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84
O thou dear handmaid of God! Thy letter hath
been received, and its contents were noted.
Marriage, among the mass of the people, is a physical
bond, and this union can only be temporary, since it is foredoomed
to a physical separation at the close.
Among the people of Bahá, however, marriage must be
a union of the body and of the spirit as well, for here both
husband and wife are aglow with the same wine, both are
enamoured of the same matchless Face, both live and move
through the same spirit, both are illumined by the same
glory. This connection between them is a spiritual one,
hence it is a bond that will abide forever. Likewise do they
enjoy strong and lasting ties in the physical world as well,
for if the marriage is based both on the spirit and the body,
that union is a true one, hence it will endure. If, however,
the bond is physical and nothing more, it is sure to be only
temporary, and must inexorably end in separation.
When, therefore, the people of Bahá undertake to marry,
the union must be a true relationship, a spiritual coming
together as well as a physical one, so that throughout every
phase of life, and in all the worlds of God, their union will
endure; for this real oneness is a gleaming out of the love
of God.
In the same way, when any souls grow to be true
believers, they will attain a spiritual relationship with one
another, and show forth a tenderness which is not of this
world. They will, all of them, become elated from a draught
of divine love, and that union of theirs, that connection,
will also abide forever. Souls, that is, who will consign
their own selves to oblivion, strip from themselves the
defects of humankind, and unchain themselves from human
bondage, will beyond any doubt be illumined with the
heavenly splendours of oneness, and will all attain unto real
union in the world that dieth not.
Selections from the Writings of `Abdu'l-Bahá
pages 117-118
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