BB00225: Ziyaratu’l-Avval (in honor of Mulla Husayn)

In the Name of God, the Most Unapproachable, the Most Holy

Praise be to God, beside Whom there is no other God, He Who hath ever been and shall everlastingly be. And verily all glory from God be upon the Primal Unity until all mention endeth and until all matters are transformed night after night.

And now, when thou desirest to pluck the virgin fruits from the gardens of Paradise and observe the effulgent lights of the Countenance of Unity, then purify thine inward and outward being. Dost thou know from what? From every mention that is not of Him Whom God shall make manifest on the Day of His Manifestation. For thou mayest perchance manifest and purify thine inward and outward being, yet in the sight of God be in the fire and pay no heed to it. Therefore sharpen thy vision and refine thy sight lest the Day of Resurrection come upon thee while thou art veiled. And before that, purify thine inward being from all who are not of the Bayan, for that is a hill which calleth unto that which is other than God, and thy outward being according to what hath been revealed therein by whatever means thou art able.

For in that Manifestation, God loveth naught as He loveth the manifestations of essence, grace, beauty and purity—not through washing in water, but through making it refined and more refined, then subtle and more subtle, if thou art able to find a way thereto. Otherwise, content thyself with thy recognition of God and His commandments, rather than with that to which thou findest no way. For God sufficeth thee above all things, while nothing sufficeth above God, thy Lord. And grieve not in the Bayan, for God desireth to behold thee in joy and gladness, in delight and exaltation, except in circumstances decreed in the Book. It is as though I behold Him Whom God shall make manifest, exalted be His mention, smiling in all His conditions when He beholdeth no grief that would grieve His heart, for that is the attribute of those who are tested and the way of those who are alone.

When thou hast done this, then glorify God once at the First Gate, twice at the Second Gate, thrice at the Third Gate, four times at the Fourth Gate, and five times at the Fifth Gate. There seek permission from God and all His creation, and enter in humility, pledging that shouldst thou attain unto Him on the Day of Resurrection, thou wilt act likewise with Him; otherwise it will profit thee not, for His Manifestation on the Day of Resurrection is mightier than His previous Manifestation. And look not upon earthly conditions save by God’s command alone, for perchance thou shalt find Him on the Day of Resurrection in exaltation, and perchance thou shalt find Him in abasement. Make not this thy proof, but make the Word of Him Whom God shall make manifest thy path. For verily I have counseled thee with that which shall deliver thee on the Great Day in the presence of God, if thou desirest to be among those who are delivered.

Then stand before the man and say: “God, there is no God but He, the Most Glorious, the Most Glorious. His is all that is in the heavens and the earth and whatsoever is between them, and whatsoever is above the heights and below the depths. The All-Merciful is established upon the Throne. Before Him boweth down whatsoever is in the heavens and the earth and whatsoever is between them, and every thing is brought low. And unto God belong the most beautiful names.

O Primal Point! How shall I make mention of Thee before God, Thy Lord, the Lord of the highest heavens and Thy Lord, the Lord of the lowest earths, and Thy Lord, the Lord of the Hereafter and of the former time, and Thy Lord, the Lord of Paradise, the Abode, and Thy Lord, the Lord of the mighty horizon, and Thy Lord, the Lord of the Lote-Tree beyond which there is no passing, and Thy Lord, the Lord of the most exalted pavilion, and Thy Lord, the Lord of the Most Glorious Books, and Thy Lord, the Lord of ʿor nearer,’ and Thy Lord Who created Thee, then established Himself upon the Throne, then drew nigh, and hath chosen Thee for Himself, then was well-pleased. O Thou Who art My Glory in the highest heavens! O Thou Who art My Good-Pleasure in the lowest earths! O Thou Who art My names in the first life! O My light in the highest horizon! O My glory at or nearer!

I have created thee and made thee a supreme sign, chosen thee and made thee the highest paradise. I bear witness to what those created before thee by thy most exalted command have witnessed, and I know what has been decreed for thee by all those of low degree. I bear witness to those who have fulfilled thy remembrance in the highest heights, then ascended with thee into the most glorious cloud. I shall not promise thee any reward less than what thou hast witnessed in the path of God through the greatest sign, for that is the ultimate end in the first life and the next creation.

Those who have veiled themselves from thee have no recourse like what they have earned in thy remembrance, though they were created to prostrate before thee in the Hereafter and in this world. I have not created the highest paradise for those who have recognized thee and then ascended by thy command to the Most Glorious Source except that I shall remember them through My greatest signs. This is what all things shall remember them by from this day until the Most Exalted Day—the day when God shall manifest the sign of His most exalted countenance.

He shall surely raise thee by His word from thy resting place with a mighty, most glorious life. Thou shalt witness what the dwellers of the heavens and earth and all between them remember through thy most exalted remembrance. Thou shalt surely answer those who remember thee with the most hidden call:

“Fear not, neither grieve, for I shall raise thee unto God if thou followest Me on the Day of Resurrection through what thou hast answered from God.”

Then be content and remember those who have been raised unto thee to God, the Possessor of most beautiful attributes. They have entered the highest paradise and settled upon silken carpets at or nearer, drinking from ruby cups wine that neither intoxicates nor clouds the mind, partaking of fresh meat and whatever their souls desire in the most glorious seats, elevated upon their thrones while angels stand before them to remind them of what was revealed in Our greatest verses.

They recline with their houris who were created from the light of their Lord upon the highest dune—their very hair remembering that there is no God but Him, the Most High, the Most Exalted. It is as though they were created from the spring of living rubies, all of them floating like mirrors wherein naught can be seen save the face of their Lord, the Mighty, the Most Glorious. Before them are most exalted open books which they gaze upon, rejoicing in what God hath sent down to them.

This is what God, thy Lord, hath granted thee in the greatest station and sent down to thee in the highest paradise. How dost thou see those who have veiled themselves from meeting thee in the most glorious pavilion? Glory be unto Thee, O God! Thou art my Lord and the Lord of all that is on high and every lowest atom. Thou hast caused me to reach the horizon of what is possible in Thy knowledge through Thy most exalted grace. I have seen those who veiled themselves from My remembrance in the blazing fire, and I witnessed the nearest hour, then possessed the kingdom of the Hereafter and this world through what Thou hast bestowed upon me from Thy most glorious bounty.

I am indeed the first to worship Thee upon the earth when Thou didst cause me to hear Thy greatest verses. I shall surely bear witness, and all things with me, that there is no God but Thee, Lord of the seen and unseen. By Thy command hast Thou originated me, and unto Thee is the return and the end. Nothing in paradise remindeth me save what was sent down upon it of Thy most glorious bounty:

“Fear not, neither grieve, for thou shalt see what thou lovest and then be content.”

Verily God, my Lord and thy Lord, heareth the secret and the whisper. There is no God but Him, the Most Glorious, the Most Glorious.