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There must needs be some tremendous force to upraise the standard of eternal friendship between nations and this force must come through self-sacrifice and universal service. (180:1) At a time when the Orient was in the dark night of cataclysmic ignorance, His Holiness BAHA'O'LLAH, like unto a glorious sun, shone forth from the eastern horizon. In the midst of contention and the clashing rivalries of the Oriental peoples he boldly proclaimed the doctrine of the oneness of the world of humanity. Numerous souls who had the courage of their convictions gathered under his banner. (180:2) In order to promote universal peace and the confederation of the nations, they were ever ready to give up their possessions and their lives. His Holiness BAHA'O'LLAH suffered imprisonment, exile and incarceration for fifty years. While under chains he raised his voice and summoned the people to the tent of unity. More than twenty thousand hastened to the arena of sacrifice and while singing songs of joy were martyred at the hands of the executioners. (180:3) The governments of the east arose with great determination to exterminate this cause. They held councils and said, "We must uproot the tree of this community and abolish the foundation of this palace of universal peace which these people desire to found"; they said, "We want to carry conquest to other countries, we desire to make other nations captive, we wish to extend the boundary of our dominions and defend our frontiers. How are we going to do all these things except through militarism? And as BAHA'O'LLAH'S aim is to prevent war we must destroy him and his followers so that his ideals may not take root and flourish."
(180:4)
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