# Ernie's Universe

*Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-22 — 1 clipping.*

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> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Ernie Jones, Ernie's Universe, bahai-library.com.
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> 
> ERNIE’S                            UNIVERSE
> 
> Based on Baha’i writings and other sources
> Ernie Jones
> 01-19-2026
> Introduction
> 
> “Ernie’s Universe” came about as a result of Ernie finding among his mother’s (Emma
> ‘Maxie’ Jones) Baha’i papers a reproduction of a chart developed by Lua Getsinger
> while spending several years in Acca with 'Abdu'l-Bahá. Lua’s chart was obviously
> designed for presentation to a Christian audience. Also, a letter written by Edward
> Getsinger authenticating the development of the chart by Lua Getsinger was found,
> inspiring Ernie to document as many references to the universe as were available from
> the Baha’i writings - the initial intent being to include ‘all’ of the writings pertaining to
> the universe, but this proved to be unworkable.
> 
> The result was a compilation titled “The Universe” which was posted online here:
> (bahai-library.com/jones_bahai_teachings_universe) and was shared with a good
> friend - well educated and interested in current science and technology - who decided
> to call it “Ernie‘s Universe” instead of “The Universe” because it conflicts with views
> currently accepted by the scientific community.
> 
> It was therefore decided to prepare this document, which is Ernie’s personal
> understanding of the universe based on some of the Baha’i writings and other sources,
> but does not necessarily conform to current scientific thinking. It is an attempt at
> clarifying the relationship between science and religion from a Baha’i perspective –
> which is that science and religion are in agreement, as explained by 'Abdu'l-Bahá.
> 
> 1.    There are certain pillars which have been established as the unshakable supports of
> the Faith of God. The mightiest of these is learning and the use of the mind, the
> expansion of consciousness, and insight into the realities of the universe and the
> hidden mysteries of Almighty God.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Selections-writings, #97
> 
> 2.    The Unity of God is logical, and this idea is not antagonistic to the conclusions
> arrived at by scientific study.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Paris Talks, #44
> Contents
> Navigator > 
> 1 THE CHART ...................................................................................................................1
> 2 GOD ............................................................................................................................... 2
> 2.1 GOD FORMULA ................................................................................................... 3
> 3 WILL or WORD ............................................................................................................. 5
> 4 WORLD OF MATTER ................................................................................................... 9
> 4.1 MINERAL ............................................................................................................. 11
> 4.2 VEGETABLE ....................................................................................................... 14
> 4.3 ANIMAL ...............................................................................................................15
> 4.4 MAN......................................................................................................................15
> 4.4.1 DIVINE ELIXIR ............................................................................................ 18
> 4.5 COMPOSITION AND DECOMPOSITION ......................................................... 20
> 5 WHATEVER LIETH BETWEEN THEM .................................................................... 20
> 6 THE SPIRITUAL KINGDOMS.................................................................................... 26
> 6.1 GRADES IN THE SPIRITUAL KINGDOM ......................................................... 28
> 6.2 HIGHEST ATTAINABLE POINT........................................................................ 29
> 6.3 HOOPER DUNBAR TALKS ............................................................................... 30
> 7 NOT SO FAR-FETCHED CONCLUSIONS ..................................................................31
> 7.1 WE NEED GOD....................................................................................................31
> 7.2 WE NEED THE MANIFESTATIONS................................................................. 32
> 7.3 ETHERIAL MATTER .......................................................................................... 32
> 7.3.1 HISTORY....................................................................................................... 32
> 7.3.2 SPACE ........................................................................................................... 33
> 7.3.3 ATOMIC STRUCTURE................................................................................. 34
> 7.3.4 ENERGY ....................................................................................................... 34
> 7.3.5 BIG BANG ..................................................................................................... 35
> 7.3.6 RED SHIFT ................................................................................................... 35
> 7.3.7 TIME ............................................................................................................. 35
> 7.4 GRAVITY ............................................................................................................. 36
> 7.5 WE ARE NOT ALONE ......................................................................................... 37
> 7.6 THE BOTTOM LINE ........................................................................................... 39
> 8 NOTES .......................................................................................................................... 39
> 1   THE CHART
> 
> 
> On this chart, “GOD” is depicted as “THE INFINITE” and ‘THE UNKNOWABLE’ using
> two concentric circles and nine protrusions which represent the nine occurrences of the
> “WORD” in human form for this cycle of human evolution on this planet up to the
> present time. The “WORD” is depicted on the chart as the only thing caused by “GOD”,
> with the “WORD” being the cause of all things. The physical universe – the dark side –
> referred to as the arc of descent - is depicted as the “WORLD OF MATTER “ and
> “CIRCLE OF CREATION”, consisting of “MINERAL”, “VEGETABLE” , “ANIMAL” and
> “MAN”. The spiritual universe – the light side – referred to as the arc of ascent - is
> depicted as “GRADES IN THE SPIRITUAL KINGDOM, INFINITE IN SERIES AND
> PROGRESSION”. There is a very important existence not specifically depicted on the
> chart which is indicated by the line between the physical universe and the spiritual
> universe, being identified in the Baha’i writings as “Whatever lieth between them”,
> “etherial matter” and “primordial matter”. “MAN” is the only thing that intersects all
> three parts of the universe. This CHART is used as a guide in this document.
> 
> 2 GOD
> 
> 3.   In order to gain some understanding of the universe according to the Baha’i writings,
> it is necessary to have some basic understanding of the usage and meaning of the
> terms “Cause”, “God” or “Creator” and the “Word” or “Will” and their relationship to
> each other and to all existence. Cause, God, Creator and other words used in this
> context all denote one and the same no-thing – the pre-existent Cause of the Will or
> Word. As God is pre-existent to all things, including the Will, it is unknowable by
> anything except itself.
> 
> 4.   In the following statement by Bahá’u’lláh, all existence, including the entire physical
> universe, is defined as having always existed and will always exist and importantly, is
> preceded by a cause.
> 
> 5.    The one true God hath everlastingly existed, and will everlastingly continue to
> exist. His creation, likewise, hath had no beginning, and will have no end. All that
> is created, however, is preceded by a cause.
> Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings, #162
> 
> 6.   The only access to any knowledge of God available to us humans is through the
> WORD, or WILL – in the human form of the Messengers or Prophets. The writings of
> the Báb, Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu'l-Bahá use terms denoting ”God” generously, although
> God in and of itself is totally unknowable, even to the Will.
> 
> 2.1 GOD FORMULA
> 
> 7.    The Baha’i writings indicate that GOD is the cause of all things and therefore there
> can be no disagreement between true science and true religion. As mathematics is a
> science based on logic and reason it is therefore possible to reference GOD using
> mathematical terms, which are defined as concise marks, signs, or notations
> representing mathematical operations, quantities, relations, and functions. These
> symbols help to represent mathematical concepts and equations concisely. The
> following are the mathematical symbols used in this formula.
> 
> "(→) Cause "
> "(≺) Precedes"
> "(∀) For all”
> “(C) Primal Cause or Creator or GOD”
> “(W) WILL or WORD - the cause of all existence”
> “(x) All existent things visible and invisible, physical and non-physical”
> 
> Basis
> 8.     In this statement by Bahá’u’lláh, God is identified as “Creator” and is a scientific
> axiom defining the most basic, irrefutable and unbreakable condition of all existence,
> as all existence of any kind requires a preceding cause, making this statement always
> true. There can only be one pre-existent Cause as it must be pre-existent to the first
> existence and all things begin with one and not with two. Therefore the primal cause
> of all other causes must be pre-existent and non-physical in order to cause non-
> physical and physical existence.
> 
> 9.    All that is created, however, is preceded by a cause. This fact, in itself,
> establisheth, beyond the shadow of a doubt, the unity of the Creator.
> Gleanings, Bahá’u’lláh #82
> 
> 10.   Interpreting this statement using mathematical symbols provides the following:
> All (∀) that is created (x) , however, is preceded (≺) by a cause (→). This fact, in itself,
> establisheth, beyond the shadow of a doubt, the unity of the Creator (C).
> 
> 11.   The Báb explains the relationship between the Creator and all of creation using the
> terms "God and "Will".
> 
> 12.   Bear thou witness ... that verily God, glorified be He, hath ever been, and will ever
> exist without anything to exist with Him. He verily hath created all things by
> virtue of His Will (Mashiyyah), and hath created the Will by itself, out of nothing
> else.... All things are created and affected by it. Then behold naught in the
> heavens, the earth, and that which lieth between them, save as the effects thereof.
> (Nader Saiedi, Gate of the Heart pp 174) - Báb, Panj Sha’n pp 388 -390
> 
> 13.   Interpreting this statement using mathematical symbols provides the following:
> God (C) is pre-existent (≺) and causes (→) the Will (W), which causes (→ ) all (∀) things
> (x).
> 
> Formula
> 14.   From the preceding statements the following formula has been developed:
> 
> C≺(→(W→(∀x)))
> 
> Explanation of formula
> 15.   (C) precedes (≺) and causes (→) W which causes (→) all (∀) creation (x).
> 
> 16.   These explanations from the Baha’i writings indicate that nothing can equate to that
> pre-existent reality and therefore only a formula is possible using
> mathematical symbols. Thus, a God “equation” is an impossibility.
> 
> 17.   Regarding any possible knowledge or description of Cause or God, 'Abdu'l-Bahá
> provides us with this explanation:
> 
> 18.   But that Essence of Essences, that Invisible of Invisibles, is sanctified above all
> human speculation, and never to be overtaken by the mind of man. Never shall
> that immemorial Reality lodge within the compass of a contingent being. His is
> another realm, and of that realm no understanding can be won. No access can be
> gained thereto; all entry is forbidden there. The utmost one can say is that its
> existence can be proved, but the conditions of its existence are unknown.
> 
> 19.   That such an Essence doth exist, the philosophers and learned doctors one and all
> have understood; but whenever they tried to learn something of its being, they
> were left bewildered and dismayed, and at the end, despairing, their hopes in
> ruins, they went their way, out of this life. For to comprehend the state and the
> inner mystery of that Essence of Essences, that Most Secret of Secrets, one needs
> must have another power and other faculties; and such a power, such faculties
> would be more than humankind can bear, wherefore no word of Him can come to
> them.
> 20.   If, for example, one be endowed with the senses of hearing, of taste, of smell, of
> touch—but be deprived of the sense of sight, it will not be possible for one to gaze
> about; for sight cannot be realized through hearing or tasting, or the sense of smell
> or touch. In the same way, with the faculties at man’s disposal it is beyond the
> realm of possibility for him to grasp that unseeable Reality, holy and sanctified
> above all the skeptics’ doubts. For this, other faculties are required, other senses;
> should such powers become available to him, then could a human being receive
> some knowledge of that world; otherwise, never.
> Selections from the writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá #24
> 
> 3 WILL or WORD
> 
> 21.   Here again in more detail, the Báb explains that God is pre-existent and causes the
> Will and that the Will is the actual cause of all existence.
> 
> 22.   “Bear thou witness ... that verily God, glorified be He, hath ever been, and will ever
> exist without anything to exist with Him. He verily hath created all things by
> virtue of His Will (Mashiyyah) , and hath created the Will by itself, out of nothing
> else.... All things are created and affected by it. Then behold naught in the
> heavens, the earth, and that which lieth between them, save as the effects thereof.
> They all, verily, are fashioned by the Will and have proceeded from it, while it is
> verily created by itself and abideth beneath its Own Essence. It hath proceeded
> from God, its Lord, and unto God, its Fashioner, it shall return.…
> 23.   [T]hou must bear witness that the Will is in one sense all things and, in another,
> devoid of them all; in one respect it is before all things and, in another, devoid of
> them all; in one gaze it is above all things and, in another, beneath them all. For,
> verily, all those different directions have been created by the Will and generated
> through the modes of its revelation. Therefore, it is more manifest to things than
> even their own reality, inasmuch as the first is a creature, created by it, the last is a
> creature created by it, the seen is a creature fashioned by it, and the hidden is a
> creature fashioned by it.”
> (Nader Saiedi, “Gate of the Heart” p 174) - Báb, Panj Sha’n pp 388 -390
> 
> 24. The Báb, Bahá'u'lláh and 'Abdu'l-Bahá      explain that God does not create, but causes
> the Will which is itself the creator of all things and define the entire creation as the
> effects and manifestations of the Will. 'Abdu'l-Bahá also identifies the Will as love –
> love being an undeniable reality that we are familiar with because we can have
> physical sensations related to love. On the chart this emanation of love is depicted as
> HOLY SPIRIT and THE CHRIST.
> 25. The only means by which we humans can have any direct knowledge of the Will is
> through the Manifestations or Prophets - each being an expression of the Will in
> human form as explained here.
> 
> 26.   No relation, connection, separation, union, nearness, remoteness, position or
> reference is possible between Him and the contingent things, inasmuch as all in
> the heavens and earth have become existent by the word of His command and
> have stepped forth from utter and absolute non-existence and nothingness into
> the court of the existent and visible, through His desire, which is the Will itself.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Baha'i Scriptures, Part II, [28]
> 
> 27. The process of His creation hath had no beginning and can have no end, otherwise
> it would necessitate the cessation of His celestial grace. God hath raised up
> Prophets and revealed Books as numerous as the creatures of the world, and will
> continue to do so to everlasting.
> Báb, Selections, p. 53 (Dala'il-i-Sab'ih), pp. 1-2
> 
> 28.    There should be no doubt that, before this Adam, there have been infinite worlds
> and endless Adams in God’s creation, to a degree that none besides God can, or
> ever will, reckon.
> (Nader Saiedi, “Gate of the Heart”, p. 196) - Bab, Panj Sha'n, pp. 99-104
> 
> 29.    O people! I swear by the one true God! This is the Ocean out of which all seas have
> proceeded, and with which every one of them will ultimately be united. From Him
> all the Suns have been generated, and unto Him they will all return. Through His
> potency the Trees of Divine Revelation have yielded their fruits, every one of
> which hath been sent down in the form of a Prophet, bearing a Message to God's
> creatures in each of the worlds whose number God, alone, in His all-encompassing
> Knowledge, can reckon.
> Bahá'u'lláh: Gleanings, #5
> 
> 30.   But while God does not create, the first principle of God, Love, is the creative
> principle. Love is an outpour from God, and is pure spirit. It is one aspect of the
> Logos, the Holy Spirit. It is the immediate cause of the laws which govern nature,
> the endless verities of nature which science has uncovered. In brief, it is Divine
> 
> Law and a Manifestation of God. This Manifestation of God is active, creative,
> spiritual. It reflects the positive aspect of God.
> 31.    There is another Manifestation of God which is characterized by passivity,
> quiescence, inactivity. In itself it is without creative power. It reflects the negative
> aspect of God. This Manifestation is matter.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Baha'i Scriptures, p 301
> 
> 32.   Know thou of a certainty that Love is the secret of God’s holy Dispensation, the
> manifestation of the All-Merciful, the fountain of spiritual outpourings. Love is
> heaven’s kindly light, the Holy Spirit’s eternal breath that vivifieth the human
> soul. Love is the cause of God’s revelation unto man, the vital bond inherent, in
> accordance with the divine creation, in the realities of things. Love is the one
> means that ensureth true felicity both in this world and the next. Love is the light
> that guideth in darkness, the living link that uniteth God with man, that assureth
> the progress of every illumined soul. Love is the most great law that ruleth this
> mighty and heavenly cycle, the unique power that bindeth together the divers
> elements of this material world, the supreme magnetic force that directeth the
> movements of the spheres in the celestial realms. Love revealeth with unfailing
> and limitless power the mysteries latent in the universe.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Selections-writings, #12
> 
> 33.    'Abdu'l-Bahá explains that God is unknowable and consequently it is impossible for
> anything, including the Will, to comprehend the essence of God.
> 
> 34.   But the question may be asked: How shall we know God? We know Him by His
> attributes. We know Him by His signs. We know Him by His names. We know not
> what the reality of the sun is, but we know the sun by the ray, by the heat, by its
> efficacy and penetration. We recognize the sun by its bounty and effulgence, but as
> to what constitutes the reality of the solar energy, that is unknowable to us. The
> attributes characterizing the sun, however, are knowable. If we wish to come in
> touch with the reality of Divinity, we do so by recognizing its phenomena, its
> attributes and traces, which are widespread in the universe. All things in the world
> of phenomena are expressive of that one reality. Its lights are shining, its heat is
> manifest, its power is expressive, and its education, or training, resplendent
> everywhere. What proof could there be greater than that of its functioning or its
> attributes which are manifest? This plant or this flower—we ask: Does it exist or
> not? Can this plant—this flower—comprehend the reality of man? Can it put itself
> in touch with the human existence or reality? Evidently not. It is entirely out of
> tune with the human kingdom; it is not possessed of the capacity, although both
> man and the flower have been created. But the difference in the degrees between
> the vegetable and the human is ever a hindrance, an obstacle. Inasmuch as the
> degree of capacity appertaining to this plant is inferior to our human kingdom, it
> 
> is entirely impossible for the plant, which is inferior, to comprehend man, who is
> superior, although both are accidental, or created. We are created; likewise, this
> plant is existent, this mineral exists, this wood exists. But can this flooring here
> comprehend those who are standing upon it? It cannot, because sight and hearing
> are properties or faculties belonging to a higher kingdom than the mineral. The
> difference between these two kingdoms, the vast difference between the mineral
> kingdom and the human kingdom, is a hindrance to comprehension.
> 35.   How, then, can the reality of man, which is accidental, ever comprehend the
> Reality of God, which is eternal? It is self-evidently an impossibility. Hence we can
> observe the traces and attributes of God, which are resplendent in all phenomena
> and shining as the sun at midday, and know surely that these emanate from an
> infinite source. We know that they come from a source which is infinite indeed.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, #126
> 
> 36. 'Abdu'l-Baháexplains the importance of the oneness of all religions as they all come
> from one source and that religion and science must conform to reason.
> 
> 37.   Bahá’u’lláh teaches that the foundations of the divine religion are one reality
> which does not admit of multiplicity or division. Therefore, the commandments
> and teachings of God are one. The religious differences and divisions which exist
> in the world are due to blind imitations of forms without knowledge or
> investigation of the fundamental divine reality which underlies all the religions.
> Inasmuch as these imitations of ancestral forms are various, dissensions have
> arisen among the people of religion. Therefore, it is necessary to free mankind
> from this subjection to blind belief by pointing the way of guidance to reality itself,
> which is the only basis of unity.
> 38.   Bahá’u’lláh says that religion must be conducive to love and unity. If it proves to
> be the source of hatred and enmity, its absence is preferable; for the will and law
> of God is love, and love is the bond between human hearts. Religion is the light of
> the world. If it is made the cause of darkness through human misunderstanding
> and ignorance, it would be better to do without it.
> 39.   Religion must conform to science and reason; otherwise, it is superstition. God
> has created man in order that he may perceive the verity of existence and endowed
> him with mind or reason to discover truth. Therefore, scientific knowledge and
> religious belief must be conformable to the analysis of this divine faculty in man.
> ‘'Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, #96
> 
> 40. In the Baha’i writings, the ‘how’ of creation of the physical universe is explained as
> seven stages of divine creative action.
> 41.   Since the Ancient of Days created mankind for the purpose of apprehending the
> power shining within themselves, and made reward and punishment the
> 
> instrument for fulfilling this purpose, He created the Will from nothing through
> the causality of the Will itself, without qualification or explanation. After that He
> created all things through its causality, and the creation of anything upon which
> the letter of the Will hath fallen is only possible through seven stages of
> contingency. Without these stages nothing is possible in the contingent world.
> These seven stages are Will (mashiyyat), Purpose (irádih), predestination (qadar),
> fate (qaḍá’), permission (idhn), fixed time (ajal), and the book (kitáb). The first
> stage of anything for which the “thingness” of existence is not a condition is the
> Will. The moment thingness is attached to it, it becometh Purpose, and this
> moment is accompanied by predestination. The manifestation of these three
> stages is fate. In this regard, it is incumbent upon all creatures to acknowledge the
> spontaneity (badá’) of God, lauded and exalted be He, for His will cannot be
> altered after the stage of fate; it is fixed. The decrees of permission, fixed time, and
> the book are subsequent to execution (imḍá’). Indeed, the reality of creation and
> the secret of the origination of existence are contained in these seven stages in
> both the hidden and manifest worlds.
> Báb, Ṣaḥífiy-i-Uṣúl va Furú’, Amr va Khalq, vol. 1, pp. 99-100
> 
> 42.   Say: Nature in its essence is the embodiment of My Name, the Maker, the Creator.
> Its manifestations are diversified by varying causes, and in this diversity there are
> signs for men of discernment. Nature is God's Will and is its expression in and
> through the contingent world. It is a dispensation of Providence ordained by the
> Ordainer, the All-Wise. Were anyone to affirm that it is the Will of God as
> manifested in the world of being, no one should question this assertion. It is
> endowed with a power whose reality men of learning fail to grasp. Indeed a man of
> insight can perceive naught therein save the effulgent splendour of Our Name, the
> Creator. Say: This is an existence which knoweth no decay, and Nature itself is lost
> in bewilderment before its revelations, its compelling evidences and its effulgent
> glory which have encompassed the universe.
> Bahá'u'lláh, Law-i-Hikmat Par. 13
> 
> 4 WORLD OF MATTER
> 
> 43. The chart depicts the Circle of Creation with the physical part of the universe as the
> “WORLD OF MATTER”, showing each of the descending degrees of physical
> existence as mineral, vegetable, animal and culminating with Man. 'Abdu'l-Bahá
> explains:
> 
> 44.   If we look with a perceiving eye upon the world of creation, we find that all
> existing things may be classified as follows: first, mineral—that is to say, matter or
> 
> substance appearing in various forms of composition; second, vegetable—
> possessing the virtues of the mineral plus the power of augmentation or growth,
> indicating a degree higher and more specialized than the mineral; third, animal—
> possessing the attributes of the mineral and vegetable plus the power of sense
> perception; fourth, human—the highest specialized organism of visible creation,
> embodying the qualities of the mineral, vegetable and animal plus an ideal
> endowment absolutely absent in the lower kingdoms— the power of intellectual
> investigation into the mysteries of outer phenomena. The outcome of this
> intellectual endowment is science, which is especially characteristic of man. This
> scientific power investigates and apprehends created objects and the laws
> surrounding them. It is the discoverer of the hidden and mysterious secrets of the
> material universe and is peculiar to man alone. The most noble and praiseworthy
> accomplishment of man, therefore, is scientific knowledge and attainment.
> 45.   All created things are captives of nature and subject to its laws. They cannot
> transgress the control of these laws in one detail or particular. The infinite starry
> worlds and heavenly bodies are nature’s obedient subjects. The earth and its
> myriad organisms, all minerals, plants and animals are thralls of its dominion. But
> man through the exercise of his scientific, intellectual power can rise out of this
> condition, can modify, change and control nature according to his own wishes and
> uses. Science, so to speak, is the breaker of the laws of nature.
> 46.   Therefore, it is manifest and evident that man, although in body a part of nature,
> nevertheless in spirit possesses a power transcending nature; for if he were simply
> a part of nature and limited to material laws, he could possess only the things
> which nature embodies. God has conferred upon and added to man a distinctive
> power—the faculty of intellectual investigation into the secrets of creation, the
> acquisition of higher knowledge—the greatest virtue of which is scientific
> enlightenment.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, #12
> 
> 47.   We declare that love is the cause of the existence of all phenomena and that the
> absence of love is the cause of disintegration or nonexistence. Love is the
> conscious bestowal of God, the bond of affiliation in all phenomena. We will first
> consider the proof of this through sense-perception. As we look upon the universe
> we observe that all composite beings or existing phenomena are made up
> primarily of single elements bound together by a power of attraction. Through this
> power of attraction, cohesion has become manifest between atoms of these
> composing elements. The resultant being is a phenomenon of the lower contingent
> type. The power of cohesion expressed in the mineral kingdom is in reality love or
> affinity manifested in a low degree according to the exigencies of the mineral
> world. We take a step higher into the vegetable kingdom where we find an
> increased power of attraction has become manifest among the composing
> elements which form phenomena. Through this degree of attraction a cellular
> admixture is produced among these elements which make up the body of a plant.
> 
> Therefore in the degree of the vegetable kingdom there is love. We enter the
> animal kingdom and find the attractive power binding together single elements as
> in the mineral, plus the cellular admixture as in the vegetable, plus the
> phenomena of feelings or susceptibilities. We observe that the animals are
> susceptible to certain affiliation and fellowship, and that they exercise natural
> selection. This elemental attraction, this admixture and selective affinity is love
> manifest in the degree of the animal kingdom.
> 48.   Finally we come to the kingdom of man. As this is the superior kingdom, the light
> of love is more resplendent. In man we find the power of attraction among the
> elements which compose his material body, plus the attraction which produces
> cellular admixture or power augmentative, plus the attraction which characterizes
> the sensibilities of the animal kingdom, but still beyond and above all these lower
> powers we discover in the being of man the attraction of heart, the susceptibilities
> and affinities which bind men together, enabling them to live and associate in
> friendship and solidarity. It is therefore evident that in the world of humanity the
> greatest king and sovereign is love. If love were extinguished, the power of
> attraction dispelled, the affinity of human hearts destroyed, the phenomena of
> human life would disappear.
> 49.   This is a proof perceptible to the senses, acceptable to reason, in accord with
> traditions and teachings of the holy books and verified by the promptings of
> human hearts themselves. It is a proof upon which we can absolutely rely and
> declare to be complete. But these are only degrees of love which exist in the
> natural or physical world. Their manifestation is ever according to the
> requirement of natural conditions and standards.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, #89
> 
> 4.1 MINERAL
> 
> 50.   'Abdu'l-Bahá explains that matter and love are both aspects of the Will and that both
> of these aspects are required to cause existence.
> 
> 51.    Matter, reflecting the negative aspect of God, is self-existent, eternal, and fills all
> space. Spirit, flowing out from God, permeates all matter. This spirit, Love,
> reflecting the positive and active aspect of God, impresses its nature upon the
> atoms and elements. By its power they are attracted to each other under certain
> ordered relations, and thus, uniting and continuing to unite, give birth to worlds
> and systems of worlds. The same laws working under developed conditions bring
> into existence living beings. Spirit is the life of the form, and the form is shaped by
> the spirit. The evolution of life and form proceeds hand in hand. The powers of
> spirit are evolved by the experiences of the form, and the plasticity of the matter of
> 
> the form is developed by the activity of the spirit. Working up through the mineral
> and vegetable kingdoms, sense-perception is reached in the animal, and the
> perfection of form is attained in man.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá’í Scriptures, p. 301
> 
> 52. In order for everything in the universe to be in constant motion, a continual source of
> energy is required. As all things are caused by the Will or creative force, this indicates
> that the creative force or Will is ever active and eternal everywhere in the universe.
> 
> 53.   Creation is the expression of motion. Motion is life. A moving object is a living
> object, whereas that which is motionless and inert is as dead. All created forms are
> progressive in their planes, or kingdoms of existence, under the stimulus of the
> power or spirit of life. The universal energy is dynamic. Nothing is stationary in
> the material world of outer phenomena or in the inner world of intellect and
> consciousness.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Foundations of World Unity #83
> 
> 54. From the following explanations by 'Abdu'l-Bahá     we can understand that existence,
> both physical and non-physical have no limits of any kind. Also, he explains the basic
> structure of the physical universe, that it has no size or shape, has always existed and
> will exist forever.
> 55.   The celestial orbs are each endowed with its own particular creation. This
> terrestrial sphere, which from a relative point of view is exceedingly small, is
> neither empty nor without purpose—how much less doth that apply to those
> brilliantly resplendent and massive bodies! In the Qur’án it is explicitly stated:
> “And among His signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the moving
> things which He hath scattered over them both.” The phrase “over them both” is
> employed, not “over it,” clearly indicating that in both the heavens and the earth
> living creatures exist, for the term “moving thing” denoteth a being possessed of
> life and motion. Despite this clarity, none have apprehended the matter up to now.
> Provisional Translation by Adib Masumian - 'Abdu'l-Bahá - Amr va Khalq, vol. 1, p. 145
> 
> 56.   Know thou that the expressions of the creative hand of God throughout His
> limitless worlds are themselves limitless. Limitations are a characteristic of the
> finite, and restriction is a quality of existent things, not of the reality of existence.
> 57.   This being the case, how can one, without proof or testimony, conceive of creation
> being bound by limits?.
> 58.   These are spiritual truths relating to the spiritual world. In like manner, from
> these spiritual realities infer truths about the material world. For physical things
> are signs and imprints of spiritual things; every lower thing is an image and
> 
> counterpart of a higher thing. Nay, earthly and heavenly, material and spiritual,
> accidental and essential, particular and universal, structure and foundation,
> appearance and reality and the essence of all things, both inward and outward—all
> of these are connected one with another and are interrelated in such a manner
> that you will find that drops are patterned after seas, and that atoms are
> structured after suns in proportion to their capacities and potentialities. For
> particulars in relation to what is below them are universals, and what are great
> universals in the sight of those whose eyes are veiled are in fact particulars in
> relation to the realities and beings which are superior to them. Universal and
> particular are in reality incidental and relative considerations. ...
> 59.   Know then that the all-embracing framework that governs existence includes
> within its compass every existent being - particular or universal - whether
> outwardly or inwardly, secretly or openly. Just as particulars are infinite in
> number, so also universals, on the material plane, and the great realities of the
> universe are without number and beyond computation. …
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Tablet of the Universe, p. 5-8 , Provisional translation
> 
> 60.   As to your question regarding the stars: Know that these brilliant stars are
> numberless and their existence is not devoid of wisdom both useful and
> important.
> 61.   Rather they are worlds, as is this world of ours. But they differ in their bodies, by
> the difference of elements, from this earthly body. They differ in formation. The
> beings existent upon these bodies are according to their formation.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Baha’i Scripture, p. 445
> 
> 62.   … because, just as the luminous spiritual worlds are sanctified above computation
> or limitation, so too are the physical worlds in this vast immensity of space.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Tablet of the Universe #17, p 5 Provisional translation
> 
> 63.   It is likewise clear and evident that this terrestrial globe came to exist, grow, and
> develop in the matrix of the universe and assumed different forms and conditions
> until it gradually attained its present completeness, became adorned with
> countless beings, and appeared in such a consummate form.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #47
> 
> 64.   Similarly, the terrestrial globe was created, from the beginning, with all its
> elements, substances, minerals, parts, and components, but these appeared only
> gradually: first the minerals, then the plants, then the animals, and finally man.
> But from the beginning, these kinds and species were latent in the earthly realm
> and appeared gradually thereafter. For the supreme law of God and the universal
> natural order encompasses all things and subjects them to its rule. When you
> 
> consider this universal order, you see that not a single thing reaches the limit of
> perfection immediately upon coming into existence, but grows and develops
> gradually until it reaches that stage.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #51
> 
> 65.   Universal existences can be likened and compared to particular ones, for both are
> subject to one natural order, one universal law, and one divine arrangement. For
> instance, you will find the smallest atoms to be similar in their general structure to
> the greatest entities in the universe, and it is clear that they have proceeded from
> one laboratory of might according to one natural order and one universal law, and
> can therefore be compared to one another.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #47
> 
> 66.   As long as the sovereignty of God is immemorial, therefore the creation of our
> world throughout infinity is presupposed. When we look at the reality of this
> subject, we see that the bounties of God are infinite, without beginning and
> without end.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Foundations of World Unity, #53
> 
> 4.2 VEGETABLE
> 
> 67.   In its ceaseless progression and journeyings the atom becomes imbued with the
> virtues and powers of each degree or kingdom it traverses. In the degree of the
> mineral it possessed mineral affinities; in the kingdom of the vegetable it
> manifested the augmentative virtue or power of growth; in the animal organism it
> reflected the intelligence of that degree; and in the kingdom of man it was
> qualified with human attributes or virtues. Furthermore, the forms and organisms
> of phenomenal being and existence in each of the kingdoms of the universe are
> myriad and numberless. The vegetable plane or kingdom, for instance, has its
> infinite variety of types and material structures of plant life—each distinct and
> different within itself, no two exactly alike in composition and detail—for there are
> no repetitions in nature, and the augmentative virtue cannot be confined to any
> given image or shape. Each leaf has its own particular identity—so to speak, its
> own individuality as a leaf. Therefore, each atom of the innumerable elemental
> atoms, during its ceaseless motion through the kingdoms of existence as a
> constituent of organic composition, not only becomes imbued with the powers and
> virtues of the kingdoms it traverses but also reflects the attributes and qualities of
> the forms and organisms of those kingdoms. As each of these forms has its
> individual and particular virtue, therefore, each elemental atom of the universe
> has the opportunity of expressing an infinite variety of those individual virtues. No
> atom is bereft or deprived of this opportunity or right of expression.
> 
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, #96.
> 
> 4.3 ANIMAL
> 
> 68.   As to the animal: It is endowed only with sense perception. It is lacking the
> reasonable perception. It cannot apprehend ideal realities. The animal cannot
> conceive of the earth as a sphere. The intelligence of an animal located in Europe
> could never have planned the discovery of the continent of America. The animal
> kingdom is incapable of discovering the latent mysteries of nature—such as
> electricity—and bringing them forth from the invisible to the plane of visibility. It
> is evident that the discoveries and inventions transcend the animal intelligence.
> The animal cannot penetrate the secrets of genesis and creation. Its mind is
> incapable of conceiving the verity of ether. It cannot know the mysteries of
> magnetism because the bestowals of abstract reason and intellect are absent in its
> endowment. That is to say, the animal in its creation is a captive of the senses.
> Beyond the tangibilities and impressions of the senses it cannot accept anything. It
> denies everything. It is incapable of ideal perception and, therefore, a captive of
> the senses.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Unversal Peace, #111
> 
> 4.4 MAN
> 
> 69. In the following statements we spiritual human beings         are defined as the purpose of
> the universe - well, actually all existence.
> 
> 70.   Having created the world and all that liveth and moveth therein, He, through the
> direct operation of His unconstrained and sovereign Will, chose to confer upon
> man the unique distinction and capacity to know Him and to love Him—a capacity
> that must needs be regarded as the generating impulse and the primary purpose
> underlying the whole of creation. … Upon the inmost reality of each and every
> created thing He hath shed the light of one of His names, and made it a recipient
> of the glory of one of His attributes. Upon the reality of man, however, He hath
> focused the radiance of all of His names and attributes, and made it a mirror of
> His own Self. Alone of all created things man hath been singled out for so great a
> favor, so enduring a bounty.
> 71.   These energies with which the Daystar of Divine bounty and Source of heavenly
> guidance hath endowed the reality of man lie, however, latent within him, even as
> the flame is hidden within the candle and the rays of light are potentially present
> 
> in the lamp. The radiance of these energies may be obscured by worldly desires
> even as the light of the sun can be concealed beneath the dust and dross which
> cover the mirror. Neither the candle nor the lamp can be lighted through their
> own unaided efforts, nor can it ever be possible for the mirror to free itself from its
> dross. It is clear and evident that until a fire is kindled the lamp will never be
> ignited, and unless the dross is blotted out from the face of the mirror it can never
> represent the image of the sun nor reflect its light and glory.
> Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings, #27
> 
> 72.   The purpose of God in creating man hath been, and will ever be, to enable him to
> know his Creator and to attain His Presence. To this most excellent aim, this
> supreme objective, all the heavenly Books and the divinely-revealed and weighty
> Scriptures unequivocally bear witness.
> 73.   Whoso hath recognized the Day Spring of Divine guidance and entered His holy
> court hath drawn nigh unto God and attained His Presence, a Presence which is
> the real Paradise...
> Baha'u'llah: Gleanings, #29
> 
> 74.   Thus, the divinity of God, which is the totality of all perfections, reveals itself in
> the reality of man—that is, the divine Essence is the sum total of all perfections,
> and from this station it casts a ray of its splendour upon the human reality. ... Thus
> man is a perfect mirror facing the Sun of Truth and is the seat of its reflection. The
> splendour of all the divine perfections is manifest in the reality of man, and it is
> for this reason that he is the vicegerent and apostle of God. If man did not exist,
> the universe would be without result, for the purpose of existence is the revelation
> of the divine perfections. We cannot say, then, that there was a time when man
> was not. At most we can say that there was a time when this earth did not exist,
> and that at the beginning man was not present upon it.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #50
> 
> 75. As humans are    the purpose of all existence we exist throughout the universe.
> 
> 76.   Know that, although human souls have existed upon the earth for a myriad ages
> and cycles, the human soul is nonetheless originated. And since it is a sign of God,
> once it has come into being it is everlasting. The human spirit has a beginning but
> no end: It endures forever.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #38
> 
> 77.   Know thou that every fixed star hath its own planets, and every planet its own
> creatures, whose number no man can compute.
> Baha'u'llah, Gleanings, #82
> 
> 78.   Verily I say, the creation of God embraceth worlds besides this world, and
> creatures apart from these creatures. In each of these worlds He hath ordained
> things which none can search except Himself, the All-Searching, the All-Wise. Do
> thou meditate on that which We have revealed unto thee, that thou mayest
> discover the purpose of God, thy Lord, and the Lord of all worlds. In these words
> the mysteries of Divine Wisdom have been treasured.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Divine Philosophy, pp. 114-115.
> 
> 79.   The earth has its inhabitants, the water and the air contain many living beings…
> then how is it possible to conceive that these stupendous stellar bodies are not
> inhabited? Verily, they are peopled, but let it be known that the dwellers accord
> with the elements of their respective spheres. These living beings do not have
> states of consciousness like unto those who live on the surface of this globe: the
> power of adaptation and environment molds their bodies and states of
> consciousness, just as our bodies and minds are suited to our planet.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Divine Philosophy, pp. 114-115.
> 
> 80. 'Abdu'l-Bahá identifies those attributes that define humankind as differentiated from
> animals, even though both have a physical animal body.
> 
> 81.   There are in the world of humanity three degrees; those of the body, the soul, and
> spirit.
> 82.   The body is the physical or animal degree of man. From the bodily point of view
> man is a sharer of the animal kingdom. The bodies alike of men and animals are
> composed of elements held together by the law of attraction.
> 83.   Like the animal, man possesses the faculties of the senses, is subject to heat, cold,
> hunger, thirst, etc.; unlike the animal, man has a rational soul, the human
> intelligence.
> 84.   This intelligence of man is the intermediary between his body and his spirit.
> 85.   When man allows the spirit, through his soul, to enlighten his understanding, then
> does he contain all Creation; because man, being the culmination of all that went
> before and thus superior to all previous evolutions, contains all the lower world
> within himself. Illumined by the spirit through the instrumentality of the soul,
> man’s radiant intelligence makes him the crowning-point of Creation.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Paris Talks, #31
> 
> 86.   There are five outward material powers in man which are the means of perception
> — that is, five powers whereby man perceives material things. They are sight,
> which perceives sensible forms; hearing, which perceives audible sounds; smell,
> which perceives odours; taste, which perceives edible things; and touch, which is
> distributed throughout the body and which perceives tactile realities. These five
> powers perceive external objects.
> 87.   Man has likewise a number of spiritual powers: the power of imagination, which
> forms a mental image of things; thought, which reflects upon the realities of
> things; comprehension, which understands these realities; and memory, which
> retains whatever man has imagined, thought, and understood. The intermediary
> between these five outward powers and the inward powers is a common faculty, a
> sense which mediates between them and which conveys to the inward powers
> whatever the outward powers have perceived. It is termed the common faculty as
> it is shared in common between the outward and inward powers.
> 88.    The outward powers are five: the power of sight, of hearing, of taste, of smell, and
> of touch. The inward powers are also five: the common faculty and the powers of
> imagination, thought, comprehension, and memory.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #56
> 
> 89.   The power of the sympathetic nerve are neither entirely physical nor entirely
> spiritual, but are between the two (systems). The nerve is connected with both. Its
> phenomena shall be perfect when its spiritual and physical relations are become
> normal.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Baha’i Scripture, p 455
> 
> 4.4.1 DIVINE ELIXIR
> 
> 90. Divine Elixir or "the Power of the Great Ether" is something not normally included in
> a discussion of the universe, but we should be aware of its existence and that it is a
> real power. In our times some of the humans having this power were the Báb, his
> follower Quddus, Bahá’u’lláh and 'Abdu'l-Bahá and many others. However, any
> human can be endowed with this power as explained here.
> 
> 91.    The Book of God is wide open, and His Word is summoning mankind unto Him.
> No more than a mere handful, however, hath been found willing to cleave to His
> Cause, or to become the instruments for its promotion. These few have been
> endued with the Divine Elixir that can, alone, transmute into purest gold the dross
> of the world, and have been empowered to administer the infallible remedy for all
> the ills that afflict the children of men. No man can obtain everlasting life, unless
> he embraceth the truth of this inestimable, this wondrous, and sublimeRevelation.
> 
> Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings, #92
> 
> 92.   “At stated periods souls are sent to earth by the Mighty God with what we call "the
> Power of the Great Ether." And they who possess this power can do anything; they
> have all Power....'
> 93.    “Jesus Christ had this Power.
> 94.    “The people thought of Him as a poor young man, Whom they had crucified; but
> He possessed the Power of the Great Ether, therefore He could not remain
> underground. This ethereal Power arose and quickened the world. And now look
> to the Master, for this Power is His.” [Master = 'Abdu'l-Bahá ]
> Baha'u'llah, ‘The Chosen Highway [Part III, Chapter 1]
> 
> 95.   Indeed God hath created everywhere around his Gate oceans of divine elixir,
> tinged crimson with the essence of existence and vitalized through the animating
> power of the desired fruit; and for them God hath provided Arks of ruby, tender,
> crimson-colored, wherein none sail but the people of Baha, by the leave of God,
> the Most Exalted; and verily He is the All-wise.
> Selections from the writings of the Bab, Qayyum al-Asma, [18] Chapter LVII.
> 
> 96.   It is evident that nothing short of this mystic transformation could cause such
> spirit and behaviour, so utterly unlike their previous habits and manners, to be
> made manifest in the world of being. For their agitation was turned into peace,
> their doubt into certitude, their timidity into courage. Such is the potency of the
> Divine Elixir, which, swift as the twinkling of an eye, transmuteth the souls of
> men!
> 97.    For instance, consider the substance of copper. Were it to be protected in its own
> mine from becoming solidified, it would, within the space of seventy years, attain
> to the state of gold. There are some, however, who maintain that copper itself is
> gold, which by becoming solidified is in a diseased condition, and hath not
> therefore reached its own state.
> 98.   Be that as it may, the real elixir will, in one instant, cause the substance of copper
> to attain the state of gold, and will traverse the seventy-year stages in a single
> moment. Could this gold be called copper? Could it be claimed that it hath not
> attained the state of gold, whilst the touchstone is at hand to assay it and
> distinguish it from copper.
> 99.   Likewise, these souls, through the potency of the Divine Elixir, traverse, in the
> twinkling of an eye, the world of dust and advance into the realm of holiness; and
> with one step cover the earth of limitations and reach the domain of the Placeless.
> It behooveth thee to exert thine utmost to attain unto this Elixir which, in one
> fleeting breath, causeth the west of ignorance to reach the east of knowledge,
> illuminates the darkness of night with the resplendence of the morn, guideth the
> 
> wanderer in the wilderness of doubt to the wellspring of the Divine Presence and
> Fount of certitude, and conferreth upon mortal souls the honor of acceptance into
> the Riḍván of immortality. Now, could this gold be thought to be copper, these
> people could likewise be thought to be the same as before they were endowed with
> faith.
> Bahá’u’lláh, Kitáb-i-Íqán, [36]
> 
> 4.5 COMPOSITION AND DECOMPOSITION
> 
> 100. 'Abdu'l-Bahá explains that all things that are composed eventually decompose.
> 
> 101. Thus, as that Essence of Oneness, or divine Being, is eternal and everlasting—that
> is, as it has neither beginning nor end—it follows that the world of existence, this
> endless universe, likewise has no beginning. To be sure, it is possible for some part
> of creation—one of the celestial globes—to be newly formed or to disintegrate, but
> the other countless globes would continue to exist and the world of existence itself
> would not be disrupted or destroyed. On the contrary, its existence is perpetual
> and unchanging. Now, as each globe has a beginning, it must inevitably have an
> end as well, since every composition, whether universal or particular, must of
> necessity be decomposed. At most, some disintegrate quickly and others slowly,
> but it is impossible for something that is composed not to ultimately decompose.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #47
> 
> 5 WHATEVER LIETH BETWEEN THEM
> 
> 102. As mentioned earlier, having an understanding of “whatever lieth between them” is
> crucial to understanding the universe. 'Abdu'l-Bahá uses the term “etherial matter” to
> define this all-pervading existence and he explains that it is not physical and can only
> be proved by its effects, such as light, electricity, and heat.
> 103. Bahá’u’lláh and 'Abdu'l-Bahá explain how the primordial non-physical matter of
> which the entire physical universe is composed comes into being.
> 
> 104. The world of existence came into being through the heat generated from the
> interaction between the active force and that which is its recipient. These two are
> the same, yet they are different. Thus doth the Great Announcement inform thee
> about this glorious structure. Such as communicate the generating influence and
> such as receive its impact are indeed created through the irresistible Word of God,
> 
> which is the Cause of the entire creation, while all else besides His Word are but
> the creatures and effects thereof.
> Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh, Lawḥ-i-Hikmat #9
> 
> 105. 'Abdu'l-Bahá explains the above statement by Bahá’u’lláh;
> 
> 106. “The world of existence came into being through the heat generated [from the
> interaction between the active force and that which is its recipient. These two are
> the same, yet they are different].” That is to say, the primary matter of contingent
> beings is the ethereal power, which is invisible and can only [be] established
> through its effects, such as electricity, heat, and light, which are vibrations of that
> power. This is established and proven in natural philosophy, and it is called
> ethereal matter. This ethereal matter is itself both the active force and the
> recipient; in other words, in the world of corporeal existents it is the sign of the
> Primal Will. “God created man by the Will, and He created the Will by means of
> itself.” Therefore, this ethereal matter is, in a certain respect, the active force, since
> light, heat, and electricity appear from it. It is also the recipient, for as vibrations
> take place in it, it becomes visible. For instance, light is a vibration occurring in
> that ethereal matter. From these vibrations the power of sight is affected, and the
> result is seeing. Likewise, vibrations take place in the air and from them the
> eardrum is affected. That effect is sound, and the result is hearing.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Three Verses in the Lawh-i-Hikmat, [2]
> 
> 107. They have said that the potentialities (qábiliyyát) and the recipients of the
> potentialities (maqbúlát) came into being and were created simultaneously. For
> example, it has been stated that all things are composed of two elements: the
> ‘Fashioner’ (qábil) and the ‘Fashioned’ (maqbúl). By ‘Fashioned’ is meant
> substance (mádda) and primary matter (huyúlá), and by ‘Fashioner’ is meant form
> and shape, which confines and limits the primary matter from its state of
> indefiniteness and freedom to the courtyard of limitation and definite form.
> Provisional Translation by Moojan Momen in Bahá’í Studies Bulletin 3.4.26-27, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá (Makátíb2:35)
> 
> 108. 'Abdu'l-Bahá explains how the universe came to exist;
> 
> 109. We must know, then, what each one of the great existent things was in the
> beginning. There is no doubt that initially there was a single origin: There cannot
> have been two origins. For the origin of all numbers is one and not two; the
> number two is itself in need of an origin. It is therefore evident that originally
> matter was one, and that one matter appeared in a different form in each element.
> Thus various forms appeared, and as they appeared, they each assumed an
> independent form and became a specific element. But this distinction attained its
> 
> full completion and realization only after a very long time. Then these elements
> were composed, arranged, and combined in infinite forms; in other words, from
> the composition and combination of these elements countless beings appeared.
> 110. This composition and arrangement arose, through the wisdom of God and His
> ancient might, from one natural order. Thus, as this composition and combination
> has been produced according to a natural order, with perfect soundness, following
> a consummate wisdom, and subject to a universal law, it is clear that it is a divine
> creation and not an accidental composition and arrangement.
> 111. It is therefore evident that the original matter, which is like unto the embryo,
> initially took the form of composed and combined elements, and that composition
> gradually grew and developed over a myriad ages and centuries, passing from one
> shape and form to another until, through the consummate wisdom of God, it
> appeared with such completeness, order, arrangement, and soundness.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #47
> 
> 112. In the following prayer for protection, the Bábprovides some very interesting
> statements indicating the existence of humans in “what which lieth between them”
> using these terms: “He truly is a witness:, “Lord of Reckoning for all that dwell”, “He
> setteth the measure assigned to all”, “His Hosts”. The Báb uses this term many times,
> and Bahá’u’lláh uses it only once referencing it from the Quran.
> 
> 113. In the Name of God, the Lord of overpowering majesty, the All-Compelling.
> 
> 114. Hallowed be the Lord in Whose hand is the source of dominion. He createth
> whatsoever He willeth by His Word of command “Be,” and it is. His hath been the
> power of authority heretofore, and it shall remain His hereafter. He maketh
> victorious whomsoever He pleaseth, through the potency of His behest. He is in
> truth the Powerful, the Almighty. Unto Him pertaineth all glory and majesty in
> the kingdoms of Revelation and Creation and whatever lieth between them.
> Verily, He is the Potent, the All-Glorious. From everlasting He hath been the
> Source of indomitable strength and shall remain so unto everlasting. He is indeed
> the Lord of might and power.
> 115. All the kingdoms of heaven and earth and whatever is between them are God's,
> and His power is supreme over all things. All the treasures of earth and heaven
> and everything between them are His, and His protection extendeth over all
> things. He is the Creator of the heavens and the earth and whatever lieth between
> them, and He truly is a witness over all things. He is the Lord of Reckoning for all
> that dwell in the heavens and on earth and whatever lieth between them, and truly
> God is swift to reckon. He setteth the measure assigned to all who are in the
> heavens and the earth and whatever is between them. Verily, He is the Supreme
> Protector. He holdeth in His grasp the keys of heaven and earth and of everything
> 
> between them. At His Own pleasure doth He bestow gifts, through the power of
> His command. Indeed His grace encompasseth all, and He is the All-Knowing.
> 116. Say: God sufficeth unto me; He is the One Who holdeth in His grasp the kingdom
> of all things. Through the power of His hosts of heaven and earth and whatever
> lieth between them, He protecteth whomsoever among His servants He willeth.
> God, in truth, keepeth watch over all things. Immeasurably exalted art Thou, O
> Lord! Protect us from what lieth in front of us and behind us, above our heads, on
> our right, on our left, below our feet and every other side to which we are exposed.
> Verily, Thy protection over all things is unfailing.
> The original of this prayer for protection is written in the Báb's own hand, in the form of a pentacle.
> Selections from the Writings of the Báb pp 212-213
> 
> 117. The Bab also indicates the existence of humans in “whatever lieth between them” in
> many other statements, including the following.
> 
> 118. Our grace assuredly pervadeth all that dwell in the kingdoms of earth and heaven
> and in whatever lieth between them, and beyond them all mankind. However,
> souls that have shut themselves out as by a veil can never partake of the
> outpourings of the grace of God.
> Selections from the Writings of the Báb #1]
> 
> 119. Say, verily any one follower of this Faith can, by the leave of God, prevail over all
> who dwell in heaven and earth and in whatever lieth between them; for indeed this
> is, beyond the shadow of a doubt, the one true Faith. Therefore fear ye not, neither
> be ye grieved.
> Selections from the Writings of the Báb #6]
> 
> 120. Say, God hath undisputed triumph over every victorious one. There is no one in
> heaven or earth or in whatever lieth between them who can frustrate the
> transcendent supremacy of His triumph. He calleth into being whatsoever He
> willeth through the potency of His behest. Verily God is the mightiest Sustainer,
> the Helper and the Defender.
> Selections from the Writings of the Báb #6
> 
> 121. ‘Abdu'l-Bahá explains some aspects of etherialmatter and that it is all pervading,
> meaning there is nowhere that it does not exist in the entire universe.
> 
> 122. The substance and primary matter of contingent beings is the ethereal power,
> which is invisible and only known through its effects, such as electricity, heat, and
> light—these are vibrations of that power, and this is established and proven in
> 
> natural philosophy and is known as the ethereal substance (máddíy-i-athíríyyih).
> This ethereal substance is itself both the active force and the recipient; in other
> words, it is the sign of the Primal Will in the phenomenal world.... The ethereal
> substance is, therefore, the cause since light, heat, and electricity appear from it. It
> is also the effect, for as vibrations take place in it, they become visible. For
> instance, light is a vibration occurring in that ethereal substance.
> Provisional translation by Keven Brown (Má’idiy-i-Ásmání 2:69), ‘Abdu'l-Bahá, [15]
> 
> 123. If we were to deny all that is not accessible to the senses, then we would be forced
> to deny realities which undoubtedly exist. For example, the ether is not sensible,
> although its reality can be proven. The power of gravity is not sensible, although
> its existence is likewise undeniable. Whence do we affirm their existence? From
> their signs. For instance, this light consists in the vibrations of the ether, and from
> these vibrations we infer its existence.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #48
> 
> 124. When we observe the world of created phenomena, we discover that each atom of
> the atoms of substance is moving through the various degrees and kingdoms of
> organic life. For instance, consider the ethereal element which is penetrating and
> traveling through all the contingent realities. When there is vibration or
> movement in the ethereal element, the eye is affected by that vibration and
> beholds what is known as light.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, #58
> 
> 125. Even the ether, the forces of which are said in natural philosophy to be heat, light,
> electricity, and magnetism, is an intelligible and not a sensible reality. Likewise,
> nature itself is an intelligible and not a sensible reality; the human spirit is an
> intelligible and not a sensible reality.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #16
> 
> 126. Consider that light consists in the vibrations of the ether, whereby the nerves of
> the eye are stimulated and vision is produced. Now, though the vibrations of the
> ether exist both in the lamp and in the sun, yet what a difference there is between
> the light of the sun and that of the stars or of the lamp!
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #37
> 
> 127. The Divine Essence as it is in itself is however beyond all description. For instance,
> the nature of ether is unknown, but that it existeth is certain by the effects it
> produceth, heat, light and electricity being the waves thereof. By these waves the
> existence of ether is thus proven. And as we consider the outpourings of Divine
> Grace we are assured of the existence of God. For instance, we observe that the
> 
> existence of beings is conditioned upon the coming together of various elements
> and their non-existence upon the decomposition of their constituent elements. For
> decomposition causeth the dissociation of the various elements. Thus, as we
> observe the coming together of elements giveth rise to the existence of beings, and
> knowing that beings are infinite, they being the effect, how can the Cause be
> finite?
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá's Tablet to Dr. Forel [3]
> 
> 128.    Similarly in the world of being there exist forces unseen of the eye, such as the
> force of ether previously mentioned, that cannot be sensed, that cannot be seen.
> However, from the effects it produceth, that is from its waves and vibrations, light,
> heat, electricity appear and are made evident.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá's Tablet to Dr. Forel [4]
> 
> 129. It is evident that the discoveries and inventions transcend the animal intelligence.
> The animal cannot penetrate the secrets of genesis and creation. Its mind is
> incapable of conceiving the verity of ether. It cannot know the mysteries of
> magnetism because the bestowals of abstract reason and intellect are absent in its
> endowment.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, #111 [205]
> 
> 130. The animal cannot understand the roundness of the earth, nor its motion in space,
> nor the central position of the sun, nor can it imagine such a thing as the all-
> pervading ether.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá in London [23]
> 
> 131. In this provisional translation, 'Abdu'l-Bahá provides some of the essential qualities
> of etherial matter as well as information about celestial bodies and their properties,
> using the terms “spiritual spheres” to denote the spheres which are common to all
> stars (for example our solar system’s Ort cloud) and “luminous divine orbs” for stars
> (and our sun):
> 
> 132. He made the circuits of these luminous divine orbs to be their lofty and celestial
> spheres; and He made the bodies of these spiritual spheres to be subtle and soft,
> flowing and liquid, undulating and vibrating, in such manner that these refulgent
> orbs swim in the circumferences of the spheres, and move in their vast space by
> the aid of their Creator and Maker, their Ordainer and Fashioner.
> 133.    The existence of a container implies the existence of something contained; what is
> contained can hardly be other than a body, but the bodies of the celestial spheres
> are in the utmost degree of subtlety, lightness and fluidity as bodies may be of
> 
> diverse kinds: solid like rocks, malleable like metals and minerals, fluid like water
> and air. Lighter still they may be of a kind that ascends heavenwards, such as that
> which is used in dirigibles; and lighter than all of these are fire, electricity and
> lightning. All of these are bodies in reality, but some of them are weightless. In like
> manner thy Lord hath created in these vast heavens manifold bodies without limit
> or number, which the minds of men can neither compute nor encompass. Souls
> are bewildered when they attempt to understand them and confounded by a mere
> glimpse of them.
> Provisional translation, Tablet of the Universe, 'Abdu'l-Bahá p 6
> 
> 6 THE SPIRITUAL KINGDOMS
> 
> 134. Having covered the physical and “whatever is between” portions of existence, we now
> come to the final goal of our human existence – the spiritual worlds – of which we are
> not allowed to know very much about – until we get there.
> 135. As explained previously, spirits are of different kinds – mineral – vegetable – animal
> – human. Spirits in kingdoms lower than human have a beginning and expire at the
> decomposition of the physical organism. The human spirit has a beginning and no
> end. Human life in an animal body (including in the womb) is the first life and its
> future after what we call death is our promotion to the spiritual realms which are
> endless and eternal.
> 136. The heavenly realms that the human spirit traverses, as stated on the chart, are
> infinite in series and progression in approaching God, but never attain to God because
> that is entirely impossible. Even the Word or Will is unable to attain to that point
> because it also is part of creation. God is unknowable.
> 
> 137. 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. The purpose underlying Their revelation hath been
> to educate all men, that they may, at the hour of death, ascend, in the utmost
> purity and sanctity and with absolute detachment, to the throne of the Most High.
> The light which these souls radiate is responsible for the progress of the world and
> the advancement of its peoples. They are like unto leaven which leaveneth the
> world of being, and constitute the animating force through which the arts and
> wonders of the world are made manifest. Through them the clouds rain their
> bounty upon men, and the earth bringeth forth its fruits. All things must needs
> have a cause, a motive power, an animating principle. These souls and symbols of
> detachment have provided, and will continue to provide, the supreme moving
> impulse in the world of being. The world beyond is as different from this world as
> 
> this world is different from that of the child while still in the womb of its mother.
> When the soul attaineth the Presence of God, it will assume the form that best
> befitteth its immortality and is worthy of its celestial habitation. Such an existence
> is a contingent and not an absolute existence, inasmuch as the former is preceded
> by a cause, whilst the latter is independent thereof.
> Baha'u'llah, Gleanings, #81
> 
> 138. Thou shalt, after thy departure, discover what We have revealed unto thee, and
> shalt find all thy doings recorded in the Book wherein the works of all them that
> dwell on earth, be they greater or less than the weight of an atom, are noted down.
> Baha'u'llah, Gleanings, #113
> 
> 139. And now concerning thy question whether human souls continue to be conscious
> one of another after their separation from the body. Know thou that the souls of
> the people of Bahá, who have entered and been established within the Crimson
> Ark, shall associate and commune intimately one with another, and shall be so
> closely associated in their lives, their aspirations, their aims and strivings as to be
> even as one soul.
> Baha'u'llah, Gleanings, #86
> 
> 140. Verily I say, the human soul is exalted above all egress and regress. It is still, and
> yet it soareth; it moveth, and yet it is still. It is, in itself, a testimony that beareth
> witness to the existence of a world that is contingent, as well as to the reality of a
> world that hath neither beginning nor end.
> Baha'u'llah, Gleanings, #82
> 
> 141. How does one look forward to the goal of any journey? With hope and with
> expectation. It is even so with the end of this earthly journey. In the next world,
> man will find himself freed from many of the disabilities under which he now
> suffers. Those who have passed on through death, have a sphere of their own. It is
> not removed from ours; their work, the work of the Kingdom, is ours; but it is
> sanctified from what we call `time and place.' Time with us is measured by the
> sun. When there is no more sunrise, and no more sunset, that kind of time does
> not exist for man. Those who have ascended have different attributes from those
> who are still on earth, yet there is no real separation.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá in London, [96]
> 
> 142.    As to the question whether the souls will recognize each other in the spiritual
> world: This (fact) is certain; for the Kingdom is the world of vision (i.e., things are
> visible in it), where all the concealed realities will become disclosed. How much
> more the well-known souls will become manifest. The mysteries of which man is
> 
> heedless in this earthly world, those will he discover in the heavenly world, and
> there will he be informed of the secret of truth; how much more will he recognize
> or discover persons with whom he hath been associated. Undoubtedly, the holy
> souls who find a pure eye and are favored with insight will, in the kingdom of
> lights, be acquainted with all mysteries, and will seek the bounty of witnessing the
> reality of every great soul. Even they will manifestly behold the Beauty of God in
> that world. Likewise will they find all the friends of God, both those of the former
> and recent times, present in the heavenly assemblage.
> Tablets of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, [205]
> 
> 6.1 GRADES IN THE SPIRITUAL KINGDOM
> 
> 143. As to thy question concerning the worlds of God. Know thou of a truth that the
> worlds of God are countless in their number, and infinite in their range. None can
> reckon or comprehend them except God, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. Consider
> thy state when asleep. Verily, I say, this phenomenon is the most mysterious of the
> signs of God amongst men, were they to ponder it in their hearts. Behold how the
> thing which thou hast seen in thy dream is, after a considerable lapse of time, fully
> realized. Had the world in which thou didst find thyself in thy dream been
> identical with the world in which thou livest, it would have been necessary for the
> event occurring in that dream to have transpired in this world at the very moment
> of its occurrence. Were it so, you yourself would have borne witness unto it. This
> being not the case, however, it must necessarily follow that the world in which
> thou livest is different and apart from that which thou hast experienced in thy
> dream. This latter world hath neither beginning nor end. It would be true if thou
> wert to contend that this same world is, as decreed by the All-Glorious and
> Almighty God, within thy proper self and is wrapped up within thee. It would
> equally be true to maintain that thy spirit, having transcended the limitations of
> sleep and having stripped itself of all earthly attachment, hath, by the act of God,
> been made to traverse a realm which lieth hidden in the innermost reality of this
> world. Verily I say, the creation of God embraceth worlds besides this world, and
> creatures apart from these creatures. In each of these worlds He hath ordained
> things which none can search except Himself, the All-Searching, the All-Wise. Do
> thou meditate on that which We have revealed unto thee, that thou mayest
> discover the purpose of God, thy Lord, and the Lord of all worlds. In these words
> the mysteries of Divine Wisdom have been treasured.
> Baha'u'llah, Gleanings, #79
> 
> 144. Therefore, know thou that the True One possesseth invisible worlds which human
> meditation is unable to comprehend and the intellect of man hath no power to
> imagine. When thou wilt purify and clarify thy spiritual nostrils from every
> 
> worldly moisture, then thou wilt inhale the holy fragrances diffusing from the
> merciful gardens of these worlds.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá'í World Faith, [Chapter 8 p.393]
> 
> 145. … the souls of the children of the Kingdom, after their separation from the body,
> ascend unto the realm of everlasting life. But if ye ask as to the place, know ye that
> the world of existence is a single world, although its stations are various and
> distinct.
> 146. In the same way, the denizens of this earth are completely unaware of the world of
> the Kingdom and deny the existence thereof. They ask, for example: ‘Where is the
> Kingdom? Where is the Lord of the Kingdom?’ These people are even as the
> mineral and the vegetable, who know nothing whatever of the animal and the
> human realm; they see it not; they find it not. Yet the mineral and vegetable, the
> animal and man, are all living here together in this world of existence.
> Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá #163
> 
> 6.2 HIGHEST ATTAINABLE POINT
> 
> 147. As the grace of God is limitless, so too are the perfections of man. If it were
> possible for the reality of anything to reach the very summit of perfection, then it
> would become independent of God and the contingent reality would attain to the
> station of the necessary reality. But every created thing has been assigned a degree
> which it can in no wise overpass. So he who occupies the degree of servitude, no
> matter how far he may progress and acquire endless perfections, can never reach
> the degree of divine Lordship. The same holds true of all other created things.
> 148. As the spirit of man lives forever after casting off this elemental frame, it is, like all
> existing things, undoubtedly capable of progress, and thus one may pray for a
> departed soul to advance, to be forgiven, or to be made the recipient of divine
> favours, bounties, and grace.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #62
> 
> 149. Just as the conception of faith hath existed from the beginning that hath no
> beginning, and will endure till the end that hath no end, in like manner will the
> true believer eternally live and endure. His spirit will everlastingly circle round the
> Will of God. He will last as long as God, Himself, will last. He is revealed through
> the Revelation of God, and is hidden at His bidding. It is evident that the loftiest
> mansions in the Realm of Immortality have been ordained as the habitation of
> them that have truly believed in God and in His signs. Death can never invade that
> holy seat. Thus have We entrusted thee with the signs of Thy Lord, that thou
> mayest persevere in thy love for Him, and be of them that comprehend this truth.
> 
> Baha'u'llah, Gleanings, #73
> 
> 150. O My servants! Sorrow not if, in these days and on this earthly plane, things
> contrary to your wishes have been ordained and manifested by God, for days of
> blissful joy, of heavenly delight, are assuredly in store for you. Worlds, holy and
> spiritually glorious, will be unveiled to your eyes. You are destined by Him, in this
> world and hereafter, to partake of their benefits, to share in their joys, and to
> obtain a portion of their sustaining grace. To each and every one of them you will,
> no doubt, attain
> Baha'u'llah, Gleanings, #153
> 
> 6.3 HOOPER DUNBAR TALKS
> 
> 151. Hooper Dunbar, a family friend and a retired member of the Universal House of
> Justice has given many talks over the years in which he shares conversations he had
> with Enoch Olinga from Uganda while acting as Enoch’s interpreter during his travels
> in south America. Enoch went on pilgrimage to Haifa in 1957 for 10 days and his
> pilgrimage was unique in that most of the time he was the only resident pilgrim in the
> Eastern pilgrim house and because of this the Guardian, Shoghi Effendi, spent a lot of
> time with him. These pilgrim’s notes are edited for clarity from YouTube Artificial
> Intelligence generated transcripts from some of Hooper’s talks including the three
> listed here and are used with his permission: (1) Shoghi Effendi - Montana Baha'i
> Summer School 2018 - 1 of 5, (2) From Matter to spiritual Journey April 2024, (3)
> Seeking Reality Oct 2024.
> 
> 152. “I traveled with Enoch Olinga three months in South America translating his talks
> and his conversations and everything and he told me these things more than once.
> Enoch told me that he asked the Guardian if Bahá’u’llah is a universal
> manifestation. Shoghi Effendi said yes, there's no limit to the power of the
> universal manifestation, that this is the ideal dimension of all of the
> manifestations of God throughout the Universe. All manifestations don't always
> demonstrate the same measure because that depends on the maturity of who its
> being delivered to. The second station is very specific. He has a time when he's
> born and dies, he has his titles, what his mission is and he carries it out and it’s
> very specific. He told me that Bahá’u’lláh is a universal manifestation but his
> assignment is planet Earth and the first four stages that the souls who have lived
> on planet Earth pass through after they die. After that Shoghi Effendi said the
> souls go on to something much higher - mixing with outstanding Souls of other
> planetary systems - other galaxies. Imagine how confused we would be if we
> passed into the next world and we met an infinite number of beings that have
> 
> existed in the universe. That is just too much so there are these special paradises
> that have been created for those of us that are living at this time. “
> 153.    “Mr. Olinga told me that Shoghi Effendi told him that there are separate spiritual
> realms or heavens for each planet on which humans exist. And the next stage in
> human progress on this planet will be making contact with other civilizations on
> other planets and that eventually at the end of this cycle - which is half a million
> years - we will have a manifestation that will unify the whole solar system and to
> eventually go beyond that to other Stellar systems. Shoghi Effendi said we will
> need to discover laws that only the love of God can reveal to us to be able to
> transport ourselves and that in the future on this planet there would be no roads
> or power lines because everyone would travel by air.”
> 154. These statements attributed to Shoghi Effendi are in conformity with the writings
> of Bahá’u’lláh, Abdu'l-Bahá and the Báb, are considered to be “pilgrim’s notes”
> and are therefore not part of the Baha’i writings.
> 
> 7 NOT SO FAR-FETCHED CONCLUSIONS
> 
> 7.1 WE NEED GOD
> 155. The Baha’i writings inculcate that the one pre-existent unknowable cause - God - has
> always existed and will exist forever and that all of creation – physical, whatever is
> between and spiritual has always existed and will exist forever and is caused by God
> indirectly through the Will – which causes all existence. The physical universe, the
> part we are most familiar with due to the limitations of our physical senses, is
> continually evolving from one condition to another. Atoms, planets, suns, galaxies,
> and all physical ‘things’ including ourselves are brought into existence and eventually
> die.
> 156. And there is purpose in all this. Of all existence, the human spirit having intellect is
> the sole part of all creation that has the capacity to learn and know that God is an
> eternal reality and that all things, including ourselves, are always dependent on this
> reality.
> 157. And even more important to ourselves is the fact that the human reality – the non-
> physical spirit - is the only part of the entire creation that survives physical death and
> exists forever, after having been brought into existence by the God – the Cause. We
> need God.
> 
> 7.2 WE NEED THE MANIFESTATIONS
> 158. Our understanding of God is necessarily dependent on the knowledge imparted by
> those specially endowed human beings that periodically appear as the educators of
> humanity, wherever humanity exists in this endless universe, who are one and all
> human expressions of the WILL in the contingent world. For the present cycle of
> human evolution on this planet Earth, these extend from Adam thru Mohammed, and
> in our own time the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh. These Messengers have been promised to
> humanity by each previous appearance of the WILL. Bahá’u’lláh states that the next
> Messenger destined for this planet will not appear until after “the expiration of a full
> thousand years”* and that this evolving civilization is destined to continue for at least
> another half million years. We need the manifestations.
> * Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings, p. 166
> 
> 7.3 ETHERIAL MATTER
> 
> 7.3.1 HISTORY
> 159. Etherial matter has been considered to be a reality since the 4th century BC possibly
> first by Aristotle and many others up to present times. The inventor Nicola Tesla
> (1856 - 1943) was a proponent of the concept of etherial matter. This statement of his
> is in conformity with Bahá’u’lláh’s explanation of primordial matter.
> 160. “All perceptible matter comes from a primary substance, or tenuity beyond
> conception, filling all space, the Akasha or luminiferous ether, which is acted upon
> by the life-giving Prana or creative force, calling into existence, in never-ending
> cycles, all things and phenomena.”
> Nikola Tesla, Man’s Greatest Achievement, 1907 (1, 2)
> 
> 161. Between April and July 1887 Albert Michelson and Edward Morley performed an
> experiment in an attempt to verify that ether existed, as there was much controversy
> in the scientific community about its existence at that time. The experiment was
> designed to detect the etherial wind caused by the motion of the Earth as it traveled
> through space. The experiment failed as they were expecting to detect a non physical
> reality using material means.
> 162. About 20 years later Albert Einstein’s theories caused the abandonment of the ‘ether
> model’ and the scientific community adopted the current model which identifies this
> part of the universe as “fields” or particles, dark matter, black holes, background
> microwave radiation, quantum energy etc. – admittedly because little or nothing is
> known about it other than that it is estimated to contain most of the energy that exists
> in the universe.
> 
> 163. Science is presently limited by what can be “proved” through physical means, thus
> eliminating etherial matter as a possibility.
> 164. In more recent times various experiments in radioactive decay have been having some
> very unusual occurrences caused by the sun. Scientists from Purdue and Stanford
> universities have identified that the decay of radioactive isotopes fluctuates in
> synchronization with the rotation of the sun's core. Also, the radioactive decay drops
> approximately a day and a half before a sunspot becomes visible to us here on planet
> earth. They cannot explain this phenomena but surmise it may be caused by emission
> from the sun of an as yet unknown ‘particle’ traveling at or near the speed of light.
> 
> 7.3.2 SPACE
> 
> 165. As has been amply explained, 'Abdu'l-Bahá uses the terms “etherial matter” or “ether”
> to describe the part of existence that the Báb (and Mohammed) term “that which lieth
> between them” or “whatever lieth between them”. Bahá’u’lláh explains this same
> part of existence as the primordial non-physical non-spiritual matter from which all
> physical things are composed. The Báb also indicates that humans exist in this non-
> physical non-spiritual realm. According to 'Abdu'l-Bahá etherial matter is “all
> pervading”, meaning there is no place where it does not exist throughout physical
> existence. He also explains that ‘space’ cannot be ‘empty’ as that denotes non-
> existence - which is an impossibility. Some scientists, such as Richard Feynman have
> also concluded that ‘empty space’ is an impossibility.
> 166. The statements by the Báb regarding human existence in etherial matter have very
> profound implications. For instance, because “whatever is between them “ is not
> physical and has no time and space, any human in that existence can travel faster
> than the speed of light – allowing for travel throughout the limitless universe. At our
> present stage of development we do not understand how a physical human and
> accompanying physical whatever can be transformed into a non-physical state in
> “whatever is between them “. At present this is science fiction. Current science is
> aware of a condition similar to this that occurs in the quantum environment where a
> particle will appear and disappear, but has no clear understanding of what actually
> happens. This is Einstein’s “Spooky things at a distance” phenomena. Its a “Startrek -
> Beam me up Scotty” sort of thing – which is not too far fetched – because in the
> previous century the imaginary “Dick Tracy two-way wrist radio” was an exciting
> dream. Today’s communications devices are far superior. You only have to know how
> to do it, as mentioned in Hooper Dunbar’s talks.
> 
> 7.3.3 ATOMIC STRUCTURE
> 
> 167. As Abdu'l-Bahá has explained, stars and atoms are similar in composition, as they are
> both brought into existence under one universal law and therefore can be compared
> with each other, meaning that in the same manner as our sun and all other stars
> having orbiting planets, atoms are composed of a nucleus with orbiting electrons.
> 168. Astronomically, we have yet to identify structures between stars similar to atoms
> arranged in molecules. Maybe we haven’t looked yet.
> 
> 7.3.4 ENERGY
> 
> 169. Current science understands that all physical matter is composed of energy but still
> has no understanding of how this energy forms into physical reality. Bahá’u’lláh and
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá have explained that the all pervading non-physical primal matter from
> which all things are composed , a negative aspect of the Will, does not become
> physical until spirit - love, a positive aspect of the Will, acts upon it. This process was
> identified earlier as the seven stages of divine creative action. For instance, in the
> mineral kingdom this can be identified as the strong and weak nuclear forces causing
> atoms to exist, and in the vegetable kingdom as the power of growth, and in the
> animal kingdom as the power of the senses and again in the human kingdom as the
> power of intellect. These are only a few of the love aspects of the Will, which are
> unlimited.
> 170. To have some concept of the amount of energy enshrined in an atom - and how
> humanity has chosen to use this discovery - it is estimated that the atomic bomb
> dropped on Hiroshima converted about 0.7 grams of uranium into energy, which
> resulted in a massive explosion equivalent to 15 kilotons of TNT. Consider our sun,
> how much greater is the expenditure of its energy. And consider the universe
> composed of unnumbered stars each with planets and each of these stellar bodies
> using tremendous amounts of energy forever. Where does all of this energy come
> from?
> 171. Each physical existence within this vast, never-ending physical universe requires a
> continual source of energy because everything is in constant motion, including atoms,
> planets, suns, stars, galaxies and whatever else exists in the universe.
> 
> 7.3.5 BIG BANG
> 
> 
> 172. The Baha’i writings amply explain that the physical universe has always existed and
> will always exist and has no size, shape or limit, and that it is forever evolving. This
> indicates that it is not possible for physical existence to have originated from a tiny
> dot somewhere conveniently close to planet Earth and that it is continually
> expanding.
> 
> 7.3.6 RED SHIFT
> 
> 173. 'Abdu'l-Bahá indicates that etherial matter, although not physical, is a soft, flowing,
> undulating, liquid having restrained waves and that it is the medium through which
> heat, light and electricity propagate. We know that energy imparted to a body of
> liquid (water and air) propagates in waves from the energy source in all directions
> and is gradually absorbed, with the waves having the least amount of energy
> disappearing first. This same phenomena no doubt exists with all liquids. From this
> common phenomenon, it is reasonable that this is also true in liquid etherial matter,
> being the cause for the “red shift”phenomena of light, thus providing a gauge of the
> distance (light years) from the source of the light.
> 
> 7.3.7 TIME
> 
> 174. According to current science, time and space are interdependent but time is not
> absolute, as movement in space affects time.
> 175. In the Baha’i writings there are numerous examples of the Báb, Bahá’u’lláh and
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá and some of those endowed with great spiritual capacities predicting
> future events very accurately. 'Abdu'l-Bahá here explains that non-phsical existences
> do not necessarily have time;
> 176. Know that the power and the comprehension of the human spirit are of two kinds:
> that is to say, they perceive and act in two different modes. One way is through
> instruments and organs: thus with this eye it sees, with this ear it hears, with this
> tongue it talks. Such is the action of the spirit, and the perception of the reality of
> man, by means of organs. That is to say, that the spirit is the seer, through the
> eyes; the spirit is the hearer, through the ear; the spirit is the speaker, through the
> tongue.
> 177. The other manifestation of the powers and actions of the spirit is without
> instruments and organs. For example, in the state of sleep without eyes it sees,
> without an ear it hears, without a tongue it speaks, without feet it runs. Briefly,
> these actions are beyond the means of instruments and organs. How often it
> happens that it sees a dream in the world of sleep, and its signification becomes
> 
> apparent two years afterwards in corresponding events. In the same way, how
> many times it happens that a question which one cannot solve in the world of
> wakefulness, is solved in the world of dreams. In wakefulness the eye sees only for
> a short distance, but in dreams he who is in the East sees the West: awake he sees
> the present, in sleep he sees the future. In wakefulness, by means of rapid transit,
> at the most he can travel only twenty farsakha an hour; in sleep, in the twinkling of
> an eye, he traverses the East and West. For the spirit travels in two different ways:
> without means, which is spiritual traveling; and with means, which is material
> traveling: as birds which fly, and those which are carried.
> Abdu'l-Bahá Baha’i World Faith p 141-2
> 
> 178. These statements indicate that time is a phenomenon limited to the physical universe
> and is not part of the spiritual worlds. As “whatever is between” is also not physical, it
> also has no time.
> 
> 7.4 GRAVITY
> 
> 179. From the following statements we can understand that gravity is a power or universal
> attractive force ('Abdu'l-Bahá words) that permeates all physical existence, similarly
> to primal (etherial) matter, but there is no evidence found in the Baha’i writings that
> indicate gravity as being dependent on etherial matter. The following are the only
> references to gravity found in the current translations of the writings.
> 180. Divine and all-encompassing Wisdom hath ordained that motion be an
> inseparable concomitant of existence, whether inherently or accidentally,
> spiritually or materially. This movement must be governed by some check or rein,
> some regulator or director, otherwise order will be disrupted and the spheres and
> bodies will fall from the heavens. For this reason God brought into being a
> universal attractive force between these bodies to hold sway over them and govern
> them, a force deriving from the firm ties, the mighty correspondence and affinity
> that exist between the realities of these limitless worlds. By the operation of this
> attractive force those holy and resplendent suns, with their luminous worlds,
> satellites and planets, circling and orbiting in their heavens, at once exerted
> attraction and were subject to it, induced motion and were themselves moved,
> began orbiting and set into orbit other bodies, shone forth and caused others to
> shine. In this manner they became arranged in a perfectly ordered system, each
> one a handiwork of consummate fashioning and manifest beauty, each one an
> enduring creation and a conclusive proof. Glory be to Him Who attracted them,
> laid firm hold on them, imbued them with effulgence, ordered them and set them
> in motion; and far from His glory be that which any of his creatures can affirm of
> Him or attribute to Him.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Tablet of the Universe, p 3
> 
> 181. If we were to deny all that is not accessible to the senses, then we would be forced
> to deny realities which undoubtedly exist. For example, the ether is not sensible,
> although its reality can be proven. The power of gravity is not sensible, although
> its existence is likewise undeniable. Whence do we affirm their existence? From
> their signs. For instance, this light consists in the vibrations of the ether, and from
> these vibrations we infer its existence.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, #48
> 
> 182. The tangible perceptions may be likened to this candle, the reasonable perceptions
> to the light. Calculations of mathematical problems and determining the spherical
> form of the earth are through the reasonable perceptions. The center of gravity is a
> hypothesis of reason. Reason itself is not tangible, perceptible to the senses.
> Reason is an intellectual verity or reality.
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Promulgation of Universal Peace, #111
> 
> 183. Our galaxy is presently estimated to be about 100,000 light years in diameter and
> 1000 light years thick with our solar system at about 25,000 light years from the
> center of gravity for our galaxy. This is only a speck in the universe, but indicates how
> gravity must function instantly at enormous distances to maintain the order of the
> numberless existences in the universe. Present science estimates the size of the
> observable universe to be 13.8 billion light years. The Baha’i writings tell us that the
> physical universe is endless. From this information, it appears that gravity is in a
> similar category as etherial or primordial matter and is also all-pervading and not
> limited by time.
> 
> 7.5 WE ARE NOT ALONE
> 
> 184. According to the Baha’i writings, human beings exist everywhere in the physical
> universe and are only able to gain knowledge of God – the cause of all things –
> through those special human beings that are endowed with divine knowledge and the
> power of the divine elixir, who periodically appear wherever humans beings exist.
> These are the Manifestations or Prophets and are each an expression of the Will in
> human form. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has stated that there have been many human civilizations
> on this planet in the very distant past, of which all traces have been lost. For this cycle
> of human existence on planet Earth these expressions of the Will extend from Adam
> in our early human history to the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh in our own time. These spiritual
> educators of humanity always have and always will appear periodically wherever
> humans exist throughout the universe.
> 
> 185. As the physical development of humans is dependent on the particular environment
> in which they come into existence, all humans throughout the universe don’t
> necessarily look like us humans on planet Earth.
> 186. There exists strong physical evidence that peoples from other parts of the universe
> have visited this planet far distant in the past and therefore very likely at the present
> time. The Book of the Hopi states that when they were living in the south the “ant
> people” showed them how to survive. Similar beliefs are common to most native
> peoples.
> 187. As of this writing, people are digging up stone carvings – which they call
> Aliencarvings (some being sold over the internet) - in various parts of Mexico from
> burial sites. These carved artifacts depict planets, including Saturn with its rings and
> its moons, space vehicles and a variety of human beings, some having elongated
> heads, others having feathered wings and arms and others have heads that look like
> ants. And interestingly, some of these “carvings” are composed of a variety of stones
> that are precision fit to non-square angles and glued together. Some are castings that
> appear to be natural stone and many have phosphorescent materials applied.
> 188. Some artifacts from Tel Toro, Mexico are dated 3,000 years BP (1950), and have
> many symbols in common with Egyptian symbols. The beings depicted are also the
> same in many instances and also include space vehicles, planets - including Saturn -
> and various scripts and symbols common to both. Both Egyptian and South American
> civilizations at about the same time in history built pyramids of huge stones which
> science even today has no explanation as to how they were constructed. Possibly they
> had some assistance from a much more advanced civilization from afar.
> 189. Artifacts from Tula Mexico dated at 34,000 to 46,000 years BP (1950) likewise share
> these same symbols and figures, including the planet Saturn, with moons, space
> vehicles and shuttles, a variety of beings, some with feathered wings and arms, others
> ant-like and dog-like, brass telescopes, astrolabs, food utensils and coins and funerary
> containers of stone and metal. One of the figures has a magnetic ring on a round
> upright with a cap where the ring is suspended by magnetic material cast into the
> figure. There is also a very interesting stone-like cast figure holding a small oval cast
> stone that lights when properly positioned in the figure’s hand. X-rays of the stone
> and the figure show wires and matching contacts and a device inside the figure that
> generates a quarter volt of direct current electricity and a device in the stone that
> emits light from the voltage. Many carved stone skulls have been recovered with what
> appears to be a computer chip with contacts on the skull. Interestingly, one skull is
> carved with an image of Saturn behind a typical South American pyramid.
> 190. In 2015 several desiccated and preserved bodies, body parts, and artifacts were found
> in the Peruvian desert in caves between Palpa and Nazca. They have been named
> Tridactyls, due to having only three fingers. In october 2022 a paper titled the "Miles
> Paper" was published by Clifford Miles, analyzing the tridactyls as a previously
> unknown species, possibly not from Earth. Other studies have been made using x-rays
> 
> and CT scans providing significant details indicating that these are not animals and in
> some instances have metal objects installed sub-cutaneously.
> 
> 7.6 THE BOTTOM LINE
> 
> 191. The sole purpose of every part of creation  – physical – etherial – spiritual – is for the
> glorification of God - the Cause of all things. Human beings are the only means by
> which this glorification is possible due to their being the sole possessors of rational
> intellectual capacity, which is lacking in all other forms of life, providing humans the
> ability to choose to recognize the cause of all existence.
> 192. We should each and every one always be grateful to our parents and ancestors, no
> matter who they are or whatever their circumstances for having given us the
> opportunity to come into existence. The individual human spirit exists potentially
> until the moment of conception, which causes it to begin an everlasting individual
> spiritual existence in these limitless worlds of God on some planet orbiting some star
> - in our case planet Earth. This physical body animated by the human spirit and
> having human intellect are intended to mature until the inevitable time of physical
> death which is the dissociation of the spirit from the physical body – which remains
> in the physical universe to be recycled – allowing the spirit to be born into the
> spiritual universe – which consists of endless worlds. Human spirits that are unable
> to be born into this physical world nonetheless pass into the spiritual universe where
> they also progress. And we now have the opportunity to pray for their spiritual
> progress, just like we would do for another person living on this planet.
> 
> 193. The bottom line is that this entire existence, physical, etherial, spiritual, exists for the
> sole purpose of humans wherever we exist in this universe to recognize that there is a
> Cause for everything and that cause is LOVE and we humans exist for the sole
> purpose of recognizing this LOVE and worshiping the Cause of this LOVE.
> LOVELY!
> 
> 8 NOTES
> 
> Writings of the Baha’i Faith are rigorously documented for authenticity. The statements
> referenced herein as “Baha’i Scriptures” are from a publication of the same title
> “Approved by the Baha’i Committee on Publications dated 1928”, Edited by Horace
> Holley but is not currently considered to be entirely authentic.
> Gate of the Heart author Nader Saiedi has consented to the use of quotes from his book.
> 
> The Hooper Dunbar notes are pilgrims notes, in this case, third-hand and not
> authenticated statements by Shoghi Effendi.
> When the Mount Palomar Telescope, the largest in the world at that time, produced
> images of NGC 2261 on January 26, 1949 the astronomers proclaimed “We can see to
> the edge of the universe”. As a youth living in San Diego county during that time, it
> seemed irrational to me that they could make such a statement. Ed Hubbel was the first
> astronomer to use the telescope. Again sometime around 1990 as an old man, when the
> Hubble telescope was put into operation, that same statement was made. This kind of
> thinking comes from the Big Bang theory, which was never convincing to me as a
> possibility, mainly due it having originated very close to we Earthlings allowing us to
> have the unique experience of being at the center of the universe. The Baha’i writings
> confirm that this theory is an impossibility because there never was a time when the
> universe did not exist and that it has no size or shape and also explains how ‘things’ come
> into existence.
>
> — *Ernie's Universe (Used by permission of the curator)*