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Epistle to the Son of the Wolf — §168

Persian source with Shoghi Effendi’s authorized English translation. Paragraph 168 of 268.

Source (Persian)

باری هر معرضی به کلمه ای تمسّک نموده و بر حقّ اعتراض کرده * سبحان اللّه ذکر الوهيّت و ربوبيّت که از اولياء و اصفياء ظاهر شده ان را اسباب اعراض و انکار قرار داده‌اند * حضرت صادق فرموده [ العبوديّة جوهرة کنهها الرّبوبيّة ] و حضرت امير در جواب اعرابی که از نفس سؤال نموده فرموده [ و ثالثها اللّاهوتيّة الملکوتيّة و هی قوّة لاهوتيّة و جوهرة بسيطة حيّة بالذّات ] ( الی ان قال ) عليه السّلام [ فهی ذات اللّه العليا و شجرة طوبی و سدرة المنتهی و جنّة المأوی ] حضرت صادق فرموده [ اذا قام قائمنا اشرقت الارض بنور ربّها ] و همچنين از ابی عبداللّه عليه السّلام حديث طويلی ذکر شده و از جمله نصوص حديث مذکور اين کلمه عليا است [ فعند ذلک يهبط الجبّار عزّ و جلّ من الغمام و الملائکة ] و فی القرآن العظيم ﴿هَلْ يَنظُرُونَ إِلَّا أَنْ يَأْتِيَهُمْ اللّهُ فِی ظُلَلٍ مِنَ الغَمَامِ﴾ و در حديث مفضّل ميفرمايد [ يسند القائم ظهره الی الحرم و يمدّ يده المبارکة فتری بيضاء من غير سوء و يقول هذه يد اللّه و يمين اللّه و عن اللّه و بامر اللّه ] * هر نحو اين احاديث را معنی نموده‌اند اثار قلم اعلی را هم معنی نمايند * حضرت امير فرموده [ انا الّذی لا يقع عليه اسم و لا صفة ] * و همچنين فرموده [ ظاهری إمامة و باطنی غيبٌ لا يدرک ] * قال ابو جعفر الطّوسی [ قلت لابی عبداللّه انتم الصّراط فی کتاب اللّه و انتم الزّکاة و انتم الحجّ قال يا فلان نحن الصّراط فی کتاب اللّه عزّ و جلّ و نحن الزّکاة و نحن الصّيام و نحن الحجّ و نحن الشّهر الحرام و نحن البلد الحرام و نحن کعبة اللّه و نحن قبلة اللّه و نحن وجه اللّه ] * روی جابر عن ابی جعفر عليه السّلام قال [ يا جابر عليک بالبيان و المعانی فقال عليه السّلام امّا البيان و هو ان تعرف اللّه سبحانه ليس کمثله شیء فتعبده و لا تشرک به شيئا و امّا المعانی فنحن معانيه و نحن جنبه و يده و لسانه و امره و حکمه و علمه و حقّه اذا شئنا شاء اللّه و يريد ما نريده ] * ايضا حضرت امير عليه السّلام فرمود [ کيف أَعبُدُ رَبًّا لم أره ] و در مقام ديگر ميفرمايد [ ما رأيت شيئا الّا و قد رأيت اللّه قبله او بعده او معه ] *

Shoghi Effendi Translation

Every one who hath turned aside from Me hath clung to his own idle words, and therewith voiced his objections to Him Who is the Truth. Gracious God! Such references as have been made to Divinity and Godhead by the holy ones and chosen ones of God have been made a cause for denial and repudiation. The Imam Sadiq hath said: "Servitude is a substance, the essence of which is Divinity." The Commander of the Faithful (Imam ‘Alí) answered an Arab, who had questioned him concerning the soul, as follows: "The third is the soul which is divine and celestial. It is a divine energy, a substance, simple, and self-subsistent." And further He - peace be upon him - said: "Therefore it is the Most Sublime Essence of God, the Tree of Blessedness, the Lote-Tree beyond which there is no passing, the Garden of Repose." The Imam Sadiq hath said: "When our Qá’im will arise, the earth will shine with the light of her Lord." Likewise, a lengthy tradition is attributed to Abi-'Abdi'llah - peace be upon him - in which these sublime words are found: "Thereupon will He Who is the All-Compelling - exalted and glorified be He - descend from the clouds with the angels." And in the mighty Qur’án: "What can such expect but that God should come down to them overshadowed with clouds?" And in the tradition of Mufaddal it is said: "The Qá’im will lean His back against the Sanctuary, and will stretch forth His hand, and lo, it shall be snow-white but unhurt. And He shall say: ‘This is the hand of God, the right hand of God, that cometh from God, at the command of God!'" In whichever manner these traditions are interpreted, in that same manner let them also interpret that which the Most Sublime Pen hath set down. The Commander of the Faithful (Imam ‘Alí) hath said: "I am He Who can neither be named, nor described." And likewise He hath said: "Outwardly I am an Imam; inwardly I am the Unseen, the Unknowable." Abu-Ja'far-i-Tusi hath said: "I said to Abi Abdi'llah: ‘You are the Way mentioned in the Book of God, and you are the Impost, and you are the Pilgrimage.' He replied: ‘O man! We are the Way mentioned in the Book of God, - exalted and glorified be He - and We are the Impost, and We are the Fast, and We are the Pilgrimage, and We are the Sacred Month, and We are the Sacred City, and We are the Kaaba of God, and We are the Qiblih of God, and We are the Face of God.'" Jabir hath said that Abu-Ja'far - peace be upon him - spoke to him as follows: "O Jabir! Give heed unto the Bayán (Exposition) and the Ma'ani (Significances)." He - peace be upon him - added: "As to the Bayán, it consisteth in thy recognition of God - glorified be He - as the One Who hath no equal, and in thy adoration of Him, and in thy refusal to join partners with Him. As to the Ma'ani, We are its meaning, and its side, and its hand, and its tongue, and its cause, and its command, and its knowledge, and its right. If We wish for something, it is God Who wisheth it, and He desireth that which We desire." Moreover, the Commander of the Faithful (Imam ‘Alí) - peace be upon him - hath said: "How can I worship a Lord Whom I have not seen?" And, in another connection, he saith: "Nothing have I perceived except that I perceived God before it, God after it, or God with it."

Translation Notes

تمسّک
tmssk m-s-k

literal: clinging; hold fast; cling

SE rendered باری (bárí), هر (hr), معرضی (mʿrḍí), کلمه (klmh), تمسّک (tmssk), نموده (nmúdh), بر (br), حقّ (ḥqq), اعتراض (iʿtráḍ), کرده (krdh) as “We, Every one, who hath turned aside, clung to, hath, voiced his objections, to Him, Who is the Truth”

cleave 30% clung 21% cling 10% cleaveth 8% hold 8% take 7% lay 5% clinging 5% have 3% seized 3%
داده‌اند
dádh‌ánd dádn

literal: give; to give; given

SE rendered اسباب (isbáb), اعراض (iʿráḍ), انکار (inkár), قرار (qrár), داده‌اند (dádh‌ánd), حضرت (ḥḍrt), صادق (ṣádq), فرموده (frmúdh), العبوديّة (al-ʿbúdídh) as “a cause, denial, repudiation, made, The Imam, Sadiq, hath said, "Servitude”

have 57% hath 29% brought 14%
حيّة
ḥíḥh ḥ-y-y

literal: living; shame

SE rendered قوّة (qúqh), لاهوتيّة (láhútíth), جوهرة (júhrh), بسيطة (bsíṭh), حيّة (ḥíḥh), بالذّات (báldhdhát), قال (qál) as “divine energy, God, a substance, simple, self-subsistent, said”

طوبی
ṭúbí ṭ-w-b

literal: blessed; blessedness; blessedness, happiness

SE rendered فهی (fhí), ذات (dhát), اللّه (al-lh), العليا (al-ʿlíá), شجرة (shjrh), طوبی (ṭúbí), سدرة (sdrh), المنتهی (al-mnthí), جنّة (jnnh), المأوی (al-mʾawí) as “it is, the Most Sublime Essence, God, the Tree, of Blessedness, the Lote-Tree, the Garden, Repose”

المنتهی
al-mnthí n-h-y

literal: end; utmost; ended

SE rendered العليا (al-ʿlíá), شجرة (shjrh), طوبی (ṭúbí), سدرة (sdrh), المنتهی (al-mnthí), جنّة (jnnh), المأوی (al-mʾawí), حضرت (ḥḍrt), صادق (ṣádq) as “the Tree, of Blessedness, the Lote-Tree, the Garden, Repose, The Imam, Sadiq”

طويلی
ṭúylí ṭ-w-l

literal: at length; became long/stretched; grow tall

SE rendered عليه (ʿlíh), السّلام (as-slám), حديث (ḥdíth), طويلی (ṭúylí), ذکر (dhkr), از (iz) as “- peace be upon him, a lengthy tradition, mentioned, from”

lengthy 17% stretched 17% extreme 17% elaborate 17% weary 17% spring 17%
جمله
jmlh j-m-l

literal: beauty; totality; beautiful

SE rendered حديث (ḥdíth), طويلی (ṭúylí), ذکر (dhkr), از (iz), جمله (jmlh), نصوص (nṣúṣ), حديث (ḥdíth), مذکور (mdhkúr), کلمه (klmh) as “a lengthy tradition, mentioned, from, words”

among 57% while 7% one 7% partially 7% amongst 4% briefly 4% glimmer 4% came 4% all 4% none 4%
نصوص
nṣúṣ n-ṣ-ṣ

literal: text; text, explicit statement; texted

SE rendered حديث (ḥdíth), طويلی (ṭúylí), ذکر (dhkr), از (iz), جمله (jmlh), نصوص (nṣúṣ), حديث (ḥdíth), مذکور (mdhkúr), کلمه (klmh), عليا (ʿlíá) as “a lengthy tradition, mentioned, from, words”

text 25% texts 25% according 25% words 25%
العظيم
al-ʿẓím ʿ-ẓ-m

literal: greatest; great; greatness

SE rendered الملائکة (al-mláʾkh), القرآن (al-qrán), العظيم (al-ʿẓím), ﴿هَلْ (﴿hal), يَنظُرُونَ (yanẓurún) as “the angels, mighty Qur’án, "What, can such expect”

great 42% most 20% mighty 13% grievous 11% immense 5% dire 2% sublime 2% glorious 2% infinite 2% azim 1%
غير
ghír gh-y-r

literal: other; other than

SE rendered يده (ydh), المبارکة (al-mbárkh), فتری (ftrí), بيضاء (bíḍáʾ), غير (ghír), سوء (súʾ), يقول (yqúl), يد (yd), اللّه (al-lh), يمين (ymín) as “His hand, lo, snow-white, unhurt, He shall say, the hand, God, the right hand”

others 19% other 19% without 10% all 10% except 10% unseemly 9% another 7% different 5% any 5% infinite 5%
اثار
ithár ʾ-th-r

literal: traces; trace

SE rendered احاديث (iḥádíth), معنی (mʿní), نموده‌اند (nmúdh‌ánd), اثار (ithár), قلم (qlm), اعلی (iʿlí), معنی (mʿní), نمايند (nmáynd) as “manner, interpreted, Pen, Most Sublime, interpret”

يقع
yqʿ w-q-ʿ

literal: occurring; occurred; fall

SE rendered امير (imír), فرموده (frmúdh), يقع (yqʿ), عليه (ʿlíh), اسم (ism), صفة (ṣfh), همچنين (hmchnín) as “(Imam ‘Alí), hath said, named, described." And, likewise”

جعفر
jʿfr j-ʿ-f

literal: ja’far

SE rendered باطنی (báṭní), غيبٌ (ghíbun), يدرک (ydrk), قال (qál), ابو (ibú), جعفر (jʿfr), الطّوسی (aṭ-ṭúsí), قلت (qlt), لابی (lábí), عبداللّه (ʿbdálllh) as “I, Unseen, the Unknowable, perceived, said, Abu-Ja'far-i-Tusi, "I said, Abi Abdi'llah”

2 occurrences in corpus

الطّوسی
aṭ-ṭúsí ṭ-w-s

literal: al-tusi

SE rendered غيبٌ (ghíbun), يدرک (ydrk), قال (qál), ابو (ibú), جعفر (jʿfr), الطّوسی (aṭ-ṭúsí), قلت (qlt), لابی (lábí), عبداللّه (ʿbdálllh) as “Unseen, the Unknowable, perceived, said, Abu-Ja'far-i-Tusi, "I said, Abi Abdi'llah”

1 occurrence in corpus

لابی
lábí ʾ-b-w → “fathers”

literal: abi

SE rendered قال (qál), ابو (ibú), جعفر (jʿfr), الطّوسی (aṭ-ṭúsí), قلت (qlt), لابی (lábí), عبداللّه (ʿbdálllh), الصّراط (aṣ-ṣráṭ), کتاب (ktáb) as “said, Abu-Ja'far-i-Tusi, "I said, Abi Abdi'llah, Way, Book”

abi 50% abu 25% sire” 25%

Source: Bahá'u'lláh, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf

Model Translations by Shoghi Effendi

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