First Aymara International Baha'i Conference, Juli, Peru, August 26-28, 1978

First Aymara International Baha'i Conference, Juli, Peru, August 26-28 1978. More than 200 Baha'is from Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru were present. The entire conference was conducted in the Aymara language. The event also included the formal opening of the Dr. Rahmatu'llah Muhajir Teaching Institute in Juli. (Baha'i News, January 1979)

'Abdu'l-Baha's secretaries and translators during His visit to America

'Abdu'l-Baha's secretaries and translators during His visit to America

‘Abdu’l-Baha describes a word picture of the “old” world order

Look thou with seeing eyes at the world about thee, and at the inhabitants thereof. Upon the stage of this immense theatre most spectacular plays are being enacted. On one side thou wilt see the victorious and the vanquished legions of profit and loss. On the other side thou wilt observe the waves of the sea of folly rising and falling. Cries are being raised on every side and the agonies of revolution, revolt and unrest reach unto the ears of progressive men. There is a tremendous strike and clash between capital and labor, and the war between the aristocrats and democrats is carried on relentlessly with bow and arrow, sword and javelin. The phalanxes of a great army are drawn in battle array, each division taking its position. Armed troops and artillery are to be found in every part of the field. The flash of the swords of enmity blind the eyes from even the most remote distance, the lightning effect of breastplate and lance and the sparkle of the bucklers of hatred light up the night and bewilder the sight. In short: strife, battle, slaughter and war are prepared in organized perfection.

On the other hand thou wilt hear from every house strains of music are raised, and confusing melodies of harp, lyre, cymbal and flute are heard, and mad revellers are dancing to the tunes while inebriated with the wine of vanishing pleasures. In one place thou wilt behold the wanton and soiled decorations, and in another the flimsy shows of the gilded class of creatures. On the one hand is to be seen the embellishment and luxury made possible through illicit wealth, and on the other hand, the ravishing from this mortal world of its beautiful appearance.

Tahirih was transformed by Baha’u’llah ...

Qurratu'l-‘Ayn was a Persian woman without fame and importance -unknown, like all other Persian women. When she saw Baha'u'llah, she changed completely, visibly, and looked within another world. The reins of volition were taken out of her hands by heavenly attraction. She was so overcome that physical susceptibilities ceased. Her husband, her sons and her family arose in the greatest hostility against Baha'u'llah. She became so attracted to the divine threshold that she forsook everything and went forth to the plain of Badasht, no fear in her heart, dauntless, intrepid, openly proclaiming the message of light which had come to her. The Persian government stood against her. They made every effort to quiet her, they imprisoned her in the governor's house, but she continued to speak. Then she was taken and killed. To her very last breath she spoke with fervid eloquence and so became famous for her complete attraction in the path of God. If she had not seen Baha'u'llah, no such effect would have been produced. She had read and heard the teachings of scriptures all her life, but the action and enkindlement were missing. (‘Abdu’l-Baha, ‘Promulgation of Universal Peace’, Page 251)

“The hundred years' respite having ended ..” – October 1967

Upon our efforts depends in very large measure the fate of humanity. The hundred years' respite having ended, the struggle between the forces of darkness -- man's lower nature -- and the rising sun of the Divine teachings which draw him on to his true station, intensifies day by day. (The Universal House of Justice, excerpt from a message to the Six Intercontinental Conferences; Messages from the Universal House of Justice, Messages 1963 to 1986, pp. 112-114) (To read the entire message, please visit Messages to the Baha’i World Community – by the Universal House of Justice)

Divine Verses

The King James version of the Bible has 50 authors, 66 books (39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament), a total of 1,189 chapters and 31,173 verses.

The Qur’an comprises 114 chapters (or books, similar to those of the Bible), and 6,230 verses.

The Báb’s first and foremost of all His books is known as Qayyumu’l-Asmá. It contains over 9300 verses and 111 chapters, each of which is a commentary on one verse of the Qur’an’s Surih of Joseph. The Báb Himself states in one passage of the Persian Bayán that His Writings comprise no less than 500,000 verses. (The Baha'i World 1973-76, p.576)

Bahá’u’lláh has confirmed that during His time in Adrianople “equivalent of all that hath been sent down aforetime unto the Prophets hath been revealed” by Him. (God Passes By, p.171)

Assignment for youth from the Universal House of Justice

The Nine Year Plan has just entered its third year. The youth have already played a vital part in winning its goals. We now call upon them, with great love and highest hopes and the assurance of our fervent prayers, to consider, individually and in consultation, wherever they live and whatever their circumstances, those steps which they should take now to deepen themselves in their knowledge of the divine message, to develop their characters after the pattern of the Master, to acquire those skills, trades and professions in which they can best serve God and man, to intensify their service to the Cause of Bahá'u'lláh and to radiate its message to the seekers among their contemporaries. (The Universal House of Justice, 10 June, 1966; Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1963-1986) (To see the entire message please visit Messages to the Baha’i World Community – by the Universal House of Justice)