Prayers and Meditations — §554

Arabic source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 554 of 858.

Source (Arabic)

سُبْحَانَكَ اللَّهُمَّ يا إِلهِي أَنْتَ الَّذِيْ مِنْ نارِ حُبِّكَ اشْتَعَلَ أَفْئِدَةُ المُوَحِّدِينَ، وَبِأَنْوارِ وَجْهِكَ اسْتَضائَتْ وُجُوهُ المُقَرَّبِينَ، فَما أَعْذَبَ يا إِلهِي كَوْثَرَ عِرْفانِكَ وَما أَحْلَى يا مَحْبُوبِيْ سِهامَ الأَشْقِيآءِ فِي حُبِّكَ وَرِضائِكَ فَما أَلَذَّ سَيْفَ المُشْرِكِينَ فِي سَبِيلِكَ وَإِظْهارِ أَمْرِكَ، أَسْئَلُكَ بِاسْمِكَ الَّذِيْ بِهِ تَبَدَّلَ الاضْطِرابُ بِالاطْمِئْنانِ و

Shoghi Effendi Translation

Glorified art Thou, O Lord my God! Thou art He the fire of Whose love hath set ablaze the hearts of them who have recognized Thy unity, and the splendors of Whose countenance have illuminated the faces of such as have drawn nigh unto Thy court. How plenteous, O my God, is the stream of Thy knowledge! How sweet, O my Beloved, is the injury which, in my love for Thee, and for the sake of Thy pleasure, I suffer from the darts of the wicked doers! How pleasing are the wounds which, in Thy path and in order to proclaim Thy Faith, I sustain from the swords of the infidels!

Translation Notes

سُبْحَانَكَ

s-b-ḥ → “Glorified”

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

اللَّهُمَّ

ʾ-l-h → “O Lord my God”

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

يا

y-ʾ

literal: O; or

أَنْتَ

ʾ-n-t → “Thou”

literal: you (masculine singular)

الَّذِيْ

l-dh-y → “which”

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

مِنْ

m-n → “of them who have recognized Thy”

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

نارِ

n-ʾ-r

literal: fire; blaze; flame

حُبِّكَ

ḥ-b-b → “love”

literal: by, with, through (preposition)

اشْتَعَلَ

sh-ʿ-l → “kindled”

literal: to kindle, burn, be inflamed; to blaze

أَفْئِدَةُ

f-ʾ-d → “hearts”

literal: heart, innermost soul, mind; heart; inner consciousness; mind; one who benefits; advantageous

المُوَحِّدِينَ،

w-ḥ-d → “unity”

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

وَبِأَنْوارِ

n-w-r → “splendors”

literal: light; illumination

وَجْهِكَ

w-j-h → “Whose countenance” Distinctive

literal: face; countenance; direction; aspect

اسْتَضائَتْ

ḍ-w-ʾ → “glory hath irradiated” Distinctive

literal: evening; night

المُقَرَّبِينَ،

q-r-b → “nigh” Distinctive

literal: place of sacrifice; altar

فَما

m-ʾ → “that”

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

أَعْذَبَ

ʿ-dh-b

literal: punishment; torment; tormented

كَوْثَرَ

k-w-th-r → “living waters”

literal: abundance; river of paradise; the Kawthar

عِرْفانِكَ

ʿ-r-f → “knowledge”

literal: to confess; to acknowledge; to recognize

أَحْلَى

ḥ-l-w

literal: sweetest; most sweet; most pleasant

سِهامَ

s-h-m → “darts”

literal: arrow; dart; shaft; portion; share

الأَشْقِيآءِ

sh-q-y → “the wicked doers”

literal: wretched ones; the miserable; the wicked

فِي

f-y → “in”

literal: in; in-it; in it

وَرِضائِكَ

r-ḍ-y → “Thy pleasure”

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

أَلَذَّ

l-dh-dh

literal: sweet; sweeter; pleasure

سَيْفَ

s-y-f → “swords”

literal: sword

المُشْرِكِينَ

sh-r-k → “the infidels”

literal: partner; associate; sharer; companion

سَبِيلِكَ

s-b-l → “path”

literal: path; way; road; cause; means

وَإِظْهارِ

ẓ-h-r → “proclaim”

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

أَمْرِكَ،

ʾ-m-r → “Faith” Distinctive

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

أَسْئَلُكَ

s-ʾ-l

literal: ask; ask/request; ask/beseech

بِاسْمِكَ

s-m-w

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

بِهِ

b-h

literal: by it; by him; with it