"Tests are benefits from God, for which we should thank Him.
Grief and sorrow do not come to us by chance,
they are sent to us by the Divine Mercy for our own perfecting.

While a man is happy he may forget his God;
but when grief comes and sorrows overwhelm him,
then will he remember his Father who is in Heaven,
and who is able to deliver him from his humiliations.

Men who suffer not, attain no perfection.
The plant most pruned by the gardeners is that one which,
when the summer comes,
will have the most beautiful blossoms and the most abundant fruit."

(Abdu'l-Baha, Paris Talks, p. 50)

"...when I behold the sea, I find that it speaketh to me of Thy majesty...."

"I am well aware, O my Lord, that I have been so carried away by the clear tokens of Thy loving-kindness, and so completely inebriated with the wine of Thine utterance, that whatever I behold I readily discover that it maketh Thee known unto me, and it remindeth me of Thy signs, and of Thy tokens, and of Thy testimonies. By Thy glory! Every time I lift up mine eyes unto Thy heaven, I call to mind Thy highness and Thy loftiness, and Thine incomparable glory and greatness; and every time I turn my gaze to Thine earth, I am made to recognize the evidences of Thy power and the tokens of Thy bounty. And when I behold the sea, I find that it speaketh to me of Thy majesty, and of the potency of Thy might, and of Thy sovereignty and Thy grandeur. And at whatever time I contemplate the mountains, I am led to discover the ensigns of Thy victory and the standards of Thine omnipotence."

-Bahá'u'lláh, Prayers and Meditations, p. 271

"...The art of music is divine and effective. It is the food of the soul and spirit.
Through the power and charm of music the spirit of man is uplifted.
It has wonderful sway and effect in the hearts of children, for their hearts are pure,
and melodies have great influence in them.
The latent talents with which the hearts of these children are endowed
will find expression through the medium of music.
Therefore, you must exert yourselves to make them proficient;
teach them to sing with excellence and effect.
It is incumbent upon each child to know something of music,
for without knowledge of this art
the melodies of instrument and voice cannot be rightly enjoyed.
Likewise, it is necessary that the schools teach it
in order that the souls and hearts of the pupils may
become vivified and exhilarated and their lives be brightened with enjoyment."

(Abdu'l-Baha, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 52)

  TEACHING CHILDREN IS THE SAME AS WORSHIP 

  MONA MAHMUDNIZHAD (1965 – 1983) 

Killed by Iranian Authorities for Teaching Bahá'í Children's Classes

"In reply to thy letter, I am obliged to be brief: Praise thou God that thou hast succeeded in becoming a teacher of young Bahá'ís, young trees of the Abhá Paradise, and at the same time art able to benefit the other children as well.  According to the explicit divine Text, teaching the children is indispensable and obligatory. It followeth that teachers are servants of the Lord God, since they have arisen to perform this task, which is the same as worship. You must therefore offer praise with every breath, for you are educating your spiritual children. The spiritual father is greater than the physical one, for the latter bestoweth but this world's life, whereas the former endoweth his child with life everlasting. This is why, in the Law of God, teachers are listed among the heirs." -Bahá'u'lláh

"A drop of the billowing ocean of His endless mercy
hath adorned all creation with the ornament of existence,
and a breath wafted from His peerless Paradise hath invested all beings
with the robe of His sanctity and glory.
A sprinkling from the unfathomed deep of His sovereign and all-pervasive Will hath,
out of utter nothingness, called into being a creation
which is infinite in its range and deathless in its duration.
The wonders of His bounty can never cease,
and the stream of His merciful grace can never be arrested.
The process of His creation hath had no beginning, and can have no end."

(Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 61)

13. O SON OF SPIRIT!
I created thee rich, why dost thou bring thyself down to poverty?
Noble I made thee, wherewith dost thou abase thyself?
Out of the essence of knowledge I gave thee being,
why seekest thou enlightenment from anyone beside Me?
Out of the clay of love I molded thee, how dost thou busy thyself with another?
Turn thy sight unto thyself,
that thou mayest find Me standing within thee, mighty, powerful and self-subsisting.

 (Baha'u'llah, The Arabic Hidden Words)

O SON OF MAN!
For everything there is a sign. The sign of love is fortitude under My decree and patience under My trials.

-Bahá'u'lláh, The Arabic Hidden Words

"Tests are benefits from God, for which we should thank Him. Grief and sorrow do not come to us by chance, they are sent to us by the Divine Mercy for our own perfecting.

"While a man is happy he may forget his God; but when grief comes and sorrows overwhelm him, then will he remember his Father who is in Heaven, and who is able to deliver him from his humiliations.

"Men who suffer not, attain no perfection. The plant most pruned by the gardeners is that one which, when the summer comes, will have the most beautiful blossoms and the most abundant fruit."

-Abdu'l-Bahá, Paris Talks, p. 50

"...Religious fanaticism and hatred are a world-devouring fire,
whose violence none can quench.
The Hand of Divine power can, alone, deliver mankind from this desolating affliction....

The utterance of God is a lamp, whose light is these words:
Ye are the fruits of one tree, and the leaves of one branch.
Deal ye one with another with the utmost love and harmony,
with friendliness and fellowship.
He Who is the Day Star of Truth beareth Me witness!
So powerful is the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth.
The one true God, He Who knoweth all things, Himself testifieth to the truth of these words."

 (Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 288)

Only when the lamp of search, of earnest striving, of longing desire,
of passionate devotion, of fervid love, of rapture, and ecstasy,
is kindled within the seeker's heart,
and the breeze of His loving-kindness is wafted upon his soul,
will the darkness of error be dispelled, the mists of doubts and misgivings be dissipated,
and the lights of knowledge and certitude envelop his being.
At that hour will the mystic Herald, bearing the joyful tidings of the Spirit,
shine forth from the City of God resplendent as the morn,
and, through the trumpet-blast of knowledge, will awaken the heart, the soul,
and the spirit from the slumber of negligence.
Then will the manifold favours and outpouring grace of the holy and everlasting Spirit
confer such new life upon the seeker that he will find himself endowed with a new eye,
a new ear, a new heart, and a new mind.
He will contemplate the manifest signs of the universe,
and will penetrate the hidden mysteries of the soul.
Gazing with the eye of God,
he will perceive within every atom a door
that leadeth him to the stations of absolute certitude.
He will discover in all things the mysteries of divine Revelation
and the evidences of an everlasting manifestation.

(Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 195)

Attachment: (Downloaded times)

"...Each of us is immeasurably far from being "perfect as our heavenly father is perfect"
and the task of perfecting our own life and character
is one that requires all our attention, our will-power and energy.
If we allow our attention and energy to be taken up
in efforts to keep others right and remedy their faults,
we are wasting precious time.
We are like ploughmen each of whom has his team to manage and his plough to direct,
and in order to keep his furrow straight
he must keep his eye on his goal and concentrate on his own task.
If he looks to this side and that to see how Tom and Harry are getting on
and to criticize their ploughing, then his own furrow will assuredly become crooked.

On no subject are the Bahá'í teachings more emphatic than on the necessity to abstain from faultfinding and backbiting while being ever eager to discover
and root out our own faults and overcome our own failings."

(Compilations, The Compilation of Compilations vol II, p. 3)

 

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Oh, trust in God! for His Bounty is everlasting,
and in His Blessings, for they are superb.
Oh! put your faith in the Almighty,
for He faileth not and His goodness endureth for ever!
His Sun giveth Light continually,
and the Clouds of His Mercy are full of the Waters of Compassion
with which He waters the hearts of all who trust in Him.
His refreshing Breeze ever carries healing in its wings to the parched souls of men! 

(Abdu'l-Baha, Paris Talks, p. 108)

Quaff then, O My brother,
from the living waters that We have caused to flow in the oceans of these words.
Methinks the seas of grandeur are surging within them,
and the gems of divine virtue are shining within and upon them.
Divest then thyself of that which debarreth thee from this fathomless crimson sea,
and to the cry of "In the name of God and by His grace!" immerse thyself therein.
Let the fear of no one dismay thee.
Trust in the Lord, thy God, for He is sufficient unto whosoever trusteth in Him.
He, verily, shall protect thee, and in Him shalt thou abide in safety.

(Baha'u'llah, Gems of Divine Mysteries, p. 57)

The portals of grace are wide open before the face of all men.
In Our outward dealings with them We have treated alike the righteous and the sinner,
that perchance the evil-doer may attain the limitless ocean of Divine forgiveness.
Our name "the Concealer" hath shed such a light upon men
that the froward hath imagined himself to be numbered with the pious.
No man that seeketh Us will We ever disappoint,
neither shall he that hath set his face towards Us be denied access unto Our court....

(Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 271)

Incline your hearts, O people of God,
unto the counsels of your true, your incomparable Friend.
The Word of God may be likened unto a sapling,
whose roots have been implanted in the hearts of men.
It is incumbent upon you to foster its growth through the living waters of wisdom,
of sanctified and holy words,
so that its root may become firmly fixed
and its branches may spread out as high as the heavens and beyond.

(Baha'u'llah, Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 93)