Gleanings — §13

Arabic source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 13 of 729.

Source (Arabic)

خضوع و خشوع از هر يک در تسبيح و تقديس الهی ظاهر شود که ذرّات تراب آن محلّ شهادت دهند بخلوص آن جمع و جذبه بيانات روحانيّه آن انفس زکيّه ذرّات آن تراب را اخذ نمايد نه آنکه تراب بلسان حال ذکر نمايد إنّا أفضل منکم چه که در حمل مشقّات فلّاحين صابرم و بکلّ ذی روح اعطای فيض فيّاض که در من وديعه گذارده نموده و مينمايم مع همه اين مقامات عاليه و ظهورات لا تحصی که جميع ما يحتاج وجود از من ظاهر است باحدی فخر ننموده و نمينمايم و بکمال خضوع در زير قدم کلّ ساکنم ... ... بايد کلّ با يکديگر برفق و مدارا و محبّت سلوک نمايند و اگر نفسی از ادراک بعضی

Shoghi Effendi Translation

They who are the beloved of God, in whatever place they gather and whomsoever they may meet, must evince, in their attitude towards God, and in the manner of their celebration of His praise and glory, such humility and submissiveness that every atom of the dust beneath their feet may attest the depth of their devotion. The conversation carried by these holy souls should be informed with such power that these same atoms of dust will be thrilled by its influence. They should conduct themselves in such manner that the earth upon which they tread may never be allowed to address to them such words as these: “I am to be preferred above you. For witness, how patient I am in bearing the burden which the husbandman layeth upon me. I am the instrument that continually imparteth unto all beings the blessings with which He Who is the Source of all grace hath entrusted me. Notwithstanding the honor conferred upon me, and the unnumbered evidences of my wealth — a wealth that supplieth the needs of all creation — behold the measure of my humility, witness with what absolute submissiveness I allow myself to be trodden beneath the feet of men.…”

Translation Notes

خضوع

kh-ḍ-ʿ → “humility and submissiveness”

literal: humility; submissiveness; lowliness

خشوع

kh-sh-ʿ → “humility”

literal: fear of God; awe; reverence; submission

از

ʾ-z

literal: from

هر

h-r → “every atom”

literal: whatever; all that; whatever thing

يک

y-k

literal: one; a single

در

d-r-r

literal: in; in, at; radiant

تسبيح

s-b-ḥ → “Glorified” Distinctive

literal: glorified; the All-Praised; exalted; dawn; daybreak; morning

تقديس

q-d-s → “holy” Distinctive

literal: holy, sacred, sanctified

الهی

ʾ-l-h → “of God”

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

شود

sh-w-d

literal: to come; to go; to arrive; came

که

k-h → “that”

literal: that; who; who, that

ذرّات

dh-r-r → “same atoms”

literal: them (pronoun + object marker)

تراب

t-r-b → “of the dust”

literal: dust; earth; soil

محلّ

ḥ-l-l → “place”

literal: place; location; spot

شهادت

sh-h-d → “attest” Distinctive

literal: witnessed; observed; seen; evident; manifest

دهند

d-h

literal: to give; to provide; to yield; to grant; to bestow

بخلوص

kh-l-ṣ → “wholly”

literal: sincere; devoted; pure one

جمع

j-m-ʿ → “gather”

literal: to gather; to assemble; group; number

جذبه

j-dh-b

literal: to draw, attract, pull; to be enraptured

بيانات

b-y-n → “utterance”

literal: to manifest; to make clear; clear, evident

روحانيّه

r-w-ḥ → “holy souls” Distinctive

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

انفس

n-f-s

literal: self; soul; psyche; person; essence

زکيّه

z-k-y

literal: pure; sanctified; chaste

را

r-ʾ-ʾ

literal: object marker; object-marker; to

اخذ

ʾ-kh-dh → “arrested”

literal: to take; to seize; to affect; to grasp

نمايد

n-m-ʾ → “may”

literal: to show, display, exhibit; to grow, develop

نه

n-h-y

literal: end; ended; utmost

آنکه

ʾ-n → “to” Distinctive

literal: that; those; he; she; it

بلسان

l-s-n

literal: tongue; language

حال

ḥ-w-l

literal: state; condition; circumstance

ذکر

dh-k-r → “mention”

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

أفضل

f-ḍ-l → “grace” Distinctive

literal: grace; bounty; generosity; excellence

منکم

m-n → “above you” Distinctive

literal: from you; among you

چه

ch-h → “For witness, how”

literal: what; what/for; whatsoever, that which

حمل

ḥ-m-l → “bearing” Distinctive

literal: to bear; to endure; to carry; to tolerate

مشقّات

sh-q-q → “discord” Distinctive

literal: split; hardship; discord

فلّاحين

f-l-ḥ → “husbandman”

literal: success; successful; farmers

بکلّ

k-l-l → “unto all”

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

ذی

dh-w-y → “and” Distinctive

literal: possessor; possessor of; possessor/owner

اعطای

ʿ-ṭ-w → “bounty”

literal: bounty; gift; giving

فيض

f-y-ḍ → “blessings”

literal: flood; abundance; overflow; emanation; grace

فيّاض

f-y-ḍ → “grace”

literal: flood; abundance; overflow; emanation; grace

وديعه

w-d-ʿ → “entrusted”

literal: deposit, trust, pledge

گذارده

g-dh-r

literal: to place, leave; to set

نموده

n-m-ود → “hath”

literal: do; to do; do/make

مع

m-ʿ → “Notwithstanding”

literal: with; together with; alongside

همه

h-m-h → “all”

literal: all; every/all

اين

ʾ-y-n

literal: this; these

مقامات

q-w-m → “people” Distinctive

literal: rising; standing; uprising; resurrection

عاليه

ʿ-l-w → “conferred upon me, and” Distinctive

literal: highest; most high; supreme

ظهورات

ẓ-h-r → “unnumbered evidences” Distinctive

literal: manifestation; appearance; to appear; to manifest; to display; to reveal; ظهور here means ‘backs’ (plural of ظهر), different semantic use than manifestation

لا

l-ʾ

literal: no; not; negation particle

تحصی

ḥ-ṣ-y

literal: unnumbered, innumerable, countless, beyond count; to count; to enumerate; to be reckoned

ما

m-ʾ

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

يحتاج

ḥ-w-j → “needs”

literal: need; needy; needs

وجود

w-j-d

literal: to find; to discover; to obtain

است

b-w-d

literal: to be; are (third person plural present copula)

باحدی

ʾ-ḥ-d

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

فخر

f-kh-r

literal: glory; boasting; pride

بکمال

k-m-l → “perfect”

literal: perfection; completeness; fully; with full; in complete; to complete, perfect, fulfill

زير

z-y-r → “inasmuch as”

literal: because; since; for; inasmuch as

قدم

q-d-m → “feet” Distinctive

literal: ancientness; antiquity; foot; to come forward

بايد

b-y-d → “must”

literal: by hand; with hands; eternal; perpetual; everlasting

با

b-ʾ-ʾ

literal: to; with; by

يکديگر

d-y-g-r

literal: other; another; different

برفق

r-f-q

literal: companion; friend; associate; the Exalted Companion

مدارا

d-w-r

literal: school; place of study

محبّت

ḥ-b-b → “beloved”

literal: love; affection

سلوک

s-l-k → “walk”

literal: conduct; behavior; way; path; spiritual wayfaring

اگر

ʾ-g-r

literal: although; even if; though; notwithstanding

ادراک

d-r-k

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

بعضی

b-ʿ-ḍ

literal: part; some; portion

Model Translations by Shoghi Effendi

Epistle to the Son of the Wolf

Bahá’u’lláh

The last outstanding Tablet revealed by Bahá’u’lláh, written around 1891 and addressed to Shaykh Muḥammad-Taqí of Iṣfahán. It calls upon that rapacious priest to repent, quotes the most celebrated passages from Bahá’u’lláh’s own writings, and adduces proofs establishing the validity of His Cause.

268 ¶

Fire Tablet

Bahá’u’lláh

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 ¶

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 ¶