--provisional translation by Peyman Sazedj
In the name of Him Who hath power to ordain what He willeth!
This is a Book sent down in truth in remembrance of that which hath caused the face of the Cause of God to unveil its splendor betwixt earth and heaven. Say: It is the Utterance of God unto all that dwell on earth. The day star of wisdom hath risen above its horizon; upon it the Pen of the All-Merciful hath traced: the prison belongeth to the Manifestation of the Cause of your Lord, the Almighty, the Beneficient. Give ear, O thou remnant of the family, unto that which the Tongue of Majesty and Glory speaketh, that the remembrance of Thy Lord may attract thee to such heights that thou shalt not be overcome by grief. Behold, We have manifested Our Cause through thee. So overpowering hath been its manifestation, that the hearts of men have been struck with terror and their eyes been blinded.
Know thou that when We desired to call Badí into being, We summoned him alone to Our presence, addressed to him a word, and lo! his limbs were so sorely shaken that he nearly swooned away. We protected him, however, through the power of Our sovereignty. We then called him into being and fashioned him, and We breathed into him the spirit of might and power. Such was the infusion of Our might, that had We but bidden him, he would have subdued all who are in the heavens and all who are on the earth. Thy Lord is, in very truth, the Mighty, the Unrestrained.
No sooner was he perfected by the Word of thy Lord, and recreated by the breath of His Revelation, than he rejoiced before Our presence and turned, with majesty and power, towards the field of sacrifice. Such was his determination, that the Concourse on high and the inhabitants of the Cities of the Names of God were sorely shaken. Thereupon a Voice was heard from the seat of glory, calling: "Hallowed be the All-Glorious Who hath created what He was pleased to create. He is indeed the Almighty, the All-Bounteous.”
Oh, would that thou wert present before Our Throne, when the Tongue of Grandeur uttered to him that which causeth the souls of men to soar. And when We unveiled to his eyes the Kingdom of Revelation, and shed upon him the light of its glory, he was made to shine through the splendour of that light. Thereupon he evinced such joy that he soared, on the wings of detachment, to the aid of thy Lord, the Lord of the entire creation. Through him the eyes of victory have been cheered and the temple of the Cause hath been adorned. Glorified be this station the burden of whose weight no tablet can bear, and whose mention no pen can describe.
Thinkest thou that he was slain? Nay, by Him Who is the Revealer of signs! Through him the spirit of life hath been stirred in the midmost heart of the world. Ponder this, O ye men of insight! By the realms on high and the all-glorious Companion, He is summoning the whole creation to God, the Almighty, Whose help is implored by all men. Thinkest thou he was but a man like others? Nay, by Him Who is the Lord of creation! Through him all the kindreds of the earth were made to tremble, and the foundations of tyranny were shaken, and the face of triumph was made to shine above the horizon of power. Can any name be attributed to him? Nay, by Him Who is the Lord of all names! He hath ascended to such heights that no praise can reach him. Through him hath the shout been raised again, in such wise that the Rock crieth out: "The Kingdom is God’s, the Most Powerful, the All-Subduing!”
Thus have We adorned the heaven of utterance with the daystar of the constancy of Our name, the Most Wondrous, and the heaven of power with that star that shineth resplendent above the horizon of the world. The Pen of the Most High addresseth him from the seat of the All-Glorious Lord, saying: "The remembrance of God and the praise of the dwellers of the Realm of Glory and the Kingdom, and the praise of all things under all conditions, rest upon thee, O thou who art the pride of the martyrs!" God hath ordained unto every soul to turn his face in the direction of Tá (Tihran) and to recite that which the Tongue of Grandeur hath uttered. Thus hath it been decreed by thy Lord, the Knower of the unseen and of the seen.
If aught hath escaped him in his service to thee, forgive him, and be pleased with him. Thus commandeth you He Who is the Sovereign Ruler. He is indeed the Almighty, the All-Knowing. Verily, We have enjoined on every son to serve his father. Such is the decree We have set forth in the Book. [The Kitáb-i-Aqdas]
Go thou straight on, at all times, and persevere in His service, that the clamor of them who have disbelieved in God, the Lord of Lords, may not hinder thee. Thou beholdest the infidels as grovelling, worm-like men, and the howling of their voices as the buzzing of the flies. Can aught prevail against His Cause? Nay, by Myself, the True One! But the people have strayed and are in doubt. Illumine their faces with the daystar of the remembrance of thy Lord and enlighten their hearts with the radiance of His Countenance that shineth upon all lands. My Glory rest upon thee, and upon those that associate with thee, and upon whomsoever turneth towards God in the Day of Judgement!
(Baha’i Library Online)
