The straight path.

 

218. The straight path. The writings of God tell us that God is leading mankind on a path that is a straight path, leading mankind to a spiritual world where we can grow and develop to our true spiritual potential: Baha’i Faith: “He hath none to equal Him in the whole universe, nor any partner in all creation. He hath sent forth His Messengers, and sent down His Books, that they may announce unto His creatures the Straight Path.”

(Bahá’í Faith, Baha’u’llah, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 98)

 BABI RELIGION: “O concourse of the faithful! Incline your ears to My Voice, proclaimed by this Remembrance of God. Verily God hath revealed unto Me that the Path of the Remembrance which is set forth by Me is, in very truth, the straight Path of God,”

        (The Bab, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 62)

 JUDAISM: Genesis 28:20 “God will be with me, and will keep me in this way (on this path) that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,” 2 Esdras 14:22 “But if I have found grace before Thee, send the Holy Ghost into me, and I shall write all that hath been done in the world since the beginning, which were written in Thy law, that men may find Thy path, and that they which will live in the latter days may live.” (Deuterocanonical Apocrypha, (Ezra 4)) Psalms 25:5 “Lead me in Thy truth, and teach me: for Thou art the God of my salvation; on Thee do I wait all the day.” Psalms 25:4 “Shew me Thy ways, O LORD; teach me Thy paths.” Psalms 27:11 “Teach me Thy way, O LORD, and lead me in a plain path,” Psalms 5:8 “Make Thy way straight before my face.” Joel 2:8 “They shall walk every one in His path:” Micah 4:2 “And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of The LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of The LORD from Jerusalem.”  Christianity: Matthew 3:3 “Prepare ye the way of The Lord, make His paths straight.” Matthew 7:13 “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:” Matthew 7:14 “Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” Luke 13:24 “Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.”

BAHA’I FAITH: “Thank God for guiding thee unto the Straight Path,” “Blessed are ye for having been chosen by God for His love, in this new age, and joy be to you for having been guided to the Great Kingdom! Verily, your Lord hath chosen you to show the path to the Kingdom of God, among the people.”

(Bahá’í Faith, Tablets of Abdu’l-Baha v1, p. 84 Abdu’l-Baha, Baha’i World Faith – Abdu’l-Baha Section, p. 361)

 BABI RELIGION: “When He chanteth words of praise and glorification of God all Paradise becomes motionless like unto ice locked in the heart of a frost-bound mountain. Methinks I visioned Him moving along a straight middle path wherein every paradise was His Own paradise, every heaven His Own heaven.”

(The Bab, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 53)

BAHA’I FAITH: “The nature of the soul after death can never be described, nor is it meet and permissible to reveal its whole character to the eyes of men. The Prophets and Messengers of God have been sent down for the sole purpose of guiding mankind to the straight Path of Truth.”

(Bahá’í Faith, Baha’u’llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah, p. 156)

Baha’i Faith: “Every created thing in the whole universe is but a door leading into His knowledge, a sign of His sovereignty, a revelation of His names, a symbol of His majesty, a token of His power, a means of admittance into His straight Path….”

(Bahá’í Faith, Baha’u’llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah, p. 160)

 BABI RELIGION: “ALL praise be to God Who hath, through the power of Truth, sent down this Book unto His servant, that it may serve as a shining light for all mankind… Verily this is none other than the sovereign Truth; it is the Path which God hath laid out for all that are in heaven and on earth. Let him then who will, take for himself the right path unto his Lord.”

        (The Bab, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 39)

 ISLAM: 186. “When my servants ask thee concerning Me, I am indeed close (to them); I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when he calleth on Me; let them also, with a will, listen to My call, and believe in Me; that they may walk in the right way.” 213. “For Allah (God) guides whom He will to a path that is straight.”

(The Qur’an (Yusuf Ali tr), Surah   2)

Islam: 161. “Verily, my Lord hath guided me to a way that is straight, a religion of right, the path (trod) by Abraham the true in faith, and he (certainly) joined not gods with Allah.” “Verily, this is My Way, leading straight: follow it: follow not (other) paths: they will scatter you about from His (great) path: thus doth He command you that ye may be righteous.”

(The Qur’an (Yusuf Ali tr), Surah   6)

  ZOROASTRIANISM: 6. “I, as a priest, who would learn the straight (path) by the Right,” 12. “What is Thine ordinance? What willest Thou? What of praise or what of worship? Proclaim it, Mazda (God), that we may hear what ordinances Destiny will apportion. Teach us by Right the paths of Good Thought that are blessed to go in,”

(Zoroaster, The Zend-Avesta, Avesta – Yasnas 33 and 34)

 Zoroastrianism: 12. “And to us Mazdayasnians who are likewise offering sacrifice, do Ye grant both the desire and knowledge of the path that is correct.” 13. “Grant to us both the desire of, and the knowledge of that straightest path, the straightest because of Righteousness, and of (Heaven) the best life.”

(The Zend-Avesta, Avesta – Yasna 68)

 HINDUISM: “Whoso worship Me, Them I exalt; but all men everywhere Shall fall into My path;” “Those of noble soul Who tread the path celestial, worship Me With hearts unwandering, knowing Me the Source, the’ Eternal Source, of Life. Unendingly”

(Hindu, Bhagavad Gita (Edwin Arnold tr) chapters 4 and 9)

 Hinduism: “The narrow path thou choosest is the righteous path to heaven!”

(Hindu, Ramayana (R. Dutt, abridged tr))

 Hinduism: “O God, Disposer, Thou knowest, straight on, the paths and ways.” “By paths directed hitherward, the straightest, send thou us happiness.” “Straight in direction be the path.”

(Hindu, Vedas, Rig Veda – Books 6, 9 and 10)

 BUDDHISM: “By means of his Transcendental Intelligence, he walks the path leading to Nirvana.” (Buddha Lankavatara Sutra)

 Buddhism: “By the Truth of emptiness and egolessness that enlightened disciples are to advance along the Path, to restrain their thoughts.” “This Scripture is intended for those who are entering upon the path,” (Buddha, Diamond Sutra)

 Buddhism: “The noble path that leads to enlightenment is wisdom.” (Buddha, Suangama Sutra)

 SABEANISM: “I prepared a path for the good ones and made a gateway for the world. A gateway for the world I made. The fire did not sin against him the uthra shone in its brightness. In its brightness the uthra shone and prepared a path for the perfect ones. For the perfect ones he prepared a path and granted salvation to the perfect ones. Salvation he granted to the perfect ones.” (Sabeanism, The way of Salvation Adam)  

Sabeanism: “Thou hast chosen (us), hast taken us out of the world of hatred, envy and disputes and hast set us firmly on paths of truth and faith,” (Sabeanism, Ginza Rba- chapter 43)

Sabeanism: “They shall rise upward on a smooth road and by the path of the perfect, shall behold the Place of Light and the everlasting Abode.” (Sabeanism, Ginza Rba- Chapter 54)

 BABI RELIGION: “O PEOPLES of the earth! Verily the resplendent Light of God hath appeared in your midst, invested with this unerring Book, that ye may be guided aright to the ways of peace and, by the leave of God, step out of the darkness into the light and onto this far-extended Path of Truth.”

(The Bab, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 60)