O ye friends of God and assistants of ‘Abdu’l-Baha:
When the Sun of Truth was concealed behind the cloud of glory, the orb of the universe disappeared from the dawning-place of the visible and shone forth in the invisible world, and conferred successive bounties upon the contingent world, then from the unseen realms, the bats began to move, opened their wings and flew around. They supposed they could interrupt the glorious bounties of that beautiful face, quench the shining rays of the Sun of Truth; extinguish the ignited fire and destroy the praiseworthy light; for they imagined that on account of the departure of His Highness the desired One, the divine foundations would be demolished and the blessed tree uprooted. Evil was that which they imagined and thou findest them in this day in manifest loss.
For, according to what was heard, the enemies in some of the lands, upon receiving the news of the most great disaster, held banquets. They rejoiced and made merry, celebrated festivals, burned incense, served sweets and flowers, lit many a candle, mixed honey and wine, played lutes and harps, spent that evening in cheerfulness and gladness until dawn, and sought delight and pleasure. But (they were) heedless that the bounty of that Sun has no end, the torrent of that rain is free from interruption, the radiance of that blessed Orb is continual, and that the dominion of the “Merciful One (who) is established upon the Throne” is permanent. Nay, rather, the human temple, like unto a cloud, prevents (people) from beholding the rays of the Sun. Therefore, it is said in the Gospel that when His Highness the Promised One comes, he shall be mounted on a cloud; but when that noble cloud is concealed, then shall the disk of the sun become manifest and transmit intense rays throughout all regions.
Consequently, after the lapse of but a short time arose a tumult throughout the regions and the pillars of the world trembled. The East became full of cries of joy and the West full of clamor. The most luminous Sun of the beauty of Truth shone forth with the utmost ardor from the invisible zodiac, upon all regions. The veil of covering and concealment was removed and the fire of the love of God became ablaze within the hearts. The beloved of God were enkindled as candles and became well known among men like unto enraptured lovers. From every quarter a song and melody was heard and the call of “O our Lord, we have heard Thy voice.” was raised in all regions. The Word of God was promoted and the fragrances of God diffused. The fame of the True One was universally spread. The call of “Am I not (your Lord)” reached the ears of the far and near. The Cause of the religion of God became loftier. All the nations became impressed, and the enemies of the Blessed Beauty (Baha’u’llah) were disappointed and in loss.
When they considered that the departure of His Highness the Desired One—may my life be a sacrifice to his beloved!—led to the exaltation of his blessed Cause, and the flame of the ignited fire increased and every assured believer stepped forward, therefore the shining of the brilliant light proved a manifest loss to the denying people. Moreover, the grace of His Highness the Almighty adorned the imperial throne of Persia with the accession of an equitable king and through the power of the Merciful One that perfect sovereign became compassionate toward this oppressed community. This was also a confirmation from His Highness the Powerful Lord.
-‘Abdu’l-Baha (Star of the West, vol. 8, no. 13, November 4,
1917)
