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Gleanings — §111

Arabic source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 111 of 729.

Source (Arabic)

حال در اين مظلوم ملاحظه کن مع آنکه بآيات بيّنات ظاهر شده و آنچه در ارض واقع گشته از قبل بکمال تصريح خبر داده و مع آنکه از اهل علم نبوده و بمدارس نرفته و مباحث نديده فنون و علوم ربّانيّه بمثابه غيث هاطل ما بين عباد نازل و جاری شده چگونه بر اعراض و اعتراض قيام نمودند اکثر ايّام در دست اعداء مبتلا و در آخر بظلم مبين در اين سجن عظيم ساکن انشاء اللّه ببصر حديد و قلب منير در آنچه از قبل و بعد ظاهر شده نظر نمائی و تفکّر کنی تا آگاه شوی بر آنچه اليوم اکثر خلق از آن غافلند انشاء اللّه از نفحات ايّام الهی محروم نمانی و از فيوضات نامتناهيه ممنوع نشوی از عنايت حق از بحر اعظم که اليوم باسم مالک قدم در عالم ظاهر است بياشامی و بر امر اللّه مثل جبل ثابت و راسخ ومستقيم مانی

Shoghi Effendi Translation

Consider this wronged One. Though the clearest proofs attest the truth of His Cause; though the prophecies He, in an unmistakable language, hath made have been fulfilled; though, in spite of His not being accounted among the learned, His being unschooled and inexperienced in the disputations current among the divines, He hath rained upon men the showers of His manifold and Divinely inspired knowledge; yet, behold how this generation hath rejected His authority, and rebelled against Him! He hath, during the greater part of His life, been sore-tried in the clutches of His enemies. His sufferings have now reached their culmination in this afflictive Prison, into which His oppressors have so unjustly thrown Him. God grant that, with a penetrating vision and radiant heart, thou mayest observe the things that have come to pass and are now happening, and, pondering them in thine heart, mayest recognize that which most men have, in this Day, failed to perceive. Please God, He may enable thee to inhale the sweet fragrance of His Day, to partake of the limitless effusions of His grace, to quaff thy fill, through His gracious favor, from the most great Ocean that surgeth in this Day in the name of the Ancient King, and to remain firm and immovable as the mountain in His Cause.

Translation Notes

ملاحظه
mláḥẓh l-ḥ-ẓ

literal: observation; observe; observation, consideration

SE rendered حال (ḥál), مظلوم (mẓlúm), ملاحظه (mláḥẓh), کن (kn), آنکه (ánkh), بآيات (báyát), بيّنات (bíbnát), ظاهر (ẓáhr) as “Consider, wronged, Though, clearest, proofs, attest”

کن
kn k-w-n

literal: be; to be

SE rendered حال (ḥál), مظلوم (mẓlúm), ملاحظه (mláḥẓh), کن (kn), آنکه (ánkh), بآيات (báyát), بيّنات (bíbnát), ظاهر (ẓáhr) as “Consider, wronged, Though, clearest, proofs, attest”

thou 56% \‘be 8% have 8% such 4% verily 4% truly 4% days 4% meditate 4% dwelt 4% preserve 4%
ارض
irḍ ʾ-r-ḍ

literal: earth; land; earth, land

SE rendered بآيات (báyát), بيّنات (bíbnát), ظاهر (ẓáhr), آنچه (ánchh), ارض (irḍ), واقع (wáqʿ), گشته (gshth), از (iz), بکمال (bkmál), تصريح (tṣríḥ) as “clearest, proofs, attest, fulfilled, unmistakable”

earth 65% land 13% world 9% all 4% soil 2% whole 2% amongst 2% mankind 1% realm 1% city 1%
گشته
gshth gshtn

literal: become; became; to become

SE rendered ظاهر (ẓáhr), آنچه (ánchh), ارض (irḍ), واقع (wáqʿ), گشته (gshth), از (iz), بکمال (bkmál), تصريح (tṣríḥ), خبر (khbr), داده (dádh) as “attest, fulfilled, unmistakable, prophecies, made”

اهل
ihl ʾ-h-l → “not”

literal: people; people/folk; people/inhabitants

SE rendered بکمال (bkmál), تصريح (tṣríḥ), خبر (khbr), داده (dádh), آنکه (ánkh), از (iz), اهل (ihl), علم (ʿlm), نبوده (nbúdh), بمدارس (bmdárs), نرفته (nrfth) as “unmistakable, prophecies, made, though, not, learned, being, unschooled”

فنون
fnún f-n-n

literal: art; arts

SE rendered بمدارس (bmdárs), نرفته (nrfth), مباحث (mbáḥth), نديده (ndídh), فنون (fnún), علوم (ʿlúm), ربّانيّه (rbbánính), بمثابه (bmthábh), غيث (ghíth) as “unschooled, disputations, inexperienced, knowledge, Divinely, showers”

arts 67% “arts 33%
نازل
názl n-z-l

literal: descending; descend

SE rendered بمثابه (bmthábh), غيث (ghíth), هاطل (háṭl), عباد (ʿbád), نازل (názl), جاری (járí), چگونه (chgúnh), بر (br), اعراض (iʿráḍ) as “showers, rained, men, how, hath”

جاری
járí j-r-y

literal: flowing; flow; to flow

SE rendered بمثابه (bmthábh), غيث (ghíth), هاطل (háṭl), عباد (ʿbád), نازل (názl), جاری (járí), چگونه (chgúnh), بر (br), اعراض (iʿráḍ), اعتراض (iʿtráḍ), قيام (qíám) as “showers, rained, men, how, hath, rebelled”

flowed 15% streamed 15% hath 12% have 12% floweth 8% flow 8% rained 8% uttered 8% streaming 8% endowed 8%
نمودند
nmúdnd nmúdn

literal: do; to do; show

SE rendered چگونه (chgúnh), بر (br), اعراض (iʿráḍ), اعتراض (iʿtráḍ), قيام (qíám), نمودند (nmúdnd), اکثر (ikthr), ايّام (iyyám), دست (dst), اعداء (iʿdáʾ), مبتلا (mbtlá) as “how, hath, rebelled, greater, life, clutches, enemies, sore-tried”

have 45% hath 11% suffered 8% sought 8% spoke 5% caused 5% arose 5% put 5% winged 5% arrested 3%
کنی
kní krdn

literal: do; to do; do/make

SE rendered نظر (nẓr), نمائی (nmáʾí), تفکّر (tfkkr), کنی (kní), آگاه (ágáh), شوی (shúy), بر (br), آنچه (ánchh), اليوم (al-yúm), اکثر (ikthr) as “observe, pondering, recognize, that, Day, most”

thou 57% pondering 14% shouldst 14% exaltest 14%
شوی
shúy shdn → “been”

literal: become; to become

SE rendered نظر (nẓr), نمائی (nmáʾí), تفکّر (tfkkr), کنی (kní), آگاه (ágáh), شوی (shúy), بر (br), آنچه (ánchh), اليوم (al-yúm), اکثر (ikthr), خلق (khlq) as “observe, pondering, recognize, that, Day, most, men”

mayest 27% wilt 27% thou 20% wert 7% become 7% may 7% shouldst 7%
محروم
mḥrúm ḥ-r-m

literal: deprived; deprive

SE rendered اللّه (al-lh), از (iz), نفحات (nfḥát), ايّام (iyyám), الهی (al-hí), محروم (mḥrúm), نمانی (nmání), از (iz), فيوضات (fíwḍát), نامتناهيه (námtnáhíh) as “God, fragrance, His, effusions, limitless”

نمانی
nmání m-ʾ-n

literal: remain; to remain; peerless

SE rendered نفحات (nfḥát), ايّام (iyyám), الهی (al-hí), محروم (mḥrúm), نمانی (nmání), از (iz), فيوضات (fíwḍát), نامتناهيه (námtnáhíh), ممنوع (mmnúʿ) as “fragrance, His, effusions, limitless, partake”

may 20% remain 20% mayest 10% peerless 10% become 10% bereft 10% kept 10% how 10%
حق
ḥq ḥ-q-q → “his”

literal: truth; true; right

SE rendered نامتناهيه (námtnáhíh), ممنوع (mmnúʿ), نشوی (nshúy), از (iz), عنايت (ʿnáyt), حق (ḥq), از (iz), بحر (bḥr), اعظم (iʿẓm), اليوم (al-yúm), باسم (básm), مالک (málk), قدم (qdm) as “limitless, partake, grace, His, Ocean, most, Day, name, Ancient”

god 29% truth 29% one 20% true 8% who 6% through 3% eternal 3% right 1% unto 1% righteousness 1%

Model Translations by Shoghi Effendi

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268 ¶

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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 ¶

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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 ¶

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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 ¶

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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 ¶

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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 ¶

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5 ¶

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57 ¶

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160 ¶

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59 ¶