Re: A Dream
Marc Sayer (msayer@efn.org)
Tue, Jan 3 1995 21:19:06 GMT
On Mon, 2 Jan 1995, David Alexander wrote:
>
> I am a non-Baha'i. I had the following dream the night of the 30th of
> December.
> <clip>
> Comments? What is the Baha'i position on dreams and personal
> revelations? I have definite Baha'i sympathies - i.e., The world which
> Baha'is want to build is the world I want my children to inherit.
>
> Another question - how does a person come to have faith that Baha'u'llah
> is who he claimed to be?
David, rather than asking us, the net users how we feel or what our
beliefs are or what we think the Baha'i position on something is, why not
ask Baha'u'llah? His words are available to all through His writings, and
like a stream, the truth is always purest at the source. If you need
books I am sure that you can get them either here via the net, or at your
local library, or through your local Baha'i community. The foundation of
all faith is the independant investigation of truth. I am not trying to
turn you off of asking questions in any way, just trying to answer this
one without putting the veil of my own interpretations between you and
the word of God. I am the local community's librarian and if you are
unable to find any books locally I am sure I can send you some, either
from our community's lending library or from my own personal collection.
I am sure that if you seek with an open mind and heart, you will find the
answers you seek and the proofs you need. I offer you this prayer as
an aid because the Truths are in this prayer;
"He is the King, the All-Knowing, the Wise!
Lo the Nightingale of Paradise singeth upon the twigs of the Tree
of Eternity, with holy and sweet melodies, proclaiming to the sincere
ones the glad tidings of the nearness of God, calling the believers in
the Divine Unity to the court of the presence of the Generous One,
informing the severed ones of the message which hath been revealed by
God, the King, the Glorious, the Peerless, guiding the lovers to the seat
of sanctity and to this resplendent Beauty.
Verily this is that Most Great Beauty, fortold in the books of
the Messengers, through Whom truth shall be distinguished from error and
the wisdom of every command shall be tested. Verily He is the Tree of
Life that bringeth forth the fruits of God, the Exalted, the Powerful,
the Great.
O Ahmad! Bear thou witness that verily He is God and there is no
other God but Him, the King, the Protector, the Incomparable, the
Omnipotent. And that the One Whom He hath sent forth by the name of `Ali
was the true One from God, to Whose commands we are all conforming.
Say: O people be obedient to the ordinances of God, which have
been enjoined in the Bayan by the Glorious, the Wise One. Verily He is
the King of the Messengers and His Book is the Mother Book did ye but know.
Thus doth this Nightingale utter His call unto you from this
prison. He hath but to deliver this clear message. Whosoever desireeth,
let him turn aside from this counsel and whosoever desireth let him
choose the path to his Lord.
O people, if ye deny these verses, by what proof have ye believed
in God? Produce it, O assemblage of false ones.
Nay, by the One in Whose hand is my soul, they are not, and never
shall be able to do this, even should they combine to assist one another.
O Ahmad! Forget not my bounties while I am absent. Remember My
days during thy days, and My distress and banishment in this remote
prison. And be thou so steadfast in My love that thy heart shall not
waver, even if the swords of the enemies rain blows upon thee and all the
heavens and the earth arise against thee.
Be thou as a flame of fire to My enemies and a river of life
eternal to My loved ones, and be not of those who doubt.
And if thou art overtaken by affliction in My path, or
degradation for My sake, be not thou troubled thereby.
Rely upon God, thy God and the Lord of thy fathers. For the
people are wandering in the paths of delusion, bereft of discernment to
see God with their own eyes, or hear His Melody with their own ears. Thus
have we found them, as thou also dost witness.
Thus have their superstitions become veils between them and their
own hearts and kept them from the path of God, the Exalted, the Great.
Be thou assured in thyself that verily, he who turns away from
this Beauty hath also turned away from the Messengers of the past and
showeth pride towards God from all eternity to all eternity.
Learn well this Tablet, O Ahmad. Chant it during thy days and
withhold not thyself therefrom. For verily, God hath ordained for the one
who chants it, the reward of a hundred martyrs and a service in both
worlds. These favors have we bestowed upon thee as a bounty on Our part
and a mercy from Our presence, that thou mayest be of those who are grateful.
By God! Should one who is in affliction or grief read this tablet
with absolute sincerity, God will dispel his sadness, solve his
dificulties and remove his afflictions.
Verily, He is the Merciful, the Compassionate. Praise be to God,
the Lord of all the worlds."
Baha'u'llah
Please forgive any typos. I am using Pine, which is not very
user-friendly and so it makes it hard to avoid mistakes, or catch and
correct them once you've made them.
I have always felt there is something special about this prayer. It
truely does give the one who chants it a great gift. And it says so very
much about so very many things.
As I said if you are in need of the words of Baha'u'llah, and can't find
them locally let me know.
Marc Sayer
msayer@efn.org