A day of joy, today, Naw-Ruz! The start of the New Year. Will anything be the same again? The old year has been left behind. A new chapter has begun. The onrush of springtime brings closer the attainment of the goal - realization of our true identity as nothingness in a sea of grace.
'Abdu'l-Bahá speaks of severance, thus:
The greatest attainment in the world of humanity is nearness to God. Every lasting glory, honor, grace and beauty which comes to man comes through nearness to God. All the Prophets and apostles longed and prayed for nearness to the Creator... [H]ow many days they devoted to supplication for this attainment, seeking ever to draw nigh unto Him! But nearness to God is not an easy accomplishment.... Divine nearness is dependent upon
- attainment to the knowledge of God, upon
- severance from all else save God. It is contingent upon
- self-sacrifice and to be found only through
- forfeiting wealth and worldly possessions. It is made possible through the
- baptism of water and fire revealed in the Gospels.
Water symbolizes the water of life, which is knowledge, and fire is the fire of the love of God; therefore, man must be baptized with
- the water of life,
- the Holy Spirit and
- the fire of the love of the Kingdom.
Until he attains these three degrees, nearness to God is not possible. This is the process by which the Bahá’ís of Persia have attained it. They gave their lives for this station, sacrificed honor, comfort and possessions, hastened with the utmost joy to the place of martyrdom; their blood was spilled, their bodies were tortured and destroyed, their homes pillaged, their children carried into captivity. They endured all these conditions joyfully and willingly. Through such sacrifice nearness to God is made possible. And be it known that this nearness is not dependent upon time or place. Nearness to God is dependent upon purity of the heart and exhilaration of the spirit through the glad tidings of the Kingdom. Consider how a pure, well-polished mirror fully reflects the effulgence of the sun, no matter how distant the sun may be. As soon as the mirror is cleaned and purified, the sun will manifest itself. The more pure and sanctified the heart of man becomes, the nearer it draws to God, and the light of the Sun of Reality is revealed within it. This light sets hearts aglow with the fire of the love of God, opens in them the doors of knowledge and unseals the divine mysteries so that spiritual discoveries are made possible. All the Prophets have drawn near to God through severance. We must emulate those Holy Souls and renounce our own wishes and desires. We must purify ourselves from the mire and soil of earthly contact until our hearts become as mirrors in clearness and the light of the most great guidance reveals itself in them.
- ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Promulgation 147-8 (emphasis added)
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