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Epistle to the Son of the Wolf — §118

Persian source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 118 of 268.

Source (Persian)

يا شيخ قلم حيا ميکند از ذکر انچه واقع شده * و در ارض صاد نار ظلم مشتعل بشانيکه هر منصفی نوحه نمود * لعمرک از مدائن علم و معرفت نحيب و بکاء مرتفع بقسميکه اکباد اهل برّ و تقوی محترق * نورين نيّرين حسنين در ان ارض رايگان جان فدا نمودند دولت و ثروت و عزّت ايشانرا منع ننمود * اللّه يعلم ما ورد عليهما و القوم اکثرهم لا يعلمون *

Shoghi Effendi Translation

O Shaykh! My Pen is abashed to recount what actually took place. In the land of Sad (Iṣfahán) the fire of tyranny burned with such a hot flame that every fair-minded person groaned aloud. By thy life! The cities of knowledge and of understanding wept with such a weeping that the souls of the pious and of the God-fearing were melted. The twin shining lights, Ḥasan and Ḥusayn (The King of Martyrs and the Beloved of Martyrs) offered up spontaneously their lives in that city. Neither fortune, nor wealth, nor glory, could deter them! God knoweth the things which befell them and yet the people are, for the most part, unaware!

Translation Notes

ميکند
míknd k-r-d

literal: do; to do; do, make

SE rendered شيخ (shíkh)قلم (qlm)حيا (ḥíá)ميکند (míknd)از (iz)ذکر (dhkr)انچه (inchh)واقع (wáqʿ) as “Shaykh, My Pen, abashed, to, recount, what, actually took”

نحيب
nḥíb n-ḥ-b “weeping”

literal: wailing; sobbing/wailing

2 occurrences in corpus

بکاء
bkáʾ b-k-y

literal: weeping; weep

SE rendered از (iz)مدائن (mdáʾn)علم (ʿlm)معرفت (mʿrft)نحيب (nḥíb)بکاء (bkáʾ)مرتفع (mrtfʿ)بقسميکه (bqsmíkh)اکباد (ikbád)اهل (ihl)برّ (brr) as “with, The cities, knowledge, understanding, weeping, wept, the souls, the pious”

weeping 50% shed 50%
بقسميکه
bqsmíkh q-s-m

literal: manner; oath; oath, swear

SE rendered علم (ʿlm)معرفت (mʿrft)نحيب (nḥíb)بکاء (bkáʾ)مرتفع (mrtfʿ)بقسميکه (bqsmíkh)اکباد (ikbád)اهل (ihl)برّ (brr)تقوی (tqúy)محترق (mḥtrq) as “knowledge, understanding, weeping, wept, the souls, the pious, the God-fearing, were melted”

swear 43% such 21% portion 9% adjure 6% great 6% beareth 4% share 4% divided 2% system 2% potent 2%
اهل
ihl ʾ-h-l

literal: people; people, folk; people/inhabitants

SE rendered مرتفع (mrtfʿ)بقسميکه (bqsmíkh)اکباد (ikbád)اهل (ihl)برّ (brr)تقوی (tqúy)محترق (mḥtrq)نورين (núrín)نيّرين (nínrín) as “wept, the souls, the pious, the God-fearing, were melted, twin, shining”

رايگان
ráygán r-y-g “willingly”

literal: freely; freely, without cost; free/generous

4 occurrences in corpus

Source: Bahá'u'lláh, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf

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