"O Temple of the Cause! Grieve not if Thou findest none ready to receive Thy gifts. Thou wast created for My sake; occupy Thyself therefore with My praise amidst My servants. This is that which hath been ordained for Thee in the Preserved Tablet. Having found upon the earth many a soiled hand, We sanctified the hem of Thy garment from the profanity of their touch and placed it beyond the reach of the ungodly. Be patient in the Cause of Thy Lord, for erelong shall He raise up souls endowed with sanctified hearts and illumined eyes who shall flee from every quarter unto Thine all-encompassing and boundless grace."
Comments:
• The first thing we notice in this paragraph is the reference to the Manifestation of God, Baha’u’llah, as the “Temple of the Cause.” We have seen in previous paragraphs that Baha’u’llah was addressed a number of times as the “Living Temple” and in Paragraph 1.44 He was equated with the “Temple of God”. We will see in succeeding paragraphs other such powerful references to Baha’u’llah, such as:
o “O Temple of God”
o “O Temple of Holiness”
o “O Temple of My Cause”
o “O Temple of Divine Revelation”
o “O Temple of Divine mysteries”
Each one of these lofty references to the Manifestation of God will require some reflection on our part. For now, let’s explore the one used in this paragraph, namely the “Temple of the Cause”
• It’s interesting to remind ourselves periodically that: the Manifestation of God is in reality the “Temple of the Cause” of God! It puts things in a more balanced perspective, doesn’t it? Let’s explore this a bit. We often encounter exhortations in the Writings about teaching and serving the Cause of God but we may not at the time equate such references concerning the Cause of God with Baha’u’llah Himself – we may mistakenly see them as just some Baha’i activities. For example, we read in this reference from the beloved Guardian that: “They must place their lives in the Hand of God, and, confident of His mercy and protection, go on teaching the Cause and serving it, no matter what happens. (Shoghi Effendi, Dawn of a New Day, p. 191). While we are busy sharing the beautiful Teachings of the Faith with others, or attempting to provide a token of service for the Cause of God, it may be helpful, in light of this paragraph, to center our thoughts on Baha’u’llah, so that with time, we become more aware that we are really teaching “Baha’u’llah” to others, or that we are indeed attempting to serve “Baha’u’llah” in various service-related circumstances. This process of centering of our hearts, and minds on Baha’u’llah is bound to create a more intimate relationship with the Manifestation of God – an inestimable bounty and privilege that we have as His followers!
• Another insight we could glean from this paragraph concerns the advice that Baha’u’llah receives to not “Grieve” if He “findest none ready to receive” His “gifts”. Baha’u’llah is then reassured that He was “created” basically for the sake of God, and that He should “occupy” Himself with God’s “praise amidst” His “servants”. In our review of the many Prayers and Writings of the Bab and Baha’u’llah we see that They both followed this advice of the Primal Will of God – each Prayer or Tablet contains words of praise and gratitude to God.
• As we explored previously, the fact that Baha’u’llah is the “Voice” that is directing Him throughout this Tablet makes it exceptionally challenging to appreciate the ramifications of such powerful exhortations by God to His Manifestation through the Primal Will of God – the Entity that according to the Bab is the source of each Manifestation of God:
“If, however, thou art sailing upon the sea of creation, know thou that the First Remembrance, which is the Primal Will of God, may be likened unto the sun. God hath created Him through the potency of His might, and He hath, from the beginning that hath no beginning, caused Him to be manifested in every Dispensation through the compelling power of His behest, and God will, to the end that knoweth no end, continue to manifest Him according to the good-pleasure of His invincible Purpose.” (The Bab, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 125)
• As we see in this paragraph the Manifestation of God is being counseled not to grieve over the fact that no one on Earth was found “ready” to “receive” His “gifts” when He appeared. This is really sad! What were those “gifts” that He could have given us if we had been “ready”? When we compare the Baha’i Faith with previous Dispensations we can’t help but notice the amazing gifts Baha’u’llah was able to give us. – so it’s mindboggling to think how much more we could have received if only people of His generation had been ready to receive them. This also presents another point to reflect on: The state of being “ready,” does it only relate to the time in which Baha’u’llah was physically in our midst, or does it apply to the whole period of His Dispensation? Another question that comes to mind is this: To what degree did those who became His followers during His lifetime actually received the “gifts” that He was allowed to bring to humanity? And, how does it apply to us, His humble followers who are currently striving to get a “partial and imperfect” understanding of such “gifts”?
• These “gifts” that the Manifestation of God is allowed by the Creator to bring to humanity and our ability to actually receive them, could also be understood in the context of the progressive nature of divine revelation. The Guardian quotes one of the Hidden Words of Baha’u’llah to demonstrate this point in the passage below:
“A reference to some of the already quoted utterances of Bahá'u'lláh and 'Abdu'l-Bahá will surely suffice to establish, beyond the shadow of a doubt, the truth of this cardinal principle [“that Divine Revelation is orderly, continuous and progressive and not spasmodic or final.”] Might not the following passage of the Hidden Words be, likewise, construed as an allegorical allusion to the progressiveness of Divine Revelation and an admission by its Author that the Message with which He has been entrusted is not the final and ultimate expression of the will and guidance of the Almighty? "O Son of Justice! In the night-season the beauty of the immortal Being hath repaired from the emerald height of fidelity unto the Sadratu'l-Muntaha, and wept with such a weeping that the concourse on high and the dwellers of the realms above wailed at His lamenting. Whereupon there was asked, Why the wailing and weeping? He made reply: As bidden I waited expectant upon the hill of faithfulness, yet inhaled not from them that dwell on earth the fragrance of fidelity. Then summoned to return I beheld, and lo! certain doves of holiness were sore tried within the claws of the dogs of earth. Thereupon the Maid of heaven hastened forth unveiled and resplendent from Her mystic mansion, and asked of their names, and all were told but one. And when urged, the first letter thereof was uttered, whereupon the dwellers of the celestial chambers rushed forth out of their habitation of glory. And whilst the second letter was pronounced they fell down, one and all, upon the dust. At that moment a voice was heard from the inmost shrine: 'Thus far and no farther.' Verily We bear witness to that which they have done and now are doing." (Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Baha'u'llah, p. 116)
• It is also interesting to learn that the Manifestation of God weighs the relative capacity of the people of His age to determine the extent to which the Divine Message with which He has been entrusted can be revealed to mortal eyes. Take for example this amazing passage from Baha’u’llah:
“Know verily that the veil hiding Our countenance hath not been completely lifted. We have revealed Our Self to a degree corresponding to the capacity of the people of Our age. Should the Ancient Beauty be unveiled in the fullness of His glory mortal eyes would be blinded by the dazzling intensity of His revelation.” (Baha’u’llah, quoted by Shoghi Effendi in ‘The World Order of Baha’u’llah’, p. 116)
• In commenting about the above-quoted Hidden Word and the two letters of the name of that “one” Whom when the “Maid of heaven” was told “the dwellers of the celestial chambers rushed forth “out of their habitation of glory” and “fell down, one and all, upon the dust” causing a “voice” being heard from the “the inmost shrine: 'Thus far and no farther.' ” – Adib Taherzadeh indicates that:
“The two letters mentioned in the above passage, according to 'Abdu'l-Bahá's interpretation, are B and H of the word 'Baha'. This means that only two letters out of three (B, H and A) have been revealed in this Dispensation, that the full significance and potency of the Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh which have been symbolically contained within the three letters of His name, have not been disclosed to mankind and that only a limited measure of His light and glory has been shed upon humanity in this age. [please note that the word 'Baha' in Arabic is composed of three letters.] (Adib Taherzadeh, The Revelation of Baha'u'llah v 1, p. 83)
• Another insight that we could gain from this conversation between the Primal Will of God and Baha’u’llah relates to the action that we should take, as His followers, when we find ourselves in situations where it appears as if no one is interested to hear about the Faith. In such moments we are called upon to “occupy .. [ourselves] …with My [Baha’u’llah’s] praise amidst My [His] servants.” What a comforting thought! This experience will help us feel, to an infinitesimal degree, what Baha’u’llah Himself went through, and at the same time our prayers and supplications, will hopefully, attract His grace so teaching opportunities will become available again.
• This paragraph also helps us to get an inkling of understanding concerning the intimate interaction between the Primal Will of God and the Manifestation of God, as well as between the Manifestation of God and humanity. We notice that this aspect of the loneliness and isolation of the Manifestation of God has been “ordained … in the Preserved Tablet.” We also learn that a Manifestation of God is really “created” for the sake of God. What does that mean, and furthermore how does the process of “creation” relate to the reality of the Manifestation of God and their appearance in both this world and the next?
• One other point that this paragraph brings to our attention is the incredible sanctity of the Manifestation of God where we read: “Having found upon the earth many a soiled hand, We sanctified the hem of Thy garment from the profanity of their touch and placed it beyond the reach of the ungodly.” It will be helpful in this regard to remind ourselves of the titles associated with Baha’u’llah in this Tablet as God’s latest Manifestation:
o “Temple of God”
o “Temple of Holiness”
o “Temple of My Cause”
o “Temple of Divine Revelation”
o “Temple of Divine mysteries
• The paragraph ends with a promise that “erelong” God shall “raise up souls endowed with sanctified hearts and illumined eyes who shall flee from every quarter unto Thine [Baha’u’llah’s] all-encompassing and boundless grace.” What an amazing scene that would be to see such souls entering Baha’u’llah’s “all-encompassing and boundless grace”! Who would these special souls be –those “with sanctified hearts and illumined eyes”!? The history of our Faith contains many heroes and heroines from different parts of the planet. We could speculate that perhaps some of them did fall in this category. Reading about their lives will surely inspire us to do our humble portion for this precious Faith! (If you feel inspired please visit Baha’i Heroes and Heroines)
