Tablets of Abdul-Baha Abbas Part 26

O thou who art advancing unto the Kingdom of G.o.d!

Verily, I read thy beautiful letter, its good composition, and I scented from the garden of its significances the fragrance of G.o.d's love. I pray G.o.d to confirm thee in the Path, to cause thee to enter the Ark of Safety, to reveal unto thee the signs and manifest to thee the evidences; thus thou mayest be firm in the love of G.o.d, steadfast in the religion of G.o.d and a growing tree by the bounty of the Kingdom of El-ABHA.

O maid-servant of G.o.d! Be rejoiced for G.o.d hath made thee a believing maid-servant in His Holy Threshold and a leaf of the leaves of the Tree of Life. If G.o.d giveth thee good descendants and a manly son, rest a.s.sured in that he will be a good son, looking unto the Supreme Horizon and confident in his soul by the favors of the Lord of the High Heavens.

I supplicate G.o.d to make His beloved ones in Cincinnati (O.) glow with the fire of Sinai, imploring unto the Kingdom of El-ABHA, meek and lowly for the sake of G.o.d among His beloved, denying self and pa.s.sion, grasping the rope of piety, so that they may be lamps of guidance in those regions. I pray G.o.d to make thee a maid-servant whose garment shall be faithfulness and the crown of her head the love of El-Baha.

Convey greeting and praise from me to thy honorable husband. I ask G.o.d to aid him with a strength whereat minds shall amaze in the Cause of the Living G.o.d.

"O ye illumined faces! O ye divine souls! and O ye..."

O ye(77) illumined faces! O ye divine souls! and O ye spiritual temples!

Verily, I read your letter which uttered your extreme love and entire attraction to the Kingdom of G.o.d, your trust in G.o.d, your immersing into the deep seas of the bounties of G.o.d and your chanting the verses of thanksgiving to G.o.d, because He guided you to His Eternal Kingdom, manifested to you His evident light, descended upon you a heavenly table through His great favor, planted you in His glorious vineyard and caused you to become manifestations of guidance among the people and dawning-points of wisdom among the creatures.

Servants of G.o.d! Sanctify the soul and dilate the breast by the promise your Lord gave you, that, verily, He confirms you through the hosts of inspiration. Ye will see (the time when) your faces s.h.i.+ne as stars in the horizon of guidance and your heads crowned by the crown of success in the Supreme World.

O Thou kind Lord!

These souls are Thy friends and this gathering is longing for Thee. They are captives of the lights of Thy Beauty and ecstatic by Thy musk-scented locks. Their hearts are Thine; they are Thy poor, humble and homeless; they have severed themselves from relative and stranger and have established the relations.h.i.+p of unity with Thee. They have adored Thee.

They were sons of earth; Thou hast made them new fruits of the Kingdom.

They were plants of the desert of bereavement; Thou hast made them trees of the rose-garden of knowledge. They were silent; Thou hast made them speak. They were extinct; Thou hast lighted them. They were sterile soil; Thou hast made them the rose-garden of significances. They were the children of the world of humanity; Thou hast caused them to attain development and the maturity of the Kingdom!

O kind One! Grant them shelter and security under Thy protection, preserve them from tests and trials, send them invisible help and confer upon them the doubtless bounty, O Thou kind Beloved!

They are the body and Thou art the Life. The body is dependent for its life and freshness upon the Spirit-therefore they are in need of confirmation and long for the Breaths of the Holy Spirit in this new Cause!

Thou art the Able! Thou art the Giver, the Educator, the Forgiver, the Pardoner and the Light s.h.i.+ning from the Invisible Realm!

"O ye who are attracted to the Heavenly Kingdom! O..."

O ye(78) who are attracted to the Heavenly Kingdom! O ye who are enlightened by the Light of Guidance! O ye lamps lighted by the Light of Love and Affection!

Verily, I have read your brilliant letter, which indicated your enkindlement by the fire of the love of G.o.d and prayed [for] your entrance into the Kingdom of G.o.d.

Blessed ye are, O ye who are firm and steadfast in the Covenant of G.o.d!

Blessed ye are, O ye s.h.i.+ning stars from the horizon of the love of G.o.d!

I supplicate to G.o.d to make you the heralds of His mercy, spreaders of the fragrances of His holiness, utterers of His name, servants in His vineyard and dwellers in the Paradise of El-ABHA; so that ye may become signs of guidance, standards of love and divine fruitful trees, cheerfully moved by the breezes of G.o.d.

Make firm your feet in the Cause of G.o.d; dilate your b.r.e.a.s.t.s by the glad-tidings of G.o.d and turn to the kingdom of G.o.d with pure hearts, sanctified souls, cheerful spirits, brightened eyes and illumined faces.

Verily, I say unto you then (when ye become so) the angels of holiness will welcome you by the glad-tidings of G.o.d, the Mighty, the Powerful.

"O ye maid-servants of the Merciful! Leaves of the..."

O ye(79) maid-servants of the Merciful! Leaves of the Tree of Life!

Thank ye the Lord, for He hath removed the covering from off your insight, illuminated your eyes by witnessing the Sun of Truth, purified your souls, and hath quickened your hearts through the holy fragrances which are being diffused from the garden of the kingdom of His Great Glory!

O ye maid-servants of the Merciful! It is inc.u.mbent upon you to soar up with wings of joy and happiness unto the apex of exultation and gladness; for He hath a.s.signed unto you the greatest guidance in the Day of Resurrection, and hath crowned you with the diadem of glory and divine honor among the women of the whole world, and hath chosen you above the queens of the world for His great bounty.

Verily, the crowns which are on the heads of the n.o.ble women-the queens of the world-all their bases will be finally broken, their gems scattered away, their l.u.s.ter removed and will become as dispersed dust. But your magnificent crowns are everlastingly brilliant and permanently glorious and mighty and their gems scintillating throughout cycles and ages.

This is the highest gift! This is the greatest bestowal! Thank ye your Lord for this great bounty and favor! O ye maid-servants of the Merciful!

verily, your Lord, the Supreme, is calling upon you from His Ancient Kingdom and announces unto you such glad-tidings, whereat the hearts of the angels of heaven rejoice.

It is inc.u.mbent upon you to strip yourselves of every old garment (i.e., old beliefs and past customs). It is inc.u.mbent upon you to be severed from this contemptible earthly world. It is inc.u.mbent upon you (to seek after) the Kingdom, in this great Day!

Purify ye your hearts, sanctify your souls and cleanse your spirits; so that ye may attain to this great success. Then ye will become the angels of heaven, will enter among the Supreme Concourse and will permanently abide in the paradise of union (with G.o.d), and will be a.s.sociated with the Beauty of El-ABHA.

"O ye firm, steadfast, and faithful Believers!..."

O ye(80) firm, steadfast, and faithful Believers!

Verily, I, from this brilliant and Blessed Spot, speak to you face to face, while ye are in that far distant country, saying:

"O people of loyalty, O people of faithfulness, O people who are awakened by the Breath of G.o.d, O people who are inhaling the scent of life from the Spirit of G.o.d! The path hath become smooth, the way straightened, the carpet of the Kingdom is spread, the Tabernacle hath been elevated upon the Hill of Might, the powers of heaven have been shaken, the corners of the earth have quaked, the sun has been darkened, the moon ceased to give light, the stars have fallen, the nations of the earth have lamented, and the Son of Man hath come upon the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, and He hath sent His angels with the sound of the great trumpet, and no one knows the meaning of these emblems save the wise and informed.

"Ye are the angels, if your feet be firm, your spirits rejoiced, your secret thoughts pure, your eyes consoled, your ears opened, your b.r.e.a.s.t.s dilated with joy, and your souls gladdened, and if you arise to a.s.sist the Covenant, to resist dissension and to be attracted to the Effulgence!

Verily, I say unto you that the Word of G.o.d has a.s.suredly been explained and has become an evident sign and a strong and solid proof, and its traces shall be spread in the East and West, and to these all heads shall bow and all souls shall submit and kneel down with their faces to the ground."

"O ye dear friends and maid-servants of G.o.d!..."

O ye(81) dear friends and maid-servants of G.o.d!

A good fragrance is coming from the rose-garden of Kenosha and a pleasing breeze is blowing from the orchard of the hearts of the friends and maid-servants of the Merciful.

Praise be to G.o.d, that town, by the presence of the beloved ones and the maid-servants of the Merciful, hath become a veritable paradise and its s.p.a.ce, like unto the heavens, is illuminated with radiant lamps. If this conflagration and attraction continue for a period, Kenosha will soon attain great provisions, will travel with speed through the degrees of existence and make great progress in the orders of the Kingdom.