BP
365
.R35
presented to the
UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
SAN DIEGO
by
IZETTA JEWEL MILLER
2.0
The Bahai Movement
A Series of Nineteen Papers Upon
The Bahai Movement
BY
CHARLES MASON REMEY
Published in the Ninety-fifth Year after
the Birth of BahaVllah
PRESS OF
J. D. MILANS & SONS
WASHINGTON, D. C.
PREFACE
THESE papers treating of the Bahai Movement
have been written at various times and places
during the past two years, some typewritten copies
of which have been circulated among people interested
in the work. Because of the growing interest in the
Bahai Cause and the increasing demand for literature
upon the subject, it now seems advisable to publish these
articles in book form, in the hope that they may be of
service to those who desire more knowledge of the
Bahai teaching.
C. M. R.
21 March, 1912,
Washington, D. C.
In the Persian and Arabic languages each let-
ter has a numerical value and each name or word
has as its numerical value the sum of the values
of its component letters. A=l, B=2, H 5.
Thus 9 is the numerical value of the name Baha,
and this number, which is the greatest of simple
numbers, is used by the Bahais as a symbol of
the name.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
1. INTRODUCTION 1
II. THE BAB 6
III. BAHA'O'LLAH 14
IV. ABDUL-BAHA 25
V. THE MANIFESTATION OF THE WORD
OF GOD 35
VI. RELATION OF THE RAHAI MOVEMENT
TO THE RELIGIONS OF THE PAST. . 42
1. CHRISTIANITY 43
JUDAISM 45
ISLAM 47
4. ZOROASTRIANISM 49
5. HINDUISM 51
6. BUDDHISM 53
7. MODERN THOUGHT 55
RESUME 57
VII. THE BAHAI SACRED WRITINGS 59
VIII. SOCIAL REFORMS, LAWS AND ORDI-
NANCES 64
IX. THE NEED OF THE TIMES 72
X. ORIENTAL-OCCIDENTAL UNITY 76
XL ETERNAL LIFE 80
XII. HEAVEN AND HELL 83
XIII. SCIENCE AND RELIGION 88
XIV. THE SUPERNATURAL 90
XV. EDUCATIONAL ASPECT OF THE BAHAI
TEACHING 91
XVI. THE BAHAI MOVEMENT AND THE ECO-
NOMIC QUESTIONS OF THE DAY 94
XVII. THE EVOLUTION OF MAN 96
XVIII. THE METHOD OF TEACHING AND THE
GROWTH OF THE BAHAI MOVE-
MENT 98
XIX. A PERSONAL TESTIMONY.. ,.103
I.
INTRODUCTION
At the present time the religious world is in a
state of change. It has broken away from the
cold and hard creed and dogma of the past, and
it is awakening to, and reaching out for, a
broader conception of truth the universal re-
ligion* This, the universal religion, is what The
Bahai Movement offers to the world.
While there are many philosophies, (re-
ligion, because of man's limitations, has taken
upon itself many and varying forms of thought)
from the spiritual view-point there is but one
religion. There is but one God and there is but
one spiritual relation between HIM and the in-
dividual souls of men. The knowledge of the
spiritual relation between the Creator and the
created is the one only and true religion. It is
the basic principle of all religious systems, and,
shorn of the superstitions and imaginations of
the past, it will be the religion of the future.
Through knowing, understanding and living
the principles of The Kingdom, men will become
united ; the various religions, sects, and cults will
cease to exist as such, and all men will live
as brothers. The Bahai Movement is actually
bringing about this milennial condition. Through
its teaching and influence the spiritual limi-
tations of an undeveloped humanity are disap-
pearing, and the Truth, which is the love of God,
is manifesting itself here on this earth as broth-
erhood among men.
This present day is characterized by a great
spiritual awakening, the like of which has never
before been in the world. This awakening is
manifest among all people, in all countries, and
under all conditions. During the past sixty-five
1
2 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
years the world has entered upon a new spiritual
era: people who have made a study of the re-
ligious work of today realize this fact, notwith-
standing their own personal view-points. In the
Christian world we see the effect of this awaken-
ing in so convincing a manner that illustrations
are unnecessary. In the other religions the same
is clearly and strikingly visible in the many
changes and movements which, in these latter
years have characterized Judaism, Islam, Hin-
duism and Buddhism. This spiritual awakening
is universal. It manifests itself differently un-
der varying conditions, social, racial and re-
ligious, but considered as a whole, it indicates
that now the soul of the world is awake and
searching, and that nothing short of the uni-
versal truth will appease its hunger and quench
its thirst. It is this universal soul-need which
the Bahai teaching is meeting and satisfying.
The teachers and prophets, the founders of
the world-religions, have been seers as well as
channels of truth to the people of their days.
Through spiritual understanding and wisdom,
they foresaw this latter-day universal awakening
and demand for truth. They also foresaw the
supply for this demand in the coming of another
channel of divine grace, the Latter-Day Messiah.
This, the greatest of all manifestations, they
prophesied would arise with spiritual under-
standing and power, reveal and demonstrate the
universal truth, which exists in all religions, and
unite all men and establish the universal religion,
the Kingdom of God on earth. That this mani-
festation, the greatest of all GOD'S Messengers,
has come is the message that the Bahai Move-
ment is giving to the world.
There was a time when the religions of the
world were considered as isolated and separate
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 3
one from another, with no connection what-
ever; but now, in the light of this new teaching,
all are seen to have emanated from the one
source which is GOD. As parts of one great
body, they are organically connected. Each has
been a step leading humanity to a higher concep-
tion of the Creator and preparing souls for the
time when all men would unite, worshipping
HIM in spirit and in truth. Thus one prophet
appeared, building upon the foundation of his
predecessors, fulfilling their prophecies and ac-
complishing the hopes of their followers by
leading humanity on, a stage further, in soul de-
velopment. Each prophet prepared the way for
the coming of the succeeding prophetic dispen-
sation. In this way have all religious movements
of the past been integral parts of the foundation
of God's Kingdom here on earth, whose com-
pleted structure now is appearing in the Revela-
tion of Baha'o'llah, in which the prophecies,
hopes and fruits of all religions are realized.
The Bahai Movement offers to the world a
teaching applicable to the modern needs of hu-
manity. It offers religion renewed. All truth
emanates from "The Word of God" and through
GOD'S mouth-pieces, His anointed ones, it
comes into the world for the soul-quickening of
humanity. The teachings of all religions in their
beginning were pure but, as time passed, man-
created philosophy and thought crept in killing
the pure spirit of truth until, finally, little
remained save creed, dogma and ceremony.
So, a purer conception of truth being
needed, another divine revelation appeared. To-
day the creeds and dogmas of the past are with-
out spiritual potency. A new spiritual quicken-
ing is necessary, and, as of old, GOD has again
revealed His Word, that all men, of all nations
4 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
and of all races, may receive more abundantly
than ever before, His spirit. This He has ac-
complished through the three inspired leaders of
the Bahai Movement: through The Bab, who
was the herald and the First Point of this Reve-
lation; through Baha'o'llah, who was the re-
vealer of The Word; and now through Abdul-
Baha, who is the expounder of The Word, in
whom all things are fulfilled.
Going back to the dawn of history one finds
the family to be the unit of civilization. Later
on, many families are found uniting under a pa-
triarch, forming a clan or tribe. Still 1 later are
found federations of clans or tribes, from which
nations have come into existence. Now the next
step is the absorbing of all nations and races into
one great world people. This is the order of the
progress of mankind, and in the fruit of the
teachings of Baha'o'llah is seen the beginning of
this great end. Civilization is the product
of religion. Each of the world's civili-
zations had its birth in a religious move-
ment. Civilization has always been the
fruit of the spiritual awakening of a people
who, by political and geographical barriers, were
isolated from external influences. In this day
geographic, political and social barriers have,
through travel and communication, been oblit-
erated until now man is limited only by the con-
fines of this planet. We are on the threshold
of an universal epoch. That which affects one
people politically, socially or financially, affects
the whole world, and the great universal civ-
ilization so rapidly advancing is casting its signs
before. In the Bahai teaching is the spiritual
power to unite men's souls. It is forming a spir-
itual nucleus from which will spring the univer-
sal civilization to be, of the magnitude of which
we can now form no conception
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 5
Today, has begun a new order of things upon
the earth. Mankind is attaining spiritual ma-
turity, and is demanding more spiritual food
than the old forms and dogmas of religion can
give him. Through spiritual enlightenment, ig-
norance is being dispelled, causing a change of
soul a change in man's nature and this change
is being felt the world round. The mission and
object of the Bahai Movement is the uniting of
men of all nations, religions and races in the
love of GOD and the brotherhood of man. Its
teaching is constructive. It fulfills the highest
hopes of the religions of the past, and is uniting
all men in the great universal religion of the fu-
ture.
II.
THE BAB.
Mirza All Mohammed, known as The Bab,*
was born in October, 1819, in the city of Shiraz,
in southern Persia. His father, a Seyed or de-
scendant of the prophet Mohammed, died during
his infancy, whereupon the young child was
adopted into the family of an uncle, a man of
virtue, who reared him, giving him such ele-
mentary education in the Persian language as
was customary among the sons of the merchant
class to which he belonged. On attaining ma-
turity Mirza Ali Mohammed went into business
with his uncle and was for some time located
in Bushire upon the Persian Gulf. As a young
man he was noted for purity, gentleness, and
charm. Even those who afterwards opposed
and persecuted him and his followers so cruelly,
never attacked his personal character. Much
religious meditation, they claimed, had unbal-
anced his mind.
On May 23d, 1844, moved by the Spirit of
God, Mirza Ali Mohammed gave his teachings to
the world. At that time from various parts of
Persia, were gathered together in Shiraz eight-
een prepared souls, men of wisdom to whom it
had been given to understand spiritual realities,
and to these chosen disciples Mirza Ali Moham-
med revealed his mission. He was the door
("Bab") or forerunner of a great prophet and
teacher soon to appear. He, The Bab, had been
divinely sent as a herald to warn the people of
the coming of The Promised One and to exhort
them to purify themselves and prepare for His
advent. One whom he entitled "He whom God
shall manifest," the Latter-Day Messiah, prom-
*"Bab" is the Arabic and Persian word for door or gate.
6
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 7
ised in all the revealed writings of the past
was soon to come and establish The Kingdom of
God upon earth.
These eighteen first disciples of The Bab were
known as "The Letters of The Living". They,
with himself as "The Point," formed the nu-
cleus for the dissemination of the new teach-
ing. As soon as The Bab had instructed these
disciples in his simple doctrines, he sent them
into various parts of Persia with the commis-
sion to teach and to proclaim his appearance.
He then, with one of his followers, went upon
the annual pilgrimage to Mecca where, before
a concourse of over one hundred thousand pil-
grims assembled from all parts of the Moslem
world, he made his first public declaration.
When he returned to Bushire, his cause was
known in many parts of the country, and was
so rapidly gaining adherents that the members
of the Mussulman clergy became alarmed lest
through the rise of tnis new cult they might
lose their hold over the people. Then were The
Bab's travels, teachings, and trials increased.
From Bushire The Bab went to Shiraz where
he was roughly treated by the Moslems, placed
under guard and ordered to remain within the
confines of his house. There, nevertheless, many
had access to him, were attracted, and believed
in his teaching, men of prominence and learn-
ing as well as those of the more humble walks
of life. The world about him was against him,
yet through the power of Divine Love he over-
came all obstacles and won the hearts of the
people.
The Bab next journeyed to Esphahan, where
by that time he had many followers. There he
was received by the governor of the city, a
Christian, who openly acknowledged belief in
8 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
him and befriended him in many ways, giving
him facilities for meeting and teaching the
people. This aroused the anger of the clergy to
such a degree that the priests sought to put The
Bab to death. Then it was that the governor
concealed him in the official quarters where he
remained for some time in safety.
The friendly governor dying suddenly, and
The Bab's whereabouts becoming known, an or-
der was issued by the government in Teheran
for him to be conveyed thither. Accordingly,
under guard he proceeded toward the capital.
In the cities and villages along the route of
travel his message had preceded him, and
wherever he went he found eager listeners and
seekers whose souls he won. Even his captors
could not resist the spirit which flowed from
him, and many of them became his friends and
staunch supporters.
The ministers of state being informed of the
rapid growth of the Babi Movement and fearing
lest The Bab's presence in Teheran would agi-
tate the clergy and possibly produce a religious
uprising, another order was issued to the effect
that he should not approach the city but tarry in
a town not far distant. From there he was soon
removed to the fortress of Maku in the extreme
northwestern part of Persia. On this long,
cross-country journey The Bab passed through
many cities and, as always, his fame spread
widely, and many believed. and followed in his
path.
Among the most prominent of The Bab's fol-
lowers was Kurratu 1'Ayn, poet, orator and
heroine of the cause, who, after an eventful ca-
reer in which she stood forth as a powerful ex-
ponent of the new faith, suffered a martyr's
death. As a woman many decades ahead of her
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 9
time, her life and example are an inspiration to
all, and especially to her sisters of the Orient
who, through the cause for which she died, are
now being lifted from their former condition
of ignorance and oppression into one of knowl-
edge and freedom.
As one listens to the accounts of the lives of
the early Babis, (The Bab's adherents were
known as Babis) of their missions and labors,
sufferings and martrydoms, he sees the wonder-
ful spirit of the love of God which actuated
them as they responded to the call. One is
thrilled as he realizes that the days of a vital
and a burning faith, such as moved the apostles
and fathers of old, have again come to pass, for
this latter-day religion is bearing the same man-
ner of spiritual fruit as the religions of the past
bore in their earlier days.
The daily increase in the numbers of The
Bab's followers caused the Persian authorities
to remove him from Maku to a more remote im-
prisonment in the castle of Chih-rik, where he
could be more closely guarded and would be
less likely to communicate with the outside
world. At length, his following having attained
to great proportions, the clergy became thor-
oughly alarmed and instigated a heresy trial or
public examination of his doctrines. This in-
vestigation was held in Tabriz by the authority
of the governor of the province, and before the
tribunal The Bab was brought a prisoner. All
manner of insults and indignities were heaped
upon him, and finally he was flogged, one of the
chief mullahs applying the rods with his own
hands. After this The Bab was returned to his
former prison in the fortress of Chih-rik.
About this time began the early persecutions
and massacres of the Babis in Persia. Aroused
10 THE BAIIAI MOVEMENT
by their priests, the fanatical Moslems fell upon
the believers in many parts of the land, pillaging
and burning their homes, and torturing and mur-
dering men, women and children. These crimes
are too revolting to be mentioned in detail. The
heart seems to stand still when listening to the
accounts of the marvelous courage and fortitude
of even the children, not to mention that of the
women and men. These souls with the greatest
calmness and joy submitted to the most fiendish
tortures and death rather than recant, or deny
their faith, when denial would have saved them.
One's heart beats rapidly when he realizes that
through this suffering these martyrs were light-
ing the way that people might be prepared to
meet the One promised to appear and establish
The Kingdom upon earth.
Sometimes Babi fugitives banded themselves
together to resist the attacks of the Moslems,
and in some instances they defended themselves
bravely only to be slaughtered in the end by the
overwhelming number of their adversaries.
That "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the
church" is again proven to the world, for with
the shedding of each drop of Babi blood the
cause gained numbers of adherents. People who
knew little or nothing of The Bab and his teach-
ings, save that a great prophet's forerunner had
come, were confirmed in the faith and went forth
to serve, and to die when called upon.
Islam is the state religion of Persia, therefore
that which shakes its power produces a like ef-
fect in the workings of the government. At
length, seeing the cause to be steadily on the
increase, the prime minister of the state ordered
that The Bab be killed, hoping thus to put an
end to the matter and to place himself in security
with the clergy and the people. Accordingly, The
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 11
Bab was again removed from the prison of Chih-
rik and taken to Tabriz, the seat of the local
government of the province. Here, on the 9th of
July, 1850, he suffered martrydom.
The Bab, with one of his most devoted fol-
lowers, a youth of noble family, was conducted
to an open square in the city and there the two
were bound and suspended by ropes against a
wall. A company of Armenian Christian sol-
diers was drawn up and the order to fire given.
When the smoke cleared, however, to the aston-
ishment of all present it was found that the aim
had been too high, and instead of harming the
captives the ropes had only been severed and the
two captives had dropped to the ground unhurt.
So great was the consternation caused by this in-
cident that the commander of the executing com-
pany refused to take further part in the affair,
and another company, of native soldiers, was or-
dered out and The Bab and his disciple were
again suspended before the wall. The ensuing
volleys riddled both bodies with bullets, and
death was instantaneous. Later, the remains
were cast out into a moat and there exposed to
public view as a warning of the fate which
awaited those who followed the new faith.
By night the body of The Bab was removed
by some of the faithful, and after being swathed
in silk it was disguised as a bale of merchandise
and deposited in a place of safety. As condi-
tions and wisdom demanded, from time to ti;r<e
this hiding place was changed, and finally, on
the 21st of March, 1909, in the presence of a
notable gathering of pilgrims from various parts
of both the Orient and the Occident, the body
of The Bab was laid to rest by Abdul-Baha, in
a sarcophagus, in the crypt of the shrine of The
Bab in the Holy Land.
12 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
Although The Bab was without learning and
schooling, save that of a very elementary nature,
yet he was so richly endowed with spiritual or
inspirational wisdom that he discomfited the
learned mullahs until they feared discussion with
him, lest the people should see the weakness of
their arguments and the strength of his teach-
ings. He wrote with the greatest rapidity and
fluency, dictating both in public and private his
many treatises upon intricate theological ques-
tions.
During the four years of The Bab's imprison-
ment his numerous letters and epistles were,
with the greatest difficulty, smuggled out of the
prison and sent to the followers in various parts
of the country. These writings contain his in-
junctions to the believers for their guidance and
protection until the coming of "Him whom God
shall manifest."
The Bab's ordinances were given for the peo-
ple of his time only, and were commensurable
with the needs and conditions of the believers
during the interim between his manifestation
and the manifestation of the greater One to
come. The Bab was the "First Point" of this
revelation, the precursor of the greater One.
In his teachings he reiterated again and
again that, when "He whom God shall mani-
fest" appeared, all should turn unto Him, and
that He would reveal teachings and ordinances
which would replace the Babi sacred literature.
It is a matter of importance to note that the
one great event for which the Babi Movement
paved the. ^vay, was the manifestation of Baha-
'o'llah, treated of in the next chapter. It should
not be considered as a later development of the
Babi cause, but rather The Bab's mission should
be considered as simply introductory to it.
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 13
Running through The Bab's writings are found
countless allusions to the spiritual power, splen-
dor and glory of Baha'o'llah, who was then in the
world, but unknown to men. He was the inspira-
tion of The Bab, to Whom The Bab continually
testified in the most eloquent and stirring of his
verses, and of Whom he bore witness by a life
of suffering and imprisonment, crowned by mar-
tyrdom.
HI.
BAHA 'O' LLAH
Mirza Hussein AH of Noor, more widely
known as Baha'o'llah, was born in Teheran, Per-
sia, on the 12th of November, 1817. His family
was one of wealth and note, His father as well
as other relatives, having been ministers of the
government, serving in various official capacities.
During Baha'o'llah's youth, His father died,
leaving Him, the eldest son, as the head of the
family. Being of a contemplative disposition,
the public life which His father had led had no
allurements for Baha'o'llah. He chose instead,
one of comparative retirement, managing the
family estates and affairs, and supervising the
education of His brothers and sisters. Even in
His youth the marks of wisdom and distinction
were upon Him.
In His home Baha'o'llah was taught the Per-
sian language, and wisdom, knowledge and the
deepest of spiritual mysteries were His, through
His own studies, meditations and inspirations.
Later, these basic principles of being are re-
vealed in His writings with power and force.
These truths are the foundation of the Bahai
cause. They are living, spiritual principles, for
they appeal to and satisfy the soul, and meet
all of the moral and spiritual needs of life.
Baha'o'llah never attended any school or in-
stitution of learning. His knowledge was inspi-
rational. It came from the source of all knowl-
edge, and is the source of knowledge for all.
At the time The Bab made his declaration
and sent his disciples forth from Shiraz, Baha-
'o'llah, then about twenty-seven years of age, was
residing in Teheran. When the glad tidings of
The Bab's manifestation reached the capital,
14
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 15
Baha'o'llah was among the first to respond to
the call, and He, in turn, proclaimed the cause,
upholding it firmly. He visited the city of Noor,
the home of his family, and other neighboring
cities and towns, where He engaged in expound-
ing The Bab's teachings, later returning to Te-
heran, there again to take up His work.
The Bab and Baha'o'llah had no family con-
nection whatever, the former being of Arabic-
Persian descent, while the latter was of ancient
Persian lineage. These tiuo never met in person,
yet in spirit they were intimate even in their
deepest thoughts and inspirations. Between
them a correspondence was established which
was carried on up to the last days of The Bab's
mission here on earth.
When, during his imprisonment in Chih-rik,
The Bab foresaw the approaching day of his re-
moval to Tabriz and his martyrdom, he sent by
faithful followers to Baha'o'llah a package con-
taining a number of his writings, his pencase
and seal ring. At that time, though Baha-
'o'llah was known only as his staunch supporter,
yet The Bab saw in Him divine signs not yet
manifest to others.
It was not long after The Bab's martyrdom
that a great calamity befell the believers. A cer-
tain enthusiast, who (though a believer in The
Bab) was quite ignorant of the teachings, be-
came unbalanced through brooding over the per-
secution and slaughter of his brother believers,
and in the hope of being able to better their con-
dition made an attempt upon the life of the
Shah of Persia. The guilty one was imme-
diately killed by the royal attendants. Without
inquiring further into the matter, his crime was
taken, by the Shah and his ministers, as a dem-
onstration of the Babis, as a body, against the gov-
]() THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
eminent. Then the innocent were made to suffer
for the guilty. This was the beginning of a sea-
son of the most bloody massacres and horrible
torture of the believers. Even to be suspected
of being a Babi was in many cases sufficient
to cause the extinction of a whole family. In
Teheran some eighty believers were handed over
by the government to the Moslems to be killed,
each being subjected to some unique torture be-
fore the final slaying.
It was a time of greatest trial and test for the
Babis. Each calamity was followed by one, more
terrible; yet through all, the wonderful hope of
The Promised One to come and their enthusias-
tic love and devotion to the memory of their
martyred master, The Bab, upheld and strength-
ened them to meet every kind of persecution.
In the midst of these troubles BahaVllah came
boldly to the front. He was placed under ar-
rest, and spent four months in chains in the
dungeon of one of the Teheran prisons. Later
on, it being proved that He was innocent of any
plot against the government, He was sertt by the
royal order into exile to Baghdad in Asiatic
Turkey. There it was thought He would be so
far removed from the Babis in Persia as to de-
stroy His prestige as leader among them. These
events occurred in 1852, the ninth year after the
declaration of The Bab.
Baha'o'llah's exile to Baghdad marks an im-
portant epoch in the development of the cause,
for from that time He stands preeminent as a
power in that persecuted community.
After the fury of the massacres of 1851-1852,
the Babis were in a deplorable condition.
Many of the disciples and personal associates of
The Bab had been martyred, while, on account
of the troubles, the few remaining ones who had
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 17
personally been taught by him were all but cut
off from association with the younger followers.
It had not been possible to disseminate, beyond a
very limited circle, the writings of The Bab, so
that the vast majority of the believers knew little
of his real teachings. In addition, they were actu-
ated by a powerful spirit of devotion to their
cause; a devotion which, because of its very in-
tensity, at times led them into difficulties. Here
and there arose false claimants for The Bab's
successorship, all of which led to confusion and
trouble.
This was the condition that prevailed when
Baha'o'llah reached Baghdad. Immediately He
directed His attention and energy toward bring-
ing knowledge and assurance to the followers.
He taught them the real significance of The
Bab's teachings and little by little, through un-
derstanding, their undirected enthusiasm found
power in restraint and strength. Thus He pre-
pared them to recognize by their spiritual facul-
ties, The One whose coming The Bab had pro-
claimed.
The Babis now increased in firmness and
steadfastness, especially those in Baghdad. As
the fame of Baha'o'llah spread abroad, men of
learning came to converse wi*h Him and listen
to His teachings, and of these many believed.
As the believers increased in number, the anger
of the Moslem clergy was aroused and this, in
turn, gave rise to other serious difficulties. Baha-
'o'llah was then led to seek a solitary retreat in
the mountain fastness of Kurdistan, where He re-
mained for two years in spiritual preparation for
His coming manifestation and ministry.
Upon Baha'o'llah's return to Baghdad/ great
was the joy of the Babis. By that time they
were realizing their spiritual strength, and they
18 THE; BAHAI MOVEMENT
welcomed their teacher with all the fervor and
enthusiasm of Oriental devotees.
Believers from various parts of Arabia and
Persia now came to Baha'o'llah, seeking knowl-
edge from Him. Then they went forth again
to teach with a deeper understanding than be-
fore, and with a renewed zeal and fervor; and
the cause grew in strength.
These developments were closely watched by
the Moslem priests. Fearful of the loss of their
own hold upon the people, which they saw wan-
ing as the light of the new teachings spread,
the priests incited the government against Baha-
'o'llah, with the determination to do all they
could to curb His power. Accordingly, after
some correspondence between the Persian and
Turkish governments, an international arrange-
ment was formulated, by which Baha'o'llah was
ordered to proceed to Constantinople, there to
await the pleasure of the Ottoman Sultan, to
whom he became temporally subject.
Upon hearing that their chief was to be re-
moved from Baghdad, the believers became wild
with grief, the greatest consternation prevailing
among them. A number of them prepared to ac-
company Him in His further exile. When, in
obedience to the summons of the Sultan, Baha-
'o'llah left Baghdad previous to starting on His
long journey, He encamped a short distance from
the city in the Garden of El Rizwan. There He
was surrounded by some of His most devoted
followers believers in The Bab.
To the most trusted of these followers Baha-
'o'llah, during His twelve days of sojourn in El
Rizwan, revealed Himself and His mission:
that He was The Promised One foretold by
The Bab; that He was the One promised
by all the prophets to appear in the latter days
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 19
and establish GOD'S Kingdom, the great univer-
sal brotherhood of nations ; that He was the One
through whose inspired guidance the difficulties
of the believers would be removed ; by steadfastly
and unitedly following Whose injunctions those
blessings for which the believers had hoped, suf-
fered and prayed would be realized. This hope
He extended to the adherents, exhorting them
to renew their energies, faith and assurance.
The Manifestation of Baha'o'llah took place
in April, 1863, nineteen years after the declara-
tion of The Bab.* This was the goal toward
which all the Babis had directed their attention,
beyond which no one had seen. Now, having at-
tained to the meeting of The Promised One, the
believers found themselves upon the threshold
of an outlook so vast, and of a work so great,
that it was only with the sustaining power of
their new teacher that they were able to face the
difficulties which confronted them.
The period of preparation over, the trusted be-
lievers found themselves in the full light of the
day of GOD, compared with which the prepara-
tive light of The Bab had been but as a few rays.
Traveling overland by caravan, through Irak-
Arabi and Asia Minor to Samsaon on the Black
Sea, and from there by ship, Baha'o'llah and His
band of followers, after a fatiguing journey,
reached Constantinople.
Here the exiles remained for several months
under, governmental surveillance, before they
were sent under military escort to Adrianople, in
the interior of Roumelia. There, it was thought,
*In the writing's of The Bab are certain verses
prophetic of the rise of Baha'o'llah in the ninth year of the Babi
cause, and of His manifestation in the nineteenth year of the
same. These prophecies wer given symbolically, in snch man-
ner as to be understood only by the faithfnl.
20 THE; BAHAI MOVEMENT
Baha'o'llah would be so far removed from the
world which His cause was agitating as practi-
cally to destroy His power as a religious leader,
thus striking a fatal blow at the new faith. It is
to be noted that each attempt upon the part of
the temporal powers to oppose this cause marks
an epoch in the demonstration of its spiritual
power.
Baha'o'llah and His exiled followers remained
in Adrianople for five years, during which
time the cause grew and the believers at-
tained to moral and spiritual virtues, their faith
manifesting itself in their daily lives. This was a
time of growth and preparation. Through per-
sonal contact, those who were with Baha'ollah
grew in the shadow of His wisdom, while those
at a distance had their souls made strong and
steadfast through His written teachings ; for in
Him all found the realization of the spiritual
power, glory and majesty of "Him whom God
shall manifest".
While in Adrianople Baha'o'llah directed His
power to bringing the believers to a realization
of His mission. The cause under The Bab's in-
spiration was more or less local, being confined
to a few Islamic countries. Its character and in-
stitutions were commensurable with the condi-
tions to which it ministered. It fulfilled its pur-
pose and when this was accomplished in the ap-
pearance of Baha'o'llah, the Babi Movement, as
such, ceased to exist.
With the manifestation of Baha'o'llah, not
only did the followers cease to be known as
Babis, becoming Bahais in name, but in the deep-
est spiritual sense did they receive from Baha-
'o'llah that soul-quickening touch, which created
within them the power to go forth to all the
world, carrying the message of peace, attracting
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 21
people of all nations and religions, and fulfilling
that which He sent them forth to accomplish.
Dating from the time of the declaration
of Baha'o'llah in the Garden of El Riz-
wan, the cause assumes a universal or a world
character; for it must be understood that the
teachings of Baha'o'llah are not limited to the
needs of certain conditions and countries, nor to
the oriental peoples. He comes, The One prom-
ised by all religions, for all peoples under all con-
ditions, both oriental and occidental. His teach-
ing is universal ; it is for the whole world.
Baha'o'llah achieved His work only under the
greatest difficulties. Among those followers
who accompanied Baha'o'llah in exile was His
half-brother, who failed to comprehend Him and
the scope and magnitude of His mission. This
man resented Baha'o'llah's growing power, and
his opposition, together with the spread of the
faith, created troubles with the Turkish govern-
ment, which increased until an order was issued
separating him from the believers, and sending
Baha'o'llah a prisoner, to the fortress of Akka
on the coast of Syria.
It was in the summer of 1868 that Baha'o'llah
and about seventy of his followers, men, women
and children, were taken in captivity ; overland
to Gallipoli, where they were embarked in a ship
sailing for Egypt. Arriving in the harbor of Al-
exandria, the exiles were transferred to another
vessel which landed them in Haifa, but a few
miles across the bay from Akka, a distance which
was covered in small boats.
Akka is the Acre of the time of the crusaders,
more anciently known as Ptolemais. Her anti-
quated ramparts and crumbling fortifications, the
scenes of some of the bloodiest combats of mili-
tary history from the ancient times of the Phoe-
22 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
nicians down to the Napoleonic war in Syria, tes-
tify to an earthly power which is of the past;
while her name, so intimately connected with the
Bahai cause, to-day is most closely associated
with that great constructive movement for spir-
itual power and peace, the glad tidings of which
were first sent forth to all the world from behind
her prison gates.
For some years prior to Baha'o'llah's arrival,
the fortress of Akka had been used as a prison
and a place of exile to which the Sultan of Tur-
key sent his political opponents. The deadly
climate of that fever-stricken rock slowly but
surely accomplished the desired destruction of
many of these unfortunate ones.
Here Baha'o'llah and His people were thrust
into two rooms of the barrack prison. With poor
and insufficient food, and water not fit to drink,
fever and sickness broke out among the believers.
Their sufferings were most intense, yet through
all they were spiritually in the greatest joy and
peace, for they realized that only by meeting the
very worst of this world's conditions, could
Baha'o'llah relieve and change those conditions;
while, as for themselves, they were only too
happy and contented to share His sufferings.
It was during this close confinement of Baha-
'o'llah within the prison of Akka that He made
His declaration to the world. This was done by
sending a series of epistles, written in Adrianople,
to the rulers and potentates of the earth. In these
missives He clearly states His mission, and He
announces to all this latter-day call of The
LORD the call of unity, harmony, and peace.
Very soon the officials and officers of the city
began to realize the greatness of Baha'o'llah.
and some among them believed in Him. His
fame as a teacher spread, and actuated by that
veneration for wisdom, so peculiar to the Orient,
many sought His presence, to be awakened to
those truths the existence of which they pre-
viously had not realized.
After two years of close confinement in prison,
Baha'o'llah was given the liberty of the city and
allowed to live in a house provided for Him and.
His family. His followers entered into various
occupations in the town and vicinity, and the
material condition of the community was greatly
improved.
In the early days of the imprisonment of
Baha'o'llah in Akka, when He was most closely
guarded and with the greatest difficulty His
communications were transmitted to those
outside the prison, His followers often journeyed
from Persia overland, for months, to obtain but
a glimpse of Him standing at His barred window
or to gaze at Him from afar as He walked upon
the parapet of the prison, and then they returned
to their homes with renewed fervor and zeal in
promulgating His cause. Later, these pilgrims
from various countries had access to Him, and,
quickened by His power, went forth to proclaim
His Cause in the uttermost parts of the earth.
Besides those who saw Him personally, Baha-
'o'llah reached thousands in distant lands, and
satisfied their thirst for knowledge, through His
tablets, which were epistles of exhortation, ad-
vice and explanation written in response to let-
ters from believers and seekers.
Baha'o'llah wrote also general treatises relat-
ing to matters both religious and secular. In
these inspired writings are found the basic prin-
ciples upon which are built the institutions of the
Bahai faith.
During the latter years of His ministry, Baha-
'o'llah was allowed to spend much time in the
24 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
country in the vicinity of Akka, even visiting
Haifa and Mt. Carmel. At the villa of Behje
(situated on the plain of Akka) He departed this
life in the month of May, 1892, after forty years
of hardship, imprisonment, and exile, that the
soul of the world might be quickened with the
life of the spirit. The tomb of Baha'o'llah, at
Behje, is greatly venerated by the many pilgrims
who yearly visit it from all parts of the world.
Through Baha'o'llah this great teaching was
given to man. His function was that of the re-
vealer. Though as a man He lived a life in har-
mony with the conventions of His oriental
environment, yet as The Revelator, the mouth-
piece of The Spirit, His teachings are univer-
sally applicable to all peoples under all con-
ditions. With the close of His ministry the
latter-day revelation was complete as a revela-
tion. The next step in the development of the
cause was that of explaining, establishing and
demonstrating these revealed truths in the world
of practicality. For the accomplishment of this,
Abdul-Baha, the son of Baha'o'llah, was the
chosen instrument.
IV.
ABDUL- BAHA.
Abdul-Baha Abbas, also known as Abbas Ef-
fendi, the eldest son of Baha'o'llah, was born in
Teheran, Persia, on the 23d day of May, 1844,
the very day upon which The Bab made his de-
claration to the disciples in Shiraz.
At a very early age Abdul-Baha was called
upon to share the sufferings of his father. When
Baha'o'llah's persecution began with His impris-
onment in Teheran and exile to Baghdad, His
property was confiscated, even to personal effects,
while the members of His family suffered in-
tensely for the bare necessities of life.
Abdul-Baha's schooling was interrupted in his
childhood by these persecutions, and afterward
he never attended any school. However, through
the constant companionship of his father, from
whom his inspiration came, and from his loving
service to all people both high and low, an un-
derstanding, wisdom and knowledge are his
which are of God.
Abdul-Baha accompanied Baha'o'llah upon His
winter journey from Teheran to Baghdad, and
during the years of exile there was constantly
at his father's right hand, serving and helping
Him in His work of teaching the people.
Abdul-Baha was the first to recognize the di-
vine power of Baha'o'llah. He was the first soul
quickened by the spirit of Baha'o'llah, and the
first to arise in the service of the Kingdom. In
Abdul-Baha's life of devotion to the cause and
his practice of the precepts of Baha'o'llah, the
perfect life of The Spirit is manifest, and in him
all things are found to be accomplished.
In Adrianople Abdul-Baha took upon himself
the task of relieving Baha'o'llah of all possible
25
26 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
cares of daily life, so that He might devote
Himself entirely to His mission. During the im-
prisonment in Akka, when hardship and sickness
were encompassing the believers on every side,
it was Abdul-Baha, who, through his buoyancy
of spirit, gave courage to the distressed ones. It
was he who nursed the sick and through the
touch of his hand imparted strength to the weak,
while the light of his great love illumined all and
empowered them to overcome their ills.
In the written testament of Baha'o'llah, as well
as in His verbal teachings, which have come
down to us through those who were near to Him,
He appointed His son Abdul-Baha to succeed
Him in His spiritual mission, and designated
Him as the one who should complete His work
in the world. The father's mantle has fallen upon
the shoulders of the son. The staff of Baha'o'llah
is now in the hands of Abdul-Baha, and the
Spirit of God, which spoke through Baha'o'llah
revealing TRUTH to the world, is now mani-
festing to the world through Abdul-Baha's life
of service to God and to man.
Abdul-Baha is the center of the Bahai cause.
He is the one to be emulated. Through follow-
ing him the Believers will attain to the spiritual
fullness of the Bahai life. Abdul-Baha is the be-
loved son into whose hands has been intrusted
the guidance of the people of The Kingdom.
Abdul-Baha's mission is that of the explainer,
the establisher. Through his life of service he
is teaching and leading the people to the realiza-
tion of the revelation of Baha'o'llah. By his
life of example he is teaching the heart of man-
kind and infusing spiritual consciousness into
humanity.
Abdul-Baha comes with the power of God to
live and manifest the life of The Kingdom. This
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 27
he is demonstrating to the world, for through
his ministry all things as revealed and intended
by Baha'o'llah are being accomplished.
Almost his entire life Abdul-Baha has passed
under the temporal law as an exile and a reli-
gious prisoner. At times he was only under mili-
tary surveillance, and again imprisoned behind
barred doors. Yet despite these physical hin-
drances his spiritual work has prospered and his
message of glad tidings has gone the world
round, taking with it the peace of the Spirit to
thousands of souls of every race and religion.
That Abdul-Baha' s mission is a purely spiritual
one needs no further demonstration than that
which is already visible in the world. With all of
the worldly powers against him, but with the
power of God with him, he is accomplishing that
which he was sent to accomplish, for from him is
emanating that power which is uniting men's
hearts and drawing into The Kingdom the hun-
gering souls from all peoples. Abdul-Baha is
harmonizing Christians, Jews, Moslems, Zoroas-
trians, Buddhists and Hindus in the one and the
true faith, the Fatherhood of God and the Broth-
erhood of man. The results of his work prove
his cause.
The name Abdul-Baha signifies the title of its
bearer, ''The Servant of God". Abdul-Baha
makes but one claim for himself, that of abso-
lute servitude in the path of God. The
Spirit of Baha'o'llah is the source of Ab-
dul-Baha's inspiration and his strength. He
seeks no prestige nor prominence for himself.
His demonstration to the world is through deeds.
His method of teaching is through deeds. His
mission is to establish the deeds of The Kingdom
in the lives of his followers.
With the passing of Baha'o'llah (May, 1892)
began Abdul-Baha's divine mission as "The Cen-
ter of the Covenant". When he arose invested
with the power .of the Spirit, began the third and
final period of the establishment of The King-
dom here among men.
Abdul-Baha is an exile from his country and,
until the re-establishment of the Turkish Con-
stitution in the summer of 1908, he was a reli-
gious prisoner, held in the fortress of Akka.
With this political change, he with many other
prisoners and exiles was freed and is no longer
under military surveillance.
Since his release Abdul-Baha has made but
few changes in his daily life. Now it is possible
for many more of his followers to visit him than
formerly, consequently his duties and labors are
increased. He has given up his residence in Akka
and, after residing for some months in the neigh-
boring town of Haifa, he has gone to Egypt,
from whence he is at present carrying on his
work.*
During every phase of the progress of The
Cause, Abdul-Baha has done nothing needlessly
to agitate the fanatical peoples who surround
him. In every way he and his family observe
the oriental conventions of life, in order to
maintain harmony and amicable relations with
the surrounding people. He is changing the
world by infusing spiritual wisdom into men's
souls. He teaches and reaches the people
through leading them rather than by trying to
force fhem, through winning souls by the spirit
rather than by trying to bring to bear the more
objective forces of the outer world.
As there were a few of The Bab's pro-
*Since this article was written Abdul-Baha has visited Europe,
where he spent some time teaching- in both London and Paris.
Now, March, 1912, it is expected that he will soon visit America.
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 29
fessed followers, who failed in the days of Baha-
'o'llah to recognize in Him the divine power by
virtue of which He was The Bab's successor, so
there are also a few followers of Baha'o'llah,
whose eyes have not been opened during the
ministry of Abdul-Baha to the spirit manifesting
within him, and who have failed to see in him
the successor of Baha'o'llah.
These opposing people have at times made
much trouble for Abdul-Baha. During the years
of his imprisonment, through false reports
concerning his work, made to the government
by these people (led by his own half-brother),
the Turkish officials imagined the Bahais were
plotting against the Ottoman power. Thus, much
distress was created.
Sometimes, on account of the troubles brought
on by the opposing people, it has been impossible
for the believers to visit Abdul-Baha. Once,
some of his followers were cast into prison, and
at another time some of the believers were forced
to flee from the Holy Land and seek refuge in
Egypt. Nevertheless, through all trials and trou-
bles Abdul-Baha has gone steadily forward ac-
complishing his work, the number of his op-
posers decreasing and the number of his sym-
pathizers increasing, until now he has clearly
shown to all that his cause is not dependent upon
earthly prosperity for its growth, nor does oppo-
sition hinder its spread.
The Bahais have the uttermost esteem, love
and veneration for Abdul-Baha. To them he is
friend, counselor, and spiritual guide.
In looking toward him as the expounder of
divine wisdom his followers are worshipping the
Divine Light which is manifesting through his
life of service to God and man. They are not
30 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
deifying his human personality, for that he holds
in common with all men.
Abdul-Baha does not wish to call the attention
of people to his personality, nor to himself as a
man, save to demonstrate to them the principles
of the higher life for which he stands. He not
only does not seek personal prestige, but even
anything suggestive of this is extremely odious
to him. For example, he has repeatedly requested
the believers not to use in connection with his
name the terms "Lord" or "Master", which are
so often applied in the Orient to spiritual teach-
ers. In fact, any demonstration of personal ado-
ration is offensive to him.
Abdul-Baha stands as the exponent of a spir-
itual principle, a great divine power. This, and
this only, he desires the world to recognize.
Many beautiful and touching incidents are re-
lated by the people of Akka of the way in
which, through long-suffering and kindness, Ab-
dul-Baha has won the hearts of those who, be-
cause of their prejudice, formerly were his
enemies. Caring for the sick and protecting the
oppressed form a large part of his daily duties.
One of the titles applied to him by the indigent
Arabs is "Father of the Poor".
While Abdul-Baha's method of teaching and
moving people is through the heart and is gen-
tleness itself, nevertheless, conditions often make
it necessary for him to be stern. Some of the
native Arabs, and others with whom he has rela-
tions need to be dealt with by a loving but firm
hand.
Abdul-Baha administers justice, but with such
kindness that the individual realizes it is done
in the true spirit of paternal training ; and instead
of offending the guilty one the opposite effect is
produced, and a lasting good accomplished.
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 31
Abdul-Baha is married. He has four daugh-
ters, three of whom have husbands and families.
Abdul-Baha is teaching through his home life as
a devoted husband and a loving father, a lesson
to both the people of the East and of the West.
He is teaching the Oriental, monogamy and that
woman should be man's intellectual, moral and
spiritual companion as well as the mother of his
children; and he is teaching the Occidental, in
these days of marital unrest, that marriage
should be founded upon a spiritual basis and not
alone upon a physical one.
While imprisoned Abdul-Baha received a sti-
pend from the Turkish government. Now that
he is freed, this no longer continues. He holds
cultivated lands in the vicinity of Akka which
render him an income. His personal needs and
those of his family are few. In reality, that
which he possesses is for the benefit of all, while
he is but the guardian of it. No one knows of the
many children he is educating ; how many needy
and infirm ones he is clothing, housing and feed-
ing. Abdul-Baha is demonstrating to the world
that there is neither virtue nor disgrace in either
riches or poverty; and that man, either in need
or in plenty, should utilize his little or his much
glorifying God through serving humanity.
There are many expenses in connection with
the carrying on of the work. Those whose souls
are in the cause contribute in various ways, of
which few, if any, are known. The American Ba-
hais can testify that Abdul-Baha very rarely per-
mits any of them to share in carrying the burden
of the work in the East, though in rare instances
he has accepted contributions for this purpose.
While his personality Abdul-Baha wishes
sacrificed, for the cause for which he stands, nev-
ertheless the people look at the outer person, and
32 THE; BAHAI MOVEMENT
each returning pilgrim from Akka is asked many
questions regarding Abdul-Baha, the man.
Abdul-Baha expresses perfect manhood. The
vigor of a fully-developed physical, intellectual,
and spiritual power is apparent in his every
movement; yet with this is a delicacy, a sensibil-
ity and an intuition which denote the inspiration
that dominates him. In him is all of the dig-
nity and majesty of the king combined with the
humbleness of the servant, and upon his brow is
the strength and force of the ancient Mosaic type
of man, counterbalanced by the gentleness of a
child.
In Abdul-Baha's presence one becomes con-
scious of the deepest feeling of respect, venera-
tion and even awe, yet not the awe which holds
one at a distance, for within Abdul-Baha's soul
there burns such a fire of divine love that very
few escape its power of attraction.
The awakened soul realizes that Abdul-Baha
understands the spiritual condition of men, and
that he is the divine physician who, through the
love of God, is healing the souls of men of the
disease of ignorance and superstition and inhar-
mony. He ministers to each in accordance with
the needs of the individual. Often, at the time,
one does not understand why Abdul-Baha acts
and advises as he does, but later all becomes clear
when, through carrying out his instructions, one
sees the depth of his understanding and realizes
the profoundness of his wisdom.
Abdul-Baha seeks always to remove the cause
of trouble. His vision penetrates into the soul
and understands its condition. His balm is sum-
med up in the word LOVE. Divine love annihi-
lates worry and kills fear, and when it takes pos-
session of the soul it is as though another and a
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 33
new dimension were added to the individual, and
old conditions of doubt and uncertainty are re-
placed by poise and assurance. Abdul-Baha's
mission is to teach men to bring the love of The
Kingdom into everyday life, and to manifest it in
every thought, word and deed.
It 'is in the little things and the numerous details
of life that the test comes in applying spiritual
teachings. In the life of Abdul-Baha it is through
the seemingly small things that his great spirit
manifests itself, and goes out with a penetrating
power to the souls of those who allow them-
selves to come within the radius of its activity.
In his presence it is as if a refreshing breeze, a
spiritual force, proceeded from the heart of Ab-
dul-Baha to that of the seeker an indescribable
force carrying strength to the weak and guidance
to the strong.
Abdul-Baha's every word, look and gesture be-
speaks his spirit, and while his spirit is the most
elusive and difficult of all things to express in
words, when once perceived it is the most tangi-
ble of realities, for it is the very essence of the
life of the soul which is proceeding from him
who is the center of guidance.
Often the face of Abdul-Baha in repose, bears
an expression as if caused by a great weight of
sorrow impossible to describe. No soul can
fathom the depths into which he sees, nor the
profoundness of his realization of the suffering
condition of man. He feels the hungering and
the thirsting of the soul of humanity for spiritual
rest, and upon his brow is written her silent
agony. However, when Abdul-Baha speaks he
is fairly charged with the positive life-forces of
The Kingdom. In every glance and movement he
manifests the joy of the Lord, and as he shows
forth this love and joy in his many deeds of
34 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
kindness, his spirit penetrates the hearts of those
who come in contact with him, and they in turn
go forth filled with the spirit to work and to
serve in his path.
The pilgrim discovers in Abdul-Baha one who
impresses his hearers not by projecting his own
ideas or personality upon them, but by calling
forth a response from within the soul of each
individual seeker. The direct influence of the
will of one personality upon another is transitory
and without lasting benefit. But how different is
the message of the spirit speaking through the
life and the words of Abdul-Baha, who has sacri-
ficed his will to the will of God. He has a mes-
sage for every soul, and as the seeker meets spir-
itually with the soul of Abdul-Baha, a new force
is added to his nature and he goes forth quick-
ened, alive and aflame with the love of God.
Through The Bab the way was made ready and
prepared for the coming of the Lord, the Latter-
Day Messiah, Baha'o'llah. Through Baha'o'llah,
in whom God was Manifest, divine knowledge
was revealed to man, the laws of The Kingdom
given to the world, and Abdul-Baha was appoint-
ed, "The Center of the Covenant". Now through
Abdul-Baha's life of service to God and man, the
way is made plain for all and the Kingdom of
God established upon earth.
V.
THE MANIFESTATION OF THE WORD
OF GOD.
"That which is the cause of everlasting life,
eternal honor, universal enlightenment, real sal-
vation and prosperity, is first of all, the knowl-
edge of God." Abdul-Baha.
"The root of all knowledge is the knowledge
of God : Glory be to Him ! And this knowledge
is impossible save through His Manifestation."
Baha'o'llah.
It is written : "In the beginning was The Word,
and The Word was with God, and The Word was
God." It is through the Word of God manifested
in the temple of man, that men's souls become
quickened with the spiritual life, attain divine
knowledge, receive spiritual assurance, and are
enabled to rise above the condition of ignorance
and ascend the scale of advancement and civili-
zation. The Word, or the Spirit of God, spoke
through all the prophets or manifestations.
Infinite Deity is beyond the comprehension of
man: yet, through the manifestation of The
Spirit of The Deity, man is enabled to come into
touch with God, to comprehend and to know His
characteristics and His attributes, and to obtain
Divine Knowledge which is eternal life. By this
is not meant that the essence of the Infinite Deity
is contained nor confined in the personality of
the revelator, but that the soul of the prophet
is as a clear mirror which mirrors forth, or mani-
fests, all of the divine attributes. Everywhere
in the world of nature is seen the result of God's
creative power, yet this has never awakened nor
brought spiritual quickening, divine joy, nor com-
35
36 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
fort to the soul of man. This is because God's
creation, though it emanates from Him, yet it
does not manifest Him. The heart of man is only
divinely quickened, and spiritually satisfied,
through the coming to humanity of the Manifes-
tation of God or The Word Revealed.
The Manifestation of "The Word" or of "The
Spirit," through the prophets or "Chosen Ones,"
is the unique source of the spiritual enlighten-
ment of men. This source is of God, not of man.
Though the prophets and divine teachers were
men, their spiritual power and strength was not
because of any human virtue or wisdom. Their
power to change men's natures, and to create
great spiritual awakenings in the world was due
to the Spirit of God which spoke through them.
The Word of God is a life-giving, a creative
power. Through it, slumbering humanity is
quickened with spiritual wisdom, and the souls of
men are lifted from the condition of ignorance
to that of knowledge .and wisdom. The advance-
ment of the world of humanity is due to the
quickening power of The Word. From it pro-
ceeds the very seed of civilization and progress
and through it man is divinely quickened and
born into The Kingdom of God.
The great power of the world's divine teach-
ers has been due to their divine wisdom and in-
spiration. These Manifestations have each
arisen as teachers among men. As they found
sympathetic souls prepared for the spiritual mes-
sages which they brought, they revealed truths,
always giving in proportion to the capacity of
their disciples to receive.
In the ministry of each prophet is seen a cer-
tain development, and unfoldment of his teach-
ing. This is due to the spiritual unfoldment and
development of the souls of his followers, for
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 37
speaking through each prophet was the Perfect
Eternal Word, which in itself is above unfold-
ment and development. Men can comprehend
this only as their souls develop. Therefore each
prophet revealed himself little by little, as he pre-
pared his followers to receive him in the fullness
of his mission.
The inner spiritual teachings of the Divine
Manifestations have been one and the same in
substance, differing only in degree. The degree
of the spiritual knowledge manifested has been
always commensurate with the degree of the spir-
itual capacity of the people to whom the prophet
ministered. The outer teachings, including the
divine laws and ordinances of the divine reve-
lators, have differed in every age. These specific
instructions have always been given in conform-
ity with the material condition peculiar to the
various ages.
Through the harmony of the spiritual law and
the material law, as exemplified in the lives and
teachings of the Manifestations, humanity has
come under divine guidance, the direct result of
which has been a higher state of development of
morals and all social relations.
Thus, from the purely spiritual view-point the
Bahais regard all the prophets as the same, be-
cause of the one eternal, unchangeable truth
which they, one and all, manifested ; whereas,
viewed from the human standpoint, these spirit-
ual teachers are seen to be different personalties,
giving different teachings and establishing differ-
ent religious systems.
The laws and ordinances, as given to the world
by the prophets, though material have had a
deep spiritual effect upon man. They were given
through divine wisdom ; and by obedience to
them, the living out of the same by men, the
38 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
conditions were created which were necessary
for the fuller and unhampered spiritual unfold-
ment of humanity. It is for this reason that
each revelator has insisted that the people follow
his commands. It was for their own good that
he commanded this. Their welfare depended
upon following his injunctions.
Supply and demand go hand in hand in spirit-
ual matters, as science has proven them to do on
the material plane. At the time of the coming of
each divine manifestation there was a certain
spiritual need among men. With each "Com-
ing", the ministering to that need was the unique
mission of the prophet.
The difference in the missions or the fields of
work of the prophets, naturally differentiates
them into the world manifestations, those
whose teachings and ordinances were directly
applied to the whole world, such as the Mel-
chizadek type, Christ and Baha'o'llah, and the
more local manifestations, those whose teach-
ings and laws were applicable only to certain
people under certain conditions, such as Zoroast-
er, Moses, Mohammed and others. Some
prophets founded new religious systems which
previously had not existed, while there were
others who re-established and confirmed the
faith of the people in the teachings and institu-
tions of a former prophet. Of these latter the
Hebrew prophets after Moses are examples.
As there are cycles of growth, fruition and de-
cay in life on the physical plane, there are also
the cycles of birth, development, fruition, decay
in religious systems or dispensations.
As the cycles or seasons in the physical world
are due to the condition of the material earth,
so the cycles or seasons in the religious world
are due to the condition of the world of hu-
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 39
manity.
Every religion has had its birth in the advent
of its divine founder. Through the labors of its
early adherents it grew and developed, bringing
forth its fruits in the institutions and civilization
which grew up and formed about it. This was
its golden age. Then followed a period in which
the faith of the people grew cold, spirituality
waned, morals suffered, and religion losing its
spirit became a form. Thus the souls of the peo-
ple became starved and their condition needed
the ministration of another prophet, who in due
time appeared and lifted them a step higher and
nearer toward the coming of The Kingdom upon
earth.
In this way each prophet has been a link in the
great chain of revelators, completing the work
and fulfilling the words of his predecessors and
preparing the way for others to come after him.
Thus have all manifestations of the past pre-
pared the way for the latter-day coming of The
Lord, accomplished in the coming of Baha'o'llah,
whose mission was to unite those now following
many systems, into one brotherhood and one uni-
versal faith.
The prophets have been seers as well as
sources of divine life. Through spiritual under-
standing they were able to indicate in their teach-
ings the material signs and conditions as well as
the more spiritual ones, which would character-
ize the advent of succeeding manifestations.
The "return" of the prophets does not refer
to the return to this world of a "personality". It
refers to the return in another personality, of the
impersonal Spirit, the Word or Spirit of God
which spoke through the prophets of the past.
With the passing of centuries people ceased
to differentiate between the personality of
40 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
a manifestation and the Spirit of God which
spoke through him, hence, instead of looking for
the return of The Spirit manifesting through
another personality, in these latter days the peo-
ple of each religion are mistakenly looking for
the personal, individual return of their own spe-
cial prophet.
The mission of each divine revelator has been
to announce and to prepare the way for the
brotherhood of The Kingdom among men. Each
accomplished his mission, speaking and teaching
through symbols and parables commensurable
with the conditions of his day; each quickened
the souls of the people with divine life and each
foretold the coming of the great Latter-Day
Messiah who was to establish The Kingdom of
Peace upon earth.
In the coming of The Bab, Baha'o'llah and
Abdul-Baha is found the fulfillment of the di-
vine promises of God, given to the peoples of the
past ages, and in it is the beginning of that age
of divine enlightenment and spiritual wisdom
for which men have long hoped and prayed. In
the light of their inspired teachings all religious
teachings of the past are understood and seen
to be as parts of one great divine plan for the
spiritual enlightenment of the world, and in
the Bahai revelation is realized, also, that power
which is binding and uniting the peoples of all
races and religions in one universal religion,
which is The Kingdom of God upon earth.
Resurrection and judgment pertain to the
coming of a manifestation. These terms should
be understood spiritually. Through the Word
revealed, souls are quickened and the spiritually
dead are given divine life. The day of each
prophet is the time of judgment for those souls
who hear his message, whether they accept the
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 41
truth or reject it.
To-day is the time of judgment prophesied in
all of the holy books of all peoples. The call of
The Lord has gone forth. The people are hear-
ing it. Some are awake to it and are arising to
serve, while other souls are not yet sufficiently
aroused to realize what has come into the world.
That The Word of God has again been mani-
fested to man and that "The One" promised in
the holy writings of all religions has come in the
flesh and has established the new and the divine
order of things, The Kingdom of God on earth,
is the message which the Bahais are giving to the
world.
VI.
RELATION OF THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
TO THE RELIGIONS OF THE PAST
The people of each religion expect the return
of the Spirit which shone through their prophet
in the past, and the universal establishment of
their own religion. The Word of God speaking
through all the prophets gave the same message
of the coming of the Messiah and the establish-
ment of The Kingdom upon earth.
As time passed, and the spirit of the teachings
became weak, the people ceased to regard their
prophet as a human being, the medium through
whom the Spirit of God manifested and was re-
vealed. They began to deify the human person-
ality of the prophet and instead of expecting the
return of the same Spirit, manifesting through
another personality, they began to look for the
return in person of their guide or prophet. Thus
the Christians believe in the corporeal descent of
Jesus from the heavens (interstellar space), in-
stead of the appearance of the Christ Spirit,
which was the divine power in Jesus that he
promised would again manifest upon earth at the
end of his dispensation. In the same way the
Jews look for the personal return of Elijah
"before the coming of the great and dread-
ful day of the Lord,!' and the Moslems
look for the personal and corporeal return of
the Imam Mahdi.
As the Bahai message is being given to the
people of each of these religions, they are being
called back to the original teachings of their in-
dividual prophet. They realize that the voice of
the Spirit spoke through him, and they under-
stand all the prophets to be manifestations of the
one Spirit of God to the people of their times,
42
THE; BAHAI MOVEMENT 43
and in this day they see the manifestations again
of this same Divine Spirit through the founders
of the Bahai movement, by which are realized
all the promises and prophecies of all the relig-
ions regarding the Latter-Day "Coming," and
The Kingdom upon earth.
CHRISTIANITY AND THE BAHAI MOVEMENT.
The Bahais believe that in Jesus appeared
"The Word," or The Spirit of God. This dif-
ferentiated him from other men. By virtue of
the Divine Spirit which spoke through him, he
was The Christ, the manifestation of God among
men. Through him souls became spiritually
quickened, were reborn, and were lifted from
the condition of spiritual ignorance (sometimes
called sin), into one of spiritual enlightenment
(sometimes called salvation).
Like the mission of every prophet, that of
Jesus The Christ was a three-fold one. First,
he fulfilled the prophecies of the prophets who
preceded him and proclaimed his coming. Thus,
in him was the consummation of the former dis-
pensations. Second, he was the unique source
of divine enlightenment to the people of his dis-
pensation, and through the power of his word
he founded his cause. Third, he prepared the
way for the coming of the great Latter-Day
Messiah, Bah'o'llah, God manifesting Himself as
The Father, whom he and all prophets foretold
would arise in the fullness of time and establish
The Kingdom of God upon earth.
Jesus explains the divine plan for the spirit-
ualization of the world in its entirety in the para-
ble of the "householder which planted a vine-
yard" (St. Matt. XXI, 33-41), in which the
householder is symbolic of God, the creator of the
world. The "vineyard" symbolizes the people
44 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
of the world, while the "husbandmen" are the
leaders of the people. His "servants" represent
the prophets sent by the Lord to call the world
to righteousness and divine obedience, all of
whom the people persecuted and rejected. His
"son" is Jesus, The Christ, whose teaching was
refused by the world which crucified him.
"When the Lord therefore of the vineyard
cometh" refers to the coming of the Latter-Day
Messiah, Baha'o'llah, while "he will miserably
destroy those wicked men and will let out his
vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall
render him the fruits in their seasons," is proph-
etic of the great outpouring of divine grace
through this new revelation, which will be so
great as to overcome and dispel the great power
of evil (spiritual ignorance) which is dominat-
ing humanity. This day is the time of the world's
turning from humanity to divinity. Baha'o'llah
has brought to the world a New Day, for with
His coming, old conditions passed away and a
new dispensation was ushered into existence.
The law of equity, "an eye for an eye and a tooth
for a tooth," and the Christ law of mercy and
love have for centuries been known to man, but
the power to enable the world in general to live
according to the Christ law has been given to all
humanity only through Baha'o'llah.
When God came to the world manifesting
Himself as the "Son," Jesus Christ, the world
rejected him, "but as many as received him, to
them gave he power to become the sons of God,
even to them that believe on his name". To
those individual souls he gave his peace, but not
to the world, because the world did not receive
him. This he announced when he said:
"Think not that I am come to send peace on
earth ; I came not to send peace, but a sword."
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 45
Here again, as well as in other instances, Christ
states that his dispensation .was to be a militant
one, which would in the end of the age be fol-
lowed by another, a triumphant dispensation of
divine grace and peace here on earth. Now Ba-
ha'o'llah has brought that peace to the world.
He is "The Prince of Peace," who has come to
the world and has established the foundation of
peace on earth. How clearly Isaiah, the prophet,
saw this coming of the Lord whdn he wrote,
"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is
given, and the government shall be upon His
shoulder and His name shall be called Wonder-
ful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, the Everlast-
ing Father, The Prince of Peace."
No one touched by the spirit of Christianity
can fail to recognize that the Bahai teaching is
only the perfection of Christianity, for to be a
real Christian in spirit is to be a Bahai, and to be
a real Bahai is to be a Christian. As one
reads the words of Christ and the testimony of
the apostles, who received from him many teach-
ings, there stands out one promise above all other
things his second coming among men another
appearance of the Christ spirit. The Word of
God in the temple of man. This manifestation
to be the beginning of the end of the old order
of human differences and at the same time to
usher in the new order of divine peace here
on earth. All is summed up in the promise "The
Kingdoms of this world are become the King-
doms of Our Lord, and of His Christ and He
shall reign forever and ever."
JUDAISM AND THE BAHAI MOVEMENT.
The Bahai s regard the Hebrew prophets as re-
vealers of divine truth. Through these various
channels The Word was revealed, souls were
46 THE BAIIAI MOVEMENT
quickened with divine life and obeyed the divine
laws, and the way was prepared for the coming
of The Kingdom on earth. These prophets from
the earliest, Abraham, down to the last, Malachi,
formed a complete chain. Each built upon the
foundation of the teachings of his predecessors ;
each ministered to the spiritual needs of the peo-
ple of his day, and each extended to humanity
the promise of the coming of the Messiah, at the
end of the days, and of the righting of all things
in the establishment of the reign of God among
men.
As one reads the Hebrew Scriptures, the
prophecies of the coming Messianic Dispensa-
tion are found to be the one great thread running
through all. In this promise is heard the one
divine voice of The Word of God speaking
through the personalities of the many prophets
or mouthpieces, or channels of truth.
In the Jewish holy books are found prophecies
pertaining in particular to two manifestations of
"The Word," to come. The so-called first and
second comings of the Messiah; those relating to
the first coming were fulfilled in the coming and
mission of Jesus, The Christ, while those regard-
ing the second coming are fulfilled in these latter
days in the coming of "The Ancient of Days",
Baha'o'llah with His precursor, The Bab, in
whom was The Spirit of Elijah (Malachi IV :5),
and His "Servant, The Branch", (Zech. 111:8),
who is Abdul-Baha.
It was through the study of the prophecies re-
garding the second coming, as recorded by the
prophet Daniel, that the Adventists learned that
the Messiah was to come in the year 1844. They
expected his miraculous appearance in the clouds
and were disappointed. The Bab came and Ab-
dul-Baha was born at this appointed time, fulfill-
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 47
ing prophecy, but in a manner not anticipated
by men. The country of Carmel and Sharon in
the Holy Land, to which Baha'o'llah was sent in
exile, and where He lived and taught, was the
place designated by the ancient seers of Biblical
fame, where the "Ancient of Days" would ap-
pear. The glory of the Lord of Hosts to come,
and the power and majesty of His spiritual rule
upon earth are testified to by prophet and psalm-
ist in the most inspiring passages of Hebrew
sacred writ, while the peace, prosperity and gen-
eral upliftment of humanity resulting therefrom
are most vividly depicted.
The mission of the Jewish people was a relig-
ious one. From the seed of the progenitor of
this people have come the founders of great re-
ligions of the past, as well as the founders of the
great religion of the present and future. From
Abraham, through the line of Isaac came Moses
and Jesus ; through Ishmael came Mohammed
and The Bab; while from the line of another
son (Abraham had six sons other than Isaac
and Ishmael) was descended Jesse,* from whom
descended Baha'o'llah.
ISLAM AND THE BAHAI MOVEMENT.
The prophet Mohammed taught submission to
the will of God. Islam means "Submission".
Mohammed arose in Arabia at a time of spiritual
need when the people were sunken in ignorance
and superstition. Through his guidance, idol-
atry and immorality were changed into the wor-
ship of the one God, and into high moral stand-
ards. He brought a code of laws and ordinances
perfectly adapted to the spiritual and material
*Not Jesse, the father of David, but another of the same name.
This point was explained to the writer by Abdnl-Baha at Haifa,
May, 1910. The same statement is fonnd in ancient oriental
records.
48 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
needs of the people of his day. These people, be-
cause of their extreme degradation, had been un-
touched both by Judaism and Christianity. They
needed a teaching and a code of laws suited to
their own special condition.
The rise of the Moslem civilization has had
no parallel in history. United under the stand-
ard of the belief in one God and the immortality
of the soul, the fierce sons of the Arabian desert,
in an incredibly short time, evolved into a highly
cultured people, their sciences, arts and litera-
ture having contributed much toward our pres-
ent western civilization.
As division, superstition and decay crept into
the Moslem Church the people retrograded, until
in a few centuries after the death of Mohammed
the spirit of his teaching was a thing of the past,
and Moslem civilization was in a decline.
Islam, like Christianity and every other re-
ligion, can not be judged by its later followers.
The student must go to its source in order to as-
certain its truths. In Christianity, the history of
the divisions and wars between the churches is
one thing, and the teaching of Christ is another
thing. So it is in Islam. The present condition
of its people, and the condition to which the
prophet called them are indeed very different.
The Moslems look for three manifestations in
the latter days (it being literally expressed in
their teachings as three trumpet calls). Accord-
ing to the traditions of Islam, seven years and
forty years, respectively, were to separate these
calls or comings. This corresponds to the mis-
sions of The Bab and of Baha'o'llah which lasted
seven, and forty years.
Islam teaches of a day (a time or period) of
spiritual resurrection and judgment, and of the
coming of the Christ, preceded by the Mahdi (di-
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 49
rector or guide), and of the establishment of
The Kingdom upon earth.
The Moslem believes the latter-day time oi
spiritual awakening or resurrection, through the
giving forth of the Word of God, to be the time
of the world's judgment, the people being their
own judges, as they choose to accept or to re-
ject the newly revealed truth. This time was to
be accompanied by certain signs similar to those
mentioned in the Bible, such as : The coming of
the spirit of Anti-Christ (which is infidelity),
decay of religious faith among men, and the ac-
companying demoralization which this must
bring with it.
Many Moslems have come into the Bahai faith,
accepting The Bab as the promised Mahdi and
Baha'o'llah as the Christ (Spirit), who was to
come, for both have fulfilled their prophecies and
traditions of which there are many. According
to them, The Bab appeared from the East
and made his public declaration at Mecca,
at the place and time prophesied (1844
A. D. or 1260 A. H.), and taught dur-
ing the anticipated length of time. Also, Baha'-
o'llah arose in Irak and went to Akka and Car-
mel in Syria. His mission lasted 40 years. The
many details are so clearly traced in tra-
dition and prophecy, that it is very easy for
the orthodox Moslem to realize the truth of the
claims of both, and to see in their missions the
fulfillment of the Islamic prophecies.
ZOROASTRIANISM AND THE BAHAI MOVEMENT.
The present Zoroastrians, or Parsees, are but
the remnant of a once powerful people. Dur-
ing the many vicissitudes of war and national de-
cay their ancient political power has become dis-
sipated, and through contact with peoples of
50 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
other religions their original religious teaching
has lost its purity, and a lifeless formalism has
taken the place of its once vital spiritual force.
As for the sacred literature of the Zoroastrians,
it, like themselves, is now but fragmentary; the
elements necessary to give it complete compre-
hensive form are lost.
Although many connecting links are missing
in Zoroastrian holy writ, nevertheless its spirit
is clear and apparent. Zoroaster taught a pure
monotheism and the future existence and im-
mortality of the soul, all of which he explained
to the people in familiar terms and parables.
The physical sun, which is the source of all phy-
sical life, he used as the symbol for the sun of
truth, the manifestation of God, the source
of all spiritual life, while the stars sym-
bolized the lesser prophets. Purity is a funda-
mental teaching in Zoroastrianism. Both spir-
itual and physical purity are taught in its laws
and ordinances, which were given in terms
couched to meet the need of mankind in that an-
cient day. Fire being the great cleanser, it is
the emblem used to denote spiritual purity, for
it is through the spiritual fire of the love of God
that men's souls are purified and quickened into
eternal life. Zoroaster is pictured as bringing
down from heaven the divine fire with which to
purify mankind. The spiritual meaning of this
is apparent, although for centuries the under-
standing of these truths was lost and the people
ignorantly adhered to the outer forms, worship-
ping the sun, the stars and fire, hence the terms
applied to them, "Sun and Fire Worshippers".
The same idea of resurrection or quickening,
spiritual judgment and The Kingdom of
God on earth, expressed in other religious teach-
ings, are found in Zoroastrianism. The end of
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 51
the Zoroastrian dispensation, it was foretold in
their sacred literature, would be characterized
by spiritual impurity, therefore the need of an-
other manifestation to bring to earth the divine
fire of the love of God for the purification of all
people. The teaching has a number of prophecies
regarding the coming of the great Latter-Day
Prophet, spoken of as Shah Bahram, and the
purification of the people of the earth by fire
the fire of the spirit.
The expectation of this coming of the prophet
is symbolized in the Zoroastrian worship, when
the people turn to worship to the rising sun. As
the same physical sun rises and sets again and
again, giving life to the earth, so does the sun of
God's truth rise in each prophetic day and.
through the personality of the prophet of that
day gives life to the souls which receive the rays
of its spiritual warmth and power.
The Zoroastrians who are now hearing of the
message of the Bahai Movement are realizing
that it is the fulfillment of the prophecies and
the spirit of their own religion, and through this
teaching they are coming into touch with kindred
spirits in all the world. Thus they are arising
to perform their service in this great work of
uniting all men in the love of The Kingdom.
HINDUISM AND THE BAHAI MOVEMENT.
The origin of Hinduism (Brahmanism), on
account of the lack of annals and records in its
literature, is practically lost to history. As
it now is, Hinduism is a most complex sys-
tem of philosophical thought, manners and cus-
toms. It lacks that unity of spirit and of form
which the teaching originally possessed. In all
religious systems men's ideas have gradually re-
placed the inspired wisdom of the founders. In
52 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
Hinduism this is particularly true, so much so
that it is only with the greatest difficulty that the
original spirit and teaching can be traced. Even
some of the most learned students of Hindu phil-
osophy, have doubted that originally Hinduism
was a revealed teaching, for since its sacred
books contain no chronicles, the personalities of
the revealers have been lost.
Of the truth in the original Hindu teachings,
however, there is no doubt, for the voice of the
Spirit, the source of all religion, speaks yet to-
day through its holy books, the Vedas, despite
the lapse of time since they were written.
According to the teaching in the most ancient
of the Hindu sacred books, God the creator, is
all in all, beside whom there is none other. Sac-
rifice is taught as the means of attaining near-
ness to God. Material sacrifice is the symbol for
the sacrifice of all worldly desires and pas-
sions which separate men's souls from God, the
highest attainment being that perfect at-onement
with God which the giving up of every desire
and passion alone can bring. Since God only is
all in all, only the life in Him can be without
change or end. This is eternal life.
The teaching in its original purity was a sim-
ple monotheism. The divine spirit spoke to the
people through the mediumship of different per-
sonalities at different times. These inspired
souls arose as the need for their teachings be-
came evident among men, to whom they were
sent as spiritual guides.
This thought is most clearly expressed in one
of the Hindu sacred books, the "Bhagavad-Gita"
or the Lord's Song, in which it is written,
"Whenever there is decay of righteousness and
there is exaltation of unrighteousness, then I
Myself come forth. For the protection of the
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 53
good, for the destruction of evil doers, for the
sake of firmly establishing righteousness, I am
born from age to age. The foolish disregard Me
when clad in human semblance, ignorant of My
supreme nature, the great Lord of beings." The
Hindus have here the promise of the coming of
a great incarnation, Krishna, to occur in this day.
He was to arise and establish universal righteous-
ness and destroy spiritual ignorance or sin.
The latter-day Krishna was to lead the people
back to the spirt of pure teaching as given by his
predecessors, (former manifestations of the
spirit of the Lord) and through spiritual wis-
dom and power was to overcome all unright-
eousness establishing in its place spiritual en-
lightenment. Those illumined Hindus whom
the Bahai cause is reaching see in Baha'o'llah the
incarnation of the spirit of God and they accept
him as their promised one, Krishna.
Thus, the Bahai teaching confirms the Hindu
in the fundamental truth of his own religion, and
it frees him from the superstition and caste which
have for centuries kept his people in a state of
both spiritual and physical bondage. Under this
influence he attains to the real spirit of sacrifice
as given in his ancient teachings, and to the real
emancipation of the soul, which is in truth the
fundamental tenet of the most ancient Hindus.
BUDDHISM AND THE, BAHAI MOVEMENT.
Buddhism stands in the relation to Hinduism
very much as Christianity does to Judaism.
Chrisitanity sprang from Judaism as the mother
religion, in like manner Buddhism came out
from Hinduism. As Christianity and Judaism
evolved two widely differing systems of philos-
ophy, so have Buddhism and Hinduism evolved
two theological systems, which not only do not
54 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
resemble each other, but are in direct opposition.
Jesus, the Christ, came not to destroy but
to fulfill the law and prophets. Guatama,
The Buddha, had no intention of depart-
ing from the true spiritual and original pre-
cepts of the teachings of Hinduism. His mis-
sion was to teach the people the divine signifi-
cance of the past teachings, which had become
to them but an empty form. Through him mil-
lions of souls have received God's truth in the
measure of their capacity, and according to the
degree their condition demanded.
The Buddha taught of the one God, and of the
life eternal. The state of nearness to God is
termed nirvana, by the Buddhists. It is syn-
onymous with the word heaven as used in the
holy writings of other religions. Gautama
wrote no books. The events of his life, and his
words and teachings were recorded by his dici-
ples and have been handed down to the people
of succeeding generations.
Of the original teachings of The Buddha
much has been lost, and replaced by the doc-
trines and beliefs of men who came after him.
In fact the latter-day Buddhist teachings, so rich
in the ramifications and speculations of philo-
sophical thought, bear about as much resemblance
to the original spiritual teachings of The Budd-
ha, as the present day multiplicity of creeds of
any one of the world religions bears to the real
teachings of its founder.
The Buddhists, like the Bahais, consider all
religions to be, from the spiritual standpoint, one
religion. They are without religious prejudice.
They welcome all high elevating thought and
teaching irrespective of its source. They believe
Gautama, The Buddha, to have been one of a se-
ries of inspired souls sent to the peoples of va-
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 55
rious ages for divine training and guidance.
As there were Buddhas who preceded him, so
there would be Buddhas who would succeed him.
They expect the coming of Maitreya, or the
great Fifth Buddha, whose coming, according to
their traditions, is now due. His work is to be
with all mankind and through him the earthly
conditions of the past are to change and be re-
placed by an age of divine wisdom and under-
standing.
The following excerpt from the recorded
teachings of Gautama to his disciple Ananda,
given just previous to his death, explains in a
few words much of his teaching, "I am not the
first Buddha who came upon earth, nor shall I be
the last. I came to teach you the truth, and I
have founded upon earth The Kingdom of Truth.
Gautama Siddhartha will die, but Buddha will
live, for Buddha is the truth and the truth cannot
die. He who believes in the truth and lives in it
is my disciple, and I shall teach him. The reli-
gion which I have preached to you will flourish
so long as my disciples cling to the truth, and lead
a life of purity. In due time another Buddha will
arise, and he will reveal to you the selfsame eter-
nal truth which I have taught you". Ananda
said: ''How shall we know him?" Gautama re-
plied: "He will be known as Maitreya, which
means/He whose name is Kindness'."
MODERN THOUGHT AND THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
During the past sixty or seventy years so-
called "Modern Thought" has entered into the
fold of every religion, preparing the people for a
broad, universal conception of God's truth, a con-
ception unfettered by the mental limitations of
past ages. Although it is called "Modern
Thought," it is in reality the most ancient
56 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
thought, for it is the resurrection of the spirit
which the religions originally possessed, and
which during so many centuries was lost to hu-
manity.
Modern Thought has been as a plough, which
has prepared the religious ground of the world to
receive the spiritual seeds of The Kingdom. Mod-
ernism has uprooted ancient creed and dogma,
and along with this uprooting, the faith of many
has been shaken and much spiritual seeking has
resulted. Now the Bahai teaching is sowing the
seeds of a live faith in men's souls. It is demon-
strating to the world that faith, religion and spir-
ituality are vital and necessary forces in the
world of humanity, and that they have nothing
in common with the superstitions and imagina-
tions of the past. The Modern Thoughtists of all
races and religions are teaching the same princi-
ples as held by the followers of the Bahai cause.
They realize that humanity as a whole is now
passing through a period of spiritual rebirth,
and this is the beginning of the age of spiritual
wisdom, which is the millennium. In the great
spiritual organism of the universe, the various
parts and members are organically united and
linked together as are the organs of the body.
As there have been great changes and upheavals
in the evolution of the material world, due to ma-
terial causes, so there have been great phases of
change and development in the evolution of the
spiritual world, due to the action of spiritual
causes.
The present day awakening, as seen in all of
the many branches of Modern Thought, and the
coming of another revelation are the direct re-
sult of certain great changes taking place in the
spiritual realm of existence, which are being pro-
duced by spiritual causes. In the early morning
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 57
when the sun is yet below the horizon, the heav-
ens are illumined by its rays and the coming of
day is evident to all. As the sun slowly rises, those
upon the high places first see it, later those in the
valleys see it also; and when it is at its zenith the
whole country is receiving its rays and basking in
its warmth.
So it is when the sun of truth manifests here
upon earth for the guidance of the people. The
manifestation or revelator, is preceded by the
signs of spiritual awakening, which show the
people that a new spiritual day or era is at hand.
Those illumined souls of high spiritual discern-
ment first recognize in the revealer or prophet,
the source of the light of God; later, the people
in general awaken to his spiritual power and
wisdom and finally, through his teaching, both
material and spiritual bounties are forthcoming
to the world.
This wave of modernism which has swept over
the world, dispelling the night of spiritual igno-
rance and superstition, is the first twilight of the
great day of God upon earth. Already many
illumined souls are seeing in the inspired reveal-
ers of the Bahai religion the light of the world
to be and its point of diffusion. Later on, the
whole world will realize that which now only the
few see. Then, all humanity will be the recipi-
ents in full of the much anticipated bounties of
The Kingdom of God upon the earth.
Resume.
As the people of the various religions come
into the spirit of the Bahai Cause, their faith
in the truth of their own religion is augmented
rather than lessened, for the spirit of this present
day teaching is the same as that which actuated
the early fathers of the ancient religions.
58 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
The Bahai Movement teaches severance. In
his heart man must be severed from the world
and its passions. His dependence must be upon
God though outwardly he must live in the world,
there fulfilling his material mission in life.
In the Bahai life, severance is comprised in the
rebirth of the Christian, the spirit of obedience
of the Jew, the submission of the Moslem, the
purification of the Zoroastrian, the sacrifice of
the Hindu, the renunciation of the Buddhist, and
the "living in harmony with the divine" of the
Modern Thoughtist. In the Bahai movement, is
summed up all of the spiritual essence of the re-
ligions of the past, which is now given in a form
most applicable to the present day needs of man,
and adequate to cope with the modern universal
problems.
VII.
THE BAHAI SACRED WRITINGS
The Bab
The book of The Bab, or his collective writ-
ings, is known as "The Beyan". That the mis-
sion of The Bab was introductory to the advent
of Baha'o'llah is most clearly stated in this book,
in which the coming of "Him whom God shall
manifest" is the one great theme. In it The Bab
exhorts the people spiritually to prepare them-
selves to meet and to recognize and to adhere to,
Baha'o'llah when he should appear. He left
certain laws and ordinances for the guidance of
his followers until the advent of Bala'o'llah,
all of which should be abrogated, with the
promised coming. These writings, calculated to
meet and minister to the local conditions which
were chiefly Islamic, have as yet not been trans-
lated into English.
Baha'o'llah.
The writings of Baha'o'llah are numerous and
are in general, comparatively brief treatises. Of
these a number have been translated and pub-
lished in the Occidental languages, while others
still remain in the original Persian and Arabic
texts.
One of the first books translated and published
in English was the Kitabu 'l-Ighan (The Book of
Assurance). This was written by Baha'o'llah
during His exile in Baghdad, and was a reply to
certain theological questions asked by a learned
Mussulman divine. While the expression is
couched in terms peculiar to Islamic thought,
yet, deeper than these terms, are revealed uni-
versal spiritual teachings the essence of which
appeals to the people of any religion.
59
60 THE; BAHAI MOVEMENT
In the Book of Assurance, Baha'o'llah quotes
familiar texts from the Old and New Testaments
of the Bible, and from the Koran of Mohammed,
and He explains the spiritual truths contained in
these three books, relative to the end and passing
of the old dispensations, the coming of the Mes-
siah, and the ushering into existence of the new
dispensation of The Kingdom upon earth. He
demonstrates the oneness of the teachings of the
Jewish, Christian and Mussulman Holy litera-
ture regarding this Latter-Day advent of the
Lord.
In the Suratu'l Hykl (Chapter upon the Tem-
ple or Body) Baha'o'llah treats of His calling,
His arising in response thereto, and His mission
here among men.
In The Book of the Seven Valleys, Baha'o'llah
explains the different stages of the spiritual
progress or development of the soul of man.
These stages He divides into seven, which He
terms "Valleys". This book was written to elu-
cidate certain truths from the standpoint of Mys-
ticism. In order to appreciate it, one must un-
derstand and be in sympathy with the spirit and
teachings of the Mystics.
In the Lawhu'l-Akdas (The Holy Tablet)
Baha'o'llah explains His cause to the Christian
world. He demonstrates that now is the time of
the end spoken of by Jesus, The Christ, and He
exhorts the Christians to consider the importance
of this day and of its cause. He demonstrates
the necessity for relinquishing dependence upon
the creeds and customs of the past ages, and ex-
horts all to adhere to the pure truth of the words
of Jesus which, when understood, will confirm
the truth revealed again in this day.
The Hidden Words (in two parts, one trans-
lated from the original Arabic text and the other
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 61
from the Persian) contain the essence of the
spiritual truths revealed by the divine revelators
of the past. In these utterances the fundamental
divine truths are again revealed to humanity in
terms applicable to the exigencies of this age.
Each verse is replete with spiritual significances,
and in each is hidden a message, or word, for the
hungry soul.
The Tablets of Tarasat, Tajalleyat and Ishrar-
kat, contain exhortations regarding the conduct
of man. In these books Baha'o'llah dwells upon
those virtues, through the practice of which spir-
itually awakened man will evolve and attain to
the state of nearness to God.
In the Kitabu'l-Akdas (Book of the Law) Ba-
ha'o'llah outlines both the material and spiritual
laws for the guidance of the people of the com-
ing dispensation. He provides for governmental
laws based upon divine laws. These laws are not
arbitrary. They are given with divine wisdom
and their virtue will become apparent as men
live in accordance with their statutes, for
through so doing, the source of the ills of the day
will disappear. The ordinances of the Bahai
cause aim at the eradication of wrong-doing
rather than the chastisement of those who perpe-
trate wickedness.
The Kitabu'l-Ahd (Book of the Testament)
is the will and testament of Baha'o'llah to His
followers. In this document He provides for the
guidance of His followers after His passing, by
appointing His beloved son, Abdul-Baha, to be
the Center of His Covenant, towards whom all
of the faithful should turn.
Baha'o'llah left many other writings to the
world. These are, for the greater part, in the
form of epistles or "Tablets," written to individ-
uals. Noteworthy among these are the ''Epistles
1)2 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
to the Kings", written just previous to His ar-
rival at Akka, and sent from this prison to all
parts of the world, during His incarceration.
In these Tablets Baha'o'llah declares His
Cause to the kings and potentates of the earth,
exhorting them to turn to The Kingdom and to
The Promised One whom God had sent to estab-
lish peace upon earth, to abolish warfare, and to
give their attention to the establishment of those
institutions which would benefit their subjects.
Abdul-Baha
The writings of Abdul-Baha are for the
greater part epistles ("Tablets") written to indi-
viduals, or to assemblies of the followers. These
are explanatory of the revealed writings of Baha-
'o'llah. A number of Abdul-Baha's lessons upon
various spiritual subjects have been collected,
translated and published by one of his followers,
under the title of "Some Answered Questions".
This work is of value to the student who desires
an insight into the spirit of the teaching. Abdul-
Baha's mission is that of amplifying and apply-
ing the truth as revealed by his father. This,
Abdul-Baha is accomplishing by his life of serv-
ice and example even more than by his words.
His Life is his book. From him is proceeding
that power of understanding which is enabling
his followers to realize and to attain to the spir-
itual admonitions of Baha'o'llah.
In reading the translations of the writings of
The Bab, Baha'o'llah and Abdul-Baha, the west-
erner should always bear in mind two things :
1st, these original writings were in the sym-
bolic and florid style of the Persian or Arabic
tongues, many of the expressions and similes of
which are untranslatable and, perforce, have been
rendered literally, consequently much of the rich
poetic oriental expression is out of harmony with
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 63
the more matter-of-fact occidental tongue,
through which, in translation, it is forced to ex-
press itself ; 2d, many of these writings were
sent to people in intellectual conditions foreign
to those to which we are accustomed here in the
west. The object of these teachers being to make
spiritual connection with souls, they sometimes
employ one line of thought and terminology, and
sometimes another, from an entirely different point
of view. For instance, in order to reach a Mussul-
man the argument must be Islamic, whereas to
reach a Christian, it must be Christian, etc.
In studying these writings let the reader first
familiarize himself with all the conditions under
which they were written : the writer, the people
to whom he was writing, their previous religious
training, the tongue, etc. ; then he will under-
stand the spiritual wisdom of the writings, the
truth of which will not be obscured by expres-
sion, names or terminology.
VIII.
SOCIAL REFORMS, LAWS, AND ORDI-
NANCES
Not only did Baha'o'llah reveal spiritual laws
and principles for the people of the world, but
He also outlined social reforms for the more ma-
terial guidance and well-being of mankind.
The spiritual or religious foundation is the es-
sential foundation ; social reforms are the fruit
of spiritual growth. Up to the present time but
few of the proposed institutions of the Bahai
faith have been established. Now is the time for
spiritual seed sowing, later will come the time of
spiritual fruitage and harvest Now the believ-
ers are establishing the spiritual institutions of
the teachings, spreading the message, enkindling
faith and love in men's hearts. The future will
see materialized the fruit of the labors of the
Bahais of today when, added to the present de-
velopment of the movement, will be all the insti-
tutions to round out the work, thus accomplish-
ing the complete design, as outlined by Baha-
'o'llah.
The Ordinances of the Bahai faith are in ac-
cord with the natural laws governing human re-
lations and affairs, and are so ordered as to
bring forth the highest and most perfect physi-
cal, moral and spiritual development of all who
place themselves within the sphere of in-
fluence. These laws are to be followed by the
people from choice, not by compulsion. As peo-
ple know and understand the wisdom of the pre-
cepts of Baha'o'llah, they will from volition, and
for their own welfare and that of those about
them, desire to live according to His advice.
Perfect liberty and freedom in religious
thought and belief is to be allowed every one.
64
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 65
The Bahais are exhorted to mingle freely with
people of all creeds, and in no way to shut them-
selves off from those of other beliefs. Neither
should they criticise nor denounce the teachings
nor the followers of other religious movements.
Through fraternal intercourse, kindness, and lov-
ing service to all humanity, the believers in this
latter-day revelation will eventually demonstrate
its truth to all the world.
While the Bahais are commanded not to inter-
fere with the religion of others, other people are
advised to relinquish those creeds and customs
which separate them into many divisions, in or-
der that all may come into the one great spiritual
unity of The Kingdom. All things find their
birth in unity. The life of any being or organi-
zation of beings is dependent upon this principle.
Therefore, how important is unity, and of the
various kinds how all-important is spiritual and
religious unity, for it is the foundation of all
unity and of the progress of the world.
With the development of the spiritual world-
unity, Baha'o'llah anticipated various universal
institutions for the great benefit of humanity. He
exhorted the rulers and governments of the world
to abolish warfare and establish peace; to settle
international difficulties by arbitration rather
than by bloodshed. In order to facilitate inter-
national understanding and unite all people,
Baha'o'llah advocated a universal language,
which would itself be instrumental in the pro-
motion of mutual understanding and sympathy
between peoples.
From Baha'o'llah's writings, it does not seem
to have been His idea that the kings of this
earth should cease to exist, but rather that all
governments should be established upon a system
of representation, without which no government
66 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
can uphold the rights of the people. The fol-
lowers of Baha should be law-abiding citizens in
whatever country they may 4well and they
should be loyal supporters of all just and
righteous governments.
One of the institutions of The Bab was the
rearrangement of the calendar. This change was
confirmed by Baha'o'llah, and the new calendar
is beginning to be used by Bahais. Eventually it
will supersede the many systems now current.
The Bahai Era begins with the year 1844 A. D.
or 1260 A. H. The first day of the Bahai year
falls on March 21st, the day upon which the sun
enters the sign of Aries, and is commonly known
as the first day of spring. The year is divided
into nineteen months of nineteen days each, mak-
ing in all 361 days to which are added four
(every fourth year five) intercalary days, to com-
plete the 365 or 366 days of the year.
The Bahais have nothing in their own religion
to exclude those holding different views. They
have no form of membership, no formulated
creed nor institutions to differentiate them
outwardly from other people. Their work is
ever inward rather than outward, and for the
benefit of all rather than a few. In this religion
there is no priesthood. Teaching is given with-
out money and without price. All are teachers,
each in his own sphere of life. Those, able and
fitted to do so, go forth as speakers, while others
teach quietly by their deeds, and by speaking
the message when they find a hearer. While
the cause asks only for the hearts of its fol-
lowers, nevertheless, when the heart is in the
work there comes the desire to give and to do
something material for the movement. The giv-
ing of tithes for carrying on the Bahai work is
a privilege, not an obligation.
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 67
Baha'o'llah, like all of the world's religious
teachers, laid great stress upon prayer and fast-
ing. Both are necessary for the development of
the soul. Through prayer the soul is brought
into communion with God and receives the
spiritual sustenance necessary for its life and
well-being. Through fasting the soul becomes
freed from the materiality of the flesh; it then
apprehends higher things, becomes conscious of
divine realities, and receives the spiritual life
forces to a higher degree than possible under the
normal condition of the body.
Baha'o'llah clearly states that seeking refuge
in creed and dogma, and faith without works, are
not acceptable. The Bahais have no forms or
ceremonials, such as have characterized the reli-
gions of the past. Prayer is made individually
by the suppliant to God. Prayer, supplemented
by a pure and useful life in this world, forms the
elements of true worship. Every one should
have an occupation, which conduces to the wel-
fare of humanity, the diligent pursuance of
which is in itself an act of worship.
The Bahai teaching encourages marriage,
while asceticism and celibacy are discouraged.
Monogamy is taught, and among the believers in
the Orient is gradually replacing the systems of
polygamy which have always existed there. The
body should be developed, not mortified, because
it is the medium through which the spirit works.
A good and perfect body is desirable.
The executive affairs of the Bahai cause will
eventually be presided over by a synod, known as
the "House of Justice". Its members will be
selected by the people. These members are to be
qualified by spiritual characteristics and wisdom.
They will be the trustees of the people. Their
mission will be v to serve the people in the numer-
68 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
ous avenues of Bahai activity, in charitable and
philanthropic works, and all the practical insti-
tutions which make for the welfare of the people
and the cause. The House of Justice will meet
at stated times and in various parts of the world,
for the performance of its work. In addition to
this general or central House of Justice for all
the world, there will be assemblages in each com-
munity for the carrying on of local service.
Baha'o'llah strongly denounced the taking of
opium and kindred drugs. The Bahais do not
use intoxicating liquors as beverages, and among
them even the use of tobacco is discouraged.
Gambling is forbidden, as having a demoralizing
effect upon the people. In fact all excesses, tend-
ing to weaken the body and the moral force of
man, should be eschewed by him.
Individual advancement and personal incentive
are to be fostered and encouraged, but the general
weal of the mass is even more to be considered.
The weak and unfortunate ones are to be pro-
tected from the greedy ones. Profit in business
is to be sought, but one person has no right
to enrich himself at the expense of another.
When the ordinances of Baha'o'llah are estab-
lished there will be fewer extremes of wealth
and poverty. The people will be better off than
they are now. The Bahai cause is prepared to
meet and to reform the many human ills which
the humanitarian thinkers and workers of the
day are striving to eradicate. This is being ac-
complished through the spiritualizing method of
changing the natural hardness of men's hearts by
infusing into them the Love of God.
In the Bahai cause woman holds a position
equal to that of man. She is not denied any
rights. Through the Bahai teaching the women
in the oriental countries are already reaping the
THE; BAHAI MOVEMENT 69
benefits of education and are advancing in many
ways, which customs of their former religion
would close to them. It is hardly necessary here
to mention those laws touching upon hygiene and
the education of both sexes, and the admonitions
forbidding mendicity, slavery, cruelty to animals
and other offences, because, though in the Orient
the need for them is yet very great, our western
civilization has already accomplished these re-
forms.
While religion and state will never be reunited
upon the old lines of creed and dogma,
the Bahais look forward to the time when
the states, or governments of the nations, will
be founded upon a spiritual foundation when
the material laws of men will be founded and en-
forced according to the principles of the divine
laws of God. Religion is necessary to man. Na-
tions, as well as individuals, have at times tried to
live without religion and the results have always
been disastrous. The divine foundation is the
only foundation upon which to build any
institution that shall endure. The ideal govern-
ment rests upon this foundation, which is not a
union of church and state, but a union of religion
and state.
Eventually, in every Bahai center there will be
a building (temple) set apart for The Lord's
use. Grouped about this, as a center, will be va-
rious institutions for the benefit of man hos-
pitals, homes, hospices, colleges, and other phil-
anthropic enterprises. All of these buildings to-
gether, will constitute the Mashrak-El-Azcar :
(literally "The dawning place of the mentions
of God").
The central building, or Temple proper, will
be a nine-sided structure surmounted by a dome,
and surrounded by gardens. The number 9 is
70 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
symbolic of the Spirit of God Manifest. The
Temple will be a sanctuary for the reading or
chanting of the "Holy Words," for meditation
and for prayer, a place of universal worship
open to all, in which people of all races and re-
ligions can worship God individually, in spirit
and in truth, without the intermediary of church,
priest or ritual.
The practical institutions of the Mashrak-El-
Azcar will afford the opportunity for the estab-
lishment in the world of all branches of those pro-
gressive works for which the Bahai cause stands.
In this day, religion is to be the direct source of
inspiration in all secular affairs. The Bahai faith
stands as the promoter of advancement in every
line of human activity and development, and
therefore every phase of these innumerable ac-
tivities will draw its life from, and be an integral
part of, the Mashrak-El-Azcar. In the Bahai
teaching one finds exhortations to prayer and
worship, upon the one hand, and exhortations to
work and service to humanity upon the other.
"Faith without deeds is not acceptable," there-
fore the Bahai religious work includes all work
and service needful to man. This faith stands
for all material and social progress. This idea is
developed in the Mashrak-El-Azcar.
The Mashrak-El-Azcar is the symbolic expres-
sion of the prophet or the manifestation of God.
The central building or place of worship may
be compared to the heart or the innermost point
of illumination, while the surrounding institu-
tions may be compared to the fruit of (or serv-
ke and good works performed by) the manifes-
tation.- Within the house of worship the people
will find their inspiration, while through the
surrounding institutions they will manifest this
inspiration to the world, by loving service to hu-
manity.
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 71
Not long since, in the city of Eshkabad, in Rus-
sian Turkestan, such a Mashrak-El-Azcar was
built. This work represents the combined efforts
of the Bahais throughout the Orient. Its archi-
tectural beauty and size testify to the loving of-
ferings of those believers, while the idea for
which it stands is far above the conception of the
surrounding people.
In this service, of the Mashrak-El-Azcar, as
well as many others the Bahais are laying a
foundation, of whose existence the world in gen-
eral is now not aware, for the alleviation of many
human evils. The people of the future will
understand the far-sightedness of these people of
to-day in their effort to bring all secular affairs
under spiritual guidance.
The Bahais of the west are following in the
steps of their oriental brethren. In the city of
Chicago a movement has been started for the
erection there of the first Mashrak-El-Azcar in
the Occident. Already an extensive building site
has been purchased, overlooking Lake Michigan,
and it is hoped that soon the building will be be-
gun. Offerings for this work have been sent
from the Bahais in all parts of the world.
The Mashrak-El-Azcar represents the sum
total of all the Bahai activities. Abdul-Baha has
repeatedly written to the believers in America,
that of all works the building of the Mashrak-
El-Azcar is the most important. It is the foun-
dation for the new order of the spiritual King-
dom upon earth, therefore its importance cannot
be overestimated. When it stands accomplished,
it will be as a haven of rest to those who seek
communion with God within its sacred pre-
cincts; while outwardly, it will be as a banner
manifesting to the world the service and the pur-
pose of the Bahai cause.
IX.
THE NEED OF THE TIMES
Living, spiritual religion is the cause of social
reform. It precedes and is the leader of human
progress, and is the basis of civilization. Life-
less religion, of theology and form, precedes and
is the cause of social and moral degradation. It
retards human progress, and is the destroyer of
civilization. Live religion produces peace and
harmony. Dead religion makes warfare and
discord.
Each of the world's spiritual teachers was in
advance of the people of his time. Each was in-
dependent of the thought and institutions of his
day, and was a creator of thought, morals and so-
cial advancement. This progressive spirit char-
acterized each of the great religious movements
during its earlier days.
Later, religion ceased to be an independent
institution (a leader of the people), and it
became a dependent institution, dependent upon
and catering to the thought of the people of the
day. Its mission as a leader and a creator of
thought and morals was at an end, and instead of
elevating the people, it retarded their progress
and became the cause of stagnation and disinte-
gration. Advancing civilization has had no more
subtle or persistent enemy to contend with than
lifeless religious systems.
Foremost among the world problems of the
day is the abolition of war and the establishment
of Peace. National, racial and religious hatred
have been the principal causes of warfare. The
present different religious teachings or philoso-
phies, not only are not working for Peace upon
earth, but through their influence upon men are
actually holding people at variance, dividing hu-
72
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 73
manity, and in many cases have been the direct
cause of war. Since the Bahai teaching is strik-
ing a fatal blow at these prejudices, it is not only
eliminating the cause of strife, but, in place of
this enmity, it is planting a virile and growing
unity between all peoples.
The Bahai principle of unity is not merely
negative, a suspension of inharmony, it is a posi-
tive force for unity, which, as it grows, trans-
mutes destructive forces into constructive forces.
It stands for, and is a promoter of, all of the
universal progressive movements uniting nations,
which the world now needs. Through it, the
differences between eastern and western thought,
manners and customs, and the lack of confidence
between all people, are being changed and re-
placed by oneness of thought and action and by
confidence and fraternity.
The Bahai Cause stands for:
The Unity of all Religions.
The Political Unity of nations.
The Social Unity of all classes, peoples and
races.
The Unity of Languages in one universal lan-
guage.
Universal Suffrage.
The Advancement of all Material Institu-
tions, conducive to the general welfare of man;
his enlightenment and progress.
World Peace.
All of which is to be established upon the
foundation of spiritual unity between peoples.
In this day, the peoples of the world are being
drawn together by all of the material forces of
civilization. Commerce and political relations
have brought people of all nations, races and
religions together, upon the plane of their outer
activities, but as yet they form a hetero-
74 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
genous mixture, having no inner or spiritual
ground upon which to build a fundamental unity.
Such a spiritual meeting ground of unity is now
the most needed thing in the world. The time
is at hand for the people of the world to unite
in all matters, most of all in religion, since it is
the most potent factor in shaping character.
The good character of nations has been made by
religion and it has been destroyed through the
lack of it.
The theologies of the past have nothing to
offer the world today as the solution of this
mighty problem. Each of them was evolved
under conditions of the past, and has no relation
to, power or influence upon, the present univer-
sal world-needs.
The day of dependent religion is at an
end, and this world is now ripe for the
leadership of a virile religious movement : a
religion ahead of the times, one whose teaching
is independent of, and not limited by the current
thought of man ; that will lead the world onward,
infusing into it the spiritual force to reform its
institutions, and unite all races and nations, ori-
ental and occidental, in faith in God and confi-
dence in one another, thus making a firm spirit-
ual foundation for the coming great world-civili-
zation.
"The Bahai teaching is not an eclectic philos-
ophy, neither is it a sect. It is a living spiritual
religion. Because of its soul inspiring qualities,
it appeals alike to the unschooled and
the learned, to the masses and the few.
The Bab, Baha'o'llah and Abdul-Baha stand out
as divine teachers and leaders, independent of the
world's attitude and thought. They are not
building a theological system from intellectual
material. Like all world movers they were far
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 75
ahead of their times. Peace, arbitration and an
international language, in fact a universal civili-
zation, were unthought of by the world, when
these teachers, over a half century ago, announced
their spiritual message, in which is incorporated
the solution of all the teeming questions which
now occupy the minds of some of the greatest
thinkers and philanthropists of the age. Upon
every hand people are clamoring to understand
more clearly the principles of peace to which
the Bahai leaders and their followers have borne
witness by trials and suffering and death.
The Bahai cause is ministering to the great
spiritual need of the day, by planting in the soul
of the world a living religion of brotherhood.
Because of this universal need, this cause is des-
tined to grow until it envelops the whole world,
uniting all men and leading them onward toward
the age of spiritual enlightenment, prosperity,
and peace.
X.
ORIENTAL-OCCIDENTAL UNITY.
The Orient can truly be said to be the mother
of the human race. From her heart went forth
those great racial wave movements which have
peopled the earth. In her mountain fastnesses
the prophets communed with God and received
His life-giving truth (which has been the inspira-
tion of all mankind), and in her valleys and upon
her plains civilization had its dawn.
The Occident can with equal truth be said to be
the son, or man-child of the mother Orient. Both
materially and spiritually the Occident has re-
ceived its physical life and its religious inspira-
tion from the Orient, the fruit of which is the
present occidental civilization.
During many centuries the peoples of the East
and those of the West have been separated by
barriers, racial, religious, geographic and politi-
cal. So complete has been this segregation, that
these two halves of humanity have developed
along different lines of thought, manners and
customs, until the very natures and characteris-
tics of these peoples have become, in general,
distinct and foreign to each other.
Now, in these latter days, through the breaking
down of the former material barriers, the
oriental and occidental peoples are being
forced one upon the other. Through interna-
tional relations, the increase of foreign commerce,
and the travel and mingling of people, the
Orientals and Occidentals are daily coming into
closer relations upon the material plane of life.
As yet, however, this is but a superficial ming-
ling, void of any basic unity.
Without any trust, confidence or affinity for
one another, the Oriental and Occidental are at
76
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 77
variance in almost every way. That which will
destroy this variance is the spiritual confidence,
trust, and mutual affinity, which the Bahai faith
is creating between the East and the West.
Through the establishment of such practical
institutions of service as will demonstrate this
spiritual unity, the greatest material and spiritual
benefit to all humanity will result, for, springing
from this spiritual foundation will be all of those
religious, political, and social activities, for which
the Bahai cause stands, and which will eventu-
ally unite in one civilization all the peoples of
the world.
The Bahai cause stands for spiritual unity
manifested in every phase and activity of life.
The Bab, Baha'o'llah and Abul-Baha stand pre-
eminent as lovers and servants of humanity.
Their mission was that of spiritual uniting and
life giving, therefore their teachings influence
every phase and detail of life. With the fruition
of this cause, the great Orient-Occident problem
will be solved. Through this Bahai spiritual
unity encompassing all peoples, oriental and occi-
dental characteristics will so blend that a new
world type of man will be evolved: one which
will embody, not only the present existing vir-
tues of the East and the West, but most of all,
the highest spiritual possibilities of humanity,
which can come to light only as people unite and
live according to divine law applied to every
phase of life.
The stages of development through which col-
lective man passes are parallel and analogous to
those through which he passes as an individual.
Until the state of physical maturity is reached,
individual men and women are content to live
apart from one another. Each is developing his
or her own mental and physical characteristics,
78 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
and, normally, two different and distinct types,
masculine and feminine, are the result.
When maturity is reached, the reason for the
difference in the characteristics of man and
woman becomes apparent. Affinity and union
take place between these differing natures and
a great change is produced in each. One sup-
plies what the other lacks, and two rounded out
and more perfect lives is the result, and further,
through this love union of man and woman, the
way is made for the birth of other human beings.
When two parents are united by the bonds of a
complete love, their children come into this world
under the highest possible auspices for both
bodily and soul development, and in their natures
are found magnified the combined virtues of
both parents.
In this day, the human race is reaching the
stage of maturity, the Orient along her own char-
acteristic lines, and the Occident along his own
characteristic lines. Now their future develop-
ment depends upon their union, both spiritual
and physical. These two halves of humanity,
eastern and western, must unite and become as
one in every respect, spiritual and material, in
order that each may reach its highest develop-
ment. From this union will come the future
universal world-type of man, who will combine
in himself all the human virtues and the highest
spiritual possibilities.
Such an union between the East and West can
never be accomplished upon any foundation other
than a spiritual one. When the Occident and the
Orient meet on a common spiritual ground, then
an intellectual and social unity in all of its forms
with all of its institutions, will result.
By brute force a man can dominate a woman,
while the souls of both are suffering, although
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 79
neither may be aware of this condition. In the
perfect marriage, neither the man nor the woman
dominates the other. Through love, they become
as one soul in two bodies. So must it be between
the Occident and the Orient. Many oriental
countries have been held by occidental nations
through force. This has not been conducive in
any way to the solution of this world problem.
Under a regime of force, both peoples, the domi-
nant and the dominated, suffer from lack
of unity. Each remains within itself, its life
forces and possibilities undeveloped, pent up,
and suffering for lack of the expression which
only the freedom of harmony can give.
In the coming epoch of religious, racial and
national unity, for which the Bahai cause is pav-
ing the way, there will be no question of
''supremacy" over one another. All peoples will
be members of one harmonious world-family,
each working to protect and help the other.
Under this order, which is the order of God's
Kingdom, the highest civic and national institu-
tions will be evolved, and the masses of the peo-
ple will attain to a high state of spiritual,
moral and physical development. Thus, hu-
manity will attain to a state of civilization and
advancement, of the greatness of which no one
can now form any conception.
XI.
ETERNAL LIFE
Eternal life is the condition of the spiritually
alive or divinely quickened soul.
To be merely alive to physical, animal and
human things is not life according to religious
terminology. To be alive in the spiritual sense is
to be conscious of the Spirit of God manifest, to
believe in Him, and to do according to His will.
The soul is an indestructible entity which exists
after its separation or freedom from the material
body. Yet mere natural existence, either here
or in the life beyond, is not life from the spiritual
or divine view-point.
Through "The Manifestation," the soul of nat-
ural man is quickened with divine or eternal life,
which is as a new and a higher dimension added
to his human nature. By virtue of this divine
quickening, the spiritually-born soul comes di-
rectly under divine guidance. Though in the
world, yet it lives in a higher realm than before
the divine realm from which it receives life,
and a force that characterizes it with higher
qualities. Thus, through the baptism of the
spirit or the Word of God revealed, the soul
passes from the condition of natural darkness
into one of divine light, from the condition of
spiritual ignorance or death, into that of spiritual
awakeness or eternal life.
Eternal life is not a condition to which the soul
attains through its own virtue or through evolu-
tion from the natural plane. It is a gift and a
bounty from God bestowed upon natural man
through Revelation. It is given through God's
mercy and favor, not through His justice. There
is evolution upon the natural plane, confined to
that plane, and also evolution upon the
80
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 81
spiritual plane, confined to that plane, but
there is no evolution from one plane to the
other. In the Divine Kingdom, before as well as
after death, there is progression towards perfec-
tion of the type of perfect spiritual manhood.
There is nothing to which the soul may evolve
beyond perfect spiritual manhood, for spiritual
man is the highest being of God's creation, above
which there is no creation. Male and
female are conditions of the physical realm
and not of the spiritual kingdom. By virtue of
the Holy Spirit, manifesting through the re-
vealer, the souls of His followers are lifted from
the lower to the higher plane, from natural man-
hood to spiritual manhood, they become charac-
terized with divine qualities, and they show forth
in their lives the fruits of the Spirit.
As metal is heated in the fire and so partakes
of the characteristics of the fire until it is like
the fire, so the soul, through the revealed word,
becomes characterized by divine characteristics.
As with the metal, the source of the heat being
outside of it, the moment it is removed from the
fire it loses the characteristics of the fire, so it is
with the human soul, for when it separates itself
from God's Word, divine characteristics cease
to emanate from it. The source of divine life
is not in man but in The Word revealed, and
of man's divine enlightenment, in his dependence
upon The Word.
Good actions and good deeds characterize the
quickened soul, but good actions and good deeds
are not in themselves a proof that a soul is di-
vinely quickened. Many souls without faith or
spiritual assurance lead exemplary lives from
the ethical standard, while, upon the other hand,
many souls sunken in crime and depravity be-
come touched by the spirit and are born into The
82 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
Kingdom, and bring forth the fruits of the di-
vine life.
Life in its highest and fullest sense, exists in
that soul in which all of the life forces, both di-
vine and material, reach their highest develop-
ment. Neither a physically perfect man nor a
highly educated man is upon the highest plane
until he is quickened, and alive to the divine
realities. The perfect type of manhood has an
all-round physical, psychical, intellectual and
divinely spiritual development. As souls are ded-
icated to God's service and become cleansed and
pure from earthly conditions, then the deep-
est mysteries of The Kingdom become clear to
them. All doubts and fears are dispelled by
faith and assurance, while all inharmonious con-
ditions are replaced by harmonious ones through
the love of God burning in the soul. This is
Eternal Life.
XII.
HEAVEN AND HELL.
Heaven and hell, salvation and sin, light and
darkness, are terms employed to differentiate the
two spiritual conditions of the soul of man.
The spiritually quickened soi\l, alive with the
life of the Spirit, is that condition called heaven,
while the unawakened soul, not yet conscious of
the bounty of God, nor alive in His Spirit, is that
state of spiritual lethargy or darkness called hell.
These two conditions apply to the life of the sowl
in this world, as to the soul in the great beyond.
As there are conditions of both spiritual awake-
ness and spiritual slumber her in this life, so
there are these same conditions in the realm of
the immaterial into which the soul passes upon
leaving this body.
God's mercy is never wearied. As for those
souls who go out into the great beyond with-
out being spiritually awakened here, for their
quickening He has ways and means unknown
to us. Reward and punishment are of two
kinds, natural and spiritual. In the world of
nature every good act, in accord with her laws,
produces a good effect, and every violation of
nature's principles has a harmful, or detrimental
effect upon the individual. The reward and pun-
ishment, the good or the bad effect following the
good or bad action of man, is inevitable; it is
according to fixed law. Likewise, according to
the divine law he advances spiritually, and when
he violates that law he suffers spiritually. Spir-
itual conditions, however, are more far reaching
than material conditions, for they are not limited
to this earthly plane; they are eternal.
83
84 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
The greatest blessing which can descend upon
man is the knowledge of God. The greatest ca-
lamity is to be deprived of this knowledge.
Through God's mercy He has given man the
blessing of knowing Him. He has also given man
free will to accept or reject this blessing as he
wills, therefore divine knowledge or ignorance
comes to man, as reward or punishment for his
choice.
A soul in this world may reject the light and
be spiritually deprived, and at the same time be
totally ignorant of its state of deprivation. From
the spiritual view-point a soul may be in darkness
and in spiritual torment, but because of the lack
of spiritual perception this soul may not realize
its own condition.
As darkness is but the absence of light, so ig-
norance is but the absence of knowledge, and
spiritual death but the absence of spiritual life.
Evil has no life nor positive existence. It is neg-
ative, it is the absence of positive light. Thus
darkness, ignorance and death are negative and
have no power within themselves, while light,
knowledge and life are positive powers, con-
taining those elements which dispel their op-
posites.
As there are many degrees of spiritual enlight-
enment for the soul while it inhabits the physi-
cal body, so are there many degrees for it in the
realms beyond this world. In this world man
is endowed with the freedom of choice. When
Divine Grace is offered him, he can accept or
reject it as he chooses. Thus, his responsibility is
great. Choice between light and darkness divine
illumination and ignorance exists, however, here
in this world only. In the realms beyond, these
earthly conditions do not exist There the soul
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 85
can exercise no free choice, as only the good
exists. There, spiritual progress and develop-
ment are also possible, but do not depend
upon the rvill of the individual, but wholly upon
the mercy and bounty of God. It is only in this
life that man can voluntarily choose to accept the
life of the Spirit and through this choice attain
to divine Mesings.
The Kingdom of Heaven is, both here and
hereafter, for those souls who are alive in The
Lord. Through revelation the divine promise
has been extended to man at various times
through the ages, that in the fullness of time the
quickening spirit of The Lord, through the
Latter-Day Messiah, would be so poured out
upon all men of all races, that the vast majority
of mankind would be illumined and quick-
ened and be in the state called heaven. The
past conditions of spiritual ignorance and dark~
ness would pass, and the day of divine wisdom,
or great age would come. The "end of the
world," "the destruction of the world," and sim-
ilar terms used in holy writ, are symbolic of the
end of the ages of spiritual darkness and sin, and
the ushering into existence of the new epoch of
general spiritual illumination. The coming age of
peace, prosperity, and divine enlightenment will
be The Kingdom of God upon earth.
The Kingdom hereafter, is that state of life in
which the spiritually illumined souls find them-
selves after passing from the physical body.
Man's objective senses, being of the plane of this
natural realm, convey to the mind only concep-
tions of conditions peculiar to this material world,
therefore, of that immaterial condition of the soul
in the existence beyond this world, man can
form no mental conception whatever. As the
soul attains to a greater and fuller divine life, it
86 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
becomes conscious and is assured of the perpetu-
ity and eternalness of the state of awakening,
and has no doubt as to the reality of the life
eternal, yet can not form a mental conception
of that condition because it is beyond the scope
of man's imagination.
Before the physical birth of the child into this
world, it is developing its physical organs, the
utility of which do not become apparent until
birth. During its pre-natal life, through the
mother, the child is nourished by life forces from
the world into which it is to be born.
So it is with the spiritual life of the soul. While
in this body, the soul is developing spiritual vir-
tues and faculties, the need for, and virtue of
which do not now appear, but which will be-
come apparent when it enters into the life be-
yond. Again like the child, the soul, while in
this body, is spiritually nourished with force
from that realm or condition into which it will
be born or enter, upon leaving its prior condition.
The Bahai believes that, while so-called death
in a sense separates souls for a time, there is a
spiritual link binding all together. The souls in
the realm beyond, retain remembrance of things
here, as well as of those near to them. Through
intercession there, souls here are helped. All
quickened souls are spiritually united. This tie is
eternal. It is not dependent upon physical
means. All souls, born of the spirit, are different
members of one great spiritual body, and whether
those members are on this earth or in the realm
beyond, there is a connection between them
which death does not sever. Natural ties are
severed when the soul leaves the body, but spirit-
ual ties are eternal. Through the sincere prayers
of others a soul is helped while here in this
world, and likewise, through the intercession of
THK BAHAI MOVEMENT 87
others, a soul having passed from this life is
helped on his spiritual way in the realm beyond ;
for progress is not confined to this earthly exis-
tence. The souls, too, who have passed on, are
able through their intercessions to help those
here on earth. All of this is possible because the
pervading spirit of God is uniting the souls of
The Kingdom at all times and under all con-
ditions.
XIII.
SCIENCE AND RELIGION.
Natural or material science is classified knowl-
edge of the human, animal, vegetable and
mineral kingdoms ; religion, or spiritual science, is
classified knowledge of the life of the spiritual,
or divine kingdom, and the laws which govern
it. There is no inharmony nor conflict between
these two realms, for there is perfect accord
throughout the whole of God's creation. Nat-
ural science teaches men how to live properly
upon this human plane. Through observing its
laws and living in accord with them, man attains
to a high state of material, physical, psychic, and
.intellectual development. On the other hand, the
prophets have revealed to humanity the laws
which govern the spiritual kingdom of souls. As
people live in accord with these divine laws, their
souls develop spiritually and they attain to a high
state of general development, for with the spir-
itual development, follows an evolution in the
natural or material development of man. When
men understand the realities of both the natural
and divine realms, they will find no conflict be-
tween religion and science.
The reason that science and religion have con-
tended in the, past, with each other, is because re-
ligious teachings have contained so many imag-
inations and superstitions as to make them in-
possible of acceptance to men of science. To be
sure, these superstitions did not exist in the
purity of the teachings as given by the prophets
themselves. Superstitions are the impediments
which religion has gathered as it has been
handed down through the ages. Science finds
only this dross a contradiction of her knowledge,
but the spiritual teachings, though they deal with
88
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 89
a higher realm, are in perfect accord with nat-
ural science.
The Bahai teaching is logical and reasonable.
It is free from superstition and is compatible
with modern science. There is in it spiritual
force, which is its very life and essence. This
transcends mere intellect, logic and reason, al-
though it is in perfect accord and harmony
with them.
One great work which the Bahai cause is ac-
complishing is the harmonizing of science and re-
ligion. It shows scientific people that true reli-
gion not only is not opposed to science, but that
it is itself scientific, and that man needs
more than mere intellectual food he needs
spiritual knowledge. Not until man adds
the spiritual to the intellectual has he that perfect
balance, by virtue of which he attains to
highest development. The Bahai teaching is
bringing a stronger, firmer and more vital faith
into the religious world. Through the spirit of
this movement, people of the old established re-
ligions realize that they have nothing to fear
from the world of modern scientific thought.
Under this influence, the old superstitions are
dropping away, but the pure, untarnished truth'
is standing supreme.
The realization that there is no conflict be-
tween the material and divine realms, that mate-
rial truth and divine truth are in perfect accord,
frees man from superstition and fear, and gives
him faith and assurance, opening before him the
door to the highest possibilities and development.
XIV.
THE SUPERNATURAL
Miracles form no part of the Bahai teaching.
The prophets were endowed with powers,
both natural and spiritual, through which they
accomplished that which was impossible to or-
dinary man. The unusual things which they did
were for the instruction and education and spir-
itual quickening of those about them. The mir-
acles ascribed to them have been a great test of
faith for the people of after generations, for to
many, miracles are not a proof of divinity.
A material phenomenon seemingly outside the
domain of natural law, would not prove to think-
ing people that the doer was divine. In these days
of physical and psychological experiment and re-
search no one would ascribe divine powers to the
physicist or the psychologist who astonished the
world with discoveries and demonstrations.
Many wonderful things are recorded by the
Bahais, illustrative of the spiritual powers of the
founders of their religion, but these form no part
of the teaching nor are they ever mentioned as
proofs, for, if so, they would prove a stum-
bling block rather than an attraction to truth
seekers.
The great and wonderful miracle, performed
by the prophets and manifestations of the past
and the present, is their power to implant in the
souls of men the love of God, to quicken human-
ity with divine life and, with all of the earthly
forces against them, to accomplish their divine
work. This is a real, a spiritual miracle.
XV.
EDUCATIONAL ASPECT OF THE BAHAI
TEACHING.
In order to produce world unity, the supersti-
tions and prejudices of past ages must be re-
moved from men's minds. Lack of education,
creates narrowness and prejudice; education,
brings broadness of view, and sympathy with
others.
The past systems of narrow education hav
tended more towards perpetuating than eradicat-
ing inharmony between men. . The follow-
ers of the different religious systems, being at
variance with one another, have in their educa-
tional systems handed down to coming gen-
erations the prejudice, ignorance and dogmatism
of past generations, thus instilling into the
children all the soul-retarding elements which
encumbered the natures of the parents. The nat-
ural tendency of man has been to remain upon
the old level of inharmony rather than to arise
therefrom by his own will.
Now, in this enlightened age, there has ap-
peared in the world simultaneously with the
Hahai revelation, a new order of educational
methods. Former dogma and prejudice are no
longer taught to children, and the minds of the
youths of this generation are not thus limited and
handicapped.
In fact, in this day, in freeing our educational
system from the superstition, prejudice and
dogma of the past, the mistake has been made
of eliminating, also, all spiritual precepts from the
general instruction of children. Thinking edu-
cators are beginning to see the demoralizing re-
sults of the lack of spiritual instruction in the
present system ; for in the people of this genera-
91
92 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
tion is manifest, to an alarming degree, the in-
roads of certain vices against which they are un-
able to protect themselves because of the want of
moral and spiritual training and poise.
It is an all-round education, for which the
Bahai cause stands. Man is a combination of
several natures and his general well-being de-
pends upon a balanced training and development.
Bodily he must train and develop his physical
powers in order to have a good and perfect or-
ganism through which to manifest the higher
man. Physically and mentally he must train and
develop the powers of perception, memory and
reason, that he may have mental organism
through which to manifest the higher spiritual
man. Man's spiritual training and soul develop-
ment is the most important of all education. This
is the highest and greatest power within his be-
ing; therefore its importance cannot be overesti-
mated. By religious and spiritual training is not
meant the teaching of doctrine or creed, but
rather, inculcating into man the knowledge of
the Truth.
When man has attained to the Bahai concep-
tion of education, he is indeed educated in every
sense of the word. This is the only education
which fully fits man for the life here, as well as
for the life hereafter.
The Bahai teaching stands for the higher edu-
cation of woman. In some recent instructions
sent to the Orient. Abdul-Baha has exhorted the
Bahai s to give their daughters every possible ed-
ucational advantage, telling them it was even
more necessary that their girls should be edu-
cated than their boys, because women are the
mothers and the natural teachers of men, and it
is of the greatest importance to the race that they
be highly educated. Already several Bahai
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 93
women physicians and nurses are working in
Persia. Their work is of the greatest importance
among the women, because they are able to pene-
trate into the seclusion of the family life of the
people, in ways not open to men.
Several other Americans, Bahais, have gone to
Persia as teachers, and are associated there with
the educational work. Quite recently a girls'
school was opened by the Bahais in Teheran,
and from the last accounts, there were more
scholars than could be accommodated. In addi-
tion to this, educational work is being carried
on in all of the oriental countries, where there
are congregations of Believers. Each year brings
Bahai students to Europe and America, who
after completing their studies return to their
own countries as teachers.
Through liberal education and the diffusion of
knowledge and wisdom, both spiritual and mate-
rial, the superstitions and limitations of the past
will cease to exist, all people will be in sympathy
with humanity as a whole, and each individual
will consider himself a citizen of the world
rather than exclusively of one country, and one
people.
XVI.
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT AND THE
ECONOMIC QUESTIONS OF THE DAY.
With the expansion of civilization and the peo-
pling of the world, the field for conquest
is so rapidly diminishing that already a
great change has been produced in the
economic conditions of the world. Owing
to the present international conditions, and the
nearness of nations, war is assuming an aspect
more detrimental to all parties than it has ever
had in the past. Arbitration must in the end
supplant national conquest and warfare.
Likewise, the warlike methods upon which the
world's commerce has been conducted will ere
long become obsolete, because of the passing of
the conditions which made those methods pos-
sible. Commercial relations are now becoming
so intimate between nations, that co-operation must
eventually take the place of the present warfare
of illegitimate competition, in the business world.
The Bahai cause teaches co-operation in all af-
fairs. Through working together for the good of
the mass, rather than for the aggrandizement of
the individual, the Bahais anticipate that national
and economic affairs will be so regulated that
comparatively little misery will exist in the
world. There will not be the extremes of wealth
and poverty which now exist and all people, both
rich and poor, will be better off than now.
Through the stable financial conditions which
co-operation between capital and labor will bring
about (co-operation for the best good of all
concerned), the laborer will be assured of a live-
lihood and will be enabled to get the best out of
life, and, upon the other hand, the capitalist will
be less on the defensive and less burdened than
94
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 95
he is now. Because of the co-operation of all
classes, the wealthy will occupy themselves more
with matters pertaining to the general wel-
fare of the people, rather than seeking mainly
their own individual enjoyment.
As people come into the spirit of the Bahai
teaching and see the virtue of co-operation, and
act upon this principle, the great economic prob-
lems which now threaten the world with dire
calamities will disappear and give place to insti-
tutions for the highest good of mankind, through
which all people will live in harmony, in happi-
ness and in plenty. The Bahais believe that
eventually the whole world will recognize the
power of the spiritual principle of co-operation,
and will apply it in matters of every day life,
thus solving life's mighty economic problem in
all of its details.
XVII.
THE EVOLUTION OF MAN.
The Bahais teach the existence of five king-
doms, planes, divisions or kinds of creation :
(1) The mineral kingdom, or material plane
in which there is no life or spirit, in the ordinary
acceptance of the term.
(2) The vegetable kingdom or physical plane,
in which there is the lowest form of spirit or life.
This plane is characterized by the principle of
growth and fruition, by virtue of which organ-
isms develop and propagate their kind.
(3) The animal kingdom or psychical plane,
the organisms of which are differentiated from
those of the vegetable plane by the power to ap-
prehend conditions outside of themselves.
(4) The human kingdom, that of man, which
is differentiated from the animal condition by
the intellectual faculty, by virtue of which man
comprehends ideas in the abstract.
(5) The divine kingdom, or condition of spir-
itual illumination, which is differentiated from
the human, or natural, or unspiritually quickened
state of the soul, by consciousness of God. By
virtue of this higher life, the quickened soul ap-
prehends spiritual realities, lives in spiritual com-
munion with the divine, and is of the order of
The Kingdom of God. Unlike the vegetable, an-
imal and human kingdoms, which are dependent
for existence upon earthly conditions, the
spiritual life of the soul is dependent upon
those peculiar to the divine realm. These con-
ditions are eternal, therefore the life of divinely
quickened souls is eternal. The spiritual
condition in which those souls live is not con-
fined to an earthly realm.
Beyond and above all created kind is the Holy
BAHAI MOVEMENT 97
Spirit of God, uncreated and infinite, unknow-
able to man save through Its Manifesta-
tion, the mediator between God and His
children here upon earth. Divinely quickened
man is the highest of the creatures, above which
there is no creation. From his beginning man
was created man a distinct species. In the early
days of man upon earth, in many respects he
more resembled the animal than he did the man
type of today. But from his first appear-
ance there was in him that human spirit,
apart and of a different kind from the
animal, which, though at first hidden, has evolved
into the type of man that we now know. In
the coming age of divine development, humanity
will continue evolving to a far higher state
than it now has attained. Man, never
having been anything but man, can never evolve
out of the kingdom of his own kind and species.
He will, however, be approaching nearer and
nearer to the perfect type of spiritiial manhood
and perfection.
XVIII.
THE METHOD OF TEACHING AND THE
GROWTH OF THE BAHAI MOVEMENT.
The method of Bahai teaching is constructive,
in every sense. In presenting this cause to a soul,
the teacher's first step is to confirm the seeker in
the truth of his own religion, and upon
that, as a foundation, place this latter-day
teaching. Argument and dispute have no
place in this cause. The teaching is quietly
yet fearlessly given, and then the matter is left
with the listener and God. People are not urged
or enticed, but rather, through love, are attracted
to the cause.
It has been found, when two or more souls
come together to discuss religious matters with
perfect love in their hearts, the result is always
uplifting and conducive to edification. When
people meet together for religious discus-
sion without this spirit of true charity in their
hearts, the result is always distressing, and it
would have been better had they not met. This
principle of the power of love the Bahais under-
stand, and they rely upon it and not upon argu-
ments presented from the plane of intellect alone.
In order to combat evil the soul should be filled
with love and truth. Fear, together with all its
attending destructive forces, disappears in the
presence of faith and assurance. The Bahai
teaching is one of joy and gladness. True spirit-
uality is profound yet not depressing, and while
uplifting, is free from levity. Truth and love are
in the world to lift people up from suffering and
depression, and should, therefore, be presented
as they are, full of joy. The Bahais are taught
at all times to manifest in their thoughts, words
and actions the joy of the Lord. It is only by
98
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 99
showing forth a joyful and happy spirit, and
by loving service to humanity, that suffering and
seeking souls are attracted and brought under the
power of the quickening spirit of the cause.
Through kind and loving service to all humanity,
to friend and foe alike, the Bahais have a most
powerful weapon with which to combat religious
prejudice and spiritual ignorance. Even the most
difficult people are won through continued kind-
ness. Once attracted, the hungry soul recog-
nizes and accepts the Truth. The Bahai teach-
ers find that when a soul is reached by their
teaching, whether a Christian, Moslem, Jew or
Buddhist, the truth at once appeals to his inner
nature, and he will usually say, "This is exactly
what I have always believed".
Having no organization, ritual, or priesthood
after the manner of other religions, the Bahais
are opposing the work of no other religious bod-
ies. It is a world-wide movement, the spirit of
which is working unhindered and unbound by
confines and barriers of sect and ism. The
Bahais see and recognize truth and spiritual
beauty wherever found, and through this
attitude of love and tolerance for all, they find at
every hand, among the people of other religious
bodies, the opportunity of sharing the spirit of
their faith.
Often people inquire whether affiliation with
the Bahai cause necessitates the giving up of
church membership. The advice is always that
no human or religious relations should be sev-
ered, but that these relations should become as
avenues for giving forth the message and the
spirit of the Bahai faith. People having church
relations continue to mingle with church peo-
ple. However, they do not remain silent about
the new light which has come to them. When
100 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
ever they find prepared souls, they give them the
glad tidings of the coming of The Lord in His
Kingdom, and thus they diffuse the knowledge
and spirit of the Truth.
Where there are several sympathizers in the
work in the same vicinity, regular meetings are
established. At these reunions the sacred writ-
ings are read, the teachings are explained, and
seekers are welcomed. As these groups increase
in numbers, they become known as "Assemblies."
In the assemblies certain people are usually se-
lected to serve. These confer together and ar-
range for meetings, publications, and other
matters in connection with the carrying on of the
work.
There is no distinction such as teacher or pu-
pil. All are teachers and at the same time all are
pupils. Contributions are not solicited. The
cause must first find root in the hearts of the
people, then the people will of themselves arise
to serve it. When a soul realizes the greatness
of the privilege of aiding the Bahai work, then
he assists, in the measure in which he is able,
his own heart being his guide.
The Bahais are working toward the great end
of uniting all races and religions in the Love of
the Lord. They are impelled by no other motive
than the Love of God. They are not looking for
results, theirs is the satisfaction of service, and
there is no other satisfaction or pleasure which
can approach that joy, the joy of serving God.
One of the questions the Bahais are often
asked, is regarding the number of those who pro-
fess this faith. The reason for their inability
to answer is quite clear to those who realize that
the object of this movement is to leaven the
whole lump of humanity, with its numerous divi-
sions, rather than to precipitate another sect upon
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 101
the many already existent. Having no form of
membership, the Bahais make no attempt to esti-
mate their number. Their strength is a spiritual
strength, not to be measured numerically. Even
were it possible to know the exact number of Ba-
hais in the world, this reckoning would be of
short duration because the movement is growing
continually, interest in it is increasing, and the
hearts of people are daily becoming more at-
tracted, and more confirmed in the truth.
The Bahais are widely distributed throughout
the world. During the days of The Bab, his
cause was confined principally to Persia, though
he had adherents also in Turkey and in
neighboring countries. With the rise of Baha-
'o'llah, this field of work was extended. The
Bahai teachers went north into Caucasia, Rus-
sia and Turkestan, south into India, east into
Burma and later on into China. With Baha-
'o'llah's exile in Turkey, Roumelia and Syria, his
cause spread in those countries as well as in
Egypt and in Arabia.
The establishment of the Bahai cause in the
West has been accomplished under the ministry
of Abdul-Baha. In the year 1894, a small group
of people in the city of Chicago became interested
in the Revelation. Later, similar groups were
formed in New York, Washington, and San
Francisco. In the winter of 1898-99, the first
band of American Bahai pilgrims crossed the
seas to visit Abdul-Baha, then in exile in the
Holy Land. Up to that time the communication
between the American Bahais and Abdul-Baha
had been by writing only. Then, with the added
impetus of Abdul-Baha's personal touch, these
American pilgrims returned to the West with re-
newed zeal and desire to spread the cause.
From the enthusiasm of this first band of tray-
102 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
elers, new centers of the teaching were founded
in France, England and America. From these
as a nucleus have developed Believers, in all parts
of the United States, in Canada, Mexico, Hawaii,
Japan and Australia, as well as in various parts
of Germany, Switzerland and Italy. During this
period of growth, several Bahai teachers from
the Orient have traveled through Europe and
America, instructing and teaching the people and
helping to establish new centers. Likewise, teach-
ers from the Occident have traveled and taught
in the oriental countries. Quietly and slowly
the cause has grown amid all varieties of hu-
man conditions, among peoples of every religion,
race and clime. In the growth and progress of
the Bahai Movement is demonstrated its uni-
versal spiritual power. Accepted by people of
every condition, it is making inroads into their
souls, as leaven; it is uniting these many hetero-
geneous elements into one homogeneous world-
people.
XIX.
A PERSONAL TESTIMONY
In the preceding chapters of this book I have
attempted to give a general resume of the his-
tory and teaching of the Bahai cause, and the
work now being accomplished. Here it is my de-
sire to relate to the reader a few of my own ex-
periences in connection with this cause. During
the past twelve years, it has been my privilege to
visit Abdul-Baha several times and to travel ex-
tensively among the Bahais in foreign lands. It
is with the desire of sharing the inspiration re-
ceived from Abdul-Baha and from his follow-
ers, that I am presuming to record these personal
observations.
My first visit to Abdul-Baha was in the winter
of 1901. At that time the cause in the West was
in its infancy and was passing through a critical
period of its growth. But few of the words of
Baha'o'llah and Abdul-Baha had been translated,
and the believers, though fired with faith and a
great desire to disseminate the teachings had as
yet, learned but little of the spiritual principles
of the cause. Consequently there was a general
lack of harmony of ideas among the adherents,
which caused much confusion. It was against
such odds that Abdul-Baha was heroically strug-
gling.
At that time he was in comparative ease,
having been allowed to leave the prison city of
Akka with its unhealthy climate, and was spend-
ing the winter in the neighboring town of Haifa.
Notwithstanding this betterment in the condi-
tions of Abdul-Baha's outer life, one felt the
weight which was upon his soul and saw how his
spirit was taxed in his endeavor to teach and
train the people in the way of The Kingdom.
103
104 THE: BAHAI MOVEMENT
I recall an incident which showed the stress
under which he, at that time, was laboring. One
night after a busy day of teaching and letter
writing he had gathered twenty or more of us at
his table for the late evening meal. We were
about half through with the repast, when some
one made an allusion to some difficulty among
the believers in America. Abdul-Baha looked
very serious, then in evident distress of both
mind and body he arose from the table and left
the room. As he went through the door his -aba
(cloak) fell from his shoulders to the floor.
Gathering it up I hurriedly followed him to
the terrace in front of the house. Scarcely touch-
ing him I slipped the cloak over his shoulders.
He did not notice the incident, so troubled and
absorbed was he as he passed out into the night.
For over a year before I first met Abdul-
Baha, I had been a believer in the Bahai cause,
so when I went to him it was not to have my
faith established but rather to have it confirmed,
and to gain knowledge. In the accomplishment
of this. Abdul-Baha helped through his un-
derstanding of me. From the moment I met
him I realized he understood me perfectly,
as an old friend. Thus a bond was established,
which has always been a source of joy, delight,
and help to me, for each visit I have had with
him, and every tablet (letter) and message re-
ceived from him, has strengthened this un-
derstanding and has demonstrated to me again
and again, Abdul-Baha's all-penetrating spiritual
sight and wisdom. Notwithstanding the distance
and circumstances which separate Abdul-Baha
from his friends, when they receive his tablets
they find advices and admonitions peculiarly ap-
plicable to them in their needs of that moment.
THE; BAHAI MOVEMENT 105
During the eleven days I remained in Haifa,
I had this phase of Abdul-Baha's personality
deeply engraved on my mind. All was not easy
to understand. I had various spiritual ups and
downs until shortly before I left him, then
everything became very clear and my spiritual
rapport with him was established. The moment
of our parting was a happy one for me, because
I felt that I was carrying away with me some-
thing which could never be destroyed, a spiritual
friendship which would grow eternally, both
here and in the future realm.
Early in the summer of 1901, shortly after my
first visit, an order was issued sending Abdul-
Baha back to the prison city of Akka. There he
remained for seven years, with the exception of
a short period, when upon several occasions he
was permitted to visit the tomb of BahaVllah at
Behje, a mile or two beyond the city gates. Dur-
ing this period of imprisonment, it was at times
with the utmost difficulty that pilgrims were able
to see Abdul-Baha, nevertheless this was a great
period of growth in the cause. Abdul-Baha
worked diligently with his pen and the result of
his labors became apparent among the Bahais in
all parts of the world.
Six years elapsed between my first and
second visits to Abdul-Baha, during which
interim he had been confined to the for-
tress. Knowing that some recent pilgrims had
remained nine days in Akka, I had rather set my
mind upon a visit of the same length. On reach-
ing Haifa I was told that, on account of the
troublous conditions surrounding Abdul-Baha,
I would be able to remain with him but a few
hours. At first the thought of so short a visit
was a keen disappointment. Upon second
thought, however, my mental attitude changed
106
and I realized fully that Abdul-Baha understood
and was planning for the best.
Whether one is benefitted by meeting Abdul-
Baha depends upon really meeting him spiritual-
ly. It is the open, unprejudiced and seeking souls
which unite with the soul of Abdul-Baha. When
this spiritual contact is effected, the personal visit
to him is not essential for enlightenment, for,
with spiritual connection between the souls of
Abdul-Baha (the heart of the Bahai movement)
and the believers (the members of the body of
the movement), these souls are one with him,
and through this unity his divine wisdom and
love go forth to all his followers.
Although my second visit with Abdul-Baha
was very short, I would not have wished it other-
wise. Again I left him in great joy with my
soul overflowing with the love of The Kingdom,
which he so freely radiates. The one great les-
son which he taught me at that time was dispell-
ing (negative) fear with (positive) assurance.
The natural tendency of man is often to fear
people and to shut himself away from them.
This becomes a habit and one which causes
much ill ease, and this condition I was just
beginning to realize. Not from anything
which Abdul-Baha said to me, but through
the way in which he received and treated
me I saw clearly that I could not serve him in
the cause and continue to remain inwardly aloof
from people. I saw that it was because of Ab-
dul-Baha's freedom from constraint, and
through his fearlessness and his friendly way of
approaching people, his frank expression of love,
faith and assurance, that he was able to reach
the souls of men and impart to them his courage
and wisdom.
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 107
Abdul-Baha throws himself into the lives of
all about him. Through this contact he undoubt-
edly suffers much, nevertheless, thus he is en-
abled to reach the people and to minister to them.
His fearlessness, combined with gentleness and
humility in approaching people, was a lesson to
me, for in his method I saw the way in which
Abdul-Baha's followers must live in order to
do his work among men.
My next visit to Abdul-Baha was at the cul-
mination of his troubles and difficulties just pre-
vious to the fall of the former despotic Ottoman
power, and the re-establishment of the consti-
tutional government in the midsummer of 1908.
Upon arriving in Haifa, I found that some re-
cent American pilgrims had not been able to
meet Abdul-Baha, but had returned to America
happy in having seen him from a distance as he
walked upon an elevated balcony on his house
within the fortifications of Akka. Four Arabs,
recent converts to the faith, on account of their
belief had for several months been confined in
the prison of the fortress. Others of the Bahais,
in order to avoid pending trouble, by Abdul-
Baha's advice had sought temporary refuge in
Egypt, while those remaining in Syria were all
but panic stricken by the trouble and persecu-
tions which were daily descending upon the
Bahai community from the hands of the un-
scrupulous government officials.
After remaining several days in Haifa, word
came from Abdul-Baha for me to go to Akka
and proceed to the house of a certain Persian
gentleman, one of the oldest and most faithful
of the believers. In the guise of a native Syrian
and with the assistance of one of the oriental
Bahais, I entered the prison city, passing through
the various guarded gates without being halted.
108 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
Once established in the privacy of the house of
the friend, Abdul-Baha having the freedom of
the city within the fortifications, came to see me
several times.
Though under the most severe physical diffi-
culties, Abdul-Baha was visibly in the greatest
spiritual strength and power. In strong contrast
with the fear and terror of his followers, im-
possible to describe, Abdul-Baha stood forth in
the greatest of joy of soul and tranquility of
spirit. He radiated calmness and assurance, and
through his strength the community of the
friends was saved from despair and from the
disaster which would have accompanied the loss
of hope at such a moment. This situation was
dramatic in the extreme. It was shortly followed
by the tragic downfall of the government that for
forty years had held Abdul-Baha a prisoner.
Several months later I was again permitted to
travel in Syria and visit Abdul-Baha. Although
it had not been long in point of time since my
previous visit, yet the conditions surrounding
Abdul-Baha had so changed as to make the
previous time seem, by comparison, to have been
in a former decade. Abdul-Baha was free. The
uttermost liberty existed. Akka had ceased to
be a penal colony and the gates were no longer
guarded.
The Bahais had not yet recovered from their
first ecstasy of joy over the freedom of Abdul-
Baha, yet through all this manifest jubilation
he was conducting his work as usual. It
was then that I realized, to the extent of my
capacity, how far above this world's conditions
Abdul-Baha stands. Not discouraged by criti-
cism, persecution, calamity; not elated by ap-
plause, commendation nor good fortune, he
stands apart from the world upon a firm rock,
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 109
the spiritual foundation of The Kingdom. By
virtue of this severance from all save God, he is
enabled to change the current of the world's
thought from materiality to spirituality, and to
create in men's souls the fire of God's love.
Almost two years after the great change in
Turkey, I again went to Syria. In coming in
contact with Abdul-Baha each soul receives the
message, or the lesson, for which it is then ready
and prepared to receive. Previously my at-
tention had been chiefly called to those principles
for which Abdul-Baha stands, which are so
clearly manifested in his life, while his person-
ality, as a man in the world, had impressed me
but little. Now, this which previously I had al-
lowed to pass almost unnoticed was to be my
chief lesson.
I saw the exquisite beauty of Abdul-Baha's
personality from lines of physical strength and
refinement in his face, to his trained thought
and judgment. His dignity and carriage, his
mental grasp of things both great and small, and
the manner in which he dealt with them in pro-
portion to their importance, were all of the deep-
est interest to me.
In his person one sees at once the power of the
spirit as well as its gentle, refining qual-
ities, a combination of strength and delicacy, of
masculine and feminine qualities; the balanced
combination of dignity, humility, forcefulness
and gentleness.
Whatever may be one's mental conception of
Abdul-Baha, one must invariably readjust it
from time to time. Under his guidance, his
followers are growing in spiritual stature, and
as the perceptive powers of the soul increase,
one sees more and more clearly Abdul-Baha's
spiritual power and divine mission. Were one
to visit him many times, each time his former
110 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
idea would be laid aside for a clearer and a more
defined conception.
My last visit with Abdul-Baha was in Septem-
ber, 1911, during his sojourn in London, Eng-
land. There he was in the vortex of western
civilization, sought by many people from various
walks of life, both high and low. Under these
conditions his spirit shone forth with greater
brilliancy than ever before.
It is natural and easy for the western mind to
weave a halo of sentiment and romance about
the personality of a persecuted religious leader,
exiled and imprisoned for his faith under the
corrupt rule of an oriental despot; but, when
this same spiritual teacher comes into the lime-
light of western thought and customs, the people
see him from a different angle; things which
they but imagined about him are dispelled, and
his real virtues stand out more strikingly visible
than ever.
Abdul-Baha, stripped of his accustomed ori-
ental environment, appeared more clearly than
ever to be the master of the spiritual situation.
I heard him give the first public address that he
had ever made, before a vast concourse of about
2,000 souls, and I was also with him during a
numb6r of personal interviews granted to vari-
ous truth seekers. At all times under these un-
accustomed conditions he drew unto himself all
people, and through his love, wisdom and power,
gave them spiritual assurance and satisfaction.
One afternoon some one asked Abdul-Baha
regarding the relation of his mission to that of
the great Manifestation, Baha'o'llah. He re-
plied by saying, "Baha'o'llah is the root of the
tree of The Kingdom, while I am the branch,
branched from that pre-existent root. The fruit
of the tree appears upon the branches, not upon
the roots."
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 111
The most potent of all factors in moving hu-
manity is love: it is at the same time the most
elusive and the most difficult of all things to de-
fine. We know it only through its characteris-
tics, and these we never fail to recognize. So it
is with true religion. There is a spiritual force,
which is divine love, working in it that is its
very life force. When one feels his soul re-
sponding to this, he realizes that he has come
into contact with a higher realm, and though he
cannot describe this awakening in so many
words, it is none the less to him the most real
of all things.
In these latter days, when "prophets" and
"new religions" are so abundant, one naturally
wonders how to distinguish truth from error,
and how to recognize the Lord's anointed one
from among many men. The difficulty was
solved almost two thousand years ago by him
who said, "By their fruits ye shall know them".
To him who has traveled and lived among the
Bahais and has seen the effect of this cause upon
the lives of peoples of every race and religion,
there can be no doubt as to the divine source of
its teachings, for in the fruits of the Bahai cause
is manifest its truth.
It has been my privilege to travel among, and
to associate with, the Bahais in many foreign
countries, and I can testify to the spiritual qual-
ities manifested in their lives. Often I have
been in a position where I have been obliged to
place myself entirely in the hands of strange
men, whose language I could not speak, the only
thing which we had in common being our faith.
I say the only thing was our faith, yet this was
everything because that faith was large enough
to encompass all things.
112 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
Western travelers whom I have met in
the oriental countries have been surprised
that I trusted myself in out-of-the-way
places and along unfrequented routes of
travel, alone with the oriental people as my sole
companions and friends. When one is sur-
rounded by friends, his personal welfare is sel-
dom a subject of worry. I can truthfully state
that never have I felt more at ease and free from
care than when I have been with the oriental
Bahais. Wherever I happened to be with them,
I have always had a warmth of hospitality and
kindness lavished upon me. This was not be-
cause of any other reason than that I was of
their faith.
Between the Bahais of the East and those of
the West there exists the strongest tie. Since it
was through the suffering, pain, and trials of the
Bahais of the Orient that this faith had its first
growth and was brought to the West, the west-
ern Bahais look toward their eastern brothers
and sisters with deepest feelings of love and
gratitude. Western Bahais have in their souls a
strong love for the eastern Bahais and a burning
desire to go to them sharing with them all the
practical things of the western civilization.
Upon the other hand, in the growth of the
Bahai cause here in the West the oriental Ba-
hais see the result of their labors, for these be-
lievers are their spiritual offspring. They
see the fruit of their bloody persecution and
great sufferings, and with open and joyful hearts
they are anxious to receive into their very lives
their western brothers and sisters, learning from
them and in turn pouring out upon them, all of
that wealth of devotion, love, and spiritual as-
surance, which the people of the East have and
which the people of the West need.
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 113
Among the Bahais there is a practical demon-
stration of a combined religious and secular
unity. Good works are not done under the name
of "charity" nor "philanthropy". Rather, it is
"reciprocation" and "interdependence". Each
gives what he has to give, and through the spirit
of giving and doing in loving service, ones own
nature unfolds and he himself receives abund-
antly.
Particularly in the Orient the contrast between
the Bahais and other people is very striking.
There, the average Orientals and Occidentals,
meet without mingling, each remaining foreign
to the other, but the opposite is true with these
very same people when they are touched by the
Bahai spirit, for then we see them associating
with one another as members of one family, hav-
ing the same interests and desires, and united in
the same works.
Among the oriental Bahais there is a love and
a devotion to this cause and its principles, im-
possible to describe. It is beyond comprehension
to understand, yet one recognizes it.
In many countries and among people of every
race and of every religion I found such a warm
welcome and had such friendship and de-
votion showered upon me, simply because I was
a Bahai, that I felt and saw the blending process
at work, uniting the East and the West. This
is a force working independently of material
conditions. I saw it working under all condi-
tions and amid all surroundings, from those of
the half-naked jungleman living in his hut, to
those of the cultured man of wealth dwelling in
his palace. This spiritual love, which is of God,
is the strongest power in creation. In its uniting
force is the foundation of accord and harmony
upon which the Orient and the Occident are
114 THE BAHAI MOVEMENT
meeting. From this movement will appear, as
fruits, all of those social institutions between the
East and the West, which will materially demon-
strate the truths which the Bahais now witness
as spiritual realities.
In Persia T found the Bahais struggling
against great opposition upon the part of those
surrounding them, in their work of uplifting
and educating woman. While in that country, I
met Bahai women who are doing great work for
their own sex. Until recently this work, for the
most part, has been very quietly done, in fact
almost in secret, on account of the persecution
by the Moslems, whose traditions regarding the
seclusion and oppression of women, the Bahais
are undermining.
I found the Persian believers to be most
stanch and courageous people. While the great
massacres and martyrdoms of the Bahais in that
land are probably now a thing of the past, never-
theless the Bahais are still under persecution
and even in these days it sometimes leads to loss
of life.
Many men whom I met had been eyewitnesses
to the massacres of the 80's, in which so many of
our people died for their faith, while others with
whom I talked had lost both family and prop-
erty. One impression which I recall very vividly,
was the calm way, free from any trace of rancor,
in which the Persian Bahais referred to the losses
and afflictions visited upon them by the enemies
of the cause. Instead of causing embitterment,
these troubles have had a most spiritualizing ef-
fect upon the believers, for the persecution has
been as a fire which has taken everything from
them save the love of God. with which their
hearts are ablaze.
After a visit among these people, one
THE BAHAI MOVEMENT 115
feels spiritually better and stronger than before,
absorbing a force from them which gives cour-
age in moments of weakness and guidance in
moments of strength. This is the spirit which
abides with those who are in reality severed
from all save God. It is this spirit which is
manifest in the life and teaching of Abdul-Baha,
and in the lives of those who in spirit follow the
principles for which he stands.
NOTICE
Copies of this book will be shipped pre-paid to
any address, upon the receipt of sixty cents. Ap-
ply to one of the following centers :
The Bahai Publishing Society,
Address Miss Mary Lesch, 5205 Jefferson Ave.
Chicago, 111.
The Bahai Assembly of New York,
226 West 58th St. New York City.
The Bahai Assembly of Washington,
P. O. Box 192 Washington, D. C.
PRICE LIST OF PUBLICATIONS
OF THE
BAHAI MOVEMENT
Hidden Words $.15
Seven Valleys .25
Book of Ighan 1.00
Postage 10 cents
Tarazat and Other Tablets In Press
Tablet of Ishrakat .25
Surat ul Hykl .25
Tablets of Abdul-Baha ( Vol. /) . . . 1.00
Postage 10 cents
Mysterious Forces of Civilization . . 1.00
Postage 10 cents
Bahai Revelation .50
Postage 10 cents
Universal Religion 1.00
Postage 10 cents
Some Answered Questions .... 1.50
Postage 10 cents
School .of the Prophets .... 1.25
Postage 10 cents
Unity Through L>ove .10
In Galilee .25
A Year with Bahais of India and Burma . .25
Story of Bahai Movement . . . .05
Revelation of Baha'o'llah . . . .10
Dawn of Knowledge .... .15
Martyrdoms in Persia .... .10
10 Days in L,t. of Acca .... .25
Table Talks with Abdul-Baha ... .10
Daily Lessons Received at Acca . . .20
My Visit to Acca .10
Flowers from the Rose Garden of Acca . 10
Portfolio of Veiws of Holy Land . . 1.00
PUBLISHED AND DISTRIBUTED BY THE
BAHAI PUBLISHING SOCIETY
Address all Orders to
MISS MARY LESCH, 5205 Jefferson Avenue . CHICAGO
NOTE Thi price tilt supersedes all previous litf*
Novembet I. 1911.
o