Sedition hath never been pleasing unto God, nor were the acts
committed in the past by certain foolish ones acceptable in His
sight. Know ye that to be killed in the path of His good pleasure
is better for you than to kill. The beloved of the Lord must, in
this day, behave in such wise amidst His servants that they may by
their very deeds and actions guide all men unto the paradise of
the All-Glorious.
214 By Him Who shineth above the Dayspring of Sanctity! The
friends of God have not, nor will they ever, set their hopes upon
the world and its ephemeral possessions. The one true God hath
ever regarded the hearts of men as His own, His exclusive
possession--and this too but as an expression of His all-surpassing
mercy, that haply mortal souls may be purged and sanctified from
all that pertaineth to the world of dust and gain admittance into
the realms of eternity. For otherwise that ideal King is, in
Himself and by Himself, sufficient unto Himself and independent of
all things. Neither doth the love of His creatures profit Him, nor
can their malice harm Him. All have issued forth from abodes of
dust, and unto dust shall they return, while the one true God,
alone and single, is established upon His Throne, a Throne which
is beyond the reaches of time and space, is sanctified above all
utterance or expression, intimation, description and definition,
and is exalted beyond all notion of abasement and glory. And none
knoweth this save Him and those with whom is the knowledge of the
Book. No God is there but Him, the Almighty, the All-Bountiful.
215 It behoveth the benevolence of the Sovereign, however, to examine all
matters with the eye of justice and mercy, and not to content himself with
the baseless claims of certain individuals. We beseech God to graciously
assist the King to fulfil that which He pleaseth, and, verily, that which
He desireth should be the desire of all the worlds.
216 Later this Servant was summoned to Constantinople, whither We arrived
accompanied by a poor band of exiles. At no time thereafter did We seek to
meet with anyone, as We had no request to make and no aim in view but to
demonstrate unto all that this Servant had no mischief in mind and had
never associated with the sowers of sedition. By Him Who hath caused the
tongues of all beings to speak forth His praise! While certain
considerations rendered it difficult to make application to any quarter,
such steps were perforce taken to protect certain souls. My Lord, verily,
knoweth what is in Me, and He beareth witness unto the truth of what I
say.
217 A just king is the shadow of God on earth. All should seek shelter
under the shadow of his justice, and rest in the shade of his favour. This
is not a matter which is either specific or limited in its scope, that it
might be restricted to one or another person, inasmuch as the shadow
telleth of the One Who casteth it. God, glorified be His remembrance, hath
called Himself the Lord of the worlds, for He hath nurtured and still
nurtureth everyone. Glorified be, then, His grace that hath preceded all
created things, and His mercy that hath surpassed the worlds.
218 It is clear and evident that, whether this Cause be seen as right or
wrong by the people, those who are associated with its name have accepted
and embraced it as true, and have forsaken their all in their eagerness to
partake of the things of God. That they should evince such renunciation in
the path of the love of the All-Merciful is in itself a faithful witness
and an eloquent testimony to the truth of their convictions. Hath it ever
been witnessed that a man of sound judgement should sacrifice his life
without cause or reason? And if it be suggested that this people have
taken leave of their senses, this too is highly improbable, inasmuch as
such behaviour hath not been confined to merely a soul or two--nay, a vast
multitude of every class have drunk their fill of the living waters of
divine knowledge, and, intoxicated, have hastened with heart and soul to
the field of sacrifice in the way of the Beloved.
219 If these souls, who have renounced all else but God for His sake and
offered up their life and substance in His path, are to be accounted as
false, then by what proof and testimony can the truth of what others
assert be established in thy presence? The late Haji Siyyid
Muhammad(30)--may God exalt his station and immerse him in the ocean of His
forgiveness and mercy!--was one of the most learned divines of his age, and
one of the most devout and pious men of his time. So highly was he
regarded that his praise was on every tongue, and his righteousness and
piety were universally acknowledged. Yet, when hostilities broke out with
Russia,(31) he who himself had pronounced the decree of holy war, and who
with blazoned standard had left his native land to rally to the support of
his faith, abandoned, after the inconvenience of a brief encounter, all
the good that he had purposed, and returned whence he had come. Would that
the veil might be lifted, and that which hath ere now remained hidden from
the eyes of men be made manifest!
220 For more than twenty years this people have, day and night, been
subjected to the fury of the Sovereign's wrath, and have been scattered by
the tempestuous gales of his displeasure, each to a different land. How
many the children who have been left fatherless, and how many the fathers
who have lost their sons! How many the mothers who have dared not, out of
fear and dread, to mourn their slaughtered offspring! How numerous those
who, at eventide, were possessed of utmost wealth and affluence, and who,
when morning came, had fallen into utter abasement and destitution! No
land is there whose soil hath not been tinged with their blood, nor reach
of heaven unto which their sighs have not ascended. Throughout the years
the darts of affliction have unceasingly rained down from the clouds of
God's decree, yet despite all these calamities and tribulations, the flame
of divine love hath so blazed in their hearts that even should their
bodies be torn asunder they would not forsake their love of Him Who is the
Best-Beloved of the worlds, but would welcome with heart and soul whatever
might befall them in the path of God.
221 O King! The breezes of the grace of the All-Merciful have transformed
these servants and attracted them unto His Holy Court. "The witness of a
true lover is upon his sleeve." Nevertheless, some of the outwardly
learned have troubled the luminous heart of the King of the Age concerning
these souls who revolve round the Tabernacle of the All-Merciful and who
seek to attain the Sanctuary of true knowledge. Would that the
world-adorning wish of His Majesty might decree that this Servant be
brought face to face with the divines of the age, and produce proofs and
testimonies in the presence of His Majesty the Shah! This Servant is
ready, and taketh hope in God, that such a gathering may be convened in
order that the truth of the matter may be made clear and manifest before
His Majesty the Shah. It is then for thee to command, and I stand ready
before the throne of thy sovereignty. Decide, then, for Me or against Me.
222 The All-Merciful saith in the Qur'an, His abiding testimony unto all
the peoples of the world: "Wish ye then for death, if ye be men of
truth."(32) Behold how He hath declared the yearning for death to be the
touchstone of sincerity! And, in the luminous mirror of thy judgement, it
is doubtless clear and evident which people have chosen, in this day, to
lay down their lives in the path of the Beloved of the worlds. Indeed,
were the books supporting the beliefs of this people to be written with
the blood spilled in the path of God--exalted be His glory!--then countless
volumes would have already appeared amongst men for all to see.
223 How, We fain would ask, is it possible to impugn this people whose
deeds are in conformity with their words, and to give credence instead to
those who have refused to relinquish one jot of their worldly authority in
the path of Him Who is the Unconstrained? Some of the divines who have
declared this Servant an infidel have at no time met with Me. Never having
seen Me, or become acquainted with My purpose, they have nevertheless
spoken as they pleased and acted as they desired. Yet every claim
requireth a proof, not mere words and displays of outward piety.
224 In this connection the text of several passages from the Hidden Book
of Fatimih--the blessings of God be upon her!--which are relevant to the
present theme will be cited in the Persian tongue, that certain matters
which have ere now been hidden may be revealed before thy presence. The
people addressed in the aforementioned Book, which is today known as the
Hidden Words, are those who, though outwardly known for learning and
piety, are inwardly the slaves of self and passion.
225 He saith: O ye that are foolish, yet have a name to be wise! Wherefore
do ye wear the guise of the shepherd, when inwardly ye have become wolves,
intent upon My flock? Ye are even as the star, which riseth ere the dawn,
and which, though it seem radiant and luminous, leadeth the wayfarers of
My city astray into the paths of perdition.
226 And likewise He saith: O ye seeming fair yet inwardly foul! Ye are
like clear but bitter water, which to outward seeming is crystal pure but
of which, when tested by the Divine Assayer, not a drop is accepted. Yea,
the sunbeam falls alike upon the dust and the mirror, yet differ they in
reflection even as doth the star from the earth: nay, immeasurable is the
difference!
227 And also He saith: O essence of desire! At many a dawn have I turned
from the realms of the Placeless unto thine abode, and found thee on the
bed of ease busied with others than Myself. Thereupon, even as the flash
of the spirit, I returned to the realms of celestial glory, and breathed
it not in My retreats above unto the hosts of holiness.
228 And again He saith: O bondslave of the world! Many a dawn hath the
breeze of My loving-kindness wafted over thee and found thee upon the bed
of heedlessness fast asleep. Bewailing then thy plight it returned whence
it came.(33)
229 Therefore, in the exercise of the royal justice, it is not sufficient
to give ear to the claimant alone. God saith in the Qur'an, the unerring
Balance that distinguisheth truth from falsehood: "O ye who believe! If a
wicked man come to you with news, clear it up at once, lest through
ignorance ye harm others, and afterward repent of what ye have done."(34)
The holy Traditions, moreover, contain the admonition: "Believe not the
tale-bearer." Certain of the divines, who have never seen Us, have
misconceived the nature of Our Cause. Those, however, who have met Us will
testify that this Servant hath not spoken save in accordance with that
which God hath commanded in the Book, and that He hath called attention to
the following blessed verse--exalted be His Word: "Do ye not disavow us
merely because we believe in God, and in what He hath sent down unto us,
and in what He had sent down aforetime?"(35)
230 O King of the age! The eyes of these refugees are turned towards and
fixed upon the mercy of the Most Merciful. No doubt is there whatever that
these tribulations will be followed by the outpourings of a supreme mercy,
and these dire adversities will be succeeded by an overflowing prosperity.
We fain would hope, however, that His Majesty the Shah will himself
examine these matters and bring hope to the hearts. That which We have
submitted to thy Majesty is indeed for thine highest good. And God,
verily, is a sufficient witness unto Me.
231 Glorified art Thou, O Lord My God! I bear witness that the heart of
the King is in truth between the fingers of Thy might. If it be Thy wish,
do Thou incline it, O My God, in the direction of charity and mercy. Thou,
verily, art the Almighty, the Most Exalted, the Most Bountiful. No God is
there besides Thee, the All-Glorious, the One Whose help is sought by all.
232 Concerning the prerequisites of the learned, He saith: "Whoso among
the learned guardeth his self, defendeth his faith, opposeth his desires,
and obeyeth his Lord's command, it is incumbent upon the generality of the
people to pattern themselves after him...."(36) Should the King of the Age
reflect upon this utterance which hath streamed from the tongue of Him Who
is the Dayspring of the Revelation of the All-Merciful, he would perceive
that those who have been adorned with the attributes enumerated in this
holy Tradition are scarcer than the philosopher's stone; wherefore not
every man that layeth claim to knowledge deserveth to be believed.
233 Again concerning the divines of the Latter Days, He saith: "The
religious doctors of that age shall be the most wicked of the divines
beneath the shadow of heaven. Out of them hath mischief proceeded, and
unto them it shall return." And again He saith: "When the Standard of
Truth is made manifest, the people of both the East and the West curse
it."(37) Should anyone dispute these Traditions, this Servant will
undertake to establish their validity, since the details of their
transmission have been omitted here for the sake of brevity.
234 Those doctors who have indeed drunk of the cup of renunciation have
never interfered with this Servant. Thus, for example, Shaykh
Murtada(38)--may God exalt his station and cause him to repose beneath the
canopy of His grace!--showed forth kindness during Our sojourn in 'Iraq,
and never spoke of this Cause otherwise than as God hath given leave. We
beseech God to graciously assist all to do His will and pleasure.
235 Now, however, all have lost sight of every other consideration, and
are bent upon the persecution of this people. Thus, if it be inquired of
certain persons who, by the grace of their Lord, repose beneath the shadow
of thy royal mercy and enjoy countless favours, "What service have ye
rendered in return for these royal favours? Have ye through wise policy
annexed a further territory to the realm? Have ye applied yourselves to
aught that would secure the welfare of the people, the prosperity of the
kingdom, and the lasting glory of the state?", they will have no other
reply than to designate, justly or falsely, a group of people before thy
royal presence as Babis, and forthwith to engage in massacre and pillage.
In Tabriz, for instance, and in the Egyptian town of Mansuriyyih, a number
of this people were ransomed and large sums were seized, yet no account of
these matters was ever made in the court of thy presence.
236 The reason for which all these things have come to pass is that their
persecutors, finding these unfortunate ones without protection, have
forgone more weighty matters and occupied themselves instead with
harassing this afflicted people. Numerous confessions and divers creeds
abide peacefully beneath the shadow of thy sovereignty. Let this people be
also numbered with them. Nay, those who serve the King should be animated
by such lofty aims and sublime intentions as to continually strive to
bring all religions beneath the shelter of his shadow, and to rule over
them with perfect justice.
237 To enforce the laws of God is naught but justice, and is the source of
universal content. Nay more, the divine statutes have always been, and
will ever remain, the cause and instrument of the preservation of mankind,
as witnessed by His exalted words: "In punishment will ye find life, O men
of insight!"(39) It would, however, ill beseem the justice of thy Majesty
that for the trespass of a single soul a whole group of people should be
subjected to the scourge of thy wrath. The one true God--glorified be His
Name!--hath said: "None shall bear the burden of another."(40) It is clear
and evident that in every community there have been, and will ever be, the
learned and the ignorant, the wise and the heedless, the profligate and
the pious. That a wise and reflecting soul should commit a heinous deed is
most improbable, inasmuch as such a person either seeketh after this world
or hath forsaken it: if he be of the latter, he would assuredly have no
regard for aught else besides God, and moreover the fear of God would
deter him from unlawful and reprehensible actions; and if he be of the
former, he would just as assuredly avoid such deeds as would alienate and
alarm the people, and act in such a manner as to earn their confidence and
trust. It is therefore evident that reprehensible actions have always
emanated, and will ever emanate, from ignorant and foolish souls. We
implore God to guard His servants from turning to anyone save Him, and to
draw them nigh unto His presence. His might, in truth, is equal to all
things.
238 Praise be unto Thee, O Lord My God! Thou hearest the voice of My
lamentation, and beholdest My condition, My distress and affliction! Thou
knowest all that is in Me. If the call I have raised be wholly for Thy
sake, then draw thereby the hearts of Thy creatures towards the heaven of
Thy knowledge, and the heart of the Sovereign towards the right hand of
the throne of Thy name, the All-Merciful. Supply him then, O My God, with
a portion of that goodly sustenance which hath descended from the heaven
of Thy generosity and the clouds of Thy mercy, that he may forsake his all
and turn unto the court of Thy favour. Aid him, O My God, to assist Thy
Cause and to exalt Thy Word amidst Thy creatures. Strengthen him, then,
with the hosts of the seen and the unseen, that he may subdue every city
in Thy Name, and hold sway, through Thy sovereignty and might, over all
that dwell on earth, O Thou in Whose hand is the kingdom of creation!
Thou, verily, art the Supreme Ordainer in both the beginning and the end.
No God is there but Thee, the Most Powerful, the All-Glorious, the
All-Wise.
239 So grossly hath Our Cause been misrepresented before thy royal
presence that, if some unseemly act be committed by but one of this
people, it is portrayed as being prompted by their beliefs. By Him besides
Whom there is none other God! This Servant hath refused even to sanction
the commission of reproved actions, how much less those which have been
explicitly prohibited in the Book of God.
240 God hath forbidden unto men the drinking of wine, and this prohibition
hath been revealed and recorded in His Book. In spite of this, and of the
fact that the learned doctors of the age--may God increase their
numbers!--have all prohibited the people from such a wretched act, there
still remain some who commit it. The punishment which this act entaileth,
however, applieth only to its heedless perpetrators, whilst those noble
manifestations of supreme sanctity remain exalted above and exempt from
all blame. Yea, the whole creation, both seen and unseen, beareth witness
unto their holiness.
241 Yea, these servants regard the one true God as He Who "doeth as He
willeth"(41) and "ordaineth as He pleaseth".(42) Thus they view not as
impossible the continued appearance in the contingent world of the
Manifestations of His Unity. Should anyone hold otherwise, how would he be
different from those who believe the hand of God to be "chained up"?(43)
And if the one true God--glorified be His mention!--be indeed regarded as
unconstrained, then whatever Cause that Ancient King may please to
manifest from the wellspring of His Command must be embraced by all. No
refuge is there for anyone and no haven to hasten unto save God; no
protection is there for any soul and no shelter to seek except in Him.
242 The essential requirement for whoso advanceth a claim is to support
his assertions with clear proofs and testimonies. Beyond this, the
rejection of the people, whether learned or ignorant, hath never been, nor
shall it ever be, of any consequence. The Prophets of God, those Pearls of
the ocean of Divine Unity and the Repositories of Divine Revelation, have
ever been the object of men's repudiation and denial. Even as He saith:
"Each nation hath plotted darkly against their Messenger to lay violent
hold on Him, and disputed with vain words to invalidate the truth."(44)
And again: "No Messenger cometh unto them but they laugh Him to
scorn."(45)
243 Consider the dispensation of Him Who is the Seal of the Prophets and
the King of the Chosen Ones--may the souls of all mankind be offered up for
His sake! After the Daystar of Truth dawned above the horizon of Hijaz,
how great were the cruelties which the exponents of error inflicted upon
that incomparable Manifestation of the All-Glorious! Such was their
heedlessness that they regarded every injury inflicted upon that sacred
Being as ranking among the greatest of all acts, and constituting a means
of attainment unto God, the Most High. For in the early years of His
mission the divines of that age, both Christian and Jewish, turned away
from that Daystar of the heaven of glory, whereupon all people, high and
low alike, bestirred themselves to extinguish the light of that Luminary
of the horizon of inner meanings. The names of all these divines have been
mentioned in the books of old; among them are Wahb Ibn-i-Rahib, Ka'b
Ibn-i-Ashraf, 'Abdu'llah-i-Ubayy, and others of their like.
244 Finally, matters came to such a pass that these men took counsel
together and conspired to shed His pure blood, even as God--glorified be
His mention!--saith: "And remember when the disbelievers schemed against
Thee, that they might lay hold upon Thee, or slay Thee, or cast Thee out;
and so they schemed, and God schemed, and God, verily, is the best of
schemers."(46) Again He saith: "But if their opposition be grievous to
Thee--if Thou canst, seek out an opening into the earth or a ladder into
heaven and bring to them a sign; yet if God wished, He could gather them
unto true guidance; be Thou not, then, of the ignorant."(47) By God! The
hearts of His favoured ones are consumed at the purport of these two
blessed verses. Such established and undisputed facts have been forgotten,
and no one hath paused to reflect, in days past or in this day, upon the
things that have prompted men to turn away from the Revealers of the light
of God at the time of their manifestation.
245 Likewise, before the appearance of the Seal of the Prophets, consider
Jesus, the Son of Mary. When that Manifestation of the All-Merciful
revealed Himself, all the divines charged that Quintessence of faith with
impiety and rebellion. Eventually, with the sanction of Annas, the most
learned of the divines of His day, and Caiaphas, the high priest, His
blessed person was made to suffer that which the pen is ashamed to mention
and powerless to describe. The wide world in all its vastness could no
longer contain Him, until at last God raised Him up unto heaven.
246 Were a detailed account of all the Prophets to be given here, We fear
that it might lead to weariness. The doctors of the Torah in particular
assert that no independent Prophet will come after Moses with a new Law.
They maintain that a Scion of the House of David shall be made manifest
Who will promulgate the Law of the Torah, and help establish and enforce
its commandments throughout the East and the West.
247 The followers of the Gospel, likewise, hold as impossible that the
Bearer of a new Revelation should again shine forth from the dayspring of
the Will of God after Jesus, Son of Mary--peace be upon Him! In support of
this contention, they adduce the following verse from the Gospel: "Heaven
and earth shall pass away, but the words of the Son of Man shall never
pass away."(48) They maintain that neither the teachings nor the
commandments of Jesus--peace be upon Him!--may ever be altered.
248 At one point in the Gospel, He saith: "I go away, and come again."(49)
Again in the Gospel of John, He hath foretold the advent of a Comforter
who shall come after Him.(50) In the Gospel of Luke, moreover, a number of
signs and portents have been mentioned. Certain divines of that Faith,
however, have interpreted these utterances after their own fancy, and have
thus failed to grasp their true significance.