ormation of world primarily
depends. As Carlyle says:--

The plain truth, very plain, we think is, that ... _one_ man that
has a higher Wisdom, a hitherto unknown spiritual Truth in him, is
stronger, not than ten men that have it not, or than ten thousand,
but than _all_ men that have it not; and stands among them with a
quite ethereal, angelic power, as with a sword out of Heaven's own
armory, sky-tempered, which no buckler, and no tower of brass,
will finally withstand.

--Signs of the Times

In the history of science, of art, of music, we see abundant illustrations
of this truth, but in no domain is the supreme importance of the great man
and his message more clearly evident than in that of religion. All down
the ages, whenever the spiritual life of men has become degenerate and
their morals corrupt, that most wonderful and mysterious of men, the
Prophet, makes His appearance. Alone against the world, without a single
human being capable of teaching, of guiding, of fully understanding Him,
or of sharing His responsibility, He arises, like a seer among blind men,
to proclaim His gospel of righteousness and truth.

Amongst the Prophets some stand out with special preeminence. Every few
centuries a great Divine Revealer--a Krishna, a Zoroaster, a Moses, a
Jesus, a Muhammad--appears in the East, like a spiritual Sun, to illumine
the darkened minds of men and awaken their dormant souls. Whatever our
views as to the relative greatness of these religion-founders we must
admit that They have been the most potent factors in the education of
mankind. With one accord these Prophets declare that the words They utter
are not from Themselves, but are a Revelation through Them, a Divine
message of which They are the bearers. Their recorded utterances abound,
too, in hints and promises of a great world teacher Who will appear "in
the fullness of time" to carry on Their work and bring it to fruition, One
Who will establish a reign of peace and justice upon earth, and bring into
one family all races, religions, nations, and tribes, that "there may be
one fold and one shepherd" and that all may know and love God "from the
least even unto the greatest."

Surely the advent of this "Educator of Mankind," in the latter days, when
He appears, must be the greatest event in human history. _And the Baha'i
Movement is proclaiming to the world the glad tidings that this Educator
has in fact appeared, th