perfection; but what a difference between the condition of
the leaves and that of the fruit! For from the fruit a hundred thousand
leaves appear, though they all grow and develop through the same vegetable
spirit. Notice the difference between the virtues and perfections of
Christ, the splendors and brilliance of Baha'u'llah, and the virtues of
the Prophets of Israel, such as Ezekiel or Samuel. All were the
manifestations of inspiration, but between them there is an infinite
difference. Salutations!

38: THE THREE STATIONS OF THE DIVINE MANIFESTATIONS

Know that the Holy Manifestations, though They have the degrees of endless
perfections, yet, speaking generally, have only three stations. The first
station is the physical; the second station is the human, which is that of
the rational soul; the third is that of the divine appearance and the
heavenly splendor.

The physical station is phenomenal; it is composed of elements, and
necessarily everything that is composed is subject to decomposition. It is
not possible that a composition should not be disintegrated.

The second is the station of the rational soul, which is the human
reality. This also is phenomenal, and the Holy Manifestations share it
with all mankind.

Know that, although the human soul has existed on the earth for prolonged
times and ages, yet it is phenomenal. As it is a divine sign, when once it
has come into existence, it is eternal. The spirit of man has a beginning,
but it has no end; it continues eternally. In the same way the species
existing on this earth are phenomenal, for it is established that there
was a time when these species did not exist on the surface of the earth.
Moreover, the earth has not always existed, but the world of existence has
always been, for the universe is not limited to this terrestrial globe.
The meaning of this is that, although human souls are phenomenal, they are
nevertheless immortal, everlasting and perpetual; for the world of things
is the world of imperfection in comparison with that of man, and the world
of man is the world of perfection in comparison with that of things. When
imperfections reach the station of perfection, they become eternal.(123)
This is an example of which you must comprehend the meaning.

The third station is that of the divine appearance and heavenly splendor:
it is the Word of God, the Eternal Bounty, the Holy Spirit. It has neither
beginning nor end, for these things are relat