Part 16 (2/2)

Verily, on the First Day We flung open the gates of Paradise unto all the peoples of the world, and exclaimed: 'O all ye created things! Strive to gain admittance into Paradise, since ye have, during all your lives, held fast unto virtuous deeds in order to attain unto it.' Surely all men yearn to enter therein, but alas, they are unable to do so by reason of that which their hands have wrought. Shouldst thou, however, gain a true understanding of G.o.d in thine heart of hearts, ere He hath manifested Himself, thou wouldst be able to recognize Him, visible and resplendent, when He unveileth Himself before the eyes of all men. XVII, 11.

”Say, by reason of your remembering Him Whom G.o.d ...”

Say, by reason of your remembering Him Whom G.o.d shall make manifest and by extolling His name, G.o.d will cause your hearts to be dilated with joy, and do ye not wish your hearts to be in such a blissful state? Indeed the hearts of them that truly believe in Him Whom G.o.d shall make manifest are vaster than the expanse of heaven and earth and whatever is between them.

G.o.d hath left no hindrance in their hearts, were it but the size of a mustard seed. He will cheer their hearts, their spirits, their souls and their bodies and their days of prosperity or adversity, through the exaltation of the name of Him Who is the supreme Testimony of G.o.d and the promotion of the Word of Him Who is the Dayspring of the glory of their Creator.

Verily, these are souls who take delight in the remembrance of G.o.d, Who dilates their hearts through the effulgence of the light of knowledge and wisdom. They seek naught but G.o.d and are oft engaged in giving praise unto Him. They desire naught except whatever He desireth and stand ready to do His bidding. Their hearts are mirrors reflecting whatsoever He Whom G.o.d shall make manifest willeth. Thus G.o.d will cheer the hearts of those who truly believe in Him and in His signs and who are well a.s.sured of the life to come. Say, the life to come is none other than the days a.s.sociated with the coming of Him Whom G.o.d will make manifest.

Reduce not the ordinances of G.o.d to fanciful imaginations of your own; rather observe all the things which G.o.d hath created at His behest with the eye of the spirit, even as ye see things with the eyes of your bodies.

XVII, 15.

”The divine Revelation a.s.sociated with the advent of Him ...”

The divine Revelation a.s.sociated with the advent of Him Who is your promised Mihdi hath proved far more wondrous than the Revelation wherewith Mu?ammad, the Apostle of G.o.d, was invested. Would that ye might ponder.

Verily, G.o.d raised up Mu?ammad, the Apostle of G.o.d, from among the people of Arabia after he had reached forty years of age-a fact which every one of you affirmeth and upholdeth-while your Redeemer was raised up by G.o.d at the age of twenty-four amidst people none of whom can speak or understand a single word of Arabic. Thus G.o.d layeth bare the glory of His Cause and demonstrateth the Truth through the potency of His revealed Word. He is indeed the Powerful, the Omnipotent, the Help in Peril, the Best Beloved.

XVII, 4.

”Say, verily G.o.d hath caused all created things to enter ...”

Say, verily G.o.d hath caused all created things to enter beneath the shade of the tree of affirmation, except those who are endowed with the faculty of understanding. Theirs is the choice either to believe in G.o.d their Lord, and put their whole trust in Him, or to shut themselves out from Him and refuse to believe with cert.i.tude in His signs. These two groups sail upon two seas: the sea of affirmation and the sea of negation.

They that truly believe in G.o.d and in His signs, and who in every Dispensation faithfully obey that which hath been revealed in the Book-such are indeed the ones whom G.o.d hath created from the fruits of the Paradise of His good-pleasure, and who are of the blissful. But they who turn away from G.o.d and His signs in each Dispensation, those are the ones who sail upon the sea of negation.

G.o.d hath, through the potency of His behest, ordained for Himself the task of ensuring the ascendancy of the sea of affirmation and of bringing to naught the sea of negation through the power of His might. He is in truth potent over all things.

Verily it is inc.u.mbent upon you to recognize your Lord at the time of His manifestation, that haply ye may not enter into negation, and that, ere a prophet is raised by G.o.d, ye may find yourselves securely established upon the sea of affirmation. For if a prophet cometh to you from G.o.d and ye fail to walk in His Way, G.o.d will, thereupon, transform your light into fire. Take heed then that perchance ye may, through the grace of G.o.d and His signs, be enabled to redeem your souls. XVIII, 13.

”Say, G.o.d shall of a truth cause your hearts to be given to ...”

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