BB00660: Salavat-i-Hayakil-i-Tis’ati ’Ashar

Glorified art Thou, O my God! Send down Thy blessings upon the First Temple, that with all Thy beauty it may be the most resplendent of Thy splendours; with all Thy majesty the most august of Thy majesties; with all Thy comeliness the most beauteous of Thy forms; with all Thy greatness the most mighty of Thy grandeurs; with all Thy light the most luminous of Thy lights; with all Thy mercy the most encompassing of Thy mercies; with all Thy words the most perfect of Thy utterances; with all Thy perfection the most complete of Thy perfections; with all Thy Names the most exalted of Thy Names; with all Thy might the most glorious of Thy powers; with all Thy will the most effectual of Thy behests; with all Thy doings the most consummate of Thy acts; with all Thy power the most far-reaching of Thy potencies; with all Thy sayings the most acceptable of Thy speeches; with all the things asked of Thee the most loved in Thy sight and the most securely treasured in Thy presence; with all Thy honour the most honoured of Thy honours; with all Thy sovereignty the most enduring of Thy dominions; with all Thy kingdom the most illustrious of Thy realms; with all Thy tokens of glory the loftiest of Thy tokens—

And with whatsoever pertaineth unto Thee of Thy most beauteous Names, inviolable and inaccessible, and Thy most exalted similitudes, uplifted and supreme; by all the good which Thy knowledge hath encompassed. Verily, Thou hast ever been knowing of all things, and Thou hast ever been powerful over all things.

Then repeat this, making mention of the Temples one by one with the very formula revealed for the First Temple. Say, for example:

Glorified art Thou, O my God! Send down Thy blessings upon the Second Temple, that with all Thy beauty it may be the most resplendent…

and so continue in like manner unto the Third Temple, and so forth, until thou reachest the Ninth and Tenth Temple. Then say at the end of the Temples:

Glorified art Thou, O my God! Send down Thy blessings upon the Ninth and Tenth Temple, the gathering-place of the Temples, that with all Thy beauty it may be the most resplendent of Thy splendours; with all Thy majesty the most august of Thy majesties; with all Thy comeliness the most beauteous of Thy forms; with all Thy greatness the most mighty of Thy grandeurs; with all Thy light—Thy light—the most luminous of Thy lights; with all Thy mercy the most encompassing of Thy mercies; with all Thy words the most perfect of Thy utterances; with all Thy perfection the most complete of Thy perfections; with all Thy Names the most exalted of Thy Names; with all Thy might the most glorious of Thy powers; with all Thy will the most effectual of Thy behests; with all Thy knowledge the most fully realized of Thy knowings; with all Thy power the most far-reaching of Thy potencies; with all Thy sayings the most acceptable of Thy speeches; with all the things asked of Thee the most loved in Thy sight and the most securely treasured in Thy presence; with all Thy honour the most honoured of Thy honours; with all Thy sovereignty the most enduring of Thy dominions; with all Thy kingdom the most illustrious of Thy realms; with all Thy tokens of glory the loftiest of Thy tokens—by whatsoever pertaineth unto Thee of Thy most beauteous Names, inviolable and inaccessible, and Thy most exalted similitudes, uplifted and supreme; by all the good which Thy knowledge hath encompassed. Verily, Thou art knowing of all things and Thou hast ever been powerful over all things.

O my God! Place me, and these Temples, within Thy shelter and Thy safeguard, Thy cave and Thy stronghold, Thy protection, Thy succour, Thy care, Thy guardianship, Thy covering, and the veil of Thy might; that I may not behold, on the part of Thy creatures, nor they behold, aught that Thou wouldst not have any of Thy loved ones behold. For Thou hast not been pleased that even a thought of grief should rise within the heart of any of Thy faithful servants—how much less that it should be heard and spread abroad—and how much more so on the part of such as seek aught short of this or beyond it!

O God! By Thee have we sought sufficiency—then suffice us. By Thee have we sought refuge—then shelter us. By Thee have we sought protection—then protect us. By Thee have we sought to be preserved—then preserve us. By Thee have we sought a sure stronghold—then hold us fast therein. By Thee have we sought victory—then grant us victory. By Thee have we sought a fortress—then fortify us against whatsoever Thou lovest not for any of Thy friends.

O God! This is the Day of Friday, on which there hath now elapsed, since first Thou didst reveal Thyself, the number of the letter waw in years, then of the dal in months, then of the dal in days. How many a time hast Thou borne witness, in my regard, unto joy from Thee! Unto Thee be praise alone; there is none other God but Thou. And how many a time hast Thou borne witness, with respect to me, unto sorrow!—and that hath been from Thy creatures, that which Thou hast not loved and not been pleased with; and Thou wilt assuredly question me concerning that which I have done.

O God! Guard all who are in the Bayan with Thy guarding—from before them and from behind them, on their right hand and on their left, from above their heads and beneath their feet, and from every side to which aught may reach them—through the angels of the heavens and of the earth and of whatsoever lieth between them.

Send down into their hearts guidance and certitude, and into their bodies piety and truth. Keep them safe that they differ not regarding Thy marvellous works, but strive in Thy good-pleasure and in the dawning-places of Thy revelation; and that they may be assured that Thou hast ever been living before all things, living after all things, living with all things, living before Thou didst create life, and living after Thou hast taken it back; that Thou hast ever been abiding through the abiding of Thy being, and everlasting through the eternity of Thine Essence.

I have worshipped none but Thee, and have desired none beside Thee. If there be any good, it is from Thee alone—no God is there but Thou; and if aught short of this appear, let it not be ascribed unto Thee.

O God, I do verily exalt Thee above every exaltation wherewith I have exalted Thee, and I exalt Thee still. I do hallow Thee above every hallowing wherewith I have hallowed Thee, and I hallow Thee still. I do glorify Thee beyond every glorification wherewith I have glorified Thee, and I glorify Thee still. I do magnify Thee above every magnification wherewith I have magnified Thee, and I magnify Thee still. I do revere Thee beyond every reverence wherewith I have revered Thee, and I revere Thee still. I do extol Thee beyond every extolling wherewith I have extolled Thee, and I extol Thee still. I do praise Thee above every praise wherewith I have praised Thee, and I praise Thee still. I do thank Thee beyond every thanksgiving wherewith I have thanked Thee, and I thank Thee still. I do worship Thee with that worship whereof Thou art worthy; and I will assuredly cut myself loose unto Thee in that manner which beseemeth the dawning of Thy Face and the robe of Thy Manifestation.

Wherefore, do Thou, O God, guard the fruit which Thou hast made to appear in the Bayan, and cause Thy proofs therein to return unto it in such wise as Thou lovest and art well-pleased with, according to the pattern of Thy command and the exaltation of Thy remembrance, in whatsoever manner Thou willest and as I myself willest.

Cause Thou, O God, the Tree of the Bayan to grow, even until the Day of Him Whom Thou wilt make manifest; and in the opening of every sixty and six years do Thou, O God, make to appear a Temple from among the Temples of the One, that Thy paths in the Bayan may be uplifted, and that they may receive what Thou hast decreed from the dawning-places of Thy revelation in the Bayan, until the day whereon Thy heaven and Thine earth and whatsoever lieth between them shall be illumined by the Manifestation of Him Whom Thou wilt make manifest.

For all creation can never suffice in His stead, whereas He, through Thy sufficiency, sufficeth for all. Do Thou then suffice me, O God, with Him, and thereafter with the Thrones of Thy manifestations, unto the last that hath no last—just as Thou hast sufficed me, in former times, with the thrones of the un-stagnant waters of Thy manifestations from the first, that first which hath no first.

And do Thou, O God, exalt the Tree of the Bayan through that power wherewith Thou art invested, O Thou the Possessor of might and dominion, O Thou the Lord of glory and of clear proof!

Forgive me, and all who are in the Bayan, whatsoever Thou lovest not; and inscribe for me, and for all who are in the Bayan, whatsoever Thou lovest. For if Thou art indeed as Thou art, Thou art the most generous of the generous.

That night, in the Day of Manifestation, hasten then to attain the Manifestation of God; for after the rising of the Sun it is no longer lawful to seek sustenance through what thou hadst been given before, or to draw nigh by means of what thou hadst done aforetime.

Examine, then, thine eye with the truest examination in this matter, and purify thy sight with the purest purification therein; lest haply thou be veiled, and die, and enter the Fire, without His Manifestation ever crossing thy heart—after that God hath made thee to hear His signs.

Consider the people of Jesus—peace be upon Him—how, when He who was promised them came with guidance and clear proofs, and a thousand and some two hundred and seventy years had passed, they remained until then in the fire of veiling. They had heard of the appearance of Muhammad, the Messenger of God, yet they gave no heed, nor did their souls attain certitude that He was indeed the One promised unto them.

Even so, if thou attain unto Him Whom God shall make manifest and findest any soul from among the people of the Qur’an, I shall assuredly beseech that He cause all who are upon the earth to enter that supreme Ridvan and that most ancient Paradise, that none may remain in the Fire. Yet this shall not come to pass save through your own selves, if ye but know, and not through any outward sight.

On the Day of Him Whom God shall make manifest, the angels shall not be sent down from heaven, nor shall the earth be made to swallow up its people. Nay rather, ye yourselves shall be the manifestations of victory and of appearance, the dawning-places of glory and of jealous might; that He may not be exalted above you without increase, whilst ye remain in your dwellings, humbly beseeching.

For example: when thou desirest to be provided, doth sustenance descend upon thee from the sky, or come forth from the earth? Nay, God provideth for thee from the treasuries of His creation, whether by thine own self or by thy brother. After this manner, then, shalt thou recognize all thine affairs.

Beware, however, that thou look not unto any one save God. For if mention be made of others, they are not changed thereby: God is He Who createth all things and provideth for them; Who causeth all things to die and bringeth them to life; Who aideth every servant and exalteth him through the manifestations of command and creation.

These are your realities, your identities, your souls, your “I-nesses”—even though ye see them not, whilst ye look unto God.

And if, in the night-season, all the guides be living in the chambers of their gardens, rejoicing upon the couches of holiness in the presence of their Lord, it behoveth thee not to remain veiled from the seats of the One, so far as thou art able to find any way thereunto; that haply thou mayest become familiar with one of them, and on the Day of Resurrection hear his word and be guided by that which they convey from Him Whom God shall make manifest.

And whenever thou dost humble thyself before them, and showest meekness in their presence, that shall verily profit thee on the Day of Resurrection as an added recompense for the Day of Friday.