Sleaford, South Australia
“Thou art He, O my Lord, Whose bounty hath surpassed all things, and Whose power hath transcended all things, and Whose mercy hath encompassed all things. Look, then, upon Thy people with the eyes of Thy tender mercies, and leave them not to themselves and to their corrupt desires in Thy days.”
-Baha’u’llah, Prayers and Meditations.
Nairne, Australia
“It is not only their fellow human beings that the beloved of God must treat with mercy and compassion, rather must they show forth the utmost loving-kindness to every living creature. For in all physical respects, and where the animal spirit is concerned, the self-same feelings are shared by animal and man . . . The feelings are one and the same, whether ye inflict pain on man or on beast. There is no difference here whatever. And indeed ye do worse to harm an animal, for man hath a language, he can lodge a complaint, he can cry out and moan; if injured he can have recourse to the authorities and these will protect him from his aggressor. But the hapless beast is mute, able neither to express its hurt nor take its case to the authorities . . . Therefore it is essential that ye show forth the utmost consideration to the animal, and that ye be even kinder to him than to your fellow man.”
-‘Abdu’l-Bahá
Gloucester, MA, USA
“O God, my God! Increase Thou this fire, as day followeth day, till the blast of it setteth in motion all the earth. O Thou, my Lord! Kindle the light of Thy love in every heart, breathe into men’s souls the spirit of Thy knowledge, gladden their breasts with the verses of Thy oneness.”
-‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
Murray Bridge, Australia
“…in Holy Scriptures, the counsels of heaven are likened to water, even as the Qur’án saith: “And pure water send We down from Heaven,” and the Gospel: “Except a man be baptized of water and of the spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God.” Thus is it clear that the Teachings which come from God are heavenly outpourings of grace; they are rain-showers of divine mercy, and they cleanse the human heart.”
-Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá
Dodgeville, WI, USA
“Wherefore, O ye beloved of the Lord, bestir yourselves, do all in your power to be as one, to live in peace, each with the others: for ye are all the drops from but one ocean, the foliage of one tree, the pearls from a single shell, the flowers and sweet herbs from the same one garden. And achieving that, strive ye to unite the hearts of those who follow other faiths.”
-Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá
North Dakota, USA
“O that I could travel, even though on foot and in the utmost poverty, to these regions, and, raising the call of “Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá” in cities, villages, mountains, deserts and oceans, promote the divine teachings! This, alas, I cannot do. How intensely I deplore it! Please God, ye may achieve it.”
-‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Tablets of the Divine Plan
Ynys Llanddwyn, Wales
“O SON OF BEAUTY! By My spirit and by My favor! By My mercy and by My beauty! All that I have revealed unto thee with the tongue of power, and have written for thee with the pen of might, hath been in accordance with thy capacity and understanding, not with My state and the melody of My voice.”
-Bahá’u’lláh, The Hidden Words of Bahá’u’lláh
Quadra Island, BC, Canada
“O SON OF LOVE! Thou art but one step away from the glorious heights above and from the celestial tree of love. Take thou one pace and with the next advance into the immortal realm and enter the pavilion of eternity. Give ear then to that which hath been revealed by the Pen of Glory.”
– #7 from the Persian Hidden Words of Baha’u’llah
Thank you 19 months for this beautiful presentation of photography and inspiring quotations from the Bahai Writings.