anyone and no haven to hasten unto save God; no
protection is there for any soul and no shelter to seek except in Him.

242 The essential requirement for whoso advanceth a claim is to support
his assertions with clear proofs and testimonies. Beyond this, the
rejection of the people, whether learned or ignorant, hath never been, nor
shall it ever be, of any consequence. The Prophets of God, those Pearls of
the ocean of Divine Unity and the Repositories of Divine Revelation, have
ever been the object of men's repudiation and denial. Even as He saith:
"Each nation hath plotted darkly against their Messenger to lay violent
hold on Him, and disputed with vain words to invalidate the truth."(44)
And again: "No Messenger cometh unto them but they laugh Him to
scorn."(45)

243 Consider the dispensation of Him Who is the Seal of the Prophets and
the King of the Chosen Ones--may the souls of all mankind be offered up for
His sake! After the Daystar of Truth dawned above the horizon of Hijaz,
how great were the cruelties which the exponents of error inflicted upon
that incomparable Manifestation of the All-Glorious! Such was their
heedlessness that they regarded every injury inflicted upon that sacred
Being as ranking among the greatest of all acts, and constituting a means
of attainment unto God, the Most High. For in the early years of His
mission the divines of that age, both Christian and Jewish, turned away
from that Daystar of the heaven of glory, whereupon all people, high and
low alike, bestirred themselves to extinguish the light of that Luminary
of the horizon of inner meanings. The names of all these divines have been
mentioned in the books of old; among them are Wahb Ibn-i-Rahib, Ka'b
Ibn-i-Ashraf, 'Abdu'llah-i-Ubayy, and others of their like.

244 Finally, matters came to such a pass that these men took counsel
together and conspired to shed His pure blood, even as God--glorified be
His mention!--saith: "And remember when the disbelievers schemed against
Thee, that they might lay hold upon Thee, or slay Thee, or cast Thee out;
and so they schemed, and God schemed, and God, verily, is the best of
schemers."(46) Again He saith: "But if their opposition be grievous to
Thee--if Thou canst, seek out an opening into the earth or a ladder into
heaven and bring to them a sign; yet if God wished, He could gather them
unto true guidance; be Thou not, then, of the ignorant."(47) By God! The
hearts of His favoured ones are cons