Tablet on the Interpretation of the Holy Scriptures
The Tablet of God (Allah) CHAPTER ONE
Divisions 1-35
GOD
1.
This is the Surah of God that hath been revealed in truth
from the divine realm of the Hallowed, the Glorious, the Illumined One.
2.
He is the Powerful.
3.
O Muhammad-`Ali, [Baha-ullah]
hearken to this proclamation from thy Lord,
at a time when He desireth to depart out from among ye by reason
of what the hands of the oppressors have wrought.
4.
Thereby have sorrows encompassed the entire creation in such wise
that the Pen is hindered from mentioning the mysteries,
5.
the Tablet from giving its written testimony,
the clouds of grace from raining down,
and the trees of paradise from bearing fruit, if ye be of them that know.
6.
Say:
O people,
ye are so wrapped in dense veils that ye expel God from His House
and yet make mention of His names at morn and eventide.
7.
Say: Blinded be the eyes that open every morning
and yet shall never fall upon My glorious and refulgent Beauty,
8.
deaf be the ears that hear every sound but neglect to hearken to My wondrous and sweet melodies,
9.
and dumb be the tongue that shall never move with My Name,
the All-Subduing, the Omnipotent, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.
10.
Contemplate within thyself My calamities, and that which hath befallen Me.
11.
By God, they have afflicted no one else before Me,
and they shall never be borne by the heavens and the earth.
12.
Matters have come to such a pass for Me on every side
that I have resigned Myself to that which no one in all the worlds will accept for himself.
13.
Say:
O People of the Bayan,
have I forbidden you what God allowed you,
or have I enjoined upon you what God proscribed?
14.
Have I altered even one of the ordinances that were revealed in the Tablets of God,
the Almighty, the Glorious, the Generous?
15.
If My sin be the divine verses that are revealed to Me,
this was not from Me, but rather from the All-Powerful, the All-Beautiful.
16.
By God, I am not the first to perpetrate this crime, rather, most of the Prophets committed it,
including `Ali-Muhammad (The Bab),
17.
and, before Him, Muhammad the Apostle of God,
[and] Christ, and Moses.
18.
Each spoke forth that with which the Strong Spirit inspired Him from the kingdom of God,
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the Protector, the Omnipotent.
19.
By God, the creation hath never seen My like and no eye hath beheld My peer,
for I am Powerful to do what I will, and I am the Pardoner, the Compassionate.
20.
Whoso denieth My Cause hath repudiated all the Messengers,
and whoso turneth away from My face hath shunned the Countenance of God.
21.
To this bear witness the essences of all contingent beings,
and the tongues of all existing things,
then this Tongue, the All-Knowing, the All-Perceiving.
22.
Say: O People of the Bayan, We lived among you as one of you,
but you were not pleased thereby.
23.
For this reason did We draw some of the 70,000 veils from the face of this Cause,
but this also gladdened you not.
24.
We lifted some more of the veils,
until affairs came to the pass where this lofty and inaccessible station stood revealed.
25.
Should ye never be pleased therewith, We shall, in spite of you,
continue to lift the veils with a power and sovereignty that derive from Us,
O assemblage of the hateful.
26.
This hath ever been the practice of the Messengers
and the character of the Sincere Ones, if ye but knew.
27.
Since ye have turned away from the primal Beauty in His subsequent form,
repudiated His verses, and disbelieved in His bounty,
28.
therefore doth He depart alone out from among you
at a time when He is detached from all who are in the heavens and on earth.
29.
My deeds bear witness thereto, if ye be of the fair-minded.
30.
Say: Verily, We have turned Our face toward Him that created the heavens and the Throne,
and I shall never ask for a helper other than God, the Glorious, the All-Praised.
31.
O people, know that My succorer is My heart and my fortress is My trust in God.
32.
My confidant is My beauty,
My troops are My mention
and My party is the concourse of the worlds.
33.
By God, when We discovered the people
adoring the graven images of their delusions and vain imaginations instead of God,
34.
We visited upon them thereby a retribution for their deeds,
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that they might thus be led to perceive that a new people had come into being.
35.
Therefore, be just with thyself.
The Surah of God (Allah) CHAPTER TWO
Divisions 36-70
GOD
36.
Is it seemly that those who turn their faces toward utter nothingness
should make mention of the eternal Beauty?
37.
Nay, by My Self, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
38.
Therefore hath God cleansed the hem of His robe from the filth of any mention by the wicked,
and hath purified it from all names and attributes, in private and in public.
39.
The people, however, neglected to take note, and remain heedless.
40.
O `Ali, close thine eyes to the like of these,
and turn they gaze away from all who are in the heavens and on earth.
41.
Then remind the people of that with which the Spirit inspireth thee at all times.
42.
If thou cleanseth thy soul from this world
and from those in whom thou perceivest the odor of unbelief,
thou wilt find that thou hast attained that station
whereunto the hearts of the Near Ones shall never soar.
43.
Thou wilt discover that thou art more learned
than all those endued with perfect and sagacious knowledge.
44.
Therefore, rend the veils in My Name, the Chosen, and pay no heed to the impudent.
45.
Quaff the waters of the river of paradise that are reserved for the righteous,
from this gleaming and radiant chalice, and stand in trepidation of no one.
46.
Put thy trust in My Name, the Forgiving, the Glorious, the Munificent.
47.
Abandon the world to those who seek it, and depart from the prison of earthly hopes.
48.
Content thyself with My love,
for, verily it is better than the treasures of the heavens and the earth,
and more excellent than all that was and is yet to be.
49.
This is My command to thee, and My counsel to the people of sanctity.
50.
Through the power of the All-Merciful,
shun the serpent that hideth within its heart a hatred for the All-Bountiful,
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51.
and turn away from it,
though it recite for thee all that hath been revealed in the Holy Scriptures
and though it cling to glorious and articulate Tablets.
52.
O `Ali, We heard with Our own ears what the ear of no contingent being hath heard.
53.
It issued from behind the walls, from those who lived in Our House
and dwelt in the precincts of that Sacred Spot around which circle the denizens of paradise,
and the people of the holy veils, then the angels that render praise to God.
54.
Nevertheless, We concealed this matter in such wise
that they privately imagined God to be heedless of them.
55.
Say: How wretched is what ye have imagined!
56.
Verily, He knoweth what is invisible in the heavens and on earth,
and He is, in truth, Omniscient.
57.
Thus was I tormented while I was among those persons and dwelt behind them.
58.
At My back was the murky gloom of rancor,
and at My right hand were the somber depths of malevolence,
and God standeth witness to what I say.
59.
The matter continued into these very days,
when the sacred Beauty desireth to deny Himself the silk brocade of human friendship
60.
and to sever Himself from all, male and female, young and old,
save from those women toward whom God hath laid upon Me responsibilities.
61.
Verily, there is no God but Him,
the Possessor of the world of creation and the kingdom of the Cause,
and all is with Him upon a Preserved Tablet.
62.
Know, however, that the reason for My withdrawal
was not what We have enumerated for thee in this luminous Tablet.
63.
Rather, We had found Ourselves to be a chief in the land and a guardian of this people,
but then abandoned this position to such as desired and would accept it.
64.
There was no such person among the people,
and distress, terror and murder were abroad in the land.
65.
We therefore manifested Ourselves between the heavens and the earth,
and dawned forth from the axis of the horizon with perspicuous sovereignty.
66.
Then, when We observed that the land was tranquil,
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We secluded Ourselves and gave it into the care of another people.
67.
For, by My Life, a subject is better than a thousand rulers,
a subordinate is more exalted than a myriad of superiors,
and one oppressed is more excellent than a city full of tyrants.
68.
Emulate thy Beloved therein and sever thyself from all things.
69.
Issue from behind the curtains of silence
and speak forth with the truth in wondrous and precious melodies.
70.
Then soar into the realm of detachment with the wings of the Sanctified,
the Exalted, the Soaring, the Benevolent, the All-High.
Translation by J. R. I. Cole
Tablet of the Sun of the Divine Beauty
Translated by S. Lambden
Still in progress
This scriptural Tablet of Baha'-Allah commencing Shams-i jamāl-i ilāhī ("The Sun of the Divine Beauty") exists in the INBMC Vol. 32: 31-4 collection of mss. of the writings of Baha'-Allah. Another text was supplied to me some years ago by my colleague and friend Nejati Alkan (now in Istanbul), a clearer complete text in the Ottoman archives in Istanbul (Arsivi confiscated alwah, Iradeler, Meclis-i Mahsus no. 1475/35, 7-13). The original text of the Lawh-i Shams-i jamāl-i ilāhī sometimes alternates between Persian and Arabic, with constant headings and often with a recreated alternating refrain. I have named this perhaps Istanbul period (c. 1863??) Tablet of Bahā'-Allāh after its opening words. The date is unknown though it might at the earliest be assigned it to the Sulaymaniyya interregnum years (1854-1856 CE) if the address "O Darvish" is indicative of Baha'-Allah himself and not another unknown recipient of this Arabo-Persian poetic writing. As a wandering mystic Bahā'-Allāh was known as Darvish Muhammad during this time. A currently unidentified `Ali is thus twice addressed. If these addresses are not directed to Baha'-Allah himself, then the `Ali here would most likely be Darvish Siddiq/ Sidq-`Ali Qazvini (d.1299/1882) who had been a Babi-Baha'i from the late 1850s if not earlier.
Tablet of the Sun of the Divine Beauty CHAPTER ONE
Divisions 1-35
THE SUN OF THE DIVINE BEAUTY
1.
He is God.
2.
The Sun of the Divine Beauty beameth forth from the Lordly Orient of the Unseen
and hath thereby shed illumination upon all realms of existence.
3.
Therefore, blessed be thou!
thou who art made luminous through its radiant brilliances.
4.
He is God.
5.
The Lamp of God radiateth light so much that through its intrinsic Splendour
the candles of the hearts of humankind are ignited!
6.
Therefore, blessed be thou, who art rendered resplendent through its splendours!
7.
He is God.
8.
In this land the [Abstracted] Tree of Detachment hath been purified
at the hand of the Beloved [Lord]
and inclineth towards the Blessed Paradise of Holiness.
9.
Therefore, blessed be thou,
for thou art in its shade which is alotted unto such as seek its shadow;
from its fruit is providence for such as seek sustenance therefrom.
10.
He is God.
11.
The Sinaitic Lote Tree crieth out with the tongue of "I, verily, am God".
12.
Therefore, blessed be thou, who hast hearkened unto its melodies
13.
He is God.
14.
The Sanctified Phoenix eternally casteth a shadow upon the realms of uncertain being.
15.
Therefore, blessed be thou! who seeketh shelter neath its shade.
16.
O Darvish!
Be thou detatched from the world that is merely of the nullification of your soul,
that thou mayest ever soar up within the world of eternal subsistence!
17.
Then cut thyself off from this mortal world
until God enableth thee to ascend unto the lofty heights of the heaven of holiness.
18.
O Darvish!
Be thou free of the tincture of the world
that thou mayest be ornamented with the wondrous tincture of the lovers!
19.
Therefore, blessed be thou, who art numbered among them that take action!
20.
He is God the Desired [Lord]!
21.
The Beauty of the Lord of Divine Majesty eternally riseth up
as a Similitude from the Dawning-Place of the Unseen.
22.
Therefore, blessed be thou, who were present between His hands
and art numbered among them that are ennobled through His manifest and resplendent Beauty.
23.
He is God.
24.
The Divine Cupbearer proferred the Lordly wine from the Chalice of the All-Merciful!
25.
Therefore, blessed be thou, that thou art numbered among such as have drunk deep of this Wine!
26.
O`Ali,
May the annihilated soul become the Immortalized soul
so that by means of the Divine Names of the Deity Most proximate thou be carried aloft.
27.
Therefore blessed be thou, that thou art numbered among such have are efficacious.
28.
He is God.
29.
Take ye flight on the wings of mystic meaning towards the heaven of Lordly Holiness
and bypass this world until thou hast entered the worlds of souls
near the Gate of the Divine Splendor.
30.
Therefore, blessed be thou, that thou art numbered among such have hearkened aright.
31.
He is God.
32.
The Divine Fire blazeth forth from the Lote Tree of Sinai
and the Moses of the Spirit discourses saying,
33.
"I, verily am God!
34.
Thy God! And the Deity of all the worlds!"
35.
Therefore, blessed be thou, that thou hast hearkened with the ear of Reality unto its words
and visioned therein with the eye of the Fire its fiery blazing.
Tablet of the Sun of the Divine Beauty CHAPTER TWO
Divisions 36-70
THE SUN OF THE DIVINE BEAUTY
36.
He is God.
37.
In the Name of Eternity through the Lote-Tree of the Encounter with God
and with the melodies of the Dove, it warbleth forth and saith:
38.
`O People!
This is the Greatest Beauty of God who hath risen up from this Dawning-Place of Lights
and discloses the veil from the Supremely Pure Visage.
39.
Therefore, blessed be thou,
that thou art to be numbered among them that have attained unto His Beauty!
40.
He is God.
41.
Envision with the insight born of Reality such that the Pearl encrusted Beauty might glisten forth!
42.
And thus, with the tongue of the inward Mystery, thou shall utter the [words]
43.
"O Thou Best of Creators". Quran 23:14
44.
O thou who art the Ornamented Garment of Reality!
45.
The Nightingale of the Mystic Holiness, in the best of accents warbleth forth the words,
46.
"Regenerate anew with every Melody!"
47.
Therefore, blessed be thou, that thou art numbered among such as have truly hearkened!!
48.
O `Ali
Peel away the husks the world of contingency
so that thou might ascend to the Pre-Existent Throne of the Placeless!
49.
He is God.
50.
The Falcon of Loves' Joy hath been made manifest from the Horizon of Divine Holiness
in that all of the [heavenly] birds sing out with wondrous new melodies,
thereby inducing intoxication and drunkenness.
51.
He is God.
52.
The Peacock of Baha' (glory)]
53.
Therefore blessed be thou, that thou art, on account of His Glory,
numbered among such as have envisioned [ ] through the [ ].
54.
He is God.
55.
[He is] The rose of Eternity. [and immortality]
56.
He is the Beloved [Lord]!
57.
This is the rose of Eternity. [and immortality]
58.
He is God
59.
[ [He is the] ]
60.
He is God!
61.
[He is] the Beloved [Lord]!
62.
He is God
63.
The Lordly Hoopoe from the Horizon of the Holiness of the Glorification.
64.
Therefore blessed be thou, in that thou hast gazed upon His Beauty!
65.
He is God!
66.
This is the Tree of Holiness!
67.
It hath indeed been planted in the Sinai of the Spirit and crieth out [with the words],
68.
`Indeed He, no God is there except Him'.
69.
Therefore blessed be whomsoever hearkeneth unto its melodies
70.
and then findeth repose in its shade;
then, furthermore, is given Providence by virtue of its fruits.
Translated by S. Lambden (still in progress)
Tablet to Ashraf CHAPTER ONE
Divisions 1-35
Tablet to Siyyid Ashraf-i Zanjani (the Noble)
Revealed in Arabic, the Tablet to Ashraf is a dispatch that Baha-ullah wrote for Siyyid Ashraf-i Zanjani at the end of Ashraf's second visit with Baha-ullah in Adrianople. The context for the communication was that Ashraf was about to leave and travel back to Iran. The tablet has instructions for Ashraf for when Ashraf gets there, what news to share with the believers about Baha-ullah, and guidance for Ashraf, and statements about the nature of Baha-ullah’s revelation. The tablet also addresses two other believers that were also martyred for the faith.
THE NOBLE
1.
O Ashraf, [1]
listen carefully to what the Tongue of the Eternal has to say.
2.
Any one of the melodies of your Lord would be sufficient to attract the hearts of all people,
if they were to perceive it with a new and purified ear.
3.
And if the names were to release themselves from the limitations of the world of creation,
they would surely all become the most great Name, could you but apprehend,
for the Ancient Beauty has manifested himself to all things in the splendor of all the names
during these blessed, mighty, and sublime days.
4.
Strive to act uprightly in the Cause of your Lord and wholly for the sake of His love
that He may appoint you among His most beautiful names in the kingdom of creation.
This, indeed, is a great bounty.
5.
I swear by my life!
Were the hands of all created things to be lifted in this day, free of any evil suggestions,
toward the court of hope of the King of Names,
and ask Him for the treasures of the heavens and the earth,
He would grant their wish, by His all-pervasive grace, before they lowered their hands.
Thus does His mercy encompass all things.
6.
Say:
O people![2]
Do not withhold yourselves from the grace of God and His mercy.
7.
Whoever withholds himself from it is indeed in great loss.
8.
Say: O people!
Do you worship the dust, and forsake your Lord, the Gracious, the Bountiful?
9.
Fear God, and be not of those who have gone astray.
10.
Say: The Book of God has now appeared in the temple of this youth.
11.
Blessed, therefore, be God, the most excellent of makers!
12.
Flee not from him, O peoples of the world;
rather, hasten to attain his presence and be of those who have returned.
13.
Repent, O people, for having abandoned God and for having transgressed against His Cause.
Do not be heedless.
14.
It is He who has created you, who has provided for you by His command and acquainted you with himself—the Mighty, the Exalted, the Knowing—
and who has unveiled to you the treasures of His knowledge and caused you to ascend to the heaven of certainty in His incorruptible, resistless, and transcendent Faith.
15.
Take care that you do not deprive yourselves of the grace of God, invalidate your works,
and disavow Him in this most manifest, most exalted, shining, and glorious Revelation.
16.
Judge, then, the Cause of God, your maker, with justice,
examine what He has sent down from the throne on high,
and meditate on it with pure and faultless hearts.
17.
In this way, the truth of this Cause will appear to you as clearly as the midday sun
and you will be assured. [and therefore completely certain]
18.
Say:
His first evidence is His own self, and following that is His revelation.[3]
19.
But for whoever is unable to recognize these two evidences,
He has made His verses His proof by His grace to all the worlds.
20.
He has endowed every soul with the capacity to recognize the signs of God.
21.
If human beings did not have this capacity,
He could not complete His proof to them, were you to reflect on His Cause.
22.
He will never deal unjustly with anyone, nor will He task a soul beyond its power.
He, verily, is the Compassionate, the Merciful.
23.
Say:
The Cause of God has become manifested in such a manner that even the blind can perceive it, how much more those whose vision is sharp and pure.
24.
Although the blind cannot see the light of the sun, they can feel its continual heat.
25.
The blind in heart, however, among the people of the Bayān—and to this God is my witness—
are powerless, no matter how long the Sun may shine on them,
either to perceive the radiance of its glory or to appreciate the warmth of its rays.
26.
Say:
O people of the Bayān!
We have singled you out from among humankind to recognize us.
27.
We have caused you to draw near to the right side of Paradise
—the place from which the undying Fire[4] proclaims in every melody:
“There is no God besides Me, the Powerful, the Most High!”
28.
Take care not to veil yourselves
from this Sun that is shining above the horizon of the Will of your Lord, the All-Merciful,
with a radiance that has encompassed all things, small and great.
29.
Open your eyes that you may behold it with your own vision,
without depending on the vision of anyone else, for God does not burden a soul beyond its ability.
30.
Thus has it been revealed in all the scriptures to the prophets and messengers of the past.
31.
Enter, O people, into this vast expanse for which neither a beginning nor an end has been decreed,
in which the call of God has been raised and the breezes of His transcendent sanctity are wafting.
32.
Remove not from yourselves the robe of glory;
neither let your hearts be deprived of remembering your Lord
nor your ears from hearing His wondrous, sublime, compelling, and most eloquent melodies.[5]
33.
O Ashraf!
Give thanks to God inasmuch as He has honored you with meeting Him
and permitted you to enter His presence, the seat of sublime glory.
34.
Blessed are your eyes, for they have beheld the beauty of God,
your Lord and the Lord of the entire creation.
35.
Blessed are your ears, for they have heard the melody of God,
the Powerful, the Knowing, the Wise.
Tablet to Ashraf CHAPTER TWO
Divisions 36-70
THE NOBLE
36.
Know that the time has come for your sojourn before the throne to end. [ ]
37.
Arise, and go forth with the tablet of God to His faithful servants,
who have consumed the veils with the fire of their attraction and ascended to God,
the King, the Mighty, the Praised.
38.
Tell them what has happened to us at the hands of those who were created by our command,
then announce to them the glad tidings of the Paradise of God that they may rejoice.
39.
Recount to them one of the stories of this youth that they may be informed and give praise to God.
40.
Say:
O loved ones of God!
Arise and assist Him.
Pay no attention to those who contend with the Being of God
and who repudiate the evidence
that God has made the proof of His Cause between the heavens and the earth.
41.
They have wronged God by arising in opposition against Him,
and they do not feel ashamed before God, who created them by His command.
42.
This is what has befallen the Ancient Beauty at the hands of these oppressors.
43.
So severe did their opposition become
that they attempted to kill me through a plan that Satan cast into their breasts.
God knows and is a witness to this.
44.
When they found themselves impotent before the sovereignty of God and His power,
they devised a new plot.
45.
This is what befell us at the hands of those who were created by our command,
yet we are well able to achieve our purpose.
46.
O loved ones of God!
Be clouds of bounty to those who believe in God and in His verses,
and a sure torment to those who disbelieve in Him and His Cause and who join partners with God.
47.
Say:
O people!
Do not listen to the words of those who are unfaithful to God and the Manifestation of Himself.
48.
Be mindful of the day when each will be asked about his deeds in the presence of his Lord,
the Exalted, the Great,
and will receive either reward or punishment for what he has done during this vain life.
This is what has been ordained in God’s mighty and guarded tablets.
49.
Do not be like those who habitually adhere to something as it suits them
and at another moment reject it.
50.
Fear God, O concourse of believers.
Hold fast to what has been sent down to you from the throne on high,
forsake all else, and remain steadfast in His Cause.
51.
If you see Muḥammad ʿAlī, [6]
give him our greetings and deliver to him that with which you have been entrusted
that he may arise to serve the Cause
and be so steadfast that his steps will not slip from the path of God, the Almighty, the Praised.
52.
Say:
O servant!
I swear by God! All you have heard and perceived has been manifested by us,
and all besides me has been created by my command, if you apprehend.
53.
All that we have mentioned is due to a wisdom on our part,
of which no one is apprised save for those whom we have acquainted
with the libraries of divine revelation and aided with the Faithful Spirit.
54.
Tear away the veils of idle fancies
that the daystar of certainty may shine on you from the dawning place of my name,
the All-Merciful, and He may appoint you among the sincere.
55.
Arise to serve your Lord,
and turn away from those who have disbelieved in God and have denied Him.
56.
Summon the people to remembrance with wisdom and heavenly counsel,
and do not dispute idly with anyone concerning the Cause of your Lord
that His proof may be fulfilled to the entire creation.
57.
Be united with the loved ones of God,
and gather them into the haven of security under the shade of the name of your Lord,
the Almighty, the Knowing.
58.
Shield His servants so that the temptations of Satan do not cause them to falter
when he arrives in your land with a great deception,
by which he intends to deprive all of you of the love of this youth.
Thus do we inform you with a message from the Unseen
that you may be aware and remain steadfast.
59.
Be detached from all things, then set your face toward the sanctuary that is the seat of the throne of your Lord, the Forgiving, the Merciful.
60.
Know that we have admonished you in other tablets,
and we found you lacking in what is worthy of you.
61.
Beware that you do not deprive yourself of what we have ordained for you in our holy and preserved tablets.
62.
Cleanse yourself of everything that stands between you and God,
then commune with Him with a humble and radiant heart.
63.
You should be so steadfast in the Cause
that were all in the heavens and on earth to conspire against you,
they would be unable to turn you aside from it and would find themselves powerless.
64.
This is what is worthy of those who consider themselves followers of God,
in these days when most of the servants are submerged in a deluge of doubts and vain imaginings
and set on the path of perdition.
65.
If you see Abā Baṣīr [7], bring him this tablet so that he can read it and be of those who know.
66.
Convey my greetings to him that he may rejoice in the glad tidings of the spirit coming from the Almighty, the All-Wise.
67.
Say: O servant!
We have sent down the verses to you and delivered them to you as a mercy from us
so that those who dwell in your land may be admonished, awaken from their slumber,
and turn with their hearts toward the object of the adoration of the world,
at whose appearance the inmates of the concourse on high fall prostrate.
68.
Call then to remembrance the loved ones of God, whom no obstacles have prevented from entering the depths of the ocean of the mercy of your Lord, the All-Bountiful, the Most Generous.
69.
Thus, do we bid and direct you that you may be thankful to God, your Lord, at all times.
70.
Peace, honor and glory rest upon you, O people of Bahā,
and upon those who have desired God’s countenance and turned toward Him.
Translated by K. Brown 2016
[1] Siyyid Ashraf-i-Zanjāni. In Gleanings from the Writings of Bahā’u’llāh, section LXIX, Bahā’u’llāh tells the story of Siyyid Ashraf's mother, who was brought to the scene her son’s imminent death so she could urge him to recant, but instead she urged him not to.
[2] The section of the Tablet to Ashraf commencing here has also been translated by Shoghi Effendi.
[3] Or ...His “manifestation” (ẓuhūr).
[4] This is a reference to the Fire in the Burning Bush from which Moses heard the voice of God proclaiming “I am God, the Lord of the universe…” (Qurʿān 28:30; cf. Exodus 3:1–15).
[5] The section of this tablet that Shoghi Effendi has also translated ends here.
[6] Probably a reference to Āqā Mīrzā Muḥammad-ʿAlīy-i-Ṭabīb, who was also from Zanjān and died a martyr.
Bahā’u’llāh wrote a tablet of visitation jointly for him, Siyyid Ashraf and Abā Baṣīr.
[7] Āqā Naqd-ʿAlī, who was blind and given the title ‘Baṣīr’ (Seeing) by Bahā’u’llāh. He was Siyyid Ashraf’s close friend and was beheaded just before Ashraf was killed.
The sacrifice of the pair is mentioned by Bahā’u’llāh in Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, pp. 73–74.
Tablet of the Name CHAPTER ONE
Divisions 1-35
Sent to a certain Mullāh Ṣādiq-i Muqaddas-i Khurāsāní,
entitled Ism'u'llāh al-Aṣdaq (the Name of God, the Most Truthful)
THE NAME
1.
He is the Most Wondrous in the realm of the All Glorious
2.
O my name!
Give ear to the call of God, from the dawning point of all utterance
that I am God thy Lord, and the Lord of all things,
the Lord of all the worlds.
3.
Then give ear to that which thou hast been inspired with from the direction of the Bayan,
4.
that I am the Compassionate, the Merciful,
that there is no other God except Me, the Mighty, the All Wise.
5.
Rise, then warn humanity for having neglected the things concerning God,
then give them the glad tidings of the Ridvan of God,
the Most High, the All Powerful, the Almighty.
6.
Say,
O people!
Are ye in any wonder that the primal beauty has come unto you once again
in this luminous radiant attire.
7.
Say,
There are in this revelation signs for the people of knowledge,
clear proofs for those who are near,
and allusions for those with the eye of discernment.
8.
O my name!
Turn thy face towards the Sanctuary.
9.
By God, this is the Sanctuary of God within your heart,
and the dwelling place (Hall) of Holiness amongst you
and a point of pilgrimage of the Cause between the heavens and the earth.
10.
Leave the Name (the kingdom of names) behind thee,
and the forms beneath thy feet, then the domain of sovereignty, to its people,
11.
for thy Lord desireth to behold thee divested of all garments
that He may adorn thee with the ornament of His Cause among the Worlds.
12.
Know then that He hath raised between us and our servants a ladder of three steps,
the first is a reminder of the world and its vanities,
13.
and the second of the life hereafter, and that which has been decreed within it,
14.
and the third of the names and its kingdoms,
whoso passeth by these stations reacheth the King of Names and attributes in less than a moment.
15.
Beware O people of Bahâ!
lest ye halt at these stations, then pass by them like the passing of clouds.
16.
That is what it befitting for our servants who are near unto us.
17.
He that passeth by them and remaineth firm in my love,
were he to lift his head to the realm above he would witness my kingdom,
and hear my melodies and is reckoned among those who are victorious.
18.
Say,
O concourse of the Bayān
Deprive not yourselves of the bounty of those days.
19.
Avail yourselves of them, then await my Cause,
the Resplendent, the Mighty, the Wondrous.
20.
"Say:
Deliver your souls, O people, from the bondage of ego and desire,
and purify them from all attachment to anything besides Me.
21.
Remembrance of Me cleanseth all things from defilement, could ye only perceive it.
22.
Say:
Were all created things to be entirely divested of the veil of worldly vanity and desire,
the Hand of God would in this Day clothe them, one and all,
23.
with the robe of
"He doeth whatsoever He willeth in the kingdom of creation,"
24.
that thereby the sign of His sovereignty might be manifested in all things.
25.
Exalted then be He, the Sovereign Lord of all,
the Almighty, the Supreme Protector, the All-Glorious, the Most Powerful.
26.
Intone, O My servant, the verses of God that have been received by thee,
27.
as intoned by them who have drawn nigh unto Him,
that the sweetness of thy melody may kindle thine own soul, and attract the hearts of all men.
28.
Whoso reciteth, in the privacy of his chamber, the verses revealed by God,
the dispersing angels of the Almighty shall disperse in the world
the fragrance of the words uttered by his voice,
and shall cause the heart of every righteous man to exalt.
29.
Though he may, at first, remain unaware of its effect,
yet the virtue of the grace vouchsafed unto him
must needs sooner or later exercise its influence upon his soul.
30.
Thus have the mysteries of the Revelation of God been decreed
by virtue of the Will of Him Who is the Source of power and wisdom.
31.
O Khalil!
God beareth Me witness.
32.
Though My Pen be still moving on My Tablet,
yet, in its very heart, it weepeth and is sore distressed.
33.
The lamp burning before the Throne, likewise, weepeth and groaneth
by reason of the things which the Ancient Beauty hath suffered
at the hands of them that are merely a creation of His Will.
34.
God, He knoweth and testifieth to the truth of My words.
35.
No man that hath purged his ear from the loud clamor of the infidels,
and inclined it to all created things,
can fail to hear the voice of their lamentation and weeping
over the trouble that hath befallen Us at the hands of those of Our servants
that have disbelieved in Us, and rebelled against Us.
Tablet of the Name CHAPTER TWO
Divisions 36-70
THE NAME
36.
Thus have We disclosed to thee a glimmer of the woes that have come upon us,
that thou mayest be made aware of Our sufferings, and patiently endure thy sorrows.
37.
Arise to aid thy Lord at all times and in all circumstances,
and be thou one of His helpers.
38.
Admonish, then, the people to lend a hearing ear
to the words which the Spirit of God hath uttered in this irradiant and resplendent Tablet.
39.
Say,
Sew not, O people, the seeds of dissension amongst men,
and contend not with your neighbor.
40.
Be patient under all conditions,
and place your whole trust and confidence in God.
41.
Aid ye your Lord with the sword of wisdom and of utterance.
42.
This indeed well becometh the station of man.
43.
To depart from it would be unworthy of God, the Sovereign Lord of all, the Glorified.
44.
The people, however, have been led astray,
and are truly of the heedless.
45.
Unlock, O people, the gates of the hearts of men
with the keys of the remembrance of Him Who is the Remembrance of God
and the Source of wisdom amongst you.
46.
He hath chosen out of the whole world the hearts of His servants,
and made them each a seat for the revelation of His glory.
47.
Wherefore, sanctify them from every defilement,
that the things for which they were created may be engraven upon them.
48.
This indeed is a token of God's bountiful favor.
49.
Beautify your tongues, O people, with truthfulness,
and adorn your souls with the ornament of honesty.
50.
Beware, O people,
that ye deal not treacherously with any person [or creature].
51.
Be ye the trustees of God amongst His creatures,
and the emblems of His generosity amidst His people.
52.
They that follow their lusts and corrupt inclinations,
have erred and dissipated their efforts.
53.
They, indeed, are of the lost.
54.
Strive, O people, that your eyes may be directed towards the mercy of God,
that your hearts may be attuned to His wondrous remembrance,
55.
that your souls may rest confidently upon His grace and bounty,
that your feet may tread the path of His good-pleasure.
56.
Such are the counsels which I bequeath unto you.
57.
Would that ye might follow My counsels!"
Translated by S. Effendi
Gleanings 136
58.
He from whom the fragrances of the Cause are not wafted and the remnants of his master,
will not be remembered in the presence of God the King the All knowing the All informed.
59.
Say in this day no one will be related to God and the Manifestation of His own Being
unless he be the banner of guidance amongst the servants,
60.
in such wise that it will appear from his deeds that those who are desirous of God will be guided
and the splendour of the All Merciful will be witnessed from his face
61.
and the mention of God, the Almighty, the All knowing, the All Informed,
will be heard from his heart and tongue.
62.
Thus hath instructed you He who is firm in His Command
in this night in which the dove of decree singeth with sorrowful signs.
63.
Then know thou who art in certainty of God,
that thy Lord hath chosen thee for his love,
and hath been bountiful to thee in many situations,
64.
hath delivered thee from heedlessness,
and confirmed thee in His own Knowledge,
65.
preferred thee above many of his creatures,
and made thee of those who are informed,
66.
hath known what hath come upon thee in his path
and the hardships thou hast endured in His love and good pleasure,
67.
with Him is the knowledge of the heavens and the earth,
not a speck of the doings of the entire creation will be erased from the tablet of decree.
68.
Well is it with thee for having been patient in the days of God,
having attained unto them and were of those who comprehend.
69.
Then strive within thyself that thou mayest become firm in the Cause
in such wise that the tongues of the entire creation will not cause thee to slip,
70.
then rise in praise of thy master
and teach His messages to those who have believed in God and his signs
then confirm them in the Cause and be of those who are firm.
Translated by S. Effendi, and completed by N. S. Woolmington
Revised editon by S. Lambden
Tablet of the Bell CHAPTER ONE
Divisions 1-35
Also called the Tablet of the Garden of Ridvan, not to be confused with another tablet of the same name.
THE BELL
1.
He is the Mighty.
2.
This is the Garden of Paradise,
wherein hath been raised the melody of God, the Protector, the Self-Subsistent.
3.
Wherein have been established the maidens of eternity whom none hath touched save God,
the Mighty, the Holy.
4.
Wherein the Nightingale of Eternity hath warbled
upon the branches of the Lote-tree beyond which there is no passing,
with a melody that hath filled with astonishment the minds of all men.
5.
Wherein is that which bringeth the poor ones near unto the shores of the ocean of wealth
and guideth mankind unto the word of God.
6.
This, verily, is a manifest truth.
7.
In Thy name "He",
for Thou art, verily, He O He.
8.
O monk of divine unity, toll the bell,
for the Day of God hath been made manifest and the Beauty of the All-Glorious
hath been established upon the Throne of manifest holiness.
9.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
10.
O Hud of the decree, blow upon the trumpet in the name of God, the Mighty, the Generous,
for the tabernacle of holiness bath been established upon the throne of inaccessible glory.
11.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
12.
O Countenance of Eternity!
Strike with the fingers of the spirit upon the rebec of a wondrous holiness,
for the Beauty of the Essence hath appeared clothed in a robe of shining silk.
13.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
14.
O angel of light, blow into the horn in this revelation,
for the letter Ha' hath come riding upon a letter of ancient majesty.
15.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
16.
O Nightingale of Splendour,
warble upon the twigs in this garden, singing the name of the Beloved,
for the Beauty of the Rose hath appeared from behind a heavy veil.
17.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
18.
O Songbird of Paradise, trill thou upon the branches in this wondrous age,
for God hath shone forth upon all that dwell in the kingdom of earth.
19.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
20.
O Bird of Eternity, soar in this sky,
for the bird of faithfulness bath winged its flight in an atmosphere of blessed nearness.
21.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
22.
O Inhabitants of Paradise, sing and chant in the most melodious and charming of voices,
for the song of God hath been raised behind pavilions of exalted holiness.
23.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
24.
O Inhabitants of the Kingdom, invoke the name of the Beloved,
for the Beauty of the Cause bath shone forth from behind the veils adorned with a shining spirit.
25.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
26.
O Inhabitants of the Kingdom of Names, bedeck the farthest reaches of heaven,
for the Greatest Name hath come riding upon the clouds of a mighty holiness.
27.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
28.
O Inhabitants of the Kingdom of Attributes upon the most glorious horizon,
make yourselves ready to enter the presence of God,
for the breezes of holiness have breathed from the Spot wherein His Essence is hidden,
and this is, verily, a manifest grace.
29.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
30.
O Paradise of oneness, rejoice within thyself,
for there hath appeared the paradise of God, the Exalted, the Powerful, the Knowing.
31.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
32.
O Heaven of Glory, give thanks unto God in thine essence,
for the heaven of holiness hath been lifted up in the sky of a gracious heart.
33.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
34.
O Sun of the kingdom of the world, cover thy face,
for the Sun of Eternity bath shone forth from the horizon of a resplendent dawn.
35.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
[O earth of [knowledge, swallow] all that you [know],
for the Earth of Knowledge hath been [spread out within] the Being of God,
the Exalted, the Mighty, the Generous.
Tablet of the Bell CHAPTER TWO
Divisions 36-65
THE BELL
36.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.]
O Lamp of the kingdom of the world, extinguish thy light,
for the Lamp of God hath shone within the niche of eternity
and the peoples of the heavens and the earth have been illumined by it.
37.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
38.
O oceans of the earth!
Cease ye the rolling of your waves, for the Red Sea bath surged at a wondrous command.
39.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
40.
O Peacock of Union, cry out amidst the bushes of the heavenly kingdom,
for the melody of God hath appeared from every direction, near at hand.
41.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
42.
O Bird of Eternity, crow in the thicket of the kingdom on high,
for the Herald of God hath cried out from every unapproachable direction.
43.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
44.
O Concourse of lovers, rejoice in your souls,
for the days of separation are come to an end and the appointed time is come
wherein the Best-Beloved hath appeared in the Beauty of an inaccessible glory.
45.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
46.
O People of mystic knowledge, be ye glad in your inmost beings,
for the days of parting are past and certitude is come
and the Beauty of the Youth hath shone forth with the ornament of holiness
in the paradise of a mighty name.
47.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is.none other than He.
48.
Praised be Thou, O my God,
I beseech Thee by Thy Day, whereon all days have been resurrected,
and by Thy enumerating from it both former and latter times.
49.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is. none other than He.
50.
And by Thy Name which Thou hast made a monarch in the kingdom of names
and a ruler over all that are in heaven and on earth.
51.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
52.
That Thou mayest make these souls independent of all save Thee
and bring them nigh unto Thee and cause them to be detached from all others save Thee.
Thou, verily, art the Powerful, the Mighty, the Compassionate.
53.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
54.
Make them, then, O my God, among those who testify to Thy oneness
and among those who submit their selves to Thy singleness,
in such wise that they may behold none else but Thee and gaze upon none save Thee.
Thou art, verily, Powerful and Mighty to accomplish this.
55.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
56.
Create, then, in their hearts, O my Beloved, the fire of Thy love,
to such an extent that the mention of all save Thee may be consumed by it,
that they may witness within their hearts that Thou hast ever been in the loftiness of eternity,
and that there has never been anything with Thee,
and that Thou art as Thou bast ever been;
no god is there save Thee, the Generous, the Mighty.
57.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
58.
For, should Thy servants who seek to ascend unto the heights of Thy oneness,
establish themselves in the mention of aught else save Thee,
the decree of unity shall have no validity in respect of them,
nor shall the title of singleness find any conformation in them.
59.
Praised be Thou, O He; O He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
60.
And Praised be Thou, O God, my God.
61.
Since this is how matters stand, send down from the clouds of Thy compassion
that which shall cleanse the hearts of Thy lovers and sanctify the breasts of them that adore Thee.
62.
Raise them up, then, through Thy exaltation
and cause them to be victorious over all that dwell on earth.
63.
This is that which Thou didst promise Thy friends by Thy unerring words:
64.
"We desire to show Our grace unto them that have been made wretched on the earth
and to make them leaders and to make them Our heirs."
65.
Praised be Thou, O He; He that is He;
O He that there is none other than He.
Translated by D. MacEoin
Tablet of Medicine CHAPTER ONE
Alias the Tablet to the Physician
A old tablet of Bahá-ulláh, revealed to a doctor. 1870 (?)
MEDICINE
1.
He is God!
2.
O God the supreme Knower!
The ancient Tongue Speaks that which will content the wise in the absence of the Doctors.
3.
Say:
O people, do not eat except when you are hungry.
4.
Do not drink after you have retired to sleep.
5.
Exercise is good when the stomach is empty; it strengthens the muscles.
6.
When the stomach is full, exercise is very bad.
7.
Do not neglect medical treatment when it is necessary
yet leave it off when the body is in good condition.
8.
Do not take nourishment except when digestion is completed.
9.
Do not swallow until you have thoroughly masticated your food.
10.
Treat disease first of all through the diet and refrain from medicines.
11.
If you find what you need for healing in a single herb,
do not use compound medicines.
12.
Leave off medicine when the health is good and use it in case of necessity.
13.
If two opposites are put on the table do not mix them, be content with one of them.
14.
Begin first with liquid food before partaking of solid food.
15.
The taking of food before what you have already eaten is digested, is dangerous--avoid this.
16.
When you begin to eat, begin with My Name El Abhá,
and finish with the Name of [*]God the Possessor of the Throne and the earth.
17.
When you have eaten walk a little that the food may settle.
18.
What is difficult to masticate is forbidden by the Wise.
--Thus the Supreme Pen Commands you.
19.
A little food in the morning is like a light to the body.
20.
Leave all harmful habits, they cause unhappiness in the world.
21.
Search for the cause of disease.
22.
This saying is the end of this speech.
23.
Be content in all conditions,
by this the person is preserved from a bad condition and from lassitude.
24.
Shun grief and sorrow, they cause the greatest misery.
25.
Say:
Jealousy eats the body and anger burns the liver.
26.
Refrain from these two as you would avoid a lion.
27.
To cleanse the body is essential,
yet only in temperate seasons (should it be done frequently).
28.
He who over-eats, his illness becomes more severe.
29.
We have arranged for each thing a cause and We have Bestowed upon it an effect.
30.
All this is from the Effulgence of My Name, which Influences everything.
31.
Your God is the Commander of all things.
32.
Say:
From what We have explained, the humors of the body should not be excessive
and their quantity depends upon the condition of the body.
33.
One sixth of each sixth part in its normal condition is the right proportion.
34.
In God must be our trust.
35.
There is no God but Him, the Healer, the Knower and the Helper.
Tablet of Medicine CHAPTER TWO
MEDICINE
36.
The Supreme Pen has not Written such Words but for the Love of thee,
that thou mayest know that grief has not seized upon the Blessed Beauty.
37.
He is not sorrowful because of what has befallen Him from the nations,
yet the sadness is for him whose reason does not grant something of the Word of God.
38.
Nothing in the earth or Heaven is outside the Grasp of God.
39.
O Doctor!
Heal the sick first by the mentioning of the Name of God,
the Possessor of the Day of Judgment
and after that use what God hath destined for the health of the constitution of His creatures.
40.
By My Life! The Doctor who has drunk from the Wine of My Love,
his visit is healing and his breath is mercy and hope.
41.
Say:
Cling to him for the welfare of the constitution.
42.
He is Confirmed by God in his treatments.
43.
Say:
This knowledge is the most knowable of all the sciences
for it is the greatest means from God (the Life-Giver to the dust)
to preserve the bodies of the peoples
and He has put it in the forefront of all the sciences and wisdoms.
44.
For Today is the Day when you must arise for My victory detached from all the world.
45.
Say:
O my God, Thy Name is my healing.
46.
Thy Remembrance is my remedy.
47.
Thy Nearness is my hope.
48.
Thy Love is my joyous companion,
and Thy Mercy is my healer and my helper in this world and in the next.
49.
Thou art the Giver, the Knower, the Wise!
50.
Give Greetings and Love to all the friends on the Part of God.
51.
Say:
Today two things are loved and sought for.
52.
One is Wisdom and Interpretation,
and the second is Preservation of the Cause of God, the Merciful.
53.
Each soul that has attained these two Commandments graces
he is accounted Before God an inhabitant of the City of Eternity,
because by those two things the Cause of God has been and will be made firm.
54.
For if Wisdom and Interpretation do not exist all will be afflicted.
55.
In this case, there would be no breath left to convert the people to the Law of God
and if Preservation is lacking there would not be any breath to mention God
or to affect the people.
56.
Say:
O friends!
Fear and anguish are womanly qualities
57.
yet if the friends of God meditate on the world and the apparent disharmony in it
the power of the oppressors will not frighten them
58.
and they will fly with the wings of longing to the Light of Heaven.
59.
What ever this One has Wished for Himself,
He has Desired it for all the friends of the True One
and that Preservation was and will be Commanded.
60.
The Purpose is that those who speak of the Cause
will remain on the earth so that they may be occupied with
the remembrance mentioning of the God of the Universe.
61.
That is why the preservation of yourselves and your brothers
is necessary and obligatory for the Cause of God.
62.
If all the friends were acting in accordance with what they are commanded,
the condition of the greater part of those on the earth would be adorned by the Garment of Faith.
63.
Blessed is the soul that brings another to the Law of God and has guided him to Eternal Life.
64.
This is one of the greatest actions in the Sight of God,
the Dear One, the Supreme, the Highest.
65.
The Spirit of Bahá be upon you.
Tablet of the Sufficiency (Adequacy) CHAPTER ONE
Divisions 1-30
SUFFICIENCY
1.
This is the Chapter of the Sufficiency.
2.
It was assuredly sent down on the part of the True [Lord] regarding the question of knowledge.
3.
In the Name of God, who, no God is there except Him,
and He is God who is Powerful over all things.
4.
O people of the letter "H"! (Hā')
Hearken unto the melody of the Crimson Leaf in the Paradise of the Divine Cloud
for He, verily, is the Light [of] the Radiant Temple [of Sinai]
Who acteth on behalf of God, as a Manifest Light unto the worlds.
5.
Bear witness unto the Countenance of the theophany through the Robe of Light
that is evident beyond Mount Qāf, at the right-hand side of the Mount [Sinai].
6.
He, assuredly, is the True [Lord]
who hath ever been the very essence of the divine Unicity which is the Camphor Fount.
7.
Emerge ye, at the command of God,
from your dwelling places then enter the garden of the inmost heart
8.
This is indeed the Abode of Light at this the time of heedlessness
before the Citadel [Object] of fervent Devotion.
9.
This is just a dewdrop from the oceans of the divine Logos-Command
which hath been inscribed in the Tablet of Life, the very essence of the celestial Fire.
10.
If thou should desire to attain the presence of the Countenance of God
then rise up unto the heaven of the atmosphere
so that thou may hearken unto the Call of the Almighty Bird, [saying]
11.
`There is no other God save Him, the [Lord], the Subduer'.
12.
And He is God Who hath ever been of All- Encompassing Power over all things.
13.
O people of the earth!
Hearken unto the Call of the Leaf of the Divine Persona
which springeth up from the Tree of all-Eternity,
and] which groweth up within the All-Enduring Realm
singing entrancing divine verses to the effect that,
14.
`He, assuredly is the True [Lord];
no God is there save Him'.
15.
He is God, Who hath ever been independent of all the worlds.
16.
O citizens of the Celestial Cloud!
This is the Paradise of the Divine Oneness, the Orchard of Eternality.
17.
Then dwell therein with the permission of God;
there is none other God save Him.
18.
And He is God Who hath ever been cognizant of all things.
19.
So hearken ye unto the melody of the ecstasy inducing voice
that cometh from the visage of [somebody] seated upon the couch of divine nearness,
the Point of the Theophany,
the Inmost Secret,
the Secreted Essence of the Book.
20.
This to the effect that He is indeed the True [Lord] besides Whom there is none other,
and He is God Who hath ever been witness unto all things.
21.
Wherefore doth God reorient thee towards the two motionless [letter] "A"s
to the end that ye may realize that he hath ever been powerful over all things.
22.
Should thou become aware of the Evident Temple within thine inmost Heart
thou would surely find composure from God
to the extent that thou would bear witness that God is certainly
the All-Sufficient Who hath ever been a patron [supporter] over the totality of the worlds.
23.
Enter ye then the House of Light,
the Snow-White Land, the Crimson Pillar,
24.
the Firmly Established Abode which is the Abode of the Hereafter, Quran 10:25
the Primal Mystery which is assuredly the Source of Life inscribed in the Mother Book.
25.
Should thou become aware of a single melody of the divine utterance,
thou would certainly find repose and be protected from
grandiose suppositions and vain allusions from the dissent [of the rejectors] of the veiled [Lord].
26.
O people of the Concourse!
Hearken ye unto the songs of the Antof endless duration [a worker]
that singeth with the verses of the divine union, [of the anthill]
indicative of the fact that `He is indeed the True [Lord],
the point of the divine cloud (or, Beclouded Realm),
the locale of the divine persona'.
27.
So exalted be God, the King, the True [Lord],
Who hath ever been powerful over all things.
28.
This is the Call of the Hoopoe of Servitude (Bahā-ullah)
in the heaven of manifest Justice, who stands before the All-Glorious [Lord God].
29.
He, verily, is the [servant] Hidden,
through the Pure Wine of the Theophany, the Mystery of the All-Beauteous [Lord].
30.
Therefore praised be He,
He is God Who hath ever been witness unto all things.
Tablet of the Sufficiency CHAPTER TWO
Divisions 31-65
SUFFICIENCY
31.
O citizens of the Celestial Cloud!
Guard [purify] thyselves lest ye be agitated within
on account of the delusive Grandiosity and Subtle Profundities
and their negative [prohibitory] aspects and their authoritative tone,
32.
for such is an expression of justice from the clouds of the divine Graciousness
inasmuch as the same hath ever been revealed according to a heaven sent wisdom.
33.
O ye denizens of the realms of Being!
Eat ye of the succulent fruit of the Crimson Tree
which hath been planted in the land of realization, the Point of Origination,
the Mystery of the [eschatological] end-time, and the secreted mystery of the Divine Decree.
34.
Thus is the decree of the Book which originates with God
and hath ever been sealed up in the Mother Book.
35.
Issue forth then from your habitations in order that you might be present
in the Sanctum of holiness, the intimate threshold of the celestial cloud
whose decree hath, with the express permission of God, the Exalted [Lord],
ever been witnessed in the Tablet of the Heart.
36.
So make thou witness, O concealed Letter,
that the Logos-Soul of Knowledge is the pristine wine of
the Theophany expressed in the Book of God,
a single letter of which hath not been grasped by anybody.
37.
Such fancy intellectual words hath ever, on the part of God, the Lord of all the worlds,
been inscribed in the tablet of the divine decree.
38.
With Him is the knowledge of the heavens and of the earth
and what lieth between them as well as the knowledge of all things,
for He Who is God hath ever been knowledgeable of all things.
39.
He it is Who, through the knowledge of what is being sent down from heaven,
whatsoever is drawn out from the earth, as well as that which rageth about upon it,
goeth forth from it, and approacheth it,
was certainly part of His knowledge which hath ever been preserved
on the part of God, the Exalted, in the Book of Light. (kitab al-nur)
40.
Then make witness that the essence of the origination [of existence]
is He Who is the locale of knowledge in the realms of existence.
41.
Wherefore is it that the essence of knowledge regarding the Divine Essence
is [focused in] the very Logos-Self of the Divine Essence.
42.
Nobody knoweth how He is save Him,
for He is God Who hath ever seen witness of all things.
43.
He is the [Lord] Who giveth victory unto whomsoever He pleaseth
through the [exalted] angels of Light.
44.
Such an one is assuredly the divine Theophany, the Pillar of Praise,
the Mystery of divine Glorification about the figurehead [brow] of aloneness,
the cloud of Isolated Uniqueness who yet hath ever, in very truth, been manifestly apparent.
45.
With Him is the knowledge of the scriptural Tablets
and the knowledge of all things in the Book of the Spirit (kitāb al-rūḥ)
although the people are without the capacity to witness even a token thereof
although God is He Who hath ever been knowledgeable of all things.
46.
So praised be unto He with whom is the Kingdom of the verses that He sendeth down
in whatever manner he pleaseth, by virtue of a command on His part.
47.
He is God who hath ever been, the [Lord] Who taketh account of all things.
48.
O people of the earth!
Should ye desire to become informed of the Reality of Knowledge
[then] become ye informed of the Countenance of Light.
49.
Say:
`Praise be to God!
50.
He is God Who hath ever been exalted
beyond the knowledge [gnosis] of the totality of the Azalīs. [the [false] Bābīs?]
51.
O Letter of the Divine Bounty!
Say:
`Praised be God!
52.
He is God, who hath ever been sanctified above the description of such as are cut off. [from Him]
53.
By the True [Lord]! He hath ever been known
by virtue of the Logos-Persona of the True Lord].
54.
O citizens of the Concourse!
Suppose ye not through evil supposition
and utter ye not that which ye do not carry out;
should, that is, ye aspire to become informed of even a letter of the Book of the Divine Cause!
55.
O Visage of the Divine Bounty!
Make thou witness unto the fact that the Essence of thy Divine Bounty hath never ceased
to be that Divine Bounty which is prostrate before God, the All-Mighty, the [Lord].
56.
No God is there save Him.
57.
He is God Who hath ever been witness unto all things
58.
Say:
Hast thou not born witness unto that which God sent down aforetime and also thereafter,
unto a younger Beloved [Lord],
for he is none other than the Logos-Persona of the Beloved [Lord].
59.
This in that the Covenant of God never taketh hold of the iniquitous,
such that is, as are given to denial.
60.
This inasmuch as He is assuredly is the [Lord] before whom prostrate all
that inhabit the heavens and the earth, and what lieth between them.
61.
And He is God Who hath ever been a Sustainer of all things.
62.
So praised be He in Whose hand is the Kingdom of the Invisible
and the powerful Dominion of the Visible He makes manifest whomsoever He wills
through a command on His part.
63.
And He, verily, is the True [Lord].
There is no other God save Him.
63.
He is God Who hath ever been independent of all the worlds.
64.
He is assuredly the [Lord] before Whose knowledge not a single thing,
whether in the heavens or on the earth, or what lieth between them, remaineth hidden.
65.
And He is God Who hath ever encompassed all things.
Translated by S. Lambden
Select notes on the Surat al-kifāya
VI:1 Here Bahā'-Allāh clearly refers to himself as "this lowly, this forsaken ant". As far as I am aware the only other writing in which Bahā'-Allāh refers to himself as nimla(t) an "ant" is the Lawḥ-i kull al-ṭa`ām (Tablet of All Food, c. 1854). The exact source of the motif of the "ant" as applied by Bahā'-Allāh to himself is not clear. It may be that it is rooted in the Bāb's exegesis of Qur'ān 27:15ff (Tafsīr surat al-baqara, 92) Obscure interpretations of qur'ānic verses and prophetological stories are fairly common in Bābī-Bahā'ī scripture. No less obscure, for example, than Bahā'-Allāh's referring to himself as an "ant" is the Bāb 's equating Imām Alī with the "gnat" mentioned in Qur'ān 2:26. Such metaphorical images may seem obscure, but a close study of the use of Arabic terms indicative of divine attributes in the Lawḥ-i kull al-ṭa`ām leads to the conclusion that leading Bābīs are alluded to themselves in highly evocative ways.
Several of the writings of Bahā'-Allāh of the Iraq period contain allusions to the exalted status of Quddus and Mirza Yahya. Towards the end of the Sahifa-yi shaṭṭiyya (c. 1857-8?) for example, we have the following Bābī confession of faith:
"He verily, no god is there except Him. Alī before Muhammad [= the Bāb ] is the Essence of God (dhāt Allāh) and His All-Enduring Being. Muhammad before `Ali [= Mirza Muhammad `Ali Barfurushi, Quddūs] is the Treasury of the Cause of God (ma`dan amr Allāh) and His Perpetual Essence. The Countenance of the Living One (tal`at al-ḥayy = Mirzā Yaḥyā?) is the Hidden Retreat of the decree of God (makman ḥukm Allah) and his upright bounty. The Letters of the Living (ḥuruf al-ḥayy) are the first to believe in God and His signs [verses]. And we, one and all, hold fast unto them".
Worth noting is the fact that the Surat al-kifāya contains several passages parallel to parts of the Lawḥ-i kull al-ṭa`ām (c. 1854) ...
The Tablet of Fuad CHAPTER ONE
Divisions 1-30
FUAD
1.
He is the most holy, the most glorious.
2.
We called out to you from beyond the ocean of grandeur, upon the crimson land,
from the horizon of tribulation.
3.
In truth, there is no God but he, the mighty, the giving.
4.
Be steadfast in my Cause, and do not join those who,
when given what they had desired, denied God, the lord of lords.
5.
God shall seize them by his overwhelming force.
6.
In truth, he is the powerful, the subduer.
7.
Know that of those who passed sentence upon us,
God took hold upon the elder by his power and sovereignty.
8.
When he experienced severe pain, he fled to Paris and resorted to physicians.
9.
He asked, "Is there any protector?"
10.
He was struck upon the mouth and it was said, "It is too late!"
11.
When he turned to the angel of victory, he was nearly obliterated out of fear.
12.
He said, "I have an ornamented mansion and a palace upon the Bosporus, beneath which rivers
run."
13.
The angel replied, "Today, no sacrifice shall be accepted from you,
even though you bring all that is in the private and public domains.
14.
Do you not hear the clamor of the people of God,
whom you have made prisoner without any evidence or confirming book?
15.
At your deed the inhabitants of paradise have wailed,
as have those who circle round the throne in the evening and at dawn.
16.
The victory of your lord has come upon you.
17.
In truth, he is the severe, the unattainable."
18.
He said, "I was the grand vizier of the people, and this is my edict!"
19.
"Hold your tongue, you denier of the Judgment Day!"
20.
"May I have a respite to summon my family?"
21.
"Never, [O] disbeliever in the verses!"
22.
Then the vault of the fiery abyss called out to him,
"I have flung the gates of the inferno open for you, opposer of the sovereign lord.
23.
Return to it, for it misses you.
24.
Have you forgotten, outcast, when you were the Nimrod of the horizons?
25.
Your wrongdoing eclipsed even the despotism of Pharaoh, lord of the stakes.
26.
By God, by your iniquity the veil of sanctity was rent and the pillars of paradise were shaken.
27.
Where is your refuge, and your protector from the fear of your lord, the Omnipotent?
28.
Today, you have no place to flee, you idolater and doubter!"
29.
Then the stupor of death overtook him and closed his eyes.
30.
Thus did we seize him by our triumph.
In truth, your lord is stern in meting out punishment.
The Tablet of Fuad CHAPTER TWO
Divisions 31-65
THE HEART
31.
An angel called to him from the right of the throne.
This is the angel of harshness.
32.
"Is there any escape for you," it was asked,
"save to hellfire, in which hearts are boiled?"
33.
The angel of torment then greeted his soul.
34.
"Enter this flaming chasm that you were promised in the Book,
which you used to deny day and night."
35.
We shall depose the one (Âli Pasha) who was like him,
and shall lay hold upon their prince (Sultan Abdul-aziz) who rules the land.
36.
We are mighty and powerful.
37.
Be steadfast in the cause,
and sing the praises of your lord in the morning and the evening.
38.
Beware lest you be stifled by the slanders of the one (Azal?)
who was seduced by the things we had bestowed upon him,
until he denied God, the King of Names.
39.
He inspires his associates just as Satan inspired him.
40.
You shall see him beset by loss in this world and the next,
for he is among those for whom torment has been prepared.
41.
He sent a letter to someone there, a missive of the debauched.
42.
In it he ridiculed God and his books, such that all things were dismayed at him.
43.
Say: Do you see anyone who will protect you when there comes the victory of God,
the mighty, the ordainer?
44.
Thus have we informed you of what lies hidden in breasts.
45.
In truth, your lord is powerful, omniscient.
46.
Arise for the sake of the cause,
then gather my lovers and remind them, in this day whereon feet have slipped.
47.
Today it is incumbent upon all who accept the cause to come to the aid of their lord.
48.
In truth, he is your guardian,
yet today the people have no guardian.
49.
Then we seized Mihdi, whom we had promised torment in the psalms and tablets.
50.
When God’s power came to him, he asked, "Might I return?"
51.
It was said, "Away with you, disbeliever in the resurrection!
52.
That is hellfire, wherein the flames have been kindled for you.
53.
You have forsaken beneficence for a life of vanity, and today you have no protector from God.
54.
Because of you the holy spirit lamented and hearts were annihilated."
55.
He said, "Is there any sanctuary for me?"
56.
"No, by my lord, even if you brought all belongings!"
57.
Therefore, he cried out, shrieking,
so that terror struck the people of the tombs,
and he was encompassed by the grasp of power.
58.
It was said, "Return to the abode of coercion in hell, and a pitifully bad abode it is!"
59.
We have taken him, just as we took many before him.
60.
Those are your houses, which we have abandoned to the spider.
61.
Consider, you who are endued with insight.
62.
He it is who opposed God, and verses of sorrow were revealed to him in the Book.
63.
Blessed is he who reads it and thinks upon it: in truth, the destiny of such a one will be good.
64.
Thus have we related to you the tales of perpetrators, so as to solace your eyes.
65.
In truth, yours is a good return.
Tablet of My Covenant CHAPTER ONE
Divisions 1-25
MY COVENANT
1.
Although the Realm of Glory hath none of the vanities of the world,
yet within the treasury of trust and resignation
We have bequeathed to Our heirs an excellent and priceless Heritage.
2.
Earthly treasures We have not bequeathed,
nor have We added such cares as they entail.
3.
By God! In earthly riches fear is hidden and peril is concealed.
4.
Consider ye and call to mind that which the All-Merciful hath revealed in the Qur’án:
5.
‘Woe betide every slanderer and defamer,
him that layeth up riches and counteth them.’ Qurán 104:1-2
6.
Fleeting are the riches of the world;
all that perisheth and changeth is not, and hath never been, worthy of attention,
except to a recognized measure.
7.
The aim of this Wronged One in sustaining woes and tribulations,
in revealing the Holy Verses and in demonstrating proofs,
hath been naught except to quench the flame of hate and enmity,
8.
that the horizon of the hearts of men may be illumined with the light of concord
and attain real peace and tranquillity.
9.
From the dawning-place of the divine Tablet the day-star of this utterance shineth resplendent,
and it behoveth everyone to fix his gaze upon it:
10.
We exhort you, O peoples of the world,
to observe that which will elevate your station.
11.
Hold fast to the fear of God and firmly adhere to what is right.
12.
Verily I say, the tongue is for mentioning what is good,
defile it not with unseemly talk.
13.
God hath forgiven what is past.
14.
Henceforward everyone should utter that which is meet and seemly,
and should refrain from slander, abuse and whatever causeth sadness in men.
15.
Lofty is the station of man!
16.
Not long ago this exalted Word streamed forth from the treasury of Our Pen of Glory:
17.
Great and blessed is this Day
—the Day in which all that lay latent in man hath been and will be made manifest.
18.
Lofty is the station of man,
were he to hold fast to righteousness and truth and to remain firm and steadfast in the Cause.
19.
In the eyes of the All-Merciful a true man appeareth even as a firmament;
its sun and moon are his sight and hearing, and his shining and resplendent character its stars.
20.
His is the loftiest station, and his influence educateth the world of being.
21.
Every receptive soul who hath in this Day inhaled the fragrance of His garment
and hath, with a pure heart, set his face towards the all-glorious Horizon
is reckoned among the people of Bahá in the Crimson Book.
22.
Grasp ye, in My Name, the chalice of My loving-kindness,
drink then your fill in My glorious and wondrous remembrance.
23.
O ye that dwell on earth!
The religion of God is for love and unity;
make it not the cause of enmity or dissension.
24.
In the eyes of men of insight and the beholders of the Most Sublime Vision,
whatsoever are the effective means for safeguarding and promoting
the happiness and welfare of the children of men
have already been revealed by the Pen of Glory.
25.
But the foolish ones of the earth, being nurtured in evil passions and desires,
have remained heedless of the consummate wisdom of Him Who is, in truth, the All-Wise,
while their words and deeds are prompted by idle fancies and vain imaginings.
Tablet of My Covenant CHAPTER TWO
Divisions 26-65
MY COVENANT
26.
O ye the loved ones and the trustees of God!
27.
Kings are the manifestations of the power,
and the daysprings of the might and riches, of God.
28.
Pray ye on their behalf.
29.
He hath invested them with the rulership of the earth
and hath singled out the hearts of men as His Own domain.
30.
Conflict and contention are categorically forbidden in His Book.
31.
This is a decree of God in this Most Great Revelation.
32.
It is divinely preserved from annulment
and is invested by Him with the splendour of His confirmation.
33.
Verily He is the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.
34.
It is incumbent upon everyone to aid those daysprings of authority and sources of command
who are adorned with the ornament of equity and justice.
35.
Blessed are the rulers and the learned
among the people of Bahá.
36.
They are My trustees among My servants
and the manifestations of My commandments amidst My people.
37.
Upon them rest My glory,
My blessings and My grace which have pervaded the world of being.
38.
In this connection,
the utterances revealed in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas are such that from the horizon of their words
the light of divine grace shineth luminous and resplendent.
39.
O ye My Branches!
A mighty force, a consummate power lieth concealed in the world of being.
40.
Fix your gaze upon it and upon its unifying influence,
and not upon the differences which appear from it.
41.
The Will of the divine Testator is this:
It is incumbent upon the Aghsán, the Afnán and My Kindred
to turn, one and all, their faces towards the Most Mighty Branch.
42.
Consider that which We have revealed in Our Most Holy Book:
43.
‘When the ocean of My presence hath ebbed and the Book of My Revelation is ended,
turn your faces toward Him Whom God hath purposed,
Who hath branched from this Ancient Root.’
44.
The object of this sacred verse is none other except the Most Mighty Branch. (Bahá-ullah)
45.
Thus have We graciously revealed unto you Our potent Will,
and I am verily the Gracious, the All-Powerful.
46.
Verily God hath ordained the station of the Greater Branch (the Bab, Muḥammad Alí)
to be beneath that of the Most Great Branch. (Bahá-ullah)
47.
He is in truth the Ordainer, the All-Wise.
We have chosen ‘the Greater’ after ‘the Most Great’,
as decreed by Him Who is the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.
48.
It is enjoined upon everyone to manifest love towards the Aghsán,
but God hath not granted them any right to the property of others.
49.
O ye My Aghsán, My Afnán and My Kindred!
We exhort you to fear God,
to perform praiseworthy deeds
and to do that which is meet and seemly and serveth to exalt your station.
50.
Verily I say, fear of God is the greatest commander that can render the Cause of God victorious, and the hosts which best befit this commander have ever been and are
an upright character and pure and goodly deeds.
51.
Say:
O servants!
Let not the means of order be made the cause of confusion
and the instrument of union an occasion for discord.
52.
We fain would hope that the people of Bahá may be guided by the blessed words:
53.
‘Say:
All things are of God.’
54.
This exalted utterance is like unto water for quenching the fire of hate and enmity
which smouldereth within the hearts and breasts of men.
55.
By this single utterance contending peoples and kindreds will attain the light of true unity.
56.
Verily He speaketh the truth and leadeth the way.
He is the All-Powerful, the Exalted, the Gracious.
57.
It is incumbent upon everyone to show courtesy to, and have regard for the Aghsán,
that thereby the Cause of God may be glorified and His Word exalted.
58.
This injunction hath time and again been mentioned and recorded in the Holy Writ.
59.
Well is it with him who is enabled to achieve that which the Ordainer,
the Ancient of Days hath prescribed for him.
60.
Ye are bidden moreover to respect the members of the Holy Household,
the Afnán and the kindred.
61.
We further admonish you to serve all nations
and to strive for the betterment of the world.
62.
That which is conducive to the regeneration of the world
and the salvation of the peoples and kindreds of the earth
hath been sent down from the heaven of the utterance of Him Who is the Desire of the world.
63.
Give ye a hearing ear to the counsels of the Pen of Glory.
64.
Better is this for you than all that is on the earth.
65.
Unto this beareth witness My glorious and wondrous Book.
Tablet to Shikkar Shikan Shavand CHAPTER ONE
Divisions 1-35
Revealed in Arabic and Persian
SHIKKAR SHAVAND
1.
He is the Supreme, the Most Exalted.
2.
Warblers, mellifluous-toned, all the parrots of Ind shall be,
because of this Pársí sugar-cone which to Bengal goes.
the great Persian poet, Háfiz of Shíráz AD 1350
3.
Your letter having reached this mortal spot of isolation was brought forth
and stored in Our treasury of submission and acquiescence.
4.
What thou had written was noted
and everything expressed therein was found to be true and correct.
5.
However, they that yearn for the abode of the Beloved,
they that circle round the sanctuary of the Desired One,
are not apprehensive of trials and adversities,
nor do they flee from that which is ordained by God.
Poetic verse from the Mathnaví of J. Rúmí AD 1250
6.
They receive their portion from the ocean of resignation
and drink their fill from the soft-flowing stream of His mercy.
7.
They would not surrender the good-pleasure of the Friend
in exchange for the kingdom of both worlds,
nor would they barter that which the Well-Beloved hath decreed
in return for dominion over the realms of the infinite.
8.
They would eagerly drink the venom of woe as if it were the water of life
and would drain deadly poison to its bitter dregs just as a sweet and life-giving draught.
9.
In the arid wastes of desolation
they are stirred with enthusiasm through the remembrance of the Friend,
and in the dreary wilds of adversity
they are eager and impatient to offer themselves as a sacrifice.
10.
Unhesitatingly have they renounced their lives
and directed their steps towards the abode of the Best Beloved.
11.
They have closed their eyes to the world
and fixed their gaze upon the beauteous countenance of the Friend, [of God]
cherishing no desire but the presence of the loved One [Lord]
and seeking no attainment save reunion with Him.
12.
They fly with the feathers of trust in God,
and soar with the wings of adherence unto His Will.
13.
In their estimation a blood-shedding blade is more desirable than finest silk
and a piercing dart more acceptable than mother’s milk.
14.
‘High-spirited souls by the myriad are deemed necessary in this path,
To lay down a hundred lives with every fleeting breath.’ Qurán 6:35
In the Kitáb-i-Íqán, Bahá’u’lláh writes concerning this verse of the Quran,
“The implication of this utterance is that His case had no remedy,
that they would not withhold their hands from Him
unless He should hide Himself beneath the depths of the earth, or take His flight unto heaven.”
15.
It behoveth us to kiss the hand of the would-be assassin
and to set out, dancing, on our way to the habitation of the Friend.
16.
How indescribably pleasant is that hour,
how immeasurably sweet that moment when the transcendent spirit is intent upon sacrificing itself,
when the tabernacle of fidelity is hastening to attain the heights of self-surrender!
17.
With necks laid bare,
we yearn for the stroke of the ruthless sword wielded by the hand of the Beloved.
18.
With breasts aglow with light, we eagerly await the dart of His decree.
19.
Contemptuous of name, we have detached ourselves from all else but Him,
20.
we shall not run away,
21.
we pray for calamity, [of affliction or martyrdom]
that thereby we may soar unto the sublime heights of the spirit,
22.
seek shelter beneath the shade of the tree of reunion,
23.
attain the highest station of love,
24.
and drink our fill from the wondrous wine of everlasting communion with Him.
25.
Surely we will not forfeit this imperishable dominion,
nor will we forgo this incomparable blessing.
26.
If hidden beneath the dust,
we shall rear our heads from the bosom of the tender mercy of the Lord of mankind.
27.
No trial can suppress these companions,
no mortal feet can traverse this journey,
nor can any veil obscure this countenance.
28.
Yea, it is clear and evident that in view of the multitudes of internal and external opponents
who have raised the standards of opposition,
who have girded the loins of endeavour to eliminate these poor creatures,
29.
it standeth to reason that one should turn away from them and flee from this land,
nay, from the face of the earth.
30.
However, through the loving-kindness of God and by the aid of His invisible confirmations,
we are as radiant as the sun and as shining as the moon.
31.
We are established upon the throne of tranquillity
and seated upon the couch of fortitude.
32.
Of what importance is the shipwreck to the fish of the spirit?
33.
What doth a soul celestial care if the physical frame is destroyed?
34.
Indeed this body is for it a prison;
and the ship merely a place of confinement to the fish.
35.
What else but a nightingale can understand a Nightingale’s melody
and who else except the intimate friend can recognize the familiar voice of the Friend?
Tablet to Shikkar Shikan Shavand CHAPTER TWO
Divisions 36-65
SHIKKAR SHAVAND
36.
Consider what was revealed in the bygone days unto Him Who is the Seal of the Prophets
and the Beginning of His chosen Ones that thou may become weightless as a spirit,
and like unto a breath, emerge from the cage of the body.
37.
While encompassed with sever tests and surrounded from all sides by enemies
the most holy Bird descended down and brought forth this verse:
38.
“Yet if their opposition be grievous to Thee—
if Thou canst, seek out an opening into the earth or a ladder into heaven.”4
39.
Oh, that a thousand eyes would shed tears of blood and a hundred thousand lives would groan from the heart.
40.
On another occasion He saith:
“And when the unbelievers were devising against thee,
to confine thee, or slay thee, or to expel thee,
and were devising, and God was devising; and God is the best of devisers.”5
41.
Reflect well on these two blessed and holy verses,
which have descended from the Source of Revelation,
so that thou may become apprised of the unseen mysteries.
42.
If the discerning eye of the people was open this outward establishment of this Servant upon His seat would have been sufficient enough for them all,
that, despite being surrounded by enemies and having been plagued by numerous calamities,
We are incandescent as a candle and radiant as the Beloved of Love in the assemblage of lovers.
43.
We have burnt all the veils and have become ablazed like the fire of love.
Yet, alas, to what use?
44.
For all the people’s eyes are shut and all their ears are closed.
They traverse the valley of heedlessness and roam the wilderness of error.
45.
“Ye are quit of what I do, and I am quit of what you do.”6 [i.e. above]
46.
Thou should be apprised to the fact that one of the divines7 in this land,
who is preoccupied with amassing worldly treasures
and who truly has not tasted from the cup of justice and equity,
47.
having neither seen this Servant nor met Him at any gathering
—to befriend Him as much as even an hour—
has now lifted his pen of tyranny
and has passed judgment on shedding the blood of these wronged ones.
48.
‘Willingly will I obey the judge who hath so strangely decreed
that my blood be spilt at Hill and at Haram!’8
49.
He, moreover, has spread some baseless rumors among a certain group of people
and in the course of these days has imparted to the noted individual9
some expressions of his idle fancies.
50.
That individual, in turn, has taken these tales of fiction back to Tihrán.
51.
‘Whatever malice and intrigue he has in his heart;
It is manifest as the day before the one true God.’10
52.
All these propositions are clear and evident,
and the motive behind them has also been exposed and confirmed.
53.
Should he succeed to conceal his evil intentions from this Servant,
how could he conceal it before the presence of the one true God,
‘the One Whom nothing is concealed from His Knowledge’?
54.
I know not at the end to what faith he will prescribe
or with what proof he will choose to argue his case?
55.
After all it has been some time since this Servant hath secluded Himself from the world,
closing His door to friend and stranger alike, and choosing the way of solitude.
56.
I know not from where this jealousy hath sprung
or from which direction did this antagonism appear?
57.
And it is not known whether in the end this would bring him blessing
and confirmation and cause his heart to be cheered!
58.
Although, he treads the path of a corrupt inclination
and this lowly One hath clung to the cord of the fear of God,
and God willing will be led to the light of salvation—
I have no ill-feeling towards him and have kept no resentment in My heart.
59.
I have left it to God and clung to the sure handle of justice.
60.
After achieving his intentions perhaps he may be led to drink from the boiling waters of Hell
and be fed from the fire of the Wrath of God.
61.
For a powerful Ruler is presiding
and He, indeed, doth not forgive oppression.
62.
Until the ordained time cometh no one hath power over Us,
and when the ordained time hath arrived it will find Our whole being longing for it.
63.
It would not be any sooner or later.
‘Surely we belong to God, and to Him we return.’11
64.
‘If God helps you, none can overcome you;
yet if He forsakes you, who then can help you after Him?’12
65.
‘Peace be upon him who follows the guidance!’13
Translated by S. Monjazeb
Notes:
1 These two verses are from a lyric poem by the great Persian poet Khájih Shamsu’d-Dín Muhammad-i-Shírází better known as Háfiz of Shíráz (1320-91 C.E.).
2 The italicized passages are the authorized translation excerpts of this Tablet published by the Universal House of Justice in The Bahá’í World Volume XVIII (1979-83) [Haifa: Bahá’í World Centre, 1986], p. 11. All other non-italicized text, except the opening verse of the Háfiz, are translated by Shahrokh Monjazeb and must be regarded as a provisional translation pending the publication of an authorized version by the Bahá’í World Centre.
2 This poetic verse is from the Mathnaví of Jalálu’d-Dín Rúmí (1207-73 C.E.).
3 Qur’án 6:35. In the Kitáb-i-Íqán Bahá’u’lláh, expounding on the meaning of this verse, writes: “The implication of this utterance is that His case had no remedy, that they would not withhold their hands from Him unless He should hide Himself beneath the depths of the earth, or take His flight unto heaven.” (Kitáb-i-Íqán [U.S. edition], p.110)
4 Qur’án 8:30.
5 Qur’án 10:41.
6 This is a reference to Shaykh ‘Abdu’l-Husayn-i-Tihrání who was the arch-nemesis of Bahá’u’lláh, outside of the faith, during the years of Bahá’u’lláh’s banishment to Baghdad. He was also know as Shaykhu’l-‘Iráqayn. See God Passes By, p. 141.
7 This verse is an Arabic poetic verse by Ibn al-Fárid (1182-1235 C.E.) the famous Arab Sufi teacher and poet who lived in Egypt.
8 This is a reference to Mírzá Búzúrg Khán-i-Qazvíní the notorious accomplice of Shaykh ‘Abdu’l-Husayn-i-Tihrání mentioned above. Mírzá Búzúrg Khán was the Persian Consul-General in Baghdad from July 1860 to February 1863.
9 This poetic verse is likely from the Mathnaví of Jalálu’d-Dín Rúmí (1207-73 C.E.).
10 Qur’án 2:156.
11 Qur’án 3:160.
12 Qur’án 20:49.
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