THE MONTH OF GLORY, JALÁL

The Bahá'í calendar Month of Jalál (Glory) is the 19 day period beginning April 9.

“Whoso hath searched the depths of the oceans that lie hid within these exalted words, and fathomed their import, can be said to have discovered a glimmer of the unspeakable glory with which this mighty, this sublime, and most holy Revelation hath been endowed. From the excellence of so great a Revelation the honor with which its faithful followers must needs be invested can be well imagined. By the righteousness of the one true God! The very breath of these souls is in itself richer than all the treasures of the earth. Happy is the man that hath attained thereunto, and woe betide the heedless.”

-- Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 10

The word glory and its derivatives is very familiar. We speak of wonderful events in our lives as glorious; we view a beautiful sunset as being glorious; we sing of the coming of the Lord as something steeped in glory. Materially, an increase in wages and what it can do for us and our families is another glorious event. Many things in this life are considered glorious, and most of them have to do with something tangible or material. 

In spite of our lofty and euphoric welcoming of anything considered glorious, the world of humanity needs a change of perspective in order to explore the depths of true glory; an attainment of spiritual capacities based upon qualities in the next world and their relationships to this life. When the Holy books speak of glory they point not toward material rewards or goodness, rather they are trying to educate us into the higher planes of spiritual thought that true glory demands of us.

A glimmer of the unspeakable glory of this most holy Revelation, according to the above paragraph, may be accorded those who have searched within the depths of its words, and fathomed its import. And that is not an easy matter to grasp. First of all, we need to get beyond the shackles of this material world and the life we see around us every day. This is not to say that everything in this life is evil or will keep us from a greater spiritual understanding; no, we must understand that there is a glory to be found here in material matters, and a spiritual glory that may only be found in the context of the world beyond. It is only when we have discovered a glimmer of the wonders of the spiritual realm that we may begin to reflect some of its goodness to our everyday dealings in this world.

The heart that begins to reflect a glimmer of God’s glory may endow its owner with the capacity to share a more abundant love and goodness with others in his daily activities.

Can you imagine a physical world in which all relationships are based within the bounds of regarding ones-self less than any other? And beyond that, the doing unto others as we would have them do unto ourselves would kindle a change the world has never seen. The holy Writings have from time immemorial talked of the day when God’s Kingdom would manifest on earth. Does that mean that suddenly God’s Kingdom will manifest within the blink of an eye and will present a perfectly formed environment for humans to partake of with no effort on their part?

No, it does not. Various holy Messengers have appeared over the course of recorded history, all the while giving humans an ever-expanding capability to better live out their lives on this Planet. Humans have advanced materially far beyond the days of the cave men, but, sadly have not yet learned to live with peace and harmony among themselves. Increasing bloodshed and destruction of societies demonstrates that humans need to alter their ways and look toward God’s love for some direction in correcting that situation.

Bahá'u'lláh’s Message built upon and expanded all previous God-related knowledge in order to enable humans to increase their spirituality, and then reflect that goodness toward their fellow humans. God’s Messengers are just that; Messengers. The Message does not automatically cause changes in human hearts. Thoughtful acceptance of the Message, and a willingness to spread the love of God in the world, will allow miracles to happen.

The beauty of this is that we do not have to start with the world. All that is required is for us to be willing to ponder God’s glory and allow that knowledge to permeate our actions in our own neighborhood. What better place to start? Each of us must realize that the “doers” in this enterprise are the seven billion souls residing here, and that includes you and me. It can only happen through the perusal of the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh and the subsequent removal of the veils from the faces of our hearts.

At that time God’s glory will begin to permeate our nature, and in turn will begin to transform our daily activities with a radiant love for all whom we encounter.

Hand of the Cause of God David Maxwell