"Praise be to Thee, O Lord my God! Thou seest..."
Praise be to Thee, O Lord my God! Thou seest and knowest that I have
called upon Thy servants to turn nowhere except in the direction of Thy
bestowals, and have bidden them observe naught save the things Thou didst
prescribe in Thy Perspicuous Book, the Book which hath been sent down
according to Thine inscrutable decree and irrevocable purpose.
I can utter no word, O my God, unless I be permitted by Thee, and can move
in no direction until I obtain Thy sanction. It is Thou, O my God, Who
hast called me into being through the power of Thy might, and hast endued
me with Thy grace to manifest Thy Cause. Wherefore I have been subjected
to such adversities that my tongue hath been hindered from extolling Thee
and from magnifying Thy glory.
All praise be to Thee, O my God, for the things Thou didst ordain for me
through Thy decree and by the power of Thy sovereignty. I beseech Thee
that Thou wilt fortify both myself and them that love me in our love for
Thee, and wilt keep us firm in Thy Cause. I swear by Thy might! O my God!
Thy servant's shame is to be shut out as by a veil from Thee, and his
glory is to know Thee. Armed with the power of Thy name nothing can ever
hurt me, and with Thy love in my heart all the world's afflictions can in
no wise alarm me.
Send down, therefore, O my Lord, upon me and upon my loved ones that which
will protect us from the mischief of those that have repudiated Thy truth
and disbelieved in Thy signs.
Thou art, verily, the All-Glorious, the Most Bountiful.
--Baha'u'llah
"Praised be Thou, O Lord my God! This is Thy..."
Praised be Thou, O Lord my God! This is Thy servant who hath quaffed from
the hands of Thy grace the wine of Thy tender mercy, and tasted of the
savor of Thy love in Thy days. I beseech Thee, by the embodiments of Thy
names whom no grief can hinder from rejoicing in Thy love or from gazing
on Thy face, and whom all the hosts of the heedless are powerless to cause
to turn aside from the path of Thy pleasure, to supply him with the good
things Thou dost possess, and to raise him up to such heights that he will
regard the world even as a shadow that vanisheth swifter than the
twinkling of an eye.
Keep him safe also, O my God, by the power of Thine immeasurable majesty,
from all that Thou abhorrest. Thou art, verily, his Lord and the Lord of
all worlds.
--Baha'u'llah
"Lauded be Thy name, O Lord my God! I entreat..."
Lauded be Thy name, O Lord my God! I entreat Thee by Thy Name through
which the Hour hath struck, and the Resurrection came to pass, and fear
and trembling seized all that are in heaven and all that are on earth, to
rain down, out of the heaven of Thy mercy and the clouds of Thy tender
compassion, what will gladden the hearts of Thy servants, who have turned
towards Thee and helped Thy Cause.
Keep safe Thy servants and Thy handmaidens, O my Lord, from the darts of
idle fancy and vain imaginings, and give them from the hands of Thy grace
a draught of the soft-flowing waters of Thy knowledge.
Thou, truly, art the Almighty, the Most Exalted, the Ever-Forgiving, the
Most Generous.
--Baha'u'llah
"O God, my God! I have set out from my..."
O God, my God! I have set out from my home, holding fast unto the cord of
Thy love, and I have committed myself wholly to Thy care and Thy
protection. I entreat Thee by Thy power through which Thou didst protect
Thy loved ones from the wayward and the perverse, and from every
contumacious oppressor, and every wicked doer who hath strayed far from
Thee, to keep me safe by Thy bounty and Thy grace. Enable me, then, to
return to my home by Thy power and Thy might. Thou art, truly, the
Almighty, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting.
--Baha'u'llah
"Ordain for me, O my Lord, and for those who..."
Ordain for me, O my Lord, and for those who believe in Thee that which is
deemed best for us in Thine estimation, as set forth in the Mother Book,
for within the grasp of Thy hand Thou holdest the determined measures of
all things.
Thy goodly gifts are unceasingly showered upon such as cherish Thy love,
and the wondrous tokens of Thy heavenly bounties are amply bestowed on
those who recognize Thy divine Unity. We commit unto Thy care whatsoever
Thou hast destined for us, and implore Thee to grant us all the good that
Thy knowledge embraceth.
Protect me, O my Lord, from every evil that Thine omniscience perceiveth,
inasmuch as there is no power nor strength but in Thee, no triumph is
forthcoming save from Thy presence, and it is Thine alone to command.
Whatever God hath willed hath been, and that which He hath not willed
shall not be.
There is no power nor strength except in God, the Most Exalted, the Most
Mighty.
--The Bab
"Glory be to Thee, O God! Thou art the God..."
Glory be to Thee, O God! Thou art the God Who hath existed before all
things, Who will exist after all things and will last beyond all things.
Thou art the God Who knoweth all things, and is supreme over all things.
Thou art the God Who dealeth mercifully with all things, Who judgeth
between all things and Whose vision embraceth all things. Thou art God my
Lord, Thou art aware of my position, Thou dost witness my inner and outer
being.
Grant Thy forgiveness unto me and unto the believers who responded to Thy
Call. Be Thou my sufficing helper against the mischief of whosoever may
desire to inflict sorrow upon me or wish me ill. Verily, Thou art the Lord
of all created things. Thou dost suffice everyone, while no one can be
self-sufficient without Thee.
--The Bab
"In the Name of God, the Lord of overpowering..."
In the Name of God, the Lord of overpowering majesty, the All-Compelling.
Hallowed be the Lord in Whose hand is the source of dominion. He createth
whatsoever He willeth by His Word of command "Be," and it is. His hath
been the power of authority heretofore, and it shall remain His hereafter.
He maketh victorious whomsoever He pleaseth, through the potency of His
behest. He is in truth the Powerful, the Almighty. Unto Him pertaineth all
glory and majesty in the kingdoms of Revelation and Creation and whatever
lieth between them. Verily, He is the Potent, the All-Glorious. From
everlasting He hath been the Source of indomitable strength and shall
remain so unto everlasting. He is indeed the Lord of might and power. All
the kingdoms of heaven and earth and whatever is between them are God's,
and His power is supreme over all things. All the treasures of earth and
heaven and everything between them are His, and His protection extendeth
over all things. He is the Creator of the heavens and the earth and
whatever lieth between them, and He truly is a witness over all things. He
is the Lord of Reckoning for all that dwell in the heavens and on earth
and whatever lieth between them, and truly God is swift to reckon. He
setteth the measure assigned to all who are in the heavens and the earth
and whatever is between them. Verily, He is the Supreme Protector. He
holdeth in His grasp the keys of heaven and earth and of everything
between them. At His Own pleasure doth He bestow gifts, through the power
of His command. Indeed His grace encompasseth all, and He is the
All-Knowing.
Say: God sufficeth unto me; He is the One Who holdeth in His grasp the
kingdom of all things. Through the power of His hosts of heaven and earth
and whatever lieth between them, He protecteth whomsoever among His
servants He willeth. God, in truth, keepeth watch over all things.
Immeasurably exalted art Thou, O Lord! Protect us from what lieth in front
of us and behind us, above our heads, on our right, on our left, below our
feet and every other side to which we are exposed. Verily, Thy protection
over all things is unfailing.(7)
--The Bab
"O God, my God! Shield Thy trusted servants..."
O God, my God! Shield Thy trusted servants from the evils of self and
passion, protect them with the watchful eye of Thy loving-kindness from
all rancor, hate and envy, shelter them in the impregnable stronghold of
Thy care and, safe from the darts of doubtfulness, make them the
manifestations of Thy glorious signs, illumine their faces with the
effulgent rays shed from the Dayspring of Thy divine unity, gladden their
hearts with the verses revealed from Thy holy kingdom, strengthen their
loins by Thine all-swaying power that cometh from Thy realm of glory. Thou
art the All-Bountiful, the Protector, the Almighty, the Gracious.
--'Abdu'l-Baha
"O my Lord! Thou knowest that the people..."
O my Lord! Thou knowest that the people are encircled with pain and
calamities and are environed with hardships and trouble. Every trial doth
attack man and every dire adversity doth assail him like unto the assault
of a serpent. There is no shelter and asylum for him except under the wing
of Thy protection, preservation, guard and custody.
O Thou the Merciful One! O my Lord! Make Thy protection my armor, Thy
preservation my shield, humbleness before the door of Thy oneness my
guard, and Thy custody and defense my fortress and my abode. Preserve me
from the suggestions of self and desire, and guard me from every sickness,
trial, difficulty and ordeal.
Verily, Thou art the Protector, the Guardian, the Preserver, the Sufficer,
and verily, Thou art the Merciful of the Most Merciful.
--'Abdu'l-Baha
"O God, my God! We are servants of Thine..."
Whenever ye enter the council-chamber, recite this prayer with a heart
throbbing with the love of God and a tongue purified from all but His
remembrance, that the All-Powerful may graciously aid you to achieve
supreme victory.
O God, my God! We are servants of Thine that have turned with devotion to
Thy Holy Face, that have detached ourselves from all besides Thee in this
glorious Day. We have gathered in this Spiritual Assembly, united in our
views and thoughts, with our purposes harmonized to exalt Thy Word amidst
mankind. O Lord, our God! Make us the signs of Thy Divine Guidance, the
Standards of Thine exalted Faith amongst men, servants to Thy mighty
Covenant, O Thou our Lord Most High, manifestations of Thy Divine Unity in
Thine Abha Kingdom, and resplendent stars shining upon all regions. Lord!
Aid us to become seas surging with the billows of Thy wondrous Grace,
streams flowing from Thine all-glorious Heights, goodly fruits upon the
Tree of Thy heavenly Cause, trees waving through the breezes of Thy Bounty
in Thy celestial Vineyard. O God! Make our souls dependent upon the Verses
of Thy Divine Unity, our hearts cheered with the outpourings of Thy Grace,
that we may unite even as the waves of one sea and become merged together
as the rays of Thine effulgent Light; that our thoughts, our views, our
feelings may become as one reality, manifesting the spirit of union
throughout the world. Thou art the Gracious, the Bountiful, the Bestower,
the Almighty, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
--'Abdu'l-Baha
"O Thou Lord of the Kingdom! Though our..."
Come ye together in gladness unalloyed, and at the beginning of the
meeting, recite ye this prayer:
O Thou Lord of the Kingdom! Though our bodies be gathered here together,
yet our spellbound hearts are carried away by Thy love, and yet are we
transported by the rays of Thy resplendent face. Weak though we be, we
await the revelations of Thy might and power. Poor though we be, with
neither goods nor means, still take we riches from the treasures of Thy
Kingdom. Drops though we be, still do we draw from out Thy ocean deeps.
Motes though we be, still do we gleam in the glory of Thy splendid Sun.
O Thou our Provider! Send down Thine aid, that each one gathered here may
become a lighted candle, each one a center of attraction, each one a
summoner to Thy heavenly realms, till at last we make this nether world
the mirror image of Thy Paradise.
--'Abdu'l-Baha
"O God! O God! From the unseen kingdom of..."
Prayer to be said at the close of the meeting of the Spiritual Assembly.
O God! O God! From the unseen kingdom of Thy oneness behold us assembled
in this spiritual meeting, believing in Thee, confident in Thy signs, firm
in Thy Covenant and Testament, attracted to Thee, set aglow with the fire
of Thy love and sincere in Thy Cause. We are servants in Thy vineyard,
spreaders of Thy religion, devoted worshipers of Thy countenance, humble
towards Thy loved ones, submissive before Thy door, and imploring Thee to
confirm us in serving Thy chosen ones, to support us with Thine unseen
hosts, to strengthen our loins in Thy servitude and to make us submissive
and adoring subjects communing with Thee.
O our Lord! We are weak, and Thou art the Mighty, the Powerful. We are
lifeless, and Thou art the great life-giving Spirit. We are needy, and
Thou art the Sustainer, the Powerful.
O our Lord! Turn our faces unto Thy merciful countenance, feed us from Thy
heavenly table with Thine abundant grace, assist us with the hosts of Thy
supreme angels and confirm us through the holy ones of the Kingdom of
Abha.
Verily, Thou art the Generous, the Merciful. Thou art the Possessor of
great bounty, and, verily, Thou art the Clement and the Gracious.
--'Abdu'l-Baha