CXXXII.
The Purpose of the one true God, exalted be His glory, in revealing
Himself
unto men is to lay bare those gems that lie hidden within the mine of
their
true and inmost selves. That the divers communions of the earth, and the
manifold
systems of religious belief, should never be allowed to foster the
feelings
of animosity among men, is, in this Day, of the essence of the Faith
of
God and His Religion. These principles and laws, these firmly-established
and
mighty systems, have proceeded from one Source, and are the rays of one
Light.
That they differ one from another is to be attributed to the varying
requirements
of the ages in which they were promulgated.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah,
p. 287
The
second Glad-Tidings:
It
is permitted that the peoples and kindreds of the world associate with
one
another
with joy and radiance. O people! Consort with the followers of all
religions
in a spirit of friendliness and fellowship. Thus hath the day-star of
His
sanction and authority shone forth above the horizon of the decree of God,
the
Lord of the worlds.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 22
In
like manner, every time the Prophets of God have illumined the world with
the
resplendent radiance of the Day Star of Divine knowledge, they have
invariably
summoned its peoples to embrace the light of God through such means
as
best befitted the exigencies of the age in which they appeared. They were
thus
able to scatter the darkness of ignorance, and to shed upon the world the
glory
of their own knowledge. It is towards the inmost essence of these
Prophets,
therefore, that the eye of every man of discernment must be
directed,..
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah,
p. 80
I
testify, O Thou Who art the Lord of the whole creation, and the Desire
of
whosoever
hath sought Thee, that, amidst Thy creatures, They [the
Manifestations
of God] resemble the sun which no matter how often it riseth
and
setteth is still the one and the same sun. Whoso maketh any distinction
between
any of Them hath truly failed to attain the ultimate purpose, and
to
reach the highest goal, and hath been deprived of the mysteries of unity
and
of the lights of sanctity and oneness. I testify, moreover, that Thou
hast
decreed that none on the face of the earth should equal Them, and none
of
Thy creatures be able to be compared with any of Them, in order that
Thine
own singleness and peerlessness might be recognized and established.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Prayers and Meditations, p. 50-51
XXIV.
Beware, O believers in the Unity of God, lest ye be tempted to make
any
distinction between any of the Manifestations of His Cause, or to
discriminate
against the signs that have accompanied and proclaimed their
Revelation.
This indeed is the true meaning of Divine Unity,
if ye be of
them
that apprehend and believe this truth. Be ye assured, moreover, that
the
works and acts of each and every one of these Manifestations of God,
nay
whatever pertaineth unto them, and whatsoever they may manifest in the
future,
are all ordained by God, and are a reflection of His Will and
Purpose.
Whoso maketh the slightest possible difference between their
persons,
their words, their messages, their acts and manners, hath indeed
disbelieved
in God, hath repudiated His signs, and betrayed the Cause of
His
Messengers.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah,
p. 59
3:84
Say: "We believe in God, and in what has been revealed to us and what
was
revealed to Abraham, Ismá'íl, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes,
and in
(the
Books) given to Moses, Jesus, and the prophets, from their Lord: We
make
no distinction between one and another among them, and to God do we
bow
our will (in Islám)."
--
Qur'an: 3 - AL-I-IMRAN.
Every
discerning observer will recognize that in the Dispensation of the
Qur'án
both the Book and the Cause of Jesus were confirmed. As to the
matter
of names, Muhammad, Himself, declared: "I am Jesus." He recognized
the
truth of the signs, prophecies, and words of Jesus, and testified that
they
were all of God. In this sense, neither the person of Jesus nor His
writings
hath differed from that of Muhammad and of His holy Book, inasmuch
as
both have championed the Cause of God, uttered His praise, and revealed
His
commandments. Thus it is that Jesus, Himself, declared: "I go away and
come
again unto you." Consider the sun. Were it to say now, "I am the sun
of
yesterday," it would speak the truth. And should it, bearing the
sequence
of time in mind, claim to be other than that sun, it still would
speak
the truth.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah,
p. 21
In
the beginning of His Book He saith: "Alif. Lám. Mím. No doubt
is there
about
this Book: It is a guidance unto the God-fearing." In the
disconnected
letters of the Qur'án the mysteries of the divine Essence are
enshrined,
and within their shells the pearls of His Unity are treasured...
It
is incumbent upon us not to depart from God's irresistible injunction
and
fixed decree, as revealed in the above-mentioned verse. We should
acknowledge
the holy and wondrous Scriptures, for failing to do this we
have
failed to acknowledge the truth of this blessed verse. For it is
evident
that whoso hath failed to acknowledge the truth of the Qur'án hath
in
reality failed to acknowledge the truth of the preceding Scriptures.
This
is but the manifest implication of the verse. Were We to expound its
inner
meanings and unfold its hidden mysteries, eternity would never
suffice
to exhaust their import, nor would the universe be capable of
hearing
them! God verily testifieth to the truth of Our saying!
--
Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 202-204
He
is a true believer in Divine unity who,
far from confusing duality with
oneness,
refuseth to allow any notion of multiplicity to becloud his
conception
of the singleness of God, who will regard the Divine Being as
One
Who, by His very nature, transcendeth the limitations of numbers.
The
essence of belief in Divine unity consisteth in regarding Him Who is
the
Manifestation of God and Him Who is the invisible, the inaccessible,
the
unknowable Essence as one and the same. By this is meant that whatever
pertaineth
to the former, all His acts and doings, whatever He ordaineth or
forbiddeth,
should be considered, in all their aspects, and under all
circumstances,
and without any reservation, as identical with the Will of
God
Himself. This is the loftiest station to which a true believer in the
unity
of God can ever hope to attain. Blessed is the man that reacheth this
station,
and is of them that are steadfast in their belief.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah,
p. 166
THE
VALLEY OF UNITY (Fourth Valley)
After
passing through the Valley of knowledge, which is the last plane of
limitation,
the wayfarer cometh to the Valley of Unity and drinketh from
the
cup of the Absolute, and gazeth on the Manifestations of Oneness. In
this
station he pierceth the veils of plurality, fleeth from the worlds of
the
flesh, and ascendeth into the heaven of singleness. With the ear of God
he
heareth, with the eye of God he beholdeth the mysteries of divine
creation.
He steppeth into the sanctuary of the Friend, and shareth as an
intimate
the pavilion of the Loved One. He stretcheth out the hand of truth
from
the sleeve of the Absolute; he revealeth the secrets of power. He
seeth
in himself neither name nor fame nor rank, but findeth his own praise
in
praising God.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, The Seven Valleys and the Four Valleys, p. 18
True
knowledge, therefore, is the knowledge of God, and this is none other
than
the recognition of His Manifestation in each Dispensation. Nor is
there
any wealth save in poverty in all save God and sanctity from aught
else
but Him -- a state that can be realized only when demonstrated towards
Him
Who is the Dayspring of His Revelation. This doth not mean, however,
that
one ought not to yield praise unto former Revelations. On no account
is
this acceptable, inasmuch as it behooveth man, upon reaching the age of
nineteen,
to render thanksgiving for the day of his conception as an
embryo.
For had the embryo not existed, how could he have reached his
present
state? Likewise had the religion taught by Adam not existed, this
Faith
would not have attained its present stage. Thus consider thou the
development
of God's Faith until the end that hath no end. V, 4.
--The
Bab, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 89
In
brief, I hold within My grasp whatsoever any man might wish of the good
of
this world and of the next. Were I to remove the veil, all would
recognize
Me as their Best Beloved, and no one would deny Me. Let not this
assertion
astound Your Majesty; inasmuch as a true believer in the unity of
God
who keepeth his eyes directed towards Him alone, will regard aught else
but
Him as utter nothingness. I swear by God! I seek no earthly goods from
thee,
be it as much as a mustard seed. Indeed, to possess anything of this
world
or of the next would, in My estimation, be tantamount to open
blasphemy.
For it ill beseemeth the believer in the unity of God to turn
his
gaze to aught else, much less to hold it in his possession. I know of a
certainty
that since I have God, the Ever-Living, the Adored One, I am the
possessor
of all things, visible and invisible...
--
The Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 15
And
now concerning thy question regarding the nature of religion. Know thou
that
they who are truly wise have likened the world unto the human temple.
As
the body of man needeth a garment to clothe it, so the body of mankind
must
needs be adorned with the mantle of justice and wisdom. Its robe is
the
Revelation vouchsafed unto it by God. Whenever this robe hath fulfilled
its
purpose, the Almighty will assuredly renew it. For every age requireth
a
fresh measure of the light of God. Every Divine Revelation hath been sent
down
in a manner that befitted the circumstances of the age in which it
hath
appeared.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah,
p. 81
XXXIII.
It hath been decreed by Us that the Word of God and all the
potentialities
thereof shall be manifested unto men in strict conformity
with
such conditions as have been foreordained by Him Who is the
All-Knowing,
the All-Wise. We have, moreover, ordained that its veil of
concealment
be none other except its own Self. Such indeed is Our Power to
achieve
Our Purpose. Should the Word be allowed to release suddenly all the
energies
latent within it, no man could sustain the weight of so mighty a
Revelation.
Nay, all that is in heaven and on earth would flee in
consternation
before it.
Consider
that which hath been sent down unto Muhammad, the Apostle of God.
The
measure of the Revelation of which He was the bearer had been clearly
foreordained
by Him Who is the Almighty, the All-Powerful. They that heard
Him,
however, could apprehend His purpose only to the extent of their
station
and spiritual capacity. He, in like manner, uncovered the Face of
Wisdom
in proportion to their ability to sustain the burden of His Message.
No
sooner had mankind attained the stage of maturity, than the Word
revealed
to men's eyes the latent energies with which it had been endowed
--energies
which manifested themselves in the plenitude of their glory when
the
Ancient Beauty appeared, in the year sixty, in the person of
`Alí-Muhammad,
the Báb.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah,
p. 76
