Wormsloe Plantation, USA
“Having created the world and all that liveth and moveth therein, He, through the direct operation of His unconstrained and sovereign Will, chose to confer upon man the unique distinction and capacity to know Him and to love Him — a capacity that must needs be regarded as the generating impulse and the primary purpose underlying the whole of creation…”
—Baha’u’llah, Gleanings From the Writings of Baha’u’llah
____________________________________________________
Tromsø, Norway
“O SON OF MAN!
Humble thyself before Me, that I may graciously visit thee. Arise for the triumph of My cause, that while yet on earth thou mayest obtain the victory.”
-Baha’u’llah, Arabic Hidden Words
____________________________________________________
Bahji, Israel
“God be praised, wherever we turn, the Ancient Beauty hath opened wide the gates of grace, and hath in unmistakable words announced glad tidings of victory through the Lord’s sustaining help. Through love hath He carried off the hearts of the believers, and He hath entrusted their triumph to the armies of the Concourse on high.”
-‘Abdu’l‑Baha, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l‑Baha
____________________________________________________
Pori, Finland
“The more difficulties one sees in the world the more perfect one becomes. The more you plough and dig the ground the more fertile it becomes. The more you cut the branches of a tree the higher and stronger it grows. The more you put the gold in the fire, the purer it becomes. The more you sharpen the steel by grinding the better it cuts. Therefore, the more sorrows one sees the more perfect one becomes. That is why, in all times, the Prophets of God have had tribulations and difficulties to withstand. The more often the captain of a ship is in the tempest and difficult sailing the more greater his knowledge becomes. Therefore I am happy that you have had great tribulations and difficulties . . . Strange it is that I love you and still I am happy that you have sorrows.”
–’Abdu’l-Baha, Star of the West
____________________________________________________
Chicago, USA
“Out of utter nothingness, O great and omnipotent Master, Thou hast, through the celestial potency of Thy might, brought me forth and raised me up to proclaim this Revelation. I have made none other but Thee my trust; I have clung to no will but Thy Will. Thou art, in truth, the All-Sufficing and behind Thee standeth the true God, He Who overshadoweth all things. Indeed sufficient unto Me is God, the Exalted, the Powerful, the Sustainer.”
-The Bab, Selection from the Writings of the Bab
____________________________________________________
Danang, Vietnam
“The animal acts in accordance with the requirements of nature, follows its own instincts and desires. Whatever its impulses and proclivities may be it has the liberty to gratify them; yet it is a captive of nature. … If we admit that being limited to the plane of the senses is a virtue the animal is indeed more virtuous than man, for it is entirely bereft of that which lies beyond, absolutely oblivious of the kingdom of God and its traces whereas God has deposited within the human creature an illimitable power by which he can rule the world of nature.”
-‘Abdu’l-Baha, Baha’i World Faith
____________________________________________________
Bahji, Israel
“¡OH HIJO DE MI SIERVA!
Si contemplaras la soberanía inmortal te esforzarías por abandonar este mundo efímero. Pero ocultarte una y revelarte el otro es un misterio que nadie sino los puros de corazón pueden comprender.”
-Baha’u’llah, P.O. 41, persa
____________________________________________________
Brisbane, Australia
“Say, this indeed is the Frequented Fane, the sweet-scented Leaf, the Tree of the divine Revelation, the surging Ocean, the Utterance which lay concealed, the Light above every other light… Indeed every light is generated by God through the power of His behest. He of a truth is the Light in the kingdom of heaven and earth and whatever is between them. Through the radiance of His light God imparteth illumination to your hearts and maketh firm your steps, that perchance ye may yield praise unto Him. Say, this of a certainty is the Garden of Repose, the Loftiest Point of adoration, the Tree beyond which there is no passing, the blessed Lote-Tree…”
–The Bab, Selections from the Writings of the Bab
Increasingly realist type photographs can’t express the many layers of meaning when I read the writings.
So now I turn to more abstract approaches. This image attempts to represent many of the ideas in this quotation.
It is then the light of the kingdom, generated light, the frequent fane, a point of adoration…