BB00291: Letter to Tahirih (Maku)

In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate

All praise be to God Who creates whatsoever He willeth through His grace—glorified and exalted be He above all that they describe. O my God! I bear witness before Thee and before those who bear witness in Thy presence that in this Book I testify that there is no God but God, alone without partner, even as He hath testified of His Own Self unto His Own Self, and sanctified His Own Being above any likeness to aught else beside Him. He is as He is in the glory of His Being, the majesty of His Essence, the beauty of His Self, and the sanctity of His Identity. None knoweth Him save Himself and none can comprehend His unity save He, for His Essence is the Eternal Essence which by its very Being transcendeth the knowledge of all created things beyond the station of understanding, and severeth all contingent beings from the plane of utterance. He is exalted above all peers and likenesses, and He is the Ancient, the Most High.

How then, O my God, can I praise Thee in the station of attributes and the manifestation of the garments of the Countenance of Thine Essence, and Thy signs in the kingdom of names and attributes, when I see no way for myself toward the sanctuary of Thy might, nor do I behold any proof in the manifestations of the signs of Thy Lordship? For all besides Thee point to naught save the station of Thy creation, and are limited by their own limitations in the realm of Thy dominion. Glorified art Thou! Exalted art Thou! Thou art the Most High, Who hath no attribute besides Thine Essence and no description besides Thy Being. All names refer to the station of creation and all attributes to the station of origination. Thou art far more glorious than that I should say of Thee “Thou art He and He is Thou,” for all such are but limitations of creation and descriptions of servants.

Thou hast ever been without mention of aught else beside Thee, and wilt ever be without reference to aught other than Thyself. Now Thou art as Thou hast ever been—none knoweth how Thou art save Thou Thyself. All descriptions of the describers are but pure sin in Thy knowledge, and all mentions of those who make mention are but sheer falsehood in Thy Book, for none can describe Thee as Thou art except Thyself, and none can praise Thee save Thee. All speak only of their own powerlessness and poverty before the sanctuary of Thy might.

Thou art He Whom manifestations do not alter and to Whom the creation of contingent beings brings no association. All things, in their abstract and material stations, demonstrate their severance from association and testify to their inability to attain. Glory be to Thee and exalted art Thou! Thou art nearer to everything than itself, and Thou art exalted above all things. Creation with all its conditions does not change Thee, nor does anything become distant from Thee in its stations.

O my God! Thou seest my position and witnesseth my inner being. Nothing in the heavens or earth is hidden from Thy knowledge. Thou art God, the Self-Sufficient, the Most High. O my Lord! I testify that all besides Thee, should they desire to know Thy Essence and attain to the station of Thine eternity, are veiled from beholding the manifestations of Thy Countenance’s glory and from arriving at the holy precincts of Thy mercy.

When the light of Thy face descended from the world of Command and reached the station of creation, all things assumed their stations, prostrating before Thy face, speaking in praise of Thy Being, pointing to the station of Thine Essence, giving thanks for Thy favors and praising Thy bounties. Glory be to Thee, O God, and exalted art Thou! How can I enumerate the praises of the Manifestations of Thy holiness, the revelations of the signs of Thy oneness, and the appearances of Thy greatness—Muhammad and his family, the best of Thy servants, Thy chosen ones, whom Thou didst select for Thyself, approve for Thy knowledge, specially choose for the station of Thy authority, fashion for the manifestation of Thy mercy, and elect for the station of Thy oneness? Thou hast made them the pillars of Thy unity, the interpreters of Thy revelation, the manifestations of Thy Self, and the signs of Thy sovereignty. Thou hast removed all distinction between Thee and them in the station of guidance unto Thee, such that all behold in the station of their knowledge Thy knowledge, in the station of their love Thy love, in the station of their manifestation Thy manifestation, and in the station of their concealment the sovereignty of Thy power.

Glory be to Thee! Glory be to Thee! Thou art exalted above the description of all save Thyself and sanctified beyond the praise of all except Thee. None can know Thee as befitteth Thine essence, nor can any servant describe Thee as beseemeth Thy reality, for verily it is the ancient and pure Being which, by its very nature, indicateth separation and beareth witness to its distinction from all else. Glory be to Thee and exalted art Thou! Thou Who art unique in the sovereignty of Thy might above all comparison, and sanctified in Thy divine oneness above all likeness. Thou hast brought creation into being through Thy grace, not through any merit, and Thou forgivest them, if Thou wishest, on the Day of Meeting.

I beseech Thee, O my God, in this my station, to bless Muhammad and his family, and to bestow upon me and upon all who love Thee every good thing encompassed by Thy knowledge, though I deserve not any portion thereof—through Thy grace and bounty, through Thy honor and favor, even as Thou didst bring me into being aforetime when I was nothing. I beseech Thee, O my God, to ordain for her who hath humbled herself before Thee, and for Thy loved ones who are content with Thy decree and patient under Thy trials—Thy handmaiden whose hands are filled with the signs of Thy inspiration—that she may spend in Thy path, as Thou willest and however Thou willest, whatsoever Thou lovest and art pleased with, without limit in measure or restraint in purpose. Verily, Thou art powerful over whatsoever Thou willest, and unto him who calleth upon Thee, Thou art the Hearer, the Answerer. And I declare, as revealed in the Qur’an: Glory to thy Lord, the Lord of Honor, above what they ascribe to Him! And peace be upon the Messengers, and praise be to God, the Lord of all the worlds.