In Washington D.C., hundred years ago, today, `Abdu'l-Baha stated:

"This material world has an outward appearance, as it has also an inner reality. All created things are interlinked in a chain leading to spirituality and ultimately ending in abstract realities. I hope that these spiritual links will become stronger day by day and that this communication of hearts, which is termed inspiration, will continue. When this connection exists, bodily separation is not important; this condition is beyond the world of words and above all description."  (Words of `Abdu'l-Baha, on 28 April 1912, "Mahmud's Diary")

In New York, prior to His departure to Washington D.C., `Abdu’l-Baha said, “May everyone point to you and ask ‘Why are these people so happy?’  I want you to be happy… to laugh, smile and rejoice in order that others may be made happy by you.”

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Timeless Treasures: Words with Meaningshttp://timelesstreasureswordswithmeanings.blogspot.ca/

“Nature is that condition, that reality, which in appearance consists in life and death, or, in other words, in the composition and decomposition of all things. This Nature is subjected to an absolute organization, to determined laws, to a complete order and a finished design, from which it will never depart—to such a degree, indeed, that if you look carefully and with keen sight, from the smallest invisible atom up to such large bodies of the world of existence as the globe of the sun or the other great stars and luminous spheres, whether you regard their arrangement, their composition, their form or their movement, you will find that all are in the highest degree of organization and are under one law from which they will never depart.”  (`Abdu’l-Baha, “Some Answered Questions”, p. 3)

“Look not upon the creatures of God except with the eye of kindliness and of mercy.”
(Baha’u’llah, “Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah”, p.33)

Let’s observe the  Earth Day with perceptive appreciation and inspired awareness of the reality of the world of creation and the true value of  its every priceless existent! 

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Inked ThinkPen
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Baha'i Ridvan Festival, which is commemorated and celebrated each year for twelve days, during the period of April 21-May 2-- marks Baha'u'llah's Declaration of His Mission to His companions in 1863.  It is the "holiest and most significant of the Baha'i Festivals".   

To learn more about the Ridvan Festival and the history of the Declaration of Baha'u'llah, please visit:  

http://www.Bahai.org/   

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Timeless Treasures: Words with Meaningshttp://timelesstreasureswordswithmeanings.blogspot.ca/

Darkness, whatever the connotation—ceases only when light is introduced.  The darkness of ignorance can only be dispersed by the light of knowledge, a gloomy state of being and heart could be vanished through a vision and thought which inspires hope and enlightenment, a heavily burdened and flooded mind be freed by ideals and truths which are constructive and stimulating, useful and upbeat. Darkness of estrangement heals by the light of unity, remoteness and isolation giving their place to nearness and friendship; and selfishness to love. 

However dense and fearful the darkness may seem, soon as a tiny spark of light is lit, it flees away in instance and disappears. Because, there is no existence for darkness; it is only the absence of light.  A practical daily step in lightening our path as we steer our way amidst the twists and turns, winning over the darkness of all kinds—some being a natural way of life perhaps, a few the hard wisdom for growth and perfection in existence—is to focus on light, aware and intelligently alert and conscious, move forward and up.

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“Be generous in prosperity, and thankful in adversity... Be a treasure to the poor... an answerer of the cry of the needy, a preserver of the sanctity of thy pledge.  Be fair in thy judgment, and guarded in thy speech... Be as a lamp unto them that walk in darkness, a joy to the sorrowful, a sea for the thirsty, a haven for the distressed, an upholder and defender of the victim of oppression. Let integrity and uprightness distinguish all thine acts.  Be a home for the stranger, a balm to the suffering... Be an ornament to the countenance of truth, a crown to the brow of fidelity, a pillar of the temple of righteousness... a luminary above the horizon of virtue, a dew to the soil of the human heart, an ark on the ocean of knowledge, a sun in the heaven of bounty, a gem on the diadem of wisdom, a shining light in the firmament of thy generation, a fruit upon the tree of humility.”  (“Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah”, p. 285)

Knowledge is light!

                                                      

"Let each morn be better than its eve and each morrow richer than its yesterday. Man's merit lieth in service and virtue and not in the pageantry of wealth and riches...  Guard against idleness and sloth, and cling unto that which profiteth mankind, whether young or old, whether high or low..."

("Tablets of Baha'u'llah Revealed after the Kitab-i-Aqdas", p.138)

However we might be occupied and busy at every pace of life, hopefully and effectively living every day in full, we may be blessed once in a while to take note and realize that how very swiftly they flow and pass by.  Naturally we cannot prevent and stop their passage, nor do we have any power to alter the speed and pace of time. What we can do is to be vigilant and present for each day, up at every hour and alive to each breath. Vigilance and presence elevates our percetptions, sharpens our focus and makes every moment to be enjoyed, counted and utilized intelligently.   Of course while such counsciousness and presence is a gift and bliss by itself, it is just the prerequisite and a base, not alone enough to make us also feel fulfilled--and it certainly cannot ensure progress and advancement, always, upward and forward.  Knowledge and awareness of the value of time and being present in time ought to be supported and lead by high ideals and meaningful senses of purpose, willfully nourished and guided on an equally noble and sensible directions.  Within this frame of reflection and thought, the passage above inspires many thoughts.  If one may seek its light, at the rise of each morning waking up to a new day, one welcomes it as a fresh opportunity with a clear, reachable goal in mind.  One tries to set that morning at a higher point, better than the night preceding it, however be its height or whatever its plight.  Such a greeting and wake-up call from within us tunes our mind, creating a wonderful upbeat sense which is positive, active, and kind.  With such a perception and spirit the mind is humbled and mindful by the fact that perfection is relative, that to advance a bit more on each day, one should actively endeavor and willingly try. That realization in turn could inspire the soul and heart to grow biger and be a bit more understanding and patient, accepting and generous towards others and onself too, as the days advance and one faithfully keeps on at that pace...

"Service is prayer."  

`Should Prayer take the form of action?'

`Abdu'l-Baha has responded: "`Yes:  In the Baha'i Cause arts, sciences and all crafts are (counted as) worship.  The man who makes a piece of notepaper to the best of his ability, conscientiously, concentrating all his forces on perfecting it, is giving praise to God.  Briefly, all effort and exertion put forth by man from the fullness of his heart is worship, if it is prompted by the highest motives and the will to do service to humanity.  This is worship:  to serve mankind and to minister to the needs of the people.  Service is prayer." 

This truth explained by `Abdu'l-Baha directs the seeking minds to a totally different sphere of understanding. It transforms what has frequently been thought perhaps to be only an imaginary, a binding but illusionary submission to an invisible source--out of fear, helplessness, lack of vision and perception, or just a naive notion of going with the flow and what was accepted by the common and popular--to a dynamic real force and enregy. It uplifts the pondering souls to an understanding  and knowledge  which recognizes, willingly and progressively, through one's own volition and actual experience, of a magnificent Source of Power and Knowledge.  Service could be said is the economy of appreciating and utilizing the Power of Divine assistance.  Such power, however, will be drawn to anyone who with an independent spirit and vigilant mind, with a sincere heart and free soul converses with the One Beloved--Who is there, always, and is ever-Hearing, ever-Watchful.  Prayer and service go hand and in hand--and thus, it could be said that a simple daily act of worship and prayer which you and I may offer could bring down to earth the heaven!
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Timeless Treasures: Words with Meanings
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"God has conferred upon and added to man a distinctive power, the faculty of intellectual investigation into the secrets of creation, the acquisition of higher knowledge, the greatest virtue of which is scientific enlightenment.  This endowment is the most praiseworthy power of man, for through its employment and exercise, the betterment of the human race is accomplished, the development of the virtues of mankind is made possible and the spirit and mysteries of God become manifest."
(From the Writings of `Abdu'l-Baha--The Appointed Successor of Baha'u'llah and Authorized Interpreter of Baha'u'llah's Writings.)

The faculty of intellectual investigation with which we are gifted as human beings, `Abdu'l-Baha has emphasized, is the human's distinctive power in the whole universe.  This gift has a primal purpose--and it is logical to think that only when it is directed towards that purpose and objective, that its value becomes apparent and it assumes perfection. As humans we are gifted with numerous faculties and powers; one is the "free will".  Would you think that the perfection of human intellect  could be influenced by this "free will"? Can people's free will alter the energy and direction, the objective and momentum of the intellectual forces?  How  such influences change and contribute to the human world as a whole?

        

To learn more about the Baha'i Faith visit: http://www.Bahai.org/ 

"Science may be likened to a mirror wherein the images of the mysteries of outer phenomena are reflected. It brings fort and exhibits to us in the arena of knowledge all the product of the past. It links together the past and present.  The philosophical conclusions of bygone centuries, the teachings of the prophets and wisdom of former sages are crystallized and reproduced in the scientific advancement of  today. Science is the discoverer of the past. From its premises of past and present we deduce conclusions as to the future. Science is the governor of the nature and its mysteries, the one agency by which man explores the institutions of material creation."

(From the Writings of `Abdu'l-Baha--The Appointed Successor of Baha'u'llah and Authorized Interpreter of Baha'u'llah's Writings.)

To learn more about the Baha'i Faith visit: http://www.Bahai.org/