Volume 091: Akka 1306 A.H. (1888–1889), Part IV (4 of 5)

BH00226: Praise be to God Who hath illumined all eyes…

Section 1: “Praise be to God Who hath illumined all…”

He is the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting! Blessed and exalted be His station!

Praise be to God Who hath illumined all eyes through the vision of His lights, Who hath caused all tongues to speak forth the highest praise in extolling His Being, the Mighty, the Chosen One, and Who hath expanded the circles of thought in recognition of His signs and their use as proof of His Own Self, the Almighty, the All-Compelling, the Subduer. He it is through Whom the Sun of Knowledge hath shone forth and illumined all, and by His light mysteries were unveiled and veils were rent asunder, and the righteous were guided to the heaven of glory and power, and the pure in heart sought shelter beneath the shade of His All-Bountiful Name. Exalted be His mighty Cause, His wise remembrance, His ancient light, His straight path, and His all-encompassing and righteous judgment.

Can any prevent His Will or stay His Decree? In His grasp is the reins of destiny and in His right hand the kingdom of creation. He ordaineth whatsoever He willeth for whomsoever He pleaseth, and shall not be asked of His doings. He hath ever been established upon the throne of glory and grandeur, and will forever remain in the heights of power and exaltation. No praise or mention can encompass Him, nor can minds and thoughts fathom His essence. All that hath been or shall be mentioned remaineth within the bounds of contingent being, while He, in truth, is sanctified beyond comprehension through knowledge and wisdom. All signs are severed from His presence and all descriptions are cut off from His gate. He shall not be asked of His doings, and He doeth what He willeth. There is no God but Him, the Almighty, the All-Glorious, the All-Praised.

Glory be unto Thee, O my God, my Lord, my Hope and my Support! How can I remain silent in Thy praise and glorification when Thou hast commanded Thy servants thus in Thy mighty Book? And how dare I speak and express the wonders of Thy praise when Thou art exalted above the mention of Thy creation, the attributes of Thy servants, and the thoughts of Thy creatures? All things are perplexed, as am I, in this subtle matter and delicate remembrance. I see in myself naught but utter powerlessness before the kingdom of Thy might, and absolute poverty before the heaven of Thy power. Exalted is Thy station above the mention of Thy servants, and sanctified is Thy Being above the imaginings of all in Thy realm. What expression can encompass the kingdom of Thy sanctity, and what description can embrace the heaven of Thy transcendence? How insignificant are pen and ink to describe the vastness of Thy knowledge’s kingdom, O Lord of all beings and Creator of existence!

I beseech Thee by Thy conquering power and Thy resplendent proof to assist me and Thy loved ones in spreading Thy remembrance throughout Thy lands and in guiding Thy creation to the wonders of Thy mysteries. O Lord! Regard not our weakness and poverty, but rather Thy strength, Thy wealth, Thy might and Thy transcendence. Aid us in all conditions to exalt Thy mighty Cause, and strengthen our hearts in such wise that neither the utterances of the misguided may affect them, nor may the veils of glory prevent them from turning toward the court of Thy Most Bountiful Name. Make us so firm in Thy Cause that the clamor of the world may not frighten us, nor may we be disturbed by the oppression of nations, through the power of Thy Most Great Name. Verily, Thou art the All-Bountiful, possessed of great favor.

Send down upon Thy loved ones, O my God, tranquility from Thy presence, that they may not be troubled when calamities and tribulations descend from the heaven of Thy decree, O Lord of all names and Creator of earth and heaven! Praise be unto Thee, O my Hope, for having spread Thy remembrance through the appearance of trials, and for having exalted Thy Cause through the descent of afflictions, and for having adorned Thy sincere ones with the robe of steadfastness and detachment, whereby they have sacrificed their spirits and bodies in the path of Thy love, and the might of the wicked among Thy creatures hath not frightened them. Were the heedless to consider, this clear proof and mighty, firm evidence would suffice them, for Thou hast said—and Thy word is the truth—“Wish ye, then, for death, if ye are truthful.”

O beloved of the heart and one who grasps the cord of affection! Your letter, containing expressions of love and unity, and intimations of fellowship and righteousness, has arrived. I beseech the Most High to reward you with the best of rewards, to protect you in His shadow from the evil of the wicked ones, and to ordain for you, through His all-encompassing grace, that which will please you. Verily, He is the Ruler over whatsoever He willeth. And since your letter arrived in days when the clouds of oppression had risen and the darkness of tyranny had encompassed all regions, I therefore exercised beautiful patience in responding to your honor until God, through His grace, removed the harm and strengthened some of those in authority to protect the sheep of God from the wolves of the earth.

By the life of your Ancient Lord! Man is bewildered by the rebelliousness of the people of loss. They witnessed manifest signs and brilliant evidences, and observed from those who turned to Him and the sincere ones a steadfastness the like of which had never been heard of in previous centuries. They recognized the power of their hearts, the expansiveness of their breasts, the firmness of their feet, and their detachment, yet they still do as they please and inflict upon them whatever oppression and enmity they desire, giving no thought to the consequences of their deeds and the repugnance of their actions.

By your life! This is a bounty from God, the Mighty, the Exalted, unto those of steadfastness and acceptance. Were it not for their oppression, how would the martyrs attain this supreme station and ultimate goal? And were it not for their wretchedness, how would the sincere ones achieve this mighty station and wise remembrance? If the oppressors knew that through their tyranny the sincere ones attain to lofty ranks and sublime stations, they would not commit such acts. But because they cling to this transient world and fleeting pleasures, and are heedless of the enduring sovereignty, they imagine death to be the ultimate harm, and thereby, despite themselves, they harm the friends. How great is their heedlessness and ignorance, and how mighty is the steadfastness, firmness, patience and detachment of the sincere ones! They have illumined the horizons with the lights of the luminary of steadfastness on the Day of the Covenant, and through the power of their hearts, they have caused the limbs of the people of discord to tremble on the Day of Sacrifice.

Say: O people! Whither do ye flee, and for how long will ye remain veiled from the truth? Have ye seen in the world any proof mightier than what hath appeared in this Most Great Revelation? The proof of the Cause hath encompassed all nations. The people of tyranny and enmity have grown weary of what they have perpetrated against the people of love, and ye behold the lovers in all regions, ablaze with the fire of yearning to sacrifice their souls and possessions in the path of the Lord of the Day of Judgment. Ye were wont to cite what transpired in the land of Taff as proof of the truth of Islam; how then have ye become veiled from the supreme steadfastness that hath appeared in these days? This is a supreme sign and a mighty proof which none deny save the people of transgression and error.

O beloved one! There hath been sent down from the heaven of Will, regarding the martyrs, that which causeth hearts to soar, souls to quiver, and breasts to expand. We beseech God, by their pure blood and their illumined resting places, to assist us and His loved ones to be steadfast in His Cause, to arise for His remembrance, to guide His servants to the meadows of His knowledge, and to lead His creation to the paradise of His certitude. Verily, He is the All-Bountiful, the Generous, the Compassionate, the Kind, the Merciful. And we beseech Him to assist the heedless to recognize His manifest Cause and to grasp the cord of His mighty remembrance. Verily, He is the Most Merciful of the merciful. O beloved of the heart! Your letter was presented with the tongue of lowliness and supplication at the Threshold of Glory, and verses of grace were revealed from the Kingdom of bounty and favor. Exalted is your Ancient Lord, Whose generosity hath encompassed the worlds and Whose mercy hath preceded all who are in the heavens and the earth. His word—exalted be His utterance and mighty His proof:

He is the Expositor, the One standing before the faces of the servants.

Praise be befitting and worthy of the Most Great Cause, through whose name the banner “Verily He is God” has been raised upon the pinnacles of the cities of grace and bounty, and by whose will the standard “The Kingdom is God’s” has become visible from all directions. He is the Name at which the ungodly tremble and by which the station of the believers is exalted. It behooveth him who desireth to visit the Kaaba of God to sanctify himself from all else and say: “O my God! I beseech Thee by Thy Baha at its most resplendent, and all Thy Baha is resplendent, to open unto the faces of Thy servants the doors of Thy mercy and bounty. Verily, Thou art the Powerful over what Thou willest, and in Thy grasp are the reins of all affairs of the first and the last.”

O My Most Exalted Pen! Turn thy face unto him who hath loved thee and soared in the atmosphere of thy love and spoken thy praise—he who was named Muhammad in the Book of Names and Abdul-Baha in this perspicuous Book which speaketh in every state that there is no God but He, the Single, the One, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.

O Muhammad! Upon thee be My glory and My loving-kindness. Give thanks unto thy Lord, for He hath mentioned thee with that whose fragrance shall never cease to endure throughout the kingdom of God, the Lord of the worlds, and hath revealed for thee that which shall gladden the eyes of those who have believed in this Great Announcement. Give glad tidings unto My servants of what the All-Merciful hath revealed in the Qur’an, that the hearts of those who are endued with understanding may be illumined thereby. Say: O people, fear God, then hearken unto that which hath been sent down from the Pen of God, the Almighty, the Powerful. Say: By God, the blessed verse “But He is the Apostle of God and the Seal of the Prophets” hath been fulfilled by the Day when mankind shall stand before the Lord of the worlds. This is the great glad tidings for those who have believed in the manifest, resplendent Light.

Glory be to God! Although mention was made of the Most Great Name in the Dawn Prayer aforetime, it is observed that most of the servants remain heedless and veiled. The Land of Sad prevented the servants from reciting it. Say: The oppressor hath commanded that whereby hearts and minds have melted. The Lord of creation beareth witness to this in this mighty prison. O Muhammad! Guard the servants lest they become afflicted with vain imaginings and idle fancies like the people of Iran. They were unbelievers yet counted themselves among the believers. Even now it is observed that some have deviated somewhat from the Sun of sanctification and the lights of the Luminary of unity. Say: My God, my God! Aid the people of Baha in that which Thou hast desired for them through Thy bounty and generosity. Then cause them to speak Thy beauteous praise and sanctify them from the mention of any besides Thee. Verily Thou art powerful over whatsoever Thou willest. There is no God but Thee, the Mighty, the Dominant, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

The loved ones must be reminded at all times lest the treacherous and the thieves find opportunity and prevent the believers from the straight path.

Section 2: “At this moment the Greater Branch entered…”

At this moment the Greater Branch entered, and We make mention of thee before His face with that which caused the rivers of wisdom and utterance to flow in the paradise of knowledge, and by which the ocean of certitude surged before the faces of all religions. Blessed art thou, and blessed be thy steadfastness and thy devotion. We beseech God to open through thee the doors of the hearts of His servants. Verily, He is the All-Bountiful, the Compassionate, the Generous. Blessed is the house which He made a shelter for His loved ones, and blessed is the leaf who aided them and attained to their service.

O Muhammad! Upon thee be My glory! From the Most Exalted Pen there hath been revealed in three special days for the martyrs—upon them be My glory and My favor—that which hath had and hath no likeness. Say: O people! Know ye with clear certitude that whatsoever hath befallen the loved ones is the cause of victory and the reason for triumph. The tyranny of the oppressors and the patience of the believers and their steadfastness have been recorded and mentioned in God’s Book by the Most Exalted Pen. Blessed are they that attain!

As to what was mentioned concerning the two departed, elevated martyrs—upon them be the glory of God and His favor—clear verses were revealed specifically for each from the heaven of divine will and the atmosphere of lordly favor.

O Hasan! Upon thee be the glory of God, the Lord of the hidden and the manifest! We testify that thou didst believe in God and His signs, and didst turn unto the horizon of His Revelation and His grace, and didst drink the cup of faith from the hand of the bounty of thy Lord, the All-Merciful. Thou didst answer when thou didst hear the Call, and didst respond when thou wast bidden by God, the Lord of all beings. Blessed art thou in that God aided thee to attain the Most Great Steadfastness when thy spirit ascended to the Most Exalted Paradise. We beseech God, blessed and exalted be He, to send down upon thee at all times that which will manifest thy station among all religions. Verily thy Lord is the Almighty, the Precious, the All-Bountiful. We made mention of thee before thy ascension and after it. Verily thy Lord is with those who love Him at all times. To this testify the Dawning-Places of My favor throughout all possibility. The glory shining from the horizon of the heaven of My Kingdom be upon thee and upon those who remember thee through that which hath been sent down for thee from God, the Speaker, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

O Ali-Akbar! My Most Exalted Pen hath turned toward thee in the prison of Akka and mentioneth thee with that which cannot be equaled by aught in the world, its ornaments, its colors and its bounties. Blessed art thou in that thou didst turn when people turned away, and didst believe when the parties of the world disbelieved, save those whom God, the Lord of the Kingdom of Names, did choose. I testify that thou didst turn thy luminous face toward God, the All-Informed, and didst acknowledge that which the Tongue of Grandeur did utter before the faces of the great and small. The clamor prevented thee not from the Lord of all beings, nor did the oppression of enemies frighten thee from drawing nigh unto the Most Exalted Horizon. Thou art he who heard and turned, and sacrificed thy spirit and thy wealth in the path of God, thy Lord, thy Beloved, thy Goal, and the Object of worship of all in the heavens and the earth. We beseech Him to give thee to drink at all times from the Kawthar which He hath ordained for them that circle round His presence and gaze upon His countenance. The glory, the light and the radiance from God, the Mighty, the Bestower, the Compassionate, the Forgiving, the Merciful, be upon thee.

Concerning what thou didst mention regarding unity, this hath been heard. However, these matters have been made contingent upon consultation in the Tablets of the Lord of the Manifestation. Whatsoever proceedeth therefrom is the decree of God, and acting upon it is adorned with the ornament of acceptance and the glory of His good-pleasure.

As to what ye mentioned that some of the friends desire to turn towards the Most Sublime Horizon and have sought permission to attain His presence—in these days, due to divine wisdom, such visits are not permitted. O Muhammad! By the life of God! The lamp is amidst the winds and the Ark of God is amidst the waves. Adorn My servants with the ornament of piety and illumine them with the light of detachment.

We have previously stated that in this Most Great Revelation, the hosts of God are goodly deeds and praiseworthy attributes, and the virtue of piety hath been appointed as the commander of the divine hosts. Blessed are they who attain and they who act. Today is the day of teaching and service—a matter more essential and obligatory than all else is the steadfastness of the friends, for some who consider themselves to be of the people of the Crimson Ark and the City of Knowledge of the Lord of Names are somewhat tainted with former vain imaginings. There is fear lest this Cause be seen like the previous party. I seek forgiveness from God, the Most Great, from the vain imaginings of the imaginers and the idle fancies of the doubters concerning this Great Announcement and this strong, shining Light.

In the days of Our childhood, one day We went to visit one of the noble ladies who was adorned with kinship. After entering, We observed two persons with exceedingly large turbans who were expounding spiritual knowledge from behind a veil to the lady of the house. Finally, their discourse culminated in one of them, who was the greater and more prominent, stating that we must know whether Gabriel is higher than Qanbar. When this Wronged One heard these words, His whole being was set aflame, yet We chose silence. After a few minutes it was mentioned:

“O honored one, if Gabriel is he who is referred to in ʿThe Faithful Spirit brought it down upon thy heart’, then at that station Master Qanbar was not even present.”

Now consider the heedlessness and unsuitable knowledge of the people. The station of Gabriel is the inner reality of the Messenger of God, yet he was arguing that Qanbar was more exalted because he was related to Ali.

Glory be to God! That party inflicted upon the Messenger of God a wrong that had and has no equal. In difficulties they should take refuge with Him, yet His mention is entirely absent while they cling to letters that were created by His Word, as ye have seen and continue to see. The Exalted One hath said that the physical form of the Letters of this Revelation is equivalent to the spiritual reality of the Letters of the previous Revelation. This Wronged One seeketh forgiveness on behalf of all and saith: My God, my God! Protect Thy loved ones. Thou art the Generous One Whose forgiveness hath encompassed the world. Have mercy upon Thy servants and assist them to perform such deeds, show forth such character and utter such words as befit Thy days. Through one exalted word the ocean of Thy bounty surgeth, and through one effulgence of the Sun of Thy Command, the sun of generosity and forgiveness appeareth manifest and evident. All are Thy servants and live by hope in Thy generosity. Stretch forth the hand of power from the sleeve of might and deliver these souls who are stuck in the clay. Thou art the Lord of the Command and the Sovereign of Bounty. There is none other God but Thee, the Mighty, the All-Bestowing.

News that causes the awakening and awareness of the servants is acceptable before God, but one must strive to distinguish truth from falsehood and record it. We shall assist him in all conditions if he be adorned with what hath appeared in My days and shone forth from the horizon of My loving-kindness that hath encompassed all who are in the heavens and the earth. For some of the friends for whom thou didst seek favor, wondrous and sublime tablets have been sent down from the heaven of divine knowledge and the atmosphere of lordly wisdom, that the friends might drink from the cups of utterance of the Desired One of the worlds that which the spiritual Khidr drank from the fountain of darkness.

O Muhammad! Thou hast ever been and art remembered. Praise be to God that thou art occupied in service and art speaking in praise and glorification. We are with thee and hear thy mention and We beseech God to assist thee and aid thee in that which shall open the doors of the hearts of His servants. Verily, He is powerful over all things. There is no God but Him, the Single, the One, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. Make mention of all those related to thee on behalf of the Wronged One and illumine them with the lights of the Sun of divine mercy. Verily thy Lord is the Kind, the Generous, and in His grasp are the reins of all who are in the heavens and the earth. The glory shining from the horizon of the heaven of My utterance be upon thee and upon those who have heard and have turned with illumined hearts to the Most Exalted Horizon. We testify that they are the companions of the Crimson Ark mentioned in the Qayyumu’l-Asma’, from God, the Commander, the All-Wise.

Blessed art thou, O thou who art mentioned in the court of the Divine Presence and art gazed upon by the glances of thy Lord, the All-Forgiving. It behooveth thee to arise to make mention and glorification among all created things and to guide those endowed with capacity, with wisdom and utterance, to the gardens of mystic knowledge and the paradises of knowledge and certitude. By thy life! This is the Day to arise to serve the Cause of God, the Sovereign, the All-Knowing. If anyone misseth an opportunity, he shall not attain it throughout the months and years. It behooveth us to beseech our Lord, the Most High, the Most Glorious, in the morning and the evening to protect us from the whisperings of the ignorant ones and to adorn us with the robes of steadfastness among all created things. Verily He is powerful over what He willeth.

Blessed art thou and those who have quaffed the cups of tribulations in the land of Ya. Ye have been mentioned every morn and eve by the tongue of the favor of the Lord of Names, and the bounty of your Lord hath surrounded you from all directions. Exalted be your Lord, from Whose knowledge nothing escapeth and Whose bounty nothing can prevent. He hath sent down from the clouds of His mercy, for those whom thou didst mention in thy letter, manifest verses whereby all created things were stirred. Grieve not for the delay that occurred in sending the reply, for it was naught but in consideration of the wisdom revealed in the Book by the command of the Lord of Lords. He is the Judge of what is right. From Him did we begin and unto Him do we return. There is no God but Him, the Mighty, the All-Bestowing.

Proclaim unto those who have adorned themselves with the ornament of steadfastness and have arisen to serve the Cause of God amongst creation, and remind them of that which beseemeth these days wherein the sun of knowledge and wisdom hath shone forth. I beseech Him, exalted be He, to bestow upon His loved ones from His bounties and to give them to drink from the cups of His grace and bestowal, and to ordain for them the good of this world and the next, and to exalt their stations through His Name amongst all peoples. Verily He is the Most High, the Most Glorious. Glory and praise be upon thee and upon them and upon every one steadfast and upright. Praise be to God, the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting, the Mighty, the All-Wise.

Muhammad-ʿAli

BH00264: The Tablet of God, the All-Protecting, the Self-Subsisting

Section 1: “A written Book sent down from God…”

He is the Protector over what was and what shall be.

A written Book sent down from God, the All-Protecting, the Self-Subsisting. Verily it is a Book through whose appearance the ocean and its waves have appeared, and from it is heard: “O concourse of creation! The Lord of the Kingdom of Names hath come with a Cause that hath stunned the denizens of Sinai, with a sovereignty that hath shaken the followers of the Bayan, and with a power before which all existence, both seen and unseen, hath bowed down. Through it the Sun hath shone forth with its lights and effulgences, and from it is heard in the final return: By God! The All-Bountiful hath come, riding upon the clouds with a power that the armies of the world and the hosts of the nations who violated the Covenant and the pledges could not withstand.’ Say: This is the Day wherein the secrets of the earth and whatsoever lay hidden therein from God, the Mighty, the Loving, have been revealed.

It proclaimeth with the most exalted call: O concourse of names! Cast away what ye possess. He Who was treasured in knowledge and concealed from eyes and sight hath come. Fear God, O people; abandon the tributary and hasten to the River of Mercy which hath flowed from the Pen of God, the Lord of the Promised Day. We have forbidden you wickedness and indecency, and have commanded you righteousness and piety. Take hold, O people, of that which ye have been commanded in My Preserved Tablet.”’

O thou who art enkindled with the fire of love! There hath come before the Wronged One what thou didst send to Samandar, upon him be the Glory of God and His loving-kindness. We have read it and found therein the fragrance of thy turning to God, the Sovereign of the dominion and the Kingdom. We have sent down for thee from the heaven of bounty that which will draw thee nigh unto the Supreme Horizon and will raise thee up through His Name amongst His servants. Verily, He is the Omnipotent over whatsoever He willeth through His word “Be” and it is. We beseech God to preserve thee through the hosts of the unseen and the seen, and to guard thee through His Name that dominateth over every witness and witnessed thing.

We have desired at this time to mention him whom thou didst mention, that he might find the fragrance of his Lord’s loving-kindness and be among those on whom shall rest no fear, neither shall they grieve. O Hasan! Hearken unto the call that hath been raised from the Kingdom of bounty. Verily it draweth thee to the ultimate goal and will aid thee to spread the Cause of thy Lord, the Most Merciful, with wisdom and utterance, and will exalt thee through His Name. He, verily, is powerful over all things. There is none other God but Him, the Mighty, the Glorious, the Loving. Forget not God’s favor upon thee. He hath aided thee and made known to thee His extended path, and hath sent down for thee that through which the fragrances of revelation have wafted and eyes have been solaced. Take hold of the Book as a command from Us, detached from the world and clinging to the cord of God, the Lord of Hosts. The glory from Us be upon thee and upon those who have turned to the horizon of manifestation and have not violated the Covenant and the pledges.

We have desired to make mention of him who has attained unto the days of his Lord and hearkened unto His call when it was raised amidst His creation—he who was named ʿAla’u’d-Din in My perspicuous Book. They who have fulfilled God’s Covenant and His Testament are indeed among those who occupy this exalted station. Take thou the chalice of My loving-kindness in My Name and drink therefrom in spite of every ignorant one who hath denied God, the Lord of all worlds. This is the Day wherein the Proof hath been sent down, the Salsabil hath flowed, and the path of God, the Lord of the mighty Throne, hath been made manifest. Say: O people of the Bayan! Abandon that which ye possess.

The Cause of God hath come with a sovereignty before which all the books of the world have bowed down, as attesteth he who possesseth a perspicuous Book. On this Day no deed or mention from anyone is acceptable save through this wise Remembrance, whom neither the veils of the peoples nor the glory of the world have deterred. He hath appeared and made manifest whatsoever He desired with a power before which the power of all who are in the heavens and on earth hath proved impotent. Beware lest ye follow your own desires. Follow Him Who guideth you and leadeth you to the Kawthar of the utterance of your Lord, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

Say: Praise be unto Thee, O my God, for having sent down unto me Thy verses and manifested unto me Thy clear tokens, and for having spoken before the faces of Thy servants and caused all things to speak forth Thy praise, except those who have broken Thy Covenant and Thy Testament, who have denied Thy grace and who have disputed Thy signs. O Lord! I beseech Thee by the pearls hidden in the ocean of Thy knowledge and by the gems treasured in the depositories of Thy protection, and by Thy binding command and Thy firm cord, to assist me in spreading Thy traces with the wisdom whose decree Thou hast sent down in Thy Books. Then ordain for me that which will make me strong through Thy strength and steadfast in the service of Thy Cause. O Lord! Thou seest the poor one standing before the gate of Thy bounty, seeking from the heaven of Thy generosity and the ocean of Thy grace that which Thou hast ordained for Thy loved ones, whom neither anything among all things nor the doubts of the divines have deterred from Thy straight Path and Thy mighty Announcement. Thou art, verily, the Lord of all worlds and the Object of them that are sincere.

We make mention of him who was named Fadlu’llah that he may rejoice and be of them that have attained. Verily grace, in its primary station and highest rank, is that which acquainteth people with the ways of God’s good-pleasure, and in another station it is His confirmation which hath encompassed them that are nigh unto Him. We bear witness that His grace hath encompassed thee and aided thee until He drew thee nigh unto Him and adorned thee with the ornament of acceptance after the turning away of most men and women. He is, verily, the Protector of them that have turned unto Him. Make mention of My loved ones on My behalf and adorn them with that which hath been sent down for them at this time.

O My loved ones in the world! Hearken unto My call from the precincts of My prison. He will assist you in that which will cause your mention to endure and that which hath appeared from you in the Announcement of God, the Lord of the mighty Throne. Render thanks unto God for having named thee with grace and sent down for thee through grace that which nothing among all things can equal, as every discerning one doth testify. We counsel thee and them that have believed in that which will exalt them amongst the servants and adorn them with virtues whereby the hearts of those whom neither the glory of names nor the doubts of the heedless have deterred have been attracted.

Say: O Lord! Aid us in that which Thou lovest and pleaseth Thee, and ordain for us that which will draw us nigh unto Thee and preserve us from the hosts of the wrongdoers. Thou art, verily, the Almighty, the All-Powerful.

O Tongue of Grandeur! Make mention of him who is named Ibrahim, who heard and turned to God, the Lord of all men, that the utterance of the All-Merciful might draw him to the horizon of knowledge, from which has shone forth the sun of God’s loving-kindness, the Lord of lords. Blessed art thou for having attained unto My days, for having turned to My horizon and for having voiced My praise amongst My servants. Verily thy Lord is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing. Let not the clamor of the oppressors dismay thee. Cast aside all created things through the power of thy Lord and take hold of that which thou art commanded by the One Who is the Strong, the Ancient. Say: O people! Fear God and follow not those who have denied His Manifestation and disputed His verses. Follow him who guideth you to the path of righteousness. Say: This is the Day of God, to this testify the Daysprings of Revelation and the Manifestations of inspiration. Thus have We sent down the verses and expounded them that thou mayest thank thy Lord and say:

“Praise be to Thee, O Lord of all creation and King of the Kingdom of Names, for having illumined my heart with the light of Thy knowledge, for having sent down unto me Thy verses and shown forth unto me Thy clear tokens which none deny save every vicious infidel. Praise be unto Thee, O Thou in Whose grasp are the reins of earth and heaven!”

O Muhammad-Qabli-Hadi! We beseech God to adorn thee with the ornament of righteousness and draw thee nigh unto Him in all conditions. Rejoice that thy name hath flowed from My Pen, and that We have aided thee to recognize the Dayspring of My verses and guided thee to the most exalted station. Beware lest the doubts of the wayward hinder thee or the veils of those who have denied the Beginning and the End conceal thee. We have made mention of Our loved ones and adorned them with the ornament of My love, from whose horizon the lights have shone forth. We have commanded all to unity and concord in this Cause whereby the faces of the idolaters have been darkened and the faces of the righteous illumined. Say: O people of God! Be not disturbed by the world’s vicissitudes. By My life! These shall pass away and ye shall behold what hath been ordained for you by God, the Lord of all beings. Say: This is the Day on which the light of divine command hath shone forth from its horizon and the Lote-Tree hath proclaimed: The Kingdom belongeth to God, the Lord of the Day of Judgment. Thus have We made mention of thee as a favor from Our presence, and I am the Mighty, the All-Bountiful.

Verily We have desired to make mention of him whom one of Our loved ones hath mentioned, who hath held fast to My cord and soared in My atmosphere. He hath been named Ali in the Book of Names by the command of God, the Sender of winds. O Ali! We have turned toward thee from the precincts of the Prison and have beheld thy burning love for God, the Dayspring of lights. Blessed art thou for having made mention before the Wronged One, Who hath sent down for thee that whose fragrance shall not cease as long as God, the Cleaver of daybreak, endureth. When thou hast drunk from the cup of My bounty and been seized by the attraction of My call, say:

“Praise be unto Thee, O my God, for having given me to drink from the cup of Thy bounty, for having adorned me with the ornament of Thy knowledge, for having guided me to Thy attributes and for having attracted my heart through Thy most sweet call when it was raised from the most exalted horizon. I testify that Thou hast appeared and manifested what Thou didst desire through Thy power which hath conquered all things and through Thy sovereignty which hath encompassed all who are in earth and heaven. O Lord! Thou seest me detached from all save Thee and attracted by Thy verses. I beseech Thee by Thy Lamp which the winds have not preserved, to ordain for me from Thy Most Exalted Pen what Thou hast written for Thy chosen ones. Verily Thou art the Omnipotent over what Thou willest and in Thy grasp are the reins of the Kingdom of Names. There is none other God but Thee, the Mighty, the All-Bountiful.”

Section 2: “O Kalb-Ali! Thy name hath been presented before…”

O Kalb-Ali! Thy name hath been presented before the Wronged One. He maketh mention of thee with that which causeth rivers to flow. Wilt thou flow or remain still? Say:

Thou knowest, O my God, what I possess, and I know not what Thou possessest. Verily, Thou art the All-Mighty, the All-Knowing. I beseech Thee by Thy signs which have illumined the horizons, by the lights of Thy countenance through which the lights have appeared, by Thy name the All-Knowing, and by Thy name through which Thou hast subdued the lands and the hearts of Thy servants, to aid me to be steadfast in Thy Cause. Verily, Thou art the Omnipotent over whatsoever Thou willest. By Thy sovereignty do all created things testify, and by Thy power do all possible things bear witness. There is none other God but Thee, the Mighty, the Self-Subsisting.

O ʿAli, when thou dost inhale the sweet fragrances of My verses, turn thy heart toward My prison and say:

My God, my God, my Goal and my King! I beseech Thee by Thy Most Great Prison, by Thy Most Strong Fortress, by Thy standing and sitting therein, by Thy movement and stillness, by Thy sighs and tears, by Thy signs and mysteries, by Thy handiwork, by Thy Name through which Thou hast subdued all names, and by Thy remembrance through which the trees have spoken, to strengthen me to be steadfast in Thy love and to hold fast to Thy cord. O Lord! I am Thy servant and the son of Thy servant. I have turned with my whole being unto Thee, hoping for the wonders of Thy grace and the manifestations of Thy loving-kindness. I beseech Thee by Thy generosity which hath encompassed all existence not to disappoint me from that which Thou hast ordained for Thy chosen ones and Thy trusted ones, who have drunk the choice wine of revelation from the hand of Thy bounty and have hastened to the place of sacrifice, yearning to meet Thee. Verily, Thou art the All-Bountiful, Whose bounty all created things acknowledge, Whose generosity all beings confess, and Whose power all who dwell in earth and heaven testify. There is none other God but Thee, the Omnipotent in both beginning and return.

O Master craftsman ʿAli! Verily, the Lord of creation mentioneth thee among His servants with verses that neither the oppression of the oppressors nor the doubts of the ungodly can prevent. Give thanks unto God for this supreme bounty and this great favor. Verily, thy Lord is the All-Merciful, the Bountiful. Blessed is the heart that hath this day turned, detached from the people, unto Our Self-Subsisting Name, Who was foretold by the Qa’im aforetime. Thus hath the Tongue spoken in this station as a grace from God, the Lord of the Mighty Throne. Let not the happenings of the world grieve thee, nor let the power of those who have denied the Faithful Spirit weaken thee—He Who circleth round the Kaaba of God, the Omnipotent, the Mighty, the Wise.

O people of God! Take My Book with a power that the might of the oppressors cannot prevent, then read it with joy and fragrance. It will draw you to the horizon of Revelation in this Day which was promised in the Books of God, the Mighty, the Praiseworthy. In Our tribulations We have remembered Our loved ones. Blessed is he who hath heard and attained, and woe unto the heedless. Cast aside the idle fancies of men, then turn to the light of certitude in this brilliant dawn. Thus have We taught thee and revealed unto thee that whereby the hearts of the mystics are attracted.

O ʿAli-Asghar! The Wronged One remembereth thee and those who have believed with a remembrance whereby all things have been attracted. When thou seest and hearest, say:

Praise be unto Thee, O Lord of the Day of Resurrection, for having remembered me and revealed unto me that whereby my remembrance shall endure among all remembrances and my name among all names. Verily, Thou art the Praised One in Thy deeds and the Obeyed One in Thy command. Should Thou decree extinction to be permanence, or darkness to be light, none hath the right to say why’ or wherefore’, and whoso saith so hath turned away from God, the Lord of the Exalted Throne.

Blessed is he who hath discerned and witnessed, and blessed is he who hath heard the Call of God, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. He Whom ye were promised in the past hath come, and that which was hidden in the treasury of God’s protection, the Almighty, the Powerful, hath been made manifest. Rejoice, O people, and follow not every remote oppressor. Know then that the oppressor is he who hath prevented the servants from clinging to the hem of God, the Most Pure. We testify that the divines of Iran have prevented the people from drawing nigh unto the All-Informed One. When the Truth was made manifest, they turned away from Him and opposed Him until they pronounced sentence of death upon His most pure, most holy, and most luminous blood. Through their turning away, the rulers of the earth turned away—to this every fair-minded and discerning one doth testify. We beseech God to adorn them with justice and fair-mindedness and to aid them in that which beseemeth His days. Verily, He is the One, the Peerless, the Mighty, the Great.

O Husayn! The Wronged One hath turned toward thee and made mention of thee with clear remembrance. Whenever mention hath flowed from My Pen, the remembrances of the world and the scriptures of the nations have bowed down before it. To this doth God’s Book testify, which speaketh in this noble station. The Wronged One hath desired naught save the reformation of the world and the exaltation of the stations of the nations. To this doth My Most Exalted Pen bear witness. Blessed is he who hath heard and attained, and woe unto them that slumber. Say:

Praise be unto Thee, O my God, for having sent down unto me that which hath illumined my heart and adorned my temple. I testify that Thou art the One Who hath power over whatsoever He willeth. There is none other God but Thee, the Protector of all things great and small.

The Will of God hath desired to make mention of him who was named Mihdi aforetime, that it might attract his eyes to the Light shining from the horizon of Revelation, his ears to the Source of the Call which God hath made the sanctuary of the Concourse on High, his hands to the heaven of bounty, and his heart to the Dayspring of his Lord’s verses, the Almighty, the Protector, the Self-Subsisting. Hearken unto the call of the Wronged One, whereby the tribes of the earth were seized with trembling and the limbs of those who denied God, the Lord of the seen and the unseen, were made to quake. Blessed is he who aided My Cause through My utterance, and joy be unto him who hath conveyed unto the servants that which hath flowed from My Pen, and happy is he who hath drunk the choice wine of My proof from the hand of My bounty. He is indeed among those who are near unto Me in My preserved Tablet. Say:

My God, my God! Praise be unto Thee for having aided me in a Cause from which most of Thy creatures have been held back. I beseech Thee, O God of Names and Creator of heaven, by the attraction of Thy Beloved One when He heard the call of meeting with Thee, and by the Spirit who arose to aid Thy Cause and upon whom the Jews inflicted that which caused the Daysprings of Revelation to lament, and by the Herald who sacrificed His spirit to exalt Thy Word and manifest Thy power, to make me steadfast in Thy love in such wise that none on earth may prevent me. Verily, Thou art the Almighty over what Thou willest. There is none other God but Thee, the Powerful, the Mighty, the All-Loving.

O ʿAli-Akbar! The Wronged One remembereth thee and counselleth thee to fear God, the Lord of the worlds. We have made trustworthiness a crown for the heads of Our servants and godliness a robe for the temples of Our loved ones. Blessed is he who hath taken God’s counsel, and woe unto them that turn away. Blessed art thou for having heard and turned toward Him whilst the people were in manifest loss. He hath prospered who hath turned unto Him, and he hath lost who hath turned away—to this doth the Tongue of God, the True Sovereign, the Just, the Manifest, bear witness. When thou hearest My call, say:

O my God, my God! Praise be unto Thee for having illumined my heart with the light of Thy knowledge and guided me to the horizon of Thy Revelation, through whose light earth and heaven were made to shine. I beseech Thee, O Lord of eternity, by Thy Most Great Name, to protect me from the evil of the barking ones who have denied the proof of God and His evidence, and disbelieved in His signs and in that which hath appeared from Him. Verily Thou art the Omnipotent One Whom nothing can weaken and no affair can frustrate. There is no God but Thee, the One Who hath power over whatsoever He pleaseth, by Thy Name, the All-Encompassing over all things small and great.

O Hasan! Hearken unto My call, for verily it draweth thee to My Kingdom, preserveth thee from Mine enemies, and aideth thee through My hosts. Blessed is the servant who hath on this day attained unto hearing it, who hath been honored by its traces, and who hath spoken forth its beauteous praise. O Hasan! Take hold of the Book of God with the power bestowed by Him and be not of the fearful ones. Verily He is with thee, witnessing and seeing, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing. Blessed are the days that have won the victory of His day, and blessed is the servant who hath turned toward His horizon; and woe unto every heedless and remote one. When thou hast attained unto the verses of thy Lord, render thanks and say:

Praise be unto Thee, O Lord of existence and Sovereign over the seen and unseen! I beseech Thee by the fruits of the Tree of Thy knowledge, and by the ocean that surgeth through Thy Name, and by the light that shineth before Thee, that Thou assist me to be steadfast in Thy Cause. O my Lord! Thou seest me directing myself toward Thy most exalted station, gazing toward Thy most glorious horizon, and holding fast to Thy firm handle. I beseech Thee not to disappoint me of that which Thou hast ordained for the sincere ones among Thy creatures and the near ones among Thy servants. Verily, Thou art the All-Bountiful, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

O Hakim! Where is thy theriac and where is thine elixir? Canst thou cure the malady of self and passion? Canst thou still the fire of rancor and hatred? We beseech God, blessed and exalted be He, to teach thee that whereby the fire of tyranny and wickedness in the world of creation may be stilled. Verily He is the Omnipotent over whatsoever He willeth through His mighty and wise command. O Hakim! O Aqa Baba! The disease of hypocrisy hath prevented the servants from unity. Hast thou any medicine to cure this chronic disease which hath kept the servants from love and unity, from rest and fellowship? Say:

O my God, my God! I beseech Thee by the joy of that servant among Thy servants who perceived the fragrance of the garment of Thy Command’s Joseph, that Thou purify the servants from the maladies that have prevented them from turning unto the lights of Thy countenance and drawing nigh unto the sanctuary of Thy presence. Verily Thou art He of Whose power and sovereignty the Books have testified, and of Whose grandeur and might the Scrolls have borne witness. There is no God but Thee, the All-Merciful, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.

BH00384: God beareth witness that there is none other God…

Section 1: “God beareth witness that there is none other…”

In the Name of God, transcendent is His Glory in bounty and grace!

God beareth witness that there is none other God but Him, and He Who speaketh before the faces of the world is verily the Hidden Treasure, the Preserved Tablet, and the Concealed Command. Through Him have the rivers of inner meanings and utterance flowed throughout creation, and the ocean of divine knowledge hath surged amidst religions. Through Him hath the breeze wafted and the Word proclaimed:

“O concourse of princes and kings! The Possessor hath come, and sovereignty belongeth unto God, the Protector, the Self-Subsisting! O manifestations of knowledge! He Who is known hath come with a sovereignty that hath conquered what was and what shall be!”

O Amin! Upon thee be My glory and My loving-kindness! Praise be to God, thou hast been enabled to serve the Cause of God from the earliest days until now, holding fast to the firm cord and turning unto the manifest light. The Tongue of Grandeur hath testified to thy steadfastness, turning unto God, acceptance, and service. Well is it with thee! We beseech God to open through thee the gates of trustworthiness among all creatures. Thy journey to the land of Kha was prompted by the request of him who hath passed away and ascended, and what he desired hath not yet come to pass. The one who truly arose to serve the Cause and was adorned with the ornament of acceptance in the Most Holy Court was serving both the Cause, upon it be My glory, and thyself—that is, in these ranks and stations.

Otherwise, praise be to God, all have attained to what God hath sent down in the Book. Truly have the people of Baha performed that which hath no likeness or equal. O Amin! Reflect upon the lovers in all regions who, with perfect submission and contentment, have sacrificed their souls—the most exalted and precious of all things—for the One True Beloved. Likewise those who, through divine power and heavenly training, have engaged in purifying the souls of the earth. Neither the assaults of vice and depravity deterred them from righteousness and godliness, nor did the swords of oppression and tyranny deprive them. Glorified be their Creator, glorified be their Source, and glorified be their Sovereign!

Mention was made of the late Himmat-ʿAli Khan. Verily We mentioned him before his passing and after his ascension with verses whose fragrance, traces, and fruits shall never vanish from the earth. We mention him again at this hour. Verily thy Lord loveth His friends. He is the Compassionate, the All-Bountiful.

The resplendent, brilliant Light shining from the horizon of the heaven of utterance be upon thee, O thou who hast turned to the Most Exalted Horizon when most of mankind turned away from it, and who hast answered thy Lord when the Call was raised between earth and heaven, and who hast acknowledged His Manifestation and sovereignty when the sources of tyranny and wickedness denied Him. I testify that thou hast drunk the choice wine of utterance from the cup of thy Lord’s bounty, the All-Merciful, and the Kawthar of eternity from the hands of bestowal. At this moment We have heard the call of all things, crying out and saying:

“Blessed art thou, O Himmat! We bear witness that thou hast heard the sweet call of God and acknowledged that which the Tongue of Grandeur hath spoken in the prison of Akka. We testify that thou hast cast away idle fancies and vain imaginings, and hast taken with thy right hand My sealed nectar and drunk thereof once in My remembrance and again in My Name, the Mighty, the Beloved. Thou hast turned with thy heart to the horizon of the Manifestation in such wise that neither the might of the wicked ones nor the oppression of the evil ones who denied God’s truth and His Manifestation, and His signs and His sovereignty, could deter thee.”

We beseech God, blessed and exalted be He, to cause thee to enter the Most Exalted Paradise and to make thee a companion of His chosen ones and His loved ones, and to send down upon thee at all times mercy from His presence and grace from His own Self and loving-kindness from His side. Verily, He is the All-Bountiful, to Whose bounty all created things have testified, and the All-Generous, Whose generosity all contingent beings have acknowledged. There is no God but Thee, the Forgiver of sins, and the Sovereign over the seen and the unseen.

Glory be unto Thee, O my God, my Lord, my Master and my Support! I beseech Thee by him and by his steadfastness in Thy Cause, and by the lights of the sun of his knowledge in Thy days, to forgive those who have visited Thy loved ones and stood before their tombs and recited what Thou didst reveal from Thy Most Exalted Pen in their remembrance and praise. Verily, Thou art the Omnipotent over what Thou willest. O my Lord! Ordain for them that which befitteth the ocean of Thy bounty and the heaven of Thy generosity, then fulfill their needs through Thy grace and munificence. Verily, Thou art the All-Bestowing, the All-Bountiful, the Forgiving, the Merciful.

O Amin! Upon thee be My glory! Convey My greetings to his son on behalf of the Wronged One. Say:

“Blessed art thou, O Murad, in that He Who is the Desire of all who are in the heavens and the earth hath turned toward thee. Grieve not for what hath befallen thee. Be content in all circumstances of destiny. Verily thy Lord doeth what He willeth. I testify, and all created things testify, that He is the One praised in His command and obeyed in His judgment.”

When thou hearest My call and perceivest the fragrance of My utterance, say:

“My God, my God! Praise be to Thee for having guided me to the ocean of Thy bounty and the path of Thy Cause, and for having illumined my heart with the light of Thy knowledge. O my Lord! I am Thy servant and the son of Thy servant. I hold fast to the cord of Thy grace. Ordain for me from Thy Most Glorious Pen the good of this world and the next. Verily, Thou art the Lord of earth and heaven, and in Thy grasp are the reins of all affairs. There is no God but Thee, the Omnipotent, the Mighty, the Powerful.”

O Amin! Upon thee be the glory of God, the Lord of the worlds. I testify that thou hast arisen to serve the Cause and hast performed that which hath been adorned with the ornament of acceptance. We beseech God, blessed and exalted be He, to ordain for thee a great reward in the Book. Verily, He is the Mighty, the All-Bestowing.

Mention hath been made of him who standeth in service to the Cause—upon him be My glory and loving-kindness. Thou hast spoken with truth and sincerity. Praise be to God, he is at all times engaged in service. In truth, he is a success for the servants of the All-Bountiful. Soon shall the tongues of the world speak his praise and glorification. Verily, He is the All-Bountiful, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

His honor, the Name of Beauty, upon him be My glory and loving-kindness, has previously submitted that the sum of twenty tumans is with him for the Huquq. We therefore instructed that it be given to two handmaidens of God, but before Our instruction arrived it seems they had given it to you, or the Trustee had not issued payment from previous funds, and We shall not issue it. Verily thy Lord is the Just, the Wise. And he too has committed no fault in this matter. Say: O My Name! Upon thee be My glory and loving-kindness. Thou hast ever been adorned with the ornament of trustworthiness and righteousness. These two are companions unto thee, and two guardians unto thee, and by God’s leave, two protectors unto thee. The Trustee has ever mentioned thee and thou art the recipient of special favors.

Section 2: “The letter of His honor Habibu’llah, upon him…”

The letter of His honor Habibu’llah, upon him be My glory and loving-kindness, reached the Most Holy Court. We read it, that is to say, observed it with the tongue of grandeur, that is to say, with the glance of favor. O Love! The gaze of favor is turned toward thee. Some time ago, a petition from My Name Beauty reached the Most Holy Court, and in that petition he expressed satisfaction with thee and thy mother. In truth these two expressions of satisfaction are as two crowns upon your two heads and two ornaments for your two temples, for the Name of God has arisen to serve the divine Cause and is occupied with praise and glorification, and deeds performed for the sake of God are illumined with the light of acceptance and perfumed with the fragrance of divine good-pleasure. O Habibu’llah! In these days, due to the lack of capacity of the servants and their occupation with unseemly matters, the station of thy father, that is, My Name Beauty, remains concealed. God will soon reveal that which He desireth and that which was hidden from the eyes of the servants. Verily He loveth the doers of good and His detached servants.

Thy petition reached Our presence, and from each letter thereof devotion and attraction were evident and manifest. Grieve not over the events of the world. We beseech God to open before thy face the gates of His mercy, His loving-kindness and His bounty. Verily thy Lord loveth His loved ones and hath ordained for them from His Most Exalted Pen in His earliest days that which the world and all that is therein cannot equal. We beseech Him, exalted be He, to write for thee that which will exalt thee through His Name amongst His creation. He is the Mighty, the All-Bountiful.

And regarding thy intention to engage in the occupation thou mentioned—although from the divine perspective, any occupation thou engage in is beloved, yet if thou findest a better one, it would be higher and more beloved in the sight of God. Place thy trust in all matters upon Him and commit them to Him. Verily He is with His trusting servants.

Convey greetings from the Wronged One to thy mother. Say: Within the divine palace itself thou hast rendered steadfast service. If thou knew its station, thou wouldst be content with God, nay, throughout thy life thou wouldst be occupied with “Praise be to Thee, O God of the worlds.”

O Amin! The glance of grace and mercy is turned towards thee. God willing, thou shalt follow the Truth in all conditions—that is to say, thou shalt deal and associate with His creation according to His nature, His disposition, and His grace. Divine success and confirmation have been ordained for thee both before and after. Engage in service with complete assurance. Thy precedence in divine services and thy zeal in matters concerning His loved ones have been inscribed by the Supreme Pen in the Crimson Book. Be thou confident and among those who are firmly established. We beseech God to confirm His servants that they may assist thee for His sake, and recognize and understand thy station. We hope that each day thou wilt attain to that which is the cause of the greatest joy for humanity. Verily, We have mentioned thee, before and after, in such wise as all the books of the world cannot equal. To this beareth witness the Lord of Eternity, Who uttereth in every state that there is none other God but Him, the Single, the One, the Mighty, the Self-Subsisting.

O Amin! Those souls who are engaged in teaching the Cause need attention, for unless the heart is detached, words have no effect. Every being needs sustenance, therefore thou must give attention according to thy capacity. Verily, thy Lord’s mercy hath preceded all things and encompassed all things. Should Ibn-i-Abhar undertake one journey to the land of Ta and its surrounding regions, this would be acceptable and adorned with the ornament of God’s good-pleasure. In no place should he tarry longer than the number of the Greatest Name, unless circumstances require it—that is, unless seekers are found. However, the means of travel should be gathered in moderation, and the fragrance of detachment should waft therefrom. This fragrance is the cause of the world’s acceptance and the peoples’ attraction. In the days of the Manifestation, assured, content, and well-pleasing souls through their detachment have attracted the people of creation and guided them to the straight path.

Today is a blessed day, and its station with God transcends the comprehension of those who comprehend. Detached souls must hold fast to wisdom, which is the cause of acceptance, and through utterance take possession of the cities of hearts. These are the cupbearers of the divine Kawthar and Salsabil. Blessed are they and joy be unto them. In all matters thou must hold fast to kindliness, mercy and compassion, although through God’s grace thou hast been and art so characterized. Such mentions are due to the manifestation of care and favors. God willing, may the True One, exalted be His glory, assist thee every day. Verily, He is powerful over all things.

O Amin! His honor Aqa Muhammad, known as Hannasab, dwelleth beneath the blessed Tree and is engaged in service. He hath submitted a detailed account regarding matters concerning his daughter, and the wife of the King of Martyrs, upon them both be God’s care and favors, hath testified in the presence of the wife, confirming what Aqa Muhammad hath stated. In any case, thou art now the Trustee and likewise engaged in serving the Cause. Investigate these matters with justice and fairness for the sake of God, and implement whatever conformeth with justice and fairness. This matter is essential. We beseech God to assist and enable you both to set right the affairs of the world. Verily, He is the Almighty, the All-Powerful.

We sent forth His Honor Afnan Ali, upon him be My glory and My loving-kindness, to the City of Love for the sale of properties and payment of the known debt, even appointing a deputy for the auction of a house which was in this land along with the aforementioned land. In truth, all must arise to set matters aright with attention to service, and exert mighty effort and endeavor. The Cause of God is mighty and will soon encompass the world. Blessed is the one whom neither vain imaginings nor doubts prevented from the will of the Self-Subsisting Lord, and whom neither the calumnies of the world nor the suspicions of the peoples held back from drawing nigh.

O Amin! Say: My God, my God! All praise be unto Thee for having remembered me in Thy prison in such wise as shall endure throughout the eternity of Thy kingdom and Thy dominion, and for having aided me to arise to serve Thy Cause, and honored me with hearkening unto Thy call and beholding Thy horizon before the throne of Thy Revelation. I beseech Thee, O Thou Who openest the doors and aideth the loved ones, by Thy Most Bountiful Name, to assist them who have turned towards Thee to do that which befitteth Thy sovereignty and beseemeth Thy days. Verily Thou art the Almighty, the Powerful, the All-Bountiful.

We have repeatedly remembered the loved ones. Give them the glad-tidings of My loving-kindness, illumine them with the light of My knowledge, and remind them of My verses which have encompassed the heavens and the earth. Praise be to God, the Lord of the worlds.

BH00452: The Tablet hath been revealed, and from its horizon…

Section 1: “The Tablet hath been revealed, and from its…”

He is the Hearing, the Answering One! He is the All-Powerful, the All-Wise!

The Tablet hath been revealed, and from its horizon the Sun of grace and bounty hath shone forth, a favor from God, the Lord of all mankind. The Kawthar of utterance hath flowed from the Pen of the Most Merciful—among the people are those who hastened, took, and drank thereof, and among them are those who turned away and were numbered with the idolaters. The verses have been sent down and the clear proofs have appeared, yet most of the people are in manifest error.

O Zayn! Observe, then mention those who have denied in the land of Sad, having followed the source of vain imaginings instead of God, the Lord of all worlds. They have taken the misleader as their guide—verily they are among the abased ones. They clung to their own desires, turning away from God, the Mighty, the Praiseworthy. These are they who secluded themselves with names and committed that which caused the dwellers of the Most Great House to lament. Verily, they are recorded among the deniers in the Book of God, the Master of the Day of Judgment. Say: By God! Neither the misleader nor any besides him, nor what the people possess will profit you, except through this Book which speaketh before the faces of the world and showeth them the straight and manifest path of God.

O people of Sad! Be fair for God’s sake! If ye deny this Most Great Cause and the Mighty Announcement, by what proof do ye establish your faith in God, the One, the All-Informed? By what evidence did ye believe in the Primal Point, and before Him in Muhammad the Messenger of God, and before Him in the Spirit, and before Him in Him Who spoke with God? Beware lest vain imaginings keep you from the Lord of all beings. Cast away the whisperings of those who have denied God, the Mighty, the Powerful.

O Zayn! Upon thee be My glory and My loving-kindness! Observe, then mention him who uttereth that which melteth the hearts of those near unto God. He said that He hath stolen the verses of the Bayan and revealed them in His Name—whereby the tears of the sincere ones were shed. Say: O heedless one! Present thyself before the Wronged One in His Most Great Prison, that thou mayest witness the light of utterance dawning from this luminous horizon. Come into the presence of His countenance, then ask whatsoever thou desirest, that thou mayest behold what thou hast neglected in following the conjectures of the heedless ones, and be assured that the ocean surgeth by itself and for itself, that the light shineth by its own essence unto its own essence, and that the verses are revealed by God’s leave, the Most High, the Most Great.

I adjure you by God to present yourselves before the Wronged One with pure intention for the sake of God, your Lord, the Most Merciful, the Compassionate. By God’s life! When the verses are revealed, the angels and the Spirit descend to hearken unto the call of God, the Goal of the mystics. This is He Whom God hath made the point of adoration for all who dwell in the highest Paradise, were ye of the fair-minded.

O Zayn! Say: O Hadi! Present thyself for God’s sake that thou mayest witness with thine own eyes the waves of the divine ocean of utterance and observe with thine own sight the effulgences of the Sun of Truth. In these days one can distinguish between truth and falsehood, but after the ascension the helpless people will be afflicted like the previous party. Say: O people of Sad! I speak for the sake of God and beseech you to present yourselves before the one whom ye have taken as the Truth, and likewise before the face of the Wronged One, that the truth may be made manifest unto you and that ye may not be of those who proclaimed “God is our Lord!” yet when He appeared from the dawning-place of His Revelation and the dayspring of His verses, they slew Him with such injustice as caused every Prophet and every trusted Messenger to cry out.

O people of Sad! The pearls of wisdom and utterance that have appeared from the treasury of the Supreme Pen are distinguished like the sun from all else. Beware lest ye veil them with the clouds of your imaginations. Fear God and be not of the wrongdoers. By God’s life! He who hath prevented you from drawing nigh unto the Most Great Ocean stood indeed before the Face and served his Lord. To this testifieth that which hath been sent down from the heaven of the will of your Lord, the All-Uttering, the All-Knowing. One among the people led him astray until he desired to slay Me. When that which was hidden in his breast was made manifest, he cried out within himself. To this bear witness those servants who were with Us when We migrated from Iraq in the path of God, the Lord of all worlds.

O Zayn! Upon thee be My glory and loving-kindness. Beseech God to assist His servants that they may recognize the truth from all else and attain unto that for which they were created. With utmost humility and supplication We make mention and beseech God to manifest His Cause through souls that are assured, content, well-pleased and fair-minded, and to purify hearts from doubt and uncertainty with the Kawthar of utterance. He is the Powerful, the Mighty. There is none other God but Him, the Lord of the Throne and earth.

O Zayn! We make mention at this time of him who was named Hasan, brother of him who migrated and attained. O Hasan! When thou hearest the call from the direction of Akka and drinkest the choice wine of revelation from the cup of bounty, say:

“My God, my God! Unto Thee be glory and praise, and within Thy grasp lies the kingdom of eternity. I am Thy servant and the son of Thy servant. Thou hast given me to drink of the choice wine of recognition and guided me to the Dayspring of proof. I beseech Thee by the signs of Thy greatness in the heaven of Thy might and the lights of Thy countenance in the kingdom of Thy grace, to make me in all conditions content, praising and thankful for the wonders of Thy generosity and bounty. Verily Thou art the Powerful, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.”

O Muhammad-Qabli-ʿAli! The Mother Book hath appeared yet the people perceive not, and the Kawthar of inner meanings and utterance hath flowed from the Pen of the All-Merciful, yet most of the people understand not. Their desires have prevented them from the horizon of God, the Self-Subsisting, the Eternal. Blessed art thou for having acknowledged that which the Tongue of Grandeur hath spoken from His inaccessible station.

O Asadu’llah! Hear the call raised from the Supreme Horizon and say:

“Here am I, O Lord of Names! Here am I, O Creator of Heaven! I beseech Thee by Thy Manifestation and Thy power, and by Thy Mount and Thy Call, to make me content with what Thou hast ordained for me by the Pen of Thy decree. Then write down for me what Thou hast written for those of Thy servants who are nigh unto Thee. Verily Thou art the Powerful, the Mighty.”

O Rida! Through the heedlessness of the negligent and the wickedness of the aggressors, the place of the Wronged One has become the prison of Akka. How far is the land of Ta from Akka! Divine love hath attracted and continueth to attract, and He preferreth exile to homeland. How excellent is this most exalted station and this most glorious rank! Blessed are they that attain.

Section 2: “O Mahmud! We have been with thee…”

O Mahmud! We have been with thee in all conditions. The Supreme Pen hath testified that thou hast believed in God and His verses, and remembered Him when creation was silent in His remembrance, and turned to Him when the people were turning away from Him. We beseech God to assist thee in preserving His Cause and in protecting what is in thy heart from every thief and every obstinate traitor.

O Ali! The divine call is raised at every moment, yet the people are heedless of it. The world is adorned with the lights of the Sun of Manifestation, yet the servants are heedless and veiled. Blessed art thou and thy brother and whosoever hath held fast to the cord of God, the Strong.

O Rida! The misleader Dawlat-Abadi has again become a Shi’ih and, like the ignorant ones of Iran, has exerted and continues to exert mighty efforts to lead people astray. Say: Present thyself and ask what thou desirest, that thou mayest hear the verses of God, the Protector, the Self-Subsisting. Love of leadership hath seized him and debarred him from the path of God, the Lord of all existence.

O Abdullah! Remember the days when thou wert present before the Wronged One, when thou didst behold His horizon and hear His call. Blessed art thou for having turned in His days to His prison and heard that for which most of mankind died in regret. To this testifieth this sealed Book which hath been sent down from the Pen of God, the Protector, the Self-Subsisting.

O Muhammad! They called the Seal of the Prophets a liar, Moses a sorcerer, and the Spirit (Christ) an infidel. And they have reviled and continue to revile the Primal Point from all pulpits and mosques of Iran. Dawlat-Abadi hath newly raised the standard of hypocrisy, busying himself with the building of Jabulqa and Jabulsa. Say: Shame upon thee, O thou rejected one! Blessed art thou for having cast away the people and taken the choice wine and drunk thereof in the name of God, the Powerful, the Mighty, the Loving.

O Haydar! the ungodly have said that the Lord of mankind hath taken from the verses of the Primal Point and sent them abroad. Say: O people! For the sake of God, reflect! That which hath streamed forth and been revealed from the treasury of the Most Exalted Pen is like the sun, distinct from all else. Be fair, O people, and be not of the wrongdoers. The Glory from Us be upon thee and upon thy wife. Give her glad tidings from the Wronged One and remind her of thy Lord’s verses.

O Hasan-Ali! Say: O Dawlat-Abadi, fear God! The waves of the ocean are His own, and the effulgences of the sun are from His very Self. The Tree hath appeared with countless fruits and the Light shineth with manifest splendor. Present thyself before the Face that thou mayest hear the verses of God, the Lord of the worlds. Verily they descend in truth from the heaven of God’s Will, the Mighty, the Wise. O Hasan-Ali! Spring is a time of lamentation. By God’s life! The hearts of those near unto God have melted from the oppression of the ungodly. A few transgressors who betrayed the chastity of the Point have become leaders and feel no shame. And this Wronged One, Who with conquering power and manifest might arose before all faces and with the hand of might raised high the Cause—Him they count not among the faithful. By God’s life! Noah lamenteth, the Spirit crieth out, and the Primal Point exclaimeth “Woe is me!” Thus have We revealed unto thee that which causeth the most exalted Paradise and the supreme Heaven to weep, that thou mayest know those who have violated God’s covenant and His testament, and mayest be of those possessed of clear certainty.

O Rahim! Divine mercy descendeth at all times. Indeed, were true mercy, upon which the existence of contingent things dependeth, to be withheld for a moment, all would perish and be reduced to nothingness. Today the gate of bounty is opened wide, the ocean of loving-kindness is surging, and the light of grace is shining bright. Blessed is the one who, detached from the world, hath held fast to the cord of love for the Most Great Name. Such a one is the horseman in the arena of sanctity and detachment. Upon him be the glory of God, the Lord of creation. Praise be to God! He hath aided thee to turn and draw nigh, and hath adorned thee with the traces of the Most Exalted Pen. Verily, He is the Self-Sufficient, the Most High. There is no God but Him, the Single, the One, the Powerful, the Mighty, the Unconstrained.

O Nurullah! Praise the Lord of Eternity Who hath enabled thee to attain unto His days and guided thee to the straight path from which most of the world’s people are debarred. His bounty took thy hand, and His grace delivered thee from the clay of idle fancies. Say:

Praise be unto Thee, O my God, for having illumined me with the lights of the Orb of Thy bounty and for having sent down unto me that which hath drawn me nigh unto the shore of the ocean of Thy nearness. O Lord! Adorn my temple with the robe of righteousness and my head with the crown of detachment. Thou, verily, art the One Who hath power over whatsoever He willeth. There is none other God but Thee, the Almighty, the Powerful.

O Pen! Make mention of My handmaiden who hath been named Shahrbanu in the Book of God, the Mighty, the All-Praised. O My handmaiden! Thou hast attained unto the most great favor, which is the knowledge of God, glorified be His majesty. Give thanks unto thy Lord for this supreme bounty and this great mercy. Then make mention of My handmaiden, the wife of Rida, who hath ascended unto the Most Exalted Companion. Blessed art thou, O My leaf! We bear witness that thou hast attained unto that which most of the women of the world have been denied. Verily, thy Lord is the All-Bountiful, the Most Generous.

O Hasan! The Lord of the worlds maketh mention of thee from His Most Great Prison. Thou art he who hath attained unto tribulation in the path of God, the Lord of all mankind, and I am the All-Knowing Witness. We have mentioned thee before in such wise as caused the Concourse on High to be attracted, and at this manifest time.

O daughter of Rida! Hearken unto the call of God. Verily, there is none other God but Him, the Single One, the All-Informed. He maketh mention of every servant who hath believed in Him and His verses, and every handmaiden who hath turned towards God, the Mighty, the Beautiful.

O wife of Isma’il! We have dispatched the hosts of Divine lovers to the place of sacrifice. They hastened until they offered up their spirits in the path of God, the Lord of the Mighty Throne. Thus have We manifested power between the righteous and the wicked. Blessed are they that have attained, and woe unto them that have turned away.

BH00493: The epistle of God, the Help-in-Peril, the Self-Subsisting

The epistle of God, the Help-in-Peril, the Self-Subsisting

He dawneth from the horizon of the heaven of proof

A Book which the All-Merciful hath sent down unto all who are in the realm of possibility, that the utterance may draw them to the horizon from which the Luminary of Manifestation hath shone forth in this blessed, mighty and wondrous Day. O concourse of the Furqan! Hearken unto the call of the All-Merciful from the Mount of Knowledge. Verily it draweth you nigh unto Him and guideth you unto His straight path. Beware lest ye deprive yourselves of this most great favor. Cast away what the people possess and take what hath been given you from God, the Lord of all worlds. Verily He hath appeared and revealed what He willed as a token of His grace, and He is the All-Bountiful, the Most Generous.

O people of the earth! Hear the call from the precincts of Akka, from the Divine Lote-Tree raised up in truth: Verily there is none other God but He, the Single One, the One, the Mighty, the Powerful. The Kawthar of immortality hath flowed from the Most Exalted Pen. Approach with radiant faces, then drink therefrom and be not of the heedless. Beware lest the doubts of your own selves withhold you from God, the Lord of all worlds. Take the chalice of salvation in the name of the Cleaver of the Dawn, then drink thereof by the command of One Who is the Ordainer, the Ancient of Days. By God! The Day is come and the people are in strange drunkenness. They have forsaken their God in that they have followed their desires. They are indeed among the most lost in the Book of God, the Master of the Day of Judgment. The ocean of utterance hath surged in the realm of possibility and the fragrances of revelation have been wafted among all religions. Blessed is he who hath found and turned unto it, and woe unto them that have turned away.

O My Pen! Turn thy face toward him who hath been named Muhammad and remind him of My verses and illumine him with the lights of My Kingdom and give him the glad-tidings of My loving-kindness which hath preceded all who are in the heavens and the earth. O Muhammad! The Most Exalted Pen hath turned toward thee once again that thou mayest inhale the fragrances of revelation and be among the thankful. We have mentioned thee before with a remembrance through which the fragrance of utterance hath been diffused throughout all possibility and the nightingales of proof have warbled upon the branches. Verily there is none other God but He, the Single One, the All-Informed.

Say: O My loved ones in Manshad! By the True One, the gate of heaven hath been opened, and the Lord of Names hath come with a power that no earthly might can weaken and with an authority that no clamor of the nations can daunt. He hath stood before all faces and proclaimed in loudest voice:

“O concourse of creation! The Self-Subsisting hath come with a sovereignty before which all who are in the heavens and on earth are powerless to stand. Beware lest the tempests of denial or the storms of hesitation move you. This is what ye were commanded aforetime and in this hour. Blessed is he who hath heard and responded, and woe unto every doubting denier. Joy be unto him who hath gone forth from the horizon of the House, speaking of this Most Great Name and bearing glad tidings of this mighty News.”

Say: O people of God! Beware lest ye be like those who fear men as they should fear God, and beware lest the veils of the transgressors, who have cast the covenant of God behind their backs and clung to the promptings of the Evil Ones, prevent you. Say: O concourse of divines! Be fair, by God, and reject not the truth through what ye possess. Read what We have sent down in truth—it will assist you and draw you nigh unto God, the Mighty, the Great. Observe and remember when Muhammad, the Apostle of God, came, the people denied Him and spoke concerning Him that which caused the Spirit to lament in His most exalted station and the Faithful Spirit to cry out. Then consider what befell God’s Messengers and His Emissaries aforetime at the hands of the wrongdoers. We mention you for the sake of God and remind you of His signs and give you glad tidings of what hath been ordained in the highest Paradise and the sublime Heaven for those who draw nigh—and I am the All-Knowing Herald.

He hath come for your salvation and hath borne hardships that ye might ascend the ladder of utterance to the summit of knowledge. To this testifieth He with Whom is a wondrous Book. Read what hath been sent down with justice and fairness—it will exalt you in truth and show you what ye were prevented from, and give you to drink of His luminous wine. Thus hath the ocean surged and the fragrance wafted. Blessed is he who hath found and seen, and away with every remote knower. The glory shining from the horizon of the heaven of utterance be upon thee and upon those who have believed in the All-Merciful and acknowledged what the Tongue of Grandeur spoke before the mention of all created things: Verily there is no God but Him, the Single, the One, the Powerful, the Chosen One.

We have turned from the eloquent tongue to the luminous tongue that all might understand what hath flowed from the Supreme Pen. O thou who gazest upon the Countenance! The first commandment hath been and is the knowledge of God, and after that steadfastness in His Cause. This steadfastness is not attained except through knowledge. Blessed is the soul that hath drunk from the Kawthar of the Merciful’s utterance and attained unto that which was the purpose of creation. The knowledge of God, in its primary station and first rank, is bound up with and dependent upon the blessed word “He doeth what He willeth and ordaineth what He pleaseth.” Whosoever attaineth unto the recognition of this exalted word shall find himself seated upon the throne of certitude, and no matter or word shall cause him to slip or be disturbed. It behooveth him to utter these sublime words: “O my Lord, the All-Merciful, the One Who prevaileth over all contingent beings! I testify that Thou art praiseworthy in Thy deeds and obeyed in Thy command.” Blessed are those servants who have held fast to these exalted words and drunk from the ocean of meanings that lie hidden therein.

The honored Siyyid Taqi, glory be upon him, appeared before the Wronged One with thy letter. We heard thy call and made mention of thee with a mention whose fragrance shall endure as long as the divine Kingdom endures. In all conditions We have counseled the servants to trustworthiness and religious devotion. In truth, the hosts that assist this Most Great Cause have been and are goodly deeds and praiseworthy character. Blessed are they who, through these hosts, open the cities of hearts in the name of the True One, exalted be His glory.

O Muhammad, upon thee be My glory! Verses have been sent down in such wise that none can reckon their number. Ask thou the True One to aid the servants to recite that which hath been revealed and to meditate upon that which hath become manifest. That which was previously sent for the manifestations of justice and fairness is most beneficial, and in the alteration of the party’s verses are signs for the discerning and evidences for the knowing ones. We altered it in wisdom from Our presence. Verily, He doeth what He willeth and ordaineth what He pleaseth. He is the Powerful, the Mighty, the Praiseworthy.

May God assist Mulla Ali-Akbar in attaining recognition. Should he observe the Book of Certitude, he will surely find his way to the Most Exalted Horizon. We beseech God to attract him through His verses, draw him near through His sovereignty, and aid him through His grace. Verily, He hath power over all things.

Mention hath been made of Mirza Nasru’llah and others. We have remembered him and do remember him that he may rejoice and be among the thankful ones. O Nasru’llah! Thy father took hold of the Book of God with power from Him and made mention of Him until he gave up his spirit in His path. By the life of God! A station hath been ordained for him whose description the pens of the chroniclers are powerless to render. We beseech God to assist thee and those who have believed to remain steadfast in this Cause whereby the foundations of the transgressors have been shaken.

O Abdullah! Thy name was present before the Wronged One. We have mentioned thee with a mention from which wafteth the fragrance of God’s loving-kindness, the Lord of creation. We counsel thee and those who have believed to wisdom and utterance. Thus hath God ordained in the Scriptures and Tablets. Glorify the name of thy Lord and turn not unto those who have denied My Most Exalted Word and the rustling of My Most Exalted Pen. These, verily, are among the most lost in the Book of God, the Lord of lords. Preserve what hath been sent down from the heaven of My Will, then recite it at eventide and at dawn.

O Abdul-Husayn! The Wronged One remembereth thee in the Most Great Prison when sorrows have surrounded Him from all sides. By God! The happenings of the world do not prevent Him, nor doth the might of nations hinder Him. He speaketh before the faces of princes and divines that which He hath been commanded by God, the Lord of all men. The swords did not frighten Him, nor did the ranks prevent Him. He hath appeared and manifested what He desired, a command from God, Who causeth the rivers to flow. Blessed is the servant who hath held fast to My Book, the eye that hath beheld My traces, and the ear that hath heard My call when it was raised in truth from this station which God hath made the most exalted of stations.

Convey My greetings to the loved ones in that land on behalf of the Wronged One, and remind them of God’s verses and evidences. Strive that perchance thou mayest open the doors of hearts with the key of the remembrance of the True One, exalted be His glory, and preserve them from previous delusions. Those souls, both men and women, who have drunk of the sealed wine have ever been mentioned before His countenance. We beseech God to keep all steadfast in His Cause. Verily, He is the Powerful over whatsoever He willeth. Within His grasp is the dominion of all who are in the earth and the heavens.

O Muhammad! Upon thee be the Glory of God, the One, the Single. Remember on My behalf him who is named Husayn, who turned to the Most Sublime Horizon, attained the presence of God, and heard the call of the All-Merciful while in the midst of the ignorant. Say: O Husayn! Beware lest the doubts of the world hold thee back. Stand firm in the Cause with such steadfastness that the thorns of those who have turned away from God, thy Lord and the Lord of thy forebears, cannot make thee slip. Remember those days when thou wert present before the Wronged One and didst drink the choice wine of reunion from the hand of thy Lord’s bounty, the Generous. Preserve this most exalted station and that which He commanded thee in His presence. Verily thy Lord is He Who speaketh the truth before all faces. Nothing whatsoever hath deterred Him, nor the opposition of the deceivers. When thou findest the fragrance of My utterance from My verses, say:

My God, my God! All praise be unto Thee for having guided me in Thy days, honored me with Thy presence, and enabled me to stand before Thy gate. I beseech Thee by the Dawning-Places of Thy verses and the Manifestations of Thy clear tokens, and by the Hands of Thy Cause who have arisen to serve Thee and have voiced Thy praise among Thy servants and have proclaimed Thy Cause and have traversed the lands in remembrance and praise of Thee. Thou art indeed the Almighty Whom nothing whatsoever can frustrate. Thou hast manifested whatsoever Thou didst desire through Thy power and might. Verily Thou art the Strong, the Powerful. There is no God but Thee, the Single, the One, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.

Thus hath the Tongue of Grandeur spoken as a token of His grace, that he might praise his Lord and be of the thankful ones. O Muhammad! Convey My glorification unto his face, then recite unto him that which hath flowed forth from the ocean of My all-encompassing knowledge. Glory be upon thee and upon him and upon those whom neither the clamor of the people nor the might of princes hath weakened, and whom the rancor of the divines who have broken God’s covenant and His testament hath not frightened, and who have done that by reason of which every possessor of vision and hearing and knowledge who hath believed in God, the Lord of all worlds, hath lamented.

He is the One Who judgeth with truth.

O Muhammad! Upon thee be My Glory! Read thou this blessed tablet that thou mayest drink from the hidden oceans within the divine words and soar with the wings of inner meanings in the holy atmosphere of the Eternal. After reading and becoming aware of it, deliver it to Muhammad—upon him be My Glory—in Manshad, that he may consider it and become informed and hearken unto the call of the Wronged One with the ear of his heart. By the life of God! This call giveth life, nay rather, transformeth the body into spirit. The Command is in His grasp. He doeth what He willeth and ordaineth what He pleaseth. O Muhammad! Verily He is praised in His deed and obeyed in His command, and He is the Almighty, the Powerful.

BH00514: Praise be to God Who hath manifested and revealed…

In the Name of Him Who speaketh in the Kingdom of Utterance!

Praise be to God Who hath manifested and revealed that which was hidden in knowledge and concealed from eyes and vision. Glorified be He Who hath caused all things to speak His praise and glorification, and Who hath summoned all to the Most Exalted Horizon wherefrom the call hath been raised:

“The Kingdom and the Dominion, the Majesty and the Power belong unto God, the Omnipotent, the Mighty, the Unconstrained!”

O peoples of the earth! By God, the Day hath come, yet the people remain in doubt and conflict. They have cast the Book of God behind their backs, clinging to their vain imaginings and idle fancies. This is the Day whereon He Who conversed with God hath been established upon the throne of Revelation, and the Herald hath cried out from the right hand of the luminous Spot:

“God, there is none other God but Him. His are the grace and bounty, the remembrance and the glory. He giveth and withholdeth, and He is the Single One, the One, the Omnipotent, the Mighty, the All-Bountiful.”

O Muhammad-Sadiq! Thy letter hath reached the Wronged One and hath been honored to be seen and heard. We have detected therefrom the fragrance of humility, submissiveness, and devotion to God, the Revealer of verses and the Manifester of clear proofs. We have sent down for thee from the heaven of utterance that which hath enraptured the hearts of the righteous. Say: O concourse of men! By God, the Greatest Scene hath been adorned through the appearance of the Lord of Destiny, and the Dove of Knowledge hath warbled upon the highest branches. Rejoice, O peoples of the worlds, for the Promise hath appeared and the Promised One speaketh before all faces with a sovereignty that hath conquered all who are in the heavens and on earth.

We make mention at this hour of thy father who hath ascended to the station God ordained for him. We beseech Him, exalted be He, by the ocean of His forgiveness, the heaven of His grace, and the sun of His mercy which hath preceded all created things, to send down upon him a heavenly feast and a blessing from His presence, and to cause him to enter the Most Exalted Paradise. Verily, He is the Bestower, the Mighty, the All-Bountiful. We have purified him at the time of his ascension from the world’s defilement and forgiven him through Our grace, for We are the Mighty, the All-Forgiving.

O thou who gazeth upon the Countenance! This is the Day of God, the Cause is God’s Cause, and the Revelation is God’s Revelation, the like of which the eye of creation hath never beheld. To this beareth witness the Mother Book in the most exalted station. Hold fast unto the cord of wisdom and speak forth the praise of God, the Lord of lords. He shall reinforce thee with the hosts of wisdom and utterance, and shall manifest through thee that which shall cause all to cry out with the loudest voice:

“O peoples of earth and heaven! By God, the gate of heaven hath been opened and the Lord of the Kingdom of Names hath come with power and sovereignty!”

Beware lest your desires prevent you, or the hosts of earth frighten you, or the ranks of the wicked weaken you. We have borne all hardships and tribulations in this Cause, whereby the limbs of all names have trembled and the hearts of every heedless doubter have been disturbed. Take the reins of affairs in the name of thy Lord, then speak that whereby every silent one shall speak, every still one shall move, and every prostrate one shall arise, by the command of God, the Lord of all directions.

Say: This is the Day whereof the Apostle of God gave glad-tidings, and before Him the Spirit, and before Him He Who conversed with God, and before them the Messengers of God, the Lord of the Day of Return. Thus have We sent down the verses and dispatched them unto thee, that thou mayest give thanks to thy Lord Who hath come from the heaven of proof with the standards of wisdom and utterance. We have desired at this time to change the eloquent language into the luminous language, by the command of God, the Lord of creation.

O Muhammad-Sadiq! Upon thee be My Glory and My Loving-kindness. All the divine Books, both of the past and of the future, proclaim and herald this Most Mighty, Most Holy Revelation. Blessed is the soul that hath attained unto that which hath been inscribed by the Most Exalted Pen in the Scriptures and Tablets. In truth I say, great is this Day. In the Tablet of the world, this exalted Word was revealed:

“The Most Great News proclaimeth: O people of Persia! Ye have been the dawning-places of mercy and the daysprings of compassion and love. The realms of existence have been illumined and adorned with the light of your knowledge and wisdom. How is it that ye have arisen to destroy yourselves and your friends with your own hands?”

O Afnan and My loved ones! Upon you be My Glory and My Loving-kindness. The tabernacle of the Cause of God is mighty. It hath encompassed and will continue to encompass all the peoples of the world. Your day is now, and a thousand tablets bear witness. Arise to help His Cause and busy yourselves in conquering the hearts and souls of the peoples of the world through the hosts of utterance. From you must appear that which will ensure the comfort and tranquility of the downtrodden. Gird up the loins of endeavor, that perchance the servants may be freed from bondage and attain unto liberty. Today the lamentation of justice is raised, and the cry of equity is heard. The dark smoke of oppression hath enveloped all peoples and nations. Through the movement of the Supreme Pen, a fresh spirit of meaning hath been breathed, by the command of the True Commander, into the bodies of words, and its effects are manifest and evident in all things of the world. This is the Most Great Glad-tidings that hath flowed from the Pen of this Wronged One. We beseech God to aid and not to deprive His servants of the fragrances of His days.

Say: O people of the Bayan! He Who is the Lord of all religions hath appeared with a Cause before which no cause can stand, and with a sovereignty that no earthly forces can weaken. He Who hath with Him the Mother Book beareth witness unto this. Say: Verily, He is with you and heareth your utterances. With Him is the knowledge of all things preserved in a Manifest Tablet. Say: Behold, then judge with equity that which hath appeared from Him. He guideth you unto His Straight Path. Purify your hearts with the Kawthar of God’s utterance, the Lord of all worlds. Nothing escapeth His knowledge. He doeth what He willeth and ordaineth what He pleaseth. He is the Almighty, the All-Powerful.

Thus hath the Tongue of Grandeur spoken in the kingdom of utterance, and that which was hidden and treasured in God’s knowledge, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed, hath been revealed. And We have desired to mention at this time thy daughter, as a grace from God, the Lord of the Mighty Throne. O My handmaiden! Take the chalice of utterance in My Name and drink therefrom, despite every people that hath been heedless and turned away from God, the Lord of the Day of Judgment. Blessed art thou for having attained unto My call and for having had thy name flow from My Most Exalted Pen, whereby God quickeneth His servants and handmaidens and remembereth them in His wondrous Book. We make mention of thy sister as a mercy from God, the Mighty, the Great, and We give her glad tidings of that which hath been ordained for her from the Ordainer, the Ancient of Days. We make mention of him who is named ʿAli-Akbar and We beseech God, blessed and exalted be He, to preserve him through His hosts, to draw him nigh unto Him, and cause him to speak His beautiful praise.

O ʿAli-Akbar! When thou hast heard and drunk the choice wine of revelation from the hand of My bounty, say: Glory be unto Thee, O my God! All praise be unto Thee for having remembered me in Thy Most Great Prison, and all thanksgiving be unto Thee for having guided me unto Thy Most Straight Path. I beseech Thee by the light of Thy Cause and the fire of Thy Lote-Tree to aid me in the service of Thy Cause. Verily, Thou art the Powerful over whatsoever Thou willest. There is none other God but Thee, the All-Forgiving, the All-Bountiful.

O Hasan! Upon thee be My glory! We have turned unto thee at this hour and revealed for thee that which hath diffused the fragrance of the All-Merciful throughout all creation, that thou mayest rejoice and be of the thankful ones. Grieve not over the world and its vicissitudes. Turn with thy heart unto God, the Lord of the worlds. Verily He preserveth His loved ones and remembereth them in that whereby their names shall endure throughout the perpetuity of His firm and wise Cause. The splendor that shineth from the horizon of My loving-kindness be upon you, O My loved ones, and upon those who are with you and have believed in God, the Almighty, the All-Knowing, the Bestower, the Generous.

We have desired to make mention of him whom thou didst mention, who was named Abu-Talib, that he may be assured that He is the One Who hath power over whatsoever He willeth, through His mighty and great Name.

O Abu-Talib! The Wronged One hath turned unto thee from the precincts of the Prison and revealed for thee that which hath caused the hearts of them that are nigh to soar. When thou perceivest the fragrance of My utterance, say:

“My God, my God! Praise be to Thee for having guided me unto Thy path and made known to me Thy way. I beseech Thee by Thy Name which Thou hast made the sovereign of all names, and by Thy Command which hath encompassed all things, to ordain for me that which shall make me steadfast in Thy love and eloquent in Thy remembrance. Verily, Thou art God, the Single, the One, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. And I beseech Thee by that which lieth with Thee to protect me and my family from the croaking of those who have denied Thy proof and Thy testimony, who have disputed Thy signs and cast aside Thy laws. Verily, Thou art the Strong, the All-Conquering, the Almighty.”

And We make mention of him who was named Nasru’llah and counsel him with that which shall exalt his station in this resplendent and luminous spot. We have mentioned thee before, and thy father who hath ascended unto the Supreme Companion, with verses that all the treasures of the heavens and earth cannot equal. O Nasru’llah! God hath come with manifest sovereignty. Beware lest the doubts of the ignorant prevent thee from drawing nigh unto God, the Lord of the worlds. We testify that thy father attained unto that which most of the servants have not attained in the presence of thy Lord. All things are recorded in a mighty tablet. We were with him at the time of his ascension, and We cleansed him with the ocean of Our forgiveness, which hath encompassed those who have drawn nigh and those who are near. Be thou steadfast in the Cause and hold fast unto His firm cord.

Thou shouldst at all times fix thy gaze upon the Truth and remain firm on His path. The world hath neither permanence nor faithfulness. We beseech God, exalted be He, to ordain for thee that which shall cause thee to be enkindled with the fire of His love and illumined by the lights of His countenance. Verily, He is the Compassionate, the Generous. The glory from Us be upon thee and upon thy family and those with thee who have drunk the choice wine of steadfastness from the hand of the bounty of God, the Forgiving, the Merciful.

As to what thou didst mention regarding His Holiness Anis, upon him be the light of God and His glory and His might and His praise, the Truth, in which there is no doubt, beareth witness. We testify that he aided the Cause of God throughout the nights and days and guided the people unto the straight path. Upon him be My light and My glory, and upon the dear one who cast aside idle fancies and took hold of the Book of God with such power as was not weakened by the hosts of the heedless. O Nasru’llah! Thy mention hath been made before the Wronged One. We beseech God to aid thee to be steadfast. By the Sun of Truth which shineth from the horizon of the heaven of the Prison, the station of steadfastness is great and mighty in the sight of God. Blessed is the servant who holdeth fast unto it, and woe unto him who turneth away therefrom. Say:

“Praise be unto Thee, O my God, for having illumined my heart with the light of Thy knowledge and adorned my temple with the ornament of Thy love. I beseech Thee by Thy signs and their mysteries, and by the Sun of Thy Name and its lights, to ordain for me that which Thou hast ordained for Thy loved ones. Verily, Thou art the Almighty, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.”

O Pen! Make mention of him who hath been named Muhammad-Taqi, who hath attained unto My remembrance and My traces and My Tablet wherefrom hath shone forth from its horizon the luminary of My loving-kindness. We beseech God to assist him to serve His loved ones and to make mention of His chosen ones, and to show humility at the mention of His Name, the Mighty, the Luminous. Verily he hath attained, time after time, as doth the Mother Book testify in this exalted station.

BH00574: Can anyone through My power and sovereignty set aside…

He is the One Who stands through grace and speaks through justice!

Can anyone through My power and sovereignty set aside that which is other than Me and take up that which is commanded in My Book—the Book at whose revelation from the heaven of My Will the Mother Book itself bowed down in submission? Is there any that hath ears to hear My most sweet call raised from the Most Exalted Horizon in the Prison of ʿAkka? Is there any wielding power and dominion who can, by My command, take My Tablet through a sovereignty that hath encompassed existence and a power that hath encompassed all created things?

O Husayn, upon thee be My glory! This is the day of supreme joy, for the Mount of God hath become a resting-place and Sinai hath been blessed to hear the utterance of the Lord of the Manifestation. Say: O people! The pavilion of Divine glory hath been raised in the most exalted station, and the banner of “Verily I am God” hath been hoisted upon the highest mountains. Deprive not yourselves! The sources of idle fancies and vain imaginings have ever, throughout the ages and centuries, brought upon the Daysprings of Revelation and the Dawning-places of the Cause that which is recorded and inscribed in the Books. Blessed are they that perceive and blessed are the fair-minded! Say: O people!

Fear God and follow not the doubts of the suspicious ones. This is the day of the blessed word “the Day when mankind shall stand before the Lord of the worlds.” This is the day when the chosen ones and the pure in heart weep and lament at His separation, while all beseech to attain His presence from the Peerless Bestower of Bounties. Know ye the value of this supreme bounty. He is the heavenly sustenance and the true Promised One Who was heralded and promised in God’s Book, both before and after. Behold the sea and its waves, the light and its effulgence, the sun and its radiance, and the Tree and its fruits!

By the life of God! I have had no purpose save your guidance. From the earliest days until now I have been encompassed by countless afflictions, and all who are on earth bear witness to what hath been mentioned. Yet the deeds of the heedless souls have deprived them of sincerity and purity. O Husayn! Thou hast ever been blessed with grace. We beseech God to assist thee to become a manifestation of sanctity and holiness, that thou mayest efface the books of idle fancies and vain imaginings through the counsels and admonitions revealed in the Tablets. Say:

My God, my God! Withhold not Thy servants from the ocean of Thy bounty, nor from the effulgences of the light of the Sun of Thy grace in Thy days. O Lord! They are Thy servants and Thy creation. If Thou shouldst chastise them, none can say “Why?” or “Wherefore?”, and if Thou shouldst forgive them, verily Thou art the Most Merciful of the merciful, and Thou art the Compassionate, the Bountiful, the All-Generous, the Mighty, the Gracious.

Let fragrant breezes from the revelations waft upon the friends and gladden them. All are remembered in the presence of the Wronged One and are recipients of His grace. That which is essential and binding today is unity and harmony. We beseech God to unite their hearts, to draw them nigh unto Him, and to acquaint them with that which will exalt them in all the worlds of His worlds. Verily He is the Lord of the world and the Master of nations. He doeth what He willeth and ordaineth as He pleaseth. There is none other God but He, the Almighty, the Powerful.

The splendor shining from the horizon of the heaven of My loving-kindness be upon thee and upon those who have laid hold on the Book of God with such strength as the hosts of the heedless and the cawing of the calamitous could not weaken. Praise be to God, the True King, the Manifest.

We wish to make mention in this exalted station of him who was named Farajullah, that this remembrance and utterance may draw him to the station of true knowledge and bring him near unto God, the Lord of all worlds. O thou who art mentioned in the presence of the Wronged One! We have manifested the Cause and revealed verses in such measure that pens are powerless to reckon them and souls are incapable of comprehending their limits. We have made known to all that which shall preserve and profit them. Verily thy Lord is the Forgiving, the Bountiful.

Say: O people of the Bayan! Fear ye the All-Merciful. He hath come through Whose name the gates of grace, bounty and bestowals were opened before the faces of all who are in earth and heaven. Fear God and follow not the oppressors who have denied God’s proof and evidence, disbelieved in His signs, remained heedless of His sovereignty and turned away from His holy and glorious countenance. Take thou the cup of My utterance from the hand of My bounty, then drink from it in My Name, the Self-Subsisting over all who are in the heavens and on earth, and say:

My God, my God! Praise be to Thee for having guided me to the Dawning-Place of Thy signs and the Dayspring of Thy clear tokens, and for having sent down for me that which endureth through the everlastingness of Thy dominion and Thy realm. I beseech Thee by Thy sovereignty which hath encompassed all created things and by Thy command which hath surrounded all existence to make me steadfast and firm in Thy love and Thy Cause. Verily Thou art the Powerful, the Mighty, the All-Bountiful.

O Qa’im-ud-Din! Upon thee be the glory of God, the Lord of all worlds. Cast aside what the people possess and take what hath been revealed in My perspicuous Book. Verily it will preserve thee, aid thee and bring thee near unto God, the Mighty, the Praiseworthy. Say: O people! Judge fairly by God concerning that which hath appeared in truth and be not of the heedless ones. He Who was promised in the Book of God hath come, Who was hidden in knowledge and concealed from the eyes of those who denied the Day of Judgment. Arise to serve My Cause by My command and be not of them that hesitate. We have opened before thy face the gates of knowledge with the key of utterance that thou mayest thank thy Lord, the Compassionate, the Bountiful.

By the life of God! The Glory (Baha) desireth naught but that which profiteth the servants. The Lord of creation beareth witness unto this. Blessed is he who hath inhaled the fragrance of the garment and hath attained to the recognition of this resplendent and luminous Light. When thou art seized by the rapture of utterance say:

Praise be to Thee, O my Lord, the All-Merciful, for having turned toward me from the direction of Thy Prison and remembered me with that which nothing that changeth or perisheth can equal. I testify that Thy favor hath encompassed existence and Thy mercy hath preceded the seen and the unseen. There is none other God but Thee, the All-Wise, the All-Knowing. My God, my God! Illumine my heart with the light of Thy knowledge and brighten my sight with the splendor of Thy countenance. Then inscribe for me from Thy Most Exalted Pen that which befitteth Thy grace and bounty and beseemeth Thy manifestation in Thy days. Verily Thou art the Almighty, the Powerful, the All-Bounteous.

O Pen of Eternity! Make mention of him who hath been named Shaykh-before-Muhammad, that he may inhale the sweet savors of the utterance of his Lord and be numbered with them that have prospered. O Shaykh! By the life of God! The eye of creation hath not witnessed the like of this Day, wherein the Lord of the worlds hath ascended the Most Great Throne and hath spoken that which hath enraptured Sinai, saying:

“Blessed be the spot of earth that hath been ennobled by Thy footsteps and adorned by Thy mighty throne.”

O Muhammad! Reflect upon the party of old. For years they prided themselves before all people in making mention of the Successor and the like. Yet when the light of Revelation illumined the horizon of the Bayan, they all rose in opposition and committed that from which all peoples of the world would dissociate themselves. Now again, similar parties have emerged who cling to names while being cut off from their Source, their Sovereign, their Sender and their Quickener. Thus have their souls enticed them to that which hath caused every discerning soul to lament.

Say: O people of the Bayan! We were formerly of the Shi’ih. Now ye should reflect upon its fruits and consequences. Yea, when the Just Imam appeared, the pen of that treacherous and deceitful party was manifest, and on the Day of Judgment both high and low—that is, the learned and the ignorant—all gave the verdict to shed His most pure blood, and now too they occupy themselves with cursing and reviling the Truth from their pulpits. Say: O people of the Bayan! It is incumbent and obligatory upon every soul to protect the servants of God from former suspicions and fancies, lest perchance such parties raise anew the standard of tyranny in the land. Say: Fear God, O people, and be not of the wrongdoers. Cast aside suspicions and fancies, and turn ye unto this resplendent, gleaming, manifest and brilliant Light. Thus hath My Most Exalted Pen warbled in this luminous thicket, from God, the Lord of all men. Blessed is he who hath heard and seen, and woe unto the heedless. The glory from Us be upon thee and upon them who have cast away all else save God and have turned unto Him, the Object of the knowledge of the mystics.

O Yahya! The Book hath come. Take hold of it with the power given thee by Us, in spite of every obstinate tyrant. Verily We have manifested that which was hidden from time immemorial and stored in the knowledge of God, the Mighty, the All-Praised. Say: O concourse of men! The Day hath come wherein He Who conversed with God hath seated Himself upon the throne of Revelation and the Herald hath called out from every direction:

“Dominion and Kingdom and Power and Glory belong to God, the Lord of the mighty throne!”

Say: O people of the Bayan! The horizons have been filled with the signs of your Lord, the King of the Day of the Covenant. Fear ye the All-Merciful and be not of them that hesitate. Arise to serve the Cause and be not of the ignorant. Those who have turned away from the Countenance are indeed in manifest loss. Blessed art thou, O Yahya, inasmuch as the Lord of the Kingdom of Names hath made mention of thee in the prison of ʿAkka, a bounty from His presence, and He is the All-Bountiful, the Most Generous.

O Husayn! Upon thee be the Glory of God! We have, on this blessed day when the realities of all things are in joy and delight through their encounter with the Lord of Names, made mention of the loved ones. Give them the glad-tidings of My remembrance of them, then recite unto them in such melodies as will draw unto them the hearts of the world. Verily thy Lord is the Speaker, the Rememberer, the Compassionate, the Forgiving, the Merciful. Make mention of My loved ones on My behalf, remind them of My verses, and illumine them with the lights of the kingdom of My wondrous utterance. We beseech God, blessed and exalted be He, to draw them nigh unto Him, to aid them in exalting and raising high the Word amongst His servants, and to record for them in His mighty Book the recompense of those who are sincere. The Glory shining forth from the horizon of the heaven of My loving-kindness be upon thee and upon My loved ones who have not cast behind them My covenant and My testament, and whom names have not prevented from turning toward the heaven of My recognition. Verily thy Lord is the Giver, the Munificent, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

BH00570: Praise be to God, the One Who stands without…

He is the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting! Blessed and exalted be His station!

Praise be to God, the One Who stands without decline, Who endures without transition, Who transcends all description and utterance, Who is sanctified from all peers and likenesses. The essence of His being cannot be comprehended by minds, nor can His reality be attained. The sun of His power is exalted above setting, and the sovereignty of His Cause is sanctified from decline and obscurity. He it is through Whose Most Great Name the world has been conquered and through Whose most perfect and complete proof the nations have been encompassed. None can resist His bidding, none can stay His judgment, none can frustrate His decree, and none can oppose His will. He has illumined existence with the lights of knowledge and understanding, and has kindled within the visible world the lamp of wisdom and utterance. Through this has He guided His servants to the source of guidance, and transformed them from the left hand of rancor and opposition to the right hand of fellowship and unity. His power has ever been triumphant, His might ever-subduing, His dominion ever-manifest, and His glory ever-resplendent. He ordains whatsoever He willeth and decreeth whatsoever He pleaseth. He is the Mighty, the Peerless.

O my God, my Lord, my Support, my Hope and my Trust! How can I make mention of Thee, when I behold Thee sanctified above all remembrance? How can I describe Thy power, when I see Thee exalted above all minds and thoughts? How can my feeble cry ascend to the court of Thy mighty power, and how can my weak, abject praise rise to the heaven of Thy sovereign strength? What befits me in my weakness and poverty to describe Thy Being, O Master of the Kingdom of might and power, or to define Thy Self, O Sovereign of the Realm of glory and grandeur? With what tongue shall I invoke Thee that it may be worthy of the court of Thy supreme majesty, and with what utterance shall I describe Thee that it may befit the threshold of Thy grandeur and power?

I am bewildered, and the knowers are bewildered; I am perplexed, and those who describe Thee are perplexed; I am astonished, and those who praise Thee are astonished. By Thy glory, O my Hope, before the kingdom of Thy power I see in myself naught but sheer impotence, and in the face of the sovereignty of Thy permanence, utter evanescence. My mention of Thee and my rising to praise Thee are but in obedience to Thy command and in submission to Thy decree. Otherwise, what am I in my poverty to stand forth in remembrance of Him Whose name is exalted above all mention, and Whose command transcends all description and thought?

I beseech Thee, O Lord of existence and King of the secrets of the seen and unseen, to manifest in the contingent world that which shall rend asunder the veils of the veiled, remove the imaginings of the doubters, and transform through might the weakness of the wavering ones, and through assurance the agitation of the fearful ones. Thou hast, O my God, revealed Thy Cause, sent down Thy decree, made clear Thy path, and set forth Thy proof in such wise that were anyone to be fair, he would find no refuge save in turning to Thee, and would see no shelter save in entering Thy presence, in acknowledging Thy oneness and confessing Thy singleness. Yet due to the weakness in the hearts of Thy servants and their fear of the malice of the oppressors and the antagonists, none have turned to Thee save those whose hearts Thou didst create from the tablets of power and assurance, and whose heads Thou didst adorn with the crowns of knowledge and understanding.

I beseech Thee by Thy hidden Name and Thy treasured Secret to lift from all eyes the veils of doubt and suspicion, that every seeing one may behold Thee seated upon the throne of glory and grandeur, and every discerning one may see Thee established upon the seat of power and loftiness, and may perceive the signs of Thy manifestation in Thy days, and may know the mysteries of Thy Cause in Thy time, and may follow Thee in that which Thou hast commanded through Thy grace in Thy firm Book and decisive Speech. Strengthen, O God, Thy loved ones who have turned to the horizon of Thy Cause, who have detached themselves from all else but Thee, and who have arisen to serve Thee in such wise as to exalt their stations in Thy dominion and kingdom and to elevate their remembrance in Thy realm and heaven.

Preserve them, O God of existence and King of the seen and unseen, from the evil of those who have forgotten Thee and have removed themselves from the precincts of Thy nearness, and adorn them every day, nay every moment, with the robes of Thy grace and the mantles of Thy bounty, and give them to drink of the pure water of nearness and reunion, and the sweet spring of meeting and attainment in the day of return. Verily Thou art the All-Bountiful, the Generous, the Self-Sufficient, the Most Exalted.

O thou who art immersed in the ocean of love and who hast ascended unto the atmosphere of the knowledge of thy Lord, the Possessor of all creation! There hath reached this servant that whose exterior was adorned with the traces of ink and whose interior with the subtleties of love and unity. From its hidden allusions I perceived the degrees of thy turning unto thy Lord, the Lord of all creation, and from its veiled symbols I recognized the stations of thy humility and lowliness before the presence of the Divine Unity. Blessed art thou and blessed is he whose pen hath moved in such wise as to diffuse the fragrance of sincerity and of turning unto his Lord, the Mighty, the Most Exalted.

And blessed be the spirit of him who hath arisen to serve the Cause of his Lord, the Lord of Names, and who hath conveyed unto the seekers that whereby they have attained the shore of immortality, detached from the vicissitudes of the realm of mortality. By thy life! I behold nothing more exalted than teaching the Cause, nor do I witness any bounty sweeter than it. Would that my Lord, the Most Glorious, might enable me to raise aloft the standards of His Cause among all created things, and would that I might turn towards the lands to spread the signs of my Chosen Lord and to guide the seekers unto the paradise of the knowledge of God, the Mighty, the All-Forgiving.

God knoweth that I have never ceased to beseech Him for success and confirmation in this righteous Cause, and I implore Him to facilitate all affairs and remove the obstacles that have arisen from the deeds of the evil ones. The Cause is in His hands—He ordaineth whatsoever He willeth for whomsoever He pleaseth, and He is the Mighty, the Praiseworthy.

O thou who art beloved! When I beheld thy letter and pondered thy words, I presented myself at the Court of Glory and mentioned thee before the countenance of thy Bountiful Lord. Thereupon the ocean of grace surged and the fragrance of generosity was wafted, and there issued forth from the Source of Bounty that whose fragrance hath perfumed the world. His Word, exalted be His utterance and magnified His favor:

He Who is established upon the Throne of Proof

O ʿAli-Akbar! Upon thee be My glory and My loving-kindness. Praise be to God, thou hast attained unto the splendors of the lights of presence and hast dwelt for a time beneath the pavilions of grandeur. At every moment the Supreme Pen is engaged and occupied in counsels and admonitions. The ocean of utterance is surging and the sun of proof is shining and manifest before all faces. Nevertheless, the people remain lost in the dark dust of idle fancies and are deprived and forbidden from the outpourings of the Day of God. Idle fancy is a dust that preventeth the eye from beholding, and vain imaginings are a barrier that hindereth from the truth. We beseech God that He may, through the hands of might, remove that which hindereth in these days.

Through wisdom and utterance—by thy life—the hosts of wisdom have been and ever shall be victorious. We beseech God to confirm the loved ones of that land in that which is befitting. Today all must gather up the carpet of their own desires and hold fast unto the Will of God, and fix their gaze upon that which will cause the elevation and exaltation of God’s Cause. After thy return, numerous Tablets were sent, and in every Tablet were concealed the oceans of grace and loving-kindness, of knowledge and wisdom. Blessed are they that drink therefrom, and woe unto the heedless. Say:

My God, my God! Aid Thy loved ones in that which will cause Thy Cause to be exalted, and ordain for them from the wonders of Thy bounty that which will attract them unto Thee and draw them nigh unto Thy court and remind them of Thy verses and kindle them with the fire of Thy love. Verily Thou art the All-Bountiful, the Mighty, the Powerful.

Convey the greetings of the Wronged One to the friends and illumine all with the lights of God’s grace. The Glory be upon thee and upon those who are with thee and who hearken unto thy words concerning this Cause, whereby the hearts of all things were troubled and the pillars of all beings were shaken, save those who cast the world behind them and turned unto God, the Protector, the Mighty, the Great, the All-Powerful.

Praise be to God, thou hast in all conditions been the recipient of the favors of the Beloved, the Most High, and hast been honored by His grace. It behooveth thee to thank Him at all times and to arise to mention and praise Him amongst the peoples of the world.

Regarding the answers to the questions which thou hadst written about: Some days after thy departure, one copy of the aforementioned questions, together with the answers to thy questions, was sent in the handwriting of Zein, upon him be the Glory of God and His grace, for thy sake. Surely it must have reached thee and thou must have perused it. Likewise, certain other questions were submitted and answers were revealed; a copy of these also will be sent—append them to the previous parts.

Furthermore, mention and glorify Haji M.H., upon him be the Glory of God, who attained the presence with thee, with wondrous and sublime remembrances from this servant. We beseech God to strengthen him at all times and to ordain for him that which is best with Him. Verily, He is the Generous, the Bestower.

As for the Bookbinder who was engaged in service in this land for about a year, and was blessed with divine bounties and was granted permission to return—it was decided that he would occasionally write and send news of conditions. A letter was received from him after his departure, but after his arrival in the land of T, no further letter from him has been observed. An answer to that letter was sent, but its receipt is not yet known. Remember and glorify him with wondrous remembrances from this servant, and inquire about his circumstances. His services and labors are ever before our sight and remembered. We beseech God to ordain for him every good thing He has promised to His loved ones in His Book.

Regarding the volume of Persian Tablets thou hadst written about, its sending depends upon permission and will. The copy of the Blessed Tablet which thou hadst requested will certainly be sent if it is found. Finally, remember and glorify the friends with wondrous and sublime remembrances. We beseech God to ordain for thee every good thing decreed in His Book and to protect thee beneath His shadow from the evil of the wicked among His creatures. The Spirit and Glory be upon thee, upon thy family, and upon the steadfast servants of God. Praise be to God, the Lord of the worlds.

BH00573: He it is Who hath moved all creation…

He it is Who hath moved all creation by the finger of His command!

A remembrance from the Remembered One to him who hath turned with his heart, confessed with his tongue, heard with his ear, and arisen with his feet to the remembrance of God and the service of His Cause in days wherein the Herald hath called out in all directions:

“The Self-Subsisting hath come with the Kingdom of verses and His sealed nectar!”

Beware, O people of the earth, lest ye deprive yourselves of the most pure nectar which the hands of the bounty of your Lord, the Ordainer, do proffer. Draw nigh with radiant faces, then drink thereof in His Name, the Mighty, the Loving. Thus hath the ocean of proof surged before all religions when the Pen of God, Lord of what was and what shall be, moved. Say: Fear ye God, O people, and follow not your desires. Follow Him Who hath come to you with the Tablet of proof and the Kawthar of utterance, then drink thereof through My remembrance, the Mighty, the Inaccessible.

O Zein! Upon thee be the Glory of God, His mercy and His loving-kindness. The Most Great Branch hath appeared before the countenance of the Lord of mankind and mentioned thee. We have remembered thee with that whereby the hearts of the Concourse on High were attracted, and the dwellers of the Most Exalted Paradise and the Supreme Heaven. Blessed is he who hath heard and recognized, and woe unto every heedless and veiled one.

O Zein! By My life and My Cause, every letter revealed from My Most Exalted Pen proclaimeth with the most loud voice in the kingdom of creation:

“O concourse of earth and heaven! Open your eyes, for the Chosen One hath come with a sovereignty before which the sovereignty of the world cannot stand, and with a Command which the hosts of the nations cannot withhold.”

To this testifieth every fair-minded one and every just one who hath spoken the truth concerning this Cause, whereby the limbs of all names have quaked and the heart of every heedless one who hath denied God, the Protector, the Self-Subsisting, hath been convulsed.

O Zein! There hath come before the Wronged One a leaf sent by one of My servants who heard My call and turned toward My direction. He was named Hasan by the tongue of Grandeur in this praiseworthy station. Give him glad tidings from Me and remind him of My verses. Say: O Hasan! Rejoice that thy mention hath flowed at this moment from the Pen of God, the Lord of the worlds. He hath sent thee from the palm tree of utterance the fresh dates of knowledge, and from the Tree of the Mount the melody of God, the Powerful, the Mighty, the Beloved. By My life! If thou wouldst hear with thine ear, it would cry out and say:

“O people of earth and heaven! By God, the regions have been perfumed by the fragrance of utterance wafted from God, the Lord of existence. Cast the rejectors behind you and turn to the Word which, when it shone forth from the horizon of the heaven of the Pen, caused those at the Mount to swoon upon the ground of extinction, save whom God willed, the Lord of the Frequented House.”

O Hasan! Behold and then mention what the tongues of the rejectors have uttered in this Promised Day. The Most Great Announcement hath come unto them, whereby the Books of God, both past and future, were adorned with verses that have filled the horizons and with evidences that have erased the traces of discord, yet most of the people perceive not. They have cast the sea behind them, sporting with the pond, and they understand not. Say: O people of Baha! Counsel the servants through deeds and character. This is what ye were commanded aforetime by God. Fear God and be not of those who see and deny. Say: Hear the call of God with your ears, then behold the Light shining from the horizon of the Cause with your eyes, nay rather with the eye of God, the Lord of the unseen and the seen. Verily, My Herald—upon him be My glory, My loving-kindness and My mercy—commanded all to look upon My verses with My eye, yet the people turned away from what he said and took for themselves a path to tyranny.

We have desired at this time to mention those whom thou didst mention, that the attraction of this remembrance might seize them in such wise that neither the ornaments of the world nor the wealth of kings and subjects shall withhold them.

O Muhammad! We have turned toward thee at this hour and make mention of thee in truth, as thy name was present before the Wronged One. When thou dost inhale the fragrance of My utterance from the direction of My prison, say:

My God, my God! Thy call hath attracted me, Thy grace hath guided me, Thy bounty hath given me to drink, and Thy generosity hath encompassed me. I beseech Thee, O God of the world and Creator of nations, by Thy Most Great Name through which the fire of hatred was kindled in the breasts of the deceivers while the light of the Cause shone in the hearts of them that know, and by the Word at whose appearance all the books of the world submitted to it, to ordain for me through Thy All-Knowing Pen that which shall remain with me in every world of Thy worlds. Verily, Thou art powerful over whatsoever Thou willest, and within Thy grasp are the reins of all affairs.

We make mention at this moment of thy brother as a grace from Us, and verily We are the All-Bountiful, the Most Generous. The glory from Our presence be upon thee and upon him and upon thy spouse and upon them that are with thee among the people of Baha who were not hindered by the intimations of the heedless nor by the power of those who disbelieved in the Day of Judgment.

We make mention at this moment of him who was named Siyyid Ali, that the breezes of My revelation may attract him and draw him nigh unto My glorious and wondrous Kingdom. O Ali! Hear the call from the direction of ʿAkka. Verily it hath been raised in truth from One Who is All-Knowing, All-Informed. We beseech God to inscribe for thee the reward of attaining His presence and standing before His countenance and arising to serve His wondrous Cause, and to aid thee in that whereby thy mention and thy name shall endure in His perspicuous Book. By the life of God! The Wronged One loveth to meet His loved ones, but the oppressors have intervened between Me and them and have committed that which hath caused the Faithful Spirit to lament. When thou drinkest the choice wine of My praise from the hand of My bounty, say:

My God, my God! The wine of Thy utterance hath intoxicated me and the Kawthar of Thy knowledge hath attracted me. I beseech Thee by Thy Name through which the Speaker of the Mount spoke forth and the decree of resurrection appeared and the people of the graves arose, and by Thy standing and sitting, and by the breezes of Thy revelation and the sending down of Thy verses, to ordain for me the reward of those who have sought Thy station and circled round Thy throne and hearkened unto Thy call and beheld Thy horizon. O Lord! Thou seest the poor one hath sought the ultimate goal and the wronged one the manifestations of Thy justice, O Lord of all being and Sovereign of the throne on high and of the dust below. I beseech Thee to ordain for me that which shall make me steadfast in Thy Cause and firm in Thy love and acting according to what Thou hast sent down in Thy Books. Verily Thou art the Powerful One Who, when Thy power is manifested, doth erase the traces of the world’s power, and when the Sun of Thy Will doth shine forth, the wills of all nations are struck dumb. There is no God but Thee, the Powerful, the Mighty, and worthy to answer prayers.

He is the Compassionate from the horizon of the Prison.

O Muhammad! The letter of the honored Siyyid Muhammad, glory be upon him, was presented before the Wronged One and was granted audience. Praise be to God that he hath repeatedly attained unto the divine verses. Today every word that appeareth from the Dayspring of God’s Will concerning His sincere ones and those near unto Him shall endure for as long as the kingdom of earth and heaven endureth. O Muhammad! God willing, thou shalt hold fast unto wisdom and utterance and occupy thyself with teaching the Cause of God. Today the ocean of verses surgeth, and the heaven of proof is adorned with the stars of evidence, and from the heaven of the All-Merciful’s grace the rains of utterance and meaning have descended in such measure that those who circle round are unable to reckon them. Nevertheless, the deniers have spoken that which no oppressor hath ever spoken, to such extent that in Our presence one occupied himself with leading astray a heedless soul from the straight path. Thus do We recount unto thee what hath befallen Me at the hands of the heedless ones.

Say: O deniers! Like the former people, deprive not yourselves of the effulgent lights of the Dayspring of Revelation. Rend asunder the veils in the name of Truth and shatter the idols of vain imaginings with the arm of certitude. How long will ye worship fancy and until when will ye pursue vain imaginations? Today the breezes of God are wafting and the fragrances of revelation are diffused, and the tongue of utterance speaketh before the faces of all who are in the realm of being. Leave and take up—leave that which is with the people and take up that which cometh from the horizon of the heaven of God’s bounty. Today the fruits of the furthermost Tree are visible, the Mount is speaking in praise of the Lord of Revelation, and the Tree circleth round the House. Blessed is he who is fair in the Cause of God, and woe unto them that hesitate.

We make mention at this hour of him who is named Ali, that he may give thanks unto God, the Lord of the mighty throne, and We make mention of Our loved ones in Kha and Ra, and verily I am the Forgiving, the Merciful.

O Muhammad! We have made mention and continue to make mention of all the loved ones, and We counsel them to manifest supreme steadfastness. For twelve hundred years the people of Persia prided themselves over other religions through mention of the Successor, yet when the Dayspring of God’s Will and the Dawning-Place of divine light—through Whose word the realm of mystical knowledge, successorship and imamate was and is created—shone forth from the horizon of purpose, all assailed Him with the spears and arrows of hatred and rancor, and at last martyred Him. Until now they have not understood the station of the Day of God. Say: By the life of God! This is the Day wherein the Primal Point uttereth “I am the first of the worshippers” and the seat of the Throne is the point round which circle the Concourse on High.

Say: Have mercy on yourselves and choose not eternal torment through love of fancies and idle imaginings. For the sake of God have We spoken and continue to speak, and for His sake do We summon all to the supreme horizon. Say: O people! Know with clear certainty that until ye pass beyond the river of names, ye shall not attain unto the ocean of meanings. This is a word that was hidden in the treasuries of My Most Exalted Pen, and We have revealed it in truth and sent it forth with justice. Blessed is he who hath heard and said: “I believe in God, the Possessor of the seen and unseen.”

Repeatedly hath this word flowed from the tongue of grandeur: “Blessed are the people who understand.” We beseech God to assist His loved ones that they may remind the people through their deeds and character, and guide them to the momentous News. The glory from Us be upon him who hath heard the call and said: “Yea, yea, O Lord of Names! Yea, yea, O Lord of mankind! Here am I, here am I, O Master of the Throne and earth, and Sovereign of the hereafter and the former days!”