Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Joyous Riḍván!


"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. We have chosen thee to be our most mighty Trumpet, whose blast is to signalize the resurrection of all mankind.

Say: This is the Paradise on whose foliage the wine of utterance hath imprinted the testimony: “He that was hidden from the eyes of men is revealed, girded with sovereignty and power!” This is the Paradise, the rustling of whose leaves proclaims: “O ye that inhabit the heavens and the earth! There hath appeared what hath never previously appeared. He Who, from everlasting, had concealed His Face from the sight of creation is now come.” From the whispering breeze that wafteth amidst its branches there cometh the cry: “He Who is the sovereign Lord of all is made manifest. The Kingdom is God’s,” while from its streaming waters can be heard the murmur: “All eyes are gladdened, for He Whom none hath beheld, Whose secret no one hath discovered, hath lifted the veil of glory, and uncovered the countenance of Beauty.”
© 2011 Chuck Egerton
-Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, XIV, p. 31


Tuesday, April 19, 2011

"It is incumbent upon all the peoples of the world to reconcile their differences ..."


"This is the Day in which God’s most excellent favors have been poured out upon men, the Day in which His most mighty grace hath been infused into all created things. It is incumbent upon all the peoples of the world to reconcile their differences, and, with perfect unity and peace, abide beneath the shadow of the Tree of His care and loving-kindness. It behoveth them to cleave to whatsoever will, in this Day, be conducive to the exaltation of their stations, and to the promotion of their best interests. Happy are those whom the all-glorious Pen was moved to remember, and blessed are those men whose names, by virtue of Our inscrutable decree, We have preferred to conceal.

Beseech ye the one true God to grant that all men may be graciously assisted to fulfil that which is acceptable in Our sight. Soon will the present-day order be rolled up, and a new one spread out in its stead. Verily, thy Lord speaketh the truth, and is the Knower of things unseen."

-Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, IV, pp. 6-7




Newly restored Shrine of The Báb, Mt. Carmel, Haifa, Israel

Monday, April 18, 2011

"I am the Lamp which the Finger of God hath lit within its niche and caused to shine with deathless splendour."



"I AM the Mystic Fane which the Hand of Omnipotence hath reared. I am the Lamp which the Finger of God hath lit within its niche and caused to shine with deathless splendour. I am the Flame of that supernal Light that glowed upon Sinai in the gladsome Spot, and lay concealed in the midst of the Burning Bush."

-The Báb, Selections From the Writings of the Báb, p. 74


Newly restored Shrine of The Báb, Mt. Carmel, Haifa, Israel

Sunday, April 17, 2011

" ... the first bestowal of God is the Word ..."




"It is clear and evident, therefore, that the first bestowal of God is the Word, and its discoverer and recipient is the power of understanding. This Word is the foremost instructor in the school of existence and the revealer of Him Who is the Almighty. All that is seen is visible only through the light of its wisdom. All that is manifest is but a token of its knowledge. All names are but its name, and the beginning and end of all matters must needs depend upon it."

-Bahá'u'lláh, The Tabernacle of Unity, p. 4

Saturday, April 16, 2011

The Green Light Expedition

The Green Light Expedition

Documentary on Amatu'l-Baha Ruhiyyih Khanum's epic journey 
to visit the Baha'is in the towns and villages 
of the Amazon basin and the Andean highlands in 1975. 

"Blessing and peace, salutation and glory, rest upon Thy loved ones, whom the changes and chances of the world have not deterred from turning unto Thee ..."


"I bear witness to Thy unity and Thy oneness, and that Thou art God, and that there is none other God beside Thee. Thou hast, verily, revealed Thy Cause, fulfilled Thy Covenant, and opened wide the door of Thy grace to all that dwell in heaven and on earth. Blessing and peace, salutation and glory, rest upon Thy loved ones, whom the changes and chances of the world have not deterred from turning unto Thee, and who have given their all, in the hope of obtaining that which is with Thee. Thou art, in truth, the Ever-Forgiving, the All-Bountiful."

Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitáb-i-Aqdas, from the Medium Obligatory Prayer, p. 99

Friday, April 15, 2011

"What advantage is there in a life that can be overtaken by death, or in an existence that is doomed to extinction, or in a prosperity that is subject to change?"





"Think ye that the things ye possess shall profit you? Soon others will possess them and ye will return unto the dust with none to help or succour you. What advantage is there in a life that can be overtaken by death, or in an existence that is doomed to extinction, or in a prosperity that is subject to change? Cast away the things that ye possess and set your faces toward the favours of God which have been sent down in this wondrous Name."

-Bahá'u'lláh, The Summons of the Lord of Hosts, Tablet to Czar Alexander II, p. 87

Salvador Dali










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