Feast of Alá (Loftiness) March 2, 2015

"... Thou hast bidden all men to observe the fast, that through it they may purify their souls and rid themselves of all attachment to any one but Thee ..."

 -Bahá'u'lláh, Prayers and Meditations, p. 79

Happy Ayyám-i-Há 2015

"God, my Fire and my Light! The days which Thou hast named the Ayyám-i-Há (the Days of Há, Intercalary Days) in Thy Book have begun, O Thou Who art the King of names, and the Fast which Thy most exalted Pen hath enjoined unto all who are in the kingdom of Thy creation to observe is approaching. I entreat Thee, O my Lord, by these days and by all such as have during that period clung to the cord of Thy commandments, and laid hold on the handle of Thy precepts, to grant that unto every soul may be assigned a place within the precincts of Thy court, and a seat at the revelation of the splendors of the light of Thy countenance. ..."

-Bahá’u’lláh, Prayers and Meditations by Bahá’u’lláh, XLV

Cezanne

"That which is worthy of His Essence is to worship Him for His sake, without fear of fire, or hope of paradise."

"WORSHIP thou God in such wise that if thy worship lead thee to the fire, no alteration in thine adoration would be produced, and so likewise if thy recompense should be paradise. Thus and thus alone should be the worship which befitteth the one True God. Shouldst thou worship Him because of fear, this would be unseemly in the sanctified Court of His presence, and could not be regarded as an act by thee dedicated to the Oneness of His Being. Or if thy gaze should be on paradise, and thou shouldst worship Him while cherishing such a hope, thou wouldst make God’s creation a partner with Him, notwithstanding the fact that paradise is desired by men.

Fire and paradise both bow down and prostrate themselves before God. That which is worthy of His Essence is to worship Him for His sake, without fear of fire, or hope of paradise."

-The Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Báb, Excerpts from the Persian Bayán

"The path to guidance is one of love and compassion, not of force and coercion."

"IT is better to guide one soul than to possess all that is on earth, for as long as that guided soul is under the shadow of the Tree of Divine Unity, he and the one who hath guided him will both be recipients of God’s tender mercy, whereas possession of earthly things will cease at the time of death. The path to guidance is one of love and compassion, not of force and coercion. This hath been God’s method in the past, and shall continue to be in the future! He causeth him whom He pleaseth to enter the shadow of His Mercy. Verily, He is the Supreme Protector, the All-Generous.

There is no paradise more wondrous for any soul than to be exposed to God’s Manifestation in His Day, to hear His verses and believe in them, to attain His presence, which is naught but the presence of God, to sail upon the sea of the heavenly kingdom of His good-pleasure, and to partake of the choice fruits of the paradise of His divine Oneness. II, 16.1"

The Báb,-Selections from the Writings of the Báb, Excerpts from the Persian Bayán

Rembrandt

" ... Verily, He is in Himself the Knower, the Sustainer, the Omnipotent."

"RID thou thyself of all attachments to aught except God, enrich thyself in God by dispensing with all else besides Him, and recite this prayer:

Say: God sufficeth all things above all things, and nothing in the heavens or in the earth or in whatever lieth between them but God, thy Lord, sufficeth. Verily, He is in Himself the Knower, the Sustainer, the Omnipotent."

-The Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Báb,Excerpts from the Dalá’il-i-Sab‘ih (The Seven Proofs)

"Know thou that first and foremost in religion is the knowledge of God."

"THOU hast asked concerning the fundamentals of religion and its ordinances: Know thou that first and foremost in religion is the knowledge of God. This attaineth its consummation in the recognition of His divine unity, which in turn reacheth its fulfillment in acclaiming that His hallowed and exalted Sanctuary, the Seat of His transcendent majesty, is sanctified from all attributes. And know thou that in this world of being the knowledge of God can never be attained save through the knowledge of Him Who is the Dayspring of divine Reality."

-The Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Báb,Excerpts from the Dalá’il-i-Sab‘ih (The Seven Proofs)

"Death proffereth unto every confident believer the cup that is life indeed."

"Death proffereth unto every confident believer the cup that is life indeed. It bestoweth joy, and is the bearer of gladness. It conferreth the gift of everlasting life. As to those that have tasted of the fruit of man’s earthly existence, which is the recognition of the one true God, exalted be His glory, their life hereafter is such as We are unable to describe. The knowledge thereof is with God, alone, the Lord of all worlds."

-Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh CLXV