BB00041: Du’a’ li-Hadrat-i-Ni’ma

Part 1: “Glorified art Thou, O my God, and praised…”

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

Glorified art Thou, O my God, and praised art Thou! I bear witness at this moment to Thy oneness, acknowledge Thine eternity, and testify to Thy unity through the very essence of my being, through the mere manifestation of my reality, and through the ultimate goals of my identity. And through all that Thy knowledge hath encompassed of my beginning and my end, my outward and my inward being, I testify that Thou art God; there is no God but Thee, the One, the Single, the Unique, the Self-Subsisting. Thou hast ever existed while nothing existed with Thee, and Thou wilt forever remain while nothing shall be mentioned with Thee. Glorified and exalted art Thou! Glorified and bestowing art Thou! Glorified and elevated art Thou! Glorified and majestic art Thou! Glorified and generous art Thou!

All call upon Thee, yet none hath access to know Thee. All exist, yet none hath proof of the manifestation of their certitude in Thee. Thou art He Who cannot be known throughout all eternity, nor described through what returns to the ultimate end of all endings and the paths of realities among contingent beings and the ways of existence among abstract entities. These all testify that Thou art free from them while being manifest to them through themselves.

Therefore, glorified art Thou! Glorified art Thou! How exalted is the sovereignty of Thy Lordship! How great is the dominion of Thy oneness! How mighty is the court of Thy Self-Subsistence! How resplendent are the lights of the light of Thy countenance! How manifest are the revelations of Thy visage! At times Thou causest whom Thou willest to ascend to the heights of creation, and at times Thou bringest down whom Thou pleasest to the uttermost depths of earth and that which lieth beyond it, which none can comprehend save Thee.

Glorified art Thou! Glorified art Thou! All desire to attain Thy presence and meet Thee, yet none hath a way to know Thy Essence or to arrive at the seats of Thy holiness. For the reality of creation in its essence and the nature of invention in its substance testify that the paths are utterly cut off and the ways are completely blocked. Whenever those who ascend attempt to reach the highest subtleties of the abstract heaven, they return to the station created within their hearts, testifying that there is no God but Him, none can know Him save Him, none can worship Him except Him, none can unite with Him but Him, and none of His creation can find Him.

And all those who are veiled among the people of ascent unto the court of Thy glory; and those who draw nigh upon the carpet of Thy bounty; and those who drink from the chalice of Thy love; and those who gaze upon the vestures of Thy countenance; and those who find intimacy in the sovereignty of Thy oneness; and those who take shelter beneath the shade of the shadows of the Tree of Thy singleness; and those who repose upon the carpet of the intimacy of Thy mercifulness; and those who delight in the remembrance of the letters of Thy dominion; and those who ascend unto the horizon of the infinite through Thy power; and those who rise unto the summit of the infinite through Thy might; and those who journey from Thee unto Thee; and those who speak from Thy presence in Thy presence—their hearts bear witness that there is none other God but Him.

The circling Kaf revolved about the world of the First, around its precinct; and the spheres of the Cloud of Names were uplifted within the pavilions of holiness and majesty, by virtue of that which Thou didst deposit within its temples. Glory be unto Thee, O Lord most Great, O Sovereign most Generous, O Manifest Originator, O [Supreme] Authority, O Merciful King—exalted beyond that any created being should encompass Thy manifestations, or that souls and spirits among the people of truth should testify unto aught save their ascent toward the summit of Thine inaccessibility.

Glory be unto Thee, O God! Thou art the Originator of the heavens and the earth and all that lieth between them, from nothing. How shall I remember Thee, O my Lord, by my remembrance of Thee? Or how shall I praise Thee, O my God, with my commendation, when I know that the Tree which spake from Thy presence is itself created by Thy command and brought into being by Thy will; and that, despite its elevation—an elevation without end—and its rejoicing—an exultation without limit—it testifieth before Thee even as it then testified: that I possess no remembrance, O my God; no existence, O my Beloved; no praise for Thee, O my King and my Sovereign; no deed, O my Ordainer and my Fashioner; and that unto Thee alone is my return, my turning, my refuge, and my abiding place.

How then shall I remember Thee, O God, by these overturned manifestations and these theophanies which, in Thy presence, are naught and in Thy dominion are utterly effaced? Thou art He Who was before every thing, and Thou art He Who shalt remain after the extinction of all things. Thou didst bring the universe into being by Thyself, and didst draw it toward the air of Thy nearness by that which Thou didst cast into its likeness; and Thou didst raise it unto the carpet of the sovereignty of Thy mercifulness by that which Thou didst reveal through Thy signs.

How mighty are the signs of Thy power! How resplendent the tokens of Thy greatness! How exalted the manifestations of the sovereignty of Thy self-subsistence! How all immaterial realities were stilled at the dawning of the light of Thy singleness; how all modes of being were humbled before the splendor of the lights of Thy self-sufficiency!

I therefore call Thee to witness, O God—Thou Who bearest witness to the creation of all things, yet no thing beareth witness to Thy making; Thou Whose signs teach all things, yet Whose knowledge no thing encompasseth; Thou Who fashionest all things in the most perfect manner encompassed by Thy knowledge, while none knoweth how that thing is fashioned by Thee; Thou Who hast exalted Thy dominion through the sublimity of the sovereignty of Thy oneness, unto a station before which all that is in the kingdoms of the earth and the heavens hath bowed down at the rising of the lights of the glory of Thy grandeur, and before whatsoever issueth from the horizon of the unseen from the dawning-places of the Sun of Thy oneness.

Glorified art Thou, O my God, with such glorification wherewith Thou hast glorified Thyself in all Thy Books and which Thy knowledge encompasseth—a glorification befitting none save Thee and which none deserveth except Thee, O Lord of lords and Ordainer of all causes. A glorification which in Thy knowledge no glorification can equal, a glorification purified from the mention of aught else but Thee and sanctified from praise of any besides Thee, a glorification whereby the unity-professing ones ascend to the summit of detachment and the sincere ones rise unto the heaven of independence, a glorification that filleth the pillars of all things with awe of Thee and […] the earth and all thereon with Thy wrath, and filleth the heavens and all therein with Thy mercy, and Paradise and all therein with Thy bounty, and the Fire and all therein with Thy overwhelming power—a glorification which is concealed with Thee in the veils of the Unseen and preserved in the pavilions of glory, wherewith Thou hast glorified Thyself and which Thou hast sent down in the decisive verses of Thy Book wherein Thou hast said, and Thy word is the truth: “Who is able to glorify Thee with such glorification wherewith Thou hast glorified Thyself?”—when Thou didst humble Thyself saying “No just estimate have they made of God.

On the Day of Resurrection the whole earth will be but His handful, and the heavens will be rolled up in His right hand. Glory to Him! High is He above the partners they attribute to Him!”

Glorified art Thou, O my God […] that my glorification of Thee is limited by the bounds of my self and confined to the station of my being, and it can never ascend unto Thee because of the loftiness of Thy elevation, and can never reach Thy presence because of the sublimity of Thy majesty. Yet according to my […] and lowliness and the extremity of my poverty and need, I would glorify Thee with such glorification wherewith Thou hast glorified Thyself, though I neither have the power for this nor know how to do this, for what I know is not befitting to the sovereignty of Thy oneness nor worthy of the majesty of Thy unity, while that wherewith Thou hast glorified Thy Essence is what befits the court of Thy nearness and is worthy of the sovereignty of Thy justice. I beseech Thee therefore, O my God, by Thy mercy which embraceth all atoms and Thy bounty which encompasseth all created things, to grant me what Thou hast ordained in the glorification of Thyself by Thyself and the magnification of Thine Essence by Thine Essence, for verily Thou art the One with power to create.

I glorify Thee, O Thou Who art the All-Glorious in the kingdom of grandeur and Who art exalted above all names and likenesses. Therefore, O my God, send Thy blessings upon the first pillar of Thy Sacred House, whereon Thou hast inscribed with the hand of Thy power that whereby Thou hast glorified Thyself—Glory be unto Thee, there is no God but Thee. Then I praise Thee, O my God, with the utmost power of my being and with whatsoever Thou hast deposited within the essence of my reality, and with all that Thy knowledge encompasseth of my hidden and manifest self—with such praise as Thou hast praised Thyself, and hast established in Thy mighty Book, and hast preserved in the pavilions of the unseen and of grandeur through Thine exaltation.

Such praise as through it they who praise may ascend to the most exalted horizon of realities, and whereby they who render thanks may rise to the highest pinnacle of subtleties. Praise which Thou alone deserveth, and none else. Praise which is exalted above all praise through Thine exaltation, and which riseth above all praise even as Thou art raised above all, and which transcendeth all praise and elevation through the dominion of Thy power. Praise that hath no equal in Thy knowledge, praise that hath no likeness in Thy Book, praise that no praise in Thy dominion can match, praise that no praise in Thy kingdom can equal, praise that no praise in Thy sovereignty can rival, praise that hath no peer in the creation of Thine acts, praise that hath no parallel in the wonder of Thine handiwork.

Praise whose beginning calleth unto its end, praise whose end pointeth to Thine endlessness, praise that is manifest through the manifestation of Thy singleness, praise that is hidden through the concealment of Thy self-sufficiency. Praise that at every moment donned the garment of Thy sovereign majesty and from which appeared the conditions of Thy compulsion and the manifestations of Thy dominion, and wherewith Thou hast described Thyself of Thy light and Thy creation and the conditions of Thy generosity and the emergence of Thy victory and the manifestations of Thy revelation and the stations of Thy mercy and the evidence of Thy bounty and the signs of Thy grace and that wherewith Thou hast praised Thyself, which no knowledge of Thy creation can encompass.

Praise that filleth the Throne with Thy light and the Seat with Thy proof, and the seven heavens and whatsoever is therein with the manifestation of Thy signs, and the seven earths and whoso is upon them and within them and whatsoever is in them and upon them with the blessings of the sovereignty of Thy grace and Thy gift, and Paradise with what Thou hast created therein of the wonders of the manifestations of Thy singleness, and the Fire with what Thou hast ordained therein of the conditions of the justice of Thy dominion, that all things may be purified therefrom and attain unto the most exalted degrees of the chambers of Thy Paradise, and there remaineth nothing save in its place, and the creation of all things is made just in its seat.

Praise whereby Thou showest mercy unto all contingent beings and forgiveth all existing things, and whereby Thou changest the manifestations of falsehood into steadfast revelations and veiled realities into endless manifestations.

How exalted is Thy bounty, O Lord of the earth and the heavens! How sublime is Thy generosity, O Thou Who art the King of the kingdom of beginning and end! This is the uttermost limit of my powerlessness in glorifying Thee, and the ultimate confession of my being in praising Thee. What can I hope to attain when Thou hast described Thyself—and who is more truthful in speech than Thee? For unto God belongeth all praise, the Lord of the heavens and the Lord of the earth, the Lord of all the worlds, and unto Him belongeth all grandeur in the heavens and the earth, and He is the Mighty, the Wise. For whenever I ascend to a pinnacle of glorification and rise to a station of praise, it increaseth my poverty before Thee and my powerlessness in Thy presence. Glory be unto Thee, O my God, and praise be unto Thee! I seek Thy forgiveness for all wherewith I have glorified Thee and I turn unto Thee repentant for all wherewith I have praised Thee, for my glorification compared to Thy glorification is pure nothingness, and my praise compared to Thy praise is absolute extinction.

I call Thee to witness—and those who are with Thee among the dwellers of Thy heavens and the inhabitants of Thy earth—that wert Thou to chastise me with every chastisement encompassed by Thy knowledge, and wert Thou, in the plenitude of Thy creative power, to bring into being a portion of my laudation of Thy Essence and my glorification of Thy Being, it would still be but little compared with that which I verily deserve at the threshold of Thy hallowed sanctity and the lofty height of Thy glory.

Glorified be God, and praise be unto God! How exalted is His exaltation and His praise! How great His majesty and His magnification! All the realities of contingent beings have gone astray from comprehending it, and all abstract essences have vanished when called upon to affirm it.

Yet, O my Lord, even as Thou hast promised, in Thy Book, recompense unto him who giveth Thee thanks—Thou hast said (and who is more truthful than Thou in speech): “Give thanks unto Me, and be not ungrateful.”—this is the measure of my gratitude for Thy favors, though I cannot number them; and this is the extent of my praise for Thy bounties, though I am powerless to reckon them. For Thou hast taught me: “If ye would count the bounty of God, ye shall not be able to reckon it.” Yea, this is the truth from Thee, and none knoweth how it is save Thee; for none besides Thee bringeth Thy bounty into being, and all else save Thee subsisteth only through Thy grace—whatsoever is other than Thee is confirmed by Thy beneficence.

How then can one, stamped with origination, marked by coming-into-being, and realized through invention, aspire to ascend unto the praise of the Lord of the heavens and the earth, or rise to the summit of glorifying the Creator of all that was in the beginning and the end? Nay, by Thy glory, I have not glorified Thee nor praised Thee, nor can I, nor am I able, nor do I desire, nor wish for that, for this is an impossible matter and a path cut off from those who are assured of Thy oneness and believe in Thy unity. Glory be to Thee! Glory be to Thee! If this be the utmost of my powerlessness to glorify Thee and the extremity of my poverty in praising Thee, how then can I remember Thee, O my God, with the remembrance of extolling Thy unity?

Glory be to Thee! Glory be to Thee! There is no God but Thee. Nay, by Thy glory, I do not remember Thee by the remembrance of extolling Thy unity. Glory be to Thee! I am indeed of those who profess Thy unity. Glory be to Thee! I am indeed of those who extol Thy oneness. For whenever I ascend to the summit of professing Thy unity and rise to the horizon of extolling Thy oneness, I find only Thy remembrance of me and my remembrance of Thee in Thy kingdom.

Part 2: “How then can this reach the majesty…”

How then can this reach the majesty of Thy holy exaltation, or befit the sanctified court of Thy unity and oneness, or how can such unity settle before the reality of Thy grandeur and the sovereignty of Thine eternity? Nay, by Thy glory, if I say “There is no God but He,” I have indeed set up a deity within himself, and the needy one has pointed to his own powerlessness, and the contingent being has returned to his limitations. And if I say “There is no God but God,” the signs of the Divine Identity in their abstractness indicate that they are originated through Thy creation, and the highest manifestations of identities show that they are invented through Thy origination, and they are not what they are in their essence except as a contingent word which Thou didst create by Thy command and establish out of nothing by Thy sovereignty.

Far be it from one such as I to mention that I would desire to profess Thy unity through the conditions of Thy kingdom, or to prove Thy oneness by mentioning what Thou hast created through Thy origination. Nay, by Thy glory, I have not desired and will never desire, nor am I able, for within the bounds of contingency and the chain of nothingness, it is impossible to unify Thy essence, and utterly cut off is the servant’s knowledge of Thy oneness and certitude of Thy uniqueness.

And here I am, at this moment, acknowledging my powerlessness and my ultimate limitation, confessing my shortcoming and my greatest deficiency. I shall bear witness to Thy unity as Thou hast revealed in Thy Book; I shall not remember Thee by other than it, for what proceeds from me is a grievous sin and a great error. But this is what hath been sent down from Thee, and Thou didst deposit its signs within the horizons and within the souls of Thy creation, and wert well-pleased therewith for whosoever proclaimeth Thy oneness—though those signs be at the furthest limit of abstracted essences and the utmost extremity of camphor-like severance—they remain fashioned signs, created epiphanies, and conditioned dispositions, all declaring that dominion circulateth within its own sphere, that the possible being speaketh only within the compass of its own self, and that the needy pointeth to his impotence.

For the unity of the Essence wherewith Thou hast unified Thyself can be borne neither by the potency of origination nor by the reality of invention, for the mention of any other than Thee is a form of polytheism. How then can there be unity between two mentions or oneness be established between two? Far be it! Rather, with certainty, acknowledgment, truthfulness and sincerity, I bear witness before Thee that Thou art God, the Single, the One, the Unique, the Eternal, Who hath ever been without peer and will forever remain without equal. When Thou didst create the signs of Thy unity as was possible in creation in the realities of the people of detachment, Thou didst therefore reveal those sacred verses in Thy Book that all who desire might drink the wine from its rivers, that the people of truth might ascend thereby to its loftiest chambers, that the contingent might reach the ultimate height of Thy creative grasp, that the needy might arrive at the source of Thy wealth in creation, and that all who desire to meet Thee might comprehend through its recitation in the watches of night and day.

How exalted it is as a token of Thy generosity, how mighty as a sign of Thy grace, how glorious as Thy gift, how sublime as Thy mercy, and how magnificent as Thy favor, bounty and kindness! Glory be unto Thee, O my God! I praise Thee and seek Thy forgiveness, and I turn unto Thee in repentance from every mention I make of Thee. There is no God but Thee, O Thou Who art the All-Merciful, the Most Compassionate, the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting, the Lord of Glory and Honor. Bear witness unto me as I bear witness unto Thee, then as atoms are created and brought into being, that I have testified to Thy unity, that there is no God but Thee. Glory be unto Thee, I am of those who believe in Thy oneness.

Then say ten times: Your God is One God; there is no God but He, the All-Merciful, the Most Compassionate. God—there is no God but He, the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting.

Then say ten times: God—there is no God but He, the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting. He it is Who fashioneth you in the wombs as He pleaseth. There is no God but He, the Mighty, the Wise.

Then say ten times: God beareth witness that there is no God but He, and the angels, and those possessed of knowledge, maintaining His creation with justice; there is no God but He, the Mighty, the Wise. God—there is no God but He—will surely gather you together on the Day of Resurrection, about which there is no doubt. And who is more truthful in statement than God?

Then say ten times: Such is God, your Lord. There is no God but He, the Creator of all things; therefore worship ye Him, and He is Guardian over all things. Follow what hath been revealed unto thee from thy Lord—there is no God but He—and turn away from those who join partners with God.

Then say ten times: Say: O mankind! Verily, I am the Messenger of God unto you all, He unto Whom belongeth the dominion of the heavens and the earth. There is no God but He; He giveth life and causeth death. Therefore believe in God and His Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, who believeth in God and His words: follow him that ye may be guided. And they were not commanded except to worship one God: there is no God but He. Glory be to Him above what they associate with Him.

Then say ten times: But if they turn away, say: God sufficeth me. There is no God but He. In Him do I put my trust, and He is the Lord of the Mighty Throne. And We brought the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his hosts pursued them in rebellion and transgression until, when drowning overtook him, he said: I believe that there is no God but He in Whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of those who submit.

Then say ten times: And if they are not ashamed, know ye that it hath been sent down through the knowledge of God, and verily there is no God but Him. Will ye then submit? Say: He is my Lord, there is no God but Him, in Him do I put my trust, and unto Him do I turn.

Then say ten times: The angels and the Spirit descend by His command upon whomsoever He willeth of His servants, saying: Warn ye that there is no God but Me, therefore fear Me. And if thou speakest aloud, then verily He knoweth the secret and that which is yet more hidden. There is no God but Him, His are the most excellent names. And I have chosen thee, so hearken unto that which is revealed: Verily I am God, there is no God but Me, therefore worship Me and establish prayer for My remembrance. Verily your God is He besides Whom there is no God. He encompasseth all things in His knowledge.

Then say ten times: And We sent no messenger before thee but We revealed unto him, saying: There is no God but Me, therefore serve Me. And [remember] when he went forth [thinking] that We had no power over him, then he cried out in the darkness: There is no God but Thee! Glory be to Thee! Lo! I have been a wrongdoer.

Then say ten times: Exalted then be Allah, the True King! There is no God save Him, the Lord of the Throne of Grace. Allah! There is no God save Him, the Lord of the Throne Supreme!

Then say ten times: And He is Allah; there is no God save Him. His is all praise in the former and the latter, His is the command, and unto Him ye will be brought back. And cry not unto any other god along with Allah. There is no God save Him. Everything will perish save His countenance. His is the command, and unto Him ye will be brought back.

Then say ten times: O mankind! Remember Allah’s grace toward you! Is there any creator other than Allah who provideth for you from the sky? There is no God save Him. Whither then are ye turned? For when it was said unto them, There is no God save Allah, they were scornful.

Then say ten times: Such is Allah, your Lord. His is the Sovereignty. There is no God save Him. How then are ye turned away? The Forgiver of sin, the Accepter of repentance, the Stern in punishment, the Bountiful. There is no God save Him. Unto Him is the journeying.

Then say ten times: Such is Allah, your Lord, Creator of all things. There is no God save Him. How then are ye perverted? Blessed be Allah, the Lord of the Worlds! He is the Living One. There is no God save Him. So pray unto Him, making religion pure for Him. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds!

Then say ten times: There is no God save Him. He quickeneth and giveth death. Your Lord and the Lord of your forefathers. How then, when their reminder cometh unto them, [will they take heed]? Know thou that there is no God save Allah, and ask forgiveness for thy sin and for believing men and believing women.

Then say ten times: He is Allah, than Whom there is no other God, the Knower of the invisible and the visible. He is the Beneficent, the Merciful. He is Allah, than Whom there is no other God, the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One, Peace, the Keeper of Faith, the Guardian, the Majestic, the Compeller, the Superb. Glorified be Allah from all that they ascribe as partner [unto Him]!

Then say after that: They measure not Allah His rightful measure. The whole earth will be His handful on the Day of Resurrection, and the heavens will be rolled in His right hand. Glorified is He and high exalted from all that they ascribe as partner [unto Him]!

Then say ten times: Allah! There is no God save Him. In Allah, then, let believers put their trust. Lord of the East and the West; there is no God save Him. So choose thou Him for thy Defender. His is the Sovereignty of the heavens and the earth, and He chose no son nor hath He any partner in the Sovereignty. He created everything and measured it very precisely.

O God! By what Thou hast revealed in Thy Book concerning the essence of my being, and the camphor of my existence, and the pure nature of my soul, and the ultimate purpose for which Thou didst create within me the consciousness of mystic knowledge and the manifestations of understanding, through that which Thy knowledge hath encompassed, that there is none other God but Thee.

Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who remember Thee. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who believe in Thy unity. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who know Thee. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who prostrate themselves. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who are humble. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who are longing. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who behold. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who fear. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who yearn. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who supplicate.

Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who seek forgiveness. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who repent. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who are remembered. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who exist. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who worship. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who return. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who draw nigh. Glory be unto Thee, O God, I was among those who elevate themselves.

For that which is attributed to me beseemeth not to be attributed to Thee, and that which is mentioned of me deserveth not to be mentioned of Thee. Glory be unto Thee above all that, and before that, and after that, and above that, and to the right of that, and to the left of that, for the first indication is the source of perdition, and the nearest indication is this or that. Glory be unto Thee, glory be unto Thee, that I should mention Thee by the mention of this or that. Nay, Thee alone do I desire. There is none other God but Thee, Lord of all things and their Creator, Provider of all things and their Fashioner, the One Who giveth life to all things. There is none other God but Thee. Thine is the creation and the command, before and after. There is none other God but Thee. Thou hast described Thyself in the Book by that which Thou didst reveal in mention of the people of Paradise when Thou didst say—and Thy word is the truth—“Their cry therein shall be Glory to Thee, O God!’ and their greeting therein Peace!’ and the close of their cry ʿPraise be to God, Lord of the worlds!”’

How then shall I mention Thee, O God, with the remembrances of grandeur and the lights of holiness and the conditions of sanctity and the manifestations of glory and the signs of the Kingdom and the tokens of the Realm and the realities of sovereignty which Thou hast deposited in the souls and horizons from Thy presence? For Thou art more glorious and greater than to be described by majesty or grandeur, and higher and more magnificent than to be characterized by magnificence and exaltation, inasmuch as all grandeur before Thy grandeur is prostrate and all greatness at the rising of the light of Thy countenance is humble. Exalted is Thy grandeur above my describing it by magnificence or greatness, and exalted is Thy greatness above my characterizing it by the attributes of holiness and majesty.

Glory be unto Thee! Thou art He to Whom belongeth grandeur over the people of Thy kingdom, Who hath clothed all created things in the garment of Thy greatness, proclaiming that Thou art more glorious than the description of magnificence and greatness, and showing that Thou art exalted above that which is created by origination. I beseech Thee, O God, by that through which Thou hast magnified Thy Self, which none can encompass in knowledge save Thee, that Thou wilt clothe me in the garments of Thy grandeur and the vestures of Thy mercy, and wilt grant me the gifts of the sovereignty of Thy Self-Subsistence, and wilt honor me with the might of the kingdom of Thy holy oneness, and wilt establish me before the throne of Thy oneness, and wilt cause me to forget every mention save the mention of Thy countenance and every pleasure of nearness save the pleasure of nearness to Thy presence.

Part 3: “For the servant’s beholding aught else but Thee…”

For the servant’s beholding aught else but Thee is a fire that consumeth him utterly, and the needy one’s being content with less than Thee is a sin that hath no equal in Thy Book. Far be it from one such as I to magnify Thy grandeur or to aspire to know Thy greatness, for unto the needy one all paths are barred and unto the seeker all ways are forbidden, and I was as naught until I remember my own self according to the glory that is Thine. Unto Thee have hands been stretched forth and necks extended, needs raised up and hearts poured out, eyes fixed intently. There is no God but Thee, the One Sovereign, the All-Compelling.

Glory be to Thee, O my God! Thou didst promise those who believed in Thee and in Thy signs that which Thou didst reveal in the Book, where Thou didst speak the truth: “The good pleasure of God is greater.” Then Thou didst acquaint me with the wonders of Thy mercy and the manifestations of Thy Lordship, that this good pleasure is with Thee a mighty creation, as Thou didst reveal concerning its recognition for whosoever desires to follow the Great Announcement and was a believer in God, the Most High, the Great, that “the remembrance of God is greater.” Through this I knew that this good pleasure is that Most Great Remembrance. Then Thou didst reinforce the word to establish the mention of Lordship after Divinity, as Thou didst reveal in the holy verse: “And thy Lord do thou magnify.” Then were gathered together the Manifestations and connected what was in the beginning and the endings in Thy Word for whosoever desired to ascend to the horizon of infinitude and settle upon the throne of fellowship in the seat of essences, as revealed in the perspicuous verses where Thou didst speak the truth: “Say: Call upon Allah, or call upon the Merciful: by whatever name ye call upon Him, to Him belong the Most Beautiful Names.”

…and lower not thy voice in thy prayer, neither raise it to excess, but follow a way between these two. And say:

“Praise be to God, Who hath not taken unto Himself a son, and Who hath no partner in the kingdom, nor hath He any protector out of abasement; and magnify Him with a mighty magnifying.”

I call Thee to witness—Thou Whom all things have witnessed in Thy sovereignty—that Thy greatness is too lofty that the very mention of magnifications should soar unto the air of Thy holiness from any created thing; and the exaltation of the dominion of Thy self-subsistence is nearer and higher than that the highest paths of immaterial beings can reach.

Glory be unto Thee, O God, and praise be unto Thee! There is none other God but Thee. God is Most Great—by that greatness whereby Thou hast magnified Thine own Self, and not by aught beside Thine own Self. For the greatness which I know, and whereunto I call Thee to witness, is but pure abasement and utter extinction; it is less than what an ant hath known of Thy greatness. Whatever I have testified of Thy majesty—glory be unto Thee!

O God! Through Thee doth every beginning begin, and unto Thee doth every return return. None can repel Thy command, nor can any turn back Thy decree. Thou hast no partner in sovereignty, and no protector out of abasement. Thou hast not taken unto Thyself a consort, nor hath Thine Essence been conjoined with any of the signs of Thy dominion; for Thou hast ever been sanctified above the praise of Thy creatures and exalted beyond the praise of Thine own Essence. Forgive, O God, whatsoever I have confessed in reliance upon Thy forgiveness; and substitute, O God, for what I deserve, that which Thou dost deserve—through Thy mercy, Thy bestowal, Thy generosity, Thy bounty, and the majesty of Thy care; for in Thy hand is grace and gracious bestowal, and in Thy grasp is liberality and honor….

Thou givest unto whom Thou willest as Thou willest, by what Thou willest; and Thou withholdest from whom Thou willest as Thou willest, by what Thou willest. Glory be unto Thee, O God, and praise be unto Thee! Glory be unto Thee, O God, and Thy greatness! Glory be unto Thee, O God, and Thy majesty! Glory be unto Thee, O God, and Thy exaltation! Glory be unto Thee, O God, and Thy self-subsistence! Glory be unto Thee, O God, as Thou art, with Thy names and attributes—names and attributes which none can encompass in knowledge save Thee.

I beseech Thee, O God, by the creative power of [the] Basmalah, and by the sanctity of [Thy] glorification, and by the dominion of the realm of the kingdom of the Mim [and its mystery], and by the primordial, everlasting divinity of the Alif, and by the subtleties of the holy grace of the carpet of the intimacy of Thy mercy, and by the banner which Thou hast raised in the Mine of Grandeur for whoso would shelter beneath the shade of the Tree of Identity, and by the guidance which Thou hast singled out for the near ones of Thy realm, and hast honored thereby [Thy chosen ones] and the people of Thy Paradise—And then by the Firstness that hath no first, and by the subtleties of Thy tenderness whereunto no tenderness is comparable; and by [the radiance of] Thy compassion; and then by the Ra’ of the appearance of Thy mercifulness upon the Throne; and then by the Ha’ of the praise whereby Thou hast [praised] Thine own Self and hast caused all within Thy dominion to be enthralled thereby;

And then by the Mim from whose right-hand side floweth the wine-water for the people of Thy unity, and whereby Thou conferrest sovereignty upon whom Thou willest of the denizens of Thy kingdom, over the realms of Thy heaven and Thy earth;

And then by the Nun whereby Thou didst create the lights, and didst appoint it a light with Thee in the Mother Book—wherein Thou hast said, and Thy word is the truth:

“God is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The likeness of His light is as a niche wherein is a lamp; the lamp is in a glass; the glass is as though it were a shining star… lit from a blessed tree, an olive neither of the East nor of the West; its oil well-nigh would shine though no fire touched it—light upon light. God guideth unto His light whom He willeth… In houses which God hath permitted to be raised, and wherein His name is remembered—therein glorify Him, morn and evening, men whom neither traffic nor selling divert from the remembrance of God, and from keeping up prayer and giving the poor-due; they fear a Day wherein hearts and eyes shall be overturned; that God may recompense them for the best of what they have done, and increase them of His bounty; and God provideth whom He willeth without reckoning.”

And then by [the] Lastness that hath no beginning and no end; and thereby Thou didst create the bounties of Paradise for its people; and by the Night wherein the Qur’an was sent down, and wherein measures were ordained for the people of exposition, and which Thou hast made, in Thy presence, better than a thousand months, even as Thou hast revealed in the Qur’an;

And then by the outspreadness of Thy vast mercy which hath encompassed all atoms and embraced all beings; and then by the Ha’ of Thy everlasting life whereby Thou bestowest upon whom Thou willest as Thou willest—Thou Who wast a Living One when there was no living one, a Living One after the extinction of every living one, a Living One with every living one, a Living One when there was no living one—yea, a Living One when none beside Thee could possibly be;

And then by the Ya’ of certainty, whereof Thou hast said—and Thy word is the truth—in the glorious Book: “Worship thy Lord until certainty come unto thee.” We have worshipped Thee, O God, our Lord, before certainty came unto us, and after it, and with it, and in it. There is no power and no might save through Thee. Thee do we worship, and from Thee do we seek help.

And then by the Mim of Thy kingship over all created things, whereof Thou hast said—and who is more truthful than Thou?—“Say: O God, Possessor of sovereignty! Thou givest sovereignty to whom Thou willest, and Thou takest sovereignty away from whom Thou willest; Thou exaltest whom Thou willest and abases whom Thou willest; in Thy hand is all good; verily Thou art powerful over all things. Thou causest the night to enter into the day, and the day to enter into the night; Thou bringest forth the living from the dead, and the dead from the living; and Thou providest whom Thou willest without measure.”

O God! By Thee, by Thy verses, and by Thy words—whoso seeketh refuge in Thee and in Thy words from that Fire—verily Thou art [He Who saveth] whom Thou willest; and Thou sayest unto it: “Be thou coolness and peace.”

I bear witness unto Thee, O my God, by what Moses, son of Imran, heard around […] the fire, where Thou didst say—and Thy word is the truth—“And when he reached it he was called, saying: Blessed is Whosoever is in the fire and Whosoever is round about it! And glorified be Allah, the Lord of the Worlds! O Moses! Lo! It is I, Allah, the Mighty, the Wise!”

Then by what he heard from the Tree on the right side of the Mount, where Thou didst say—and Thy word is the truth—“And when he came unto it, he was called from the right side of the valley in the blessed field, from the tree: O Moses! Verily I am God, the Lord of the worlds!”

Yea, I take Thee to witness, O my God, even as Thou hast witnessed unto Thyself, and I bear witness, as do all within the kingdom of Thy earth and heaven and whatsoever hath been created and shall be created […] Thy Book, that Thou art God, the Mighty, the Wise, and that Thou art God, the Lord of the worlds. Thine is the creation and the command, both before and after, and unto Thee shall all return.

I beseech Thee, O my God, by Muhammad and Ali and Fatimih and Hasan and Husayn and Ali and Muhammad and Ja’far and Musa and Ali and Muhammad and Ali and Hasan and Muhammad, and by the first pillar of the Sacred House, beneath whose shade floweth water that stagnates not, then by the second pillar of the Sacred House, where floweth a stream of milk whose taste changeth not, then by the third pillar that none […] except Thee, and by what descendeth from the right of that pillar, a river which Thou hast described in the Mother Book as wine, delightful to those who drink, then by the fourth pillar where that which was revealed on the Night of Power did cleave asunder, through which Thou didst create the Word of Magnification and make it the temple of the Muhammadan Name, even as Thou didst make the first the temple of the manifestation of the ʿAlid Name, and by the pure honey that floweth in the river created at its left hand—that Thou send blessings upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad.

And by Thy Sacred House and the Sacred Month and the four rivers which Thou hast described in the Mother Book, the sanctuaries wherein Thou hast glorified Thyself, then praised Thy Essence therein, then proclaimed Thy Unity therein, then magnified Thy Self therein, that Thou send blessings upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad.

And by the throne whereon Thou art established, which verily was created by Thy command upon four pillars: from its first pillar did all whiteness in the kingdom of earth and heaven become white, and from the second did all yellow things in the East and West become yellow by what Thou didst create throughout all cycles, and by the third wherefrom all greenness in the kingdom of beginning and end became green, then by the fourth whereby all red things which Thou hast numbered in the Mother Book became red, and Thou didst make those supreme words and most excellent similitudes but a single word, and made them all fathers, preservers and repositories of Thy mysteries and interpreters of Thy verses.

I seek Thy forgiveness, O my God, for my mention of Thee, then for my mention of Thee, then for my mention of Thee, for Thou hast not created in the temples of their most luminous hearts […] Thy Lordship and Thy Divinity, where Thou didst reveal in the exposition of the knowledge of the pillar […] as described by Thy friend, the Commander of the Faithful, in the Prayer of the Tens: In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. Say: He is God, the One! God, the Eternal! He begetteth not, nor is He begotten, and there is none like unto Him. Yea, verily Thou art God, the One, the Single, the Unique, the Eternal!

Nay, I seek Thy forgiveness for this mention of Thee, for in that Surih, in the station of Thy Names, Thou didst not mention a number higher than the letter Sad, nor doth there flow therein from above the number of Qaf. I seek Thy forgiveness for all whereby I have mentioned Thee and I turn unto Thee in repentance from all whereby I have borne witness unto Thee.

Therefore deal Thou with me, O my God, as befitteth […] the sovereign might of Thy power and the greatness of Thy glory, for I am one who cleaveth to the hem of Thy pardon and bounty, and who wandereth between the two hands of the throne of Thy Most Merciful Nature, therefore make me, O my God, as one befitting the sovereignty of Thy dominion, wherewith Thou hast described Thyself, such that after the passing away of all things, “Unto whom belongeth the Kingdom this day?” Then Thou hast loved Thyself as “Unto God, the One, the All-Compelling.”

I testify before Thee, O my God, that there is no sovereignty except Thine, before and after, there is no God but Thee. In Thee have I sought protection and refuge, in Thee have I taken shelter […] and there is no might nor power except through Thee. And verily Thy greatness, Thy dominion, Thy power and Thy majesty leave no escape in the throats of my enemies and Thine enemies.

And I say, trusting in Thee and clinging to Thy cord: “Sufficient unto me is God.” And God hath heard him who […] “I have no refuge save God.” I bear witness to that which God hath called, and He […] from whom He hath disassociated Himself, and unto God belongeth the Last and the First. Glorified be thy Lord, the Lord of Glory, from that which they describe. And peace be upon the Messengers, and praise be to God, the Lord of all worlds.