Babism.--Mirza Husain Ali Nuri Baha'o'llah was born at Teheran in 1817 A.
D. From 1844 he was one of the first adherents of the Bab, and devoted
himself to the pacific propagation of his doctrine in Persia. After the
death of the Bab he was, with the principal Babis, exiled to Baghdad, and
later to Constantinople and Adrianople, under the surveillance of the
Ottoman Government. It was in the latter city that he openly declared his
mission. He was "He whom God would make manifest," whom the Bab had
announced in his writings, the great Manifestation of God, promised for
the last days; and in his letters to the principal Rulers of the States of
Europe he invited them to join him in establishing religion and universal
peace. From this time, the Babis who acknowledged him became Bahais. The
sultan then exiled him (1868 A. D.) to Acca in Palestine, where he
composed the greater part of his doctrinal works, and where he died in
1892 A. D. (May 29). He had confided to his son, Abbas Effendi Abdul-Baha,
the work of spreading the religion and continuing the connection between
the Bahais of all parts of the world. In point of fact, there are Bahais
everywhere, not only in Mohammedan countries, but also in all the
countries of Europe, as well as in the United States, Canada, Japan,
India, etc. This is because Baha'o'llah has known how to transform Babism
into a universal religion, which is presented as the fulfillment and
completion of all the ancient faiths. The Jews await the Messiah, the
Christians the return of Christ, the Moslem the Mahdi, the Buddhists the
fifth Buddha, the Zoroastrians Shah Bahran, the Hindoos the reincarnation
of Krishna, and the Atheists--a better social organization! Baha'o'llah
represents all these, and thus destroys the rivalries and the enmities of
the different religions; reconciles them in their primitive purity, and
frees them from the corruption of dogmas and rites. For Bahaism has no
clergy, no religious ceremonial, no public prayers; its only dogma is
belief in God and in his Manifestations (Zoroaster, Moses, Jesus, et al.,
Baha'o'llah). The principal works of Baha'o'llah are the Kitab-ul-Ighan,
the Kitab-ul-Akdas, the Kitab-ul-Ayd, and numerous letters or tablets
addressed to sovereigns or to private individuals. Ritual holds no place
in the religion, which must be expressed in all the actions of life, and
accomplished in neighborly love. Every one must have an occupation. The
education of children is enjoined and regulated. No one has the power to
receive confession of sins, or to give absolution. The priests of the
existing religions should renounce celibacy, and should preach by their
example, mingling in the life of the people. Monogamy is universally
recommended, etc. Questions not treated of are left to the civil law of
each country, and to the decisions of the Bait-ul-Adl, or House of
Justice, instituted by Baha'o'llah. Respect toward the Head of the State
is a part of respect toward God. A universal language, and the creation of
tribunals of arbitration between nations, are to suppress wars. "You are
all leaves of the same tree, and drops of the same sea," Baha'o'llah has
said. Briefly, it is not so much a new religion as Religion renewed and
unified, which is directed today by Abdul-Baha.--(Nouveau Larousse
Illustre, supplement, p. 66.)
"Just as this book was going to press the introduction to..."
Just as this book was going to press the introduction to it appearing on
the following page was received from Abdul-Baha.
"He is God!..."
He is God!
O Thou Almighty Lord!
Strengthen all mankind that they may do according to the instructions and
teachings recorded in these writings, so that wars and strifes may be
eliminated from the world of man; that the roots of enmity may be
destroyed and the foundations of love and affection be established; that
the hearts may be filled with love and the souls be attracted; that wisdom
may advance and the faces become brightened and illumined; that there be
no more wars and strifes and that reconciliation and peace appear; that
the Unity of the world of man may pitch its tent on the "apex of the
horizons," so that peoples and parties become as one nation, that
different continents become as one continent and the whole earth as one
land; that the sects of antagonizing and dogmatic religions be unified;
that the world of creation be adorned and all the people of the earth
abide in unity and peace.
Verily, Thou art the Giver, the Bestower, the Beholder!
(signed) Abdul-Baha Abbas.
TABLETS OF ABDUL-BAHA
"O thou party who art assisted by the hosts of the Kingdom..."
O thou party(5) who art assisted by the hosts of the Kingdom of El-Abha!
Blessed are ye who are assembled in the shadow of the Word of God, who are
abiding in the cave of the Covenant of God, who are comforted by dwelling
in the Paradise of El-Abha(6), who are cheerfully moved with the breezes
which blow from the point of the providence of God, and who have arisen to
render service to the Cause of God, to promulgate the Religion of God, to
promote the Word of God and to hoist the standards of sanctity in those
regions and climes.
By the life of El-Baha! Verily, the perfect and divine power will breathe
in you with bounties from the Holy Spirit and enable you to accomplish a
thing the like of which hath never been seen by the eye of existence.
O party of the Covenant! Verily, the Beauty of El-Abha hath promised the
most great assistance to the beloved who are firm in the Covenant and to
confirm them through the mightiest power. Ye will surely find in your
luminous assembly such signs as will shine within hearts and souls. Adhere
to the hem of the robe of the Lofty One and do your best to spread the
Covenant of God and to kindled with the fire of the love of God, so that
your hearts may move with joy through the fragrances of humbleness which
are being diffused from the heart of Abdul-Baha. Make feet firm,
strengthen hearts and rely upon the everlasting bounties which will
successively pour on your from the Kingdom of El-Abha. Know, verily, the
lights of Baha' will shine forth onto you during your gathering together
in the brilliant Paradise.
It is incumbent on you to have union and harmony. It is incumbent upon you
to have affinity and accord, so that ye may become united in body and soul
as the Pleiades, and as strings of brilliant pearls. Thereby your
foundation will be laid, your argument will become manifest, your stars
will beam forth and your souls will be comforted.
When ye enter the spiritual meeting of Consultation, chant the following
commune, your hearts beating with the love of God and your tongues
purified from aught else save the commemoration of God; so that the Most
Might Power may confirm you by the greatest assistance:
"O my God! O my God! We are servants who..."
O my God! O my God! We are servants who have sincerely turned our faces
unto Thy grand face, severed ourselves from all else save Thee in this
great day and are assembled together in this glorious meeting, of one
accord and desire, and unanimous in thought to promulgate Thy Word amid
Thy creatures.
O my Lord! O my Lord! Suffer us to be signs of guidance, standards of Thy
manifest Religion throughout the world, servants of Thy Great Covenant--O
our exalted Lord! --appearances of Thy oneness in Thy Kingdom, the El-Abha,
and stars which dawn forth unto all regions.
O Lord! Make us as seas rolling with the waves of Thy great abundance,
rivers flowing from the mountains of Thy glorious Kingdom, pure fruits on
the tree of Thy illustrious Cause, plants refreshed and moved by the
breeze of Thy gift in Thy wonderful vineyard.
O Lord! Cause our souls to depend upon the signs of Thy Oneness, our
hearts to be dilated with the bounties of Thy Singleness, so that we may
become united as are ripples on a waving sea; become harmonized as are the
rays which shine forth from a brilliant light; so that our thoughts,
opinions and feelings become as one reality from which the spirit of
accord may be diffused throughout all regions.
Verily Thou art the Beneficent, the Bestower! Verily Thou art the Giver,
the Mighty, the Loving, the Merciful!
"O ye who are sincere! O ye who are attracted! O ye..."
O ye(7) who are sincere! O ye who are attracted! O ye who are yearning! O
ye who are arising for service to the Cause of God, for the promotion of
the Word of God and the spreading of the Fragrances of God!
Verily, I read your excellent letter, its beautiful composition, eloquent
words and deep meanings. I praised God and gave glory to Him for that He
hath strengthened you and confirmed you in serving His glorious vineyard.
Your faces shall be enlightened with the radiance of supplication to God,
invocation to Him, Humbleness and submissiveness to the friends
(believers), and your assembly will be made a magnet for the lights of
assistance from His Great Kingdom.
It is incumbent upon you to commemorate and ponder upon the signs of God,
to implore to God and to be evanescent and subservient in the Cause of
God. This is what makes you the signs of guidance among the people, stars
shining in the supreme horizon and thriving trees in the Paradise of
El-Abha.
Then know ye that Abdul-Baha is in cheerfulness and joy and in the
happiness of great glad-tidings through being in this far distant
prison.(8) By the life of El-Baha! --this prison is my supreme paradise, my
utmost desire, the joy of my heart and the dilation of my breast, my
shelter, my asylum, my inaccessible cave and my high protection. By it I
glory among the angels of heaven and the Supreme Concourse.
Be rejoiced, O friends of God, with this confinement which is a cause of
freedom, this prison which is a means of salvation (to many) and this
suffering which is the best cause of great comfort. Verily, by God, I
would not change this prison for the throne of the command of the horizons
and would not exchange this confinement for all excursions and enjoyments
in the gardens of the earth.
Verily, I hope, through the kindness of my Lord and His mercy, bounty and
generosity, to be suspended in the air in His path and that my breast may
become the target to be be pierced by thousands of bullets; or that I may
be cast into the bottomless seas, or thrown into the wilderness and plains
of barrenness. This is my utmost aim, my supreme desire, the animation of
my spirit, the healing of my bosom and the sight of my eyes.
As to you, O friends of God: Make firm your feet in the Cause of God with
such firmness as cannot be shaken by the most great disasters of this
world. Be not troubled by anything under any condition. Be as lofty
mountains, dawning stars from the horizon of existence, brilliant lamps in
the assemblies of oneness and lowly souls, pure hearted, with the friends.
Be signs of guidance; lights of piety; severed from the world, holding
fast to the firm rope; spreaders of the spirit of life; abiders in the ark
of safety; manifestations of mercy; dawning-stars of the mysteries of
existence; points of revelation; day-springs of light; strengthened by the
Holy Spirit; attracted toward God; sanctified from all things and from the
(natural) qualities of people, and characterized with the attributes of
the angels of heaven--so ye may attain to the greatest gift in this great
century and new age.
By the life of El-Abha! No one will obtain this great favor save he who
cuts himself from this world, being attracted by the love of God, who is
dead to the desires and appetites of self, sincere to God in all things
and meek, humble, imploring, pleading and lowly before God.
"O ye who are firm in the Covenant!..."
O ye who are firm in the Covenant!
The report of the Spiritual Gathering, which is dated *** and sent by you,
was received and its contents were a source of great fragrance and
spirituality. I was glad to read the names of the revered members.
The signature of that meeting should be the Spiritual Gathering (House of
Spirituality) and the wisdom therein is that hereafter the government
should not infer from the term "House of Justice" that a court is
signified, that it is connected with political affairs, or that at any
time it will interfere with governmental affairs.
Hereafter, enemies will be many. They would use this subject as a cause
for disturbing the mind of the government and confusing the thoughts of
the public. The intention was to make known that by the term Spiritual
Gathering (House of Spirituality), that Gathering has not the least
connection with material matters, and that its whole aim and consultation
is confined to matters connected with spiritual affairs. The was also
instructed (performed) in all Persia.***
"O my God! O my God!..."
O my God! O my God!
These are servants who have turned to Thy Kingdom and hearkened unto Thy
voice. Their hearts were dilated by Thy call, responded unto Thy summons,
were attracted unto Thy beauty, acknowledged Thy proofs, believed in Thy
signs, confessed Thy Oneness and arose for the service of Thy Cause and
the promotion of Thy Word.
O Lord! O Lord! Make them lamps of guidance, lights glistening in the
supreme apex, sparkling stars in heaven, holy angels moving on earth and
thriving trees bearing delicious and fragrant fruits.
O Lord! O Lord! Purify their qualities, clarify their consciousness,
cleanse their hearts and illumine their faces. Verily Thou art the
Powerful, the Precious, the Protecting!
O ye spiritual ones! The rules for election are those which are customary
in that country. The period of election is five years.
O Lord! O Lord! Bless this Spiritual Gathering, strengthen them by Thy
power for the spreading of Thy divine fragrances, cause them to follow Thy
will which is effective in the realities of all things, and aid them by a
confirmation such as never hath preceded to any one in former
centuries.(9) For these are servants of Thy servants and Thou hast crowned
them them with this diadem, the most luminous (Abha) gems of which will
shine unto all the horizons.
Verily Thou art the Powerful, the Mighty, the Giver!
"O ye who are sincere! O ye who are firm! O ye who..."
O ye who are sincere! O ye who are firm! O ye who are steadfast!
Verily, I received a letter from that brilliant body and Spiritual
Gathering--those who have arisen and called out for the Kingdom of God
among the peoples of America.
Verily, know with certain knowledge that ye will be confirmed by hosts
from the Kingdom of El-Abha and with inspirations from the Supreme
Concourse in the promotion of the Word of God. Verily, Abdul-Baha is with
you and supplicates unto God, desiring His heavenly blessings to surround
you, His divine favors to encompass you, the appearances of the Sun of
Truth to shine in your hearts, the glad tidings of God to rejoice your
spirits, the fragrances of holiness to perfume your nostrils, the verses
of guidance to be chanted in your gatherings, and the lamp of the Supreme
Concourse to illumine your meetings. Know with real assurance that this
light will encompass the horizons (the world) with great brilliancy.
I ask God to make ye lamps ignited by the great Light, so that ye may
stand with all power, meekness, humbleness, sacrifice and self-resignation
and thus become examples for the people and pure types for the world, be
salt of the earth, stars of guidance, great trees with broad foliage and
excellent fruits of fragrant scent, growing by the bounty of the cloud of
the Kingdom of El-Abha.
I praise God that ye were firm in faithfulness in that ye testified and
acknowledged the efforts which Mirza Assa Ullah(10) manifested in
spreading the fragrances of God and that ye thanked him for his labor and
teaching for you, and this is what gladdens the heart of Abdul-Baha.
"O thou who art attracted by the Fragrances of God!..."
O thou(11) who art attracted by the Fragrances of God!
Verily I say unto thee the truth, that I am with you in spirit and in
heart, that I rejoice by your joy and am happy by your happiness; and hear
with the ear of spirit your calling and scent with the spiritual nostrils
the fragrances of your garden.
O ye friends of God! Arise from the corporeal beds (bodies) and ask for
the divine favors, so that ye become revived by the Holy Spirit through
the breath which the Spirit breathes into the souls.
By the glory of my Lord, there will be for your brilliant assemblage an
evident sign and great effects in the spirits and the hearts. Therefore,
gladden the friends of the Merciful with the glad-tidings of thy Lord in
this time, and convey to them greeting from Abdul-Baha in this promised
century, so that they may arise with me in servitude to the Threshold of
El-Baha.
"O ye servants of the Threshold of God!..."
O ye servants of the Threshold of God!
The weekly reports of *** were received and I was informed of their
beautiful meanings which proved firmness and steadfastness in the Cause of
God and solidity in the Covenant of God.
Through the favor and providence of the Beauty(12) of Abha I trust that
Spiritual Gathering will develop day by day and will be reinforced by the
strength of God.
Communication with the friends of God in other countries is a source of
fragrant spirituality.
O ye members of the Spiritual Gathering! Appreciate this favor. This is
the glorious crown of the Kingdom, which, in this century, the Hand of the
Great Favor has placed on your head, and the gems of this brilliant diadem
will surely glisten unto all centuries.
Thank God that ye became a manifestation of such favor and are addressed
by such speech.
"O ye friends of Abdul-Baha!..."
O ye friends of Abdul-Baha!
Verily I read your reports with great joy. They are a cause of
spirituality and fragrance and a source of dilation of souls. If this
Spiritual Meeting, by the divine fragrance and heavenly confirmation, be
firmly established (or continued) it will become a source of great signs
and will be confirmed in matters of paramount importance.
The Spiritual Meetings, which are organized in this cycle of God and this
divine century, have never had their simile or likeness in bygone cycles.
For the great meetings (organizations) were under the protection of
aristocratic men, while these meetings (or organizations) are under the
protection of the bounty of El-Abha. The helper or supporter of those
(organizations) was either a prince or a king; either a priest was the
principal, or a great republic (the cause); but the Helper, the Assistant,
the Confirmer and the Inspirer of these spiritual meetings (or
organizations) is His Majesty the Everlasting God.
Consider not the present condition, but rather foresee the future and the
end. A seed in the beginning is very small, but in the end a great tree.
One should not consider the seed, but the tree and its abundance of
blossoms, leaves and fruits.
Consider the days of Jesus, when there was only a small body of people,
and then observe the great tree which grew from that seed and what an
abundant fruit it produced. This is greater than that, forasmuch as it is
the calling of the Lord of Hosts and the Voice of the Trumpet of the
Living God; it is the summons unto the harmony and unison of the world,
and it is the banner of faithfulness, trustworthiness and friendship among
the difference nations and sects of the universe; it is the light of the
Sun of Truth and the spirituality of the Majestic One. Verily this great
cycle (dispensation) will encompass all the horizons and ultimately all
the nations will gather together under this standard.
Therefore, know the importance of this seed which was planted in the
divine field by the heavenly Gardener, watered with the rain of grace and
nurtured by the heat and light of the Sun of Truth. Thus, O ye friends of
God, give thanks unto His Majesty, the One, that ye became (or were made)
the manifestation of such a gift and the recipient of such favor.
Blessed are ye! Good-tidings unto you for this great blessing!
"O ye who are sincere! O ye who are firm in the Covenant..."
O ye who are sincere! O ye who are firm in the Covenant of God in this new
cycle!
Verily I praise God for that He confirmed you in the service of the Cause
of God in His great vineyard.
Write to Mrs. ........ and convey to her greetings and praise and say to
her that her Lord will aid and strengthen her in attaining her desire.
Convey my greeting and salutation unto the maidservant of God, the
attracted one, Mrs. ........, the respected. I ask God to make her a
spreader of the new Gospel, an utterer in praise of her Lord in that vast
region.
Convey my kindness and love unto the maid-servant of God, who is thrilled
by the fragrances of God, Miss ........ of [that place] so that she may be
rejoiced by my greeting to her, the fullness of my favor, and that she may
be drawn by the love of God even as the magnet attracts the iron.
O my precious friends in the Kingdom of God, the members of the Spiritual
Meeting! Communicate with all parts of Persia; write replies to the
letters which are sent to you, with all joy, happiness, fragrance and
spirituality; because the friends of God in Persia are all rejoiced in
commemorating you in the meetings and assemblies, in houses and
Mashrak-el-Azcars.(13)
"O ye who are attracted by the Fragrances of God!..."
O ye who are attracted by the Fragrances of God!
Verily I read your letters which uttered your steadfastness in the Cause
of God, your firmness in His Religion and your joy by the breezes wafted
from the garden of the Kingdom of God.
The truth, I say unto you, "Verily, the Supreme Concourse utter praise
upon you, because ye forsook the desires of self, were illumined by the
light of guidance, clothed yourselves with the garment of sanctity and
called in the Name of El-Abha among the people. Verily, ye shall reap what
ye sow and obtain the fruits of what ye plant. This is a pre-ordained
fact."
O ye beloved of God! When the winds blow severely, rains fall fiercely,
the lightning flashes, the thunder roars, the bold descends and storms of
trial become severe, grieve not; for after this storm, verily, the divine
spring will arrive, the hills and fields will become verdant, the expanses
of grain will joyfully wave, the earth will become covered with blossoms,
the trees will be clothed with green garments and adorned with blossoms
and fruits. Thus blessings become manifest in all countries. These favors
are results of those storms and hurricanes.
The discerning man rejoiceth at the day of trials, his breast becometh
dilated at the time of severe storms, his eyes become brightened when
seeing the showers of rain and gusts of wind, whereby trees are uprooted;
because he foreseeth the result and the end (of these trials), the leaves,
blossoms and fruits (which follow this wintry storm); while the ignorant
(short-sighted) person becometh troubled when he seeth a storm, is
saddened when it raineth severely, is terrified by the thunder and
trembleth at the surging of the waves which storm the shores.
As ye have heard of the former times, when (for example) Christ--glory be
to Him! --appeared, a storm of trials arose, afflictions appeared, the
winds of tests blew, the thunder of temptation descended and hosts of
people (Pharisees) surrounded the houses of the friends; then the weak
ones were shaken and were misled after once being guided; but the
disciples withstood the hardships and endured the storms of ordeals,
remaining firm in the Religion of God. Then observe that which occurred
after the storm and what appeared subsequent to that severity, whereby the
members (followers) trembled.
God hath changed the sorrow to joy, the destructive darkness of calamity
into the shining light from the Supreme Concourse. The people at the
beginning persecuted and reviled the believers in God and said of them:
"These are the people of aberration." Then, when their light appeared,
their stars shone and their lamps illuminated, the people returned into
love and affinity; they prayed to them, offered words of glory night and
day (in their name) and remembered them in eulogy, reverence, honor and
majesty.
Therefore, O ye beloved of God, be not grieved when people stand against
you, persecute you, afflict and trouble you and say all manner of evil
against you. The darkness will pass away and the light of the manifest
signs will appear, the veil will be withdrawn and the Light of Reality
will shine forth from the unseen [Kingdom] of El-Abha. This we inform you
before it occurs, so that when the hosts of people arise against you for
my love, be not disturbed or troubled; nay, rather, be firm as a mountain,
for this persecution and reviling of the people upon you is a pre-ordained
matter. Blessed is the soul who is firm in the path!
"O thou servant of God!..."
O thou servant(14) of God!
***Trust no man save him whose breast hath been dilated by God through the
light of faith, whom God hath confirmed in His Religion, and who is
severed from all else save God and attracted by His Fragrances.