slander and calumny, proved to be a tempest of trials that
swept over those regions, yet it was powerless to do any harm to trees
that are deep-rooted, firm, and fixed, nor could it inflict damage on
structures that are solid, mighty and strong. The blessed, the potent
spirit of 'Abdu'l-Baha will always protect and shield the holy and
sanctified beings, will assist them, watch over them, and empower them to
remain firm as immovable mountains.

Truly that which you have done is appropriate and the way you have reacted
is highly fitting and proper, because in the Will and Testament primary
emphasis has been laid on guarding and protecting the Cause of God. Thus
it has been revealed: 'O ye beloved of the Lord! The greatest of all
things is the protection of the true Faith of God, the preservation of His
Law, the safeguarding of His Cause and service unto His Word.' Praise be
to God that those blessed and enraptured souls who are enkindled with the
fire of His love have been graciously assisted to preserve and shield the
Faith of God.

You must have glanced at the idle words of that faithless person--words
that are wholly motivated by selfish and personal interests. They are so
futile, senseless and absurd that even the babes of this glorious
Dispensation, rocked in their cradles, would recognize how vain and
preposterous, how impregnated with subtle machinations they are. How much
keener then must be the discernment of those distinguished beings whose
substance of life has been moulded by the gracious and bountiful fingers
of the Blessed Beauty and whose tree of existence has been watered and fed
by the heavenly stream of His favour and providence. Surely those luminous
gems whose nostrils are perfumed by the imperishable fragrance of holiness
and are endued with a keen sense of perception will readily distinguish a
loathsome odour, no matter how slight it may be, from the sweet-scented
breeze blowing from the rose-garden of His Oneness. They will easily
recognize the words of a conceited and malevolent one, though his words be
wrapped up in delicate terms and phrases or take the guise of
fellow-feeling, sympathy and kindly wishes, from the genuine expressions
of truth and sincerity, of devotion, piety and faithfulness.

Indeed, it is true to say that malice will cause one's intelligence and
understanding to fade, and the king of reason to become subservient to the
satanic self and its promptings. Time and again has this