MusicChoda bavaray jagakay dhanday / Choda day jagakay dhanday / Deep jala apanay andar ka / Toad sabhi maya kay phanday / Tera antar mera dera / Nirmala hoe to karun basera / Pawan banaa chetna apnee / Toe prakash dun banday / Choda day jagakay dhanday
[Free thyself from the fetters of this world... / Thou art My lamp and My light is in thee. / Get thou from it thy radiance... / Loose thy soul from the prison of self... / Thy heart is My home; sanctify it for My descent. / Thy spirit is My place of revelation; / cleanse it for My manifestation.]
(Ravi Shankar and Tom Price, Choda Bavaray [text from the Hidden Words of Bahá'u'lláh, No. 40 from the Persian and Nos. 11 & 59 from the Arabic])
Give up anger; renounce pride; transcend all worldly attachments.
The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility.
Fearlessness, singleness of soul, the will
Always to strive for wisdom; opened hand
And governed appetites; and piety,
And love of lonely study; humbleness,
Uprightness, heed to injure nought which lives,
Truthfulness, slowness unto wrath, a mind
That lightly letteth go what others prize;
And equanimity, and charity
Which spieth no man's faults; and tenderness
Towards all that suffer; a contented heart,
Fluttered by no desires; a bearing mild,
Modest, and grave, with manhood nobly mixed,
With patience, fortitude, and purity;
An unrevengeful spirit, never given
To rate itself too high;- such be the signs,
O Indian Prince! of him whose feet are set
On that fair path which leads to heavenly birth!
Man possesses two kinds of susceptibilities: the natural emotions, which are like dust upon the mirror, and spiritual susceptibilities, which are merciful and heavenly characteristics.
There is a power which purifies the mirror from dust and transforms its reflection into intense brilliancy and radiance so that spiritual susceptibilities may chasten the hearts and heavenly bestowals sanctify them. What is the dust which obscures the mirror? It is attachment to the world, avarice, envy, love of luxury and comfort, haughtiness and self-desire; this is the dust which prevents reflection of the rays of the Sun of Reality in the mirror. The natural emotions are blameworthy and are like rust which deprives the heart of the bounties of God. But sincerity, justice, humility, severance, and love for the believers of God will purify the mirror and make it radiant with reflected rays from the Sun of Truth.
For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
The work of the leader should ensure the prosperity of the populace. So it is said, "humility is the root of great nobility; the low forms a foundation for the great; and princes consider themselves to be of little worth". Each depends on humility therefore; it is of no advantage to have too much success, so do not sound loudly like jade bells, nor clatter like stone chimes.
Those who follow the natural way are different from others in three respects. They have great mercy and economy, and the courage not to compete. From mercy there comes courage; from economy, generosity; and from humility, willingness to lead from behind. It is the way of sickness to shun the merciful, and to acclaim only heroic deeds, to abandon economy, and to be selfish. They are sick, who are not humble, but try always to be first.
Through a want of humility Vena perished, likewise kind Nahusha, Sudas, the son of Pigavana, Sumukha, and Nemi. But by humility Prithu and Manu gained sovereignty, Kubera the position of the Lord of Wealth, and the son of Gadhi the rank of Brahmana.
The eighth of the good lands and countries which I, Ahura Mazda, created, was Urva of the rich pastures. Thereupon came Angra Mainyu, who is all death, and he counter-created the sin of pride.
The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts.
[T]ake up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say... Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the noise of thy viols: the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee. How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms;
And your Lord says: "Call on Me; I will answer your (Prayer): but those who are too arrogant to serve Me will surely find themselves in Hell - in humiliation!"
As to him who turneth aside, and swelleth with pride, after that the clear tokens have come unto him, from the Revealer of signs, his work shall God bring to naught.
MusicFecit potentiam in brachio suo, dispersit superbos mente cordis sui.
[He hath shewed strength with His arm; He hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.]
(J.S. Bach, Magnificat, Chorus, #7)
The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.
Humility exalteth man to the heaven of glory and power, whilst pride abaseth him to the depths of wretchedness and degradation.
Before destruction the heart of man is haughty, and before honour is humility.
Arise, O LORD; O God, lift up thine hand: forget not the humble.
O CHILDREN OF VAINGLORY!
For a fleeting sovereignty ye have abandoned My imperishable dominion, and have adorned yourselves with the gay livery of the world and made of it your boast. By My beauty! All will I gather beneath the one-colored covering of the dust and efface all these diverse colors save them that choose My own, and that is purging from every color.
O SON OF SPIRIT!
There is no peace for thee save by renouncing thyself and turning unto Me; for it behooveth thee to glory in My name, not in thine own; to put thy trust in Me and not in thyself, since I desire to be loved alone and above all that is.
O SON OF MAN!
Wert thou to speed through the immensity of space and traverse the expanse of heaven, yet thou wouldst find no rest save in submission to Our command and humbleness before Our Face.
But those who believe and work righteousness, and humble themselves before their Lord,- They will be companions of the gardens, to dwell therein for aye!
Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.
MusicDeposuit potentes de sede et exaltavit humiles.
[He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree.]
(J.S. Bach, Magnificat, Aria, #8)
He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
They who are the beloved of God, in whatever place they gather and whomsoever they may meet, must evince, in their attitude towards God, and in the manner of their celebration of His praise and glory, such humility and submissiveness that every atom of the dust beneath their feet may attest the depth of their devotion.
There is the "rightful" doer. He who acts
Free from self-seeking, humble, resolute,
Steadfast, in good or evil hap the same,
Content to do aright- he "truly" acts.
O CHILDREN OF MEN!
Know ye not why We created you all from the same dust? That no one should exalt himself over the other. Ponder at all times in your hearts how ye were created. Since We have created you all from one same substance it is incumbent on you to be even as one soul, to walk with the same feet, eat with the same mouth and dwell in the same land, that from your inmost being, by your deeds and actions, the signs of oneness and the essence of detachment may be made manifest. Such is My counsel to you, O concourse of light! Heed ye this counsel that ye may obtain the fruit of holiness from the tree of wondrous glory.
Therefore, all individuals present here must be in the attitude of perfect love and fellowship, manifesting the utmost humility and self-sacrifice...
Therefore, under no circumstances whatsoever should we assume any attitude except that of gentleness and humility.
Do this now, my son, and deliver thyself, when thou art come into the hand of thy friend; go, humble thyself, and make sure thy friend.
In accordance with the divine teachings in this glorious dispensation we should not belittle anyone and call him ignorant, saying: 'You know not, but I know'. Rather, we should look upon others with respect, and when attempting to explain and demonstrate, we should speak as if we are investigating the truth, saying: 'Here these things are before us. Let us investigate to determine where and in what form the truth can be found.' The teacher should not consider himself as learned and others ignorant. Such a thought breedeth pride, and pride is not conducive to influence. The teacher should not see in himself any superiority; he should speak with the utmost kindliness, lowliness and humility, for such speech exerteth influence and educateth the souls.
Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
Be unjust to no man, and show all meekness to all men.... Be... a fruit upon the tree of humility.
Act with honour, but retain humility. By acting according to the way of the Tao, set others an example.
By good deeds, pure lives, humility and meekness be a lesson for others.
How often the Prophets of God and His supreme Manifestations in Their prayers confess Their sins and faults! This is only to teach other men, to encourage and incite them to humility and meekness, and to induce them to confess their sins and faults. For these Holy Souls are pure from every sin and sanctified from faults. In the Gospel it is said that a man came to Christ and called Him "Good Master." Christ answered, "Why callest thou Me good? there is none good but One, that is, God."[Matt. 19:16-17] This did not mean--God forbid!--that Christ was a sinner; but the intention was to teach submission, humility, meekness and modesty to the man to whom He spoke.
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
MusicGroßer Herr, o starker König, / Liebster Heiland, o wie wenig / Achtest du der Erden Pracht!
Der die ganze Welt erhält, / Ihre Pracht und Zier ershaffen, / Muß in harten Krippen schlafen.[Great Lord and mighty King, / beloved Saviour, oh, how little / dost Thou esteem earthly pomp!
He who maintains the whole world, / and did create its ornament and splendour, / must sleep in a hard manger.](J.S. Bach, Christmas Oratorio, Aria, #8)
And there are, certainly, among the People of the Book, those who believe in God, in the revelation to you, and in the revelation to them, bowing in humility to God: They will not sell the Signs of God for a miserable gain! For them is a reward with their Lord, and God is swift in account.
Has not the Time arrived for the Believers that their hearts in all humility should engage in the remembrance of God and of the Truth which has been revealed (to them), and that they should not become like those to whom was given Revelation aforetime, but long ages passed over them and their hearts grew hard? For many among them are rebellious transgressors.
Before thee We sent (apostles) to many nations, and We afflicted the nations with suffering and adversity, that they might learn humility. When the suffering reached them from us, why then did they not learn humility? On the contrary their hearts became hardened, and Satan made their (sinful) acts seem alluring to them.
If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
Nay, seek (God's) help with patient perseverance and prayer: It is indeed hard, except to those who bring a lowly spirit...
[Prayers are] conducive to humility and submissiveness...
Call on your Lord with humility and in private: for God loveth not those who trespass beyond bounds.
And do thou (O reader!) Bring thy Lord to remembrance in thy (very) soul, with humility and in reverence, without loudness in words, in the mornings and evenings; and be not thou of those who are unheedful.
Whereupon the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves; and they said, The LORD is righteous. And when the LORD saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the LORD came to Shemaiah, saying, They have humbled themselves; therefore I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance; and my wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak.
And when he humbled himself, the wrath of the LORD turned from him, that he would not destroy him altogether: and also in Judah things went well.
But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.
A man's pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
MusicEv'ry valley shall be exalted, and ev'ry mountain and hill made low; the crooked straight and the rough places plain.
(Handel, Messiah, Air, #3 [text from Isaiah 40:3])
By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches, and honour, and life.
Great, therefore, is the blessedness of him who hath believed in Thee, and in Thy signs, and hath humbled himself before Thy sovereignty, and hath been honored with meeting Thee, and hath attained the good pleasure of Thy will, and circled around Thee, and stood before Thy throne.
Praise be to Thee, O my God, that Thou hast aided me to remember Thee and to praise Thee, and hast made known unto me Him Who is the Day-Spring of Thy signs, and hast caused me to bow down before Thy Lordship, and humble myself before Thy Godhead, and to acknowledge that which hath been uttered by the Tongue of Thy grandeur.
The noblest of nobles is humbled when faced with the manifestations of Thy glory, and the mightiest of potentates is a mere abject one when confronted with the compelling evidences of Thine authority.
Say: "Whether ye believe in it or not, it is true that those who were given knowledge beforehand, when it is recited to them, fall down on their faces in humble prostration, "And they say: 'Glory to our Lord! Truly has the promise of our Lord been fulfilled!'" They fall down on their faces in tears, and it increases their (earnest) humility.
And the servants of (God) Most Gracious are those who walk on the earth in humility, and when the ignorant address them, they say, "Peace!";
"Knowledge is a light which God casteth into the heart of whomsoever He willeth." It is this kind of knowledge which is and hath ever been praiseworthy, and not the limited knowledge that hath sprung forth from veiled and obscured minds. This limited knowledge they even stealthily borrow one from the other, and vainly pride themselves therein!
MusicBless'd be the Lord, who look'd with gracious eyes / Upon His vassals' humble sacrifice, / And has with an approving smile / My work o'erpaid, and grac'd the pile.
What though I trace each herb and flow'r, / That drink the morning dew, / Did I not own Jehovah's pow'r, / How vain were all I knew.
Say what's the rest but empty boast, / The pedant's idle claim, / Who having all the substance lost / Attempts to grasp a name.(Handel, Solomon, Act I, Scene 1)