The Kingdom of God: a life already opening

Now the greatest doubt of the deniers is this: where is that world? And everything which has no concrete external existence is mere imagination. However, the world of existence is one world, but it becomes manifold in relation to diverse realities. For example, the mineral, vegetable and animal worlds are one world, but the animal world in relation to the vegetable world is a spiritual reality and another realm, another condition.

The Kingdom is outwardly referred to as "heaven", but this is an expression and likeness and not a factual statement or reality. For the Kingdom is not a material location but is sanctified above time and place. It is a spiritual realm, a divine world, and it is the seat of the sovereignty of the almighty Lord. It is exalted above bodies and all that is corporeal, and it is freed and sanctified from the idle conjectures of men. For to be confined to place is a characteristic of bodies and not of spirits: Time and place encompass the body, not the mind and the soul.

… Likewise, love has no place, but it is connected with the heart.

… Entrance into the Kingdom is through the love of God, through detachment, through sanctity and holiness, through truthfulness and purity, through steadfastness and faithfulness, and through self- sacrifice.

O my dear friend! Verily, my heart is united with thee even though my body is in a distant land, for verily neither long distance nor immense remoteness can prevent the union between hearts, because the clear hearts are in reality assembled in union in the Kingdom of God, while bodies are dispersed in the east and west of the earth.

Therefore, true sweetness lies in the chambers of paradise, and the sweetness and beauty of the All-Merciful is found in the countenances of fellowship.

The real, true Baha'is are the seeing, the perceptive, the knowing; their most noble task is that they make good use of the grace of understanding and refine the conscience of men everywhere, thus paving the way for the Kingdom of God on earth. For love and peace bring heaven down to earth.

"Will this misery-laden world ever attain happiness?" a visitor asked one day. The Master replied:

"It is nearly two thousand years since His holiness the Lord Christ taught this prayer to His people: "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth, as it is in Heaven.' Thinkest thou that He would have commanded thee to pray for that which would never come? That prayer is also a prophecy."

Know that in language, 'Kingdom' (Malakut) is an intensification of 'dominion' (Mulk), meaning sovereignty. In the terminology of the people of truth, it refers to the divine realm which encompasses the earthly realm and is sanctified from the conditions, characteristics, limitations and imperfections of the material world - pure, perfect, ancient, luminous, spiritual; neither within contingent existence nor outside it; neither confined to space nor perceivable by physical senses. Its example is like the world of mind and spirit in the human temple, which encompasses the physical form and directs all conditions, members, parts, powers, senses and faculties of the human world - neither within nor without, for entering, exiting and mixing are characteristics of the physical world.

All directions and quarters belong to the realm of place, but the Abha Kingdom is sanctified above directions. All rising points exist in the contingent world, but that eternal realm exists in the placeless realm. Every region and kingdom is bounded, but that enduring kingdom is abstract and distinct.

The answer to the first question: the souls of the children of the Kingdom, after their separation from the body, ascend unto the realm of everlasting life. But if ye ask as to the place, know ye that the world of existence is a single world, although its stations are various and distinct.

… Those souls who are pure and unsullied, upon the dissolution of their elemental frames, hasten away to the world of God, and that world is within this world. The people of this world, however, are unaware of that world, and are even as the mineral and the vegetable that know nothing of the world of the animal and the world of man.

Concerning what occurreth after man ascendeth from this contingent world to the realm of the placeless - all the conditions of Heaven and Hell are spiritual in nature, although that world is not separated from this world. Its separation, in truth and meaning, is like the separation of the human kingdom from the kingdom of the mineral, for the mineral is unaware of the human world.

As for the unveiling of the beauty of the Holy Manifestations at the time of ascending to the limitless worlds, this pertaineth to the fact that the world of physical senses and material perceptions is metaphorical while the world of the spirit is reality itself.

It would be true if thou wert to contend that this same world is, as decreed by the All-Glorious and Almighty God, within thy proper self and is wrapped up within thee. It would equally be true to maintain that thy spirit, having transcended the limitations of sleep and having stripped itself of all earthly attachment, hath, by the act of God, been made to traverse a realm which lieth hidden in the innermost reality of this world. Verily I say, the creation of God embraceth worlds besides this world, and creatures apart from these creatures.

However, a heavenly soul who is aware of the divine realm, whose eye of insight is opened, who is detached from the natural world and has attained spiritual power - such a one is aware of the divine world and the realm of spirits. The reality of the spirit is abstract - it is not physical, has no space, and occupies no place.

As to the worlds whereunto Christ (unto whom be the great glory) referred: They are spiritual, divine, heavenly, single, unlocated; neither the imperfect mind can comprehend them, nor the sinning soul can know them. But, verily the sights of the people of the Kingdom of El-ABHA perceive them and the intellects of the people of the Supreme Concourse apprehend them.

But the reality of Divinity is indivisible, and each individual of humankind cannot be a part of it as is often claimed. Nay, rather, the individual realities of mankind, when spiritually born, are emanations from the reality of Divinity, just as the flame, heat and light of the sun are the effulgence of the sun and not a part of the sun itself. Therefore, a spirit has emanated from the reality of Divinity, and its effulgences have become visible in human entities or realities.

Although the spirit is hidden from view, still its commandments shine out like rays of light upon the world of the human body. In the same way, although the Kingdom of heaven is hidden from the sight of this unwitting people, still, to him who seeth with the inner eye, it is plain as day.

Wherefore dwell thou ever in the Kingdom, and be thou oblivious of this world below. Be thou so wholly absorbed in the emanations of the spirit that nothing in the world of man will distract thee.

These spiritual powers, these divine susceptibilities cry out at all times with the clarion call of the Kingdom and with a potency born of the soul, saying: O thou endowed with sight! Behold the Divine Principle at work! Reflect on the potent Kingdom of the Lord of Light. See the traces of the Holy Spirit in the world and the signs of the Sovereign of the all-Highest Paradise on every side.

Know ye that the world is your heedlessness of your Creator and your occupation with aught else save Him. The hereafter is that which draweth you nigh unto God, the Mighty, the Beautiful. Whatsoever preventeth you this day from the love of God - that indeed is the world.

Burst thy cage asunder, and even as the phoenix of love soar into the firmament of holiness. Renounce thyself and, filled with the spirit of mercy, abide in the realm of celestial sanctity.

23 And if, confirmed by the Creator, the lover escapeth the claws of the eagle of love, he will enter the REALM OF KNOWLEDGE and come out of doubt into certitude, and turn from the darkness of wayward desire to the guiding light of the fear of God. His inner eye will open and he will privily converse with his Beloved; he will unlock the gates of truth and supplication and shut the doors of idle fancy.

… 44 Whensoever the light of the revelation of the King of Oneness settleth upon the throne of the heart and soul, His radiance becometh visible in every limb and member. At that time, the mystery of the famed tradition gleameth out of the darkness: "A servant is drawn unto Me in prayer until I answer him, and when I have answered him, I become the ear wherewith he heareth ..." For thus the Master of the house hath appeared within His home, and all the pillars of the dwelling are ashine with His light.

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When the channel of the human soul is cleansed of all worldly and impeding attachments, it will unfailingly perceive the breath of the Beloved across immeasurable distances, and will, led by its perfume, attain and enter the City of Certitude. Therein he will discern the wonders of His ancient wisdom, and will perceive all the hidden teachings from the rustling leaves of the Tree -- which flourisheth in that City. With both his inner and his outer ear he will hear from its dust the hymns of glory and praise ascending unto the Lord of Lords, and with his inner eye will he discover the mysteries of "return" and "revival." How unspeakably glorious are the signs, the tokens, the revelations, and splendors which He Who is the King of names and attributes hath destined for that City! The attainment of this City quencheth thirst without water, and kindleth the love of God without fire.

… In these Cities spiritual sustenance is bountifully provided, and incorruptible delights have been ordained. The food they bestow is the bread of heaven, and the Spirit they impart is God's imperishable blessing. Upon detached souls they bestow the gift of Unity, enrich the destitute, and offer the cup of knowledge unto them who wander in the wilderness of ignorance.

Thus beings, insofar as their existence is concerned, have been made real through God, that is through His creative power: 'Were He to desire a thing and say "be," it shall exist.' As for spiritual creation, which is the station of the new creation, it is supreme guidance, eternal life, universal qualities, the acquirement of the all-inclusive divine perfections, and progress in all the stages of human endowments. This creation and existence is realized through the appearance of the Divine Manifestations in the contingent world.

As to the fourth degree of spirit, it is the heavenly spirit, which is the spirit of faith and the outpouring grace of the All-Merciful. This spirit proceeds from the breath of the Holy Spirit, and through a power born of God it becomes the cause of everlasting life. It is that power which makes the earthly soul heavenly and the imperfect man perfect. It cleanses the impure, unlooses the tongue of the silent, sanctifies the bondslaves of passion and desire, and confers knowledge upon the ignorant.

That is why He says: "I am the bread which came down from heaven; whosoever shall eat of this bread will not die," that is, whosoever partakes of this divine sustenance will gain eternal life. Thus, whoever partook of this grace and acquired a share of these perfections found eternal life, and whoever sought illumination from His ancient grace was delivered from the darkness of error and illumined by the light of guidance.

Your faith comes like rain; the first drops are far between, but soon it will pour in torrents. … The knowledge of God rises in the heart like the sun; it mounts, mounts, always casting an immortal light.

You must be reborn by the Spirit. A child in the matrix has eyes and ears but only learns their use when it is born. A man cannot comprehend the Spirit before he has put aside earthly things.

The first entrance into light and into belief is extremely difficult. The spiritual birth is troublesome and painful in the same degree as is the physical birth. In reality, the two births are alike.

Know thou, verily, man before reaching (spiritual) maturity passes his days and only apprehends trivial things which are clear on account of their exoteric indications, but when he attains full development, then he grasps the reality of things and their esoteric facts. Every day after maturity is equivalent to one year before it, on account of man's perception, understanding, apprehension and discoveries.

But if the human spirit be rejoiced and attracted to the Kingdom, if the inner eye be opened and the spiritual ear attuned, and if spiritual feelings come to predominate, the immortality of the spirit will be seen as clearly as the sun and heavenly tidings and intimations will encompass that spirit.

As to the difference between inspiration and imagination: inspiration is in conformity with the Divine Texts, but imaginations do not conform therewith. A real, spiritual connection between the True One and the servant is a luminous bounty which causeth an ecstatic (or divine) flame, passion and attraction. When this connection is secured (or realized) such an ecstasy and happiness become manifest in the heart that man doth fly away (with joy) and uttereth melody and song. Just as the soul bringeth the body in motion, so that spiritual bounty and real connection likewise moveth (or cheereth) the human soul.

O thou who hast been attracted by the Magnet of the Kingdom! Note that thy Lord hath manifested the Magnet of souls and hearts in the Pole of the existing world, to which all the sacred hearts are attracted from the far distant lands and countries. The iron body is attractable although at long distances away; but the earthen one is not although in contact and very close.

O thou who art attracted to the call of the Lord of the Kingdom!

Know thou, verily, the Kingdom is a magnet of the divine world, and it attracteth the iron of pure hearts which are capable of the bounties of the Lord of Might. Blessed art thou, for thou hast turned unto the Lord of Heaven, thy heart hath depended upon the Light of Guidance, thou hast advanced toward the Center of Righteousness, and thy spirit is cheered by the abundance of the Supreme Concourse!

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"The magnet attracts iron, and as you approach the Kingdom of God you will be attracted by the things of the Kingdom. Worldly people are not of the kind to be affected by the magnet.

...Those souls that, in this day, enter the divine kingdom and attain everlasting life, although materially dwelling on earth, yet in reality soar in the realm of heaven. Their bodies may linger on earth but their spirits travel in the immensity of space. For as thoughts widen and become illumined, they acquire the power of flight and transport man to the kingdom of God.

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Endeavor as much as possible to liberate thyself wholly from human susceptibilities-so that the powers of the Kingdom may gain control over thy heart and thy spirit-to such a degree that although thou art living on the face of the earth, yet thou mayest truly be in heaven; that although outwardly thou an composed of material elements, yet spiritually thou mayest become composed of heavenly elements.

The spirit of man must acquire its bounties from the Kingdom of God in order that it may become the mirror and manifestation of lights and the dawning point of divine traces, because the human reality is like the soil. … Similarly, the human spirit or reality of man, unless it becomes the recipient of the lights of the Kingdom, develops divine susceptibilities and consciously reflects the effulgence of God, will not be the manifestation of ideal bounties, for only the reality of man can become the mirror wherein the lights of God are revealed.

There are three paths through which man obtains spiritual happiness. The first path is the path of ordeals, trials and difficulties. His feet are torn with thorns and thistles, he goes through many pains and torments but finally he reaches to his destination.

The second path is a pleasant path but the traveler makes slow progress. He advances surely but slowly. Step by step he comes nearer and nearer to the goal. It may take many years but the persevering, determined, cheerful traveler goes on and on.

The third path is the path of faith. With one step the traveler finds himself in the Kingdom; even less than the twinkling of an eye the change is wrought. In one moment, he travels from the world of negation into the world of affirmation. We have seen this with our own eyes. A man who has been the collective center of all the vices, having become a Baha'i is changed completely in less than a second. He has become another man. He has entered a new world of light.

When the grace of the Best-Beloved, the Most Glorious -- may my spirit be a sacrifice for His loved ones -- becometh thy companion and helper, infinite stations shall be traversed in an instant, and the seats of truth and stations of holiness shall become thy dwelling-place.

Thou hast been borne of the Spirit and hast entered the Kingdom of God. What bestowal is there greater than this?

O honored Family! The heartfelt greetings and love from you were conveyed to me. I implore for you heavenly life; pray for you eternal happiness, pray for you the spirit of the Kingdom and the second birth, so that you may enter from the natural world into the world of the Merciful Kingdom. Upon you be Baha El Abha!

O thou who gazest upon the Kingdom of the All-Merciful!

Thy vision is keen and thy creation is a new creation.

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Today the souls of the world, despite their outward life, are reckoned as dead in the sight of God, for those possessed of true life are souls who have attained unto the recognition of God. They are the possessors of eternal life and everlasting existence. And those dead who have received their portion from the breezes of revelation and the fragrances of inspiration, and have drunk from the Kawthar of recognition from the hand of bounty - they are alive and enduring in the sight of God.

The greatest day in the life of a human soul is when as a thirsty one, he arrives at the Fountain of the Water of Life; when as a lover he attains the Presence of the Beloved; when as a blind and a deaf man receives spiritual sight and hearing: in short, the day wherein he enters the Kingdom of God. That is indeed a most memorable day.

O thou son of the Kingdom! Man could be so honourable if he would tread the path of God. He would be so beauteous if the light of God could shine upon him and so wise were he to seek the knowledge of the Kingdom.

I hope that the doors of divine worlds may be opened before your faces, that you may soar up in a space whose lights are eternal, enter a garden whose fruits are everlasting, become the center of human virtues and the appearances of divine perfections, that your hearts be adorned with the commemoration of God, your faces illumined with the light of the love of God, your ears may hear the melodies of sanctity, your spirits may be gladdened with divine glad tidings, your tongues may move in praising God; in short, that you may attain to such a station as to be called the Children of the Kingdom.

But I speak to them of the trees of the world of existence, of the fruits of human virtues and of heavenly morals and traits and call people to the Kingdom of God.

Then the heart is purified, the spirit gladdened with the Good-News of the Kingdom and the realm of morality will become the delectable paradise.

O you who spend in the path of God! The proof of faith is the spending of wealth and life: "Those who strive in the path of God with their wealth and their souls." Praise be to God that you are arising to do this. These acceptable deeds will take on a tangible form in the Abha Kingdom and will yield boundless fruits. This tree that is planted in the realm of possibility will reach to the branches of the Supreme Concourse, becoming full of leaves and blossoms, laden with fruits, and these fruits will be scattered throughout the world of existence. One righteous deed becomes the cause of abundant bounty.

However, the children of the Kingdom are engaged in sowing the seeds in the field of truth so that they may gather a rich harvest, may achieve everlasting grace and blessings, may partake of life eternal, may reap incorruptible benefits and shine resplendent like stars from the horizon of the Kingdom.

O Sulayman! This is the time of Solomonic grandeur and the season of spiritual sovereignty, and that servitude at the Sacred Divine Threshold - this is eternal dominion and everlasting crown-bearing.

The title of queen is true for those handmaidens who have attained recognition of the Truth, and they are in truth the queens of the kingdoms of the celestial realm and will ever be so.

O Khousrow in the Kingdom of inner mystery.

Every soul that partakes of this spiritual banquet, every soul that enters beneath the shadow of God and becomes intoxicated from the eternal cup vouchsafed by the divine Bestower, such a one is the king of existence, a star shining in the kingdoms of both the worlds and the ruler over the country of heart and soul.

God willing thou shalt become ever more steadfast, ever more strong so that thou wilt be enabled to withstand the peoples of the world with a power from on high. Then shalt thou truly be a light of the kingdom and an example unto the Concourse above.

O thou who art attracted by the Word of God to the Kingdom of God!

Turn with the whole of thy being to God, forget aught else save God, and supplicate God to make thee a sign of guidance in the midst of people who are veiled from God; perchance they may be guided to the Orb of all horizons, enter the kingdom of harmony, drink of the cup of the love of God, rejoice at the manifestation of the Kingdom of God, taste the delight of the mention of God, and shelter themselves in the shadow of the Tree of Life in the midst of the Paradise of God.

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Cause the birds of souls to soar in another atmosphere, and make the intimates of the mortal realm familiar with the mysteries of the Kingdom.

Strive day and night that its lustre and brightness may increase, so that the Light of God may environ all the regions, the Kingdom of God may be established and the Glory of Abha be revealed.

The Master replied:

Enter into the Cause of Baha'u'llah and act in accordance with His counsels. When you have attained to the pinnacle of your development in the Cause of Baha'u'llah, you will see how confirmations are granted you.

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Q. What is the greatest duty of man in this world?

A. To enter in the Kingdom of God is the greatest and most important duty.

Fear not, worry not, do not pursue the things of this world! Follow continuously the guidance of God, keeping His Kingdom as the goal before your eyes here and in the beyond. With Him, in Him, through Him, you are always and everywhere safe!

O servant of God! Your letter was received and I prayed for you and beseeched the Kingdom of God that you may become detached from attachment to this world and become severed, and be mindful of the eternal Kingdom. This world's foundation is built upon wind and has no end. One should attend to the affairs of this world only to the extent necessary and spend the remaining time on the Kingdom of God, so that eternal illumination may be achieved and everlasting existence obtained.

When the heart becometh free from attachment unto this world, it will crave for the world of the Kingdom and seek for eternal life.

As soon as he begins to be detached from this world the Spirit of the Kingdom, like unto a sun, will shine from the horizon of his heart.

What delusions are these, what rebellion is this, what ignorance is this, and what disobedience is this - that they are heedless of God yet alert to the world, asleep to the Kingdom yet awake to the realm of dust!

O thou handmaid aflame with the fire of God's love! Grieve thou not over the troubles and hardships of this nether world, nor be thou glad in times of ease and comfort, for both shall pass away. This present life is even as a swelling wave, or a mirage, or drifting shadows. Could ever a distorted image on the desert serve as refreshing waters?

O my beloved, there is no soul but its cup becomes clouded one day by a destined measure, so that souls may not find rest nor be attracted to this transient existence and elemental life, but rather hearts may become attached to the divine Kingdom and souls may rejoice in eternal outpourings.

The days of life will end - comfort and difficulty, glory and abasement, wealth and poverty will all terminate, but the divine edifice shall remain and heavenly souls shall find their way to the divine pavilion and shine forth from the horizon of inner meanings and realities with infinite lights.

O 'Abdu'l-Baqi! Whatsoever thou beholdest in the realm of existence is transient, and whomsoever thou findest dwelling beneath the extended shade is steadfast and enduring. For they have entered beneath the shade of His countenance and have been admitted into the paradise of His grace.

His Holiness Baha'u'llah hath ordained for His believers eternal Sovereignty which is not overthrown and annihilated through the lapse of centuries and cycles. The foundation of any other Sovereignty is not securely laid. Therefore you must strive in that which is permanent and unchangeable.

The Sovereignty of the world is like unto the mirage and the Sovereignty of the Kingdom is like unto the ocean of water. The latter is the Reality, the former is superficiality.

O ye maid-servants of God! All the palaces shall be destroyed and become like graves, buried beneath the ground, but God, through His mighty hand, will build for ye solid palaces in His Kingdom which will not be destroyed forever and evermore; nay, rather its foundation will be strengthened in the course of ages and centuries.

All the powers of the world are limited, but the power of God's Kingdom is unlimited. All powers will eventually cease to exist, but the power of the Kingdom exists forever.

Know ye the value of these days, for today man is able to attain unto a station or essence which extinction shall not overtake and which ages and centuries shall not alter. Blessed is the soul that hath attained and hath not been deprived.

This is the station I desire for you, that you may enter the Kingdom of God and know eternal peace and happiness. Otherwise, should you become the possessors of all the world's treasures, you would remain afflicted with toil and adversity in the end.

If you put your efforts into understanding the precepts of the Kingdom instead of into acquiring worldly shares and rights, you will gain perpetual joy and happiness.

The Kingdom of God is vast. He will give you whatever you desire and there will be no place for strife and conflict.

And they cannot have this rest of heart but through the Love of GOD. Therefore we must know what happiness exists in the Other world, and not in this.

In reality, there is no happiness in the world of existence for men except in the splendors of the Light of the Kingdom.

Among them is the station of the Paradise of Justice, the Green Land, the Deep of Malakut. This is reserved for those servants whom neither commerce nor trade diverteth from the remembrance of God. These are indeed the companions of the light, and they enter therein by God's leave and repose upon the carpet of glory.

Among them is the station of the Paradise of Grace, the Crimson Land, the mystery of the Yellow, the hidden secret of the White, the Point of Nasut.

The soul, when it has entered this exalted heaven, this eternal paradise, has sought the dawn of this most luminous day, has entered this most pleasant, most pure place, has taken on perfections, acquired the illumination of the essence (jawahir) of names and attributes, has drunk from this "cup tempered at the camphor fountain [Q76:5]," has roamed throughout these lands, plunged the depths of these seas, and has been guided to this fire kindled and aflame on the Paran of love, confirms in its reality the profession of Divine Unity (kalimat at- tawhid) and establishes in its essence the sign of detachment (ayat at- tajrid). It attains to everlasting life and eternal living. It takes pleasure from delights the like of which no eye has seen nor any ear heard.

This world is the empire of the spiritual sovereignty of the Abha Beauty, and this realm is the seat where the mighty throne of the Kingdom of the Exalted One is established. Its effulgent sun, its shining moon never set, its brilliant stars never fade, its bright horizon is never overcast. Its oceans surge and its birds soar in the heights. Its streams are living waters, soft-flowing rivers of immortality. Its trees are saplings planted in the orchard of the Lord of Glory.

This is the Kingdom that was promised by Christ. This is the Kingdom that all the Prophets gave glad tidings of. This is the Kingdom whose sun is ever at its zenith. This is the Kingdom whose moon and stars never set. This is the Kingdom whose season is perpetually springtime. This is the Kingdom whose trees are ever-bearing. This is the Kingdom whose air is always life-giving. This is the Kingdom whose life is eternal and whose glory is everlasting.

Its palaces are ever illumined by the lights of the Kingdom. Its season is always spring. Its trees are ever green and flourishing. Its fruits are fresh and tender. Its sun is forever rising. Its moon is always a brilliant full moon. Its assembly is always radiant and its cups are ever-circulating.

It is the City Limitless; not one has yet found its boundary. Its Sun never sets; its Moon is ever a full moon, it never is on the wane; its stars are all suns; its season is ever Spring; its blossoms and flowers never wither; its trees are ever fruitful. All living beings in that City are unaware of death, and death never overtakes them.

Fix thy gaze upon the Supreme Realm and the Kingdom on high - thou shalt witness a rising that hath no setting after it, and observe a day that hath no night to follow. All is rising and radiance, manifestation and light, for the Sun of Truth is sanctified above rising and setting.

Tell them that "The suns of the garden of El-ABHA are still shining, the moons rising, the stars brightening, the gifts perpetual, the grace perfect, the glad-tidings spreading, the signs of singleness and oneness are chanted in the cloister of its Godhead and the flags of sanctity are waving above the palaces of its glory.

But those who have advanced to the Kingdom of God have assuredly advanced to a sea of clear and limpid water and thus have attained unto the greatest bounty, the perfect rest and the eternal life to which there is no abrupt end. Their faces have shined with joy, their souls delighted with pleasure, their hearts illumined and their cups overflowed with abundance. Their edifice hath risen high, their palaces have been adorned, their suns shone, their stars gleamed and their diadems radiated with a dazzling light. Their dominions have expanded and their lights have spread to all ages and generations.

Therefore know with certainty that joy and delight, pleasure and gladness, attainment to the divine presence, the ultimate goal, the supreme garden, and the most exalted paradise are from the realities of the Kingdom, not from the elements of the material world.

Be patient in the time of affliction and trial, endure every difficulty and hardship with a dilated heart, attracted spirit and eloquent tongue in remembrance of the Merciful. Verily this is the life of satisfaction, the spiritual existence, heavenly repose, divine benediction and the celestial table!

Praise be to God, the treasure of the Kingdom is present and prepared, and the divine treasure is manifest like an ocean.

When thou dost enter the market place of the All-Merciful which is in the divine Kingdom, however, thou shalt become the manifestation of His grace and bountiful favour.

Happy art thou who hast entered this Supreme Paradise under the shadow of the Tree of Life and hast partaken of the Heavenly Table.

Praise be to God, the feast of bounty is richly adorned, and this is the era of the supreme Paradise. Blessed are those who attain! Glad tidings to those who arrive! O joy to the yearning ones! And bravo, bravo to the steadfast!

But the spiritual feast is supreme paradise and the divine celebration is the manifestation of the evident light.

Praise God that you arranged such a gathering and sought such joy and pleasure, that you are attracted to the realm above, and that through divine grace and bounty each of you is an ocean. At every moment offer thanks and praise, and with harp and melody raise a song and tune until you set the world in motion and make souls the confidants and companions of the Concourse on High.

They are intoxicated by that chalice and in the rose garden of the Kingdom are like tulips holding the wine cup.

Since all are gathered in the shade of the Blessed Tree and are beheld by the glances of the Eye of Mercifulness, and in the Abha Paradise we are intoxicated with the pure wine, spiritual susceptibilities and attractions of heart and spirit have reached this degree.

O thou who gazest upon God! Take thy habitation and dwelling place beneath the shade of the Divine Lote-Tree, and make thy home in the rose-garden of Paradise. Through the grace and bounty of the All-Merciful, seek wings and pinions, and soar in the Abha Paradise which is a reflection and sign of the Abha Kingdom, that thou mayest become a holy dove in the gardens of sanctity and a nightingale of intimacy in the meadows of detachment.

But the birds of the heavenly rose garden yearn to fly towards the shelter of the All-Merciful. Their hearts are fixed on that sanctified nest in the shades of the Sadrat-ul-Muntaha. The birds of the meadow of truth seek the verdure of the Ridvan and the nightingales of the All-Merciful seek the sweet fields where whose denizens are the Supreme Concourse and here, in such places as these, they sing their wondrous melodies and their exquisite songs.

Be of the trees in the gardens of the Kingdom and of the flowers in the meadows of the realm of divine grace.

God willing, may you all dwell beneath the divine Lote-Tree and be nourished by its goodly fruits.

Make melody in the Kingdom and play in the sanctuaries of the Realm of Might, with the tune and melody of the Kingdom of Names, "Glory be unto Him Who is the Ever-Living, the One Who dieth not!", that the hearers may be thrown into tumult and commotion, and that trembling and quaking may seize the pillars of the mortal world, and the birds of the garden of oneness may break into song.

O you who are enkindled with the fire of the love of God! When the birds of the garden of truth burst into song and melody, the hearing of the people of the Kingdom is stirred, and the hearts of the denizens of Paradise are moved to ecstasy and rapture.

From the boughs of this blessed Tree I am singing with wondrous melodies in praise and glorification of the Ancient Beauty.

You heard the melody of the celestial realm and brought the angel's call to your ears.

The lights of hearts are brighter than the sun, and the outpouring of spirits more copious than the rain-cloud. How blessed then are those souls who have gained a portion of the rays of the Sun of Truth that shineth forth from the Most Glorious Horizon.

O inmates of the Kingdom! Intone the name of the Beloved, for the beauty of His Cause hath shone forth from behind the veils, adorned with a luminous spirit.

Today the Kingdom of God is illumined by the lights of the Sun of Manifestation, and the radiance of the Sun of Grace hath encompassed the world.

This blessed name is composed of two B's and one A. Were I to reveal the mystery of the A standing between the two letters, all who dwell in the kingdom of heaven would swoon away, how much more those who dwell in the realm of dust.

Shouldst thou enter therein and attain unto it, set thy face towards the Kaaba of God, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting, and say: "O my God! I beseech Thee by Thy most glorious light, and all Thy lights are verily glorious." Thereupon, will the doors of the Kingdom be flung wide before thy face, and thou wilt behold what eyes have never beheld, and hear what ears have never heard.

Admit us into Thy Kingdom of holiness and quicken us through the breaths of the Holy Spirit. Grant eternal life and heavenly perfections.

Show me the way to the retreat of the Kingdom and make me the object of the eye of favor in the sanctuary of the Realm of Might.

We are helpless birds with broken wings, yet we desire to soar in the realm of the Kingdom.

… Make our tongues eloquent and our eyes seeing, that we may behold the realm of the Kingdom and with fluent speech praise Thy beauty and perfection.

O Thou Lord of the Kingdom! Cause Thou the rejoicing of my heart; empower my weak spirit and strengthen my exhausted nerves. Illumine Thou my eyes: suffer my ears to become hearing, so that I may hearken to the music of the Kingdom and attain to the joy and happiness everlasting.

Enlighten my eyes and make my ears hearing that I may hearken to the melody of the Kingdom and seek eternal joy and delight.

O thou candle of the Love of God!

I ask God to grant thee by His favor and grace that which is thy utmost desire; that the closed doors become opened, the uneven roads become even, thy face shine by the love of God, thy sight become brighter by witnessing the signs of God; that thou mayest attain spiritual joy, eternal happiness and heavenly life.

May God illumine thy face in His most glorious Kingdom, and expand thy breast through the outpourings of His most exalted Dominion, and strengthen thee with mighty confirmation from His Most Supreme Horizon.

May thy tongue become eloquent in the mention and praise of God, and thine ear attentive to the divine call. May thine eyes be opened to the most great signs, and mayest thou become intimate with the mysteries of the Self-Sufficing Lord.

And in all conditions mayest thou ever soar to the Abha Kingdom.

O servant of God! Beseech God that thou mayest attain heart-awareness, that thou mayest perfume the world of the spirit with the sweet-scented breezes of dawn, and that thou mayest make the Kingdom of Abha thy refuge and shelter.

Turn thy face toward the Most Glorious Horizon and seek assistance from the Supreme Kingdom.

God has chosen you. This crown He has placed upon your head. This eternal life has been given you. Turn day and night to the Kingdome of Abha. Supplicate for boundless favors from that Kingdom.'

Let this hungry one sit around the celestial Table of Thy heavenly Food!

Thou seest us, O my God, gathered around this table, praising Thy bounty, with our gaze set upon Thy Kingdom. O Lord! Send down upon us Thy heavenly food and confer upon us Thy blessing. Thou art verily the Bestower, the Merciful, the Compassionate.

May we receive abundant portion from the Forgiving Lord in this age of light, may we enter the divine Kingdom, may we seek eternal grace and find everlasting bounty.

We beseech God to aid thee and grant thee success and ordain for thee that which is the cause of eternal life and everlasting existence.

If you seek the ultimate goal, connect yourself to the Abha Kingdom, and if you seek the divine Lote Tree, be steadfast in the Cause of God.

O thou who awaitest the dawning rays of divine favors! Turn thy face toward the Kingdom of the invisible Realm of the All-Glorious, that thou mayest witness the most great signs, and bind thy heart to the Most Glorious Beloved--may my spirit and my very essence be a sacrifice for His loved ones--that thou mayest attain attachment to the Supreme Companion and enter the Most Glorious Paradise, the resplendent Garden, and the sublime orchards, and be seated upon the throne of sovereignty at the very heart of Paradise.

O spiritual leaf, respected Nabihih! O spiritual leaf who art remembering the remembrance of God! May the Lord of verses preserve thee. Turn thy heart toward the Supreme Concourse, attach thyself to holy outpourings from the Most Exalted Realm, place thy trust in God, seek that which endureth in God's Kingdom, and pursue everlasting life, eternal glory, heavenly rest, and the outpourings of the All-Merciful.

Be not grieved by the world and its hardships, for it was and is transient. Fix thy gaze upon the everlasting Beauty and that which hath been ordained for thee in the Kingdom.

You are under the shadow of the favor of the King of Oneness and on the shore of the sea of the bounty of the Lord of Unity. You abide eternally in the paradise of divine love and walk in the path of the All-Merciful's good-pleasure. Turn your gaze to the Most Glorious Horizon and fix your eyes on the Supreme Kingdom. Whatever is the ultimate desire of the believers will be attained, and whatever is the greatest gift of the Lord of the Worlds will be achieved.

O thou who art guided by the light of guidance!

In the Abha Kingdom there is a station which is the ultimate goal of those near to God and the highest aspiration of the sincere ones.

But those who found freedom sought release from kingship - they saw the throne as a tight fetter and considered the diadem a painful torment. They found the crown to be illness itself. Therefore they sought an eternal kingdom and yearned for everlasting sovereignty. They pursued the glory of the realm of unity and desired greatness in the heavenly world. They considered servitude at the threshold to be crown and tiara, and bondage at the gate to be sovereignty over both worlds.

O thou maidservant! Have great magnanimity, so that thou mayest be favored in the Threshold of the Almighty. Have lofty aspirations so that thou mayest attain, in the Kingdom of God, to Eternal Life.

Though thou art small in the physical and material world, I beseech God to make thee great in spirit in the Kingdom of God.

I swear by the Sun of the horizon of inner meanings that God has and will have paradises beyond compare. But in this first life, what is meant by paradise is His good-pleasure and entry into His Cause. And after the believers ascend from this world, they enter incomparable paradises and partake of boundless blessings, which are the fruits of their deeds in this world.

And know thou for a certainty, that in the divine worlds, the spiritual beloved ones (believers) will recognize each other, and will seek union (with each other), but a spiritual union. Likewise, a love that one may have entertained for any one will not be forgotten in the world of the Kingdom. Likewise, thou wilt not forget (there) the life that thou hast had in the material world.

In the next world, man will find himself freed from many of the disabilities under which he now suffers. Those who have passed on through death, have a sphere of their own. It is not removed from ours; their work--the work of the Kingdom--is ours; but it is sanctified from what we call 'time and place.' … Those who have ascended have different attributes from those who are still on earth, yet there is no real separation.

"In prayer there is a mingling of station, a mingling of condition. Pray for them as they pray for you!

Since the end of every union is separation, it behoveth us to find intimacy in the kingdom of sanctity, for it is a union without separation and a meeting not followed by parting.

In the eternal world, then, which is the world of divine unity and heavenly oneness, friendship and spiritual intimacy are naturally among the essential requisites of that sanctified world....

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"In the same way that we are gathered here in the utmost love and friendship, I hope that, God willing, we will meet in the Kingdom of Abha. The essential gathering is there. That gathering is everlasting. There is no separation therein. This is our hope."

Particularly to one Theosophist who expressed great joy at attaining the blessed presence, He said: "I hope our joy will be eternal, that we shall be together in all the divine worlds, that we shall find shelter under the protection of Baha'u'llah. There is union there that knows no separation, a day that has no night following it, joy that knows no sorrow, life that finds no death.

As Christ foretold, we will take the real food in the Kingdom with the Father. That is the real meeting. It has no limit, no end, no separation.

As we find ourselves eating with each other here, so we hope that we shall partake of the Divine Food with each other in the Kingdom of Heaven.

O thou whom I mention with my heart and tongue! Though I do not see thee with mine eyes, I do see thee with my heart, and mention thee with the fullness of love, clemency, yearning and attraction, supplicating my Lord that we may meet together at the meetings of His Kingdom and the pavilions of His might, where we shall chant the verses of thanks for His bounty, generosity and gifts, the lights of which have shone upon all horizons and their effulgences have become intense upon the hearts of the people of harmony.

And so will ye nestle together hereafter, in the rose-garden of the All-Merciful in the Abha Kingdom, upon the branches of the divine Lote-Tree. For ye are the birds of the meadow of guidance and the nightingales of the bower of bounty.

O thou maid-servant of God! I ask from the favors of the Sun of Truth the splendors of the eternal outpouring for thee; I beg everlasting glory and desire for thee and thy family divine gifts, so that all of you may become united and harmonized, rest under the shade of the Tree of Life, and become eternal and established in the Kingdom of Being.

I hope that you, along with all your sons and daughter, will enter under the shade of this heavenly tent and receive your share and portion from the bounty of eternal life.

Those children will, God willing, become the children of the Kingdom and, beneath the protecting shadow of the favors of the Ancient Beauty - may my spirit be a sacrifice for His loved ones - will become fruit-bearing trees and flowers and sweet herbs in the Abha Paradise.

Know thou of a certainty that those of tender age in the Abha Garden shall inherit the realm of the Kingdom and that the outpourings of celestial grace encompass the children in the school of the love of God. It is my hope that through the manifold bounties of Him Who is the Lord of Oneness thou mayest be reared and nurtured beside this heavenly stream which floweth in the rose-garden of divine guidance.

For thy beloved child has hastened to the embrace of the heavenly Father and has turned his face to the Kingdom of the All-Merciful, and the Lord, the Self-Subsisting has shown him the utmost tenderness and care.

I Myself shall atone for the loss of her son -- a son who now dwelleth within the tabernacle of My majesty and glory, and whose face beameth with a light that envelopeth with its radiance the Maids of Heaven in their celestial chambers, and beyond them the inmates of My Paradise, and the denizens of the Cities of Holiness.

Though I was saddened by Emil Ruof's ascension to the Supreme Kingdom, I find solace in knowing that though this lamp was extinguished in the niche of this earthly realm, it has been kindled in the glass of the Kingdom.

He is as a brilliant lamp unto thee and will be with thee in the divine worlds.

O handmaiden of God! How fortunate and blessed in destiny you are, that you came into existence from the lineage of one whose heart is alive with eternal life and who is promised fresh and verdant sustenance in the immortal Kingdom.

That pure soul calls out from the realm of the Kingdom: "O blessed and beloved son! A hundred praises that you have made me content and honored and exalted.

Be assured that, praise be to God, you illumined and brightened the face of that noble elder in the Abha Kingdom, and this is glory for you in both worlds.

However when they step into this world, after they have grown, they recognize each other and they realize that they have a father and mother and how great and self-sacrificing have been their father and mother. So when you ascend into the realm of light you will then realize how great is my fatherhood for you."

… 'Abdu'l-Baha answered: "Here we comprehend things according to our environment and adaptation. This world has not much capacity to conceive the truth. Twin sisters may embrace each other in the matrix and be entirely unconscious of the knowledge of their father and mother. But when they are born into this world theirs will be this deep consciousness."

At last, he departed from this evanescent abode and returned to the everlasting world, eager to meet Thee, humble before Thy face, attracted to Thee, and confident in Thy grace and Thy forgiveness.

When he hasteneth from this world to the world of the Kingdom and maketh his way to the divine realm, then his spiritual life will attain completion.

Now, like the morning bird, he warbleth and singeth in the gardens of the Kingdom, and upon the branches of the world of immortality he continuously chanteth. He is intoxicated with the cup of bounty and overcome by the wine of forgiveness and pardon.

Today in the horizon of the Abha Kingdom he shines like the morning star with utmost brilliance and cries out "Would that my people knew how my Lord has forgiven me and placed me among the honored ones!"

Today in the realm of the Kingdom he sits upon the throne of might wearing a crown of divine gifts and exercises spiritual sovereignty.

Wherefore, lift up thine eyes, turn thy gaze toward the Kingdom of Abha, and behold that heavenly pearl shining radiantly upon the diadem of everlasting majesty.

He hath soared with the spirit, and We are now in a garden of delight. … He who hath soared to the Supreme Horizon remaineth beneath the shadow of My Hidden Name and My Resplendent Being. He is in joy and gladness.

I bear witness that thou didst quaff from the wellspring of paradise and wert intoxicated with the choice wine proffered in the most sublime chalice, that thou didst attain unto the presence of the Most High, sought the shelter of His unsurpassing mercy, gained admittance into the Abha Kingdom, ascended unto the highest heaven, rose to the loftiest station, entered within the heavenly abode, reposed in the gardens of delight, hearkened to the melodies of the birds of holiness singing upon the blessed Tree, and wert blest with the gift of reunion and granted life everlasting.

O loved ones of God! Praise be to God that those pure souls were freed from the dusty world and joined the angels of the celestial realm, meaning they acquired heavenly attributes and found their way to the private chamber of the All-Merciful Lord.

They have become weary of the earthly world and seek the pure realm, the luminous kingdom.

… O Kind God! They have been freed from this world and have taken flight to Your realm.

O Lord, Lord! With complete humility I stretch forth my hands in supplication toward the Kingdom of pardon and forgiveness, and I commune with Thee with a heart aflame, flowing tears, and exhausted patience. I beseech Thy favors for these assured souls who have winged their flight to the Supreme Concourse, the horizon of utmost glory, with the wings of attraction, fluttering like birds to reach the threshold of the Gate, crying out in fear of error and seeking bounty, yearning for pardon and good-pleasure, beseeching the removal of the veil so as not to be gathered blind but rather immersed in the sea of meeting, attaining their ultimate desire, swaying with the wine of favors in the shade of the Ultimate Tree. O Lord, be forgiving unto them and give them the morning draught, and grant them an exalted station in the Kingdom of Lights, delighting in the vision of mysteries. Verily Thou art the Forgiver, the Generous, the Pardoner, the Mighty, the Bestower.

Forgive and pardon and bestow favor, and grant them the blessing of witnessing and attaining Thy presence in the Kingdom of mysteries.

O Lord! He is a bird with folded wing - cause him to soar to the summit of prosperity and make him like the morning light shining from the horizon of success in the kingdom of spirits, where Thou hast delivered him from the darkness of shadows and ordained for him every good thing with which Thou hast specially favored the chosen ones in the Supreme Concourse and Thy Most Glorious Kingdom.

Exalt their stations in the realm of names, and endow them with truthful tongues among the dwellers of creation. Suffer them to gain admission, after their ascension, into the heaven of reunion with the Exalted Friend.

Assist him, then, suffer him to enter the garden of immortality, and honor him with the privilege of witnessing and meeting Thee.

Suffer us to be wholly freed from this nether life, and cause us to be blessed with the bountiful gifts of the Kingdom.

… Give peace to hearts and grant tranquility to souls so that when we ascend to the Kingdom we may attain Your presence and be joyous and glad in the Supreme Concourse.

Although the grace of attainment was not achieved in the nearest horizon, God willing, thou shalt attain in the Most Glorious Kingdom and succeed in receiving the effusions from the cloud of the station of "Then he drew nigh and came down till he was at the distance of two bows' length or even nearer."

If thou openest the eye of thy soul and gazest upon the Kingdom of the Best-Beloved, thou wilt observe that this is a letter of liberation whereby thou shalt gain admittance to the divine Kingdom, and when thou takest flight from this dusty realm of darkness to the luminous world, thou shalt hasten to the private chamber of the Truth.

These bestowals will become apparent in the divine world, not in this earthly realm of dust.

Sacrifice this earthly frame for the Celestial Beloved and offer this contingent temple as an oblation to the Beloved of the realms beyond, that thou mayest witness a goodly life and an eternal existence in the Most Glorious Kingdom and observe the manifest signs.

I bear witness that thou didst depart from thy dwelling, advancing toward the Ultimate Goal and the Most Exalted Summit, and didst traverse land and sea until thou didst enter the Most Exalted Paradise and didst attain the presence of God, the Lord of the first and the last.

Once the doors of the cage are opened, once the fetters of that prison-house are broken - the nightingale will soar toward the Rose-garden of Eternity and on the branches of the Tree of Life it shall perch, singing sweetly the songs of Freedom and Peace.

… Within the breast of this nightingale, a hundred thousand heart-rejoicing songs are hidden! Once out of the cage, it shall wing its way toward the Horizon of Everlasting glory and there join its heavenly voice with the celestial choir, ever singing, ever singing, never dreaming of return.

Those souls who enter God's Kingdom, according to Christ's words, do not die. So enter God's Kingdom so you will not fear death.

When the Master was on the steamship Celtic, a woman came to Him with her problem: she was afraid of death. He said to her: "Then do something that will keep you from dying; that will instead, day by day make you more alive, and bring you everlasting life. According to the words of His Holiness Christ, those who enter the Kingdom of God will never die. Then enter the Divine Kingdom, and fear death no more."

Now through the endless grace of the Beloved, the Kind One, He has made the prison of the wanderers into a delightful expanse, and the jail of the longing ones into a rose garden and meadow. Therefore this mighty prison is a supreme paradise, and this strong fortress the recipient of the favors of the Greatest Name.

Turn thy face toward the Abha Kingdom, seek to grasp the hem of His grandeur, find thy dwelling and shelter beneath the Sadratu'l-Muntaha, and partake of the fruit of the tree of fellowship, that thou mayest live in perfect contentment in this narrow mortal world and, after thy spirit's ascension, attain unto life everlasting in the eternal realm.

That world is the Kingdom of complete attraction and affinity. It is the Kingdom of the One Divine Spirit, the Kingdom of God. Therefore, the affinity and love manifest in this meeting, the divine susceptibilities witnessed here are not of this world but of the world of the Kingdom.

May the outpourings of the Holy Spirit encompass all and may an assembly of the denizens of the Kingdom be formed in this earthly realm.

All gatherings are of the material world but praise be to God this assembly is of the divine realm. All are confined to the natural world but praise be to God you are oriented toward the divine Kingdom.

And convey my utmost love and kindness to Dr. Helenius Sepala and Mrs. Trugg Helenius and say that I will pray to God that you may become members of the heavenly assembly and pillars of the celestial parliament, for this station is eternal and has no end or separation.

Now it is my hope that you and people like unto you may sit around this divine table and partake of this heavenly Food.

Monday, December 2---Supper. This world is likened unto the ocean; the law and teachings of God is the ship; the mate is the covenant; the Captain is God; and the seashore is the kingdom of Abha.

I wish you to live in the world of the Spirit--to see the Divine Reality in everything,--to behold the illumination of the world of the Kingdom beyond and within the gloomy mask of this mortal existence. For the world of the Kingdom is a world of Lights, a world of happiness, a world of accomplishment, the real and eternal world.

But when their heart is turned toward the Kingdom of God and their happiness comes from the bounties of the highest horizon, they become free from every sorrow. They attach their heart to the divine world, become the confidant of the human world, and promote the signs and mysteries of the All-Merciful.

Because the grace of the Kingdom of ABHA makes the weak to become strong, the poor to become wealthy; the confused one to become assured, and renders happiness to the grieved soul. It makes the disappointed soul to become hopeful, and a deprived man to become initiated. This is heavenly power.

This is the Cause of happiness! This is the means of consolation! The Glory of man is through the Love of God, entrance into his Kingdom and being imbued with his divine characteristics.

When the people live in the realm of light, then their hearts will be illumined; then their spirits will be rejoiced with the divine Glad -Tidings, then their minds will become the receptacles of the Holy Spirit; then they shall be regenerated; then they shall enter in the Kingdom of Abha.

The more the person advances in Divine things, the more will he receive the Attributes of Light; and the more he retrogrades, the more will he receive the attributes of darkness. This world is dark and in darkness, but the Spiritual World is Light. This is the Heavenly Kingdom.

When these perfections shine forth like brilliant lights from the horizon of the soul and such joy and spirituality are attained, every joy and perfection is in the shadow of compulsion.

[They] are like great worms in the depths of the earth and are unaware of the realm of the highest heaven, and guided all those present to turn toward the Supreme Kingdom and the imperishable dominion and eternal life and everlasting felicity, for this is the purpose of creation and being - otherwise what fruit would there be in this fleeting two-day life and what benefit and effect would this creation have?

Turn toward Baha'u'llah and you will acquire peace and tranquillity, you will hear the melody of the Kingdom, you will stir people's souls and you will attain the highest degree of perfection.

This is the illumination of the world of humanity! This is the eternal life! This is the sublimity of human nature. This is heavenly glory! This is the radiant crown of the Kingdom of Abha!

This is the eternal glory. This is the eternal life. This is the entrance into the Kingdom of God, the dominion which will last forever.

"How should we gain eternal happiness?"

Answer:- You must enter in the Kingdom of Abha. In the Kingdom of Abha, there is light upon light.

This happiness is eternal, and this life is life everlasting.

The denizens of the Kingdom derive their joy from the bounties of God and set their hopes on His infinite grace. They exult in the outpourings of divine bounty and are gladdened by the favours of the Lord of Hosts.

The sincere ones are in utmost joy and jubilation and in the highest paradise with an All-Forgiving God.

The truth I say unto you! If ye were aware of what God hath destined for you in the kingdom of His glory, verily ye would rejoice exceedingly and soar with the wings of joy unto the heights of happiness, crying with the most loud voice: "Blessings and happiness from this great attainment and evident bounty."

If for a moment thou wouldst turn thy gaze toward the Kingdom of God from which the gates have been opened, the glad-tidings of the Glorious Lord would seize thee and the melodies of that matchless Garden would attract thee with such power that thou wouldst rend thy garments and tatters, cast off all restraint, and cry out: "Hasten to witness the Unseen made manifest!

And we beseech from His abundant grace and glorious generosity that you might become so intoxicated with the wine of the love of God that you set fire to the hearts of all contingent beings, cast flames into the reality of existence, raise up commotion in earth and heaven, bring the sea of the world into waves, soar to the heights of the supreme Kingdom, and when you hasten to the Abha Kingdom your face will shine bright, your eyes will open clear, you will become the manifestation of endless favors and the dawning-place of the levels of light.

Thank thou God that the doors of the Kingdom are opened and the way of the Truth become manifest and evident.

Therefore, enter thou completely into this divine Kingdom; that is, acquire heavenly bliss and beatitude and turn thy face to the Luminous Realm, so that the hurtful powers may be dispersed at once, eternal felicity, composure and tranquility become realized, the heart find glad-tidings, the soul, peace, and even the body, grace and beauty.

O servant of the Divine Threshold! Blessed is the hour when the spirit of the heart, having been delivered from the defilement of this world of water and clay, turns toward the invisible realm and beholds such a holy manifestation from the Kingdom of sanctification that it becomes bewildered at witnessing the attributes of the All-Merciful.

Give thanks to God that thou hast attained true vision and in the ancient Kingdom hast beheld the beauty of that cherished Beloved.

You found joy and delight and traversed the Kingdom of Light.

Since you belong to this class of souls, therefore you have realized the Kingdom of God and have partaken of the bestowals of the Holy Spirit.

If thou comprehendest this grace and favor, this bounty and blessing, thou wilt become worthy of the holy court of the Self-Subsisting Lord and enter into the lights of His countenance.

The reality of His favor is illumination of the face and eternal salvation in the Most Glorious Kingdom and Supreme Heaven, and the highest station of success and attainment.

O thou who gazest upon the Kingdom of existence!

The people of prostration must needs have a countenance radiant as the most luminous sun through the bounty of the Praised Station, and those assured of the Most Great Signs should have faces illumined by the favors of the All-Glorious.

Ye are counted among the people of the immortal Kingdom. Ye must, through the assistance of the Lord of Names, sanctify and purify yourselves from unpleasing conditions and selfish limitations.

Such souls are accounted as letters of God's Book and abide eternally in the immortal Kingdom, enduring as God endureth.

O servant of Baha! Praise be to God that a crown from the glorious Kingdom rests upon the heads of the friends, and the eternal throne of sovereignty in that world is the felicity of the friends.

O thou excellent maid-servant of God! Thank thou God that thou hast stepped into the arena of existence in this glorious age, hast become the manifestor of never-ending outpouring, hast attained to the most great gift, hast found the season of the divine springtime, hast perfumed thy nostrils with heavenly flowers, hast discovered the way to the celestial Kingdom and hast partaken a share from the eternal life.

O thou who art attracted toward the Kingdom! The Doors of the Kingdom are open; and the sons of the Kingdom are in the utmost joy and happiness.

O thou who art advancing toward the Kingdom of God! The doors of the Ideal Heaven of God are opened and some souls are on the wing like unto birds of holiness and have attained to the divine Kingdom.

A hundred good tidings, that the doors of the Kingdom have been opened and the Call of the Lord of the Kingdom upraised.

O thou who art waiting for the Appearance of the Kingdom!

Glad-tidings be unto thee, for the Kingdom of God hath raised its tent and tabernacle upon the apex of the world, the standard of the Kingdom is hoisted, the call of the Kingdom is sent forth and the hosts of the Kingdom have appeared.

Therefore, there are many fortresses and castles of hearts which are conquered and many regions of spirits which are subdued. The lights of the Kingdom have shone forth from the horizon of the East and the West.

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O thou who art looking for the Kingdom of God!

Thy letter was considered. Glad tidings be unto thee for thy supreme wish became manifest in the assemblage of the world. The spacious Kingdom was newly adorned, and like unto paradise, manifested beautiful scenes.

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The contents of the letter indicated that ye have been attracted to the Kingdom of God and set ablaze with the fire of the love of God.

O spiritual youth! I have chanted verses of thanksgiving to God for what He has bestowed upon you from His grace and mercy, and for making you a wayfarer on the path of the Kingdom, receiving the favors of your loving Lord.

Thank thou God, for thou hast illuminated thy face with this light and hast partaken of the bounty of the Kingdom of El-ABHA, chanted the verses of unity and worn the crown of guidance of the Glorious Lord on thy head. This is the real Kingdom!

You are ever-present and gazing upon the Kingdom.

Whosoever enters in the Kingdom of God, he becomes the object of pardon and the forgiveness of the True One.

O true servant of the Abha Beauty! After the ascension of the Blessed Beauty, may my spirit be a sacrifice for His loved ones, holy souls forgot this world and saw themselves in the Abha Kingdom, and conducted themselves accordingly. … Their joy is the melody of the birds that rises in the rose garden of Abha, and their desire is the manifestation of the light and flame of Sinai that sheds its radiance from the hidden realm of the Abha Kingdom.

Certainly this monastery has been destroyed several times already and rebuilt twice, but God's loved ones have another mystery and another song. Their world is another world, their life another life, their air another air.

In this world and the world beyond we Baha'is have but one goal: to live and to work for the Kingdom of God (Malakut-i-Allah). Immortal existence in the beyond is but a continuation of our life and work here, through other means, in other forms, in other surroundings.

that pit shall become even as a sheltering paradise, an exalted meadow, and a garden of delight. It shall become a place of the gladdening of the spirit, and the centre of the attraction of the hearts to the Kingdom.

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The meaning of the Kingdom (malakut) in its primary sense and degree is the scene of His transcendent glory. In another sense it is the world of similitudes ('alam-i-mithal) which existeth between the Dominion on high (jabarut) and this mortal realm (nasut); whatever is in the heavens or on the earth hath its counterpart in that world. Whilst a thing remaineth hidden and concealed within the power of utterance it is said to be of the Dominion (jabarut), and this is the first stage of its substantiation (taqyid). Whenever it becometh manifest it is said to be of the Kingdom (malakut). The power and potency it deriveth from the first stage, it bestoweth upon whatever lieth below.

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As to what thou hast asked concerning other worlds: Verily God hath ever possessed worlds without end; but each of them doth circle round this world...

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We will have experience of God's spirit through His Prophets in the next world, but God is too great for us to know without this intermediary. The Prophets know God, but how is more than our human minds can grasp. We believe we may attain in the next world to seeing the Prophets. There is certainly a future life. Heaven and hell are conditions within our inner beings.

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The soul which has one degree of love is clearly in its centre, God, since one degree is sufficient for it to abide in him through grace. If it has two degrees it enters into another more interior centre with God and so on. If it reaches the last degree, the love of God will be able to wound the soul at its deepest point; that is, it is brought to the state where it appears to be God himself. In this state the soul is like a crystal, limpid and pure. It is so enlightened it appears to be light itself.

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...the kingdom of the Father is spread out upon the earth, and people do not see it.... (Gospel of Thomas)

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The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.

Supplied quotation · catalogue passage not verified

Therefore, in this world, also, it is necessary to prepare and make ready for the world to come. Whatever is needed in the 'Alam-i Malakut man must prepare and make ready for here.

Catalogue reference: ABU0112 · passage alignment is approximate; supplied wording retained.