BB00076: Tasbih-i-Fatimih

Part 1: “I glorify the glory of Him Whose essence…”

In the Name of God, the Most High, the Most Great

I glorify the glory of Him Whose essence of being none knoweth, nor the pure existence of His Self, nor the manifestation of His Presence when it shall be. Glorified be He! He hath ever been self-subsisting in the dominion of His sanctity without mention of aught beside Him in His eternity, and He shall ever be in the kingdom of His might, naught mentioned before Him in the court of His glory. Unto such a King, the Ancient Sovereign, the All-Wise Lord, and the All-Knowing Beloved, befitteth the negation of all praise from His holy court and the negation of negation from His beauty, for whatever creation perceiveth is limited by origination, whatever hearts know is bound by invention, whatever servants describe is confined by the geometry of things, and whatever sustaineth the Throne is defined by temporal existence. Never hath He had description in His dominion nor attribute in His kingdom, for the highest essence of awareness and perception is as naught before Him, and the loftiest realities of pure abstraction are non-existent in His presence.

Through the essential nature of His eternal countenance, all things are brought to naught before the station of His knowledge, and through the reality of His pristine beauty, all creation and its people are cut off from describing His attributes. Every essence of description is falsehood before His threshold, and every abstract attribute is untruth before His countenance.

Glorified is He! I bear witness that there is no God but Him, as He is, without any being able to know how He is, though I know my very existence is pure sin before Him—how then could my testimony of Him be worthy? Existence itself is steeped in sin and cannot indicate God. So glory be to God, though I know all paths are cut off; praise be to God, though I recognize all ways are blocked; God is Most Great, though I witness the impossibility of all records.

Glory be to God with true glorification, despite my utter incapacity and poverty; praise be to God as befitteth Him in my journey and dwelling; and God is Most Great as He deserveth in my hereafter and my worldly life.

O my God! This is a holy night which Thou hast blessed with Thy favor and distinguished by revealing therein the Qur’an through Thy grace, making it better than a thousand months through Thy generosity. I beseech Thee therein for the best of good—Thy Greatest Remembrance—and I seek refuge with Thee from the worst of evil—fleeing from Thee and being distant from Thee—in the Greatest Scene and the Illumined Horizon.

I beseech Thee by Thy Name, the Hidden, the Treasured, the Protected, the Pure, the Holy, the Blessed, the Most Glorious, the Most Great, the Most Generous, the Most Exalted, the Most High, the Most Ancient, the Most Mighty, the Most Elevated, that Thou send blessings upon Muhammad, Thy servant and Thy Messenger, in all that Thou possessest of the grace of the All-Giving and the existence of the Ever-Accepting.

And I beseech Thee to send peace upon Thy servant, this suppliant who hath descended at Thy exalted threshold seeking Thy presence, yearning for Thee, fearful of Thee, fleeing unto Thee, and arriving before Thee—Muhammad, Ali, Fatimih, Hasan, Husayn, Ali, Muhammad, Ja’far, Musa, Ali, Muhammad, Ali, Hasan, and Muhammad.

By all Thy divine manifestations, Thy holy revelations, Thy glorified attributes, Thy heavenly names, the fragrances of Thy holy glory, the lights of Thy ancient splendor, and whatsoever hath been honored in Thy holy court through the wondrous Command and the new Creation—for verily Thou art the Lord of grace and the God of all hopes—bestow upon whomsoever Thou willest as Thou willest.

I beseech Thee, O God, by the right of Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, to send peace upon Thy servant, the praiser in Thy kingdom and the praised in Thy heaven and earth—Ahmad—and upon the followers of Thy Expected Proof and Thy Greatest Friend, and to include in what hath been revealed unto him before Thee the patient one in Thy good-pleasure and the proclaimer of Thy verses—Kazim—through Thy grace and mercy, then Thy generosity and care. I beseech Thee to bestow Thy grace upon Thy friend—he who summoneth unto Thee, pointeth to Thee, abideth upon the Mount, and proclaimeth in the darkest night—that verily Thou, O my God, art He Who sendeth down good from the primal origins of causes.

Send down upon us all that by which Thou hast named Thyself, and ordain for us all that Thy knowledge encompasseth of Thy bounty, and decree for us all that Thy Book specifieth through Thy generosity. Grant all that Thou teachest Thy creation and knowest in the sovereignty of Thy might, art powerful over, and encompasseth in the kingdom of Thy dominion—as a bounty from Thee through Thy favors and as a gift from Thee through Thy glory, without our souls deserving any benevolence, without God mentioning us in any utterance. For Thy way is beneficence and Thy practice is bestowing favors.

The cause of Thy grace hath ever been Thy grace, just as Thou didst originate my creation through favors and bestow upon me hopes. Thou art indeed independent of all things while all are in need of Thee. If Thou hast no mercy upon us this night, whither shall I flee? And if Thou forgivest us not this evening, who shall forgive us?

I beseech Thee by Thy generosity at this time when I flee unto Thee, confess before Thee, fear Thee, desire Thee, am in awe of Thee, am apprehensive of Thee, and have no path except toward Thee, to send down upon us from the midst of the treasuries of Thy grace and the surging oceans of Thy generosity the sovereign relief from Thee and the way of deliverance with Thee. For in Thy hand is the sovereignty of destiny and in Thy grasp the kingdom of decree, and in Thy right hand all is made easy. Look upon us with a near glance and deliver us from this ordeal, for through it hearts have weakened, souls have grown heavy, voices have been humbled, and needs have been raised to Thy holy court, O King of earth and heaven, O Sovereign of names and attributes!

Though I know that my asking of Thee is the greatest sin, for Thou art too exalted to be asked, just as Thou didst initiate all without their asking, bestow upon all without their deserving or supplication. For the gates of Thy grace on this night are opened, the voices of those calling upon Thee are ascending, the spirits of Thy response from Thy presence are descending, and all affairs are determined by the decree of Thy proof.

I beseech Thee by Thy judgment from which there is no escape and Thy execution from which there is no flight, to ordain for me and for those who follow me and who love me every grace encompassed by Thy knowledge and every bounty preserved in Thy Book. For Thy hands are filled with mercy, Thy countenance is radiant with honor, Thy visage gazes with compassion. Unto Thee have steps hastened to Thy Sacred House, hearts have overflowed at the Corner and Station, necks have stretched toward Thee in what is lawful and forbidden.

Unto Thee have needs been raised with mention of nothingness, and upon Thee have important matters descended, O Lord of Majesty and Bounty! Grant us what profiteth Thee not and bestow upon us what harmeth Thee not though it benefiteth us, for all good is in Thy hand, all grace is from Thee, all bounty is from Thee, and all command returneth to Thee. None hath any portion save what Thou hast ordained, nor any share save what Thou hast decreed.

Write for me through Thy mercy all Thy mercy, through Thy care all Thy care, through Thy giving all Thy giving, through Thy bounty all Thy bounty, through Thy grace all Thy grace, through Thy generosity all Thy generosity, through Thy bestowing nature all Thy bestowing nature. Leave in that all that Thou lovest, and send down upon my father in the holy presence that which will bring him to the station of intimacy with Thee, delight in Thy remembrance, and occupation with gazing upon Thy countenance; and upon my mother that which will transform her grief into joy from Thee, cool her eyes through Thy vengeance upon Thine enemies, and grant her what she desires.

In the name of God, to Whose good-pleasure I have devoted my soul! Bestow Thy bounty upon both the living and departed among the believers, men and women, and upon the followers of Islam, both men and women, through that which exists and shall exist, through Thy grace, mercy, generosity, gifts, beneficence and bestowal, and through that which pertains to Thy eternal sovereignty, Thy everlasting kingdom, and Thy endless dominion. For all existence before Thee comes from naught; therefore show mercy unto him who, before Thee, was as nothing, created from nothing by Thy command. For verily, all Thy power lies in Thy word “Be,” and thus dost Thou create whatsoever Thou willest as Thou willest, and bring into being whatsoever Thou desirest as Thou desirest.

Were it not that Thou hast ordained the fire for those who forget Thy remembrance and who show pride before Thy near ones among Thy chosen ones, by Thy glory, I would have been the first of those beseeching Thee on their behalf for Thy favors, and the first of those imploring Thee with reverence. But since Thou hast forbidden them the decree of those near unto Thee, Thy existence in respect to the unity-professing ones, and Thy grace in respect to the knowing ones, I love not to ask save what Thou hast ordained, nor to seek save what Thou hast decreed. For Thou art more merciful than every merciful one, more kind than every kind one, more generous than every generous one, and more bountiful than every bountiful one.

What am I, and my remembrance of Thee, then my supplication unto Thee, then my confession of powerlessness before Thee, then my acknowledgment of my sins before Thee? Glory be unto Thee! There is no God but Thee! Glory be unto Thee! Verily I am of those who supplicate. Praise be unto Thee! There is no God but Thee! Glory be unto Thee! Verily I am of those who remember. Grandeur be unto Thee! Glory be unto Thee! There is no God but Thee! Glory be unto Thee! Verily I am of those who know. I seek Thy forgiveness for all things and turn unto Thee, and I say there is no power nor strength save in Thee.

What I asked of God, He hath granted me. Praise be to God, the Lord of the worlds! Thy book hath indeed been sent down unto me on this Night of Power, and I have beheld it with mine eyes upon that Greatest Mountain, and I bear witness to that which was inscribed therein by the decree of the Pen. I asked God to make thee steadfast upon the path through a hidden command. Know thou that all good is mentioned in the remembrance of my Lord and thy Lord, and all evil is decreed for him who turneth away from the remembrance of my Lord and thy Lord. There is no glory with God save through obedience to Him. How many servants have possessed the east of the earth and its west, yet are now being gathered into the fire of hell! And there is no abasement with God save through disobedience to Him. How many servants possessed nothing in this world, yet recline upon couches in Paradise! This indeed is God’s favor unto whom He willeth, and this indeed is God’s punishment for whom He decreeth.

Part 2: “Bear thou witness to what thou hast asked…”

Bear thou witness to what thou hast asked in the spirit of thy book concerning the secret of the glorification of Fatimih, the Resplendent, its unity and its symbols, that if all existence were ink, then seas, then tablets, then writers to explain a single letter thereof, these would be exhausted before one of its mysteries could be revealed.

But due to my extreme distress, utmost poverty, and complete powerlessness, through a slight sprinkling, as if dripping from the drops of the seas of the Trinity, know thou that glorification is the first pillar of the Throne, and its explanation is unity in the words “There is no God but God.” Then praise is the second pillar of the Throne, and its name was “Praise be to God.” And magnification is the third pillar of the Throne, the manifestations of the letters of the Guardianship, and its attribute was “God is Most Great.”

And the attribution of all this unto Fatimih, upon her be peace, proceedeth from the very station of her origin which is the Divine Decree [qadar]—the third side of the triangle of threefoldness in the primordial point of action—being the form of the triangle whose name is the Most High [ali]. For she is verily the Night of Power, inasmuch as the Ha’ which God sent down therein through His words ʿVerily We sent it down’ is that which was made manifest in the last letter of her name.

And it is the letter through which existence endures for the Face and annihilation, and it is the mystery of unity [tawhid] and the inner essence of glorification. All things have appeared through its grace and bounty. When He made it equal to His Word and described it as righteousness in the kingdom of names, and its mystery is the Lord in the holy presence of the cloud, and its handiwork is righteousness in the righteousness of the world of annihilation, which is a green earth wherein grow the trees of Ha which none can cut down save by God’s leave. And that which is mentioned in the tradition that it equals a thousand prostrations is because God made the Night of Power better than a thousand months. And verily “I” refers to the station of Lordship attributed to God, exalted be His mention. And the ha is the station of Muhammad, and the Night is the station of Fatima, peace be upon her, and what is meant by the angels are the Imams, and the Spirit is ʿAli.

This is the interpretation according to the outward meaning. And if you desire the inward path, verily the One sent down is He Who appeared through the ha, for the ha, in the ha. And verily all the degrees of His manifestation tell of Its own essence. You see in the countenance of none from the family of God and Muhammad and Fatima and Muhammad except the countenance manifest from God unto them, their Lord, in their station. And verily it is the ha, and it is the manifestation of the Point, for it possesses pillars and within those are five points which their outward indicates their inward, and their unseen their visible.

And if you desire the difficult path, the hidden way, the most luminous method, and the greatest path in the station of the inmost of the inmost, I have no opportunity now for what I wish, for it is time for the night prayer. When I am finished, then to the wisdom of the beginning and the end, for verily He is the Generous, possessed of bounties, the Bestower, possessed of majesty, the All-Giving, possessed of gifts. Nothing in the heavens or earth is too great for Him, and He is the King, the Powerful, the Exalted.

Behold then with the eye of thine heart, and take thy portion from the mystery of creation, and thy share from the fruit of existence, and thy progress from that outpouring, and thy provision from that ink for the Day of Resurrection. Verily, there shall the Herald cry out unto all lands and servants that God, thy Lord, lieth in wait.

Know thou that the decree of glorification and praise are, in the sight of God, alike, and that with Him the reality of sanctification and praise are as the point of equilibrium. Nay rather, were the servant to become established upon the carpet of origination, and to witness the decree of the Divine Will after the ordinance, and to hear mention of the Tree of Sinai ere the final irrevocable command, and to drink the water of laudation from the chalice of the sovereign Lord of glory, and to efface from around his heart every darkness of the dusky multitude, and from around his mind every blindness of the sightless, and from around his soul every deafness of the dusty, that he might pause to observe the dawning of the light of eternity from the morn of radiance—then would he know that glorification is unto God, and that praise is unto God, and that magnification is unto God; and that the first beareth the light of the First, and that the second beareth the effulgence of the Second, and that the third beareth the effulgence of the Fourth. For this reason hath the word of Divinity been given precedence over mention of Grandeur.

And the word ʿthere is no God but God’ is not meet in the station of manifesting the three pillars, inasmuch as the first is the pillar of Unity, and the second is the word of Sovereignty in the Praiser, the Praised, and the Praiseworthy; and in the third is the word of Sovereignty for the seas of abstraction and the proofs of singularity. Therefore hath the dawning-place of the Divine Essence appeared in advance within the manifestation of Sovereignty, for there Sovereignty belongeth unto God, the True One. And verily the first thing God chose for Himself is the Most High, the Most Great, and His Book beareth witness thereto. And verily God is the Most High, the Most Great.

This is but a drop from the surging, boundless, and tumultuous ocean, for this Day all glory returneth unto God in both beginning and end. If thou desirest to comprehend the true meaning, consider what We have revealed in the Tafsir-i-Hamd for the questioner whom God made the answerer. For therein the heaven was raised, the balance established, Glory manifested, and the Revelation sent down—sufficient proof for every soul and every eye. And whoso desireth to witness the bounty of the All-Merciful in His Book, the Furqan—which of thy Lord’s favors canst thou deny? Is it ʿAli? Is it Muhammad? Know thou the path with humility.

This is a mention from the songs of the birds of the divine cloud, upon the leaves of the Tree of Manifestation, and from the warbling of the dove of Mount Sinai upon the branches of the camphor tree, and from the melodies of the nightingale of eternity atop the Tree of Light. Open thou the gate of thine hearing, for therein the trumpet of the Jealous King is blown, and the bugle of the Sovereign of months is sounded, and the darkness is illumined by the Praised One, and all are called by the Grateful King. For this is the Day of Light, the Day of the Mystery of Manifestation, the Day of the passing of darkness when the earth shineth with the light of its Lord, the Forgiving One.

Know thou that God’s bounty hath neither beginning nor end. What is mentioned in the tradition regarding the reward for that exalted glorification and that lofty, sublime remembrance is for the purpose of refining hearts and educating souls from among the heedless ones. The love of God and its requirements, and the reward of God’s remembrance and His Manifestation, are beyond all limits and numbers in the reckoning of existence. Nay, by thy Lord! I do not limit the reward of thy Lord nor set bounds for it. Rather, I promise that whosoever rendeth the veils of light and attaineth unto the source of grandeur in the court of Manifestation, God will grant him all that is attributed to Him and all that is associated with Him, and will increase from His bounty upon whomsoever He willeth. This indeed is the great attainment, the transcendent, resplendent light, and the manifest revelation in wisdom for whoso hath numbered the geometry of destiny for an appointed day.

Sufficient is what We have caused to shine upon thee, and none can inform thee like one who is wise and hidden. 1268.

Peace be from the essence of Peace, and from Him Who is the Source of Peace, and unto Him returneth Peace, unto every muslim who hath submitted his cause and awakened from the sleep of his beginning. I counsel thee and whosoever seeketh Me that this world is like a day—when thou diest thou shalt see naught of it, and thy hands shall be empty of all things save for him whom God hath granted a sound heart, who hath followed the wise Remembrance, the mighty Command, and the precious Symbol.

Verily that which occupieth people shall not profit them at the hour of death, whereunto pointeth the word of the King of Names and Attributes: “Rivalry in worldly increase distracteth you until ye visit the graves.” That is, that to which ye turn is none other than the One God, Single, Most Praised, Eternal. The multiplicity is but from the examples of extension and invented geometry, and it remaineth with you until ye enter the graves in fear. Nay! Ye shall soon know. Nay! Were ye to know with the knowledge of certainty, ye would behold the hell-fire, then would ye surely see it with the eye of certainty. Then on that day shall ye be questioned concerning the bounty. And today all are questioned concerning the bounty, for it is that mighty Pillar, that ancient Name, and that knowing Attribute. Therefore turn thou to the first forbearing believer, for entry into the house is not fitting save through the door. Therefore cleave thou to the love of that Excellence, for he is the first spirit who hath partaken of the fruits of the Tree of Eternity. Sufficient is my Lord unto me and unto all who seek me.

He Who created me, then sustained me, causes me to die and then brings me back to life, then unto Him shall all return. Glorified be Thy Lord, the Lord of the Throne, above that which they describe. Peace be upon the Messengers. And all praise be unto God, the Lord of the worlds.