Prayers and Meditations — §441

Arabic source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 441 of 858.

Source (Arabic)

ا المِسْكينُ؟ أَسْئَلُكَ يا إِلهَ العالَمِينَ وَيا مَحْبُوبَ العَارِفِينَ وَمَقْصُودَ مَنْ فِي السَّمَواتِ وَالأَرَضِينَ بِاسْمِكَ الَّذِيْ بِهِ ارْتَقَى كُلُّ نِدَاءٍ إِلى سَمَاءِ عِزِّ أَحَدِيَّتِكَ وَطَارَ كُلُّ مُقْبِلٍ فِي هَوآءِ وَحْدَتِكَ وَكِبْرِيائِكَ، وَبِهِ كَمُلَ كُلُّ نَاقِصٍ وَعَزَّ كُلُّ ذَلِيلٍ وَنَطَقَ كُلُّ كَلِيلٍ وَبَرَءَ كُلُّ عَلِيلٍ وَقُبِلَ ما لَمْ يَكُنْ قَابِلاً لِحَضْرَتِكَ وَلائِقًا لِعَظَمَتِكَ وَسُلْطَانِكَ، بِأَنْ تَنْصُرَنَا بِجُنُودِ غَيْبِكَ وَبِقَبِيلٍ مِنْ مَلئِكَةِ أَمْرِكَ، ثُمَّ اقْبَلْ مِنَّا ما عَمِلْناهُ فِي حُبِّكَ وَرِضَائِكَ، وَلا تَطْرُدْنَا يا إِلهِي عَنْ بابِ رَحْمَتِكَ، وَلا تُخَيِّبْنَا مِنْ بَدَائِعِ فَضْلِكَ وَمَواهِبِكَ، أَيْ رَبِّ تَشْهَدُ أَرْكانُنا وَجَوارِحُنَا

Shoghi Effendi Translation

I beseech Thee, O Thou Who art the Lord of the worlds, and the Beloved of such as have recognized Thee, and the Desire of all that are in heaven and on earth, by Thy Name through which the cry of every suppliant hath ascended into the heaven of Thy transcendent holiness, through which every seeker hath soared to the sublimities of Thy unity and grandeur, through which the imperfect have been perfected, and the abased exalted, and the tongue of every stammerer unloosed, and the sick made whole, and whatever was unworthy of Thy highness and beseemed not Thy greatness and Thy sovereignty made acceptable unto Thee,—I beseech Thee to aid us by Thine invisible hosts and by a company of the angels of Thy Cause. Do Thou, then, accept the works we have performed for love of Thee, and for the sake of Thy pleasure. Cast us not away, O my God, from the door of Thy mercy, and break not our hopes in the wonders of Thy grace and favors.

Translation Notes

المِسْكينُ؟

m-s-k

literal: stillness, rest, quietude, tranquility

أَسْئَلُكَ

s-ʾ-l → “beseech Thee”

literal: ask; ask/request; ask/beseech

يا

y-ʾ → “O”

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

إِلهَ

ʾ-l-h → “Thou Who art the Lord”

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

العالَمِينَ

ʿ-l-m → “of the worlds”

literal: world; universe; the worlds

مَحْبُوبَ

ḥ-b-b → “Beloved”

literal: love; affection

العَارِفِينَ

ʿ-r-f → “recognized Thee” Distinctive

literal: to confess; to acknowledge; to recognize

وَمَقْصُودَ

q-ṣ-d → “and the Desire”

literal: intention; purpose; aim; goal; to seek; to direct oneself

مَنْ

m-n → “of all that”

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

فِي

f-y → “in”

literal: in; in-it; in it

السَّمَواتِ

s-m-w → “heaven”

literal: heaven; sky

وَالأَرَضِينَ

ʾ-r-ḍ → “and on earth”

literal: earth; land; ground; country

الَّذِيْ

l-dh-y → “through which”

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

بِهِ

b-h → “as”

literal: by it; by him; with it

ارْتَقَى

r-q-y → “hath ascended”

literal: raise them; promote them; heal them; ascension; elevation; rise

كُلُّ

k-l-l → “cry of every suppliant”

literal: for us; to us

نِدَاءٍ

n-d-y

literal: call; voice; proclamation; forty; forty years

إِلى

ʾ-l-y → “towards”

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

عِزِّ

ʿ-z-z → “of Thy transcendent holiness”

literal: glory; might; honor; dignity; power; majesty

أَحَدِيَّتِكَ

ʾ-ḥ-d → “one”

literal: oneness; unity; absolute unicity; singleness of divine essence

وَطَارَ

ṭ-y-r → “hath soared”

literal: the letter Ṭá; refers to Ṭihrán (also spelled Ṭehran)

مُقْبِلٍ

q-b-l → “acceptable” Distinctive

literal: group; company; tribe; sort; kind

هَوآءِ

h-w-y → “desires” Distinctive

literal: air; atmosphere; void

وَحْدَتِكَ

w-ḥ-d → “of Thy unity”

literal: Divine unity; monotheism; belief in the oneness of God

وَكِبْرِيائِكَ،

k-b-r → “and grandeur”

literal: greatest; greater; grandeur

كَمُلَ

k-m-l → “have been perfected”

literal: perfection; completeness; fully; with full; in complete; to complete, perfect, fulfill

نَاقِصٍ

n-q-ṣ

literal: deficiency; lack; diminution

ذَلِيلٍ

dh-l-l

literal: abasement; humiliation; lowliness; to be abased

وَنَطَقَ

n-ṭ-q

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

وَبَرَءَ

b-r-ʾ → “creatures” Distinctive

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

عَلِيلٍ

ʿ-l-l

literal: cause; reason; illness; defect

ما

m-ʾ → “that”

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

لَمْ

l-y-s → “not”

literal: to reproach; blame; censure

يَكُنْ

k-w-n → “was”

literal: is; to be (third person singular present); to be one; oneness; unity

لِحَضْرَتِكَ

ḥ-ḍ-r

literal: presence; majesty; His/Your Excellency

وَلائِقًا

l-y-q → “worthy”

literal: worthy, befitting, appropriate, suitable

لِعَظَمَتِكَ

ʿ-ẓ-m → “Thy greatness” Distinctive

literal: greatest; supreme; mightiest

وَسُلْطَانِكَ،

s-l-ṭ → “and Thy sovereignty”

literal: dominion; authority; power; sovereignty; control

بِأَنْ

ʾ-n-n → “that”

literal: that; those; he; she; it

تَنْصُرَنَا

n-ṣ-r → “aid us”

literal: help; victory; helper

بِجُنُودِ

j-n-d → “by Thine invisible hosts”

literal: hosts, armies, troops

غَيْبِكَ

gh-y-b

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

مَلئِكَةِ

m-l-k → “angels”

literal: kingdom; dominion; realm; sovereignty; possessions; property; ownership

أَمْرِكَ،

ʾ-m-r → “of Thy Cause”

literal: command; cause; matter; affair

ثُمَّ

th-m-m → “then”

literal: then; thereafter; next; moreover

عَمِلْناهُ

ʿ-m-l

literal: to work; to act; to do; to perform

وَرِضَائِكَ،

r-ḍ-y → “Thy pleasure”

literal: good-pleasure, consent, satisfaction; satisfaction; pleasure; approval; contentment

وَلا

w-l-y → “Lord” Distinctive

literal: no; not; negation particle

تَطْرُدْنَا

ṭ-r-d → “Cast me”

literal: expel; drive away; expelled

إِلهِي

ʾ-l-h → “God”

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

عَنْ

ʿ-n → “from”

literal: from; about; concerning; away from

بابِ

b-w-b → “door”

literal: door; gate; chapter; way; manner

رَحْمَتِكَ،

r-ḥ-m → “of Thy mercy”

literal: merciful, compassionate; pertaining to divine mercy

تُخَيِّبْنَا

kh-y-b → “withhold”

literal: disappoint; disappoint, frustrate; disappointed/frustrated

بَدَائِعِ

b-d-ʿ → “wonders”

literal: to create; most wondrous; excel

فَضْلِكَ

f-ḍ-l → “of Thy grace”

literal: grace; bounty; generosity; excellence

وَمَواهِبِكَ،

w-h-b → “and favors” Distinctive

literal: gift; grant; bestowal

أَيْ

ʾ-y-y

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

رَبِّ

r-b-b

literal: Lord; lord; divine

تَشْهَدُ

sh-h-d

literal: witnessed; observed; seen; evident; manifest

أَرْكانُنا

r-k-n

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

وَجَوارِحُنَا

j-r-ḥ

literal: limbs; member; limb, body part

Model Translations by Shoghi Effendi

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