BB00033: Kitabu’l-Qiyama

God beareth witness that there is none other God but Him and that whatsoever is beside Him hath been created by Him and all are His worshippers. And verily I bear witness unto God, my Lord, the Lord of the heavens and the Lord of the earth, the Lord of all things. None other God is there but Him, His is the creation and the command. Nothing escapeth His knowledge; His is whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is on earth and whatsoever lieth between them. Nothing can frustrate Him. His is whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is on earth and whatsoever lieth between them. Verily He is the All-Knowing, the All-Informed, the All-Powerful.

None can be concealed in the secret of His mystery. The command is His, nothing escapeth God’s knowledge, neither in the kingdom of the heavens nor on earth nor between them. There is none other God but Him, unto Him belong might and majesty. There is none other God but Him, unto Him belong power and beauty. I counsel you concerning that which God hath created of Him Whom God shall make manifest. I bear witness unto the greatest of that which they attain, not unto that which they desire. Worship ye not God while ye were among the sincere ones? Ask not of God that which He heareth not concerning it. His are the most excellent names, if they would but turn unto Him. Nay, God is far more exalted than that anything should escape […] Yet do I seek forgiveness of God for Him Whom God shall make manifest, and for the grief that cometh unto you save […] that ye may not grieve Him. Through Him are manifested all names in the kingdoms of the heavens and of the earth and of that which lieth between them, and all are possessed of knowledge thereof.

Should they desire Glory, verily He is in His dominion if they would be guided. And should they desire the Primal Point, verily He is in the treasuries of His command. Verily they worship none but Him. And should they desire good-pleasure, verily He is upon His seat of glory. Verily they bow down before none but Him. And should they desire sovereignty, verily He is upon His throne. Verily they render thanks unto none but Him. And should they desire all names, then each one is a manifestation of His name, glorifying Him by night and by day, and exalting Him until they follow God and His command. He hath set forth this example for you, but ye were among those who were far removed.

And I set forth this example in knowledge that ye might remember […] whether they hear, see, witness, obey, know and magnify. And verily the example of the names of God is like unto your hearing, your sight and your hearts. Were it not that God heareth them through them, they would have nothing of themselves. Thus after your death ye are raised up and unto Him do ye bear witness, if ye bear witness. Let each one of you consider himself as a single soul and bear witness unto all beside him if […] created by Him through Him. Verily we all stand faithful unto that. That from thee in the souls […] that in time if they would but ponder.

An example for Him Whom God shall make manifest: a sovereign king who strengtheneth all […] and they upon […] prostrate themselves by night and by day. And they ask about those who are in His grasp, for verily ye shall not be among those who regret.

And likewise if He Whom God will make manifest were to be asked about names and attributes, verily ye would not be counted among those who believe in divine unity. And if the King should deem something difficult, then in His utterance He is like one who rides that which is difficult. God sendeth down from heaven the angels who, by His command, labor day and night. There is no God but God, the One, the Self-Subsisting. If the King should wish to bestow, then from the treasuries of His bounty and whatsoever He commandeth, thus do they recite of His oneness, if they but knew. And when He wisheth to seize with might, then appeareth from the beginning the intensity of His grasp.

Thus if God should wish to seize with might, He would manifest through those endowed with might from among His creation whatsoever He willeth, for verily He is the All-Compelling, the Mighty. God hath unto Him such similitudes, and there is none like unto God and His creation, nor beneath them do they know the similitudes. By your own selves then worship ye Him. And if the King should wish to honor a soul, then verily will He honor him through the means of His kingdom, and likewise do they observe beneath God. Thus if God should wish to exalt a servant He would exalt him through what He hath placed in the treasuries of His most beautiful names, for He is the Mighty, the Beloved.

And when God wisheth to abase a servant according to what his hands have wrought, then verily will this be manifested from the treasuries of His names whereby He created once. The Manifestation of that name is verily the Abaser, the Dreaded.

Let him whom God shall make manifest be unto thee as the name of God, then unto Him shall ye profess His unity. And if He should wish by His own self to honor a soul, He will honor him by His command as He pleaseth, for He is the Mighty, the Beloved. Make mention that all are honored by reason of His self, and verily the kingdom is Thine and all names and conditions, if ye but knew. And if He wishes to show His might over anyone, He shall manifest His Own Self—verily He is the Mighty, the All-Subduing, the Feared. And if knowledge is sought, verily knowledge has manifestation in His names through which all know. Similarly for you are all names and examples, if you but knew what lies within yourselves and pondered upon the horizons.

Nay, God is the Creator of all things, and knowledge is but created in time—He knows His creation and He is the Powerful, the Inaccessible, the Exalted, the Beloved. He is the Lord by Whom His knowledge is strengthened from all things in the heavens and on earth and whatsoever lies between them. He is the Powerful, the Inaccessible, the Guardian, the Self-Subsisting. Were He to desire the heavens and earth, none could grasp what is in His hand through the assistance of a thousand thousand matters until reaching God.

Thus if God willed for them, He would guide a soul at once as He guides the angels in all things, if you would acknowledge for God that His Command is nearer than “Be, and it is.” For if the angel were to pass by one of you—there is no God but Him, the Victorious in His dominion—he would see from you what you know not. Likewise, had God not commanded those who take and those who bind, then verily the angels of the All-Merciful would still be the manifestations of His command in attribute—whether to seize, or to inscribe, or to proclaim. Then do they declare the oneness of God, your Lord, the All-Merciful; then do they praise Him and give thanks unto Him. Yours is not to sorrow, nor to weep, nor to utter words of lament concerning Him Whom God shall make manifest. If it is He alone that ye truly unify, and if ye prostrate yourselves, then remember of His Most Beautiful Names that which relieveth your hearts, not that over which ye grieve; for we indeed follow Him. He is, exalted is He, far above that; and how should a soul be saddened on His account, if ye but knew?

And remember, before Him, all that exalteth His mention—those whom He hath ascribed unto His servants, that He may succor you with His signs as He willeth, by His command. Verily, He is the All-Commanding, the Inaccessible, the Most Exalted, the Self-Subsisting. He beareth witness to a single letter—nay, were it nine times nineteen letters, the count would not encompass it. They neither present aught to Him, nor inform Him thereof, nor originate speech about Him, nor remember by Him on His behalf, nor publish it abroad. For whatsoever ye commemorate, ye cannot therewith compel Him to hearken, nor to behold with your eyes.

When God sendeth down the verses of mercy, then those who outwardly bear them show mercy, until the Day of Resurrection. And when He willeth that He be worshipped and remembered by a word of subduing might or of smiting power, should He desire such utterance, then the manifestations of force and of chastisement endure, until the Day of Resurrection—as though they had been created by His word to subdue and to smite. Let God abide, for by His word hath He brought creation into being; and that which hath not appeared from your bodies, He created thereby.

Thus, if He sendeth down the verses of mercy, lo, those are the manifestations of mercy until the Day of Resurrection, that haply ye may be shown compassion. And if God sendeth down the verses of severity and of smiting, then are they the manifestations thereof until the Day of Resurrection—smiting and overpowering. Follow ye, then, the command of God, and He shall recompense… even as ye behold. And we verily are watchful until the Day of Resurrection….