attained unto the choice wine of Thy
meeting.

I implore Thee, O Thou the King of kings and the Pitier of the
downtrodden, to ordain for them the good of this world and of the world to
come. Write down for them, moreover, what none of Thy creatures hath
discovered, and number them with those who have circled round Thee, and
who move about Thy throne in every world of Thy worlds.

Thou, truly, art the Almighty, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.

--Baha'u'llah

THE FAST

The Kitab-i-Aqdas states: "We have commanded you to pray and fast from the
beginning of maturity [15 years]; this is ordained by God, your Lord and
the Lord of your forefathers.... The traveler, the ailing, those who are
with child or giving suck, are not bound by the fast.... Abstain from food
and drink, from sunrise to sundown, and beware lest desire deprive you of
this grace that is appointed in the Book."

The period of the Fast is March 2 through March 20.

"I BESEECH THEE, O MY GOD, BY THY MIGHTY..."

I beseech Thee, O my God, by Thy mighty Sign, and by the revelation of Thy
grace amongst men, to cast me not away from the gate of the city of Thy
presence, and to disappoint not the hopes I have set on the manifestations
of Thy grace amidst Thy creatures. Thou seest me, O my God, holding to Thy
Name, the Most Holy, the Most Luminous, the Most Mighty, the Most Great,
the Most Exalted, the Most Glorious, and clinging to the hem of the robe
to which have clung all in this world and in the world to come.

I beseech Thee, O my God, by Thy most sweet Voice and by Thy most exalted
Word, to draw me ever nearer to the threshold of Thy door, and to suffer
me not to be far removed from the shadow of Thy mercy and the canopy of
Thy bounty. Thou seest me, O my God, holding to Thy Name, the Most Holy,
the Most Luminous, the Most Mighty, the Most Great, the Most Exalted, the
Most Glorious, and clinging to the hem of the robe to which have clung all
in this world and in the world to come.

I beseech Thee, O my God, by the splendor of Thy luminous brow and the
brightness of the light of Thy countenance, which shineth from the
all-highest horizon, to attract me by the fragrance of Thy raiment, and
make me drink of the choice wine of Thine utterance. Thou seest me, O my
God, holding to Thy Name, the Most Holy, the Most Luminous, the Most
Mighty, the Most Great, the Most Exalted, the Most Glorious, and clinging
to the hem of the robe to wh