Kamál, 01 ‘Alá’ (Loftiness), 182 B.E.
Quotes for Reflection
Regarding the first, Bahá’ís across the globe, in the most unassuming settings, are striving to establish a pattern of activity and the corresponding administrative structures that embody the principle of the oneness of humankind and the convictions underpinning it, only a few of which are mentioned here as a means of illustration: that the rational soul has no gender, race, ethnicity or class, a fact that renders intolerable all forms of prejudice, not the least of which are those that prevent women from fulfilling their potential and engaging in various fields of endeavour shoulder to shoulder with men; that the root cause of prejudice is ignorance, which can be erased through educational processes that make knowledge accessible to the entire human race, ensuring it does not become the property of a privileged few; that science and religion are two complementary systems of knowledge and practice by which human beings come to understand the world around them and through which civilization advances; that religion without science soon degenerates into superstition and fanaticism, while science without religion becomes the tool of crude materialism; that true prosperity, the fruit of a dynamic coherence between the material and spiritual requirements of life, will recede further and further out of reach as long as consumerism continues to act as opium to the human soul; that justice, as a faculty of the soul, enables the individual to distinguish truth from falsehood and guides the investigation of reality, so essential if superstitious beliefs and outworn traditions that impede unity are to be eliminated; that, when appropriately brought to bear on social issues, justice is the single most important instrument for the establishment of unity; that work performed in the spirit of service to one’s fellow human beings is a form of prayer, a means of worshipping God. Translating ideals such as these into reality, effecting a transformation at the level of the individual and laying the foundations of suitable social structures, is no small task, to be sure. Yet the Bahá’í community is dedicated to the long-term process of learning that this task entails, an enterprise in which increasing numbers from all walks of life, from every human group, are invited to take part. — Universal House of Justice 1
Question for Consideration
What is the interrelationship of one’s agency, the interconnectedness of everything in a cause and effect universe ruled by divine justice, and the influence of one’s choices on others?
Perplexity Pro and Kimi K2.5 Model Response 2
In Bahá’í thought, your agency is real and weighty, but it always operates inside a tightly interwoven universe where every thought, word, and deed sets off chains of cause and effect; divine justice is the law that governs these chains so that, over time and across both worlds, no sincere good is lost and no injustice remains without redress or educational consequence. Within this order, your choices inevitably influence others—directly and indirectly—and you share in the spiritual fruits or poisons that your example and actions release into that common web.
1. Agency as a sacred trust
The Bahá’í writings describe each person as having two natures: one oriented to “moral sublimity and intellectual perfection,” and another that can sink into “bestial degradation and carnal imperfections.” Your rational soul has the capacity to choose which nature predominates, and that choice shapes both your own destiny and the condition of the world around you. [1] [2]
Bahá’u’lláh states that the “companions of God…are, in this day, the lump that must leaven the peoples of the world,” and that their “trustworthiness, truthfulness…deeds and character” are meant to benefit all humankind, not only themselves. Every believer is therefore charged with acquiring such virtues as rectitude, chastity, and freedom from prejudice, which Shoghi Effendi calls “the spiritual prerequisites of success” and “the bedrock” on which the fortunes of plans and institutions rest. In this view, agency is not simply the power to choose; it is a trust to wield your will in a way that reflects God’s attributes into the world. [3] [4]
2. An interconnected world of causes and effects
‘Abdu’l‑Bahá explains that everything in existence lives by attraction, composition, and cooperation; when attraction and unity prevail, there is life, and when “discord, decomposition and division” prevail, there is death and ruin. He applies this both to the natural world and to human society: “all development and progress are fruits of the lights of virtue, cooperation and concord,” while war, prejudice, and hatred lead to “desolation and ruin.” [5] [6]
Because of this deep interconnection, even apparently small choices radiate outward. Bahá’u’lláh says that “within the very breath of such souls as are pure and sanctified far-reaching potentialities are hidden…so great are these potentialities that they exercise their influence upon all created things.” He also affirms that “one righteous act…is endowed with a potency that can so elevate the dust as to cause it to pass beyond the heaven of heavens…[and] its influence…will, most certainly, be diffused throughout the whole world.” In other words, every sincere act of justice, love, or service strengthens the fabric of reality; likewise, every act of injustice or prejudice tears at that fabric and propagates harm far beyond its visible target. [7] [8]
3. Divine justice governing the web
Bahá’u’lláh identifies justice as “the light of men” and says, “The organization of the world and the tranquillity of mankind depend upon it.” He describes the training of the world as resting on two pillars—reward and punishment—which are “the sources of life to the world.” Under divine justice, the causal network of the universe is not random: consequences are the very means by which souls are educated, societies are purified, and unity is ultimately established. [9]
‘Abdu’l‑Bahá further explains that fate has two kinds: one irrevocable and one conditional; the conditional kind is affected by human choice. This means that, while some overarching conditions are fixed, much of what befalls us—individually and collectively—is shaped by the free decisions of human beings and the patterns they create over time. Yet even when others misuse their agency and cause suffering, God can transmute those trials into means of spiritual progress for the wronged; departed souls can advance through divine grace, the prayers of others, and good works done in their name. Thus, divine justice ensures that no sincere effort or undeserved pain is ultimately wasted, even though in the short term the web of causes may look cruel or chaotic. [10]
4. How your choices influence others under divine justice
The writings repeatedly show that one person’s faithful or faithless response to this order can reshape history. ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá recounts how the exile of Abraham, which seemed like utter loss, became the cause of a long chain of world‑changing events—the rise of prophets and civilizations across millennia—and asks, “Can anyone claim that all this was purely fortuitous?” He likewise notes that “it has often happened that one blessed soul has become the cause of the guidance of a nation.” [11] [12]
Shoghi Effendi explains that the believers’ personal rectitude, chastity, and freedom from prejudice are the “weapons” by which they regenerate both their own community and the wider society, especially in the face of corrosive forces such as racism and materialism. Their virtues “most effectively accelerate the march of their institutions, plans, and enterprises…guard the honor and integrity of their Faith, and subdue any obstacles that may confront it in the future.” Conversely, he warns that moral laxity and racial prejudice are like “cancerous growths” that eat into the vitals of society, and he calls overcoming prejudice “the most vital and challenging issue” facing the community—an issue whose resolution or neglect will profoundly affect the destiny of whole peoples. [13] [14]
Because the universe is so interlinked, the Bahá’í teachings effectively deny the notion of a purely private virtue or sin. Your decisions reshape your own character, but they also:
- Contribute to or weaken the bonds of unity that sustain social life. [15]
- Create patterns and atmospheres that make it easier or harder for others to choose the good (for example, by normalizing chastity or prejudice in a community). [16]
- Participate in long chains of cause and effect that may guide, confirm, or test souls you will never meet in this life.Some-Answered-Questions. [17]
Under divine justice, you are neither a powerless victim of an impersonal mechanism nor an isolated sovereign whose choices affect only yourself. You are a responsible actor within a morally charged network, given the dignity of real agency and the assurance that God’s justice and mercy will ultimately balance all accounts, seen and unseen. To use that agency in “work performed in the spirit of service” is, as the quotation you shared says, counted as worship itself, because it aligns your will with the unifying purposes of God and helps heal the very web in which all souls are entangled.Some-Answered-Questions. [18] [19]
Citations
- [1] ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/389042568
- [2] ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Some Answered Questions. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/184837404
- [3] Effendi, Shoghi. The Advent of Divine Justice. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/716325250
- [4] Effendi, Shoghi. The Advent of Divine Justice. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/464301738
- [5] ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/931595452
- [6] ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/389042568
- [7] Effendi, Shoghi. The Advent of Divine Justice. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/716325250
- [8] Bahá’u’lláh. Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/026029088
- [9] Effendi, Shoghi. The Advent of Divine Justice. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/990670022
- [10] ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Some Answered Questions. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/721471381
- [11] ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Some Answered Questions. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/619417661
- [12] Effendi, Shoghi. The Advent of Divine Justice. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/481194216
- [13] Effendi, Shoghi. The Advent of Divine Justice. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/663134693
- [14] Effendi, Shoghi. The Advent of Divine Justice. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/720204804
- [15] ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/888217203
- [16] Effendi, Shoghi. The Advent of Divine Justice. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/089113482
- [17] ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Some Answered Questions. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/725713286
- [18] Universal House of Justice. “2 March 2013 – To the Bahá’ís of Iran.” Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/320603352
- [19] Effendi, Shoghi. The Advent of Divine Justice. Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/011656339
Footnotes
- Universal House of Justice. “2 March 2013 – To the Bahá’ís of Iran.” Bahá’í Reference Library. https://www.bahai.org/r/320603352 ↩︎
- Perplexity Pro and Kimi K2.5 Model. “The Influence of Choices on Others.” Edited by Steve Bosserman. March 1, 2026. https://www.perplexity.ai/search/regarding-the-first-bahais-acr-oncB0JlTQFKp0llM3rog9g ↩︎
Be the Voice of…
Therefore, all souls should consider it incumbent upon them to investigate reality. Reality is one; and when found, it will unify all mankind. Reality is the love of God. Reality is the knowledge of God. Reality is justice. Reality is the oneness or solidarity of mankind. Reality is international peace. Reality is the knowledge of verities. Reality unifies humanity. — ‘Abdu’l-Bahá The Promulgation of Universal Peace | Bahá’í Reference Library.