Reading faithfully: words, meanings, and the reader’s desires

These people are like unto the Mohammadan who never prayed in his life. … "Yes! the trouble is you remember only that which is useful to your own purpose and forget the rest."

Great error may result from the misinterpretation of a single word or expression of the sacred books.

Nay, rather, by corruption of the text is meant that in which all Muslim divines are engaged today, that is the interpretation of God's holy Book in accordance with their idle imaginings and vain desires.

… In yet another instance, He saith: "A part of them heard the Word of God, and then, after they had understood it, distorted it, and knew that they did so." This verse, too, doth indicate that the meaning of the Word of God hath been perverted, not that the actual words have been effaced.

And should they reply: "The Books that are in the hands of this people, which they call the Gospel and attribute to Jesus, the Son of Mary, have not been revealed by God and proceed not from the Manifestations of His Self", then this would imply a cessation in the abounding grace of Him Who is the Source of all grace. If so, God's testimony to His servants would have remained incomplete and His favour proven imperfect.

… Be not veiled by aught that hath been revealed in the Qur'an, or by what thou hast learned from the works of those Suns of immaculacy and Moons of majesty, regarding the perversion of the Texts by the fanatical or their alteration by their corruptors. By these statements only certain specific and clearly indicated passages are intended.

Whoso interpreteth what hath been sent down from the heaven of Revelation, and altereth its evident meaning, he, verily, is of them that have perverted the Sublime Word of God, and is of the lost ones in the Lucid Book.

Corrupt not the holy, the all-embracing, and primal Word of God, and seek not to profane its sanctity or to debase its exalted character.

Most of the people of the world cling to their own desires, imagining themselves to be turning toward the truth.

… This is a matter whose mysteries may not be divulged at this time, for all people are deprived of its foundation - that is to say, they have not truly comprehended the divine purpose in the revealed Books, but have contented themselves with whatever they have deduced from or heard from their divines. Should anyone transgress even slightly from these theological limitations, they pronounce him an infidel.

Every people follows their Messenger, yet all are veiled from what I have willed for them. Each recites what was revealed in the Books to their Messenger, yet they are far removed from what I intended therein.

Glory be unto God! Throughout ages and centuries they have been engaged in reading the Book of God, yet remained deprived and forbidden from understanding it.

For twelve hundred years and more they recited the Book of God, the Furqan, yet failed to comprehend a single letter thereof.

O people! Act in accordance with what ye have been commanded in the Tablets, and follow not the ways of the ignorant ones who have cast the ordinances of God behind their backs and followed the ways of the fabricators - they who have taken a word from the Book and interpreted it according to their desires. These, verily, are among the perverters.

They seek to prove what they believe through the verses while denying Him Who revealed them.

Fie upon those who have turned away from all the signs, who have taken but a single letter from the Book and used it to prove their contentions, who have denied God through Whose command were sent down glorious scriptures and sublime tablets!

… Beware, O people, lest ye pervert the words of God from their proper place. Bear witness to that which God hath witnessed, then be as brothers reclining upon couches face to face. Unite in such wise that no trace of discord may be detected among you. Through your unity will the Cause of God be made manifest throughout His creation, His tokens be established among His servants, and His light be proven throughout the worlds.

There are and there may be found some souls who collect the supplications of the Blessed Perfection and take out of every supplication a phrase or a sentence and then attribute it to themselves. Such people are like unto the man who gathers out of the Gospel sundry sayings of Christ, that is, he selects from every page a few words and as a result he composes phrases and sentences and claims to be the original writer.

Concerning the objection of Shaykh Abdu'r-Rahim thou hadst written that in the traditions of the infallible ones there appears the alteration of certain words and letters of the Qur'an, and likewise in the books of the Sunnis, in certain instances other than the verse "and of knowledge ye have been given but little," in a single verse two different words have been recorded, both of which are permissible and valid. Despite this, why did the Shaykh not attribute the error to Uthman the Lame but rather to the Pen of the Most Great Servitude?

As for what you indicated that the new verses do not accord with the old words - yes, if you look at their outward meanings and neglect their inner significances, you will find them different and divergent. For the new utterance is the essence of exposition and consists of clear verses. If you wish to reconcile the new clear verses with the old allegorical words, they will not agree. But if you look with the eye of insight at the allegorical verses of the Qur'an and comprehend their interpretation, you will see that God's books and scrolls are in harmony and agreement throughout all ages and centuries.

The first reason was that certain conditions were mentioned in the Holy Book regarding the Promised One, which were symbolic words rather than literal meanings. But since they took them literally, they turned away in pride, saying "This Promised One is not that Promised One."

It is quite evident that the people did not understand the glad tidings, or prophecies, referring to the Christ in the Bible, for in the Old Testament they found this verse--that the coming one will come as a sovereign and will conquer the east as well as the west. … These people, finding these prophecies were not fulfilled in the time of Christ, nay rather (the reverse), reached to such a state that they even killed Him.

Consider what was revealed in the Gospel concerning the darkening of the sun and the moon, and the falling of the stars, and the like thereof.

Those who were guided by the lights of the Ancient Beauty on the day of the manifestation of that Most Glorious Light, although they saw the appearance of that Divine Word different from what they had been promised in the Divine Books concerning the appearance of such mentioned signs, nevertheless clung to the mention of these words and turned away from the Day-Star of the Divine Realm and the Sun of the heaven of holy eternity, through which the land of Mecca was illumined.

Glory be to God! The Promised One of all books and scriptures was conditional upon certain requirements and bound by certain signs, such that if people remained veiled, they would have an excuse. For example, the Promised One of the Jews was to come forth from an unknown place, and among His conditions were unlimited sovereignty, occupancy of David's throne, the drawing of swords, the mobilization of thousands, the promotion of the Torah, the proclamation of verses, the universalization of the Mosaic Law, and the manifestation of supreme justice whereby wolf and lamb, leopard and kid, lion and calf, serpent and suckling child would become companions, nestmates and confidants. This was established by the decisive texts of the Torah and accepted by all. When the Spirit of God illumined the horizons with the light of guidance, none of these conditions and signs were outwardly fulfilled, for all these statements had inner meanings and were symbols and mysteries. Though the Jews denied Him, they had an outward excuse.

Similarly, the Promised One of the Gospel was to come with great pomp and circumstance and hosts of exalted angels, riding upon a cloud from heaven to earth, the sun and moon were to be darkened, and the stars were to fall upon the earth's surface. That glorious Promised One was to come with trumpet and clarion call and hosts of ethereal angels from heaven to this world, awakening East and West with the sound of the trumpet. Thus if Christians sought an excuse at the appearance of the Muhammadan Beauty, they had an outward pretext.

Likewise, the Promised One of the Qur'an was conditional upon endless signs - Jabulqa and Jabulsa, the conquest of East and West and South and North, the sovereignty of the Qa'im and of the Prince of Martyrs, the descent of Jesus, the appearance of the Antichrist, the Greater Resurrection, the gathering and dispersion, the promised Paradise and the blazing fires, and countless other signs. If the followers of the Qur'an made excuses and pretexts, these were acceptable to the ignorant.

But the Promised One of the Bayan - may my spirit be a sacrifice unto Him - was so clearly and manifestly described by the Bab that no one, neither secretly nor openly, neither inwardly nor outwardly, neither in meaning nor in form, was left with any excuse or pretext. He explicitly states: "Beware, beware lest thou be veiled by the Vahid of the Bayan or by what was revealed in the Bayan." Observe how He says "Beware lest ye be veiled by the statements in the writings of the Primal Point," that is to say He Who in the Bayan hath thus decreed, and such is explicitly recorded, furthermore admonisheth you lest thou be veiled by the First Vahid from Him, and the First Vahid is none other than the Bab Himself--may my soul be a sacrifice unto Him--and the eighteen Letters of the Living.

And one of these Letters of the Living is Quddus, concerning whom the Bab--may my soul be a sacrifice unto Him--explicitly declareth that thirteen Vahids of Mirrors are under the shadow of Quddus. Despite this, He admonisheth "Beware lest thou be veiled from the Promised Beauty by Me and the Letters of the Living." Consider then how emphatically He declareth and admonisheth that on the Day of the Manifestation of the Beauty of the Intended One, "Beware lest ye look to whether I accept Him or not, and thereby become veiled from Him"--meaning, do not make your acceptance and recognition contingent upon Mine and the Letters of the Living.

It is evident that the Bab--may my soul be a sacrifice unto Him--was the Herald of the Ancient Beauty and the Promoter of His Cause. God forbid! Forgetfulness hath no access to that pure Soul, much less disobedience. When He saith "Beware lest ye be veiled from Him by Me," the very thought of it is impossible. Nevertheless, He emphasizeth and explicitly declareth this so that no one might later say, "If this Cause were true and this Promised One were indeed the Promised One of the Bayan, surely the Mirror would have accepted and acknowledged Him."

Likewise, let them not be veiled by certain outward aspects of the Bayan, as they have become. For instance, they say that a decree was issued by the Bab--may my soul be a sacrifice unto Him--that it should be read in the school of Him Whom God shall make manifest. They ask: "Where then is the school of Him Whom God shall make manifest? Where are the kings of the Bayan? Where are the temples and mosques of the Bayan? Where are its signs and emblems? Not yet hath a single mosque been erected, no temple hath been built, the Law of the Bayan hath not been promoted, the divine ordinances have not become manifest. How then hath a new Promised One come and Him Whom God shall make manifest appeared?"

By God! Be fair and close the eye of tyranny. Were the people of the Furqan (Qur'an) to cry out that the Bab--may my soul be a sacrifice unto Him--declared "I am the Promised One of the Furqan, the Hour is come, and the great catastrophe hath appeared," saying "If this be the promised Qa'im, where then is His unsheathed sword? Where is His unfurled standard? Where are His assembled hosts? Where are the reins and spears? Where is His promotion of the resplendent Law and His propagation of the clear and manifest Path? Where is the soaring of the chosen ones and the noble ones? Where is their gathering in the Mother of Cities? Where is the Great Resurrection? Where is the Balance? Where is the Bridge? Where is the Reckoning? Where is the blazing Fire? Where is the joyous Paradise? Where is the Kawthar and the Salsabil? Where is the cup mixed with camphor and ginger? Where are the dark-eyed maidens, restraining their glances in pavilions? Where are the immortal youths like hidden pearls? Where are the stern and mighty angels? Where are the chains and fetters?" and "Where? Where? Where?" What answer would they give?

The Exalted One---may my spirit be a sacrifice unto Him---saith that all these conditions, signs, and events came to pass in the twinkling of an eye, yet the people were veiled from beholding them. O God! Where is fairness? All these momentous events occurred in the twinkling of an eye and possessed an inner interpretation; yet the "school of Him Whom God shall make manifest" is not susceptible of interpretation? Deal justly, O people!

Consider how heedless they are. The Exalted One saith: "Beware lest thou be veiled by that which hath been revealed in the Bayan." Yet this one saith: "Where is the school of Him Whom God shall make manifest?" But the mention of the school is itself from that which hath been revealed in the Bayan, concerning which He saith: Beware lest thou be thereby veiled from Him Whom God shall make manifest. In short, praise be to God, the Exalted One---may my spirit be a sacrifice unto Him---left no veil remaining; He rent them all asunder. Yet this obstinate people are like the spider: whatever veil of theirs thou dost tear away, they straightway weave another; for this veiledness springeth from their very being. And when a thing pertaineth to the essential requirements of a reality, its separation therefrom is impossible.

Upon you be greetings and praise.

For example, the Muslims claim that the moon was cleft asunder by Muhammad and fell upon the mountain of Mecca. They imagine the moon to be a small body which Muhammad divided in twain, casting one part on one mountain and the other part on another! These tales are prompted by sheer fanaticism. Likewise, the accounts that the Christian clergy provide and the charges that they level are always exaggerated and often baseless.

Is it not possible that since the death of Christ and Baha'u'llah there has been a tendency toward superstitions as to miracles and so on to gather about the accounts of their lives?

When asked about the alteration of the holy books, they said there was not just one book of the Gospel in all the world, there were many books. How would it have been possible to gather these and alter them? Now in the Vatican there is a manuscript Gospel from seventeen hundred years ago written on gazelle skin that has not changed at all.

They contain many inspired utterances, but through the lapse of time human ideas have crept in and afterwards men have come to believe that they are all, in their totality the revealed words of God.

In brief, if you refer to history, you will observe that more than a thousand books were written and circulated in rejection of Christ (may the spirit of all be a sacrifice for Him). Most of these works were by the most eminent religious scholars of the world. Nevertheless, after three hundred years, the blessed countenance of Christ shone so brilliantly from the horizon of truth that all these calumnies vanished like darkness, and of those books, merely their names remained in religious histories.

For instance, the Hebrew prophets were sent to announce Christ, but unfortunately the Talmud and its superstitions veiled Him so completely that they crucified their promised Messiah. Had they renounced the talmudic traditions and investigated the reality of the religion of Moses, they would have become believers in Christ. Blind adherence to forms and imitations of ancestral beliefs deprived them of their messianic bounty.

"At the time of His Holiness Jesus Christ the Jews forsook Him, and would imagine a phantasmal god and would adore that!"

The divines of Egypt objected to Moses, the divines of the Torah and the idolaters to the Spirit, and the divines of the idols, the Gospel and the Torah to the Seal of the Prophets, bringing forth that which caused the Mother Book to lament.

Look, then remember when Muhammad, the Apostle of God, came, He was denied by the divines of idols and of the Torah and the Gospel. Among them was he who desired a house of gold, and among them was he who asked for a spring to gush forth, and among them was he who wished a book to descend from heaven, and among them was he who said before His face: "If this be the truth, then cause stones to rain down upon us from heaven."

Each day they would claim some new understanding and knowledge, until finally their knowledge culminated in this: One day, before attaining maturity, this Wronged One entered a gathering where two individuals wearing enormous turbans were, from behind a curtain, describing to one of the ladies their own spiritual knowledge and stations, until one of them stated that we must determine whether Gabriel is higher or Qanbar, whether 'Abbas is higher or Salman. This Wronged One was bewildered. After a few minutes it was mentioned: "O Mulla, if Gabriel is the one referred to in 'The Faithful Spirit descended with it upon thy heart', then Master Qanbar was not even present there."

Among other things he asked about the sign of the Manifestation being that they would remove two well-known Shaykhs from their graves and hang them on two withered trees, whereupon those trees would instantly be observed to become green and flourishing. Observe how deluded this person is and at what station he stands. They carry their burdens upon their backs and perceive it not, and the volumes of allusions rest upon their hearts yet they understand not.

For twelve hundred years and more, among the established and certain beliefs of the Shi'ih sect was the life of the Qa'im and His existence in well-known cities, and whosoever claimed His birth was put to death. Then it became clear and evident to men of insight that this sect had been in error, and throughout these twelve hundred years not one among their divines or others gained any knowledge of the birth of the Manifestation and the manner thereof, wandering instead in the valleys of fancy and imagination.

In brief, observe that for a thousand years, nay more, these people have had naught but fancy in their grasp, and through a thousand established traditions and decisive utterances they confirmed to themselves this matter whose very foundation was imaginary, and they clung to it and counted as infidels and rejected ones those who denied it.

Even as thou hast observed that after the widespread acceptance among all the servants of the Quranic references concerning the Promised Qa'im and His appearance in Jabulqa and Jabulsa, as well as the mention of the Seal of the Prophets which was the explicit text of the Book, God created servants who rent asunder all these references and evidences and the veil of clear text that was recorded in the Quran.

But the heedless and ignorant souls have interpreted this word according to their own imaginings, and thus remained deprived of the living waters of certitude and forbidden from the manifestation of God.

Turn thy face toward God and detach thyself from those who at times speak as spoke the divines of the Qur'an, and at times speak as spoke the people of the Gospel, then the people of the Torah, and thus have they veiled themselves behind the veils of allusions.

Beware lest ye be veiled by allusions or by the words of those who know not their left from their right.

The people are weak, and certain unprofitable and useless utterances of the people of the Furqan remain in their minds and hearts. Therefore they may give ear to certain vain imaginings. Say: The matter is not as such. Were that which is hidden from you to be unveiled, ye would abandon the world and whatsoever words and allusions are therein, and would hold fast unto the Word that hath encompassed the world.

The condition of the servants is evident - for years they have drunk from the cup of vain imaginings and have reached maturity at the breast of idle fancies. Assuredly they were not and are not worthy to draw near to the Most Great Ocean. They are familiar with buzzing and flee from the cooing of the doves of the supreme Paradise.

O My loved one! The world hath been laid waste by vain imaginings. The world hath but one Builder, one Destroyer. The Command is in God's hands, the Lord of lords. The people are seen to be so heedless that one is astonished. If one veil is rent asunder, they are found to be afflicted with another veil greater than the first.

We show them the horizon of certitude but they turn away from it, and We cause them to hear the cooing of the Dove but they hearken not. The Pen of Revelation remindeth them at all times but they remember not. They follow the ignorant and call them learned ones.

The Knower of the unseen remindeth them through the Book of God, yet they perceive not. My Most Exalted Pen maketh them aware, yet they turn away from it.

In truth, no one hath been or shall ever be capable of offering praise, thanksgiving and glorification to God as befitteth His station. How many among the learned who considered themselves as oceans of knowledge and counted themselves among the heaven of wisdom have today failed to attain unto a single drop of the most pure wine or to comprehend a single word of divine knowledge.

Woe unto every learned one whom knowledge hath withheld from the Sovereign, the Self-Subsisting, and every mystic whom vain imaginings have veiled from the Hidden Name. By the life of God! Those who pride themselves on their knowledge in the days of God and occupy themselves therewith without His leave are indeed among the worshippers of names, as recorded in the Crimson Book.

Among them are those who ask of the drop concerning the ocean, its waves and its depths. Say: Woe unto you, O heedless ones!

And among them are those who ask of the atom concerning the sun, its radiance, its light and its splendor - thus mayest thou know the state of these hateful ones.

Man is bewildered by the veiling of the people of the lands. I know not in what valley they wander or to what thing they cling. Do they not see the rising of the Sun of inner meanings from the horizon of utterance, and do they not behold the dawning of the Luminary of knowledge and wisdom at the pole of possibility?

The Tongue of God is speaking manifestly and evidently amidst the world, the Most Exalted Horizon is visible, the river of inner meanings is flowing from the Supreme Pen, and the Luminary of utterance is shining and gleaming from the highest horizon of contingent being. Nevertheless, all are heedless save a handful of the Letters of thy Lord's countenance - namely, those souls who have quaffed of the sealed wine by the name of the Self-Subsisting and have attained unto the Kawthar of the knowledge of the Beloved of all possibility.

The favor of the True One, exalted be His glory, hath ever had precedence, and likewise His mercy, grace and generosity. How many souls have witnessed with their own eyes the rain of divine mercy at the time of its descent, and likewise have seen His clear proofs in the Surahs and Tablets. Nevertheless, they persist in their turning away and hold fast to their objections.

All were commanded not to be veiled at the time of His manifestation by the Bayan and what was revealed therein, inasmuch as not a single letter was revealed therein except concerning this transcendent, mighty, and beloved Cause. His purpose was none other than that ye should not cling to it in His days, nor adduce such proofs as were adduced by the people of the Furqan, and before them the people of the Gospel and the Psalms. For at the time of each Manifestation, every people clung to the words revealed aforetime, and thereby opposed God unknowingly.

The Author of the Bayan declares: "Let not the Bayan veil you from Him, and turn not away from Him on account of its letters. The entirety of the Bayan is as but a leaf before Him - if He accepts it, it is accepted, and if He rejects it, verily He is to be loved in His Cause and obeyed in His decree."

On one occasion He said: "O servant in attendance! Today the Kingdom of the Bayan boweth down in submission before the All-Merciful. All books and tablets are suspended upon His Will, and all who are in the Bayan are commanded to recognize this Most Great Remembrance, this momentous Announcement." Blessed is the one who hath broken the chains of idle fancies and vain imaginings through the Name of the Self-Subsisting, who hath forsaken that which is possessed by the people and held fast unto that which is with God.

Say: All this descendeth from a single Tree - God causeth to descend upon it as He pleaseth the exponents of His command and prohibition. Ye gaze toward your Lord. Consider whereby command is established and prohibition is established, that ye may not be veiled by them on the Day of Resurrection. For if God should will, He would make command into prohibition, even as ye now witness.

This is the mystery of the tradition concerning Iblis, that after being veiled from the new prostration, he outwardly beseeched God saying, "Forgive me, I will worship Thee with such worship as none hath ever rendered." Then came the divine revelation from his own self to his own self that "I love to be worshipped in the way I have ordained, not in the way thou wouldst worship."

… Now in every Revelation, if the learned ones would strive to prevent differences from arising - or if differences do arise, since they possess no inner comprehension to observe each thing in its proper place - they should, through divine wisdom and heavenly subtlety, resolve such differences, rejecting none but assigning to each a suitable station in existence, so that all may be educated in one way until the next Revelation.

And I bear witness before Thee concerning what people attribute to me, that I commanded naught in any book reaching unto all people save the purification of the air, and after making mention of the exaltation of Thy Cause and the Furqan, I joined therewith mention of the confirmation of Thy judgment from before upon all who believed in Thee until Thy judgment should reach them. And until that time I commanded no one with any new judgment from Thy presence, and in all wherein people differed they moved only in what pertained to the air.

In the Name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate

In truth, this is a letter from the presence of God unto thee, concerning that which thou didst ask of me. Know verily that I am a servant who hath believed in God and in His signs, and I am not of the idolaters.

The matter became confused among the people regarding me, by reason of what I disclosed of the knowledge of mystical understanding and of eloquence which my Lord, God, had bestowed upon me -- though it was not permitted me to manifest it, for it was a charge laid upon mine own soul and upon none other. Therein I erred and sinned. And today I have attained certitude, by a decree against my very self, that I occupy not the station of one vested with authority in the Cause, nor with judgment, nor with knowledge, nor with eloquence such that it would be incumbent upon the people to receive aught from me.

Through the goodly surmise of men there appeared traces ascribed to my knowledge; yet these very preventatives confounded them concerning my affair, and in their well-meant deeds they conveyed unto the people whatsoever they wished in the religion of God. This day I beg forgiveness of God, my Lord, for all that I manifested, and I say unto thee -- for the absent ones and for whoso knoweth me -- that I do not stand upon any Cause whose recognition is incumbent upon the people; I lay claim to no authority. And whoso should ascribe to me divine knowledge or authority, upon him be the curse of God, and the curse of His angels, and of all humankind.

I counsel thee, O thou who inquirest, to convey a copy of this very page unto every soul -- lover and hater alike -- that they may go forth from the rule of confusion and behold with their very eyes that I am not the one who standeth in the rank of the Gates, either in knowledge or in deed. Whoso followeth me in any judgment or knowledge -- God and His angels are quit of him. By the might of God, I occupy no station that would make it lawful for men to follow me, nor to promulgate what God granted me of the knowledge of Divine Unity and of eloquence. I ask forgiveness of God, my Lord, and turn unto Him in penitence.

Upon everyone who desireth knowledge of the roots and branches it is enjoined that he seek it from other than me, and that he efface all that he findeth of my traces -- save what is validated by clear proof from the Book of God, the Sunna of His Messenger, and the consensus of all the learned. O friend -- just as the Messenger of God (blessings be upon him) said unto the first: "Thou art the Truthful One" -- even so, convey thou this Book unto every soul, that they may efface the traces of argument, turn away from me, and seek other than me.

By the rank of Mua¸¥ammad and the Family of God -- upon them be the peace of God -- I have attained certainty regarding mine own affair: I possess not a judgment like unto that of the learned; whoso followeth me in any matter is assuredly in error. I am but a servant who believeth in God and in His signs. This is my testimony before God and before everyone who readeth this Book with certitude, unto the Day of Resurrection: God shall question him thereof, and he shall be, before God, mustered among the sinners.

All that flowed from my pen before this page hath no authority. And now I am certain in my judgment that I am not upon a Cause that would make obedience unto me incumbent upon the people. I beg forgiveness of God, my Lord -- there is no God but He, the Lord of plenteous bounty. And praise be to God, the Lord of all the worlds.

Those who followed Our signs aforetime -- these are the rightly guided. But those who have followed their vain desires -- naught of their deeds shall be accepted; these, indeed, are the lost.

As for the word of the idolaters concerning what We have revealed unto thee -- that the Remembrance taketh letters from the Qur'an and sendeth down verses in a clear Arabic tongue -- by thy Lord! They have lied against God and have fabricated concerning Our verses, prompted by what Satan cast into their souls.

… And whoso saith that He hath taken letter by letter from the Qur'an -- such a one is indeed among the polytheists. The likeness of the creation of letters before God is as the likeness of your own creation. None can alter His signs; and on that Day the averse shall find for themselves, apart from the mention of the Name of God, neither witness nor helper.

They have disbelieved who say that the Word of God taketh verses that are sent down in the Book from the Qur'an -- say: Glory be to Him and exalted is He above what they associate!

Among them is he who said that He hath plagiarized the verses of the Point and revealed them in His Name. At this My Most Exalted Pen hath lamented, and the dwellers of the Most Exalted Paradise. The Mother Book beareth witness to this in the most sublime station.

Nevertheless, the sightless ones of the world have said that what is sent down from the heaven of divine will has been stolen from the words of the Primal Point. Observe what injustice hath been perpetrated against this Wronged One.

O 'Ali-Akbar! Consider the station whereof the Primal Point hath spoken: "I seek refuge with Thee, O my God, lest my position on that Day be the position of the wicked." Observe what He said and what they say, what He did and what they do. They arose to cut down the Tree, and when their schemes were exposed, they opened their lips in calumny. You and all the people of the Bayan know that the Truth hath never been hidden nor concealed behind a veil.

The Point of the Bayan has said that in the year nineteen, all who are in the Bayan should write books to each other proving He Whom God shall make manifest. His purpose was that all should be occupied with this Most Great Remembrance through tongue, hand, pen and heart, lest the people of the Bayan should act like the Shi'ih sect. However, His counsels produced the opposite effect in most of the hearts of the opposers of the Bayan.

O My Name! All that was revealed in the Bayan concerning the mention of the Most Great Remembrance was revealed with utmost clarity. That which was made the cause of distinguishing the people and the degrees of recognition and the appearance of tests was the mention of Mustaghath, and now the meaning thereof hath been revealed from the Supreme Pen in the Clear Tablet - that which until now they have neither understood nor comprehended. The people are weak, and most have drunk the milk of vain imaginings from the breast of idle fancy.

Recently a statement hath appeared from these liars claiming that what the Exalted One meant by the year Nine was nine years after the appearance of Him Whom God shall make manifest, at the time of Mustaghath. Observe how far they have strayed from the path of truth and justice! By God, it would be better for the tongue to be struck dumb than to utter such words.

Among the deniers is one who claims that the Revelation hath appeared too soon, and that this is not the way of God as established of old. Say: Woe unto you, O concourse of deniers! Are ye more powerful than God and His Cause, or is He Who doeth as He willeth? And if ye acknowledge His power and sovereignty, He hath manifested Himself as He pleased and desired, and is not to be questioned about what He pleaseth.

Yet these deluded souls have not attained unto a drop from the ocean of utterance and speak that which no ignorant one has ever spoken.

This servant is bewildered and amazed at how they have interpreted and understood the utterances of the Exalted One, for in some passages He speaks "Verily I am God, there is no God but Me."

O thou who gazest upon the Countenance! Names have prevented most from the ocean of inner meanings, and mention of "successor," "guardian" and "mirror" hath deprived them of the Dayspring of verses and the Dawning-Place of clear proofs.

Should anyone discover the interpretations of My Book and the allusions of My words, he would bear witness that from the beginning of the Cause I made mention of him according to his station and rank, but the people are in manifest ignorance.

They deny the station which He declares cannot be known through Him or what was revealed in the Bayan, measuring it by their own vain imaginings.

Those who have said that "He Whom God shall make manifest" is the Primal Point Himself have spoken unjustly.

If they deny My mention, can any mention of them remain in the Bayan? Nay, by the Knower of hidden things! The entire Bayan is adorned with My Name and embellished with My mention.

They read what We revealed aforetime and reject that which is greater. Lo! They are of the idolaters.

Did you write the Bayan as God, your Beloved, the Beloved of the mystics, commanded you? Nay, by your life, you neither wrote it nor obeyed what you were commanded by Him, and became of the hesitating ones. Rather, you desired to keep people away from His command and prohibition, and to be among those who distance others.

There is no Tablet wherein We have not counseled the servants concerning this Announcement at which feet have slipped, and no Book wherein We have not commanded the people to be submissive before the Gate. The Names broke God's covenant and His testament until they openly denied the Mighty, the Unconstrained.

Every misbeliever has taken for himself a vain fancy apart from God. They understand not. They worshipped the unseen throughout ages and centuries, yet when He manifested Himself they denied Him, saying: "It behooveth Him not to appear, for we have heard from our fathers that He is the Hidden Name." Say: By God! He is this One, and this is the treasured Mystery.

Yet when the horizon of the Manifestation shone forth and the Lord of the Day of Resurrection appeared, We saw every name clinging to another name and taking it as lord for itself instead of God. Thus did their souls entice them.

Although the people of the Bayan have heard and continue to hear the cursing, rejection and condemnation of the former people openly declared from pulpits without any concealment or veil, yet they are occupied in establishing such a people themselves.

Now the deniers among the people of the Bayan cling to the deeds of the past and utter the words of that party. They say the Bayan hath been altered, denying whatsoever hath been revealed concerning this Most Great Revelation and Most Great Announcement, attributing it to alteration, although this Cause is self-evident and needeth no mention, and all the books and scriptures of the world are dependent upon its acceptance.

O Abu'l-Qasim! The delusions of the previous party have emerged - the notorious Dawlat-Abadi has denied the Book of God and has intended to eliminate it. This grief is greater than all the griefs of the world. His followers say this Text is not authentic.

In these days, sorrow upon sorrow and grief upon grief have appeared, for it hath been heard that an oppressor hath attempted to obliterate the Bayan and likewise the Qayyumu'l-Asma'. By His truth, this is an injustice whose fire consumeth the world and its peoples. Glory be to God! The words of the former party have resurfaced - they say "This Bayan is not that Bayan," just as they said "This Qur'an is not that Qur'an."

Old arguments have been renewed - they say the Bayan has been altered. Say: By God's life! None has been, nor ever shall be, able to alter the Bayan. The purpose of the idolaters is to prevent people from beholding the divine books and thereby to carry out their own designs.

The words of the past have resurfaced - sometimes they say the Bayan has been altered, uttering calumnies the like of which have never been heard in creation.

New words have appeared and old sayings have emerged from the sacks of heedlessness. They say the Bayan has been corrupted, just as the previous party said and were cast into hell.

In these days a new thought hath occurred to those false [treacherous] souls. They have intended to steal and erase the Book of God. Say: Woe unto you, O enemies of God and His Manifestation and His Cause! Fear ye God and be not among the oppressors.

Whatever divine verses they possessed, they added some fabricated ones and gave them to the people of this land, creating great mischief. But their efforts in this vain life came to naught.

In sum, they removed all the Sacred Writings and Tablets belonging to this servant and to others, even those pertaining to commandments whose adjustments were in my possession. Consider how far their iniquity did reach. And yet, this servant remained silent and serene, lest this foul odour be diffused throughout all regions, and these dreadful events become fully known to the fomenters of discord.

He was even intent upon shedding the blood of 'Abdu'l-Baha, the documented proof of which is at hand. Furthermore, he falsified the Words of the Blessed Beauty. Obtain a copy of the declaration written by Aqa Mirza Badi'u'llah, and read it to see how he hath falsified the Book of God. The evidence of this, too, is at hand.

Consider that Mirza Badi'u'llah wrote in his own hand, published and distributed that Mirza Muhammad-Ali had altered the Book of God, meaning he had removed passages from the Book of God and written other passages, attributing them to the Blessed Beauty. Yet despite this proclamation, he again formed bonds of friendship with him and made peace.

When these night birds beheld this glory of God's Cause, they deemed it opportune and thereby began, in utmost secrecy from friend and stranger alike, to cast doubts, claiming: "We are the origin, the root and foundation of this Cause, both past and present." Through such means they confound the uninformed and cast the foolish into the realm of forgetfulness.

Some souls imagined that the Blessed Beauty had considerations of father and son, not knowing that He established the power of the Covenant for the propagation of God's Cause and the triumph of the Word of God.

"The House of Justice will put things right," He said. "It will gather together all the Sacred Writings, scrutinized them carefully, and pronounce its conclusive findings, and should any make contradictory remarks, he would be severely dealt with." Then He gave an explanation about how such a tablet never existed and was not from the Ancient Beauty and was not in His blessed idiom.

It was all based on false and ill-intended stories and rumors. For instance, it was voiced among people that this Person had made lawful that which was forbidden by God and made prohibited that which God had allowed, and that He had abandoned fasting, obligatory prayers, jihad, and discarded the religion of His Grandfather.

They who were not acquainted with so much as a letter of the Cause have risen to falsehood, speaking only as their own selves and desires have bidden them; and thereby are they accursed in this world and in the world to come, though they perceive it not.

They have risen in opposition in such wise as cannot be described in words, and God is witness to what I say, save those who have cast the idolaters behind their backs and their allusions beneath their feet.

The veils of the learned have deprived the world from the All-Knowing Lord, as you have become aware. … Would that they had sufficed with this much! But finally they issued the decree for the death of the Lord of the world.

Consider the party that clung unto this word, and that came to be called the Imamiyyih. They hanged that guileless Essence of being---He from whose word the successors and the saints were created---and with bullets of rancor and hatred they martyred Him. The curse of God be upon the wrongdoing people! Those who deemed themselves the best of parties were, in the end, beheld as the basest among the peoples of the world. All of that faction arose to shed the most pure blood.

Behold the people of the Furqan - they interpreted but did not attain save those whom God aided with the truth. Thus does the All-Knowing teach you.

The laws of wisdom and utterance have been scattered through the disagreements of the followers of religions - they are indeed among the distracted ones.

For six thousand years misunderstandings have kept humanity divided. … Misunderstandings have been among the people. People have bowed to imitations.

But because imitations have crept into religions, divisions and misunderstanding have resulted. These imitations cannot be found in the reality of religion.

The forms and superstitions which appeared and obscured the light did not affect the reality of Christ. For example, Jesus Christ said, "Put up thy sword into the sheath." The meaning is that warfare is forbidden and abrogated; but consider the Christian wars which took place afterward.

The teachings of Christ are forgotten. Consider that Christ commanded Peter to sheathe his sword. He also said, 'Whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also' [Matt. 5:39].

Yet they made a mockery of God's laws, transgressed the fortress of His Cause, and were among the heedless. The harm of their deeds returned to the root of the Tree--thus was the matter, if thou be of them that hear. Verily, those who dispute and fight with people have departed from the paradise of justice and are accounted among the oppressors in the preserved tablets of might.

It may be that certain minds might not believe in some of the aforementioned boundaries laid down in the Books of God due to an unawareness of their hidden benefits, but that which hath streamed forth from the Ancient Pen in this Most Great Revelation with regard to men's gathering together and becoming unified -- along with their morals, conduct, and occupation with that which will profit humanity -- hath not been and cannot be denied by anyone, unless they are altogether senseless.

His intention is destruction, and it is divided into two parts, one physical and the other spiritual. The physical abomination of desolation is the razing and destroying of buildings. The spiritual abomination of desolation is the destruction of the teachings of GOD.

When Moses got down from Mount Sinai and saw his people have corrupted themselves by the worship of the molten calf saying: 'These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.' his wrath waxed hot against them and at their stiffneckedness and said to one of these worshippers: Why didst thou worship this molten calf?

Once again He emphasized, "The blessed expositions infuse the stone, but had no effect on him. It is the story of the deaf man and the trumpet, and the mirror in the hand of the blind."

One who has taste perceives the flavor of good fruits. For souls who are deprived of this station, the sending down of heavenly food has been and will be divine wrath.

Thus you witnessed how We seized the leader of the people with a wondrous Book, despite knowing his rejection and rebellion. Now what was a blessing for him became a curse, and its effects are evident in all lands.

By God the Truth! Whoso wavereth in this Cause, his faith shall not be accepted though he bring the worship of both worlds. Whoso worshippeth God in these days while remaining heedless of His Manifestation and His sovereignty, upon him shall be pronounced the judgment passed upon the followers of former religions, for they made mention of God and worshipped Him yet knew Him not, and thereby their works were rendered vain and they were among the lost.

They cast the Book of God behind their backs in that they followed every ignorant doubter.

The world hath been adorned through the appearance of the Ancient King, and yet most of the people remain heedless. They have taken their vain imaginings and cast the Book of God behind their backs. Thus have their souls prompted them - they are indeed among the most lost.

They have cast the Book of God behind their backs, clinging to idle fancies and vain imaginings.

Among the people are those who play with God's verses - for this do those in the heavens and earth curse them.

Say: Beware lest ye utter that which God hath not permitted unto you. Thus hath the matter been decreed. Blessed is he who hath taken unto the Truth a way.

Beware lest ye alter the Temple of God. Know ye what We have informed you of before, then aid your Lord, the Mighty, the Wise.

Cast ye aside all allusions and intimations, place them beneath your feet, and turn with radiant faces unto a station that hath been illumined by the lights of the Throne.

This is the Day whereon all things testified to that whereunto the Tongue of Power hath testified before the Divine Lote-Tree. All glory be to that which God hath bestowed upon us!

O Lord! Protect Thy weak servants from the doubts of the people of vain desires, from the distortion of clear verses, from following ambiguous verses, and from the interpretations of the people of lusts.