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Tablets of Abdul-Baha Abbas

  • Author:
  • ‘Abdu’l-Bahá

  • Source:
  • Bahá’í Publishing Committee, 1909 edition
  • Pages:
  • 730
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Pages 609-610

“O thou who art attracted to the Fragrances of God!…”

O thou who art attracted to the Fragrances of God!
As to thy question, “If the husband preventeth his wife from entering into the Light, or the wife preventeth the husband from entering into the Kingdom of God:“ In reality neither one of them preventeth the other from entering into the Kingdom of God, except when the husband hath a great attachment to the wife, or the wife to the husband. When either one of the two adoreth the other to the exclusion of God, then each will prevent the other from entering into the Kingdom of God.
As to thy question concerning the additions to the Old and New Testament: Know thou, verily, as people could not understand the words, nor could they apprehend the realities therein, therefore they have translated them according to their own understanding and interpreted the verses after their own ideas and thus the text fell into confusion. This is undoubtedly true. As to an intentional addition: This is something uncertain. But they have made great mistakes as to the understanding of the texts and the comprehending of the references and have therefore fallen into doubts, especially in regard to the symbolical verses.
As to thy question, “That Abdul-Baha hath said to some of the believers that evil never exists, nay rather, it is a non-existent thing:“ This is but truth, inasmuch as the greatest evil is (man’s) going astray and being 610 veiled from Truth. Error is lack of guidance; darkness is absence of light; ignorance is lack of knowledge; falsehood is lack of truthfulness; blindness is lack of sight; and deafness is lack of hearing. Therefore, error, blindness, deafness and ignorance are non-existent things. If we say that according to the text of the bible, “God hardened Pharaoh’s heart” that he not believe in Moses, this signifies that, verily, He did not soften his heart. And when we wish to say that God hath not guided a certain one of His servants, this would be interpreted (by people) that God led him astray. The darkness spoken of in the Bible as being created by God, signifieth that, verily, God hath not caused light to shine; inasmuch as where there is no light, there will be darkness; when there is no sight, there will be blindness; when there is no life, there ill be death; when there is no riches, there will be poverty; and when there is no knowledge, there will be ignorance.
Consequently, it is proven by indisputable argument and clear explanation that, verily, evils are non-existent, but people have not understood the meaning of the verses of the Bible.
I beg of God to make thee a faithful servant in His great vineyard, enable thee to speak His praise, to diffuse His fragrances, to chant His verses and to herald His name at every moment.