Afflication

Month, Day: 181, Speech, Will (Majesty)

 ‘The Tabernacle of Unity, Bahá’u’lláh’s Responses to Mánikchí Sáhib and Other Writings’

Lawḥ-i-Maqṣúd (Tablet of Maqṣúd): 

• O God, my God! I testify to Thy unity and to Thy oneness. I beseech Thee, O Thou Possessor of names and Fashioner of the heavens, by the pervasive influence of Thine exalted Word and the potency of Thy supreme Pen, to aid me with the ensigns of Thy power and might, and to protect me from the mischief of Thine enemies who have violated Thy Covenant and Thy Testament. Thou art, verily, the Almighty, the Most Powerful.

Remarks: 12/05/2024

12/05/2024 --    

Learning and Wisdom

Month, Day: 181, Speech, Will (Perfection) 

Lawḥ-i-Maqṣúd (Tablet of Maqṣúd): 

• The Great Being saith: The man of consummate learning and the sage endowed with penetrating wisdom are the two eyes to the body of mankind. God willing, the earth shall never be deprived of these two greatest gifts. That which hath been set forth and will be revealed in the future is but a token of this Servant’s ardent desire to dedicate Himself to the service of all the kindreds of the earth.

Remarks: 12/02/2024

12/02/2024 --   

Queen Victoria

Month, Day: 181, Power, Names (Perfection) 

Proclamation of Baha'u'llah: 

•  O QUEEN in London! ... We have been informed that thou hast forbidden the trading in slaves, both men and women. This, verily, is what God hath enjoined in this wondrous Revelation. God hath, truly, destined a reward for thee, because of this.

The Guardian attended Oxford as one example of many. 

Remarks: 11/11/2024

11/11/2024 --   

Leniency and forebearance

Month, Day: 181, Knowledge, Grandeur (Majesty) 

Lawḥ-i-Maqṣúd 

Therefore an enlightened man of wisdom should primarily speak with words as mild as milk, that the children of men may be nurtured and edified thereby and may attain the ultimate goal of human existence which is the station of true understanding and nobility. And likewise He saith: One word is like unto springtime causing the tender saplings of the rose-garden of knowledge to become verdant and flourishing, while another word is even as a deadly poison. It behooveth a prudent man of wisdom to speak with utmost leniency and forbearance so that the sweetness of his words may induce everyone to attain that which befitteth man’s station.

Remarks: 10/29/2024

10/29/2024 --   

Honour of Will

 Month, Day: 181, Will, Honour (Independence) 

Lawḥ-i-Ḥikmat (Tablet of Wisdom) 

For every land We have prescribed a portion, for every occasion an allotted share, for every pronouncement an appointed time and for every situation an apt remark. Consider Greece. We made it a Seat of Wisdom for a prolonged period. However, when the appointed hour struck, its throne was subverted, its tongue ceased to speak, its light grew dim and its banner was hauled down. Thus do We bestow and withdraw. Verily thy Lord is He Who giveth and divesteth, the Mighty, the Powerful.

In every land We have set up a luminary of knowledge, and when the time foreordained is at hand, it will shine resplendent above its horizon, as decreed by God, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. If it be Our Will We are fully capable of describing for thee whatever existeth in every land or hath come to pass therein. Indeed the knowledge of thy Lord pervadeth the heavens and the earth.

Remarks: 10/10/2024

10/10/2024 --  

Sages of the west

Month, Day: 181, Might, Speech (Independence) 

Lawḥ-i-Ḥikmat (Tablet of Wisdom) 

Now We have, for the sake of God, the Lord of Names, set Ourself the task of mentioning in this Tablet some accounts of the sages,² that the eyes of the people may be opened thereby and that they may become fully assured that He is in truth the Maker, the Omnipotent, the Creator, the Originator, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.  

Note: 2

In many of the passages that follow concerning the Greek philosophers, Bahá’u’lláh quotes verbatim from the works of such Muslim historians as Abu’l-Fatḥ-i-Sháhristání (1076–1153 A.D.) and Imádu’d-Dín Abu’l-Fidá (1273–1331 A.D.).    

Remarks: 09/20/2024

09/20/2024 --  

Nature, embodiment

Month, Day: 181, Might, Light (Justice) 

Lawḥ-i-Ḥikmat (Tablet of Wisdom) 

 Say: Nature in its essence is the embodiment of My Name, the Maker, the Creator. Its manifestations are diversified by varying causes, and in this diversity there are signs for men of discernment. Nature is God’s Will and is its expression in and through the contingent world. It is a dispensation of Providence ordained by the Ordainer, the All-Wise. Were anyone to affirm that it is the Will of God as manifested in the world of being, no one should question this assertion. It is endowed with a power whose reality men of learning fail to grasp. Indeed a man of insight can perceive naught therein save the effulgent splendor of Our Name, the Creator. Say: This is an existence which knoweth no decay, and Nature itself is lost in bewilderment before its revelations, its compelling evidences and its effulgent glory which have encompassed the universe. 

Remarks: 09/11/2024

09/11/2024 --  

True philosopher

Month, Day: 181, Names, Perfection (Perfection) 

Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh revealed after the Kitáb-i-Aqdas (pages 52) 

A true philosopher would never deny God nor His evidences, rather would he acknowledge His glory and overpowering majesty which overshadow all created things. Verily We love those men of knowledge who have brought to light such things as promote the best interests of humanity, and We aided them through the potency of Our behest, for well are We able to achieve Our purpose.   (emphasis mine)

That's almost like the the Apple of the Bab's eye.  

 Remarks: 08/26/2024

08/26/2024 --  

Unique power that bindeth

Month, Day: 181, Names, Grandeur (Majesty) 

Selections from the Writings of `Abdu'l-Bahá (pages 27-28) 

Know thou of a certainty that Love is the secret of God's holy Dispensation, the manifestation of the All-Merciful, the fountain of spiritual outpourings. Love is heaven's kindly light, the Holy Spirit's eternal breath that vivifieth the human soul. Love is the cause of God's revelation unto man, the vital bond inherent, in accordance with the divine creation, in the realities of things. Love is the one means that ensureth true felicity both in this world and the next. Love is the light that guideth in darkness, the living link that uniteth God with man, that assureth the progress of every illumined soul. Love is the most great law that ruleth this mighty and heavenly cycle, the unique power that bindeth together the divers elements of this material world, the supreme magnetic force that directeth the movements of the spheres in the celestial realms. Love revealeth with unfailing and limitless power the mysteries latent in the universe. Love is the spirit of life unto the adorned body of mankind, the establisher of true civilization in this mortal world, and the shedder of imperishable glory upon every high-aiming race and nation.

And, economics: Economy is the foundation of human prosperity (requires logging into FB).   

Remarks: 09/11/2024

09/11/2024 --  Removed the image which comes from FB. 

Exaltation

Month, Day: 181, Perfection, Questions (Justice) 

SAQ (The Difference between Man and Animal) 

This love of transcendence is one of the hallmarks of man. I am astonished that certain philosophers in Europe and America have consented to lower themselves to the animal realm and so to regress, whereas all existence must ever aspire towards exaltation. And yet, were you to call one of them an animal, he would be most hurt and offended.

Remarks: 08/14/2024

08/14/2024 --  

Realm of poverty

Month, Day: 181, Perfection, Light (Glory) 

Hidden Words:

O Son of Passion!

Cleanse thyself from the defilement of riches and in perfect peace advance into the realm of poverty; that from the wellspring of detachment thou mayest quaff the wine of immortal life.

Remarks: 08/04/2024

08/04/2024 --  

Koran, Lokman

Month, Day: 181, Words, Glory (Glory) 

Koran, Rodwell, Lokman:

Seest thou not that God causeth the night to come in upon the day, and the day to come in upon the night? and that he hath subjected the sun and the moon to laws by which each speedeth along to an appointed goal? and that God therefore is acquainted with that which ye do?

Remarks: 07/13/2024

07/13/2024 --  

Knowledge as a state

 Month, Day: 181, Mercy, Splendour (Beauty) 

SAQ #25: 

Moreover, entrance and exit, descent and ascent, are characteristics of bodies and not of spirits—that is to say, sensible realities enter and come forth, but intellectual subtleties and mental realities, such as intelligence, love, knowledge, imagination and thought, do not enter, nor come forth, nor descend, but rather they have direct connection.

For example, knowledge, which is a state attained to by the intelligence, is an intellectual condition; and entering and coming out of the mind are imaginary conditions; but the mind is connected with the acquisition of knowledge, like images reflected in a mirror.

Remarks: 06/23/2024

06/23/2024 --   

Health-Healing-Nutrition-17

Month, Day: 181, Light, Questions (Grace) 

Health, Healing, and Nutrition (#17): 

Regarding the eating of animal flesh and abstinence therefrom, know thou of a certainty that, in the beginning of creation, God determined the food of every living being, and to eat contrary to that determination is not approved. For instance, beasts of prey, such as the wolf, lion and leopard, are endowed with ferocious, tearing instruments, such as hooked talons and claws. From this it is evident that the food of such beasts is meat. If they were to attempt to graze, their teeth would not cut the grass, neither could they chew the cud, for they do not have molars. Likewise, God hath given to the four-footed grazing animals such teeth as reap the grass like a sickle, and from this we understand that the food of these species of animal is vegetable. They cannot chase and hunt down other animals. The falcon hath a hooked beak and sharp talons; the hooked beak preventeth him from grazing, therefore his food also is meat.

     But now coming to man, we see he hath neither hooked teeth nor sharp nails or claws, nor teeth like iron sickles. From this it becometh evident and manifest that the food of man is cereals and fruit. Some of the teeth of man are like millstones to grind the grain, and some are sharp to cut the fruit. Therefore he is not in need of meat, nor is he obliged to eat it. Even without eating meat he would live with the utmost vigour and energy. For example, the community of the Brahmins in India do not eat meat; notwithstanding this they are not inferior to other nations in strength, power, vigour, outward senses or intellectual virtues. Truly, the killing of animals and the eating of their meat is somewhat contrary to pity and compassion, and if one can content oneself with cereals, fruit, oil and nuts, such as pistachios, almonds and so on, it would undoubtedly be better and more pleasing.

Remarks: 06/18/2024

06/18/2024 --   

Mighty and supreme

Month, Day: 181, Light, Beauty (Majesty) 

BWF, pg. 209: 

Oh my Branches! A mighty power and supreme potency is hidden and concealed in the world of being. Focus your gaze upon it and upon the direction of its unity, not upon the differences which are apparent therein.

Is this the appeal of AI or AIn't? Some bits of matter calling for attention? 

Remarks: 06/06/2024

06/06/2024 --   

Cone of relativity

Month, Day: 181, Beauty, Glory (Beauty) 

Cone of relativity
will be seen
when maturity sets in

Remarks: 05/12/2024

05/12/2024 --  

Wings of Angels

Month, Day: 181, Glory, Loftiness (Independence) 

Quoting 'Abdu'l-Baha: 

In relation to God, the term “angels” referreth to the Prophets of God and His Messengers, even as He hath said in the Qurʼán: “Praise be to God, Fashioner of the heavens and the earth, Who sendeth forth the angels as His Messengers with two, or three, or four pairs of wings…” [4] That which the All-Glorious God hath intended by “wings” in this verse are the modes of revelation and the kinds of proofs wherewith He hath sent His Messengers. These “wings” He hath made the means by which men may attain to the Wellspring of divine guidance, and all creation be led aright to the paradise of love and affection. For this, above all else, will conduce to the advancement of the world, and serve as the most potent of wings whereby the pure in heart may soar unto the Paradise of Oneness and the sacred abode of Divine Unity. Thus hath it been referred to as “wings” in the Scriptures of God.

Remarks: 04/26/2024

04/26/2024 --  

Letter from my Beloved

Month, Day: 181, Glory, Perfection (Perfection) 

The Largest Baha'i Facebook Group Ever

Quoting 'Abdu'l-Baha: 

"we must look upon every human being we saw as a letter from the Beloved to us."

 "No matter," said the dear Master, "how blotted, blurred, torn or soiled that letter appears to be, nevertheless, you must look upon it with the eye of reality and say to yourself, this is a letter from my Beloved, therefore, because it is from Him, I must love it with that divine love and overlook all its defects - inasmuch as the Beloved wrote it."

 It must be our love and devotion to God, the Beloved, that gives us a sin covering eye and welcomes all as the children of the One Heavenly Father."

 ~ Corinne True, Star of the West, XIII:10, January 1923, page 284

Remarks: 04/15/2024

04/15/2024 --  

The Beautitudes

Month, Day: 181, Splendour, Will (Glory) 

Beautitudes of Baha'u'llah:  

See Tablets of Baha'u'llah Revealed after the Kitab-i-Aqdas.

Remarks: 03/30/2024

03/30/2024 --  

Operational, again

Month, Day: 180, Loftiness, Names (Glory) 

Sweeping around the bottom in the Operational times. 

Remarks: 03/09/2024

03/09/2024 --  

Word of God

Month, Day: 180, Loftiness, Splendour (Independence) 

Seen, today, on FB, Baha'i Blog post. 

Remarks: 03/01/2024

03/01/2024 --  

Grace and comprehension

Month, Day: 180, Dominion, Glory (Glory) 

Some Answered Questions: 

Know, therefore, that what the people possess and believe to be true is liable to error. For if in proving or disproving a thing a proof drawn from the evidence of the senses is advanced, this criterion is clearly imperfect; if a rational proof is adduced, the same holds true; and likewise if a traditional proof is given. Thus it is clear that man does not possess any criterion of knowledge that can be relied upon.

But the grace of the Holy Spirit is the true criterion regarding which there is no doubt or uncertainty. That grace consists in the confirmations of the Holy Spirit which are vouchsafed to man and through which certitude is attained.

Pertains to several modern dilemmas of which artificial intelligence is one. 

Remarks: 02/08/2024

02/08/2024 --  

Counsel to Treasure

Month, Day: 180, Sovereignty, Glory (Glory) 

Kitáb-i-Aqdas: This is the Counsel of God; would that thou mightest heed it! This is the Bounty of God; would that thou mightest receive it! This is the Utterance of God; if only thou wouldst apprehend it! This is the Treasure of God; if only thou couldst understand!

Remarks: 01/20/2024

01/20/2024 --  

Human utterance

Month, Day: 180, Honour, Glory (Perfection) 

Lawḥ-i-Ḥikmat: Say: Human utterance is an essence which aspireth to exert its influence and needeth moderation. As to its influence, this is conditional upon refinement which in turn is dependent upon hearts which are detached and pure. As to its moderation, this hath to be combined with tact and wisdom as prescribed in the Holy Scriptures and Tablets. 

Remarks: 01/1/2024

01/01/2024 --