongst men. Any kind of prejudice is destructive to the body politic.
When we review history from the beginning of human existence to the
present age in which we live, it is evident all war and conflict,
bloodshed and battle, every form of sedition has been due to some form of
prejudice--whether religious, racial or national--to partisan bias and
selfish prejudice of some sort. Even today we witness an upheaval in the
Balkans, a war of religious prejudice. Some years ago when I was living in
Rumelia, war broke out among the religious peoples. There was no attitude
of justice or equity whatever amongst them. They pillaged the properties
of each other, burning each others' homes and houses, slaughtering men,
women and children, imagining that such warfare and bloodshed was the
means of drawing near to God. This clearly proved that prejudice is a
destroyer of the foundations of the world of humanity, whereas religion
was meant to be the cause of fellowship and agreement.
Religion must be the cause of love. Religion must be the cause of justice,
for the wisdom of the Manifestations of God is directed toward the
establishing of the bond of a love which is indissoluble. The bonds which
hold together the body politic are not sufficient. These bonds may be
mentioned--for instance, the bond of patriotism. This is evidently not a
sufficient bond, for how often it happens that people of the same nation
wage civil war amongst themselves. The bond of fellowship may be racial,
but history proves this is not sufficiently strong, for tremendous wars
have broken out between peoples of the same racial lineage. Again, the
bond holding men together may be political. How often it happens that the
diplomacy of nations makes a treaty of peace one day and on the morrow a
declaration of war! It is historically evident and manifest that these
bonds are not self-sufficient.
The real bond of integrity is religious in character, for religion
indicates the oneness of the world of humanity. Religion serves the world
of morality. Religion purifies the hearts. Religion impels men to achieve
praiseworthy deeds. Religion becomes the cause of love in human hearts,
for religion is a divine foundation, the foundation ever conducive to
life. The teachings of God are the source of illumination to the people of
the world. Religion is ever constructive, not destructive.
The foundation of all the divine religions is one. All are based upon
reality. Reality does not admit plurality, yet amongst mankind there have
arisen differences concerning the Manifestations of God. Some have been
Zoroastrians, some are Buddhists, some Jews, Christians, Muslims and so
on. This has become a source of divergence, whereas the teachings of the
holy Souls Who founded the divine religions are one in essence and
reality. All these have served the world of humanity. All have summoned
souls to peace and accord. All have proclaimed the virtues of humanity.
All have guided souls to the attainment of perfections, but among the
nations certain imitations of ancestral forms of worship have arisen.
These imitations are not the foundation and essence of the divine
religions. Inasmuch as they differ from the reality and the essential
teachings of the Manifestations of God, dissensions have arisen, and
prejudice has developed. Religious prejudice thus becomes the cause of
warfare and battle.
If we abandon these timeworn blind imitations and investigate reality, all
of us will be unified. No discord will remain; antagonism will disappear.
All will associate in fellowship. All will enjoy the cordial bonds of
friendship. The world of creation will then attain composure. The dark and
gloomy clouds of blind imitations and dogmatic variances will be scattered
and dispelled; the Sun of Reality will shine most gloriously.
Verily, we should consider the divine Prophets as the intermediaries, but
mankind has made use of Them as causes of dissension and pretexts for
warfare and strife. In reality, They were the intermediaries of love and
reconciliation. If They were not sources of love and fellowship amongst
men, then undoubtedly They were not true, for the divine wisdom and
purpose in sending the Prophets was the manifestation of love in human
hearts. Therefore, we must investigate reality. First of all, let us
determine whether these Prophets were valid or not by using rational
proofs and shining arguments, not simply by quoting traditionary
evidences, because traditions are divergent and the source of dissension.
Among the holy, divine Manifestations of God was Moses. The sending of
Prophets has ever been for the training of humanity. They are the first
Educators and Trainers. If Moses has developed the body politic, there is
no doubt that He was a true Teacher and Educator. This will be proof and
evidence that He was a Prophet. We shall consider how He was sent to the
children of Israel when they were in the abyss of despair, in the lowest
degree of ignorance and heedlessness, degraded and under conditions of
bondage. Moses rescued these degraded people of Israel from that state of
bondage. He raised them from that condition of ignorance, saved them from
barbarism and led them into the Holy Land. He educated them, endowed them
with sagacious instincts, made them worthy and honorable. He civilized
them, raised them to a higher plane of existence until they were enabled
to establish a national sovereignty, the great kingdom of Solomon. This
proves that Moses was a Teacher and an Educator. He had neither army nor
dominion; neither did He possess wealth. It was only through an idealistic
power that He cemented them together, proving that He was a Prophet of
God, an Educator and Trainer.
Likewise, must we set aside prejudice in considering other divine
Educators by investigating reality. For instance, let us take Christ. He
achieved results greater than Moses. He educated the body politic, trained
mighty nations. There is no doubt whatever that such Souls were Prophets,
for the mission of Prophethood is education, and these wondrous Souls
trained and educated mankind.
Christ was a unique Personage, without helper or assistant. Single and
solitary He arose to train great and mighty nations; the Romans, Greeks,
Egyptians, Syrians, Chaldeans and Assyrians came under His influence. He
was able to bind together many nations, melting them together, as it were,
and pouring them into one mold, changing their enmity into love, war into
peace. Under His influence satanic souls became veritable angels,
tyrannical rulers became just, the human moral standard was raised. This
proves that Christ was an Educator, a Teacher and Trainer of nations. If
we deny this, it is nought but injustice.
Blessed souls--whether Moses, Jesus, Zoroaster, Krishna, Buddha, Confucius
or Muhammad--were the cause of the illumination of the world of humanity.
How can we deny such irrefutable proof? How can we be blind to such light?
How can we dispute the validity of Christ? This is injustice. This is a
denial of reality. Man must be just. We must set aside bias and prejudice.
We must abandon the imitations of ancestors and forefathers. We ourselves
must investigate reality and be fair in judgment.
The old nation of Persia denied all these facts, harboring the utmost
hatred and enmity toward other religious beliefs besides their own. We
have investigated reality and found that these holy souls were all sent of
God. All of them have sacrificed life, endured ordeals and tribulations in
order that They might educate us. How can such love be forgotten? The
light of Christ is evident. The candle of Buddha is shining. The star of
Moses is sparkling. The flame ignited by Zoroaster is still burning. How
can we deny Them? It is injustice. It is a denial of complete evidence. If
we forsake imitations, all will become united, and no differences will
remain to separate us.
We entertain no prejudice against Muhammad. Outwardly the Arabian nation
was instrumental in overthrowing the Parsi dominion, the sovereignty of
Persia. Therefore, the old Parsi nation manifested the utmost contempt
toward the Arabs. But we deal justly and will never abandon the standard
of fairness. The Arabians were in the utmost state of degradation. They
were bloodthirsty and barbarous, so savage and degraded that the Arabian
father often buried his own daughter alive. Consider: Could any barbarism
be lower than this? The nation consisted of warring, hostile tribal
peoples inhabiting the vast Arabian peninsula, and their business
consisted in fighting and pillaging each other, making captive women and
children, killing each other. Muhammad appeared among such a people. He
educated and unified these barbarous tribes, put an end to their shedding
of blood. Through His education they reached such a degree of civilization
that they subdued and governed continents and nations. What a great
civilization was established in Spain by the Muslims! What a marvelous
civilization was founded in Morocco by the Moors! What a powerful
caliphate or successorship was set up in Ba_gh_dad! How much Islam served
and furthered the cause of science! Why then should we deny Muhammad? If
we deny Him, we awaken enmity and hatred. By our prejudice we become the
cause of war and bloodshed, for prejudice was the cause of the tremendous
storm which swept through human history for thirteen hundred years and
still continues. Even now in the Balkans a commotion is apparent,
reflecting it.
The Christian people number nearly three hundred millions and the Muslims
about the same. It is no small task to do away with such numbers. And
furthermore, why should they be obliterated? For these are all servants of
the one God. Let us strive to establish peace between Christians and
Muslims. Is it not better? What is the benefit of war? What is its
fruitage? For thirteen hundred years there has been warfare and hostility.
What good result has been forthcoming? Is it not folly? Is God pleased
with it? Is Christ pleased? Is Muhammad? It is evident that They are not.
The Prophets have extolled each other to the utmost. Muhammad declared
Christ to be the Spirit of God. This is an explicit text of the Qur'an. He
declared Christ to be the Word of God. He eulogized the disciples of
Christ to the utmost. He bestowed upon Mary, the mother of Christ, the
highest praise. Likewise, Christ extolled Moses. He spread broadcast the
Old Testament, the Torah, and caused the name of Moses to reach unto the
East and the West. The purpose is this: that the Prophets Themselves have
manifested the utmost love toward each other, but the nations who believe
and follow Them are hostile and antagonistic among themselves.
The world was in this condition of darkness when Baha'u'llah appeared upon
the Persian horizon. He hoisted the banner of the oneness of the world of
humanity. He proclaimed international peace. He admonished the Persian
nation to investigate reality, announced that religion must be the cause
of unity and love, that it must be the means of binding hearts together,
the cause of life and illumination. If religion becomes the cause of
enmity and bloodshed, then irreligion is to be preferred, for religion is
the remedy for every ailment, and if a remedy should become the cause of
ailment and difficulty, it is better to abandon it. Today in Persia you
will see the Muslims, Christians, Zoroastrians, Buddhists assembled
together in the same meeting, living in accordance with the teachings of
Baha'u'llah, manifesting utmost love and accord. Rancor, hatred,
antagonism and violence have disappeared; they live together as one
family.
And ye who are the people of the Orient--the Orient which has ever been the
dawning point of lights from whence the Sun of Reality has ever shone
forth, casting its effulgence upon the West--ye, therefore, must become the
manifestations of lights. Ye must become brilliant lamps. Ye must shine as
stars radiating the light of love toward all mankind. May you be the cause
of love amongst the nations. Thus may the world become witness that the
Orient has ever been the dawning point of illumination, the source of love
and reconciliation. Make peace with all the world. Love everybody; serve
everybody. All are the servants of God. God has created all. He provideth
for all. He is kind to all. Therefore, must we be kind to all.
I am greatly pleased with this meeting. I am joyous and happy, for here in
these western regions I find Orientals seeking education and who are free
from prejudice. May God assist you!
8 October 1912
Talk at Leland Stanford Junior University
Palo Alto, California