It is seemly that the servant should, after each prayer,
supplicate God to bestow mercy and forgiveness upon his parents. Thereupon
God's call will be raised: 'Thousand upon thousand of what thou hast asked for
thy parents shall be thy recompense!' Blessed is he who remembereth his parents
when communing with God. There is, verily, no God but Him, the Mighty, the
Well-Beloved. (The Báb, ‘Selections from the Writings of the Báb’; The
Compilation of Compilations, Vol. II, The Importance of Prayer, Meditation and
the Devotional Attitude)
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Live ye one with another, O people, in radiance and joy. By
My life! All that are on earth shall pass away, while good deeds alone shall
endure; to the truth of My words God doth Himself bear witness. (Bahá’u’lláh,
The Kitab-i-Aqdas)
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Nothing that existeth in the world of being hath ever been
or ever will be worthy of mention. However, if a person be graciously favoured
to offer a penny-worth -- nay even less -- in the path of God, this would in
His sight be preferable and superior to all the treasures of the earth. It is
for this reason that the one true God -- exalted be His glory -- hath in all
His heavenly Scriptures praised those who observe His precepts and bestow their
wealth for His sake. Beseech ye God that He may enable everyone to discharge
the obligation of Huquq, inasmuch as the progress and promotion of the cause of
God depend on material means. If His faithful servants could realize how
meritorious are benevolent deeds in these days, they would all arise to do that
which is meet and seemly. In His hand is the source of authority and He
ordaineth as He willeth. He is the Supreme Ruler, the Bountiful, the Equitable
the Revealer, the All-Wise. (Bahá’u’lláh, from a Tablet; ‘The Compilation of
Compilations, Vol. I, Huqúqu'lláh’)
From ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
Make ye then a mighty effort, that the purity and sanctity
which, above all else, are cherished by ‘Abdu'l-Bahá, shall distinguish the
people of Bahá; that in every kind of excellence the people of God shall
surpass all other human beings; that both outwardly and inwardly they shall
prove superior to the rest; that for purity, immaculacy, refinement, and the
preservation of health, they shall be leaders in the vanguard of those who
know. And that by their freedom from enslavement, their knowledge, their self-control,
they shall be first among the pure, the free and the wise. (‘Abdu’l-Baha,
"Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu'l-Bahá"; The Compilation of
Compilations, vol. I, Excellence in All Things)
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This is a good gathering, a good meeting. This assemblage is
the assemblage of God, for it is not convened for any worldly purpose; it is
not organized because of any commercial purpose; it is not held because of any
political purpose; nor is it held because of some material end or purpose. It
is held purely for the sake of God. Therefore I am very pleased. I am very glad
to find such a meeting in this city—an assemblage, the members of which are in
the utmost unity; an assemblage which does not entertain any desire save the
good pleasure of God; an assemblage which has responded to the call of the
Kingdom of Abhá, saying Yá-Bahá‘u‘l-Abhá; an assemblage, the purpose of which
is the illumination of the world of humanity; an assemblage, the purpose of
which is universal guidance. Surely, such an assemblage is blest.
Today, the various nations of the world are submerged in the sea of materialism, having no purpose except material profits, and they are working for naught save the realization of their own ends. An assemblage which is turned to the Kingdom, which is possessed of the spiritual subtilties; which is possessed of attractions of the conscience, which is directed to God —this is a Bahá’í assemblage. Outside of that, all the others are submerged in the sea of materialism. Therefore, you must thank God that — Praise be to God! — the sun of reality has shone upon you, the breezes of favor have blown toward you, heavenly Manna has descended upon you, the Signs of God have been revealed to you; the hosts of the Blessed Beauty have surrounded you. You have hearkened to the admonitions of God and you are pursuing the straight pathway. Therefore, you must thank God for the manifestation of such boundless bestowals. (‘Abdu’l-Baha, from a talk, October 19, Los Angeles; ‘World Order magazine, January 1945)