The Secret of Divine Civilization

The Secret of Divine Civilization is a book written anonymously by `Abdu'l-Bahá in 1875, addressed to the rulers and the people of Persia, but can be applied to developmental reform in any society. It is considered to be part of the authoritative religious text of the Bahá'í Faith. The work was lithographed in Bombay in 1882 and received wide circulation in Iran under the Persian title Risali-yi-madaniyyih or the Treatise on Civilization.

The book was widely known in its time as an attempt to improve the degraded condition of Persia. The author frequently references current issues that were being debated, such as whether to modernize and accept Western technology, or to reject Western culture and rely on technology developed in Persia and the Islamic world.