Kitáb-i-'Ahd — §3

Persian source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 3 of 16.

Source (Persian)

اين مظلوم از حمل شدائد و بلايا و انزال آيات و اظهار بيّنات اخماد نار ضغينه و بغضا بوده که شايد آفاق افئده اهل عالم بنور اتّفاق منوّر گردد و بآسايش حقيقی فائز * و از افق لوح الهی نيّر اين بيان لائح و مشرق بايد کل بآن ناظر باشند * ای اهل عالم شما را وصيّت مينمايم بآنچه سبب ارتفاع مقامات شمااست * بتقوی اللّه تمسّک نمائيد و بذيل معروف تشبّث کنيد * براستی ميگويم لسان از برای ذکر خير است او را بگفتار زشت ميالائيد * عَفَا اللّهُ عَمَّا سَلَف * از بعد بايد کل بما ينبغی تکلّم نمايند * از لعن و طعن و ما يتکدّر به الإنسان اجتناب نمايند * مقام انسان بزرگ است * چندی قبل اينکلمه عليا از مخزن قلم ابهی ظاهر * امروز روزيست بزرگ و مبارک آنچه در انسان مستور بوده امروز ظاهر شده و ميشود * مقام انسان بزرگست اگر بحقّ و راستی تمسّک نمايد و بر امر ثابت و راسخ باشد * انسان حقيقی بمثابه آسمان لدی الرّحمن مشهود شمس و قمر سمع و بصر و انجم او اخلاق منيره مضيئه * مقامش اعلی المقام و آثارش مربّی امکان

Shoghi Effendi Translation

The aim of this Wronged One in sustaining woes and tribulations, in revealing the Holy Verses and in demonstrating proofs hath been naught but to quench the flame of hate and enmity, that the horizon of the hearts of men may be illumined with the light of concord and attain real peace and tranquillity. From the dawning-place of the divine Tablet the day-star of this utterance shineth resplendent, and it behoveth everyone to fix his gaze upon it: We exhort you, O peoples of the world, to observe that which will elevate your station. Hold fast to the fear of God and firmly adhere to what is right. Verily I say, the tongue is for mentioning what is good, defile it not with unseemly talk. God hath forgiven what is past. Henceforward everyone should utter that which is meet and seemly, and should refrain from slander, abuse and whatever causeth sadness in men. Lofty is the station of man! Not long ago this exalted Word streamed forth from the treasury of Our Pen of Glory: Great and blessed is this Day - the Day in which all that lay latent in man hath been and will be made manifest. Lofty is the station of man, were he to hold fast to righteousness and truth and to remain firm and steadfast in the Cause. In the eyes of the All-Merciful a true man appeareth even as a firmament; its sun and moon are his sight and hearing, and his shining and resplendent character its stars. His is the loftiest station, and his influence educateth the world of being.

Translation Notes

اين

ʾ-y-n → “this”

literal: this; these

مظلوم

ẓ-l-m → “Wronged One”

literal: wrongedness, oppression, meekness; state of being wronged or oppressed

از

ʾ-z → “of”

literal: from

حمل

ḥ-m-l → “sustaining” Distinctive

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

شدائد

sh-d-d → “tribulations”

literal: strong; severe; intense; violent

بلايا

b-l-w → “tribulations”

literal: affliction; trial; calamity; trial, tribulation, affliction, calamity; yes; indeed; verily

انزال

n-z-l → “revealing”

literal: to descend, to be revealed

آيات

ʾ-y-y → “Holy Verses”

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

اظهار

ẓ-h-r → “Revelation” Distinctive

literal: manifestation; appearance; to appear; to manifest

بيّنات

b-y-n → “proofs” Distinctive

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

اخماد

kh-m-d → “quench”

literal: to extinguish, quench, suppress

نار

n-ʾ-r → “flame”

literal: light; illumination

ضغينه

ḍ-gh-n → “hate”

literal: rancor, hatred, malice, spite

بغضا

b-gh-ḍ → “enmity” Distinctive

literal: hatred; enmity; animosity

بوده

b-w-d → “hath been” Distinctive

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

که

k-h → “that”

literal: that; who; who, that

شايد

sh-y-d → “haply”

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

آفاق

ʾ-f-q → “horizon” Distinctive

literal: horizons; regions; quarters; skylines

افئده

f-ʾ-d → “hearts”

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

اهل

ʾ-h-l → “men” Distinctive

literal: people; inhabitants; family; kin; worthy; deserving; my family; my people; my kin

عالم

ʿ-l-m → “world”

literal: world; universe; the worlds

بنور

n-w-r → “with the light”

literal: light; illumination

اتّفاق

w-f-q → “concord”

literal: accord, agreement, harmony; to agree, accord with

گردد

g-r-d

literal: become; to become; make

بآسايش

ʾ-s-y → “well-being”

literal: shadow; shade; shelter; protection

فائز

f-w-z → “attain”

literal: benefit, profit, advantage; usefulness; bounty; effusion; grace

لوح

l-w-ḥ → “Tablet”

literal: tablet; panel; divine decree; revelation

الهی

ʾ-l-h → “divine”

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

مشرق

sh-r-q → “shineth” Distinctive

literal: radiance; splendor; dawn; illumination

بايد

b-y-d → “must”

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

کل

k-l-l → “everyone”

literal: for us; to us

بآن

ʾ-n-n → “that”

literal: that; those; he; she; it

ناظر

n-ẓ-r → “fix his gaze upon”

literal: neck; slaves; those held in bonds

ای

ʾ-y-y → “O”

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

شما

sh-m-ʾ → “you”

literal: you (plural); your

را

r-ʾ-ʾ

literal: object marker; object-marker; to

وصيّت

w-ṣ-y → “testaments”

literal: counsel; commandment; bequest; will; testament; admonition; command

مينمايم

n-m-ʾ → “will”

literal: to show; to display; to make; to render; to perform; display; show; emblem; reflection

بآنچه

b-ch-h → “that which”

literal: building, structure, edifice; to build, construct; structure, edifice

سبب

s-b-b

literal: cause; reason; means; instrument

ارتفاع

r-f-ʿ → “elevate” Distinctive

literal: to be raised, elevated, exalted, lifted up

مقامات

q-w-m → “station”

literal: rising; standing; uprising; resurrection

بتقوی

t-q-y → “fear of”

literal: strength; power; might; piety; fear of God; godliness

تمسّک

m-s-k → “Hold fast” Distinctive

literal: musk; to seize; grip; to hold fast; to cling to; to grasp

بذيل

dh-y-l

literal: hem; skirt; tail; border

معروف

ʿ-r-f → “right”

literal: to confess; to acknowledge; to recognize

تشبّث

sh-b-th → “clung”

literal: to cling to; to grasp; to hold fast

کنيد

k-r-d → “made” Distinctive

literal: do; to do; do, make

براستی

r-s-t → “Verily”

literal: truth; verily; truly

ميگويم

g-w-y → “I say”

literal: speech; utterance; saying; word

لسان

l-s-n → “tongue”

literal: tongue; language

برای

b-r-y → “for”

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

ذکر

dh-k-r → “mentioning”

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

خير

kh-y-r → “good”

literal: goodwill; benevolence; kindness; good; goodness; benefit; better; best

او

h-w-w → “it” Distinctive

literal: he; it (third person pronoun); refuge; shelter; dwelling place; abode; lamentation, cry, woe; melody, song

بگفتار

g-f-t → “said” Distinctive

literal: utterance; speech; word; discourse

زشت

z-sh-t

literal: ugly; vile; wicked; evil-doers

ميالائيد

ʾ-l-y → “until now”

literal: to befoul; to besmirch; to defile; to soil; to stain; to; unto; towards

عَفَا

ʿ-f-w → “forgiven”

literal: to pardon; to efface; to forgive

عَمَّا

ʿ-n

literal: with them; in their company

سَلَف

s-l-f → “past”

literal: predecessor; ancestor; that which has passed

بعد

b-ʿ-d → “after”

literal: after; behind; distance

بما

m-ʾ → “that” Distinctive

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

ينبغی

n-b-gh → “behooveth”

literal: it is proper; it is fitting; it is necessary; it behooves

تکلّم

k-l-m → “utter” Distinctive

literal: words; utterances; locutions; word; utterance; speech; sayings; verses

لعن

l-ʿ-n → “accursed”

literal: to curse; to revile; curse

طعن

ṭ-ʿ-n → “grievous blow”

literal: wound; thrust; pierce

يتکدّر

k-d-r → “angry” Distinctive

literal: troubled; to trouble/sadden; obscured

به

b-h

literal: by it; by him; with it

الإنسان

ʾ-n-s → “men” Distinctive

literal: familiar; intimate; companionship; to be acquainted with; companion; intimate friend; to be intimate with; to keep company; to console

اجتناب

j-n-b → “thee” Distinctive

literal: to avoid; to shun; to keep away from

انسان

ʾ-n-s → “man”

literal: familiar; intimate; companionship; to be acquainted with; companion; intimate friend; to be intimate with; to keep company; to console

بزرگ

b-z-r-g → “Lofty”

literal: great; large; important; grandeur

چندی

ch-n-d → “while”

literal: some; several; a few; how many

قبل

q-b-l

literal: group; company; tribe; sort; kind

اينکلمه

k-l-m → “Word”

literal: words; utterances; locutions; word; utterance; speech; sayings; verses

عليا

ʿ-l-w → “exalted”

literal: highest; most high; supreme

مخزن

kh-z-n → “treasury”

literal: to store, to treasure; storehouse, depository, treasury

قلم

q-l-m → “Pen”

literal: pen; writing instrument

ابهی

b-h-w → “Glory” Distinctive

literal: splendor; glory; magnificence; Bahá (Proper Name in Bahá’í texts)

امروز

r-w-z → “Day”

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

مبارک

b-r-k → “blessed”

literal: blessed; auspicious; fruitful; blest; blessed word

آنچه

ʾ-n → “to”

literal: that; those; he; she; it

در

d-r-r → “in”

literal: in; in, at; radiant

مستور

s-t-r → “hidden”

literal: to veil; to conceal; to cover; veil; covering

شده

sh-d → “hath been”

literal: to become; to be

ميشود

sh-w-d → “will be” Distinctive

literal: become; to become; became

اگر

ʾ-g-r → “were they”

literal: although; even if; though; notwithstanding

بحقّ

ḥ-q-q → “righteousness” Distinctive

literal: truth; right; that which is true or just

راستی

r-ʾ-s-t → “sincerity”

literal: truthfulness; truth/verily; truth

بر

b-r-r → “in” Distinctive

literal: on; on, upon; upon

امر

ʾ-m-r → “Cause”

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

ثابت

th-b-t → “firm”

literal: firm; steadfast; established; fixed

راسخ

r-s-kh → “steadfast”

literal: steadfast; firm; firmly rooted; established

بمثابه

m-th-l → “as”

literal: like; example; parable; similitude

آسمان

s-m-w → “heaven”

literal: heaven; sky

لدی

l-d-y → “at”

literal: with; in the presence of; from; by

الرّحمن

r-ḥ-m → “All-Merciful”

literal: merciful, compassionate; pertaining to divine mercy

مشهود

sh-h-d → “witness” Distinctive

literal: witnessed; observed; seen; evident; manifest

شمس

sh-m-s → “sun”

literal: sun; daystar; manifestation of divine light

قمر

q-m-r → “moon”

literal: moon

سمع

s-m-ʿ → “heard”

literal: heard, hearkened to, acceptable, worthy of attention

بصر

b-ṣ-r → “eyes”

literal: sight; insight; discernment; spiritual perception

انجم

n-j-m → “stars”

literal: star

اخلاق

kh-l-q → “character”

literal: character; moral traits; disposition; conduct

مضيئه

ḍ-w-ʾ

literal: to shine; to illuminate; to light up; illumined; shining; radiant

آثارش

ʾ-th-r → “influence”

literal: effect; trace; influence; imprint; sign; mark; vestige

مربّی

r-b-b → “Lord”

literal: father; paternal

امکان

m-k-n → “world of being” Distinctive

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

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 ¶

Gleanings

Bahá’u’lláh

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-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 ¶