BB00255: Ziyarat li-Avvali man aman

In the Name of God, the Most Unapproachable, the Most Holy

Glorified art Thou, O my God! I testify before Thee on this day, the Day of Friday, and before all things, that Thou art God, there is no God but Thee, alone without partner. Thine is the dominion and the kingdom, Thine the might and the power, Thine the strength and the sovereignty, Thine the force and authority. Thou givest life and causest death, then causest death and givest life. Verily, Thou art the Ever-Living Who dieth not, the Single One Who passeth not away, the King Who perisheth not, the Sovereign Who changeth not. Thou createst what Thou willest by Thy command. Verily, Thou art powerful over all things.

Then turn to the Sun and say: May the Most Glorious Glory and the Most Exalted Sublimity from Thy Lord, the God of all things, be upon thee, O thou Rising Sun, Eternal Sign, Divine Countenance, Most Holy Face, and Garment of Unity! I testify before thee and all things that there is no God but Him, my Lord and thy Lord. He hath ever been One God, Single, Alone, Self-Subsisting. He hath no partner in sovereignty, nor any protector in the earth save by His leave. He hath ordained the creation of all things by His power and hath fashioned the essence of all things by His will.

I shall testify before thee from this moment until the Day of Resurrection, that thou mayest bear witness before God concerning that which I have testified to thee, for that is the Day of Judgment and Decree. God, thy Lord, shall judge between His servants and shall recompense every soul according to what it hath earned, by His creation. Nothing escapeth His knowledge, whether in the heavens or on the earth or between them, and nothing in the kingdom of command or creation or what lieth beneath them can frustrate Him. Verily, He is powerful over all things.

Then turn to [Him Who is] established upon His throne and settled upon His seat and say: Glory be unto Thee, O my God! Verily Thou art Peace, and from Thee cometh peace, and unto Thee returneth peace, and Thou art the Creator of peace. Thou hast ever been exalted in Thine Essence above the most sublime essences of all contingent beings reaching toward the horizon of Thy majesty’s glory, and Thou wilt ever be sanctified in Thine Entity at a height which no being can attain through the manifestation of its essential reality. I beseech Thee, O my God, in this hour on Friday, before Thy Beloved, Thy Friend, Thy Chosen One, Thy Intimate One, and Thy Trusted One, by that which Thou hast revealed unto Him, that Thou wilt bless the Tree of Affirmation, its root, branch, twigs, leaves and fruits with every blessing Thou hast created or wilt create, with every mercy Thou hast spread or wilt spread, with every gift Thou hast bestowed or wilt bestow upon anyone, with every honor Thou hast conferred or wilt confer upon anyone, and with every bounty Thou hast sent down by Thy command or wilt send down. For every good by which something is remembered descendeth from the heaven of Thy glory’s clouds, and whatsoever is below that is created by Thy justice.

I testify before Thee, O my God, that the Tree of Thy Unity hath ever been unapproachable, exalted, transcendent, holy, magnificent, glorious, mighty, sovereign, and ruling. It hath been elevated above every elevation through its indication of Thee, and raised above every height through its confronting Thy Will, for Thou hast tested all Thy creation in Thy unity through the manifestation of Him Whom Thou hast established in the station of Thy uniqueness and upon Whom Thou hast sent down the signs of Thy grandeur. For whosoever hath truly believed in Thy servant in Thy unity, then he hath no will save the Will underlying the Will of Thy uniqueness, no desire save its desire, no power save its power, no decree save its decree, no term save its term, no permission save its permission, and no book besides His Books.

And if there be in any soul aught beside His Will, such would not be among the proofs of Thy unity nor among the manifestations of Thy sanctity, but rather a sign of the fire and within it, for Thou hast not created any fire more intense than separation from Thee, and Thou hast not decreed anything Thou lovest not to be mentioned more remote than that which would indicate will besides Thy Will. By Thy glory, I shall surely flee from such a state unto Thee, and shall turn through Thee to Thee, that I may not indicate anything except Thee, for that is the ultimate ascent of the servant unto Thee, and the final height to which the servant can rise unto Thee.

Therefore, O my God, cause at that time the entire tree and whatsoever shall be its return and abode to be according to what Thou lovest and art pleased with, for whosoever departeth from beneath its shade entereth into the shadow of the fire, as there is naught between negation and affirmation, and whosoever is therein is either in Thy fire or in Thy paradise—around these two do all contingent beings revolve and all created things circle. Therefore, O my God, protect me from all fire and grant me paradise and whatsoever Thou hast created therein, for I know of no fire more intense than remoteness from Thee, and no paradise more exalted than nearness unto Thee. Glorified art Thou! There is no God but Thee. Below that fire is the limit of existence, and below that paradise is the paradise of existence.

I verily seek Thy forgiveness for all that Thou lovest not, and I beseech Thee for all that Thou lovest to send down upon that Most Exalted Branch and the Most Impregnable, Most Glorious Exemplar, and upon whosoever followeth His path among the former and latter ones, the outer and inner ones, until the Day wherein Thou shalt judge, for that is the Day of Judgment. Grant me, O my God, on that Day complete certitude, for I have already witnessed therein from before, when naught remained save Thee. Therefore, O my God, on that Day encompass all who have believed in Thee and in Thy signs, for Thou art the Lord of all worlds. He is God. And unto God belongeth all command before and after, and verily unto God shall all return.