"Know ye in truth that wealth is a mighty barrier between the seeker and his desire, the lover and his beloved. ..."

"O YE THAT PRIDE YOURSELVES ON MORTAL RICHES! 
Know ye in truth that wealth is a mighty barrier between the seeker and his desire, the lover and his beloved. The rich, but for a few, shall in no wise attain the court of His presence nor enter the city of content and resignation. Well is it then with him, who, being rich, is not hindered by his riches from the eternal kingdom, nor deprived by them of imperishable dominion. By the Most Great Name! The splendor of such a wealthy man shall illuminate the dwellers of heaven even as the sun enlightens the people of the earth!"

~Bahá'u'lláh

"Put away the garment of vainglory ..."

"O CHILDREN OF DESIRE! 
Put away the garment of vainglory, and divest yourselves of the attire of haughtiness."

~Bahá'u'lláh

" The chief of the monarchs of love is wronged by the people of tyranny and the dove of holiness lies prisoned in the talons of owls. ..."

"O DWELLERS IN THE CITY OF LOVE! 
Mortal blasts have beset the everlasting candle, and the beauty of the celestial Youth is veiled in the darkness of dust. The chief of the monarchs of love is wronged by the people of tyranny and the dove of holiness lies prisoned in the talons of owls. The dwellers in the pavilion of glory and the celestial concourse bewail and lament, while ye repose in the realm of negligence, and esteem yourselves as of the true friends. How vain are your imaginings!"

~Bahá'u'lláh

"Tell the rich of the midnight sighing of the poor ..."

"

O CHILDREN OF DUST! 
Tell the rich of the midnight sighing of the poor, lest heedlessness lead them into the path of destruction, and deprive them of the Tree of Wealth. To give and to be generous are attributes of Mine; well is it with him that adorneth himself with My virtues."

~Bahá'u'lláh

"Ye turn your eyes towards the thorn, and name it a flower."

"ALAS! ALAS! O LOVERS OF WORLDLY DESIRE! 
Even as the swiftness of lightning ye have passed by the Beloved One, and have set your hearts on satanic fancies. Ye bow the knee before your vain imagining, and call it truth. Ye turn your eyes towards the thorn, and name it a flower. Not a pure breath have ye breathed, nor hath the breeze of detachment been wafted from the meadows of your hearts. Ye have cast to the winds the loving counsels of the Beloved and have effaced them utterly from the tablet of your hearts, and even as the beasts of the field, ye move and have your being within the pastures of desire and passion."

~Bahá'u'lláh

"Live then the days of thy life, that are less than a fleeting moment, with thy mind stainless ..."

© 2017 Chuck Egerton

"O COMPANION OF MY THRONE! 
Hear no evil, and see no evil, abase not thyself, neither sigh and weep. Speak no evil, that thou mayest not hear it spoken unto thee, and magnify not the faults of others that thine own faults may not appear great; and wish not the abasement of anyone, that thine own abasement be not exposed. Live then the days of thy life, that are less than a fleeting moment, with thy mind stainless, thy heart unsullied, thy thoughts pure, and thy nature sanctified, so that, free and content, thou mayest put away this mortal frame, and repair unto the mystic paradise and abide in the eternal kingdom forevermore."

~Bahá'u'lláh

" ... none but the pure in heart can comprehend."

"O SON OF MY HANDMAID! 
Didst thou behold immortal sovereignty, thou wouldst strive to pass from this fleeting world. But to conceal the one from thee and to reveal the other is a mystery which none but the pure in heart can comprehend."

~Bahá'u'lláh