XIX. To every
discerning and illuminated heart it is evident that God,
the unknowable
Essence, the Divine Being, is immensely exalted beyond
every human
attribute, such as corporeal existence, ascent and descent,
egress and
regress. Far be it from His glory that human tongue should
adequately
recount His praise, or that human heart comprehend His
fathomless
mystery. He is, and hath ever been, veiled in the ancient
eternity of
His Essence, and will remain in His Reality
everlastingly
hidden from
the sight of men. "No vision taketh in Him, but He taketh in
all vision;
He is the Subtile, the All-Perceiving."...
The door of
the knowledge of the Ancient of Days being thus closed in the
face of all
beings, the Source of infinite grace, according to His
saying, "His
grace hath transcended all things; My grace hath encompassed
them all,"
hath caused those luminous Gems of Holiness to appear out of
the realm of
the spirit, in the noble form of the human temple, and be
made manifest
unto all men, that they may impart unto the world the
mysteries of
the unchangeable Being, and tell of the subtleties of His
imperishable
Essence.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 46-47
The people of
Bahá burn brightly amidst the gatherings even as a candle
and hold fast
unto that which God hath purposed. This station standeth
supreme above
all stations. Well is it with him who hath cast away the
things that
the people of the world possess, yearning for that which
pertaineth
unto God, the Sovereign Lord of eternity.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 58-59
Glory be to
Thee, O King of eternity,
and the Maker of nations, and the
Fashioner of
every moldering bone! I pray Thee, by Thy Name through which
Thou didst
call all mankind unto the horizon of Thy majesty and glory,
and didst guide
Thy servants to the court of Thy grace and favors, to
number me with
such as have rid themselves from everything except
Thyself, and
have set themselves towards Thee, and have not been kept
back by such
misfortunes as were decreed by Thee, from turning in the
direction of
Thy gifts.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Prayers and Meditations, p. 47-48
Say, O followers
of the Son! Have ye shut out yourselves from Me by
reason of My
Name? Wherefore ponder ye not in your hearts? Day and night
ye have been
calling upon your Lord, the Omnipotent, but when He
came
from the heaven
of eternity in His great glory, ye turned
aside from Him
and remained
sunk in heedlessness.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 9
Great is the
blessedness of him who hath in this Day cast away the things
current amongst
men and hath clung unto that which is ordained by God,
the Lord of
Names and the Fashioner of all created things, He
Who is come
from the heaven
of eternity through the power of the Most
Great Name,
invested with
so invincible an authority that all the powers of the earth
are unable
to withstand Him. Unto this beareth witness the Mother Book,
calling from
the Most Sublime Station.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 48
Glorified be
my Lord, the All-Glorious! Thereupon she summoned unto
herself one
maiden from her handmaidens,
Glorified be
my Lord, the All-Glorious! And commanded her: "Descend
into
space from
the mansions of eternity,
-- Compilation,
Baha'i Prayers, p. 221
He came down
from the pavillions of beauty and stood like the Sun at the
zenith of heaven,
peerless and unique in His beauty.
Rejoice! This
is the Deathless Youth, come bearing great joy.
Thus He stood
in the midst of heaven, shining like the noonday Sun at the
axis of beauty,
His Name mighty! Thereupon a herald proclaimed: "
Rejoice! This
is the Beauty of the Unseen, come with a mighty spirit."
A clamor then
arose from the hearts of the maids of heaven in their
chambers, "Blessed
be God, the best of Creators!" Thereupon the dove
sang out,
Rejoice! for
the eyes of the privy angels have seen none like unto this
Deathless Youth."
The gates of
Paradise were flung wide yet again, opened with the key of a
mighty Name.
Rejoice! This
is the Deathless Youth, come with a mighty Name.
The Maid of
Beauty came forth, dawning like the sun, plain upon the horizon
of the morn.
Rejoice! This
is the Maid of Glory, come with a mighty beauty.
A brocade she
wore, dazzling the minds of the privy angels.
Rejoice! this
is the Deathless Maid, come with a mighty grace.
She descended
from the chambers of eternity, then She sang
such a song as to
enchant the
hearts of the sincere.
Rejoice! This
is the Deathless Beauty, come with a mighty secret.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Tablet of the Deathless Youth (provisional translation).
The sun has
risen over the sacred horizon, and the concourse on high has
been illumined
by its radiance. The scent of musk has diffused from the
knolls of sanctity,
perfuming the temples of pre-existence. Happy is he who
adorns himself
with these fragrances! The luminary of the Cause has risen in
the midst of
the sky, and has taken the form of a full moon, brilliant in
its whiteness.
Concourse of the near ones, seek to be illumined by its
splendor! Say:
The throne has been established behind the pavilion of
majesty, and
about it circle chaste maidens of beauty bearing flagons
brimming with
the water of life. Blessed is the person who attains to
sprinkled droplets
thereof. Say: The Maiden of Eternity
has uncovered Beauty
itself with
a gut-wrenching gaze. Blessed is the one who is struck by her
glance! Say:
The voice of God has been heard from the sanctuary of eternity,
and the hearts
of the mystic knowers have been enthralled by its melodies.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Surah of the Companions (provisional translation).
He is the Beloved One
[1] The Maid
of Eternity came from the Exalted Paradise;
Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, O Glad Tidings!
...
[8] This sweet
Davidic voice, from the Divine Lote-Tree--with
the Messianic
Spirit she came;
Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, O Glad Tidings!
...
[12] With the
joyful tidings of reunion this Divine Maiden
came from a
branch of the Tree of Blessedness;
Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, O Glad Tidings!
...
[16] This Eternal
Countenance, she came with snow-white hand
from the Divine
command;
Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, O Glad Tidings!
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Lawh-i Halih, Halih, Halih, Ya Bisharat (prov. translation)
He is the Mighty.
This is the
Garden of Paradise, wherein hath been raised the melody of God,
the Protector,
the Self-Subsisting. Wherein have been established the
maidens of
eternity whom none hath touched save God,
the Mighty, the Holy.
Wherein the
Nightingale of Eternity hath warbled upon the branches of the
Lote-tree beyond
which there is no passing, with a melody that hath filled
with astonishment
the minds of all men. Wherein is that which bringeth the
poor ones nigh
unto the shores of the ocean of wealth and guideth mankind
unto the word
of God. This, verily, is a manifest truth.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
The Tablet of the Bell (provisional translation)
In the name of God, the most holy, the most exalted.
Praise be to
Thee, O God, My God. I make mention of Thee at this time, when
the sun of
Thy Godhead hath risen from the horizon of the splendid divinity
of Thy oneness,
the lights of Thy lordship have flashed forth from the
dawning of
the ineffable encounter with the eternal kingdom of Thy
self-sufficiency,
and the darkness of this world hath been illumined by
the radiance
of the faithful realm of Thy cause--in such wise that the
garden of paradise
came into being above the essence of Thy glorious
selfhood. Therein
were planted the trees of Thy quintessence, which put
forth the fruits
of Thine essence, and therein wafted the breezes of Thy
spirit and
the breaths of Thy sanctity. Therein were foreordained the gems
of Thy bounties
and the substance of Thy munificence; and therein were
uncovered the
treasures of Thy knowledge and mystery. Over its terraces
flow the streams
of Thy glorious life, the canals of Thy radiant eternality,
and the springs
of the wine of Thine inaccessibility. When Thou didst
desire, O my
God, to manifest it, Thou didst raise it up to the throne of
grandeur and
greatness, embellish it with the rays of might and power,
render it effulgent
by Thine essence, and didst make to shine upon it the
sun of oneness
from the pre-eternal lights of Thy features. Thou
didst
light for it
the wick of eternity in the lamp of pre-existence.
Now, Thy
most exalted
decree hath come to the kingdom of command by Thy signature,
so that a visage
might appear therefrom, that the brilliance of Thy beauty
might be manifest
to all who dwell on earth, and that the glory of Thy
countenance
might be seen by all who are in the realm of Thy cause.
There arose
the houri [maiden], Who had dwelt in pre-eternity in the pavilions of
holiness, protection,
and glorification and in the canopies of sinlessness,
greatness and
splendor. Upon Her creamy brow the most high pen hath written
in crimson
ink, "Praise be to God! This is a houri [maiden] upon Whom none have
gazed save
God, the exalted, the most high. God hath purified the hem of
Her purity
from the knowledge of the concourse of names in the realm of
eternity, and
Her face from the view of all who are in the kingdom of
creation. When
She arose with the ornament of God from Her palace, She
looked with
one glance toward the sky. The people of the heavens swooned at
the rays of
Her visage and at the wafting of Her perfume. Then She looked
with another
glance toward the earth, and it was illumined by the lights of
Her beauty
and the loveliness of Her splendor.
...
Then the firmament
was illumined by the radiance of its light, contingent
beings were
made resplendent by its appearance and effulgence, and by its
rays infinite
numbers of suns dawned forth, as though they trekked through
heavens that
were without beginning or end. I became bewildered at the pen
of God's handiwork,
and at what it had inscribed upon Her temple. It was as
though She
had appeared with a body of light in the forms of the spirit,
as though She
moved upon the earth of essence in the substance of
manifestation.
I noticed that the houris [Maidens] had poked their heads
out of their
rooms [chambers] and were suspended in the air above
Her. They grew
perplexed at Her appearance and Her beauty, and were
entranced by
the raptures of Her song. Praise be to Her creator, fashioner,
and maker--to
the one Who made Her manifest.
Then she nearly
swooned within herself, and with all her being she sought
to inhale My
fragrance. She opened Her lips, and the rays of light dawned
forth from
Her teeth, as though the pearls of the cause had appeared from
Her treasures
and Her shells.
She asked, "Who art Thou?"
I said, "A servant
of God and the son of his maidservant."
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Tablet of the Maiden (provisional translation)
Arise thou to
serve the Cause and say: I swear by the righteousness of
God! Verily
this is the Primal Point, arrayed in His new attire and
manifested
in His glorious Name. He at present beholdeth everything from
this Horizon.
Indeed He is supreme over all things. Amongst the Concourse
on High He
is known as the Most Great Announcement and in the Realms
of
Eternity
as the Ancient Beauty, and before the Throne by this Name which
hath caused
the footsteps of them that are endued with understanding to
slip.
Say, I swear
by God! In this Revelation even before a single verse was
sent down from
the realm of holiness and sublimity, the supreme testimony
of God had
been fulfilled for all the inmates of heaven and the dwellers
on earth; moreover,
We have revealed the equivalent of whatsoever was
sent down in
the Dispensation of the Bayán. Fear ye God and suffer not
your deeds
to be rendered vain and be not of them that are sunk in
heedlessness.
Open your eyes that ye may behold the Ancient Beauty from
this shining
and luminous station.
Say, God is
my witness! The Promised One Himself hath come down from
heaven, seated
upon the crimson cloud with the hosts of revelation on His
right, and
the angels of inspiration on His left, and the Decree hath
been fulfilled
at the behest of God, the Omnipotent, the Almighty.
Thereupon the
footsteps of everyone have slipped except such as God hath
protected through
His tender mercy and numbered with those who have
recognized
Him through His Own Self and detached themselves from all that
pertaineth
to the world.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 182-183
This is a Tablet
sent down by the Lord of mercy that the people of the
world may be
enabled to draw nigh unto this Ocean which hath surged
through the
potency of His august Name. Amongst men there are those who
have turned
away from Him and gainsaid His testimony, while others have
quaffed the
wine of assurance in the glory of His Name which pervadeth
all created
things. A grievous loss hath indeed been suffered by those
that have inclined
their ears to the croaking of the raven, and refused
to hearken
unto the sweet warblings of the Bird of Heaven
singing upon
the twigs of
the Tree of eternity: Verily there is none
other God but Me,
the All-Knowing,
the All-Wise. This is the Day that hath been illumined
by the splendours
of the light of Our countenance--the Day around which
all days and
nights circle in adoration. Blessed is the man of insight
who hath perceived,
and the sore athirst who hath quaffed from this
luminous Fountain.
Blessed the man who acknowledgeth the truth, earnestly
striving to
serve the Cause of his Lord, the Powerful, the Almighty.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 261
With fixed and
steady gaze, born of the unerring eye of God, scan for a
while the horizon
of divine knowledge, and contemplate those words of
perfection
which the Eternal hath revealed, that haply the mysteries of
divine wisdom,
hidden ere now beneath the veil of glory and treasured
within the
tabernacle of His grace, may be made manifest unto you. The
denials and
protestations of these leaders of religion have, in the main,
been due to
their lack of knowledge and understanding. Those words
uttered by
the Revealers of the beauty of the one true God, setting forth
the signs that
should herald the advent of the Manifestation to come,
they never
understood nor fathomed. Hence they raised the standard of
revolt, and
stirred up mischief and sedition. It is obvious and manifest
that the true
meaning of the utterances of the Birds of
Eternity is
revealed to
none except those that manifest the Eternal Being, and the
melodies of
the Nightingale of Holiness can reach no ear save that of the
denizens of
the everlasting realm. The Copt of tyranny can never partake
of the cup
touched by the lips of the Sept of justice, and the Pharaoh of
unbelief can
never hope to recognize the hand of the Moses of truth. Even
as He saith:
"None knoweth the meaning thereof except God and them that
are well-grounded
in knowledge." And yet, they have sought the
interpretation
of the Book from those that are wrapt in veils, and have
refused to
seek enlightenment from the fountain-head of knowledge.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 16-17