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gaze on Thy beauty and observe whatsoever is in Thy Book.
Praise be to Thee, O my God, that Thou hast aided me to remember Thee and
to praise Thee, and hast made known unto me Him Who is the Day-Spring of
Thy signs, and hast caused me to bow down before Thy Lordship, and humble
myself before Thy Godhead, and to acknowledge that which hath been uttered
by the Tongue of Thy grandeur.
O God, my God! My back is bowed by the burden of my sins, and my
heedlessness hath destroyed me. Whenever I ponder my evil doings and Thy
benevolence, my heart melteth within me, and my blood boileth in my veins.
By Thy Beauty, O Thou the Desire of the world! I blush to lift up my face
to Thee, and my longing hands are ashamed to stretch forth toward the
heaven of Thy bounty. Thou seest, O my God, how my tears prevent me from
remembering Thee and from extolling Thy virtues, O Thou the Lord of the
Throne on high and of earth below! I implore Thee by the signs of Thy
Kingdom and the mysteries of Thy Dominion to do with Thy loved ones as
becometh Thy bounty, O Lord of all being, and is worthy of Thy grace, O
King of the seen and the unseen!
Praise be unto Thee, O our God, that Thou hast sent down unto us that
which draweth us nigh unto Thee, and supplieth us with every good thing
sent down by Thee in Thy Books and Thy Scriptures. Protect us, we beseech
Thee, O my Lord, from the hosts of idle fancies and vain imaginations.
Thou, in truth, art the Mighty, the All-Knowing.
I testify, O my God, to that whereunto Thy chosen Ones have testified, and
acknowledge that which the inmates of the all-highest Paradise and those
who have circled round Thy mighty Throne have acknowledged. The kingdoms
of earth and heaven are Thine, O Lord of the worlds!
Since Thou hast, O my God, established Thyself upon the throne of Thy
transcendent unity, and ascended the mercy seat of Thy oneness, it
befitteth Thee to blot out from the hearts of all beings whatsoever may
keep them back from gaining admittance into the sanctuary of Thy Divine
mysteries, and may shut them out from the tabernacle of Thy Divinity, that
all hearts may mirror Thy beauty, and may reveal Thee, and speak of Thee,
and that all created things may show forth the tokens of Thy most august
sovereignty, and shed the splendors of the light of Thy most holy
governance, and that all who are in heaven and on earth may laud and
magnify Thy unity, and give Thee glory, for having manifested Thy Self
unto them through Him Who is the Revealer of Thy oneness.
Divest, then, Thy servants, O my God, of the garments of self and desire,
or grant that the eyes of Thy people may be lifted up to such heights that
they will discern in their desires naught except the stirring of the
gentle winds of Thine eternal glory, and may recognize in their own selves
nothing but the revelation of Thine own merciful Self, that the earth and
all that is therein may be cleansed of whatever is alien to Thee, or
anything that manifesteth aught save Thy Self. All this can be fulfilled
throughout Thy dominion by Thy word of command, "Be," and it is! Nay, even
swifter than this, and yet the people understand not.
Glorified, immeasurably glorified art Thou, O my Beloved! I swear by Thy
glory! I recognize this very moment that Thou hast granted all for which I
have supplicated Thee, in this blessed night which, as decreed by Thee,
calleth to remembrance Him Who was the Companion of Thy beauty and the
Beholder of Thy face, ere I had been mentioned by Thee, or called into
being within the court of Thy holiness. I perceive that Thou hast made all
things to be the manifestations of Thy behest, and the revelations of Thy
handiwork, and the repositories of Thy knowledge, and the treasuries of
Thy wisdom. I recognize, moreover, that were any of the revelations of Thy
names and Thine attributes to be withheld, though it be the weight of a
grain of mustard seed, from whatsoever hath been created by Thy power and
begotten by Thy might, the foundations of Thine everlasting handiwork
would thereby be made incomplete, and the gems of Thy Divine wisdom would
become imperfect. For the letters of negation, no matter how far they may
be removed from the holy fragrances of Thy knowledge, and however
forgetful they may become of the wondrous splendors of the dawning light
of Thy beauty, which are shed from the heaven of Thy majesty, must needs
exist in Thy realm, so that the words which affirm Thee may thereby be
exalted.
Thy might beareth me witness, O my Well-Beloved! The entire creation hath
been called into being to exalt Thy triumph and to establish Thine
ascendancy, and all the bounds that have been set by Thee are but the
signs of Thy sovereignty, and proclaim the power of Thy might. How great,
how very great, are the revelations of Thy wondrous power in all things!
They are such that the lowliest among Thy creatures hath been made by Thee
a manifestation of Thy most august attribute, and the most contemptible
token of Thy handiwork hath been chosen as a recipient of Thy most mighty
name. Poverty, as decreed by Thee, hath been made the means for the
revelation of Thy riches, and abasement a path leading to Thy glory, and
sinfulness a cause for the exercise of Thy forgiveness. By them Thou hast
demonstrated that to Thee belong Thy most excellent titles, and unto Thee
pertain the wonders of Thy most exalted attributes.
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