BB00108

Part 1: “Ye believe and are certain in the Unity…”

…Ye believe and are certain in the Unity, and God hath singled out the Point of the Bayan with His verses and then this science, which is the greatest proof from God, a knowledge for all the worlds, would ye but reflect upon it. All are powerless before the first, and none have encompassed knowledge of the second save after what We have revealed in the Book, and ye shall act according to what God hath taught you thereafter.

When the years of your children reach the number of eleven, ye shall teach them this science as a bounty from God, that they may be grateful. And ye shall write the temple of Unity and preserve it as ye desire. All of these are eleven units from the Names which ye write in nineteen temples, and whatsoever ye desire to add. And be ye certain that all began from the first temple and unto it shall all return.

(in tabular form) 1—Wahid—Mahbub—Bidavi—Jazal—Ilah—Majid—Hish—Basit—Vazi’—Muluk—Haqq—29—36—48—60—220—84—96—108

2—Halik—Qavi—Din—Hasib—Basit—Vali—Masik—Hamid—Hafif—Fanis—Kharif

3—Madil—ʿAqd—Vazi’—Mukabbir—Huda—Madaf—Munif—Hariz—Mubir—Farah—Shaydur

4—Baqi—Kabir—Fazi’—Ni’am—ʿIlm—Qasab—Qarfasam—Farah—Musavvir—Farif—Katib

5—ʿAlim

6—Qayus

7—Sarif

8—Raydur

9—Mubir

10—Qasman

11—Raziq

12—Musavvir

13—Rayfu’

14—Nasran

15—Katab

16—Hatm

17—Sayravi

18—Rashad

19—Fatil

And God preserveth those who are in the Bayan from differing in a matter, for God loveth not differences.

Know with certainty that the differences in each Manifestation are like the differences in that Manifestation, such as the differences between Moses and Jesus in their Manifestation, and this is what the people truly read in their religion. And perhaps the differences are parts of the Manifestation, just as Moses was divided into seventy-two sects, and Jesus likewise, and the community of Muhammad similarly, and verily each one of them was true in their manifestation.

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

Blessed is He Who sendeth down, upon whomsoever He willeth, the Spirit of the Cause. Be at ease, and fear not: verily God, thy Lord, is Forgiving, Grateful; and there is none other God but He. He hath caused the Book to descend by His command, that men may learn the ordinance of their Lord, the All-Merciful, in every inscribed letter; and We, in truth, bestow the wondrous judgment upon whomsoever We will of Our servants, according to a measure ordained.

Convey, O thou exalted man, the Message in every condition; for, this day, all shall be brought to appear before the mention of the Name of thy Lord. Whoso followeth Our verses, and striveth on the Day of the First—these have We confirmed—such are they that shall attain. But as for those who followed the command of God, yet went not forth from their dwellings for the sake of the covenant of God’s Remembrance, their works shall not profit them, and they are in manifest error. Sufficient is this Book as a proof for him who desireth to believe in the signs of God and be of them that bow down. And say: Praise be to God, the Lord of the worlds.

The Messenger of God—may the blessings of God be upon Him and His kindred—hath said: “We have not worshipped Thee with the worship Thou dost deserve, nor have we known Thee with the knowledge Thou dost merit.” And his descendant, ʿAli ibn al-Husayn—peace be upon them both—hath said in the Dawn Supplication (in the portion wherein he maketh mention of the summary concerning the return): “O my God! By Thy might and Thy majesty and by Thy greatness: were I, from the day Thou didst originate me, to worship Thee from the beginning of time with a worship enduring through the everlastingness of Thy lordship—were every hair, in every blink of the eye, to offer Thee, unto eternity, the praise of all created things and their gratitude altogether—yet should I be found wanting in the discharge of thanksgiving for the hidden blessing of but one of Thy favors unto me.”

And he saith, in substance: “And were I to crush the mines of the world’s iron with my body, and to till its earth with the lids of mine eyes; and were I to weep, for fear of Thee, tears abundant as the heavens and the earth—supplication and blood—this would still be little beside the great right Thou hast over me.” And he addeth: “And were it that Thou, O my God, shouldst punish me thereafter with the punishment of all created things together, and shouldst increase the fire behind me and within my body, and shouldst fill the layers of Gehenna because of me, that in the fire there might be one tormented other than myself, and that there be no fuel for Hell but me—this would yet be, by Thy justice toward me, but little compared with the abundance of what Thy pardoning-kindness hath made incumbent.”

And ʿAli—peace be upon him—hath said (ascribed here as the “Pillar”): “I have not worshipped Thee for fear of Thy fire, nor for longing after Thy paradise; rather did I find Thee worthy of worship, and therefore worshipped Thee.” Such is the station of his servitude—may the blessings of God rest upon him. Nay, the very secret of the Cause is that every hair of their bodies, in all states, voiced the like.

And the Proof, Muhammad ibn al-Hasan, the Lord of the Age—peace be upon them both—hath said in the Friday supplication (some words here being uncertain):

“O my God, my Master and my Lord! By Thy greatness and Thy majesty: Thou art the Intended One, and Thou art the Worshipped—none beside Thee, O my God. The paths of severance have caused me to utter … and in the ways of inviolability … signs … Glory be to Thee, O my God: Thy Manifestation is more manifest than all things, that I should point to aught beside Thee; and Thy love is sweeter than all knowing, that I should stand in need of knowing other than Thee. Glory be to Thee, O my God: I have believed in Thee as Thou art—Thou art; and I repent of myself and of all that is before the worlds, as Thou art—Thou art. I have fled, O my God, with my whole being unto Thee, and cast … unto Thee. I possess nothing before Thee: if Thou punish me with all Thy power, Thou art most just in judgment; and if Thou ennoble me with all good, Thou art the Lord of bounty and bestowal; and verily Thou art independent of all the worlds.”

And thus is the station of contentment unto God, the One, the Single. And he saith (in meaning):

“O my Master: thus have I reached Thee; and I found only, in knowledge, severance from all beside Thee. I sought Thy love, and found it only by effacing all that is other than Thee. I sought obedience unto Thee, and found it only in the love of Thy loved ones.”

Glory be to Thee, O my God! There is no knowledge save Thee—Thou alone, without partner. Thou, O my God, knowest our evil deeds—none but Thee. I seek forgiveness for all that which Thou lovest not; and I call upon Thee in every state with the tongue of Thy inspiration, as Thou willest. And Thou art the Self-Sufficient, peerless beyond compare.

Part 2: “There is no God but Thee. Glorified be…”

There is no God but Thee. Glorified be Thou above the descriptions of them that liken Thee unto created things—exalted, exceeding high.

…words… from the beginning… of the jurists… in the Rida’i Visitation, upon him and his seven fathers and his four sons be the prayers of God:

“O Sovereign Bestower! I am the fugitive, with my whole being—my oneness and the very essence of my praise—hastening unto Thee. Had not Thy Lord encompassed my unity, it would have been better for me; for, before I affirmed His oneness, I bore but a single fault; but after I affirmed His oneness, it is as though I had committed every fault—since His very remembrance is a sin… and I have acquired every guilt; and my remembrance of myself—of the remembrancers—is a sin… amidst seven… whose groaning… Therefore there is no escape save… and today is the first… for, within Thee, there remaineth not… its pillars… in Thy annihilation. Nor is there any flight but that I take refuge in Thy court. There is no remembrance save His remembrance; no glory save His glory; no praise save His praise; no loftiness save His loftiness; no nearness save His nearness; no manifestness save His manifestness; no hiddenness save His hiddenness. Therefore hath God commanded all to return unto Thee, to come before Thee, to confess Thy guardianship, to arise in obedience unto Thee, to cleave to the cord of Thine infallibility, and to gaze upon the lights of the effulgence of Thy Countenance—O my Master—and the mercy of God and His blessings…”

…sin and conjunction… sin… and grace between them, and union between them… and the gaze… from…? (Signature of Haji Rafi’ …) to this… sin… from its extremities and …? …sin… sin—then those refused…? …the last of the supplications: “Ya Hu.”

Glorified art Thou, O my Beloved! I knew not that I was heedless, and that all beside me was mad—how is it that I behold some who neglect Thy remembrance and take delight in other than Thee, and build up the world though they know it shall pass away? Some worship Thee for what Thou givest them; some ask Thee for the needs they desire; some abandon the world and sever themselves from its pleasures, yet forsake Thy good-pleasure in the world to come; some obey Thee out of fear; some worship Thee out of love; some affirm Thy unity because Thy oneness is nobler than all things; and some remember Thee because Thy remembrance is more manifest than every remembrance.

Yet when I look closely upon their souls and lift the veil from their deeds, I see them as associators in Thy sight, far removed from Thy nearness—for even the greatest of them is he who loveth Thy remembrance because it is clearer than all things… whereas He Himself is like unto nothing, and in truth he worshippeth but himself, granting it its portion, and making… for his need… a resting-place… Glory be to Thee! Is one like Thee to be sought for…? How far astray are men: they ask their own selves and forget Thy greatness… They ask of Thee their wants, though they know that all beside Thee is naught in Thy presence… and that what is not turned toward Thee, and what asketh Thee for that which perisheth in a few brief days—how can it befit the world without end in its totality…?

Glory be to Thee, glory be to Thee! By Thy might… I know not by what path I should remember Thee, nor by what proof I should keep silence before Thy Countenance… I stand before Thee and say what Thou hast taught me: “I commit my affair unto God; verily God seeth His servants.” …It was sent down upon me upon that mountain… wrote the truth… Thou knowest them better than I. Grant, O God, unto each of the seven… what they desire in… for Thou art the Munificent, and…

The difference is the measure of two letters—how then beyond that? Yet We have sent down at the beginnings of the differences words firm and clear, whereby shall the veiled be raised up—and also the people of unveiling and discovery shall see all these as from a single Tree: at its summit it calleth out, from God its Lord, “Verily there is no God but I, the All-Glorious, the Most Glorious!” and at its lowest degree it crieth of itself, “Verily I am the least of every small thing!” and between the two its degrees are beyond counting—each by the command of God; and all, by His command, make mention.

Then, then… the tahlilat of the first of every month and its last. It behoveth not him that is able to read to abandon them; and whoso reciteth, God shall bestow upon him, for every letter ghayn, two-and-fifty degrees in Ridvan:

“There is no God but God”—as many as all that He hath created and will create. “There is no God but God”—as many as all that He hath brought forth and will bring forth. “There is no God but God”—as many as all that He hath originated and will originate. “There is no God but God”—as many as all that He hath ordained and will ordain. “There is no God but God”—as many as all that He hath been and will be. “There is no God but God”—as many as all that He hath decreed and will decree. “There is no God but God”—as many as all that He hath … and will … “There is no God but God”—as many as all that He hath willed and will will; “There is no God but God”—as many as all that hath gone forth and will go forth; “There is no God but God”—as many as all that He hath determined and will determine; “There is no God but God”—as many as all that He hath formed and will form; “There is no God but God”—as many as all that He hath verified and will verify; “There is no God but God”—as many as all that He hath found and will find; “There is no God but God”—from the first that hath no first, as many as every number; “There is no God but God”—unto the last that hath no last, as many as every sun of truth that hath risen or shall rise.

In the Name of God, the Most Unassailable, the Most Holy.

God hath borne witness that there is none other God but He. His are creation and command: He giveth life and causeth death, causeth death and giveth life; and He is the Living Who dieth not. In His grasp is the dominion of all things. He createth what He willeth by His command; verily He is powerful over all things.

Then bear thou witness that there is none other God but He, the All-Watchful, the Self-Subsisting; and that He is the True One Who standeth—He in whom all are promised. So give thanks unto your Lord, the All-Merciful, at every moment—before every moment and after every moment.

…Write not part of the Tablet… a remembrance from God, the Most High… thereby… it shall not be manifested by God on the Day of Resurrection—then shall ye remember… God… Mighty… Most Exalted… Strong… Sovereign… King… All-Watchful…