Epistle to the Son of the Wolf — §151

Persian source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 151 of 268.

Source (Persian)

عند ذلک ارتفع نداء الفطرة مرّة بعد مرّة نادت و قالت يا ملأ الارض تاللّه انّی لفطرة اللّه بينکم ايّاکم ان تنکرونی قد اظهرنی اللّه بنور احاط علی من فی السّموات و الارضين * انصفوا يا قوم فی ظهوری و بروزی و اشراقی و لا تکونوا من الظّالمين *

Shoghi Effendi Translation

Thereupon the voice of the true Faith was lifted up, calling aloud again and again and saying: "O concourse of the earth! By God! I am the true Faith of God amongst you. Beware that ye deny Me not. God hath manifested Me with a light that hath encompassed all that are in the heavens and all that are on earth. Judge ye equitably, O people, My manifestation, and the revelation of My glory, and the radiance of My light, and be not of them that act unjustly."

Translation Notes

عند

ʿ-n-d → “Thereupon”

literal: obstinacy; opposition; enmity

ذلک

dh-l-k → “Thereupon”

literal: abasement; humiliation; lowliness; to be abased

ارتفع

r-f-ʿ → “was lifted up”

literal: to be raised, elevated, exalted, lifted up

نداء

n-d-y → “voice of”

literal: call; voice; cry; summons

الفطرة

f-ṭ-r → “true Faith”

literal: creator; the one who splits/creates

مرّة

m-r-r → “again and” Distinctive

literal: to pass; to pass by; to go

بعد

b-ʿ-d → “after”

literal: after; behind; distance

قالت

q-w-l → “saying”

literal: speech; utterance; saying; word

يا

y-ʾ → “O ye”

literal: O; or

ملأ

m-l-ʾ → “concourse of”

literal: assembly; multitude; chiefs; to fill; people of rank; fullness, assembly

الارض

ʾ-r-ḍ → “the earth”

literal: earth; land; ground; country

تاللّه

ʾ-l-h → “By God”

literal: God; Allah; deity; Divinity; divine nature; godhood

انّی

ʾ-n-n → “that” Distinctive

literal: I, verily; behold I

بينکم

b-y-n → “amongst you”

literal: to manifest; to make clear; clear, evident; in; among; between; at this moment

ايّاکم

w-q-y → “Fear” Distinctive

literal: beware; take heed; woe to you

ان

ʾ-n

literal: that; those; he; she; it

تنکرونی

n-k-r → “denied” Distinctive

literal: denial; rejection; repudiation; wrong; evil; to deny; to reject

قد

q-d → “We have been”

literal: verily; indeed; certainly (particle of emphasis)

اظهرنی

ẓ-h-r → “manifested Me”

literal: manifestation; appearance; to appear; to manifest

بنور

n-w-r → “with a light”

literal: light; illumination

احاط

ḥ-w-ṭ → “hath encompassed”

literal: to encompass, surround, envelop, embrace

علی

ʿ-l-w

literal: highest; most high; supreme

من

m-n → “of”

literal: from; out of; than (preposition and particle)

فی

f-y → “in”

literal: in; in-it; in it

السّموات

s-m-w → “the heavens”

literal: heaven; sky

الارضين

ʾ-r-ḍ → “on earth”

literal: earth; land; ground; country

انصفوا

n-ṣ-f → “Judge ye equitably”

literal: justice; fairness; equity

قوم

q-w-m → “people”

literal: rising; standing; uprising; resurrection

بروزی

b-r-z → “revelation of My glory”

literal: to go; to depart; to rest; spirit; soul

اشراقی

sh-r-q → “radiance of My light”

literal: radiance; splendor; dawn; illumination

لا

l-ʾ → “be not”

literal: no; not; negation particle

تکونوا

k-w-n → “be not”

literal: to do; to make; to perform; to be; was

الظّالمين

ẓ-l-m → “that act unjustly” Distinctive

literal: wrongedness, oppression, meekness; state of being wronged or oppressed

Model Translations by Shoghi Effendi

Fire Tablet

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Revealed in late 1871 during a period of severe hardship in ‘Akká, this Tablet takes the form of an anguished dialogue between Bahá’u’lláh and God. Questions about the sufferings of the faithful are answered with divine assurances, building to a crescendo of triumph over tribulation.

50 ¶

Gleanings

Bahá’u’lláh

A compilation of 166 selections from Bahá’u’lláh’s Tablets, spanning the Baghdad, Adrianople, and ‘Akká periods (1853–1892). George Townshend assisted with English refinement. Shoghi Effendi wrote that it gives the friends a splendid opportunity to acquire knowledge and understanding of the Faith.

729 ¶

Kitáb-i-’Ahd

Bahá’u’lláh

The Book of the Covenant — Bahá’u’lláh’s Will and Testament, written entirely in His own hand and unsealed on the ninth day after His ascension. It designates ‘Abdu’l-Bahá as His successor and establishes what Shoghi Effendi called the mightiest Covenant in all religious history.

16 ¶

Kitáb-i-Íqán

Bahá’u’lláh

The principal doctrinal work of the Faith, revealed in Baghdad within the space of two days and two nights in response to questions from the Báb’s maternal uncle. Shoghi Effendi described it as occupying a position unequalled by any work except the Kitáb-i-Aqdas — a model of Persian prose, at once original, chaste, vigorous, and remarkably lucid.

291 ¶

Prayers and Meditations

Bahá’u’lláh

Published in 1938, this companion volume to Gleanings contains 184 prayers and meditations selected by Shoghi Effendi from Bahá’u’lláh’s devotional writings revealed across successive exiles from Baghdad to ‘Akká. Shoghi Effendi described it as a volume whose perusal would deepen the spirit of devotion and faith.

858 ¶

Tablet of Aḥmad

Bahá’u’lláh

Revealed in Adrianople and addressed to a believer named Aḥmad, this Tablet has been invested by Bahá’u’lláh with a special potency and significance. Its central imagery draws on the metaphor of fire and water: “Be thou as a flame of fire to My enemies and a river of life eternal to My loved ones.”

17 ¶

Tablet of Carmel

Bahá’u’lláh

Revealed during a visit to Mount Carmel, this Tablet addresses the mountain directly and prophesies its future as the world spiritual and administrative center of the Faith. Shoghi Effendi designated it one of three foundational Charters. Its imagery of the Ark and the dwellers therein prefigures the Universal House of Justice.

5 ¶

Tablet of the Holy Mariner

Bahá’u’lláh

Chanted aloud in the outskirts of Baghdad just weeks before the Declaration in the Garden of Riḍván, its gloomy prognostications aroused the grave apprehensions of all who heard it. Only the Arabic portion has an authorized translation; the Persian portion remains untranslated.

57 ¶

The Hidden Words

Bahá’u’lláh

Seventy-one Arabic and eighty-two Persian aphorisms revealed around 1858 while walking along the banks of the Tigris in Baghdad. Originally designated the “Hidden Book of Fáṭimih,” Shoghi Effendi described it as a marvelous collection of gem-like utterances occupying a position of unsurpassed preeminence among the ethical writings of the Faith.

160 ¶

Will and Testament

‘Abdu’l-Bahá

Written by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in three parts between 1901 and 1908, opened and read after His passing on 28 November 1921. Shoghi Effendi designated it the Charter of the New World Order — the mightiest instrument forged to ensure the continuity of the three ages of the Bahá’í Dispensation.

59 ¶