Prayers and Meditations — §828

Arabic source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 828 of 858.

Source (Arabic)

بِمَا شَهِدَ بِهِ لِسَانُ أَمْرِكَ فِي مَلَكُوْتِ بَيَانِكَ وَجَبَرُوتِ عِلْمِكَ أَيْ رَبِّ أُحِبُّ أَنْ أَسْأَلَكَ فِي هَذَا الْمَقَامِ كُلَّ مَا عِنْدَكَ لِإِثْبَاتِ فَقْرِي وَإِعْلَاءِ عَطَائِكَ وَغَنَائِكَ وَإِظْهَارِ عَجْزِي وَإِبْرَازِ قُدْرَتِكَ وَإِقْتِدَارِكَ. لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ الْعَزِيزُ الْوَهَّابُ. لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ الْحَاكِمُ فِي الْمَبْدَاءِ وَالْمَآبِ.

Shoghi Effendi Translation

Thou seest, O my God, how my spirit hath been stirred up within my limbs and members, in its longing to worship Thee, and in its yearning to remember Thee and extol Thee; how it testifieth to that whereunto the Tongue of Thy Commandment hath testified in the kingdom of Thine utterance and the heaven of Thy knowledge. I love, in this state, O my Lord, to beg of Thee all that is with Thee, that I may demonstrate my poverty, and magnify Thy bounty and Thy riches, and may declare my powerlessness, and manifest Thy power and Thy might.

Translation Notes

بِمَا

m-ʾ → “that” Distinctive

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

شَهِدَ

sh-h-d → “testified”

literal: witnessed; observed; seen; evident; manifest

بِهِ

b-h

literal: by it; by him; with it

لِسَانُ

l-s-n → “Tongue”

literal: tongue; language

أَمْرِكَ

ʾ-m-r → “Thy Commandment” Distinctive

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

فِي

f-y → “in”

literal: in; in-it; in it

مَلَكُوْتِ

m-l-k → “kingdom”

literal: kingdom; dominion; realm; sovereignty

بَيَانِكَ

b-y-n → “Thine utterance”

literal: to manifest; to make clear; clear, evident; in; among; between; at this moment

وَجَبَرُوتِ

j-b-r → “heaven”

literal: compelled; forced; constrained

عِلْمِكَ

ʿ-l-m → “Thy knowledge”

literal: world; universe; the worlds

أَيْ

ʾ-y-y → “O”

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

رَبِّ

r-b-b → “my Lord”

literal: by, with, through (preposition)

أُحِبُّ

ḥ-b-b → “I love”

literal: love; beloved; beloved ones

أَنْ

ʾ-n → “to”

literal: that; those; he; she; it

أَسْأَلَكَ

s-ʾ-l → “beg” Distinctive

literal: question; problem; issue; matter; asking; petition; request

هَذَا

h-dh-ʾ → “this”

literal: this; that

الْمَقَامِ

q-w-m → “state” Distinctive

literal: rising; standing; uprising; resurrection

كُلَّ

k-l-l → “all”

literal: for us; to us

عِنْدَكَ

ʿ-n-d → “with Thee”

literal: obstinacy; opposition; enmity

لِإِثْبَاتِ

th-b-t → “that I may demonstrate”

literal: firm; steadfast; established; fixed

فَقْرِي

f-q-r → “my poverty”

literal: poor; needy; the poor one; pauper

وَإِعْلَاءِ

ʿ-l-w → “and magnify” Distinctive

literal: highest; most high; supreme

عَطَائِكَ

ʿ-ṭ-w → “Thy bounty”

literal: bounty; gift; bestowal; grace; bountifulness

وَغَنَائِكَ

gh-n-y → “Thy riches”

literal: to be independent of; to be in no need of; to dispense with; rich; wealthy; needless

وَإِظْهَارِ

ẓ-h-r → “and may declare” Distinctive

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

عَجْزِي

ʿ-j-z → “my powerlessness”

literal: to be unable; to fail; to be exhausted; impotence; أعجاز (roots of trees/extremities) is Pattern II plural, distinct from ‘inability’ forms

وَإِبْرَازِ

b-r-z → “revelation” Distinctive

literal: appearance; manifestation; coming forth

قُدْرَتِكَ

q-d-r → “Thy power”

literal: power; might; decree; measure; worth

لَا

l-ʾ

literal: no; not; negation particle