< < back to Table of Contents
Chapter 44
---------------
The Most Great Infallibility -- the station of the Independent Prophet, who receives revelation direct from God.
1)
O thou who hast set thy face towards the Realm on High and hast quaffed
My sealed wine from the hand of bounteousness! Know thou that the term
'Infallibility' hath numerous meanings and divers stations. In one
sense it is applicable to the One Whom God hath made immune from error.
Similarly it is applied to every soul whom God hath guarded against
sin, transgression, rebellion, impiety, disbelief and the like. However,
the Most Great Infallibility is confined to the One Whose station is
immeasurably exalted beyond ordinances or prohibitions and is sanctified from errors and omissions.
Indeed He is a Light which is not followed by darkness and a Truth not
overtaken by error. Were He to pronounce water to be wine or heaven to
be earth or light to be fire, He speaketh the truth and no doubt would
there be about it; and unto no one is given the right to question His
authority or to say why or wherefore. Whosoever raiseth objections will
be numbered with the froward in the Book of God, the Lord of the
worlds. 'Verily He shall not be asked of His doings but all others
shall be asked of their doings.' [1] He is come from the invisible
heaven, bearing the banner 'He doeth whatsoever He willeth' and is
accompanied by hosts of power and authority while it is the duty of all
besides Him to strictly observe whatever laws and ordinances have been
enjoined upon them, and should anyone deviate therefrom, even to the
extent of a hair's breadth, his work would be brought to naught.
[1 cf. Qur'án 21:23.]
-- Baha'u'llah, Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 108
2)
In response to thy request the Pen of Glory hath graciously described
the stations and grades of the Most Great Infallibility. The purpose is
that all should know of a certainty that the Seal of the Prophets [Muhammad]--may
the souls of all else but Him be offered up for His sake--is without
likeness, peer or partner in His Own station. The Holy Ones [The Holy Imams]--may
the blessings of God be upon them--were created through the potency of
His Word, and after Him they were the most learned and the most
distinguished among the people and abide in the utmost station of
servitude. The divine Essence, sanctified from every comparison and
likeness, is established in the Prophet [Independent Prophet], and God's inmost Reality,
exalted above any peer or partner, is manifest in Him. This is the
station of true unity and of véritable singleness. The followers of the previous Dispensation [Islam] grievously failed to acquire an adequate understanding of this station. The Primal Point [The Bab]
--may the life of all else but Him be offered up for His sake--saith:
`If the Seal of the Prophets had not uttered the word "Successorship",
such a station would not have been created.'
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 123
3)
Praise be unto God Who hath made the Most Great Infallibility the shield for the temple of His Cause in the realm of creation,
and hath assigned unto no one a share of this lofty and sublime
station--a station which is a vesture which the fingers of transcendent
power have woven for His august Self. It befitteth no one except Him
Who is seated upon the mighty throne of `He doeth what He pleaseth'.
Whoso accepteth and recognizeth that which is written down at this
moment by the Pen of Glory is indeed reckoned in the Book of God, the
Lord of the beginning and the end, among the exponents of divine unity,
they that uphold the concept of the oneness of God.
When the stream of words reached this stage, the sweet savours of true
knowledge were shed abroad and the day-star of divine unity shone forth
above the horizon of His holy utterance. Blessed is he whom His Call
hath attracted to the summit of glory, who hath drawn nigh to the
ultimate Purpose, and who hath recognized through the shrill voice of
My Pen of Glory that which the Lord of this world and of the next hath
willed. Whoso faileth to quaff
the choice wine which We have unsealed through the potency of Our Name,
the All-Compelling, shall be unable to discern the splendours of the
light of divine unity or to grasp the essential purpose underlying the
Scriptures of God, the Lord of heaven and earth, the sovereign Ruler of
this world and of the world to come. Such a man shall be accounted
among the faithless in the Book of God, the All-Knowing, the
All-Informed.
O thou honoured enquirer! We bear witness that thou didst firmly adhere
unto seemly patience during the days when the Pen was held back from
movement and the Tongue hesitated to set forth an explanation regarding
the wondrous sign, the Most Great Infallibility. Thou hast asked this
Wronged One to remove for thee its veils and coverings, to elucidate
its mystery and character, its state and position, its excellence,
sublimity and exaltation. By the life of God! Were We to unveil the
pearls of testimony which lie hid within the shells of the ocean of knowledge and assurance or to let the beauties of divine mystery which are hidden within the chambers of utterance in the Paradise of true understanding, step out of their habitation,
then from every direction violent commotion would arise among the
leaders of religion and thou wouldst witness the people of God held
fast in the teeth of such wolves as have denied God both in the
beginning and in the end. Therefore We restrained the Pen for a
considerable lapse of time in accordance with divine wisdom and for the
sake of protecting the faithful from those who have bartered away
heavenly blessings for disbelief and have chosen for their people the
abode of perdition.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 105-106
4)
Briefly, it is said that the "Dayspring of Revelation" is the manifestation of these words, "He doeth whatsoever He willeth"; this condition is peculiar to that Holy Being, and others have no share of this essential perfection. That is to say, that as the supreme Manifestations certainly possess essential infallibility, therefore whatever emanates from Them is identical with the truth, and conformable to reality.
They are not under the shadow of the former laws. Whatever They say is
the word of God, and whatever They perform is an upright action. No
believer has any right to criticize; his condition must be one of
absolute submission, for the Manifestation arises with perfect
wisdom--so that whatever the supreme Manifestation says and does is
absolute wisdom, and is in accordance with reality...
In short, the meaning of "He
doeth whatsoever He willeth" is that if the Manifestation says
something, or gives a command, or performs an action, and believers do
not understand its wisdom, they still ought not to oppose it by a
single thought, seeking to know why He spoke so, or why He did such a
thing. The other souls who are under the shadow of the supreme
Manifestations are submissive to the commandments of the Law of God,
and are not to deviate as much as a hairsbreadth from it; they must
conform their acts and words to the Law of God. If they do deviate from
it, they will be held responsible and reproved in the presence of God.
It is certain that they have no share in the permission "He doeth
whatsoever He willeth," for this condition is peculiar to the supreme
Manifestations.
So Christ--may my spirit be sacrificed to Him!--was the manifestation
of these words, "He doeth whatsoever He willeth," but the disciples
were not partakers of this condition; for as they were under the shadow
of Christ, they could not deviate from His command and will.
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 171-174
5)
Chapter 45 in Some Answered Questions is devoted to an explanation by
`Abdu'l-Bahá of this verse of the Aqdas. In this chapter He stresses,
among other things, the inseparability of essential "infallibility"
from the Manifestations of God [Independent Prophets],
and asserts that "whatever emanates from Them is identical with the
truth, and conformable to reality", that "They are not under the shadow
of the former laws", and "Whatever They say is the word of God, and
whatever They perform is an upright action".
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 199
6)
XXXVII. Blessed is the man that hath acknowledged his belief in God and
in His signs, and recognized that "He shall not be asked of His
doings." Such a recognition hath been made by God the ornament of every
belief, and its very foundation. Upon it must depend the acceptance of
every goodly deed. Fasten your eyes upon it, that haply the whisperings
of the rebellious may not cause you to slip.
Were He to decree as lawful the thing which from time immemorial had
been forbidden, and forbid that which had, at all times, been regarded
as lawful, to none is given the right to question His authority. Whoso
will hesitate, though it be for less than a moment, should be regarded
as a transgressor.
Whoso hath not recognized this sublime and fundamental verity, and hath
failed to attain this most exalted station, the winds of doubt will
agitate him, and the sayings of the infidels will distract his soul. He
that hath acknowledged this principle will be endowed with the most
perfect constancy. All honor to this all-glorious station, the
remembrance of which adorneth every exalted Tablet. Such is the
teaching which God bestoweth on you, a teaching that will deliver you
from all manner of doubt and perplexity, and enable you to attain unto
salvation in both this world and in the next. He, verily, is the
Ever-Forgiving, the Most Bountiful.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 86
7)
O thou who soarest in the atmosphere of love and fellowship and hast
fixed thy gaze upon the light of the countenance of thy Lord, the King
of creation! Render thanks unto God, inasmuch as He hath unravelled for
thee that which was hidden and enshrined in His knowledge so that
everyone may become aware that within His realm of supreme
infallibility He hath not taken a partner nor a counsellor unto
Himself. He is in truth the Dayspring of divine precepts and
commandments and the Fountainhead of knowledge and wisdom, while all
else besides Him are but His subjects and under His rule, and He is the
supreme Ruler, the Ordainer, the All-Knowing, the All-Informed.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 110
8)
He Who is the Dawning-place of God's Cause hath no partner in the Most
Great Infallibility. He it is Who, in the kingdom of creation, is the
Manifestation of "He doeth whatsoever He willeth". God hath reserved
this distinction unto His own Self, and ordained for none a share in so
sublime and transcendent a station. This is the Decree of God,
concealed ere now within the veil of impenetrable mystery. We have
disclosed it in this Revelation, and have thereby rent asunder the
veils of such as have failed to recognize that which the Book of God
set forth and who were numbered with the heedless.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 36
9)
Should differences arise amongst you over any matter, refer it to God
while the Sun still shineth above the horizon of this Heaven and, when
it hath set, refer ye to whatsoever hath been sent down by Him. This,
verily, is sufficient unto the peoples of the world.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 38
10)
Assist ye, O My people, My chosen
servants who have arisen to make mention of Me among My creatures and
to exalt My Word throughout My realm. These, truly, are the stars of the heaven of My loving providence
and the lamps of My guidance unto all mankind. But he whose words
conflict with that which hath been sent down in My Holy Tablets is not
of Me. Beware lest ye follow any impious pretender. These Tablets are
embellished with the seal of Him Who causeth the dawn to appear, Who
lifteth up His voice between the heavens and the earth. Lay hold on
this Sure Handle and on the Cord of My mighty and unassailable Cause.
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 61
CLIV. Warn, O Salman, the beloved of the one true God, not to view with
too critical an eye the sayings and writings of men. Let them rather
approach such sayings and writings in a spirit of open-mindedness and
loving sympathy. Those men, however, who, in this Day, have been led to
assail, in their inflammatory writings, the tenets of the Cause of God,
are to be treated differently. It is incumbent upon all men, each
according to his ability, to refute the arguments of those that have
attacked the Faith of God. Thus hath it been decreed by Him Who is the
All-Powerful, the Almighty.
-- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 329
O my God, aid Thou Thy servant to raise up the Word, and to refute what
is vain and false, to establish the truth, to spread the sacred verses
abroad, reveal the splendours, and make the morning's light to dawn in
the hearts of the righteous.
Thou art verily the Generous, the Forgiving.
-- Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 250
11)
That which is preeminent above all other gifts, is incorruptible in
nature, and pertaineth to God Himself, is the gift of Divine
Revelation. Every bounty conferred by the Creator upon man, be it
material or spiritual, is subservient unto this. It is, in its essence,
and will ever so remain, the Bread which cometh down from Heaven. It is
God's supreme testimony, the clearest evidence of His truth, the sign
of His consummate bounty, the token of His all-encompassing mercy, the
proof of His most loving providence, the symbol of His most perfect
grace. He hath, indeed, partaken of this highest gift of God who hath
recognized His Manifestation in this Day.
Render thanks unto thy Lord for having vouchsafed unto thee so great a
bounty. Lift up thy voice and say: All praise be to Thee, O Thou, the
Desire of every understanding heart!
-- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 194
12)
165. Recite ye the verses of God every morn and eventide. #149
Bahá'u'lláh states that the essential "requisite" for reciting "the
verses of God" is the "eagerness and love" of the believers to "read
the Word of God" (Q and A 68).
With regard to the definition
of "verses of God", Bahá'u'lláh states that it refers to "all that hath
been sent down from the Heaven of Divine Utterance". Shoghi
Effendi, in a letter written to one of the believers in the East, has
clarified that the term "verses of God" does not include the writings
of `Abdu'l-Bahá; he has likewise indicated that this term does not
apply to his own writings.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 236
13)
1431. Any Narrative not Authenticated by a Text should not be Trusted
"Thou has written
concerning the pilgrims and pilgrims' note. Any narrative that is not
authenticated by a Text should not be trusted. Narratives, even if
true, cause confusion. For the people of Baha, the Text, and only the
Text, is authentic."
('Abdu'l-Bahá: from a previously untranslated tablet)
-- Compilations, Lights of Guidance, p. 437
< < back to Table of Contents