Bahai Story Library
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Compare versions: THE FIRE OF THE LOVE OF GOD

The same event, told by different sources. The canonical version below is what we publish; the alternate accounts are preserved for scholarly comparison and for noticing where retellings differ.

Canonical version

THE FIRE OF THE LOVE OF GOD

Primary Source'Abdu'l-Bahá · Bahá'í World Faith

O friend! Be set aglow with the fire of the love of God, so that the hearts of the people will become enlightened by the light of thy love.

Supplicate to God, pray to Him and invoke Him at midnight and at dawn. Be humble and submissive to God and chant the verses of thanksgiving at morn and eve, for that He guided thee unto the Manifest Light and showed to thee the straight Path and destined to thee the station of nearness in His wonderful Kingdom. Verily I ask God to augment for thee, every day, the light of guidance and His gift of virtue, comfort and ease. Thus thou mayest set a good example in that region; that He may lift up the veil from before the eyes of thy mother and father, so that they may witness the lights of the Kingdom of God, which have encompassed all regions.

Source: 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá'í World Faith (1943). Public domain text from Project Gutenberg eBook #19239.

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Alternate account · 77% similar

“O thou who art attracted unto the Beauty of El-Abha!...”

'Abdu'l-Bahá · Tablets of 'Abdu'l-Bahá Abbas

O thou who art attracted unto the Beauty of El-Abha!

Verily I read thy recent letter***, and noted its beautiful contents and meanings which proved thy firmness in the straight Path.

O friend! Be set aglow with the fire of the love of God, so that the hearts of the people will become enlightened by the light of thy love.

Supplicate to God, pray to Him and invoke Him at midnight and at dawn. Be humble and submissive to God and chant the verses of thanksgiving at morn and eve, for that He guided thee unto the Manifest Light and showed to thee the straight Path and destined to thee the station of nearness in His wonderful Kingdom. Verily I ask God to augment for thee, every day, the light of guidance and His gift of virtue, comfort and ease. Thus thou mayest set a good example in that region; that He may lift up the veil from before the eyes of thy mother and father, so that they may witness the lights of the Kingdom of God, which have encompassed all regions.

Source: 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Tablets of 'Abdu'l-Bahá Abbas (1909). Public domain text from Project Gutenberg eBook #19312.

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Why are alternate accounts kept? Different retellings of the same event often vary in emphasis, detail, and tone. Scholars and devotional readers can notice these differences and trace the trustworthiness of each retelling.