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39: THE HUMAN CONDITION AND THE SPIRITUAL CONDITION OF THE DIVINE MANIFESTATIONS 154 |
We said that the Manifestations have three planes. First,
the physical reality, which depends upon the body; second,
the individual reality, that is to say, the rational soul;
third, the divine appearance, which is the divine perfections,
the cause of the life of existence, of the education of
souls, of the guidance of people, and of the enlightenment
of the contingent world.
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But the individual reality of the Manifestations of God
is a holy reality, and for that reason it is sanctified and, in
that which concerns its nature and quality, is distinguished
from all other things. It is like the sun, which by
its essential nature produces light and cannot be compared
to the moon, just as the particles that compose the globe of
the sun cannot be compared with those which compose
the moon. The particles and organization of the former
produce rays, but the particles of which the moon is composed
do not produce rays but need to borrow light. So
other human realities are those souls who, like the moon,
take light from the sun; but that Holy Reality is luminous
in Himself.
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The third plane of that Being
1
is the Divine Bounty, the
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splendor of the Preexistent Beauty, and the radiance of the
light of the Almighty. The individual realities of the Divine
Manifestations have no separation from the Bounty of
God and the Lordly Splendor. In the same way, the orb of
the sun has no separation from the light. Therefore, it may
be said that the ascension of the Holy Manifestation is
simply the leaving of this elemental form. For example, if
a lamp illumines this niche, and if its light ceases to illuminate
it because the niche is destroyed, the bounty of the
lamp is not cut off. Briefly, in the Holy Manifestations the
Preexistent Bounty is like the light, the individuality is
represented by the glass globe, and the human body is like
the niche: if the niche is destroyed, the lamp continues to
burn. The Divine Manifestations are so many different
mirrors because They have a special individuality, but
that which is reflected in the mirrors is one sun. It is clear
that the reality of Christ is different from that of Moses.
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Verily, from the beginning that Holy Reality
2
is conscious
of the secret of existence, and from the age of childhood
signs of greatness appear and are visible in Him.
Therefore, how can it be that with all these bounties and
perfections He should have no consciousness?
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We have mentioned that the Holy Manifestations have
three planes. The physical condition, the individual
reality, and the center of the appearance of perfection: it is
like the sun, its heat and its light. Other individuals have
the physical plane, the plane of the rational soul—the
spirit and mind.
3
So the saying, “I was asleep, and the divine
breezes passed over Me, and I awoke,” is like Christ’s
saying, “The body is sad, and the spirit is happy,” or
again, “I am afflicted,” or “I am at ease,” or “I am
troubled”—these refer to the physical condition and have
no reference to the individual reality nor to the manifestation
of the Divine Reality. Thus consider what thousands
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of vicissitudes can happen to the body of man, but the
spirit is not affected by them; it may even be that some
members of the body are entirely crippled, but the essence
of the mind remains and is everlasting. A thousand accidents
may happen to a garment, but for the wearer of it
there is no danger. These words which Bahá’u’lláh said, “I
was asleep, and the breeze passed over Me, and awakened
Me,” refer to the body.
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In the world of God there is no past, no future and no
present; all are one. So when Christ said, “In the beginning
was the Word”
4
—that means it was, is and shall be;
for in the world of God there is no time. Time has sway
over creatures but not over God. For example, in the
prayer He says, “Hallowed be Thy name”; the meaning is
that Thy name was, is and shall be hallowed.
5
Morning,
noon and evening are related to this earth, but in the sun
there is neither morning, noon nor evening.
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1. | The Manifestation. [ Back To Reference] |
2. | The Manifestation. [ Back To Reference] |
3. | Cf. “Soul, Spirit and Mind,” p. 208. [ Back To Reference] |
4. | Cf. John 1:1. [ Back To Reference] |
5. | Matt. 6:9; Luke 11:2. [ Back To Reference] |