The Book of the Epistle to the Son of the Wolf CHAPTER TWO
Divisions 36-65
EPISTLE TO THE SON OF THE WOLF
36.
By Thy glory!
O Thou Who art the Hope of such as have acknowledged Thy unity,
and the Desire of the hearts of them that are rid of all attachment to any save Thee!
37.
I find no succorer except Thee,
nor king, nor refuge, nor haven besides Thyself.
38.
Alas, alas!
My turning away from Thee hath burnt up the veil of mine integrity,
and my denial of Thee hath rent asunder the covering cast over mine honor.
39.
O would that I were beneath the depths of the earth,
so that my evil deeds would remain unknown to Thy servants!
40.
Thou seest the sinner, O my Lord,
who hath turned towards the dawning-place of Thy forgiveness and Thy bounty,
and the mountain of iniquity that hath sought the heaven of Thy mercy and pardon.
41.
Alas, alas!
My mighty sins have prevented me from approaching the court of Thy mercy,
and my monstrous deeds have caused me to stray far from the sanctuary of Thy presence.
42.
Indeed, I am he that hath failed in duty towards Thee,
and hath broken Thy Covenant and Thy Testament,
and committed that which hath made the dwellers of the cities of Thy justice,
and the dawning-places of Thy grace in Thy realms, to lament.
43.
I testify, O my God,
that I have put away Thy commandments, and clung to the dictates of my passions,
and have cast away the statutes of Thy Book, and seized the book of mine own desire.
44.
O misery, misery!
As mine iniquities waxed greater and greater, Thy forbearance towards me augmented,
and as the fire of my rebelliousness grew fiercer,
the more did Thy forgiveness and Thy grace seek to smother up its flame. By the power of Thy might!
45.
O Thou Who art the desire of the world and the Best-Beloved of the nations!
46.
Thy long-suffering hath puffed me up, and Thy patience hath emboldened me.
47.
Thou beholdest, O my God, the tears that my shame hath caused to flow,
and the sighs which my heedlessness hath led me to utter.
48.
I swear by the greatness of Thy majesty!
I can find for myself no habitation save beneath the shadow of the court of Thy bounty,
nor any refuge except under the canopy of Thy mercy.
49.
Thou seest me in the midst of a sea of despair and of hopelessness,
after Thou didst cause me to hear Thy words “Despair not.”
50.
By Thy power! My sore injustice hath severed the cord of my hope,
and my rebellion hath darkened my face before the throne of Thy justice.
|
|
|
51.
Thou beholdest, O my God,
him who is as one dead fallen at the door of Thy favor,
ashamed to seek from the hand of Thy loving-kindness the living waters of Thy pardon.
52.
Thou hast given me a tongue wherewith to remember and praise Thee,
and yet it uttereth that which hath caused the souls of such of Thy chosen ones nigh unto Thee to melt,
and the hearts of the sincere amongst the dwellers of the habitations of holiness to be consumed.
53.
Thou hast given me eyes to witness Thy signs, and to behold Thy verses,
and to contemplate the revelations of Thine handiwork,
but I have rejected Thy will,
and have committed what hath caused the faithful among Thy creatures
and the detached amidst Thy servants to groan.
54.
Thou hast given me ears that I may incline them unto Thy praise and Thy celebration, and unto that which Thou didst send down from the heaven of Thy bounty and the firmament of Thy will.
55.
And yet, alas, alas, I have forsaken Thy Cause,
and have commanded Thy servants to blaspheme against Thy trusted ones and Thy loved ones,
and have acted before the throne of Thy justice in such wise that those that have recognized Thy unity and are wholly devoted to Thee among the dwellers of Thy realm mourned with a sore lamentation.
56.
I know not, O my God,
which among my evildoings to mention before the billowing ocean of Thy favor,
nor which of my trespasses to declare when face to face with the splendors of the suns of Thy goodly gifts and bounties.
57.
“I beseech Thee, this very moment, by the mysteries of Thy Book,
and by the things hid in Thy knowledge,
and by the pearls that lie concealed within the shells of the ocean of Thy mercy,
to reckon me among such as Thou didst mention in Thy Book and describe in Thy Tablets.
58.
Hast Thou decreed for me, O my God,
any joy after this tribulation, or any relief to succeed this affliction, or any ease to follow this trouble?
59.
Alas, alas!
Thou hast ordained that every pulpit be set apart for Thy mention,
and for the glorification of Thy Word, and the revelation of Thy Cause,
|
|
|
60.
but I have ascended it to proclaim the violation of Thy Covenant,
and have spoken unto Thy servants such words as have caused
the dwellers of the tabernacles of Thy majesty and the denizens of the cities of Thy wisdom to lament.
61.
How often hast Thou sent down the food of Thine utterance out of the heaven of Thy bounty,
and I denied it;
and how numerous the occasions Thou hast summoned me to the soft flowing waters of Thy mercy,
and I have chosen to turn away therefrom, by reason of my having followed my own wish and desire!
62.
By Thy glory! I know not for which sin to beg Thy forgiveness and implore Thy pardon,
nor from which of mine iniquities to turn aside
unto the court of Thy bounteousness and the sanctuary of Thy favor.
63.
Such are my sins and trespasses that no man can number them, nor pen describe them.
64.
I implore Thee, O Thou that turnest darkness into light,
and revealest Thy mysteries on the Sinai of Thy Revelation,
to aid me, at all times, to put my trust in Thee, and to commit mine affairs unto Thy care.
65.
Make me, then, O my God,
satisfied with what the hand of Thy decree hath traced, and the pen of Thy ordinance hath written.
Potent art Thou to do what pleaseth Thee,
and in Thy grasp are the reins of all that are in heaven and on earth.
No God is there but Thee, the All-knowing, the All-Wise.”
Дата добавления: 2019-02-12; просмотров: 173; Мы поможем в написании вашей работы! |
Мы поможем в написании ваших работ!