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CXXXIX: Let thine ear be attentive, O Nabíl-i-A'zam,
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1 |
Let thine ear be attentive, O Nabíl-i-A'zam, to the Voice of the Ancient of Days, crying
to thee from the Kingdom of His all-glorious Name.
He it is Who is now proclaiming from the realms
above, and within the inmost essence of all created
things: "I truly am God, there is none other God but
Me. I am He Who, from everlasting, hath been the
Source of all sovereignty and power, He Who shall
continue, throughout eternity, to exercise His kingship
and to extend His protection unto all created
things. My proof is the greatness of My might and
My sovereignty that embraceth the whole of creation."... |
2 |
Blessed art thou, O My name, inasmuch as thou
hast entered Mine Ark, and art speeding, through
the power of My sovereign and most exalted might,
on the ocean of grandeur, and art numbered with
My favored ones whose names the Finger of God hath
inscribed. Thou hast quaffed the cup which is life
indeed from the hands of this Youth, around Whom
revolve the Manifestations of the All-Glorious, and
the brightness of Whose presence they Who are the
Day Springs of Mercy extol in the day time and in
the night season. |
3 |
His glory be with thee, inasmuch as thou hast
journeyed from God unto God, and entered within
the borders of the Court of unfading splendor ñ the
Spot which mortal man can never describe. Therein
hath the breeze of holiness, laden with the love of
thy Lord, stirred thy spirit within thee, and the
waters of understanding have washed from thee the
stains of remoteness and ungodliness. Thou hast
gained admittance into the Paradise of God's Remembrance,
through thy recognition of Him Who
is the Embodiment of that Remembrance amongst
men. |
4 |
Wherefore, be thankful to God, for having
strengthened thee to aid His Cause, for having made
the flowers of knowledge and understanding to
spring forth in the garden of thine heart. Thus hath
His grace encompassed thee, and encompassed the
whole of creation. Beware, lest thou allow anything
whatsoever to grieve thee. Rid thyself of all attachment
to the vain allusions of men, and cast behind
thy back the idle and subtle disputations of them
that are veiled from God. Proclaim, then, that which
the Most Great Spirit will inspire thee to utter in the
service of the Cause of thy Lord, that thou mayest
stir up the souls of all men and incline their hearts
unto this most blessed and all-glorious Court.... |
5 |
Know thou that We have annulled the rule of the
sword, as an aid to Our Cause, and substituted for
it the power born of the utterance of men. Thus have
We irrevocably decreed, by virtue of Our grace. Say:
O people! Sow not the seeds of discord among men,
and refrain from contending with your neighbor, for
your Lord hath committed the world and the cities
thereof to the care of the kings of the earth, and
made them the emblems of His own power, by virtue
of the sovereignty He hath chosen to bestow upon
them. He hath refused to reserve for Himself any
share whatever of this world's dominion. To this He
Who is Himself the Eternal Truth will testify. The
things He hath reserved for Himself are the cities
of men's hearts, that He may cleanse them from all
earthly defilements, and enable them to draw nigh
unto the hallowed Spot which the hands of the infidel
can never profane. Open, O people, the city of the
human heart with the key of your utterance. Thus
have We, according to a pre-ordained measure, prescribed
unto you your duty. |
6 |
By the righteousness of God! The world and its
vanities, and its glory, and whatever delights it can
offer, are all, in the sight of God, as worthless as, nay,
even more contemptible than, dust and ashes. Would
that the hearts of men could comprehend it! Cleanse
yourselves thoroughly, O people of Bahá, from the
defilement of the world, and of all that pertaineth
unto it. God Himself beareth Me witness. The things
of the earth ill beseem you. Cast them away unto
such as may desire them, and fasten your eyes upon
this most holy and effulgent Vision. |
7 |
That which beseemeth you is the love of God, and
the love of Him Who is the Manifestation of His
Essence, and the observance of whatsoever He chooseth
to prescribe unto you, did ye but know it. |
8 |
Say: Let truthfulness and courtesy be your adorning.
Suffer not yourselves to be deprived of the robe
of forbearance and justice, that the sweet savors of
holiness may be wafted from your hearts upon all
created things. Say: Beware, O people of Bahá, lest
ye walk in the ways of them whose words differ from
their deeds. Strive that ye may be enabled to manifest
to the peoples of the earth the signs of God, and
to mirror forth His commandments. Let your acts
be a guide unto all mankind, for the professions of
most men, be they high or low, differ from their conduct.
It is through your deeds that ye can distinguish
yourselves from others. Through them the brightness
of your light can be shed upon the whole earth.
Happy is the man that heedeth My counsel, and
keepeth the precepts prescribed by Him Who is the
All-Knowing, the All-Wise. |
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