In the Holy Qur'án is found a verse at Suríh 24:35
which contains within it an abundance of meaning and significance. Islamic
scholars have written many commentaries over the centuries attempting to
interpret its meaning. Until the advent of the Bahá'í Revelation,
apparently its significance has remained shrouded in mystery. It is interesting
to study the various interpretations of this verse, and since the writer is not
a learned scholar nor privy to the original Arabic, several translations of the
Qur'án in English have been relied upon in order to ferret out the
various implications and interpretations of this enigmatic and cryptic passage
revealed by the Prophet Muhammad.
My first encounter with this verse was Shoghi Effendi's interpretation in his
message addressed to the Bahá'ís attending the 1953
Inter-Continental Conference held in Chicago, Illinois, wherein he illustrates
the Verse of Light as an historical record of God's Revelation from the time of
Adam to the present day: the unfoldment of God's eternal plan. Many references
to this verse are to be found in the Bahá'í Writings, a small
compilation of which is here included.
The expressions used in this verse such as light, tree, lamp, oil are invoked
profusely by the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh in their Tablets and
Writings as similes and metaphors so as to enlighten our hearts and minds with
the inner meanings of the Revelations of God, of our purpose in this life, and
to facilitate our entrance into the Kingdom. Bahá'u'lláh's
references to the Lote-Tree, the Sadratu'l-Muntahá, the Blessed Tree,
the Lamp, the Oil are found throughout His Writings.
The following are some renditions of the Verse of Light by various translators
of the Qur'án into English, together with some commentaries by them, as
well as by other Islamic scholars.
The first is by J. M. Rodwell:
God is the Light of the Heavens and of the Earth. His Light is like a niche in which is a lamp - the lamp encased in glass - the glass, as it were, a glistening star. From a blessed tree it is lighted, the olive neither of the East nor of the West, whose oil would well nigh shine out, even though fire touched it not! It is light upon light. God guideth whom He will to His light, and God setteth forth parables to men, for God knoweth all things.[1]
God is the light of heaven and earth: the similitude of his light is as a niche in a wall, wherein a lamp is placed, and the lamp enclosed in a case of glass; the glass appears as it were a shining star. It is lighted with the oil of a blessed tree, an olive neither of the east, nor of the west; it wanted little but that the oil thereof would give light, although no fire touched it. This is light added unto light: God will direct unto his light whom he pleaseth. God propoundeth parables unto men; for God knoweth all things.[2]
God is the Light of the heavens and the earth;
the likeness of His Light is as a niche wherein is a lamp
(the lamp in a glass the glass as it were a glittering star)
kindled from a Blessed Tree,
an olive that is neither of the East nor of the West
whose oil wellnigh would shine,
even if no life touched it;
Light upon Light;
(God strikes similitudes for men,
and God has knowledge of everything).[3]
God is the Light (n.2996)[4] of the heavens and the earth,(n.2997)
The parable of His Light is as if there were a Niche
And within it a Lamp:
The Lamp enclosed in Glass:(n.2998)
The glass as it were a brilliant star:(n.2999)
Lit from a blessed Tree,(n.3000)
An Olive, neither of the East nor of the West,(n.3001)
Whose Oil is well-nigh luminous,
Though fire scarce touched it:(n.3002)
Light upon Light!
God doth guide Whom He will to His Light:(n.3003)
God doth set forth Parables for men:
And God doth know all things.[5]
Fn. 2996: "Embedded within certain directions concerning a refined domestic and social life, comes this glorious parable of Light, which contains layer upon layer of allegorical truth about spiritual mysteries. No notes can do justice to its full meaning. Volumes have been writing on the subject, the most notable being Imám Ghazáli's Mishkát-ul-Anwár. In these notes I propose to explain the simplest meaning of this passage, reserving a brief account of Ghazáli's exposition for Appendix VII." (printed at the end of the Súra at pp. 920-924).[6]
Fn. 2997: "The physical light is but a reflection of the true Light in the world of Reality, and that true Light is God. We can only think of God in terms of our phenomenal experience, and in the phenomenal world, light is the purest thing we know. But physical light has drawbacks incidental to its physical nature; e.g. (1) it is dependent upon some source external to itself; (2) it is a passing phenomenon; if we take it to be a form of motion or energy it is unstable, like all physical phenomena; (3) it is dependent on space and time; its speed is 186,000 miles per second, and there are stars whose light takes thousands of years before it reaches the earth. The perfect Light of God is free from any such defects."[7]
Fn. 2998: "The first three points in the Parable centre round the symbols of the Niche, the Lamp, and the Glass.
- The Niche (Mishkát) is the little shallow recess in the wall of an Eastern house, fairly high from the ground, in which a light (before the days of electricity) was usually placed. Its height enabled it to diffuse the light in the room and minimised the shadows. The background of the wall and the sides of the niche helped to throw the light well into the room, and if the wall was white-washed, it also acted as a reflector: the opening in front made the way for the light. So with the spiritual Light: it is placed high, above worldly things; it has a niche or habitation of its own, in Revelation and other Signs of God; its access to men is by a special Way, open to all, yet closed to those who refuse its rays.
- The Lamp is the core of the spiritual Truth, which is the real illumination; the Niche is nothing without it; the Niche is actually made for it.
- The Glass is the transparent medium through which the light passes. On the one hand, it protects the light from moths and other forms of low life (lower motives in man) and from gusts of wind (passions), and on the other, it transmits the light through a medium which is made up of and akin to the grosser substances of the earth (such as sand, soda, potash, etc.), so arranged as to admit the subtle to the gross by its transparency. So the spiritual Truth has to be filtered through human language or human intelligence to make it intelligible to mankind."[8]
Fn. 2999: "The glass by itself does not shine. But when the light comes into it, it shines like a brilliant star. So men of God, who preach God's Truth, are themselves illuminated by God's Light and become the illuminating media through which that Light spreads and permeates human life."[9]
Fn. 3000: "The olive tree is not a very impressive tree in its outward appearance. Its leaves have a dull greenish-brown colour, and in size it is inconspicuous. But its oil is used in sacred ceremonies and forms a wholesome ingredient of food. The fruit has a specially fine flavour. (Cf.n.2880: For Arabia the best olives grow round about Mount Sinai. The fig, the olive, Mount Sinai, and the sacred city of Mecca are mentioned together in association in xcv:1-3 (of the Qur'án) where we shall consider the mystic meaning. Olive oil is an ingredient in medicinal ointments and in ointments used for religious ceremonies such as the consecration of kings. It has thus a symbolic means. If used for food, the olive has a delicious flavour)."[10]
Fn. 3001: "This mystic Olive is not localised. It is neither of the East nor of the West. It is universal, for such is God's Light. As applied to the olive, there is also a more literal meaning, which can be allegorised in a different way. An olive tree with an eastern aspect gets only the rays of the morning sun; one with a western aspect, only the rays of the western sun. In the northern hemisphere the south aspect will give the sun's rays a great part of the day, while a north aspect will shut them out altogether, and vice verse in the southern hemisphere. But a tree in the open plain or on a hill will get perpetual sunshine by day: it will be more mature, and the fruit and oil will be of superior quality. So God's light is not localised or immature: it is perfect and universal."[11]
Fn. 3002: "Pure olive oil is beautiful in colour, consistency, and illuminating power. The world has tried all kinds of illuminants, and for economic reasons of convenience, one replaces another. But for coolness, comfort to the eyes, and steadiness, vegetable oils are superior to electricity, mineral oils, and animal oils. And among vegetable oils, olive oil takes a high place and deserves its sacred associations. Its purity is almost like light itself: you may support it to be almost light before it is lit. So with spiritual Truth: it illuminates the mind and understanding imperceptibly, almost before the human mind and heart have been consciously touched by it."[12]
Fn. 3003: "Glorious, illimitable Light, which cannot be described or measured. And there are grades and grades of it, passing transcendently into regions of spiritual height, which man's imagination can scarcely conceive of. The topmost pinnacle is the true prototypal Light, the real Light, of which all others were reflections, the Light of God. Hence the saying of the holy Prophet about God's 'Seventy thousand veils of Light'[13]".
In every epoch after Mohammad a Saint arises to act as his viceregent: the people are on trial till the Resurrection.
Whosoever has a good nature is saved, whosoever is of frail heart is broken.
The Saint, then, is the living Imám, who appears in every age whether he be a descendant of 'Umar or of 'Alí.
He is the God-guided one (Mahdí) and the Guide (Hadí): he is both hidden and seated before you.
He is as the Light of the Prophet, and Universal Reason is his Gabriel: the saint lesser than he receives illumination from him, like a lamp.
The saint below this "lamp" is as the lamp-niche: the Light has gradations of intensity;
For the Light of God has seven hundred veils: regard the veils of the Light as so many tiers.
Behind each veil a certain class of saints has its abode: the veils mount tier after tier up to the Imám.
The light that is the life of the topmost rank is painful and insupportable to one beneath;
Yet, by degrees, his squintness diminishes; and when he has passed through all seven hundred veils, he becomes the Sea.
The fire that is good for iron or gold - how should it be good for quinces and apples?
The apple and quince have only a slight crudity: unlike iron, they want a gentle heat;
But those flames are too mild for the iron, which easily absorbs the glow of the fiery dragon.
---
What is that iron? The self-mortified dervish: under the hammer and the fire he is red and happy.
He is the chamberlain of the fire, in immediate touch with it; he goes straight into the heart of the fire.
Therefore he is the Heart of the world, for by means of the heart the body performs its proper function.
All individual hearts are as the body in relation to the universal Heart of the Saint.[17]
By the star when it setteth,
Your compatriot erreth not, nor is he led astray,
Neither speaketh he from mere impulse.
The Koran is no other than a revelation revealed to him:
One terrible in power taught it him, endued with wisdom.
With even balance stood he in the highest part of the horizon:
Then came he nearer and approached,
And was at the distance of two bows, or even closer, -
And he revealed to his servant what he revealed.
His heart falsified not what he saw.
What! will ye then dispute with him as to what he saw?
He had seen him also another time,
Near the Sidrah-tree, which marks the boundary.
Near which is the garden of repose,
When the Sidrah-tree was covered with what covered it,
His eye turned not aside, nor did it wander:
For he saw the greatest of the signs of his Lord.[21]
By the star, when it setteth; your companion Mohammed erreth not,
nor is he led astray; neither doth he speak of his own will.
It is no other than a revelation, which hath been revealed unto him.
One mighty in power, endued with understanding, taught it him:
and he appeared in the highest part of the horizon.
Afterwards he approached the prophet and drew near unto him;
until he was at the distance of two bows' length from him, or yet nearer:
and he revealed unto his servant that which he revealed.
The heart of Mohammed did not falsely represent that which he saw.
Will ye therefore dispute with him concerning that which he saw?
He also saw him another time, by the Lote-tree beyond which there is no passing:
near it is the garden of eternal abode.
When the Lote-tree covered that which it covered,
his eyesight turned not aside, neither did it wander:
and he really beheld some of the greatest signs of his Lord.[22]
In the name He bore (Husayn-'Alí) He combined those of the Imám Husayn, the most illustrious of the successors of the Apostle of God - the brightest "star" shining in the "crown" mentioned in the Revelation of St. John - and of the Imám 'Alí, the Commander of the Faithful, the second of the two "witnesses" extolled in that same Book. He was formally designated Bahá'u'lláh, an appellation specifically recorded in the Persian Bayán, signifying at once the glory, the light and the splendor of God, and was styled the "Lord of Lords," the "Most Great Name," the "Ancient Beauty," the "Pen of the Most High," the "Hidden Name," the "Preserved Treasure," "He Whom God will make manifest," the "Most Great Light," the "All-Highest Horizon," the "Most Great Ocean," the "Supreme Heaven," the "Pre-Existent Root," the "Self-Subsistent," the "Day-Star of the Universe," the "Great Announcement," the "Speaker on Sinai," the "Sifter of Men," the "Wronged One of the World," the "Desire of the Nations," the "Lord of the Covenant," the "Tree beyond which there is no passing."[25]
From the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh:
He is the King, the All-Knowing, the Wise. Lo the Nightingale of Paradise singeth upon the twigs of the Tree of Eternity, with holy and sweet melodies, proclaiming to the sincere ones the glad tidings of the nearness of God, calling the believers in the Divine Unity to the court of the Presence of the Generous One, informing the severed ones of the message which hath been revealed by God, the King, the Glorious, the Peerless, guiding the lovers to the seat of sanctity and to this resplendent Beauty.[26]
And likewise, He saith: "They will even refuse unto that Tree, which is neither of the East nor of the West, the name believer, for were they so to name Him, they would fail to sadden Him."[27]
Cast away the things current amongst men and take fast hold on that whereunto ye are bidden by virtue of the Will of the Ordainer, the Ancient of Days. This is the Day wherein the divine Lote-Tree calleth aloud, saying: O people! Behold ye My fruits and My leaves, incline then your ears unto My rustling. Beware lest the doubts of men debar you from the light of certitude.[28]
O 'Alí! That which they accepted from the Bush they now refuse to accept from Him Who is the Tree of the world of existence. Say, O people of the Bayán, speak not according to the dictates of passion and selfish desire. Most of the peoples of the earth attest the truth of the blessed Word which hath come forth from the Bush...O kindreds of the earth! Incline your ears unto the Voice from the divine Lote-Tree which overshadoweth the world and be not of the people of tyranny on earth...[29]
O Muhammad! Hearken unto the Voice proceeding out of the Realm of Glory, calling aloud from the celestial Tree which has risen above the land of Za'farán.[30]
...We have attired thee with the vesture of My good-pleasure in My heavenly Kingdom, and from the Divine Lote-Tree which is raised on the borders of the vale of security and peace, situate in the Luminous Spot beyond the glorious City...[31]
...He (Moses) went forth from the city, and sojourned in Midian in the service of Shoeb. While returning, Moses entered the holy vale, situate in the wilderness of Sinai, and there beheld the vision of the King of glory from the "Tree that belongest neither to the East nor to the West." There He heard the soul-stirring Voice of the Spirit speaking from out of the kindled Fire, bidding Him to shed upon Pharaohic souls the light of divine guidance...[32]
Every discerning eye can, in this Day, perceive the dawning light of God's Revelation, and every attentive ear can recognize the Voice that was heard from the Burning Bush. Such is the rushing of the waters of Divine mercy, that He Who is the Day Spring of the signs of God and the Revealer of the evidences of His glory is without veil or concealment associated and conversing with the people of the earth and its kindreds.[33]
The episode of Sinai hath been re-enacted in this Revelation and He Who conversed upon the Mount is calling aloud: Verily, the Desired One is come, seated upon the throne of certitude, could ye but perceive it. He hath admonished all men to observe that which is conducive to the exaltation of the Cause of God and will guide mankind unto His straight Path.[34]
O Shaykh! Thou hast heard the sweet melodies of the Doves of Utterance cooing on the boughs of the Lote-Tree of knowledge. Hearken, now, unto the notes of the Birds of Wisdom upraised in the Most Sublime Paradise. They verily will acquaint thee with things of which thou were wholly unaware. Give ear unto that which the Tongue of Might and Power hath spoken in the Books of God, the Desire of every understanding heart. At this moment a Voice was raised from the Lote-Tree beyond which there is no passing, in the heart of the Most Sublime Paradise, bidding Me relate unto thee that which hath been sent down in the Books and Tablets, and the things spoken by My Forerunner, Who laid down His life for this Great Announcement, this Straight Path.[35]
O King! Were thou to incline thine ears unto the shrill voice of the Pen of Glory and the cooing of the Dove of Eternity, which on the branches of the Lote-Tree beyond which there is no passing, uttereth praises to God, the Maker of all Names and the Creator of earth and heaven, thou wouldst attain unto a station from which thou shouldst behold in the world of being naught save the effulgence of the Adored One, and wouldst regard thy sovereignty the most contemptible of thy possessions.[36]
The blessed Lote-Tree standeth, in this day, before thy face, laden with heavenly, with new and wondrous fruits. Gaze on it, detached from all else save it.[37]
From the Writings of the Báb
O ye kinsmen of the Most Great Remembrance! This Tree of Holiness, dyed crimson with the oil of servitude, hath verily sprung forth out of your own soil in the midst of the Burning Bush, yet ye comprehend nothing whatever thereof, neither of His true, heavenly attributed, nor of the actual circumstances of His earthly life, nor of the evidences of His powerful and unblemished behaviour. Actuated by your own fancies, ye consider Him to be alien to the sovereign Truth, while in the estimation of God He is none other than the Promised One Himself, invested with the power of the sovereign Truth, and verily He is, as decreed in the Mother Book, held answerable in the midst of the Burning Bush...[38]
O ye peoples of the earth! Hearken unto My call, ringing forth from the precincts of this Sacred Tree - a Tree set ablaze by the pre-existent Fire: There is no God but Him; He is the Exalted, the All-Wise. O ye the servants of the Merciful One! Enter ye, one and all, through this Gate and follow not the steps of the Evil One, for he prompteth you to walk in the ways of impiety and wickedness; he is, in truth, your declared enemy.[39]
...That which is intended by "Revelation of God" is the Tree of divine Truth that betokeneth none but Him, and it is this divine Tree that hath raised and will raise up Messengers, and hath revealed and will ever reveal Scriptures. From eternity unto eternity this Tree of divine Truth hath served and will ever serve as the throne of the revelation and concealment of God among His creatures, and in every age is made manifest through whomsoever He pleaseth.[40]
This is the divinely-inscribed Book. This is the outspread Tablet. Say, this indeed is the Frequented Fane, the sweet-scented Leaf, the Tree of the divine Revelation, the surging Ocean, the Utterance which lay concealed, the Light above every other light...Indeed every light is generated by God through the power of His behest. He of a truth is the Light in the kingdom of heaven and earth and whatever is between them. Through the radiance of His light God imparteth illumination to your hearts and maketh firm your steps, that perchance ye may yield praise unto Him. Say, this of a certainty is the Garden of Repose, the Loftiest Point of adoration, the Tree beyond which there is no passing, the blessed Lote-Tree, the Most Mighty Sign, the most beauteous Countenance and the most comely Face.[41]
From the Writings and Discourses of 'Abdu'l-Bahá:
The tree of life is the highest degree of the world of existence: the position of the Word of God, and the universal Manifestation. Therefore that position has been preserved; and, at the appearance of the most noble universal Manifestation, it became apparent and clear. For the position of Adam, with regard to the appearance and manifestation of the divine perfections, was in the embryonic condition; the position of Christ was the condition of maturity, and the age of reason, and the rising of the Great Luminary (Bahá'u'lláh), was the condition of the perfection of the essence and of the qualities. This is why in the supreme Paradise the tree of life is the expression for the center of absolutely pure sanctity - that is to say, of the Divine Universal Manifestation.[42]
O Leaf upon the Tree of Life! The Tree of Life, of which mention is made in the Bible, is Bahá'u'lláh, and the daughters of the Kingdom are the Leaves upon that blessed Tree. Then thank thou God that thou hast become related to that Tree, and that thou art flourishing, tender and fresh.[43]
The Báb, the Exalted One, is the Morn of Truth, the splendour of Whose light shineth throughout all regions. He is also the Harbinger of the Most Great Light, the Abhá Luminary. The Blessed Beauty is the One promised by the sacred books of the past, the revelation of the Source of Light that shone upon Mount Sinai, Whose fire glowed in the midst of the Burning Bush. [44]
In the ages to come, though the Cause of God may rise and grow a hundredfold and the shade of the Sadratu'l-Muntahá shelter all mankind, yet this present century shall stand unrivalled, for it hath witnessed the breaking of that Morn and the rising of that Sun. This century is, verily the source of His Light and the dayspring of His Revelation. Future ages and generations shall behold the diffusion of its radiance and the manifestations of its signs.[45]
"...the Holy Seed of infinite preciousness, holding within itself incalculable potentialities representing the culmination of the centuries-old process of the evolution of humanity through the energies released by the series of progressive Revelations starting with Adam and concluded by the Revelation of the Seal of the Prophets, marked by the successive appearance of the branches, leaves, buds, blossoms and plucked, after six years by the hand of destiny, ground in the mill of martyrdom and oppression but yielding the oil whose first flickering light cast upon the somber, subterranean walls of the Siyáh-Chál of Tihrán, whose fire gathered brilliance in Baghdád and shone in full resplendency in its crystal globe in Adrianople, whose rays warmed and illuminated the fringes of the American, European, Australian continents through the tender ministerings of the Center of the Covenant, whose radiance is now overspreading the surface of the globe during the present Formative Age, whose full splendor is destined in the course of future millenniums to suffuse the entire planet."[46]
"On the occasion of the launching of an epochal, global, spiritual, decade-long crusade, constituting the high-water mark of the festivities commemorating the centenary of the birth of the Mission of Bahá'u'lláh, coinciding with the ninetieth anniversary of the declaration of that same Mission in the Garden of Ridván...on such a solemn and historic occasion I invite His followers, the world over, to contemplate with me the glorious and manifold evidences of this onward march of His Faith and of the steady unfolding of its embryonic World Order, both in the Holy Land and in the five continents of the globe."[47]
"...this infinitely precious Faith, despite eleven decades of uninterrupted persecution...involving the martyrdom of its Prophet-Herald, the four banishments and forty-year-long exile suffered by its Founder, the forty years of incarceration inflicted upon its Exemplar, and the sacrifice of no less than twenty thousand of its followers, had succeeded in firmly establishing itself in all continents of the globe...bidding fair to envelop, at the close of the coming decade, the whole planet with the radiance of its splendor."[48]
"Its driving force is the energizing influence generated by the Revelation heralded by the Báb and proclaimed by Bahá'u'lláh.
"Its Marshal is none other than the Author of the Divine Plan ('Abdu'l-Bahá).
"Its standard-bearers are the Hands of God appointed in every continent of the globe.
"Its generals are the twelve national spiritual assemblies participating in the execution of its design.
"Its vanguard is the chief executors of 'Abdu'l-Bahá's master plan, their allies and associates.
"Its legions are the rank and file of believers standing behind these same twelve national assemblies and sharing in the global task embracing the American, the European, the African, the Asiatic and Australian fronts.
"The charter directing its course is the immortal Tablets that have flowed from the pen of the Center of the Covenant Himself.
"The armor with which its onrushing hosts have been invested is the glad tidings of God's own message in this day, the principles underlying the order proclaimed by His Messenger, and the laws and ordinances governing His Dispensation.[49]
"...Then, and only then, will the vast, the majestic process, set in motion at the dawn of the Adamic cycle, attain its consummation - a process which commenced six thousand years ago, with the planting, in the soil of the divine will, of the tree of divine revelation, which has already passed through certain stages and must needs pass through still others ere it attains its final consummation.
"The first part of this process was the slow and steady growth of this tree of divine revelation, successively putting forth its branches, shoots and offshoots, and revealing its leaves, buds and blossoms, as a direct consequence of the light and warmth imparted to it by a series of progressive dispensation associated with Moses, Zoroaster, Buddha, Jesus, Muhammad and other Prophets, and of the vernal showers of blood shed by countless martyrs in their path.
"The second part of this process was the fruition of this tree, that belongeth neither to the East nor to the West, when the Báb appeared as the perfect fruit and declared His Mission in the Year Sixty (1260 A.H.-1844 A.D.) in the city of Shíraz.
"The third part was the grinding of this sacred seed, of infinite preciousness and potency, in the mill of adversity, causing it to yield its oil, six years later, in the city of Tabríz.
"The fourth part was the ignition of this oil by the hand of Providence in the depths and amidst the darkness of the Siyáh Chál of Tihrán a hundred years ago [1853].
"The fifth was the clothing of that flickering light, which had scarcely penetrated the adjoining territory of 'Iráq in the lamp of revelation, after an eclipse lasting no less than ten years, in the city of Baghdád.
"The sixth was the spread of the radiance of that light, shining with added brilliancy in its crystal globe in Adrianople, and later on in the fortress town of 'Akká, to thirteen countries in the Asiatic and African continents.
"The seventh was its projection, from the Most Great Prison, in the course of the ministry of the Center of the Covenant, across the seas and the shedding of its illumination upon twenty sovereign states and dependencies in the American, the European, and Australian continents.
"The eighth part of that process was the diffusion of that same light in the course of the first, and the opening years of the second, epoch of the Formative Age of the Faith, over ninety-four sovereign states, dependencies and islands of the planet, as a result of the prosecution of a series of national plans, initiated by eleven national spiritual assemblies throughout the Bahá'í world, utilizing the agencies of a newly emerged, divinely appointed Administrative Order, and which has now culminated in the one hundredth anniversary of the birth of Bahá'u'lláh's Mission..
"The ninth part of this process - the stage we are now entering [in 1953] - is the further diffusion of that same light over one hundred and thirty-one additional territories and islands in both the Eastern and Western hemispheres, through the operation of a decade-long world spiritual crusade whose termination will, God willing, coincide with the Most Great Jubilee commemorating the centenary of the declaration of Bahá'u'lláh in Baghdád.
"And finally the tenth part of this mighty process must be the penetration of that light, in the course of numerous crusades and of successive epochs of both the Formative and Golden Ages of the Faith, into all the remaining territories of the globe through the erection of the entire machinery of Bahá'u'lláh's Administrative Order in all territories, both East and West, the stage at which the light of God's triumphant Faith shining in all its power and glory will have suffused and enveloped the entire planet."[50]
"The Great Being, wishing to reveal the prerequisites of the peace and tranquility of the world and the advances of its peoples, hath written: "The time must come when the imperative necessity for the holding of a vast, an all-embracing assemblage of men will be universally realized. The rulers and kings of the earth must needs attend it, and participating in its deliberations, must consider such ways and means as will lay the foundations of the world's Great Peace amongst men.. Such a peace demandeth that the Great Powers should resolve, for the sake of the tranquility of the peoples of the earth, to be fully reconciled among themselves. Should any king take up arms against another, all should unitedly arise and prevent him. If this be done, the nations of the world will no longer require any armaments, except for the purpose of preserving the security of their realms and of maintaining order within their territories. This will ensure the peace and composure of every people, government and nation..."[51]
"That which God hath ordained as the sovereign remedy and mightiest instrument for the healing of the world is the union of all its peoples in one universal Cause, one common Faith. This can in no wise be achieved except through the power of a skilled, an all-powerful, and inspired Physician. By My life! This is the truth, and all else naught but error."[52]
"This is the Day wherein the divine Lote-Tree calleth aloud saying: O people! Behold ye My fruits and My leaves, incline then your ears unto My rustling. Beware lest the doubts of men debar you from the light of certitude. The Ocean of utterance exclaimeth and saith: O yet dwellers on the earth! Behold My billowing waters and the pearls of wisdom and utterance which I have poured forth. Fear ye God and be not of the heedless.
"In this Day a great festival is taking place in the Realm above; for whatsoever was promised in the sacred scriptures hath been fulfilled. This is the Day of great rejoicing. It behoveth everyone to hasten towards the court of His nearness with exceeding joy, gladness, exultation and delight and to deliver himself from the fire of remoteness."[53]
"O God my God! Praise be unto Thee for kindling the fire of divine love in the Holy Tree on the summit of the loftiest mount: that Tree which is "neither of the East nor of the West," that fire which blazed out till the flame of it soared upward to the Concourse on high, and from it those realities caught the light of guidance, and cried out: "Verily have we perceived a fire on the slope of Mount Sinai.
"O God, my God! Increase Thou this fire, as day followeth day, till the blast of it setteth in motion all the earth. O Thou, my Lord! Kindle the light of Thy love in every heart, breathe into men's souls the spirit of Thy knowledge, gladden their breasts with the verses of Thy oneness. Call Thou to life those who dwell in their tombs, warn Thou the prideful, make happiness worldwide, send down Thy crystal waters, and in the assemblage of manifest splendors, pas round that cup which is "tempered at the camphor fountain."
"Verily, art Thou the Giving, the Forgiving, the Ever-Bestowing. Verily, art Thou the Merciful."[54]