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Chapter 62
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"Servant" as a reference to the Manifestations of God (both Independent Prophets and Dependent/Lesser Prophets).
1)
"Servant" -- Baha'u'llah, the Independent Prophet.
This servant will now share with thee a dewdrop out of the fathomless
ocean of the truths treasured in these holy words, that haply
discerning hearts may comprehend all the allusions and the implications
of the utterances of the Manifestations of Holiness, so that the
overpowering majesty of the Word of God may not prevent them from
attaining unto the ocean of His names and attributes, nor deprive them
of recognizing the Lamp of God which is the seat of the revelation of
His glorified Essence.
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 28
2)
"Servant" -- the Bab, the Independent Prophet.
I yield Thee such thanks as can cause the Nightingale of Glory to pour
forth its melody in the highest heaven: "Ali (the Bab), in truth, is
Thy servant, Whom Thou hast singled out from among Thy Messengers and
Thy chosen Ones, and made Him to be the Manifestation of Thyself in all
that pertaineth unto Thee, and that concerneth the revelation of Thine
attributes and the evidences of Thy names."
-- Baha'u'llah, Prayers and Meditations by Baha'u'llah, p. 329
3)
In the passage below from the Hidden Words, "My servant", is the Dependent Prophet of
Baha'u'llah, who is also the Face of God (like Baha'u'llah). The
statement "his face is My face" is true when the Manifestations of God
are viewed from the "station of pure abstraction and essential unity";
the same way the Holy Imams said, "Muhammad is our first, Muhammad our
last, Muhammad our all." which is cited by Baha'u'llah in the
Kitab-i-Iqan when explaining the "station of pure abstraction and essential unity" of the Manifestations of God. "be then abashed before Me" -- recognise the sovereignty of the Dependent Prophet (who is the Face of God) -- recognise the sovereignty of God.
30. O SON OF MAN!
Deny not My servant should he ask anything from thee, for his face is My face; be then abashed before Me.
-- Baha'u'llah, The Arabic Hidden Words
4)
"My chosen servants" are the
Dependent Prophets of Baha'u'llah, who are also the "Sure Handle" and the "Cord", like the Holy Imams in the era of Muhammad.
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
5)
"His servants" are the Dependent Prophets of Baha'u'llah, and else besides them are as naught,
as described in more detail in subsequent passage from the Iqan about
the Manifestations of God.
Take heed lest ye hesitate in recognizing this resplendent Beauty when
once He hath appeared in the plenitude of His sovereign might and
majesty. He, verily, is the True One, and all else besides Him is as
naught before a single one of His servants, and paleth into nothingness
when brought face to face with the revelation of His splendours.
Hasten, then, to attain the living waters of His grace, and be not of
the negligent. As to him who hesitateth, though it be for less than a
moment, God shall verily bring his works to naught and return him to
the seat of wrath; wretched indeed is the abode of them that tarry!
-- Baha'u'llah, Suri of the Temple, The Summons of the Lord of Hosts, p. 54
And of all men, the most accomplished, the most distinguished and the
most excellent are the Manifestations of the Sun of Truth. Nay, all
else besides these Manifestations, live by the operation of their Will,
and move and have their being through the outpourings of their grace.
"But for Thee, I would have not created the heavens." Nay, all in their
holy presence fade into utter nothingness, and are a thing forgotten.
Human tongue can never befittingly sing their praise, and human speech
can never unfold their mystery. These Tabernacles of holiness, these
primal Mirrors which reflect the light of unfading glory, are but
expressions of Him Who is the Invisible of the Invisibles. By the
revelation of these gems of divine virtue all the names and attributes
of God, such as knowledge and power, sovereignty and dominion, mercy
and wisdom, glory, bounty and grace, are made manifest.
These attributes of God are not and have never been vouchsafed
specially unto certain Prophets, and withheld from others. Nay, all the
Prophets of God, His well-favoured, His holy, and
chosen Messengers, are, without exception, the bearers of His
names, and the embodiments of His attributes. They only differ in the
intensity of their revelation, and the comparative potency of their
light. Even as He hath revealed: "Some of the Apostles We have caused
to excel the others."[1] It hath therefore become manifest and evident
that within the tabernacles of these Prophets and chosen Ones of God
the light of His infinite names and exalted attributes hath been
reflected, even though the light of some of these attributes may or may
not be outwardly revealed from these luminous Temples to the eyes of
men. That a certain attribute of God hath not been outwardly manifested
by these Essences of Detachment doth in no wise imply that they Who are
the Daysprings of God's attributes and the Treasuries of His holy names
did not actually possess it. Therefore, these illuminated Souls, these
beauteous Countenances have, each and every one of them, been endowed
with all the attributes of God, such as sovereignty, dominion, and the
like, even though to outward seeming they be shorn of all earthly
majesty. To every discerning eye this is evident and manifest; it
requireth neither proof nor evidence.
[1 Qur'án 2:253.]
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 102
6)
The Manifestations of God are
servants of God, are the Face of God, are all Manifestations of the
"First" and the "Last," as indicated in the passages below.
Were any of the all-embracing Manifestations of God to declare: "I am
God!" He verily speaketh the truth, and no doubt attacheth thereto. For
it hath been repeatedly demonstrated that through their Revelation,
their attributes and names, the Revelation of God, His name and His
attributes, are made manifest in the world. Thus, He hath revealed:
"Those shafts were God's, not Thine!"[1] And also He saith: "In truth,
they who plighted fealty unto thee, really plighted that fealty unto
God."[2] And were any of them to voice the utterance: "I am the
Messenger of God," He also speaketh the truth, the indubitable truth.
Even as He saith: "Muhammad is not the father of any man among you, but
He is the Messenger of God."[3] Viewed in this light, they are all but
Messengers of that ideal King, that unchangeable Essence. And were they
all to proclaim: "I am the Seal of the Prophets," they verily utter but
the truth, beyond the faintest shadow of doubt. For they are all but
one person, one soul, one spirit, one being, one revelation. They are
all the manifestation of the "Beginning" and the "End," the "First" and
the "Last," the "Seen" and "Hidden" -- all of which pertain to Him Who
is the innermost Spirit of Spirits and eternal Essence of Essences. And
were they to say: "We are the servants of God," this also is a manifest
and indisputable fact. For they have been made manifest in the
uttermost state of servitude, a servitude the like of which no man can
possibly attain. Thus in moments in which these Essences of being were
deeply immersed beneath the oceans of ancient and everlasting holiness,
or when they soared to the loftiest summits of divine mysteries, they
claimed their utterance to be the Voice of divinity, the Call of God
Himself.
[1 Qur'án 8:17.]
[2 Qur'án 48:10.]
[3 Qur'án 33:40 ]
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 178
These Manifestations of God have each a twofold station. One is the
station of pure abstraction and essential unity. In this respect, if
thou callest them all by one name, and dost ascribe to them the same
attribute, thou hast not erred from the truth. Even as He hath
revealed: "No distinction do We make between any of His Messengers!"[1]
For they one and all summon the people of the earth to acknowledge the
Unity of God, and herald unto them the Kawthar of an infinite grace and
bounty. They are all invested with the robe of Prophethood, and
honoured with the mantle of glory. Thus hath Muhammad, the Point of the
Qur'án, revealed: "I am all the Prophets." Likewise, He saith: "I am
the first Adam, Noah, Moses, and Jesus." Similar statements have been
made by Ali. Sayings such as this, which indicate the essential unity
of those Exponents of Oneness, have also emanated from the Channels of
God's immortal utterance, and the Treasuries of the gems of divine
knowledge, and have been recorded in the scriptures. These Countenances
are the recipients of the Divine Command, and the day-springs of His
Revelation. This Revelation is exalted above the veils of plurality and
the exigencies of number. Thus He saith: "Our Cause is but one."[2]
Inasmuch as the Cause is one and the same, the Exponents thereof also
must needs be one and the same. Likewise, the Imams of the Muhammadan
Faith, those lamps of certitude, have said: "Muhammad is our first,
Muhammad our last, Muhammad our all."
[1 Qur'án 2:285.]
[2 Qur'án 54:50.]
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 152
O Salmán! and O Jandáb![6] In truth, recognition of Me in luminousness
is the recognition of God,[7] and Recognition and knowledge of God is
indeed knowledge of Me; this is what is meant by sincere devotion.[8]...
O Salmán! We are the Mystery of God[21] that shalt not remain hidden.
We are His light that shalt never be extinguished, His Grace that is
expected from none other save Him. Muhammad is our first, Muhammad our
last, Muhammad our all![22] Muhammad is our first, Muhammad our last,
Muhammad our all. He who recognizeth Us in this regard hath, in truth,
consummated his Faith.
O Salmán, and O Jandáb! Muhammad and I were the Light that was voicing
forth the divine eulogy before any other reality started to praise Him.
We were the cause of illumination unto all creation. This one Light was
divided by God into two portions, the Chosen "Mustafa"[23], and His
Vicegerent, "Murtada"[24], and vouchsafed unto creation. God, exalted
be His Glory, said to each half, "Be Muhammad!", "Be 'Alí!"[25] It is
thus that the Prophet said: "I am from 'Alí and 'Alí is from Me. None
can give forth My Trust but Myself and 'Alí."[26] This refers to our
unity in the worlds of Light and Spirit. Similar is this divine
utterance: "and If He dieth or is slain."[27] "Dieth" refers to the
passing away of the Prophet. "Slain" refers to the martyrdom of the
Successor[28], for the Two are one Entity, one Signification and one
Light. Their unity is in purpose and attributes. They are different in
Their corporeal entity and their Names. But in the world of spirit,
They are One Spirit. In Spirit, He said, "Thou art the Spirit within My
Limbs." In the world of bodies, He saith: "Thou art of Me and I am of
Thine. Thou shalt inherit after Me."...
-- Imam Ali, Sermon of Ma'rifat bin-Nuraaniyyat (Recognition with Luminousness) - a provisional translation by K. Fananapazir.
Full text available at: https://bahai-library.com/imam-ali_marifat_nuraniyyat
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