of riches shall descend upon thee. Be thou not afraid of humiliation, for exaltation some day shall be thy portion.

O Son of Existence! If thou lovest this Everlasting and Eternal Kingdom, and this Ancient and Everlasting Life, thou shalt abandon this mortal and temporal kingdom.

O Son of Existence! Do not occupy thyself with this world, for with fire We try the gold, and with gold We test the creatures.

O Son of Man! Thou desirest the gold and We desire thy separation from it. Thou hast known the riches of thyself in obtaining it, and I have known that thy richness is to purify thyself from it. By My Life! This is My Knowledge and that is thine imagination : How can My Thought agree

with thine?

O Son of Man! Distribute the money that I gave thee, upon My poor, that thou may'st distribute in Heaven from treasures of Exaltation which have no end, and from stores of Glory which cannot be destroyed: But, by My Life, the sacrifice of thy life is more glorious, couldst thou see with Mine Eye.

O Son of Humanity! The temple of Existence is My Throne: Cleanse it from everything, that I may occupy and be seated upon it.

O Son of Existence! Thy heart is My Residence: Sanctify it that I may descend into it. Thy soul is My Appearance: Purify it that I may be manifested in it.

O Son of Man! Put thy hand into My Pocket,

(trust in Me) that I may raise My Head from above thy pocket, (thy heart) shining with brilliancy.

O Son of Man! Ascend to My Heaven that thou may'st attain nearness to Me, and drink from everlasting Cups of Glory, pure wine which has no likeness.

O Son of Man! Many days have passed away in which thou hast occupied thyself with what thou desirest of superstitions and imaginations: How long wilt thou remain asleep upon thy bed? Lift up thy head from slumber, for the Sun has arisen and reached the Zenith, that He may shine upon thee with the Lights of Beauty.

O Son of Man! The Light has shone upon thee from the horizon of the Mount, and the Spirit of Holiness breathed in the Sinai of thy heart: Therefore cleanse thyself from obstacles and imaginations; then enter into the Court, that thou may'st be fitted for the Everlasting Life and prepared to meet Me; that no death, no trouble and no exhaustion can befall thee.

O Son of Man! My Eternity is My Creation and I have created it for thee; therefore make it as a garment to thy temple. My Oneness is My Invention and I have invented it for thee; therefore clothe thy soul with it, that thou may'st be the Dawning-star of My Unity, forever.

O Son of Man! My Greatness is My Gift to thee, and My Pride is My Mercy upon thee, but that which is due to Myself, no one can comprehend and no soul can realize! I have stored it in the treasures of My Secret and in the stores of My

Command, as a favor upon My Worshipers and a Mercy to My Creatures.

O Children of the Unknown God! You shall be prevented from loving Me, and your souls shall be disturbed when I am mentioned, for your minds cannot endure Me, and your hearts cannot inclose Me.

O Son of Beauty! By Myself and My Providence, and by My Mercy and My Beauty, everything of texts that has descended to thee from the Tongue of Might, which I have written with the Pen of Strength, We have intended to fit thy position and thy condition, rather than My Supreme Attitude and State.

O Children of Man! Do you know why We created you from one clay? That no one should glorify himself over the other. Always be mindful of how you were created, for as We created you from one substance, you must be as one soul, walking upon the same feet, eating with one mouth and living in one land; that you may be able to show from your being and your deeds and actions, the signs of the Unity and the essences of abstraction. This is My Advice to you, O people of Light; therefore profit by this advice, that you may attain the fruits of Holiness from the Trees of Might and Power.

O Children of the Spirit! You are My Treasures, for in you I treasured the Pearls of My Secrets and the gems of My Understanding; therefore preserve them. Otherwise some of the unbelievers of My people and the wicked ones of My creatures will discover them.

O Son of Him Who Stands by His Own Identity in the Kingdom of Himself. Know that I have sent to thee all the Fragrance of Holiness and have accomplished in thee the Utterance, and have perfected the Grace by thee, and I have willed for thee what I have willed for Myself; therefore dwell in Me and be grateful to Me.

O Son of Man! Write all our Utterances to thee with the Substance of Light upon the tablets of the soul; and if thou canst not, make the Substance out of the essence of the heart, and if impossible to do so, then write them with the ink of blood shed in My Cause. It is dearer to Me than all else, for its Light shines forever.

CHAPTER XXXI.

LETTERS OF INVITATION SENT TO THE RULERS OF THE EARTH.

Beha 'U'llah sent the following letters to the great people of the earth, summoning them to come to the banquet of His Kingdom and partake of its spiritual food, "eat and drink with the elect." No one of them came; and the prophecies, foretold by Christ and Enoch, were fulfilled. These letters are translated by Prof. E. G. Browne of the University of Cambridge, England.

LETTER TO THE POPE.

"O Pope! rend asunder the veils! The Lord of Lords hath come in the shadow of clouds, and the matter hath been decided on the part of God, the Powerful, the Unconstrained. Disclose the (divine) splendours (?) by the authority of thy Lord; then ascend into the Kingdom of Names and Attributes: thus doth the Supreme Pen command thee on the part of thy Lord, the Mighty, the Controller. Verily He hath come from heaven another time, as He came from it the first time: beware lest ye oppose Him as the Pharisees opposed Him without evidence or proof. On His right side floweth the River of Grace, and on His left side