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PUBLISHED BY THE BAHAI PUBLISHING SOCIETY, NEW YORK
Single copies 10c By the Year $1.00
Hidden Words. Words of Wisdom and Communes; from the "Supreme Pen" of Baha'ollah. 93 pages; paper cover, 10c; leather, $1.00. The Seven Valleys. Revealed by Baha'ollah. 56 pages; paper cover, 25c; leather, $1.00. Book of Ighan or Book of Assurance. By Baha'ollah. 190 pages; cloth, 80c. Postage 10c additional. Tablet of Tarazat, Tablet of the World, Words of Paradise, Etc. By Baha'ollah. 92 pages; paper 50c. The Tablet of Ishrakat. By Baha'ollah. 45 pages; paper 25c. Surat ul Hykl. By Baha'ollah. 63 pages; paper cover, 25c. Ten Days in the Light of Acca. By Julia M. Grundy, from the words of Abdul Baha. 111 pages; paper cover, 25c. Table Talks at Acca. By Arthur S. Agnew, 23 pages; paper cover, 10c. Notes Taken at Acca. By Mrs. Corinne True, 32 pages; paper cover, 10c. |
The Revelation of Baha'ollah. By Isabella D. Brittingham. 33 pages; paper cover, 10c. The Bahai Proofs. (History and Instruction.) Unity Through Love. By Howard MacNutt. 31 pages; paper, 10c. Bahai Hymns and Poems. By Mrs. Louise Spencer Waite. 31 pages; paper, 10c. The Story of the Bahai Movement. (A Universal Faith.) A Year With the Bahais in India and Burmah. By Sydney Sprague. 53 pages; paper, 20c. In Galilee. By Thornton Chase. 84 pages; paper, 25c. Some Answered Questions Collected and translated from the Persian of Abdul Baha by Laura Clifford Barney. Table Talks With Abdul Baha Notes taken by Mr. and Mrs. Geo T. Winterburn. 32 pages; paper, 10c. |
Address The Bahai Publishing Society
P. O. Box 321 Madison Square New York City.
Bahai New Year's Message[edit]
"Old things have passed away: Behold I make all things new."
Each Prophet or Manifestation of God, when he comes to the world, founds a new dispensation, a new time, for his followers. Thus we have had the Mosaic time, the Christian time, the Mohammedan time, etc. To-day those who believe in Baha'u'llah, are establishing the Bahai time. It establishes a new method of reckoning, by dividing into periods of nineteen years, each year containing nineteen months of nineteen days each. This division leaves four intercalary days at the end of each year, which are devoted to love and charity. The New Year begins on the twenty-first of March, in accord with the teachings of our Revelator.
There is a great and glorious truth underlying the appointing of March the 21st, the Vernal Equinox, as the time of New Year rejoicing. The former New Years Day, January 1st, dedicated by the Romans to the two-faced warrior god, Janus, and celebrated by the ancient Jews, and modern Christians, came in the dead of winter, in the period of cold and death. The Bahai New York comes at the very beginning of Spring symbolizing the Spring time of the soul. It stands for newness of life physically and spiritually, and thus we have all the beautiful ideals of Easter, and of the New Year, bound together in one grand whole. It is the time of new beginnings, new hopes and new aspirations. It is time when the heart of man cries out exultantly: "O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good. Sing unto Him a new song",—for he causeth the desert to "blossom as the rose", and the valley he covers with greenness; out of night he bringeth day, and out of death the everlasting Life.
On this, our glad New Year, a new light shines upon the mountains, for Life and the Resurrection are proclaimed forevermore. The bars of Winter are broken asunder and the iron bands of death are riven. The lilies lift their holy white grails filled with the sunshine of God's Love, for hath he not manifested His love in every flower and in the uprising of all green things?
- "In the beauty of the lilies, Christ was born across the sea,
- With a glory in His bosom, which transfigures you and me."
They are the sweet, small interpreters of large certainties. Though winter cuts them down, with every Spring they come again, writing their testimony on the new page of the book of revelation, wherein we read that life is an eternal Genesis.
Thus we can understand why Baha'u'llah, the Father of Wisdom and Love, appointed this blessed season for beginning the New Year. The Spring festival is as old as the hope of man, call it by whatever name you will. Be it the Passover of the Jews, the Easter of the Christians, the Meglesian festival of the Romans, held in honor of the Magna Mater (Great Mother), and lasting for six days in early April, the Spring festival of the early Saxons, in which they worshipped the goddess of Spring, and called her Eostre, their feast day being named "the Sunday of Joy", or in this time the Bahai feast of Nauruz—the New Day, in all of them we hear the one great key note in the "Song of Spring", with its renewal of all nature in beauty and rejoicing. "Behold! I make all things new!" Oh! blessed symbol of a most joyous spiritual Truth.
Therefore as Bahais, let us rejoice
and sing praises unto God. For we
know that His universe, and all that
therein is, shapes itself, not unto death
and destruction, but to a yet more glorious
development of life, and that it endureth[Page 4]
"from everlasting to everlasting",
and that each New Year shall be
brighter and brighter "unto the perfect
day". The Father of glory hath come
and hath established His Kingdom "upon
earth as it is in Heaven, a kingdom
which shall embrace all nations. The
winter of souls has passed. The Spring
and a New Year has come, and He who
became "the first fruits of them that
slept" is arisen. Darkness hath fled
from the earth forever, for He, the
Lamb of God, the Center of our Covenant,
is the light thereof. Oh! lift up
your hearts and be joyful, all the nations
of the earth!
New Year Greeting[edit]
- Welcome, Oh Spring, with royal cheer
- We celebrate the glad New Year.
- May it be filled with new delight,—
- With greater knowledge, faith more bright,—
- New health and strength, a firmer will,
- All other hearts with joy to fill,
- Forgetting self, from day to day
- To follow in the "Perfect Way";—
- New sympathy with others' creeds.—
- New tenderness for others' needs,—
- New prayers for all who live on earth,—
- New aspirations, and new birth;—
- New laws for men—that strife shall cease,
- For He hath come who bringeth peace,
- That all shall serve in bonds of love,
- All worshipping One God above.—
- New songs of beauty and of praise
- To Him who in this day of days,
- Hath brought again the Incarnate Word,
- Through which a New Creation stirred;—
- New fires within our breasts aflame,
- New zeal the tidings to proclaim,
- Tidings of joy, of wondrous worth,
- God's Glorious Kingdom come to earth;—
- New efforts to go forth and bring
- The weary ones unto our King,
- That He, the Lamb, upon His throne,
- In love may claim them for His own.
- He calleth to the world: Behold!
- All things are new! Passed is the old:
- Passed is the winter's icy death;
- Life's Spring is here with fragrant breath.
- With leaves and buds, new upturned sod,
- New understanding of our God,
- New Love which casteth out all fear,
- New Peace, new Joy, a glad New Year
LOUISE R. WAITE.
Bahai Callendar[edit]
Month. Name. Begins.
- Baha (Splendor) March 21.
- Jalal (Glory) April 9.
- Jamal (Beauty) April 28.
- Agmat (Grandeur) May 17.
- Noor (Light) June 5.
- Rahmat (Mercy) June 24.
- Kalamat (Words) July 13.
- Asma (Names) Aug. 1.
- Kamal (Perfection) Aug 20.
- Azzat (Might) Sept. 8.
- Masheyat (Will) Sept. 27.
- Ilm (Knowledge) Oct. 16.
- Kudrat (Power) Nov. 4.
- Kowl (Speech) Nov. 23.
- Massa-El (Questions) Dec. 12.
- Sharaf (Honor) Dec. 31.
- Sultan (Sovereignty) Jan. 19.
- Mulk (Dominion) Feb. 7.
- Ula (Loftiness) March 2.
The extra days beginning February
26 and including March 1st are intercalary
or festival days, which, according
to the Command of the Kitab el Akdas.
are to be spent in celebration, feasting
and giving to the poor. Immediately
after these days of feasting and rejoicing,[Page 5]
the month of fasting begins March
2d and extends to March 21, Nauruz,
the first day of the Bahai New Year, or
the Day and Month of Baha. The Kitab el Akdas
ordains that fasting shall be
from sunrise to sunset each day of the
19th month as mentioned.
According to the Bahai Calendar the week is completely abolished, but pending the retention of the week, new names have been given to the days composing it, as follows—
- Sunday Yawma'l Jemal
- Monday " Kamal
- Tuesday " Fizal
- Wednesday " Idal
- Thursday " Istijlal
- Friday " Istiklal
- Saturday " Jalal
The News From Acca[edit]
HAIFA, Jan. 1st, '09.
Through THE BAHAI BULLETIN, I wish to acknowledge the receipt of the many letters which the good friends have written from the various parts of America. I have translated all the supplications they have contained, and those that have asked me to convey certain messages to Him without sending supplications. I have presented myself to that sacred presence and have delivered them.
To as many of these letters as I can I send acknowledge of receipt and the information desired. Most of them ask me to give the news of the Holy Land. This I have endeavored to do, at least for as many as I could, but with my practise of medicine and translating, etc., I cannot comply with all requests. However, now that THE BAHAI BULLETIN has come to my aid and is devoting a section or department to the news of the Holy Land, I will obey all the beloved by sending my monthly installment to the BULLETIN.
To begin herewith, I will give you the following good news: By the will of Abdul Baha, the Bahai Friends in Acca are subscribing to the American Bahai Temple, "The Mashrak-el-Azcar". Only day before yesterday the subscription book was opened and the amount subscribed already amounts to $550.00. Those of us who live in Haifa are anxiously awaiting the time when the book will reach here so that we may add our humble but heart-felt contributions. This will encourage the friends everywhere, for the beloved Abdul Baha himself has contributed.
There is much concerning Acca that I would like to write, but lack of time forbids. The steamer has just arrived and I hear that seven Parsee Bahais have come from Yezd. Praise God, the doors of "Hope" and of "Meeting" are open! Blessed are they who come!
Real Bahai Love for all. May this New Year which is blessed with two Bahai numbers (19 & 9) set aglow the hearts with energy for establishing the Tabernacle of God, The Mashrak-el-Azcar in America
Ameen U. FAREED, M. D.
HAIFA, Jan. 27. '09.
You will be interested in hearing from Acca at any time. At this particular season the writer is fortunate in being a guest in the Master's household and more especially so, as this happens to be his birthday, and also the anniversary of the martyrdom of the Blessed Bab.
My journey hither had been particularly eventful inasmuch as I had visited the stricken scenes of the Italian earthquake.
You who have made this pilgrimage
know the route thither lies along[Page 6]
the delightful shores of the tideless Mediterranean
Sea and how the prison city,
Acca, lies basking in tropical sunshine,
the very object of observation as
one enters this beautiful bay, Mt. Carmel
south, Acca north. We arrived at
evening and the friends in Haifa gave
us a most cordial and truly Bahai greeting.
Next morning the drive of nine
miles from Haifa to Acca was made in
the most ideal weather, and as we drove
along our carriage met several of the
believers with whom we exchanged the
familiar greeting. Arriving at Acca, just
before lunch, we soon met the dear Master!
The anticipated meeting but faintly suggested the reality! In His benign countenance one reads compassionate love and majestic wisdom! One stands transfixed, and as he advances with words of welcome—throws his arms about you—salutes you with a kiss—holds you in his embrace—you feel as one imagines the parabolic prodigal felt—a sense of perfect love, refuge, filial devotion and serene happiness.
His tender devotion toward you all in America came spontaneously to His lips in words of inquiry, by name, for many whom He afterwards assured me were only a few in mind.
We drank our tea together as words of wisdom and instruction came from His lips.
Taking some flowers from a boquet on His table He pressed them into my hand with a tender and loving gesture as if to say "These are for you."
One does not feel particularly embarrassed as the Interpreter gives His words to you, for the music and earnestness of his voice is constantly a source of inspiration and comfort.
I know you will wish to know how it seems here since the Turks have proclaimed freedom. I assure you it is the same life which has characterized the Master in this Prison City for over forty years. The same spies, the same sentinels upon the walls, the same atmosphere of tactful caution is everywhere. To be sure the Master can go in and out at will. He has repeatedly been urged to go away and live in some other country, but His wisdom decides it best to remain here.
The Cause demands no change in household manners, exercise of apprehension or extended privileges.
Were any marked changes to occur the Mohammedans would say—also all government officers—"See how he becomes as a heathen, this teacher of religion the moment he can do so."
I came so quietly that only by merest chance can any one know who, why, whence or whither. Thus, you will understand the Turkish power which is, indeed, very uncertain, may descend again upon the Exiled one at any moment upon the slightest provocations. To this end He may not yet act with perfect freedom.
My kindest regards to the New York Assembly.
(Rev.) O. M. FISHER.
ACCA, SYRIA, Jan. 29th, 1909.
I am sure you will be greatly pleased to learn that the beloved Abdul Baha has remembered you most kindly, has read the translation of the contents of your publication, and that he has told me to write for it. This, of course, indicates His good pleasure in your favor.
A few days ago our dear sister, Mrs. L. Getsinger and her party of two, as well as Mr. Stanwood Cobb, of Robert College, Constantinople, were here for the Holy Visit. At this writing our dear brother, Rev. Dr. Fisher of New York, is here.
Yesterday morning our beloved Abdul Baha
made us all happy by saying:
"To-day I myself will take you to the
Holy Tomb and to the Rizwan (the Garden
of Baha'ollah). Accordingly He,
Miss Rosenburg, of London, England,
Rev. Dr. Fisher, of New York, and the
writer started on the most sacred visit
of the Bahais. This is the first time in[Page 7]
about eight years that Abdul Baha has
accompanied European and American pilgrims
to the Holy Places. And exceeding
great joy it was to us all!
The day was exceptionally beautiful; the sunshine, so longed for in the winter, was abundant; the air was fresh and life-giving, and last though not least, were the green prairies decorated so plentifully with the famous anemones and Lilies of the Valley. Abdul Baha Himself pointed out the scenes of greatest beauty. To have been in His company at such a time was indeed a rare, Heavenly reality.
When inside the Sacred Tomb, Abdul Baha in wonderful, deep, resounding voice chanted the "Tablet of Visitation." Oh, how I wish that all might have been present and have heard it.
Dr. Fisher was desirous of photographing the sacred places that glorious morning and hence it was that Abdul Baha Himself pointed out scenes of special interest from the standpoint of the photographer. One was a general view from behind the large, spreading pines, focalizing, wonderfully, the Holy Tomb and the adjoining buildings.
About noon we returned to Acca. The pilgrims from Persia, India, Russia and Egypt were waiting at the Gate of Abdul Baha's house, for He had invited them to the Banquet of Love. They were longing to break bread with their brothers and sisters from the Occident.
Soon after we were all in the Hall, where the Table, so familiar to those who have been in that "Penal Town," the "Most Great Prison" of Baha'ollah was spread. As customary, the Servant of Baha offered each a napkin and seated all at the table. While His guests were feeding their bodies, he was feeding their souls with food of the words of God which were flowing as a river of "milk and honey" from His sacred lips. By his wish I interpreted his words into English for the Western friends. The substance of his Heavenly speech was:
"All the nations, religions, peoples, races, denominations and cults are at warfare with one another. The efforts of each are directed towards the effacement of the other. Everyone of them endeavors with might and main to overcome and do away with the others. Even the individuals among them are intent upon overcoming one another. The one people to-day whose hopes and aspirations are for the unity of mankind and the love of humanity is this oppressed community of Baha. The duty of the Bahais is that they should daily strengthen the bonds of love among themselves so that love many become their strongest point and their 'Reserve' power whereby they shall subdue the hatred, envy and malice of the nation. By love they must conquer the realms of hearts and minds."
ARMEEN U. FAREED, M. D.
Mashrak-el-Azcar[edit]
Call for Convention
CHICAGO, January 12th, 1909.
Dear Fellow Servants in the Field of God:
In pursuance of the expressed wish of Abdul-Baha that a convention be held in the city of Chicago, composed of delegates from all spiritual meetings of believers in America, for the purpose of establishing a National Temple Organization of men and women "for the provision of the needs of the Temple," this invitation is sent to you.
Abdul-Baha says: "If this be established with perfect fragrance and joy, it will produce great results."
The purpose of this "New Meeting" of[Page 8]
representatives of all believers is to form
a National Temple Committee to manage
and carry to completion the first
Mashrak-el-Azcar, Bahai Temple of Worship,
of America.
Your humble servant, the House of Spirituality, after careful consideration, has decided upon Saturday, March 20, 1909, as the day for the beginning of this convention, which is expected to continue until all the Temple business before it shall be completed.
You are therefore invited and urgently requested to notify your Assembly, or "Spiritual Meetings," of the coming Convention and its date, and also, as soon as you can, to send us the name or names of your delegates, who will arrive here on March 20th. As the time is short, we urge you to let us know within three weeks, and sooner if possible, how many delegates your city will send, and who they are. Your information will be accepted as credential.
As this is the only information of the determined date sent to your locality, please spread it thoroughly among all the believers there, in the spirit of love and service, that all shall have a voice and opportunity in this first united, practical work for the Cause of God, the effect of which will be powerful, not only in America but throughout the world; not only for this time but for centuries.
We know that the Cause cannot prosper nor grow in this land until there is evident unity among the believers, and the wise Servant of God, our Beloved Abdul-Baha has promised that this Temple shall be the cause of Unity. Therefore let us all unite in heart and soul and mind for the raising of this Temple of Unity. God willing, it shall be the Hub of the wheel of Bahai enlightenment and advance, which shall join all the scattered spokes into oneness of purpose, work and service.
Brothers, Sisters, in His Name unite, come together with joy, bear your part of the labor and be happy in your part of the gladness in this primal work of the New Dispensation of Divine Peace and Love.
We are humbly your servant, THE HOUSE OF SPIRITUALITY, Per George Lesch, Secretary.
Description of Temple at Eshkabad, Russia[edit]
Eshkabad is in Russian Turkestan just north of the Elbruz mountains which separate the desert plain of western Turkestan on the north from Persia on the south. The city itself lies on the plain a short distance from the mountains which here are quite rugged and rocky. The town is quite modern in aspect, being laid off with gardens and broad streets which meet at right angles. Rows of trees along the sidewalks remind one of a western city, while the buildings and the water ways, which flank the streets and which are fed with water coming from the nearby mountains, are strikingly Oriental.
Mr. Sprague, with whom I was traveling, and I could hardly believe that this city had sprung up almost entirely during the past half century. It was but a huddle of mud huts when Baha'o'llah first directed some of His followers to settle there. Now this is replaced by a large and prosperous city of buildings of brick and stone.
The Mashrak-el-Azkar stands in the
center of the city, surrounded by a large
garden which is bounded by four streets.
It rises high above the surrounding
buildings and trees, its dome being visible
for miles as the traveler approaches
the city over the plain. The building in
plan is a regular polygon of nine (9)
sides. One large doorway and portico,
flanked by turrets, facing the direction
of the Holy City, forms the principal
motive of the facade, while the dome
dominates the whole composition.[Page 9]
The walls of the Temple are of brick
covered with a fine and hard stucco
which in that climate resists quite well
the action of the elements, while the
doors are concrete supported by iron
beams. In plan the building is composed
of three elements, the central rotunda,
the aisle of ambulatory which
surrounds it and the loggia which surrounds
the entire building.
The interior of the rotunda is five stories in height. The first or main floor story consists of nine (9) arches supported by piers which separate the ambulatory from the rotunda proper. The second story consists of a similar treatment of arches, piers and balustrades which separate the triforium gallery (which is directly above the ambulatory) from the well of the rotunda. The third story is decorated with nine blank arcades between each of which is a shield upon which is inscribed in Persian characters, "Ya Bahi-ul-ABHA." The fourth story contains nine (9) large windows, while the wall of the fifth story, which is not as high as the other stories, is pierced by eighteen (18) bullseye windows. Above this is the dome which is hemispherical in shape. The rotunda, from the floor to the top of the dome, is elaborately decorated with fretwork and other designs in relief. We were told the ultimate aim was that color and gilding should be added to this decoration.
The inner dome is of iron and concrete, while the outer dome or roof is entirely of metal. The intention is that this latter shall be gilded.
The main portico of the Temple is two stories high in the clear, while the loggias, which surround the building, are on two floors, the lower being on the main floor level, while the upper one is on the level of the triforium gallery. This upper loggia is reached by two staircases, one to the right and one to the left of the main entrance, and the triforium gallery is entered from this loggia. On the main floor the principal entrance is by the large doorway, but there are also several minor doors which connect the ambulatory with the loggia. An abundance of light is admitted through the windows in the upper part of the rotunda as well as through the windows of the gallery and ambulatory which open onto the loggias.
The Persian style of architecture has been used in treating the details and decoration of the buildings.
At present the stucco work is not quite completed. The interior of the rotunda is finished, but the decoration of the loggias and gallery and ambulatory is only done in part. However, the work is continuing and it will not be long before all will be completed.
From what I saw and heard in Eshkabad, I found that those believers who superintended the building of the Temple were competent business men and that although they had undertaken a large enterprise, every possible economy was made, yet, at the same time, no expense seemed to have been spared, when necessary, for the beauty and the solidity of the building.
The layout of the garden is not yet complete. Nine avenues of approach lead to the Temple. The main avenue of the nine leading to the entrance portico will be entered from the street by a monumental gateway. Last July they were completing the plans for this principal gateway of the grounds. At the four corners of the garden are four buildings. One is a school, one is a house where traveling Bahais are entertained, one is to be used as a hospital and the other is for workmen, storage, etc. Much of the property in the immediate vicinity of this enclosure belongs to Bahais, so the Mashrak-el-Azkar is the center of the community materially as well as spiritually.
That which impressed me more than
all else, as I stood before this Mashrak-el-Azkar,
was the fact that the Bahais[Page 10]
of the east had all worked with one
accord and had given freely toward its
erection.
The Temple in America can only be accomplished as we give up self and unite in this service. The beloved in the east made their offerings and left them with all personal desires upon the altar of sacrifice. Now we, in this country, must do likewise. We need something more than money for the Temple. It must be built of the material of sacrifice and cemented together by the spirit of unity. In the building of the Temple each and every one must lay before God his material offering together with his ideas, desires and aspirations—give them to the Lord completely—and then, as we come together to construct the material building, we will find that we have ample means for the work in hand.
Each one of us has sufficient means, both material and spiritual, for the work which God has given us to perform. We need not trouble thinking that we may not have enough means, but we should seek to apply to the best advantage the means which God has given us.
Faithfully your brother in the service of Abdul-Baha,
(Signed) CHARLES MASON REMEY.
The Spiritual Table[edit]
On Sunday, Feb. 7th, 1909, a certain Journalist, representing one of the well known Arabic newspapers, called upon Abdul Baha. An account of the interview is furnished by Dr. Ameen U. Fareed.
- The journalist asked: "Are you a
Persian?"
- (Abdul Baha): "No."
- (J.): "Are you a Turk?"
- (A. B.): "No."
- (J.): "Are you an Arab?"
- (A. B.): "No."
- (J.): "What are you then?"
- (A. B.): "I am of the Kingdom of God and I have no nationality."
- (J.): "Have you no nativity?"
- (A. B.): "Yes, I have nativity."
- (J.): "Where is your nativity"
- (A. B.): "It is the City of Baha."
- (J.): "Where is the City of Baha located?"
- (A. B.): "In the Eastern Temperate Zone."
- (J.): "What kind of place is this City of Baha?"
- (A. B.): "Most beautiful."
- (J.): "How is its climate:"
- (A. B.): "Most temperate."
- (J.): "How is its water?"
- (A. B.): "Most salubrious."
- (J.): "What is the degree of longitude and latitude?"
- (A. B.): "In the Equatorial line."
- (J.): "Oh, but you said it was in the Eastern Temperate Zone before, and now you say that it is in the Equatorial line?"
- (A. B.): "Both are one."
- (J.): "Give me the description and particulars of it?"
- (A. B.): "It is the City Limitless; no one has ever found Its boundary. Its sun never sets; Its moon is ever a full moon; Its stars are all suns; Its season is every spring; Its blossoms and flowers never wither; Its trees are ever fruitful. The people of that City are unaware of death, and death never overtakes them."
Abdul Baha, commenting upon this interview, remarked that the Journalist was quite perplexed.
Tablet of Abdul Baha[edit]
Oh ye friends of God!
Oh ye manifestors of bounties and favors of the Beauty of Abha!
That Illumined Orb (Baha'o'llah) hath arisen from the horizon of sanctity and holiness to shed its rays upon the expanse of the universe and that mysterious Beloved hath rent asunder the veil of concealment and appeared in the Assemblage of humanity so that the wooers of his heart captivating Beauty attained to His Meeting. Torrents of spiritual teachings have descended from His Holy Lips, that we may hear with the ears of our spirits; walk in the Path of the Beloved; see His Attributes and Manners; behold His Character and Prlnciples; drink the Cup of bestowal; taste the sweetness of His Reality, obey His Religion and emulate His glorious example.
Oh ye friends!—His gentle nature was excellent and His sweet disposition sublime—He was in the utmost humility and submission; and perfect kindliness and praise—worthy courtesy adorned His Being. He was a refuge for every affrighted one; an asylum for every discomfitted one; a fountain for every thirsty one; a Highway of Salvation for every wandering one; a Healing to every sick one; and a dressing for every wounded one. In brief ye have undoubtedly heard and read His Holy Instructions. But Alas! We have entirely neglected them and are pursuing our own desires, following our own opinions, seeking our own ideas, and chasing our own shadows! Is it not a shame to change His Rose Garden into a bramble patch! His Delectable Paradise into a ruined abode! To seek to eradicate His Foundation and completely destroy His Structure! To forget the Divine Instructions and cast behind our backs the Commands of God; with our lips to speak of the waves of the tumultuous Ocean, while inwardly we are dying of thirst; and while claiming divine wealth of consciousness, we are so poverty stricken in spirit as to be but illusive phantoms—blown about by every wind.
I declare by the Bounty of the Blessed Perfection that nothing will produce results save intense sincerity! Nothing will be productive of fruit save complete advancement toward God! Everything is condemned save severance and every idea is fruitless and unacceptable save supplication, communion, prayer and obedience. We must entirely collect our scattered thoughts, purify and sanctify the house of our existence from every attachment and make the palace of our hearts the nest and shelter of the Dove of Holiness.
Then and not till then will the significance of confirmation and assistance become evident and known, the power of the Kingdom become apparent, and the hosts of the Supreme Concourse run swiftly into the arena of heavenly conquest, to gain victory over the East and West of the hearts, and make the North and South of the spirits of men the flowery regions of the Love of God.
Praise be to God that the Province of Caucasia—Baku is a glorious light in the Lamp of Oneness, a wonderful Effulgence from the Sun of Beauty of the Divine Beloved. Its believers are sincere and its friends are the favored ones in the Threshold of Oneness.
Truly I say this is a most great Bounty and a most Eminent Gift.
Upon ye be Baha El Abha!
(Sig.) ABDUL BAHA ABBAS.
The Message[edit]
Bahaism: Its Ethical and Social Teachings
By Miss E. J. Rosenberg
"The Divine Manifestations are sent and manifested to train the souls of men in such wise that the divine qualities may overcome the animal imperfections, and that the heavenly light may shine universally."
These are the words of Abdul Baha,
the eldest son of the great founder of
this faith, Baha'o'llah, to whom was
entrusted the charge of establishing and
carrying on his father's teaching. Baha'o'llah
in his writings puts forward the
great claim to be a Universal Manifestation
of God—a universal teacher—appealing
not more especially to the East
than to the West, but equally to the
whole world of mankind, and Bahaism
possesses for us one unique point of interest
in the fact that it is a great world-religion
which has taken its rise in
our own era; for this great movement
was started in 1844 when the
young Ali-Muhammad, known as the
Bab on attaining the age of twenty-five,
first declared his mission to his countrymen
in Persia, and for a brief period of
six years, which ended with his martyrdom,
devoted his life to teaching the true
meaning of religion, and started that
wonderful movement of living reform,
elaborated and completed by the teachings
of Baha'o'llah and his son Abdul Baha,
of which we are now witnessing
the effect in the wonderful awakening
now taking place in that country. All
Europe is watching with interest this
movement which was prompted and foreseen
so many years ago by Baha'o'llah.
He even anticipated and foreshadowed
the spiritual and material reform now
taking place among the Western nations.
Had the inspiration of this religious
movement been confined to the
teaching of the Bab, it is quite possible
that it would have affected merely the
country of its birth, or that at most it
would have become a reformation within
the religion of Islam. But the Bab's
teachings and prophetic utterances were
largely directed towards the preparation
of the minds of his hearers for the advent
of a far greater teacher than himself
who would shortly succeed him.
These anticipations and predictions were
realized in the declaration of his mission
by Baha'o'llah, nineteen years after
the beginning of the movement inaugurated
by the Bab. In his hands the
teaching became world-wide in its appeal.
At the present time nearly one-third
of the people of Persia are followers
of Bahaism. In the United States
of America the movement has taken
great hold, and its adherents may be
counted by thousands; there is scarcely
a city in the United States without its
little community of Bahais, and at Chicago,
the site has been purchased, and
the preliminary steps taken for the erection
of the house of worship for the
Bahais of America. This is not intended
to be a church, as we understand it, but
a place of meeting which will be used
as a spiritual and educational centre.
Actually the first building of this kind
to be erected, is now being completed at
Eshkabad in Russian Turkestan. In
the countries of Europe there are
amongst others a group of German Bahais
at Stuttgart, another centre in
Paris, a small community in London, &c.,
&c. When we remember that Baha'o'llah
announced his mission to the world
in 1868, these facts become more remarkable.
I must not omit to mention
that Bahaism is now beginning to spread
amongst the natives of lndia and Burmah,[Page 13]
where its teachings are enthusiastically
adopted by its adherents as a
means of establishing real unity and
brotherhood amongst the numerous races
and creeds of those countries. There is
now a community of, roughly speaking,
five hundred* in Bombay, another of 300
in Mandalay, besides various smaller
groups in Rangoon and other cities.
Most thinkers acknowledge this present time in which we are now living to be a period of great spiritual unrest, of deep searching after truth, and of intense desire for a restatement of the fundamental realities of religion in terms harmonizing with the needs and aspirations of our particular age and that shall satisfy the deepest longings and desires of men. Baha'o'llah claims to have answered this need, and I wish to try to indicate as briefly as possible a few of the ways in which he has done this.
The long and patient labors of science have made visible to us throughout the whole material world, the universal reign of Law, and surely the inner world of the moral and spiritual life of man is also under a universal Law; that is, mental, moral and interior actions, and mental attitudes if I may so express it, just as surely produce definite results as outward actions. As we should therefore expect, Baha'o'llah's teaching is intensely practical. He says that no longer will mere words and talk about religion be accepted by the divine Assayer, but only true and righteous deeds. He has pointed out to his followers certain rules of conduct, certain acts that they must do, if they wish to learn from Him. He says that work of any kind done in a faithful spirit of service is accepted before God as an act of worship, and that the first duty of a man is rightly to fulfil his part in the world and to the whole of Society. Therefore it is enjoined upon all Bahais that they must have a definite employment; that is an art, trade or profession of some kind, which they must practice for their own benefit and that of other men. Also, he teaches that one of the greatest works a man or woman can do is to bring up a family of rightly trained and educated children fitted to carry on the upward evolution of the race. To this end he makes it obligatory on all his followers to provide the best possible education that can be obtained for their children, both boys and girls equally. In this connection he uses these beautiful words: "He that educateth a child shall be to me as if he educated my own son," and he enacts that special honor shall be rendered and a special provision shall be made for all teachers and educators.
Baha-o'llah strictly forbids mendicancy, but at the same time directs that the community of believers must provide work for all who need it.
The care of the sick and disabled not otherwise provided for, and for children and widows who are left without means of support also falls upon the general community. The funds for these purposes are to be supplied by proportionate contributions from all the Bahais and are to be administered by the elected councils called Houses of Justice.
It is directed that each body or community of believers is to elect a council called Beit-ul-Adl or House of Justice, from among those of its members who are most respected for their upright life, good character and intelligence. There is also to be established a General House of Justice for each nation, and besides this, a Universal House of Justice, consisting of members elected to represent every nation, which will form a kind of permanent board of arbitration and conciliation, to which all international disagreements and difficulties are to be submitted and whose decisions must be accepted by all Bahais
- It is impossible to give the exact numbers of the Bahais in various places, as their numbers are constantly being added to. (E. J. R.)
as final and authoritative. It must also be remembered in this connection that Baha'o'llah enjoined that there should be no special class of priests or clergy, set apart from the rest of the people for the purpose of teaching spiritual truths. This duty must be undertaken by those who are pre-eminently fitted for it by their character and learning; they are to receive no payment or salary for religious teaching, but must earn their own support by some trade or profession in the same way as the rest of the Bahais. Also the perfect civil and religious equality of women with men is asserted in the clearest possible manner.
He teaches his followers that the first necessity for them is to associate with men of every race and religion in the spirit of true brotherhood, love and sympathy, and to acknowledge all men as seekers of the One Truth.
The greatest stress is laid upon this, and it may be considered as one of the fundamental bases of his teaching. So all prophets and religious teachers of the past are to be considered as from God; but, as the circumstances of every age differ from those of previous ages, therefore it becomes necessary that from time to time a new teacher or prophet should appear, who can reformulate the truth of the One Religion in a way which suits the needs of that age or period.
There are many other aspects of Baha'o'llah's writings which it would be most interesting to analyze, but I must confine myself to saying that His Spiritual teachings are of the widest and most universal character and are not confined merely to directions as to conduct and morals. I have purposely drawn attention to those of his teachings—in necessarily the briefest possible manner—which seem more particularly to meet the practical and social needs of our time.
Baha'o'llah's mission lasted forty years and during his lifetime he wrote an immense number of short epistles, treatises and books, some of them containing practical advice and directions, others of a purely mystical and spiritual nature; several of these have already been translated into English, French, Russian, German and Swedish from the Arabic and Persian originals, the English translations being mostly published in the United States. From some of them I will quote a few passages, showing far better than any words of mine can do, the gist and scope of these writings.
Extracts From Books and Writings of Baha'o'llah and Abdul Baha[edit]
1. "At this time the Supreme Pen exhorts the daysprings of power and dawning-places of authority: to wit, kings, rulers, chiefs, princes, learned men and mystics, and commands them to hold fast to religion. Religion is the greatest instrument for the order of the world and the tranquillity of all existing things."
2. "Religion is the necessary connection which emanates from the reality of things; and as the Universal Manifestations of God are aware of the mysteries of beings, therefore they understand this essential connection, and by their knowledge establish the Law of God."
- From the "Words of Paradise," B.uh.
- From "Some Answered Questions," by Abdul Baha (publ. Kegan Paul).
3. "In every country or government where any of this community reside, they must behave towards that government with faithfulness, trustfulness, and truthfulness. It is obligatory and incumbent on the people of the world in general to assist this most Great Cause—which has descended from the heaven of the Will of the King of Pre-existence—so that perchance the fire of animosity which is ablaze in the hearts of some of the nations may be quenched through the water of Divine Wisdom and Lordly commands and exhortations, and that the light of union and accord may irradiate and illuminate the regions of the world."
4. "The Ministers (or members) of the House of Justice must promote "The most Great Peace" in order that the world may be freed from onerous expenditure. This matter is obligatory and indispensable, for warfare and conflict are the foundation of trouble and distress.
"All must adhere to the means which are conducive to love and unity."
5. "We exhort the members of the House of Justice and command them to guard and protect the servants,* maid-servants, and children. They must under all circumstances have regard for the interests of the servants.* Blessed is the prince who succours a captive, the rich one who favours the needy, the just man who assures the right of the wronged one from the oppressor, and the trustee who performs what he is commanded by the Pre-existent Commander."
6. "The light of men is justice, quench it not with the contrary winds of oppression and tyranny."
7. "School must first train the children in the principles of religion * * * but this in such a measure that It may not injure the children by leading to fanaticism and bigotry."
8. "Knowledge is like unto wings for the being of man and is as a ladder for ascending. To acquire knowledge is incumbent upon all, but of those sciences which may profit the people of the earth, and not such sciences as begin merely in words and end in mere words. The possessors of sciences and arts have a great right among the people of the world."
9. "The kings—may God assist them—or the counsellors of the world, must consult together, and appoint one of the existing languages, or a new language, and instruct the children therein in all the schools of the world, and the same must be done in respect to writing also. In such case the earth will be as one (or united)."
10. "It is incumbent on every one of you to engage in some employment, such as arts, trades and the like. We have made this, your occupation, identical with the worship of God, the True God."
11. "Charity is beloved and acceptable before God, and is accounted the chief among all good doods. Blessed is he who prefers his brother before himself.
12. "Oh people of Baha; Ye are daysprings of love, and dawning-places of the providence of God. Defile not the tongue with cursing or execrating any one, and guard your eyes against that which is not worthy. * * * Be not the cause of sorrow, much less of sedition and strife. * * * Ye are all leaves of one tree and drops of one sea."
- 3. From "The Glad Tidings." B.uh.
- 4. From "The Tablet of the World."
- 5. The "Words of Paradise," B.uh.
* Servants of God, i. e., men and women generally.
- 1. I. e., the characters employed must be similar for all languages.
- 6 and 7. From the "Words of Paradise," B.uh.
- 8. From the "Tajalliyat."
- 9. From "The Glad Tidings," B.uh.
- 10 and 12. From "The Glad Tidings."
- 11. From the "Words of Paradise."
13. "Oh friends, it is the wish of Abdul Baha that the Friends may establish general unity. * * * We are all servants of one Threshold, waves of one sea, drops of one stream, and plants of one garden. * * * The beloved of God must be friendly even with strangers. To organize assemblies is praiseworthy, but these must be established for certain objects. For example, assemblies for teaching the truth, gatherings for the spreading of the Fragrance of God, gatherings for the relief of orphans and for the protection of the poor, assemblies for the spread of learning, in a word there must be gatherings for matters which concern the well-being of man, such as the organization of a society of commerce, of societies for the development of arts or industries, and societies for the expansion of agriculture. Such societies are very acceptable and praiseworthy and concern all (the people) in general.
"I hope all the Friends from the East and the West will rest in the same assembly and adorn one gathering, and appear with all heavenly attributes and virtues in the world of humanity."
It would be possible to compile many books of similar sayings from the writings both of Baha'o'llah and of his son, Abdul Baha; but I think I have quoted a sufficient number to show the very practical and helpful nature of these works, and also their universal application.
I much wish that some one more competent had been able to describe this great movement, but I can only crave your indulgence for this short account of Bahaism as it now exists.
ETHEL J. ROSENBERG.
- 13. From an epistle of Abdul Baha, addressed to Believers in Persia, July 4th, 1906.
The Assemblies, Teheran, Persia[edit]
TEHERAN, 19/11, 08.
Letter from Mr. Sydney Sprague to Mr. R. C. Wilhelm:
The BULLETIN is certainly a splendid means of communicating news of the Cause to all parts of the world and I shall look forward each month with pleasure to receiving my copy. If you wish, I will write sometime for it. At present I am sending you a poem which you might insert. It has already appeared in the English Theosophical Review.
I suppose you have met Remey on his return and he has told you of our wonderful experiences and how I am situated at present in Teheran? I sent him recently copies of Tablets which I hope he will forward to you.
I am so happy to be at work in Persia and hope, as Abdul Baha says in the Tablet, that there will be good results. I found there was a good deal to be done to put the school in a flourishing condition, so I helped the believers to reorganize it more on the American system. We also have an elected school board of which I am one of the members. This board meets once a week to consult as to what is best for the school.
There are over 200 boys in the school,
fifty of whom are studying English with
me. I find them very clever and quick
to learn. Many boys have come to us
lately from other schools, as it is becoming
known that we have one of the
best schools in Teheran. Unfortunately
the work, we are doing is not understood
by the American Missionaries here
and doubtless owing to their lack of
information things have been said about
me tending to prejudice the Mohammedans
against us. However, our help[Page 17]
and trust is in God, and whatever happens
to the school or us is good; but
is it not sad that our countrymen,
Christians, ill advisedly giving currency
to statements which may lead to further
persecution of an heroic and long
suffering people! By the missionaries,
the people have been told that there
were no Bahais in America, and that
reports and statements to the contrary
were untrue, and, naturally by being
in Teheran upsets them.
What will they say when the two maid-servants arrive? I am so looking forward to having them here. It will be very pleasant for me to have an American to talk with occasionally, though the Believers here are such splendid people, and surround me with such care and affection, that I can't say that I am homesick. However, any word from America is much appreciated and I hope you will write me sometimes of yourself and the work in New York.
My Bahai Greetings to all the friends there and also from all the spiritual friends here.
If you get any new books or pamphlets, l hope you will send me copies. The Persians are always interested to see them also.
My special greetings to your mother.
Your brother in the Cause or God,
- (Signed) SYDNEY SPRAGUE,
- c/c Mirza Azizollah Khan,
- rue Arbab Jemshed, Teheran.
- c/c Mirza Azizollah Khan,
Washington[edit]
WASHINGTON, D. C., Feb. 25th, 1909.
To the BULLETIN:
Every Sunday morning there is a Sunday School for the small children and a steadily growing class of adults. The children are making wonderful progress and their happy interest is an inspiration to see. Among the grown-ups the custom is to take up our bibles and study some prophecy and then as the Spirit comes to us to try to straighten out whatever may puzzle any heart. Most of us have grown into a stage where there seem to be no questions; we feel so surely that all we need is growth and that "Knowledge, Faith and Love" are everywhere about us.
These meetings are a source of joy. On Monday evenings Mr. and Mrs. Woodward have a study class, and on Friday there is the regular Assembly and on Saturday Mr. Remey has a class for men. On Wednesday at the house of Mrs. Barnitz there is another study class, and from every Bahai home there is a widening centre of influence.
Our prayer, sent to Acca by Mr. and Mrs. Hannen from the Unity Feast given by Mrs. Giles and Mrs. Wilts, was a prayer for oneness, that we as an Assembly might attract all hearts by the power of love, and arise to teach with wisdom, with beauty, and with power. Already our prayer seems answered and joy grows in our hearts. Last Sunday Miss Little and the Misses Shumans gave a beautiful Unity Feast and Miss Knoblock spoke and many prayers and Tablets were read.
How humble and glad we are that to us has come such joy that our spirits have felt the Call and the bounty of God has been so poured upon us that we see and know. May we all pray for each other in Spirit and in Truth, even to the uttermost limit of the world of Existence.
"O Thou Pure and Holy Lord—give us hearing and intelligence that we may hear and find, that we may see the Light of Reality, which has arisen in the Orient, that we may hear the Divine voice from the Kingdom or Sanctification and that we may comprehend the mystery."
- In His Name,
- Your Co-worker,
- CLAUDIA STUART COLES.
Letter from Mirza Assad'ullah[edit]
HAIFA, SYRIA, Jan. 1st, 1909.
To THE BAHAI BULLETIN:
With the newest greeting of this New Year I greet my Spiritual Brother, who is spreading the Holy Fragrances of God—Mr. Hooper Harris.
The other day your letter to Dr. Fareed, together with your valuable magazine, THE BAHAI BULLETIN, were received by him. This periodical is of great value and utility to the Bahai friends, for the beloved people of God will be happy to learn thereby of one another. It can indeed establish the strong bond of love and friendliness which can monthly draw them nearer and make them dearer to one another.
When I was in Chicago a few years ago, the Centre of the Covenant—Abdul Baha (may my life serve His Holy purposes to the very end!)—commanded me to open the gateway of communication for the people of Baha in the East and in the West. And our efforts in that direction, at that time, opened the way to a certain extent, but the means for the attainment of this worthy end is the very BULLETIN you are now publishing. Therefore I ask the assistance of the Lord for you, Oh Brother, and for THE BAHAI BULLETIN I wish growth and permanency!
In your epistle to My Son, you have requested this servant to contribute to your publication. Although my time at present is quite fully engaged, yet, owing to my love for you and all the dear Servants of the Kingdom. I desire to comply with this request and my heart will send regularly, I hope, its contributions through my humble pen.
In your traveling in Hindustan, you have, of course, ascertained the fact that modes of thinking and styles of writing differ in various lands and among different nations, and that subjects which carry great weight in the estimation of the Occidental may not seem important in the sight of the Oriental, and matters which appeal to the Eastern mind may not appeal to the Western. Every bird has a special food, flight and song!
Publications like the BULLETIN, however, must contain the food of every bird of thought and the melody of every nightingale in order that it may become the Solomonic-Allbird Linguist! I will endeavor to write upon subjects which will appeal to the friends in the West."
Subjects should be treated in a comprehensive manner so that people of various degrees of perception may each and all comprehend the inner significance according to their respective capacities.
You have observed how the words of the Blessed Beauty (Baha'o'llah), exalted in His Station! and those of the Beloved Abdul Baha win the hearts and attract the souls of various peoples and nations of the earth and how they set free the prisoners of self and materiality. As soon as they listen to these Holy Words they throw away the fetters of the natural life and soar in the atmosphere of God and seek the Heavenly, Spiritual Life! This is due to the fact that these words come down from on High and traverse "the Arc of descent" in the realm of genesis until they arrive at the material world and are "made flesh,"—that is, they cause material creation. Therefore these words have impressions and effects upon all souls according to the degrees of their attainment.
On this account, I would suggest that
you ask the Beloved One's permission to
print one of His general Tablets in each
monthly issue. If this be done, I am
sure of success for the BULLETIN, provided,
however, that the English translation
of such Holy Tablets is of the
best and eloquent type. At all events,[Page 19]
the matter is the hand of God and He
is the Helper!
Oh, dear brother, you know and all must know for a certainty that there is no greater effect-producer in life than the Word of God. Verily, the Word of the Lord is the greatest miracle! As long as you can procure that, do so with love and joy, for truly it is the panacea for the disease of humanity.
A Bahai Mother[edit]
- Alone within she stood; the crowd without,
- With horrid taunting jeer and mocking shout,
- Were making out of death a ghastly feast,—
- As human blood is banquet for the heart.
- She knew, alas too well, who was their prey;
- In one brief hour they had snatched away
- From out her arms, her own, her well-beloved.
- Ah, for this crime was Heaven itself not moved!
- Why should her boy, a tree of strength and truth,
- Be struck down in the beauty of his youth?
- Why should the wicked triumph o'er the good,
- The lamb be given to the wolves for food?
- Yet often, he to her this warning gave:
- "Know thou, man cannot soul and body save,—
- My soul I give to God; if others lust
- For Bahai blood, then bravely die I must."
- The woman remembered; strength came to her heart;
- "O God," she prayed, "grant unto me a part
- Of this day's sacrifice to Thee. I know
- That I, so weak, can little do to show
- My love for Thee, yet willingly I give
- My boy, my all; now grant me strength to live."
- So from the altar of that mother's love,
- Like incense, rose a martyr's soul above.
- Just then the crowd drew near with hideous yell,
- Threw something through the window; there it fell
- Close to her feet. She gazed at it in dread
- And saw, in shapeless mass, her loved one's head!
- Then, by God's help, she took that head so dear,
- A prayer breathed o'er it, kissed it with a tear—
- And back to the blood-hounds hurled it in her might;
- Even their base souls were troubled by that sight!
- Triumphant rang her voice,—aye, from the rack,—
- "That which to God we give, we take not back!"
—Sydney Sprague.
Teheran, Nov. 19th.
This incident occurred in Zenjan, Persia, in the Days of the Blessed Beauty, Baha'o'llah.
Announcement of Meetings[edit]
NEW YORK.
Regular meetings every Sunday at 11 o'clock. A. M., at Geneological Hall, No. 226 West 58th Street.
Regular meetings every Friday evening at 8 o'clock, at the studio of Miss Juliet Thompson, No. 119 East 19th Street.
Regular meetings every Sunday afternoon at 3:30 o'clock, at the residence of Mr. Arthur P. Dodge, 261 West 139th Street.
Regular meetings every Sunday evening, at 8 o'clock, at the home of Mrs. E. E. Gibbons, No. 83 Madison Avenue.
BROOKLYN.
Regular meetings every Sunday evening at 8 o'clock at Lockwood Academy, 138 South Oxford Street (near Fulton Street).
BUFFALO, N. Y.
Regular meetings Sunday and Thursday of each week, 8:30 P. M., at 494 Elmwood Avenue.
