When Christ appeared, certain blessed souls followed His example. They
were with their Master, ever watching and observing His conduct, movements
and thoughts. They witnessed the persecutions which were heaped upon Him
and were informed of all the events appertaining to that marvelous
life--recipients of His kindness and favors. After the ascension of Christ
they hastened to various regions of the world, scattering broadcast the
teachings and instructions which He had given them. Through their devotion
and efforts other places and remote nations became informed of the
principles revealed by Him.
Through their instrumentality the East was illumined, and the light which
flooded the East flooded the West. This light was the cause of guiding
great hosts of people. It proved to be a preventive of warfare in many
instances. This is evidenced in the unification and conjoining of various
nations which had formerly been hostile to each other--such as the Greeks,
Romans, Egyptians, Syrians, Chaldeans and Assyrians. Through Christ the
oneness of the world of humanity received its expression and proved to be
the cause of spiritual illumination for mankind. The breaths of the Holy
Spirit became effective in the hearts of people.
Now we have, likewise, come from the Orient, announcing the appearance of
Baha'u'llah, Who shone from the horizon of the East. We have observed His
life and beheld His deeds. We have been witnesses of His ordeals and
sufferings, observers of His imprisonment and exile. We are fully
acquainted with the persecutions heaped upon His blessed Personality.
Therefore, we who are His disciples have been scattered throughout the
world in order that His teachings may be widespread and be heard by every
ear. Thus may the people receive the glad tidings of the dawn of His great
dispensation, become aware of the divine evidences manifest in Him, be
informed of the wonderful episodes of His marvelous life, the greatness of
His power in withstanding the kings of the Orient, the might of His spirit
in upholding under all circumstances the standard of the oneness of the
world of mankind. Perchance you have heard or read of Him. I will give you
a brief epitome of His life in order that you may be informed of the
history of His great movement and know His teachings.
Baha'u'llah was a Persian personage descended from prominent lineage.
During His early years a Youth Whose name was 'Ali-Muhammad appeared in
Persia. He was entitled the Bab, which means door or gate. The bearer of
this title was a great Soul from Whom spiritual signs and evidences became
manifest. He withstood the tests of time and lived contrary to the custom
and usages of Persia. He revealed a new system of faith opposed to the
beliefs in His country and promulgated certain principles contrary to the
thoughts of the people. For this, that remarkable Personality was
imprisoned by the Persian government. Eventually, by order of the
government He was martyred. The account of this martyrdom, briefly stated,
is as follows: He was suspended in a square as a target and shot to death.
This revered Personage foreshadowed the advent of another Soul of Whom He
said, "When He cometh He shall reveal greater things unto you."
Thus, after the martyrdom of the Bab, Baha'u'llah appeared. The government
arose against Him. The priesthood in Persia opposed Him, subjecting Him to
severe persecution. His possessions were confiscated, His relatives and
friends were killed, and He was placed in a dungeon. For a long period He
was imprisoned, chained and subjected to severest suffering. Afterward, He
was exiled to 'Iraq, or Mesopotamia, from thence to Constantinople, then
transferred to Adrianople and finally to Akka in Syria. He spent
twenty-four years in the prison of Akka, where He underwent the severest
ordeals and privations without a day or night of relaxation and repose.
Notwithstanding this imprisonment and suffering, He manifested utmost
spiritual power and majesty. Although imprisoned, He withstood two tyrant
kings and eventually overcame both.
Shortly after His imprisonment He addressed Epistles, or Tablets, to all
the kings and rulers of the world, summoning them to universal peace, to
unity and international brotherhood. Among these sovereigns was the _Sh_ah
of Persia, through whose instrumentality chiefly He had been imprisoned.
In His letter to that ruler He arraigned him severely and prophesied his
downfall, saying, "Thou art a tyrant; thy country will be laid waste; and
thy family, humiliated and debased." He wrote to the Sultan of Turkey in
similar terms, saying, "Thy dominion will pass away from thee." The
Epistles to the kings and rulers summoning them to international peace
were written by Baha'u'llah fifty years ago. Everything He wrote has come
to pass. These letters were published in Bombay thirty years ago and are
now spread broadcast throughout the world. Briefly, Baha'u'llah endured
forty years of vicissitudes, ordeals and hardships for the purpose of
spreading His teachings, which may be mentioned as follows:
The first teaching is that man should investigate reality, for reality is
contrary to dogmatic interpretations and imitations of ancestral forms of
belief to which all nations and peoples adhere so tenaciously. These blind
imitations are contrary to the fundamental basis of the divine religions,
for the divine religions in their central and essential teaching are based
upon unity, love and peace, whereas these variations and imitations have
ever been productive of warfare, sedition and strife. Therefore, all souls
should consider it incumbent upon them to investigate reality. Reality is
one; and when found, it will unify all mankind. Reality is the love of
God. Reality is the knowledge of God. Reality is justice. Reality is the
oneness or solidarity of mankind. Reality is international peace. Reality
is the knowledge of verities. Reality unifies humanity.
In brief, His theme was that reality underlies all the great religious
systems of the world. He summoned the nations and peoples of the world to
it. Hostile nations because of their acceptance of the reality of His
words became unified. Strife, discord and contention among them passed
away; they attained a station of utmost love. At present in Asia those who
have accepted His teachings and followed His example, although formerly
most hostile and bitter toward each other, now associate in brotherhood
and fellowship. The strife and warfare of past times have ceased among
them. Jews, Zoroastrians, Christians, Muslims and others have attained to
a superlative state of love and agreement through Baha'u'llah. They now
consort together as one family. They have investigated reality. Reality
does not accept multiplicity, nor is it subject to divisibility. These
irreconcilable peoples have become unified and agreed.
The second teaching of Baha'u'llah is the principle of the oneness of the
world of humanity. God is one; His servants are, likewise, one. God has
created all; He is kind to all. Inasmuch as He is such a tender Father to
all, why should His children disagree? Why should they war and fight? Like
the Heavenly Father we must live in love and unity. Man is the temple of
God, the image and likeness of the Lord. Surely if one should destroy the
temple of God, he will incur the displeasure of the Creator. For this
reason, we must live together in amity and love. Baha'u'llah has addressed
the world of humanity, saying, "Verily, ye are the fruits of one tree and
the leaves of one branch." This signifies that the entire world of
humanity is one tree. The various nations and peoples are the branches of
that tree. Individual members of mankind are represented by the twigs and
blossoms. Why should these parts of the same tree manifest strife and
discord toward each other?
The third teaching of Baha'u'llah concerns universal peace among the
nations, among the religions, among the races and native lands. He has
declared that so long as prejudice--whether religious, racial, patriotic,
political or sectarian--continues to exist among mankind, universal peace
cannot become a reality in the world. From the earliest history of man
down to the present time all the wars and bloodshed which have taken place
were caused either by religious, racial, political or sectarian bias.
Therefore, it is evident that so long as these prejudices continue, the
world of humanity cannot attain peace and composure.
Among the teachings of Baha'u'llah is His declaration that religion must
be the cause of love and fellowship, must be the source of unity in the
hearts of men. If religion becomes a cause of enmity and hatred, it is
evident that the abolition of religion is preferable to its promulgation;
for religion is a remedy for human ills. If a remedy should be productive
of disease, it is certainly advisable to abandon it.
Furthermore, the teachings of Baha'u'llah announce that religion must be
in conformity with science and reason; otherwise, it is superstition; for
science and reason are realities, and religion itself is the Divine
Reality unto which true science and reason must conform. God has bestowed
the gift of mind upon man in order that he may weigh every fact or truth
presented to him and adjudge whether it be reasonable. That which conforms
to his reason he may accept as true, while that which reason and science
cannot sanction may be discarded as imagination and superstition, as a
phantom and not reality. Inasmuch as the blind imitations or dogmatic
interpretations current among men do not coincide with the postulates of
reason, and the mind and scientific investigation cannot acquiesce
thereto, many souls in the human world today shun and deny religion. That
is to say, imitations, when weighed in the scales of reason, will not
conform to its standard and requirement. Therefore, these souls deny
religion and become irreligious, whereas if the reality of the divine
religions becomes manifest to them and the foundation of the heavenly
teachings is revealed coinciding with facts and evident truths,
reconciling with scientific knowledge and reasonable proof, all may
acknowledge them, and irreligion will cease to exist. In this way all
mankind may be brought to the foundation of religion, for reality is true
reason and science, while all that is not conformable thereto is mere
superstition.
The teachings of Baha'u'llah also proclaim equality between man and woman,
for He has declared that all are the servants of God and endowed with
capacity for the attainment of virtues and bestowals. All are the
manifestations of the mercy of the Lord. In the creation of God no
distinction obtains. All are His servants. In the estimation of God there
is no gender. The one whose deeds are more worthy, whose sayings are
better, whose accomplishments are more useful is nearest and dearest in
the estimation of God, be that one male or female. When we look upon
creation, we find the male and female principle apparent in all phenomena
of existence. In the vegetable kingdom we find the male and female fig
tree, the male and female palm, the mulberry tree and so on. All plant
life is characterized by this difference in gender, but no distinction or
preference is evidenced. Nay, rather, there is perfect equality. Likewise,
in the animal kingdom gender obtains; we have male and female, but no
distinction or preference. Perfect equality is manifest. The animal,
bereft of the degree of human reason and comprehension, is unable to
appreciate the questions of suffrage, nor does it assert its prerogative.
Man, endowed with his higher reason, accomplished in attainments and
comprehending the realities of things, will surely not be willing to allow
a great part of humanity to remain defective or deprived. This would be
the utmost injustice. The world of humanity is possessed of two wings: the
male and the female. So long as these two wings are not equivalent in
strength, the bird will not fly. Until womankind reaches the same degree
as man, until she enjoys the same arena of activity, extraordinary
attainment for humanity will not be realized; humanity cannot wing its way
to heights of real attainment. When the two wings or parts become
equivalent in strength, enjoying the same prerogatives, the flight of man
will be exceedingly lofty and extraordinary. Therefore, woman must receive
the same education as man and all inequality be adjusted. Thus, imbued
with the same virtues as man, rising through all the degrees of human
attainment, women will become the peers of men, and until this equality is
established, true progress and attainment for the human race will not be
facilitated.
The evident reasons underlying this are as follows: Woman by nature is
opposed to war; she is an advocate of peace. Children are reared and
brought up by the mothers who give them the first principles of education
and labor assiduously in their behalf. Consider, for instance, a mother
who has tenderly reared a son for twenty years to the age of maturity.
Surely she will not consent to having that son torn asunder and killed in
the field of battle. Therefore, as woman advances toward the degree of man
in power and privilege, with the right of vote and control in human
government, most assuredly war will cease; for woman is naturally the most
devoted and staunch advocate of international peace.
Baha'u'llah teaches that material civilization is incomplete, insufficient
and that divine civilization must be established. Material civilization
concerns the world of matter or bodies, but divine civilization is the
realm of ethics and moralities. Until the moral degree of the nations is
advanced and human virtues attain a lofty level, happiness for mankind is
impossible. The philosophers have founded material civilization. The
Prophets have founded divine civilization. Christ was the Founder of
heavenly civilization. Mankind receives the bounties of material
civilization as well as divine civilization from the heavenly Prophets.
The capacity for achieving extraordinary and praiseworthy progress is
bestowed by Them through the breaths of the Holy Spirit, and heavenly
civilization is not possible of attainment or accomplishment otherwise.
This evidences the need of humanity for heavenly bestowals, and until
these heavenly bestowals are received, eternal happiness cannot be
realized.
In brief, the purport is this: The teachings of Baha'u'llah are boundless,
innumerable; time will not allow us to mention them in detail. The
foundation of progress and real prosperity in the human world is reality,
for reality is the divine standard and the bestowal of God. Reality is
reasonableness, and reasonableness is ever conducive to the honorable
station of man. Reality is the guidance of God. Reality is the cause of
illumination of mankind. Reality is love, ever working for the welfare of
humanity. Reality is the bond which conjoins hearts. This ever uplifts man
toward higher stages of progress and attainment. Reality is the unity of
mankind, conferring everlasting life. Reality is perfect equality, the
foundation of agreement between the nations, the first step toward
international peace.
26 October 1912
Talk at Assembly Hall, Hotel Sacramento
Sacramento, California