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the dearest wish of those hearts that yearn after Thee, Whose decree is
the sole hope of them that have recognized Thy truth! I implore Thee, by
Thy divine sweetness and by the splendors of the glory of Thy face, to
send down upon us from Thy retreats on high that which will enable us to
draw nigh unto Thee. Set, then, our feet firm, O my God, in Thy Cause, and
enlighten our hearts with the effulgence of Thy knowledge, and illumine
our breasts with the brightness of Thy names.
I am he, O my Lord, that hath set his face towards Thee, and fixed his
hope on the wonders of Thy grace and the revelations of Thy bounty. I pray
Thee that Thou wilt not suffer me to turn away disappointed from the door
of Thy mercy, nor abandon me to such of Thy creatures as have repudiated
Thy Cause.
I am, O my God, Thy servant and the son of Thy servant. I have recognized
Thy truth in Thy days, and have directed my steps towards the shores of
Thy oneness, confessing Thy singleness, acknowledging Thy unity, and
hoping for Thy forgiveness and pardon. Powerful art Thou to do what Thou
willest; no God is there beside Thee, the All-Glorious, the
Ever-Forgiving.
Unto Thee be praise, O Lord my God! I testify that Thou art God, and that
there is none other God besides Thee. Thou hast from eternity been
immeasurably exalted above the praise of any one except Thee, and far
above the description of any of Thy creatures. All created things have
borne witness to Thy unity, and every dweller in Thy kingdom hath
confessed Thy oneness. The essence of the apprehension of the assured
among Thy creatures can never attain unto Thee, and the gem-like
utterances with which Thy people have praised and glorified Thee can never
hope to ascend unto the atmosphere of Thy holiness. For men's apprehension
of Thee is but the apprehension of Thine own creation; how can it reach up
to Thee? And all human praise and glorification of Thee pertain unto Thy
servants; how can they be deemed worthy of the court of Thy oneness?
I swear by Thy glory! The quintessence of knowledge is powerless to
comprehend Thy nature, and the inmost reality of every praise of Thee
falleth short of the seat of Thy great glory and of Thine all-compelling
power. Every utterance that seeketh to describe Thee, and every knowledge
that attempteth to comprehend Thee, is but an expression of Thine own
creating, and is begotten by Thy will, and fashioned in conformity with
Thy purpose.
I implore Thee, O Thou Who art inscrutable to all except Thee, and can be
comprehended through naught else save Thyself, by the wrongs which He Who
is the Day-Spring of Thy Cause hath suffered at the hands of the ignoble
among Thy creatures, and by what hath befallen Him in Thy path, to grant
that I may, at all times, be wholly dissolved in Thee, and fix my gaze
upon the horizon of Thy will and be steadfast in Thy love.
I have, O my Lord, turned unto Thee according to what Thou hast commanded
me in Thy Book, and have set my face towards the horizon of Thy
loving-kindness even as Thou hast permitted me in Thy Tablets. Cast me not
out of the door of Thy grace, I beseech Thee, and write down for me the
recompense destined for him who hath entered Thy presence, and hath risen
to serve Thee, and hath been carried away by the drops sprinkled upon him
from the Ocean of Thy favors in Thy days, and by the splendors of the
Day-Star of Thy gifts that have been shed upon him at the revelation of
the light of Thy countenance.
Potent art Thou to do what pleaseth Thee. No God is there save Thee, the
Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting.
Lauded be Thy Name, O Lord my God! I am Thy servant who hath laid hold on
the cord of Thy tender mercies, and clung to the hem of Thy bounteousness.
I entreat Thee by Thy name whereby Thou hast subjected all created things,
both visible and invisible, and through which the breath that is life
indeed was wafted over the entire creation, to strengthen me by Thy power
which hath encompassed the heavens and the earth, and to guard me from all
sickness and tribulation. I bear witness that Thou art the Lord of all
names, and the Ordainer of all that may please Thee. There is none other
God but Thee, the Almighty, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.
Do Thou ordain for me, O my Lord, what will profit me in every world of
Thy worlds. Supply me, then, with what Thou hast written down for the
chosen ones among Thy creatures, whom neither the blame of the blamer, nor
the clamor of the infidel, nor the estrangement of such as have withdrawn
from Thee, hath deterred from turning towards Thee.
Thou, truly, art the Help in Peril through the power of Thy sovereignty.
No God is there save Thee, the Almighty, the Most Powerful.
Glorified art Thou, O my God! I yield Thee thanks that Thou hast made
known unto me Him Who is the Day-Spring of Thy mercy, and the
Dawning-Place of Thy grace, and the Repository of Thy Cause. I beseech
Thee by Thy Name, through which the faces of them that are nigh unto Thee
have turned white, and the hearts of such as are devoted to Thee have
winged their flight towards Thee, to grant that I may, at all times and
under all conditions, lay hold on Thy cord, and be rid of all attachment
to any one except Thee, and may keep mine eyes directed towards the
horizon of Thy Revelation, and may carry out what Thou hast prescribed
unto me in Thy Tablets.
Attire, O my Lord, both my inner and outer being with the raiment of Thy
favors and Thy loving-kindness. Keep me safe, then, from whatsoever may be
abhorrent unto Thee, and graciously assist me and my kindred to obey Thee,
and to shun whatsoever may stir up any evil or corrupt desire within me.
Thou, truly, art the Lord of all mankind, and the Possessor of this world
and of the next. No God is there save Thee, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.