The Voice Of The Divine Herald Proceeding

Sources: Gleanings From The Writings Of Baha'u'llah

The voice of the Divine Herald, proceeding out of the throne of God,

declareth: O ye My loved ones! Suffer not the hem of My sacred vesture to

be smirched and mired with the things of this world, and follow not the

promptings of your evil and corrupt desires. The Day Star of Divine

Revelation, that shineth in the plenitude of its glory in the heaven of

this Prison, beareth Me witness. They whose hearts are turned towards Him
br /> Who is the Object of the adoration of the entire creation must needs, in

this Day, pass beyond and be sanctified from all created things, visible

and invisible. If they arise to teach My Cause, they must let the breath

of Him Who is the Unconstrained, stir them and must spread it abroad on

the earth with high resolve, with minds that are wholly centered in Him,

and with hearts that are completely detached from and independent of all

things, and with souls that are sanctified from the world and its

vanities. It behoveth them to choose as the best provision for their

journey reliance upon God, and to clothe themselves with the love of their

Lord, the Most Exalted, the All-Glorious. If they do so, their words shall

influence their hearers.



How great, how very great, the gulf that separateth Us from them who, in

this Day, are occupied with their evil passions, and have set their hopes

on the things of the earth and its fleeting glory! Many a time hath the

court of the All-Merciful been to outward seeming so denuded of the riches

of this world that they who lived in close association with Him suffered

from dire want. Despite their sufferings, the Pen of the Most High hath,

at no time, been willing to refer, nor even to make the slightest

allusion, to the things that pertain to this world and its treasures. And

if, at any time, any gift were presented to Him, that gift was accepted as

a token of His grace unto him that offered it. Should it ever please Us to

appropriate to Our own use all the treasures of the earth, to none is

given the right to question Our authority, or to challenge Our right. It

would be impossible to conceive any act more contemptible than soliciting,

in the name of the one true God, the riches which men possess.



It is incumbent upon thee, and upon the followers of Him Who is the

Eternal Truth, to summon all men to whatsoever shall sanctify them from

all attachment to the things of the earth and purge them from its

defilements, that the sweet smell of the raiment of the All-Glorious may

be smelled from all them that love Him.



They who are possessed of riches, however, must have the utmost regard for

the poor, for great is the honor destined by God for those poor who are

steadfast in patience. By My life! There is no honor, except what God may

please to bestow, that can compare to this honor. Great is the blessedness

awaiting the poor that endure patiently and conceal their sufferings, and

well is it with the rich who bestow their riches on the needy and prefer

them before themselves.



Please God, the poor may exert themselves and strive to earn the means of

livelihood. This is a duty which, in this most great Revelation, hath been

prescribed unto every one, and is accounted in the sight of God as a

goodly deed. Whoso observeth this duty, the help of the invisible One

shall most certainly aid him. He can enrich, through His grace, whomsoever

He pleaseth. He, verily, hath power over all things....



Tell, O 'Ali, the loved ones of God that equity is the most fundamental

among human virtues. The evaluation of all things must needs depend upon

it. Ponder a while on the woes and afflictions which this Prisoner hath

sustained. I have, all the days of My life, been at the mercy of Mine

enemies, and have suffered each day, in the path of the love of God, a

fresh tribulation. I have patiently endured until the fame of the Cause of

God was spread abroad on the earth. If any one should now arise and,

prompted by the vain imaginations his heart hath devised, endeavor, openly

or in secret, to sow the seeds of dissension amongst men--can such a man be

said to have acted with equity? No, by Him Whose might extendeth over all

things! By My life! Mine heart groaneth and mine eyes weep sore for the

Cause of God and for them that understand not what they say and imagine

what they cannot comprehend.



It beseemeth all men, in this Day, to take firm hold on the Most Great

Name, and to establish the unity of all mankind. There is no place to flee

to, no refuge that any one can seek, except Him. Should any man be led to

utter such words as will turn away the people from the shores of God's

limitless ocean, and cause them to fix their hearts on anything except

this glorious and manifest Being, that hath assumed a form subject to

human limitations--such a man, however lofty the station he may occupy,

shall be denounced by the entire creation as one that hath deprived

himself of the sweet savors of the All-Merciful.



Say: Observe equity in your judgment, ye men of understanding heart! He

that is unjust in his judgment is destitute of the characteristics that

distinguish man's station. He Who is the Eternal Truth knoweth well what

the breasts of men conceal. His long forbearance hath emboldened His

creatures, for not until the appointed time is come will He rend any veil

asunder. His surpassing mercy hath restrained the fury of His wrath, and

caused most people to imagine that the one true God is unaware of the

things they have privily committed. By Him Who is the All-Knowing, the

All-Informed! The mirror of His knowledge reflecteth, with complete

distinctness, precision and fidelity, the doings of all men. Say: Praise

be to Thee, O Concealer of the sins of the weak and helpless! Magnified be

Thy name, O Thou that forgivest the heedless ones that trespass against

Thee!



We have forbidden men to walk after the imaginations of their hearts, that

they may be enabled to recognize Him Who is the sovereign Source and

Object of all knowledge, and may acknowledge whatsoever He may be pleased

to reveal. Witness how they have entangled themselves with their idle

fancies and vain imaginations. By My life! They are themselves the victims

of what their own hearts have devised, and yet they perceive it not. Vain

and profitless is the talk of their lips, and yet they understand not.



We beseech God that He may graciously vouchsafe His grace unto all men,

and enable them to attain the knowledge of Him and of themselves. By My

life! Whoso hath known Him shall soar in the immensity of His love, and

shall be detached from the world and all that is therein. Nothing on earth

shall deflect him from his course, how much less they who, prompted by

their vain imaginations, speak those things which God hath forbidden.



Say: This is the Day when every ear must needs be attentive to His voice.

Hearken ye to the Call of this wronged One, and magnify ye the name of the

one true God, and adorn yourselves with the ornament of His remembrance,

and illumine your hearts with the light of His love. This is the key that

unlocketh the hearts of men, the burnish that shall cleanse the souls of

all beings. He that is careless of what hath poured out from the finger of

the Will of God liveth in manifest error. Amity and rectitude of conduct,

rather than dissension and mischief, are the marks of true faith.



Proclaim unto men what He, Who speaketh the truth and is the Bearer of the

Trust of God, hath bidden thee observe. My glory be with thee, O thou that

callest upon My name, whose eyes are directed towards My court, and whose

tongue uttereth the praise of thy Lord, the Beneficent.