Stories and anecdotes: learning to see again

It happened one day in the time of Christ -- may the life of the world be a sacrifice unto Him -- that He passed by the dead body of a dog, a carcass reeking, hideous, the limbs rotting away. One of those present said: "How foul its stench!" And another said: "How sickening! How loathsome!" To be brief, each one of them had something to add to the list.

But then Christ Himself spoke, and He told them: "Look at that dog's teeth! How gleaming white!"

The Messiah's sin-covering gaze did not for a moment dwell upon the repulsiveness of that carrion. The one element of that dead dog's carcass which was not abomination was the teeth: and Jesus looked upon their brightness.

The disciples of Jesus, passing along the road and seeing a dead dog, remarked how offensive and disgusting a spectacle it was. Then Christ turning to them said, 'Yes, but see how white and beautiful are his teeth'----thus teaching that there is some good in everything.

Once a Pharisee and a Publican entered the Temple to pray. The Pharisee said: 'Thank God I am not as other men.' The other said: 'God have mercy upon me, a sinner!' Christ said of these two: 'The Pharisee is not acceptable in the Kingdom of God, but the other is acceptable, because the Pharisee is trusting in his own action, but the other is depending upon the forgiveness of God.'

The true version of this story is in [the] Masnavi. It is related that an aged and decrepit man became the guest of His holiness Abraham. He exercised toward his guest the utmost hospitality and courtesy. When dinner was served, his holiness Abraham uttered the Name of God and then started eating. On the other hand the guest uttered the name of an Idol and began to eat. His holiness was grieved, arose in wrath and rebuked his guest most severely.

But even, as he did so, God's revelation descended upon him:- "O Abraham! For a hundred years this man has been an idol worshipper and I have been patient with him. I have nurtured him. I have protected him. I have taken good care of him. I have trained him. I have encircled him with many bounties and I have been kind and loving to him; but thou wert not able to endure his society for one night! And I, a hundred years!"

His Holiness Abraham was deeply touched by this address, and begged his aged guest to pardon him.

A great king, walking in his garden one day, noticed a man, about ninety years old, planting some trees. The king asked what he was doing and the old man answered that he was planting date trees. "How long before they will bear fruit?" asked the king. "Twenty years." "But you will not live to enjoy the fruit; why then should you plant these trees?" The old man answered, "The last generation planted trees that bore fruit for my benefit; so it is now my duty to plant for the benefit of the next generation." The king was pleased at this answer so gave the man a piece of money. The gardener fell on his knees and thanked him. The king asked, "Why do you kneel before me?" "Because, your majesty, not only have I had the pleasure, or gift, of planting these tress, but they have already borne fruit, since you give me this money." This so pleased the king he gave the man another piece of money. Again the old gardener knelt, saying, "Again I kneel to thank your majesty. Most trees will bear fruit only once, while these trees of mine have already borne two crops--since you give me two pieces of money." The king smiled and asked, "How old are you?" The man answered, "I am twelve years old." "How can that be? You are surely a very old man." The gardener answered, "In the days of the king your predecessor, the people were in a most unhappy state of constant warfare and trouble, so I cannot include that as a part of my life. But since your majesty came to rule, the people are happy, contented, and at peace. Therefore, as it is but twelve since your gracious reign began, I am only years old." This pleased the king so very much that, perforce, he gave the old man another piece of money, saying, "I shall have to leave you now, for your words please me so greatly that if I listen to you longer I shall become a pauper!"

I am greatly fatigued today. The Mufti, the Consul and others came. How disagreeable it was! I became very tired. Association with people differs greatly - if one deals with the proud and haughty, hardness of heart results, but when one associates with the mindful, it increases one's spirituality.

How pleasant it was when we were in prison, when in times of hardship no one would come and we were at peace. I would write letters to the East and West. I planted a garden and built a wooden house within it in 'Akka. Someone thought they would cast us into the sea or send us to the Sahara of Fezzan, but I was resigned.

I planted trees, and they laughed at me saying I was taking needless trouble. I told them an apposite tale: They say that Harun ar-Rashid one day came upon a ninety-year-old man planting trees. He asked, "What tree is this?" The man replied, "A date palm." He asked, "How many years until it bears fruit?" The man said, "Twenty years." He said, "O foolish one! You plant now for twenty years hence?" The man replied, "O Caliph, others planted and we ate; what harm is there if we plant and others eat?" Harun ar-Rashid was pleased with these words and gave him a hundred dirhams. The old man prostrated himself. The Caliph asked, "Why do you prostrate?" He replied, "People plant and eat the fruit later, but I planted just now and have already eaten its fruit!" The Caliph gave another hundred dirhams. The old man prostrated again, saying "They plant and eat one fruit, but I planted and have eaten two fruits!" Harun ar-Rashid said, "Let us leave, for if we stay another hour, we shall have to give this old man the entire treasury."

Now, praise be to God, we have reaped the fruit of these trials and tribulations. How wonderful it is for one to be under chains and commune with God.

Once a poor Arab was weeping and wailing in the wilderness while tending to his dying dog.

… These expressions were so moving that the passerby too began to weep.

… Insulted, the Arab stared at him and exclaimed, 'I said I loved the dog, but not enough to share my own bread with him!'

In the East there are many stories extant about the deeds of this singular man, some of them probably without any historical foundation, yet inculcating a deep moral lesson, the spiritual value of which is brought home to every individual.

There is a story attributed to Christ in the oriental literature that is not found in any of four gospels. It is reported that one day a number of people saw Christ flying away with great haste. They asked him, why art thou hurrying away with such rapidity? He did not give them any answer but continued to run. Finally they caught him in his flight and told him: Why this haste? Are you flying away from the ferocity of a lion or a panther or a leopard or a wolf or a bear? There are no such wild beasts in this vicinity and we do not see any logical reason for this precipitous flight!

Then Christ said 'I am flying away from a fool.' They were astonished at this declaration. 'Art thou not the Christ? Breathe with the Power of the Holy Spirit over this man and he will be freed from his foolishness.'

Christ said:- "With the same breath of the Holy Spirit that I blew over the ignorant and he became wise; the deaf became hearing, the blind seeing, the mute speaking, the sick became well and the dead received a new life - I blew the same breath of the holy Spirit more than one thousand times over this fool and there was no result; consequently I am flying away from him.

It is as follows:-

"When Sergius met Mohamad he was so impressed by his general bearing and coupled with an intuitive knowledge he was convinced that later in life this youth will become a King. Hence he took him aside and said:- 'What wilt thou give me if I made thee a King, a ruler over many nations and tribes?'

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He described how as a young boy he witnessed the Mystery Play of Ali's Betrayal and Passion, and how it affected him so deeply that he wept and could not sleep for many nights.

Christ says that if a kind shepherd loses one sheep from the flock, he leaves the other sheep to run after that lost sheep.

A workman who had left his bag of tools in the hall was welcomed with smiling kindness by 'Abdu'l-Baha. With a look of sadness the man said: "I don't know much about religious things, as I have no time for anything but my work."

"That is well. Very well. A day's work done in the spirit of service is in itself an act of worship. Such work is a prayer unto God."

When Baha'u'llah left Bagdad and without the knowledge of the friends went to Soleymanie, one day he saw a boy in the streets weeping.

… Then all the learned and wise men of the city gather around him and after a time finding that these men have taken all his time, he retired to the mountains where nobody could reach him.

When I was very young I was travelling with Baha'u'llah and my family. We reached the city of Kermanshahan. Here we took quarters in a Caravanserai. Here there was a very poor boy who came to assist us in unloading, bringing to us water etc. At night I gave him a full dish of Polou and meat. I watched him eat. He was enjoying it very much. It was as though he had never eaten Polou. I conversed with him.

Little by little he divulged to me his childlike dream: - "I never never had eaten such royal dinner in all my life and I fully believe (he sighed deeply) that if I could have such dinner for three successive nights I would become a King but you are going to leave tomorrow (anxiously) Are you not?"

Where can I find another like him, with such sincerity, such faithfulness, such character, such power? Where can I find one? O Isfandiyar! I am not willing that you should go, yet if you wish to go, let it be according to your own will." But because the Blessed Perfection had said, "You must be faithful," Isfandiyar stayed with his master until he died. He was a point of light. Although his color was black, yet his character was luminous; his mind was luminous; his face was luminous. Truly, he was a point of light.

I had a servant, Esphandiar by name; he was better than a hundred whites. He was so good tempered, so faithful and trustworthy. One would be amazed at his intelligence.

Then He said: "When we were travelling to Baghdad in the company of the Blessed Beauty, we stopped for one day in Qasr-i-Shirin. The headman there was a Kurd who said 'I request that you be my guests.' We also alighted at his house. He showed great love and kindness - he was a very good man. The Blessed Beauty also showed him much favor. He said 'I am a Kurd, I am ignorant, I have no knowledge, but I love the Blessed Beauty.' During that one day he showed great kindness. He was also a Sunni.

At that point He related the story of Khalil Pasha, the governor:)

While he was in power, everyone would invite him and host him. But when he was about to be dismissed, everyone cut off relations with him. He came to Haifa and absolutely no one paid him any attention. He stayed at a hotel with his family. I went and brought him to the house - his family in the inner quarters and himself in the outer quarters. Then I saw he was distressed and wanted to be with his family, so I rented a special house and gave him lodging there, and would comfort him in the evenings.

His brother was the Minister of Education. After fifteen days, at three o'clock at night, a telegram came from his brother saying "A position has been prepared for you with good pay - depart quickly." He had been weeping, but when this news arrived he began to dance. That very night the deputy governor and judge and others came to congratulate him and accompanied him to the steamer, but I did not go. I said "Now you are an important person again - we have no business with you."

There was in Acca a Greek merchant who had grown very wealthy. He had a dog which followed him everywhere and was renowned for its intelligence and faithfulness. He understood everything his master hold him. Once he had piled many loads of wheat in front of the mosque in the center of the public square. The Sheikh of that mosque came to him and said 'You must pay something for [this], taking this space in front of the mosque! "I will do nothing of the kind." The Sheikh threatened to carry away a load of wheat. The Merchant said something in the ear of the dog. It climed the loads and stood there keeping guard. As soon as the Sheikh came near to make good his threat, the dog came down on him and he had to fly away for his life.

How the children love the small, innocent lambs! especially when they run after them, filling their ears with baa-aa-aa, baa-aa-aa-. Because their nature is so simple, children love all kind of animals and stories related to them as well as to inanimate objects.

I remember an incident of my childhood which will bear out this matter. I was then very, very young, probably 3 or 4 yrs. At the time the Blessed Perfection lived in Teheran. In our street, close by to our house lived one of the Farrashes of the palace. He was a bird fancier and in a peculiar manner all his own he had tamed a number of nightingales which followed him everywhere, sitting on his head and shoulders and while he walked in the streets they warbled melodiously. He had cut a piece of the lower bills of the poor birds;- so that they could not pick up the grains and were forced to eat out of his hand.

Often he used to come to our garden with the nightingales perched on his head. As a child I was delighted with the strange spectacle. The birds flew away and sat on the branches of the trees singing. Then suddenly the man whistled and they returned back swiftly, roosting on his head, shoulders and hands. This sight especially pleased me and I clapped my hands with glee as I watched them.

When we were in Bagdad, one day a company of small birds took refuge in a tree, because they were chased by a hawk. Some one took a gun and fired at the hawk. It fell dead to the ground. The birds became very happy and flew away, circling in the air and singing songs of joy.

Another day we went from Bagdad to Salmani Pak (a village several miles from Bagdad.) On the way I saw a large bush of thistle under which numerous sparrows had gathered and over which perched a hawk. The poor sparrows having seen the hawk, had sought shelter under the clomp of thistle and the hawk had followed them. However, fate was against it, for one of the thorns had pierced its breast, causing its death. The sparrows unaware of this fact continued to remain there until they died of starvation.

One day in Baghdad, I went hunting with two or three of the friends. Riding a camel, an unclad Arab Bedouin came towards us. In jest, one of the friends raised his gun to scare the Arab, but another one prevented him. The Arab came, dismounted and asked for bread; we gave him some. He asked for tobacco and pipe, which we also gave. He asked for ammunition, and we provided. But we had no coffee to give him. Pleased with us, eventually he left.

The friend who had prevented the mock shooting said, "Do not be deceived by the appearance of this unclad, skinny and dark-skinned Arab. He is the chief of a large tribe and commands many men. If anyone were to attack him, he would raise a cry, which would summon multitudes of supporters to his aid. A huge commotion would ensue, and his men would exact severe revenge."

There was a man by the name of Haji Mohamad Taki Shirazi who had joined our company. He was a great hunter. He was such a crackshot that while his horse was galloping, he could shoot birds on the wing. Riding on his horse, with his gun, he followed us. The Blessed Beauty knowing his love for hunting told him: 'Don't kill these innocent birds.' But the man paid no attention. Without exaggeration he fired on that day five or six hundred shots but without killing one bird.

On our return trip we saw a crane. It was very large. This bird rises very slowly from the ground but once in the air it flies very rapidly. When Haji Mohamad Taki saw this crane, he became elated because he thought he could show off his skill here. The bird had just risen from the ground when he fired the first shot and missed. He fired [4] times more with no better success. By this time the bird was high in the air and he thought he would surely bring it to the ground and again fired two shots but missed. Because Baha'u'llah told him not to shoot and he wanted to break His Word, he did not succeed and not a single bullet found its mark.

One day I summoned him and said: "When the soldiers were here, this pool was always full; why is it like this now?" He related a story, saying that in Egypt someone went somewhere and asked: "Is there anything for God's sake?" They said no. He asked: "Is there anything for the Prophet's sake?" They said no. He asked: "Is there anything for the sake of the saints?" They said no. He asked: "Is there anything for the sake of the stick?" They said: "Everything is ready!"

Together we went to the house used by the Ancient Beauty and, from there, to the house employed after His ascension and then to a well in the German Colony. The Master said:

"They have capped this well so that others would not benefit from its drinking water. Sanctified is God! What gain or profit do they expect by showing such iniquity towards others? Some people are unable to hide the secrets of their hearts and inner thoughts, and they are incapable of not perpetrating harm. In this regard, the Iranians are better. In Tihran we had a neighbor by the name of Haji Muhammad-'Ali who was extremely frugal. Each day he would only give a piece of bread and a coin to his wife and children. After he died, however, he left behind one hundred thousand tumans and willed that an aqueduct be constructed in his name. Accordingly, a quarter of his estate was spent on this charity, and now that aqueduct is known by his name."

"While we were in Baghdad," the Master said, "this Mirza Javad was with us. He had a melancholic and disconsolate disposition; he used to get angry most quickly. It was impossible for any man to associate with him for one day without having a quarrel. His disposition was most bitter and his temper something terrific. With such a person I spent very amicably for eight yrs.

When we first took this house, the landlord was very harsh with us. He had closed all doors to us, but gradually there came relief and the door of association opened, until one time he came to me and said, "O Effendi, I want to go to Beirut, and my house and family and possessions are here, and I trust none of my relatives, and I beg you to watch over them." I said that we are strangers and this task is beyond us, but we will try to be considerate. Finally he sent his wife to the presence of the Blessed Beauty and pleaded, therefore I accepted...

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"As an illustration of what I mean by the spirit of non-retaliation, I may mention the instance of a believer in Russia who was attacked without provocation and almost killed. The criminal was tried and condemned to death. The believer, animated by this spirit, begged the Governor to mitigate the sentence, and obtained its reduction to several years of banishment.

Once His Holiness David wished to meet a thankful person. He observed someone who had taken some wheat and barley mixed together and ground it between two stones until it became like flour. Then he kneaded it and made a loaf, and made a fire from some straw. After the flames died down, he placed the loaf on the embers.

When everything was ready I told him: "now start eating but with the same thankfulness you ate your bread yesterday." I did not need to say that, he would have done it anyway, but we enjoyed seeing him so thankful.

It is related that once in the days of the Apostle of God He signified His desire that an army should advance in a certain direction, and leave was granted unto the faithful to raise contributions for the holy war. Among many was one man who gave a thousand camels, each laden with corn, another who gave half his substance, and still another who offered all that he had. But a woman stricken in years, whose sole possession was a handful of dates, came to the Apostle and laid at His feet her humble contribution. Thereupon the Prophet of God may my life be offered up as a sacrifice unto Him bade that this handful of dates be placed over and above all the contributions that had been gathered, thus asserting the merit and superiority thereof over all the rest. This was done because that elderly woman had no other earthly possessions but these.

O thou who art grief-stricken and anguished by the calamities that have befallen thee and the tidings that have reached thee! All the dwellers of the pavilion of glory have been immersed in an ocean of sorrows and are partners in this endless storm of grief and lamentation. No eye remained that did not weep for thy affliction, and no heart that was not filled with blood. Burning sighs were raised, and wailing and lamentation reached its zenith. This servant inquired as to what event had occurred and what catastrophe, like deadly poison, had transpired that caused such burning anguish and was the source of such grief, ardor, tenderness, and intense emotion.

They answered with lamentation, saying: The only son of that indigent servant hath put off the garment of this earthly life and hastened unto the court of the Lord of Lords. He hath been delivered from the straitness of the world of being and soared away unto the realm beyond space. He grew weary of the body and sped unto the world of the spirit, and attained the presence of the Beloved. Though for that bird of Heaven it was but freedom from the cage and deliverance from the prison of desire and passion; a drop that hastened to the sea, a mote that sped unto the height of the sun; a yearning soul that found its way unto the sanctuary of the Best-Beloved of all horizonsâ€"yet did that calamity plunge that sorrow-stricken father into grievous mourning, and make that anguished mother the companion of sighing and lamentation. It laid low that bearer of the divine Tablets, and consumed in the fire of yearning that courier who traversed the wilderness of the settlements of the Most Great Name. In his heart it reared aloft the banner of a blazing grief.

He was his sole support, his peerless jewel, his true heir, his dearly cherished son. What, then, became of that aged and stricken one, and how loud was the wailing of that desolate mother? This they recounted, and from the tears of their eyes they strung many pearls of sorrow. They lamented and cried aloud, they grieved and bewailed; and in this affliction they became with thee companions in sorrow and confidants in anguish.

When the sighing and lamenting exceeded all bounds, this servant said that that wise elder is young and vigorous in patience and endurance of unbearable trials and tribulations, and like a rock in strength and might, for he is seeing and knowing, aware of the transience of this world. Every bird and moving creature must cease its flight and motion, and every iron cage must surely break, allowing the bird to take flight. In this light, what effect has a long or short delay, and what difference between today and tomorrow? Especially since the Most Great Calamity and the Supreme Ordeal has left no room for other calamities and trials, and particularly since thou and I have become alike in circumstance, known and marked by the same attribute and character.

Grieve not, for thou art my companion and friend, my intimate associate through months and years. What the True One desired for me, He desired for thee. We are partners and share the same portion, relying upon the Mighty Lord and seeking refuge at His threshold. By coincidence, Salman the Persian, who was counted among the People of the Household and was free from every bond, had one unique child, one peerless light of his eyes. This only child he would sometimes leave as security for bread for Abu Dharr, and sometimes leave alone and friendless while he traveled. Sometimes he was in Hijaz, sometimes in Yemen, sometimes in Mada'in, sometimes in the desert of Oman and the mountain of Najd and the plain of tribulation. Finally, that unique child of his lay in the bed of earth during his lifetime, and that pearl of his was pierced by the diamond of fate by the hand of destiny. Yet he neither wept nor burned with anguish, neither did he heave hidden sighs nor display obvious grief. He made neither lamentation and wailing nor showed restlessness and endless mourning. He submitted to God's decree and showed acceptance and contentment.

Though in the end he had no physical progeny, how many spiritual offspring did he leave behind! A great multitude were born of his spiritual essence, and more than physical children, they became the cause of his ancient glory. Therefore, grieve thou not and make no lamentation. If thou desire a hundred sons, I shall present them to thee - each one thy spiritual son and of divine lineage, progeny without trouble and children without toil, who will serve thee with heart and soul and not sell thee for both worlds. Ask, and I shall present them. Grieve not, for I am thy sympathizer. Lament not, for I am thy companion. Shed no tears, for I am thy dear friend. I hope, through the grace of the Ancient Beauty, that thou wilt find solace and seek tranquility, find rest and become content with God's decree, and in tribulation and trial become my intimate confidant.

O Hátim of the realm of longing and yearning! Hátim of Ta'iy bestowed dirhams and dinars and horses and camels and brocades and garments. He spread the feast of food and the table of bounty. And this giving and bestowing made his name endure in this transient world. But his food was the flesh of desert camels and his drink the water from dangerous wilderness pits.

Once Imam Hasan and Imam Husayn both became ill. Their parents, His Holiness Imam ‘Ali and His wife Fatimih, vowed to fast when their children recovered. After some time the children became well and their parents fasted for three days. On the first day they baked four pieces of barley bread, one for each: ‘Ali, Fatimih, Hasan and Husayn. When the time arrived for them to break the fast, they heard someone at the door.

They asked after the identity of the visitor. It was a beggar, so they gave him all the bread and broke their own fast with water. On the second day the same thing happened. At the time of eating, someone knocked on the door and said that he was a slave. The four pieces of bread were given to him.

On the third day there was again a knock on the door and the man declared that he was homeless. As before, he received all the bread. Thus was revealed a verse in the Qur'an directing the faithful to be generous towards the poor, the captive and the homeless and to give preference to these people over themselves.

It is said that Sultan Mabmud cut a melon and gave a portion of it to Ayaz who ate it cheerfully and expressed gratitude. When the Sultan ate a little of the same melon, he found it bitter. He asked, 'How did you eat such a bitter melon and show no sign of disliking it?' Ayaz answered, 'I had eaten many sweet and palatable things from the hands of the Sultan and I thought it very unworthy of me to express dislike on eating a slightly bitter thing today.'

Once upon a time Salman called on Abouzar. When the lunch time came around the host brought two loaves of bread and salt. There was nothing else in the house. Salman as though talking to himself said: 'I wish there was a little cheese!'

Abouzar feeling ashamed, went out, sold his only goat, bought the cheese and brought it at the table. The guest helped himself generously and when he was quite satisfied he raised his hands toward heaven and prayed:- 'Blessed are those who are satisfied with every little, and are contented!'

Abouzar feeling the superfluity of such a prayer told to his friend: 'If thou wert really a satisfied and contented fellow I would have now my goat in the house'.

When I was in America I was most busy. Often I addressed three meetings in a day and gave innumerable interviews from early morning till midnight. In Europe I spread certain divine Teachings which will insure security to the human world and taught them that the foundation of the religions of God is one and the same. Now I have returned to Egypt in order to rest from the effect of this arduous journey and while I am here correspondence is uninterrupted [sic] with all parts of the West. All the newspapers and magazines published my addresses and the Western world is ringing with this Call.

I have done this not because I expected the praises of men. Far from it! How foolish are some people who may think that we have accepted all these hardships and underwent forty years of incarceration by Sultan Abdul Hamid in order to receive the commendations of men. How thoughtless they are! Neither their adulation or blame shall reach me. I have done my work. I have sown my seeds and leave to the Power of God to cause their growth. You wait a few years longer and you will then hear the notes of this melodious music!

Once upon a time there was a poor Fellah (farmer) who cultivated a patch of ground with cotton. His neighbouring farmers were all rich landlords and Pashas and so they prevented in a high handed manner this poor Fellah to receive his just share of water whereby to irrigate his parched farm. He pleaded several times to their fair sense of justice but they laughed him out of their presence. Finally realizing that his cotton will dry and labours fail, he went one midnight and changed the current of [the] stream toward his own farm and irrigated it most thoroughly. When in the morning the landlords saw what their daring neighbour has done he sent for him and rebuked him severely. Not being satisfied with this they bastinadoed him very hard. While he was undergoing this cruel punishment he cried out "O ye men! I have already irrigated my farm. This will do you no good. I have saved the destruction of my crop from draught! Why do you inflict upon me such a useless torture! The earth is watered."

A group of very hungry poor people came to me and made a request. I directed them to a grocery store that had all kinds of food available. I told them, "Storm this shop, take whatever is there, eat it and take it away - I will take responsibility for it."

These poor hungry people, as soon as they heard this statement, immediately rushed and looted the shop. No matter how much the shopkeeper shouted and wailed that "You are plundering my goods!", they paid him no attention at all. They even ate the raw dry rice and took things away with them.

Once in Bagdad a European woman was passing through the streets. She happened to see a poor man sitting in dirt, surrounded with filth and clad in rags. She pitied him and took out of her hand bag a piece of gold, and placed it in the palm of his hand. The man hurried to the stream and started to wash the money. The European woman who was no less a personage than the wife of the English consul was astonished and asked him why did he do this for? "Oh" the man answered quite calmly "Because the money coming out of your hand is unclean." The lady was amused. "Is this hand which is washed with soap several times during the day, unclean and your hands black with dirt, soot and filth, clean?" she half-inquired and went on her way.

When we were in Bagdad we had an Arab Baha'i who lived nine miles out of the city. On his farm he had three or four date-palms. Although dates were very cheap in the Bazaar yet he would come and invite the friends to go with him and eat of his dates. He was so loving and enthusiastic that no one had the heart to refuse him. They often hired asses to ride on and in doing so they had to pay two or three Bashleeks for each quadruped and when reaching there no one could eat more than a half or a quarter of a Mataleek date.

Several Baha'is had a small hall room. One could hardly move in it. But as they did not care for these outward comforts, having the joy of heaven in their hearts, when toward the evening they returned from their work; all night they were singing, chanting communes, so that even the neighbors who had every comfort envied them.

Then, a Persian, who outwardly claimed to be a Baha'i arrived in Baghdad. As he was going to stay only a few days - not desiring to rent a room - he came and stayed with our friends in the small crowded room. Of course they did not mind him. They hailed him as a brother, expecting that he will also enter in the spirit of their inner joy. But no, he started to criticize and make remarks on their crowded room and its humble appearance.

One of these men who was a simple, Kashani composed a line of poetry, addressed to him. It was very funny but to the point. The translation: "O thou our honored guest! God has given unto us an imperial palace! Look at its lofty dome! I wonder! What is the cause of thy rankling."

There was a man, Pedar Jan. I cannot praise him enough. He was the embodiment of spirituality. He used to carry under his arm while walking in the bazaars a dozen pairs of stockings hoping to sell them. But, forgetting his surroundings, he would slowly chant the communes (prayers). Then someone would come up softly, behind him, and take the stockings from under his arm. If a customer wanted a pair of stockings Pedar Jan would look under his arm—but there would be nothing there. So he thought he would carry the stockings on the palms of his hands. Again he would become absorbed, reading the supplications, and again the stockings would be stolen without his knowledge.

One day in Baghdad, a beggar asked for alms. We gave him one majidi and he told Us: "Go in peace, young man; may His Holiness 'Abbas give you support." He prayed for Us -- it was a good prayer.

There was one Abdullah Baghdadi who was initially among the wicked and was known for all manner of depravity. He was resurrected. He attained a wondrous state, such that it became famous even among outsiders how Abdullah had changed, becoming utterly detached. Despite having an establishment, having first been a chief of ruffians, he abandoned it all and came on foot to Akka. Whoever looked upon his face was delighted. He became so radiant, so spiritual that it defies description.

I would say, "Abdullah, tell me." He would say, "Praise be to God, through the grace and favor of the Blessed Beauty - I was in darkness, I was tormented, I was bound by everything, I was attached to creation like a bird in a cage. I broke the cage and became free. I sleep on the ground but it is as though I sleep in a bed. Before I would sleep in silk sheets but in torment, now I sleep on the earth in the utmost joy and delight."

I recall an incident which occurred in Bagdad. There were two friends who knew not each other's language. One fell ill, the other visited him, but not being able to express his sympathy in words, resorted to gesture, as if to say, "How do you feel?" With another sign the sick replied, "I shall soon be dead;" and his visitor, believing the gesture to indicate that he was getting better, said, "God be praised!"

(Here the Master told him the story of the 5 men who were of as many nationalities and a stranger to each other's tongue. With a piece of coin which belonged to all, each one desired to buy "grapes" but could not understand that his brother wanted the same thing. Misunderstanding each others motive they disagreed, but when a tray of grapes was brought in by one who understood their languages they saw they all wanted the same thing.)

Then the Master ('Abdu'l-Baha) told the following story or parable:

A man once, as he was walking, saw a wonderful sight. In a certain place there were three men. The first of these was blind, but he could see things that were very distant. The second was deaf to all near sounds but he could hear things that were very far off. The third was naked but he held in his hands very carefully a long hem of a garment. The man asked the teacher the meaning of this sight.

The interpretation of it was this: These three men represented humanity. The first, who could only see at a distance but was blind to all that was near him, means that people can generally see very clearly the faults and shortcomings of other natures and of those who are far from them, but their own faults are too near to be perceived.

The second man was able to hear of the deaths of others but his own death was too near him to be heard. The third one, who was quite bare, shows that in this state man comes into this world and in this state it is quite certain he must leave it and though he knows this very well, yet he spends his whole time in carefully preserving the hem of a garment from being soiled.

There was once a young mulla who wished to become specialized in the evaluation of human character through the study of physiognomy. Leaving his home, he travelled to Egypt and for six years studied the science of facial features. After a great deal of the hardship which is the lot for any foreigner in a strange land, he passed his tests in both theory and practice, and having been granted the required certificates he mounted his mule and happily headed back towards his homeland.

Question: What is your opinion concerning disarmament?

Answer: Be a general agreement all the governments of the world must disarm simultaneously and at the same time. It will not do if one lays down the arms and the other refuses to do so. The nations of the world must concur with each other concerning this supremely important subject, thus they may abandon together the deadly weapons of human slaughter. As long as one nation increases her military and naval budget, another nation will be forced into this crazed competition through her natural and supposed interests. For example, Germany has unceasingly added a vast sum for the maintenance of her army; this alarms the French statesmen and volatile patriots, and affects the calm and steady nerves of the Britishers across the channel. Immediately there will be rumours of war; German aggression, German ambition, the yellow journals write scaring editorials, jingoism becomes the topic of the capitals and the air will be filled with suspicions. Someone will see, for the purpose of expediency, a German man dirigible flying over French fortifications or English forts making observations, whereupon a hue and a cry will be raised from every quarter of the country, and thus there will be a corresponding increase in the estimates of the Minister of War for the defence of our homes and our hearths, our women and our sweethearts, from the attack of strangers! The same argument is resorted to when the French nations adds one or two years to her military conscription, and the English Imperialists emphasize in public meetings the doctrine of 'double standard power.' Now as long as Germany continues in her own military perfection, the French will walk in her footsteps, trying at every turn to increase their own war ammunition, to be prepared for any national crisis or sudden attack. Hence, it seems, the only solution lies in the fact of universal disarmament on the part of the nations.

When we speak of Universal Peace, we mean that all governments must change their fleets of battleships and dreadnaughts to a mighty fleet of merchant marine, plying the oceans of the world, uniting the distant shores and interweaving the commercial, intellectual and moral forces of mankind. But should England alone transform the character of her warships, she would remain at the mercy of her enemies and would remain powerless and defenceless. The British Isles would unquestionably be threatened by a powerful invading, well-disciplined host. Hence, aside from any national prowess, the English people would be pushed into this weltering whirlpool of military and naval expenditures, and would be struggling to keep their heads above the seething water all around them, irrespective of any nationality.

Once a person met his friend in the street, and after the exchange of courtesies, gave him a hard blow in the face. 'Why dost thou do this?' 'Hast thou not read in the Gospel wherein Christ says--Whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also!--Now according to this admonition, let me smite thee on thy left cheek also.' The man submitted to the second blow quite willingly, and they parted. Next day, they met each other again, and the man received two more blows on his cheeks without any evident murmur. They met the third day, and he was going to inflict upon him the same blows. 'Wait a minute, my friend. I am not the only person in the world to live according to the Teachings of Christ. Thou also art one. I have obeyed Him two days, and the next two days will be thy turn.' With these words he smote the man on his cheek, and asked him to 'turn the other also.'

Now the question of disarmament must be put into practice by all the nations and not only by one or two. Consequently the advocates of Peace must strive day and night, so that the individuals of every country may become peace-loving, public opinion may gain a strong and permanent footing, and day by day the army of International Peace be increased, complete disarmament be realized and the Flag of Universal Conciliation be waving on the summit on the mountains of the earth.

One day a man became annoyed with his camel and promised himself that on the following day he would sell it for one shahi (a small monetary unit). This person was a religious man and was always faithful to his promises. The following morning, however, he regretted his promise and wondered what to do. After much thinking, he came up with a trick to save his camel. He tied a cat to the camel's neck and began advertising his camel for one shahi. People gathered around him and everyone wanted to buy the beast for that price. He said, 'Yes, the price of the camel is one shahi but that of the cat is a thousand qurush (a unit much larger than a shahi). Both must be sold together.'

People became disappointed and went away. After a while a customer came to him and said, 'I have heard that you are selling your camel for one shahi.'

The owner replied, 'Yes, here it is; but you must also buy the cat for a thousand qurush.'

The customer, who liked the camel very much, said, 'I will give you one hundred shahi for the camel but you keep the cat.'

The owner of the camel said, 'That is not possible.'

Then the customer sighed a long sigh and said, 'The camel would be one of a kind if that accursed cat were not attached to his neck.'

One day a layman went to a Mullah and asked several questions. The Mullah did not answer him. The man told him then "Have you not read in the Koran 'you must not turn away a questioner'?"

The Mullah in turn rejoined:- "hast thou not read also in the same holy book the injunction, 'Give thou not thy possessions to the fool'? Now my possessions are the ideals and knowledge of Truth. I must protect them from the intruders."

In Baghdad, we rode out with a sheikh to a place about one and a half parasangs from Baghdad. This sheikh had had his hand kissed so much that whenever his mare saw someone from afar, it would immediately stop until that person came and kissed the sheikh's hand, then the mare would start moving again.

There was a Bakhtashi who passed by the door of a theological seminary. He saw the attendant is beating a dog most severely. "Why do you beat this dumb dog?" asked the Baktashi. "Because it has entered the seminary and made the place unclean." "But this dog is unintelligent. Look at me! I who am an intelligent man never enter in a seminary, do I?"

It is said that once a Mohammedan, a Christian and a Jew were rowing in a boat. Suddenly a tempest arose and the boat was tossed on the crest of the waves and their lives were in danger.

The Mohammedan began to pray: "O God! Drown this infidel of a Christian!" The Christian supplicated the Almighty: "O Father! Send to the bottom of the deep this Moslem!"

They observed the Jew was not offering any prayer, and therefore asked him: "Why do you not pray for relief?" He answered, "I am praying. I am asking the Lord to answer the prayers of both of you!"

There was a certain Mustafa Bayk, the chief of the secretariat of the Mufti of 'Akka. He was a most unscrupulous person and harbored intense enmity towards the blessed Cause. He was most unattractive as well. We were invited one night to the home of Mufti and it so happened that he was there too. For some reason, I told the story of Hajjaj Ibn Yusuf.[25] I said, "Hajjaj had a wife who was most beautiful, and she did not love her husband at all. One day, Hajjaj was beholding himself in the mirror and admiringly said, 'O Lord! How attractive Thou hast created me and what an excellent character hast Thou bestowed upon me!' His wife replied, 'Hajjaj, you are being slanderous towards God!' This morning when Mustafa Bayk was beholding himself in the mirror, the Mufti said, 'Say: O Lord, How attractive Thou hast created me and what an excellent character hast Thou bestowed upon me!'"

Everyone laughed heartedly.

Smilingly, 'Abdu'l-Baha shared: The late Mirza Rida-Quli had an argument with his maternal cousin. The cousin bribed Mirza Isma'il Savihchi with a meal, inducing him to present false testimony to the 'ulama, and thereby winning his case. One day Mirza Rida-Quli was walking by Tihran's moat when he saw Mirza Isma'il, who said to him, "Why do you look at me so angrily? Your cousin fed me and tricked me into testimony. Now, if you feed me, instead of him, I will support you!"

Once Aga Reza was making confectionary in Adrianople and had a small store. He had made a sort of Persian bon-bon. A Turk passed by the store and his eyes were attracted by this kind of candy. "What is this?" he asked. "It is Nogl." 'With what materials hast thou made this?" "With sugar and cinnamon." The Turk wondered for awhile and said: 'Thou art telling a lie. There is no relationship between sugar and cinnamon.'

When I was very young one day I was taken through the Bazaars of Teheran. The shopkeepers had the custom to call aloud after the people to sell their wares and in order to entice the prospective customers they would call them by the most flattering names and titles. There was a very old woman - probably 80 yrs old - with bent back and wrinkled face - who walked at the time through the Bazaar. The shopkeepers would shout after her: 'Miss Khanom! O thou never-fading rose! O thou young, beautiful maiden! Come, here, grace with thy lovely presence our shops! We will reduce the prices for thee and sell thee cheaper than the rest.' All the time she knew well that these are foolish compliments but just the same she liked them. She would smile and pass by them, taking everything they said seriously.

Taki Menshadi often spoke during the hours of sleep. Once I slept with him in the same room and was kept awake because of this habit of his. I thought he will be embarrassed and lose his sleep if I called his attention to it, therefore I never told him anything about it. It is stated that while a person speaks during his sleep, if questions are put to him he will answer truthfully. Menshadi was a blessed soul and he served this Cause with rare faithfulness. His soliloquies during the hours of sleep amused me very much and often I was afraid that the sound of my laughter will awake him ...

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Once in Bagdad we thought of mosquito net Aga Ammon came to me and said he has found a powder that if spread over the bed the bugs will become unconscious and die and thus one gets a good sleep! I refused to use it over my bed but Aga Ammon did it. When we went in the morning to call him we observed he is laid [sic] on his bed as an unconscious person, and all over and around him the bugs were in a state of drunkenness. We carried him out of the bed and he came to himself after some exertion on our part.

One remembers an anecdote from a lecture by Ruhiyyih Khanum, about a Christian woman named Lydia who came time and again complaining about her husband to 'Abdu'l-Baha. One day He said to her, 'Lydia, Lydia, you cannot put up with this one man, and I have to put up with the whole human race.'

'Abdu'l-Baha remarked:

In Tehran, we had a neighbor named Haji Muhammad-Husayn Jawahiri. He was an affluent man and had several children, both boys and girls. For the sustenance of each child, he would give a piece of bread and a small coin. In the evenings, he would purchase a dizi for a hundred dinar and they would eat that with bread. He also had a donkey, which he rode during the day while traveling through town, attending to his business transactions.

One of his sons one time stole two-thousand tumans from him. He complained to the governor, who summoned the boy. The governor asked, "Did you steal the money? Tell the truth. If you lie, I will skin your head." The lad replied affirmatively. The governor inquired, "Why?" He stated, "Our father is tightfisted and does not spend any money. Therefore, I was compelled to this deed."

The governor gave a thousand of that money to the Haji and decreed that each month, the Haji would give ten tumans to the boys and five tumans to the girls, and if he did not, the children were free to steal their father's possessions. Immediately, the children received their monthly allowance.

You are so frightened that even your dreams are confused and disturbed, like the story of that person who would attend religious gatherings. Upon hearing the accounts of the martyrs of Karbala, he would grasp his handkerchief, weep bitterly, and say, "Would that we had been with you to attain a great triumph!" He always wished he had been present at Karbala. By chance, one night he dreamed that Yazid had arrived with a mighty army, and he found himself in the camp of the Prince of Martyrs. First, Ali Akbar came, obtained permission for martyrdom, went to the battlefield, and was martyred. Then Qasim came, obtained permission, went to the battlefield, and was martyred.

In this manner, one by one, several went and were martyred until it was that person's turn. The Imam commanded him to go to the battlefield. He protested, "How can I go to the battlefield? I have no horse." The Imam said, "Take my horse." He took the Imam's horse and mounted it. Then he said, "I have no sword." The Imam replied, "Take my sword." He took it and, seeing that it was a good opportunity to escape, he fled with both the horse and sword, leaving the Imam without either, preferring flight to standing firm.

When he awoke in the morning, he related this dream to all his relatives and friends until it reached the governor's ears. The governor summoned him and said, "I have heard you had an interesting dream. Tell me everything, for it is an amusing tale." The sheikh related his dream from beginning to end. The governor asked, "How much was the Imam's horse worth?" He replied, "At least four hundred tumans." "And the sword?" "Three hundred tumans." The governor ordered that seven hundred tumans be taken from the sheikh before dismissing him, saying, "O faithless one! Not only did you fail to help the Imam, but you stole his possessions and left him without horse or sword. The Imam's horse and sword were worth more than seven hundred tumans, but you need only pay seven hundred tumans and go."

We had a [f... Ba...] by name Hadi Hassan of Tabriz. He was very restless and very nervous. One day he came to the holy presence of the Blessed One. There was a quince there. The B[lessed] B[eauty] gave it to him and said: 'This quince is quieting. This quince is [yours], eat it.' Hadi H[assan] took [the] q[uince] and went out. He was eating and [...] 'it is quieting'. He [...] quiet. This restlessness was [clearly] changed to tranquility.

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He started to speak about an interesting subject. I took out my notebook to write down his words. Looking towards me he said laughingly:

"What art thou writing now[?] Art thou not satisfied with all that thou hast written[?] What dost thou do with them? No matter what I say thou art ready to make a note of it. Who has ordered thee to do this?"

Saying this he approach[ed] and took the notebook out of my hand. He read several pages, laughing aloud at my detailed description of a number of events. "Oh oh! he writes everything, everything" he said, looking at the believers. Then he smote hard on my both cheeks. "This is thy reward!

In the days of the Prophet, there was one named Nu'man who was quite mischievous, and one named Mu'ayth who was dark of countenance. The Prince of the Faithful was engaged in battle with one of the tribes and appointed Mu'ayth as storekeeper. When they were about to advance, they established a base and contemplated their attack. Mu'ayth said, "I cannot stay alone with these provisions." Nu'man volunteered to remain with Mu'ayth. After some time, hunger overtook Nu'man and brought him to desperation. However much he pleaded to receive a few dates, his entreaties were to no avail. Mu'ayth said, "Until the warriors return from the battlefield, it would be far from justice and fairness to give you dates." Nu'man said, "I am dying," but it yielded no result. He said, "I will torment you," to which Mu'ayth replied, "Do what you will."

Nu'man went to the highway where he saw a caravan bound for Medina and asked what they had. They said, "We have nothing except a cow we are taking to sell." He said, "I have a slave for sale; would you buy him?" They replied, "We have no money." He answered, "I will exchange him for the cow." The outcome was that he received two cows and sold the slave. He said, "Bring the cows, tie their horns, and secure them to the ground, but know that this slave of mine is stubborn. Just so he doesn't separate from me, he might deny it, but pay no attention to his words."

They went to take Mu'ayth, who asked, "What is this about?" They said, "We bought you from your master." He said, "I consider him nothing; how could he have sold me?" They replied, "Your master said you would say this." They bound him and set off. Nu'man opened the leather bag of dates and ate them, showing them to Mu'ayth. They brought Mu'ayth bound into Medina.

When the warriors returned from battle and were informed of this incident, they said, "What answer shall we give to the Prophet?" Mu'ayth said, "I will give the answer." When he came before the Prophet, who asked what had happened, he submitted, "In the Qur'an, God has said 'Do not cast yourselves into destruction with your own hands.' I was dying of hunger, and no matter what I did, he would give me nothing. So I sold him." They sent back the cows and released Mu'ayth.

Then he illustrated the length of his journey by the following story:

"A certain Kurd was awakened in the morning to say his prayers. He arose and prayed five times successively. (The Mohammedan morning prayer consists of facing Mecca, reading a passage from the Koran, and bowing and kneeling twice in supplication.) The people said to him, 'What art thou doing? The morning prayer should be uttered only twice and thou art repeating it five times.' He replied, 'God bless you. I do not say my prayers often. When I do say them, why should I say them only twice? The more the better!'

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[One day at three in the afternoon we were summoned. I had a severe fever. He said, "You have a fever," and in a jesting tone added that fever was the fruit of this land - everyone who arrives must have a fever. Tea was served in His presence. I perspired profusely, such that my clothes were soaked. He said, "Go change your clothes. You will not have fever again." During the nine months that we were blessed to be there, no illness befell me.]

During our stay in Bagdad there lived in that city one of the Ameers of Afghanistan. He was reputed to be very wealthy and cultured. He used to frequent our house and ask questions concerning the Islamic religion.

One morning he invited me to tea and I accepted his invitation. When we reached his house he boiled a quantity of green tea in a large kettle and poured the hot black liquid into a capacious vase. Then he cut into small pieces three or four loaves of bread and mixed it with the steaming tea. When the pieces of bread were well-soaked he spread over it a pound of butter. Putting this unpalatable concoction on a tray he placed it on the floor and asked me to help myself.

In order not to hurt his feeling of hospitality I took one mouthful but could not continue. I asked for a little sugar but he remonstrated that sugar will utterly spoil the choice dish. He could not understand why I did not like it, because he said: 'This is one of the best delicacies in Afghanistan.' I excused myself from eating but after half an hour the large vase was empty and our friend had a hearty breakfast.

I remember when I was four or five years old there was a very poor old man in our street whose name was "Insouciant." When the season of poppies came around he filled his tray with them and brought around to sell them to the little boys. As he walked from one end of the street to another end he sang aloud these lines:-

Green and verdant are my poppies,

Aha! Ahoy, come out, O boys!

"Insouciant" is here with joys.

Hearing his voice I would run out of the house and buy his poppies. This "Insouciant" often gathered us children around himself and related to us many funny stories.

There was once a blacksmith in Iran, and to keep his fire going and get the iron red hot so it could be hammered into shape on the anvil, he had a boy apprentice to blow and blow the bellows. Finally the boy, half dead from toil, cried out, "I am dying! I am dying!" And the blacksmith shouted back, "Die and blow the bellows! Die and blow! Die and blow!"

It is said that one of the Arab kings said to one of his companions, "Is it possible for someone to have never eaten faloodeh and not know what it is?" The companion submitted that indeed, there are many who have never eaten it and do not know it. One day an Arab came before the king. The companion suggested that this might be one of those who had never experienced faloodeh and didn't know what it was. The king said if this proved true, he would give him a purse of gold. Then he ordered a feast to be spread with all manner of foods. They placed the faloodeh before the Arab, who began to eat. From his manner of eating, they realized he did not know what it was. The companion asked him what it was. He replied, "In the Qur'an, God, exalted be His glory, mentions date palms and pomegranates. We have date palms in our land; I assume this must be pomegranate." The companion said, "O king, you should give me two purses of gold, for he doesn't know pomegranate either!"

Have you heard the story of the emperor who looked into the mirror and became very sad and despondent? He said, "Oh! What a healthy and vigorous body I had but how worn it has become now! What a handsome face I had but how ugly it has become now! What graceful stature I had but how bent my body has become with age!" Thus he spoke one by one of the physical conditions of his youth and expressed his sadness at their loss.

A king at the time of his death wished he was of the poor class. 'I wish I was poor!' he exclaimed. 'In the first place, I would not have ruled with injustice, and, in the second place, at the last moment, I would not be in such a state of remorse and regret!' A poor man who heard him say this exclaimed, 'Thank God that at the time of death, the kings wish to be poor, but we, the poor. At the time of death never desire to say we wish we were kings'!

O spiritual youth! Every youth in this earthly realm is preoccupied with thoughts of this world and immersed in animal passions. Their thoughts are of food and drink, their pursuits the desire for pearls and shells, even the basest clay fragments. But the end result is regret and remorse.

They say that Sebüktekin possessed the utmost glory and power - a palace like the highest paradise, delightful chambers, a colorful feast, a life of honey and sweetness, well-stocked treasuries and abundant wealth. At the height of his joy and delight, he was suddenly afflicted with consumption and melted away like a candle, playing sorrowful melodies of regret. When he lost hope of life, three days before death, he arranged in his royal palace a row of golden-belted servants and gathered an assembly of maidens from his harem. He displayed precious jewels and gems before their eyes, and prepared his hoarded treasures on one side. He summoned renowned ministers to his presence and commanded a great army to perform victory drills in the field before his royal palace. He himself looked all around, weeping and saying: "How shall I be deprived of this sovereignty and bounty, lose hope of life, leave you all, and hasten empty-handed from this world to the next?" He wept and wept until he drew his last breath. Consider with what regret he departed this world!

Thus it became clear that the end of the wealthy is regret upon regret, except for the rich person who pours forth treasure from his sleeve for charitable causes and expends his wealth in benevolent matters. Such blessed souls shine like brilliant stars from the horizon of eternal glory.

Now you, O cherished youth, praise be to God, have contributed beyond your means of dirhams and dinars for the completion of the Mashriqu'l-Adhkar, having no purpose except the good-pleasure of the Lord. You are successful in both worlds and renowned among the assemblage of humanity. I hope that through the favors of the Blessed Beauty, divine confirmations will become manifest and the happiness of both worlds will be attained.

O pure and goodly visitor! Convey with utmost yearning the utmost kindness of 'Abdu'l-Baha to all the loved ones of Milan. And upon you be the Most Glorious Glory.

Alexander the Great, when going to India, was unable to conquer India. The princes of India obeyed him. One of the kings invited him (to dine). History records that when he and the guests arrived and were seated, there was a cover on the table. They removed this cover and it was found that the plates, instead of containing food, contained various jewels and gold, one containing diamonds, rubies, sapphires, etc. The prince said, Will your Majesty enjoy all these? But, exclaimed Alexander, these are not edible. The Prince said, Such beautiful gems, such beautiful gold, beautiful silver - can you not enjoy them? Alexander said, We cannot eat these. The Prince replied, What can be eaten? Just a piece of bread? Strange! Could you not find some bread? You took all the trouble to come here for bread!

Alexander was ashamed.

When he was asked what the term 'Iram of the Pillars' mentioned in the Qur'an [Q89:6-14] referred to, he replied:

"This was a garden situated opposite the garden of Paradise itself and created by Shaddad. It was a garden whose leaves, flowers, and trees were all made of emerald; whose blossoms were made of gems; whose pebbles were made of pearls; whose walls were made of gold and silver; and whose servants were this and that. When Shaddad had finished creating his garden, he decided to go there and enter it. As he was alighting from his steed by the entrance of the garden, he had not yet taken both his feet from out his stirrups when the angel of death came all of a sudden and claimed his life."

When Halakou Khan, the great Tartar Conqueror entered Bagdad, he ordered his men to look over the records and the books of the financial department of the Abbaside Khalifs - so that the revenues of his newly-acquired dominion may be based upon a firm foundation and all those who have not paid their annual taxes may be so taxed according to law. While they were searching through the books they came across two items of taxation and expenditure that gave them much food for thought. Under one of the days of the month (12 Safar) it was recorded that Jafar Barmaki has paid one hundred thousand Dinars as taxes and right beside the above account, another small item was inserted two days afterwards that half Derham (five cents) was expended on old clothes and naphta with which to burn the body of the same man...

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At this point Hajjaj's army arrived, and the Bedouin became very frightened. Hajjaj ordered, "Secure his camels and bring him to me." When the Beouin came to his presence, weak-kneed, Hajjaj said, "Peace be upon you." He replied, "Peace be upon you, and the mercy of God and His blessings." He asked, "Do you drink wine?" He replied, "No." He asked, "Do you eat food?" He answered, "Yes." They prepared for him a fine meal. He ate and said, "It is delicious, but may God preserve me in what is to follow." He said, "Be at ease and eat properly." After he ate, he was told, "There are two choices before you: either be my companion and intimate friend, or I shall have you bound and sent to the Caliph." He replied, "O Commander, there is yet a third option, which is that you let me return to my camels." He bestowed a gift upon him and released him.

Another subject which was discussed was 'smoking' and 'drinking' because the Druises as a rule are addicted to neither of these two evil habits. Mohamadan history contains many references to these subjects and the Master pointed out that there were in the past ages many temperance Societies and as a result of their activities teetotalers became very numerous. There were many men and women who abstaine[d] totally from all intoxicating drinks and especially from smoking tobacco.

The object of these temperance Societies became well-established during the reign of Sultan Salim. The king espousing this cause encouraged all his court[iers] and the members of his royal family to follow him in this matter. One of his ministers who was the instructor of his son became a missionary teetotaler. And no one would have dared to smoke in his presence.

As it generally happen[s] in such vases the dislike of the father for smoking was compensated by an equal attachment of the son to this custom. Not daring to smoke before the public and fearing the displeasure of his Sire, he would go every night into his private room, lock the door and smoke to his heart's content. One night he was late, and as he entered the room, banged the door behind himself and sat smoking, forgetting to turn in the key. While he was in the height of 'smoking', suddenly the door was opened and to his surprise the teacher walked in and a column of smoke escaped into the open air.

When he was face to face with his pupil he began to upbraid and censure him for thus wantonly disobeying the Command of his noble father, intimating that if he came to know about this, he would surely punish him severely. To the amazement of the teacher the pupil did not show any sign of agitation but in calm and dignified manner asked him to be seated and he would present his case to his impartial judgement.

'When our holy prophet' the pupil said 'declared his divine mission to the world all the animate creatures and inanimate objects prostrated before him, obeyed his command and offered to them their allegiance, save this accurse[d] and execrable tobacco. It arose in rebellion against its rightful Lord. It is only for this all-sufficient reason that I am subjecting it to smoke as a just punishment for its diabolic disobedience.'

The teacher listening to this religious explanation exclaimed with evident eagerness[:] If it is so, then let me smoke it too;- so that I may also gain the reward of paradise!

See how good Baha'u'llah is to us, how great the power of His Word! From what distant parts of the world He has brought us together in this house and caused us to meet at this heavenly table, for love has prepared a feast and bidden Abdu'l-Baha to let this entertainment be in His name. What a union of hearts and what a confirmation of Baha'u'llah between East and West has been established! How His bounty has embraced all! How His favors have been perfected for all!

When the Muslims conquered Persia, the chief of the Zoroastrian high priests went to drink wine. According to Muslim law wine is forbidden, and he who drinks it must be punished by eighty-one strokes of the whip. Therefore, the Muslims arrested the high priest and whipped him. At that time the Arabs were considered very low and degraded by the Persians, scarcely to be accounted as human beings. As Muhammad was an Arab, the Persians looked upon Him with disdain; but when the high priest saw the evidences of a power in Muhammad which controlled these despised people, he cried out, "O thou Arabian Muhammad, what hast thou done? What hast thou done which has made thy people arrest the chief high priest of the Zoroastrians for committing something unlawful in thy religion?" By this circumstance the prejudice which caused the Zoroastrian to shun the Muslim had been overcome, for he recognized in what had happened to him the great influence Muhammad exercised over these people.

Today in this meeting we have an evidence of how Baha'u'llah through the power of the love of God has exercised a wonderful spiritual influence throughout the world. From the remotest parts of Persia and the Orient He has caused men to come to this table to meet with the people of the West in the utmost love and affection, union and harmony. Behold how the power of Baha'u'llah has brought the East and West together. And Abdu'l-Baha is standing, serving you. There is neither rod nor blow, whip nor sword; but the power of the love of God has accomplished this.

In this world we judge a cause or movement by its progress and development. Some movements appear, manifest a brief period of activity, then discontinue. Others show forth a greater measure of growth and strength, but before attaining mature development, weaken, disintegrate and are lost in oblivion. Neither of these mentioned are progressive and permanent.

There is still another kind of movement or cause which from a very small, inconspicuous beginning goes forward with sure and steady progress, gradually broadening and widening until it has assumed universal dimensions. The Baha'i Movement is of this nature. For instance, when Baha'u'llah was exiled from Persia with Abdu'l-Baha and the rest of His family, they traveled the long road from Tihran to Baghdad, passing through many towns and villages. During the whole of that journey and distance they did not meet a single believer in the Cause for which they had been banished. At that time very little was known about it in any part of the world. Even in Baghdad there was but one believer who had been taught by Baha'u'llah Himself in Persia. Later on, two or three others appeared. You will see, therefore, that at the beginning the Cause of Baha'u'llah was almost unknown, but on account of being a divine Movement it grew and developed with irresistible spiritual power until in this day, wherever you travel -- East or West -- and in whatever country you journey, you will meet Baha'i assemblies and institutions. This is an evidence that the Baha'is are spreading the blessings of unity and progressive development throughout the world under the direction of divine guidance and purpose, while other movements which are only temporary in their activities and accomplishments have no real, universal significance.

One of the Kings of Persia once got sick. This King was very proud and despotic. All the people at the court feared him and cowered before him. The King sent for the Court physician to treat him. When the physician arrived and prescribed a large dose of quinine the King in his wrath cried out:- Who should take this medicine?

The physician fearing the anger of the King said:- "I am the one to take the quinine." "All right," the King said and he ordered his chamberlain to bring the largest dose of quinine and made his physician to take it.

By mere chance, the health of the King was improved by the next day and after awhile he got well. From that time on whenever he became sick he sent for his physician and made him take quinine.

He deplored the short sightedness and ignorance of the leaders of that country and illustrated it by a story at the court of Sultan Abdul Aziz.

This monarch so happened that had mastered a knowledge of the western music. One day all his ministers were present and an artist was playing on the Piano the Western Classics. The Sultan was walking and when the piece came to an end he would explain to his courtiers, surrounding him the name of the music. "Aye Sire! It was most wonderful!" they would all say in unison while bowing down to the ground.

Finally one of them comes forward and says: "Your Majesty! This is all sham! We know nothing about this music. We are all like donkeys. We make all these protestations just to gain your favor." The Sultan was very pleased with his truthfulness and promoted him to a higher position.

In the course of conversation about the confusion of the administration of Persian government the Master told him the following story:

There was a Mirza Fadl'u'llah who were looking for a government appointment. He came one day to the Blessed Perfection and begged him to use his influence before the Secretary of one of the Departments so that he may become appointed as a clerk. As he was a good and able man this was done and the next day the man took his position as a clerk. Now it so happened that the name of the Chief Clerk was also Mirza Fadl'u'llah and as he was an old man he soon died. By sheer audacity the first man took on his own initiative the place of the chief clerk because of the identity of the names, he signed all the documents and were taken to His Majesty for royal approval. Without noticing the change, the Shah approved the papers and after that the man filled this important position for many years and few knew of the change of personality.

Mu'awiyah was asked: "Despite the fact that the Prophet said regarding you 'May God never fill his belly,' and said 'God's curse be upon the she-camel, its rider and its leader,' and your father broke the Prophet's tooth, and your mother sucked the liver of Hamzah the Prophet's uncle, and you yourself were detested - how did you become the sovereign ruler of Islam and establish yourself on the throne of the caliphate?" He replied, "It was because the companions of the Commander of the Faithful disagreed so much, and the more they disagreed, the stronger I became."

Mu'tamidu'd-Dawlih of Isfahan, Manuchihr Khan, built extensively. He owned many villages around Tehran. All these edifices, these buildings, these properties - all of them vanished. All of it was ruined, no trace remained. However, in the City of God he laid one brick, and that brick endured and will not be destroyed. For several days he protected the Blessed Beauty from enemies in his private quarters. At first he outwardly sent Him away but then kept Him protected in his private covered quarters.

Thirty-six persons sat upon the throne of the caliphate, and all were bound to name and fame, yet of none of them does any trace or sign remain. But because Bahlul was known as the madman of God, they are still building domes and shrines in his honor.

In 'Akka, there was a certain man by the name of Tawfiq. He had taken so much money from people that, when he was departing [for Istanbul], his son was unable to lift his luggage. He went to Istanbul and after awhile wrote Me, saying, "I have a parcel of land in Haifa that I bought for a thousand qarush. I give You the power of attorney to do with it as necessary. But now I need one hundred liras and, if this fund reaches me [in time], I will be appointed the trustee of the grounds of Mecca. Through whatever means possible, kindly ensure that I receive the required fund." I sent him one hundred liras and after a while auctioned the land, which earned three hundred and twenty liras. I took the one hundred liras owed to Me and told Mirza Muhsin to send the rest, plus extra ten liras, to Tawfiq in care of a certain believer. It was not long thereafter that he received his commission in Mecca and, en route, came here and expressed his gratitude.

For a while we had no news of him. I asked Nusuhi Bey if he had heard of him. Six months later I received a letter from Nusuhi Bey saying that such a person was not in Istanbul. Sometime later, I had a second letter from him saying, "Recently I was on a vessel and it so happened that mention of Tawfiq was made. The old man that was the spiritual leader of our neighborhood said, 'In fact, such a person lives in our area and is blind in both eyes. Each day, his daughter brings him to the coffeehouse, where he begs, and then takes him home.'" Because of Your instructions, I went and saw him." I sent him forty liras and some olive oil (which I bought from you, Shaykh Salih). It was not long after that Tawfiq perished in a fire in that section of Istanbul.

When I was in Constantinople I heard on every side the praise of Foad Pasha the then grand Vizir. At that time I was about 17 or 18 years old. One day I was in the house of Kamal Pasha, the former Ambassador of Turkey to Persia. He spoke Persian fluently and as we knew him during his official position in Teheran he called on us during our short stay in that city and I payed him back the visit.

While I was talking with Kemal Pasha, they announced the arrival of Foad Pasha. I thought to myself now I will have the opportunity of meeting this celebrated statesman and hear from his lips words of political wisdom and intellectual versatility. As soon as he entered his first word was addressed to Kamal Pasha. "I could not sleep last night." A statesman who could not sleep all night must of necessity, thinking out the vast plan of some administrative reform or public or civic welfare. "I did not enjoy one wink of slumber till morning; the result being the composition of two blank verses" he said "Do you want me to read them to you?" I sat there astonished at this state of affair, that the Grand Minister of an Empire does not sleep all night for writing two verses. The verses were some poetical exaggeration about the beauty and tresses of the beloved.

When he left the room I asked Kamal Pasha "why did you praise so volubly these vapid verses?" He said:- "Why! We cant do otherwise!"

In the time of Fath-'Ali Shah, there was a governor of Simnan named Dhulfaqar Khan who was a very brave and zealous person. One of the ulama of Simnan during his governorship, whenever there was a gathering commemorating the martyrdom and suffering of the Lord of Martyrs, would repeatedly say with great anguish "Would that I had been with thee and attained a mighty triumph!"

One night he dreamed he was on the plain of Karbila in the company of the Lord of Martyrs on that field of tribulation, and all the companions and followers were in danger while the opposing forces were attacking and ready for battle. He came before His Holiness and asked permission to fearlessly attack the enemy ranks and render aid to Him. His Holiness accepted his request. He said "My Lord, I have no sword." His Holiness gave him His own sword. Then he said "I have no horse." His Holiness graciously gave him Dhul-Janah, His own steed. As soon as he mounted the horse and put his foot in the stirrup, he fled in such a way that the opponents and attackers could not catch up to him.

The aforementioned cleric recounted this dream everywhere until it reached the ears of Dhulfaqar Khan. He immediately sent for him to be brought. He asked him "Respected cleric, what is this matter of your dream and the plain of Karbila?" The cleric fearlessly and with perfect dignity related his dream to the governor. Dhulfaqar Khan asked "How much were His Holiness's horse and sword worth?" The cleric said "The horse was worth at least 500 tumans and the sword 200 tumans." The governor ordered that 700 tumans be taken from the cleric as a fine for the price of His Holiness's horse and sword, and then he was released.

Among the deceptions of Mirza Muhsin Khan, the Iranian Ambassador in Istanbul, was that one time he invited Shakir Pasha, the brother of Grand Vizier Kamil Pasha, to his home and made him understand that he was the foremost admirer of the Most Glorious Station [Baha'u'llah]. Then Shakir Pasha came to me and said the Ambassador had greatly praised and commended you. The Ambassador's purpose was on one hand to portray himself as a supporter of Baha'u'llah while on the other hand to dig a deep pit for Him.

Once is Acca two persons claimed undisputable possession of a donkey. They brought witnesses before the judge to substantiate their respective claim. The judge was bewildered and did not know to which party should he heed, because to all appearances both seemed to be right. At last he found a solution. He said: 'Leave the donkey alone. Man may forget but the donkey will not forget. Let it go out and if it stops at the door of any one of your two houses, he is its undisputed owner.' This suggestion was carried out and the right owner was discovered.

When we were there, on the day we were departing, someone came crying and shouting that "Last night, thinking there were people here, I slept for a while. A thief came and stole my two mules." The Blessed Beauty commanded that they must be found. They called for the mukhtar (headman), who said "There are three tribes here - Arab, Kurd and Turk - how is it possible to get them back from them?" They commanded it must be found.

They sent a telegram to the governor of Diyarbakir and also informed the qa'im-maqam. The qa'im-maqam said the thief of these mules is the mukhtar himself. He is under French protection and nothing can be done to him.

They commanded that the mukhtar be imprisoned. The mukhtar cried out that "I am under French protection!" They commanded "Bring the mules - be under whoever's protection you want." He asked for twenty-four hours' grace and brought the mules.

The Master told us one story in which Baha'u'llah appeared as a judge. It happens that while in Baghdad, during the season that the pilgrims come from all over the Islamic world to visit the Holy Shrines of the Mohamadans, Baha'u'llah went to a city, called "Samereh" not far from Baghdad. This city is much frequented by the pilgrims of various nationalities. The Arabs rent rooms in their own homes and charge exorbitant prices.

Now one of these Arabs who knew Baha'u'llah well rented a room to a Persian noble for 15 days at the amount of 30 Dollars. This Persian would call the Arab every morning to drink tea with him and he would have him always at dinner and supper; for he cooked various Persian dishes, rice, chicken, etc. After 15 days the Persian gave him the sum as stipulated in the beginning but he wanted more.

As the Arab could speak only a few Persian words, he could not make [himself] understood. Therefore he goes to Baha'u'llah and pleads saying that during 15 days this man has given me a whole lot of trouble. Every day, every day he asked me to drink tea in the morning and Polou at night! And now he gives me only 30 Dollars!

Baha'u'llah laughed heartily, but the Master did not tell us how He smoothed the ruffled feelings of the Arab.

Once upon a time a certain Jew was attacked by an opposing Governor. He bastinadoed him. Having put his feet to the bastinado he began beating him and telling him that he must pay a certain sum of money. While being thus beaten, because of excessive pain, he was chewing the hem off his garment. A man passing by remarked: 'Why don't you release yourself?' He replied: 'It is not my life that they want, they want my money. Had the Governor asked for my life, I would have offered it, but he wants money!'

Once a great general told us the following story: 'While still a novice and a youth inexperienced in the art of war, I led an army corps to battle in company with other young officers. As soon as we encountered the enemy who gave us battle, we became wholly confused, and knowing of naught else, we turned our back to the battle and set to flight. While running for our lives, we were met by some veteran soldiers, who bore the scars of many wars. They asked, "O ye our officers! Where are you fleeing? You are our generals and leaders. Return and command us to repel the enemy and we will obey you, and the day will end in our favor!" We were encouraged, returned, led our troops and won the battle.'

'During the war against a foreign nation one of the soldiers was stricken with a severe sickness. The Military Doctor observing his case recommended him to the watchman. 'Do as I tell you' he told him. 'This man will not sleep tonight. It is the crucial night of his sickness but tomorrow morning he will feel much better. Nurse him very carefully and watch over him all night.' The Doctor went and after sunset the watchman came around to take his position. After an hour or two he saw the sick man is getting worse, bemoaning and lamenting loudly. In order to alleviate his pain he gave him an opium pill. As a result of this he slept soundly all night. In the morning the doctor came and saw the condition of the patient is worse than yesterday. Not being able to explain this relapse he sent for the watchman, 'What did you give him last night?' 'Oh! he was in such a frantic condition that I gave him only a pill of opium after which he slept quietly all night.' 'Did you not think, I who am a Doctor knew this remedy just as well but did not give it to him because it would have made him worse?' 'What do I care about this consideration? On my watch night I wanted to sleep and this patient disturbed my sleep. I gave him an opium pill and it served its purpose. Tonight there will be another watchman. If the patient is getting worse it does not trouble me in the least.'"

Then he spoke about the sensitiveness of the plants and how they have a degree of "feeling" according to their environments. There are various degrees of sensitiveness in all the Kingdoms of creation. Often one word may reform a man, while on the other hand, all the processes of criminal laws may fail to readjust the moral life of another. One man may be highly sensitized and responds quickly to all advices and exhortations but another may need sharper measures.

This was illustrated in the case of prime Minister of Persia who having a wonderfully intelligent and keen man in his service, rebuked him one day for a slight thing which he had done unwittingly. This man left the presence of the Prime Minister and for a long time was sick through the effect of that one rebuke.

Later on, another Prime Minister was appointed. The police reported to him of the notorious deeds of a rough criminal who was making life miserable to the inhabitants of one of the sections of the city. "Bring him to me I know how to punish him." When they brought the criminal - in order to walk in the footsteps of his predecessor - he started to advise him to threaten him and to show him with gentle words the evils of criminal actions. Hoping that this moral lesson will be sufficient, he let him go free. After a few days, they brought him the news that this man has committed worse crimes than ever. He was perplexed. He did not know what to do; because in this case his moral lesson proved a failure.

He went then to the former prime Minister and explained to him the situation. "Ask the police to bring him here. I know how to punish him." the former Minister said. As soon as the man was brought he ordered the Farrashs to bring the Bastinados, his feet were raised in the air and with fresh sticks just gotten from the trees he was severely beaten. He was taken afterwards to the prison and for sometimes rigorously handled. When the term of his prison life came to an end and was given freedom, he never dared to commit any crime. "You must reach that man through the sole[s] of his feet and not moral persuasion" one day remarked the retired Prime Minister to his successor.

The inhabitants of one of the provinces of Persia desired to get free from the onerous burden of Military Conscription which was laid upon them by new laws put in force by the then Minister of war. One amongst them said I will do something so that the whole province become exempt from this law. They were naturally very glad. In Teheran there is a Military square in the centre of which they have mounted on a platform a great cannon; so this man got a hearse and bringing it near this platform stationed himself beside it started to cry, bemoan and lament.

There was a man in Bagdad who was the chief of a thousand warriors. These men were not in the regular army but the government gave the chief two thousand dollars a month so that he may divide it amongst his men with the stipulation that whenever war breaks forth this chief with his one thousand strong warrior [sic] may join the army. But instead of paying two dollars to his men monthly he would give them one dollar and pocket the rest.

"In the writings of Baha'u'llah there are events which were not mentioned in the Gospels. These traditions are from the life of Christ. They show the genius and sublimity of Christ. I would like to tell you another story. It is said that one day Christ arrived in a village where the government made a law that the inhabitants must not allow strangers to enter their homes.

Jesus was a poor man. One night when He was out in the fields, the rain began to fall. He had no place to go for shelter so He lifted His eyes toward heaven, saying, "O Father! For the birds of the air Thou hast created nests, for the sheep a fold, for the animals dens, for the fish places of refuge, but for Me Thou hast provided no shelter.

A certain rich man came into the presence of Jesus Christ and said "O thou Spirit of God, I want to be one of thy disciples." Jesus said, "Go and follow the Ten Commandments." In reply the man said, that he had know n the Ten Commandments from his youth and wanted to receive some new teaching. Jesus then said, "Go to thy house and give all that thou hast in the path of God and carry thy cross and come to be my disciple."

Two friends - one a detached wealthy man and one an attached poor man - suddenly went on a journey at the poor man's request, leaving behind all attachments and means.

A rich man and a poor man lived in the same town. One day the poor man said to the rich man, "I want to go to the Holy Land."

There was once a Suffi in Baghdad who on a hot summer day went to the Euphrates river with his water-pitcher to carry water to his wife and children. Having arrived in the front of the river he thought it will be well to bathe himself for a few minutes. He took off his clothes and went into the river. He had one dip under the water but when he raised his head he saw himself he is in the Nile, in Egypt. He got out of the river, borrowed some clothes from the nearby villagers and entered the city of Cairo. He lived there for 15 yrs, got a wife and had seven children. One day he went to Nile with other friends to have a bathing. When he entered in the cool water, one of his friends got near to him and pushed him under the current. He struggled to get above the water and once out of danger, he saw himself in the Euphrates, his clothes and water-pitcher standing just where he had them 15 yrs. Calmly he gets out of the river, puts on his clothes, fills the water-pitcher and goes toward his home. Here he finds his wife is waiting for the water. She receives it without any murmur or surprise. (Now to finish the realism of this unreal story, the Chronicler not being satisfied with this adds the following:) After one year the Egyptian wife with [his] seven children travelling from Cairo arrived safely in Baghdad and found the husband and the father to their great delight and happiness.

When Khan was in the Holy Land, 'Abdu'l-Baha made this reply to an American inquirer: There was once an Arab traveler who had lost his way in the desert. He was dying of thirst and, humbly, he begged God for water. Suddenly on the far horizon he saw an oasis with waving trees, and he knew that there could be no trees and greenery unless water was present too. When he had somehow dragged himself across the sands and reached the oasis, how did he go about quenching his thirst? Was his conviction enough for him, that growing things meant water? Or did he search avidly for a source, a crack in a rock or an opening in the earth where water could get through and he could drink and live?

When we left Bagdad a Darvish came to me and begged to be a member of the party. I told him the trip will be most difficult. He was willing to accept all manners of hardships. He came with us as far as Constantinople and when we left for Adrianople he stayed behind. After a while he joined us. Having been accustomed with our association he could not live alone.

In Adrianople he rented a room in an adjoining Mosque with another friend and for sometime they lived together peacefully. One day the Darvish came to Baha'u'llah saying that "my friend this morning attacked me furiously and gave me a sound beating, but I did not say anything. I was in the state of the utmost resignation. After half an hour he returned, kissed my hands and said 'Verily you have attained the stage of great merit, you are now a saint.'"

Baha'u'llah listening with interest to this story said laughing:- 'If he beats you another time and you demonstrate such resignation he may believe that you have attained to the station of Prophethood.'

...once when the Blessed Perfection was travelling from one place to another with His followers He passed through a lonely country where, at some little distance from the highway, a hermit lived alone in a cave. He was a holy man, and having heard that Our Lord, Baha'u'llah, would pass that way, he watched eagerly for His approach. When the Manifestation arrived at that spot the hermit knelt down and kissed the dust before His feet, and said to Him: 'Oh, my Lord, I am a poor man living alone in a cave nearby; but henceforth I shall account myself the happiest of mortals if Thou wilt but come for a moment to my cave and bless it Thy Presence.' Then Baha'u'llah told the man that he would come, not for a moment but for three days, and He bade His followers cast their tents, and await His return.

The poor man was so overcome with joy and gratitude that he was speechless, and led the way in humble silence to his lowly dwelling in a rock. There the Glorious one sat with him, talking to him, and teaching him, and toward evening the man bethought himself that he had nothing to offer his great Guest but some dry meat and some dark bread, and water from a spring nearby. Not knowing what to do he threw himself at the feet of his Lord and confessed his dilemma. Baha'u'llah comforted him and by a word bade him fetch the meat and bread and water; then the Lord of the universe partook of this frugal repast with joy and fragrance as though it had been a banquet, and during the three days of His visit they ate only of this food which seemed to the poor hermit the most delicious he had ever eaten. Baha'u'llah declared that He had never been more nobly entertained or received greater hospitality and love.

'This,' exclaimed the Master, when He had finished the story, 'shows us how little man requires when he is nourished by the sweetest of all foods -- the love of God.'

The available source contains an omission or incomplete wording; sentence boundaries need review.

In Baghdad there was a young man who had been a tailor in Iran and who later declared his faith. This person lived in quarters above the entrance to a caravanserai. One night as he sat in his room, he heard a sound from the square in front. Going outside, he found a young man lying there with a dagger in the back of his neck. He pulled out the dagger, and the young man immediately died. Fear overcame the tailor, thinking "Perhaps someone saw me and will say I killed him - how shall I answer?" In his extreme agitation, with the bloody dagger in hand, he ran back toward his room. He closed the caravanserai door and entered his quarters. Blood was dripping from the dagger drop by drop. In his room he realized the dagger was still in his hand. His agitation increased. He buried the dagger under the earth. His clothes were bloodied, so he likewise buried those.

Some gendarmes passed by and saw the fallen youth. Following the trail of blood, they came to the young tailor's room. They knocked but he did not answer. Breaking down the door, they entered, dug up the dagger from under the ground, seized him and took him to prison. Under torture and torment, he confessed that he had killed the man. A death sentence was issued and they telegraphed Constantinople for the order to execute him. The victim's relatives came daily demanding his execution, but they were waiting for word from Constantinople, which was delayed.

Many knives and daggers had accumulated at the police station and these were put up for auction, including that particular dagger. A blacksmith came and asked where this dagger was from. They told him it belonged to the Iranian who had killed that youth with it. He said, "One week before this incident, such-and-such person had me fix the handle of this dagger." This gave the court pause - perhaps this Iranian had not done the killing. After investigation it was discovered that the victim and another youth had been jealous over a woman, which led to this result. When this became known, the relatives rushed to the court and showered the Iranian with affection. One kissed him, another embraced him, saying "You came to the cry of our slain one and heard his lamentation." They gave him many gifts and rewards. They asked him why he had confessed to the killing. He said, "I endured so much torment that I became resigned to death."

Then he told us a story of a merchant who was very poor. He wrote to Baha'u'llah and asked for His blessings in his business. The Blessed Perfection wrote him, 'wait[!] the blessing of God shall descend upon thee.' After a few month fortune smiled at him and he became the possessor of twenty seven thousand English pounds. One day a Baha'i called on him and remarking the change in his attitude told him that it was through the blessing of God that he has become wealthy; wealth must not make him proud. The merchant laughted and pointing to his large safe said: - "Do you see that safe. That is my God!" After a few months he lost everything but he became a good Baha'i.

There was once a Jewish merchant in Constantinople who bought many bobs of drapery and wursted goods to be shipped to Persia for sale. Each bale was of a different color - red, yellow, green, black etc. While he was travelling from one Caravanserai to another, the Kurdish robbers attacked him, made him a prisoner and carried away all his goods.

When they reached the middle of a desert they alighted from their horses and talked together about the division of the spoil. All the Kurds loved the red color and thus after much discussion they hit on the idea of measuring the bale of the red drapery with a spear;- so that each person may receive an equal share.

After a while they found out that the bale of the red drapery will not be enough to go all around;- so they fell on the poor Jew and started to abuse and beat him. "Why didst thou not get all the bales red?" they furiously asked him. "Oh my brothers!" he pleaded with tears in his eyes. "I did not know I will be fortunate to have such customers with cash on the spot, otherwise I would have surely done what you have required."

Some years ago an ambassador was sent from Persia to London where he stayed five years. (His name was Abdul Hassan Khan.) When he returned to Persia they asked him to tell them about the English people. He answered: "I do not know the English people. Although I have been in London five years, I have only met the people of the Court." This man was a great man in Persia, and sent to England by princes, and yet he did not know the people, although he lived among them five years.

On his return the Master found several people waiting for him. From one he asked from what country he comes? He answered with fervor and too much vehemence: "I am from---'' In order to gently rebuke him and show him this false emotion of patriotism he said the following story:-

"Once upon a time the King of a certain country got hold of an owl and put it in a large golden cage and hanging it in his royal Park which was a mass of luxuriant flowers and tall trees. The King observed that the owl was not happy in this wonderful Park and always laments 'Oh! My country! O my country!' Finally he ordered to let the owl fly out of the cage and he with a number of his retinue, followed the course of the owl's flight. After many hours the owl alighted on the dilapidated wall of a ruined and deserted castle (it is proverbial in the Orient that the owl loves always the destroyed buildings) and screechingly cried out 'Oh how happy am I! At last I reached my beloved country! My abode of rest! My paradise of delight! My heavenly hope is now fulfilled!'"

In Baghdad, the Caliph said to Bahlul that a market inspector was needed. Bahlul replied that no inspector was necessary, and to prove his point, he took the Caliph to the marketplace. They went to a merchant's shop and inquired about his business. The merchant replied that it was very poor, with neither profit nor gain. Bahlul asked him to explain his selling practices. The merchant said, "When buying, I place my thumb beside the measure to increase it, and when selling, I place my thumb in the measure to make it appear less."

From there, they went to an oil seller's shop. When asked about his business, he replied, "Praise be to God, the gates of blessing are open, for when buying I take slightly less lest I be cheated, and when selling I give more than the measure." Bahlul said, "Now you see why I said no inspector is needed."

This is the Lake around which His Holiness Christ often walked, over which he often sailed. The site wherein he called his apostles into active service is very near. While he was walking and thinking about the Kingdom of God he saw them fishing and realizing that they were endowed with receptive hearts he addressed them: Come and I will make ye the fishers of men and Baha'u'llah addressing the people of the world said: Come and I will make ye the vivifiers of mankind.

When Saint Paul was asked a question concerning philosophy, he said: "Before I knew Christ, I was learned, I was a philosopher, I was informed of all things. But when I came to know Christ, I forgot all else. If you seek knowledge of Christ, ask me. Of aught else I have no knowledge."

Surely you have read in the wisdom of Solomon - Solomon says: When I was a child, I thought pleasure was in wandering and riding. When I reached youth and experienced excursions, riding and wandering, I saw there was no pleasure in it. I said to myself pleasure is in sovereignty, in power, in ruling. When I attained sovereignty I saw there was no pleasure in that either.

They relate that Hassan of Basra was one day traversing the desert of Hijaz, seeking after the saints of God, when his gaze fell upon the desert and he observed a youth, bareheaded and barefoot, hurrying from one direction to another, crying out "My Lord! My Lord!" So Hassan pursued him and asked, "From where have you come, O youth?" He replied, "From God." He asked, "And where are you going?" He replied, "Unto God." He asked, "And what provisions have you for this?" He replied, "Trust in God." He asked, "Who are you?" He replied, "Ali ibn Al-Hussein, may my soul be sacrificed for him," when he spoke these words.

In any case, now that you have attained to this bounty and this station through pure grace, you must strive to attain the gift of "What provisions have you for this? Trust in God." We hope that you will become immersed in the ocean of this station, and this station will be attained through the diffusion of the fragrances of the All-Merciful. And upon you be glory, and upon all who are firm in God's Covenant and Testament.

Jinab-i-Aqa Siyyid Taqi relates that someone saw a distinguished personage in the realm of dreams and asked him how his affairs had fared at the Divine Threshold. He replied that when we reached that Threshold, they asked "What gift have you brought?" I submitted "Knowledge." They said: "Verily, thy Lord's treasuries are full of this." I said "Good deeds and acts of worship." They said: "Verily, thy Lord's treasuries are full of these."

O you who would test 'Abdu'l-Baha! Does it befit one like you to test a servant who is humble and submissive before God? No, by God! Rather, it is for the Center of the Covenant to test the people of the world, and not for them to make their minds the standard of truth and weigh therewith the lights of dawn. Have you not heard that 'Ali (peace be upon him) was standing at the edge of a high cliff when a man of vain imaginings addressed him saying: "O Abu'l-Hasan, do you believe in God's protection, help, preservation and guardianship?" He replied: "Yes, this is true, just as you say." Then that heedless one, forgetting God's remembrance, said: "O 'Ali, then throw yourself from this high place down to the depths below so I may believe that you are confident in God's protection and preservation." 'Ali (peace be upon him) replied: "It is not for me to test God, but for God to test me. This would be an unforgivable sin on my part." Therefore take heed, O you who would plunge into the depths of testing, from his words (peace be upon him), while you test another whom you cannot comprehend.

Then know that the trinity is identical to the quaternity, and the quaternity identical to the trinity. This is known to one who understands the subtle meaning of words and discovers the mysteries encoded in the lines of creation and the messages sent down from on high. Soon what you asked about will be revealed to you as clear as the sun in the midst of heaven. Affairs will be transformed and you will say: "Glory be to Him Who makes souls laugh after they have wept, Who gives life to decayed bones after their dissolution, Who makes the difficult easy, Who expands breasts when souls are choking and breath rattling, Who illumines the darkness with the brilliant light from the horizon of the mercy of the Jealous Lord, Who raises up the lowly and brings down the lofty, Who dims the stars and makes them missiles against the wicked!"

Therefore understand these clear allusions and be at peace in the remembrance of your Lord in all conditions. Test no one after this, for testing is God's prerogative. Man has only to submit to what was revealed in the Qur'an: "We shall surely try you with something of fear and hunger, and decrease of goods and lives and fruits." And the Glory be upon you.

Likewise in traditions and narrations, even in the Mathnavi it is versified that someone asked the Prince of Believers (may my spirit be a sacrifice for him): "Are you confident and assured in God's protection?" He replied "I am certain." Then the person said "Then throw yourself down from the roof's height, for God is the Protector." He replied "It befits not the servant to test his Lord, rather it befits God to test His servant."

Mr. X. in Persia did not believe that one could fast for nine days. He brought a Jew and imprisoned him in a room and locked the door, and did not permit anything (food or water) to be taken to him. Indeed, his prisoner took nothing for nine days, not even water. For six days he slept, then he could not sleep any more, but he was very weak.

In Akka there was a man, very short, an artist, a very good man. His name was Hadi. One day he came to me and said, 'This malaria is killing me. I have had it for two years. The doctors prescribe medicine and it gets better for a few days, but returns. I am dying.' I joked with him, saying, 'You do not take any food.' He said, 'O yes, I eat very well!' Jokingly I said, 'What food do you like best? I will mention the names of different foods and you tell me what you like best - pilau, abgousht, kofteh (made with pounded meat), baglaba ( sweet pastry with ground nuts), sweets, dried sour milk with shourba.' When I said 'Shourba-e- Kashk' (dried sour milk mixed with broth) he said, 'And put some garlic in.' I said, 'Very well.' They prepared it for him and he got well. Then he was ill at another time and he told them to prepare the same thing for him. That time he ate it and died.

Mr. Woodcock closed with two Oriental stories; one told by Abdul-Baha is particularly impressive. It concerns a rivalry between Greek and Japanese artists, at some period of history. This competition became so keen that an opportunity was given to these artists to compare their skill. A gallery was provided and the rivals were to decorate opposite sides. A sliding scaffolding concealed the work of one party from the other.

Finally, the day of the test came. The king and his party inspected first the work of the Japanese, who had most wonderfully depicted figures, scenes and objects on their side of the wall, in a manner which seemed superlatively great. When the other side was unveiled it developed that the Greeks had devoted their time to polishing their side, and it was so perfectly done that the pictures from the opposite side were mirrored therein and depicted even more exquisitely.

Later on the Master told her a story of a competition between the Chinese and Roman artists. The King [one word illegible] a large hall where both of them could paint. The Chinese asked for a curtain to be hung in the middle of the hall so that their competitors may not see what they are doing. The Chinese Artists worked for 6 months day and night but the Roman Artists did not work and everybody thought they are going to lose. Just one day before the King's coming to give the award, the Roman Artists set to work and polished the wall like a mirror.

The King's Ministers and Courtiers came. First they saw the Chinese paintings. They were marvelous and beautiful. The curtain then was put aside so that they see also the Roman works. The wall polished by the Roman Artists was so transparent that the Chinese paintings on the opposite wall were entirely reflected therein. The award went to the Romans.

Though time and again Siyyid Mihdi Dihaji would mention some service he had ostensibly rendered with regard to the imprisonment of Mirza Abu'l-Fadl in Tehran, when this subject was raised on a certain occasion, Mirza Abu'l-Fadl immediately said the following with the utmost candour:

The truth is that none of us did anything worthy of mention. The real effort was made by Mulla Rida Yazdi, who became well-known for his consummate courage, perseverance, and sincerity, and openly discussed matters of religion with the princes of Persia. As he had gained a reputation for his honesty and truthfulness, when he stated that the Baha'is do not involve themselves in political affairs, his words were accepted by his audience. My companions and I, however, preferred to speak more cautiously, and saw fit to give the vicegerent the impression that Mulla Rida Yazdi was a Sufi or Ghali. Mulla Rida Yazdi, for his part, would candidly say to the vicegerent, 'That which I have said is the very truth. When Mirza Abu'l-Fadl and his companions gather at each other's homes, they say precisely the things I am saying.'

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Therefore I submit to that honored brother that which Luqman submitted to his master: In the early dawn, when the breeze of divine favor was wafting, Luqman, kindled by the fire of the love of the All-Merciful, would raise his head from the pillow of rest and, finding his master in the embrace of comfort and sleep, would approach his bedside with utmost courtesy and say: "O master, arise! The gates of trade are open and the Concourse on High and the sanctified souls are engaged in commerce. O master, arise and deprive not thyself of this trade, for eternal pearls are being offered for sale and precious everlasting things are at hand." And when he would find his master showing laziness, he would return to his place and become immersed and lost in contemplation of the wondrous handiwork of God and the mysteries of divine wisdom. And when he would observe that dawn was approaching, he would again turn to his master and say: "O master, arise, for the time draweth to a close. I fear the market-place may close while thou art still asleep. Arise and let not the time slip away, that perchance thou mayest not remain deprived of the outpourings of the All-Merciful in these last hours of the night."

Now doth this servant submit: O brother, strive that in these divine days thou mayest acquire infinite bounties and be blessed with eternal favors. By the True One Himself, whatsoever is lost by any soul in this day shall be difficult to recover. Both you must raise your hands in supplication and this servant shall lift his hands in hope that perchance we may be illumined by the effulgent rays of the Sun of Truth and remain steadfast in His Cause with complete firmness. Behold the people as dead and turn to the Ever-Living One. Had the people of the earth attained unto a drop from the ocean of life, they would surely have hearkened to the divine call and witnessed the light of His countenance. Remember what the All-Merciful hath revealed in the Qur'an: "They have ears with which they hear not, and hearts with which they understand not," unto the end of His exalted Word.

And it is most evident that the mention which befitteth this most exalted and glorious station cannot flow from the pen of this servant, for the ocean of divine utterance is sanctified and exalted above the expressions of this evanescent one, since it hath neither shore nor end. Therefore, I conclude by saying: There is no God but Him, the Almighty, the Most Exalted, the All-Compelling, the Self-Subsisting. We beseech Him, exalted be He, to assist you and strengthen you in His remembrance and praise, and to protect you from the imaginings of every imaginer and the whisperings of every tempter who believeth not in God, the Single, the All-Informed.

And another entreaty: Convey on behalf of this evanescent one greetings and salutations to all the kindred, both brothers and sisters and relations, and remind them with utmost love and kindness that perchance they may be adorned with the ornament of recognition and certitude and may turn unto the Dawning-Place of the Cause of the All-Merciful.

Thy desire to leave this land, despite thy assigned duties, for other lands for the sake of another service is like that Bedouin Arab who set out for Baghdad hoping to attain the presence of the Caliph. He took with him as a gift a waterskin filled with water he had collected from a pool, unaware that the Tigris was flowing and the Euphrates coursing.

Haji Sayad Javad used to tell me that once he embarked on a sailing vessel from Balsorah for Bombay. It took the vessel three months to reach Bombay, but before we arrived at the port, a strong wind arose and carried us back to Karachi and from there another contrary gale took us to Balsorah. Thus he was on the sea for five months without landing anywhere and at last he was brought back to where he started on his voyage ..."

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Travel and explore the deserts---places such as the cities of Salih and Thamud, the sand dunes of the tribe of Hud, the cities of Lot and of Sheba, and the settlements of the people of Rass and Midian, and other lands. Behold how they have been, even as a defeated army, dispersed and scattered across these barren wastes.

(He was asked about 'Ad and Themoud. The Master responded:)

There were [certain tribes] prior to the time of Moses who numbered among the Arab clans that are no more, that is, no sign of them has remained. Their mention is made in the history of Islam, but they are not referenced in the Torah. They came from the city of Ahqaf and certain evidences, such as, wells, caves, and other things, were present at the time of the Prophet Muhammad.

Behold ye and call to mind what befell 'Ad and Thamud who turned away and opposed those whom God had sent unto them to guide them to His straight path.

"There was once a disciple of Muhammad who asked of another disciple, 'What shall I do to please God?' And the other disciple replied: 'Do not kill. Do not steal. Do not covet,' etc., etc., etc. … Then the disciple went to 'Ali. 'What do you say I should do in order to please God and to become nearer to Him?' 'One thing only: be truthful.'

King Solomon was a truthful man. One day a person sought his protection: he wanted Solomon to safeguard him against an enemy who was on his track.

Solomon happened to be carrying a large basket on that day. He told the man to get into the basket and the man did as he was told. Then Solomon put the basket on his head. Soon the man's enemy came to Solomon and asked him if he had seen the man.

Solomon said, "Yes, he is in the basket on my head."

The enemy said, "Come on, man, this is not a time for joking."

Solomon responded, "The truth is what I have told you."

The enemy did not believe him and resumed his chase.

Then Solomon told the man that his enemy was gone and that he could come out of the basket.

The man said, "By the Almighty, Solomon, I almost expired from fear. Why did you tell him that I was in the basket on your year?"

Solomon said, "Deliverance is in truthfulness. Had I told him differently, he would not have believed me and would have probably killed both of us."

During the time of Mohamad one of the disciples had attracted unto himself many enemies. They awaited every favorable opportunity to waylay and capture him. As he was well-known they did not dare to attack him in the public. Thus adding fuel to their silent-working grudge they kept it alive and watched the turns of events. At last one night they surrounded his house and lying low in different corners, were ready to pounce upon him as soon as he emerged out. Some one notified him of the siege and he was quite alarmed.

Salman, the Persian, the well-known disciple of Mohamad was at the time in the house as his guest and he was appealed to, to find a means of escape. "Get into that large basket" Salman answered him calmly "and I will carry thee beyond the zone of danger." The man obeyed the order without any objection and hid himself in the basket. Placing it on his head, Salman walked fearlessly out of the house.

No sooner he was in the street than he was surrounded by the besiegers. 'Oh Salman!' they cried 'Tell us, what is this in thy basket?' 'The man whom you are trying to find.' he answered. 'What! thou art indeed fooling us. Come tell us the truth.' they rejoined. 'I declare by Allah! that I have told you the truth.' 'Bah! Who would believe you telling such a story! The man would not dare to leave his house, how much more impossible to sit in a basket and be carried around on thy head. Go. We are not so simple-minded.'

By this time Salman was out of their power and continued his walk till he reached a safe spot. Placing the basket on the ground the man jumped out with pallid face and full of agitation. 'Oh Salman! how didst thou dare to declare so plainly and swear by Allah that I was in the basket? They might have searched and arrested me.' he asked still trembling with fear. 'Fear thou not' Salman replied 'hast thou not heard the wise saying of the holy Prophet: 'Salvation is in truth'?'

After the death of Mohamad one of the noblemen of Syria embraced the religion of Islam. Considering himself as unfortunately deprived forever of the blessed presence of the Prophet of God, he thought the next best blessing that will be showered upon him is to travel to Arabia and meet, associate and converse with those immediate disciples who have had the privilege of years of closest intimacy with the Divine Messenger. After a toilsome journey he reached his destination and was pleased to meet the life-companions of the prophet.

'You have had the spiritual fortune of associating with the Chosen One of God, you have listened to his sage words and advices, you are illumined by the light of his utterances, you have strung the pearls of his exhortations. I have accepted the religion of Islam and have journey[ed] all the way from my home to this holy city;- so that I may see you and that you may relate to me his admonitions.'

One of them reported the prophe[t] as saying: 'Be ye trustworthy.' Another 'Submit everything into the hand of God,' a third: 'Be ye faithful,' a fourth: 'Be ye resigned to the Will of the Almighty, a fifth, 'Be ye patient under the shock of calamities' a sixth: 'Bridle your anger,' a seventh: 'Forgive the men for God loveth the beneficient,' an eighth: 'Promote peace among men' a ninth: 'Let there be no compulsion in Religion' and a tenth: 'Wrong not any and ye shall not be wronged.'

The nobleman listened to all these sacred sentences with holy zeal and appreciation. Then he went to Ali, the son-in-law of the prophet and asked him also to tell him something of the sayings of the prophet. Ali answered: ''Salvation is in truth' was the oft-repeated advice of the Messenger of God.' At first he was not satisfied with this short epigrammatic advice.

When he reached his room he started to ponder over it and then it flushed across his mind that all the other sayings he had heard so far are included in the concise phrase: 'Salvation is in truth. For example he could not be trustworthy or faithful or bridle his anger if he was not truthful. He realized that truthfulness is the foundation upon which the edifice of other qualities is raised and supported.

He returned then to Ali and exclaimed with the joy of a man who has found a new precious jewel: 'All the disciples told me one of the praiseworthy attributes but you have guided me to the fountain-hain [sic] of all the virtues of the world of humanity: 'Salvation is in truth'' In reality truth is the spring of all the lordly qualifications; truth is the shining sun of the brilliant stars of good manners; truth is the sea and all other commandments are the rivers.'

Someone asked a Perfect One about a spiritual guide, and he pointed to a person in Nishapur. Following this direction, he inquired about the mentioned person, and people said, "This is a man given to wine and kebab, a dissolute sinner." He returned to the perfumer and reported what people had said, to which he replied, "That is the one I mentioned."

He went again to the shop of the mentioned person and saw a man with a thick mustache and two beardless youths attending him. He thought to himself that this person was truly dissolute. He went to the perfumer and expressed his doubts. The perfumer said, "He is the one I told you about. I told you when you asked me, and if you don't believe it, don't come here again."

Finally, he became this person's guest. At sunset, they headed towards his house. He told the two young men to get three bottles of wine, two for himself and one for the guest. They had not gone far when they reached a brothel, and he said two prostitutes should also come to the house, and everyone in the street knew him for this vice. The guest was amazed beyond amazement until they reached the house.

He had the two prostitutes perform ablutions, poured the wine down a well, performed his ablutions, and spent about an hour in prayer and supplication. Then he called for the two prostitutes and began counseling and advising them to such a degree that they began to weep, and he made them promise to abandon their profession, go to another city, and take husbands.

The guest asked him in astonishment about this state of affairs. He replied, "This lower self of mine is very rebellious. However much I try to overcome it, I found no other solution. Finally, I saw this was the best way, and it is always subdued." This person remained with him, benefited from his knowledge and wisdom, and became his disciple.

Mr. Reed:

What place does comparative religion have in the Bahai movement?

Abdul Baha:

It is, in fact, considered as a necessity. The Bahais have made a special study of other religions. There are some Bahais who know more about the Gospel than the Christians even. Just now our knowledge of the Koran is not possessed by the Mohammedan priests.

They have a patriarch called ... He was a well known man. The Christians were proud of his knowledge. He was a great orthodox. He possessed a garden outside of Akka, and a building there, and we chanced to pass that day with some Christian friends. He said, "Let us go and call on the patriarch, for the patriarch is here and we will call on him. The patriarch is a friend of mine." We went there. When we sat in the room, I asked the patriarch, "What are you doing all alone here?" He said, "I am not alone." "Who is with you?" I asked. He pointed to the image of Elijah and said, "I talk with Elijah; I am not alone." And as he remarked that he communed with Elijah, I recalled a passage from the Bible. I said: "It is most appropriate to cite a verse from the Gospel which has attracted me often. I wonder what your view of the subject is." "What verse is it? " he asked.

"His Holiness Christ said that John the Baptist was Elijah. When they came from the mount of transfiguration, Elijah came. We expected Elijah to come before Moses, and now Moses has come before Elijah, on Mount Transfiguration. Christ said Elijah came but they did not know him. Nay, rather they molested him, and then the disciples learned from that statement that the simile referred to John the Baptist. Then, again, He says that John the Baptist was the Elijah foretold, who would come before Christ. This is also an explicit text of the Gospel, whereas when they asked of John the Baptist, 'Art thou Elias?' he said, 'I am not.' Christ said he was Elijah. The disciples declared that this John the Baptist was the prophet prophesied, whereas when they asked of him he said he was not. Now, he was either Elijah, or he was not! What is your view of it? How can it be interpreted?"

The man was dumbfounded. He simply changed colors from red to yellow, he was so shame-struck to find I knew so much.

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There was a fanatical Protestant minister that always wanted to argue. One time he came to Me and said, 'Given His large body and girth, with what kind of ladder did Muhammad ascend to heaven?' I responded, 'With the same ladder that Christ used [to reach the heaven].' He became angry and said to Me, 'I will eventually make a Christian out of You!'

A short while later, he became ill and the doctors instructed him to be circumcised. Afterwards, I went to visit him, and he was worried that I may say something; but I did not embarrass him.

Hajji Mirza Kamal al-Din Naraqi had an uncle named Hajji Mulla Muhammad Naraqi. One day Hajji Mirza Kamal al-Din related that one night he was sleeping at his uncle's house. In the middle of the night, his uncle got up barefoot and bareheaded, fell to the ground and wept bitterly.

Virtue and excellence consist in true faith in God, not in having a small or a large appetite for food, or in similar matters. Jinab-i-Tahirih had a good appetite. When asked concerning it, she would answer, 'It is recorded in the Holy traditions that one of the recorded attributes of the people of paradise is 'partaking of food, continually.

O beloved! They say that the noble Sayyid Tabataba was in the land of Egypt and became renowned in that country. His eminence was established and his correct lineage was proven and well-known. However, he had a speech impediment, meaning he could not properly pronounce certain letters. Therefore, he would say "tabataba" instead of "tayyib tayyib" and became known as Tabataba.

During the Dispensation of Mohammed, there lived two poets in Mecca. One composed a great eulogy praising Mohammed; the other wrote a satire. When the two poems were presented to him, he highly praised both, and commended the endeavors of each.

Those who heard him were rather astonished, and did not know what to make of it. They said: 'This man has extolled you, the other has condemned you. How is it that you commend both?'

Mohammed answered; 'Both of these men have reflected their own feelings, and disclosed their inner states.' Similarly, the praise that you have mentioned in your talk is the reflection of your own hearts.

Once upon a time there was a shepherd who shepherded the sheep of Hossein Ali. He was [a] very simple man. He could neither read nor write. His neighbours would come and ask him, 'Art thou a Musulman, a Jew or a Christian.' He did not know how to answer them, but [after] a moment of reflection, he would say, 'I really don't understand your question but all that I know I am the shepherd of Hossein Ali.'

Abraham's migration from His native land caused the bountiful gifts of the All-Glorious to be made manifest, and the setting of Canaan's brightest star unfolded to the eyes the radiance of Joseph. The flight of Moses, the Prophet of Sinai, revealed the Flame of the Lord's burning Fire, and the rise of Jesus breathed the breaths of the Holy Spirit into the world. The departure of Muhammad, the Beloved of God, from the city of His birth was the cause of the exaltation of God's Holy Word, and the banishment of the Sacred Beauty led to the diffusion of the light of His divine Revelation throughout all regions.

When I was in Mazanderan I was a wee-bit of a child and enjoyed all the funs and plays incident to that age. In our town we had a man by the name of Aga Rahee[m] who was the overseer of our shepherds. One day he came to our house and asked my mother to let him take me to a pastoral Barbeque given by the shepherds. After some persuasion on his part the permission was granted and I was glad for the opportu[nity] of participating in an outdoor entertainment where animals are roasted in whole.

Aga Raheem took me with him and soon we were out in the country. He led m[e] through green valleys and beautiful pastures till we reached at the foot of a lofty mountain. Here we had to walk through a narrow delife and then by a zigzag roa[d] and with much difficulty slowly ascend to the summit. When we arrived at the top I w[as] surprised to find myself on a vast, verdant table-land which was no other tha[n] the pasturage-ground of our cattle[s]. I still feel the exhilarating breeze whi[ch] greeted my cheeks on that clear day. Exclusive of cows and horses there [were] about 4000 sheep and goats belonging to us and a few thousand more were the property of other landlords but all of them grazing peacefully on this large plateau. It was a most charming, ideal pastoral scene and from afar I could see many shepherdesses.

We rode a few minutes mor[e] and then under a spacious bower I was welcomed by more than 80 shepherds, all of whom were clamoring to salute me. they wore their best clothes, for this was a gala day and to me a no[vel] and attractive sight! On that morning they had killed about 15 sheep and having cleaned and prepared them in the cold, flowing spring nearby, they [had] forked through them long iron rods. Then they made as many huge camp-fires and in a spectacular way while they sung wild, primitive songs and played circular rustic, peasant dances they roasted them. At noon they sat on the green grass and helped themselves of the seasoned, toothsome meat with an extraordinary appetite.

In the afternoon they performed another function and that was the branding of the sheep with red hot irons to indicate in the future their quality, ownership etc. There were some of the sheep which bleated and baa-baaed wh[en] branded only a few times and then grew quiet; they were quite sheep-like. But other[s] rent the air with their baa-baas for more than one hour. I stood there laughing to my heart's content (Here the Beloved laughed also very heartily) at their strange noises, because I had never seen before such a f[u]nny confusi[ng] scene. When the sheep were released from the hands of the shepherds branding them they r[a]n hither and thither like distracted animals and their droll cries were very amusing and comical to the ears of the little child. I laughed so much on that day that tears flowed from my eyes.

When the evening drew nigh and the hour of our leave-taking approached all the shepherd[s] gathered around me and in their farewell, spontaneous talks hinted that they expect me to give them some gifts as is customary amongst the landlords in those parts. I asked Aga Raheem what was all this about, tha[t] I am only a child and they ought not expect me to give them presents, moreover I have brought nothing with me. He answered: 'This is impossible. You are the master of all these shepherds and I do not like to say what they would think if you leave this place without giving them some gifts.' I was indeed in a dilemma but I thought for a moment and then the idea came to me to give to each shepherd a few sheep out of our own flock. I communicated this idea to the Overseer and he was rather pleased with it and in a solemn tone announced to them which was immediately acte[d] upon.

When at last we reached home and my act of generosity was relat[ed] to the Blessed Perfection he laughed very much over it and said: 'We must appoint a guard to protect Aga-Master from his liberal[ity] otherwise some day he may give up himself.'

When the little village Samreh on the lake of Galilee was bought years ago, I went there to supervise the building of a room for our temporary headquarter. We had no[t] carried with us any tent or for that matter anything and thought to spend the night right in the open under the blue sky. We were still sitting around a camp fire, talking when a threatening black cloud ascended to the heaven and started a torrential rain. By the time we tried to think where to go, we were soaked with water and as it settled into a rather steady, continuous downpour we thought we must find some place of safety.

After much inquiries from each other and our Arab laborers, finally one of them told us that far away from where we were there is a low, narrow arch by placing the rough blocks of stones beside each other, which may partially protect us from the rain and the wind. Now it was pitch darkness, the wind was blowing and the rain was pouring. We agreed to hold each other's hand and let the Arab who knew the pla[ce] guide us. As I knew there were many deep hollows in the country I cautioned ou[r] man against them, when suddenly we heard the cries of one of the believers who had fallen in the hole and was calling on us to go to his rescue. With much difficulty we brought out of the mud and water and by the time we reached the Arch we were drenched and wet through and through.

When I lowered my back and entered the narrow arch I felt as though I am in the most spacious gall[ery.] None of us could lie down and sleep on that night. we squatted there till morning, our backs supported by the cold stones. Then we were most glad to welcome the warm rays of the sun under which we dried our clothes.

When we were travelling from Bagdad toward Constantinople, one day, we thought [to] go ahead of the family, pitch the tent and prepare everything till Baha'u'llah and the rest of the party arrive.

… Experience teaches us many lessons that we are not apt to forget.

During the first year of our arrival in Bagdad one day Mirza Javad asked me to go out with him to an outlying district. At this time, Arabian robbers frequented the roads and no one dared to go out of the town. In the morning we two started to walk to that district. Having spent part of the day there toward the evening we started to return. However, before leaving Bagdad Mirza Javad took with himself for precaution's sake, an old rifle he had for many years.

As we were walking back toward the city we spied in the far off horizon several horsemen coming towards us. Seeing us all alone, they galloped toward our left and right and back so that we may not fly away and in front of us three men appeared with rifles in their hands. Mirza Javad looked around and was much agitated. He got hold of his rifle but to his further confusion he realized that he has with himself neither powder nor cartridges so his rifle was more useless than a piece of stick.

Then I told him take your rifle in your hand, keeping it in a position as though you are going to aim at them. Don't heed them at all. Don't look at them. Walk straight. Laugh and speak with me. The three men ahead of us cried out "down with your rifle" Mirza Javad did not give any attention to them. They were amazed at our audacity! "Down with your arm." They cried all at once. No result. They were [cowered] and paced back a few steps. In this way we walked and laughed and talked till we reached the gate of the city and all the time our "friends" going backward.

When the horsemen saw the futility of their pursuit they spied another pedestrian on the road and galloped toward him. This man seeing us coming with rifle in hand hastened toward us and cried for protection from the robbers. Meanwhile the gate was opened and our "friends" realized the hopelessness of their case hide back to darkness. We did not have anything on ourselves but the other man had some money and was grateful to us because we saved him. Addressing Mirza Javad he said:- "I am glad you did not kill them. The way you took your rifle in your hands I thought every moment you will shoot at them." [Here the Master had a hearty laugh and added:] "And all this time our rifle was empty."

They were all afraid and pleaded and cried that we may give them back their freedom. They said they did not mean what they did, that it was all a joke, and would not have touched the Caravan for anything in the world. In short they pleaded and supplicated so much that I ordered the believers to unfasten their arms on condition that they must never play such joke on the unsuspecting travelers.

Difficulty and ease are mostly in the mind. For instance, when we think now about living in the deserts of Arabia, amid those sand dunes and barren wastes, beneath a black tent - nothing could be more difficult than this, because our thought is that this is difficult. But the Arab himself is in the utmost joy. His thought is that to live such a life is most pleasant. Indeed, he wonders how city-dwellers can endure being confined and sheltered in houses.

Once we were traveling to Tiberias. A Christian gentleman, who was among the wealthy, was with us. An Arab caravan had also come from the desert, having sold wheat and was returning, and we were traveling together. This Christian was conversing with an Arab woman, saying, "How do you live in this desert, upon this hot earth, in this barren wilderness, without companions or friends, and always in fear and danger? Come to the city. If you come to the city, you will live in the utmost comfort." She said, "What comfort is there in the city?" He said, "First of all, in the city you live in a furnished house, with lamps at night. Everything is provided - delicious and clean food, abundant sweets, plentiful fruits, fine clothes, music and song, honor and respect - unlike your situation. What do you have? Donkeys and camels and a house of wool and hair, in this wilderness." The woman kept saying "Yes." Then, having been reclining against her camel, she sat up straight and said, "Man, what are you saying? You are imprisoned and confined in this city while we are in this wilderness!"

I saw that all these things he spoke of held absolutely no importance for the woman. Her thought was that the desert was good and she was in the utmost joy. Human joy, comfort and delight depend on character. If one's character is divine, merciful, and spiritual, any condition is good. If one's character is satanic, there is torment and punishment in any state. The joy of the human heart comes from the divine breathings - hearing pleasant words, listening to expressions about the knowledge of God, meeting with blessed souls, receiving divine confirmations, having the doors of inner meanings opened to one, becoming attracted to truth - these are the cause of human joy. If one's joy is in worldly goods, these are better available to animals...

The available source contains an omission or incomplete wording; sentence boundaries need review.

"Ishmael invited me to a meal. He had one special table and a general one. At the special table five were seated. Ishmael, myself and three others. At first a bowl of chicken broth was brought. It had been left till it was cold. It was like jelly. He took a bowl and said: 'You must eat it with a spoon, thus. I will eat it with a spoon.' Then roasted meat was brought. It was very good. The broth also was very delicious. Then vegetables were brought; after the vegetables, jellies. After these they brought pilau. In reality it was very delicious. He said: 'I have brought a French cook to whom I give a hundred pounds a month. These dishes were prepared by him.'"

"Outside of Teheran" he said "We had a great park planted by the Father of the Beloved Perfection. This was a wonderful garden. It contained our gates, Eastern, Western, Northern and Southern. As you entered the Eastern gate, the Western gate was visible, similarly form the Northern you can see the Southern gate, In the Center of the garden a great throne was built and 4 straight avenues branching off toward the gates,- so that you could see all the four gates as you sat on that throne. On both sides of these avenues, poplar trees were planted to the number of ten thousand. These trees rising erect and majestic toward the sky. Under these trees thousands of rose bushes were planted, the fragrance of which filled the air. Often we used to sleep at night on this throne. The moon clear, full, silvery stone upon us, the galaxies of the stars shedding their rays, now faintly and again with a lustrous twinkle over the calm and mystic scene of the garden. Long before sunrise, I would open my eyes admiring with wonder this infinite universe of God. Then all at once the nightingales, in sweet melodies break into sweet concert of divine music, the gentle murmur of the rills flowing on all rides reached to the ears and the zephyr passing through the leaves making the noise of a soft sweeping handclap and applause. In the early morning the blessed Perfection would rise and prepare tea for all of us and while the sun was dawning from the Eastern horizon we were gathered around him, drinking tea and enjoying the heavenly scene all around us".

In Haifa there was at one time a German Consul who became Abdul Baha's friend. He used to call on him often, and Abdul Baha returned his visits. At one time, he disappeared for a whole month.

Suddenly, one day he entered Abdul Baha's room. He had a stick in his hand and was lame. "Oh, sir, how is it that you have not inquired about my health during the past month?" -- "Why, friend, what has happened to thee?" "Yes," he pitifully answered, "I am the victim of 'Bravo.'

In London, one of the Baha'is was ill and, in tears, some of the other friends came to Me saying that the ailing person wished to meet with Me. I went to his hospital but was prevented from visiting. With a great difficulty, the friends convinced the hospital authorities that My meeting with him would result in his cure. Therefore, they allowed Me to enter his room, and God cured him.

Ridvaniyyih Khanum related that when her child was ill, the Master came and gave two pink roses to the little one, then, turning to the mother, He said in His musical voice so full of love: "Be patient."

That evening the child passed away.

[I took tea into the blessed presence of 'Abdu'l-Baha, two serving pots on a clean tray. In one pot was tea, in another was boiling water. There were also two cups, one filled with hot water and the other empty and covered with a white cover. Next to these was a small crystal bowl of sugar lumps. He said,] This is very good. Tea must be like this: good sugar, excellent tea, purified water, clean cup and in every way neat and organized. Otherwise, it is better not to drink it. 'What is not cared for at the beginning cannot be remedied at the end.'

A skilled thief first becomes friends with the caravan and acts very benevolent and kind until he leads the caravan near the thieves at the mountaintop. Then it becomes clear he was in league with the thieves - but it's too late, the caravan has been robbed.

A lion, wolf, and fox went hunting. They captured a wild ass, a gazelle, and a hare. The lion said to the wolf, 'Divide the spoil.' The wolf said, 'That is easy; the ass for yourself, the gazelle for me, and the hare for the fox.' The lion bit off the wolf's head saying, 'You are not a good divider.' Then turning to the fox, he said, 'You divide!' The fox said, 'The ass, the gazelle, and the hare are yours!' The lion looking at him, said, 'Because you have accounted yourself as nothing, you may take all the prey.'

A crow was perched on the lofty branch of a tall tree. In its beak it carried a piece of cheese. It so chanced that two jackals passed by under the tree. The first jackal said to the other one: "Would it not be clever if we could get this piece of cheese out of the beak of the crow?' 'Watch me! I am the one to get it.'

Then raising its head up towards the tree it said: 'O Monsieur crow! O crow Effendi! Oh Mirza crow! Thou art a melodious singer! In comparison to thy voice that of nightingale is very ugly. Thou art a better singing bird than the thrush! Oh! that thou couldst sing for us a song of joy to cheer and uplift our despondent spirits.'

The crow was greatly pleased with this flattery and opening its beak started its cow-cow and the cheese dropped on the ground to the delight of the waiting jackals.

One night while the Arab was sound sl[eep] in his bed, the hyena left its crib and attacked him. By the time [he] tried to parry the attack, it got hold of his leg, tore away a large piece of flesh and ran away. He started to cry and lament and his neighbo[rs] gathered from all directions to find out the cause. Seeing his prostrate on the ground and listening to his woeful tale they shook their heads and exclaimed: 'Such will be the reward of those who are kind to hyena.'

In Persia whenever there is a long-standing feud between two tribes, in order to remove it, they inter-marry. In reality, it has a wonderful effect. In Persia there are many of the nomadic tribes who pass all their years under the tent, in the open. Often between two tribes there has existed enmity and hatred for many years. They have fought against each other; pillaged each other's property and many people were killed on both sides.

Now if an outside, disinterested influence comes in and tries to reconcile these two contending parties, he will use the same old eternal rule. The son of the chief of one tribe will marry the daughter of the chief of the other tribe. Immediately the enmity is changed into amity and the hatred into love. This has been tried again and again and has not been found wanting!

How wonderful it is when one is thirsty and, crying out "Thirst! Thirst!", runs in every direction until such a cup of water becomes available to him.

On the road to Baghdad we were twenty-two riders, the weather was extremely hot and all were thirsty. As fate would have it, we had forgotten our water container. Some had become so thirsty that they could no longer endure and were about to fall.

We were in this state when from afar a black tent appeared. We said there must be water here, and with our thirst we spurred our horses until we reached there. We said "Water! Water!" There was a Kurd who replied: "Buttermilk! Buttermilk!" He had a skin of buttermilk. An eastern wind had also blown upon it, making it very cold. We drank it and he brought another skin.

Right there in the sunshine upon the ground we had a good sleep. When we awoke we found no trace of thirst remained, and twice we mounted our steeds.

When they reached there the farrash went on ahead. "What was all this," he said, "about the sale of an 'aba and your vouching for the payment? Explain yourself."

"I know nothing about it," the money-changer replied.

"Come along," said the farrash to Salman. "All is clear at last. You are a Babi."

It happened that the turban which Salman had on his head was similar to those worn in Shushtar. As they were passing a crossroads, a man from Shushtar came out of his shop. He embraced Salman and cried: "Where have you been, Khajih Muhammad-'Ali? When did you arrive? Welcome!"

The Bahai must first be informed of the Principles and teaching of Baha'u'llah, then go forth and spread the Message. It is like unto a soldier, who must arm himself with the buckler and armor, and then he enters the battlefield to fight against the foe. But if he goes to fight without arming himself, he will be defeated.

The Bahais are the Army of God. Their defensive armors or weapons are: First, Faith; second, Assurance; third, Severance; fourth, Complete Attraction to the Kingdom of ABHA. If they are armed with these weapons, they will gain the victory in whatever field they may enter. As long as he is not equipped with these weapons, he will not be successful. He must cut himself entirely from all imitations.

In Persia we were under the sword. From one moment to the other we had no assurance of life, and during our long imprisonment we were in constant danger. As we were not attached to this life, we were entirely forgetful of these outward conditions. Therefore we remained firm. We did not notice the gleaming, flashing swords around us. But in reality we were happy. [Here he laughed heartily.] At that time there were many severe tests, but there was abundant spirituality. We were walking on the earth, but in reality we were soaring towards the Supreme Concourse. [Laughing]: What were those days, and what are these days! Those days were the cause of the development of the souls. Those days people progressed and advanced spiritually.

During the eventful days of Nassr Ed Din Shah, those people who were Bahais were fearless, filled with the glad-tidings of God, overflowing with supplication and communion. When a Bahai walked in the streets, in his heart he was praying to God, begging of God—'Make me a sacrifice in Thy Path! Let the enemies surround me, carry me to the arena of martyrdom, make me a ransom to Thy Cause!' It is very easy now to be martyred, but it was very difficult at that time. Those frightful looking soldiers, those horrible executioners, those dreadful farrashes, and especially the cannoneers with their fierce moustaches. They threw fear into the hearts of the staunchest and the firmest. Yet the friends were most firm and resolute before the faces of these beings of terror.

At the time of trials, wonderful confirmations descend upon man, regenerating him and making him a new creation. Mirza Ghorban Ali, who was one of the Seven Martyrs, a man of great piety and learning, was a strong Babi, but he was very fearful and timid. He was so fearful of being known as a Babi that when he met the friends in the streets he would not look at them. He shunned their association. Yet the enemies found him our somehow, and brought him into the prison house. As he was well known among the military class for his wisdom and devotion, two of these influential officers went to Mirza Tagi Khan, the Prime Minister, and interceded for him. When the Prime Minister found out that such important men were interceding for him, he became very lenient and told them to bring him to him so that he might recant. This Prime Minister was such a domineering and blood-thirsty man that the army was in constant fear of him, so that when he was reviewing the army if he just turned his eyes upon one of the soldiers he would tremble and shake with fear.

Finally these two officers took Mirza Ghorban Ali to the Prime Minister, and they were so happy in the thought that he would be released before long. When he came before the Prime Minister, the Prime Minister looked at him and said: 'These friends of yours have interceded for you. Are you ready to repudiate Ali Mohammed (The Bab)?' Mirza Ghorban Ali, looking around, saw the executioner about fifteen feet from him, standing, and then he turned to the Minister and asked: 'Whom shall I repudiate, Ali or Mohammed?' (Mohammed being the Prophet and Ali the son-in-law, they are considered the Holy Ones in the Mohammedan world. The name of the Bab is composed of these two.) The Prime Minister became so angry that he ordered the executioners to take him away and kill him, and he left the presence of the Prime Minister with serene face and a heavenly smile on his countenance. At such a time, a firm believer is known!

Those persons who are firm in the Faith during these days shine like unto the brilliant sun and are the cause of the tranquility of the hearts; but those whose hearts are not set aglow with the fire of the Love of God are like fruitless trees and honeyless bees.

When the enemies of the Cause pillaged our home and confiscated all our properties in Teheran I was a child. My mother had rented a small house in a remote quarter of the city so that they may not find out our whereabouts. My sister was also with us.

One midnight I heard some one knocking at the door. I went and opened it. It was one of the believers. He entered our room and looked into our faces. Fire emitted from his eyes. He said "Why are ye standing quiet?" I asked him: "What must we do?" He answered: "My friends! Dance, be happy, these are the feast days of the Lord." Till morning he danced, chanted, sang and when the [sun] appeared from the Eastern horizon he left the house. On that very day he was arrested and martyred.

Whenever I remember the lives of these heavenly souls and their complete severance my heart is made very happy. Through their sanctity the Banner of this Holy Cause was unfurled on the apex of the world.

There was in Baghdad a man by the name of Haji Faraj Kahhal [oculist]. He himself used to say, 'I blinded three thousand eyes until at last I became an oculist.' This man frequented the Iranian Consulate and would take news to the Iranians. In those days, the Tehran Gazette, the first Iranian newspaper, was brought to the Consulate once every month. My uncle [Jinab-i-Kalim] would spend some time every day at the Salih coffeehouse which was located in the old section of Baghdad. He would also take me there and other Iranians would be there too.

One day Haji Faraj related, 'It is reported in the paper that Aqa 'Abdu'l-Qasim-i-Hamadani went to Sulaymaniyyih. In Urman he was invited by its governor, Husayn-'Ali Khan. For his guest's safety, the governor sent several mounted guards with him. The guards took him by a wrong road to the top of a mountain. There they cut his throat and covered his body with rocks. Then they took all his possessions. Passing by the site of the crime, the residents of the nearby villages saw the blood on the ground. After some search, they exhumed the body and discovered that Aqa 'Abdu'l-Qasim was still alive. They took him to a village and stitched his throat. He could not talk but made known that he wanted paper and a pen. Then he wrote his own story:

"'I am Aqa 'Abdu'l-Qasim, a merchant from Hamadan. In Urman Husayn-'Ali Khan invited me to his house. He then sent some people with me. They did this to me on the road and took all my belongings. Now I want requital. They should return all my belongings which should be delivered to Darvish Muhammad-i-Irani who lives on Sar-Galu mountain. He is free to do with them whatever He wishes. I had returned to Iran from a visit to Him and was going back to Him again.'"

After hearing this story, we knew that this Darvish Muhammad was the Blessed Beauty. In our respective homes, both Mirza Aqa Jan and I repeated the supplication, 'O Thou Who art invoked!' 2,001 times. Then we asked Haji Faraj if he knew of any other Iranians in Sulaymaniyyih. He said that there was one whose name was Haji 'Abbas. Through Haji Faraj we wrote to Haji 'Abbas, who wrote back, 'This erudite darvish is residing on Sar-Galu mountain. It is impossible to go there because of the presence of hooligans. He comes to the town once a week to go to the public bath.'

Hence, Shaykh Sultan and Aqa Muhammad-Javad left for Sulaymaniyyih. There they investigated and made inquiries about His whereabouts. At last they learned that He was indeed residing on Sar-Galu mountain and that it was impossible for them to go there. So they waited in Sulaymaniyyih until He arrived. They attended His presence and presented their plea. Baha'u'llah, however, did not agree. Then they said, 'We do not want to do anything contrary to Thy blessed will but we are not leaving Thy presence either.'

Question: Can you provide an account of Tahirih's deliverance from Qazvin, her arrival in Tihran, her departure for Badasht, and the events that transpired there?

Answer: In brief, what happened is the following.

… As a result, Tahirih met with the greatest hardship.

You have surely heard how Tahirih, when imprisoned in the house of the chief of police, what a flame she ignited. By chance, it was a time of celebration and joy, and the chief of police arranged a feast for his son. When the wedding gathering was arranged and the veiled ladies of the ministers, officials and princes were present, and from every direction the sound of tar, tanbur, lute, oud, harp and chang rose up, and the evening's entertainment was prepared - as the musicians and singers and performers began their music and song in the feast, Tahirih opened her tongue in speech and so moved them all that everyone abandoned that affair and gathered around her to hear her glad tidings. The celebration and feast was disrupted and the melody and song cut off - the strains of exposition and mystical knowledge arose.

"One day Kurratu'l Ayn was sitting with our Lord (Abbas Effendi, who was five years old) in her arms, behind a curtain in a room where a number of believers were discussing the proofs of the coming of The Bab. She cried, 'O men! O men! This is not the time to discuss proofs, this is the time for deeds, actions, martyrdom. Teach, act, die!'"

There was a Shaykh Baqiri of Yazd, one of those who fled from Badasht. He came to Tehran and caused many souls to waver. He would weep and say that the Babis had deceived him. Later he went to Baghdad and repented, saying he had done those things out of fear.

When the Blessed Beauty was in Kurdistan, Aqa Muhammad Karim sent his family to Baghdad. Yahya, despite keeping himself constantly hidden and meeting with no one, would become uncontrollable when matters concerning women arose. There was a person named Abu'l-Qasim who would occasionally visit him. One day, he wrapped a silk undergarment and a ring from the Bab in a bundle and gave it to Aqa Mirza Muhammad-Quli to take and propose marriage to the daughter of Aqa Muhammad Karim. He went to Aqa Muhammad Karim's house. Aqa Muhammad Karim asked, "What is this?" He replied, "Open it and you will understand, His Holiness has sent it." He immediately returned the bundle and said, "My wife and children have not yet recovered from the fatigue of their journey." Yahya became very distressed.

As it happened, that Abu'l-Qasim married the daughter of Aqa Muhammad Karim. Yahya incited others and they strangled Abu'l-Qasim. This matter caused Aqa Muhammad Karim's resentment, and he arose in enmity and continuously caused mischief. The Blessed Beauty said nothing. The friends would come and report that Aqa Muhammad Karim had done such and such today, but the Blessed Beauty would say nothing. Until finally he grew weary and came into the blessed presence and repented, saying, "Truly I have been most unfair, but Your forbearance has humbled me."

There was a Mohamad Bey, a Kurd, of short stature, fat and a long beard. He had met Baha'u'llah when he was living in the mountain of Soleymanieh and became His ardent follower. When Baha'u'llah returned from the mountains after two years of absence, this Mohamad Bey also came to Bagdad bringing 46 mares for the governor Omar pasha. He was dressed in long, flowing robe and had a big turban on his head. Now just think of his strange appearance:- short, fat, long, black beard, long oriental robe and a big turban on his head! After a few days he came to see the Blessed Perfection and lo! there was a complete change in his costume! He was dressed in European clothes but he looked very phantastic.

While he was sitting in the room with Baha'u'llah talking, I was out, standing in front of the door of the house. Suddenly i saw a Kurd is running from far away toward Our home. On the way he would make all the pedestrians wait and asking them: Oh sir! "Where is the house of Darvish Mohamad (this was the name of Baha'u'llah, which he assumed during his two years absence) I will give my life if i could just look into his face!" They directed him to me. When he came to me and asked his question with such eagerness, such love, such impatience i took him by the hand and carried him without any notice in the room in which Baha'u'llah was speaking with Mohamad Bey. His whole frame was quivering with the force of love, his eyes were dazzling with the light of love. When he saw Baha'u'llah, he wept and joyed with such depth of feeling that all of us wept. It turned out that he was the servant of Mohamad Bay and had this extraordinary love for the Blessed Perfection. Baha'u'llah arose from his seat and made him seat beside his master. I can never forget him as he was sitting there, his eyes like unto two lamps of light centered upon Baha'u'llah.

The morning after Baha'u'llah's arrival, He was sitting in the big reception room receiving the callers. Many prominent people were present. 'Abdu'l-Baha very young was watching people coming and going. Suddenly it was announced that the brother of the Grand Vizir is coming. As soon as he appeared at the door he was so impressed by the majestic presence of Baha'u'llah that he knelt down before him in the presence of all those people. This was the cause of astonishment by all.

It was an hour like unto this and on such a day that Baha'u'llah was bidding farewell to the friends in Bagdad, preparatory to his departure for the garden of Rizwan outside the town.

When he left the house every one was weeping. The women in the 'Androun' were almost beside themselves with despair; the believers had gathered in the 'Beyrouni' to whose number were added many strangers and outsiders. From the house he walked to a place called "khezer", which is now ruined. Then he rode on a horse for the garden of Najib Pasha. We also accompanied him.

In the Centre of the garden a large tent was pitched, wherein the Blessed Perfection alighted and made His abode.

In the evening, 'Abdu'l-Baha came to the home of Shaykh Salih and shared the story of 'Abdu'llah Pasha:

It was in the middle of the night when they informed Me that a local Arab wished to see Me for the delivery of a message. When he came in, I recognized him to be the servant of 'Abdu'llah Pasha. He said, "Pasha is gravely ill and wishes to see You." I left immediately that night and saw that indeed Pasha was in a bad situation.

The available source contains an omission or incomplete wording; sentence boundaries need review.

Our friend finding his refutations childish answered him in the following story: Mohammad Ali Pasha had a big, fat camel. When the Hajis started on their long pilgrimage to Mecca through the desert, he ordered a rapid-fire cannon to be mounted on the back of the Camel;- so that they may fire it on their start and at their arrival along their road. The ear of the camel was so accustomed to the thundering noise of the cannon that although it was fired on its back, he never moved.

Just as during the twenty-five years that the Ancient Beauty was in 'Akka, illness repeatedly prevailed in this region and came up to the gates of 'Akka but turned back - and all the inhabitants of 'Akka from all nations testify to this. Immediately after the Ascension this disease became prevalent in 'Akka while this servant and the relatives were outside. Since most of the friends were in the fortress, in order to be with the friends we brought all the relatives inside the fortress. As we were entering, the people - men and women, young and old - were fleeing outside. Nevertheless, praise be to God, not one of the friends was afflicted with cholera.

This happened like the time when the Blessed Ascension occurred in the Mansion. All the inhabitants of Akka witness that before the Ascension, during the Blessed days, cholera came four times and surrounded all the surrounding areas but did not enter Akka. Even in places with good air like Mount Lebanon and right up to the gates of Akka the cholera went, but did not enter Akka.

However, on the day of the Blessed Ascension, suddenly the situation in Akka changed - cholera entered and everyone fled.

[Regarding the fact that each day the call of the Cause of God was raised in yet a new location, 'Abdu'l-Baha remarked one-day:] When He had returned to Baghdad, one day the Blessed Perfection was passing over a bridge and someone mentioned to His blessed Person that a letter was received from Mosul in which reference had been made to Baha'u'llah. With greatest excitement and joy, the Ancient Beauty cried out, "Aqa Mirza Muhammad-Quli, Aqa Mirza Muhammad-Quli, come quickly and hear the glad-tidings that the fame of the Cause has reached Mosul!"

When I left Haifa two years and half ago, I was so weak that I could not walk twenty yards and my system was attacked by three kinds of illnesses, but praise be to God the Confirmations reached us wherever we went.

But in Paris I do not see extraordinary exhilaration. It is like unto a lazy animal. All the beating in the world will not make him get up; even if you enter a needle in his feet he will not get up.

The day you invited me to your home outside New York, and we spent that day and evening in ultimate spirituality remembering God and in love and fellowship, and I spoke that night in that gathering - that day and night will never be forgotten, for it passed with utmost joy and delight. In life, if a person spends one night in joy or passes it in grief and sorrow, these two kinds of nights are never forgotten during one's lifetime, especially if spent with a kind friend who has come to the Holy Land and attained the blessing of circumambulating the Most Holy Threshold.

Were He to will it, He could destroy all that are on the earth by but a word from Him. Verily He is powerful over all worlds. O My loved ones! call ye to mind al-Badi'---his dominion, his power---then ponder the burning ardor that seized him through the Word of God, the Almighty, the All-Conquering, the Mighty, the Wise. Remember, O Pen of the Most High, when he stood before the Throne, and there was breathed into him the spirit of might and dominion from One strong and faithful; and the attractions of longing laid hold upon him after he had been thunderstruck by the first Word.

He traversed land and sea in his longing to attain the presence of God until he entered the shore of the right-hand valley in the blessed crimson spot. We called out to him from behind the pavilions of grandeur, and when he heard it, the sweetness of the call so overwhelmed him that he was transformed. Then We shed upon him the lights of the countenance, and when he beheld the Most Great Sign, he surrendered his spirit at the advent of his Lord, the Lord of all beings.

One day some soldiers came to the house of a believer and asked for one of his guests to be brought to them, that they might take him to his execution, according to their warrant. The host gave himself up in his guest's place and was killed in his stead. This is an instance of true brotherly love.

"And God gives victory to whom He wishes." In such battles there is no victor, in truth all are vanquished. When two ships collide, if one ship sinks, the other is also damaged. This victory and defeat has no permanence, it is a temporary matter. Victory belongs to the divine hosts, that is, the hosts of the love of God - a victory that is followed by no defeat. For example, the apostles of Christ achieved a spiritual victory over other nations, but it was a victory followed by no defeat. Thus spiritual conquests are firm and enduring, not physical conquests. The regions of heart and soul must be conquered through the power of the love of God, not the earthly world. For instance, those souls who were martyred in the path of God hastened to the altar of love with utmost joy and attraction. These divine hosts achieved victory by giving their lives, not by taking lives. They influenced hearts through spiritual power, not through the power of rifle and cannon. These conquests of the heart are eternal.

Last night at midnight I remembered Mirza Ashraf. Such a state overtook me that I lost all control, involuntarily I prayed and was perfumed by the fragrance of his martyrdom. This Aqa Mirza Ashraf was truly the noblest of people. How learned and knowledgeable he was. He was among the most distinguished scholars. All people and all the learned ones testified to his knowledge, learning, detachment, piety and godliness. He was renowned among the great ones and all his relatives, associates and compatriots testified to his nobility, that this person was a lamp of guidance and a banner of detachment and piety. He had the utmost respect among his countrymen, until he rent asunder the veils of superstition, unveiled the mysteries, gained new vision, attained divine knowledge, became attracted to the holy fragrances and was enkindled with the fire of the love of God.

He became so aflame that he fearlessly arose to exalt the Word of God and was constantly in fervent enthusiasm. He opened an eloquent tongue and taught the stations of divine unity. He endured severe trials and tribulations and became the target of government persecution, torture and punishment. But he cared not - day by day his attraction increased and his enthusiasm grew stronger. In the fire of government wrath he found peace and tranquility, and martyrdom in God's path was his highest station. He found not a moment's rest. He always held the sealed wine in hand and intoxicated the seekers. Until he hastened from Tehran to Isfahan to teach God's Cause, and along the way in every city and village he clearly spread the divine fragrances. Although he was in great danger, he had no fear or anxiety. His hope was in the favors of the Blessed Beauty and in this state he entered Isfahan. Despite the fact that the government...

With utmost power he arose to teach the Cause of God despite intense opposition. When it became known in that city that a renowned personage had arrived, intoxicated with the pure wine and proclaiming the Day of Manifestation, raising a mighty call and throwing the city into commotion, and that he would soon have a great influence, the government intervened. They arrested that wronged one, cast him into chains and fetters, and in the end, with the utmost joy and radiance, he drank the cup of glorious martyrdom, sacrificing his life at the divine altar and hastening to the Supreme Concourse and the Abha Kingdom. Upon him be the Glory of God, the Most Glorious. His sacred resting place is in Isfahan.

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This war lasted a long time, and concerning the tale of the Fort of Shaykh Tabarsi, He said: "In the Fort of Tabarsi there were one hundred and ten souls. On the night when Babu'l-Bab was shot, they broke through seven barricades. When they broke through the seventh barricade, Sartip Abbas-Quli Khan was hiding there. The horse of Babu'l-Bab's foot got caught in a rope - all the friends were on foot while Babu'l-Bab was mounted.

Then they made the mistake of lighting a fire. Babu'l-Bab was the only one mounted. Abbas-Quli Khan shot from within a tree, but before that, that night they had broken through seven barricades."

Therefore it is submitted that among the early believers was Khar Valiyani, who was the first to believe and for about a year or more would mount pulpits to promote the Cause and prove its truth, presenting proofs of the truth of Truth, yet afterwards became such an opposer that he issued death sentences against all pure souls. And there were many like him, including Mulla Muhammad-Taqiy-i-Haravi, Mulla 'Abdu'l-'Ali, Mirza Ibrahim-i-Shirazi and others who were all believers but became deniers after a year or two.

There is a story told by Haji Amin that the farmers in Yazd each had access to the main waterline one or two or three hours [a day], depending on their spread, to feed their orchards and gardens. One night one of the Zoroastrians took all the water to himself and saturated his farm. In the morning people complained to the governor, who then ordered the farmer's beaten by bastinado. As he was receiving the beating, he cried out, "O Governor, I watered my farm and it's done! My gardens are watered and it's done! My orchard is watered and it's done!"

A story was related of a Baha'i who was questioned by a great enemy of this Cause: 'Why did you accept this Cause?' He answered: 'because of your opposition.'

When we arrived in Baghdad, one day there was a great maneuvers of the Turkish army Corps and as Baha'u'llah looked upon them said. 'My army shall win the eternal victories. These shall be put to rout and defeated.'"

Consider the disciples of Christ. With respect to his physical life, Peter was a fisherman, and it is known what the life of a fisherman is like. But his spiritual life was so illumined with the outpourings of Christ that even on this speck of dust his traces remain, while the Roman emperor Nero with all his greatness has left no trace, no fruit, no sign, no memory, and no evidence of his existence.

Consider from before: Peter was a fisherman, likewise the other apostles - one was a carpenter, another a dyer. Through divine bounty and the grace of Christ they ascended to the throne of everlasting sovereignty, attained eternal life, shone forth from the divine Kingdom, obtained infinite bestowals. … Mary Magdalene was a village woman, but when she became the recipient of divine favors she became Mary Magdalene who forever shines from the horizon of eternal glory.

The Pharisees of the Jews did not consider the apostles of Christ worthy of address in Christ's time and counted them among the lowliest people, while they were the stars of guidance and the lamps of the Supreme Concourse.

Peter was a mere fisherman yet became supreme. Mary was a village woman yet surpassed the queens of the horizons - for hundreds of thousands of queens came and went, all now lost without trace or mention, while Mary Magdalene still shines like a star from the horizon of greatest glory.

Mary had a friend among the Roman officers (who at that time were Masters of the Holy Lands). He was the one who protected her from enemies after the death of Christ.

… She said to the Emperor: 'I have come on behalf of the Christians to bring to your notice the fact that Herod and Pilate martyred the Christ at the instigation of the Jews.

Having already made firm and steadfast the shaking and afraid apostles she [Mary Magdalene] started on her famous journey toward Rome - the then renowned capital of the Roman Empire.

The essence of the intention is that I wish you to pray for me and I will pray for you. The pathway we shall walk together is the pathway of the disciples of Christ. After the departure of His Holiness to the Supreme Paradise, the disciples who had followed His teachings met together in consultation upon the summit of a mountain near Jaffa. Such a consultation was never before held.

O ye true friends! The letters ye wrote, the pages ye penned, and the names ye mentioned were all received in the Holy Land; they have all been attentively perused, and their most pleasing contents have been noted.

Praise be to God that through the grace and favour of the Ancient Beauty---may my life be offered up for His loved ones---such servants have been gathered beneath the standard of the Covenant as have perfumed the world through the gentle breezes wafting from the gardens of their hearts, and flooded the realm of splendours with the light shining from their faces. They are the manifestations of the manifold bounties of the ever-living Lord and the exponents of the signs and tokens of the Great Announcement. They are the dawning-places of the stars of guidance and the daysprings of the mysteries of loving-kindness, the sweet savours of the rose-gardens of Divine Unity and the fragrances of the meads of Oneness, the immovable mountains of the Covenant and Testament and the wellsprings of the soft-flowing waters of joy and certitude, the fruitful trees of the paradise of faith and the birds of holiness soaring above the meadows of understanding, the shining lamps in the assemblage of divine mysteries and the embodiments of purity in the gathering of the righteous. They are graciously aided by the hosts of the Abha Kingdom and favoured with the assistance of the angels of the celestial Concourse.

O ye loved ones of the Abha Beauty! O ye friends of the Almighty Lord! Unloose your tongues in thanksgiving for this supreme bestowal, and render praise unto the peerless Lord that ye were singled out for this grace and favour, and numbered amongst those who have attained the heights of servitude. Gird up the loins of endeavour, and step into the circle of the angels of the paradise of Oneness. Thus may ye, on the shores of the Most Great Ocean, net the fish that thirst for the seas of divine knowledge and, in the fields of unity, catch the gazelles that seek the meads of reality, so that through the unfailing aid and bounty of the Lord, ye may gather together all nations beneath the shade of the Word of Oneness. Thus may the fragrances of God spread through the East and the West, and the magnetic forces of the All-Merciful stir the world of being into motion. Thus may the mysteries of this holy Cycle be made manifest, the signs of the Dispensation of the Most Great Name be revealed, the garden of the world be rendered fertile, and the orchard of creation bear luscious fruits. Thus may the candle of Divine Unity be kindled, contingent limitations be consumed away by a single flame of the Lord’s burning Fire, the lights of guidance shine, and the darkness of ignorance and blindness be utterly obliterated.

When Christ winged His flight unto the limitless realms, He left behind eleven disciples. As they arose, with a seeing eye and a hearing ear, with an eloquent tongue and an unshakeable resolve, to magnify the Word of God, they so flourished that each became like unto the tree whose "root is firmly fixed, and whose branches reach unto heaven, yielding its fruit in all seasons".60 Simon Cephas,61 who was the shining moon amongst those stars of guidance, was to outward seeming no more than a fisherman on the Sea of Galilee. And yet, because he arose with fixed resolve and the utmost vigour to spread the signs of God and gather together the righteous, the light of his servitude shone with such brilliance above the horizon of existence that the very sun and moon were left bewildered, and circled, moth-like, around that resplendent candle.

Now, upon His ascension, the Ancient Beauty---may my life be offered up for His Most Great Name---left behind some fifty thousand believers upon this swiftly passing world. He educated them, one and all, through the sweet scents of holiness, opened the doors of manifold grace before their faces, nurtured them in the bosom of His loving-kindness, and taught them the lessons of the spirit in the school of insight. Would it not be regrettable if we were to sit dispirited or remain lost and bewildered, if we were to prefer the path of comfort and repose, seeking freedom from all cares? This is not faithfulness! This is not sincerity! This is not the path of guidance!

Erelong our days shall draw to a close, and the birds of the meadows shall carol the anthem of departure. Erelong the lamp of health shall be quenched, the darkness of death shall prevail, and the resplendent morn of the life to come shall dawn. Let us then strive with earnest endeavour to arrive at the heavenly Kingdom with radiant faces and, in the Realm of Glory, be admitted into the circle of those who have remained fast and firm. Consider what a fire of guidance eleven souls kindled on the summits of the world when they endured all manner of woes and trials and arose with all their hearts! Now, were we to arise as we ought, armed with the assured confirmations of the Abha Kingdom, what splendours would be made manifest and what results would ensue! I swear by the Beauty of the All-Praised, by His upraised standard, and by His sheltering shade, that such a conflagration would blaze up in the heart of the world as would melt the very rocks and clods of earth.

O friends, make ye a mighty effort! O loved ones, arise and bestir yourselves! Occupy yourselves not with the tales and accounts of those who waver in the Covenant, for these are but confused dreams and idle and childish talk. Speak of them that are steadfast, and tread the path of them that stand unwaveringly firm!

The duty of long years of love obey, And tell the tale of blissful days gone by.

Remember the story of Paul and Peter, who would enter any gathering and after teaching would receive ample beatings, yet would again converse with utmost kindness, love, forbearance and gentle speech.

Consider thou how the faithful women in the time of Christ, and after the departure of His Highness, underwent hardships! What difficulties did they not bear; and what calamities did they not endure! But adversity and trial, misfortune and derision, became the cause of imperishable and deathless glory and rest.

Remember the hardships of the disciples, and what Mary, the Virgin; Mary, the Magdalene; and Mary, the mother of Jesus, bore in the path of God; especially Barbara, until she was martyred in the love of Christ; and she being attracted unto the Kingdom of God, her spirit soared unto the summits of holiness in the paradise of eternal life, in the place of Meeting.

Esther was a woman; when she was favoured with pure intent and turned her gaze unto the Lord, what services she was enabled to render! Now behold the tomb of this woman of noble birth, and consider the myriads of mighty kings who ruled over Persia, Transoxania, and other countries in the world.

It may be that man can guide a blessed, holy soul into the Kingdom of God while he, himself, is deprived thereof. Consider Judas Iscariot: He invited others, while he, himself, was deprived of the Kingdom of God.

And in the days of Christ--may my spirit be a sacrifice unto Him--Iscariot, who was the chief of the apostles, returned to hell.

Such events are numerous, but in the end all became remorseful and disgusted with themselves.

When Christ was speaking to his disciples about his approaching death and the scattering of the sheep Peter said unto him, 'although all shall be offended, yet will not I.' Then the Master intimated that he shall not remain firm, saying that 'this day, even in this night, before the cock crow twice thou shalt deny me thrice.' but Peter spoke the more vehemently, 'if I should die with thee, I will not deny thee in any wise. Likewise also said they all.' But when they were put under the refining process of examination we find that their assertions did not agree with their actions.

Once His Holiness Christ gathered the disciples together, and having offered to them the Lord's Supper, He advised them, admonished them and uttered certain teachings to them, and then He said this was 'The Lord's Supper.' Now, as this meeting is held under the shadow of the Blessed Beauty, it should be called 'The Lord's Sustenance,' and as the consequences of 'The Lord's Supper' continued until the present time, so we hope that the results and effects of this 'Lord's Sustenance' may also become permanent and perpetual.

Philosopher Vambery, who was in Budapest, Austria, had never believed in any of the religions. For years and years he traveled in Constantinople, Afghanistan, Turkestan and Persia and learned the languages of these countries very well. He said to me: 'Because of this, I am amazed and surprised, that I, Vambery have not the courage to and cannot mention the name of Christ with reverence in the churches of the Jews. But you have proved with such courage and power, in the synagogues of the Jews, that Jesus Christ was the Word and the Spirit of God.'

The truth is that this place has a spiritual atmosphere. There are many beautiful views, but they have no spiritual atmosphere. All the prophets have been on Mt. Carmel, but in the mountains of Lebanon there were no prophets. It is strange that all the world is one, yet this part has become especially blessed. Palestine has been mentioned by God continually. But Sumal, Lebanon, and Damascus have never been mentioned. There was a magnificent temple of the sun at Baalbek. Its ruins still exist. It is written in the Koran: "God gives His bounty and favor to whomsoever He willeth." So it is with this land.

The heart is attracted here. His Holiness Elijah dwelt in a cave below this spot. At that time all the children of Israel were opposed to the religion of God. They were engaged in their own passions and pursuits. Only their name indicated that they were the people of His Holiness Moses. If His Holiness Moses had come among them at that time he would not have recognized them. He would have said: "I do not consider them as my own, for they have entirely forsaken the religion of God. They are deprived of the law of God. There is no light at all remaining in them. They are like a negro servant whose name is Diamond. His name is Diamond but he is a black servant." Such was their condition.

Then His Holiness Elijah educated certain souls in this cave. He educated pure and sincere souls as they ought to be and sent them among the children of Israel. They began to teach and call the children of Israel back to God. They called them back to the law of God. His Holiness Elijah gathered all their chief men together and brought them to the top of this mountain. There were three hundred and sixty of these chief men. But however much he taught and counselled them he obtained no result. He tried to guide them, but it was no use. For several years he worked to educate them. At the end no result was apparent. He realized that they would corrupt other souls. Then he had these three hundred and sixty men put to death. Then the rest of the children of Israel returned to their original spiritual morals and behavior. Then they regained their spiritual life. The everlasting glory again became apparent. They overcame the neighboring tribes. They rebuilt the Holy Temple. The laws of God were put into effect.

Then when His Holiness Elijah had finished his work he left it and went away. He retired. They thought he had ascended to Heaven. But no, having accomplished his work, he retired. He had no attachment to the world. When his object was accomplished he retired from the world. When he realized that his work was done he devoted himself to his own development.

The sincerity of a pure person is apparent in his deeds and activities. His Holiness Elijah tried very much and labored very hard. Then when the way became smooth and the time of comfort and ease came he went away. He had no attachment to this world. All the thoughts of man, every trace which he leaves behind him must be heavenly. He must have no attachment to this world. This world is like the waves of the sea. It does not last. The wise person does not attach his heart to waves.

O Spiritual Youth!

Thy letter was received. Thou wert filled with delight from the overflowing love of the Baha'is of Stuttgart. Of course thou must be happy, because though today the government and the people of Germany beat the drum of supremacy in the world and know themselves superior to all of the vicissitudes and religions of the world, yet notwithstanding this, the German people became so humble and deferential in your presence, and their utmost desire and wish was to serve you. Of course you must be happy, full of enthusiasm and joy. A Persian youth receiving such services from the important people of Germany, certainly it is the cause of happiness.

This is from the effectual power of His Holiness Baha'u'llah which has made such important persons to be humble and deferential towards Aqa Mirza Lotfullah.

Praise be to God, notwithstanding this great gift (of the Cause) the Persians are captives of the neglectful sleep, and in relationship to this Cause they are ashamed and disgraced.

When the Master of the Universe His Holiness Rosul (i.e., Mohammad)--upon Him be peace--shone like a bright star on the horizon of Hejaz (i.e., Mecca) the Koreish people were full of shame and disgrace and fear from bad reputation. They would say this person has become the cause of our bad name and notoriety.

After the Light of God was spread throughout the horizon of the world and the majesty of Islam reached to the East and West, the same people who had been ashamed raised the song of "happiness be upon us, happiness be upon us".

Abbas the uncle of the Prophet (Mohammad) was always afraid and terrified that the foundation of his household would be shaken. While in the time of ignorance his title was Sagayt El Haj (i.e., water carrier for the pilgrims); afterwards in Islam he attained such a state that his descendants for five hundred years had the Khalafat of four countries.

In a short (time) the Persians also will raise their head to the summit of honor and from the attainment of this great favor they will say "happiness be upon us, happiness be upon us."

Convey to all the Baha'is and the maidservants of the Merciful the utmost greetings of Abha.

His Holiness the Prince would say to Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr, "You are of my lineage." It became clear that physical fatherhood and sonship have no significance. Canaan was Noah's son, and Abraham was Azar's son - that father was a Prophet while the son was rebellious and cut off, and this father was an idolater while the son was the glorious and most great Friend of God. From this lusterless shell emerged a brilliant pearl, and from that precious and valuable shell came forth base and worthless pottery full of deceit and cruelty.

The owner of the slave Bilal used to beat him with great violence, saying, "Why dost thou shout about thy love for Muhammad?" Eventually one of the Prophet's disciples purchased the slave's freedom and soon afterwards his original owner took credit for the fact, saying: "See that Bilal? He first mentioned the name of Muhammad in my house."

During the call to prayer in the Dispensation of the Qur'an, placing the hand beside the ear was an ancient custom and longstanding practice of the muezzins. For in the early days of the spread of God's religion in Medina, when the call to prayer was raised, they would stone the muezzin from all sides. Therefore, whoever gave the call to prayer would place both hands beside his ears to protect his head from the stones of the ill-starred ones.

O servant of God! Abu-Dhar-i-Ghaffari was a shepherd who wept and lamented greatly, yet he found the light of guidance and hastened to the extended shade of His Holiness the Messenger - may my spirit be a sacrifice for Him. He accomplished his task and, like a nightingale of inner meanings and a celestial musician in the divine rose garden, played a sweet melody.

Though outwardly Uways-i-Qarani never attained the presence of the Prophet, His Holiness declared: "Verily I perceive the fragrance of the All-Merciful from the direction of Yemen."

It is said that when Uwais-i-Qarani learned that the blessed tooth of the Holy Prophet was broken by the stone of cruelty from the unfaithful ones, he pulled out all his own teeth so that he would always be mindful of and affected by the breaking of that tooth. Now His honor Aqa Ghulam-'Ali has likewise become affected by and mindful of the tribulation of the Ancient Beauty.

You have surely heard the story of 'Ali ibn Yaqtin, when they asked His Holiness about the number of pilgrims that year upon returning from pilgrimage. He said there were one hundred thousand pilgrims that year, but the only ones who truly performed the pilgrimage were himself, his camel, and 'Ali ibn Yaqtin - even though Ibn Yaqtin was in Basra as governor on the Day of 'Arafih. But since he was occupied with protecting the loved ones of God, this was greater than pilgrimage.

We have sent no Messenger except with clear signs, yet all were mocked by them. Among them was Adam, whom We sent with truth and settled in the heart of Paradise, in a valley unreached by those near unto God. We taught him all names and showed him the mysteries of the Cause, then sheltered him in the shade of the Tree of Paradise, if ye but knew. We commanded him to eat of all that his soul desired, yet forbade him the Tree of the Spirit - this is a hidden mystery concealed. This Tree sprang from the pure Spirit, and none should approach it save God, the Supreme, the Mighty, the Manifest.

When We found his desire thinner than a hair, We caused him to descend from Paradise and placed him on earth among those who traverse its paths. Then We informed him of a matter and awakened him to what he had done. Thereupon he lamented within himself for seventy thousand years, then fell prostrate upon the dust for seventy thousand years. Then he raised his head and cried: "Glory be unto Thee! There is no God but Thee. Have mercy upon me and take me not to task for what my hands have wrought. Verily Thou art the Forgiver of all things, the Merciful, the Mighty, the Feared. Forgive me, O my Beloved, for what I did before Thee, for Thou didst settle me in a station sanctified from all save Thee, yet I occupied myself with my own desires and grew heedless of Thy remembrance. Turn unto me through Thy grace and mercy, for Thou art the Truth, the Knower of the unseen."

Then We sent down upon him the rains of mercy, cleansed him with the tears of his eyes, purified him from all defilement, and made him of those who soar in the holy atmosphere. Thereafter We chose him in truth, made him a Prophet, and sent him to those who dwelt on earth to command them to justice and forbid them from oppression. This is what hath been inscribed by the Pen of Glory on hidden tablets of glory.

He said: "O people! I am God's servant. God hath chosen me for His Cause and made me a sign from Him unto you, if ye would but know. Fear God, O people of the earth, and spread not corruption therein. Seek grace from God, the Supreme, the Beloved. Take none as your protector save Him, and commit not in your own land what God hath forbidden you through the tongue of His chosen one, that perchance ye may be gathered before God on the Day of Resurrection." Yet they turned away from him, rejected His signs, and said: "We shall not follow thee unless thou bringest us another sign." Thus did they turn away from Him and were among those who were dead within their own veils. Then after Him We chose His son and made him a sign from Us, and sent him to his people that men might turn their faces toward the countenance of God. But when he came to them with clear signs, they turned away from him and were of those who in all eternity had turned away from the Beauty's face.

Adam is the symbol of the childhood of the race of man. Childhood has not a great capacity, therefore when he put out his hand to take the apple, he had not the capacity to receive such great knowledge as the apple symbolizes.

"And he who bought him in Egypt said to his wife: 'Make his dwelling honorable. He may be of benefit to us, or we may adopt him as a son.' Thus did We establish Joseph in the land, that We might teach him the interpretation of events. And God has full power over His affairs, but most men know not."

O lover of the countenance of Baha! It is related that when Abraham, the Friend of God, was cast into the blazing fire, Gabriel called out: "O illustrious Friend, hast thou any need?" He replied: "Not of thee! His knowledge of my condition sufficeth my need."

O Abraham! A Friend [of God] hath appeared from God, and the Hand of Divine favor preserved him from the fire of the idolaters, nay rather, transformed that vengeance into bounty and mercy. His mention is renowned throughout the world and is a mighty cause for those who mount the pulpit.

Know thou that when Ishmael, son of the Friend of the All-Merciful, desired to set foot in the wilderness of love that he might reach the Sinai of divine nearness - which is the station of complete sacrifice - at the moment he intended to proceed to his destination, he observed one adorned in the garments of knowledge and piety. … When that lover of the Beauty of the All-Glorious heard the melody of the Friend of the All-Merciful, he drove him away and took refuge in God's protection. Thus was he preserved and safeguarded from the evil of Satan and his deception.

Therefore, O thou who seekest to behold the countenance of the Chosen Beauty, become as Abraham, the Friend of God in his sacrifice, and freely give thy life like Ishmael, that thou mayest find the gates of bounty opened from every direction and behold the favors of the King of Oneness like a brilliant light.

In the recitation of the Surah of the Poets there is a lesson for those who read: When Moses (peace be upon Him) found the burden heavy, He addressed the Lord saying: "Send for Aaron. And they hold a charge of crime against me, so I fear they may slay me." And Pharaoh said: "Did we not cherish thee as a child among us, and didst thou not stay among us for years of thy life? And thou didst that deed which thou didst, and thou art of the ungrateful!" He said: "I did it when I was astray. So I fled from you when I feared you; but my Lord granted me wisdom and made me one of the Messengers."

Until Moses abandoned his flock, he heard not the divine call from the fire kindled in the tree of Sinai. Praise be to God that, despite having a flock, thou didst hear that merciful call from the blessed human tree.

They say Moses was a child. They told Pharaoh "This is from the Children of Israel, from the newly born infants." He said "Bring him to me that I may see." They brought Moses. He said "hot" instead of "date" and put a piece of burning coal in his mouth. Pharaoh said "Leave him alone, he cannot distinguish between 'date' and 'hot'." Moses' tongue was burned, and from the burning of his tongue he became the One Who Spoke with God.

Because Moses as a babe chose the fire and had his tongue burned, therefore in after life God endowed his mouth with great eloquence. Had not Joseph been sold as a slave never would he have become the mighty ruler of Egypt.

The journey of the Israelites was both physical and spiritual. They journeyed to the Promised Land, and geography and history both prove that this was a physical journey. Moses viewed the Promised Land, but died before it was reached, having given over his charge to Joshua.

That cow was indeed a person who was highly respected, esteemed and honored among the Children of Israel. However, since that sanctified soul opposed the Cause of God, they were commanded to sacrifice it, so that the sacred Cause of God might live. To sacrifice means to cease following that person - the intention of sacrifice is to abandon following him.

O fish of the boundless sea! When His Holiness Jonah, peace be upon him, became the companion within the whale of natures and elements, and was afflicted in the darkness of the sea of contingent existence - that is, he became separated from the realm of the Kingdom of existence which is the lights of the placeless realm, and came to exist in the realm of place - therefore the reality of Dhun-Nun was his distinctive essence, and the whale was his elemental body and human temple and his outward reality, and the sea was the contingent world and the dark conditions of existence.

O servant of God! His Holiness Jonah, He of the Fish, became captive in the belly of the whale of contingent existence, but afterwards found deliverance and salvation.

O thou who followest Noah the Carpenter! O carpenter! Thou art of the same craft and profession as His Holiness Noah. He built the ark of salvation and played the game of service at the Sacred Threshold. He protected a company of souls from the Most Great Flood and preserved them from destruction.

It is said that God addressed Moses, saying "O Moses! Call upon Me and pray with a tongue that has not sinned." Moses replied, "O Lord! Where can I find such a tongue? My tongue is the essence of error. How then can such a tongue be possible?" The reply came from the Court of Glory: "O Moses! Act in such a way that others pray for you, for you have committed no error with the tongues of others. Therefore this tongue is pure and free from error."

O friends of God! It is mentioned in the glorious Gospel that one day a group of Jews came to the holy presence of His Holiness the Spirit of God (Christ) and had a coin in their hand. They asked to whom they should submit this coin, meaning to whom should they pay tribute and tax. He asked what was engraved on the coin. They said the name of Caesar. He said render unto God what is God's and unto Caesar what is Caesar's.

They relate that when His Holiness, the Chief of Those Who Prostrate and the Leader of Those Drawn Nigh (peace be upon him), was brought to Damascus as a captive in chains, someone approached and asked whether, if a mosquito were to alight upon his cloak and be killed when brushed away, prayer would be permissible in a garment stained with mosquito blood. That illustrious one replied: "Glory be to God! They slay Hussein yet inquire about the blood of a mosquito!"

In this desert, for many years, His Holiness Christ uttered: 'Here am I, O My God, here am I', and in this wilderness for several centuries the Prophets and the chosen ones associated together. The fragrance of their remembrance hath perfumed the mountains and the field, and their quickening breezes have imbued the desert and the sea with new life.

His Holiness Christ, used to walk most of the nights when in the region of this lake. He was all alone, thinking of the illumination of the world of humanity. He did not rest for one moment. He was not at liberty for even one day. He spent his days as a wanderer, and was shelterless in these deserts and mountains.

The place where he called the disciples to enter the Kingdom of God is in this region. They were engaged in fishing. His Holiness Christ, used to walk alone on the shore. When he saw the signs of acceptance in their faces, he said, 'Come, so that I may make you the fishers of men,' and they at once left everything and followed that Light personified!

God be exalted! Always, in the beginning of the Cause, common souls, who in the estimation of the people, were of no importance whatever, have advanced to the divine Manifestation. For example, these fishermen believed in His Holiness Christ. In the Koran it is revealed that the ignorant of the people would say to His Holiness the Messenger (Mohammed), 'None have followed thee except the most degraded of the people; the learned sages, the nobles and the high class count thee as a fool.'

However, it cannot be said of this Cause, for everyone testifies that all of the learned philosophers and nobles of every nation were humble in the presence of the Blessed Beauty, and great numbers of these became believers.

We desired to console and comfort him who was named 'Ali and who was with him during the days and nights. It behooveth Us to mention what befell Muhammad, the Apostle of God, aforetime. When his sons Qasim and Ibrahim ascended unto God, the deniers arose in derision and mockery. Thereupon Gabriel came from his Lord, the Glorious, and recited this blessed verse: "Wealth and children are an ornament of the life of this world. But the good deeds which endure are better in thy Lord's sight for reward, and better in respect of hope."

Peter, who was the focal point of the saints and source of the righteous, in the time of Jesus (may my soul be a sacrifice for Him), thrice denied Him on the night He was delivered up. And the Lord Himself had told him the night before that "thou shalt deny Me thrice before the cock crow." And after the denial and the crowing of the cock, the words of the Lord came to his mind, whereupon he immediately cried out and lamented until God forgave him and made him one of those near unto Him.

They relate that Fadil of Khurasan was among the most wretched of servants, and that he would waylay travellers. He fell in love with a maidservant, and came to her one night and climbed the wall. Thereupon he heard someone reciting this verse: "Hath not the time come for them that believe, that their hearts should be humbled for the remembrance of God?" It smote his heart, and he cried out: "Yea, O my Lord! The time hath come, and it is now!" Then he returned, repented, and set out for the Sacred House of God; and he abode there thirty years, until his spirit ascended unto the most lofty horizon. How strange! He heard the Word of God from the tongue of one of His servants, and it fell with such power upon him that, in one instant, he turned from the abyss of earthly existence unto the horizon of the All-Merciful.

A few words are written - pay complete attention and look carefully so you may understand the purpose, which is this: Until Joseph the Truthful was confined in the well, he did not reach the throne of glory in divine Egypt. When he emerged from the depths of the well, he reached the heights of the moon.

When the brothers of Joseph cast him into the well and sold him for a paltry price of a few dirhams, they came to their father in the evening weeping and wailing. This is why He says "and they came to their father in the evening weeping."

Consider how when Joseph's cruel brothers burned with the fire of envy, they cast him into a deep well and sold him for a paltry price of a few dirhams. But the divine gaze of favor brought him out from the depths of the well and raised him to the heights of the moon. He became the beloved of spiritual Egypt and prince of the divine realm.

O my spiritual friend! Joseph of Canaan attained the throne of Egypt and became most honoured in that land, but this honour and dignity was a consequence of his suffering in prison and the result of his oppression in a darkened pit.

O Jacob, though to outward seeming Joseph of Canaan was cast into a pit, yet he ascended and soared to the eternal Kingdom, and established himself at the zenith of the moon. He caused His friends to shine bright as the celestial sun and the morning star in the horizon of the All-Merciful, while consigning His enemies, like earthly insects, to the depths of darkness.

O thou who hast approached the Kingdom of God and hast looked toward the Center of the Covenant!

Verily, thy namesake, the faithful Joseph, fell surely into grievous distress through the jealousy of his brethren, who dishonored him; nay, outraged him, and cast him behind their backs and threw him in a dark well; they sold him for a paltry price—for a few pence—returning to their father at eve weeping, and, with his shirt stained with false blood, they slandered the wolf who was free from blame.

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O Joseph the Truthful! The story of Joseph has returned in the person of 'Abdu'l-Baha, whom the people of cruelty have cast into the dark well. But soon the messenger of eternity shall come and lower the bucket of faithfulness and cry out: "O glad tidings! This is the youth of Baha!"

The brothers of Joseph at first reproached and blamed him and cast him into the well, but when they finally saw Joseph as the governor of Egypt, they said "Verily, God has chosen you from among us and bestowed greatness upon you." Your family will ultimately say the same.

Therefore give thanks to the Lord of Command that He granted you true brotherhood and did not cast you like the brothers of Joseph of Canaan into the well of envy, did not make you venture upon great injustice, and you did not sell that divine Moon of Egypt for a paltry price, did not tear your collars, and did not come weeping before the father. Glory be to God! Having cast that wronged Joseph into the well and sold him for a few dirhams, they still began crying like the oppressed ones.

When Joseph saw his envious brothers and obstinate kinsmen heedless and indolent, he presented himself in the Egyptian marketplace, so that in his wandering he might demolish the foundation of estrangement and raise high the banner of unity.

When the sight of His Holiness Jacob became inflamed, his sense of smell took the place of sight. "Indeed I sense the fragrance of Joseph" he declared from a thousand leagues away. But the bearer of good tidings, lacking insight, could not smell the fragrance of the garment. Had he illumined the eye of insight with the beauty of Joseph, he surely would have detected the fragrance of the kind beloved from a thousand leagues away.

The Egyptian carrier of glad-tidings was the bearer of the garment of Joseph, yet he could not inhale the fragrance of the garment. His holiness Jacob, in Canaan, longed for meeting (Joseph), yet he was near and inhaled the fragrance of the garment.

When the women of Egypt beheld the beauty of Joseph, they cut their fingers in their amazement and said "This is not a mortal, this is none other than a noble angel." Likewise will the heedless souls soon awaken and become conscious, and utter words of praise for the friends and handmaidens of the All-Merciful, and envy their servitude and yearn to serve them, and proclaim "By God, truly God has preferred you above us."

O thou servant of the Ancient Beauty! When Josephâ€"peace be upon himâ€"unveiled his bright countenance in the Egypt of beauty, he set ablaze the souls of a myriad buyers. Now the Joseph of the celestial Canaan, the ruler of the Egypt of the spirit, with a face radiant as the sun and a beauty far above the praise and description of such as are endued with understanding, hath rent asunder the veils and emerged resplendent in the midmost heart of the world.

When crowds of customers approached, some who were true seekers pressed forward to relinquish pure pearls and regal gems in exchange for His divine goods. Others offered no more than skeins of yarn but though this was a paltry bargain it was their all, whilst there were those, alas, who turned away their gaze from Him in scorn, rejected all He offered and strove to extinguish His light.

O beloved and kind friend! The True Beloved and Divine Joseph unveiled His face and appeared in the Egypt of the All-Merciful. Some, like an old crone, sought Him with a skein of yarn; some, like Zulaykha, yearned for union with the Beloved, sacrificing life and wealth and honor and name and reason and understanding; and some, like Jacob, had their eyes illumined by the fragrance of His garment.

O servant of the Most Glorious Beauty! Joseph of Egypt appeared in the marketplace, and Zulaykha, though a stranger, became familiar with him and rent her garment in her love for him. But his own brothers, though familiar with him, rent his garment and stained it with blood and cast him into a well, and sold him for a paltry price of a few pieces of silver.

His Holiness Jacob became so intoxicated by the fragrance of the divine Joseph's garment that he rushed dancing to the field of sacrifice.

O thou whose heart is distracted by the Friend's tresses! The tumult of the world ariseth from the curling locks of the Beloved, and the quaking of the nations from the power of the revelation of the Lord.

When the beauty of the All-Merciful Joseph appeareth in the marketplace of Canaan, surely there shall be commotion in the Egypt of God, and a hundred thousand aging mystics and a hundred thousand chaste and virtuous Zulaykhas shall be captured in the realm of ecstasy.

O true and discerning leaf! Although Layla possessed beauty of countenance, she was not a manifestation of divine guidance. The essence of beauty and the reality of sweetness is the light of faith, which constitutes the true grace and beauty of humankind.

The seeing sage observes in a tiny drop of water the beauty and perfection of "Blessed be God, the best of creators," and the informed seer, when casting pure seed in the expanse of soil, perceives in the humble grain the sign of matchless flowers and hyacinths. Although outwardly Joseph the Truthful's abode was the bottom of a well, in reality it was the height of the moon. Although Abraham's dwelling place was in the midst of the blazing fire, that fire became a rose garden and flower bed. Although the disbelieving Herod cast the blessed head of the Lord of Restraint upon the dust of abasement, it raised its head from the heavens of glory.

One night when he was away from home he had had an alarming dream of his little daughter. She had come to him, sat on his knee and complained that her head ached. Rapidly she grew worse. They sent for the doctor. The father knew in his dream that she was hopelessly ill and felt the most acute anguish. Then he saw her die.

In Baghdad, whenever Sheikh Abdul-Hussein, the mujtahid, found opportunity, he would secretly make insinuations, but the Blessed Beauty would respond to them. Among his insinuations was this: One night he told his confidants that he had seen in a dream the King of Iran seated beneath a dome, saying to him, "Honored Sheikh, rest assured that my sword shall utterly uproot the Baha'is." And upon that dome was written the Verse of the Throne in English script.

The Blessed Beauty sent word through Zaynu'l-'Abidin Khan Fakhru'd-Dawlih that this was indeed a true dream, for the Verse of the Throne was the same Verse of the Throne, even though written in English script--meaning that this Baha'i Cause is the same divine Cause of Islam, though the script has changed, meaning the words have changed while the same truth and meaning remain. As for that dome, it is this Cause of God which encompasses and prevails over the king, and the king is under its shadow, and it shall surely triumph.

One of the Babis had a vision in which he saw a passage from the Qur'an written in English upon an arch beneath which sat the Shah. He reported this vision to friends, through whom it reached the ears of the Shah, the same monarch through whose cruelty so many of the believers had been imprisoned or martyred.

The Shah, upon hearing of the vision, became very angry, declaring that the English writing indicated some design on the part of the Babis, whom he would utterly destroy. But the Babi replied, 'That this inscription was written in English imports nothing; but its place is significant. So high above the Shah's head is the Power of God that he is powerless to reach it.'

I dreamed a dream and behold, the Blessed Beauty (Baha'u'llah) came and said to Me: `Destroy this room.'

Last night something very curious happened. Long after midnight I got out of my bed and was on the point of calling Sayad Assadollah (his room is next to the Master) when suddenly I heard him say "Bale', "Aga" - yes, Master. I thought it was very strange that he did answer before my calling him, so I waited till he comes. No! he was not coming. I was going to call him again when I heard "Bale' Aga". I said this time he will surely come. No sign of Sayad Assadollah!

By this time I was amused and I started to laugh. The third and the fourth time I was going to call him. The answer was heard before I opened my mouth. Finally he did not come. It seemed that he was dreaming. The repeated answers of "Bale' Aga" were uttered in a dream state.

As for your dream about Ya'qub - "I want Ya'qub for Ya'qub" - its interpretation is that, God willing, a day will come when I will find you like Elijah, a herald to the Kingdom of God.

This is what We saw in a dream, and We recount it truthfully that it may be a remembrance for all the peoples of the world.

We were walking in the House on a pitch-dark night. At times We gazed upon the Most Great Scene, and at other times I contemplated the pearls of nightly discourse, and at times the unique gems of destiny, and yet again I spoke to it of the lessons that had befallen Me, until the dawn broke forth with a smile. Then slumber overtook Me, and I reclined upon a pillow for but a brief moment.

In the Name of God, the Most Exalted, the Most High!

The remembrance of God in the City of Patience concerning His servant Job, when We sheltered him beneath the sacred Tree in his heart and caused him to witness the Fire that was kindled and shone within his inmost being. We revealed Ourself to him through his own self, and called unto him from that Spot of God round about which blessing hath been vouchsafed, saying: "Verily, He is God, thy Lord and the Lord of all things, and He is, in truth, powerful over all things, the Self-Subsisting." When his countenance was illumined by the Fire that burned within him, We clothed him with the garment of Prophethood and commanded him to summon the people to the Fountainhead of grace and bounty, and to call them to the shore of sanctified love. We established him in the earth and rained upon him the showers of bounty, and made him rich above all who dwell on earth. We bestowed upon him abundance of wealth and made him prosperous in the realm, and provided him with a portion of all things. We strengthened his arm with a company endued with power, and granted him sons of his own loins, and established him in an exalted station in the land.

For successive years he dwelt among his people, counseling them with the jewels of hidden knowledge wherewith We had taught him, and reminding them of the days that were destined to come. He said: "O people! The oceans of knowledge have surged within the Self of God, Who standeth for justice - hasten ye thereunto that ye might find a way unto them. The Sun of loving-kindness hath truly risen and now standeth at its noontide height. The Beauty of the Divine Countenance hath appeared from behind the holy pavilions - present yourselves before Him that ye might be illumined by His beloved sanctified lights. The heavens of grandeur have been raised up and adorned with the stars of knowledge and wisdom - thus hath the Cause dawned from the holy horizon.

"O people! Messengers came unto you aforetime with God's messages and delivered unto you that which would guide you to the shore of exalted glory. The Hours have come in truth, the Lights have shone forth in justice, the Bird of Eternity hath warbled, the Dove of the Cause hath cooed, the clouds of Light have been upraised, the seas of grace have surged, yet ye, O peoples of the earth, have been deprived of all these things. Fear ye God, and spread not corruption in God's land of wisdom, but hearken unto the Word which hath descended from the heaven of nearness."

Thus did We counsel Our servants through the tongue of the Messengers from the beginning that hath no beginning unto the end that hath no end. Yet all turned away from God's counsel and retraced their steps, save those whom Our loving-kindness had preceded, who heard God's call from behind the veils of hidden glory, who answered God's summons with their inner and outer beings, and who were attracted by the melodies of the Beloved. These attained unto the stations of guidance - upon them be God's blessings and mercy. God granted them that which none knoweth and brought them to a station that was hidden from the eyes of all created things.

God shall soon manifest His Cause and separate truth from falsehood, raise up the banners of guidance and utterly demolish all traces of the idolaters. He shall cause His servants to inherit the earth - they who have detached themselves unto God and have not drunk the love of the Calf in their hearts, who have turned away from those who disbelieved and associated partners with God after clear proofs had come unto them from every direction. Thus hath the decree been inscribed by the Finger of Glory upon the Tablets of Light.

Remember Our servant Job, when he appeared with the banners of wealth in the realm, and his people envied him and slandered him in their gatherings, and thus were their deeds preserved in the hidden scrolls. They imagined that he called upon God because of the ornaments of the world bestowed upon him, though he was sanctified above their imaginings and certitudes and above all in the realm together. When We desired to manifest the signs of truth in his detachment and his reliance upon God, We sent afflictions upon him from all directions and tried him with trials. We took from him his sons and cut off from him the bounty We had bestowed upon him in truth, and We took from him each day something known. Not a day passed except that there descended upon him from the direction of fate what was inscribed by the Pen of Decree. Misfortune and hardship seized him according to what was ordained by the Mighty, the Self-Subsisting. Then We burned what was harvested from his fields by the hands of the angels of command and made it all as scattered dust. When We had sanctified him from the ornaments of the realm and purified him from the filth of earth and cleansed him from all worldly conditions, We caused a scorching wind from the angels of wrath to blow upon his skin. Thereby his body weakened, his form was afflicted, and his members trembled to such extent that no part of his body larger than a dirham remained unwounded. Yet each day he increased in thankfulness, and he was patient at all times and did not lament what befell him. Thus did We account him among the trusting ones, the thankful ones, and the patient ones.

His people drove him from the village wherein he dwelt, showing no shame before God their Creator, and they harmed him according to their power, and We found him oppressed in the earth. The gates of wealth were closed in his face and the gates of poverty were opened, until days passed and he found nothing with which to satisfy his hunger, and thus was the matter decreed for him. There remained for him neither companion nor friend nor associate, and he became solitary in the realm save for his wife who believed in her Lord and served him in his tribulation, and We made her a means for him in all matters. When his companion found him in that grievous state, she went to his people and asked of them a loaf of bread, but these embodiments of tyranny would not give it to her, and thus did We record all things in a clear book. When she was driven to extremity in her need, she went to one who was among the most evil of women on earth, who refused to give her a loaf until she took from her what she desired--and by God, the Pen is ashamed to mention it, and God was witness to their deeds. She came to the servant with a loaf, and when he looked upon her he found her hair cut off. Then did he cry out in his heart, and thereby the heavens and earth cried out, and he said: "O handmaiden of God! I perceive in thee a matter forbidden to the truth. Why didst thou cut thy hair which God made the ornament of thy beauty?" She said: "O Job! Whenever I asked thy people for a loaf for thy sake, they all refused, until I entered the house of a handmaiden among the handmaidens of God and asked her for a loaf. She denied me until she took my hair and gave me this loaf which I have brought before thee. Thus did she transgress against God and show pride toward Him, and thus was the matter decreed between me and her. O Job! Forgive me."

O Job! Pardon me and take me not to task for my sin, for I was helpless in Thy Cause. Have mercy upon me and forgive me, for Thou art verily compassionate and forgiving. And that which was decreed between them was decreed, and grief arose to such degree that the heavens were nigh to being cleft asunder, the earth of forbearance to be rent, and the mountain of patience to crumble. Then he laid his face upon the dust and said: "O Lord! Affliction hath touched me from all sides, and Thou art He Whose mercy hath preceded all things. Have mercy upon me through Thy bounty and bestow upon me through Thy grace, for Thou art ever merciful unto Thy servants." When We heard his cry, We caused to flow beneath his right foot a spring of sweet, refreshing water, and We commanded him to immerse himself therein and drink therefrom. When he drank, he was healed of all ailments and appeared in the most excellent form. And We restored unto him all that We had taken from him, and more besides, such that We rained down upon him from the heaven of bounty that which enriched him above all who dwell on earth. We solaced his eyes through his family and fulfilled for him what We had promised to the patient ones in the preserved tablets of holiness. We set aright all his affairs and strengthened him with the arm of the Cause which was mighty in truth. Through him We exalted the lowly and destroyed those who had waxed proud before God and were wretched upon the earth. Thus do We do what We will by Our command, and fulfill the reward of the patient ones, and bestow upon them from the treasuries of holiness an abundant recompense.

O concourse of earth! Be patient in God and grieve not for that which befalleth you in the days of the Spirit, for ere long shall ye witness the reward of the patient ones in a holy and inaccessible Paradise. God hath created a garden in the precincts of eternity and named it Patience, a name which until that day had been treasured in the repositories of infallibility. Therein hath He ordained that which He hath ordained in no other paradise, and We have now unveiled its covering and mentioned it unto you as a mercy from Us unto all the worlds. Therein are rivers of the shade of God's loving-kindness, which God hath forbidden unto all save those who have shown patience in tribulations, seeking the face of God, Who is in truth praiseworthy. None shall enter therein save those who have not altered God's favor unto themselves, who have entered beneath the shadow of the Tree of the Spirit, who have feared no one, and who have soared on the wings of glory in the atmosphere of patience. They have shown patience in afflictions, and the more tribulations increased upon their souls, the more did they grow in their love for their Lord. They turned with their whole being toward a holy and exalted direction, the ardor of longing grew intense in their breasts, and the breezes of spiritual taste increased in their souls, until they sacrificed themselves and gave up their possessions and spent all that God had bestowed upon them through His grace and bounty. And in all these severe conditions they remained thankful to their Lord and sought no one's help. God hath inscribed their names among the patient ones in the preserved tablets of holiness.

Blessed then is he who is adorned with the robe of patience and steadfastness, who changeth not in adversity, whose feet slip not at the blowing of the winds of force, who is content with his Lord at all times and in Him ever trusteth. By God! He shall soon cause him to appear in the pavilions of grandeur, attired in a luminous garment that shall shine as shineth the light from the horizon of the Spirit, in such wise as to dazzle all eyes that behold it. And above his head shall the herald of God proclaim: "This is he who showed patience in God during the vain life of this world despite all that the idolaters wrought against him." The denizens of the highest paradise shall seek his blessing, and the dwellers of the chambers and the chaste-eyed damsels in the tabernacles of beauty shall yearn for his presence.

Reflect upon his holiness Job: What trials, calamities and perplexities did he not endure! But these tests were like unto the fire and his holiness Job was like unto pure gold.

O thou who hast turned thy face unto God!

His Holiness Job endured diseases, ailments and great affliction until he plunged into the healing spring and was cured of his incurable malady.

Although this affliction is among the greatest calamities and severest tribulations, and in truth the entire gathering of divine unity has fallen into intense grief - even the maidens of virtue wept in their chambers of purity and the lamentations of mourning arose from all the secluded ones in the sanctuary of eternity, and this indeed is a tremendous sorrow - yet since the descent of this greatest calamity is assuredly based on the Most Great Wisdom, consider that the Holy Prophet (may the spirit of the worlds be sacrificed for Him) had one noble child named Ibrahim.

When, by the irrevocable divine decree and the destined ordinance of the Lord, he passed away, the people of the sanctuary began to wail and lament that this luminous jewel was an only child, and the hearts of young and old were clouded with sorrow at the setting and disappearance of this radiant star from the horizon of truth.

Noah endured nine hundred and fifty years of tribulation; thou must at least bear a tenth of a tenth thereof. And Noah's lamentation reached such a degree that he was named "Noah" (the wailer).

I will tell you a story:--

A certain ruler wished to appoint one of his subjects to a high office; so, in order to train him, the ruler cast him into prison and caused him to suffer much. The man was surprised at this, for he expected great favors. The ruler had him taken from prison and beaten with sticks. This greatly astonished the man, for he thought the ruler loved him. After this he was hanged on the gallows until he was nearly dead. After he recovered he asked the ruler, "If you love me, why did you do these things?" The ruler replied: "I wish to make you prime minister. By having gone through these ordeals you are better fitted for that office. I wish you to know how it is yourself. When you are obliged to punish, you will know how it feels to endure these things. I love you so I wish you to become perfect."

Buddha had disciples and he wished to send them out into the world to teach, so he asked them questions to see if they were prepared as he would have them be. "When you go to the East and to the West," said the Buddha, "and the people shut their doors to you and refuse to speak to you, what will you do?" - The disciples answered and said: "We shall be very thankful that they do us no harm." - "Then if they do you harm and mock, what will you do?" - "We shall be very thankful that they do not give us worse treatment." - "If they throw you into prison?" - "We shall still be grateful that they do not kill us." - "What if they were to kill you?" the Master asked for the last time. "Still," answered the disciples, "we will be thankful, for they cause us to be martyrs. What more glorious fate is there than this, to die for the glory of God?" And the Buddha said: "Well done!"

O Rustam! Your namesake became a world-conqueror through the power of the sword, but that world conquest ended in imprisonment in a deep pit, and he bid farewell to this world, for an unkind brother rose up with utmost hatred and enmity and caused his death and passing. Neither empire-building nor world conquest remained - it was a dream that passed, an illusion that vanished.

O servant of Baha! Rustam had a brother who was full of tyranny and oppression. He joined with his brother's enemies and set his heart on deceit and trickery, until he cast that fortunate one from the throne into a harsh pit, and himself fell into misfortune and destruction.

O Rustam, though Dastan's mighty son was a lion-tamer, yet through physical might his desire was not attained, for in the end a pit became his resting place.

O merciful Rustam! Though Tahmtan was mighty-limbed and the champion of every gathering, yet he was wounded by Sohrab's mighty mace and fell into a perilous pit through his brother's treachery.

O Rustam, strong of body as an elephant, who was powerful as the demon-binding hero - he overthrew the foundation of brave men. You, through divine power, overthrow the evil ones like the grandson of Nariman, so that you may become like Tahmtan, the army-breaking sovereign and the knight of the battlefield against Ahriman.

They say that Isfandiyar was invulnerable, fighting against the mighty warrior. Sword and axe had no effect upon him, and arrow and shaft could not penetrate. But his eye, which is the light of spirit and soul, was wounded and afflicted by a gentle arrow.

O thou who art nurtured by loving-kindness! They say that Isfandiyar was invulnerable, such is people's tradition, and yet despite this they say he could not withstand the arrow of Tahmtan - he was blinded in both eyes and gave up his soul.

Had Farud confined his hope to the All-Loving Lord, he would surely have attained a praiseworthy station. But he placed hope in the obstinate Tus, and thus became disappointed.

Never can the jackal with dyed fur display the radiance of the heavenly peacock, nor can the fox with its howl produce the roar of the lion of paradise. Though the sand grouse may learn the call of the hoopoe, where is the hoopoe's secret and the message from Saba?

The mountain is large, but it has no intelligence. The diamond is small, but it is filled with light. The elephant produces no melody; the nightingale's song is like the music of Heaven.

The hoopoe was one who Solomon sent as a messenger and who achieved the highest degree of fame. It was a weak bird but became like the mighty Simurgh with magnificent wings.

O melodious visitor! Remember those days when we were gathered together like a flock of birds, and that melodious bird would chant the Tablets and verses with the most wondrous melodies, and we would all move toward the Holy Shrine in complete humility and supplication, lowly and submissive. And on the way you would intone the blessed poems with marvelous melodies and adorn ears with their precious meanings.

One effulgence from the Sun of detachment fell upon the kings; they passed beyond self and other and laid their heads in the wilderness. Among them was Nu'man, upon whom shone [one night] the Sun of the Word rising from the dayspring of detachment. He became thoughtful and bewildered, and when he emerged from the stupor of wonderment, he addressed himself to himself, saying: 'What use are all these treasures and ornaments thou hast gathered, which tomorrow another shall possess, and another shall sit upon thy throne?' In an instant the wine of detachment so attracted him that it brought him to a station where he passed beyond treasuries and riches, crown and throne, and all the means of pomp and sovereignty, and that very night he left his house and turned toward the wilderness. When morning came and the nobles were present, they found the throne of kingship without its king. However much they searched, they found no trace of him.

He proceeded until He reached the concealing veil, and there at His feet He beheld a child that had removed itself from its mother's breast. And this infant clung to the hem of His robe so earnestly and besought Him in such piteous tones to stay, that the dust of sorrow shrouded the face of every perceiving soul and the winds of anguish blew upon the entire creation.

[Abdul Baha's meeting with the children in the homes of Mr. and Mrs. A.P. Dodge, 261 W. 139th. St. New York city.

The Bahai mothers and children were gathered in the afternoon of April 16th. 1919 to meet Adbul Baha. The parents and invited Friends formed a circle seated in the back-ground, and the children sat on the floor in front of them, an aisle being made for Abdul Baha. He entered, and bending over the children laid the hand of blessing upon the head of each one as He passed along- Two little colored children were in the group to receive the beautiful blessing- As He passed along He placed His hand under the chin of one little boy and said:- "Laugh! Laugh!" Then He spoke in the following words.]

These are blessed children. They are very illumined. In their faces the rays of the Love of God can be seen. I pray in their behalf- His Highness Christ said, these are the children of the Kingdom. Their hearts are like pure mirrors. They are in utmost cleanliness. When the hearts of the grown people become as pure then the Kingdom of God will come on earth. Children in their childhood are beloved because of the purity of their hearts. I Pray for them. You too must pray for their assistance, so that each of them shall become pure plants, and be watered by the downpour of Mercy, and may bring forth blessed fruits.

O valiant lion! The renowned Ardashir renewed the sovereignty of Iran, but he was bloodthirsty and warlike. However, the lions of the divine jungle do not take life - they bestow life. They do not shed blood - they scatter musk and ambergris. They do not seek strife or contention - they pour forth refined sugar. Therefore, adopt thou the way of these pure ones and become one of the free.