Gleanings — §571

Arabic source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 571 of 729.

Source (Arabic)

ّ الدّنيا ثمّ ألسنكم عن ذكر ما سويٰه ثمّ أركانكم عن كلّ ما يمنعكم عن اللّقا و‌يقرّبكم إلی ما يأمركم به الهوى اتّقوا اللّه يا قوم و‌كونوا

Shoghi Effendi Translation

Cleanse from your hearts the love of worldly things, from your tongues every remembrance except His remembrance, from your entire being whatsoever may deter you from beholding His face, or may tempt you to follow the promptings of your evil and corrupt inclinations. Let God be your fear, O people, and be ye of them that tread the path of righteousness.

Translation Notes

الدّنيا

d-n-w → “worldly things”

literal: this world; earthly life; temporal realm

ثمّ

th-m-m

literal: then; thereafter; next; moreover

ألسنكم

l-s-n → “your tongues”

literal: arrow; pointed weapon; spear-point; edge

عن

ʿ-n → “from”

literal: from; about; concerning; away from

ذكر

dh-k-r → “every remembrance” Distinctive

literal: remembrance; mention; memory

ما

m-ʾ → “that”

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

سويٰه

s-w-y → “except Thee” Distinctive

literal: worst; evil; bad; other than; besides; save; except

أركانكم

r-k-n → “foundations” Distinctive

literal: pillar; cornerstone; support; fundamental element; limb; member

كلّ

k-l-l → “whatsoever” Distinctive

literal: for us; to us

يمنعكم

m-n-ʿ → “hinder”

literal: forbidden; prevented; deprived

اللّقا

l-q-y → “beholding His face”

literal: opposite; facing; in front of; towards

و‌يقرّبكم

q-r-b → “nearness” Distinctive

literal: place of sacrifice; altar

إلی

ʾ-l-y → “to”

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

يأمركم

ʾ-m-r → “Cause” Distinctive

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

به

b-h

literal: by it; by him; with it

الهوى

h-w-y → “evil and corrupt inclinations” Distinctive

literal: desire; vain desire; inclination; passion

اتّقوا

w-q-y → “Let God be your fear”

literal: to fear; to frighten; afraid

اللّه

ʾ-l-h

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

يا

y-ʾ → “O”

literal: O; or

قوم

q-w-m → “people”

literal: rising; standing; uprising; resurrection

و‌كونوا

k-w-n → “be ye”

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

Model Translations by Shoghi Effendi

Epistle to the Son of the Wolf

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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 ¶