Gleanings — §27

Arabic source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 27 of 729.

Source (Arabic)

در کتاب إِشَعْيَا ميفرمايد: "أُدْخُلْ إِلَی الصَّخْرَةِ وَاخْتَبِئْ فِی التُّرَابِ مِنْ أَمَامِ هَيْبَةِ الرَّبِّ وَمِنْ بَهَاءِ عَظَمَتِهِ." اگر نفسی در همين آيه تفکّر نمايد بر عظمت أمر و جلالت قدر يوم اللّه مطّلع ميشود و در آخر آيه مذکوره ميفرمايد: "وَيَسْمُو الرَّبُّ وَحْدَهُ فِی ذَلِکَ اليَومِ" امروز روزی است که ذکرش در کلّ کتب از قلم امر ثبت گشته ما من آيةٍ إلّا و قد تنادی بهذا الإسم و ما من کتابٍ إلّا و يشهد بهذا الذّکر المبين لو نذکر ما نزّل فی الکتب و الصّحف فی ذکر هذا الظّهور ليصير هذا اللّوح ذا حجم عظيم بايد اليوم کلّ بعنايات إلهيّه مطمئن باشند و بکمال حکمت در تبليغ امر جهد نمايند تا جميع بانوار فجر معانی منوّر شوند ...

Shoghi Effendi Translation

In the Book of Isaiah it is written: “Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of His majesty.” No man that meditateth upon this verse can fail to recognize the greatness of this Cause, or doubt the exalted character of this Day — the Day of God Himself. This same verse is followed by these words: “And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that Day.” This is the Day which the Pen of the Most High hath glorified in all the holy Scriptures. There is no verse in them that doth not declare the glory of His holy Name, and no Book that doth not testify unto the loftiness of this most exalted theme. Were We to make mention of all that hath been revealed in these heavenly Books and holy Scriptures concerning this Revelation, this Tablet would assume impossible dimensions. It is incumbent in this Day, upon every man to place his whole trust in the manifold bounties of God, and arise to disseminate, with the utmost wisdom, the verities of His Cause. Then, and only then, will the whole earth be enveloped with the morning light of His Revelation.

Translation Notes

در

d-r-r

literal: in; in, at; radiant

کتاب

k-t-b → “Book”

literal: book; scripture; writing

ميفرمايد:

f-r-m → “saith”

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

"أُدْخُلْ

d-kh-l → ““Enter”

literal: enter; entered; entering

إِلَی

ʾ-l-y → “towards”

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

الصَّخْرَةِ

ṣ-kh-r → “rock”

literal: rock; stone

وَاخْتَبِئْ

kh-b-ʾ → “hide”

literal: to hide; to conceal; tent; pavilion; chamber; tabernacle; hiding place

فِی

f-y → “in”

literal: in; in-it; in it

التُّرَابِ

t-r-b → “dust”

literal: dust; earth; soil

مِنْ

m-n → “for” Distinctive

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

أَمَامِ

ʾ-m-m

literal: mother; to lead; to head; matter; affair; people; nation; community; female servant; handmaiden; umma

هَيْبَةِ

h-y-b → “fear”

literal: fear; awe; majesty; reverence

الرَّبِّ

r-b-b → “Lord”

literal: by, with, through (preposition)

بَهَاءِ

b-h-w → “glory”

literal: highest; most high; supreme

عَظَمَتِهِ."

ʿ-ẓ-m → “majesty.””

literal: greatest; supreme; mightiest

اگر

ʾ-g-r

literal: although; even if; though; notwithstanding

نفسی

n-f-s → “man” Distinctive

literal: self; soul; psyche; person; essence

همين

h-m-n → “this”

literal: the same; that very

آيه

ʾ-y-y → “verse”

literal: verse; sign; miracle; proof; sign, verse, miracle, token, indication; ayah; he; him; it

تفکّر

f-k-r → “meditateth”

literal: thoughts; ideas; fancies; opinions; to think; to reflect; to contemplate

نمايد

n-m-ʾ → “will” Distinctive

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

بر

b-r-r → “upon”

literal: on; on, upon; upon

أمر

ʾ-m-r → “Cause”

literal: command; cause; matter; affair; Cause (of God); to command; to order

جلالت

j-l-l → “exalted character”

literal: majesty; glory; exaltation; magnificence

قدر

q-d-r

literal: power; might; decree; measure; worth

يوم

y-w-m → “Day”

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

اللّه

ʾ-l-h → “God”

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

مطّلع

ṭ-l-ʿ

literal: rising; appearance; countenance; manifestation

ميشود

sh-w-d → “been” Distinctive

literal: perhaps, perchance, haply, maybe, possibly; to become; to be; to happen; to occur

آخر

ʾ-kh-r

literal: the hereafter, the next life, the world to come; last, latter; the next life, the hereafter; delay; postponement

مذکوره

dh-k-r

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

"وَيَسْمُو

s-m-w → “exalted”

literal: heaven; sky

وَحْدَهُ

w-ḥ-d → “alone”

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

ذَلِکَ

dh-l-k → “that” Distinctive

literal: abasement; humiliation; lowliness; to be abased

امروز

r-w-z → “Day”

literal: narration; tradition; fragrance; to grow; to spring forth; to sprout

است

b-w-d → “is the”

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

که

k-h

literal: that; who; who, that

کلّ

k-l-l → “all”

literal: for us; to us

از

ʾ-z

literal: from

قلم

q-l-m → “Pen”

literal: pen; writing instrument

ثبت

th-b-t

literal: firm; steadfast; established; fixed

گشته

g-sh-t → “Were”

literal: become; became; to become

ما

m-ʾ

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

قد

q-d

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

تنادی

n-d-y → “voice” Distinctive

literal: call; voice; cry; summons; to call; to proclaim; to cry out; to summon

بهذا

h-dh-ʾ

literal: this; that

يشهد

sh-h-d → “testify”

literal: witnessed; observed; seen; evident; manifest

المبين

b-y-n → “most exalted theme” Distinctive

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

لو

l-w

literal: if; would that; O that

نذکر

dh-k-r → “mention”

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

نزّل

n-z-l → “revealed”

literal: to descend, to be revealed

الصّحف

ṣ-ḥ-f → “Scriptures”

literal: page; tablet; scroll; book

الظّهور

ẓ-h-r → “Revelation”

literal: manifestation; appearance; to appear; to manifest

ليصير

ṣ-y-r → “interposed themselves” Distinctive

literal: to become; to turn into; to grow

اللّوح

l-w-ḥ → “Tablet”

literal: tablet; panel; divine decree; revelation

ذا

dh-w

literal: possessor; possessor of

حجم

ḥ-j-m → “dimensions”

literal: size

بايد

b-y-d → “incumbent”

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

بعنايات

ʿ-n-y → “bounties”

literal: to concern; to mean; to turn away from; bounty; loving-kindness; grace; divine care; attention; meaning; significance; inner sense

مطمئن

ṭ-m-n

literal: tranquility; confidence; tranquil

بکمال

k-m-l → “utmost”

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

حکمت

ḥ-k-m → “wisdom”

literal: government; rule; governance; wisdom

تبليغ

b-l-gh → “teach”

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

جهد

j-h-d

literal: effort; striving; exertion; endeavor

تا

t-y-y

literal: so that/until

جميع

j-m-ʿ

literal: to gather; to assemble; group; number

بانوار

n-w-r → “light”

literal: light; illumination

فجر

f-j-r → “morning” Distinctive

literal: dawn; dayspring; to break (of dawn)

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 ¶