condition of complete contentment. But dogs, wolves, tigers, hyenas and
those other beasts of prey, are alienated from each other as they hunt and
roam about alone. The creatures of the fields and birds of the air do not
even shun or molest one another when they come upon their mutual grazing
and resting grounds but accept each other with friendliness, unlike the
devouring beasts who immediately tear each other apart when one intrudes
upon the other's cave or lair; yea, even if one merely passeth by the
abode of another the latter at once rusheth out to attack and if possible
kill the former.

Therefore, it hath been made clear and manifest that in the animal kingdom
also love and affinity are the fruits of a gentle disposition, a pure
nature and praiseworthy character, while discord and isolation are
characteristic of the fierce beasts of the wild.

The Almighty hath not created in man the claws and teeth of ferocious
animals, nay rather hath the human form been fashioned and set with the
most comely attributes and adorned with the most perfect virtues. The
honour of this creation and the worthiness of this garment therefore
require man to have love and affinity for his own kind, nay rather, to act
towards all living creatures with justice and equity.

Similarly, consider how the cause of the welfare, happiness, joy and
comfort of humankind are amity and union, whereas dissension and discord
are most conducive to hardship, humiliation, agitation and failure.

But a thousand times alas, that man is negligent and unaware of these
facts, and daily doth he strut abroad with the characteristics of a wild
beast. Lo! At one moment he turneth into a ferocious tiger; at the next he
becometh a creeping, venomous viper! But the sublime achievements of man
reside in those qualities and attributes that exclusively pertain to the
angels of the Supreme Concourse. Therefore, when praiseworthy qualities
and high morals emanate from man, he becometh a heavenly being, an angel
of the Kingdom, a divine reality and a celestial effulgence. On the other
hand, when he engageth in warfare, quarrelling and bloodshed, he becometh
viler than the most fierce of savage creatures, for if a bloodthirsty wolf
devoureth a lamb in a single night, man slaughtereth a hundred thousand in
the field of battle, strewing the ground with their corpses and kneading
the earth with their blood.

In short, man is endowed with two natures: one tendeth towards mo