Dawn Prayers

Praise

The praise which hath dawned from Thy most august self and the glory which hath shown forth from Thy most effulgent beauty rest upon Thee, O Thou who art the Manifestation of Grandeur.
O God, my God! These are Thy feeble servants. They are Thy loyal bondsmen and Thy handmaidens who have bowed themselves down before Thy exalted utterance and humbled themselves at the threshold of life.
Thou art He who hath created all things through a word uttered by Thy behest, and fashioned the entire creation through the power of Thy sovereignty and might.
I testify, O my God, that if I were given a thousand lives by Thee, and offered them up all in Thy path, I would still have failed to repay the least of the gifts which, by Thy grace, Thou hast bestowed upon me.
There is none other God but Thee, the Fashioner, the Creator, the Almighty, the most powerful.
I give praise to Thee, O my God, that Thou hast awakened me out of my sleep, and brought me after my disappearance, and raised me up from my slumber
Praise be to God. His traces are evident. Praise be to God. His lights are radiating.

Material and Spiritual Wealth

I bear witness that he who hath known Thee hath known God, and that he that hath attained unto Thy presence hath attained unto the presence of God.
Say: Rejoice not in the things ye possess. Tonight they are yours, tomorrow others will possess them.
Be thou not unhappy. The tempest of sorrow shall pass. Regret will not last. Disappointment will vanish.
One of the basic principles of Baha’u’llah’s teachings is that we should share the wealth we acquire. But one must first acquire wealth, both spiritual and material, before one can share it.
O seeker of truth! If thou desirest that God may open thine eyes, thou must supplicate to God, pray to, and commune with Him.
All men have proceeded from God, and unto Him, they shall return. All shall appear before Him for judgement.
Lord, pitiful are we, grant us Thy favor.
Life is a load that must be carried while we are on earth.
O Befriended Stranger! The candle of thine heart is lighted by the hand of My power, qhench it not with the contrary words of self and passion.

The wings of detachment

May my spirit be a sacrifice to the wrongs Thou didst suffer, and my soul be a ransom for the adversities Thou didst sustain.
In every aspect of life, purity and holiness, cleanliness and refinement, exalt the human condition and the further development of man’s inner reality.
Awaken me and make me conscious. Cause me to be detached from all else save Thee.
O Lord, brighten thou my face with the lights of Thy bestowals.
I am a captive. Rid me of my bondage by the power of Thy might and through the force of Thy will, that I may soar on the wings of detachment toward the loftiest summit of thy creation.
I implore Thee by Thy most great name, through which Thou didst stir up Thy servants and build up Thy cities, to assist thy people to turn in the direction of Thy manifold bounties.
Thou seest O my Lord, Thy suppliant waiting at the door of Thy bounty.
Do thou ordain for me, O my Lord, every good thing thou didst send down in Thy book, and suffer me not to be far removed from the shelter of thy mercy.

Peace

God’s hidden secrets have been divulged, and all created things have been called into being, and all the revelations have been sent down.
O Lord, draw up the people from the abyss of hatred and enmity, and deliver them from the impenetrable darkness. Unite their hearts, and brighten their eyes with the light of peace and reconciliation.
Ye are the angels, if your feet be firm, your spirits rejoiced, your secret thoughts pure
If the learned and worldly wise men of this age were to allow mankind to inhale the fragrance of fellowship and love, every understanding heart would apprehend the meaning of true liberty, and discover the secret of absolute peace.
If we see that unity brings light, we shall continue. For 6000 years we have been waking on the left hand path…Let us advance toward the light.
The world is at war and the human race is in travail and mortal combat…it is the very foundation of the human race that is being destroyed.
Strengthen all mankind that they may do according to the instructions and teachings recorded in these Writings.
O Lord, give us capacity and make us worthy, that we may evince the most great steadfastness.

Family

O  Lord, give me the grace to serve Thy loved ones.
They that are the followers of the one true God, shall, at the moment they depart out of this life,   experience such joy and gladness as would be impossible to describe.
Bring together and keep all families in perfect unity of love and mutual support…. And for their occasional failures, instill forgiveness and peace.
O my God, my Lord and my Master, I have detached myself from my kindred, and have sought, through Tee, to become independent of all that dwell on earth, and ever ready to receive that which is praiseworthy in Thy sight.
O thou forgiving God, forgive the sins of my loving mother. Pardon her shortcomings. Cast upon her the glance of Thy gracious providence, and enable her to gain admittance into Thy kingdom.
According to the teachings of  Baha’u’llah, the family, being a human unit, must be educated according to the rules of sanctity. All the virtues must be taught.
If a man, in his own home, doth not treat his relations and friends with entire trustworthiness and integrity, his dealings with the outside world … will prove barren and unproductive.
All men are servants of one God. One God reigns over all the nations of the world, and has pleasure in all of His children.
Forgive us, and our fathers, and our mothers, and fulfill whaatsoever we have desired from the ocean of Thy grace and divine generosity.
Rely upon God. Trust in Him. Praise Him, and call him continually to mind.

Humility and Bounty

Lowly and tearful, I raise my suppliant hands to thee….Graciously look upon Thy servant, humble and lowly at Thy door.…Give me Thy grace to serve Thy loved ones. Strengthen me in my servitude towards Thee.
Every imperfect soul is self centered and thinking only of his own good. But as his thoughts expand a little, he will begin to think about the welfare and comfort of his family.
Out of the wastes of nothingness, with the clay of My command, I have made thee to appear, and have ordained for thy training every atom of existence.
Provide for the speedy growth of the tree of Thy Divine Unity. Water it then with the flowing waters of Thy good pleasure.
Thou dost suffice me in every hardship that may descend upon me. Thou art my sole companion iin my loneliness, the delight of my heart in my solitude.
Out of the realities of existence, He has chosen the reality of man, and has honored it with intellect and wisdom, the two most luminous lights in either world.
Every time I muse on Thy glory and Thy sovereignty, I find myself as the most guilty among those that have transgressed against Thee in Thy realm.
Lauded be Thy name, O my God, and the God of all things, my glory and the glory of all things, my desire and the desire of all things, my strength and the strength of all things….Suffer me not, I implore Thee, to be kept back from the ocean of Thy tender mercies, nor to be far removed from the shores of nearness to Thee.
O Befriended Stranger! The candle of thine heart is lighted by the hand of My power, quench it not with the contrary winds of self and passion. The healer of all thine ills is remembrance of Me, forget it not. Make My love thy treasure, and cherish it, even as thy very sight and life.

Favorite Prayers

O Lord, my God, give me Thy grace to serve thy loved ones. Strengthen me in my servitude to Thee.
I charge you all, that each one of you concentrate all your thoughts of your heart on love and unity.
Supply me, then, with the good of this world and of the next.
Be generous in prosperity, and thankful in adversity.
From the sweet-scented streams of Thy eternity, give me to drink, O my God, and of the fruit of the tree of Thy being, enable me to taste, O my hope.
Thou, who through but one word of Thy mouth, caused all things to expire and dissolve asunder, and Who, by yet another word, caused whatever had been separated to be combined and reunited!
Create in me a pure heart, O my God, and renew a tranquil conscience within me.
O my God, unite the hearts of Thy servants and reveal to them Thy great cause.
O God, refresh and gladden my spirit, purify my heart, illumine my powers.

Parents

The time is at hand when whatsoever lieth hid in the souls and the hearts of men will be disclosed.
O Lord, in this Dispensation, Thou dost accept the intercession of children on behalf of their parents.
Unto every father hath been enjoined the instruction of his son and daughter in the art of reading and writing and in all that hath been laid down in the Holy Tablets… He that bringeth up his son, or the son of another, is as though he hath brought up a son of Mine.
It is incumbent on the father and mother to train their children in good conduct and the study of books.
O Thou Forgiving God, forgive the sins of my loving mother. Pardon her shortcomings. Cast her upon the glance of Thy gracious providence.
I beg of Thee to wash away our sins as befitteth Thy Lordship, and to forgive me, my parents, and those who, in Thy estimation, have entered the abode of Thy love in a manner that is worthy of Thy transcendent sovereignity.
It is seemly that the servant should, after each prayer, supplicate God to bestow mercy and forgiveness and mercy upon his parents.
Let the mothers consider that whatever concerneth the education of children is of the first importance…for when the bough is green and tender, it will grow in whatever way you train it.
No God is there save Thee, the Ewver Forgiving, the Most Generous.

As I tend to my garden, I am reminded of the sanctuary and beauty of life.

From the sweet-scented streams of Thine eternity, give me to drink, O my God. And of the fruits of the tree of Thy Being, enable me to taste, O my Hope.
It behooveth the people of Baha'i to die to the world and all that is therein, to be so detached from all earthly things that the inmates of Paradise may inhale, from their garment, the sweet smelling savor of sanctuary.
Heavenly Father, as I tend to my garden, I am reminded of the sanctuary and beauty of life.
O my God, O my God! Unite the hearts of thy servants and reveal to them Thy great purpose.
Baha'i gardens are designed to be both esthetically striking and charged with meaning.
At the gate of the garden, some stand, and look within, but do not care to enter. Others step inside, behold its beauty, but do not penetrate far…  But there are always some who enter, and become intoxicated with the splendor of what they behold, and remain for life to tend the garden.
Waft, then, unto me, O my God, and my Beloved, from the right hand of Thy mercy and loving kindness, the holy breaths of Thy favor, that they may draw me away from myself, and from the world, unto the courts of Thy nearness. Thou truly hast been supreme over all things.
O Lord! Cause this sapling to become verdant, fresh and flourishing by the outpourings of Thy special bounty and favor.
Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass, its all about learning how to dance in the rain.
O God, verily we have gathered here in the fragrance of thy love.
 

The mind and spirit of man advance when he is tried by suffering

The mind and spirit of man advance when he is tried by suffering. Just as the plow furrows the earth deeply, purifying it of weeds and thistles, so suffering and tribulations free man from heavy affairs of this worldly life until he arrives at the state of cmplete detachment. Look back at times past and you will find  that the greatest men have suffered most. To attain eternal happiness, one must suffer.
Hence do ye witness a new stirring throughout all created things. See how, in this day, the scope of sciences and arts have been widened out, and what woundrous technical advances have been made, and to what a high degree the mind’s powers have increased, and what stupendous inventions have appeared.
O Son of the Wondrous Vision! I have breathed within thee a breath of My own Spirit. 
Do ordain that my choice be conformed to thy choice and my wish to Thy wish, that I may be entirely content with that which Thou dost desire, and be wholy satisfied with that which Thou dost destine for me by Thy bounteousness and favor.
I ask of Thee, by Thy most given name, O Thou, the Desire of the World, the well-beloved of mankind, to grant that the breeze of Thy inspiration may susain my soul.
Let my heart be dilated with the joy through the spirit of confirmation from Thy Kingdom.
 
O Son of Spirit! Noble have I created thee, yet thou hath abased thyself. Rise, then, unto that for which thou was created.
O Thou Provider! Thou hast breathed over the friends of the West the sweet fragrance of the Holy Spirit, and with the light of divine guidance Thou hast lit the Western sky.
Whoso reciteth this prayer with lowliness and fervor, will bring gladness and joy to the heart of this servant. It will be even as meeting Him face to face.