Tablets of Abdul-Baha Abbas Part 112

O thou spiritual person and heavenly man-may G.o.d confirm thee!

Know, that the divine springtime hath come with its rains and abundance, with the heat of its sun, the breeze of its life and the scent of its fragrance; and through this universal and great abundance, the land of the holy truth and facts hath moved and brought forth of every kind, good and beautiful fruits. But the barren, wicked land will not bring forth save the thorn of denial, of haughtiness and disdain. Therefore, thank thou G.o.d for He hath made thee a good, fertile land by the clouds of the abundance of G.o.d the Chosen.

Convey my greetings to thy esteemed wife and daughter, who are honored by the people of the Kingdom of Perfection.

"O thou who art esteemed and guarded!..."

O thou who art esteemed and guarded!

Thank G.o.d for that by reason of which thy picture hath come into the court of holiness of perfumed breaths. I supplicate to G.o.d to confirm thee in that which beseemeth this station.

"O thou who art rejoiced by the Appearance of G.o.d!..."

O thou who art rejoiced by the Appearance of G.o.d!

Blessed art thou for that thine eyes were brightened by the light of guidance, thine ears heard the calling of G.o.d from the Supreme Concourse, thine heart was gladdened by the love of G.o.d and attracted unto the Beauty of G.o.d. Verily, by the Lord of Hosts, thou wilt find thyself in the Kingdom surrounded by favors on the part of thy Lord, the Clement, and the angels of mercy will herald to thee glad-tidings which are the greatest gift from the King of Might.

Upon thee be El-Baha and upon thee be praise! O thou who art attracted by the fragrance of G.o.d in this manifest day!

"O thou who art exhilarated by the Wine of the Love of..."

O thou who art exhilarated by the Wine of the Love of G.o.d-young in age and old in soul!

Truly, truly, I say unto thee, thy thanksgiving for my brilliant letter, which was sent thee, caused me to address thee repeatedly with the greatest affection of soul and spirit. By the life of G.o.d! verily, this letter will make thee and thine household [rejoice] throughout the eternity of the eternities, because the tongue of Abdul-Baha is addressing thee from this lofty and sublime threshold of the Blessed Perfection.

I a.s.suredly cast mine eyes on the picture traced by thine hand and smelled the fragrance of the love of G.o.d from its flowers, because it is painted while thine heart hath been overflowing with the love of Baha' and thou hast made it as a token for thy remembrance.

I beg of G.o.d to make thee cut thine heart from this world and whatever is in it, to devote thy life to the service of the maid-servants of G.o.d, to kneel down, wors.h.i.+p and glorify the affectionate Lord, the Exalted, the Lord of angels and spirit!***

The brilliant leaves (i.e., the ladies of the household) who are overshadowed by the protection of Baha', present their greetings and love to thee.

"To the servant of G.o.d!..."

To the servant of G.o.d!

I ask G.o.d to make thee a growing, developing branch in His vineyard, bearing flowers, leaves and fruits, with widespread branches, blooming, verdant and watered by the abundance of the clouds of His Kingdom and the heat of the sun of His Word.

"To the servant of G.o.d, .........:..."

To the servant of G.o.d, .........:

What thou hast written is understood. In reply I will elucidate briefly, the purport of which you, with your intelligence, will surely comprehend:

The world of humanity is encompa.s.sed by the darkness of conventionalities, disagreements, discords, avoidance, animosity, enmity, ignorance, folly, l.u.s.tful desires and animal tendencies; the gloomy night had darkened the horizon of the world in such manner that all had forgotten the light and deemed the darkness inevitable in the world of humanity, and its solution impossible; when, unexpectedly, the Light of Reality appeared and enlightened the horizon of the world, diffusing its rays throughout the East and West, the beholding of which instantly delighted the perfect and perceiving eyes; but the imperfect eyes, afflicted by the darkness, were dazzled by the radiance, while the negligent closed theirs and turned away entirely. That light is the Love of G.o.d, the Spirit of G.o.d, unity, concord, science and knowledge, bounty and perfection, redemption of life, spiritual perception, universal peace, alliance of the nations, unification of all peoples and the reality of the attributes of the Merciful One, which I hope thou wilt fully attain.

"O seeker of the truth!..."

O seeker of the truth!

There are two ways of healing diseases, the material way and the spiritual way. The first is the remedies of the physician; the second prayers and turning one's self to G.o.d. Both must be practiced and followed. The diseases that happen to be caused by physical accident are cured by medical aid; others, which are due to spiritual causes, will disappear by spiritual means. For instance: For a disease due to grieving, fear, nervous impressions, the spiritual remedies will take more effect than the physical. Therefore, these tow kinds of remedies must be followed; neither is an obstacle to the other. You must take care of the physical remedies.

These also came from the bounty and mercy of G.o.d who revealed and made evident the science of medicine, so that His servants may also be benefited by this mode of healing. In the same way take care of the spiritual healing, because it giveth wonderful results.

And if thou art looking for the divine remedy which will cure the spirit of man of all diseases and make him obtain the health of the divine Kingdom, know that it is the precepts and teaching of G.o.d. Take the greatest care of them.

"Thy letter was received and its contents noted. In..."

(294) Thy letter was received and its contents noted. In truth, thou hast been thrown amid dire ordeals, enduring agonizing afflictions. These trials were according to the consummate wisdom, therefore they were for the best. It is good for man to endure (in such moments).

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. a.s.suredly gold is purified by being submitted to the fire and if it contain any alloy or imperfection, it will disappear. That is the reason why violent tests become the cause of the everlasting glory of the righteous and are conducive to the destruction and disappearance of the unrighteous.

The wisdom of all these tribulations that poured successively upon thee was this, that thou shouldst be prepared and made ready for this Cause, that thou mightiest expect the attainment to the greatest guidance, for all these trials were but a preparation for thine entrance into the Most Exalted Paradise and the beginning of obtaining this most great benefit.

Unless the season of winter appear, thunder roll, lightening flash, snow and rain fall, hail and frost descend and the intensity of cold execute its command, the season of the soul-refres.h.i.+ng spring would not come, the fragrant breeze would not waft, the moderation of temperature would not be realized, the roses and hyacinths would not grow, the surface of the heart would not become a delectable paradise, the trees would not bloom, neither would they bring forth fruits and leaves. That was the beginning of the manifestation of these roses, hyacinths, buds, blossoms and fruits.

Therefore, be not distressed on account of those adversities which fell upon thee; nay, rather, arise and render thanks that the ultimate goal is the attainment to this eminent bounty and the enjoyment of this highest gift of the almighty G.o.d. Consequently gird up the loins of thine endeavor, that thereby some results might be produced, some fruits gathered, the lamp of everlasting life ignited and the gifts of the Lord of the Kingdom be manifest, so that thou mayest accomplish again, with great yearning and exaltation, the wors.h.i.+p of the Lord of Hosts.

"O thou who art firm in the Covenant!..."