Prayers and Meditations — §54
Arabic source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 54 of 858.
Source (Arabic)
سُبْحانَكَ يا إِلهِي كَيْفَ أَشْكُرُكَ بِما اخْتَصَصْتَنِي بَيْنَ عِبادِكَ، وَاصْطَفَيْتَنِي لِعِرْفانِ نَفْسِكَ بَعْدَ الَّذِيْ أَعْرَضَ كُلٌّ عَنْ جِمالِكَ، أَشْهَدُ يا إِلهِي لَوْ أُقْتَلُ فِيْ سَبِيلِكَ فِيْ كُلِّ حِينٍ أَلْفَ مَرَّةٍ لا يُعادِلُ بِقَلِيلِ ما أَعْطَيْتَنِي
Shoghi Effendi Translation
Praised be Thou, O my God! How can I thank Thee for having singled me out and chosen me above all Thy servants to reveal Thee, at a time when all had turned away from Thy beauty! I testify, O my God, that if I were given a thousand lives by Thee, and offered them up all in Thy path, I would still have failed to repay the least of the gifts which, by Thy grace, Thou hast bestowed upon me.
Translation Notes
epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §235: laudgleaningsGWB §633: the All-Gloriouskitab-i-iqanKIQ §205: the “veilsprayers-and-meditationsP&M §842: exalted, immensely exaltedtablet-of-the-holy-marinerMariner §54: Glorified be He thatthe-hidden-wordsHW §89: from on highepistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §244: the veilsgleaningsGWB §80: clouds
SE expanded to “O my God”
epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §172: how couldgleaningsGWB §374: how much lesskitab-i-iqanKIQ §282: “What of the signprayers-and-meditationsP&M §233: How, thenthe-hidden-wordsHW §15: whyepistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §228: HowgleaningsGWB §242: why is it, thenprayers-and-meditationsP&M §795: whithersoever
epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §129: thankfulfire-tabletFire §49: thankgleaningsGWB §634: through thy recognitionprayers-and-meditationsP&M §54: thank Theetablet-of-ahmadAhmad §15: those who are gratefultablet-of-carmelCarmel §3: give thanksthe-hidden-wordsHW §46: and thankfulepistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §150: render thanks
SE expanded to “singled me out”
confined 17% vouchsafed 13% specially 13% singled 13% shown 8% specifically 8% have 8% supreme 8% thou 8% especially 4%
epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §243: especiallygleaningsGWB §94: vouchsafed speciallykitab-i-iqanKIQ §149: suchprayers-and-meditationsP&M §358: Thou hast endowedthe-hidden-wordsHW §143: have designedwill-and-testamentW&T §36: give them Thy blissepistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §38: specifically revealedgleaningsGWB §404: being endowed
epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §168: “Servitudefire-tabletFire §50: all the servantsgleaningsGWB §657: all them that serve Himkitab-i-iqanKIQ §157: the people ofprayers-and-meditationsP&M §804: of the Adored Onetablet-of-ahmadAhmad §15: a servicethe-hidden-wordsHW §3: of otherswill-and-testamentW&T §12: trusted servants
epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §158: His chosen onesfire-tabletFire §27: andgleaningsGWB §435: crystalkitab-i-iqanKIQ §264: pureprayers-and-meditationsP&M §757: Thou didst ordainthe-hidden-wordsHW §100: crystal purewill-and-testamentW&T §45: Thy Holy Onesepistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §168: chosen ones
This form usually rendered as “knowledge”, “understanding”, “recognition” (144 occurrences)
knowledge 34% understanding 26% recognition 8% recognize 8% comprehension 7% know 6% recognizing 4% insight 3% wisdom 2% visualize 2%
epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §100: but knowgleaningsGWB §90: that thou mayest comprehendkitab-i-ahdAhd §13: perform praiseworthy deedskitab-i-iqanKIQ §14: standard of their own knowledgeprayers-and-meditationsP&M §65: acknowledgingtablet-of-ahmadAhmad §12: to seethe-hidden-wordsHW §52: do thou observe itepistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §252: Know
This form usually rendered as “thyself”, “own”, “self” (222 occurrences)
epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §141: gazethgleaningsGWB §406: any giftkitab-i-ahdAhd §8: thosekitab-i-iqanKIQ §154: the most unletteredprayers-and-meditationsP&M §623: Thine all-glorious Selftablet-of-the-holy-marinerMariner §52: within herselfthe-hidden-wordsHW §9: unto Mewill-and-testamentW&T §25: believers
epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §9: cavilsgleaningsGWB §712: shall turn awaykitab-i-iqanKIQ §6: protestationsprayers-and-meditationsP&M §105: have turned their backstablet-of-ahmadAhmad §14: turns awaythe-hidden-wordsHW §9: bywill-and-testamentW&T §17: opposed Godepistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §232: that have gone astray
beauty 86% countenance 3% radiant 1% revelation 1% glory 1% whose 1% most 1% through 1% exalted 1% meditating 1%
epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §122: AmonggleaningsGWB §103: countenancekitab-i-ahdAhd §14: Graciouskitab-i-iqanKIQ §208: theprayers-and-meditationsP&M §234: revelation of Thy countenancetablet-of-the-holy-marinerMariner §55: countenancesthe-hidden-wordsHW §88: a beautywill-and-testamentW&T §3: Abhá Beauty
8 occurrences in corpus
SE rendered أَشْهَدُ (ʾashhad), إِلهِي (ʾilhí), لَوْ (law), أُقْتَلُ (ʾuqtal), سَبِيلِكَ (sabílik) as “testify, O my God, if, Thy path”
SE rendered سَبِيلِكَ (sabílik), حِينٍ (ḥínin), أَلْفَ (ʾalf), مَرَّةٍ (marrahin), يُعادِلُ (yuʿádil), بِقَلِيلِ (biqalíl) as “Thy path, thousand lives, failed to repay, the least”
epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §14: furthering unitygleaningsGWB §178: concordkitab-i-iqanKIQ §179: one thousandprayers-and-meditationsP&M §776: combinedwill-and-testamentW&T §9: thousand years…”epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §142: unite the heartsgleaningsGWB §436: fellowshipkitab-i-iqanKIQ §178: “A
SE rendered حِينٍ (ḥínin), أَلْفَ (ʾalf), مَرَّةٍ (marrahin), يُعادِلُ (yuʿádil), بِقَلِيلِ (biqalíl) as “thousand lives, failed to repay, the least”
This form usually rendered as “excelleth”, “can”, “compared” (9 occurrences)
This form usually rendered as “few”, “little”, “numbered” (21 occurrences)
epistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §126: exceedethfire-tabletFire §42: independencegleaningsGWB §167: even though for one momentkitab-i-iqanKIQ §214: littleprayers-and-meditationsP&M §797: to an imperceptible degreethe-hidden-wordsHW §91: handfulepistle-to-the-son-of-the-wolfESW §216: lessfire-tabletFire §47: fewness
SE expanded to “hast bestowed upon me”
