Tag: "Purpose of life"

tag name	Purpose of life	type:	Philosophy; Principles, teachings; Religion, general
web link	bahai-library.com/tags/Purpose_of_life
variations or mis-spellings	meaning of life; purpose of creation
related tags	- Concepts; - Interfaith dialogue; Creation; Life (general); Psychology; Purpose; Sociology
referring tags	- Virtues and spiritual qualities; – Living the life; Advancement of civilization; Betterment of society; Faith and deeds; God, Knowledge of; God, Love of; Human nature; Realization of potentialities; Service; Social action, examples of; Soul, Human; Spirituality
Inventory subject	Purpose; goal of creation
notes	See also: – Bahá'u'lláh, Bahá'í Sacred Writings, Chapter 2, section "God’s Purpose for Humanity" – Covenant Library Unified Index
selected quotations (authoritative sources)	These quotations reflect common presentations of Bahá’í views; the materials below may show a wider range of interpretations and contexts: "... It is not merely material well-being that people need. What they desperately need is to know how to live their lives—they need to know who they are, to what purpose they exist, and how they should act towards one another; and, once they know the answers to these questions they need to be helped to gradually apply these answers to everyday behavior. It is to the solution of this basic problem of mankind that the greater part of all our energy and resources should be directed ..." – Universal House of Justice, letter dated 19 November 1974 "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..." – Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, XXIX (BH00958) "Veiled in My immemorial being and in the ancient eternity of My essence, I knew My love for thee; therefore I created thee, have engraved on thee Mine image and revealed to thee My beauty. I loved thy creation, hence I created thee. Wherefore, do thou love Me, that I may name thy name and fill thy soul with the spirit of life. Love Me, that I may love thee. If thou lovest Me not, My love can in no wise reach thee. Know this, O servant. Thou art My dominion and My dominion perisheth not; wherefore fearest thou thy perishing? Thou art My light and My light shall never be extinguished; why dost thou dread extinction? Thou art My glory and My glory fadeth not; thou art My robe and My robe shall never be outworn. Abide then in thy love for Me, that thou mayest find Me in the realm of glory. Noble have I created thee, yet thou hast abased thyself. Rise then unto that for which thou wast created." – Bahá'u'lláh, The Hidden Words, Arabic, no. 3–5, 14 and 22 (BH00386) "I bear witness, O my God, that Thou hast created me to know Thee and to worship Thee. I testify, at this moment, to my powerlessness and to Thy might, to my poverty and to Thy wealth. There is none other God but Thee, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting." – Bahá'u'lláh, Bahá'í Prayers "... Man is in the ultimate degree of materiality and the beginning of spirituality; that is, he is at the end of imperfection and the beginning of perfection. He is at the furthermost degree of darkness and the beginning of the light. That is why the station of man is said to be the end of night and the beginning of day, meaning that he encompasses all the degrees of imperfection and that he potentially possesses all the degrees of perfection. He has both an animal side and an angelic side, and the role of the educator is to so train human souls that the angelic side may overcome the animal..." – 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, chapter 64 (AB00420) "... Be not careless of the virtues with which ye have been endowed, neither be neglectful of your high destiny...." – Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, XCVI (BH02699) "My first counsel is this: Possess a pure, kindly and radiant heart, that thine may be a sovereignty ancient, imperishable and everlasting. The best beloved of all things in My sight is Justice; turn not away therefrom if thou desirest Me, and neglect it not that I may confide in thee. By its aid thou shalt see with thine own eyes and not through the eyes of others, and shalt know of thine own knowledge and not through the knowledge of thy neighbor. Ponder this in thy heart; how it behooveth thee to be. Verily justice is My gift to thee and the sign of My loving-kindness. Set it then before thine eyes." – Bahá'u'lláh, The Hidden Words, Arabic no. 1 and 2 (BH00386) "... Ye were created to show love one to another and not perversity and rancor. Take pride not in love for yourselves but in love for your fellow-creatures. Glory not in love for your country, but in love for all mankind..." – Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh, Lawḥ-i-Ḥikmat (Tablet of Wisdom), ¶5 (BH00223) "Truthfulness is the foundation of all human virtues. Without truthfulness progress and success, in all the worlds of God, are impossible for any soul. When this holy attribute is established in man, all the divine qualities will also be acquired." – 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Compilation Trustworthiness, #40 "In the beginning of his life man was in the world of the womb, wherein he developed the capacity and worthiness to advance to this world. The powers necessary for this world he acquired in that world. He needed eyes in this world; he obtained them in the world of the womb. He needed ears in this world; he obtained them there. All the powers that were needed in this world he acquired in the world of the womb. In that world he became prepared for this world, and when he entered this world he saw that he possessed all the requisite powers and had acquired all the limbs and organs necessary for this life, in that world. It followeth that in this world too he must prepare for the world beyond. That which he needeth in the world of the Kingdom he must obtain and prepare here. Just as he acquired the powers necessary for this world in the world of the womb, so, likewise, he must obtain that which he will need in the world of the Kingdom—that is to say, all the heavenly powers—in this world. – 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Additional Tablets, Extracts and Talks, Extract from a talk (ABU0112; earlier translation and complete talk: The Promulgation of Universal Peace, talk no. 81, 6 July 1912) "... All men have been created to carry forward an ever-advancing civilization..." – Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, CIX (BH00407) "Occupy not the days of your lives with the betterment of your own affairs; arise, rather, for the betterment of the world." – Additional Tablets and Extracts from Tablets Revealed by Bahá’u’lláh "... Briefly, all effort and exertion put forth by man from the fullness of his heart is worship, if it is prompted by the highest motives and the will to do service to humanity. This is worship: to serve mankind and to minister to the needs of the people. Service is prayer..." – 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Paris Talks, no. 55 (ABU1800) ... Material civilization is like unto the lamp, while spiritual civilization is the light in that lamp. If the material and spiritual civilization become united, then we will have the light and the lamp together, and the outcome will be perfect. For material civilization is like unto a beautiful body, and spiritual civilization is like unto the spirit of life. If that wondrous spirit of life enters this beautiful body, the body will become a channel for the distribution and development of the perfections of humanity..." – 'Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, talk no. 5 (14 April 1912) (ABU0275) "... The long ages of infancy and childhood, through which the human race had to pass, have receded into the background. Humanity is now experiencing the commotions invariably associated with the most turbulent stage of its evolution, the stage of adolescence, when the impetuosity of youth and its vehemence reach their climax, and must gradually be superseded by the calmness, the wisdom, and the maturity that characterize the stage of manhood. Then will the human race reach that stature of ripeness which will enable it to acquire all the powers and capacities upon which its ultimate development must depend..." – Shoghi Effendi, from a letter dated 11 March 1936, in The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 202 "... A foundational concept to explore... is the spiritual reality of man. In the Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh, the nobility inherent to every human being is unequivocally asserted; it is a fundamental tenet of Bahá’í belief, upon which hope for the future of humankind is built. The soul’s capacity to manifest all the names and attributes of God—He Who is the Compassionate, the Bestower, the Bountiful—is repeatedly affirmed in the Writings. ... “Man’s merit lieth in service and virtue”, Bahá’u’lláh avers, “and not in the pageantry of wealth and riches.” And further: “Dissipate not the wealth of your precious lives in the pursuit of evil and corrupt affection, nor let your endeavours be spent in promoting your personal interest.” By consecrating oneself to the service of others, one finds meaning and purpose in life and contributes to the upliftment of society itself..." – Universal House of Justice, letter dated 1 March 2017, to the Bahá'ís of the world
references	en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meaning_of_life; bahaiquotes.com/subject/purpose-of-life; www.bahai.org/library/authoritative-texts/search#q="purpose of life"; www.bahai.org/library/authoritative-texts/search#q="meaning of life"

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