Prayers and Meditations — §119

Arabic source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 119 of 858.

Source (Arabic)

سُبْحانَكَ اللَّهُمَّ يا إِلهِي أَسْئَلُكَ بِاسْمِكَ الَّذِيْ بِهِ خُلِقَتِ الإِصْباحُ وَأُرْسِلَتِ الأَرْياحُ وَمُوِّجَتِ البِحارُ وَزُيِّنَتِ الأَشْجارُ بِالأَثْمارِ وَالأَرْضُ بِالأَنْهارِ بِأَنْ تَنْصُرَ أَحِبَّائَكَ بِجُنُودِ الغَيْبِ وَالشَّهادَةِ، ثُمَّ أَغْلِبْهُمْ عَلَى الَّذِينَ بَغَوْا فِيْ أَرْضِكَ وَهَتَكُوا حُرْمَتَكَ وَكَفَرُوا بِآياتِكَ وَنَقَضُوا مِيثاقَكَ وَنَبَذُوا أَحْكامَكَ وَقامُوا بِالمُحارَبَةِ إِلى أَنْ جَعَلُوا أُسارَى أَهْلَكَ وَحَبَسُوا مَظْهَرَ ذاتِكَ وَمَطْلَعَ كيْنُونَتِكَ فِيْ أَخْرَبِ البِلادِ، أَيْ رَبِّ أَنْتَ القَوِيُّ

Shoghi Effendi Translation

I give praise to Thee, O Lord my God! I entreat Thee by Thy Name through which Thou didst cause the dawn to appear, and the winds to blow, and the seas to surge, and the trees to bring forth their fruits, and the earth to be beautified with its rivers, that Thou wilt aid all them that are dear to Thee with both Thy visible and invisible hosts. Render them, moreover, victorious over all those who have so rebelled in Thy land, and dishonored Thy name, and disbelieved in Thy signs, and broken Thy Covenant, and cast behind their backs Thy laws, and have to such an extent risen up against Thee, that they carried into captivity Thy kindred, and flung the Manifestation of Thy Self into prison, and immured Him Who is the Dayspring of Thine Essence in the most desolate of cities.

Translation Notes

سُبْحانَكَ

s-b-ḥ → “give praise to Thee” Distinctive

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

اللَّهُمَّ

ʾ-l-h → “O Lord” Distinctive

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

يا

y-ʾ

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

أَسْئَلُكَ

s-ʾ-l → “I entreat Thee” Distinctive

literal: ask; ask/request; ask/beseech

بِاسْمِكَ

s-m-w → “by Thy Name”

literal: to name, to nominate, to designate, to appoint; name; noun; to name, to appoint, to designate

الَّذِيْ

l-dh-y → “through which”

literal: who; which; that which; the one who

بِهِ

b-h

literal: by it; by him; with it

خُلِقَتِ

kh-l-q → “Thou didst cause” Distinctive

literal: character; moral traits; disposition; conduct

الإِصْباحُ

ṣ-b-ḥ → “the dawn to appear”

literal: morning; lamp; morning, dawn

وَأُرْسِلَتِ

r-s-l

literal: to send; sent

الأَرْياحُ

r-y-ḥ → “the winds to blow”

literal: rest; ease; comfort; tranquility; wind; breeze; spirit; fragrance; scent; aroma

وَمُوِّجَتِ

m-w-j

literal: wave; waves; surge

البِحارُ

b-ḥ-r → “the seas to surge”

literal: sea; ocean

وَزُيِّنَتِ

z-y-n

literal: to adorn; ornament; beauty; adornment; embellishment; decoration

الأَشْجارُ

sh-j-r → “the trees”

literal: tree

بِالأَثْمارِ

th-m-r → “their fruits”

literal: fruit; the fruit

وَالأَرْضُ

ʾ-r-ḍ → “earth”

literal: earth; land; ground; country

بِالأَنْهارِ

n-h-r → “streams”

literal: river; to flow

بِأَنْ

ʾ-n-n → “that”

literal: that; those; he; she; it

تَنْصُرَ

n-ṣ-r → “Thou wilt aid”

literal: help; victory; helper

أَحِبَّائَكَ

ḥ-b-b → “all them that are dear to Thee” Distinctive

literal: love; affection

بِجُنُودِ

j-n-d → “hosts”

literal: hosts, armies, troops

الغَيْبِ

gh-y-b → “invisible”

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

وَالشَّهادَةِ،

sh-h-d → “visible and” Distinctive

literal: witnessed; observed; seen; evident; manifest

ثُمَّ

th-m-m

literal: then; thereafter; next; moreover

أَغْلِبْهُمْ

gh-l-b → “ascendancy” Distinctive

literal: dominance; overcome; victorious

عَلَى

ʿ-l-w → “over” Distinctive

literal: highest; most high; supreme

بَغَوْا

b-gh-y → “becometh” Distinctive

literal: by, with, through (preposition)

فِيْ

f-y → “in”

literal: in; in-it; in it

وَهَتَكُوا

h-t-k → “profaneth”

literal: to tear, rend, violate, break; desecration

حُرْمَتَكَ

ḥ-r-m → “deprived” Distinctive

literal: sanctity, inviolability, dignity, honor, respect

وَكَفَرُوا

k-f-r → “and disbelieved”

literal: to disbelieve, reject; unbelief, ingratitude; to deny, to disbelieve, to reject

بِآياتِكَ

ʾ-y-y → “in Thy signs”

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

وَنَقَضُوا

n-q-ḍ → “and broken”

literal: breaker; violator; one who breaks (covenant); covenant-breaker

مِيثاقَكَ

w-th-q → “Thy Covenant” Distinctive

literal: covenant; testament; bond

وَنَبَذُوا

n-b-dh → “and cast behind their”

literal: to cast; to reject; to abandon; to throw away

أَحْكامَكَ

ḥ-k-m → “Thy laws”

literal: government; rule; governance; wisdom

وَقامُوا

q-w-m → “risen up against”

literal: rising; standing; uprising; resurrection

بِالمُحارَبَةِ

ḥ-r-b

literal: warfare; combat; fighting; hostility

إِلى

ʾ-l-y → “towards”

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

أَنْ

ʾ-n → “that”

literal: that; those; he; she; it

جَعَلُوا

j-ʿ-l → “make” Distinctive

literal: make; made; to make

أُسارَى

ʾ-s-r → “from his chains” Distinctive

literal: captive; captives; captive/prisoner

أَهْلَكَ

ʾ-h-l → “people” Distinctive

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

وَحَبَسُوا

ḥ-b-s → “cast Him into prison”

literal: to confine; to detain; prison

مَظْهَرَ

ẓ-h-r → “Manifestation”

literal: manifestation; appearance; to appear; to manifest

ذاتِكَ

dh-w-t → “of Thy Self”

literal: essence; self; being

وَمَطْلَعَ

ṭ-l-ʿ → “Who is the Dayspring”

literal: rising; appearance; countenance; manifestation

كيْنُونَتِكَ

k-w-n → “of Thine Essence”

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

أَخْرَبِ

kh-r-b → “most desolate”

literal: ruin; desolation

البِلادِ،

b-l-d → “of cities”

literal: city; land; country

أَيْ

ʾ-y-y

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

رَبِّ

r-b-b

literal: Lord; lord; divine

أَنْتَ

ʾ-n-t

literal: you (masculine singular)

القَوِيُّ

q-w-y

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

Model Translations by Shoghi Effendi

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