We’ve been drawing on talks that ‘Abdu’l-Baha’ gave while in America to illustrate various themes highlighted in the “Introductory Essays” series.  One of the themes highlighted is the fundamental oneness of religion.  In essence, spiritual truth has been revealed to humanity as our capacity has grown, and thus every revelation of God- those that formed such religions as Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam…etc- are from the same Source and all fundamentally true. One of the metaphors frequently used to illustrate this is that the revelations of God are like the sun, which can appear differently each day depending on cloud cover and other factors, and may arise from different points on the horizon depending on the season, but it is always the same sun.  Humanity has failed to recognize the fundamental oneness of God’s revelations because we allow traditions and other temporal aspects to obscure our appreciation of the light that shines from that One Sun.  Those obscuring ideas are like clouds and fog that obscure our appreciation of the light of truth that comes from the Sun.  

This is a very powerful metaphor and it is used in many different ways in the Revelation of Baha’u’llah.  Just as humans and all life depends on the Sun for its material sustenance, humans depend on the revelations of God for their spiritual sustenance.  

In this short talk below, ‘Abdu’l-Baha’ enlarges on these themes. Enjoy!

This morning the city is enveloped in fog and mist. How beautiful is a city brilliant with sunshine. Just as these mists and vapors conceal the phenomenal sun, so human imaginations obscure the Sun of Truth. Consider the radiant glory of the great solar center of our planetary system: how wonderful the sight, how its splendor illumines vision until clouds and mists veil it from the eye. In the same way, the Sun of Truth becomes veiled and hidden by the superstitions and imaginations of human minds. When the sun rises, no matter from what dawning point on the horizon it appears—northeast, east, southeast—the haze and mists disperse, and we have clear vision of its glory mounting to the zenith. Similarly, the nations have been directed to the dawning points of the Sun of Reality, each to a particular rising place from which the light of religion has become manifest; but after a time the dawning point has become the object of worship instead of the Sun itself, which is ever one Sun and stationary in the heavens of the divine Will. Differences have arisen because of this, causing clouds and darkness to overshadow again the glorious luminary of Reality. When the mists and darkness of superstition and prejudice are dispersed, all will see the Sun aright and alike. Then will all nations become as one in its radiance.

Inasmuch as these clouds and human vapors of superstition hide the light of the spiritual Sun, we must put forth our utmost endeavor to dispel them. May we unite in this and be enlightened to accomplish it, for the Sun is one and its radiance and bounty universal. All the inhabitants of earth are recipients of the bounty of the one phenomenal sun, and none are preferred above others; so, likewise, all receive the heavenly bestowals of the Word of God; none are specialized as favorites; all are under its protection and universal effulgence. Human strife and religious disagreement complex and disfigure the simple purity and beauty of the divine Cause until clouds obscure the light of reality and disunion results. Therefore, make use of intelligence and reason so that you may dispel these dense clouds from the horizon of human hearts and all hold to the one reality of all the Prophets. It is most certain that if human souls exercise their respective reason and intelligence upon the divine questions, the power of God will dispel every difficulty, and the eternal realities will appear as one light, one truth, one love, one God and a peace that is universal.