Faith

“He that hath faith hath wisdom”

– Buddha

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Hinduism c. 3000 BC The Bahá'í Faith 1844 AD

By faith is fire kindled. Know thou that every ear which hearkeneth unto His Words
By faith is offered sacrifice. with true faith shall be immune from the fire. Thus the believer,
Sing we now Faith, the pinnacle of joy. through his recognition of Him will appreciate the transcendent
character of His heavenly Words, will whole-heartedly choose
Bless Faith, the one who gives. Him over others, and will refuse to incline his affections towards
Bless him who wills, but has not. those who disbelieve in Him. Whatever one gaineth in the life to
Bless him who gives his worship unstinting. come is but the fruit of this faith. Indeed any man whose eye
Bless this song I sing. gazeth upon His Words with true faith well deserveth Paradise;
and one whose conscience beareth witness unto His Words with
As the Gods evoked Faith true faith shall abide in Paradise and attain the presence of God;
from the mighty Asuras, and one whose tongue giveth utterance to His Words with true
so may my prayer for the generous worshiper be accepted! faith shall have his abode in Paradise, wherein he will be seized
with ecstasy in praise and glorification of God, the Ever-Abiding,
The Gods, led by the Spirit, Whose revelations of glory never end and the reviving breaths
honor Faith in their worship. of Whose holiness never fail. Every hand which setteth down
Faith is composed of the heart's intention. His Words with true faith shall be filled by God, both in this
Light comes through faith. world and in the next, with things that are highly prized; and
every breast which committeth His Words to memory, God shall
Through faith men come to prayer, cause, if it were that of a believer, to be filled with His love; and
faith in the morning. every heart which cherisheth the love of His Words and
Faith at noon and at the setting of the Sun. manifesteth in itself the signs of true faith when His Name is
O Faith, give us faith! mentioned, and exemplifieth the words, `their hearts are
thrilled with awe at the mention of God', that heart will become
— Rig-Veda Samhita, X.151.1-5 the object of the glances of divine favour and on the Day of
Resurrection will be highly praised by God.

— Selections from the Báb, pages 98-99

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The Bahá'í Faith 1844 AD Judaism c. 1500 BC

Although a person of good deeds is acceptable at the Threshold In you, O Lord, do I take refuge;
of the Almighty, yet it is first "to know," and then "to do." let me never be put to shame!
Although a blind man produceth a most wonderful and In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me;
exquisite art, yet he is deprived of seeing it. Consider how most incline your ear to me, and save me!
animals labor for man, draw loads and facilitate travel; yet, as Be to me a rock of refuge,
they are ignorant, they receive no reward for this toil and labor. to which I may continually come;
The cloud raineth, roses and hyacinths grow; the plain and you have given the command to save me,
meadow, the garden and trees become green and blossom; yet for you are my rock and my fortress.
they do not realize the results and outcome of all these. The
lamp is lighted, but as it hath not a conscious knowledge of Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked,
itself, no one hath become glad because of it. Moreover, a soul from the grasp of the unjust and cruel man.
of excellent deeds and good manners will undoubtedly advance For you, O Lord, are my hope,
from whatever horizon he beholdeth the lights radiating. my trust, O Lord, from my youth.
Herein lies the difference: By faith is meant, first, conscious Upon you I have leaned from before my birth;
knowledge, and second, the practice of good deeds. you are he who took me from my mother’s womb.
My praise is continually of you.
— `Abdu'l-Bahá:
Bahá'í World Faith, p.382-3 I have been as a portent to many,
but you are my strong refuge.
My mouth is filled with your praise,
and with your glory all the day.
Do not cast me off in the time of old age;
forsake me not when my strength is spent.
For my enemies speak concerning me;
those who watch for my life consult together
and say, “God has forsaken him;
pursue and seize him,
for there is none to deliver him.”

— Psalms 71: 1-11

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Buddhism c. 400 BC The Bahá'í Faith 1844 AD

He that hath faith hath wisdom; he that hath wisdom hath Regard thou faith as a tree. Its fruits, leaves, boughs and
peace. He that hath no wisdom and no faith, whose soul is one branches are, and have ever been, trustworthiness,
of doubt, is destroyed. truthfulness, uprightness and forbearance.

— Mahabharata — Bahá'u'lláh

No fire like passion, The essence of faith is fewness of words and abundance of
no sickness like hate, deeds; he whose words exceed his deeds, know verily his death
no grief like the ego’s is better than his life.
and no joy like peace.
— Tablets of Baha'u'llah, page 156
No disease like greed,
no sorrow like desire.
He who knows this
is fit for Nirvana.

No gift like health,

no wealth like calm of mind,
no faith like trust,
no peace like Nirvana.

—Dhammapada p. 140

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Islam c. 613 AD
It is God who hath reared the Heavens without pillars thou
canst behold; then mounted his throne, and imposed laws on
the sun and moon: each travelleth to its appointed goal. He
ordereth all things. He maketh his signs clear, that ye may have
firm faith in a meeting with your Lord.
— Qur’án 13:2
How can ye withhold faith from God? Ye were dead and He
gave you life; next He will cause you to die; next He will restore
you to life: next shall ye return to Him!
He it is who created for you all that is on Earth, then
proceeded to the Heaven, and into seven Heavens did He
fashion in: and He knoweth all things.
— Qur’án 2:26-27
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Christianity 1 AD
For truly, I say to you, if you have faith as a grain of mustard
seed, you will say to this mountain, “Move from here to there,”
and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.
— Matthew 17.20
Don’t copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God
transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.
Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and
pleasing and perfect. Because of the privilege and authority God
has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are
better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of
yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.
— Romans, 12: 2-3
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Christianity 1 AD
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of
things not seen. For by it men of old received divine approval.
By faith we understand that the world was created by the word
of God, so that what is seen was made out of things which do
not appear.
By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet
unseen, took heed and constructed an ark for the saving of his
household; by this he condemned the world and became an
heir of the righteousness which comes by faith.
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a
place which he was to receive as an inheritance; and he went
out, not knowing where he was to go. By faith he sojourned in
the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with
Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he
looked forward to the city which has foundations, whose
builder and maker is God. By faith Sarah herself received power
to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she
considered him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one
man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many
as the stars of heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by
the seashore.
— Hebrews 11: 1-3, 7-12
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Christianity 1 AD
By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he
who had received the promises was ready to offer up his only
son, of whom it was said, "Through Isaac shall your descendants
be named." He considered that God was able to raise men even
from the dead; hence, figuratively speaking, he did receive him
back...
By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid for three months by
his parents, because they saw that the child was beautiful; and
they were not afraid of the king's edict. By faith Moses, when he
was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's
daughter, choosing rather to share ill-treatment with the people
of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered
abuse suffered for the Christ greater wealth than the treasures
of Egypt, for he looked to the reward. By faith he left Egypt, not
being afraid of the anger of the king; for he endured as seeing
him who is invisible. By faith he kept the Passover and sprinkled
the blood, so that the Destroyer of the first-born might not
touch them.
— Hebrews 11: 17-19, 23-28
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