Symbolic terms
used by Baha'u'llah to refer to prophets: "Maid(s)
of Heaven",
"Brides",
"handmaidens",
"húrís",
"Beauties",
"black-eyed Damsels". Other terms
used include:
"His
chosen ones", "countenances", "manifestations
of Thy Divine
holiness",
"angels", "servants", "Sun", "Moons", "stars", "His loved ones",
"birds
of heaven", "doves", "assayers".
More terms used
that are applicable to prophets include: "throne",
"announcement", "call", "cry", "balance",
"testimony", "holy veil", "veil of
concealment", "Tablet of God", "signs",
"revelation",
"descent"
[from heaven],
"mansions",
"clouds".
1. The passage
below can be interpreted in the following sense as a
reference to
dependent (lesser) prophets:
-"concealed
within the Holy Veil"--realm
of pre-existence of the Prophets.
-"His chosen
ones" -- the Prophets of God.
-"Warn,
then, those that have joined partners with
Him"--those who join
partners
with God are those who reject the Prophet as the Face of God.
-"I am come from the Throne
of glory" -- reference
to her/his prophetic
station.
-"And bear you an announcement
from God" -- the declaration of the
Dependent
Prophet.
-"Weigh it with the just Balance
that ye possess, the Balance of the testimony
of the Prophets and Messengers
of God" -- judge their revelation with same
standards
you use for Prophets and Messengers of God, as they are.
-"And render your works vain, and
be numbered with the infidels" -- reference
to believers
who after serving the faith reject a dependent prophet and thereby
render
their works vain.
-"Step
out of Thy holy chamber, O Maid of Heaven"
-- the dependent prophet
summoned
to appear on earth.
-"I am the Maid of Heaven, the Offspring
begotten by the Spirit of Bahá."
I am
a prophet, the dependent prophet of Baha'u'llah. Similar to how
Baha'u'llah
referred to the Jafar as-Sadiq, the Sixth Imam, as 'son' of
Muhammad,
i.e. his dependent prophet: 'Thus hath Sádiq, son of Muhammad,
spoken: "God verily will test
them and sift them." - Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 255'
CXXIX. O wayfarer in the path of God!
Take thou thy portion of the ocean of
His grace, and deprive not thyself
of the things that lie hidden in its depths.
Be thou of them that have partaken
of its treasures. A dewdrop out of this
ocean would, if shed upon all that
are in the heavens and on the earth,
suffice to enrich them with the bounty
of God, the Almighty, the All-Knowing,
the All-Wise. With the hands of renunciation
draw forth from its life-giving
waters, and sprinkle therewith all
created things, that they may be cleansed
from all man-made limitations and
may approach the mighty seat of God, this
hallowed and resplendent Spot.
Be not grieved if thou performest
it thyself alone. Let God be all-sufficient
for thee. Commune intimately with
His Spirit, and be thou of the thankful.
Proclaim the Cause of thy Lord unto
all who are in the heavens and on the
earth. Should any man respond to
thy call, lay bare before him the pearls of
the wisdom of the Lord, thy God,
which His Spirit hath sent down unto thee,
and be thou of them that truly believe.
And should any one reject thine offer,
turn thou away from him, and put
thy trust and confidence in the Lord, thy
God, the Lord of all worlds.
By the righteousness of God! Whoso
openeth his lips in this Day and maketh
mention of the name of his Lord,
the hosts of Divine inspiration shall descend
upon him from the heaven of My name,
the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. On him
shall also descend the Concourse
on high, each bearing aloft a chalice of pure
light. Thus hath it been foreordained
in the realm of God's Revelation, by the
behest of Him Who is the All-Glorious,
the Most Powerful.
There lay concealed
within the Holy Veil, and prepared for the service of God,
a company of
His
chosen ones who shall be manifested unto men,
who shall
aid His Cause,
who shall be afraid of no one, though the entire human race
rise up and
war against them. These are the ones who, before the gaze of
the dwellers
on earth and the denizens of heaven, shall arise and, shouting
aloud, acclaim
the name of the Almighty, and summon the children of men to
the path of
God, the All-Glorious, the All-Praised. Walk
thou in their way, and
let no one
dismay thee. Be of them whom the tumult of the world, however
much it may
agitate them in the path of their Creator, can never sadden, whose
purpose the
blame of the blamer will never defeat.
Go forth with
the Tablet of God and His
signs , and rejoin them that have
believed in
Me, and announce unto them tidings of Our most holy Paradise.
Warn, then,
those that have joined partners with Him.
Say: I am come to
you, O people,
from the Throne of glory
, and bear you an announcement
from
God, the Most
Powerful, the Most Exalted, the Most Great. In mine hand I
carry the testimony
of God, your Lord and the Lord of your sires of old.
Weigh it with
the just Balance that ye possess, the Balance
of the testimony
of the Prophets
and Messengers of God. If ye find it to be
established in
truth, if ye
believe it to be of God, beware, then, lest ye cavil at it,
and render
your works
vain, and be numbered with the infidels. It
is indeed the sign of
God that hath
been sent down through the power of truth, through which the
validity of
His Cause hath been demonstrated unto His creatures, and the
ensigns of
purity lifted up betwixt earth and heaven.
Say: This is the sealed and mystic
Scroll, the repository of God's
irrevocable Decree, bearing the words
which the Finger of Holiness hath
traced, that lay wrapt within the
veil
of impenetrable mystery, and hath
now been sent down as a token of
the grace of Him Who is the Almighty, the
Ancient of Days. In it have We decreed
the destinies of all the dwellers of
the earth and the denizens of heaven,
and written down the knowledge of all
things from first to last. Nothing
whatsoever can escape or frustrate Him,
whether created in the past or to
be created in the future, could ye but
perceive it.
Say: The Revelation
sent down by God hath most surely been repeated, and the
outstretched Hand of Our power hath
overshadowed all that are in the heavens
and all that are on the earth. We
have, through the power of truth, the very
truth, manifested an infinitesimal
glimmer of Our impenetrable Mystery, and
lo, they that have recognized the
radiance of the Sinaic splendor expired, as
they caught a lightening glimpse
of this Crimson Light enveloping the Sinai
of Our Revelation. Thus hath He Who
is the Beauty of the All-Merciful come
down in the clouds
of His testimony , and the decree accomplished
by virtue of
the Will of God, the All-Glorious,
the All-Wise.
Say: Step
out of Thy holy chamber, O Maid of Heaven,inmate
of the Exalted
Paradise!
Drape thyself in whatever manner pleaseth Thee in the silken
Vesture of Immortality, and put on,
in the name of the All-Glorious, the
broidered Robe of Light. Hear, then,
the sweet, the wondrous accent of the
Voice that cometh from the Throne
of Thy Lord, the Inaccessible, the Most
High. Unveil
Thy face , and manifest the beauty of the black-eyed Damsel,
and suffer not the servants of God
to
be deprived of the light of Thy shining
countenance.
Grieve not if Thou hearest the sighs of the dwellers of the
earth, or the voice of the lamentation
of the denizens of heaven. Leave them
to perish on the dust of extinction.
Let them be reduced to nothingness,
inasmuch as the flame of hatred hath
been kindled within their breasts. Intone,
then, before the face of the peoples
of earth and heaven, and in a most
melodious voice, the anthem of praise,
for a remembrance of Him Who is
the King of the names and attributes
of God. Thus have We decreed Thy
destiny. Well able are We to achieve
Our purpose.
Beware that Thou divest not Thyself,
Thou Who art the Essence of Purity, of
Thy robe of effulgent glory. Nay,
enrich Thyself increasingly, in the kingdom
of creation, with the incorruptible
vestures of Thy God, that the beauteous
image of the Almighty may be reflected
through Thee in all created things and
the grace of Thy Lord be infused
in the plenitude of its power into the
entire creation.
If Thou smellest from any one the
smell of the love of Thy Lord, offer up
Thyself for him, for We have created
Thee to this end, and have covenanted
with Thee, from time immemorial,
and in the presence of the congregation of
Our well-favored ones, for this very
purpose. Be not impatient if the blind
in heart hurl down the shafts of
their idle fancies upon Thee. Leave them to
themselves, for they follow the promptings
of the evil ones.
Cry out before
the gaze of the dwellers of heaven and of earth: I am the Maid
of Heaven,
the Offspring begotten by the Spirit of Bahá. My habitation
is the
Mansion of His
Name, the All-Glorious. Before the Concourse on high I was
adorned with the ornament of His
names. I was wrapt within the veil of an
inviolable security, and lay hidden
from the eyes of men. Methinks that I
heard a Voice of divine and incomparable
sweetness, proceeding from the right
hand of the God of Mercy, and lo,
the whole Paradise stirred and trembled
before Me, in its longing to hear
its accents, and gaze on the beauty of Him
that uttered them. Thus have We revealed
in this luminous Tablet, and in the
sweetest of languages, the verses
which the Tongue of Eternity was moved to
utter in the Qayyúmu'l-Asmá.
Say: He ordaineth as He pleaseth,
by virtue of His sovereignty, and doeth
whatsoever He willeth at His own
behest. He shall not be asked of the things
it pleaseth Him to ordain. He, in
truth, is the Unrestrained, the
All-Powerful, the All-Wise.
They that have disbelieved in God
and rebelled against His sovereignty are
the helpless victims of their corrupt
inclinations and desires. These shall
return to their abode in the fire
of hell: wretched is the abode of the
deniers!
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings
from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 279-284
2.
"I have summoned the Maids of Heaven to emerge from behind the veil of
concealment"
--
can
be interpreted in the following sense: Baha'u'llah has
called on the
pre-existent dependent prophets to appear on earth. "and
have
clothed them
with these words of Mine" -- and they receive
their revelation
from him. Baha'u'llah,
the Independent Prophet, receives his revelation directly
from God. No
Independent Prophet will appear until after at least one thousand
years have
passed.
O My servants
[believers]! Through the might of God and His power, and
out of the
treasury of His knowledge and wisdom, I have brought forth
and revealed
unto you the pearls that lay concealed in the depths of
His everlasting
ocean. I have summoned the Maids
of Heaven to emerge
from behind
the veil of concealment, and have clothed them
with these
words of Mine--words
of consummate power and wisdom. I have, moreover,
with the hand
of divine power, unsealed the choice wine of My Revelation,
and have wafted
its holy, its hidden, and musk-laden fragrance upon all
created things.
Who else but yourselves is to be blamed if ye choose to
remain unendowed
with so great an outpouring of God's transcendent and
all-encompassing
grace, with so bright a revelation of His resplendent
mercy?...
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings
from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 327
3.
"one of the Beauties of the Most Sublime Paradise"
can also be interpreted as
a reference
to one of the dependent prophets. The "Wronged
One" refers to
Baha'u'llah
himself.
"We will now
mention unto thee Trustworthiness and the station thereof in
the estimation
of God, thy Lord, the Lord of the Mighty Throne. One day of
days We repaired
unto Our Green Island. Upon Our arrival, We beheld its
streams flowing,
and its trees luxuriant, and the sunlight playing in their
midst. Turning
Our face to the right, We beheld what the pen is powerless
to describe;
nor can it set forth that which the eye of the Lord of Mankind
witnessed in
that most sanctified, that most sublime, that blest, and most
exalted Spot.
Turning, then, to the left We gazed on one
of the Beauties of
the Most
Sublime Paradise, standing on a pillar
of light, and calling aloud
saying: `O
inmates of earth and heaven! Behold ye My beauty, and My
radiance, and
My revelation, and My effulgence. By God,
the True One! I am
Trustworthiness
and the revelation thereof, and the beauty thereof. I will
recompense
whosoever will cleave unto Me, and recognize My rank and
station, and
hold fast unto My hem. I am the most great ornament of the
people of Bahá,
and the vesture of glory unto all who are in the kingdom of
creation. I
am the supreme instrument for the prosperity of the world, and
the horizon
of assurance unto all beings.' Thus have We sent down for thee
that which
will draw men nigh unto the Lord of creation."
This Wronged
One hath, at all times, summoned the peoples of the world unto
that which
will exalt them, and draw them nigh unto God. From the
Most
Sublime Horizon
there hath shone forth that which leaveth no room unto any
one for vacillation,
repudiation or denial. The wayward, however, have
failed to profit
therefrom; nay, it shall only increase their loss.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 136-137
4a. The
"handmaidens" who "magnify
Thy name with such words as have
not been heard
by any of Thy creatures" can be interpreted
as referring
to dependent
prophets who bring new revelation and teachings.
Since Thou hast purposed, O my God,
to cause all created things to enter
into the tabernacle of Thy transcendent
grace and favor, and to waft over
the entire creation the fragrances
of the raiment of Thy glorious unity,
and to look upon all things with
the eyes of Thy bounty and Thy oneness, I
beseech Thee, therefore, by Thy love,
which Thou hast made to be the
mainspring of the revelations of
Thine eternal holiness, and the flame that
gloweth within the hearts of such
of Thy creatures as yearn towards Thee,
to create, this very moment, for
those of Thy people who are wholly devoted
to Thee, and for such of Thy loved
ones as love Thee, out of the essence of
Thy bounty and Thy generosity, and
from the inmost spirit of Thy grace and
Thy glory, Thy Paradise of transcendent
holiness, and to exalt it above
everything except Thee, and to sanctify
it from aught else save Thyself.
Create, moreover, within it, O my
God, out of the lights shed by Thy
throne, handmaidens
who will intone the melodies of Thy wondrous and most
sweet invention, that
they may magnify Thy name with such words as have not
been heard
by any of Thy creatures, be they the inmates
of Thy heaven or
the dwellers
of Thine earth, nor been comprehended by any of Thy people.
Unlock, then, the gates of this Paradise
to the faces of Thy loved ones,
that haply they may enter them in
Thy name, and by the power of Thy
sovereignty, that thereby the sovereign
bounties vouchsafed by Thee unto
Thy chosen
ones and the transcendent gifts granted unto Thy trusted ones be
perfected, that they may extol Thy
virtues with such melodies as none can
either intone or describe, and that
none of Thy people may conceive the
design of appearing in the guise
of any of Thy chosen ones, or of emulating
the example of Thy loved ones, and
that none may fail to discern between
Thy friends and Thine enemies, or
to distinguish them that are devoted to
Thee from such as stubbornly oppose
Thee. Potent art Thou to do what Thou
willest, and powerful and supreme
art Thou over all things.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Prayers
and Meditations, p. 326-327
Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious!
Thereupon she summoned unto
herself one maiden from her handmaidens,
Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious!
And commanded her: "Descend
into space from the mansions of eternity,
- Bahá'u'lláh, Tablet
of the Holy Mariner
4b.
"Those countenances which are hid within the chambers of chastity" and
"the manifestations
of Thy Divine holiness" can
also be interpreted as a
reference to
dependent prophets.
Lauded be Thy
name, O Thou Who art the Goal of my desire! I swear by Thy
glory! How
great is my wish to attain unto a detachment so complete that
were there
to appear before me those countenances
which are hid within the
chambers of
chastity, and the beauty of which Thou didst
veil
from the eyes
of the entire
creation, and whose faces Thou didst sanctify from the sight of
all beings,and
were they to unveil themselves in all the glory of the splendors
of Thine incomparable
beauty, I would refuse to look upon them, and
would
behold them
solely for the purpose of discerning the mysteries of Thy handiwork,
which have
perplexed the minds of such as have drawn nigh unto Thee, and
awed the souls
of all them that have recognized Thee. I would, by Thy power
and Thy might, soar to such heights
that nothing whatsoever would have the
power to keep me back from the manifold
evidences of Thy transcendent
dominion, nor would any earthly scheme
shut me out from the manifestations
of Thy Divine
holiness.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Prayers
and Meditations, p. 337
In like manner, every time the Prophets
of God have illumined the world
with the resplendent radiance of
the Day Star of Divine knowledge, they have
invariably summoned its peoples to
embrace the light of God through such
means as best befitted the exigencies
of the age in which they appeared. They
were thus able to scatter the darkness
of ignorance, and to shed upon the
world the glory of their own knowledge.
It
is towards the inmost essence of
these Prophets,
therefore, that the eye of every man of discernment must
be directed,...
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings
from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 80
5.
"how innumerable are the pearls", "How many the húrís (maidens)
of inner
meaning that
are as yet concealed within the chambers of divine wisdom!" can
be interpreted
in the following sense: how many the pre-existent dependent
prophets of
Baha'u'llah. As a parallel, Baha'u'llah also cites a reference in the
Quran to Imam
Hasan and Imam Husayn who were dependent prophets of
Muhammad --
the "pearls and coral"
that came out from the Two Seas (two
bodies of flowing
water): Imam Ali and Fatima, their parents
who belong to the
Family of Muhammad.
Cited in "Introduction to Shi'i Islam," Moojan Momen,
p. 153.
We have digressed
from the purpose of Our argument, although whatsoever is
mentioned serveth
only to confirm Our purpose. By God! however great Our
desire to be
brief, yet We feel We cannot restrain Our pen. Notwithstanding
all that We
have mentioned, how innumerable are the pearls which have remained
unpierced in
the shell of Our heart! How many the húrís
of inner meaning that
are as yet
concealed within the chambers of divine wisdom![1]
None hath yet
approached
them;--húrís, "whom no man nor spirit hath touched before."
Notwithstanding
all that hath been said, it seemeth as if not one letter of Our
purpose hath
been uttered, nor a single sign divulged concerning Our object.
When will a
faithful seeker be found who will don the garb of pilgrimage, attain
the Ka'bih
of the heart's desire, and, without ear or tongue, discover the
mysteries of
divine utterance? [1 Qur'an 55:56.]
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The
Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 70
55:19 He has let free the two bodies of flowing water, meeting together:
55:20 Between them is a Barrier which they do not transgress:
55:21 Then which of the favours of your Lord will ye deny?
55:22 Out of them come Pearls and Coral:...
55:37 When the sky is rent asunder, and it becomes red like ointment:
55:38 Then which of the favours of your Lord will ye deny?...
55:56 In them
will be (Maidens), chaste, restraining their glances, whom
no man or Jinn before them has touched;-
55:57 Then which of the favours of your Lord will ye deny?-
55:58 Like unto
Rubies and coral.
-- The Qur’án 55 - AR-RAHMAN
6. The
"Brides of inner meaning" can
be interpreted in the following sense:
the dependent
prophets who will continue the revelation of Baha'u'llah and
"utter
a myriad songs" and unfold "innumerable mysteries".
By God! This Bird of Heaven, now dwelling
upon the dust, can, besides these
melodies, utter a myriad songs, and
is able, apart from these utterances, to
unfold innumerable mysteries. Every
single note of its unpronounced
utterances is immeasurably exalted
above all that hath already been revealed,
and immensely glorified beyond that
which hath streamed from this Pen. Let
the future
disclose the hour when the Brides of inner meaning will, as
decreed by
the Will of God, hasten forth, unveiled, out of
their mystic
mansions, and
manifest themselves in the ancient realm of being. Nothing
whatsoever is possible without His
permission; no power can endure save
through His power, and there is none
other God but He. His is the world of
creation, and His the Cause of God.
All proclaim His Revelation, and all
unfold the mysteries of His Spirit.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The
Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 175
The continuation
of revelation is also alluded to by the following passages
which may be
a reference to the laws of the Aqdas and their formulation
according to
the spiritual capacity of the earliest believers. Hence, for example,
their partriachal
nature and the permissibility of bigamy. In the era of
Muhammad, is
was permitted for a man to have up to four wives -- based
on the spiritual
capacity of believers then.
Know verily that the veil
hiding Our countenance hath not been completely
lifted. We have revealed Our Self
to a degree corresponding to the capacity
of the people of Our age.
Should the Ancient Beauty be unveiled in the
fullness of His glory mortal eyes
would be blinded by the dazzling intensity
of His revelation.
-- Excerpt from one of Baha'u'llah's
Tablets
67. O SON OF BEAUTY!
By My spirit and by My favor! By
My mercy and by My beauty! All that I
have revealed unto thee with the
tongue of power, and have written for
thee with the pen of might, hath
been in accordance with thy capacity
and understanding, not with My state
and the melody of My voice.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The
Hidden Words of Baha'u'llah, p. 19
Whenever My laws appear like the
sun in the heaven of Mine utterance, they
must be faithfully obeyed by all,
though My decree be such as to cause the
heaven of every religion to be cleft
asunder.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The
Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 21
7. In certain
contexts "servants" can also be interpreted
as references to
dependent prophets.
Assist ye, O My people, My chosen
servants
who have arisen to make mention
of Me among My creatures and to exalt
My Word throughout My realm. These,
truly, are the stars
of the heaven of My loving providence and the lamps of My
guidance unto all mankind. But he
whose words conflict with that which hath
been sent down in My Holy Tablets
is not of Me. Beware lest ye follow any
impious pretender. These Tablets
are embellished with the seal of Him Who
causeth the dawn to appear, Who lifteth
up His voice between the heavens and
the earth. Lay hold on this Sure
Handle and on the Cord
of My mighty and
unassailable Cause.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The
Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 61
8.
"Beauties of divine mystery", "birds abiding within the domains of My Kingdom",
"doves dwelling
in the rose-garden of My wisdom" can also
be interpreted as
references
to dependent prophets of Baha'u'llah.
O thou honoured
enquirer! We bear witness that thou didst firmly adhere unto
seemly patience
during the days when the Pen was held back from movement and
the Tongue
hesitated to set forth an explanation regarding the wondrous sign,
the Most Great
Infallibility. Thou hast asked this Wronged One to remove for
thee its veils
and coverings, to elucidate its mystery and character, its state
and position,
its excellence, sublimity and exaltation. By the life of God!
Were We to
unveil the pearls of testimony which lie hid within the shells of
the ocean of
knowledge and assurance or to let the beauties
of divine mystery
which are hidden
within the chambers of utterance in the Paradise of true
understanding,
step
out of their habitation, then from every direction
violent
commotion would
arise among the leaders of religion and thou wouldst witness
the people
of God held fast in the teeth of such wolves as have denied God both
in the beginning
and in the end. Therefore We restrained the Pen for a
considerable
lapse of time in accordance with divine wisdom and for the sake of
protecting
the faithful from those who have bartered away heavenly blessings
for disbelief
and have chosen for their people the abode of perdition.
O thou seeker
who art gifted with keen insight. I swear by Him Who attracted
the Concourse
on High through the potency of His most sublime Word! Verily, the
birds abiding
within the domains of My Kingdom and the doves
dwelling in the
rose-garden
of My wisdom utter such melodies and warblings
as are inscrutable
to all but
God, the Lord of the kingdoms of earth and heaven; and were these
melodies to
be revealed even to an extent smaller than a needle's eye, the
people of tyranny
would utter such calumnies as none among former generations
hath ever uttered,
and would commit such deeds as no one in past ages and
centuries hath
ever committed. They have rejected the bounty of God and His
proofs and
have repudiated the testimony of God and His signs. They have gone
astray and
have caused the people to go astray, yet perceive it not. They
worship vain
imaginings but know it not. They have taken idle fancies for their
lords and have
neglected God, yet understand not. They have abandoned the most
great Ocean
and are hastening towards the pool, but comprehend not. They follow
their own idle
fancies while turning aside from God, the Help in Peril, the
Self-Subsisting.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 106-107
9. In the following
passages "assayers" can also be interpreted
as a
reference to
dependent prophets.
9a)
I swear by Him Who is Our Beloved
and your Beloved, that if one's life be
not offered up in His path, it would
not be worth even as much as a mustard
seed, and if one's inmost being were
not laid down at His feet, it would
appear more abject and insignificant
than a pebble. However, none but the
divine Assayers
are able to recognize this gem. In truth, when bereft of
vision, what advantage would one
gain by entering into the all-highest
Paradise? If destitute of hearing,
what can one perceive by drawing close
unto the celestial Tree of Blessedness?
The Assayers of these priceless
gems are such souls unto whom the
following tribute is paid: 'They that
speak not till
He hath spoken and act according to His commandment.'
Likewise He saith: 'They whom neither
merchandise nor traffic beguile from
the remembrance of the Almighty.'
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Compilations,
Fire and Light, p. 12
9b)
Then the gales of divine tests and
the winds of lordly temptation blew
from the Sheba of the everlasting
Cause. They became distracted by the
beauty of the wine server and grew
heedless of the immortal countenance,
to the extent that they imagined
the shadow to be the sun and phantoms
to be light. They set out for the
ladders of the greatest name so that
they might scale those heavens and
arrive at that seat and place. When
they rose toward it, the divine
assayers descended upon them with the
sacred touchstone, by the irresistible
decree of the lord. When these
emissaries did not perceive the scent
of the spiritual youth, they forbade
entry to all.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Tablet
of the Holy Mariner (from the Persian).
9c)
69. O CHILDREN
OF ADAM!
Holy words
and pure and goodly deeds ascend unto the heaven of celestial
glory. Strive
that your deeds may be cleansed from the dust of self and
hypocrisy and
find favor at the court of glory; for ere long the assayers
of mankind
shall, in the holy presence of the Adored One, accept naught
but absolute
virtue and deeds of stainless purity. This is the daystar of
wisdom and
of divine mystery that hath shone above the horizon of the
divine will.
Blessed are they that turn thereunto.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
The Hidden Words of Baha'u'llah, p. 46
Persian no.
69
This holy verse
is replete with meaning, and as time is pressing only a
brief mention
is made as follows: naught else but upright conduct and
pure deeds
shall be accepted at His divine Threshold. ('Abdu'l-Bahá from
a Tablet to
an individual believer -- translated from the Persian)
9d)
35. O MY FRIENDS!
Quench ye the lamp of error, and
kindle within your hearts the everlasting
torch of divine guidance. For ere
long the assayers of mankind shall, in
the holy presence of the Adored,
accept naught but purest virtue and deeds
of stainless holiness.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The
Hidden Words of Baha'u'llah, p. 34
10. In certain
contexts
"angels"
can also be interpreted as references to dependent
prophets.
10a)
This is the Day whereon the All-Merciful
hath come down in the clouds of
knowledge, clothed with manifest
sovereignty. He well knoweth the actions of
men. He it is Whose glory none can
mistake, could ye but comprehend it. The
heaven of every religion hath been
rent, and the earth of human understanding
been cleft asunder, and the angels
of God are seen descending. Say: This
is
the Day of mutual deceit; whither
do ye flee? The mountains have passed away,
and the heavens have been folded
together, and the whole earth is held within
His grasp, could ye but understand
it. Who is it that can protect you? None, by
Him Who is the All-Merciful! None,
except God, the Almighty, the All-Glorious,
the Beneficent. Every woman that
hath had a burden in her womb hath cast
her burden. We see men drunken in
this Day, the Day in which men and angels
have been gathered together.
Say: Is there any doubt concerning
God? Behold how He hath come down from
the heaven of His grace, girded with
power and invested with sovereignty. Is
there any doubt concerning His signs?
Open ye your eyes, and consider His clear
evidence. Paradise is on your right
hand, and hath been brought nigh unto you,
while Hell hath been made to blaze.
Witness its devouring flame. Haste ye to
enter into Paradise, as a token of
Our mercy unto you, and drink ye from the
hands of the All-Merciful the Wine
that is life indeed.
Drink with healthy relish, O people
of Bahá. Ye are indeed they with whom it shall
be well. This is what they who have
near access to God have attained. This is the
flowing water
ye were promised in the Qur'án, and later in the Bayán,
as a
recompense from your Lord, the God
of Mercy. Blessed are they that quaff it.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings
from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 45-46
The passage
above about the "angels of God seen descending"
(dependent
prophets of
Baha'u'llah) can be paralleled to the passage below "the
Light which
we have sent
down" which is a reference to the Imams (dependent
prophets of
Muhammad) cited
in "Introduction to Shi'i Islam" by Moojan Momen, p. 151-153
64:8 Believe, therefore, in God and
His Apostle, and in the Light which
we have sent
down. And God is well acquainted with all that ye do.
64:9 The Day that He assembles you
(all) for a Day of Assembly,- that
will be a Day of mutual loss and
gain (among you), and those who believe
in God and work righteousness,- He
will remove from them their ills, and
He will admit
them to Gardens beneath which Rivers flow, to dwell therein
for ever: that will be the Supreme
Achievement.
64:10 But those who reject Faith and
treat Our Signs as falsehoods, they
will be Companions of the Fire, to
dwell therein for aye: and evil is
that Goal.
--Qur'an: 64 - AT-TAGHABUN.
10b)
Say: Let not your hearts be perturbed,
O people, when the glory of My Presence
is withdrawn, and the ocean of My
utterance is stilled. In My presence amongst
you there is a wisdom, and in My
absence there is yet another, inscrutable to
all but God, the Incomparable, the
All-Knowing. Verily, We behold you from Our
realm of glory, and shall aid whosoever
will arise for the triumph of Our Cause
with the hosts of the Concourse on
high and a company of Our favoured angels.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The
Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 38
11. In the passage
below, "souls who will adorn the world of
being with a
new raiment
and a wondrous robe" -- can also be interpreted
as references
to dependent
prophets and the new teachings they bring. "Moon"
and "divine
unity"
are also references applicable to prophets.
The term "suns"
hath many a time been applied in the writings of the
"immaculate
Souls" unto the Prophets of God, those luminous Emblems of
Detachment.
Among those writings are the following words recorded in the
"Prayer of
Nudbih": "Whither are gone the resplendent Suns? Whereunto have
departed those
shining Moons and sparkling Stars?" Thus, it hath become evident
that the terms
"sun,"
"moon," and "stars"
primarily signify the Prophets of
God, the saints,
and their companions, those Luminaries, the light of Whose
knowledge hath
shed illumination upon the worlds of the visible and the
invisible.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 35
O Thou kind
Lord! From the horizon of detachment Thou hast manifested
souls
that, even
as the shining moon,
shed radiance upon the realm of heart and
soul, rid themselves
from the attributes of the world of existence and
hastened forth
unto the kingdom of immortality. With a drop from the ocean
of Thy loving
kindness Thou didst oft-times moisten the gardens of their
hearts until
they gained incomparable freshness and beauty. The holy
fragrance of
Thy divine unity was diffused far and wide,
shedding its sweet
savours over
the entire world, causing the regions of the earth to be
redolent with
perfume.
Raise up then,
O Spirit of Purity, souls who, like those
sanctified beings,
will become
free and pure, Will adorn the world of being with a new raiment
and a wondrous
robe, will seek no one else but Thee, tread
no path except
the path of
Thy good-pleasure and will speak of naught but the mysteries of
Thy Cause.
--Compilations,
Fire and Light.
Passage above
can be likened to the one below in reference to Baha'u'llah
himself.
"O King! I was
but a man like others, asleep upon My couch, when lo, the
breezes of
the All-Glorious were wafted over Me, and taught Me the
knowledge of
all that hath been. This thing is not from Me, but from One
Who is Almighty
and All-Knowing. And He bade Me lift up My voice between
earth and heaven,
and for this there befell Me what hath caused the tears
of every man
of understanding to flow. The learning current amongst men I
studied not;
their schools I entered not. Ask of the city wherein I dwelt,
that thou mayest
be well assured that I am not of them who speak falsely.
This is but
a leaf which the winds of the will of thy Lord, the Almighty,
the All-Praised,
have stirred. Can it be still when the tempestuous winds
are blowing?
Nay, by Him Who is the Lord of all Names and Attributes! They
move it as
they list. The evanescent is as nothing before Him Who is the
Ever-Abiding.
His all-compelling summons hath reached Me, and caused Me to
speak His praise
amidst all people. I was indeed as one dead when His
behest was
uttered. The hand of the will of thy Lord, the Compassionate,
the Merciful,
transformed Me."
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 11-12
12.
The "black-eyed damsels" can
also be interpreted as references to
dependent prophets.
The Apostle
of God--may the blessings of God and His salutations be upon
Him--is reported
to have said: "Blessed the man that hath visited Akká, and
blessed he
that hath visited the visitor of Akká. Blessed the one that hath
drunk from
the Spring of the Cow and washed in its waters, for the
black-eyed
damsels quaff the camphor in Paradise, which
hath come from the
Spring of the
Cow, and from the Spring of Salván (Siloam), and the Well of
Zamzam. Well
is it with him that hath drunk from these springs, and washed
in their waters,
for God hath forbidden the fire of hell to touch him and
his body on
the Day of Resurrection."
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 179-180
Say: Step out
of Thy holy chamber, O Maid of Heaven, inmate of the Exalted
Paradise! Drape
thyself in whatever manner pleaseth Thee in the silken
Vesture of
Immortality, and put on, in the name of the All-Glorious, the
broidered Robe
of Light. Hear, then, the sweet, the wondrous accent of the
Voice that
cometh from the Throne of Thy Lord, the Inaccessible, the Most
High. Unveil
Thy face, and manifest the beauty of the black-eyed
Damsel,
and suffer
not the servants of God to be deprived of the light of Thy
shining countenance.
Grieve not if Thou hearest the sighs of the dwellers
of the earth,
or the voice of the lamentation of the denizens of heaven.
Leave them
to perish on the dust of extinction. Let them be reduced to
nothingness,
inasmuch as the flame of hatred hath been kindled within their
breasts. Intone,
then, before the face of the peoples of earth and heaven,
and in a most
melodious voice, the anthem of praise, for a remembrance of
Him Who is
the King of the names and attributes of God. Thus have We
decreed Thy
destiny. Well able are We to achieve Our purpose.
-- Bahá'u'lláh,
Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 282-283
General references on the Prophets of God.
These attributes of God are not and
have never been vouchsafed specially unto
certain Prophets, and withheld from
others. Nay, all the Prophets of God, His
well-favoured, His holy, and chosen
Messengers, are, without exception, the
bearers of His names, and the embodiments
of His attributes. They only differ
in the intensity of their revelation,
and the comparative potency of their
light. Even as He hath revealed:
"Some of the Apostles We have caused to excel
the others." It hath therefore become
manifest and evident that within the
tabernacles of these Prophets and
chosen Ones of God the light of His infinite
names and exalted attributes hath
been reflected, even though the light of some
of these attributes may or may not
be outwardly revealed from these luminous
Temples to the eyes of men. That
a certain attribute of God hath not been
outwardly manifested by these Essences
of Detachment doth in no wise imply that
they Who are the Daysprings of God's
attributes and the Treasuries of His holy
names did not actually possess it.
Therefore, these illuminated Souls, these
beauteous Countenances have, each
and every one of them, been endowed with all
the attributes of God, such as sovereignty,
dominion, and the like, even though
to outward seeming they be shorn
of all earthly majesty. To every discerning
eye this is evident and manifest;
it requireth neither proof nor evidence.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The
Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 103
These Manifestations of God have each
a twofold station. One is the station
of pure abstraction and essential
unity. In this respect, if thou callest
them all by one name, and dost ascribe
to them the same attributes, thou
hast not erred from the truth. Even
as He hath revealed: "No distinction do
We make between any of His Messengers."
For they, one and all, summon the
people of the earth to acknowledge
the unity of God, and herald unto them
the Kawthar of an infinite grace
and bounty. They are all invested with the
robe of prophethood, and are honored
with the mantle of glory. Thus hath
Muhammad, the Point of the Qur'án,
revealed: "I am all the Prophets."
Likewise, He saith: "I am the first
Adam, Noah, Moses, and Jesus." Similar
statements have been made by Imám
`Alí. Sayings such as these, which
indicate the essential unity of those
Exponents of Oneness, have also
emanated from the Channels of God's
immortal utterance, and the Treasuries
of the gems of Divine knowledge,
and have been recorded in the Scriptures.
These Countenances are the recipients
of the Divine Command, and the Day
Springs of His Revelation. This Revelation
is exalted above the veils of
plurality and the exigencies of number.
Thus He saith: "Our Cause is but
One." Inasmuch as the Cause is one
and the same, the Exponents thereof also
must needs be one and the same. Likewise,
the Imáms of the Muhammadan Faith,
those lamps of certitude, have said:
"Muhammad is our first, Muhammad is our
last, Muhammad our all."
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings
from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 51
Such revelation is confined to His
Prophets and chosen Ones, inasmuch as none
mightier than they hath come to exist
in the world of being. This truth all
recognize, and bear witness thereto.
These Prophets and chosen Ones of God are
the recipients and revealers of all
the unchangeable attributes and names of
God. They are the mirrors that truly
and faithfully reflect the light of God.
Whatsoever is applicable to them
is in reality applicable to God, Himself, Who
is both the Visible and the Invisible.
The knowledge of Him, Who is the Origin
of all things, and attainment unto
Him, are impossible save through knowledge
of, and attainment unto, these luminous
Beings who proceed from the Sun of
Truth.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The
Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 142
The door of the knowledge of the Ancient
of Days being thus closed in the face
of all beings, the Source of infinite
grace, according to His saying: "His
grace hath transcended all things;
My grace hath encompassed them all" hath
caused those luminous Gems of Holiness
to appear out of the realm of the
spirit, in the noble form of the
human temple, and be made manifest unto all
men, that they may impart unto the
world the mysteries of the unchangeable
Being, and tell of the subtleties
of His imperishable Essence. These sanctified
Mirrors, these Day-springs of ancient
glory are one and all the Exponents on
earth of Him Who is the central Orb
of the universe, its Essence and ultimate
Purpose. From Him proceed their knowledge
and power; from Him is derived their
sovereignty. The beauty of their
countenance is but a reflection of His image,
and their revelation a sign of His
deathless glory. They are the Treasuries of
divine knowledge, and the Repositories
of celestial wisdom. Through them is
transmitted a grace that is infinite,
and by them is revealed the light that
can never fade. Even as He hath said:
"There is no distinction whatsoever
between Thee and them; except that
they are Thy servants, and are created of
Thee." This is the significance of
the tradition: "I am He, Himself, and He is
I, myself."
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The
Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 99
XXI. O Salmán! The door of
the knowledge of the Ancient Being hath ever been,
and will continue for ever to be,
closed in the face of men. No man's
understanding shall ever gain access
unto His holy court. As a token of His
mercy, however, and as a proof of
His loving-kindness, He hath manifested unto
men the Day Stars of His divine guidance,
the Symbols of His divine unity, and
hath ordained the knowledge of these
sanctified Beings to be identical with the
knowledge of His own Self. Whoso
recognizeth them hath recognized God. Whoso
hearkeneth to their call, hath hearkened
to the Voice of God, and whoso
testifieth to the truth of their
Revelation, hath testified to the truth of God
Himself. Whoso turneth away from
them, hath turned away from God, and whoso
disbelieveth in them, hath disbelieved
in God. Every one of them is the Way of
God that connecteth this world with
the realms above, and the Standard of His
Truth unto every one in the kingdoms
of earth and heaven. They are the
Manifestations of God amidst men,
the evidences of His Truth, and the signs of
His glory.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings
from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 49
Know that the attributes of perfection,
the splendor of the divine
bounties, and the lights of inspiration
are visible and evident in all the
Holy Manifestations; but the glorious
Word of God, Christ, and the Greatest
Name, Bahá'u'lláh,
are manifestations and evidences which are beyond
imagination, for They possess all
the perfections of the former
Manifestations; and more than that,
They possess some perfections which
make the other Manifestations dependent
upon Them. So all the Prophets of
Israel were centers of inspiration;
Christ also was a receiver of
inspiration, but what a difference
between the inspiration of the Word of
God and the revelations of Isaiah,
Jeremiah and Elijah!
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered
Questions, p. 149-150
Question.--How many kinds of Prophets
are there? Answer.--Universally, the
Prophets are of two kinds. One are
the independent Prophets Who are
followed; the other kind are not
independent and are themselves followers.
The independent Prophets are the lawgivers
and the founders of a new cycle.
Through Their appearance the world
puts on a new garment, the foundations
of religion are established, and
a new book is revealed. Without an
intermediary They receive bounty
from the Reality of the Divinity, and
Their illumination is an essential
illumination. They are like the sun
which is luminous in itself: the
light is its essential necessity; it does
not receive light from any other
star. These Dawning-places of the morn of
Unity are the sources of bounty and
the mirrors of the Essence of Reality.
The other Prophets are followers and
promoters, for they are branches and
not independent; they receive the
bounty of the independent Prophets, and
they profit by the light of the Guidance
of the universal Prophets. They
are like the moon, which is not luminous
and radiant in itself, but
receives its light from the sun.
The Manifestations of universal Prophethood
Who appeared independently are,
for example, Abraham, Moses, Christ,
Muhammad, the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh. But
the others who are followers and
promoters are like Solomon, David, Isaiah,
Jeremiah and Ezekiel. For the independent
Prophets are founders; They
establish a new religion and make
new creatures of men; They change the
general morals, promote new customs
and rules, renew the cycle and the Law.
Their appearance is like the season
of spring, which arrays all earthly
beings in a new garment, and gives
them a new life.
With regard to the second sort of
Prophets who are followers, these also
promote the Law of God, make known
the Religion of God, and proclaim His
word. Of themselves they have no
power and might, except what they receive
from the independent Prophets.
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered
Questions, p.165