The voice of Divinity: revelation, servitude and response

O My Name! By God! I speak not of Mine own desire, but the Spirit speaketh within My breast. These words are not from Me but from One mighty and powerful.

This is a Book that speaketh the truth, that there is none other God but Him, the Almighty, the Self-Subsisting.

… And as I was beholding the direction of His Cause, there was revealed in this Manifestation that which hath caused every witness and the witnessed to tremble.

All words are equal in His sight - He exalteth them at one time and abaseth them at another, and He shall not be questioned about what He doeth. He is verily the Almighty, the All-Powerful. When He saith "I am but a servant," He thereby educateth the manifestations of servitude, and likewise observe regarding the station of the Bab and beyond that, until it culminateth in "I am God, the Sovereign, the Just, the Wise."

Say: O people of the Bayan! Come, then tell Me truthfully: Who was it that spoke on Sinai to the Manifestation of the Revelation whom We named with Our name "He Who conversed with God" and sent unto him who disbelieved in God, the Lord of the Unseen and the Seen? If ye say the Tree spoke of its own accord, how then do ye deny this Call which hath been raised in truth? And if ye say He spoke in it, then He it is Who now speaketh: "There is no God but Me, the Forgiving, the Generous."

… And in the station of "I am He," the Tree proclaimeth: "Verily, I am God, there is no God but Him, the Mighty, the Praised One." And in the station of "He is I," the Tongue of Grandeur speaketh among creation: "He is God, there is no God but Me, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed." And in the station of "Verily He is He," He speaketh and saith: "There is no God but Him, the Most High, the Most Great."

Say: I, verily, have not sought to extol Mine own Self, but rather God Himself, were ye to judge fairly. Naught can be seen in Me except God and His Cause, could ye but perceive it. I am the One Whom the tongue of Isaiah hath extolled, the One with Whose name both the Torah and the Evangel were adorned.

Say: God is My witness! I have wished nothing whatever for Myself. What I have wished is the victory of God and the triumph of His Cause. He is Himself a sufficient witness between you and Me. Were ye to cleanse your eyes, ye would readily perceive how my deeds testify to the truth of My words, how My words are a guide to My deeds.

Say: O people! I am but a servant of God and His bondsman. I have come to you from the direction of God with a message from Him.

Verily, I am God's servant among you. He hath sent Me with the truth to manifest His Cause. Every atom beareth witness to this, as doth this hidden Pillar Who hath borne afflictions in manifesting God's Cause and hath cast behind Him all creation.

We speak naught except by God's command, and breathe naught save that which returneth unto Him, and We command no one save that through which are manifested the attributes of his Lord's Cause, the Mighty, the Impregnable.

By God, I speak not from desire - rather the Spirit speaketh within My breast, and My proof is My arising and what floweth from a mighty holy Finger.

Say: O people! By God, My tongue moveth through the will of your Lord, the Most Merciful, and My pen through His all-powerful and mighty finger.

O people! I desired not to manifest Myself, but the Mighty, the Faithful manifested Me. I concealed My face; your Ancient Lord revealed it.

I was seized by the attraction of God at the moment of the descent of these words, in such wise that the reins of ordering were taken from my hand. This was not from me, but from the presence of One Mighty and Beloved. Say: O people! By God! the Most Great Spirit speaketh in this ancient Temple whatsoever He willeth and desireth. This is not from me, but from Him, could ye but perceive.

And I have manifested myself only by Thy command and have desired it only for Thy remembrance and praise. Thou art the One Who knoweth what is within my soul, and Thou art the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.

Say: He speaketh not out of desire, if ye be of them that understand. Say: Even were He to speak from desire, it behooveth you not to object to Him, O ye possessed of insight, for in His desire is seen naught save the desire of God, your Best-Beloved, the Most High, the Most Glorious, and in His Self naught save the Self of God, the Lord of the seen and the unseen.

Say: I have believed in God and the Manifestations of His Cause. He hath raised Me up in truth and sent Me unto all who are in the heavens and on earth.

Say: Were He to find mighty servants, He would forever and always proclaim "Verily, I am God!"

Then He, exalted be His mention, saith: "When he came to it, he was called from the right side of the valley in the blessed spot, from the Tree: 'O Moses! Verily, I am God, the Lord of the Worlds.'"

… He hath said concerning that which He willeth: "Verily, I am the Essence whereupon no name nor thing can fall, and I am the Gate of Remission, and there is no strength nor power save in God, the Most High, the Most Great."

God testifieth that there is none other God but Him, and that He Who speaketh is indeed the One Who conversed with Moses from the Burning Bush, and the Speaker on the night of the Ascension through the Hidden Mystery, and the Desired One unto Whom the Spirit ascended.

The Day of God hath come. The Throne of Divine Utterance hath appeared at the heart of contingent being, and the Speaker of the Mount is seated thereon. The river of mercy floweth from the right hand, and the banner of authority is raised on the left.

At one time it speaks forth from the Mount, at another from this Spot which has been illumined by the lights of Revelation, and at yet another time it speaks in the form of the Pen: "The Promise has come, and the Lord of all being is seated upon His mighty throne."

God testifieth that there is none other God but Him, and that the One Who speaketh forth is the Speaker on Sinai, Who hath dawned above the horizon of revelation, and through Whom the mysteries have been unveiled, the stream have gushed forth, and all that was from everlasting concealed in the books of God, the Help in Peril, the Self Subsisting, hath been revealed.

Hear My call from the realm of My loving-kindness - verily there is no God but Him, the All-Powerful, the Almighty, the Most Exalted, the Mighty, the All-Wise.

O Moses! We chose the Interlocutor aforetime and sent him to Pharaoh and his chiefs with nine clear signs, and I am verily the Sender, the Most Exalted, the All-Knowing, the Ancient.

Say: By God! The Fire hath returned in the Tree and speaketh forth: 'I am, verily, God, the Mighty, the Exalted, the Well-Beloved.'

Today the Tree of Knowledge in the highest paradise uttereth this most exalted Word: Today He Who conversed with Moses is seated upon the throne of Revelation.

O friends! Today the Speaker of Sinai is manifest and evident, and upon the branches of the Divine Lote-Tree He speaks and proclaims.

O Husayn! Bear thou witness within thyself, then within thy spirit, then within thine essence, that verily the Tree of Sinai upon the branch of this Manifestation doth proclaim the truth: "Verily, I am God, there is none other God but Me, and He is God, the One Who hath power over all things."

These are the verses of the Book which have been sent down in truth from the dominion of God, the Exalted, the Great...And I confirm what you possess of God's laws and ordinances, and I have come to you from Sinai with the call of God, the Exalted, the Triumphant, the Ancient.

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By God! The Day hath come wherein He Who conversed upon Sinai speaketh forth verses that neither the veils of the people nor the clamor of the lands can withhold.

O peoples of the earth! Hearken unto that which none hath heard before. By God! The One Who called out from the Mount now speaketh, and He Who spoke forth at the ascension recounteth unto you what befell Him at the hands of the wrongdoers.

The Pen of the Most Merciful makes mention of the friends and declares: The Dawning-Place of the Divine Books is manifest today, and the Speaker on Sinai uttereth His discourse from the most exalted station.

Having imparted unto thee, beneath countless veils of concealment, certain hidden mysteries, We now return to Our elucidation of the Books of old, that perchance thy feet may not slip and thou mayest receive with complete certitude the portion which We shall bestow upon thee of the billowing oceans of life in the realm of the names and attributes of God.

In reality Jesus did descend from heaven, because he was a heavenly man, although he was born from the womb of his mother Mary. That is why he said he came from heaven, and that he was in heaven, as related in the Gospel of St. John.

Men asked, 'Why does He say He is of God?' If they had understood the reality of Christ, they would have known that the body of His humanity was a cloud that hid His Divinity. The world only saw His human form, and therefore wondered how He could have 'come down from Heaven'.

Moreover as one of the perfect qualities of the Divinity is Fatherhood, therefore we give him the title of the Father; because the Manifestation of God is like unto a clear mirror in which is reflected the rays of the Sun of Reality and one of these rays is Fatherhood.

The mirror of Jesus was entirely clear, so that it received the full light from the sun and was, therefore, the sun itself, and this was what Jesus meant when He said: "I and the Father are one."

The four letters which are mentioned in the tradition of the Imam (peace be upon him) that must be revealed with the Promised One are these four stations: The station of servitude, with which the Promised One arose at first; and the station of Imamate, concerning which He said "Verily I am the Qa'im Whose appearance was promised unto you"; third is the station of Prophethood, concerning which He said that the Holy Manifestations have no beginning and no end; fourth is the word "Verily I am God" - "He speaketh not from mere impulse. His utterance is but revealed revelation."

Verily I am the Proof of God and His Light.

Verily I am God, no God is there but Me, and aught except Me is but My creation. Say, worship Me then, O ye, My creatures.

Say: Me, therefore, do ye worship. This is a blessed leaf from the Crimson Tree - there is no God but He. Say: Me, therefore, do ye fear.

And I recite concerning Myself, night and day, and then concerning God's faithful servants: "Verily I am God, there is no God but I, the All-Knowing, the All-Powerful." And if thou willest: "Verily I am God, there is no God but I, the Sovereign, the Inaccessible."

And proclaim from My true tongue that "Verily I am God, there is no God but I. I have created all things by My command, and verily Muhammad is My servant and My Messenger, and verily the Letters of the Living are My friends, and likewise the Twin Gates are My doors, for verily I am God, there is no God but I. I have created the heavens and earth by My command more swiftly than uttering the word 'Be.'"

The remembrance of thy Lord's manifestation, the Most High, called out: "Verily, I am the Truth! It hath been written from God as a proof for all the worlds."

God hath testified of Himself that there is no God but Him - no God but I, the Single, the One, the Individual, the Self-Subsisting, the Bountiful.

Remember God, the Most High, Who was in truth speaking and witnessed around the Fire in the Mother Book.

God hath revealed unto me: "Verily, I am God, there is no God but Me.

… Say: I am indeed the Doer by God's leave in the two Points of the First Ones and in the two Centers of the Last Ones. And I am the Fire in the upright Alif between the two seas. I drowned Pharaoh and Ad and Thamud by God's leave in one of the two gulfs, and I saved Noah and Abraham and Moses in one of the two seas.

In the next Resurrection, this Indivisible One Being is naught but the very being of Him Whom God shall make manifest, Who, under all conditions, proclaimeth: "I, in very truth, am God! None other God is there but Me, the Lord of all things, and all besides Me are only My creation. Then adore Me, O My creation!"

… In this Day therefore I bear witness unto My creatures, for the witness of no one other than Myself hath been or shall ever be worthy of mention in My presence.

This is a letter from God, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting, unto God, the Almighty, the Best Beloved, to affirm that the Bayan and such as bear allegiance to it are but a present from me unto Thee and to express my undoubting faith that there is no God but Thee, that the kingdoms of Creation and Revelation are Thine, that no one can attain anything save by Thy power and that He Whom Thou hast raised up is but Thy servant and Thy Testimony.

They say that the letter from the Bab to Yahya begins thus: 'From God, the Mighty, the Beloved, to God, the Mighty, the Beloved.' But this passage is also written at the beginning of the letter to Dayyan and to others.

In Tablets revealed by the Blessed Beauty there are also many such passages. The intent is an address from the Manifestation to Himself.

Say: I am the springtime of the All-Merciful for that which was sown in the Bayan, and the rain of grace for that which was planted therein with justice.

However, His Holiness the Herald, that is to say the Primal Point, states at the beginning of the Bayan: "He Who speaketh in every condition, verily I am God, there is no God but Me, the Lord of all things, and all besides Me are My creation. O My creation! Worship ye Me."

O Hasan! Say: O deniers! The Herald, that is, the Primal Point, hath declared: "Verily, in every state He speaketh: 'I, verily, am God. There is none other God but Me, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting.'"

His word is the truth: I am but as a ring upon His finger and as a leaf among the leaves of His garden. Thus hath the matter been decreed by God, the Lord of the Day of Judgment.

Say: O people of the Bayan! Have ye found in that which was revealed unto 'Ali before Nabil aught that was not adorned with the ornament of My Name? Nay, by the Lord of all worlds! Were it not for My remembrance, the Bayan would not have been revealed, and were it not for My Self, the sun of exposition would not have shone forth from the horizon of meaning and utterance.

Say: This is indeed Ali Who hath appeared once again in this most pure, most manifest, most luminous Beauty, and Who speaketh the truth in the heaven of immortality and the kingdom on high, if ye be of them that hear.

God testifieth that there is none other God but I, the Rememberer, the Supreme, the Mighty, the Powerful. And I bear witness that I am God, there is none other God but He, the Rememberer, the Supreme, the Mighty, the Powerful. He, verily, hath testified in the heights of His Being to My Being, the Mighty, the Holy, the Luminous. And I, verily, do now testify in the exaltation of My Being to His Being, the Holy, the Mighty, the Luminous.

O people! Behold ye My Beauty in His Beauty, then His signs in My signs, then His Manifestation in My Manifestation, then His dawning in My dawning, then His effulgence from this manifest horizon. Say: He hath enjoined upon you in all the Tablets to make mention of Me and to praise My Self, yet the people have denied My Self, the Mighty, the Powerful, the Exalted, the All-Knowing.

O Pen of the Most High! Bear thou witness, in thine own self, that verily He is God and that there is none other God but Me, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting. Bear thou witness, then, by thine own essence, that verily I am God and that there is none other God but Him, that all have been created at My behest and that all abide by My command.

My face hath been set towards Thy face, and my face is, verily, Thy face, and my call is Thy call, and my Revelation Thy Revelation, and my self Thy Self, and my Cause Thy Cause, and my behest Thy behest, and my Being Thy Being, and my sovereignty Thy sovereignty, and my glory Thy glory, and my power Thy power.

The Wronged One beareth witness that He is verily the Self-Subsisting, the All-Compelling, Who hath appeared from the horizon of the Known and speaketh before the faces of all peoples: "There is none other God besides Him, the Mighty, the All-Knowing."

God beareth witness unto His Own Self by His Own Self that verily I am alive in the Most Glorious Horizon, and from this Horizon I speak forth in all things, declaring: "Verily I am God, there is none other God but Me, the Most Exalted, the All-Compelling, the Mighty, the Wondrous."

God beareth witness that there is none other God but Him, and that I am He, and He is the Glory in this most exalted and magnificent ornament. O glad tidings unto you, O denizens of immortality!

Mine outward being calls unto Mine inward being, and Mine inward being unto Mine outward. There is none in the dominion save Me, and I am the True One, the Knower of things unseen.

He hath appeared in the garment of "I am" and speaketh forth with "I am the One Who is manifest."

My tongue hath testified to My Self, and My Self hath testified to My Temple, and this is a testimony which, were God to reveal it, would cause the highest to become the lowest, the pillars to quake, hearts to be perturbed, and souls to tremble. Thus hath My tongue spoken in the kingdom of Mine utterance.

God testifieth that there is none other God but Him, and He Who hath come with the truth is the Lord of all worlds and the Most Great Name through Whom was revealed that which lay hidden in God's knowledge and concealed from the eyes of men.

God testifieth that there is none other God but Him, and He Who speaketh is verily the Dawning-Place of revelation and the Rising-Point of inspiration.

God beareth witness that there is none other God but Him, and that He Who hath come upon the clouds is indeed the One promised in the Books and inscribed in the Scriptures of God, Lord of all the worlds.

And He Who speaketh in the realm of creation is indeed He through Whom the eyes of the world have been solaced and through Whom every wondrous Tablet hath been sent down.

Verily He is the One Who gazeth from the Most Exalted Horizon and speaketh from the Most Glorious Tongue that I am, verily, the One Who is worshipped in the last and in the first, and the people have not prevented Him from that which was ordained by God, the Creator of Names and the Fashioner of earth and heaven.

God testifieth that there is none other God but Him, and that He Who hath appeared is verily the Most Exalted Pen, the Lote-Tree beyond which there is no passing, the Most Glorious Horizon, the Manifestation of the Unseen in the Kingdom of Creation, the First Exemplar among nations, the Temple manifested in justice, and the Light shining forth from the horizon of grace.

And He Who speaketh with truth is verily the Ocean of My Will and the Heaven of My Purpose and the Rain of My Grace and the Sun of My Loving-kindness and the Repository of My Revelation and the Dayspring of My Inspiration and the Dawning-Place of My Cause and the Treasury of My Knowledge and the Source of My Salsabil and the Fountain of My Kawthar.

God testifieth that there is none other God but Him, and He Who speaketh with truth is verily the Tongue of My grandeur and the Dawning-Place of My glory and the Horizon of My favors and the Sun of My Will and the Heaven of My Purpose and the Pen of My Command and My Preserved Tablet and the Book of My Laws unto all who are in the heavens and on earth.

Is there any soul who would dare say 'why' or 'wherefore' or speak in Our presence? Nay, by My mighty and knowing Self! All necks are humbled before My glorious and beauteous countenance, and all heads are bowed before My mighty and impregnable sovereignty.

From time immemorial I was a Treasure hidden in a station unknown to all save Mine own Self, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.

Say: This is the Dawn whereat the hidden Essence and the unseen Treasure were made manifest, the Dawn whereat the Ancient Beauty seized the cup of immortality with the hands of glory and, having first quaffed therefrom, proffered it unto all the peoples of the earth, high and low alike.

The Beauty of the All-Merciful from the horizon of the Divine Good-Pleasure, behind clouds of sorrow, did verily shine forth. Should the clouds be lifted, such commotion would arise in every soul that the servants would turn away from the Lord of all creation. For this reason did He take on a veil before His face, that the light might shine upon the righteous in measured portion.

And this, verily, is the Beauty of God which hath dawned from behind the veils with a sovereignty that cannot be concealed nor hidden.

Say: This indeed is the Essence of Oneness in the Most Exalted Assembly, and the Reality of Divine Unity in the Kingdom of Eternity, and the Mystery of Divinity in the Kingdom of Names, and the Ancient Beauty in this radiant and noble Temple.

Say: By God! I am the Most Great Manifestation in the most exalted Paradise, the Most Pure Beauty in the Most Glorious Horizon, the Most Evident Word at the Furthermost Tree, the Mighty Announcement at the Lote-Tree beyond which there is no passing, the Hidden Countenance in the heaven of destiny, and the Mystery of God and His Command in the kingdom of origination.

Say: O people! I am the Most Great Sign amongst you and the Most Exalted Word within you.

Say: I am He through Whose name the Tablets were sent down and the pages of God, your Lord, were adorned, were ye of the perceiving ones.

Say: All names are My name and whatsoever is created is My proof - blessed are they who know. At times I remember Myself as the Most Exalted, and at other times as the Sovereign of Names Who is remembered as the Most Glorious, were ye of those who understand.

I have ever been all-encompassing, and all else encompassed. To this testifieth whosoever hath soared in the atmosphere of My knowledge and drunk the choice wine of My love from the chalice of My bounty.

Bear thou witness that no God is there but Him, He who pronounceth at all times that I am God, there is none other God but Me, verily, I am, at all times independent of the entire creation.

O Tongue of this Temple! We, verily, have created thee through Our name, the All-Merciful, have taught thee whatsoever had remained concealed in the Bayan, and have bestowed upon thee the power of utterance, that thou mayest make mention of Mine exalted Self amidst My creatures.

… Say: Naught is seen in My temple but the Temple of God, and in My beauty but His Beauty, and in My being but His Being, and in My self but His Self, and in My movement but His Movement, and in My acquiescence but His Acquiescence, and in My pen but His Pen, the Mighty, the All-Praised. There hath not been in My soul but the Truth, and in Myself naught could be seen but God.

Say: Verily the Throne is My Temple whereon the All-Merciful is seated.

Verily the sea walketh in human form and counseleth the servants with that which will profit them in the worlds of their Lord, the All-Wise.

I have caused the living waters to issue from the Kawthar of My mouth, even as I have concealed the living sun behind My hair. In truth, within the darkness of My hair I have hidden the light of My beauty: though dark in its outer being, its inner being is light upon light, upon all light. Thus have the secrets been revealed by the Pen of the Unconstrained.

My hair is My Messenger. It is calling aloud at all times upon the branch of Fire within the hallowed and luminous garden of Paradise, that perchance the inmates of the realm of creation may detach themselves from the world of dust and ascend unto the retreats of nearness -- the Spot where the Fire seeketh illumination from the light of the Countenance of God, the Glorious, the Powerful.

He is God!

My hair is My Veil whereby I conceal My Beauty, that haply the eyes of the non-believers among My servants may not fall upon it. Thus do We conceal from the sight of the ungodly the glorious and sublime beauty of Our Countenance.

The Tree hath spoken in My breast and the Treasure hath called out in My heart, saying: "There is none other God besides Me, the Mighty, the Great."

Say: Verily the Tree of the Cause speaketh within My breast, if ye would hear with the hearing of God. Say: By God! The Spirit of the Cause hath rent asunder from Me the veil of concealment and hath made Me manifest in truth - this was decreed by One mighty and powerful. Say: The Faithful Spirit speaketh in this Ridvan and calleth all to a holy and mighty Beauty, and giveth the people glad tidings of the meeting with God in this Spirit that gleameth from the horizon of grace.

In it the Temple of Baha was established upon the Throne of Eternity, and the Face shone forth from the horizon of the Beginning with wondrous and glorious lights.

Exalted is He Who sendeth down verses from the Kingdom which was illumined with the lights of the Throne, and Who speaketh in the Lote Tree of Revelation that perchance men may find a way unto Him.

Hearken, O people, unto the call of your Lord from this crimson Tree upon the Spot of Eternity in the paradise of your Lord, the Most High! God! There is no God but Me, and verily I have been standing at the right of the Path of Truth, and I witness those who pass over it - among them are those who pass like lightning from the clouds, and among them are those who pass upon their breasts, and among them are those who pass upon their feet, and among them are those who pause before it, and thus do We witness them and We are witness unto this.

O 'Ali! The Most Great Ocean hath surged, and from each drop thereof is heard: "There is no God but Him, the One, the Mighty, the All-Bountiful!"

In the name of Him Who warbleth upon the branches!

O My name! Hearken unto My call from around My throne that I may acquaint thee with an ocean that hath no shore and whose depths no swimmer hath reached. Verily, thy Lord is the All-Knowing, the All-Bountiful.

The Nightingale of Sinai calls out: "To Me, O people of immortality!" The Nightingale of faithfulness calls out: "To Me, O people of fidelity!" The Hoopoe of the divine presence warbles: "To Me, O companions of guidance!"

Come, O My Pen! How art thou faring on this Day? Hath the wine of mystic knowledge intoxicated thee? At times We behold thee racing in the arena of divine knowledge, and at others moving and swaying.

O Pen! Days have passed while thou wert silent, uttering neither remembrance nor exposition. Because of this the realities and divine explanations have lamented. Revive all things once again through thy sweet melody, that perchance thou mayest behold one who will arise to serve thy Lord and aid Him, detached from all else save Him.

Close not the gates of divine knowledge to those who dwell in the realm of contingent being. Be thou ever speaking in the name of thy Lord, the All-Merciful.

O thou who art mentioned before the Wronged One! My Most Exalted Pen desireth to reveal unto thee the pearls of wisdom that lay hidden in its treasuries, to cause thee to hear the call of God, and to show thee the waves of the ocean of utterance in these days wherein He Who was hidden hath appeared with His Name, the Self-Subsisting, and hath, with the hands of grace and bounty, proffered His sealed wine.

This is a Book which of itself speaketh and saith, heareth and answereth. Verily He is the Speaker, the All-Hearing.

Say: This is the Day wherein God walketh and speaketh, did ye but know it, and this is the Mother Book calling out in the most exalted voice from the horizon of the heaven of the prison of Akka, yet ye perceive it not.

This is the Day whereon the Book speaketh, wherein the Sun discourseth, and wherein the Moon proclaimeth: "Dominion belongeth unto God, the Lord of the Throne and of the dust! Glory be to God, the Lord of all creation! And sovereignty is God's, the Lord of both the past and future!"

The Pen testifies that there is none other God but Me, the Protector, the Self-Subsisting. The Tongue testifies that there is none other God but Me, the Mighty, the Beloved. God bears witness to that which My Tongue has testified, that there is none other God but Me, the Mighty, the Invincible.

Say: By God the Truth! The Book hath been sent down through grace, and the Trumpet hath been sounded - and it is My Most Exalted Pen, whereby We have both given and taken away.

The Lamp proclaims amidst the nations, saying: By God! That which was treasured in God's knowledge and inscribed in His perspicuous Book, which was named the Mother Book by God, the Lord of the worlds, hath been revealed.

Verily the Book itself proclaimeth and saith: "O people! The All-Bountiful hath come upon the clouds. Behold ye the countenance of God, the Lord of all worlds!

Thus doth the Pen move when the Tongue of Eternity speaketh. He, verily, is the Single One, the All-Knowing.

This is a Day wherein all things speak even as the Ancient Beauty spoke when He was seated upon His Most Great Throne.

Verily the sun circleth round My will, and the moon hath drawn nigh and declared: "Praise be unto Thee, O Beloved of those who dwell in the heavens and on earth!" And all things proclaim: "Praise be unto Thee, O Beloved of the world and Educator of the nations, for having manifested Thyself, exalted Thy Cause, and spoken before all faces.

My glory is My Name, and My manifestation is My Beauty, and My fortress is My love, and My proof is My Self, and My power is My signs, and My creation is My verses, and My sovereignty is My might, and My abode is My prison, and My Tablet is My messenger, and My Pen is My Command, and My party is My trust, and My fingers are My companions, and the Promised One is attainment to My presence, the Mighty, the Wondrous.

Glory be to Him Who hath adorned the Tablet of Creation with the ornament of the Point adorned with the letter "H", through which was manifested the Hidden Book that had been treasured within the Kingdom of Knowledge from time immemorial.

We have sent forth the Criterion in the form of man. Verily He standeth before the Face, crying out and calling: "By God! The Truth hath come, yet the people understand not!"

By My Word were the heavens raised up, and by My Name was the Throne established upon this glorious, wondrous station.

He hath arisen in His name, the Self-Subsisting, amongst His servants and hath spoken that which hath caused the inhabitants of the cities of names to tremble with fear, save those whom God, the Lord of existence, hath willed.

Through My fire the world was set ablaze, and through My light every sincere and informed one was guided. Through My call every learned one was attracted, and through My word all who are in the heavens and earth were thunderstruck.

Say: He has appeared in truth from the Dayspring of God, the Mighty, the Powerful, and has spoken in truth in the heaven of eternity and the kingdom of creation that "I am God, there is no God but Me, the Mighty, the Praiseworthy."

Say: This is the Day wherein the Trump beareth witness unto Him Who conversed with God upon the Mount, and wherein the Bugle proclaimeth "The Kingdom is God's, the One, the All-Informed!"

This is the Day wherein the All-Bountiful came riding upon the clouds - to this beareth witness the Mother Book which speaketh before the faces of all peoples.

Say: They have passed, by the Lord of what was and what shall be! One saith: Where are the earthquakes? Say: The tribes have been seized while ye were slumbering. When the standards of the signs appeared with clear proofs, the earth was shaken and the mountains crumbled, while ye were heedless.

The sight hath been snatched away and the moon hath been eclipsed when there appeared the Most Great Countenance and the Possessor of Destiny established Himself upon the throne of His Most Great Name.

I have appeared and made manifest that which was recorded in the Books of God and treasured up in His knowledge; yet most of the people are as dead.

I created creation for this Day, yet when it appeared, those who followed vain imaginings turned away from it, having neither clear proof nor an illuminating Book.

This is the Day wherein the Hidden hath appeared and the Treasured One hath emerged and the King hath spoken in the Most Great Prison - the Kingdom belongeth unto God, the Omnipotent, the All-Compelling, the Self-Subsisting.

The Tongue of Revelation hath spoken: Verily, there is none other God but Him, the All-Compelling, the Self-Subsisting.

The Tongue of the Ancient One hath given glad tidings unto all who dwell in the world of the appearance of the Most Great Name, and beareth witness before all nations that verily He is My very Self, and the Dayspring of Mine Essence, and the Dawning-Place of My Cause, and the heaven of My bounty, and the ocean of My Will, and the lamp of My guidance, and the path of My justice, and the balance of My laws.

The day-star of words, dawning above the horizon of the utterance of Him Who is the Lord of all names and attributes, hath, at this most blessed of hours, shone forth in all truth with the splendours of the light of God. The spirit of understanding, flowing from the Pen of the All-Glorious, hath, by virtue of His grace, been conferred upon all created things.

This is a Book We have sent down in truth, as a mercy from Us to those who have attained unto the days of God and have turned with their hearts to His noble station.

The Preserved Tablet speaketh: The verses have been sent down, the clear proofs have appeared, and the Light of the Cause hath dawned from the horizon of power, and the Call hath been raised, yet all remain heedless and veiled, save those souls who, drawn by the Call, have turned, detached from all things, toward the most exalted horizon.

Say: Verily this is the Manifestation of God in all things, as every created thing doth testify, did ye but know.

The atoms have testified to that which My tongue hath testified in My prison - that there is none other God but Me, the All-Knowing Speaker.

O 'Ali! Today the very essence of proof proclaims "Verily, the All-Merciful has come!" and all atoms bear witness to the Divine Form established upon the Most Great Throne.

O Muhammad-Ja'far! The trees hear My call in the morning and the evening, at nightfall and at dawn. By My life! In the early hours My ears hear My own call.

O Ali! The Dayspring of the Cause addresseth thee in most wondrous utterance. By God! Wert thou to be present before the Throne and hear it from the Tongue of grandeur and power, thou wouldst sacrifice thy body, then thy spirit, then thy very self, for love of God, the Sovereign Lord, the All-Compelling, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

Say: O servants! Have ye not witnessed God's power through My mighty hand, and have ye not heard the holy utterances of the eternal Sovereign from My most pure and sacred tongue, and have ye not observed the all-embracing divine mercy from My boundless cloud of grace, and have ye not discovered the radiance of the Sun of inner meanings from the holy horizon of My Beauty?

Today the Tree of Sinai calleth out between earth and heaven: "O concourse of creation! The gates of heaven have been opened through this Lamp that hath appeared in human temple.

Hearken thou unto the call of thy Lord from the right side of the Throne, from behind a thousand veils of luminous silk damask.

Say: The eye of the Spirit hath not deviated; verily He is, at this moment, in the Most Sublime Prospect, calling you unto God, the Most High, the Most Exalted, from this Most Glorious Horizon.

I have manifested Myself to all servants - among them are those who have inhaled My fragrance and attained the ocean of My presence, and among them are those who turned away by following those who clung to vain imaginings and hesitated in this Great Cause.

Blessed art thou for having attained unto My days, and for having heard My Revelation and My establishment upon the throne of My utterance.

O thou who art mentioned before the Wronged One! Bear thou witness even as God hath borne witness, then recite what hath been sent down in the Tablet of the verses of thy Lord, the Dayspring of lights.

A mention from Us to him who hastened with his heart to the Qiblih of the world and testified to that which God had testified before the creation of the heavens and earth and before the letter K was joined with its pillar N, that My call might repeatedly draw him to My Kingdom.

This is a Book from Us to him who hath attained the lights of the Countenance and heard the call of his Lord, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise, that it may be unto him a glad-tiding from Our presence and a mercy from Us.

He has testified to that which God testified before the creation of earth and heaven - that there is none other God but Him, the Single, the One, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

Thou hast attained unto the recognition of the Revelation on a Day whereon the Speaker on Sinai hath proclaimed: "There is none other God but Me, the Lord of the unseen and the seen."

The Supreme Pen testifieth that thou hast recognized My sovereignty and drawn from the ocean of My knowledge, and hast attained unto the presence of My throne and heard My call time and again, and hast attained that which is the purpose in the Books of God, the Lord of the worlds.

Verily, from the heaven of the Unseen He calleth thee and giveth thee glad tidings of this Remembrance which God hath made the Dawning-Place of all remembrances.

O Husayn! Hearken unto the Voice of Him Who speaketh in all things: "There is none other God but Me, the Mighty, the All-Bountiful!"

It will draw thee nigh unto a station wherein the Lote-Tree of the utmost boundary proclaimeth: "There is none other God but I, the All-Hearing, the All-Answering."

Say: He speaketh as He pleaseth even as He spoke in the Burning Bush - "Verily, there is no God but Me, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed."

Thus hath there flowed from the tongue of My Pen the stream of My bounty, as a token from My presence, and I am, verily, the Truth, the Knower of the unseen.

Today certain followers of the Bayan who fancy they have rent asunder the veils and attained their ultimate goal have balked at the blessed words "Verily I am God" which have issued forth from the Dayspring of Revelation, nay rather, because of these words they have turned away.

Among the people is he who objected, saying that He hath claimed divinity, and was nigh consumed with rage. Say: This is what was foretold unto you by Him Who announced to you this mighty Cause.

And verily I complain unto God of these servants, for they regard Me according to what is with them and not according to what is with Me, and they measure the Self of God by their own selves and His words by their words. By Him Who is Myself! Were all who are in the heavens and on earth to turn today unto God, He would teach them from the wonders of His knowledge that which would make them independent of all the worlds.

Say: O people, fear ye God and follow not every sinful infidel. Have ye forgotten God's sovereignty and His power, and God's might and His glory in the days when He stood forth by His own Self and revealed His Cause between the heavens and the earth, whereunto ye were witnesses?

Say: O people of the Furqan! The All-Merciful hath come with a sovereignty before which the hosts of earth and heaven cannot stand. This is attested by the Mother Book which speaketh in the final abode and proclaimeth: The appointed time hath come, and the Revealer of verses hath come from the horizon of might with a Cause before which have bowed the necks of those who established for themselves beneath the shadow of vain imaginings a station that was, from time immemorial, rejected through justice.

Say: O concourse of divines! By God, the Promise has come to pass and He Who conversed on Sinai is seated upon the throne of Revelation, calling out in the most exalted voice between earth and heaven: "The Kingdom has come - the Kingdom is God's, the Lord of what was and what shall be!"

O people of the Torah, the signs of God have filled the horizons while you remain in doubt and discord. How long will you play with your vain imaginings? Turn to the station wherein the verses of God, the Lord of lords, are sent down at every moment. Thus has My tongue spoken and My pen moved by My command, and I am the Mighty, the Bestower.

We have ordained for them the laws of religion, yet they turn away therefrom. The Word of God hath appeared and the Ancient Beauty hath been established upon the Most Great Throne, yet most people do not understand.

Give thanks to the Aim of the world that He remembered thee in the Most Great Prison, and arise with complete steadfastness in the Cause of the Lord of all names. Verily He heareth and seeth, and He is the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.

Say: Cast aside every barking dog and hearken unto that which the Divine Lote-Tree uttereth amidst the Concourse of Creation: Verily there is none other God but Me, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

Were it not for the Glory (Baha), who would call out before all humanity? And were it not for Him, who would manifest the Truth before the faces of the rulers?

The Most Great Ocean hath surged and spoken in the name of the Ancient Lord, yet most nations are as the dead. We call them to the Kawthar of life, but they have turned away from it, having followed vain imaginings.

Glorified be He Who hath appeared with the truth and hath come from the heaven of utterance with a mighty proof, and hath spoken before the faces of the world. The hidden hath been revealed and that which was concealed hath come with a luminous light. He hath aided His Cause through the movement of His Most Exalted Pen and hath taken no helper unto Himself. Verily, He is the Almighty, the Powerful.

And I am He Who speaketh in all things that I am God, there is no God but Me, the Guardian, the Mighty, the Generous.

He is the One speaking at the center of the world, that all peoples might turn to the horizon of the manifestation of God, the Lord of all worlds.

The Remembrance of God from the Divine Lote-Tree upon the glowing Spot hath been raised up in truth, and every people heareth from it that there is no God but Him, and He Who hath come with the truth hath been the Guardian over all the worlds.

Say: He is the One Who hath rolled up the heavens of your idle fancies while ye perceive it not.

O My servants! Hearken unto My call from the precincts of My prison. There is none other God but I, the Stranger, the Prisoner.

This is a Book which hath been sent down in truth from the presence of One mighty and wise. It speaketh that I am the Prisoner in this mighty Prison.

We have forsaken palaces and chosen the most desolate of houses, adorning it with the ornaments of the Kingdom. Exalted is this palace which God hath made the Manifestation of Destiny and the Greatest Scene, wherein the Ancient One hath been established upon the throne of His Great Name with majesty and glory.

Say: Through it God hath transformed the prison, making it a plot of Paradise, wherefrom waft the breezes of the mercy of your Lord, the Mighty, the Wise.

God hath dawned forth from the horizon of the Prison upon thee, O thou who hast turned towards God, the Cleaver of the Dawn! Blessed is the soul that hath turned with his heart to the Dayspring of verses. Rejoice thou in that thou hast been mentioned before the Throne, and that which draweth thee nigh unto the Mighty, the Bestower hath been revealed unto thee.

Say: By God! This is God's Day wherein none is mentioned save Him. He is verily the One Who speaketh in the Most Great Prison and calleth betwixt earth and heaven. No Prophet there was who did not herald this Day to all creation, and no Book exists but was adorned with this Most Great Name.

My Most Exalted Pen beareth witness that verily I am the Wronged One. … I bear witness unto him who hath turned towards My countenance that he hath turned towards God, the Lord of all worlds.

This is a Book from the Prisoner to those who have believed in God, the King, the Mighty, the Self-Subsisting. They shall inhale the fragrances of the Youth from the words of their Lord, the Mighty, the All-Knowing, and shall be numbered among those who are assured.

Thus hath spoken the Tongue of Grandeur when He was imprisoned in this land which hath been named with the most excellent names in the Scriptures and Tablets.

The Book speaketh the truth and testifieth to that which the Ancient Beauty hath testified in the Most Great Prison and in this exalted station, that there is none other God but Him, Who hath power over all things. He doeth what He willeth through His sovereignty and ordaineth what He pleaseth.

O people of creation! The Lord of Names makes mention of you from this Prison wherein has been established the throne of your Lord, the Most High, the Most Great. He has come for the life of the world and has called all to the Most Great Ocean.

And We departed in such glory as the eyes of them that are nigh unto God had never beheld the like.

Say: The servant hath departed from the City of God, and this We accepted for Ourself before the creation of the heavens and before the spirits were breathed into the temples of the worlds, at a time when neither the primal Adam, nor Moses of the Cause, nor the Faithful Spirit were yet mentioned.

We left the house, turning toward another land, remembering My early days and speaking the verses of God, the Lord of the worlds.

And whenever I became powerless before Him: "O my Lord! Have mercy upon my soul and leave me not in the hands of the wicked. You witness how these wolves have surrounded me, yet He does not hear from me and speaks in all things that 'I am God, there is no God but Me. I created all possible things for the knowledge of My Self and brought beings into existence to attain My presence.'

O My Pen! How many a day hast thou heard My lamentation for My tribulations and thy cry for Mine afflictions!

By My majesty and glory, the Voice that riseth from the mouth of Baha is not on account of what hath befallen Him at the hands of the wicked ones. Rather, it riseth solely out of His longing and yearning to make mention of thy Lord, the Mighty, the All-Wise.

I know not, O my God, how I should conduct myself amidst Thy servants. Whenever I remind them of the wonders of Thy remembrance, they rise up against me.

Rejoice, O My handmaiden, then grieve, O My servant woman. As for the rejoicing, it is for My manifestation and My dawning and My effulgence and My exaltation and My radiance and My power and My glory; and as for the grief, it is for My anguish and My exile and My distress and My imprisonment and My tribulation.

Marvel not if We jest in prison, for sorrows have never overtaken Us in the path of thy Lord, and We are in wondrous joy.

We have offered up one of Our Branches. Say: Unto Thee be praise, O Glory of the worlds!

I am so fatigued the hour is come when I must leave everything and take My flight. I am too weary to walk.

O thou who gazeth upon the Face and speaketh among the servants! Say: O peoples of the earth! By the True God, the Call hath been raised from the prison of Akka - a Call in whose yearning to hear it countless souls have perished. My Tongue in this glorious and wondrous station beareth witness to this. This is the Day wherein the ocean of God's utterance, the Lord of all worlds, hath surged.

This is an epistle from the One Who hath been imprisoned in the path of God, the Almighty, the Powerful, the Bestower, unto him who hath believed in God and been guided by this Sun which hath dawned from the horizon of grace with wondrous sovereignty.

O Rida! Your letter hath reached the prison, and come before the gaze of the Prisoner, through Whom the Tree hath spoken, and the Mount called out, and the Rock cried aloud, and the Vale flowed, and the Dove sang: "The Kingdom belongeth unto God, the Most High, the Most Great!"

A remembrance from the Prisoner unto him who hath turned towards the Countenance, that this remembrance may draw him nigh unto a station wherein the Tree uttereth: There is none other God but He, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

O Rahim! The All-Bountiful, Who is imprisoned in the prison of 'Akka, makes mention of thee, inasmuch as He hath summoned all unto God, the Lord of all names.

The Lord, exalted and sanctified is He, saith:

He is the Hearer, the Beholder, and the Answerer

O thou who art remembered before My face, inscribed in the Book, and gazing towards the horizon of Revelation in the final return! Hear the call from the direction of grandeur, to the right of the luminous spot: Verily, there is no God but Him, the Mighty, the Bestower.

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Whereupon, the Tongue of God bid me to write:

Hast thou not heard that My proof is Mine own Being, and My testimony is My Self, and My evidence is My Revelation, and that which floweth from My pen is a path to My knowledge, unattainable to all save those who have severed themselves from all things and passed straight through the world and all that is therein, aloof as a cloud? My proof hath ever been the revelation of My power which pervadeth all that are in the heavens and all that are on the earth.

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The Ancient Countenance hath turned toward thee from this glorious horizon. The servant in attendance before the Throne desired to write unto thee. We said: Take up thy pen, for verily We have ever been One Who revealeth, sendeth down, and transmitteth, and I am the Sender, the Revealer, the Transmitter, the Almighty, the Powerful.

At this hour, which is four and a half hours past nightfall on the eleventh of Muharram al-Haram, as I was engaged in mentioning that Beloved One before His face, He said: "O servant in attendance! We make mention of him who hath acknowledged and confessed the oneness and singleness of God and that which was uttered by the tongues of His Messengers and chosen ones. We have found from him the fragrance of the love of God and make mention of him with that which nothing can equal.

O Ali! Mine ear hath heard that wherewith thou didst commune with God at a time when My tongue was speaking, saying that the remembrance, utterance and praise which appeared from the mines of God's knowledge, the dawning-places of His revelation and the treasuries of His mercy were for My Self, and I am the Hearer, the Beholder, the Answerer, the Mighty, the Wise.

We found thee loving Us, wherefore We have remembered thee, and We heard thy call and therefore have called out to thee, and We saw thy turning to Us and therefore have turned toward thee from this Spot which God hath made the Dawning-Place of lights.

We have seen thy turning unto Us and have made mention of thee from My Most Exalted Pen, and We have heard thy call and have called unto thee from this luminous Spot, from the Divine Lote-Tree: "Verily, there is none other God but Me, the Mighty, the All-Knowing." I created all peoples for this Most Great Day, but when He appeared they turned away and denied God, the Lord of Lords.

We have heard thy call and have called out to thee from the Most Sacred Side of the Throne, and have remembered thee with a remembrance through which thy station hath been elevated, and the station of all who have turned to God, the Single, the All-Informed.

We have heard that wherewith thou didst commune with God and We answer thee with that which diffuseth the fragrance of eternity through the duration of My most excellent Names.

We have heard thy mention and have remembered thee. We have found the fragrance of thy love and have sent down for thee this well-beloved Tablet.

He is the Manifest, the Speaker, the All-Seeing

We make mention of him who hath made mention of Us, and We answer him who hath turned towards Us when My most exalted Horizon appeared--the Dawning-Place of revelation of the Lord of Names and Creator of the heavens--that My most sweet call may draw him to a station wherein he shall hear from all things: "By God! The Countenance of the Beloved hath appeared and the Speaker of Sinai hath spoken.

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We have been with you at all times. At times you turned to holy glances when the attraction of the Cause took hold of you from the presence of One mighty and powerful, and at times you were heedless - such is the nature of man.

We have heard thy call and have called out to thee from the shore of the Most Great Sea, that the rapture of the Call may seize thee and strengthen thee to make mention of thy Lord, the Most High, the Most Glorious, in this Day wherein the Dove warbleth upon the branches of the Lote-Tree beyond which there is no passing.

He is with thee and will aid thee through His grace. He is, in truth, the All-Bountiful, the All-Informed. Drink thou the living waters of My loving-kindness in My days, and recognize the value of My favors. By God's life! There is nothing like unto them in all creation. To this beareth witness My Pen, and beyond it My Tongue which speaketh in the kingdom of Mine utterance that there is no God but Me, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.

O handmaiden of God! Hearken thou unto the call of the Wronged One. He hath heard thy cry and hath answered thee from the precincts of His Most Great Prison, as a token of grace from God, the Lord of all worlds.

Verily the Tree maketh mention of one of its leaves, and remembereth it as a bounty from God, the Almighty, the Self-Subsisting, that it may be drawn by the utterance of the All-Merciful to the Most Exalted Horizon and be brought near to the Praiseworthy Station.

We love to remember the loved ones in all conditions, as attested by that which hath been sent down from My Most Exalted Pen in numerous Tablets which none can reckon save God, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.

O My handmaiden! Today this word was heard from the Blessed Tree: "Blessed is the servant who has inhaled the fragrance of My garment and clung to the hem of My loving-kindness, and blessed is the handmaiden who has attained to My recognition and witnessed that which the Tongue of My grandeur has witnessed in My mighty and wondrous Kingdom." Glory be upon My handmaidens who have believed in the One, the All-Informed.

O My handmaiden, My handmaiden! Rejoice thou in that the Wronged One remembereth thee from His prison, and calleth upon thee with both His outward and inner tongue, saying:

O Lord of the worlds and Beloved of the nations! I beseech Thee by the Name through Whose manifestation all things were attracted, and the Nightingale sang upon the branches of the Uttermost Tree, to ordain for Thy handmaiden that which shall solace her eyes, gladden her heart and dilate her breast.

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O My Afnan! Recall thou the days when thou wert in My presence and didst hear the voice of God, the King, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

O Firuz! Hearken unto the call of the All-Merciful on this Naw-Ruz wherein all things have been adorned with the raiment of My remembrance and the garment of thy Lord's loving-kindness, the Bestower, the Bountiful.

O Varqa! That which thou didst send to the servant who standeth before the Throne hath been presented and hath won the attention of the Wronged One in this glorious and noble station. We answer thee with this Tablet - verily thy Lord is the All-Merciful, the Mighty, the All-Knowing.

He speaks, and His word is the truth: Blessed is he and joy be unto him, for he has attained unto My service throughout all his days. Verily We make mention of him and My handmaiden and My leaf who has attained unto her relationship to My Cause, the Mighty, the Wondrous.

O thou who gazest toward the horizon! At this time, the Branch of the Divine Lote-Tree was present and made mention of thee. Therefore We make mention of thee with a mention whose fragrance has diffused the sweet-scents of love and affection among the servants. We beseech God to assist thee and enable thee to achieve that whereby thy name may be exalted throughout the land.

We have chosen thee and made thee a servant unto My Self, that thou mayest be among those who rejoice. We have accepted what thou hadst, and this is of My latter bounty, that thou mayest give thanks unto thy Lord, the All-Bountiful.

And We make mention of him who was named `Abdu'l-`Ali, and We give him the glad-tidings of My verses, My loving-kindness, and My mercy which have encompassed all regions. Thus did the Tongue of Grandeur speak as He walked during this night in a place which God had made among the most exalted of places.

In My Name, the One burning with the fire of My love!

Praise be to God Who hath manifested that which was hidden in His knowledge and caused all things to proclaim that there is none other God but He, the Almighty, the Self-Subsisting.

Be thou aflame with the fire of My love, soaring in My atmosphere, holding fast to My cord, clinging to My robe, stirred by My will, turning thy face toward My face, speaking in My praise, and acting according to that which hath been sent down in My perspicuous, mighty and wise Book.

We were with thee at the time when thou didst what thou didst in the name of thy Lord. Verily thy Lord is cognizant of all things.

When the Dawning-Place of God's Revelation and the Dayspring of His inspiration arrived, He established Himself upon the throne of utterance and revealed unto thee that which hath perfumed the whole of creation with the fragrance of His loving-kindness.

We have found from thy mention the fragrance of thy love for thy Lord, and We have revealed unto thee this Hidden Tablet whose verses were inscribed by My Most Exalted Pen.

O friends! We see that He Who is mentioned mentions you from His Most Great Prison and We hear from Him that which has caused all things to quiver and the very pebbles to cry out: "There is none other God but He, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise."

These are the days of the All-Merciful, and the lamp of divine favor is lit and shining at the axis of contingent being.

O thou who makest mention of Me and art the herald of My Cause! Thou hast called all to My Self and informed all of My manifestation and My dawning and My effulgence and My sovereignty, and counseled them to attain unto My presence and acknowledge My Cause and confess that which proceedeth from Me.

We have made mention of every name that was in the Book as a bounty from God, the Revealer of verses. Give thanks unto God for that He hath turned toward thee from the direction of the Prison and hath revealed for thee that which shall never be exhausted.

This is a Book from Us to him who was named Muhammad-before-'Ali, that he may testify in his being to that which God did testify before the creation of all things that there is none other God but Him, the Help in Peril, the Mighty, the Self-Subsisting.

O peoples of the earth! The fragrance of the Revelation has wafted and the Tongue of Pre-existence has spoken in the Most Great Prison: "Verily there is no God but Me, the Mighty, the Praiseworthy."

O thou who gazest upon the Face!

When thou hearest the verses of God, arise to aid His Cause and say: O people! The Beloved hath come with sovereignty, grandeur and glory. Beware that ye oppose Him not.

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We send Our greetings to My loved ones in that land and make mention of them through My Most Exalted Pen, which proclaimeth at all times: "There is none other God but Me, the Rememberer and the Remembered."

The Beauty of the All-Merciful has appeared - may the spirit of all who dwell in the realms of glory be sacrificed for Him! The countenance of the All-Bountiful has dawned from the horizon of possibility.

O Mashhadi Rida! The Lord of Names declareth: The Kingdom belongeth unto God, the Lord of all the worlds. And the Lord of Creation declareth: Glory be unto God, the Object of the mystics. And the Divine Lote-Tree proclaimeth: He Who conversed on Sinai hath come, speaking: Verily there is none other God but Me, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

O Iskandar! We have turned toward thee from the precincts of the Prison and have sent down for thee that which will attract thee to the supreme horizon, the station wherein the Call hath been raised.

He is the Wronged One.

The Most Exalted Pen beareth witness unto him who hath turned unto God, the Lord of all beings, and hath quaffed the choice wine of steadfastness from the hands of bounty and bestowal. He, verily, is the All-Witnessing, the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.

Thou art the Lord, Thou art the Creator, Thou art the One Who appeared on Sinai in the realm of lights.

Thou beholdest, O my God, the Day-Star of Thy Word shining above the horizon of Thy prison-city, inasmuch as within its walls He who is the Manifestation of Thy Self and the Day-Spring of the light of Thy unity hath raised His voice and uttered Thy praise.

This is a day among the days of Ridvan wherein Thou didst manifest Thyself to all who are on earth through Thy name, the All-Merciful, and didst reveal Thy power and dominion to all who dwell in the realms of creation.

I testify, O my God, to Thy manifestation and Thy establishment upon the throne of utterance in the kingdom of creation, and to the mysteries of Thy Book and the lights of Thy countenance.

All praise be to Thee, O Lord my God! This is one of the days of Thy Riḍvan Festival whereon a servant of Thine hath extended an invitation to the Manifestation of Thine Essence and the Revealer of Thy Sovereignty, and hath decked forth a place in the prison to receive Thine all-glorious Beauty, O Thou Who art the Lord of earth and heaven!

This is a Tablet from the Prisoner to a leaf of the leaves of the Tree of Ridvan, that the winds of her Lord's Will, the All-Merciful, may stir it and draw it nigh unto God, the Lord of Names and Attributes. O leaf! Hearken thou unto My call from the direction of the Prison, that there is none other God but Him.

We mentioned thee before and mention thee at this time. Be thou thankful and say: "Praise be unto Thee, O Thou Wronged One, the All-Mentioned, and glory be unto Thee, O Thou Rememberer, the All-Knowing." I testify that Thou didst arise with the Cause and didst manifest that which was hidden from time immemorial and treasured within Thy knowledge. Verily Thou art the Mighty, the Powerful.

The gaze of the Wronged One hath been directed towards thee, and He hath sent down for thee that which God hath made a sign to the lands and a token to His servants.

I testify that Thou dost not withhold those who seek Thee from the ocean of Thy grace, nor those who desire Thee from the sun of Thy bounty. Praise be unto Thee, O my God, for having caused me to be attracted by Thy verses, whereupon I hastened to the shore of the ocean of Thy nearness and heard Thy sweetest call, which cannot be equaled by all the treasures of earth and heaven, and for having shown me Thy beauty in the Most Great Prison through what the hands of the nations have wrought.

This is the Day whereon the door of generosity hath been opened unto the world, inasmuch as the Most Great Name hath been established upon the throne of bounty and hath summoned all unto God, the Almighty, the All-Powerful.

I am He Who speaketh from Mine all-highest horizon.

We have manifested that which was hidden in knowledge and have sent down from the heaven of Will that which the reckoners have failed to reckon.

Listen to the melodies of the Leaf of Eternity in the Lote-Tree of the utmost boundary and say with the accent of the Dove: "Glorified be my Lord, the Most High!" This is He Who remembers you to the glorious and most luminous homeland - say: "Glorified be my Lord, the Most High!"

I beseech Thee by Thy Name through which the horizons were illumined and the lands were enlightened to ordain for me that which Thou hast ordained for Thy handmaidens who have heard Thy call and were present before the throne of Thy grandeur and attained unto Thy presence after Thou didst manifest the Manifestation of Thyself through Thy sovereignty and Thy power.

O Lord! Praise be unto Thee for having moved the Pen of the Most High to make mention of him whom Thou didst desire, while confined in the Most Great Prison. By Thy glory! This grace cannot be equaled by whatsoever existeth in the kingdom of creation and the realm of invention.

Thus did We counsel thee before, and now again, that thou mayest be of those who are assured.

Say: This is My path, if ye would behold the path of God. This is My proof, if ye would heed the proof of God. Say: This is My testimony, if ye would be certain of God's testimony. Say: This is the path of God in the heavens and on earth, if ye desire to traverse it.

The Wronged One calls out amidst the world and commands the people to that which He was commanded by the Mighty, the Wise.

Verily We have manifested Ourselves for your life, but most of the people are heedless. The tongue of My grandeur calleth unto them and commandeth them with that which profiteth them in My dominion and My kingdom, yet they are in evident doubt.

In this Day the Blessed Tree of Remembrance speaketh forth in the Kingdom of Utterance saying: Well is it with the servant who hath turned his face towards Him, and embraced His truth, and with the handmaiden who hath hearkened to His Voice and become of the blissful. … To this the Tongue of Truth beareth witness from His exalted Station.

O My loved ones in Shiraz! The Supreme Pen hath testified and doth testify at all times that He is the Single One, the One, the Powerful, the Strong, the Triumphant, the Mighty. He doeth what He willeth and ordaineth what He desireth, and He is the All-Bountiful, the Generous.

By My life! These shall detach them from the worlds and draw them nigh unto a station wherein the Tree of the Command doth speak: "There is no God but Me, the Powerful, the Exalted, the Mighty, the Beauteous."

This is a Book from this Youth to all who are on earth: Worship none but God, the King, the Most High, the Most Great. Thus hath the Command been sent down in all the Tablets from the presence of One mighty and powerful.

O peoples of the earth! By God, the fragrance of the Garment has been diffused, the horizon of the Manifestation has been illumined, and the Speaker of the Mount has spoken, yet most of the people remain heedless. My Most Exalted Pen calls out to them night and day - to this the Lord of all beings bears witness in this perspicuous Book.

The Wronged One hath loved faithfulness and hath ever gazed and continueth to gaze upon it.

By thy life! Under all conditions We turn to God and make mention of Him in truth, in such wise that neither what hath occurred and will occur, nor what hath appeared and will appear, can hinder Us.

To this beareth witness My Manifest Tablet which the Lord of Eternity hath sent down that it might proclaim before the face of the world that there is none other God but Me, the Mighty, the All-Praised.

Thus doth the Lord of Names command thee, for He is the Commander over what He willeth. … Thus hath My firm and dominant Command been sent down from the heaven of revelation [the Mighty, the Impregnable]."

The Truth seeth and heareth. Whosoever acteth in accordance with that which hath been commanded will assuredly attain unto the infinite bounties of God.

This is a Day wherein the Tree uttereth: "There is none other God besides Me, the Protector, the Self-Subsisting." He it is Who hath spoken and caused all things to speak in praise of His Own Self, the One Who dominateth over all that is seen and unseen.

We found man asleep; We awakened him. And We saw him distant; We drew him near. And We found him mute; We caused him to speak, that he might speak before the face of the world through the Most Great Name.

O Asadu'llah! The Lord of the worlds declareth in this utterance which hath been sent down from the heaven of the All-Merciful's will: "Act thou according to My commandments for the love of My beauty." This is a word which the All-Merciful revealed aforetime in Baghdad and in this Great Prison. When thou attainest unto it, say: "Praise be to God, the Beloved of them that know!"

Now is the time for the diffusion of light and the manifestation of mysteries from the Revealer of Sinai.

And thou, O Ahmad, say: In the Name of God and by God! Then pass over the Bridge as the clouds pass, in the name of thy Lord, the Mighty, the All-Bestowing, and be not of the patient ones.

Glorified is He Who hath sent down the verses in truth that He might guide thereby such servants as have been pervaded by the fragrance of faithfulness. He, verily, is the Forgiving, the Merciful.

God hath made Me the Discriminator between created things - verily He is the Ruler over whatsoever He willeth, and He is the Single One, the All-Compelling, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

A remembrance from Us to whoever desires to enter within the pavilion of grandeur and glory and to arrive at the City wherein the Call has been raised from the luminous Tree - God, there is no God but Him, the Mighty, the Bestower - that he may attain the presence of the Throne and hear what the Tongue of his Lord, the Self-Sufficient, the Most High, doth speak.

O My loved ones! We have loved your presence even as you love it, but between Us have intervened the veils of those who disbelieved in God, the Lord of lords.

O servant! Hearken unto that which the Tongue of the All-Merciful uttereth in this station which God hath made to transcend all contingent things: Verily, there is none other God but Me, the Mighty, the Generous. Say: Through My appearance that which was hidden hath appeared, and through My call all things have spoken even as the Tongue of God, the Powerful, the Mighty, the All-Knowing, hath spoken.

Grieve not thou at this, for We have ordained for Our own Self what hath befallen Us, and My Soul beareth witness to this, and with Us is a wisdom whereof none of Our near servants hath knowledge.

We have enjoined upon all to act with goodliness. Blessed is he who has heard and acted upon that which he was commanded by the One Who is the Wise Commander. We have forbidden the servants from all that would give rise to sorrows in the contingent world.

Thus hath the Pen of inner meanings spoken upon the branch of utterance, as a command from the All-Merciful Who hath come with an authority that they who are endowed with fairness and justice cannot deny. To this testifieth He Who speaketh in all things: There is none other God but Me, the Single, the One, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

We summon you unto God and seek from you no recompense - the Pen of Revelation beareth witness to this, were ye of them that hear.

Today the Blessed Tree of Baha, which hath been planted by the hand of the Lord of Names in the Most Exalted Paradise, uttereth this most sublime Word: "O peoples of the earth! The Lord of Heaven hath come with manifest sovereignty."

We have made the earth other than the earth - ponder ye upon it and upon that which hath grown therefrom through My Name, the Planter, the Mighty, the Bountiful.

Say: O people of earth and heaven! Hearken unto the call of God upon the Sinai of the Command from the Divine Lote-Tree that verily there is none other God but Me, the Mighty, the Generous.

Were ye to look with My eye, ye would behold it as the Dawning-Place of My most excellent names and the Manifestation of My most exalted attributes.

Behold naught save My luminous and exalted Beauty, and utter naught save My praise, if thou be of them that know.

This is a Book which speaks with truth and makes mention of the people in this Day wherein the Nightingale of Iraq cries out with a wondrous lamentation, and counsels His loved ones to remember God, the All-Subduing, the Mighty, the Powerful. Therefore, O ye luminous concourse, grieve not over anything, nor over all that hath befallen Us at the hands of the company of the idolaters, for We have offered up Our spirit in the days of God ere the creation of the heavens and the earth.

Had not My mercy preceded all things, I would have returned existence unto non-existence by reason of what hath befallen My loved ones - how much more by what hath befallen My Own Self!

Thus doth the Dove of the Cause warble between earth and heaven, that perchance thereby the servants of the All-Merciful may hasten to the shore of this bounty which hath been raised up in justice.

At this moment the Mother Book hath, in the most exalted call, summoned the people of the earth and invited them to the Dawning-Place of Divine Revelation and the Source of heavenly ordinances.