Gilberto dear friend
Dr Susan says nice things about many people. She is the essence of fairness,
objectivity, and erudition but in the matter of some lowly ones like this
dust she says very nice things that are as warn as December weather outside
is freezing.
In the Kitab i Iqan Baha'u'llah says many wonderful things about the Holy
Qur'an:
This passage about a seeker seeking the City of God is a most remarkable
passage. I beg you [and others interested to peruse it with love and
devotion]. I will do so tonight and we shall become WEDDED TO THAT CITY [THE
BOOK OF GOD] THAT A MOMENT'S SEPARATION WOULD BE UNTHINKABLE.
Yours truly humbly and definitely undeserving of Susan's kind praise khazeh
** They that valiantly labour in quest of God's will, when once they have
renounced all else but Him, will be so attached and wedded to that City that
a moment's separation from it would to them be unthinkable. They will
hearken unto infallible proofs from the Hyacinth of that assembly, and
receive the surest testimonies from the beauty of its Rose and the melody of
its Nightingale. Once in about a thousand years shall this City be renewed
and re-adorned.
Wherefore, O my friend, it behooveth Us to exert the highest endeavour
to attain unto that City, and, by the grace of God and His loving-kindness,
rend asunder the "veils of glory"; so that, with inflexible steadfastness,
we may sacrifice our drooping souls in the path of the New Beloved. We
should with tearful eyes, fervently and repeatedly, implore Him to grant us
the favour of that grace. That city is none other than the Word of God
revealed in every age and dispensation. In the days of Moses it was the
Pentateuch; in the days of Jesus the Gospel; in the days of Muhammad the
Messenger of God the Qur'an; in this day the Bayan; and in the dispensation
of Him Whom God will make manifest His own Book - the Book unto which all
the Books of former Dispensations must needs be referred, the Book which
standeth amongst them all transcendent and supreme. In these cities
spiritual sustenance is bountifully provided, and incorruptible delights
have been ordained. The food they bestow is the bread of heaven, and the
Spirit they impart is God's imperishable blessing. Upon detached souls they
bestow the gift of Unity, enrich the destitute, and offer the cup of
knowledge unto them who wander in the wilderness of ignorance. All the
guidance, the blessings, the learning, the understanding, the faith, and
certitude, conferred upon all that is in heaven and on earth, are hidden and
treasured within these Cities.
For instance, the Qur'an was an impregnable stronghold unto the people
of Muhammad. In His days, whosoever entered therein, was shielded from the
devilish assaults, the menacing darts, the soul-devouring doubts, and
blasphemous whisperings of the enemy. Upon him was also bestowed a portion
of the everlasting and goodly fruits - the fruits of wisdom, from the divine
Tree. To him was given to drink the incorruptible waters of the river of
knowledge, and to taste the wine of the mysteries of divine Unity.
All the things that people required in connection with the Revelation
of Muhammad and His laws were to be found revealed and manifest in that
Ridvan of resplendent glory. That Book constitutes an abiding testimony to
its people after Muhammad, inasmuch as its decrees are indisputable, and its
promise unfailing. All have been enjoined to follow the precepts of that
Book until "the year sixty"(1260 AH) - the year of the advent of God's
wondrous Manifestation. That Book is the Book which unfailingly leadeth the
seeker unto the Ridvan of the divine Presence, and causeth him that hath
forsaken his country and is treading the seeker's path to enter the
Tabernacle of everlasting reunion. Its guidance can never err, its
testimony no other testimony can excel. All other traditions, all other
books and records, are bereft of such distinction, inasmuch as both the
traditions and they that have spoken them are confirmed and proven solely by
the text of that Book. Moreover, the traditions themselves grievously
differ, and their obscurities are manifold.
Muhammad, Himself, as the end of His mission drew nigh, spoke these
words: "Verily, I leave amongst you My twin weighty testimonies: The Book
of God and My Family."
(Baha'u'llah: The Kitab-i-Iqan, Pages: 198-201)
Interestingly of course the exalted Bab was both the "Family" and the Book
[from the Bayan]
***
There are two proofs from God to men: the signs (or verses) of God, and he
to whom they are revealed. The first are a permanent and evident proof till
the Day of Resurrection; the second is an evident proof only so long as the
period of the Manifestation lasts. ... Every - things is mentioned - either
confirmed or forbidden - in the Bayan.
For the 'Silent Book' (Kitab-i-S.aamit) there is a 'Speaking Book'
(Kitab-i-Naat.iq) appointed by God, and neither one can exist without the
other. And the latter [Speaking Book]is He whom God shall manifest [i.e
Baha'u'llah]. And when He appear, faith shall be cut off from those who
believe, except those who believe in Him; and when faith is cut off, how
shall confession remain to those who are confessors?***
[the Persian Bayan]
Say: The Book of God hath been sent down in the form of this Youth [i.e.
Baha'u'llah] Hallowed, therefore, be God, the most excellent of makers!
Take ye good heed, O peoples of the world, lest ye flee from His face. Nay,
make haste to attain His presence, and be of them that have returned unto
Him.
(Baha'u'llah: Gleanings, Pages: 104-105)
The door of the knowledge of the Ancient Being hath ever been, and will
continue for ever to be, closed in the face of men. No man's understanding
shall ever gain access unto His holy court. As a token of His mercy,
however, and as a proof of His loving-kindness, He hath manifested unto men
the Day Stars of His divine guidance, the Symbols of His divine unity, and
hath ordained the knowledge of these sanctified Beings to be identical with
the knowledge of His own Self. Whoso recognizeth them hath recognized God.
Whoso hearkeneth to their call, hath hearkened to the Voice of God, and
whoso testifieth to the truth of their Revelation, hath testified to the
truth of God Himself. Whoso turneth away from them, hath turned away from
God, and whoso disbelieveth in them, hath disbelieved in God. Every one of
them is the Way of God that connecteth this world with the realms above, and
the Standard of His Truth unto every one in the kingdoms of earth and
heaven. They are the Manifestations of God amidst men, the evidences of His
Truth, and the signs of His glory.
(Baha'u'llah: Gleanings, Pages: 49-50)
Lowly and nothing khazeh
"Because of many pressures and problems this servant did not wish to
interfere in your conversation"
Please do, Khazeh jan. Part of the reason I invited Gilberto to participate
here (after so many of his postings on SRB were being rejected) is because I
was hoping the two of you might become acquianted with one another.
Gilberto, meet Khazeh, one of the most learned participants on this list.
warmest, Susan
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