Greatest Name
Editorial introduction
One pilgrim remembered, decades later, the joy that overcame him when his eyes fell on the Greatest Name hanging in a place of honour in a room. That memory is a good place to begin, because the Greatest Name is first of all something that happens to a person: a word on the lips at dawn, a refuge in trouble, the last breath before sleep. Bahá’u’lláh teaches that the Name is also a proclamation, the sun rising from the supreme horizon, the banner of pre-existence raised on the mount of the world, and that to remember it is to recognise the One it names. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s explanation of the ringstone symbol lays out the worlds of God, of command and of creation, with revelation as the mirror between them. The Qur’án’s invitation to call upon God by His most beautiful names gives this devotion an older setting [1]. From here the journey leads to Bahá’u’lláh Himself, to the daily recitation of the Name and the law of repetition that shapes a habit into a character, and to the Word of God and the power of speech, where a name becomes a life.
When my gaze fell upon the Greatest Name, occupying as it did the place of honour in the room of this great personage, I was all at once overcome by a feeling of immense joy and happiness. To this day the memory of that joy and happiness abideth with me; nor shall I ever forget it."
The Greatest Name should be found upon the lips in the first awaking moment of early dawn. It should be fed upon by constant use in daily invocation, in trouble, under opposition, and should be the last word breathed when the head rests upon the pillow at night.
It is the name of comfort, protection, happiness, illumination, love and unity.
Give especial greeting to ... and say: "There lie glorious meanings in the word "Allaho-ABHA". I hope thou wilt discover those significances."
Therefore, whenever you wish your soul's palate to become sweet and your conscience to be filled with honey, raise the cry of "Ya Baha'u'l-Abha!"
Yet in this Day the cry of the Concourse on high is "Allah-u-Abha," and the spirit of this servant is stirred and thrilled by this Call.
The greeting is the blessed word "Baha-u-Abha" which is inscribed by the Supreme Pen on the tablets of hearts, and the call and melody of the sanctified Concourse in the upper realm is "Ya Baha'u'l-Abha"!
Due to the honor of this blessed Name, I long to see thy face so that I may hear this blessed Name from thy tongue with my own ears. Consider with what a bounty thou hast been distinguished!
That great Name is the Most Great Name, meaning the Blessed Beauty, and what is available today is the meaning of two letters of the Most Great Name, and these are "B" and "H".
Know also that the three horizontal lines represent the World of God, the World of Command, and the World of Creation, for they are the sources of the [divine] influences. The World of God is the source of the grace of the Almighty; the World of Command is the pure and refined mirror in which the Sun of Reality is manifested; and the World of Creation is the source of the acquisition of effulgences which appear through the medium of the Most Great Channel, that is, the recipient of the grace of God and the bestower of grace upon created things.
I hope that thou shalt discover the hidden significances of divine verses, and through the bounty of the Almighty, thou mayest become informed of the concealed mystery and recondite symbol of the stone of the Most Great Name.
The chain of servitude to the Blessed Beauty is connected to and associated with the Greatest Name, and the keys are an indication that this chain of servitude is the means of opening doors and is in every way a protection for the heart and soul and a safeguard for the spirit and mind.
We have adorned the Night of Power with the letter "H" that the people of Baha may attain certitude through this Most Great, Supreme Name.
O Husayn, may souls be sacrificed for your name!
This honored name was, in the Dispensation of the Furqan, a banner raised for the Wronged One, and in this Dispensation it is the first element of the Greatest Name. Observe how blessed it is!
As for the seven spirits and seven stars mentioned in the Revelation of John, these refer to the seven letters found in the Greatest Name, for this Name with its seven letters has shone upon the horizons and illumined creation with brilliant rays from the Kingdom of the All-Merciful.
Praise be to God Who caused the Dove to speak forth in praise and made manifest the Point emerging at the letter B through the extended Alif absolute in the Most Great Scrolls, whereupon they gathered together and were perfected and were ordered and were contained and were joined, and thus became the Greatest Name, rising and shining at the Pole of Creation.
If read carefully, it will become clear and evident that it is very detailed, for the mention of the Greatest Name - may my spirit be sacrificed for His loved ones - is recorded therein, and that encompasses all meanings of knowledge - "knowledge is but a single point, which the ignorant have multiplied" - is a saying of His Holiness the Prince [Imam 'Ali], and that point is the Greatest Name, and the explanation of this matter with sufficient and complete proof is detailed and expounded in the commentary on Bismi'llahi'r-Rahmani'r-Rahim.
Say: The Most Great Name has four aspects, if you would bear witness: To believe in God and His signs, then in the Prophet and those who are witnesses after Him, then in the Gates of Guidance. Thus have you fulfilled God's command and comprehended the Most Great Name.
Praise be to Thee, O my God, with such praise that things fall short of attaining unto it, and the heavens and the earth and all that is between them shine with the first rays of its light - praise that filleth Thy names and Thy earth and what lieth between them from the pillars of all things, that there is no God but Thee, the Possessor of Most Splendid Glory, of Most Sublime Majesty, of Most Beautiful Beauty, of Most Great Grandeur, of Most Brilliant Light, of All-Encompassing Mercy, of Perfect Words, of Most Great Names, the One possessed of Supreme Might, and the One endowed with Purpose in all things, and the One with All-Conquering Dominion, and the One with Far-Reaching Power, and the One whose Word is Well-Pleasing, and the One with Unshakeable Proofs, and the One with Everlasting Sovereignty, and the One with Glorious Dominion, and the One with Exalted Grace, and the One with Lofty Praise - for no one can enumerate the manifestations of Thy names, nor can anyone's knowledge encompass the conditions of Thy likenesses.
Praise be to God Who hath exalted His verses in His glorious Book, and He is God, the Ever-Watchful over all things.
Today is the day when the Sun of the Most Great Name is rising from the horizon of the world, mentioned in every Book by a different name. In the Torah It appeared and was recorded by the name of Jehovah - a name which, before the advent of Moses, was concealed in God's treasury of knowledge. Thus in the Torah He says: "I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob as God Almighty, but by My name Jehovah I was not known to them."
The Most Great Name hath appeared, Who was promised in the Books of God, the Lord of what was and what shall be.
Say: O concourse of the world! By God, the Most Great Name hath come, which was inscribed by the Most Exalted Pen in every unfurled scroll, every sealed book, and every recorded tablet.
This is the Most Great Name of God concerning which God's Proof and Evidence gave tidings. By My life! No mention nor utterance hath appeared more explicit than this.
The key to the treasured mystery and the hidden secret had ever been recorded and concealed within the divine Books and Scriptures, but today, through celestial grace, that Most Great Key hath become manifest and visible, and it was the Most Great Name of God, through whose blessing the gates of knowledge and wisdom have been and continue to be opened unto hearts.
All have heard that it hath been said that the Most Great Name is mentioned and concealed in this prayer, and now it is manifest and speaking and hath dawned upon all who dwell on earth.
To those possessed of insight it is clear and evident that the station of the mention of the Most Great Name must be at the beginning, for it precedes all names and is the source and dawning-place of all remembrance - and indeed it appears at the opening of the aforementioned prayer.
Blessed art thou for having adorned thy letter with this Name, through which the limbs of the divines trembled and the hearts of the ecclesiastics were troubled, and through which that which was hidden in God's knowledge was made manifest - He, the Protector, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.
Its opening was adorned with this blessed verse: "O my God! I beseech Thee by Thy most glorious glory [Baha]." … To those possessed of insight it is most clear and evident that the station of mentioning the Most Great Name is at the beginning, since it precedes all names and is the source and dawning-place of all remembrances, and it appears at the opening of the aforementioned prayer.
O my God and my Beloved! This is the Name wherewith Thou hast adorned the preamble of the Tablet of Eternity, and made it the ornament of Thine own Self, O Thou Who art the Sovereign of the kingdoms of names. And Thou hast commanded all to recite it at dawn, that none among those endowed with vision might be debarred therefrom.
That which thou hast extracted from the verses concerning the Greatest Name was accepted before the Throne.
God beareth witness that there is none other God but Him, and He Who speaketh is verily the Most Great Name, Who was hidden in the eternity of eternities.
The Ancient Beauty hath turned His face toward the world, and verily He is the Most Great Name, calling out with the most exalted call and bringing glad tidings to those in the kingdom of creation, unto God, the Sender of winds.
O Most Great Name! We, verily, have made thee to be among the greatest of names, that thou mayest issue forth from the abode of silence, and rise above the dawning-place of utterance to proclaim a Cause that hath encompassed all worlds.
It crieth out by its own self and saith: "By God! The Lord of Eternity hath come with the Most Great Name.
O peoples of the earth! The Most Great Name hath come, calling you unto the Supreme Horizon.
He summoneth all peoples, through His Most Great Name, to His highest horizon and His most glorious appearance.
The Tablet calleth aloud in the world and giveth glad tidings to the peoples of the Most Great Name, Who hath summoned all unto the supreme horizon - this station which God hath made His glorious and wondrous seat.
The Tongue hath spoken before the faces of the world and given them glad tidings of the Most Great Name, that they might rejoice in the days of God, the Lord of the worlds.
The verses were sent down when the signs appeared and the Spirit speaketh between the world and giveth glad-tidings unto the nations of the Most Great Name, whereby all who are in the heavens and earth were illumined.
He is the One Who calleth betwixt earth and heaven, and He is the One manifest through the Greatest Name in the world.
He hath shone forth from the horizon of the world with His Most Great Name, the Hidden, and thereby have all things cried out, and all in the kingdom of names have raised their voices, proclaiming: "God hath come with manifest sovereignty!"
The horizon of the world hath been illumined by the Sun of My Most Great Name, yet most of the people perceive not.
The horizon of the world is illumined with the splendors of the Most Great Name, yet rare indeed are they who possess true vision.
The world hath been adorned with the ornament of the Most Great Name, yet most of the people remain heedless.
The breast of the world hath been dilated through the manifestation of My Most Great Name - to this every fair-minded one possessed of knowledge doth testify.
The sun of My Most Glorious Name has dawned from the supreme horizon.
The Banner of Pre-existence hath been raised through the Most Great Name upon the mount of the world. Blessed is he who hasteneth unto it with his heart.
This cycle is the cycle of the manifestation of the Most Great Name and the Ancient Beauty - may my spirit be a sacrifice for His loved ones.
Verily, Thou art the Lord of the world, the Almighty over the nations, and the One made manifest through the Most Great Name, whereby the heavens and earth were illumined in Thy wondrous and wonderful Day.
Praise that is sanctified above comprehension and minds befitteth the Lord of the worlds Who, through the Most Great Name, hath cast down the banner of associating partners with God and raised high the standard of divine unity in the most exalted station, and through the appearance of His Beloved One hath adorned the world with a new adorning.
Say: The true believer in divine unity is he who cleaveth unto this Name which God hath made the Sovereign of Names, and he who turneth away from it remaineth veiled in concealment.
By God! Nothing that is witnessed and seen will profit you this Day save through this Name which God has made the Dayspring of His names, the Manifestation of His attributes and the Dawning-Place of His firm and mighty Cause.
This is an epistle from the All-Bestowing to him who hath believed in God, the Lord of Lords, and attained unto the Most Great Ocean when it surged through this Name which God hath made to prevail over all who are in the lands.
Whoso hath attained unto recognition in this Day hath attained unto all good.
The whole world was created for this blessed Day which in the divine Books hath been designated as the Day of God.
All have been created for this Day, yet all are found to be heedless and veiled save those who have cast away the world and have clung to the Most Great Name, whereby the hearts of the peoples who turned away from God, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise, have been shaken.
It is indeed the Most Great Name through which the peoples were scattered and the sincere ones were gathered at the shore of the Ancient Sea.
This is the Most Great Name and the Most Perfect, Most Ancient Blessed Word - at its very mention the evil ones are scattered.
Take hold of the Most Great Name through the power of Him Who is the Lord of Eternity, and cast aside that which the peoples possess.
Blessed is he who hath clung to the Most Great Name and held fast to His luminous hem.
Blessed is the state of the one who, detached from the world, hath clung to the Most Great Name and received his portion from the ocean of His grace.
Hold fast unto My strong cord, then drink from the choice wine of My Most Glorious Name, whose seal We have broken through My sovereignty and power.
Today, through the assistance of the Most Great Name, the pearls of certitude and knowledge are manifest and visible.
Today through the key of the Most Great Name the gates of bounty, mercy, compassion, knowledge and understanding have been opened before the faces of the world.
We have opened the gates of utterance with the key of Our Most Great Name, and hearts through this Name whereby all who are in the heavens and on earth have been attracted - were We to speak of it, all would be thunderstruck.
Impart thou the Greatest Name to the ears, so that all may call out among nations: "O Thou Baha' of the world! O Thou Sun of Pre-existence!"
Truly, I say unto thee, this blessed Name is the spirit of life, the deliverer from death, the word of salvation and of manifest signs!
The power of the Greatest Name enabled Christ to grant divine life to those dead in self and passion, and to make seeing eyes - meaning insight - out of blind ones.
Hasten to the Greatest Name that brings the dead to life!
Be confident in the influence of the Greatest Name, which makes the blind see, the deaf hear, the mute speak, and brings the dead back to life.
Guide my people, for they know not!" and engage in supplication and lamentation, that perchance through divine grace, heavenly guidance and the outpourings of the Greatest Name, the blind may gain sight, the deaf may hear, the dead may be quickened, the captives may be freed, the deprived may receive their share, and the veiled ones may attain.
This sovereign remedy is none other than the love of the Blessed Beauty and His Sacred Dispensation ordained by the One True God, for it will speedily restore true health. This patent medicine is the Love of the Greatest Name, for it embraces all the perfections and conditions of existence.
O Physician of troubled hearts! For every chronic disease bestow the potent remedy of the Covenant, and for every incurable pain grant the instantaneous cure of divine knowledge, so that the power of the Most Great Name may influence both essence and form, bringing dead bones back to life though they be decomposed.
The use of the Greatest Name and dependence upon it, cause the soul to strip itself of the husks of mortality and to step forth freed, reborn, and new creature...
I swear by the Ancient Beauty that the effects of the Greatest Name will become so manifest and evident in the soul and conscience, even in bone and flesh, that the mind will be bewildered and confounded.
O thou who gazest upon the Most Transcendent Scene! The reality of generosity, like the Most Great Name, became manifest and embodied in this most glorious Revelation, and like the sun became visible and evident at the center of possibility.
The hearts of all who dwell on earth have been stirred by the sweet-scented breezes wafting from the garden of nations through the most great Name.
O friends of 'Abdu'l-Baha! Praise be to God, the bestowals of the Greatest Name are manifest like the rays of the sun, its radiance is evident, and all are present in His Kingdom.
The favors of the Most Great Name are all-encompassing!
Be thou joyous and gladdened under the shade of the Greatest Name's providence, and become filled with delight and fragrance.
Thus if you desire protection from the powers of the world and earthly influences, place the Greatest Name in your dwelling, wear the ring of the Greatest Name, and keep Abdul Baha'is photograph in your home.
Thou hast asked for stones with the Greatest Name. At present there are not any at hand. God willing, they will be sent afterwards.
"Oh! Upon this stone is impressed the Name of Baha'u'llah" she fairly cried out with happiness and serenity in her face.
I suggested some simple remedy, and he gave that along with the one he had been giving, I sat by the child and took its hand, and said the Greatest Name, and in a few hours the child began to improve. As far as my mentality goes I cannot see that the remedy did the child any good.
I beseech Thee by Thy Most Great Name which hath spoken that there is no God but Thee, and Glory be unto Thee, O my God!
I beseech Thee by Thy binding Command and by Thy Most Great Name, whereby the hearts of the nations were stirred, to ordain for me the good of this world and the next.
I beseech Thee by Thy most sweet call, and by the Name of Thy Most Great, Most Glorious Name, and by Thy [perspicuous] Book and Thy firm [and steadfast] Cause, to ordain for Thy loved ones the good of this world and of the world to come.
I beseech Thee by Him Who conversed upon Sinai, Who has ascended the throne of manifestation, and by the fire of Thy Sacred Tree, and by Thy Greatest Name whereby Thou hast subdued the cities of names, to open before my face the door of Thy bounty, Thy grace, Thy might and Thy wealth.
I beseech Thee by Him Who is the Purpose of the world and by the Most Great Name which Thou hast manifested amidst the nations, and through Whose Most Exalted Pen Thou hast caused to flow the Kawthar of everlasting life, and through Whom Thou hast quickened whatsoever Thou didst purpose in the kingdom of creation, that Thou wilt send down from the heaven of Thy bounty and the clouds of Thy generosity that which will tranquilize my heart, gladden mine eyes and dilate my breast.
O God of the world, Who hast manifested through the Most Great Name! I beseech Thee by the ocean of Thy knowledge, and the sun of Thy manifestation, and the heaven of Thy bounty, to ordain for Thy loved ones that which will gladden them in Thy days.
I beseech Thee by the Most Great Name, through which the Kingdom of Names appeared and all things came into being, to assist Thy loved ones to achieve the most great steadfastness, and to ordain for them, through Thy bounty and grace, that which will bring joy to their eyes,
tranquility to their souls, and gladness to their hearts.
Say: O God of the world and Lord of the nations! I beseech Thee by the Most Great Name, through which the lands were shaken and the servants were disturbed, to make me steadfast in Thy Cause and firm in Thy love.
O Siyyid Muhammad! Say: My God, my God! I beseech Thee by the lights of Thy throne and the manifestations of Thy power, and by the Lamp through which Thy dominion and Thy kingdom were illumined, and by Thy Most Great Name whereby the ocean of recognition surged before the faces of the peoples, to ordain for me that which will draw me nigh unto Thee and make me steadfast in Thy Cause - the Cause whereby the feet of the people of Thy realm have slipped.
I beseech Thee by Thy Most Great Name, through which Thou hast separated between the nations, that Thou send down from the clouds of Thy mercy that which will purify the people of Thy dominion, that they may draw near unto the Dayspring of Thy Revelation, the Dawning-Place of Thine inspiration, the Treasury of Thy knowledge, and the Repository of Thy Will.
O God of the worlds! I beseech Thee by Thy Most Great Name, whereby the dwellers of the cities of names and the Concourse on High were seized with ecstasy, to ordain for Thy handmaiden that which will draw her nigh unto Thee and attract her to Thy good-pleasure.
I beseech Thee by the Most Great Name through which the ocean of Thy bounty and mercy surged and the fragrance of Thy garment was wafted among Thy creation, to ordain for me that which Thou hast ordained for Thy handmaidens who have detached themselves from all else but Thee in Thy days and have turned to the horizon of Thy Revelation in such wise that neither the allusions of Thy servants nor the clamor of the people of Thy realm could hinder them.
I beseech Thee by Thy Most Glorious Name, through whose grief the dwellers of Thy most exalted Paradise did lament, to cause Thy handmaidens to drink from the Salsabil of Thy remembrance and the Kawthar of Thy love.
I beseech Thee by Thy Most Great, Most Glorious Name, through which the ocean of bounty surged and the fragrance of eternity wafted, to assist Thy servant Rida in that which Thou lovest and approvest.
I beseech Thee by Thy Most Great Name, whereby the hearts of the nations were shaken, save those whom Thy Will hath desired and Thy Purpose hath chosen, to ordain for him who hath loved Thee amongst mankind and turned to Thee in the earliest days, and who hath inhaled the fragrance of Thy revelation and the sweet-scented breeze of Thine inspiration, and hath drunk Thy choice sealed wine through Thy Name, the Self-Subsisting, and hath done in Thy path that which the Tongue of Thy grandeur hath testified to when Thou wert seated upon the throne of Thy grace, that which will exalt him among Thy servants and draw him nigh unto Thee.
I beseech Thee, O Light of the world and Illuminator of the nations, by the Most Great Name, to ordain for me that which Thou hast destined for Thy chosen ones and trusted ones, who were so carried away by the breathings of Thy Revelation that they hastened to the place of sacrifice in their longing to attain Thy presence.
I beseech Thee by the Most Great Name which was hidden in Thy knowledge and treasured up with Thee, to ordain for me that which Thou hast ordained for Thy chosen ones who have acknowledged that which Thy Prophets have uttered.
Thou seest a young child, the son of one who bears my name - upon him be my glory - clinging to Thy All-Bountiful Name and to Thy Most Great Name. I beseech Thee, O Lord of the worlds and Master of nations, by the Most Great Name, to protect him with the hosts of the unseen and the seen, and ordain for him what Thou hast ordained for Thy chosen ones and trusted ones.
Glorified art Thou, O my God! I beseech Thee by Thy Most Beautiful Names, and Thy Most Perfect and Exalted Words, and by the lights of Thy Countenance in the heaven of eternity, and by Thy Most Great, Most Perfect, Most Generous Name, through which all faces have turned toward the face of Thy Self-Sufficiency, and all hearts have been made to drink the holy waters of Thy Oneness, and through which every poor one hath been enriched, and every abased one hath been exalted, and every sick one hath been healed - to preserve the bearer of this Tablet from every affliction and illness, and from every disease and malady, and from whatsoever may occur through Thy decree in Thy kingdom of plague and pestilence and less than these, from all that causeth souls to tremble and bodies and hearts to be disturbed. Verily, Thou art He Who doeth what He pleaseth through Thy power and ordaineth what He willeth through the sovereignty of Thy command. None can resist Thy decree in the kingdom of Thy might, and none can prevent the execution of Thy judgment in the heaven of Thy creation. Verily, Thou art the Almighty, the Most Exalted, the All-Glorious, the Most Generous, the All-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.
I beseech Thee, O my God, by Thy Most Great Name, the All-Glorious, the Most Glorious, and by the Ultimate Tree, the Most Exalted, the All-Exalted, that Thou protect the bearer of this white leaf from all evil, calamity, plague and pestilence.
Glory be unto Thee, O my God! I beseech Thee by Thy Most Great Name, through which whoso hath borne it hath not drowned in the seas, nor been affected by the arrows of the wicked, nor been altered by poisons and denial, and through which every sinner hath attained the robe of Thy forgiveness and every sick one the garment of Thy healing, to make me so steadfast in Thy Cause that association with Thy creatures and fellowship with Thy servants shall not make me heedless, and to preserve me from every affliction and evil and pestilence and malady, and from the arrows of the intimations of the heedless and the swords of the allusions of those who turn away and the denial of the deniers. Then send down upon me, O my God, from the clouds of Thy mercy that which Thou hast promised me. Verily Thou art the best of those who send down and the best of those who fulfill their promise. There is no God but Thee, the Mighty, the Powerful, the Beautiful.
O my Lord! I beseech Thee by Thy Most Great Name, through which every rock and clod and leaf hath spoken forth Thy praise and glorification, to protect me from the evil of those who have disbelieved in Thee and in Thy signs.
I beseech Thee by Him Whom Thou didst name 'Ali in Thy Book, who was martyred in Thy path in the Land of Ya, to open through the key of Thy Most Great Name the doors of Thy grace and bounty unto all peoples.
I beseech Thee by the Name through which the heaven was cleft asunder and every barren earth was rent and the mountains of idle fancy were scattered in the kingdom of creation, to open before the faces of Thy loved ones the gates of Thy might and bounty.
I beseech Thee by the Most Great Name through which the breezes of the dawn of Revelation have wafted over all lands and those who lay in their graves have stirred before the faces of Thy servants, to make me speak before all faces in Thy remembrance and praise.
O truthful speaker, it behooves you to extend the hands of thanksgiving and praise toward the Divine Presence and say: Praise be unto You, O Quickener of moldering bones, Educator of nations, and the One Who has dawned upon the horizons of the world through the Greatest Name, for having guided me to the bright pathway and the easy, exemplary road wherein there is neither crookedness nor decline, and for causing me to speak Your mention among humanity until I cry out with the loudest call: "Glory and sanctity belong to the Lord of the highest heavens!
Be thou known for thy love of thy Lord and for giving voice to this Great Name.
Convey My remembrance unto thy brother, saying: Turn with thy most pure heart to the Most Great Scene and say: "O Lord of mankind! I beseech Thee by Thy Most Great Name not to leave me to myself, and to make me ever-mindful of Thee, detached from all creation.
O My Pen! Make mention of him who hath been named 'Ali-Aqa, that he may rejoice in that which the Tongue of Grandeur hath moved with his name, and in that which God hath made to be revealed unto him as a light amidst the darkness of the earth, and as a fire in the Lote-Tree of the Bayan, and as a manifestation in the world and the Most Great Name amongst the peoples.
Thus have We wafted unto thee the fragrances of the All-Merciful from this Paradise, and verily thou shalt find them in My most wondrous and matchless words.
If thou shouldst ask the atoms about the Source of verses, they would say: "He hath come with His holy, mighty and inaccessible kingdom!"
Verily the Book speaketh through this Most Great Name, whereby the hearts of the world were shaken, save those who heard the Call and said: "Here am I, O Lord of the verses!
O servant! Detach thyself from self and desire, and incline with the ear of thine inmost heart unto that which the Dove warbleth upon the twigs of the Divine Lote-Tree, that thou mayest be among those who have heard the verses of their Lord, the Most Great, from the direction wherein was established the Most Great Name and wherein He shed His radiance upon all who are in the heavens and the earth and beneath the soil.
Hold fast unto the Most Great Name and conquer hearts through this wise remembrance.
But the conquest of hearts is difficult, save through the power of the Most Great Name and the hosts ye cannot see. Therefore, strive thou with heart and soul that thou mayest be successful in conquering hearts, and mayest find thy breast expanded, and become the recipient of the outpourings of the Holy Spirit.
O you who are firm in the Covenant! Your letter arrived and its contents brought endless joy, for it conveyed the glad tidings of the chanting of verses and recitation of prayers in gatherings of sanctification and teaching, where those who claim knowledge and learning are overcome and brought low before children. This is the power of the Greatest Name that makes the great ones conquered by children and renowned hawks subdued by weak mosquitoes.
Thou didst aid Thy Cause with the Pen and didst summon through the Most Great Name.
Remind the people of this Most Great Name, that they may become aware and turn unto God, the Peerless, the All-Informed.
God the true One is My Witness! This is the Day whereon it is incumbent upon everyone that seeth to behold, and every ear that hearkeneth to hear, and every heart that understandeth to perceive, and every tongue that speaketh to proclaim unto all who are in heaven and on earth, this holy, this exalted, and all-highest Name.
He ariseth amidst mankind and speaketh through the Most Great Name with wisdom and utterance in such wise that the clamor of the heedless shall not silence him.
Despite His imprisonment and tribulation, He summoneth the world through His Most Great Name with a power that the might of the oppressors hath failed to withhold.
Say: O friends! Break the chains of the utterances of the wicked through the power of the Most Great Name and arise to action.
Blessed is he who takes his portion from the Most Great Ocean and arises amidst the peoples with this Name which God has made the Sovereign of names in the kingdom of creation, and through which He has attracted the hearts of those who believe in His unity.
Through the power of the Most Great Name thou must needs manifest supreme steadfastness amidst all peoples.
Seek thou shelter in the Greatest Name, and appear in the utmost strength and power.
O friends! Through the power of the Most Great Name, remain firm and steadfast on the Most Straight Path, and in all conditions take refuge in the Truth.
He hath ordained for every name an influence and sovereignty over the seen and the unseen, and hath made the effect of all names dependent upon His Most Great Name, which hath indeed been made manifest through truth, yet most people have turned away from it....
The glory shining forth from the horizon of My will be upon thee and upon My leaves and handmaidens who have heard My call and turned unto My horizon and have said: "Praise be unto Thee for having manifested Thyself through Thy Most Great Name unto all who are in the heavens and on earth."
Through the blessedness of the Most Great Name, drink ye thereof at all times and offer it freely to all mankind, that all who dwell on earth may abandon the turbid pools of fancy and idle imaginings and turn instead to the Ocean of Life.
Further quotations · supplied wording and references
The inscription upon the Baha'i ringstone is the symbol of the Greatest Name, Baha, who is the Manifestation of the essence of God. It is also symbolic of the three planes representing the World of God, the World of Revelation and the World of Creation.
For thought and discussion