The Mathlum (Wronged One)
I. “Adorn yourself with My Character, in such wise that should anyone treat you unjustly you would take no heed of him, nor oppose him. Leave him to the judgment of your Lord, the Powerful, Omnipotent and Self-Subsisting. Be at all times a “Wronged One,”(al-mathlum: ‘wronged one’/‘oppressed one’) for this is one of My Attributes, though none but the sincere are aware of it. Verily, the sighs of patience uttered by one wronged (al-Mathlum) are more precious to God than any other deed, did you but know. Therefore, be patient in the face of whatever befalls you, and set your trust in your Lord God in all your affairs. He, verily, suffices you against all the harm that any created thing can wreak toward you, and preserves you in the shelter of His Cause and the mighty fortress of His guardianship. There is no God but Him. His are the worlds of creation and command (alam-i-khalq va amr) and all seek His aid. Should anyone slander you, you must not retaliate against him in kind lest you become as he is. Turn aside from him and set your face toward the Holy Tabernacle in this exalted and sacred Canopy. Be among men as a sweet-scented knoll, that the fragrance of sanctity may be wafted among them. In such wise, you might succeed in attracting them to the court of the Holy and Beloved One. Should you find a helper among the friends of God, seek his company at eventide and dawn, throughout the months and years. In all matters, emulate God, your Succorer. Walk among men with His dignity and peace, and teach them the Cause of their Lord to the extent that they are able to hear it.” (Baha’u’llah, Suriyi-i-Damm)
II. “This ‘oppression’ is the essential feature of every Revelation. Unless it cometh to pass, the Sun of Truth will not be made manifest. For the break of the morn of divine guidance must needs follow the darkness of the night of error.” (Baha’u’llah, Iqan, p. 31)
III. “All who stand up in the cause of God will be persecuted and misunderstood. It hath ever been so, and will ever be. Let neither enemy nor friend disturb your composure, destroy your happiness, deter your accomplishment. Rely wholly upon God. Then will persecution and slander make you the more radiant. The designs of your enemies will rebound upon them. They, not you, will suffer. A large multitude of people will arise against you, showing oppression, expressing contumely and derision, shunning your society, and heaping upon you ridicule. However, the Heavenly Father will illumine you to such an extent that, like unto the rays of the sun, you shall scatter the dark clouds of superstition, shine gloriously in the midst of Heaven and illumine the face of the earth. You must make firm the feet at the time when these trials transpire, and demonstrate forbearance and patience. “Oppression is the wind that doth fan the fire of the Love of God. Welcome persecution and bitterness. A soldier may bear arms, but until he hath faced the enemy in battle he hath not earned his place in the king’s army. Let nothing defeat you. God is your helper. God is invincible. Be firm in the Heavenly Covenant. Pray for strength. It will be given to you, no matter how difficult the conditions.” (‘Abdu’l-Baha, Crisis and Victory)
IV.“Verily, we wronged them not, but they have wronged themselves!” (W&T, p. 9)
V. “There are three processes in teaching: the first is to attract the people; the second is to convert the people; and the third is to be consecrated. There must be attraction, conversion, and consecration. The teachers must not be unwise.” (Shoghi Effendi, Memories of ‘Abdu’l-Baha: Recollections of the Early Days of the Baha’is of California, p. 115) 2
VI. “The friends must realize the Power of the Holy Spirit which is manifest and quickening them at this time through the appearance of Baha’u’llah. There is no force of heaven or earth which can affect them if they place themselves wholly under the influence of the Holy Spirit and under its guidance. Such individuals who are subject to the negative influences of the world are those who are not properly consecrated in the Faith.” (Shoghi Effendi, August 11, 1957) “Not by the force of numbers, not by the mere exposition of a set of new and noble principles, not by an organized campaign of teaching–no matter how worldwide and elaborate in its character–not even by the staunchness of our faith or the exaltation of our enthusiasm, can we ultimately hope to vindicate in the eyes of a critical and skeptical age the supreme claim of the Abha Revelation. One thing and only one thing will unfailingly and alone secure the undoubted triumph of this sacred Cause, namely, the extent to which our own inner life and private character mirror forth in their manifold aspects the splendor of those eternal principles proclaimed by Baha’u’llah.” (Shoghi Effendi, Baha’i Administration, p. 196)
VII. Does the soul progress more through sorrow or through the joy in this world?’
‘Abdu’l-Baha.—‘The mind and spirit of man advance when he is tried by suffering. The more the ground is ploughed the better the seed will grow, the better the harvest will be. Just as the plough furrows the earth deeply, purifying it of weeds and thistles, so suffering and tribulation free man from the petty affairs of this worldly life until he arrives at a state of complete detachment. His attitude in this world will be that of divine happiness. Man is, so to speak, unripe: the heat of the fire of suffering will mature him. Look back to the times past and you will find that the greatest men have suffered most.’
‘He who through suffering has attained development, should he fear happiness?’
‘Abdu’l-Baha.—‘Through suffering he will attain to an eternal happiness which nothing can take from him. The apostles of Christ suffered: they attained eternal happiness.’
‘Then it is impossible to attain happiness without suffering?’
‘Abdu’l-Baha.—‘To attain eternal happiness one must suffer. He who has reached the state of self-sacrifice has true joy. Temporal joy will vanish.’
VIII. When ‘Abdu’r-Rahman Pasha received the note from the Sublime Porte condemning the exiles to imprisonment, it boosted his arrogance. He decided to use it as a means of extracting some money for himself… Having failed to do this, one evening he called on Shaykh ‘Aliy-i-Miri, the Mufti of ‘Akka who was an admirer of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, and shared with him his plan of arresting the Baha’is in the morning. His plan was to arrest them as they came to open their shops and send them to prison. He also planned to restrict ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s freedom of movement in the city. He solicited the support of the Mufti in this plan… That same night the Mufti went to ‘Abdu’l-Baha, told him the news and strongly urged the Master to bribe the Governor, as otherwise everyone would be arrested in the morning. Disapproving the Mufti’s solution, ‘Abdu’l-Baha assured him that God was compassionate and merciful, and that He would leave this matter in the hand of God. He advised him to go home and to rest assured of the outcome. It was late and Baha’u’llah had just retired. Nevertheless, ‘Abdu’l-Baha went to Him and gave Him the news. Baha’u’llah ordered that the believers be advised not to go to work in the morning. Everyone was informed and they all assembled in the reception room of ‘Abdu’l-Baha in the morning. 3 I was, at the time, confined to prison… but each morning was permitted to go to the house of Baha’u’llah where I worked as a cook and at night I returned to prison. On that morning, on my way, I noticed that the shop of Aqa Muhammad-Ibrahim, the coppersmith, was closed and so were other shops belonging to the believers. I was very surprised and wondered what had happened. I hastened to the house of Baha’u’llah where I found all the shopkeepers assembled in the reception room. I was told the news and went into the kitchen to work. It was approximately two hours after sunrise when a man pushed aside the curtain in front of the door with his walking stick. I looked up and it was Iskandar Effendi, the head of the telegraph office. He was in great haste but signs of joy could be detected in his appearance. He wanted to see the Master who was upstairs at the time. I went up and found that He was in the presence of Baha’u’llah. I told the Master that Iskandar Effendi had come to see Him and he was in a happy mood. The Blessed Beauty smiled and said [to ‘Abdu’l-Baha] ‘Go downstairs, Aqa! He has good news. No one can frustrate God in His purpose.’ ‘Abdu’l-Baha went to the reception room where He was shown a telegram just received containing the order of dismissal of ‘Abdu’r-Rahman Pasha. After a few minutes He went hurriedly upstairs. Halfway up, I asked Him if he could tell me the news. He smiled and said in a loud voice, ‘God has struck a severe blow at the Pasha.’ He then went to convey the news to Baha’u’llah. As to ‘Abdu’r-Rahman Pasha, in the morning, accompanied by a few soldiers, he went to arrest the believers at their shops and send them to prison. To his surprise he found the shops were closed. At first he thought the late opening was perhaps due to the month of Ramadan when people were going late to work. Soon after, he went to the Police Station where he waited for the shops to open up. During this time he was unaware of God’s intervention… The above telegram was addressed to Shaykh ‘Aliy-i-Miri, the Mufti of ‘Akka, who communicated its content to the Pasha… The Mufti had been truly astonished by this event. For it was late in the evening when the Governor’s scheme had come to light, and in the morning the telegram arrived. He considered this incident to have been a miracle. He said to the Master, ‘I am almost on the verge of losing my mind over this episode. Please tell me, what did Baha’u’llah say late that evening when you informed Him of the plot?’‘Abdu’l-Baha responded by saying that the Blessed Beauty ordered the believers not to open their shops in the morning and advised them to leave their affairs in the hand of God Baha’u’llah also declared that when a person leaves his affairs to God, he ought not to take any other measures himself, otherwise he could frustrate the plan of God. (The Revelation of Baha’u’llah, Vol. III, pp. 411-412)
IX. O God! Refresh and gladden my spirit. Purify my heart. Illumine my powers. I lay all my affairs in Thy hand. Thou art my Guide and my Refuge. I will no longer be sorrowful and grieved; I will be a happy and joyful being. O God! I will no longer be full of anxiety, nor will I let trouble harass me. I will not dwell on the unpleasant things of life. O God! Thou art more friend to me than I am to myself. I dedicate myself to Thee, O Lord.