The essence of justice is fair-mindedness. Bahá’u’lláh prayed that God would “.. graciously adorn the world of humanity with justice and fair-mindedness, although in truth the latter is but one of the expressions of the former. Verily, justice is a lamp that guideth man aright amidst the darkness of the world and shieldeth him from every danger.”
Because as ‘Abdu’l-Bahá explained: “In man there are two natures: his spiritual or higher nature and his material or lower nature. In one he approaches God, in the other he lives for the world alone. Signs of both these natures are to be found in men. In his material aspect he expresses untruth, cruelty and injustice; all these are the outcome of his lower nature. The attributes of his Divine nature are shown forth in love, mercy, kindness, truth and justice, one and all being expressions of his higher nature. Every good habit, every noble quality belongs to man’s spiritual nature, whereas all his imperfections and sinful actions are born of his material nature. Man has the power both to do good and to do evil; if his power for good predominates and his inclinations to do wrong are conquered, then man in truth may be called a saint. But if, on the contrary, he rejects the things of God and allows his evil passions to conquer him, then he is no better than a mere animal.”
Bahá’u’lláh wrote how justice must manifest: “The purpose of justice is the appearance of unity among men. Justice and equity are twin Guardians that watch over men. From them are revealed such blessed and perspicuous words as are the cause of the well-being of the world and the protection of the nations.”
The Bahá’í International Community wrote: “No one is free from the exacting demands of justice; all will be called upon to continuously re-examine their own attitudes, values, and relationships with others. The faculties needed to construct a more just and sustainable social order —moderation, justice, love, reason, sacrifice and service to the common good— have too often been dismissed as naïve ideals. Yet, it is these, and related, qualities that must be harnessed to overcome the traits of ego, greed, apathy and violence, which are often rewarded by the market and political forces driving current patterns of unsustainable consumption and production.”
In humanity’s striving for becoming our best selves ‘Abdu’l-Bahá wrote:“The second attribute of perfection is justice and impartiality. This means to have no regard for one’s own personal benefits and selfish advantages... It means to consider the welfare of the community as one’s own. It means, in brief, to regard humanity as a single individual, and one’s own self as a member of that corporeal form, and to know of a certainty that if pain or injury afflicts any member of that body, it must inevitably result in suffering for all the rest.”
Before justice can manifest, finding the truth of a thing is paramount. “Justice is”, the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada wrote: “first, made possible by developing the capacity to seek truth through our own eyes – and not through mere opinion, conventional wisdom, or one-sided views of others. Second, justice is made evident to the degree that unity and reconciliation is reflected in our relationships and social structures. In other words, we must seek to recognize injustice and then see that justice is restored within our society and institutions. Justice also requires that capabilities be developed for universal participation in the process of building a better world”. It is during the process of reconciliation that the means of restoring harmony, resolving differences, or bringing conflicting ideas, facts, or accounts into agreement. This is the manifestation of justice.
“O SON OF SPIRIT!
The best beloved of all things in My sight is Justice; turn not away therefrom if thou desirest Me, and neglect it not that I may confide in thee. By its aid thou shalt see with thine own eyes and not through the eyes of others, and shalt know of thine own knowledge and not through the knowledge of thy neighbor. Ponder this in thy heart; how it behooveth thee to be. Verily justice is My gift to thee and the sign of My loving-kindness. Set it then before thine eyes. – Baha’u’lláh”