transformation

Among those souls that are righteous, that are luminous entities and Divine reflections, was Jinab-i-Muhammad-Taqi, the Afnan. This eminent Bough was an offshoot of the Holy Tree [the Báb's kindred]; in him an excellent character was…

Another time we were told that we could have an interview with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and mother went with me when I had one. I asked Him, "What can I do to serve this Faith?" The Master paced up and down the room... "Study. Study. Study." So…

Certain European philosophers agree that the species grows and develops, and that even change and alteration are also possible. One of the proofs that they give for this theory is that through the attentive study and verification of the…

From the time of the creation of Adam to this day there have been two pathways in the world of humanity; one the natural or materialistic, the other the religious or spiritual. The pathway of nature is the pathway of the animal realm.…

The connection between God and the creatures is that of the creator to the creation; it is like the connection between the sun and the dark bodies of contingent beings, and is the connection between the maker and the things that he has…

The greatest bestowal of God in the world of humanity is religion; for assuredly the divine teachings of religion are above all other sources of instruction and development to man. Religion confers upon man eternal life and guides his…

Religion is the outer expression of the divine reality. Therefore it must be living, vitalized, moving and progressive. If it be without motion and non-progressive it is without the divine life; it is dead. The divine institutes are…

When the darkness of ignorance and heedlessness concerning the realm of eternity and bereavement from the True One had encircled the universe, then the resplendent Luminary dawned and the brilliant Light illumined the horizon of the…

According to divine philosophy, there are two important and universal conditions in the world of material phenomena; one which concerns life, the other concerning death; one relative to existence, the other non-existence; one manifest…

Today there is no greater glory for man than that of service in the cause of the “Most Great Peace.” Peace is light whereas war is darkness. Peace is life; war is death. Peace is guidance; war is error. Peace is the foundation of God;…

In the estimation of historians this radiant century is equivalent to one hundred centuries of the past. If comparison be made with the sum total of all former human achievements it will be found that the discoveries, scientific…

‘Abdu’l-Bahá spent His early years in an environment of privilege, wealth, and love. ** ‘Abdu’l-Bahá…

"I beseech you," he tearfully entreated Mulla Ali, "to allow me to accompany you on your journey. Perplexities oppress my heart; I pray you to guide my steps in the way of Truth. Last night, in my dream, I heard the crier announce in the…

Gregory was instrumental in arranging for two major speaking engagements for ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in Washington DC to an audience of more than a thousand in Rankin Chapel at Howard University, and that evening to a large gathering of the Bethel…

Shaykh Hasan recognized in the Báb all those attributes his master had predicted, and he became His devoted disciple, travelling far and wide to be close to the newest Manifestation of God on earth. When the ulama of Isfahan issued the…

Siyyid Isma`ils writings are among the best known in the modern Shi`ism and the most important among them are: Hisnul-Hasin dar Sharh Baladul-Amin, a commentary on his grandfather's important work on statesmanship. ** Siyyid…

In May 1878, his travel teaching took Siyyid Mustafa Rumi to Myanmar (Burma). There he would, not yet knowing the local language, together with Jamal Effendi and Haji Siyyid Mihdi, lay the foundation for the Burmese Bahá’í community.…

"‘Abdu’l-Bahá recognized Chase as "the first American believer," and Shoghi Effendi later described him as "indeed the first to embrace the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh in the Western world." ** Thornton Chase, Disciple of…

Because of the marked individualism of those days in the Bahá’í community, there were many philosophical differences. The Bahá’ís of that time were immature in the ways of the Faith and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá used Corrine True to begin a…

34 O ye who burn in the flames of bereavement! By the Day-star of the World, my bereaved and longing heart is afire with a grief that is beyond my description. The sudden, the grievous and calamitous news that the Most Exalted, the…

Mírzá Aḥmad Sohrab recorded in his diary the following prophecy about Akká and Haifa uttered by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá while seated by the window of one of the Bahá’í Pilgrim Homes at Haifa on February 14, 1914:— The view from the Pilgrim…

In making appointments, the only criterion must be fitness for the position. Before this paramount consideration, all others, such as seniority, social or financial status, family connection or personal friendship, must give way.…

Education and religion are alike based on the assumption that it is possible to change human nature. In fact, it requires but little investigation to show that the one thing we can say with certainty about any living thing is that it…

Bahá’u’lláh says, in the Book of Aqdas:— Be the essence of cleanliness among mankind ... under all circumstances conform yourselves to refined manners ... let no trace of uncleanliness appear on your clothes.... Immerse yourselves…

Bahá’u’lláh says:— O people of God! I exhort you to courtesy. Courtesy is indeed ... the lord of all virtues. Blessed is he who is adorned with the mantle of Uprightness and illumined with the light of Courtesy. He who is endowed…

Education—the instruction and guidance of men and the development and training of their innate faculties—has been the supreme aim of all the Holy Prophets since the world began, and in the Bahá’í teachings the fundamental importance…

Bahá’u’lláh teaches that everyone endowed with the Station of Prophethood is given sufficient proofs of His Mission, is entitled to claim obedience from all men and has authority to abrogate, alter or add to the teachings of His…

In the year 1869 Bahá’u’lláh wrote to Napoleon III, rebuking him for his lust of war and for the contempt with which he had treated a former letter from Bahá’u’lláh. The Epistle contains the following stern warning:— For what thou…

If we study the story of the “ascent of man” as recorded in the pages of history, it becomes evident that the leading factor in human progress is the advent, from time to time, of men who pass beyond the accepted ideas of their day and…

The power of spiritual healing is doubtless common to all mankind in greater or less degree, but, just as some men are endowed with exceptional talent for mathematics or music, so others appear to be endowed with exceptional aptitude…

In all ages the Prophets of God have foretold the coming of an era of “peace on earth, goodwill among men.” As we have already seen Bahá’u’lláh, in the most glowing and confident terms, confirms these prophecies and declares that their…

What is the cause of this sudden awakening throughout the world? Bahá’ís believe that it is due to a great outpouring of the Holy Spirit through the Prophet Bahá’u’lláh, Who was born in Persia in 1817 and passed away in the Holy Land in…

Another factor which will help in bringing about universal peace is the linking together of the East and the West. The Most Great Peace is no mere cessation of hostilities, but a fertilizing union and cordial cooperation of the hitherto…

<div class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It was during one of his visits to 'Akká that Haji Mirza Haydar-'Ali was allowed to enter the presence of Bahá'u'lláh at the time of revelation. He has left to…

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<div class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In the ‘Priceless Pearl’ Ruhiyyih Khanum tells us how in 1920 ‘Abdu’l-Bahá sent Shoghi Effendi abroad for his studies, in the company of Lotfullah Hakim who was…

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<div class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Muhammad Shah, the king of Persia, was torn between two conflicting desires. He wanted to meet the Báb. He was anxious to see in person this young Man Who could win…

<p><span style="font-family: verdana;">In the whole range of Bahá'u'lláh's Writings, the Kitáb-i-Íqán (The Book of Certitude) has most importance, with the exception of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas (The Most Holy Book). It was revealed in Baghdad…

Nabíl records the nine-month imprisonment of the Báb at the mountain fortress of Máh-Kú on the western frontier of Persia — and the remarkable transformation of His warden, 'Alí Khán, from a hostile jailer into a devoted believer who could no longer hold the door closed against the friends.

Shoghi Effendi's account, in *God Passes By*, of how 'Alí Khán — the warden ordered to keep the Báb in strictest confinement at the fortress of Máh-Kú — was so moved by a strange vision that he relaxed his discipline, and how the people of the village then began to come every morning hoping for a glimpse of the Prisoner's face.

It was the last four months of the nine-year plan and I [Jenabe Caldwell] had just come out of India. As usual when I was anywhere near Israel, I would stop for a three day visit, go to the Shrines and thank Bahá’u’lláh for His blessings…

Lua Getsinger – spiritual mother of both Mrs Hearst and May Bolles (Maxwell) – was a member of a pilgrim group, late in 1898. For the following eighteen years she returned time and again to ‘Akka and Haifa. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá entrusted her…

When he was very young, people thought of ‘Abdu’lláh Baghdádí as a libertine, solely devoted to pleasure. He was regarded by all as the sport of inordinate desires, mired down in his physical passions. But the moment he became a…

On August 20th there arrived at Green Acre a young man, dishevelled, tremulous. His name was Fred Mortensen. Let him tell his story in his own words. He wrote it for the magazine, The Star of the West: In my youth my environment was not…

On the night of 20 August, a horrifying young man came to a meeting at the Kinney's house. From head to foot he was covered with soot. His blue eyes stared out from a dark gray face. This was Fred Mortensen, a reformed criminal. When…

Today, at table, let us speak for a little of proofs. If you had come to this blessed place in the days of the manifestation of the evident Light,29 if you had attained to the court of His presence, and had witnessed His luminous…

In Isaiah, chapter 11, verses 1 to 10, it is said: “And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and…

Question.—The Christ said: “I am the living bread which came down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof and not die.”86 What is the meaning of this…

Question.—In verse 22 of chapter 15 of 1 Corinthians it is written: “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” What is the meaning of these…

Question.—In the Bible it is said that God breathed the spirit into the body of man. What is the meaning of this…

Question.—What is the truth of the question of reincarnation, which is believed by some…

Question.—Those who are blessed with good actions and universal benevolence, who have praiseworthy characteristics, who act with love and kindness toward all creatures, who care for the poor, and who strive to establish universal…

O Sherif!... All thy life thou hast accorded worship unto Us, but when We manifested Ourself unto thee, thou didst desist from bearing witness unto Our Remembrance, and from affirming that He is indeed the Most Exalted, the Sovereign…

O thou who art voicing the praises of thy Lord! I have read thy letter, wherein thou didst express astonishment at some of the laws of God, such as that concerning the hunting of innocent animals, creatures who are guilty of no…

O thou dear handmaid of God! Praise thou God, because thou art favoured at His Holy Threshold, and cherished in the Kingdom of His might. Thou art the head of an assembly which is the very imprint of the Company on high, the…

O ye servants of the Blessed Beauty!... It is clear that in this day, confirmations from the unseen world are encompassing all those who deliver the divine Message. Should the work of teaching lapse, these confirmations would be…

O ye sons and daughters of the Kingdom! Your letter was received. From its contents it was known that, praise be to God, your hearts are in the utmost purity and your souls rejoice in the glad tidings of God. The mass of the people are…

O thou servant of God! Thy letter was received. Its contents were lofty and sublime, and its aim high and far-reaching. The world of humanity is in need of great improvement, for it is a material jungle wherein trees without fruit…

O ye concourse of the Kingdom of Abhá! Two calls to success and prosperity are being raised from the heights of the happiness of mankind, awakening the slumbering, granting sight to the blind, causing the heedless to become mindful,…

Existence is of two kinds: one is the existence of God which is beyond the comprehension of man. He, the invisible, the lofty and the incomprehensible, is preceded by no cause but rather is the Originator of the cause of causes. He, the…

O thou who art firm in the Covenant! The letter thou hadst written on 2 May 1919 was received. Praise thou God that in tests thou art firm and steadfast and art holding fast to the Abhá Kingdom. Thou art not shaken by any affliction or…

O thou bearer of the Great-tidings of the Kingdom of…

O thou seeker after…

O ye174 beloved servants of Abdul-Baha and the maid-servants of the Merciful…

O ye34 Cohorts of…

The most renowned of those repentant souls was the vigorous commander Hurr, who had obstructed all roads to Husayn. His transformation took place in the depths of night, nor could his soldiers believe their eyes when they beheld this man…

To Ethel Rosenberg, the first English woman to embrace the Bahá’í Faith in her native land, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá said, while she was on pilgrimage in the Holy Land in 1901, ‘We must strive to change our bad qualities into good ones, quick temper…

We are told that there was one name that always brought joy to the face of Bahá’u’lláh. His expression would change at the mention of Mary Magdalen's name. Here was a woman who was transformed 'from the gentle, appealing mistress of…

When ‘Abdu’l-Bahá came to Boston in May, many people invited Harry Randall to meet Him, but invariably he said, "No. I do not care to meet him. I know he is a wonderful man, but I do not care to meet him." Finally, someone asked if…

Why Do Manifestations Appear in Human Form? Janaab-i-Muhammad Quli Khan-i-Nakha’ee, was an influential and rich local man, who believed in Bahá’u’lláh, and lived in Khusef which is part of Birjand. As a result of his acceptance of the…