Congregational prayer, in the sense of formal obligatory prayer which is to be recited in accordance with a prescribed ritual as, for example, is the custom in Islam where Friday p...
This is a reference to Mirza Yahya, known as Subh-i-Azal (Morning of Eternity), a younger half-brother of Baha'u'llah, who arose against Him and opposed His Cause. Mirza Yahya was...
In _God Passes By_, Shoghi Effendi refers to the fact that Baha'u'llah, Who was thirteen years older than Mirza Yahya, had counselled him and watched over his early youth and manho...
A reference to Siyyid Muhammad-i-Isfahani, who is described by Shoghi Effendi as the Antichrist of the Baha'i Revelation. He was a man of corrupt character and great personal ambit...
Baha'u'llah enjoins the adoption of a universal language and script. His Writings envisage two stages in this process. The first stage is to consist of the selection of an existing...
The first sign of the coming of age of humanity referred to in the Writings of Baha'u'llah is the emergence of a science which is described as that divine philosophy which will inc...
O MY FRIENDS! Have ye forgotten that true and radiant morn, when in those hallowed and blessed surroundings ye were all gathered in My presence beneath the shade of the tree of lif...
O SON OF THE WONDROUS VISION! I have breathed within thee a breath of My own Spirit, that thou mayest be My lover. Why hast thou forsaken Me and sought a beloved other than Me?
O SON OF SPIRIT! My first counsel is this: Possess a pure, kindly and radiant heart, that thine may be a sovereignty ancient, imperishable and everlasting.
O YE PEOPLE THAT HAVE MINDS TO KNOW AND EARS TO HEAR! The first call of the Beloved is this: O mystic nightingale! Abide not but in the rose-garden of the spirit. O messenger of th...
Encompassed as I am at this time by the dogs of the earth and the beasts of every land, concealed as I remain in the hidden habitation of Mine inner Being, forbidden as I may be fr...
The consumption of wine and other intoxicants is prohibited in the Kitab-i-Aqdas (see notes 144 and 170). Reference to the use of wine in an allegorical sense--such as being the ca...
O thou whom We have outwardly never met, yet whom We inwardly cherish in Our heart! Be fair in thy judgement and present thyself before Him Who seeth and knoweth thee, even if thou...
Exemption from obligatory prayer and fasting is granted to women who are menstruating; they should, instead, perform their ablutions (see note 34) and repeat 95 times a day between...
O SON OF SPIRIT! My claim on thee is great, it cannot be forgotten. My grace to thee is plenteous, it cannot be veiled. My love has made in thee its home, it cannot be concealed. M...
In the eighth of the most holy lines, in the fifth Tablet of Paradise, He saith: O YE THAT ARE LYING AS DEAD ON THE COUCH OF HEEDLESSNESS! Ages have passed and your precious lives...
Having imparted unto thee, beneath countless veils of concealment, certain hidden mysteries, We now return to Our elucidation of the Books of old, that perchance thy feet may not s...
men and women alike a single prostration in place of each unsaid Obligatory Prayer 14 Exemption from obligatory prayer is granted to those who find themselves in such a condition o...
O MOVING FORM OF DUST! I desire communion with thee, but thou wouldst put no trust in Me. The sword of thy rebellion hath felled the tree of thy hope. At all times I am near unto t...
O SON OF MAN! Upon the tree of effulgent glory I have hung for thee the choicest fruits, wherefore hast thou turned away and contented thyself with that which is less good? Return...
It is recorded in all the Books of the Gospel that He Who is the Spirit(15) spoke in words of pure light unto His disciples, saying: "Know that heaven and earth may pass away, but...
The Arabic expression haykalu't-tawhid, translated here as cross-legged, means the posture of unity. It has traditionally signified a cross-legged position.
O SON OF DESIRE! The learned and the wise have for long years striven and failed to attain the presence of the All-Glorious; they have spent their lives in search of Him, yet did n...
O SON OF SPIRIT! Noble have I created thee, yet thou hast abased thyself. Rise then unto that for which thou wast created.
O My brother! Sanctify thy heart, illumine thy soul, and sharpen thy sight, that thou mayest perceive the sweet accents of the Birds of Heaven and the melodies of the Doves of Holi...
There is a well-known Islamic tradition concerning God and His creation: I was a Hidden Treasure. I wished to be made known, and thus I called creation into being in order that I m...
O DWELLERS IN THE CITY OF LOVE! Mortal blasts have beset the everlasting candle, and the beauty of the celestial Youth is veiled in the darkness of dust. The chief of the monarchs...
O SON OF THE SUPREME! To the eternal I call thee, yet thou dost seek that which perisheth. What hath made thee turn away from Our desire and seek thine own?
Thou canst indeed hear the learned and the foolish amongst the people voice the same objections in this day, saying: "The sun hath not risen from the West, nor hath the Crier cried...
Pen of the Most High, the Supreme Pen and the Most Exalted Pen are references to Baha'u'llah, illustrating His function as Revealer of the Word of God.