Paris Talks Part 11

THE DESIRES AND PRAYERS OF 'ABDU'L-BAHa

November 15th

'Abdu'l-Baha said:

You are all very welcome, and I love you all most dearly.

Day and night I pray to Heaven for you that strength may be yours, and that, one and all, you may partic.i.p.ate in the blessings of Baha'u'llah, and enter into the Kingdom.

I supplicate that you may become as new beings, illumined with the Divine Light, like unto s.h.i.+ning lamps, and that from one end of Europe to the other the knowledge of the Love of G.o.d may spread.

May this boundless love so fill your hearts and minds that sadness may find no room to enter and may you with joyful hearts soar like birds into the Divine Radiance.

May your hearts become clear and pure like unto polished mirrors in which may be reflected the full glory of the Sun of Truth.

May your eyes be opened to see the signs of the Kingdom of G.o.d, and may your ears be unstopped so that you may hear with a perfect understanding the Heavenly Proclamation sounding in your midst.

May your souls receive help and comfort, and, being so strengthened, may they be enabled to live in accordance with the teachings of Baha'u'llah.

I pray for each and all that you may be as flames of love in the world, and that the brightness of your light and the warmth of your affection may reach the heart of every sad and sorrowing child of G.o.d.

May you be as s.h.i.+ning stars, bright and luminous for ever in the Kingdom.

I counsel you that you study earnestly the teachings of Baha'u'llah, so that, G.o.d helping you, you may in deed and truth become Baha'is.

CONCERNING BODY, SOUL AND SPIRIT

4 Avenue de Camoens, Paris, Friday morning, November 17th

There are in the world of humanity three degrees; those of the body, the soul, and spirit.

The body is the physical or animal degree of man. From the bodily point of view man is a sharer of the animal kingdom. The bodies alike of men and animals are composed of elements held together by the law of attraction.

Like the animal, man possesses the faculties of the senses, is subject to heat, cold, hunger, thirst, etc.; unlike the animal, man has a rational soul, the human intelligence.

This intelligence of man is the intermediary between his body and his spirit.

When man allows the spirit, through his soul, to enlighten his understanding, then does he contain all Creation; because man, being the culmination of all that went before and thus superior to all previous evolutions, contains all the lower world within himself. Illumined by the spirit through the instrumentality of the soul, man's radiant intelligence makes him the crowning-point of Creation.

But on the other hand, when man does not open his mind and heart to the blessing of the spirit, but turns his soul towards the material side, towards the bodily part of his nature, then is he fallen from his high place and he becomes inferior to the inhabitants of the lower animal kingdom. In this case the man is in a sorry plight! For if the spiritual qualities of the soul, open to the breath of the Divine Spirit, are never used, they become atrophied, enfeebled, and at last incapable; whilst the soul's material qualities alone being exercised, they become terribly powerful-and the unhappy, misguided man, becomes more savage, more unjust, more vile, more cruel, more malevolent than the lower animals themselves.

All his aspirations and desires being strengthened by the lower side of the soul's nature, he becomes more and more brutal, until his whole being is in no way superior to that of the beasts that perish. Men such as this, plan to work evil, to hurt and to destroy; they are entirely without the spirit of Divine compa.s.sion, for the celestial quality of the soul has been dominated by that of the material. If, on the contrary, the spiritual nature of the soul has been so strengthened that it holds the material side in subjection, then does the man approach the Divine; his humanity becomes so glorified that the virtues of the Celestial a.s.sembly are manifested in him; he radiates the Mercy of G.o.d, he stimulates the spiritual progress of mankind, for he becomes a lamp to show light on their path.

You perceive how the soul is the intermediary between the body and the spirit. In like manner is this tree(11) the intermediary between the seed and the fruit. When the fruit of the tree appears and becomes ripe, then we know that the tree is perfect; if the tree bore no fruit it would be merely a useless growth, serving no purpose!

When a soul has in it the life of the spirit, then does it bring forth good fruit and become a Divine tree. I wish you to try to understand this example. I hope that the unspeakable goodness of G.o.d will so strengthen you that the celestial quality of your soul, which relates it to the spirit, will for ever dominate the material side, so entirely ruling the senses that your soul will approach the perfections of the Heavenly Kingdom. May your faces, being steadfastly set towards the Divine Light, become so luminous that all your thoughts, words and actions will s.h.i.+ne with the Spiritual Radiance dominating your souls, so that in the gatherings of the world you will show perfection in your life.

Some men's lives are solely occupied with the things of this world; their minds are so circ.u.mscribed by exterior manners and traditional interests that they are blind to any other realm of existence, to the spiritual significance of all things! They think and dream of earthly fame, of material progress. Sensuous delights and comfortable surroundings bound their horizon, their highest ambitions centre in successes of worldly conditions and circ.u.mstances! They curb not their lower propensities; they eat, drink, and sleep! Like the animal, they have no thought beyond their own physical well-being. It is true that these necessities must be despatched. Life is a load which must be carried on while we are on earth, but the cares of the lower things of life should not be allowed to monopolize all the thoughts and aspirations of a human being. The heart's ambitions should ascend to a more glorious goal, mental activity should rise to higher levels! Men should hold in their souls the vision of celestial perfection, and there prepare a dwelling-place for the inexhaustible bounty of the Divine Spirit.

Let your ambition be the achievement on earth of a Heavenly civilization!

I ask for you the supreme blessing, that you may be so filled with the vitality of the Heavenly Spirit that you may be the cause of life to the world.

THE BAHa'iS MUST WORK WITH HEART AND SOUL TO BRING ABOUT A BETTER CONDITION IN THE WORLD

November 19th

How joyful it is to see such a meeting as this, for it is in truth a gathering together of 'heavenly men'.

We are all united in one Divine purpose, no material motive is ours, and our dearest wish is to spread the Love of G.o.d throughout the world!

We work and pray for the unity of mankind, that all the races of the earth may become one race, all the countries one country, and that all hearts may beat as one heart, working together for perfect unity and brotherhood.

Praise be to G.o.d that our efforts are sincere and that our hearts are turned to the Kingdom. Our greatest longing is that truth may be established in the world, and in this hope we draw near to one another in love and affection. Each and all are whole-hearted and selfless, willing to sacrifice all personal ambition to the grand ideal towards which they strive: Brotherly love and peace and union among men!

Doubt not that G.o.d is with us, on our right hand and on our left, that day by day He will cause our numbers to increase, and that our meetings will grow in strength and usefulness.

It is my dearest hope that you may all become a blessing to others, that you may give sight to the spiritually blind, hearing to the spiritually deaf and life to those who are dead in sin.

May you help those sunk in materiality to realize their Divine son-s.h.i.+p, and encourage them to arise and be worthy of their birthright; so that by your endeavour the world of humanity may become the Kingdom of G.o.d and of His elect.

I thank G.o.d that we are at one in this grand ideal, that my longings are also yours and that we work together in perfect unity.

Today, upon the earth, one sees the sad spectacle of cruel war! Man slays his brother man for selfish gain, and to enlarge his territories! For this ign.o.ble ambition hate has taken possession of his heart, and more and more blood is shed!

Fresh battles are fought, the armies are increased, more cannon, more guns, more explosives of all kinds are sent out-so does bitterness and hate augment from day to day!

But this a.s.sembly, thank G.o.d, longs only for peace and unity, and must work with heart and soul to bring about a better condition in the world.

You who are the servants of G.o.d fight against oppression, hate and discord, so that wars may cease and G.o.d's laws of peace and love may be established among men.

Work! Work with all your strength, spread the Cause of the Kingdom among men; teach the self-sufficient to turn humbly towards G.o.d, the sinful to sin no more, and await with glad expectation the coming of the Kingdom.

Love and obey your Heavenly Father, and rest a.s.sured that Divine help is yours. Verily I say unto you that you shall indeed conquer the world!

Only have faith, patience and courage-this is but the beginning, but surely you will succeed, for G.o.d is with you!