Bicentenary Poems and Prose

Day of Perfection

Day of Perfection:
To the Blessed Beauty

"Man reacheth perfection through good deeds, voluntarily performed, not through good deeds the doing of which was forced upon him. And sharing is a personally chosen righteous act: that is, the rich should extend assistance to the poor, they should expend their substance for the poor, but of their own free will, and not because of the poor have gained this end by force. For the harvest of force is turmoil and the ruin of the social order. On the other hand voluntary sharing, the freely-chosen expending of one’s substance, leadeth to society’s comfort and peace. It lighteth up the world; it bestoweth honour upon humankind."

‘Abdu’l-Bahá1

Deed by deed we climb
the degrees of perfection
overcoming self to share our wealth.

Self-improvement comes
when we work for the betterment
of humanity.

Spiritual refinement is achieved
through voluntary act
of sharing.

Poet's Note: ▼

This is Poem 52 of 200 Dedicated to The Blessed Beauty.

Footnotes
1  Bahái Words for February 12, 2017