22: O thou who art turning thy face towards God!
'Abdu'l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, (1978) · Read original
When in Bahá'í history
O thou who art turning thy face towards God! Close thine eyes to all things else, and open them to the realm of the All-Glorious. Ask whatsoever thou wishest of Him alone; seek whatsoever thou seekest from Him alone. With a look He granteth a hundred thousand hopes, with a glance He healeth a hundred thousand incurable ills, with a nod He layeth balm on every wound, with a glimpse He freeth the hearts from the shackles of grief. He doeth as He doeth, and what recourse have we? He carrieth out His Will, He ordaineth what He pleaseth. Then better for thee to bow down thy head in submission, and put thy trust in the All-Merciful Lord.
Source: 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá (1978). Public domain text from Project Gutenberg eBook #19287.
Cite this story
'Abdu'l-Bahá. (1978). *Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá*. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/19287/pg19287-images.html
Record yourself reading this story
Recording stays on this device only. Nothing is uploaded.
Related stories
A Letter to the Peacemakers: 'Abdu'l-Bahá's Tablet to The Hague
As the First World War ended, an organization in The Hague devoted to building a durable peace wrote to 'Abdu'l-Bahá. From the Holy Land, only newly released from a lifetime of confinement, He answered with one of the great Tablets of His ministry — setting out, for the world's peace-workers, the teachings of Bahá'u'lláh on the oneness of humanity and the true foundations on which a lasting peace must rest.
Abdu'l-Bahá's Tablet on Detachment from the World
From Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, a Tablet on the spiritual practice of detachment — not the rejection of the world but the freedom of the soul from the bondage of its desires, so that the heart may be ready for the indwelling of the Beloved.
Abdu'l-Bahá's Tablet on the Purpose of Religion
From Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, a Tablet setting out the central purpose of religion: not the formal observance of ritual, but the unification of hearts, the elevation of human character, and the establishment of the kingdom of justice and fellowship in the visible world.
Abdu'l-Bahá's Tablet on the Spiritual Meeting
From Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, a Tablet on the proper character of the spiritual meeting — the gathering of believers in private homes for prayer and consultation, which the Master holds out as the true seedbed of the Bahá'í community life.