Epistle to the Son of the Wolf — §156

Persian source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 156 of 268.

Source (Persian)

يا ايّها الغافل ان کنت فی ريب ممّا نحن عليه انّا نشهد بما شهد اللّه قبل خلق السّموات و الارض انّه لا اله الّا هو العزيز الوهّاب و نشهد انّه کان واحدا فی ذاته و واحدا فی صفاته لم يکن له شبه فی الابداع و لا شريک فی الاختراع قد ارسل الرّسل و انزل الکتب ليبشّروا الخلق الی سواء الصّراط *

Shoghi Effendi Translation

"O thou who art gone astray! If thou hast any doubt concerning Our conduct, know thou that We bear witness unto that whereunto God hath Himself borne witness ere the creation of the heavens and of the earth, that there is none other God but Him, the Almighty, the All-Bounteous. We testify that He is One in His Essence, One in His Attributes. He hath none to equal Him in the whole universe, nor any partner in all creation. He hath sent forth His Messengers, and sent down His Books, that they may announce unto His creatures the Straight Path.

Translation Notes

يا

y-ʾ → “O ye”

literal: O; vocative particle; oh (vocative particle)

ايّها

literal: O; vocative particle; oh (vocative particle)

الغافل

gh-f-l → “who art gone astray” Distinctive

literal: heedlessness; negligence; inattention

ان

ʾ-n → “to”

literal: that; those; he; she; it

کنت

k-w-n → “thou hast” Distinctive

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

فی

f-y → “in”

literal: in; in-it; in it

ريب

r-y-b → “doubt”

literal: doubt, suspicion, uncertainty; doubt; suspicion

نحن

n-ḥ-n → “We are”

literal: we

عليه

ʿ-l-y → “upon”

literal: highest; most high; supreme

نشهد

sh-h-d → “bear witness”

literal: witnessed; observed; seen; evident; manifest

بما

m-ʾ → “that” Distinctive

literal: what; which; that which; relative pronoun; interrogative

اللّه

ʾ-l-h → “God”

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

قبل

q-b-l → “ere”

literal: group; company; tribe; sort; kind

خلق

kh-l-q → “creation”

literal: character; moral traits; disposition; conduct

السّموات

s-m-w → “heavens”

literal: heaven; sky

الارض

ʾ-r-ḍ → “earth”

literal: earth; land; ground; country

انّه

ʾ-n-n → “that there is”

literal: I, verily; behold I

لا

l-ʾ → “or”

literal: no; not; negation particle

اله

ʾ-l-h → “God”

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

الّا

ʾ-kh-r → “but” Distinctive

literal: except; but; if not; lo; now; at this time; save; only; unless

هو

h-w → “is”

literal: He; He is

العزيز

ʿ-z-z → “Almighty”

literal: glory; might; honor; dignity; power; majesty

الوهّاب

w-h-b → “All-Bounteous”

literal: gift; grant; bestowal

واحدا

w-ḥ-d → “One”

literal: Divine unity; monotheism; belief in the oneness of God

ذاته

dh-w-t → “Essence”

literal: self; essence; being

صفاته

w-ṣ-f → “Attributes”

literal: attribute; quality; characteristic

لم

l-y-s → “not”

literal: to reproach; blame; censure

شبه

sh-b-h → “equal” Distinctive

literal: doubt; uncertainty; suspicion; resemblance; semblance

الابداع

b-d-ʿ → “wondrous” Distinctive

literal: to create; most wondrous; excel

شريک

sh-r-k → “partner”

literal: partner; associate; sharer; companion

الاختراع

kh-r-ʿ → “creation”

literal: invention; creation; origination

قد

q-d → “We have been”

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

ارسل

r-s-l → “sent forth”

literal: to send; dispatch; transmission

انزل

n-z-l → “sent down”

literal: to descend, to be revealed

الکتب

k-t-b → “Books”

literal: book; scripture; writing

ليبشّروا

b-sh-r → “may announce”

literal: human; mankind; human nature

الی

ʾ-l-y → “towards”

literal: to; to, toward; to, until

سواء

literal: level; equal; straight; upon a throne; resting upon; toward; to; direction of; other than; besides; except

الصّراط

ṣ-r-ṭ → “Straight Path”

literal: path, way, straight path

Model Translations by Shoghi Effendi

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729 ¶

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16 ¶

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291 ¶

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858 ¶

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17 ¶

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57 ¶

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59 ¶