Tablets of Abdul-Baha Abbas Part 37

O maid-servant of G.o.d! Thy heart shall surely have attractions and revelations through the power of the Beauty of El-ABHA, which will be followed by glad-tidings and signs, in every minute and instant. Verily, I reveal unto thee in spirit and address thee in heart, a speech which will open unto thee the doors of mysteries which are concealed behind veils.

When mirrors become pure and the lights s.h.i.+ne, the signs of the Sun of Truth shall reflect therein with most wonderful splendors.

O maid-servant of G.o.d! Verily, I have not forgotten thee and will not forget thee. Trust thou in the love of Abdul-Baha, for verily, nothing equals it.

O maid-servant of G.o.d! Verily, the Household(97) present unto thee greeting and praise, with all longing and attraction.

"O thou who art attracted to the Fragrances of G.o.d!..."

O thou who art attracted to the Fragrances of G.o.d!

I pray to G.o.d that He may cause to descend upon thee a heavenly blessing, quicken thy heart with the Holy Spirit into an everlasting life and make thy heart a source of merciful sentiments; so that thy breath may become a quickener of the souls, thine attractions may move the heart of the world, thy strong love may attract the hearts of men, and that thine abundant affection may become a mercy to mankind in the world of existence. Verily, my Lord is Powerful, Potent and the Bestower!

Be thou loving to every afflicted one, a dispeller of sorrows to every grieved one, a refuge to every fearful one, a heavenly food to every dest.i.tute one, a balm to every wounded one, a consolation to dejected hearts, a blessing to unfortunate souls, a treasure to every begging one and a succor to every lamenting one-so that thou mayest be a banner of guidance and the essence of piety among the maid-servants of thy Supreme Lord. Verily, thy Lord is the Beneficent, the Gracious, the Bestower!

"O maid-servant of G.o.d!..."

O maid-servant of G.o.d!

***I beg of G.o.d that He may make [that place] a center of merciful events and a point whereon the lordly favors may fall; and that He may make thee so ablaze with the fire of His love that the flame of the love of G.o.d may pervade all those parts.

"O thou dear maid-servant of G.o.d!..."

O thou dear maid-servant of G.o.d!

Thy letter was received and a sweet odor wafted from the rose-garden of its meanings. Thou hast offered thanks before the threshold of the One G.o.d, for that thou hast stepped into the Court of the Manifestation in such a blessed day and hast partaken a share and portion from the bounties of the Pre-existent Beauty(98) . This mortal world is fickle and unstable like unto a s.h.i.+fting shadow, and the human life is like unto a mirage and a reflection on the water. When thou lookest at the result thou wilt consider the preliminaries as important, otherwise, preliminaries without a result are of no fruit or harm; they are pure fancy and sheer darkness.

Therefore even a short duration of life is sufficient.

I beg of G.o.d that He may render thee successful so that thou mayest find the result of the supernal life from the temporal life and attain to the gift of the heavenly food and be strengthened to serve the Cause of G.o.d.

"O thou who art esteemed in the Threshold of the..."

O thou who art esteemed in the Threshold of the Almighty!

Praise thou G.o.d, for that thou hast found the Light of Guidance, recognized the Lord of the Kingdom, art engaged in the service of the Divine Garden and hast guided a number of souls and led them to the Kingdom of Existence. When thou occupiest thyself with all thy strength in service, thou wilt become a magnet of attraction and cause every seeker to reach the presence of the Desired One; thou wilt raise a great clamor in the world and evince such an ecstasy and rapture that will astonish the minds.

Send my loving greeting to those souls whom thou hast guided unto the divine kingdom and say unto them: "Ye must appreciate Miss ....... Move your tongues in thanksgiving and be obliged for her great effort; for she gave you to drink the wine of guidance from the cup of the love of G.o.d and led you to the kingdom of lights. Were you to thank her for many years as a reward for this guidance, ye will not be able to repay your obligation for this gift."

Thou hast written concerning the Impersonality of the Divinity.

Personality is in the Manifestation of the Divinity, not in the Essence of the Divinity. The reality of the divine world is purified and sanctified from limits and restriction. But the pure Mirror, which is the Manifestor of the Sun of Truth and in which the Sun of Truth is manifest in appearance-that mirror is restricted, not the lights. The soul pervadeth throughout the whole body, and its commands are effective in all the parts and limbs of man. Notwithstanding its utmost sanctification (or abstraction) this soul is manifest and evident in all its grades, in this material form. By seeing G.o.d is meant beholding the Manifestation of Himself; for witnessing the sun in its entire splendor, in a clear gla.s.sy surface, is identical with witnessing the essence of the sun itself.

When the souls of the sincere depart (from this body), then their unreal vision (i.e., seeing) is changed into a vision of reality. Even as man, when in the age of babyhood and imperfection, though he seeth things, yet that vision is superficial and external. But when he reacheth the world (or age) of perfection and becometh endowed with reasoning faculty and (the power of) discrimination and comprehension, then that vision of his is a vision (i.e., seeing) of reality(99) and not the unreality.

It is evident that the divine nearness is an unlimited nearness, be it in this world or the next one. This is a nearness which is sanctified from the comprehension of the minds. The more a man seeketh light from the Sun of Truth, the nearer he will draw. For instance, a clear body is near unto the sun, and a black stone is far from the sun. This nearness dependeth upon clearness, purity and perfection and that remoteness is due to density, dullness (or obscurity) and imperfection.

As to the question whether the souls will recognize each other in the spiritual world: This (fact) is certain; for the Kingdom is the world of vision (i.e., things are visible in it), where all the concealed realities will become disclosed. How much more the well-known souls will become manifest. The mysteries of which man is heedless in this earthly world, those will he discover in the heavenly world, and there will he be informed of the secret of truth; how much more will he recognize or discover persons with whom he hath been a.s.sociated. Undoubtedly, the holy souls who find a pure eye and are favored with insight will, in the kingdom of lights, be acquainted with all mysteries, and will seek the bounty of witnessing the reality of every great soul. Even they will manifestly behold the Beauty of G.o.d in that world. Likewise will they find all the friends of G.o.d, both those of the former and recent times, present in the heavenly a.s.semblage.

As to the difference and distinction between Lazarus and that "rich man": The first was spiritual, while the second was material. One was in the highest degree of knowledge and the other in the lowest depths of ignorance. The difference and distinction will naturally become realized between all men after their departure from this mortal world. But this (distinction) is not in respect to place, but it is in respect to the soul and conscience. For the Kingdom of G.o.d is sanctified (or free) from time and place; it is another world and another universe. But the holy souls are promised the gift of intercession. And know thou for a certainty, that in the divine worlds, the spiritual beloved ones (believers) will recognize each other, and will seek union (with each other), but a spiritual union. Likewise, a love that one may have entertained for any one will not be forgotten in the world of the Kingdom. Likewise, thou wilt not forget (there) the life that thou hast had in the material world.

O thou maid-servant of G.o.d! Hold fast to the Most Strong Handle(100) and be thoroughly attracted to the Kingdom of ABHA, until thou mayest at every instant find a new confirmation and attain to a wonderful gift and become a cause for the guidance of souls.

"O thou who hast attained to Truth!..."

O thou who hast attained to Truth!

I beg of G.o.d that the divine light which is spoken of in the Twelfth Chapter of John may shed its rays upon thee forever, so that thou mayest always be in light. The life of man in this world is short and will soon drawn to an end. Consequently one must appreciate (or count as gain) every breath (or moment) of his life and endeavor in that which is conducive to eternal glory.

Thou hast written concerning the s.h.i.+ning a.s.sembly of Was.h.i.+ngton (D.C.): This caused me great joy, for that a.s.semblage is a rose-garden of mysteries and very sweet fragrances of being inhaled from it. I hope that through the sincerity of heart of the friends and maid-servants of G.o.d, that a.s.sembly will continue and be extended (or grow) day by day, will increase in luminosity every moment and that the members of that a.s.sembly will make extraordinary progress in the Divine Threshold.

If the health and well-being of the body be expended in the path of the Kingdom, this is very acceptable and praiseworthy; and if it is expended to the benefit of the human world in general-even though it be to their material (or bodily) benefit and be a means of doing good-that is also acceptable. But if the health and welfare of man be spent in sensual desires, in a life on the animal plane, and in devilish pursuits-then disease is better than such health; nay, death itself is preferable to such a life. If thou art desirous of health, wish thou health for serving the Kingdom. I hope thou mayest attain a perfect insight, an inflexible resolution, a complete health and spiritual and physical strength in order that thou mayest drink from the fountain of eternal life and be a.s.sisted by the spirit of divine confirmation.

Say unto ........: "Thou art sowing pure seeds, but that soil (wherein the seeds fall) is full of useless plants, weeds and rubbish. Therefore the seeds are wasted. Consequently, come and sow those seeds in a pure, sweet and fertile soil, in order that they may vegetate, become fresh and verdant and form into heaps on heaps of harvest."

Send my greeting to ........ and say unto her: "The sun is in the utmost effulgence but the surface turned toward it must be a mirror; the clearer and purer it is, the more lights shall be reflected therein."

Send my loving greeting to his honor ........ and say unto him: "Do not miss the opportunity. Now in the springtime and the bounty of heaven is pouring on earth and the fields and rose-gardens are in growth and development. Exert thyself as much as thou canst, in order that through this everlasting bounty and the sprinklings of the clouds of the divine gift, thou mayest grow and thrive like unto a fruitful tree, with the utmost freshness and purity."

That matter (or substance) which is the cause of the moderation and perfection of the body is that perfect moderate temperament which is produced by the organization and admixture of const.i.tuent elements; that matter (or substance) is material (or physical) not spiritual. But reason, which comprehends (or detects) the realities of things, is a spiritual reality, not physical (or material). Therefore the animal is deprived of reason, and it (reason) is specialized to mankind. The animal feeleth realities which are perceptible to the senses, but man perceiveth intellectual realities (or things perceptible to reason). Consequently, it hath become evident that reason is a spiritual faculty, not physical (or material).

The Holy Land is not tranquil in these days(101). Consequently, let thy presence (or coming) in the Holy Land depend on some other time. Endeavor night and day in serving the Cause of G.o.d; this service is real visit, and this is meeting, itself.

Deliver my greeting to each one of the friends of G.o.d and maid-servants of the Merciful with the utmost love.

That blessed name which thou hast asked to remain with thee forever and become the cause of spiritual progress-the name is "Aseyeh," which is the name of the mother of Abdul-Baha. I give the blessed name to thee. Be therefore in the utmost joy and happiness, and be engaged in all gladness and attraction (or ecstasy) for thou hast become the object of such a favor.

"O thou who art attracted to the Fragrances of G.o.d!..."