Epistle to the Son of the Wolf — §228

Persian source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 228 of 268.

Source (Persian)

همچنين ميفرمايد [ فانّ مثله جلّ ذکره کمثل الشّمس لو يقابلنّه الی ما لا نهاية مرايا کلهنّ ليستعکسنّ من تجلّی الشّمس فی حدّهم و ان لم يقابلها من احد فيطلع الشّمس و يغرب و الحجاب للمرآيا و انّی ما قصّرت عن نصحی ذلک الخلق و تدبيری لاقبالهم الی اللّه ربّهم و ايمانهم باللّه بارئهم و ان يؤمننّ به يوم ظهوره کلّ ما علی الارض فاذا يسرّ کينونتی حيث کلّ قد بلغوا الی ذروة وجودهم و وصلوا الی طلعة محبوبهم و ادرکوا ما يمکن فی الامکان من تجلّی مقصودهم و الّا يحزن فؤادی و انّی قد ربّيت کلّ شیء لذلک، فکيف يحتجب احدٌ ؟ علی هذا قد دعوت اللّه و لادعونّه انّه قريب مجيب ]

Shoghi Effendi Translation

And likewise, He saith: "He - glorified be His mention - resembleth the sun. Were unnumbered mirrors to be placed before it, each would, according to its capacity, reflect the splendor of that sun, and were none to be placed before it, it would still continue to rise and set, and the mirrors alone would be veiled from its light. I, verily, have not fallen short of My duty to admonish that people, and to devise means whereby they may turn towards God, their Lord, and believe in God, their Creator. If, on the day of His Revelation, all that are on earth bear Him allegiance, Mine inmost being will rejoice, inasmuch as all will have attained the summit of their existence, and will have been brought face to face with their Beloved, and will have recognized, to the fullest extent attainable in the world of being, the splendor of Him Who is the Desire of their hearts. If not, My soul will indeed be saddened. I truly have nurtured all things for this purpose. How, then, can anyone be veiled from Him? For this have I called upon God, and will continue to call upon Him. He, verily, is nigh, ready to answer."

Translation Notes

همچنين

ch-n-n → “And likewise”

literal: always; ever; forever; at all times; constantly

ميفرمايد

f-r-m → “He saith”

literal: to say; to decree; to ordain; to command

جلّ

j-l-l → “glorified”

literal: exalted; glory; majesty

ذکره

dh-k-r → “mention”

literal: remembrance; mention; memory; invocation; reminders; commemorations

کمثل

m-th-l → “- resembleth” Distinctive

literal: like; example; parable; similitude

الشّمس

sh-m-s → “the sun”

literal: sun; daystar; manifestation of divine light

لو

l-w → “If”

literal: if; would that; O that

يقابلنّه

q-b-l → “placed before”

literal: group; company; tribe; sort; kind

الی

ʾ-l-y → “towards”

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

ما

m-ʾ

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

لا

l-ʾ

literal: no; not; negation particle

نهاية

n-h-y → “forbidden” Distinctive

literal: end, limit, utmost, extreme; final; the end, limit, utmost bound; Lote-Tree beyond which there is no passing; end; limit; terminus

مرايا

r-ʾ-y → “mirrors”

literal: to see; to perceive; to look; to see, to observe, to behold; to view; vision; dream; sight; ل is prefix; verb تری (you see) is from ر-ا-ي

کلهنّ

k-l-l → “each”

literal: all; every; whole; entirety; entire; completely

ليستعکسنّ

ʿ-k-s → “reflect”

literal: opposite; reverse; contrary; conversely

من

m-n

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

تجلّی

j-l-w → “splendor”

literal: effulgence; manifestation; revelation

فی

f-y → “of” Distinctive

literal: in; in-it; in it

حدّهم

ḥ-d-d → “limitations” Distinctive

literal: iron; sharp, keen, acute

ان

ʾ-n

literal: that; those; he; she; it

لم

l-y-s

literal: to reproach; blame; censure

احد

ʾ-ḥ-d → “none”

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

فيطلع

ṭ-l-ʿ → “rise”

literal: rising; appearance; countenance; manifestation

يغرب

gh-r-b → “set”

literal: west; sunset; place of setting

الحجاب

ḥ-j-b → “veiled”

literal: to veil oneself, to be veiled

انّی

ʾ-n-n → “that” Distinctive

literal: I, verily; behold I

قصّرت

q-ṣ-r → “powerlessness” Distinctive

literal: shortcoming; negligence; falling short; to be deficient

عن

ʿ-n

literal: from; about; concerning; away from

نصحی

n-ṣ-ḥ → “counsel”

literal: counsel; advice; admonition

الخلق

kh-l-q → “that people” Distinctive

literal: character; moral traits; disposition; conduct

تدبيری

d-b-r → “Take ye counsel together” Distinctive

literal: deliberation; consideration; prudence; management; planning; counsel

اللّه

ʾ-l-h → “God”

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

ربّهم

r-b-b → “Lord”

literal: divine; of God; lordly

ايمانهم

ʾ-m-n → “believe”

literal: to believe; to have faith; to be secure; trust; trustworthiness; covenant; deposit; believer, faithful

بارئهم

b-r-ʾ → “Thy people” Distinctive

literal: high; exalted; upper; to adorn; to arrange; to prepare; banners; standards

يؤمننّ

ʾ-m-n → “faith” Distinctive

literal: to believe; to have faith; to be secure; trust; trustworthiness; covenant; deposit; believer, faithful

به

b-h

literal: by it; by him; with it

يوم

y-w-m → “day”

literal: day; age; period; era; a day

ظهوره

ẓ-h-r → “Revelation”

literal: manifestation; appearance; to appear; to manifest

علی

ʿ-l-w → “exalted”

literal: highest; most high; supreme

الارض

ʾ-r-ḍ

literal: earth; land; ground; country

فاذا

ʾ-dh → “If”

literal: when; if; whenever; then suddenly

يسرّ

s-r-r → “will rejoice”

literal: secret; secrets; secret, mystery

کينونتی

k-w-n → “be”

literal: beings; creatures; existents; creation; rancour; grudge; enmity; being; existence (as philosophical term)

حيث

ḥ-y-th → “in such wise that”

literal: where; in which; inasmuch as; in such wise that; whereby; in that; respect, aspect

قد

q-d → “We have been”

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

بلغوا

b-l-gh → “attained”

literal: to reach; to attain; to deliver; to proclaim

ذروة

dh-r-w → “summit”

literal: peak; apex; pinnacle; summit

وجودهم

w-j-d → “existence”

literal: to find; to discover; to obtain

وصلوا

w-ṣ-l → “and” Distinctive

literal: reunion; union; meeting; connection

محبوبهم

ḥ-b-b → “Beloved”

literal: love; affection

ادرکوا

d-r-k → “comprehend” Distinctive

literal: to overtake; to catch; to reach; to attain; to perceive; to comprehend

يمکن

m-k-n → “all created things” Distinctive

literal: establishment; confirmation; empowerment; firm settlement; place; possibility; being (negated as ‘non-being’)

مقصودهم

q-ṣ-d → “Desire of their hearts”

literal: intention; purpose; aim; goal; to seek; to direct oneself

الّا

ʾ-kh-r → “end”

literal: end; hereafter; other

يحزن

ḥ-z-n → “saddened”

literal: sorrow; grief; sadness; anguish; to grieve; to sorrow; to be sad

فؤادی

f-ʾ-d → “soul”

literal: heart, innermost soul, mind; heart; inner consciousness; mind; one who benefits; advantageous

ربّيت

r-b-y → “education” Distinctive

literal: Lord; Master; Sustainer; Cherisher

شیء

sh-y-ʾ → “things”

literal: thing; something; to will; to wish; to desire; to open; to unfold; to reveal

لذلک،

dh-l-k → “for this purpose”

literal: abasement; humiliation; lowliness; to be abased

فکيف

k-y-f → “How”

literal: how; in what manner

هذا

h-dh-ʾ → “For this have I”

literal: this; that

دعوت

d-ʿ-w → “called”

literal: call, invocation, summons; to call, invite, summon

انّه

ʾ-n-n → “He, verily”

literal: I, verily; behold I

قريب

q-r-b → “nigh”

literal: place of sacrifice; altar

مجيب

j-w-b → “answer”

literal: responder; one who answers; answerer

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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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 ¶