Prayers and Meditations — §360

Arabic source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 360 of 858.

Source (Arabic)

ةٌ فِيها فَتَحْتَ أَبْوابَ جُودِكَ عَلَى وَجْهِ بَرِيَّتِكَ وَمَصارِيْعَ عِنايَتِكَ لِمَنْ فِي أَرْضِكَ، أَسْئَلُكَ بِالَّذِينَ سُفِكتْ دِمائُهُمْ فِي سَبِيلِكَ وَانْقَطَعُوا عَنْ كُلِّ الجِهاتِ شَوْقًا لِلِقائِكَ، وَأَخَذَتْهُمْ نَفَحاتُ وَحْيِكَ عَلَى شَأْنٍ يُسْمَعُ مِنْ كُلِّ جُزْءٍ مِنْ أَجْزاءِ أَبْدانِهِمْ ذِكْرُكَ وَثَنائُكَ بِأَنْ لا تَجْعَلَنا مَحْرُومًا عَمَّا قَدَّرْتَهُ فِي هذا الظُّهُورِ الَّذِيْ بِهِ يَنْطِقُ كُلُّ شَجَرٍ بِما نَطَقَ بِهِ سِدْرَةُ السِّينآءِ لِمُوسى كلِيْمِكَ وَيُسَبِّحُ كُلُّ حَجَرٍ بِما سَبَّحَ بِهِ الحُصاةُ فِي قَبْضَةِ مُحَمَّدٍ حَبِيبِكَ، فَيا إِلهِي هؤُلآءِ عِبادُكَ الَّذِينَ جَعَلْتَهُمْ مُعاشِرَ نَفْسِ

Shoghi Effendi Translation

Lauded be Thy name, O my God! This is the hour when Thou hast unlocked the doors of Thy bounty before the faces of Thy creatures, and opened wide the portals of Thy tender mercy unto all the dwellers of Thine earth. I beseech Thee, by all them whose blood was shed in Thy path, who, in their yearning over Thee, rid themselves from all attachment to any of Thy creatures, and who were so carried away by the sweet savors of Thine inspiration that every single member of their bodies intoned Thy praise and vibrated to Thy remembrance, not to withhold from us the things Thou hast irrevocably ordained in this Revelation—a Revelation the potency of which hath caused every tree to cry out what the Burning Bush had aforetime proclaimed unto Moses, Who conversed with Thee, a Revelation that hath enabled every least pebble to resound again with Thy praise, as the stones glorified Thee in the days of Muḥammad, Thy Friend.

Translation Notes

فِيها

f-y → “in”

literal: in it; in them

فَتَحْتَ

f-t-ḥ → “unlocked”

literal: opening; opening up; conquests; revelations; disclosure

أَبْوابَ

b-w-b → “doors”

literal: door; gate; chapter; way; manner

جُودِكَ

j-w-d → “bounty”

literal: generosity; bounty; liberality

عَلَى

ʿ-l-w → “exalted”

literal: highest; most high; supreme

وَجْهِ

w-j-h → “faces”

literal: face; countenance; direction; aspect

بَرِيَّتِكَ

b-r-ʾ → “creatures”

literal: to create; to create anew; to be free from; innocent; free from; clear of; to cure; to heal; to clear

وَمَصارِيْعَ

ṣ-r-ʿ → “laid low” Distinctive

literal: slain; slain/prostrate; door

عِنايَتِكَ

ʿ-n-y → “mercy” Distinctive

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

لِمَنْ

m-n → “all the dwellers” Distinctive

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

أَرْضِكَ،

ʾ-r-ḍ → “earth”

literal: earth; land; ground; country

أَسْئَلُكَ

s-ʾ-l → “beseech”

literal: ask; ask/request; ask/beseech

بِالَّذِينَ

l-dh-y → “which” Distinctive

literal: those who; the ones who (relative pronoun)

سُفِكتْ

s-f-k → “shed”

literal: to shed; to spill; bloodshed; to shed (blood)

دِمائُهُمْ

d-m-y → “blood”

literal: blood; to breathe, to blow; breathed

سَبِيلِكَ

s-b-l → “path”

literal: path; way; road; cause; means

وَانْقَطَعُوا

q-ṭ-ʿ → “rid themselves” Distinctive

literal: to be severed; to be cut off; to detach oneself; to abstain

عَنْ

ʿ-n → “from”

literal: from; about; concerning; away from

كُلِّ

k-l-l → “all”

literal: for us; to us

الجِهاتِ

j-h-h → “side”

literal: direction; aspect; side; regard

شَوْقًا

sh-w-q → “yearning” Distinctive

literal: to encourage; to incite; yearning; enthusiasm

لِلِقائِكَ،

l-q-y → “Presence”

literal: opposite; facing; in front of; towards

وَأَخَذَتْهُمْ

ʾ-kh-dh → “laid hold” Distinctive

literal: to take; to seize; to affect; to grasp

نَفَحاتُ

n-f-ḥ → “savors” Distinctive

literal: breeze; fragrance; whiff; breath; emanation

وَحْيِكَ

w-ḥ-y → “inspiration” Distinctive

literal: revelation; inspiration; divine communication

شَأْنٍ

sh-ʾ-n

literal: affair; concern; matter; aspect; quality; state; affairs; matters; conditions; circumstances; affair, matter, station, rank, dignity; station; rank; importance; matter, affair, concern, dignity, rank

يُسْمَعُ

s-m-ʿ → “heard”

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

جُزْءٍ

j-z-ʾ → “except”

literal: part; portion; component; section; volume

أَجْزاءِ

j-z-ʾ

literal: part; portion; component; section; volume

أَبْدانِهِمْ

b-d-n → “bodies”

literal: without; apart from; besides

ذِكْرُكَ

dh-k-r → “remembrance”

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

وَثَنائُكَ

th-n-y → “praise”

literal: praise; commendation; eulogy; glorification; praise, commendation, eulogy

بِأَنْ

ʾ-n-n → “not to” Distinctive

literal: that; those; he; she; it

لا

l-ʾ

literal: no; not; negation particle

تَجْعَلَنا

j-ʿ-l → “make” Distinctive

literal: to make; to cause; to render; to appoint

مَحْرُومًا

ḥ-r-m → “withhold” Distinctive

literal: sanctity, inviolability, dignity, honor, respect

قَدَّرْتَهُ

q-d-r → “ordained” Distinctive

literal: power; might; decree; measure; worth

هذا

h-dh-ʾ → “this”

literal: this; that

الظُّهُورِ

ẓ-h-r → “Revelation—a”

literal: manifestation; appearance; to appear; to manifest

بِهِ

b-h → “as”

literal: by it; by him; with it

يَنْطِقُ

n-ṭ-q → “cry out” Distinctive

literal: to speak; to utter; to pronounce; to articulate

شَجَرٍ

sh-j-r → “tree”

literal: tree

بِما

m-ʾ → “that” Distinctive

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

سِدْرَةُ

s-d-r → “Bush”

literal: lote-tree; divine tree

السِّينآءِ

s-y-n → “breasts”

literal: Sinai; Sina; breast

كلِيْمِكَ

k-l-m → “conversed”

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

وَيُسَبِّحُ

s-b-ḥ → “Glorified” Distinctive

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

حَجَرٍ

ḥ-j-r → “stone”

literal: stone; rock

الحُصاةُ

ḥ-ṣ-y → “reckon” Distinctive

literal: count; enumerate; enumeration

قَبْضَةِ

q-b-ḍ → “grasp”

literal: grasp; grip; control; seize

مُحَمَّدٍ

ḥ-m-d → “thanks”

literal: praise; Muhammad; praised

حَبِيبِكَ،

ḥ-b-b → “Friend”

literal: love; affection

فَيا

y-ʾ → “O”

literal: O; or

إِلهِي

ʾ-l-h → “God”

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

هؤُلآءِ

h-ʾ-l

literal: these

عِبادُكَ

ʿ-b-d

literal: servant; slave; worshipper

مُعاشِرَ

ʿ-sh-r

literal: association; companionship; social interaction; عشرين (twenty) is from numeral root ع-ش-ر, distinct from ‘association’ meaning

نَفْسِ

n-f-s → “Thee” Distinctive

literal: self; soul; psyche; person; essence

Model Translations by Shoghi Effendi

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17 ¶

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160 ¶

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59 ¶