Paragraph 167

Likewise, these souls, through the potency of the Divine Elixir, traverse, in the twinkling of an eye, the world of dust and advance into the realm of holiness; and with one step cover the earth of limitations and reach the domain of the Placeless. It behooveth thee to exert thine utmost to attain unto this Elixir which, in one fleeting breath, causeth the west of ignorance to reach the east of knowledge, illuminateth the darkness of night with the resplendence of the morn, guideth the wanderer in the wilderness of doubt to the wellspring of the Divine Presence and Fount of certitude, and conferreth upon mortal souls the honor of acceptance into the Riḍván of immortality. Now, could this gold be thought to be copper, these people could likewise be thought to be the same as before they were endowed with faith.

Here we are at the seventh of thirty paragraphs looking at the first of the two stations of the Manifestations of God, that of "pure abstraction and essential unity", and the last of those four paragraphs that talk about this miraculous elixir. 

Baha'u'llah begins with the word "likewise", so there is a connection to the previous paragraph, which He will undoubtedly develop in this one. When He says "these souls", He is obviously referring to those mentioned at the end of paragraph 163, those souls that have been transformed by the Divine Teachings. So we figure that when He is pointing out that this copper which has changed to gold cannot be considered as the same as it was before He is saying that a soul which has encountered the divine teachings and been transformed can no longer be considered the same as prior, especially when this touchstone is there to prove its value.

When we read these four paragraphs as a group, and understand that they are all referring back to paragraph 163, then all these references to the divine elixir and the transmutation of copper to gold make more sense.

And just in case we are still in doubt, we can look at other references to the "Elixir" in the Writings. For example, in Prayers and Meditations, XXXVIII, He refers to "Thy most exalted Word which Thou hast ordained as the Divine Elixir unto all who are in Thy realm, the Elixir through whose potency the crude metal of human life hath been transmuted into purest gold". This is but one of many such references.

Of course, there is much more in this paragraph, so let's move on.

While we may have a concept of what "the realm of holiness" might be, what is the "domain of the Placeless"? This is an impossible question to answer, but Baha'u'llah gives it a bit more context when He tells us to "abandon the habitation of self and desire and step into the placeless realm of eternal glory". By calling it "placeless", He is putting it beyond any specific location. It is not, for example, somewhere in the Middle East, nor is it a "place" like Heaven. Any time we run the risk of beginning to pin something like this down, giving it a specific definition, He raises our vision above such earthly limitations. This is something He has done throughout this book, and the rest of His writings. He takes our preconceptions of such things and raises our vision. Whether it is a concept of God, the station of the Messengers, or what is implied by the oneness of humanity, He always tries to help us see more than we previously imagined.

Looking at that longer sentence, we want to apply a technique we have used throughout our study of this book and see if we can discern a path He is showing to us. In His description of what this Elixir can do, He offers the following four points. It can:

• causeth the west of ignorance to reach the east of knowledge
• illuminateth the darkness of night with the resplendence of the morn
• guideth the wanderer in the wilderness of doubt to the wellspring of the Divine Presence and Fount of certitude
• conferreth upon mortal souls the honor of acceptance into the Riḍván of immortality

In other words, it can cause the movement of:

• ignorance to knowledge
• night to morn
• doubt to certitude
• mortal to immortal

Could the latter elements be seen as the same as the former? Is knowledge the same as ignorance? Is the morning the same as the night? Can certainty be seen as the same as doubt? And is there a difference between those that which is immortal and that which is mortal? Obviously the answer is "no".

But why is this all a concern? Why should any of this matter?

To us it is a reminder that whatever someone may have done in the past, once they have been transformed by these divine teachings, they are no longer the same person.

Of course, this transformation occurs in every Dispensation, which is probably why it is included in this larger section of "pure abstraction and essential unity". This transformation of the people is a fundamental part of every religion.

Remember Saint Paul? We just mentioned him in the previous paragraph. As we said there, the challenge for the early Christians was for them to see him in a new light. He had been one of their great persecutors, but was now one of their great champions.

Perhaps this is why we see over and over again in many sacred books that the past has been forgiven.

But then, lest we get egotistical about this, there are also warnings from the Pen of Baha'u'llah that this transformation may not be eternal. Later in this very book, He cautions us not to despise the "sinner", for:

...none knoweth what his own end shall be. How often hath a sinner attained, at the hour of death, to the essence of faith, and, quaffing the immortal draught, hath taken his flight unto the Concourse on high! And how often hath a devout believer, at the hour of his soul’s ascension, been so changed as to fall into the nethermost fire!

This could be why we need to regularly pray and meditate, read the Writings every morn and eve, engage in the Fast, purify our material goods through the Right of God, and so forth. Maybe there is a tendency of the human heart to revert back to its copper-like state even after it has transformed to pure gold, and obedience to the teachings, coupled with humility, mitigates this reversion back to a lower state.

One last point we feel is important to put in here. Baha'u'llah does not seem to be concerned about what we refer to as a conversion of faith. He does not seem to be concerned about what some have referred to as "wearing the team jacket". There are many examples in religious history of those who were highly regarded as devoted followers of a faith who only later turned out to be their worst enemy. Consider Judas Iscariot, who was seen to be one of Jesus's closest disciples. Or call to mind, from Baha'i history, Ibrahim Khayrullah who is regarded as having brought the Faith to North America, only to later be recognized as a Covenant Breaker. These are but two of countless examples of those who had been touched by the Faith of God, transformed, in the eyes of men, into purest gold, only to fall back to the most tarnished of coppers.

We find in these paragraphs about copper and gold both a great promise, but also a profound warning.