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Chapter 66
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Step -- the appearance of pre-existent Prophets (both Independent and Dependent) on earth.
1)
The Manifestation of God stepping forth from behind the veil of concealment, to appear on earth:
Consider the past. How many, both high and low, have, at all times, yearningly awaited the advent of the Manifestations of God
in the sanctified persons of His chosen Ones. How often have they
expected His coming, how frequently have they prayed that the breeze of
divine mercy might blow, and the promised Beauty step forth from behind the veil of concealment,
and be made manifest to all the world. And whensoever the portals of
grace did open, and the clouds of divine bounty did rain upon mankind,
and the light of the Unseen did shine above the horizon of celestial
might, they all denied Him, and turned away from His face -- the face of God Himself. Refer ye, to verify this truth, to that which hath been recorded in every sacred Book.
--Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 4
2)
Muhammad, the Independent Prophet, stepping forth from the invisible realm to appear on earth.
These are the melodies, sung by Jesus, Son of Mary, in accents of
majestic power in the Ridvan of the Gospel, revealing those signs that
must needs herald the advent of the Manifestation after Him. In the
first Gospel according to Matthew it is recorded: And when they asked
Jesus concerning the signs
of His coming, He said unto them: "Immediately after the oppression[1]
of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give
her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the
earth shall be shaken: and then [1] The Greek word used (Thlipsis) has
two meanings: pressure [1] and oppression. shall appear the sign of the
Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn,
and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet."[1]
Rendered into the Persian tongue,[2] the purport of these words is as
follows: When the oppression and afflictions that are to befall mankind
will have come to pass, then shall the sun be withheld from shining,
the moon from giving light, the stars of heaven shall fall upon the
earth, and the pillars of the earth shall quake. At that time, the
signs of the Son of man shall appear in heaven, that is, the promised
Beauty and Substance of life shall, when these signs have appeared, step forth out of the realm of the invisible into the visible world.
And He saith: at that time, all the peoples and kindreds that dwell on
earth shall bewail and lament, and they shall see that divine Beauty
coming from heaven, riding upon the clouds
with power, grandeur, and magnificence, sending His angels with a great
sound of a trumpet. Similarly, in the three other Gospels, according to
Luke, Mark, and John, the same statements are recorded. As We have
referred at length to these in Our Tablets revealed in the Arabic
tongue, We have made no mention of them in these pages, and have
confined Ourselves to but one reference.
[1 Matthew 24:29-31.]
[2 The passage is quoted by Bahá'u'lláh in Arabic and interpreted in Persian.]
Inasmuch as the Christian divines have failed to apprehend the meaning
of these words, and did not recognize their object and purpose, and
have clung to the literal interpretation of the words of Jesus, they
therefore became deprived of the streaming grace of the Muhammadan
Revelation and its showering bounties.
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 24
3)
"beauties of divine mystery" (Dependent Prophets of Baha'u'llah) step out of their habitations to appear on earth.
O thou honoured enquirer! [1] 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. 106
4)
"Step out of Thy holy chamber, O Maid of Heaven" -- the Dependent Prophet summoned to appear on earth.
Say: Step out of Thy holy chamber, O Maid of Heaven, inmate of the Exalted Paradise! Drape thyself in whatever manner pleaseth Thee in the silken Vesture of Immortality, and put on, in the name of the All-Glorious, the broidered Robe of Light. Hear, then, the sweet, the wondrous accent of the Voice that cometh from the Throne of Thy Lord, the Inaccessible, the Most High. Unveil Thy face,
and manifest the beauty of the black-eyed Damsel, and suffer not the
servants of God to be deprived of the light of Thy shining countenance.
Grieve not if Thou hearest the sighs of the dwellers of the earth, or
the voice of the lamentation of the denizens of heaven. Leave them to
perish on the dust of extinction. Let them be reduced to nothingness,
inasmuch as the flame of hatred hath been kindled within their breasts.
Intone, then, before the face of the peoples of earth and heaven, and
in a most melodious voice, the anthem of praise, for a remembrance of
Him Who is the King of the names and attributes of God. Thus have We
decreed Thy destiny. Well able are We to achieve Our purpose.
--Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 282
5)
The Surih of the Temple, an important tablet revealed by Baha'u'llah, is another
place where Baha'u'llah refers to His many Dependent Prophets ("temples
of the Oneness of God") in separate paragraphs, in addition to other
important themes covered. In the passage below the "Maid of Heaven" can
also be interpreted as another reference to a Dependent Prophet of
Baha'u'llah, who will "Step forth from the chambers of paradise" and
appear on earth. Also, "His servants", mentioned in the subsequent
paragraph, are the Dependent (Lesser) Prophets of Baha'u'llah, the same
way the Holy Imams were servants of Muhammad; and all else besides them
are as naught, described in more detail in the subsequent passage from
the Kitab-i-Iqan about the station of the Manifestations of God.
1.100
O Temple of Divine Revelation! Sound the trumpet in My Name! O Temple of Divine mysteries! Raise the clarion call of Thy Lord, the Unconditioned, the Unconstrained! O Maid of Heaven! Step forth from the chambers of paradise and announce
unto the people of the world: By the righteousness of God! He Who is
the Best-Beloved of the worlds -- He Who hath ever been the Desire of
every perceiving heart, the Object of the adoration of all that are in
heaven and on earth, and the Cynosure of the former and the latter
generations -- is now come!
1.101
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, Surih of the Temple, The Summons of the Lord of Hosts, p. 53
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
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