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Chapter 76
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The two classes of Prophets -- Independent Prophets and Dependent/Lesser Prophets.
1)
The following passage on the two
classes of Prophets names Abraham, Moses, Christ, Muhammad, the Báb and
Bahá'u'lláh as "Manifestations of universal Prophethood" (Independent
Prophets). Solomon, David, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel are examples of
Dependent/Lesser Prophets. After it are a few more references on the Prophets.
THE TWO CLASSES OF PROPHETS
Question.--How many kinds of Prophets are there? Answer.--Universally,
the Prophets are of two kinds. One are the independent Prophets Who are
followed; the other kind are not independent and are themselves
followers.
The independent Prophets are the lawgivers and the founders of a new
cycle. Through Their appearance the world puts on a new garment, the
foundations of religion are established, and a new book is revealed.
Without an intermediary They receive bounty from the Reality of the
Divinity, and Their illumination is an essential illumination. They are
like the sun which is luminous in itself: the light is its essential
necessity; it does not receive light from any other star. These
Dawning-places of the morn of Unity are the sources of bounty and the
mirrors of the Essence of Reality.
The other Prophets are followers and promoters, for they are branches
and not independent; they receive the bounty of the independent
Prophets, and they profit by the light of the Guidance of the universal
Prophets. They are like the moon, which is not luminous and radiant in
itself, but receives its light from the sun.
The Manifestations of universal Prophethood Who appeared independently
are, for example, Abraham, Moses, Christ, Muhammad, the Báb and
Bahá'u'lláh. But the others who are followers and promoters are like
Solomon, David, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. For the independent
Prophets are founders; They establish a new religion and make new
creatures of men; They change the general morals, promote new customs
and rules, renew the cycle and the Law. Their appearance is like the
season of spring, which arrays all earthly beings in a new garment, and
gives them a new life.
With regard to the second sort of Prophets who are followers, these
also promote the Law of God, make known the Religion of God, and
proclaim His word. Of themselves they have no power and might, except
what they receive from the independent Prophets.
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p.165
It should first be noted that in one sense the stations of the Prophets
of God differ one from another. For instance, consider Moses [the Independent Prophet]. He
brought forth a Book and established ordinances, whilst a number of the
Prophets and Messengers [the Dependent/Lesser Prophets of Moses] who arose after Him were charged with the
promulgation of His laws, insofar as they remained consonant with the
needs of the age. The books and chronicles annexed to the Torah bear
eloquent testimony to this truth.
-- Baha'u'llah, Tabernacle of Unity.
Thereupon God sent Elijah the prophet [a Dependent/Lesser Prophet in the era of Moses] who redeemed the people, renewed the law of God and established an era of new life for Israel.
-- Abdu'l-Baha, Foundations of World Unity, p. 95
Among the great prophets was His Holiness Abraham who being an
iconoclast and a herald of the oneness of God, was banished from His
native land. He founded a family upon which the blessing of God
descended; and it was owing to this religious basis and ordination that
the Abrahamic house progressed and advanced. Through the divine
benediction, noteworthy and luminous prophets issued from the lineage
of His Holiness. There appeared Isaac, Ishmael, Jacob, Joseph, Moses,
Aaron, David and Solomon.
-- Compilations, Baha'i World Faith, p. 270
4:163. We have sent thee inspiration, as We sent it to Noah and the
Messengers after him; We sent inspiration to Abraham, Ismail, Isaac,
Jacob, and the Tribes, to Jesus Job, Jonah, Aaron, and Solomon, and to
David We gave the Psalms.
4:164. Of some Messengers We have already told thee the story; of others We have not; and to Moses [Independent Prophet] Allah spoke direct.
-- The Qur'an (Yusuf Ali tr), Surah 4
2)
The following passage on the
"station of pure abstraction and essential unity" of the Manifestations
of God includes Muhammad, Adam, Noah, Moses and Jesus, who are
Independent Prophets; and Ali [Imam Ali] and the Holy Imams, who are
Dependent/Lesser Prophets of Muhammad; all of whom "are all invested with the robe of Prophethood [are all Prophets]". In the next passage,
"prophethood", "messengership", "successorship" and "imamat" are used in reference to the Holy
Imams; who are Manifestations of God (Dependent/Lesser Prophets of Muhammad):
These Manifestations of God have each a twofold station. One is the
station of pure abstraction and essential unity. In this respect, if
thou callest them all by one name, and dost ascribe to them the same
attribute, thou hast not erred from the truth. Even as He hath
revealed: "No distinction do We make between any of His Messengers!"[1]
For they one and all summon the people of the earth to acknowledge the
Unity of God, and herald unto them the Kawthar of an infinite grace and
bounty. They are all invested with the robe of Prophethood, and
honoured with the mantle of glory. Thus hath Muhammad, the Point of the
Qur'án, revealed: "I am all the Prophets." Likewise, He saith: "I am
the first Adam, Noah, Moses, and Jesus." Similar statements have been
made by Ali [Imam Ali]. Sayings such as this, which indicate the essential unity
of those Exponents of Oneness, have also emanated from the Channels of
God's immortal utterance, and the Treasuries of the gems of divine
knowledge, and have been recorded in the scriptures. These Countenances
are the recipients of the Divine Command, and the day-springs of His
Revelation. This Revelation is exalted above the veils of plurality and
the exigencies of number. Thus He saith: "Our Cause is but one."[2]
Inasmuch as the Cause is one and the same, the Exponents thereof also
must needs be one and the same. Likewise, the Imams of the Muhammadan
Faith, those lamps of certitude, have said: "Muhammad is our first,
Muhammad our last, Muhammad our all."
[1 Qur'án 2:285.]
[2 Qur'án 54:50.]
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 152
At this time the breeze of God is wafted and the spirit of God hath
surrounded. The pen is withheld from motion and the tongue hath ceased
utterance. Briefly: In this station the declaration of divinity and the
like have appeared from them, while in the station of messengership
they have declared prophethood. Likewise in every station they have
made a declaration expedient thereto and have attributed all these to
themselves; (declarations) concerning the world of command, the world
of creation, the worlds of divinity, and the worlds of phenomena.
Therefore whatever they may say and claim, including divinity, deity,
prophethood, messengership, successorship, imamat or servitude is true
and without doubt. Consequently these proven statements should be
reflected upon, that no one may be overtaken in the sayings of the
Manifestations of the Invisible and Dawning-places of Holiness.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Bahá'í scriptures, p. 48
3)
In the following passage, David,
a Dependent/Lesser Prophet in the era of Moses, is named as one of
the Manifestations of God. Jesus is also named as a Manifestation of God
(an Independent Prophet).
None of the many Prophets sent down, since Moses was made manifest, as
Messengers of the Word of God, such as David, Jesus, and others among
the more exalted Manifestations who have appeared during the
intervening period between the Revelations of Moses and Muhammad, ever
altered the law of the Qiblih. These Messengers of the Lord of creation
have, one and all, directed their peoples to turn unto the same
direction.
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 51
4)
All Prophets (i.e. both Independent Prophets and Dependent/Lesser Prophets) are seated on the same throne. As
indicated in the next passage, Bahá'u'lláh (an Independent Prophet)
rules on the same throne as David (a Dependent Prophet in the era of
Moses). As indicated in the subsequent
passage, Jesus (an Independent Prophet) ruled on the throne of David (a Dependent Prophet in the era of Moses).
It is clear and evident to thee that all the Prophets are the Temples
of the Cause of God, Who have appeared clothed in divers attire. If
thou wilt observe with discriminating eyes, thou wilt behold them all
abiding in the same tabernacle, soaring in the same heaven, seated upon
the same throne, uttering the same speech, and proclaiming the same
Faith. Such is the unity of those Essences of being, those Luminaries
of infinite and immeasurable splendour. Wherefore, should one of these
Manifestations of Holiness proclaim saying: "I am the return of all the
Prophets," He verily speaketh the truth. In like manner, in every
subsequent Revelation, the return of the former Revelation is a fact,
the truth of which is firmly established. Inasmuch as the return of the
Prophets of God, as attested by verses and traditions, hath been
conclusively demonstrated, the return of their chosen ones also is
therefore definitely proven. This return is too manifest in itself to
require any evidence or proof.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 153
The Most Great Law is come, and the Ancient Beauty ruleth upon the throne of David. Thus hath My Pen spoken that which the histories of
bygone ages have related.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Proclamation of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 89
The obstacle which prevents the so-called religious man from accepting the teachings of God is literal interpretation.
Moses announced the coming of Christ. The Israelites were awaiting him
with the greatest impatience and anxiety, but when he came they called
him Beelzebub. "The conditions laid down in the Bible for the coming of
the expected one were not fulfilled," they said. They did not
understand that the conditions were symbolical.
For instance, it is written -- "He will come from an unknown place."
Jesus came from Nazareth. "How can this be the Messiah?" they reasoned.
"It is written -- he will carry an iron scepter, that is to say, his
shepherd's staff will be a sword. This man has no sword. It was
prophesised -- he will be seated on the throne of David; behold this
man has not so much as a mat whereon to sit. He was to spread the law of Moses; this man, on the contrary, seeks to destroy
it. How can he be the promulgator of God's law?" they scornfully
laughed.
It was prophesised that the east and west would be united under the
Jewish law; the animals would be at peace one with another; that the
wolf would no longer devour the sheep. They did not see these
conditions fulfilled. Roman tyranny enveloped the world and they
crucified the Christ.
The Jews were blind to reality. The real Christ came from the city of
light in the eternal realms Christ is a king. His shepherd's staff,
that is, his tongue, was a sword dividing the true from the false. The
throne of David is not a material throne but an eternal kingdom. Christ
re-established this kingdom; it has been forgotten. Christ conquered
the east and the west. This means a spiritual victory, not a material
one.
-- Abdu'l-Baha, Divine Philosophy, p. 35
653. If Christians of all denominations and divisions should
investigate reality, the foundations of His Holiness Christ would unite
them. No enmity or hatred will remain for they will all be under the
one guidance of reality itself. Likewise in the wider field, if all the
existing religious systems will turn away from ancestral imitations and
investigate the reality, seeking the real meanings of the Holy Books,
they will unite and agree upon the same foundation, the reality itself.
As long as they follow counterfeit doctrines or imitations instead of
reality, animosity and discord will exist and increase. Let me
illustrate this. His Holiness Moses and the prophets of Israel
announced the advent of the Messiah but expressed it in the language of
symbols. When His Holiness Christ appeared, the Jews rejected Him
although they were expecting His manifestation, and in their temples
and synagogues were crying and lamenting, saying "O God, hasten the
coming of the Messiah!" Why did thy deny Him when He announced Himself?
Because they had followed ancestral forms and interpretations and were
blind to the reality of Christ [i.e. the Manifestation of God]. They
had not perceived the inner significances of the Holy Bible. They
voiced their objections, saying, "We are expecting His Holiness Christ,
but His coming is conditioned upon certain fulfillments and prophetic
announcements. Among the signs of His appearance is one that He shall
come from an unknown place, whereas now this claimant of Messiahship
has come from Nazareth. We home and we are acquainted with his mother.
"Second: One of the signs or messianic conditions is that his scepter
would be an iron rod, and this Christ has not even a wooden staff.
"Third: He was to be seated upon the throne of David whereas this
messianic king is in the utmost state of poverty and has not even a mat.
-- Compilations, Baha'i Scriptures, p. 331
5)
In the following passages, Imam
Sadiq (the sixth Imam of Shi'i Islam) is referred to as 'son' of
Muhammad -- i.e. his Dependent Prophet. The Holy Imams are descended from Imam Ali (the first Imam) and Fatima (the daughter of the Muhammad).
Behold, how, notwithstanding these and similar traditions, they idly
contend that the laws formerly revealed, must in no wise be altered.
And yet, is not the object of every Revelation to effect a
transformation in the whole character of mankind, a transformation that
shall manifest itself both outwardly and inwardly, that shall affect
both its inner life and external conditions? For if the character of
mankind be not changed, the futility of God's universal Manifestations
would be apparent. In the "Avalim," an authoritative and well-known
book, it is recorded: "A Youth from Bani-Hashim shall be made manifest,
Who will reveal a new Book and promulgate a new law;" then follow these
words: "Most of His enemies will be the divines." In another passage, it is related of Sadiq, son of Muhammad,
that he spoke the following: "There shall appear a Youth from
Bani-Hashim, Who will bid the people plight fealty unto Him. His Book
will be a new Book, unto which He shall summon the people to pledge
their faith.
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 240
Thus hath Sadiq, son of Muhammad, spoken: "God verily will test them
and sift them." This is the divine standard, this is the Touchstone of
God, wherewith He proveth His servants. None apprehendeth the meaning
of these utterances except them whose hearts are assured, whose souls
have found favour with God, and whose minds are detached from all else
but Him. In such utterances, the literal meaning, as generally
understood by the people, is not what hath been intended.
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 254
6)
Based on the following passage,
Baha'u'llah is among the Independent Prophets, who "possess some
perfections which make the other Manifestations dependent upon Them"; reflecting the fact that there will be Dependent Prophets of Baha'u'llah,
who receive their
revelation from Him; the same as in other recent major dispensations.
Know that the attributes of perfection, the splendor of the divine
bounties, and the lights of inspiration are visible and evident in all
the Holy Manifestations; but the glorious Word of God, Christ, and the
Greatest Name, Bahá'u'lláh, are manifestations and evidences which are
beyond imagination, for They possess all the perfections of the former
Manifestations; and more than that, They possess some perfections which
make the other Manifestations dependent upon Them. So all the Prophets
of Israel were centers of inspiration; Christ also was a receiver of
inspiration, but what a difference between the inspiration of the Word
of God and the revelations of Isaiah, Jeremiah and Elijah!
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 149-150
7)
In the following passage,
Muhammad is the "root" (Independent Prophet), while Imam Ali is the
"branch" (Dependent Prophet); similarly, Moses is the "root"
(Independent Prophet), while Joshua is the "branch" (Dependent
Prophet). In next passage, Muhammad is to Imam Ali as Aaron was to Moses. In next passage, Abdu'l-Baha is referred to in the following terms, "the branch of command hath sprung forth from this root [Baha'u'llah]".
"And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a
thousand two hundred and three-score days, clothed in sackcloth."[1]
These two witnesses are Muhammad the Messenger of God, and Ali, son of
Abu Talib.
[1 Rev. 11:3.]
In the Qur'án it is said that God addressed Muhammad, the Messenger of
God, saying: "We made You a Witness, a Herald of good news, and a
Warner" -- that is to say, We have established Thee as the witness, the
giver of good tidings, and as One bringing the wrath of God.[1] The
meaning of "a witness" is one by whose testimony things may be
verified. The commands of these two witnesses were to be performed for
twelve hundred and sixty days, each day signifying a year. Now,
Muhammad was the root, and Ali the branch, like Moses and Joshua.
-- Abdu'l-Baha, Some Answered Questions, p. 48
And narrated Sad that the Prophet [Muhammad] said to 'Ali [Imam Ali], "Will you not be pleased from this that you are to me like Aaron [branch] was to Moses [root]?"
-- Volume 5, Book 57, Number 57: (Hadith, Bukhari Vol 5).
Say: Verily, the ocean of pre-existence hath branched forth from this
most great Ocean. Blessed, therefore, is he who abides upon Its shores,
and is of those who are established thereon. Verily, this most sacred
temple of Abha -- -the Branch of Holiness -- - hath branched
forth from the Sadratu'l-Muntaha. Blessed is whosoever sought shelter
beneath it and is of those who rest therein.
Say: Verily, the branch of command hath sprung forth from this root
which God hath firmly planted in the ground of the will, the limb of
which has been elevated to a station which encompasses all existence.
Therefore, exalted be He for this creation, the lofty, the blessed, the
inaccessible, the mighty!
O ye people! Draw nigh unto It, and taste the fruits of its knowledge
and wisdom on the part of the mighty, the knowing One. Whosoever will
not taste thereof shall be deprived of the bounty, even though he hath
partaken of all that is in the earth -- - were ye of those who
know.
-- Baha'u'llah, Tablet of the Branch.
8)
Following is a prophecy in the
Bible about Muhammad (an Independent Prophet) and the 12 Imams
(Dependent Prophets of Muhammad).
The Law of God is also described as the Holy City, the New Jerusalem.
It is evident that the New Jerusalem which descends from heaven is not
a city of stone, mortar, bricks, earth and wood. It is the Law of God
which descends from heaven and is called new, for it is clear that the
Jerusalem which is of stone and earth does not descend from heaven, and
that it is not renewed; but that which is renewed is the Law of God.
The Law of God is also compared to an adorned bride who appears with
most beautiful ornaments, as it has been said in chapter 21 of the
Revelation of St. John: "And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem,
coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her
husband."[1] And in chapter 12, verse 1, it is said: "And there
appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and
the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars."
This woman is that bride, the Law of God that descended upon Muhammad.
The sun with which she was clothed, and the moon which was under her
feet, are the two nations which are under the shadow of that Law, the
Persian and Ottoman kingdoms; for the emblem of Persia is the sun, and
that of the Ottoman Empire is the crescent moon. Thus the sun and moon
are the emblems of two kingdoms which are under the power of the Law of
God. Afterward it is said: "upon her head is a crown of twelve stars."
These twelve stars are the twelve Imams, who were the promoters of the
Law of Muhammad and the educators of the people, shining like stars in
the heaven of guidance.
[1 Rev. 21:2.]
-- Abdu'l-Baha, Some Answered Questions, p. 68
9)
Baha'u'llah refers to prophecies of Isaiah and Amos (both Dependent Prophets in the era of Moses):
O Shaykh! Peruse that which Isaiah hath spoken in His Book. He saith:
"Get thee up into the high mountain, O Zion, that bringest good
tidings; lift up Thy Voice with strength, O Jerusalem, that bringest
good tidings. Lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah:
'Behold your God! Behold the Lord God will come with strong hand, and
His arm shall rule for Him.'" This Day all the signs have appeared. A
Great City hath descended from heaven, and Zion trembleth and exulteth
with joy at the Revelation of God, for it hath heard the Voice of God
on every side. This Day Jerusalem hath attained unto a new Evangel, for
in the stead of the sycamore standeth the cedar. Jerusalem is the place
of pilgrimage for all the peoples of the world, and hath been named the
Holy City. Together with Zion and Palestine, they are all included
within these regions. Wherefore, hath it been said: "Blessed is the man
that hath migrated to 'Akká."
Amos saith: "The Lord will roar from Zion, and utter His Voice from
Jerusalem; and the habitations of the shepherds shall mourn, and the
top of Carmel shall wither." Carmel, in the Book of God, hath been
designated as the Hill of God, and His Vineyard. It is here that, by
the grace of the Lord of Revelation, the Tabernacle of Glory hath been
raised. Happy are they that attain thereunto; happy they that set their
faces towards it. And likewise He saith: "Our God will come, and He
will not be silent."
O Shaykh! Reflect upon these words addressed by Him Who is the Desire
of the world to Amos. He saith: "Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel,
for, lo, He that formeth the mountains and createth the wind, and
declareth unto man what is his thought, that maketh the morning
darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, the Lord, the
God of Hosts, is His name." He saith that He maketh the morning
darkness. By this is meant that if, at the time of the Manifestation of
Him Who conversed on Sinai anyone were to regard himself as the true
morn, he will, through the might and power of God, be turned into
darkness. He truly is the false dawn, though believing himself to be
the true one. Woe unto him, and woe unto such as follow him without a
clear token from God, the Lord of the worlds.
Isaiah saith: "The Lord alone shall be exalted in that Day." Concerning
the greatness of the Revelation He saith: "Enter into the rock, and
hide thee in the dust, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of His
majesty." And in another connection He saith: "The wilderness and the
solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice,
and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even
with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the
splendor of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the Lord,
and the splendor of our God."
These passages stand in need of no commentary. They are shining and
manifest as the sun, and glowing and luminous as light itself. Every
fair-minded person is led, by the fragrance of these words, unto the
garden of understanding, and attaineth unto that from which most men
are veiled and debarred. Say: Fear God, O people, and follow not the
doubts of such as shout aloud, who have broken the Covenant of God and
His Testament, and denied His mercy that hath preceded all that are in
the heavens and all that are on earth.
-- Baha'u'llah, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 146
10)
At the following link are prophecies of the Holy Imams (Dependent Prophets in the era of Muhammad) on the coming of the Bab and Baha'u'llah.
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