Nothing, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá observes, reaches its perfection the moment it comes into being; the embryo takes its forms one after another in the womb, the seed labours unseen in the earth, the planet itself ripened over ages before it could carry a single living thing. Growth of this kind is not drift. Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá describe a universe held under one law that decrees, as a tree is bound to its fruit, a definite result, and they name that result: the revelation of divine perfections, and a human being able to bear them. Aristotle, weighing whether rain falls and teeth grow by necessity or for an end, raised the question in philosophy’s own terms [1], and the Bahá’í writings answer it without pretending that a metaphor settles every matter of science. Their harder claim is that a few years of earthly life cannot be the goal of so long a labour, and that man, the sum of all creation, is still only potential until cultivated. The road from here passes through the arcs of ascent and descent, through evolution and the four causes, and on to the attractive power of love that draws every creature toward its end.
Similarly, the terrestrial globe was created, from the beginning, with all its elements, substances, minerals, parts, and components, but these appeared only gradually: first the minerals, then the plants, then the animals, and finally man. But from the beginning, these kinds and species were latent in the earthly realm and appeared gradually thereafter. For the supreme law of God and the universal natural order encompasses all things and subjects them to its rule. When you consider this universal order, you see that not a single thing reaches the limit of perfection immediately upon coming into existence, but grows and develops gradually until it reaches that stage.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Chapter 51, The Appearance of the Spirit and the Mind in Man, 1904-Oct ca. -- AB00722)
02
For example, the human embryo grows and develops gradually in the womb of its mother, and assumes different forms and conditions, until it reaches maturity with the utmost beauty and appears in a consummate form with the utmost grace. In like manner, the seed of this flower which you see before you was in the beginning a small and insignificant thing, but it grew and developed in the womb of the earth, and assumed different forms, until it appeared with such perfect vitality and grace in this degree. It is likewise clear and evident that this terrestrial globe came to exist, grow and develop in the matrix of the universe, and assumed different forms and conditions, until it gradually attained its present completeness, became adorned with countless beings, and appeared in such a consummate form.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Chapter 47, The Evolution of the Universe and the Origin of Man, 1904-Oct ca. -- AB00077)
03
All created things have their degree, or stage, of maturity. The period of maturity in the life of a tree is the time of its fruit bearing. The maturity of a plant is the time of its blossoming and flower. The animal attains a stage of full growth and completeness, and in the human kingdom man reaches his maturity when the lights of intelligence have their greatest power and development.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Public address given at Genealogical Hall on 1912-Nov-17 -- ABU0101)
04
God in his wisdom has created all things. Nothing has been created without a special destiny, for every creature has an innate station of attainment. … Each kingdom of nature holds potentialities and each must be cultivated in order to reach its fulfillment.
Briefly, the world of existence is progressive. It is subject to development and growth. … All of these show that the world of existence is continuously progressing and developing; and therefore, assuredly, the virtues characterizing the maturity of man must, likewise, expand and grow.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Public address given at Hotel Sacramento on 1912-Oct-26 -- ABU0119)
06
O thou servant of God! Unquestionably, through the manifestation of the Infinite Power in this glorious age, wonderful signs will appear in the world and great changes are seen in the present and promised in the future, for the Word of God is like unto the Spirit, and the contingent world like unto the embryo in the womb of the mother. Through the power of the Spirit such various changes and metamorphoses become apparent, transforming them from one form to another.
This universe is not created through the fortuitous concurrences of atoms; it is created by a great law which decrees that the tree bring forth certain definite fruit. Verily, this universe contains many worlds of which we know nothing.
And likewise He saith: "Have they not considered within themselves that God hath not created the heavens and the earth and all that is between them but for a serious end, and for a fixed term?
(Bahá’u’lláh, Lawh-i-Ibn-i-Dhi'b (Epistle to the Son of the Wolf), 1308 ? [1891], to Muhammad Taqi Isfahani (son of the Wolf) -- BH00005)
09
The Creator of all is One God. From this same God all creation sprang into existence, and He is the one goal, towards which everything in nature yearns.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words spoken on 1911-Oct-28 in Paris -- ABU0491)
10
God has not created all the plants you know and all the various metals for nothing. They are for some purpose. They have their physiologic findings, and each one of them has its physiologic result. They are not for useless purposes. And if we deny pharmaceutics and therapeutics, then it would mean that all these things are without physiologic effect, when there is use for each one of these plants.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words to Drs. W. and W. Allen and Dr. J. Catton, spoken on 1912-Oct-21 -- ABU0060)
11
For instance, the world of elements cannot be annihilated, because pure existence cannot be annihilated; and what we observe are but transformative modifications in the composition of the essence.
In the physical creation, evolution is from one degree of perfection to another. The mineral passes with its mineral perfections to the vegetable; the vegetable, with its perfections, passes to the animal world, and so on to that of humanity. This world is full of seeming contradictions; in each of these kingdoms (mineral, vegetable and animal) life exists in its degree; though when compared to the life in a man, the earth appears to be dead, yet she, too, lives and has a life of her own.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words spoken on 1911-Nov-03 in Paris -- ABU0626)
13
Consider the aim of creation: is it possible that all is created to evolve and develop through countless ages with this small goal in view--a few years of a man's life on earth? Is it not unthinkable that this should be the final aim of existence?
The mineral evolves till it is absorbed in the life of the plant, the plant progresses till finally it loses its life in that of the animal; the animal, in its turn, forming part of the food of man, is absorbed into human life.
Thus, man is shown to be the sum of all creation, the superior of all created beings, the goal to which countless ages of existence have progressed.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words spoken at Dreyfus home in Paris, 1911-Nov-10 -- ABU0054)
14
Life on earth did not exist from the beginning and all at once, but it developed in stages and by degrees. The atoms of the elements are predisposed (programmed) to synthesis and composition according to the laws of nature; the Cosmic Spirit, the divine Primal Will operates and creates in this manner. The Primal Will operates in the element, in the primal atom, as attraction and repulsion; on the next higher level as organic life; then as animal-vegetative; and finally as spiritual life, which is destined to rise to the super-spiritual.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words spoken ca. 1909-1910 -- ABU0170)
15
As the Creator has pleased to implant in the atoms His dynamic Power, a latent purposeful behaviour, one thing is contained in another and consecutively there develops from a latent condition an appearance made visible.[']
This sounds rather like the theory of Darwin who, a thousand years later and with better methods, with more perfect tools, lifted the veil of secrecy from many of the miracles of creation.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words spoken in the house of Abdu'l-Baha in Feb 1910 -- ABU0226)
The available source contains an omission or incomplete wording; sentence boundaries need review.
16
We regard man as the chief member because, among all created things, he encompasses all the perfections of existence.
Now, what we mean by "man" is the complete human being, the foremost person in the world, who is the sum of all spiritual and material perfections, and who is like the sun among all created things. Imagine, then, a time when the sun did not exist as such, in other words, when the sun was merely another celestial body. Undoubtedly, at such a time the relationships between existing things would have been disrupted.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Chapter 46, Transformation of Species, 1904-Jun ca. -- AB00278)
17
If man did not exist, the universe would be without result, for the purpose of existence is the revelation of the divine perfections.
… But from the beginning that has no beginning to the end that has no end, a perfect Manifestation has always existed. This Man of whom we speak here is not just any man: that which we intend is the Perfect Man.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Chapter 50, Spiritual Proofs of the Origin of Man, 1904-Oct ca. -- AB00440)
18
All divine philosophers and men of wisdom and understanding, when observing these endless beings, have considered that in this great and infinite universe all things end in the mineral kingdom, that the outcome of the mineral kingdom is the vegetable kingdom, the outcome of the vegetable kingdom is the animal kingdom and the outcome of the animal kingdom the world of man. The consummation of this limitless universe with all its grandeur and glory hath been man himself, who in this world of being toileth and suffereth for a time, with divers ills and pains, and ultimately disintegrates, leaving no trace and no fruit after him.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Lawh-i-Dr Forel (Tablet to Dr Forel), 1921-Sep-21, to Auguste Forel -- AB00020)
19
God has created all earthly things under a law of progression in material degrees, but He has created man and endowed him with powers of advancement toward spiritual and transcendental kingdoms.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Public address given at Maxwell home on 1912-Sep-02 -- ABU0100)
20
The elemental atoms which constitute all phenomenal existence and being in this illimitable universe are in perpetual motion, undergoing continuous degrees of progression.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Public address given at Metaphysical Club on 1912-Aug-27 -- ABU0024)
21
"That which hath been in existence had existed before, but not in the form thou seest today." From this blessed verse it is clear and evident that the universe is evolving. In the opinion of the philosophers and the wise this fact of the growth and evolution of the world of existence is also established. That is to say, it is progressively transferred from one state to another.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Commentary on passages from the Tablet of Wisdom, 1910-Apr-14, to Ali Akbar Quchani -- AB00373)
22
Through the light and heat of the great central luminary, all that is potential in the earth is awakened and comes forth into the realm of the visible. The fruit hidden in the tree appears upon its branches in response to the power of the sun; man and all other organisms live, move and have their being under its developing rays; nature is resplendent with countless evolutionary forms through its pervading impulse -- so that we can say a function of the sun is the revelation of the mysteries and creative purposes hidden within the phenomenal world.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Address to Federation of Women's Clubs at Hotel La Salle in Chicago, 1912-May-02 -- ABU0146)
23
Now, even accepting the reality of evolution and progress; nevertheless, from the moment of his appearance man has possessed perfect composition, and has had the capacity and potential to acquire both material and spiritual perfections and to become the embodiment of the verse, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." At most he has become more pleasing, more refined and graceful, and by virtue of civilization he has emerged from his wild state, just as the wild fruits become finer and sweeter under the cultivation of the gardener and acquire ever greater delicacy and vitality.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Chapter 49, The Evolution of Species, 1904 ca. -- AB00167)
24
In the world of existence man has traversed successive degrees until he has attained the human kingdom. In each degree of his progression he has developed capacity for advancement to the next station and condition. While in the kingdom of the mineral he was attaining the capacity for promotion into the degree of the vegetable. In the kingdom of the vegetable he underwent preparation for the world of the animal, and from thence he has come onward to the human degree, or kingdom. Throughout this journey of progression he has ever and always been potentially man.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Public address given at 309 W 78th St on 1912-Jul-06 -- ABU0112)
25
The point of the compass in describing a circle does not reverse its motion, for this would be contrary to the natural movement and the divine order and would disrupt the regularity of the circle.
… Apart from this, advancing and moving through the worlds in a direct line and according to the natural order is the cause of existence, and moving against the natural order and arrangement of things is the cause of extinction.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Chapter 81, Reincarnation, 1904 ca. -- AB00036)
26
Praise be to God! Man ever aspires to greater heights and loftier goals. He ever seeks to attain a world surpassing that which he inhabits and to ascend to a degree above that which he occupies. This love of transcendence is one of the hallmarks of man. I am astonished that certain philosophers in Europe and America have consented to lower themselves to the animal realm and so to regress, whereas all existence must ever aspire toward exaltation.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Chapter 48, The Difference between Man and Animal, 1904-Oct ca. -- AB00057)
27
For instance, behold in all things the revelation of the Sun of the name "Lord", for in all things the effects of this name are visible and the education of all depends upon it. And education is of two kinds: one kind encompasses all and educates and provides sustenance to all, as He has called Himself the Lord of all worlds; and the other kind is specific to those souls who have entered beneath the shadow of this Name in this Most Great Revelation.
(Bahá’u’lláh, Commentary on a verse from Sa'di -- BH00245)
28
Today the Lord of Hosts is the protector of the Covenant, the powers of the Kingdom guard the Covenant, heavenly souls serve the Covenant, and celestial angels promote the Covenant. Indeed, if observed with insight, all the powers of the world ultimately serve the Covenant, but this will become apparent in the future.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, 1919-Jul-24, to Macnutt, Howard et al -- AB00093)
29
If not for this fruition, what is the purpose of the tree? For this world is like unto a tree, and the fruits thereof are the divine worlds; assuredly the tree of creation is adorned with luscious fruits. Were it not for the existence of the divine worlds, the kingdom of being would be fruitless.
Further quotations · supplied wording and references
30
The Baha'i Faith teaches man was always potentially man, even when passing through lower stages of evolution.
LG#1341, UD.458 (4 Oct. 1950 on behalf of Shoghi Effendi)
Supplied quotation · catalogue passage not verified
31
We cannot prove that man was always man for this is a fundamental doctrine, but it is based on the assertion that nothing can exceed its own potentialities, that everything, a stone, a tree, an animal and a human being existed in plan, potentially, from the very 'beginning' of creation. We don't believe man has always had the form of man, but rather that from the outset he was going to evolve into the human form and species and not be a haphazard branch of the ape family.
(7 Jun. 1946 on behalf of Shoghi Effendi, in Arohanui, p. 85)
Supplied quotation · catalogue passage not verified
32
There is nothing unreasonable in the Master's statement you quote, page 220, "The Promulgation of Universal Peace": He expounds the idea that man was always potentially man, which is just another way of saying the Cause contains the power to produce the effect; in this planned and integrated universe, he was part of the plan from the beginning, so to speak.
(24 Feb. 1947 on behalf of Shoghi Effendi)
Supplied quotation · catalogue passage not verified
33
We cannot state reasonably that this world is ten thousand or one hundred thousand or one hundred million years old, for the divine rays have ever descended upon man.
How do the images of seed, embryo, tree, and fruit shape the meaning of purpose in these passages?
What differences arise between explaining a process through its conditions and understanding it through its possible fulfilment?
How does Aristotle’s discussion of ends in nature compare with the theological purposes described here?
What changes when the reference to humanity is clarified through the passages concerning the Perfect Man?
How can we explore the collection’s historical arguments and scientific language carefully while asking what cultivation of intelligence and virtue is required of us now?