Prayers and Meditations — §591

Arabic source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 591 of 858.

Source (Arabic)

سُبْحَانَكَ يا إِلهِي لَكَ الحَمْدُ بِما عَرَّفْتَنِي مَطْلَعَ رَحْمَتِكَ وَمَشْرِقَ فَضْلِكَ وَمَصْدَرَ أَمْرِكَ، أَسْئَلُكَ بِاسْمِكَ الَّذِيْ بِهِ ابْيَضَّتْ وُجُوهُ المُقَرَّبِينَ وَطارَتْ أَفْئِدَةُ المُخْلِصِينَ بِأَنْ تَجْعَلَنِي فِي كُلِّ الأَحْوالِ مُتَمَسِّكًا بِحَبْلِكَ وَمُنْقَطِعًا عَنْ دُونِكَ وَناظِرًا إِلى أُفُقِ وَحْيِكَ وَعامِلاً بِما أَمَرْتَنِي بِهِ فِي أَلْواحِكَ، أيْ رَبِّ زَيِّنْ ظاهِرِي وَباطِنِي

Shoghi Effendi Translation

Glorified art Thou, O my God! I yield Thee thanks that Thou hast made known unto me Him Who is the Dayspring of Thy mercy, and the Dawning-Place of Thy grace, and the Repository of Thy Cause. I beseech Thee by Thy Name, through which the faces of them that are nigh unto Thee have turned white, and the hearts of such as are devoted to Thee have winged their flight towards Thee, to grant that I may, at all times and under all conditions, lay hold on Thy cord, and be rid of all attachment to anyone except Thee, and may keep mine eyes directed towards the horizon of Thy Revelation, and may carry out what Thou hast prescribed unto me in Thy Tablets.

Translation Notes

سُبْحَانَكَ

s-b-ḥ → “Glorified”

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

يا

y-ʾ

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

إِلهِي

ʾ-l-h → “O my God”

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

لَكَ

literal: for us; to us

الحَمْدُ

ḥ-m-d → “yield Thee thanks”

literal: praise; to praise

بِما

m-ʾ → “that” Distinctive

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

عَرَّفْتَنِي

ʿ-r-f → “made known” Distinctive

literal: knowledge; know; knower

مَطْلَعَ

ṭ-l-ʿ → “Dayspring”

literal: rising; appearance; countenance; manifestation

رَحْمَتِكَ

r-ḥ-m → “Thy mercy”

literal: merciful, compassionate; pertaining to divine mercy

وَمَشْرِقَ

sh-r-q → “Dawning-Place” Distinctive

literal: radiance; splendor; dawn; illumination

فَضْلِكَ

f-ḍ-l → “Thy grace”

literal: grace; bounty; generosity; excellence

وَمَصْدَرَ

ṣ-d-r → “breasts” Distinctive

literal: to issue, emanate, proceed; issued, emanating

أَمْرِكَ،

ʾ-m-r → “Thy Cause”

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

أَسْئَلُكَ

s-ʾ-l → “I beseech Thee”

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

ابْيَضَّتْ

b-y-ḍ → “have turned white”

literal: white; whiteness; the white

وُجُوهُ

w-j-h → “faces”

literal: face; countenance; direction; aspect

المُقَرَّبِينَ

q-r-b → “nigh” Distinctive

literal: place of sacrifice; altar

وَطارَتْ

ṭ-y-r → “soar”

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

أَفْئِدَةُ

f-ʾ-d → “hearts”

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

المُخْلِصِينَ

kh-l-ṣ → “devoted”

literal: sincere; devoted; pure one

بِأَنْ

ʾ-n-n → “to grant that”

literal: that; those; he; she; it

تَجْعَلَنِي

j-ʿ-l → “make” Distinctive

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

فِي

f-y → “in”

literal: in; in-it; in it

كُلِّ

k-l-l → “at all times”

literal: for us; to us

الأَحْوالِ

ḥ-w-l → “and under all conditions”

literal: states; conditions; circumstances; situations; affairs

مُتَمَسِّكًا

m-s-k → “lay hold” Distinctive

literal: musk; to seize; grip; to hold fast; to cling to; to grasp

بِحَبْلِكَ

ḥ-b-l → “on Thy cord”

literal: cord; rope; bond; connection

وَمُنْقَطِعًا

q-ṭ-ʿ → “be rid of all attachment”

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

عَنْ

ʿ-n → “of”

literal: from; about; concerning; away from

دُونِكَ

d-w-n → “to anyone except Thee”

literal: below; lower than; beneath

وَناظِرًا

n-ẓ-r → “keep mine eyes directed” Distinctive

literal: sight; view; spectacle; appearance

إِلى

ʾ-l-y → “towards”

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

أُفُقِ

ʾ-f-q → “horizon”

literal: horizon; sphere; realm; quarter

وَحْيِكَ

w-ḥ-y → “Thy Revelation”

literal: revelation; inspiration; divine communication

وَعامِلاً

ʿ-m-l → “deeds” Distinctive

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

أَلْواحِكَ،

l-w-ḥ → “in Thy Tablets”

literal: description; tablet; manifesto

أيْ

ʾ-y-y

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

رَبِّ

r-b-b

literal: by, with, through (preposition)

زَيِّنْ

z-y-n

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

ظاهِرِي

ẓ-h-r

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

وَباطِنِي

b-ṭ-n

literal: inner; hidden; inward; esoteric

Model Translations by Shoghi Effendi

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16 ¶

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291 ¶

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17 ¶

Tablet of Carmel

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5 ¶

Tablet of the Holy Mariner

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57 ¶

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160 ¶

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59 ¶