“God hath raised up Prophets and revealed Books as numerous as the creatures of the world…”

… there can be no doubt that from everlasting God hath been invested with the independent sovereignty of His exalted Being, and unto everlasting He will remain inaccessible in the transcendent majesty of His holy Essence. No creature hath ever recognized Him as befitteth His recognition, nor hath any created being ever praised Him as is worthy of His praise. He is exalted above every name, and is sanctified from every comparison. Through Him all things are made known, while too lofty is His reality to be known through anyone but Him. The process of His creation hath had no beginning and can have no end, otherwise it would necessitate the cessation of His celestial grace. God hath raised up Prophets and revealed Books as numerous as the creatures of the world, and will continue to do so to everlasting. 

- The Báb  ('Selections from the Writings of the Báb')

1912: ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s prediction about the next 100 years

They spoke of the temporarily quiet Atlantic, and He [‘Abdu’l-Baha] said: "One must ride in the Ship of God; for this life is a stormy sea, and all the people on earth - that is, over two billion souls - will drown in it before a hundred years have passed. All, except those who ride in the Ship of God. Those will be saved."

(‘A Sampler from Mahmud’s Diary’, vol. 2, translated by Marzieh Gail; ‘The Baha’i World 1954-1963’)  

Translation of the Tablet of Bahá’u’lláh which is framed and hanging in His room at the Ridván Garden

House of Baha'u'llah in Ridvan Garden, early 1900s
(Baha'i Media Bank)

He is God. Glorified be He; Grandeur and Might are His.

On the morning of the blessed Friday, We proceeded from the Mansion and entered the Garden. Every tree uttered a word, and every leaf sang a melody. The trees proclaimed: “Behold the evidences of God’s Mercy”, [1] and the twin streams recited in the eloquent tongue the sacred verse “From us all things were made alive.” Glorified be God! Mysteries were voiced by them, which provoked wonderment: in which school were they educated, and from whose presence had they acquired their learning? Yea! This Wronged One knoweth and He saith: “From God, the All-Encompassing, the Self-Subsistent”.

Upon Our being seated, Rádíyih—upon her be My glory—attained Our presence on thy behalf, laid the table of God’s bounty, and in thy name extended hospitality to all present. In truth, all that which stimulateth the appetite and pleaseth the eye was offered, [2] and indeed that which delighteth the ear could also be heard as the leaves were stirred by the Will of God, and from this movement a refreshing voice was raised, as if uttering a blissful call inviting the absent to this Feast. God’s power and the perfection of His handiwork could enjoyably be seen in the blossoms, the fruits, the trees, the leaves, and the streams. Praised be God, Who hath thus confirmed thee and her.

In brief, all in the Garden were recipients of the choicest bounties and in the end expressed their thanksgiving unto their Lord. O that all God’s beloved had been present on this day!

We beseech God, exalted be He, to cause to descend upon thee, at every moment, a blessing and a mercy and a measure of divine grace from His presence. He is the Forgiving, the All-Glorious.

We send greetings to His loved ones, and supplicate for each one of them that which is worthy of mention and is acceptable in His presence. Peace be upon thee, and upon God’s sincere servants. Praise be to Him, the Lord of all mankind.

- Baha’u’llah  (‘Additional Tablets and Extracts from Tablets Revealed by Bahá’u’lláh’; Baha’i Reference Library of the Baha’i World Center)

 [1] Qur’án 30:50.

 [2] Cf. Qur’án 43:51.

The effect of one’s prayers upon the world

Intone, O My servant, the verses of God that have been received by thee, as intoned by them who have drawn nigh unto Him, that the sweetness of thy melody may kindle thine own soul, and attract the hearts of all men. Whoso reciteth, in the privacy of his chamber, the verses revealed by God, the scattering angels of the Almighty shall scatter abroad the fragrance of the words uttered by his mouth, and shall cause the heart of every righteous man to throb. 

- Baha’u’llah  (‘Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah’)

The Báb’s amazing reference to the station of Bahá’u’lláh

“Beware, beware,” is His significant warning addressed to Váḥid, “lest in the days of His Revelation the Váḥid of the Bayán (eighteen Letters of the Living and the Báb) shut thee out as by a veil from Him, inasmuch as this Váḥid is but a creature in His sight.”

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘God Passes By’)

“What is a Baha’i?” – ‘Abdu’l-Baha was asked

When asked on one occasion: “What is a Bahá’í?” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá replied: “To be a Bahá’í simply means to love all the world; to love humanity and try to serve it; to work for universal peace and universal brotherhood.” On another occasion He defined a Bahá’í as “one endowed with all the perfections of man in activity.” In one of His London talks He said that a man may be a Bahá’í even if He has never heard the name of Bahá’u’lláh. He added:—

“The man who lives the life according to the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh is already a Bahá’í. On the other hand, a man may call himself a Bahá’í for fifty years, and if he does not live the life he is not a Bahá’í. An ugly man may call himself handsome, but he deceives no one, and a black man may call himself white, yet he deceives no one, not even himself.”

“One who does not know God’s Messengers, however, is like a plant growing in the shade. Although it knows not the sun, it is, nevertheless, absolutely dependent on it. The great Prophets are spiritual suns, and Bahá’u’lláh is the sun of this ‘day’ in which we live. The suns of former days have warmed and vivified the world, and had those suns not shone, the earth would be cold and dead, but it is the sunshine of today that alone can ripen the fruits which the suns of former days have kissed into life.” 

- 'Abdu'l-Baha (Quoted by Dr. Esslemont in ‘Baha’u’llah and the New Era’, chapter 5)