gh a breath from Him? Grievous then would be your
trespass before His throne! Fear God, and lift not the hand of injustice
and oppression to destroy what He hath Himself raised up; nay, walk ye in
the way of God, the True One. No sooner did the hosts of true knowledge
appear, bearing the standards of Divine utterance, than the tribes of the
religions were put to flight, save only those who willed to drink from the
stream of everlasting life in a Paradise created by the breath of the
All-Glorious.

74 God hath decreed, in token of His mercy unto His creatures, that semen
is not unclean. Yield thanks unto Him with joy and radiance, and follow
not such as are remote from the Dawning-place of His nearness. Arise ye,
under all conditions, to render service to the Cause, for God will
assuredly assist you through the power of His sovereignty which
overshadoweth the worlds. Cleave ye unto the cord of refinement with such
tenacity as to allow no trace of dirt to be seen upon your garments. Such
is the injunction of One Who is sanctified above all refinement. Whoso
falleth short of this standard with good reason shall incur no blame. God,
verily, is the Forgiving, the Merciful. Wash ye every soiled thing with
water that hath undergone no alteration in any one of the three respects;
take heed not to use water that hath been altered through exposure to the
air or to some other agent. Be ye the very essence of cleanliness amongst
mankind. This, truly, is what your Lord, the Incomparable, the All-Wise,
desireth for you.

75 God hath, likewise, as a bounty from His presence, abolished the
concept of "uncleanness", whereby divers things and peoples have been held
to be impure. He, of a certainty, is the Ever-Forgiving, the Most
Generous. Verily, all created things were immersed in the sea of
purification when, on that first day of Ridvan, We shed upon the whole of
creation the splendours of Our most excellent Names and Our most exalted
Attributes. This, verily, is a token of My loving providence, which hath
encompassed all the worlds. Consort ye then with the followers of all
religions, and proclaim ye the Cause of your Lord, the Most Compassionate;
this is the very crown of deeds, if ye be of them who understand.

76 God hath enjoined upon you to observe the utmost cleanliness, to the
extent of washing what is soiled with dust, let alone with hardened dirt
and similar defilement. Fear Him, and be of those who are pure. Should the
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