22. Part Two — 2

1To resume: It hath become evident through these explanations that all things express the Divine Names and Attributes. Each in proportion to its capacity, indicates and points to the Divine Knowledge, until the appearances of (His) Attributes and Names have encompassed all the seen and the unseen. Thus it is said: "Is there any appearance in aught else save Thee, which is not of Thee,—that it could have brought Thee forth? Blind is the eye which doth not behold Thee!" It is also said by the King of Eternity: "I have seen no thing except I beheld God in it, before it or after it." Also in the tradition of Comeil—"The Light which shone forth from the Morn of Eternity, the traces of which gleam upon the Temples of Unity." Man, the most noble and perfect of the creatures, is a mightier evidence and greater expression than the other visible things. The most perfect, superior and excellent of men are the Manifestations of the Sun of Truth; nay rather, all else save them exist only through their desire and move by their generosity. "Were it not for Thee (Mohammed), I would not have created the firmaments." Nay, all are mere nothingness and absolute non-existence before their court of holiness; their mention is purified from mention of others, and their description is sanctified above description of all else. These Holy Temples are the Eternal Primal Mirrors which express the Invisible of the Invisibles and all His Names and Attributes, such as Knowledge, Power, Dominion, Grandeur, Mercy, Wisdom, Glory, Generosity and Beneficence. All these Attributes become manifest and evident through the appearance of these Essences of Oneness and these qualities are not peculiar to some to the exclusion of the others. Nay, all the favored Prophets and holy Chosen Ones are qualified with these Attributes and named by these Names, but in certain stations some appear mightier in manifestation and greater in light; as it is said: "These are the Prophets; We have preferred some of them before others" (K. S. 2). Therefore it is shown and confirmed that the Prophets and Chosen Ones of God are Day-springs of the manifestation and emanation of all these exalted Attributes and Infinite Names, although some of these Attributes may or may not outwardly appear in those luminous Temples. Even if a certain quality is not outwardly manifested from those abstracted Spirits, it cannot be denied that those repositories of Divine Attributes and mines of Supreme Names possess that quality. Therefore all these brilliant Beings and wonderful Countenances are declared to be endowed with all the Attributes of God, such as Dominion, Grandeur and the like, though they may not apparently appear with outward dominion and other similar (powers). This point is evident and certain to every possessor of perception and in no need of argument.

2Yea, as these servants have not obtained the interpretations of the holy words from the clear and brilliant fountains of Divine Knowledges, they are wandering thirsty and withered in the valley of doubts and heedlessness, having turned away from the sea of fresh salutary water, and are roving around the bitter salt. As the Nightingale of Divinity hath said concerning them: "Although they see the way of righteousness, yet they shall not take that way. But if they see the way of error, they shall take that way because they accuse our signs of falsity and neglect the same" (K. S. 7). The translation of this is that if they see the way of rectitude and salvation, they do not take that way nor do they advance toward it; but if they see the path of error, disobedience and untruth, they will adopt it as the road for attainment to the True One. This advancement toward untruth and turning away from the True One did not occur that is, they were not afflicted with this error and misguidance except as retribution for denying Our signs and ignoring the revelation and appearances of Our verses.

3It is likewise witnessed that in this wonderful and exalted Manifestation, myriads of Divine verses are revealed from the Heaven of Power and Mercy, yet the people have denied and cling to the words of servants who do not comprehend a single letter thereof. For this reason they have doubted similar clear facts, depriving themselves of the Rizwan of Knowledge of the One God and the Garden of Eternal Wisdom.

4To be brief; we will return to the subject questioned, namely: "Although the dominion of the Gha'im is recorded in the traditions related of the 'Brilliant Stars' (Imams), yet no trace of sovereignty hath appeared. Nay rather, the contrary is realized, inasmuch as His followers and friends have been and are afflicted and confined in the hands of the people and are of the utmost lowliness and impotence in the world."

5Yea, the sovereignty which is mentioned in the Books in connection with the Gha'im is true and beyond doubt, but it is not a dominion or government which can be comprehended by every individual. Moreover all the former Prophets who have announced to the people a subsequent Manifestation have also spoken of the dominion of that Manifestation, as is recorded in the former Books. This is not confined to the Gha'im alone. Dominion and all the Names and Attributes are certain and evident concerning all those preceding and subsequent Manifestations, for they are the appearances of the Invisible Attributes and Dawning-places of Divine Mysteries, as already mentioned.