1961: National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States

(The Baha'i World 1954-1963)

The “three stations” of the Manifestations of God

…the Manifestations of God have three stations: first, the material reality, which pertains to the human body; second, the individual reality, that is, the rational soul; and third, the heavenly manifestation, which consists in the divine perfections and is the source of the life of the world, the education of the souls, the guidance of the people, and the enlightenment of all creation.

The corporeal station is human in nature and is subject to disintegration, for it is an elemental composition and that which is composed of elements must of necessity be decomposed and dispersed.

But the individual reality of the Manifestations of the All-Merciful is a sanctified reality, and it is so because it surpasses in essence and in attributes all created things. It is like the sun, which, by virtue of its inherent disposition, must inevitably produce light, and cannot be compared to any satellite. For instance, the constituent parts of the sun can in no wise be compared to those of the moon. The composition and arrangement of the former necessarily produce rays, whereas the constituent parts of the latter require the acquisition, rather than the production, of light. So the other human realities are souls, which, like the moon, acquire their light from the sun, but that sanctified Reality is luminous in and of itself.

The third station is that of divine grace, the revelation of the beauty of the Ancient of Days and the effulgence of the lights of the ever-living and omnipotent Lord. The individual realities of the holy Manifestations cannot be separated from divine grace and revelation any more than the corporeal mass of the sun can be separated from its light. Thus the ascension of the holy Manifestations is simply the abandonment of Their elemental bodies. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (Table talks in Akka, authenticated by ‘Abdu’l-Baha; ‘Some Answered Questions’ – 2014 revised translation by the Baha’i World Centre)

Verses from the Súratu’l-Haykal (Tablet of the Temple]) “each of which testifies to the resistless power infused into the Revelation proclaimed by” Bahá’u’lláh – identified by the Guardian

In the Súratu’l-Haykal, one of the most challenging works of Bahá’u’lláh, the following verses, each of which testifies to the resistless power infused into the Revelation proclaimed by its Author, have been recorded:

• “Naught is seen in My temple but the Temple of God, and in My beauty but His Beauty, and in My being but His Being, and in My self but His Self, and in My movement but His Movement, and in My acquiescence but His Acquiescence, and in My pen but His Pen, the Mighty, the All-Praised. There hath not been in My soul but the Truth, and in Myself naught could be seen but God.”
• “The Holy Spirit Itself hath been generated through the agency of a single letter revealed by this Most Great Spirit, if ye be of them that comprehend.”…
• “Within the treasury of Our Wisdom there lies unrevealed a knowledge, one word of which, if We chose to divulge it to mankind, would cause every human being to recognize the Manifestation of God and to acknowledge His omniscience, would enable every one to discover the secrets of all the sciences, and to attain so high a station as to find himself wholly independent of all past and future learning. Other knowledges We do as well possess, not a single letter of which We can disclose, nor do We find humanity able to hear even the barest reference to their meaning. Thus have We informed you of the knowledge of God, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.” “
• The day is approaching when God will have, by an act of His Will, raised up a race of men the nature of which is inscrutable to all save God, the All-Powerful, the Self-Subsisting.”
• “He will, ere long, out of the Bosom of Power draw forth the Hands of Ascendancy and Might—Hands who will arise to win victory for this Youth and who will purge mankind from the defilement of the outcast and the ungodly. These Hands will gird up their loins to champion the Faith of God, and will, in My name the self-subsistent, the mighty, subdue the peoples and kindreds of the earth. They will enter the cities and will inspire with fear the hearts of all their inhabitants. Such are the evidences of the might of God; how fearful, how vehement is His might!” 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘The Dispensation of Baha’u’llah; included in ‘The World Order of Baha’u’llah’)

1961: National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Canada

(The Baha'i World 1954-1963)

The “attributes and qualities” of members of Spiritual Assemblies

O friends of God! Every assembly is in need of seasoned members who are worthy of its membership and are endowed with innate capacities. Likewise, the members of the Spiritual Assembly must acquire the capacities and merits that are requisites of this lofty station, and through the power of the spirit become experienced members of that assemblage. Those capacities are faith, assurance, insight, loving-kindness, spirituality, radiance, purity, detachment, sanctity, holiness, high endeavour, and nobility of character. My hope is that the members of that assembly shall be distinguished by these attributes and qualities, and shall each day prove anew the existence of these blessings within the reality of their own being. If it be so, Burma shall become even as the snow-white Spot, and those regions shall become the arenas of God’s most great bestowals. Upon you be the Glory of the All-Glorious! 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (From a Tablet; ‘Additional Tablets, Extracts and Talks’; Online Baha’i Reference Library, Baha’i World Centre)

“The design of all cemeteries” – ‘Abdu’l-Baha delineates

To the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Bombay  

O ye friends of God! It is understood that a wall hath been put up around the Bombay Cemetery, and that water supply is now available. It is a source of joy to the hearts that the friends are busily engaged in important matters, especially in regard to the graves of Bahá’ís, which to outward appearance should look majestic.  

It is understood that the land for the cemetery is twenty yards wide and sixty yards long. The design of all cemeteries should be as follows: four large avenues intersecting at the middle like across. Each avenue should be at least two yards wide, with a water pool in the centre of the four avenues. Thus the width of the land will be divided into four sections, and each section similarly divided in the form of a cross.  

Each grave should have a one-yard-wide flower bed to its right, left, top, and bottom. In other words, the graves should not be joined together. Each grave must have its   own flower bed, and if beautiful trees were planted all around the cemetery as well as the water pond, it would be pleasing indeed.  

The main point is that the graves should be situated separately in proper order and should have borders of flowers. However, you may deal with this as you deem advisable.  

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (From a Tablet; ‘Additional Tablets, Extracts and Talks’; Online Baha’i Reference Library, Baha’i World Centre)

O Bahá’u’lláh what hast Thou done!

Baha’u’llah estimates “the station ordained for the true believer”

Estimating the station of the true believer He [Baha'u'llah] remarks: “By the sorrows which afflict the beauty of the All-Glorious! Such is the station ordained for the true believer that if to an extent smaller than a needle’s eye the glory of that station were to be unveiled to mankind, every beholder would be consumed away in his longing to attain it. For this reason it hath been decreed that in this earthly life the full measure of the glory of his own station should remain concealed from the eyes of such a believer.” “If the veil be lifted,” He similarly affirms, “and the full glory of the station of those who have turned wholly towards God, and in their love for Him renounced the world, be made manifest, the entire creation would be dumbfounded.” 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘The Dispensation of Baha’u’llah; included in ‘The World Order of Baha’u’llah’)

Baha’u’llah cites examples of the amazingly great “forces latent in His Revelation”

Expatiating on the forces latent in His Revelation Bahá’u’lláh reveals the following:

• “Through the movement of Our Pen of glory We have, at the bidding of the omnipotent Ordainer, breathed a new life into every human frame and instilled into every word a fresh potency. All created things proclaim the evidences of this world-wide regeneration.” “This is,” He adds, “the most great, the most joyful tidings imparted by the pen of this wronged One to mankind.”
• “How great,” He in another passage exclaims, “is the Cause! How staggering the weight of its message! This is the Day of which it hath been said: ‘O my son! verily God will bring everything to light though it were but the weight of a grain of mustard seed, and hidden in a rock, or in the heavens or in the earth; for God is subtile, informed of all.’”
• “By the righteousness of the one true God! If one speck of a jewel be lost and buried beneath a mountain of stones, and lie hidden beyond the seven seas, the Hand of Omnipotence will assuredly reveal it in this day, pure and cleansed from dross.”
• “He that partaketh of the waters of My Revelation will taste all the incorruptible delights ordained by God from the beginning that hath no beginning to the end that hath no end.”
• “Every single letter proceeding from Our mouth is endowed with such regenerative power as to enable it to bring into existence a new creation—a creation the magnitude of which is inscrutable to all save God. He verily hath knowledge of all things.”
• “It is in Our power, should We wish it, to enable a speck of floating dust to generate, in less than the twinkling of an eye, suns of infinite, of unimaginable splendor, to cause a dewdrop to develop into vast and numberless oceans, to infuse into every letter such a force as to empower it to unfold all the knowledge of past and future ages.”
• “We are possessed of such power which, if brought to light, will transmute the most deadly of poisons into a panacea of unfailing efficacy.”

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘The Dispensation of Baha’u’llah; included in ‘The World Order of Baha’u’llah’)

‘Abdu’lBaha’s Message to the American People - published in San Francisco Chronicle, October 4, 1912

Praise be to God: The United States has in reality made extraordinary progress; day by day they are advancing toward the ultimate goal. The material virtues of the people are many; now they must think of the ideal virtues, so that the highest of the perfections of humanity may illumine the regions of America. Among the highest virtues is universal peace, the oneness of humanity. The chief ailment of humanity today is international strife; this militates against the advancement of the material and ideal virtues.

The continent of America is isolated so far as other countries are concerned; the government is not thinking of making conquests, of enlarging the circle of colonization. They are not thinking to contend with other nations so far as financial, commercial and political supremacy is concerned. They are not the rival of any other nation. Their utmost desire is this: That the continent of America be protected.

They are engaged in the amelioration of internal conditions; they are not engaged in warfare with any nation. Therefore, they have the time and ability to raise the standard of universal peace and spread the doctrine of the oneness of God. May their influence spread and permeate to all parts of the world.

Other peoples of the world have to contend with international difficulties. First, the nations are rivals with each other so far as commercial advantages are concerned. Second, they are thinking of the national self-aggrandizement. Third, they are thinking of planting new colonies. Therefore, it is difficult for them to step into this field, to uphold international peace, because they are contending, warlike, victory-loving people. They cannot be instrumental in promulgating international peace.

‘Abdu’l-Baha’s conversation with a Jewish rabbi

This morning, ‘Abdu’l-Baha went down stairs, and for nearly an hour He was walking in front of the hotel, watching the crowds of Jews who were selling cucumbers. Then a Jewish Rabbi, noted for His learning, called on Him, and he invited Him to come up and sit on the veranda.

After a few preliminary questions about his own health and that of his relatives, ‘Abdu’l-Baha asked him point-blank: "How long are you Jews going to wait for the coming of the Messiah? Day and night you are praying in your Synagogues to hasten His coming. Is He deaf that He does not hear your invocations? Do you imagine that His hands are tied? He came two thousand years ago, but you were then sound asleep and are yet afflicted with the same disease. Why do ye not open your eyes?"

The Rabbi replied: "The Christians claim that Jesus was the Son of God. Now if that was really so, would we have crucified Him?"

Then ‘Abdu’l-Baha answered:

"The title of sonship is first claimed by the Israelites. There are many references in the Old Testament as to their being the sons of God. In the Psalms the title of the Son is given to David. Nay, rather, if you read Exodus, Chapter 4, v. 16, Chapter 32, v. 1-23, Chapter 7, v. 1, you will realize that the appellation of 'God' is given to persons and things. In the Book of Job you will read also that 'there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord.'

Some examples of “dazzling initiatives the followers of Bahá’u’lláh undertook for the sake of the development and progress of Iran” over more than a hundred years

Consider what trailblazing actions and what dazzling initiatives the followers of Bahá’u’lláh undertook for the sake of the development and progress of Iran and in the discharge of the commitment to the good of humanity that He nurtured in them. See what a range of educational, medical, industrial, and agricultural establishments and what material, spiritual, intellectual, and cultural advancements were brought about as a result of the profound faith that generation after generation of those followers placed in the truth that success and prosperity, spiritual salvation and the good pleasure of God are made possible through service, love, and goodwill towards one’s fellow beings. A few examples suffice to attest this truth.

• In some of the remotest corners of the country, more than a hundred years ago, the Bahá’ís of Iran established modern schools that they might impart knowledge to girls and boys and eradicate ignorance.
• By teaching literacy to adults, whether men or women, they swiftly eliminated illiteracy in their communities.
• Courageously and persistently, from the earliest days of the Cause, they have striven to promote the freedom of women and the equality of women and men and have endeavoured to ensure that this important principle—which is an inseparable aspect of Bahá’u’lláh’s fundamental principle of the oneness of humanity—is not only implemented in their personal and family lives, but is also institutionalized in their social and administrative affairs as well as in their educational programmes.
• They established hospitals and dispensaries, so that with the aid of modern medical science and new inventions they might contribute to the health and well-being of their fellow citizens and heal physical ailments too.
• They have exerted great effort to contribute to the development and prosperity of cities and villages, to further industry and agriculture, and to exalt and celebrate the arts and crafts of Iran.
• They have endeavoured to remove ethnic and religious prejudices and have taught their children the lesson of the oneness of humanity from their earliest years.
• They have raised the banner of truthfulness, honesty, and moral conduct in such manner that, throughout the history of this blessed Cause, even its sworn enemies have confessed to their honesty and truthfulness and been astonished and dumbfounded to see that they refuse to deny the truth for the sake of worldly benefit, material advantage, or the preservation of their lives and possessions.
• A hundred years ago they instituted the culture of freedom of choice and the election of representatives in every town and village in which they lived, and they have learned and practised consultation as a principle essential for the creation of harmony and unity together with variety and diversity.
• And above all, they have placed great value on education and have made every effort to ensure that, by means of educational programmes that train human character, the divine principles and teachings are translated into reality.

- The Universal House of Justice  (Naw-Ruz 2023 message to the Baha’is of Iran)

The Greatest Name

Concerning the Greatest Name; this term refers both to “Alláh-u-Abhá” and to “Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá”. The first is the form of Bahá’í greeting and should be used, while the other is an invocation, meaning “O Thou Glory of Glories”. These two words are both referred to as the Greatest Name. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 23 September 1936 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to NSA of Australia and New Zealand; “Messages to the Antipodes’)

1958: Hands of the Cause and Auxiliary Board Members attending the Intercontinental Conference in Kampala, Uganda

(The Baha'i World 1954-1963)

List of requests included in this prayer for the Fast revealed by Baha’u’llah

Prayer

“I beseech Thee, O my God…

• to cast me not away from the gate of the city of Thy presence, and to disappoint not the hopes I have set on the manifestations of Thy grace amidst Thy creatures.
• to draw me ever nearer to the threshold of Thy door, and to suffer me not to be far removed from the shadow of Thy mercy and the canopy of Thy bounty.
• to attract me by the fragrance of Thy raiment, and make me drink of the choice wine of Thine utterance.
• so to raise me up to serve Thy Cause that I shall not fall back, nor be hindered by the suggestions of them who have caviled at Thy signs and turned away from Thy face.
• to enable me to gaze on the Day-Star of Thy Beauty, and to supply me with the wine of Thine utterance.
• to graciously aid me to do what Thy will hath desired and Thy purpose hath manifested.
• to grant that I may die to all that I possess and live to whatsoever belongeth unto Thee.
• to aid me to remember Thee amongst Thy creatures, and to extol Thee amidst Thy people.
• to remove me far from whatsoever Thy will abhorreth, and draw me nigh unto the station wherein He Who is the Day-Spring of Thy signs hath shone forth.
• to make known unto me what lay hid in the treasuries of Thy knowledge and concealed within the repositories of Thy wisdom.
• to number me with such as have attained unto that which Thou hast sent down in Thy Book and manifested through Thy will.
• to write down for me with Thy most exalted Pen what Thou hast written down for Thy trusted ones and Thy chosen ones.
• to write down for every one who hath turned unto Thee, and observed the fast prescribed by Thee, the recompense decreed for such as speak not except by Thy leave, and who forsook all that they possessed in Thy path and for love of Thee.
• to cancel the trespasses of those who have held fast to Thy laws, and have observed what Thou hast prescribed unto them in Thy Book.”

 - Baha’u’llah  (‘Prayers and Meditations by Baha’u’llah’) 

1962: National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Spain

(The Baha'i World 1954-1963)

Naw-Ruz: Persian historical background; Social and religious significance; Occasion for initiation of “philanthropic undertakings…for all humanity” – ‘Abdu’l-Baha explains in a Tablet

According to ancient custom, every nation has general holidays when all the people rejoice and are glad. That is, they choose the day of the year whereon a great or glorious event had occurred. On that day they manifest great joy and happiness. They visit one another; if they have any feelings of bitterness towards one another, they become reconciled on that day; hard feelings pass away and they unite in love for each other. As great events occurred on the day of Naw-Rúz for the Persians, that nation therefore made it a national feast and considered it a national holiday.

This is, indeed, a blessed day because it is the beginning of the temperate season and the commencement of springtime in the Northern Hemisphere. All earthly things, whether trees, animals, or humans, become refreshed; they receive power from the life-giving breeze and obtain new life; a resurrection takes place and, because it is the season of springtime, there is a general marvellous activity in all contingent beings.

There was a time when the Persian dynasty died out and no trace remained thereof. On such a day [Naw-Rúz] a new one was founded. Jamshíd [1] ascended the throne. Persia became happy and at peace. Its power, which had been dissipated, once more returned. Hearts and souls became possessed of wonderful susceptibilities, to such a degree that Persia became more advanced than it had been in former days under the sovereignty of Kayumars and Húshang. [2] The glory and greatness of the government and the nation of Persia rose higher. Likewise, a great many events occurred upon the day of Naw-Rúz that brought honour and glory to Persia and to the Persians. Therefore, the Persian nation, for the last five or six thousand years, has always considered the Feast of Naw-Rúz as a day of national happiness, and until now it is sanctified and recognized as a blessed day.

1956: First Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Kwangpu, Hollanamdo, Korea

(The Baha'i World 1954-1963)

Baha’u’llah’s amazing promise to every human being

O my Lord, my Master, and the Goal of my Desire! I have heard that Thou hast declared this to be a Day whereon if anyone, with complete sincerity, were to ask but once, “Show Thyself to me”, then from the heaven of Divine Utterance he would hear: “Look, and thou shalt behold Me!” From this blessed and exalted utterance the station of this Day is made clear and evident. 

- Bahá’u’lláh  (Additional Prayers Revealed by Baha’u’llah; Baha’i Reference Library of the Baha’i World Centre)