with purity of heart have We established upon the seat of Our acceptance;
and how many an exponent of wisdom have We in all justice consigned to the
fire. We are, in truth, the One to judge. He it is Who is the
manifestation of "God doeth whatsoever He pleaseth", and abideth upon the
throne of "He ordaineth whatsoever He chooseth".

158 Blessed is the one who discovereth the fragrance of inner meanings
from the traces of this Pen through whose movement the breezes of God are
wafted over the entire creation, and through whose stillness the very
essence of tranquillity appeareth in the realm of being. Glorified be the
All-Merciful, the Revealer of so inestimable a bounty. Say: Because He
bore injustice, justice hath appeared on earth, and because He accepted
abasement, the majesty of God hath shone forth amidst mankind.

159 It hath been forbidden you to carry arms unless essential, and
permitted you to attire yourselves in silk. The Lord hath relieved you, as
a bounty on His part, of the restrictions that formerly applied to
clothing and to the trim of the beard. He, verily, is the Ordainer, the
Omniscient. Let there be naught in your demeanour of which sound and
upright minds would disapprove, and make not yourselves the playthings of
the ignorant. Well is it with him who hath adorned himself with the
vesture of seemly conduct and a praiseworthy character. He is assuredly
reckoned with those who aid their Lord through distinctive and outstanding
deeds.

160 Promote ye the development of the cities of God and His countries, and
glorify Him therein in the joyous accents of His well-favoured ones. In
truth, the hearts of men are edified through the power of the tongue, even
as houses and cities are built up by the hand and other means. We have
assigned to every end a means for its accomplishment; avail yourselves
thereof, and place your trust and confidence in God, the Omniscient, the
All-Wise.

161 Blessed is the man that hath acknowledged his belief in God and in His
signs, and recognized that "He shall not be asked of His doings". Such a
recognition hath been made by God the ornament of every belief and its
very foundation. Upon it must depend the acceptance of every goodly deed.
Fasten your eyes upon it, that haply the whisperings of the rebellious may
not cause you to slip.

162 Were He to decree as lawful the thing which from time immemorial had
been forbidden, and forbid that which had, at all times, been rega