bservance of the laws He hath prescribed--laws which He hath
always ordained, and will continue to ordain, unto men, and through which
the truth may be distinguished and separated from falsehood.

CXXXIV: THE FIRST AND FOREMOST DUTY PRESCRIBED...

The first and foremost duty prescribed unto men, next to the recognition
of Him Who is the Eternal Truth, is the duty of steadfastness in His
Cause. Cleave thou unto it, and be of them whose minds are firmly fixed
and grounded in God. No act, however meritorious, did or can ever compare
unto it. It is the king of all acts, and to this thy Lord, the
All-Highest, the Most Powerful, will testify....

The virtues and attributes pertaining unto God are all evident and
manifest, and have been mentioned and described in all the heavenly Books.
Among them are trustworthiness, truthfulness, purity of heart while
communing with God, forbearance, resignation to whatever the Almighty hath
decreed, contentment with the things His Will hath provided, patience,
nay, thankfulness in the midst of tribulation, and complete reliance, in
all circumstances, upon Him. These rank, according to the estimate of God,
among the highest and most laudable of all acts. All other acts are, and
will ever remain, secondary and subordinate unto them....

The spirit that animateth the human heart is the knowledge of God, and its
truest adorning is the recognition of the truth that "He doeth whatsoever
He willeth, and ordaineth that which He pleaseth." Its raiment is the fear
of God, and its perfection steadfastness in His Faith. Thus God
instructeth whosoever seeketh Him. He, verily, loveth the one that turneth
towards Him. There is none other God but Him, the Forgiving, the Most
Bountiful. All praise be to God, the Lord of all worlds.

CXXXV: O LETTER OF THE LIVING! THE EAR OF GOD...

O Letter of the Living! The ear of God hath heard thy cry, and His eyes
have beheld thy written supplication. He is calling thee from His seat of
glory, and is revealing unto thee the verses that have been sent down by
Him Who is the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting.

Blessed art thou for having utterly abolished the idol of self and of vain
imagination, and for having rent asunder the veil of idle fancy, through
the power of the might of thy Lord, the Supreme Protector, the Almighty,
the one Beloved. Thou art indeed to be numbered with those Letters that
have excelled every other Letter. Wherefore thou