Ídál, 02 Sharaf (Questions), 182 B.E.
Quotes for Reflection
Trustworthiness, wisdom and honesty are, of a truth, God’s beauteous adornments for His creatures. These fair garments are a befitting vesture for every temple. Happy are those that comprehend, and well is it with them that acquire such virtues. — Bahá’u’lláh 1
Question for Consideration
How are the virtues of trustworthiness, wisdom and honesty regarded as “God’s beauteous adornments for His creatures,” and as “fair garments…a befitting vesture for every temple”?
Perplexity Pro Response 2
Bahá’u’lláh is describing these virtues as spiritual qualities that both come from God and make a human being beautiful in God’s sight, just as fine garments adorn a physical body. [1]
Adornments from God
- In the Bahá’í writings, virtues such as trustworthiness, wisdom and honesty are described as “virtues and attributes pertaining unto God,” reflections of divine perfections that are “evident and manifest.” [1]
- When a person acquires such virtues, that soul becomes “array[ed]…with the mantle of a saintly character” and “adorn[ed]…with the ornament of holy and goodly deeds,” showing forth something of God’s own beauty in human form. [1]
Fair garments and vesture
- Bahá’u’lláh repeatedly uses the imagery of clothing to describe character: “The goodliest vesture in the sight of God in this day is trustworthiness,” and “We ask God…to clothe Thy loved ones in the robe of justice and to illumine their beings with the light of trustworthiness.” [1]
- In the same vein, He calls trustworthiness “the world’s comeliest garment,” indicating that such virtues are the true finery of a human being, far surpassing outward status, wealth or appearance. [1]
Every “temple” and the human reality
- The “temple” in this passage refers to the human person, whose reality is likened in the Writings to a temple or sanctuary that should be adorned with spiritual qualities. [1]
- Thus Bahá’u’lláh can say, “Adorn your temples with the adornment of trustworthiness and piety,” meaning that every individual—every “temple”—is worthy of and completed by these inner garments of character. [1]
Why these three: trustworthiness, wisdom, honesty
- Trustworthiness is called “the sun of the heaven of My commandments” and “the greatest portal leading unto the tranquillity and security of the people,” indicating its central role in social and spiritual life. [1]
- Wisdom and honesty are repeatedly linked with truthfulness, uprightness and piety; through them, God “array[s] every man with the mantle of a saintly character” and makes him a channel of justice, equity and guidance for others. [1]
“Happy are those that comprehend…”
- The passage ends by blessing those who both understand this metaphor and actually acquire these virtues, echoing other texts that say such qualities are “the cause of peace, security and tranquillity” and the “foundation of all virtues and perfections.” [1]
- To comprehend and practice them is therefore to fulfill “the fundamental purpose underlying creation,” which is “the appearance of trustworthiness and godliness, of sincerity and goodwill amongst mankind.” [1]
Citations
- Trustworthiness: A Cardinal Bahá’í Virtue. Compiled by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, Revised August 1990 – Bahá’í Reference Library
Footnotes
- Research Department of the Universal House of Justice. “Trustworthiness: A Cardinal Bahá’í Virtue.” Bahá’í Reference Library, Revised August 1990. https://www.bahai.org/r/456830565. ↩︎
- Perplexity Pro. “A Befitting Vesture for Every Temple.” Edited by Steve Bosserman. December 30, 2025. https://www.perplexity.ai/search/trustworthiness-wisdom-and-hon-7_zSvMZ3SMyQQaVBU1Nnkg#0 ↩︎
Frameworks for Understanding the World 