A new version of the Bahá’í Reference Library is now available. This ‘old version’ of the Bahá’í Reference Library will be replaced at a later date.
The new version of the Bahá’i Reference Library can be accessed here »
A new version of the Bahá’í Reference Library is now available. This ‘old version’ of the Bahá’í Reference Library will be replaced at a later date.
The new version of the Bahá’i Reference Library can be accessed here »
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Napoleon III |
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For what thou has done, thy kingdom shall be thrown
into confusion, and thine empire shall pass from thine
hands, as a punishment for that which thou has wrought.
Then wilt thou know how thou has plainly erred. Commotions
shall seize all the people in that land, unless thou
arisest to held this Cause, and followest Him Who is the
Spirit of God (Jesus Christ) in this, the Straight Path. Hath
thy pomp made thee proud? By My Life! It shall not endure;
nay, it shall soon pass away, unless thou holdest fast
by this firm Cord. We see abasement hastening after thee,
whilst thou art of the heedless.
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Needless to say, Napoleon, who was then at the zenith of his
power, paid no heed to this warning. In the following year he
went to war with Prussia, firmly convinced that his troops
could easily gain Berlin; but the tragedy foretold by Bahá’u’lláh
overwhelmed him. He was defeated at Saarbruck, at Weisenburg,
at Metz, and finally in the crushing catastrophe at
Sedan. He was then carried prisoner to Prussia, and came to a
miserable end in England two years later.
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Germany
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Bahá’u’lláh later gave an equally solemn warning to the
conquerors of Napoleon, which also fell on deaf ears and received
a terrible fulfillment. In the Book of Aqdas, which was
begun in Adrianople, and finished in the early years of
Bahá’u’lláh’s imprisonment in ‘Akká, He addressed the Emperor
of Germany as follows:—
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O King of Berlin! … Do thou remember the one
whose power transcended thy power (Napoleon III)
and whose station excelled thy station. Where is he?
Whither are gone the things he possessed? Take warning,
and be not of them that are fast asleep. He it was who
cast the Tablet of God behind him, when We made
known unto him what the hosts of tyranny had caused
Us to suffer. Wherefore, disgrace assailed him from all
sides, and he went down to dust in great loss. Think
deeply, O King, concerning him, and concerning them
who, like unto thee, have conquered cities and ruled over
men. The All-Merciful brought them down from their
palaces to their graves. Be warned, be of them who reflect.
…
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During the period of German successes in the Great War of
1914–1918, and especially during the last great German offensive
in the spring of 1918, this well-known prophecy was
extensively quoted by the opponents of the Bahá’í Faith in
Persia, in order to discredit Bahá’u’lláh; but when the forward
sweep of the victorious Germans was suddenly transformed
into crushing, overwhelming disaster, the efforts of these enemies
of the Bahá’í Cause recoiled on themselves, and the notoriety
which they had given to the prophecy became a powerful
means of enhancing the reputation of Bahá’u’lláh.
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Persia
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Let nothing grieve thee, O Land of Tá (Ṭihrán), for
God hath chosen thee to be the source of the joy of all
mankind. He shall, if it be His will, bless thy throne with
one who will rule with justice, who will gather together
the flock of God which the wolves have scattered. Such a
ruler will, with joy and gladness, turn his face towards,
and extend his favors unto, the people of Bahá. He indeed
is accounted in the sight of God as a jewel among
men. Upon him rest forever the glory of God, and the
glory of all that dwell in the kingdom of His Revelation. Rejoice with great joy, for God hath made thee “the Day Spring of His light,” inasmuch as within thee was born the Manifestation of His Glory. Be thou glad for this name that hath been conferred upon thee—a name through which the Day Star of Grace hath shed its splendor, through which both earth and heaven have been illumined. Ere long will the state of affairs within thee be changed, and the reins of power fall into the hands of the people. Verily, thy Lord is the All-Knowing. His authority embraceth all things. Rest thou assured in the gracious favor of thy Lord. The eye of His loving-kindness shall everlastingly be directed towards thee. The day is approaching when thy agitation will have been transmuted into peace and quiet calm. Thus hath it been decreed in the wondrous Book.—Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, pp. 110–111. |
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So far, Persia has only begun to emerge from the period of
confusion foretold by Bahá’u’lláh, but already constitutional
government has been started, and signs are not lacking that a
brighter era is at hand.
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Turkey
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O thou who considerest thyself the greatest of all men
… erelong thy name shall be forgotten and thou shalt
find thyself in great loss. According to thy opinion, this
Quickener of the world and its Peacemaker is culpable
and seditious. What crime have the women, children and
suffering babes committed to merit thy wrath, oppression
and hate? You have persecuted a number of souls who
have shown no opposition in your country, and who have
instigated no revolution against the government; nay,
rather, by day and by night they have been peacefully engaged
in the mentioning of God. You have pillaged their
properties, and through your tyrannical acts, all that they
had was taken from them. … Before God, a handful of
dust is greater than your kingdom, glory, sovereignty and
dominion, and should He desire, He would scatter you as
the sand of the desert. Erelong His wrath shall overtake
you, revolutions shall appear in your midst and your
countries will be divided! Then you will weep and lament
and nowhere will you find help and protection. … Be
ye watchful, for the wrath of God is prepared, and erelong
you shall behold that which is written by the Pen of
Command.
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Thou hast, O Chief, committed that which hath made
Muḥammad, the Apostle of God, groan in the Most Exalted
Paradise. The world hath made thee proud, so much
so that thou hast turned away from the Face through
Whose brightness the Concourse on high hath been illumined.
Soon thou shalt find thyself in evident loss. Thou
didst unite with the Ruler of Persia for doing Me harm,
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although I had come to you from the Dawning-place of
the Almighty, the Great, with a Cause which refreshed
the eyes of the favored ones of God. …
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Didst thou think that thou could put out the fire
which God hath enkindled in the Universe? No! I declare
by His True Soul, wert thou of those who understand.
More than that, by what thou hast done its blaze and
flame have been increased. Soon it will encompass the
world and its inhabitants. … The day is approaching
when the Land of Mystery (Adrianople) and what is beside
it shall be changed, and shall pass out of the hands of the
King, and commotions shall appear, and the voice of
lamentation shall be raised, and the evidences of mischief
shall be revealed on all sides, and confusion shall spread
by reason of that which hath befallen these captives
[Bahá’u’lláh and His companions] at the hands of the hosts
of oppression. The course of things shall be altered, and
conditions shall wax so grievous, that the very sand on the
desolate hills will moan, and the trees on the mountain
will weep, and blood will flow out of all things. Then wilt
thou behold the people in sore distress. … Thus hath the matter been decreed on the part of the Designer, the Wise, Whose command the hosts of heaven and earth could not withstand, nor could all the kings and rulers withhold Him from that which He willeth. Calamities are the oil for this Lamp, and through them its Light increaseth, were ye of those who know! All oppositions displayed by the oppressors are indeed as heralds to this Faith, and by them the appearance of God and His Cause have become widely spread among the people of the world. |
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O Spot [Constantinople] that art situate on the shores
of the two seas! The throne of tyranny hath, verily,
been established upon thee, and the flame of hatred hath
been kindled within thy bosom, in such wise that the
Concourse on high and they who circle around the Exalted
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Throne have wailed and lamented. We behold in thee
the foolish ruling over the wise, and darkness vaunting itself
against the light. Thou art indeed filled with manifest pride.
Hath thine outward splendor made thee vainglorious? By
Him Who is the Lord of mankind! It shall soon perish, and
thy daughters and thy widows and all the kindreds that dwell
within thee shall lament. Thus informeth thee the All-Knowing,
the All-Wise.
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