Ya Bahá'u'l Abhá

Bahá’u’lláh has educated thousands of souls who, while under the menace of the sword, raised to the highest heaven the cry of "Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá"; and in the fire of tests, their faces became illuminated like gold.

Know thou that hardship and privation shall increase day by day, and the people shall thereby be afflicted. The doors of joy and happiness shall be closed on all sides, and terrible wars shall occur. Frustration and despair shall encompass the people until they are forced to turn to the One True God. Then will the light of most joyful tidings so illumine the horizons that the cry of 'Yá Bahá’u’l Bahá' will be raised from every direction. This shall come to pass.

O that I could travel, even though on foot and in the utmost poverty, to these regions, and, raising the call of "Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá" in cities, villages, mountains, deserts and oceans, promote the divine teachings! This, alas, I cannot do. How intensely I deplore it! Please God, ye may achieve it.

O ye beloved friends of God and handmaids of the Merciful! Call ye to mind the blessed Name of our peerless Beloved, the Abhá Beauty, in an uplifting spirit of unbounded ecstasy and delight, then unloose your tongues in His praise in such wise that the realm of the heart may be purged from the woes and sorrows of the world of water and clay, that the great heights of spiritual perception may be unveiled before your eyes, that the glorious signs of His Divine Unity may shine resplendent, a fresh outpouring of His grace may stream forth, and a liberal effusion of celestial confirmations may be vouchsafed unto you. His Name is indeed the healing medicine for every illness, and imparteth warmth unto those starving with cold. It is the sovereign remedy and the supreme talisman. It is the source of life in both worlds, and of salvation unto such as have gone astray. Today this hallowed Name serveth as a shield for all mankind, and as a veritable refuge for the children of men. It is the wondrous accent of the Lord of Mercy, and His celestial melody. Wherefore, O faithful friends, raise ye the triumphal cry of Ya Bahá'u'l-Abhá! O ye who yearn after the Beauty of the Almighty! Lift up your faces toward the Supreme Horizon. Rest not, even for a moment. Breathe not a single breath save in remembrance of His love and in recognition of His grace, in the promulgation of His Utterances and the vindication of His Testimonies. Verily, this is the Magnet of divine confirmations. This is the mighty Force which will surely attract heavenly assistance.

Praise be to God, in Paris certain souls have appeared, precious companions! The Cause of God hath given new life to a decaying body, and the divine teachings have been established. I fain would hope that in this centre of materialists, the people of God will flourish and be victorious, that the divine foundation may be laid down, and that the standard of "Yá Bahá'u'l- Bahá" may be unfurled.

Praise be to Him! The renown of His Cause hath reached to east and west, and word of the power of the Bahá Beauty hath quickened north and south. That cry from the American continent is a choir of holiness, that shout from far and near that riseth even to the Company on high is "Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá!" Now is the east lit up with a glory, and the west rose-sweet, and all the earth is fragrant with ambergris, and the winds that blow over the Holy Shrine are laden with musk. Erelong shall ye see that even the darkest lands are bright, and the continents of Europe and Africa have turned-into gardens of flowers, and forests of blossoming trees.

The call of Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá can be heard far and wide. It is my hope that this soul-stirring melody of the Bahá Kingdom may also be raised high in Paris, for Paris is tumultuous in all things. I pray the Almighty that the music and singing of the beloved of God will be so loud that the vibrations thereof may cause the limbs of Paris to quake. I await very joyful tidings from the friends in Paris. Unquestionably the divine melody will in the future be raised in that city, but I long that this may happen in these days of the Covenant, and that ye will be the enchanting songsters and the sweet-singing nightingales of that land.

The Greatest Name should be found upon the lips in the first awakening moment of early dawn. It should be fed upon by consistent use in daily invocation, in trouble, under opposition, and should be the last word breathed when the head rests upon the pillow at night. It is the name of comfort, protection, happiness, illumination, love and unity.

The triumphal cry Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá resoundeth on every side, and the call Yá ‘Alíyyu'l-Alá ringeth throughout all regions. No stir is there in the world save that of the Glory of the One Ravisher of Hearts, and no tumult is there save the surging of the love of Him, the Incomparable, the Well-Beloved.

They must disperse themselves in every land, pass by every clime and travel throughout all regions. Bestirred, without rest and steadfast to the end they must raise in every land the triumphal cry "O Thou the Glory of Glories!" (Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá), must achieve renown in the world wherever they go, must burn brightly even as a candle in every meeting and must kindle the flame of Divine love in every assembly; that the light of truth-may rise resplendent in the midmost heart of the world, that throughout the East and throughout the West a vast concourse may gather under the shadow of the Word of God, that the sweet savors of holiness may be diffused, that faces may shine radiantly, hearts be filled with the Divine spirit and souls be made heavenly.

In a Tablet addressed to the American believers, a few days before He [‘Abdu’l-Bahá] passed away, He thus vented His pent-up longing to depart from this world: "I have renounced the world and the people thereof ... In the cage of this world I flutter even as a frightened bird, and yearn every day to take My flight unto Thy Kingdom. Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá! Make Me drink of the cup of sacrifice, and set Me free."

It is therefore imperative for the individual American believer, and particularly for the affluent, the independent, the comfort-loving and those obsessed by material pursuits,to step forward, and dedicate their resources, their time, their very-lives to a Cause of such transcendence that no human eye can even dimly perceive its glory. Let them resolve, instantly and unhesitatingly, to place, each according to his circumstances, his share on the altar of Bahá’í sacrifice, lest, on a sudden, unforeseen calamities rob them of a considerable portion of the earthly things they have amassed. Now if ever is the time to tread the path which the Dawn-breakers of a previous age have so magnificently trodden. Now is the time to carry out, in the spirit and in the letter, the fervent wish so pathetically voiced by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Who longed, as attested in the Tablets of the Divine Plan, to "travel though on foot and in the utmost poverty", and raise "in cities, villages, mountains, deserts and oceans" "the call of Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá." Then and only then can the members of this Community hasten the advent of the day when, as prophesied by His Pen, "heavenly illumination" will "stream" from their country "to all the peoples of the world." Then and only then will they find themselves "securely established upon the throne of an everlasting dominion."

The battle-cry animating its heroes and heroines is the cry of Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá, Yá ‘Alíyyu'l-‘Alá.

Your email of 7 June 1998 concerning a passage sometimes attributed to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá which begins "Yá Bahá'u'l-Abhá! In this cry, all the cries of the universe are sounded...." was received by the Universal House of Justice, and referred to our Department for reply. In response to a similar query in the past, the Research Department has advised that it has been unable to find, either in English or in Persian, such a statement. Furthermore, a careful search has failed to discover any explanation of this passage in the Writings of the Faith or in the letters of Shoghi Effendi; therefore, its authenticity cannot be verified. In light of this, it is recommended that the text in question not be used or made available to the friends.

If you fall into trouble, say, "Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá!" If any one oppose you, say, "Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá!" Even while at your work, mention "Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá!"