“It behooveth you to await the Day of the appearance of ...”
the Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Báb, (1976) · Read original
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When in Bahá'í history
It behooveth you to await the Day of the appearance of Him Whom God shall manifest. Indeed My aim in planting the Tree of the Bayán hath been none other than to enable you to recognize Me. In truth I Myself am the first to bow down before God and to believe in Him. Therefore let not your recognition become fruitless, inasmuch as the Bayán, notwithstanding the sublimity of its station, beareth fealty to Him Whom God shall make manifest, and it is He Who beseemeth most to be acclaimed as the Seat of divine Reality, though indeed He is I and I am He. However, when the Tree of the Bayán attaineth its highest development, We shall bend it low as a token of adoration towards its Lord Who will appear in the person of Him Whom God shall make manifest. Perchance ye may be privileged to glorify God as it befitteth His august Self.
Indeed ye have been called into being through the power of the Point of the Bayán while the Point Himself is resigned to the Will of Him Whom God shall make manifest, is exalted through His transcendent sublimity, is sustained by the evidences of His might, is glorified by the majesty of His oneness, is adorned by the beauty of His singleness, is empowered by His eternal dominion and is invested with authority through His everlasting sovereignty. How then could they, who are but the creation of the Point, be justified in saying ‘why or wherefore’?
O congregation of the Bayán, and all who are therein! Recognize ye the limits imposed upon you, for such a One as the Point of the Bayán Himself hath believed in Him Whom God shall make manifest, before all things were created. Therein, verily, do I glory before all who are in the kingdom of heaven and earth. Suffer not yourselves to be shut out as by a veil from God after He hath revealed Himself. For all that hath been exalted in the Bayán is but as a ring upon My hand, and I Myself am, verily, but a ring upon the hand of Him Whom God shall make manifest—glorified be His mention! He turneth it as He pleaseth, for whatsoever He pleaseth, and through whatsoever He pleaseth. He, verily, is the Help in Peril, the Most High.
7: Prayers And Meditations
Source: the Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Báb (1976). Public domain text from Project Gutenberg eBook #18828.
Discuss this story
For adults
- Read the closing lines once more. What single phrase stays with you?
- What might the Báb's example ask of us in our own circumstances?
- If you were to share this story aloud at a devotional gathering, which sentence would you read first?
For teens
- If you were going to tell a friend this story in two sentences, what would you say?
- If you were in the Báb's place, what might you have done?
Reflection
- What in this account feels timely? What feels timeless?
- How does truthfulness show up in your life right now — and where is it being asked of you?
- Is there someone in your life who would be helped by hearing this story?
Comprehension quiz
Which source is "“It behooveth you to await the Day of the appearance of ...”" 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
the Báb. (1976). *Selections from the Writings of the Báb*. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/18828/pg18828-images.html
Record yourself reading this story
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