SOULS ARE LIKE MIRRORS
'Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá'í World Faith, (1943) · Read original
Studio narration for this story is coming — it’ll be generated by the cloud-TTS pipeline (voice: auto-selected from the source author).
When in Bahá'í history
Souls are like unto mirrors, and the bounty of God is like unto the sun. When the mirrors pass beyond all coloring and attain purity and polish, and are confronted with the sun, they will reflect in full perfection its light and glory. In this condition one should not consider the mirror, but the power of the light of the sun, which hath penetrated the mirror, making it a reflector of the heavenly glory.
Source: 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá'í World Faith (1943). Public domain text from Project Gutenberg eBook #19239.
Discuss this story
For adults
- Where do faith and patience meet in this story?
- What does the setting of this account contribute to its meaning?
- What stands out about 'Abdu'l-Bahá's response in this account?
For teens
- Who is someone you know who lives out faith the way this story describes?
- If you were going to tell a friend this story in two sentences, what would you say?
Reflection
- Where in your own life are you being asked to practice faith?
- Read the passage a second time, slowly. What did you notice that you missed the first time?
- What in this account feels timely? What feels timeless?
Comprehension quiz
Which source is "SOULS ARE LIKE MIRRORS" drawn from?
What period of Bahá'í history does this story belong to?
Which historical figure is featured most prominently in this story?
Which virtue does this story most clearly illustrate?
Cite this story
'Abdu'l-Bahá. (1943). *Bahá'í World Faith*. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/19239/pg19239-images.html
Record yourself reading this story
Recording stays on this device only. Nothing is uploaded.
Related stories
A delightful story is told of a Mademoiselle Letitia, who had come from a poor…
A delightful story is told of a Mademoiselle Letitia, who had come from a poor family in Haifa to live in the Master's home in 'Akka to teach French to the children. She was happy there, though she was a Catholic and the nuns in the…
‘Abdu’l-Ḥamíd’s Committee
“One year before ‘Abdu’l-Ḥamíd was dethroned, he sent an extremely overbearing, treacherous and insulting committee of investigation. The chairman was one of the governor’s staff, Árif Bey, and with him were three army commanders…
Art Is Worship: A Painter's Question in London
In London in September 1911, a painter came to ask 'Abdu'l-Bahá whether art was a worthy vocation. The Master answered in three words. Then an actor asked about drama, and the conversation widened into a memory of a Mystery Play that, as a child, had kept Him sleepless for nights.
Better Conditions
“After two years of the strictest confinement permission was granted me to find a house so that we could live outside the prison walls but still within the fortifications. Many believers came from Persia to join us but they were not…