< < back to Table of Contents
Chapter 59
---------------
Ruby (precious stone) and its symbolic association with the Independent Prophets and Dependent/Lesser Prophets.
1)
O thou whom We have outwardly never met, yet whom We inwardly cherish
in Our heart! Be fair in thy judgement and present thyself before Him
Who seeth and knoweth thee, even if thou seest and knowest Him not: Can
any soul be found to elucidate these words with such convincing
arguments, clear testimonies, and unmistakable allusions as to appease
the heart of the seeker and relieve the soul of the listener? Nay, by
the One in Whose hand is My soul! Unto none is given to quaff even a
dewdrop thereof unless he entereth within this city, a city whose
foundations rest upon mountains of crimson-coloured ruby, whose walls
are hewn of the chrysolite of divine unity, whose gates are made of the
diamonds of immortality, and whose earth sheddeth the fragrance of
divine bounty.
-- Baha'u'llah, Gems of Divine Mysteries, p. 16
2)
O Thou most holy Beauty! The unbelievers do not respite Thee that a
breath should be exhaled from Thy chest for as My voice wishes to leave
My mouth, they place the hand of hatred over My mouth and yet with all
your knowledge of this matter you command Me to raise My call in this
atmosphere for Thou art the doer in truth, Thou art the commander in
justice. Thou does what Thou wishes and Thou art wise over all things.
If Thou hearkenest to the call of Thy servant, if Thou fulfillest his
wish then forgive them with the utmost kind word and delicate utterance
that those handmaidens of eternity may return to their seats in the
crimson and ruby laden chambers.[29] Thou knowest that I have now
become afflicted between the unbelievers from two parties and Thou
commandest in both Revelations and overseest both Dispensations and
Thou art manifest in the Twin garments and Thou art resplendent through
the Two Suns and have been mentioned with the Twin Names, possessest
the Twin Dawning-places, commandest the secret of the Twin Mysteries in
these Two Lines and God is fully aware beyond all this.[30]
-- Baha'u'llah, Surih-i-Sabr (Lawh-i-Ayyúb), Surih of Patience or Tablet of Job - A provisional translation by K. Fananapazir.
3)
1.22
O Maid of inner meanings! Step out of the chamber of utterance by the
leave of God, the Lord of the heavens and the earth. Reveal, then,
thyself adorned with the raiment of the celestial Realm, and proffer
with thy ruby fingers the wine of the heavenly Dominion, that haply the
denizens of this world may perceive the light that shone forth from the
Kingdom of God when the Daystar of eternity appeared above the horizon
of glory. Perchance they may arise before the dwellers of earth and
heaven to extol and magnify this Youth Who hath established Himself in
the midmost heart of Paradise upon the throne of His name, the
All-Sufficing Helper -- He from Whose countenance shineth the
brightness of the All-Merciful, from Whose gaze appear the glances of
the All-Glorious, and in Whose ways are revealed the tokens and
evidences of God, the omnipotent Protector, the Almighty, the
All-Loving.
1.23
Grieve not if none be found to accept the crimson wine proffered by Thy
snow-white hand and to seize it in the name of Thy Lord, the Most
Exalted, the Most High -- He Who hath appeared again in His name, the
Most Glorious. Leave this people unto themselves, and repair unto the
Tabernacle of majesty and glory, wherein Thou shalt encounter a people
whose faces shine as brightly as the sun in its noontide splendour, and
who praise and extol their Lord in this Name that hath arisen, in the
plenitude of might and power, to assume the throne of independent
sovereignty. From their lips Thou shalt hear naught but the strains of
My glorification and praise; unto this Thy Lord beareth Me witness. The
existence of these people, however, hath remained concealed from the
eyes of all who, from everlasting, have been created through the Word
of God. Thus have We made plain Our meaning and set forth Our verses,
that perchance men may reflect upon the signs and tokens of their Lord.
-- Baha'u'llah, Suri of the Temple, The Summons of the Lord of Hosts, p. 13
4)
In the passage below, "how innumerable are the pearls", "How many the húrís (maidens) of inner meaning that are as yet concealed within the chambers of divine wisdom!" -- how many the pre-existent Dependent Prophets of Bahá'u'lláh? An allusion to the fact that in the era of Baha'u'llah, a Universal Manifestation,
the number of Dependent Prophets is greater than the usual number:
twelve. As a parallel, Bahá'u'lláh also cites a reference in the Quran
to Imam Hasan and Imam Husayn who were Dependent Prophets of Muhammad -- the "pearls and coral" that came out from the Two Seas ("two bodies of flowing water"): Imam
Ali and Fatima, their parents who belong to the Family of Muhammad,
cited in "Introduction to Shi'i Islam," Moojan Momen, p. 153. In Quran
55:56 where it states, "In them will be (Maidens), chaste, restraining their glances" can be paralled to "Those countenances which are hid within the chambers of chastity" and "the manifestations of Thy Divine holiness" referred to in passage further below from Prayers and Meditations CLXXXIV.
We have digressed from the purpose of Our argument, although whatsoever
is mentioned serveth only to confirm Our purpose. By God! however great
Our desire to be brief, yet We feel We cannot restrain Our pen.
Notwithstanding all that We have mentioned, how innumerable are the pearls which have remained unpierced in the shell of Our heart! How many the húrís of inner meaning that are as yet concealed within the chambers
of divine wisdom![1] None hath yet approached them;--húrís, "whom no
man nor spirit hath touched before." Notwithstanding all that hath been
said, it seemeth as if not one letter of Our purpose hath been uttered,
nor a single sign divulged concerning Our object. When will a faithful
seeker be found who will don the garb of pilgrimage, attain the Ka'bih
of the heart's desire, and, without ear or tongue, discover the
mysteries of divine utterance? [1 Qur'an 55:56.]
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 70
55:19 He has let free the two bodies of flowing water, meeting together:
55:20 Between them is a Barrier which they do not transgress:
55:21 Then which of the favours of your Lord will ye deny?
55:22 Out of them come Pearls and Coral:...
55:37 When the sky is rent asunder, and it becomes red like ointment:
55:38 Then which of the favours of your Lord will ye deny?...
55:56 In them will be (Maidens), chaste, restraining their glances, whom no man or Jinn before them has touched;-
55:57 Then which of the favours of your Lord will ye deny?-
55:58 Like unto Rubies and coral.
-- The Qurán 55 - AR-RAHMAN
Lauded be Thy name, O Thou Who art the Goal of my desire! I
swear by Thy glory! How great is my wish to attain unto a detachment so
complete that were there to appear before me those countenances which are hid within the chambers of chastity, and the beauty of which Thou didst veil
from the eyes of the entire creation, and whose faces Thou didst
sanctify from the sight of all beings,and were they to unveil
themselves in all the glory of the splendors of Thine incomparable
beauty, I would refuse to look upon them, and would behold them solely
for the purpose of discerning the mysteries of Thy handiwork, which
have perplexed the minds of such as have drawn nigh unto Thee, and awed
the souls of all them that have recognized Thee. I would, by Thy power
and Thy might, soar to such heights that nothing whatsoever would have
the power to keep me back from the manifold evidences of Thy
transcendent dominion, nor would any earthly scheme shut me out from
the manifestations of Thy Divine holiness.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Prayers and Meditations, p. 337
< < back to Table of Contents