Bahá'í Prayers
Children and Youth
Praised be Thou, O Lord my God! Graciously
grant that this infant be fed from the breast
of Thy tender mercy and loving providence and
be nourished with the fruit of Thy celestial trees.
Suffer him not to be committed to the care of
anyone save Thee, inasmuch as Thou, Thyself,
through the potency of thy sovereign will and
power, didst create and call him into being. There
is none other God but Thee, the Almighty, the
All-Knowing.
Lauded art Thou, O my Best Beloved, waft
over him the sweet savors of Thy transcendent
bounty and the fragrances of Thy holy bestowals.
Enable him then to seek shelter beneath the
shadow of Thy most exalted Name, O Thou
Who holdest in Thy grasp the kingdom of names
and attributes. Verily, Thou art potent to do what
Thou willest, and Thou art indeed the Mighty, the
Exalted, the Ever-Forgiving, the Gracious, the
Generous, the Merciful.
- Bahá'u'lláh
O Thou peerless Lord! Let this suckling babe
be nursed from the breast of Thy loving-kindness,
guard it within the cradle of Thy safety
and protection and grant that it be reared in the
arms of Thy tender affection.
- `Abdu'l-Bahá
O God! Rear this little babe in the bosom of
Thy love, and give it milk from the breast
of Thy Providence. Cultivate this fresh plant in
the rose garden of Thy love and aid it to grow
through the showers of Thy bounty. Make it a
child of the kingdom, and lead it to Thy heavenly
realm. Thou art powerful and kind, and Thou art
the Bestower, the Generous, the Lord of surpassing
bounty.
- `Abdu'l-Bahá
O God! Educate these children. These children
are the plants of Thine orchard, the
flowers of Thy meadow, the roses of Thy garden.
Let Thy rain fall upon them; let the Sun of Reality
shine upon them with Thy love. Let Thy breeze
refresh them in order that they may be trained,
grow and develop, and appear in the utmost
beauty. Thou art the Giver. Thou art the Compassionate.
- `Abdu'l-Bahá
O Thou kind Lord! These lovely children are
the handiwork of the fingers of Thy
might and the wondrous signs of Thy greatness.
O God! Protect these children, graciously assist
them to be educated and enable them to render
service to the world of humanity. O God! These
children are pearls, cause them to be nurtured
within the shell of Thy loving-kindness.
Thou art the Bountiful, the All-Loving.
- `Abdu'l-Bahá
O Lord! Make these children excellent plants.
Let them grow and develop in the Garden
of Thy Covenant, and bestow freshness and
beauty through the outpourings of the clouds of
the Abhá Kingdom.
O Thou kind Lord! I am a little child, exalt me
by admitting me to the kingdom. I am earthly,
make me heavenly; I am of the world below, let
me belong to the realm above; gloomy, suffer
me to become radiant; material, make me spiritual,
and grant that I may manifest Thine infinite
bounties.
Thou art the Powerful, the All-Loving.
- `Abdu'l-Bahá
O God, guide me, protect me, make of me a
shining lamp and a brilliant star. Thou
art the Mighty and the Powerful.
- `Abdu'l-Bahá
O My Lord! O my Lord!
I am a child of tender years. Nourish me
from the breast of Thy mercy, train me in the
bosom of Thy love, educate me in the school of
Thy guidance and develop me under the shadow
of Thy bounty. Deliver me from darkness, make
me a brilliant light; free me from unhappiness,
make me a flower of the rose garden; suffer me to
become a servant of Thy threshold and confer
upon me the disposition and nature of the righteous;
make me a cause of bounty to the human
world, and crown my head with the diadem of
eternal life.
Verily, Thou art the Powerful, the Mighty,
the Seer, the Hearer.
- `Abdu'l-Bahá
O Peerless Lord! Be Thou a shelter for this
poor child and a kind and forgiving Master
unto this erring and unhappy soul. O Lord!
Though we are but worthless plants, yet we belong
to Thy garden of roses. Though saplings
without leaves and blossoms, yet we are a part of
Thine orchard. Nurture this plant then through
the outpourings of the clouds of Thy tender mercy
and quicken and refresh this sapling through the
reviving breath of Thy spiritual springtime. Suffer
him to become heedful, discerning and noble,
and grant that he may attain eternal life and abide
in Thy Kingdom for evermore.
- `Abdu'l-Bahá
O Lord! Make this youth radiant, and confer
Thy bounty upon this poor creature. Bestow
upon him knowledge, grant him added
strength at the break of every morn and guard him
within the shelter of Thy protection so that he
may be freed from error, may devote himself to
the service of Thy Cause, may guide the wayward,
lead the hapless, free the captives and awaken the
heedless, that all may be blessed with Thy remembrance
and praise. Thou art the Mighty and the
Powerful.
- `Abdu'l-Bahá