Furthermore, it is evident to thee that the Bearers of the trust of God are made manifest unto the peoples of the earth as the Exponents of a new Cause and the Bearers of a new Message. Inasmuch as these Birds of the Celestial Throne are all sent down from the heaven of the Will of God, and as they all arise to proclaim His irresistible Faith, they therefore are regarded as one soul and the same person. For they all drink from the one Cup of the love of God, and all partake of the fruit of the same Tree of Oneness. These Manifestations of God have each a twofold station. One is the station of pure abstraction and essential unity. In this respect, if thou callest them all by one name, and dost ascribe to them the same attribute, thou hast not erred from the truth. Even as He hath revealed: “No distinction do We make between any of His Messengers!” For they one and all summon the people of the earth to acknowledge the Unity of God, and herald unto them the Kawthar of an infinite grace and bounty. They are all invested with the robe of Prophethood, and honored with the mantle of glory. Thus hath Muḥammad, the Point of the Qur’án, revealed: “I am all the Prophets.” Likewise, He saith: “I am the first Adam, Noah, Moses, and Jesus.” Similar statements have been made by ‘Alí. Sayings such as this, which indicate the essential unity of those Exponents of Oneness, have also emanated from the Channels of God’s immortal utterance, and the Treasuries of the gems of divine knowledge, and have been recorded in the scriptures. These Countenances are the recipients of the Divine Command, and the daysprings of His Revelation. This Revelation is exalted above the veils of plurality and the exigencies of number. Thus He saith: “Our Cause is but one.” Inasmuch as the Cause is one and the same, the Exponents thereof also must needs be one and the same. Likewise, the Imáms of the Muḥammadan Faith, those lamps of certitude, have said: “Muḥammad is our first, Muḥammad our last, Muḥammad our all.”
Remember way back in paragraph 24 we made mention of how significant that paragraph would be to the whole of part one? We pointed out that nearly the rest of that section of the book would be dedicated to analyzing and explaining that quote from Jesus, nearly 70 paragraphs, or 60 pages.
In this paragraph we have something similar.
Here He mentions that the Messengers have two stations, and begins to define the first, that of absolute unity. He spends 30 paragraphs talking about this, finally offering the second station in paragraph 191. Literally 10 percent of the book is dedicated to this one theme, and if we go back and re-read everything we have read until now, we will discover that it all talked about this point, that of unity. Given that unity is the fundamental message of Baha'u'llah, this comes as no surprise. Part one seems to all focus around their essential unity, as explained in their similar story arcs and in the broad understanding of that quote from Jesus. Of course, the obvious argument is to point out their very real differences, and show how each is unique. Baha'u'llah sidesteps this by explaining that they, each and all, have two stations.
The first station is defined as "the station of pure abstraction and essential unity", The second station is defined as "the station of distinction, and pertaineth to the world of creation and to the limitations thereof."
When we look at these two stations, we can easily recognize that those that argue for their distinction are actually correct. When these people argue that Jesus or Buddha are unique in religious history, they are not wrong. But they are only looking at that second station. When we step back and look at their story arc, their teachings, the overall message they are delivering, then we can see that this first station is true, too.
Although it is not explicitly stated in this book, by recognizing these two stations that all the Manifestations occupy, we can find greater unity with those that argue against Baha'u'llah. By agreeing with those points of truth in their argument, just as the Master did so often, we can more readily help them open their heart to this profound new truth.
Going back to Part 2, and this paragraph, we also see that it all falls under the explanation and definition of the sovereignty which the uncle is asking about. "How", we will recall, "did the Bab show the sovereignty of the Promised One?"
Over these next 30 paragraphs, Baha'u'llah delves into the idea of the absolute oneness of these Messengers. It could be seen as similar to our understanding of the sovereign, the King. While we may have King George, King Edward, or King Charles, they are all the King. In like manner, the Manifestation of God is the supreme King, each with a different name, perhaps, but all entitled to that title of Sovereign.
At this point, we could look at the word "Furthermore" and ask what the springboard is that has led us to this point. What are the steps we have already taken on this path to certitude?
We could look at the word "likewise" and discuss how it implies the same point from another perspective to help achieve clarity. "Furthermore" implies the next step in the argument.
We could mention that the quote “I am the first Adam, Noah, Moses, and Jesus.” brings us right back to paragraphs 7 - 23. This, of course, follows heavily on the importance of detachment at the very beginning in paragraphs 1 and 2.
We could even look at the progression of the quotes:
“No distinction do We make between any of His Messengers!”
“I am all the Prophets.”
“I am the first Adam, Noah, Moses, and Jesus.”
“Our Cause is but one."
“Muḥammad is our first, Muḥammad our last, Muḥammad our all.”
We could even look at the various metaphors and the journey they take us on:
these Birds of the Celestial Throne
the one Cup of the love of God
the fruit of the same Tree of Oneness
the Kawthar of an infinite grace and bounty
the robe of Prophethood
the mantle of glory
the Channels of God’s immortal utterance
the Treasuries of the gems of divine knowledge
the daysprings of His Revelation
lamps of certitude
These are the sorts of points we have looked at throughout out little study of this remarkable book, so none of it should be unusual to you by now. But rather than focus on any or all of these, we are going to leave it to you, dear Reader, to dive into on your own.
As with paragraphs 6 and 24 from Part 1, this is a paragraph we will surely refer back to over and over as we move forward in these next 30 paragraphs, so we feel comfortable leaving it for now.
