O My brother! Sanctify thy heart, illumine thy soul, and
sharpen thy sight, that thou mayest perceive the sweet accents of the Birds of
Heaven
- Baha'u'llah (‘Gems of Divine Mysteries’)
How to “perceive the sweet accents” of the Word of God
O My brother! Sanctify thy heart, illumine thy soul, and
sharpen thy sight, that thou mayest perceive the sweet accents of the Birds of
Heaven 
Not to busy oneself with own concerns
Do not busy yourselves in your own concerns; let your
thoughts be fixed upon that which will rehabilitate the fortunes of mankind and
sanctify the hearts and souls of men.
- Baha'u'llah (‘Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah’)
- Baha'u'llah (‘Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah’)
Need to “sanctify” one’s heart
O Son of Being! Thy heart is My home; sanctify it for My
descent.
- Baha’u’llah (‘The
Hidden Words of Baha’u’llah’)
How to treat others
Lay not on any soul a load which ye would not wish to be
laid upon you, and desire not for any one the things ye would not desire for
yourselves.
- Baha’u’llah (‘Gleanings
from the Writings of Baha’u’llah’)
Cleansing one’s “temple of being”
O Son of Man! The temple of being is My throne; cleanse it
of all things, that there I may be established and there I may abide.
- Baha’u’llah (‘The Hidden Words of Baha’u’llah’)
Preventing sadness enter one’s heart
When your heart is filled with the love of God there will be
no room for sorrow. There will only be love and happiness.
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha
(Words of 'Abdu'l-Baha recorded by Mrs. Crockett; Star of the West, vol.
1, no. 9, August 20, 1910)
“Mental faculties” are “inherent properties of the soul”
…concerning mental faculties, they are in truth of the
inherent properties of the soul, even as the radiation of light is the
essential property of the sun.
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (‘Tablet to August Forel’)
To “play nobly our part”
…if we rise to play nobly our part every deficiency in our
lives will be more than compensated by the all-conquering spirit of His grace
and power.
- Shoghi Effendi (Excerpt from a letter dated 3 June 1925 to
Bahá'í Convention, ‘Bahá'í Administration’)
The religion of God and His divine law
The religion of God and His divine law are the most potent
instruments and the surest of all means for the dawning of the light of unity
amongst men.
- Baha’u’llah (‘Tablets of Baha’u’llah revealed after the
Kitab-i-Aqdas’)
The Báb
I am the Flame of that supernal Light that glowed upon Sinai
in the gladsome Spot, and lay concealed in the midst of the Burning Bush.
- The
Báb (‘Selections from the Writings of the Báb’)
Baha’u’llah
This is the One Whom the heart of the world remembereth, and
is promised in the Books of God, the Mighty, the All-Wise.
- Baha'u'llah (Tablet
to Czar Alexander II, Suriy-i-Haykal [Tablet of Temple]; ‘The Summons of the
Lord of Hosts’)
Baha’u’llah
The True One is come! He indeed is the beloved of the
worlds!
- Baha'u'llah (Tablet to Czar Alexander II, Suriy-i-Haykal [Tablet of
Temple]; ‘The Summons of the Lord of Hosts’)
Obligatory Prayers
The Obligatory Prayers are binding inasmuch as they are
conducive to humility and submissiveness, to setting one's face towards God and
expressing devotion to Him.
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (From a Tablet; compilation: ‘The
Importance of Obligatory Prayer and Fasting’, prepared by the Research
Department of the Universal House of Justice; The American Baha’i September
2000)
Forgiveness and mercy
…let your adorning be forgiveness and mercy and that which
cheereth the hearts of the well-favoured of God.
- Baha’u’llah (‘Tablets of
Bahá'u'lláh revealed after the Kitab-i-Aqdas; compilation: ‘Unlocking the Power
of Action’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of
Justice)
A “consecrated soul”
One consecrated soul is preferable to a thousand other
souls.
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (‘Selections from the Writings of `Abdu'l-Bahá’; The
Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Consultation)
Love
Love is heaven's kindly light, the Holy Spirit's eternal
breath that vivifieth the human soul.
- 'Abdu'l-Bahá ('Selections from the
Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá)
Purpose of our creation
The purpose of the creation of man is the attainment of the
supreme virtues of humanity through descent of the heavenly bestowals.
- 'Abdu'l-Baha (From a talk, 'The
Promulgation of Universal Peace')
Attributes to show
The companions of God… must show forth such trustworthiness,
such truthfulness and perseverance, such deeds and character that all mankind
may profit by their example.
- Baha’u’llah
(Quoted by Shoghi Effendi in ‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)
Turning one's heart to the Manifestation of God
It behoveth every man to blot out the trace of every idle
word from the tablet of his heart, and to gaze, with an open and unbiased mind,
on the signs of His Revelation, the proofs of His Mission, and the tokens of
His glory.
- Baha'u'llah (‘Gleanings from
the Writings of Baha'u'llah’)
Education and training of children
Among the greatest of all services that can possibly be
rendered by man to Almighty God is the education and training of children...
‘Abdu’l-Baha
(‘Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’)
Each human being is a “lamp” of God
O Son of Being! Thou art My lamp and My light is in thee.
Get thou from it thy radiance and seek none other than Me.
- Baha’u’llah (‘The
Hidden Words of Baha’u’llah’)
One's vision
O Man of Two Visions! Close one eye and open the other.
Close one to the world and all that is therein, and open the other to the
hallowed beauty of the Beloved.
- Baha'u'llah (‘The
Hidden Words of Baha’u’llah’)
The effect of "pure and goodly deeds"
The betterment of the world can be accomplished through pure
and goodly deeds, through commendable and seemly conduct.
- Baha’u’llah (Quoted
by Shoghi Effendi in ‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)
The most glorious fruit of the tree of knowledge
The most glorious fruit of the tree of knowledge is this
exalted word: Of one tree are all ye the fruit, and of one bough the leaves.
Let not man glory in this that he loveth his country, let him rather glory in
this that he loveth his kind.
- Baha’u’llah (‘Tablets of Baha’u’llah revealed
after the Kitab-i-Aqdas’)
Education of children
He that bringeth up his son or the son of another, it is as
though he hath brought up a son of Mine; upon him rest My Glory, My
Loving-Kindness, My Mercy, that have compassed the world.
- Baha’u’llah (‘Tablets
of Baha’u’llah revealed after the Kitab-i-Aqdas’)
Worlds of God
Know thou of a truth that the worlds of God are countless in
their number, and infinite in their range. None can reckon or comprehend them
except God, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.
- Baha'u'llah (‘Gleanings from the
Writings of Baha'u'llah’)
To become trustworthy and reliable
O ye friends of God! Show ye an endeavor that all the
nations and communities of the world, even the enemies, put their trust,
assurance and hope in you…
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha
(‘Tablets of Abdul-Bahá Abbas’, vol. 2; The Compilation of Compilations,
vol. I, Excellence in All Things)
To turn away from self
O Son of Man! If thou lovest Me, turn away from thyself; and
if thou seekest My pleasure, regard not thine own; that thou mayest die in Me
and I may eternally live in thee.
- Baha’u’llah (‘The Hidden Words of
Baha’u’llah’)
Purity of soul
…the soul of man after death… remains in the degree of
purity to which it has evolved during life in the physical body…
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (From a talk, November 3, 1911, Paris; ‘Paris Talks’)
Spirit & Body
Matters related to man’s spirit have a great effect on his
bodily condition.
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (‘Selections from the Writings of
‘Abdu’l-Baha’)
Fellowship, kindliness and unity
It behoveth man to adhere tenaciously unto that which will
promote fellowship, kindliness and unity.
- Baha’u’llah
(Lawh-i-Dunya [Tablet of the World]; ‘Tablets of Baha’u’llah revealed
after the Kitab-i-Aqdas’)
Cleanliness
…although bodily cleanliness is a physical thing, it hath,
nevertheless, a powerful influence on the life of the spirit.
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (‘Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’)
Prejudice
Prejudice is the destroyer of human happiness, no matter
what form it assumes.
- 'Abdu'l-Baha (From a talk, June 9, 1912’ Baptist Temple, Philadelphia; Star of the West, vol. 5, no. 7, July 13, 1914)
- 'Abdu'l-Baha (From a talk, June 9, 1912’ Baptist Temple, Philadelphia; Star of the West, vol. 5, no. 7, July 13, 1914)
Mothers and education of children
O ye loving mothers, know ye that in God’s sight, the best
of all ways to worship Him is to educate the children and train them in all the
perfections of humankind; and no nobler deed than this can be imagined.
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (‘Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’)
One's words and deeds
Whatever a man’s tongue speaketh, that let him prove by his
deeds. If he claimeth to be a believer, then let him act in accordance with the
precepts of the Abhá Kingdom.
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (‘Selections from the Writings of
‘Abdu’l-Baha’)
Enkindled teacher
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (‘Selections from the Writings of
‘Abdu’l-Baha’; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. II, Guidelines for
Teaching)
Baha’u’llah
I have come in the shadows of the clouds of glory, and am
invested by God with invincible sovereignty.
- Baha’u’llah (‘Gleanings from the
Writings of Baha’u’llah’)
Fortitude
- Baha’u’llah (‘The Hidden Words of Baha’u’llah’)
Divine Physicians
The Prophets of God
should be regarded as physicians whose task is to foster the well-being of the
world and its peoples
- Baha’u’llah (‘Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah’)
The “promptings of the self”
Follow not the promptings of the self, for it summoneth
insistently to wickedness and lust…
- Baha’u’llah (‘The Kitab-i-Aqdas’)
Deeds
Occupy thyself, during these fleeting days of thy life, with
such deeds as will diffuse the fragrance of Divine good pleasure, and will be
adorned with the ornament of His acceptance.
- Baha’u’llah (‘Epistle to the Son
of the Wolf’)
The “most great healing for the disease of self and passion”
Verily, I say, fasting is the supreme remedy and the most
great healing for the disease of self and passion.
- Baha’u’llah (Compilation on
‘The Importance of Obligatory Prayer and Fasting’, prepared by Research
Department of the Universal House of Justice)
The “sun” and “moon” of the “religion of God”
Verily, the religion of God is like unto heaven; fasting is
its sun, and obligatory prayer is its moon.
- Baha’u’llah
(Compilation: 'The Importance of Obligatory Prayer and Fasting',
prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice)
Humbleness
O Son of Man! Humble
thyself before Me, that I may graciously visit thee.
- Baha’u’llah (‘The Hidden
Words of Baha’u’llah’)
A “pure, kindly and radiant heart”
O Son of Spirit! My first counsel is this: Possess a pure,
kindly and radiant heart, that thine may be a sovereignty ancient, imperishable
and everlasting.
- Baha’u’llah (‘The Hidden Words of Baha’u’llah’)
True liberty
Mankind in its entirety must firmly adhere to whatsoever
hath been revealed and vouchsafed unto it. Then and only then will it attain
unto true liberty.
- Baha’u’llah (‘Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah’)
Spiritual civilization
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (From a talk on 14 April
1912, Church of the Ascension, New York; ‘The Promulgation of Universal Peace:
Talks Delivered by 'Abdu'l-Bahá during His Visit to the United States and
Canada in 1912’)
Lamp of religion
Should the lamp of religion be obscured, chaos and confusion
will ensue, and the lights of fairness and justice, of tranquillity and peace
cease to shine.
- Baha’u’llah (‘Tablets of Baha’u’llah revealed after the
Kitab-i-Aqdas’)
Courtesy
We, verily, have chosen courtesy, and made it the true mark
of such as are nigh unto Him. Courtesy is, in truth, a raiment which fitteth all
men, whether young or old.
- Baha'u'llah (Tablet to Napoleon III, Suriy-i-Haykal [Tablet of Temple]; ‘The Summons of the
Lord of Hosts’)
Religion
- Baha’u’llah (‘Tablets of Baha’u’llah revealed after the Kitab-i-Aqdas’)
Brotherhood
No brotherhood appears in the world as lasting save that of
the spiritual type.
- 'Abdu'l-Bahá (From
a talk, Montreal, Canada, 4 September 1912; Star of the West, vol. 8, no. 11,
September 1917)
Truthfulness & Courtesy
- Baha’u’llah (Quoted by Shoghi Effendi in ‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)
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