Kitáb-i-Íqán — §10

Persian source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 10 of 291.

Source (Persian)

و بعد هيکل صالحی از رضوان غيبی معنوی قدم بيرون نهاد و عباد را به شريعه قرب باقيه دعوت نمود و صد سنه اَو ازيد امر به اوامر الهی و نهی از مناهی می فرمود، ثمری نبخشيد و اثری ظاهر نيامد. و چند مرتبه غيبت اختيار فرمود. با آنکه آن جمال ازلی ناس را جز به مدينه احديّه دعوت نمی نمود. چنانچه می فرمايد: "و إلی ثَمُودَ اَخَاهُم صَالِحاً قَالَ يا قَومِ اعبُدُوا اللّه مَا لَکُم مِنْ إلهٍ غَيرُهُ " إلی آخرالقول : "قَالُوا يَا صَالِحُ قَد کُنتَ فيِنَا مرجُوّاً قَبلَ هَذَا اَتَنهَانَا اَن نَعْبُدَ مَا يَعْبُدُ آبَاؤنَا و إنّنا لَفِی شَکٍّ مِمّا تَدعُونا إلَيهِ مُريبٍ." و هيچ فائده نبخشيد تا آنکه به صيحه ای جميع به نار راجع شدند.

Shoghi Effendi Translation

And after Him there appeared from the Ridván of the Eternal, the Invisible, the holy person of Sálih, Who again summoned the people to the river of everlasting life. For over a hundred years He admonished them to hold fast unto the commandments of God and eschew that which is forbidden. His admonitions, however, yielded no fruit, and His pleading proved of no avail. Several times He retired and lived in seclusion. All this, although that eternal Beauty was summoning the people to no other than the city of God. Even as it is revealed: “And unto the tribe of Thámúd We sent their brother Sálih. ‘O my people,’ said He, ‘Worship God, ye have none other God beside Him….’ They made reply: ‘O Sálih, our hopes were fixed on thee until now; forbiddest thou us to worship that which our fathers worshipped? Truly we misdoubt that whereunto thou callest us as suspicious.’” All this proved fruitless, until at last there went up a great cry, and all fell into utter perdition.

Translation Notes

بعد

b-ʿ-d → “after”

literal: after; behind; distance

هيکل

h-y-k-l → “Him” Distinctive

literal: temple; structure; form; body

صالحی

ṣ-l-ḥ → “betterment”

literal: peace; reconciliation

از

ʾ-z → “of”

literal: from

رضوان

r-ḍ-w → “from the Ridván of the Eternal”

literal: good-pleasure, consent, satisfaction

غيبی

gh-y-b → “Invisible”

literal: the unseen; the invisible; the hidden; the unknowable; stranger; foreign; alien; separated

معنوی

ʿ-n-y → “loving-kindness” Distinctive

literal: meaning; sense; significance

قدم

q-d-m

literal: ancientness; antiquity; foot; to come forward

بيرون

b-r-n

literal: outside; out; forth

نهاد

n-h-d

literal: to place; to lay down; to set; to submit

عباد

ʿ-b-d → “people”

literal: servant; slave; worshipper

را

r-ʾ-ʾ

literal: object marker; object-marker; to

به

b-h → “to”

literal: by it; by him; with it

شريعه

sh-r-ʿ → “river”

literal: law; legislation; religious law; canon; ordinance

قرب

q-r-b

literal: place of sacrifice; altar

باقيه

b-q-y → “of everlasting life”

literal: remaining; everlasting; eternal; immortal; permanence; duration; continuance

دعوت

d-ʿ-w → “summoned”

literal: call, invocation, summons; to call, invite, summon

نمود

n-m-ʾ → “may” Distinctive

literal: to become; to be

صد

ṣ-d → “hundred”

literal: hundred

سنه

s-n-h → “years”

literal: year; way; tradition; custom

اَو

h-w-w

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

ازيد

z-y-d

literal: increase; excess; more; additional; to increase; to grow; to be added

امر

ʾ-m-r → “Cause”

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

الهی

ʾ-l-h → “of God”

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

نهی

n-h-y → “forbidden”

literal: end, limit, utmost, extreme; final; the end, limit, utmost bound; Lote-Tree beyond which there is no passing; end; limit; terminus

می

m-y-y → “it” Distinctive

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

فرمود،

f-r-m → “He” Distinctive

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

ثمری

th-m-r → “no fruit”

literal: fruit; the fruit

نبخشيد

b-kh-sh → “grace” Distinctive

literal: grant; bestow; give

اثری

ʾ-th-r → “signs” Distinctive

literal: effect; trace; influence; imprint

ظاهر

ẓ-h-r

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

نيامد.

ʾ-m-d → “hope” Distinctive

literal: to not come; to not arrive; reaching; arrival; attainment; to bring, to produce; to present

چند

ch-n-d → “while” Distinctive

literal: some; several; a few; how many

مرتبه

r-t-b → “times”

literal: rank; station; degree; time; instance

اختيار

kh-y-r → “good” Distinctive

literal: goodwill; benevolence; kindness

با

b-ʾ-ʾ → “have clung”

literal: to; with; by

آنکه

ʾ-n → “to” Distinctive

literal: that; those; he; she; it

جمال

j-m-l → “Beauty”

literal: beauty; comeliness

ازلی

ʾ-z-l → “eternal”

literal: eternity; pre-eternity; without beginning; eternal; everlasting; from eternity

ناس

n-ʾ-s → “people”

literal: companionship; fellowship; familiarity; to keep company

جز

j-z → “apart from”

literal: except

مدينه

m-d-n → “city”

literal: religion; faith; creed; belief

احديّه

ʾ-ḥ-d → “of God”

literal: oneness; uniqueness; absolute unity; singularity of God

چنانچه

ch-n-n → “Even as”

literal: thus; in such manner; as

"و

w-w-w → ““And”

literal: and; quotation mark

إلی

ʾ-l-y → “towards”

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

اَخَاهُم

ʾ-kh-w → “brother”

literal: brother; sister

قَالَ

q-w-l → “said”

literal: speech; utterance; saying; word

يا

y-ʾ → “O ye”

literal: O; vocative particle; oh (vocative particle)

قَومِ

q-w-m → “people,’”

literal: rising; standing; uprising; resurrection

مَا

m-ʾ → “that”

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

لَکُم

l-k-m

literal: for you, to you, your (dative pronoun)

مِنْ

m-n

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

إلهٍ

ʾ-l-h → “God”

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

غَيرُهُ

gh-y-r → “others”

literal: without; besides; other than; except; other; different

قَد

q-d

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

کُنتَ

k-w-n

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

فيِنَا

f-y

literal: in; in-it; in it

مرجُوّاً

r-j-w → “our hopes were fixed”

literal: hope; hope, desire; hope/desire

قَبلَ

q-b-l → “before”

literal: group; company; tribe; sort; kind

هَذَا

h-dh-ʾ → “this”

literal: this; that

آبَاؤنَا

ʾ-b-w → “our fathers”

literal: father; fathers; Abi

شَکٍّ

sh-k-k → “misdoubt”

literal: doubt; doubting

إلَيهِ

ʾ-l-y

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

مُريبٍ."

r-y-b → “doubt” Distinctive

literal: doubt; doubter; doubter/suspicious

هيچ

h-y-ch → “any”

literal: nothing; any; not a single

فائده

f-y-d → “profit”

literal: hand; power; strength; (plural) hands; agents; helpers; to assist, to support, to aid, to strengthen

تا

t-y-y → “so that”

literal: so that/until

صيحه

ṣ-y-ḥ → “lamentations”

literal: to cry out; to shout; to clamor; cry, shout, outcry

ای

ʾ-y-y

literal: O; vocative particle; oh (vocative particle)

جميع

j-m-ʿ → “all fell”

literal: to gather; to assemble; group; number

نار

n-ʾ-r → “fire”

literal: light; illumination

راجع

r-j-ʿ → “return”

literal: return; reference; place of return; resort

شدند.

sh-d

literal: to become; to be

Model Translations by Shoghi Effendi

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Tablet of Carmel

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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.

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59 ¶