The Simple Life
‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s personal wants were few. He worked late and early. Two simple meals a day sufficed Him. His wardrobe consisted of a very few garments of inexpensive material. He could not bear to live in luxury while others were in want. He had a great love for children, for flowers, and for the beauties of nature.
~ Dr. J.E. Esslemont, Baha’u'llah and the New Era, p. 57
Abdu’l-Baha seems to have been a very simple man but entrusted with a sever responsibility to carry forth the message of his father’s message from God. I very much appreciate this passage that illustrates how he was able to live with such basic means. No extravagant meals or clothes were necessary for someone who knew the poverty that others must live in. He had many followers and was greatly respected. Anything he could have wished for in his personal life would have been provided, yet the things he most wished for–the end of prejudices, universal education for all, religious tolerance–were not to be seen.