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"The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens."
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"The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens."
119 stories where detachment appears.
200 years ago in Persia, there were many with the same expectation, that the Qa’im, the promised one, would soon appear. Amongst them lived Siyyid Kazim, wise man, teacher, spiritual divine, who studied the texts of the Holy books and…
A rich man and a poor man lived in the same town. One day the poor man said to the rich man, "I want to go to the Holy Land." The rich man replied, "Very good, I will go also," and they started from the town and began their pilgrimage. But…
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, the true Exemplar of the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh demonstrated this form of detachment by His actions. Throughout His life, He never wished to exalt His name nor did He seek publicity for Himself. For instance, He had an…
‘Abdu’l-Bahá told a story about a Persian believer’s journeys and how he could not sleep at night while in the wilderness for fear of someone stealing his new shirt, a new gift from a prominent person. After several sleepless nights he…
“We had no communication whatever with the out-side world. Each loaf of bread was cut open by the guard to see that it contained no message. All who believed in the Bahá’í manifestation, children, men and women, were imprisoned with us.…
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…
As an example of the methods of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s teaching: My father was having difficulty understanding this matter of Detachment. Just what were we supposed to become detached from? We were taught not to become isolated and detached as…
Bahá'u'lláh and the Fishes Once upon a time there was a noble Vasir, a minister in the court of the Shah, the King of Persia. He was a good man, greatly respected, who helped those in need. The Vasir had a son whom he loved greatly. One…
O phoenix of that immortal flame kindled in the sacred…
O thou party who art assisted by the hosts of the Kingdom of…
O ye friends of…
This recent war has proved to the world and the people that war is destruction while Universal Peace is construction; war is death while peace is life; war is rapacity and bloodthirstiness while peace is beneficence and humaneness; war…
They needed no teacher, then; by themselves, they saw through the veils that had blinded them before, and won the supreme desire of their hearts. ** Áqá Ibráhím-i-Iṣfahání And His…
Aqa Mirza Muhammad-Taqi Abhari (Ibn-i-Abhar) received many tablets from Baha'u'llah. For example, Ibn-i-Abhar had posed the question of the well-being and prosperity of the Baha'is of Persia. In a Tablet revealed in 1889 Baha'u'llah in…
He was a tradesman, and like the others who came in at the start, he cast everything away out of love for God, attaining in one leap the highest reaches of knowledge. ** Áqá Muhammad-Báqir and Áqá Muhammad-Ismá‘íl, the…
He spent his days in friendly association with the other believers. Then for a while he went to Ghawr, near Tiberias, where he farmed, both tilling the soil and devoting much of his time to supplicating and communing with God. **…
The Bab's three uncles: Haji Mirza Siyyid Ali aka the Greatest Uncle - he was the middle brother, Haji Mirza Siyyid Muhammad aka the Greater Uncle - he was the eldest of the three brothers, and Haji Mirza Hassan Ali, the younger Uncle.…
In the days when the fort of Tabarsi had become the rallying centre for the disciples of the Bab, he languished disconsolate upon a sick-bed, unable to lend his assistance and play his part for its defence. No sooner had he recovered than,…
When young, he joined the circle of the late Siyyid Kázim and became one of his disciples. He was known in Persia for his purity of life, winning fame as Mullá Ṣádiq the saintly. ** Ismu’lláhu’l-Asdaq (Mullá ****Ṣ****ádiq…
He was detached from every selfish thought, averse to every mention except to whatever concerned the Holy Cause. ** Mírzá…
Large crowds of people thronged the approaches to the headquarters of the government, eager to learn what would befall him. "Since last night," the Amir, as soon as he had seen him, remarked, " I have been besieged by all classes of State…
He was young, far away from his loving father, and Mullá Muḥammad-‘Alí was his tutor and guardian. Bahá’u’lláh would refer to him with infinite grace and loving-kindness, and revealed a number of Tablets in his name. The Blessed Beauty…
His detachment from the things of this world and his attachment to the life of the spirit are indescribable. He was love embodied, tenderness personified. ** Shaykh…
Siyyid Mirza Husayn-i-Mutavalli was the recipient of the Tablet Shikkar-Shikan-Shavand. This man was a Babi who had been with 300 others under the leadership of Quddus at the Tabarsi fort, where they were attacked and starved. **…
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.…
On my arrival I found that Husayn Khan, who in the meantime had been searching for me, was eager to know whether I had fallen a victim to the Bab's magic influence. `No one but God,' I replied, `who alone can change the hearts of men, is…
From his years Billy Sears possessed an inordinate interest in God. He asked his parents, his grandfather, the preacher, the mayor, even the local people he met a myriad of questions: 'Did God have a wife? Where was His house? Could He…
108 O Leaf of…
122 O leaf that has been stirred by the breeze of God! O victim of oppression in the path of the Abhá Beauty!—may my soul and the souls of the handmaids of God be offered up as a sacrifice for the dust of His Holy…
90 The Guardian’s anguish, because of this tragic occurrence, is such that it can neither be plumbed nor described in words. That sublime and gloried Leaf, that precious jewel of the Kingdom, was the one great solace of his life; she…
143 Although that supreme calamity, that great ordeal, the ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, put the torch to the harvest of our hearts, and brought down both our outer and inner beings, wedding us to grief and ceaseless pain, yet praised be…
165 All praise to the omnipotent Lord, that in this auspicious day He Who is the Sun of bounty has shone out so fair and bright as to light up the world of the hearts. He has burned away the veils of waywardness and ignorance. He has…
172 At this hour while yet the heart burns with the anguish of sorrow, and the gloom of bereavement still hangs low, my thoughts turn in loving remembrance to my sincere beloved sisters and brothers in the…
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…
183 The Ancient Beauty, the Most Great Name, has, through the splendours of His grace in this most glorious of all ages, made this world of dust to radiate light. The loving counsels of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá have turned the beloved of the Lord…
193 All praise be unto the Court of Holiness, that God has drawn certain blessed souls, entities delicate and pure, unto a realm where they have no desire save the good-pleasure of the Beloved; where, in the pathway of the Ancient…
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…
During His own lifetime Bahá’u’lláh appointed a few tried and trusted friends to assist in directing and promoting the work of the Movement, and gave them the title of Ayadiyi-Amru’lláh (lit. “Hands of the Cause of God”). ‘Abdu’l-Bahá…
Bahá’u’lláh tells us that the life in the flesh is but the embryonic stage of our existence, and that escape from the body is like a new birth through which the human spirit enters on a fuller, freer life. He writes:— Know thou of a…
As a religious body, Bahá’ís have, at the express command of Bahá’u’lláh, entirely abandoned the use of armed force in their own interests, even for strictly defensive purposes. In Persia many, many thousands of the Bábís and Bahá’ís…
It has been the general characteristic of religion that organization marks the interruption of the true spiritual influence and serves to prevent the original impulse from being carried into the world. The organization has invariably…
‘Abdu’l-Bahá appointed His eldest grandson, Shoghi Effendi, to the responsible position of “Guardian of the Cause” (Valiyy-i-Amru’lláh). Shoghi Effendi is the eldest son of Diya’íyyih Khánum, the eldest daughter of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. His…
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<div class="MsoNormal"> <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Whereas riches may become a mighty barrier between man and God, and rich people are often in great danger of attachment, yet people with small worldly possessions…
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Nabíl's chronicle opens with the figure of Shaykh Aḥmad-i-Aḥsá'í, the Arabian scholar who, at the age of forty, set out from al-Aḥsá in 1216 A.H. to prepare a generation of disciples for the imminent appearance of the promised One. He recognized the birth of Bahá'u'lláh in Núr in 1233 A.H. as the secret event that justified his entire ministry.
As his life drew to a close in Karbilá in 1259 A.H., Siyyid Káẓim-i-Rashtí gathered his disciples and gave them the charge that the Dawn-Breakers treats as the immediate prologue to the Báb's Declaration: scatter yourselves over the face of the earth, detach yourselves from all earthly things, and seek the Promised One who is now manifest.
Esslemont's account of the early life of Mírzá Ḥusayn-‘Alí — the One later known as Bahá'u'lláh — born in Tihrán on November 12, 1817 to a noble household. He showed remarkable wisdom as a child, refused His father's ministerial post, and embraced the Báb's message at twenty-seven.
He then related a story about detachment: the Persian friends travel mostly on foot. They sleep whenever they get tired. They rest whenever they see a shady tree. Once a person came to the Amir. The Amir wished to present him with a…
The thirty-second Hidden Word in Arabic — Bahá'u'lláh's image of the soul's freedom: that no journey through space and no traversal of the heavens can substitute for inner detachment from all save God.
The seventh Hidden Word in Arabic — Bahá'u'lláh's call to the son of man to forsake all but Him, that he may attain to His presence and abide in His company.
The forty-fourth Persian Hidden Word — Bahá'u'lláh's praise of the soul who has chosen a single true companion in the Beloved over the world's many fair-weather companions.
Ibn-i-Asdaq often accompanied his father on his teaching tours throughout Persia. Thus he became imbued with the spirit of service to the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh and eventually developed a passionate love for Him, a love that knew no bounds.…
In Europe, on one occasion, remembering the desperate days in Tihran when Bahá’u’lláh was incarcerated, their home sacked and their properties confiscated, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá could yet say, ‘Detachment does not imply lack of means; it is marked…
It was June of 1847. An immense crowd of people thronged the gate of the city of Tabriz to witness the very first time that the Báb entered their city. Some were merely curious, while others were earnestly trying to find out if the Báb…
Jinab-i-Haji Amin was a shining star who served the Cause as the Trustee of Huququ'lláh for forty-seven years with eagerness and zeal, showing magnanimity, courage and incredible steadfastness. During the Ministry of Bahá’u’lláh he was…
Mable Ives, after she married Howard Colby Ives (my father) became known to many who loved her as Rizwanea. For very many years, after they were married, my father and Rizwanea traveled and taught the Faith. It was their entire life. They…
Many a night, no less than ten persons subsisted on no more than a pennyworth of dates. No one knew to whom actually belonged the shoes, the cloaks, or the robes that were to be found in their houses. Whoever went to the bazaar could claim…
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…
Also among the emigrants and near neighbors was Áqá ‘Alí Najaf-Ábádí. When this spiritual young man first listened to the call of God he set his lips to the holy cup and beheld the glory of the Speaker on the Mount. And when, by grace…
This eminent man had high ambitions and aims. He was to a supreme degree constant, loyal and firmly rooted in his faith, and he was among the earliest and greatest of the believers. At the very dawn of the new Day of Guidance he became…
These two blessed souls, Mírzá Maḥmúd of Káshán and Áqá Riḍá of Shíráz, were like two lamps lit with God’s love from the oil of His knowledge. Encompassed by Divine bestowals from childhood on, they succeeded in rendering every kind of…
This man of God came from the district of Tafrísh. He was detached from the world, fearless, independent of kindred and stranger alike. He was one of the earliest believers, and belonged to the company of the faithful. It was in Persia…
Áqá Ṣidq-‘Alí was yet one more of those who left their native land, journeyed to Bahá’u’lláh and were put in the Prison. He was a dervish; a man who lived free and detached from friend and stranger alike. He belonged to the mystic…
Mírzá Áqá of Káshán — known to the Bahá'í community as Jináb-i-Muníb — was a calligrapher, poet, and singer who left his daughter and his livelihood to walk on foot beside Bahá'u'lláh from Baghdád to Constantinople. He died, ill, in a Smyrna hospital during the exile to 'Akká, his last act being to drag himself to Bahá'u'lláh's feet and weep.
Two pure souls of Ádhirbáyján who freed themselves from the superstitions that had blinded them, left their province for Adrianople, and at length followed the exiles to 'Akká, where they died together of the fever that took so many of the early prisoners. Their two luminous tombs are in 'Akká.
Among the exiles, neighbors, and prisoners there was also a second Mír Imád,57 the eminent calligrapher, Mishkín-Qalam.58 He wielded a musk-black pen, and his brows shone with faith. He was among the most noted of mystics, and had a…
Muḥammad-Muṣṭafá was a blazing light. He was the son of the famous scholar Shaykh Muḥammad-i-Shibl; he lived in ‘Iráq, and from his earliest youth was clearly unique and beyond compare; wise, brave, deserving in every way, he was known…
Nabil of Qa‘in’s means of livelihood was his business partnership with me. That is, I provided him with a capital of three krans [almost 8 cents] with it he bought needles, and this was his stock-in-trade. The women of Nazareth gave him…
One day ‘Abdu’l-Bahá learned that a lady had cut her lovely hair in order to contribute to the building of the House of Worship in Wilmette. He wrote to her with loving appreciation: ‘On the one hand, I was deeply touched, for thou hadst…
Salle de l’Athenée, St Germain, Paris,…
November 6th This is in truth a Bahá’í house. Every time such a house or meeting place is founded it becomes one of the greatest aids to the general development of the town and country to which it belongs. It encourages the growth of…
‘Does the soul progress more through sorrow or through the joy in this…
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.
In the beginning of the eleventh chapter of the Revelation of St. John it is…
Question.—What is the manner, and what is the meaning, of the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles, as described in the…
Question.—What is the truth of the story of Adam, and His eating of the fruit of the…
Question.—In the Holy Books there are some addresses of reproach and rebuke directed to the Prophets. Who is addressed, and for whom is the…
Question.—In the Bible it is said that God breathed the spirit into the body of man. What is the meaning of this…
You question about eternal life and the entrance into the Kingdom. The outer expression used for the Kingdom is heaven; but this is a comparison and similitude, not a reality or fact, for the Kingdom is not a material place; it is…
Glory be unto Thee, O Lord, Thou Who hast brought into being all created things, through the power of Thy…
Immeasurably exalted art Thou, O my God, above the endeavours of all beings and created things to praise Thee and recognize Thee. No creature can ever comprehend Thee as beseemeth the reality of Thy holy Being and no servant can ever…
He is God, the Sovereign Ruler, the Ever-Living, He Whose help all men…
O My God, my Lord and my Master! I have detached myself from my kindred and have sought through Thee to become independent of all that dwell on earth and ever ready to receive that which is praiseworthy in Thy sight. Bestow on me such…
Throughout eternity Thou hast been, O my Lord, and wilt ever remain the One true God, while all else save Thee are needy and poor. Having clung tenaciously to Thy Cord, O my God, I have detached myself from all mankind, and having set…
Twelve hundred and seventy years have elapsed since the declaration of Muḥammad, and each year unnumbered people have circumambulated the House of God [Mecca]. In the concluding year of this period He Who is Himself the Founder of the…
Worship thou God in such wise that if thy worship lead thee to the fire, no alteration in thine adoration would be produced, and so likewise if thy recompense should be paradise. Thus and thus alone should be the worship which befitteth…
O thou handmaid afire with the love of God! I have considered thine excellent letter, and thanked God for thy safe arrival in that great city. I beg of Him, through His unfailing aid, to cause this return of thine to exert a powerful…
Regarding the statement in The Hidden Words, that man must renounce his own self, the meaning is that he must renounce his inordinate desires, his selfish purposes and the promptings of his human self, and seek out the holy breathings…
Thou seest me, O my God, bowed down in lowliness, humbling myself before Thy commandments, submitting to Thy sovereignty, trembling at the might of Thy dominion, fleeing from Thy wrath, entreating Thy grace, relying upon Thy…
O ye sincere ones, ye longing ones, ye who are drawn as if magnetized, ye who have risen up to serve the Cause of God, to exalt His Word and scatter His sweet savours far and wide! I have read your excellent letter, beautiful as to…
O my Lord! I have drawn nigh unto Thee, in the depths of this darksome night, confiding in Thee with the tongue of my heart, trembling with joy at the sweet scents that blow from Thy realm, the All-Glorious, calling unto Thee,…
Whoso reciteth this prayer with lowliness and fervour will bring gladness and joy to the heart of this Servant; it will be even as meeting Him face to…
O ye two favoured handmaids of the Lord! The letter from Mother Beecher hath been received, and truly it spoke for you both, wherefore I address the two of you together. This seemeth very good to me, for ye two pure beings are even as a…
O ye co-workers who are supported by armies from the realm of the All-Glorious! Blessed are ye, for ye have come together in the sheltering shade of the Word of God, and have found a refuge in the cave of His Covenant; ye have brought…
The prime requisites for them that take counsel together are purity of motive, radiance of spirit, detachment from all else save God, attraction to His Divine Fragrances, humility and lowliness amongst His loved ones, patience and…
Ye have written as to the meetings of the friends, and how filled they are with peace and joy. Of course this is so; for wherever the spiritually minded are gathered together, there in His beauty reigneth Bahá’u’lláh. Thus it is…
O my well-beloved daughter of the Kingdom! The letter thou hadst written to Dr. Esslemont was forwarded by him to the Land of Desire [The Holy Land]. I read it all through with the greatest attention. On the one hand, I was deeply…
O thou ignited candle! Thy letter was received. Its contents imparted spiritual gladness, for they were pervaded by spiritual sentiments and indicated the attraction of thy heart, attachment to the Kingdom of God and love for His divine…
Among the Gospel images 'Abdu'l-Bahá would explain to inquirers was Christ's saying about the camel and the eye of the needle — the small *needle gate* in the wall of an ancient city, the kneeling of the camel, and what the image asks of the rich.
O bird without a…
O thou attracted…
O thou beloved and benevolent daughter of the Kingdom of…
O thou kind maid-servant of…
O thou who art attracted to the Beauty of…
O thou who hast approached toward…
The exalted titles conferred upon Him by Bahá’u’lláh are indicative of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá's lofty station. Yet ‘Abdu’l-Bahá never applied them to Himself. Instead, after the Ascension of Bahá’u’lláh, He took the title of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá (Servant…
The master Nan-in had a visitor who came to inquire about Zen. But instead of listening he kept talking about his own ideas. After a while, Nan-in served tea. He poured tea into the visitor’s cup until it was full, then he kept on pouring.…
absolutism in [the conduct of] affairs: on his own decisive resolution, without seeking permission from the Royal Presence or taking counsel with prudent statesmen, he issued orders to persecute the Bábís, imagining that by overweening…
Whereas riches may become a mighty barrier between man and God, and rich people are often in great danger of attachment, yet people with small worldly possessions can also become attached to material things. The following Persian story of…
Whilst her beloved husband was in prison, Navvab, the wife of Bahá’u’lláh, a pearl, a flower amongst women, was pregnant and alone with their three children, most of their servants ran away, it was too dangerous to stay in their home.…