The Baha’i Cause now encircling the world is a movement for
unity of religions, universal peace and a universal language. Its founders, the
Báb, Baha’u’llah and ‘Abdu’l-Baha have brought to humanity a message which
transforms for its followers this earth world into a spiritual Rose-Garden.
To present to you some of their thoughts on happiness is the
purpose of this compilation of quotations. Asked the intimate goal of a human
life ‘Abdu’l-Baha replied that it assuredly was not to eat, nor to sleep, nor
to dress, nor to repose on the conch of negligence. Rather it is to find one's
way to eternity and understand the divine signs; to receive wisdom from the
Lord of Lords and to move steadily forward like a great sea.
Speaking with a group of friends He said:
"To see the joy of divine gladness on your faces is the
cause of my happiness for when I see you happy, I am happy also. The divine
Messengers come to bring joy to this earth, for this is the planet of
tribulation and torment and the mission of the great Masters is to turn men
away from these anxieties and to infuse life with infinite joy.”
"When the divine message is understood all troubles
will vanish. Shadows disappear when the universal lamp is lighted for whosoever
becomes illumined thereby no longer knows grief. He realizes that his stay on
this planet is temporary and that life is eternal. When once he has found
reality he will no longer retreat into darkness.”
''Reflect on the tribulations the divine Messengers endure
in each age -- exile, prison, the cross, decapitation; yet they ever remain
tranquil. Behold the apostles of Christ! They had many trials.
The friends of Baha’u’llah in Persia have undergone unspeakable calamities.
Their possessions were seized and destroyed, their children captured, their
lives sacrificed; yet at the hour of martyrdom they danced with joy, for they
were completely detached from the life of this world. Trials have never
prevented men from knowing the happiness of the beyond. Nay, rather, this is
the path.''
"…The world needs more happiness and illumination. The
star of happiness is in every heart, we must remove the clouds so that it may
twinkle radiantly. Happiness is an eternal condition. When it is once
established, man will ascend to the supreme heights of bliss. A truly happy man
will not be subject to shifting eventualities of time. Like unto an eternal
king he will sit upon the throne of fixed realities. He will be impervious to
outward, changing circumstances, and through his deeds and actions impart
happiness to others. A Baha’i must be happy, for the blessings of God are
bestowed upon him.”
“Every soul must strive to impart to mankind that joy and happiness the nature of which is permanent."
"This is the day of happiness. In no time of any
manifestation was there the cause for happiness as now. A happy state brings
special blessings. When the mind is depressed the blessings are not received.''
"Laugh and talk, don't Lament and talk. Laugh and
speak."
"Laughter is caused by the slackening or relaxation of
the nerves. It is an ideal condition and not physical. Laughter is the visible
effect of an invisible cause. For example, happiness and misery are super
sensuous phenomena. One cannot hear them with his ears or touch them with his
hands. Happiness is a spiritual state. But happiness is caused either by
looking at a beautiful picture, or witnessing a delectable panorama, or
associating with the person whom you love, or listening to a good voice, or solving
an intectual problem. All these are the motives of happiness, but the real
cause is spiritual."
"What is necessary is divine joy. Divine happiness is
the speaker of the heart… The soul of man must be happy no matter where he is.
One must attain to that condition of inward beatitude and peace; then onward
circumstances will not alter his spiritual calmness and joyfulness."
From 1868 to 1908 ‘Abdu’l-Baha was a prisoner in Acca,
Palestine. His teachings of universal peace and brotherhood were too far in
advance of His time. But as He said, "Every morning when I awoke I praised
God there was another day to serve Him in His prison. Every night I thanked Him
that He had permitted me to serve His Kingdom one more day in His prison. I was
in a Turkish prison forty years but every day was a day of perfect joy."
''My happiness," He [‘Abdu’l-Baha] said, "comes
from the Kingdom of Abha! My joy is from the Delectable Paradise! My health is
gained through the rays of the sun of Reality. My spirituality descends from
the world of lights. My enkindling is obtained from the Fire of the Love of
God. My attraction is vouchsafed from the mainspring of all truths. My life is
maintained through the fraternization of all mankind, the progress of the Cause
of God and the unity of the friends.''
(Star of the West, vol. 13, no. 5, August 1922)
