O Peoples of the East and the West! Be ye fearful of God concerning the
Cause of the true Joseph and barter Him not for a paltry price(22)
established by yourselves, or for a trifle of your earthly possessions,
that ye may, in very truth, be praised by Him as those who are reckoned
among the pious who stand nigh unto this Gate. Verily God hath deprived of
His grace him who martyred Husayn, Our forefather, lonely and forsaken as
He was upon the land of Taff [Karbila]. Yazid, the son of Mu'aviyih, out
of corrupt desire, bartered away the head of the true Joseph to the
fiendish people for a trifling price and a petty sum from his property.
Verily they repudiated God by committing a grievous error. Erelong will
God wreak His vengeance upon them, at the time of Our Return, and He hath,
in very truth, prepared for them, in the world to come, a severe torment.
_Chapter XXI._
"O Qurratu'l-'Ayn! We have, verily, dilated Thine ..."
O Qurratu'l-'ayn!(23) We have, verily, dilated Thine heart in this
Revelation, which stands truly unique from all created things, and have
exalted Thy name through the manifestation of the Bab, so that men may
become aware of Our transcendent power, and recognize that God is
immeasurably sanctified above the praise of all men. He is verily
independent of the whole of creation. _Chapter XXIII._
"The angels and the spirits, arrayed rank upon rank, ..."
The angels and the spirits, arrayed rank upon rank, descend, by the leave
of God, upon this Gate(24) ...' and circle round this Focal Point in a
far-stretching line. Greet them with salutations, O Qurratu'l-'Ayn, for
the dawn hath indeed broken; then proclaim unto the concourse of the
faithful: 'Is not the rising of the Morn, foreshadowed in the Mother Book,
to be near at hand?(25)
O Qurratu'l-'Ayn! Turn Thou eagerly unto God in Thy Cause, for the peoples
of the world have risen in iniquity, and but for the outpouring of the
grace of God and Thy mercy unto them, no one could purge even a single
soul for evermore.(26) O Qurratu'l-'Ayn! The life to come is indeed far
more advantageous unto Thee and unto such as follow Thy Cause than this
earthly life and its pleasures. This is what hath been foreordained
according to the dispensations of Providence...
O Qurratu'l-'Ayn! Say: Verily I am the 'Gate of God' and I give you to
drink, by the leave of God, the sovereign Truth, of the crystal-pure
waters of His Revelation which are gushing out from the incorruptible
Fountain situate upon the Holy Mount. And those who earnestly strive after
the One True God, let them then strive to attain this Gate.(27) Verily God
is potent over all things...
O peoples of the earth! Give ear unto God's holy Voice proclaimed by this
Arabian Youth Whom the Almighty hath graciously chosen for His Own Self.
He is indeed none other than the True One, Whom God hath entrusted with
this Mission from the midst of the Burning Bush. O Qurratu'l-'Ayn! Unravel
what Thou pleasest from the secrets of the All-Glorious, for the ocean is
surging high(28) at the behest of the incomparable Lord. _Chapter XXIV._
"Are ye wickedly scheming, according to your selfish ..."
Are ye wickedly scheming, according to your selfish fancies, an evil plot
against Him Who is the Most Great Remembrance of God? By the righteousness
of God, all who are in the heaven and on earth and whatsoever lieth
between them are regarded in My sight even as a spider's web,(29) and
verily God beareth witness unto all things. Indeed they will not lay plots
but against themselves. God hath caused this Remembrance to be, in very
truth, independent of all the dwellers of earth and heaven. _Chapter XXV._
"O ye peoples of the earth! During the time of My ..."
O ye peoples of the earth! During the time of My absence I sent down the
Gates unto you. However the believers, except for a handful, obeyed them
not. Formerly I sent forth unto you Ahmad and more recently Kazim, but
apart from the pure in heart amongst you no one followed them. What hath
befallen you, O people of the Book? Will ye not fear the One true God, He
Who is your Lord, the Ancient of Days?... O ye who profess belief in God!
I adjure you by Him Who is the Eternal Truth, have ye discerned among the
precepts of these Gates anything inconsistent with the commandments of God
as set forth in this Book? Hath your learning deluded you by reason of
your impiety? Take ye heed then, for verily your God, the Lord of Eternal
Truth, is with you and in very truth is watchful over you... _Chapter
XXVII._
"O ye kinsmen of the Most Great Remembrance! This ..."
O ye kinsmen of the Most Great Remembrance! This Tree of Holiness, dyed
crimson with the oil of servitude, hath verily sprung forth out of your
own soil in the midst of the Burning Bush, yet ye comprehend nothing
whatever thereof, neither of His true, heavenly attributes, nor of the
actual circumstances of His earthly life, nor of the evidences of His
powerful and unblemished behaviour. Actuated by your own fancies, you
consider Him to be alien to the sovereign Truth, while in the estimation
of God He is none other than the Promised One Himself, invested with the
power of the sovereign Truth, and verily He is, as decreed in the Mother
Book, held answerable in the midst of the Burning Bush...
O Qurratu'l-'Ayn! Deliver the summons of the most exalted Word unto the
handmaids among Thy kindred, caution them against the Most Great Fire and
announce unto them the joyful tidings that following this mighty Covenant
there shall be everlasting reunion with God in the Paradise of His
good-pleasure, nigh unto the Seat of Holiness. Verily God, the Lord of
creation, is potent over all things.
O Thou Mother of the Remembrance! May the peace and salutation of God rest
upon thee. Indeed thou hast endured patiently in Him Who is the sublime
Self of God. Recognize then the station of thy Son Who is none other than
the mighty Word of God. He hath verily pledged Himself to be answerable
for thee both in thy grave and on the Judgement Day, while thou hast, in
the Preserved Tablet of God, been immortalized as the 'Mother of the
Faithful' by the Pen of His Remembrance. _Chapter XXVIII._
"O Qurratu'l-'Ayn! Stretch not Thy hands wide open ..."
O Qurratu'l-'Ayn! Stretch not Thy hands wide open in the Cause, inasmuch
as the people would find themselves in a state of stupor by reason of the
Mystery, and I swear by the true, Almighty God that there is yet for Thee
another turn after this Dispensation.
And when the appointed hour hath struck, do Thou, by the leave of God, the
All-Wise, reveal from the heights of the Most Lofty and Mystic Mount a
faint, an infinitesimal glimmer of Thy impenetrable Mystery, that they who
have recognized the radiance of the Sinaic Splendour may faint away and
die as they catch a lightning glimpse of the fierce and crimson Light that
envelops Thy Revelation. And God is, in very truth, Thine unfailing
Protector. _Chapter XXVIII._
"O People of Persia! Are ye not satisfied with this glorious ..."
O People of Persia! Are ye not satisfied with this glorious honour which
the supreme Remembrance of God hath conferred upon you? Verily ye have
been especially favoured by God through this mighty Word. Then do not
withdraw from the sanctuary of His presence, for, by the righteousness of
the One true God, He is none other than the sovereign Truth from God; He
is the most exalted One and the Source of all wisdom, as decreed in the
Mother Book...
O peoples of the earth! Cleave ye tenaciously to the Cord of the
All-Highest God, which is but this Arabian Youth, Our Remembrance--He Who
standeth concealed at the point of ice amidst the ocean of fire. _Chapter
XXIX._
"O People of the earth! By the righteousness of the One ..."
O People of the earth! By the righteousness of the One true God, I am the
Maid of Heaven begotten by the Spirit of Baha, abiding within the Mansion
hewn out of a mass of ruby, tender and vibrant; and in this mighty
Paradise naught have I ever witnessed save that which proclaimeth the
Remembrance of God by extolling the virtues of this Arabian Youth. Verily
there is none other God but your Lord, the All-Merciful. Magnify ye, then,
His station, for behold, He is poised in the midmost heart of the
All-Highest Paradise as the embodiment of the praise of God in the
Tabernacle wherein His glorification is intoned.
At one time I hear His Voice as He acclaimeth Him Who is the Ever-Living,
the Ancient of Days, and at another time as He speaketh of the mystery of
His most august Name. And when He intoneth the anthems of the greatness of
God all Paradise waileth in its longing to gaze on His Beauty, and when He
chanteth words of praise and glorification of God all Paradise becomes
motionless like unto ice locked in the heart of a frost-bound mountain.
Methinks I visioned Him moving along a straight middle path wherein every
paradise was His Own paradise, every heaven His Own heaven, while the
whole earth and all that is therein appeared but as a ring upon the finger
of His servants. Glorified be God, His Creator, the Lord of everlasting
sovereignty. Verily He is none other but the servant of God, the Gate of
the Remnant of God your Lord, the Sovereign Truth. _Chapter XXIX._
"O Thou the Supreme Word of God! Fear not, nor be ..."
O Thou the Supreme Word of God! Fear not, nor be Thou grieved, for indeed
unto such as have responded to Thy Call, whether men or women, We have
assured forgiveness of sins, as known in the presence of the Best Beloved
and in conformity with what Thou desirest. Verily His knowledge embraceth
all things. I adjure Thee by My life, set Thy face towards Me and be not
apprehensive. Verily Thou art the Exalted One among the Celestial
Concourse, and Thy hidden Mystery hath, of a truth, been recorded upon the
Tablet of creation in the midst of the Burning Bush. Ere long God will
bestow upon Thee rulership over all men, inasmuch as His rule transcendeth
the whole of creation. _Chapter XXXI._
"O Concourse of Shi'ihs! Fear ye God and Our Cause ..."
O Concourse of _Sh_i'ihs! Fear ye God and Our Cause which concerneth Him
Who is the Most Great Remembrance of God. For great is its fire, as
decreed in the Mother Book. _Chapter XL._
"Recite ye as much as convenient from this Qur'an both ..."
Recite ye as much as convenient from this Qur'an both at morn and at
eventide, and chant the verses of this Book, by the leave of the eternal
God, in the sweet accents of this Bird which warbleth its melody in the
vault of heaven. _Chapter XLI._
"Issue forth from your cities, O peoples of the West and ..."
Issue forth from your cities, O peoples of the West and aid God ere the
Day when the Lord of mercy shall come down unto you in the shadow of the
clouds with the angels circling around Him,(30) exalting His praise and
seeking forgiveness for such as have truly believed in Our signs. Verily
His decree hath been issued, and the command of God, as given in the
Mother Book, hath indeed been revealed...
Become as true brethren in the one and indivisible religion of God, free
from distinction, for verily God desireth that your hearts should become
mirrors unto your brethren in the Faith, so that ye find yourselves
reflected in them, and they in you. This is the true Path of God, the
Almighty, and He is indeed watchful over your actions. _Chapter XLVI._
"O ye peoples of the earth! Hearken unto My call, ringing ..."
O ye peoples of the earth! Hearken unto My call, ringing forth from the
precincts of this sacred Tree--a Tree set ablaze by the pre-existent Fire:
There is no God but Him; He is the Exalted, the All-Wise. O ye the
servants of the Merciful One! Enter ye, one and all, through this Gate and
follow not the steps of the Evil One, for he prompteth you to walk in the
ways of impiety and wickedness; he is, in truth, your declared enemy.(31)
_Chapter LI._
"Be Thou patient, O Qurratu'l-'Ayn, for God hath indeed ..."
Be Thou patient, O Qurratu'l-'Ayn, for God hath indeed pledged to
establish Thy sovereignty throughout all countries and over the people
that dwell therein. He is God and verily He is powerful over all things.
_Chapter LIII._
"By My glory! I will make the infidels to taste, with the ..."
By My glory! I will make the infidels to taste, with the hands of My
power, retributions unknown of any one except Me, and will waft over the
faithful those musk-scented breaths which I have nursed in the midmost
heart of My throne; and verily the knowledge of God embraceth all things.
O concourse of light! By the righteousness of God, We speak not according
to selfish desire, nor hath a single letter of this Book been revealed
save by the leave of God, the Sovereign Truth. Fear ye God and entertain
no doubts regarding His Cause, for verily, the Mystery of this Gate is
shrouded in the mystic utterances of His Writ and hath been written beyond
the impenetrable veil of concealment by the hand of God, the Lord of the
visible and the invisible.
Indeed God hath created everywhere around this Gate oceans of divine
elixir, tinged crimson with the essence of existence and vitalized through
the animating power of the desired fruit; and for them God hath provided
Arks of ruby, tender, crimson-coloured, wherein none shall sail but the
people of Baha, by the leave of God, the Most Exalted; and verily He is
the All-Glorious, the All-Wise. _Chapter LVII._
"The Lord hath, in truth, inspired Me: Verily, verily, I am ..."
The Lord hath, in truth, inspired Me: Verily, verily, I am God, He besides
Whom there is none other God, and I am indeed the Ancient of Days...
O people of the Kingdom! By the righteousness of the true God, if ye
remain steadfast upon this line which standeth upright between the two
lines, ye shall, in very truth, quaff the living waters from the Fountain
of this wondrous Revelation as proffered by the hand of His Remembrance...
I swear by your true Lord, by Him Who is the Lord of the heavens and of
the earth, that the divine Promise concerning His Remembrance is naught
but the sovereign truth and, as decreed in the Mother Book, it shall come
to pass...
Say, O peoples of the earth! Were ye to assemble together in order to
produce the like of a single letter of My Works, ye would never be able to
do so,(32) and verily God is cognizant of all things...
O Qurratu'l-'Ayn! Say: Behold! Verily the Moon hath faded; verily the
night hath retreated; verily the dawn hath brightened;(33) verily the
command of God, your true Lord, hath been accomplished...
Out of utter nothingness, O great and omnipotent Master, Thou hast,
through the celestial potency of Thy might, brought me forth and raised me
up to proclaim this Revelation. I have made none other but Thee my trust;
I have clung to no will but Thy Will. Thou art, in truth, the
All-Sufficing and behind Thee standeth the true God, He Who overshadoweth
all things. Indeed sufficient unto Me is God, the Exalted, the Powerful,
the Sustainer. _Chapter LVIII._
"O Thou Remnant of God! I have sacrificed myself wholly ..."
O Thou Remnant of God! I have sacrificed myself wholly for Thee; I have
accepted curses for Thy sake, and have yearned for naught but martyrdom in
the path of Thy love. Sufficient witness unto me is God, the Exalted, the
Protector, the Ancient of Days.
O Qurratu'l-'Ayn! The words Thou hast uttered in this momentous Call have
grieved Me bitterly. However, the irrevocable decision resteth with none
but God and the decree proceedeth from none save Him alone. By My life,
Thou art the Well-Beloved in the sight of God and His creation. Verily,
there is no power except in God, and sufficient witness unto Me is your
Lord, Who is, in very truth, the Omnipotent Avenger. _Chapter LVIII._
"O Peoples of the earth! By the righteousness of God, this ..."
O Peoples of the earth! By the righteousness of God, this Book hath,
through the potency of the sovereign Truth, pervaded the earth and the
heaven with the mighty Word of God concerning Him Who is the supreme
Testimony, the Expected Qa'im, and verily God hath knowledge of all
things. This divinely-inspired Book hath firmly established His Proof for
all those who are in the East and in the West, hence beware lest ye utter
aught but the truth regarding God, for I swear by your Lord that this
supreme Proof of Mine beareth witness unto all things...
O servants of God! Be ye patient, for, God grant, He Who is the sovereign
Truth will suddenly appear amongst you, invested with the power of the
mighty Word, and ye shall then be confounded by the Truth itself, and ye
shall have no power to ward it off;(34) and verily I am a witness over all
mankind. _Chapter LIX._
"Verily such as ridicule the wondrous, divine Verses ..."
Verily such as ridicule the wondrous, divine Verses revealed through His
Remembrance, are but making themselves the objects of ridicule, and We, in
truth, aid them to wax in their iniquity.(35) Indeed God's knowledge
transcendeth all created things...
The infidels, of a truth, seek to separate God from His Remembrance,(36)
but God hath determined to perfect His Light(37) through His Remembrance,
and indeed He is potent over all things...
Verily, Christ is Our Word which We communicated unto Mary;(38) and let no
one say what the Christians term as 'the third of three',(39) inasmuch as
it would amount to slandering the Remembrance Who, as decreed in the
Mother Book, is invested with supreme authority. Indeed God is but one
God, and far be it from His glory that there should be aught else besides
Him. All those who shall attain unto Him on the Day of Resurrection are
but His servants, and God is, of a truth, a sufficient Protector. Verily I
am none other but the servant of God and His Word, and none but the first
one to bow down in supplication before God, the Most Exalted; and indeed
God witnesseth all things. _Chapter LXI._
"O People of the Qur'an! Ye are as nothing unless ye ..."
O People of the Qur'an! Ye are as nothing unless ye submit unto the
Remembrance of God and unto this Book. If ye follow the Cause of God, We
will forgive you your sins, and if ye turn aside from Our command, We
will, in truth, condemn your souls in Our Book, unto the Most Great Fire.
We, verily, do not deal unjustly with men, even to the extent of a speck
on a date-stone. _Chapter LXII._
"O Peoples of the earth! Verily the resplendent Light of ..."
O Peoples of the earth! Verily the resplendent Light of God hath appeared
in your midst, invested with this unerring Book, that ye may be guided
aright to the ways of peace and, by the leave of God, step out of the
darkness into the light and onto this far-extended Path of Truth(40) ...
God hath, out of sheer nothingness and through the potency of His command,
created the heavens and the earth and whatever lieth between them. He is
single and peerless in His eternal unity with none to join partner with
His holy Essence, nor is there any soul, except His Own Self, who can
befittingly comprehend Him...
O peoples of the earth! Verily His Remembrance is come to you from God
after an interval during which there were no Messengers,(41) that He may
purge and purify you from uncleanliness in anticipation of the Day of the
One true God; therefore seek ye whole-heartedly divine blessings from Him,
inasmuch as We have, in truth, chosen Him to be the Witness and the Source
of wisdom unto all that dwell on earth...
O Qurratu'l-'Ayn! Proclaim that which hath been sent down unto Thee as a
token of the grace of the merciful Lord, for if Thou do it not, Our secret
will never be made known to the people,(42) while the purpose of God in
creating man is but for him to know Him. Indeed God hath knowledge of all
things and is self-sufficient above the need of all mankind. _Chapter
LXII._
"Whenever the faithful hear the verses of this Book ..."
Whenever the faithful hear the verses of this Book being recited, their
eyes will overflow with tears and their hearts will be deeply touched by
Him Who is the Most Great Remembrance for the love they cherish for God,
the All-Praised. He is God, the All-Knowing, the Eternal. They are indeed
the inmates of the all-highest Paradise wherein they will abide for ever.
Verily they will see naught therein save that which hath proceeded from
God, nothing that will lie beyond the compass of their understanding.
There they will meet the believers in Paradise, who will address them with
the words 'Peace, Peace' lingering on their lips...
O concourse of the faithful! Incline your ears to My Voice, proclaimed by
this Remembrance of God. Verily God hath revealed unto Me that the Path of
the Remembrance which is set forth by Me is, in very truth, the straight
Path of God, and that whoever professeth any religion other than this
upright Faith, will, when called to account on the Day of Judgement,
discover that as recorded in the Book no benefit hath he reaped out of
God's Religion...
Fear ye God, O concourse of kings, lest ye remain afar from Him Who is His
Remembrance [the Bab], after the Truth hath come unto you with a Book and
signs from God, as spoken through the wondrous tongue of Him Who is His
Remembrance. Seek ye grace from God, for God hath ordained for you, after
ye have believed in Him, a Garden the vastness of which is as the vastness
of the whole of Paradise. Therein ye shall find naught save the gifts and
favours which the Almighty hath graciously bestowed by virtue of this
momentous Cause, as decreed in the Mother Book. _Chapter LXIII._
"O Spirit of God! Call Thou to mind the bounty which ..."
O Spirit of God! Call Thou to mind the bounty which I bestowed upon Thee
when I conversed with Thee in the midmost heart of My Sanctuary and aided
Thee through the potency of the Holy Spirit that Thou mightest, as the
peerless Mouthpiece of God, proclaim unto men the commandments of God
which lie enshrined within the divine Spirit.
Verily God hath inspired Thee with divine verses and wisdom while still a
child and hath graciously deigned to bestow His favour upon the peoples of
the world through the influence of Thy Most Great Name, for indeed men
have not the least knowledge of the Book. _Chapter LXIII._
"O People of the earth! To attain the ultimate retreat in ..."
O People of the earth! To attain the ultimate retreat in God, the True
One, are we to seek a Gate other than this exalted Being?...
When God created the Remembrance He presented Him to the assemblage of all
created beings upon the altar of His Will. Thereupon the concourse of the
angels bowed low in adoration to God, the Peerless, the Incomparable;
while Satan waxed proud, refusing to submit to His Remembrance; hence he
is identified in the Book of God as the arrogant one and the accursed.(43)
_Chapter LXVII._
"God, besides Whom there is none other true God, saith: ..."
God, besides Whom there is none other true God, saith: Indeed, whoso
visiteth the Remembrance of God after His passing, it is as though he hath
attained the presence of the Lord, seated upon His mighty Throne. Verily
this is the Way of God, the Most Exalted, which hath been irrevocably
decreed in the Mother Book...
Say, O peoples of the world! Do ye dispute with Me about God by virtue of
the names which ye and your fathers have adopted for Him at the promptings
of the Evil One?(44) God hath indeed sent down this Book unto Me with
truth that ye may be enabled to recognize the true names of God, inasmuch
as ye have strayed in error far from the Truth. Verily We have taken a
covenant from every created thing upon its coming into being concerning
the Remembrance of God, and there shall be none to avert the binding
command of God for the purification of mankind, as ordained in the Book
which is written by the hand of the Bab. _Chapter LXVIII._
"The people, during the absence of the Bab, re-enacted ..."
The people, during the absence of the Bab, re-enacted the episode of the
Calf by setting up a blaring figure which embodied animal features in
human form(45) ...
Whenever the people ask Thee of the appointed Hour say: Verily the
knowledge of it is only with My Lord,(46) Who is the Knower of the unseen.
There is none other God but Him--He Who hath created you from a single
soul,(47) and I have no control over what profiteth Me or harmeth Me, but
as My Lord pleaseth.(48) Indeed God is Self-Sufficient and He, My Lord,
standeth supreme over all things. _Chapter LXIX._