Tuesday, July 26, 2011

"Regard the world as the human body ..."


"O YE the elected representatives of the people in every land! Take ye counsel together, and let your concern be only for that which profiteth mankind, and bettereth the condition thereof, if ye be of them that scan heedfully. Regard the world as the human body which, though at its creation whole and perfect, hath been afflicted, through various causes, with grave disorders and maladies. Not for one day did it gain ease, nay its sickness waxed more severe, as it fell under the treatment of ignorant physicians, who gave full rein to their personal desires, and have erred grievously. And if, at one time, through the care of an able physician, a member of that body was healed, the rest remained afflicted as before. Thus informeth you the All-Knowing, the All-Wise."

-Bahá'u'lláh, Proclamation of Bahá’u’lláh, Tablet to The Elected Representatives of the Peoples in Every Land, p. 67



Alberto Giacometti

Monday, July 25, 2011

"Should anyone wax angry with you, respond to him with gentleness ..."



"Should anyone wax angry with you, respond to him with gentleness; and should anyone upbraid you, forbear to upbraid him in return, but leave him to himself and put your trust in God, the omnipotent Avenger, the Lord of might and justice."

-Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitáb-i-Aqdas, p. 75 paragraph 153

Sunday, July 24, 2011

" ... the promised hour is now come."


"Bestir yourselves, O people, in anticipation of the days of Divine justice, for the promised hour is now come. Beware lest ye fail to apprehend its import and be accounted among the erring."


-Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, XII, p. 17



Jack Delano
A Former Slave

Saturday, July 23, 2011

"The purpose underlying their revelation hath been to educate all men ..."



"The Prophets and Messengers of God have been sent down for the sole purpose of guiding mankind to the straight Path of Truth. The purpose underlying their revelation hath been to educate all men, that they may, at the hour of death, ascend, in the utmost purity and sanctity and with absolute detachment, to the throne of the Most High…."

-Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, LXXXI, pp. 156-157

Friday, July 22, 2011

"The world is in travail, and its agitation waxeth day by day."





"The world is in travail, and its agitation waxeth day by day. Its face is turned towards waywardness and unbelief. Such shall be its plight, that to disclose it now would not be meet and seemly. Its perversity will long continue. And when the appointed hour is come, there shall suddenly appear that which shall cause the limbs of mankind to quake. Then, and only then, will the Divine Standard be unfurled, and the Nightingale of Paradise warble its melody."

-Bahá'u'lláh,  Gleanings From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, LXI, pp. 118-119




Laurent

Thursday, July 21, 2011

"The Promised One is come! The Kingdom is God’s, the Mighty, the Gracious, the Forgiving."



"Say: O peoples of the earth! Destroy the abodes of negligence with the hands of power and assurance, and raise up the mansions of true knowledge within your hearts, that the All-Merciful may shed the radiance of His light upon them. Better is this for you than all whereon the sun shineth, and unto this beareth witness He Who holdeth within His grasp the ultimate decree. The Breeze of God hath been wafted over the world at the advent of the Desired One in His great glory, whereupon every stone and clod of earth hath cried out: "The Promised One is come! The Kingdom is God’s, the Mighty, the Gracious, the Forgiving."

-Bahá'u'lláh, The Summons of the Lord of Hosts, Tablet to Pope Pius IX, pp. 55-56

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

"Should the soul become ignited with the fire of the love of God, it is called benevolent and pleasing unto God ..."


"Know, furthermore, that the life of man proceedeth from the spirit, and the spirit turneth to wheresoever the soul directeth it. Ponder upon that which We have revealed unto thee that thou mayest recognize the Soul of God which hath appeared above the Dayspring of bounty invested with manifest sovereignty.

Know also that the soul is endowed with two wings: should it soar in the atmosphere of love and contentment, then it will be related to the All-Merciful, and should it fly in the atmosphere of self and desire, then it will pertain to the Evil One; may God shield and protect us and protect you therefrom, O ye who perceive! Should the soul become ignited with the fire of the love of God, it is called benevolent and pleasing unto God, but should it be consumed with the fire of passion, it is known as the concupiscent soul. Thus have We expounded this subject for thee that thou mayest obtain a clear understanding."

-Bahá'u'lláh, The Summons of the Lord of Hosts, Súriy-i-Ra’ís, p. 154