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Concealment and Revelation in BahullhsBook of the River

Nader Saiedi

Abstract

This article examines the thesis proposed by Juan Cole, based on his translationand interpretation of Bahullhs S. ah. fiy-i-Shat. t. yyih (Book of the River), thatBahullh did not consider himself a Manifestation of God until a short timeprior to his Rid. vn declaration and that his experience in the Syh-C hl inTehran in 1852 was not a divine revelation. It is argued that such a revision ofhistory is unwarranted. The text of the Book of the River is analyzed as well asthe date and context of its revelation, and it is argued that the tablet should beviewed in terms of the dialectic of concealment and revelation thatcharacterizes Bahullhs early writings. Significant problems in translationand interpretation are discussed, and evidence is cited from Bahullhswritings confirming the reality of his revelation in Tehran and his selectivedeclaration of his station as the Promised One during the early Baghdad period.

Rsum

Cet article examine la thse propose par Juan Cole, quil fonde sur satraduction et son interprtation de la tablette S. ah. fiy-i-Shat. t. yy ih (Le Livre dela Rivire) de Bahullh. Selon cette thse, Bahullh ne se considrait pascomme une Manifestation de Dieu jusqu peu de temps avant sa dclarationdans le jardin de Rid. vn, et son exprience dans le Syh-Chl, Tehran en1852, ntait pas une rvlation divine. Larticle fait plutt valoir quil ny paslieu de faire une telle rvision de lhistoire. Lauteur analyse le texte du Livrede la Rivire, de mme que la priode et le contexte dans lequel il a t rvl,et explique que la tablette devrait tre perue la lumire de la dialectique denon-divulgation et de rvlation qui caractrisait les premiers crits deBahullh. Larticle traite de problmes importants concernant la traductionet linterprtation de cette tablette, et cite des crits de Bahullh qui

confirment la ralit de sa rvlation Tehran et sa dclaration slective, audbut de la priode de Baghdad, de sa station de Promis.

Resumen

Este artculo examina la tesis propuesta por Juan Cole, basada en sutraduccin e interpretacin del S. ah. f i y - i -Shat. t. yyih (Libro del Rio) de queBahullh no se consideraba Manifestacin de Dios hasta poco antes de sudeclaracin de Rid. vn y que lo que experiment en el Syh-Chl en Tehran en1852 no fue revelacin divina. Se razona que tal revisin de la historia esinjustificada. Se hace anlisis del texto del Libro del Rio como tambin la fecha

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y contexto de su revelacin y se razona que la tabla deber ser comprendida deacuerdo con la dialctica de ocultacin y revelacin que caracteriza losescritos iniciales de Bahullh. Se discuten problemas de consideracin en latraduccin e interpretacin, y se citan pruebas de los escritos de Bahullhque confirman la realidad de su revelacin en Tehran y su declaracin

selectiva de su condicin espiritual de ser El Prometido durante el periodoinicial en Baghdad.

It is a fundamental Bah belief that the Bbs prophecy that the PromisedOne would appear in the year nine was fulfilled by Bahullhs revelationin the Syh-Chl of Tehran during Muh.arram 1269 A.H. (October 1852). It isalso generally accepted that, although Bahullh disclosed his station privatelyto a few individuals, he did not publicly announce that he was Him Whom Godshall make manifest until his declaration in the Rid.vn Garden in Baghdad in1280 A.H. (April 1863). Recently, however, Professor Juan R. I. Cole(Commentary) has proposed the thesis that Bahullh may not haveconsidered himself to be a Manifestation of God during the greater part of theBaghdad period and that Bahullhs experience in the Syh-Chl was not a

divine revelation. Clearly, any proposal for such a radical revision of Bahhistory should be expected to meet a high standard of evidence and logic beforeit could be seriously entertained by anyone.

Coles basic argument rests on his reading of Bahullhs S.ah. f i y - i -Shat.t.yyih (Book of the River) which Cole has translated. He maintains that inthis tablet Bahullh denies having any divine Cause and thereforeBahullhs claim to a prophetic station probably should not be dated furtherback than about 1859 (Cole, Commentary). Although acknowledging thatBahullh speaks authoritatively in the tablet and that the word s.ah. fih denotessacred scripture, Cole nevertheless suggests that at the time Bahullh wrotethe tablet he may only have thought of himself as a Babi Sufi shaykh or oneamong the Bb leaders, but that in any case Bahullhs self-conceptionchanged mightily between the early 1850s and the late 1850s (Commentary).

The evidence against this thesis is so extensive and multifaceted that it isdifficult to cover it all in a single article. I will argue here that Coles translationof the Book of the River contains significant errors, particularly in almost all thepoints used to support the argument that in this tablet Bahullh makes noclaim to any divine revelation. On the contrary, the Book of the River clearlyattests to the sublime station of Bahullh and strongly alludes to the fact thathe is none other than the Promised One of the Bayn. I will also show that innumerous tablets Bahullh unambiguously identifies his Revelation as thatpromised by the Bb to appear in the year nine. Likewise, in many of thetablets Bahullh revealed during the Baghdad period, he tells us explicitlyabout his station as a new Manifestation of God. The familiar account of the

T H E J O U R N A L O F B A H S T U D I E S 9 . 3 . 1 9 9 926

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revelation in the Syh-C hl as the beginning of a new propheti c era, asrecorded in the Tablet to the Shah of Iran, is confirmed and supported explicitlyby numerous other writings.

The central misconception underlying the thesis is very similar to that of afew other writers who contend that the Bbs early works indicate no prophetic

consciousness and suggest that it was not until some four years after his 1844Declaration that the Bb first began to consider himself the Qim and a newManifestation of God. It is also similar to some discussions of the early writingsof Bahullhsuch as the Hidden Words, the Four Valleys, and the SevenValleysthat understand those early works as reiterating typical Sufi ideas andfind discontinuity and inconsistency between the conceptual content ofBahullhs early mystical writings and that of his later writings, such as theKitb-i-Aqdas, which have a social, legal, or administrative orientation and anemphasis on covenant.

Early Writings of BahullhThose analyses, along with the theory which will be examined in this article,have family resemblances and are all , in my opinion, based upon a

reductionistic logic which misconstrues the early and the later writings of bothBahullh and the Bb.1 Although a full discussion of all these issues isbeyond the scope of this article, it can be demonstrated that Bahullhs earlytexts are in perfect harmony with his later ones, including the Kitb-i-Aqdas, aswell as with the principle of covenant and with all the diverse social, historical,and legal aspects of the Bah Faith. In addition, Bahullhs early texts, likehis later ones, can be seen to disclose a logic of discourse, a worldview, and aspiritual and sociological insight that are not reducible to any Eastern orWestern system either in the past or in the present. The early writings ofBahullh, in fact, embody the same logic found in the Kitb-i-Aqdas.Bahullhs Four Valleys is an explication of an epistemology which isneither solely mystical, legal, nor rational but the harmonious unity of all threein a novel creative and historical framework. The Hidden Words, rather thanbeing solely mystical, is a discourse on covenant which includes an outline ofthe new world order of Bahullh (Saiedi Kalimt-i-Maknnih).

Moreover, these early writings of Bahullh clearly show that theincomparable author of those texts claims the highest possible spiritual stationfor himself. For instance, Bahullh describes the Hidden Words as the inneressence of all the divine revelations of the past. He claims that he understandsthat inner essence of all that has been uttered by the tongue of power and

Concealment and Revelat ion 27

1. Elsewhere (Saiedi Tah.ll) I have discussed aspects of the Bbs concept of gatehood, showingthe inadequacy of that approach with regard to the Bbs writings.

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might, and revealed unto the Prophets of old (Hidden Words 3) so completelyas to be able to condense it into the brief form of the Hidden Words. Obviouslythis is not just the account of a mystics temporary sense of holy ecstasy. Itimplies a claim beyond any that could be made by an ordinary human being.Not surprisingly, we find the same claim to absolute knowledge of divine truth

and mysteries in all the works of Bahullh during the Baghdad period,including the Kitb-i-qn and the Book of the River.In addition to the content of these early writings, both their style of

expression and their symbolic structure indicate the inception of a new divinedispensation. For example, the Hidden Words is in the form ofyt, the modeof revelation of verses in which God speaks directly, in the voice of God, tohuman beings. It is the same form of language and address that characterizes theQurn and the Bbs Qayymul-Asm. And Bahullh, significantly, breakswith the typical practice of the Bb leaders, including Azal, who attempted toimitate the Bbs style in their writings. The new and unprecedented languageBahullh employs is itself a clear mark of his authority and station.

But even if (and this is a counterfactual assumption) all the early writings ofBahullh expressed only a language of utter humility and servitude and

rejected any claim to a unique spiritual station, that in itself would not constituteevidence that Bahullh did not at the time consider himself to be aManifestation of God. Bahullh explains that during the Baghdad period hesometimes revealed himself and sometimes concealed his station behind veilsand clouds. His Baghdad writings should be understood precisely in terms ofthat dialectic of concealment and revelation. In fact, in the Book of the Riveritself Bahullh refers to the gradual revelation of truth in accordance withhuman aptitude: Every thing hath its storehouses with thy Lord, and Hesendeth them down as He pleaseth according to a measure from Him.2 Anystatement which may appear to indicate servitude should be viewed in thatcontext: it might intentionally indicate no particular station. Yet at the sametime, the occasional use of the language of servitude is in no way incompatiblewith the station of a Manifestation of God. As Bahullh has explained in the

Kitb-i-qn, the Manifestations of God speak in different ways because of theirmultiple stations:

Were any of the all-embracing Manifestations of God to declare: I am God! Heverily speaketh the truth, and no doubt attacheth thereto. For it hath been repeatedlydemonstrated that through their Revelation, their attributes and names, the Revelation


2. Unless otherwise indicated, all quotations from the Book of the River are provisionaltranslations based on the Persian text of the tablet published in Iran National Bah ArchivesManuscript Collection (INBA)57: 1018. The translation is published in its entirety in this issue ofthe Journal of Bah Studies. The version of the tablet published in Ishrq Khvars Mid iy-i-

smn(used by Cole) contains a number of minor errors.

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of God, His name and His attributes, are made manifest in the world. . . . And wereany of them to voice the utterance: I am the Messenger of God, He also speaketh thetruth, the indubitable truth. . . . Viewed in this light, they are all but Messengers of thatideal King, that unchangeable Essence.

And were they all to proclaim: I am the Seal of the Prophets, they verily utter butthe truth, beyond the faintest shadow of doubt. For they are all but one person, one

soul, one spirit, one being, one revelation. . . . And were they to say: We are theservants of God, this also is a manifest and indisputable fact. For they have beenmade manifest in the uttermost state of servitude, a servitude the like of which no mancan possibly attain. (Kitb-i-qn 178)

Date and Context of RevelationIt should be pointed out that Coles conclusion about the date of theemergence of Bahullhs prophetic self-conception has changed.Previously Cole had argued that Bahullh did not make any claim or haveany conception of being the Promised One before 1862that is, about a yearbefore the declaration in the Rid. vn Garden. But then he noted the undeniableevidence that Bahullh had in fact disclosed his station to certain individualsat least four years before the Rid.vn declaration. However, Cole maintained his

basic position but pushed back the time of Bahullhs first propheticconsciousness three yearsto 1859 (Cole, Commentary).

However, that clearly shows that Bahullhs writings after 1859 employexactly the same language and express exactly the same message as his earlierwritings, a fact that is logically compatible with the generally accepted Bahview of the early Baghdad period. In that case, the Book of the River should beread in terms of the same logic of wisdom and the dialectic of concealment andrevelation which is present in all Bahullhs writings of this period.

The question of the date and context of revelation of the tablet is crucial forevaluating Coles commentary on the tablet. He dates the writing of the Book ofthe River to 1857, around the time Bahullh wrote the Hidden Words. But allwe really know is that in the Book of the River Bahullh quotes one of theHidden Words. Cole has reasoned from this that the two works were written atabout the same time: It quotes a Hidden Word, No. 1 of the Arabic (but withthe grammatical difference that the plural imperative is used, whereas in the textof the Hidden Words we now have the grammar is singular). My guess istherefore that it was written around 1857 shortly before Bahullh put theHidden Words into final shape (Commentary).

But in fact, Bahullh could have written this tablet years after the HiddenWords, anytime between 1859 and 1863namely, during the period in whichwe know that Bahullh had already privately declared his station. Thereasoning in the above statement appears to be based on the assumption thatbecause Bahullh quotes from the Hidden Words but with a slight difference(a plural instead of a singular), therefore it must have been written around the


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time he wrote the Hidden Words but before the text was fixed in final form.In other words, if the tablet had been written after the text of the Hidden Wordswas fixed, he would have quoted from the final form. But if that were true,then Bahullhs tablet to Ns. irid-Dn Shh, which was revealed about tenyears after the Hidden Words, should also have been revealed at the same time

as the Hidden Words. In that tablet Bahullh also quotes from the HiddenWords with variation in wordingonce using a different beginning, anothertime with a singular form instead of the plural that occurs in the final text(Bahullh, t h r - i - Q a l a m - i - A l 1:73). The fact is that Bahullh doessometimes reveal the same revelation in different forms in his writings.

Although we do not know the precise date of the Book of the River, given thefact that Bahullh does quote from the Hidden Words (and as we will see, heactually indicates that it is taken from that book), it is more reasonable to inferthat the tablet was revealed after the Hidden Words, sometime between 1858and 1861. In this way the Book of the River is similar to the Kitb-i-qn, inwhich Bahullh also quotes from the Hidden Words (although without anymention of the source), and again with slight change of expression.3 Therefore itis likely that the Book of the River was revealed within the same period which

even Cole has acknowledged as the time of Bahullhs propheticconsciousness.

Although we do not know the precise date when the tablet was written, we doknow something about the context of its revelation. In a long tablet writtenaround 1861 (Mzandarn, A s r r u l -t h r 5: 31244), Bahullh informsus about his relation to the Bb community in the period between 1856 and1861. Based on this tablet we know that, as early as 1856, there was a seriousdebate within the Bb community concerning Bahullhs station. Many ofthe Bbs had noted Bahullhs extraordinary spiritual and moral authorityand some even perceived that he was the Promised One of the Bayn. Thiscaused considerable envy and opposition on the part of some of Bahullhsenemies, who threatened to kill his supporters and even prohibited other Bbsfrom traveling to Baghdad. At this time Bahullhs enemies were accusing

him of rejecting the Bb, his Mirrors,4 and the Bayn. In response to thisagitation, for a few years Bahullh discouraged some of his Bb followersfrom making the pilgrimage to Baghdad, eventually allowing visits around1859.

It is in this context of confusion, rumors, accusations, and animosity thatBahullh wrote the Book of the River in response to the questions of a Bbnamed Javd (probably Javd-i-Ks hn, who became a Bah), who asks


3. That is, in the Persian text. Shoghi Effendi, in his English translation of the Kitb-i-qn, hasused the translation of the passage as published in TheHidden Words (see Kitb-i-qn 228).4. A designation given to certain prominent Bbs.

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Bahullh about rumors of miracles that had been attributed to him and toother prominent Bbs. From Bahullhs response in his tablet, it becomesclear that Javd considers miracles extremely important as justification ofBahullhs spiritual authority and even feels miracles to be a necessarydemonstration of divine powerto force the powerful and learned leaders of

humanity to recognize and submit to the Cause of God. He has troubleunderstanding how divine dominion can be present when no miracles haveoccurred.

The Book of the RiverIn the Book of the River, Bahullh concisely and sublimely explains auniverse of complex spiritual truth. After rejecting the rumors about specificmiracles that had been attributed to him, he discusses the question of miracles ina multidimensional way. First he emphasizes the fact that in the sacredscriptures, particularly in the Bayn, the supreme proof and testimony of theManifestation of God is the revelation of verses. Consequently, the onlyrelevant question concerning the truth of Bahullhs claim involves therevelation of verses and not the production of miracles. However, Bahullh

immediately rejects the rationalist position on miracles as well. The rationaliststake human reason as the supreme standard of judgment and reject thepossibility of miracles by the Prophets in the past because miracles arecontradictory to reason. At this point, Bahullh engages in a complexmetaphysical and epistemological analysis. He argues that the rationalisticdenial of the possibility of miracles is false because human reason is not asufficient standard for understanding any natural phenomenon within thecomplex reality that is Gods creation. It is not only strange, unnatural displaysof power by the Prophets which are miraculous. In fact, he states, allphenomena, as things endowed with power, are also miracles of God. Themiraculous nature of all reality transcends the limits of human reason. Humanreason is incapable of comprehending any phenomenon independent ofexperience and observation. If it were not for that actual experience andobservation, human reason would not believe in the existence of anyphenomenon. If the rationalist argument for the rejection of miracles attributedto the former Prophets were true, then the reality of all natural phenomena mustbe rejected as well.

The rationalists materialistic deductions are based on their forgetting themiraculous nature of all reality. After actual observation and experience, reasontakes for granted all the wonders of natural phenomena and reduces them tonecessary rational truths capable of deduction through rational analysis. In thismechanistic methodology, the rationalists contrast the irrationality ofmiracles, the existence of God, and the possibility of revelation to the rationalcharacter of ordinary natural events. Bahullh affirms the necessity of


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empirical experience for knowledge precisely in order to emphasize themiraculous and divine origin of all reality. All of reality testifies to the truth ofGod and His Manifestations.

The implications of this analysis are indeed far-reaching. Bahullhemphasizes the poverty of a mechanistic conception of nature, unveils the

spiritual foundations of science, affirms the symbolic character of all reality,and defines all beings as embodiments of the creative Word of God. This,however, means that some of the miracles attributed to the Prophets could alsobe real even if they may seem improbable to the eye of reason.

Bahullh next rejects the rationalist argument that the miracles attributedto the Prophets of the past could not possibly be true because life at presentseems to be without miracles. The rationalists argue that if miracles happened inthe past, they should be happening now as well. Bahullh emphasizes thedynamic character of life and asserts that the absence of miracles in the presentdoes not imply the impossibility of their occurrence in the past: For how oftenhave events occurred in the past which have not occurred in the present, andvice versa. As a counterexample, he refers to the periodic occurrence ofepidemics:

Consider, for instance, that every thirty years, according to the calculation andreckoning of men, there is an outbreak of plague in some lands. Could it be arguedwith disbelief during the delay of an outbreak of plague that no plagues have occurredin the past, since otherwise it must happen now? The same is true of other events thathave occurred before but are not happening at present, and vice versa.

However, the most important point about miracles is that they are notnecessary proof of the claim of the Manifestation of God. It is the Word of Goditself which is the supreme testimony of God and conclusive demonstration ofHis power. Bahullh decides to unveil different aspects of this and manyother questions by using the analogy of the river (shat. t.). Divine revelation islike a great river which inundates the land: When its waters swell and flood, it

rusheth forward and moveth turbulently. Whatever it doeth, it remaineth within itsown sovereignty. However much the helpless people cry out from every s i d e clamoring that a great dam hath been rent asunder, or a barrier obliterated, orhouses destroyed, or a palace crushed to ruinsthe river payeth them no heed.

The mighty river is just and universalistic. It deals with all in the same way.The divines and sovereigns are not singled out for special favors: With theutmost force and compulsion, power and sovereignty, it continueth to rush andflow, touching all places equally. For instance, before the onrush of its power itdoth not matter whether a building belongeth to a prince or to a pauper; theeffect is the same, unless that building hath unique fortifications.

Like the rivers natural cycle of ebb and flood, revelation occurs in a


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natural way, according to fixed laws. The miracles desired by people wouldinvolve an unnatural interruption in the natural course of divine revelation. Ifthe rivers course were artificially changed, then some dry lands would beirrigated but many others would be destroyed and far more negativeconsequences would result.

This analogy unveils the mystery of divine decree (qad. ) and destiny (qadar)as well. The details of this issue are elaborated in other writings of the Bb,Bahullh, and Abdul-Bah.5 Human action is the product of the activeinteraction of divine effulgence and human free choice and reception. The signof divine power becomes manifest in all things in accordance with their ownstations and aptitudes. The Word of God is the embodiment of divine justice.Both the faith of the faithful and the rejection of the rejectors, including thepowerful and the exalted, are part of divine wisdom and Gods universal justice.The divine river actualizes the hidden tendencies of the different beings andradically tests all things.

Bahullh identifies the reason for the differences in reception andrecognition in the differing capacities of the recipients:

Each person speaketh and expresseth himself according to that which is reflectedwithin him. For example, with reference to the same analogy of the flooding river,observe that it floweth forward in one manner and its relationship to all buildings andstructures is the same, yet any valley that hath more capacity is able to take in more ofit, and any dam whose foundation is weaker is less able to resist it. . . . In like manner,consider the rays of the Eternal Sun, which shine with the same illumination in theheaven of human hearts but, when reflected in the forms of mirrors, differ by reasonof differences among the mirrors themselves. Thus it is that some abide exalted intheir essences and high in their endeavors, while others sink into the depths of lethargyand degradation. All things have their rank before God, and all return unto Him.

The cycle of the rivers ebb and flood becomes a metaphorical vehicle todescribe the principle of progressive revelation as well. [I]n every age andcentury, as He desireth, the Unique Hidden One and the Eternal Essence

manifesteth that true River and real Sea and causeth it to flow, adorning it witha new temple and a new vesture. But whenever a new Manifestation appears,people cling to their vain imaginations and fail to recognize the supreme Objectof their expectation. With utmost desire and thirst they drown and perish,lacking even the faintest awareness that they could quaff a draught thereof.

Bahullh warns Javd not to allow the sayings of the people to prevent himfrom recognizing the Divine Beauty, refers to belief in the Most ExaltedCountenance and recognition of His station as manifested after Him on the

Concealment and Revelation 33

5. See, for example, Mzandarn,Amr va Khalq 1:7585.

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Throne as sufficient above any other knowledge or deed, adding that Hisgood pleasure and faith in Him is dependent upon obedience unto Hiscommand in all things, This, he says, is the fruit of existence. Bahullhconcludes the tablet by quoting the first of the Arabic Hidden Words.

Bahullhs Claim to a CauseI will now analyze Coles translation of the Book of the River and thedeductions based on it in light of the tablet itself. In his commentary on thetablet, he says:

This work is the clearest indication I know of Bahaullahs self-conception beforeabout 1859, when he appears to have begun telling people like Fitnih and Nabil-iAkbar that he was the Promised one. Denis MacEoin pointed out in his 1989BRISMES article that Bahaullah in this work disclaims having any Cause at thatpoint, and my rereading it now in conjunction with my translation convinces me thatDenis is right. He has no iqbal bar amri, is making no claim to have a divine Cause.

This work gives us a humanist Bahaullah, who sternly denies being able to workany miracles, who defers humbly to the Mirrors of the Babi dispensation, who givesus a catechism that includes belief in God, the Bab, Quddus, and the Living

Countenance (Denis thinks this is Azal; I dont know Babi terminology well enoughto have an opinion). Indeed, the argument seems to be made that just as plagues nolonger break out in Iraq every 30 years as they had in past centuries (owing toOttoman quarantines, by the way), that after the Babs death the age of miracles isover with. This is in turn an announcement of a profound secularization of sorts, isntit? (Commentary)

The most important strand of the argument is based on the perception thatBahullh has stated in the tablet that he makes no claim to any divine cause.This is Coles translation of the passage in question:

If it were not for fear of the hidden chains in the breasts of the people, I would havecontinued to mirror forth all divine parables and subtleties of the celestial laws with

reference to the very flowing of this physical river. But what shall I say? I make noclaim to a Cause. (Book of the Tigris)

The expression used by Bahullh here (as it appears in the version of thetablet used by Cole) is: Valkin c hih gyam kih hc h iqbl bih amrnadram.6 Although he translates this as: But what shall I say? I make noclaim to a Cause, not only does Bahullh say no such a thing here, he saysnothing remotely close to it. What Bahullh says is:


6. Cole incorrectly quotes the original as bar amr instead of bih amr.The more accurateversion of the tablet has Valkin chignih mshavad kih hchiqbl bih amr nadram.

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Were it not for fear of the malice hidden in the hearts, I would have assuredlyunveiled all the inmost divine analogies and all the subtleties of the heavenlyprinciples with regard to the course of this outward river. Yet, alas, I am disinclined toapproach any matter.

In other words, he has no desire to discuss the issue in question in detail. This isno case of ambiguous meaning. Bahullh has used a common polite Persianidiom which indicates reluctance or disinclination to approach an issue orengage in a task. From the text it is absolutely clear that the issue or task(amr) in question is nothing but the act of speech, writing, and exposition ofBahullhs spiritual knowledge through the metaphor of the river. It is justbefore this statement, in the same paragraph, that Bahullh makes the claimthat he is able to unveil all spiritual mysteries and all divine truths just throughthe metaphor of the river! However, because of the malice hidden in thehearts of the people surrounding him, he does not wish to divulge all thosemysteries. Obviously, this is indeed a clear indication of Bahullhs self-conception at the time he revealed the tablet. The passage, in other words,alludes powerfully to the fact that Bahullh is the Manifestation of God. It is

worth noting that in his later writings, Bahullh affirms that his ability tounveil all spiritual truth through one single metaphor is itself an indication ofhis exalted station (Iqtidrt71).

The beginning of the phrase, Yet, alas, or literally, What can I say?(Valkin c hih gyam), also idiomatic, is not a literal confession of havingnothing to say but an expression of reluctance to say something that one in factdoes know. It conveys disappointment and sorrow, but Bahullh is notexpressing sorrow that he has no claim to any divine cause! Rather, he isexpressing sorrow because he cannot disclose his real station, reveal his oceanof knowledge, and impart his inner secret because of the climate of hostility andthe low spiritual level of the people around him.7 This becomes even clearerwhen we note that Bahullh speaks of the anguish and sorrow that haveafflicted him in these days. His disinclination to complete the task of

unveiling all spiritual truth through the metaphor of the river is due to theconditions that prevail in these days.

There is absolutely no word equivalent to claim or to having a claimhere. It is true that the word amris also sometimes used for cause, but that isonly one of the possible uses ofamrand not the primary meaning of the term.But it is not even a possible meaning in the expression in question. In itsprimary sense, amr(meaning any event, matter, affair, issue, task, topic, etc.) i s


7. That meaning is evident in the more accurate version of the tablet, which instead of Valkinchih gyam has Valkin chignih mshavad.

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used by Bahullhthat is, not as divine causein numerous cases inhis writings.

In many of Bahullhs later tablets, he also writes that the hatred in thehearts of the people has prevented him from revealing tablets or unveiling allspiritual truth in his tablets. He also frequently uses a similar phrase to express

his lack of desire to discuss particular issues. For instance, in one of his latertablets he says that he has discussed the techniques of the alchemical elixir inhis Adrianople tablets because of his followers frequent requests, but thatotherwise he himself has no wish to discuss these issues. His exact words are:Vaill Qalam-i-Al . . . iqbl bih d hikr-i-n umr nads htih va nadrad(Ishrq Khvar,Midiy-i-smn1:19). In this sentence, both key terms of thestatement in the Book of the Riveriqb l and u mr (plural of a mr) occur.But if we were to translate this sentence as Cole translates those terms in theBook of the River, it would give us the self-contradiction: otherwise the MostExalted Pen makes no claim to utter these divine Causes. Clearly, Bahullhis simply saying that the Most Exalted Pen has no desire to discuss these issues.There is also no doubt that the latter statement was revealed years afterBahullhs public declaration of his station.

An interesting point is that, in a paragraph prior to the passage in question,Cole treats another occurrence of the word iqbl in a completely different way.He translates the passage as follows: Clearly, before the mind had perceivedsuch a thing, it would not have accepted anyones description of it (Book ofthe Tigris). But while i q b l is translated as a claim in the controversialsentence, it has been entirely omitted from the translation of this passage. Andin fact the word claim would make no sense there. In both sentences iqblmeans inclination. In the above instance Bahullh actually has written:Certainly, human reason would not be inclined to accept the possibility of theexistence of such a thing by means of any rational definition or descriptionwithout actual observation and experience (emphasis added).

In the Kitb-i-qn Bahullh uses a similar expression with iqbl to conveythe same meaning, namely that he has no inclination or desire to do something.Discussing Karm Khn-i-Kirmns book, Bahullh writes: Har chand nabd iqbl bih mulhiz. i y- i - ka l im t - i -g hiyr nads htih va nadram, meaning:Although we never felt disposed to peruse other peoples writings (Kitb-i-qn 185). Siyyid Kz. im-i-Rasht also uses such an expression frequently in hisPersian book Majmaul-Asrr, saying that since he has already discussed thetopic in his previous writings, or since he is tired and ill, he has no iqbl to alengthy discussion of the issue. He frequently says, for example, aln iqbl bihd hikr-i-n nadram, meaning: right now I have no wish to mention thati s s u e . 8 This reading of the expression as used in the Book of the River is


8. See, for example,Majmaul-Asrr44, 56, 274, 314.

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confirmed by another passage at the end of the tablet, where Bahullh writesthat he has revealed the tablet solely out of his love for Javd, Otherwise, Ihave no inclination to set forth any topic, or write a single letter thereon.

But that expression is not the only mistranslation in the passage. It is notchains that are hidden in the breasts but hatred. However, it has apparently

been assumed that the word aghll is the plural ofghull (chain). But here aghllis being used as the plural of the Arabic word g hi l l (rancor, malice, oranimosity). M ug hi l l , from the same root, means a person who is spiteful,deceitful, and bears malice and ill will. Bahullh frequently uses the termsghill and mughill in his tablets to describe the state of his enemies hearts.9 Inthis phrase Bahullh creates two plurals not found in standard Arabicaghll as the plural ofghill and as. dras the plural ofs. a d r (heart). Note thatcreating new words and derivatives was one way in which the Bb declared hissupreme authority as the Manifestation of God. However, what is indisputableis that in this context Bahullh is not talking about chains but animosities inthe hearts. The mistranslation makes it more difficult to understandBahullhs reference to his state of disappointment and his forced silence.

With that crucial information and the correction, now when we read the entire

paragraph it becomes absolutely clear what Bahullh is talking about in thispassage:

This is especially true if the Eastern Winds begin to blow upon the flood of thisheavenly river, which is rushing forth from the North of divine unity. How manyexalted souls and possessors of true understanding, how many mighty castles and firmlofty edifices, will be destroyed and perish. By Him Who holdeth the heavens by Hismight and moveth the oceans by His command! Were it not for fear of the malicehidden in the hearts, I would have assuredly unveiled all the inmost divine analogiesand all the subtleties of the heavenly principles with regard to the course of thisoutward river. Yet, alas, I am disinclined to approach any matter. On account of theintensity of My anguish and sorrow, in these days I am sore tried between the Gog ofsilence and the Magog of utterance. I beseech God to send down an Alexander whowill raise an insurmountable barrier.

Here Bahullh is saying that although he possesses perfect knowledge of alldivine mysteries, and although he can describe all of them through a singlemetaphor, he is forced to conceal these truths and practice wisdom (that is, theprinciple that words must be uttered with due regard unto the exigencies of theoccasion and the people [Bahullh, Tablets 172]). He is in between silenceand speech: the surging of his spiritual truth urges him to expression and


9. See, for example, Gleanings 255, 273.

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effulgence, while the hostile disposition of the people around him makes himreluctant to disclose those inner truths. In fact, this passage testifies not toBahullhs rejection of any divine claim but the exact opposite. Here he laysclaim to the same absolute knowledge as he does in the preface to the HiddenWords. While he is making a claim to absolute divine knowledge, he is also

affirming that he is intentionally concealing it out of prudence because thepeople are unready to bear it, and he offers hope that in the future, divineassistance will pave the way for a full declaration of his station.

Alexander the GreatOne additional element which should not be missed in this connection isBahullhs reference to Alexander. According to the Qurnic story (Srih19), Alexander the Great (Dhul-Qarnayn) was the agent of divine deliverancefrom the hostile tribes of Gog and Magog. Immediately following the referenceto Alexander, Bahullh tells us that he has just made a secret allusion to animmensely important concealed truth: Hidden allusions are concealed withinthese verses and holy letters are treasured up within these words. Blessed is theone who hath seized these pearls, recognized their value, and attained the

presence of their Supreme Meaning. His secret allusion is to somethingwonderful but concealed. The allusion to Alexander as the agent of deliverancefrom Gog and Magog suggests the proximity of his own declaration, one whichresolves the problem of concealment and makes possible the completerevelation of his spiritual truth.

As we have now seen, the passage that has been used to argue thatBahullh at that time did not think of himself as a Manifestation of God issaying exactly the opposite. It affirms that Bahullh possessed absolutedivine knowledge yet also was forced to be silent and withhold unveiling hisinner truth. Bahullhs expression of sorrow for his state of concealmentbecause of the immaturity of the people recalls the statement in his tablet ofvisitation for Imm H. usayn in which he speaks of the forced separation betweenh (h) and e (vv) due to Imm H. usayns sorrow (Majmiy-i-Alvh. 205).On the basis of the writings of Shaykh-Ah. mad-i-Ah.s and the Bb, it may beargued that h refers to the loving creative Word of God, and e to theessences and receptivities of the contingent beings. The incapacity of the latterto receive the former means the delay of spiritual creation and of the inceptionof a new divine Spring. The Book of the River confirms decisively the Bahconception that the Baghdad period was one of concealed revelation, half-waybetween speech and silence.

It should be noted that Coles translation of the tablet actually contains anumber of other problems. For instance, Bahullh quotes the Qurnic verseVa man as. daqu minallh hadt ha n? (And whose word is more true thanGods?), which Cole translates: And whose [sic] believes a word from God.


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In another place, Bahullhs imperative construction in Ponder and reflect[Fikr va tadabbur nimdih], that haply all the hidden mysteries may be freedfrom the veils of nearness and remoteness is translated as a third-person pasttense: It [the pen] pondered and thought about the riverand the rest of thesentence is given the wrong tense to make it consistent with that mistake,

obscuring the fact that Bahullh is here urging Javd to grasp themonumental truth just imparted to him in the parable of the river. Elsewhere,Bahullhs statement: Similarly, ponder upon the mysteries of divine decree[qad. ] and destiny [qadar]. Whatever hath appeared or will appear is like thisriver, becomes translated as: In the same way, consider the foreordained andpredestined mysterieswhat has appeared and shall appear, thus losing thepoint that Bahullh is speaking about the specific question of the mystery ofqadaror destiny mentioned in the Four Valleys and other writings. However,translation errors that do not play a major role in Coles commentary on thetablet will not be pursued here.

Miracles as EvidenceAccording to Coles reading of the Book of the River, Bahullh denies being

a Prophet; instead, we are told, this tablet gives us a humanist Bahaullah,who sternly denies being able to work any miracles, who defers humbly to theMirrors of the Babi dispensation. To further support this conclusion Cole adds:Indeed, the argument seems to be made that just as plagues no longer break outin Iraq every 30 years as they had in past centuries . . . after the Babs death theage of miracles is over with. This is in turn an announcement of a profoundsecularization of sorts, isnt it? (Commentary).

However, there is absolutely nothing in Bahullhs tablet indicating that heis unable to work miracles. Bahullh begins by referring to specific rumorsthat had been circulating and says that they are not true: Of the miraclesmentioned, those which are ascribed to this humble one are fabricationscontrived by impostors (nc hih az z. uhrt-i-mujizt kih dhikr s hud nchi hnisbat bih n h. aqr ast kidhbun iftarhul-mukdhib n). It is obvious here thatBahullh is in no way saying that he has not performed any miracle, nor is hesaying that he is unable to work miracles. He is simply rejecting the rumor thathe has performed the specific miracles Javd has asked about. But purelyhypothetically, even if Bahullh had denied performing any miracles, it doesnot follow that he was denying he was able to perform miracles. The equationof the two is invalid.

But we are offered a stronger, although also invalid, inference. Cole arguesthat in the example of thirty-year cycles of plague, Bahullh is rejecting thepossibility that miracles will occur at all after the Bb. But that inference isunwarranted on three counts. First, the issue being discussed is not whether inthe future miracles will or will not happen, but whether the accounts of miracles


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attributed to former Prophets were true or not. Bahullh is saying that if thosesame miracles are not happening right now, that does not mean that they did nothappen in the past. As we saw before, Bahullhs passage is a rejection of therationalist denial of miracles in the past. Second, in the example of thirty-yearcycles of plague, Bahullh is not saying that plague will never break out

again. He explicitly talks about the delay in its occurrence. In other words,there will be outbreaks of plague again, but not necessarily in intervals of thirtyyears. Concerning miracles, therefore, Bahullh seems to be saying thatpreviously miracles have indeed happened even if they are not being repeated inthe present day, and that in the future miracles can still happen, just as plaguecan still break out!

But in Coles translation of this section, all reference to the d e l a y of theplague has been omitted:

Now, some argue that if the miracles attributed to past prophets are true, then theymust appear now, as well. But this argument is unworthy of the consideration ofillumined minds and pure hearts. It is quite frequently the case that affairs occurred inthe past that no longer occur today, and vice versa. . . . For instance, every thirty years

as you count and reckon, in some countries a plague epidemic used to break out. Canthis interval be disputed? And can it be denied that no such thing has recentlyoccurred? Otherwise, many other things should also occur nowadays that used to takeplace but do not, and vice versa. (Book of the Tigris)

Third, Bahullh is not even talking about the non-occurence of miraclesaltogether in the present. At the beginning of the tablet, he has confirmed thetruth of thepresumably recent miracles attributed to the Bb Mirrors.However, even if he had spoken of a complete absence of miracles in thepresent, that in no way implies there could be no miracles in the future. Againthe inference is invalid. Bahaullah is arguing that history is dynamic and thatwe cannot deduce either the past or the future from the conditions of thepresent. Therefore, Bahullh is not talking about the inability to performmiracles, the impossibility of present miracles, or the impossibility of futuremiracles. The interpretation of the tablet as evidence that Bahullh advocatesa humanist or secularist doctrine on the grounds that the tablet rejects thepossibility of future miracles is not supported by the text itself. Furthermore,one has to remember Bahullhs acceptance of Mull H. a s a n - i - A m schallenge, in the later Baghdad period, to perform a miracle provided that thosewho asked for it accepted his claim afterward.10 In fact, in Bahullhs laterwritings, his message with regard to miracles is exactly the same as his messagein the Book of the River. On the one hand he attests to his ability to perform


10. Recounted in Gleanings 13132.

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miracles (and refers to the fact that his companions have witnessedextraordinary events in his presence),11 while at the same time he does not wishhis followers to engage in attributing various miracles to him because his stationis higher than that of mere miracle worker. In any case, miracles are not thestandard of divine truth, and he does not wish to open a door to rumors and

misrepresentations.Of course the word secularization is somewhat ambiguous and it is beyondthe scope of this article to discuss it. But Bahullhs dismissal of miracles asevidence is not due to exclusion of the spiritual from the material realm. On thecontrary, Bahullh intends to create a form of consciousness and civilizationin which all aspects of life are mirrors of divine attributes. Bahullhs tabletsand statements revealed in Baghdad, such as Panj Kanz (Five Treasures),1 2

clearly show that he intends to spiritualizenot secularizethe life of thepeople of the world. He dismisses the relevance of miracles precisely becausehis intention is to educate humanity so that its life will reflect a systematicintegration of spiritual principles, and to direct its gaze toward the revealedwords of God. This fact is even evident in the Book of the River, whereBahullh rejects the rationalist arguments by emphasizing the spiritual and

miraculous nature of all reality. The fact is that Bahullhs vision cannot beadequately described in terms of the current labels of secularization and non-secularization, but that is a different topic. In Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, oneof his last tablets, Bahullh writes:

Mine aim hath ever been, and still is, to suppress whatever is the cause of contentionamidst the peoples of the earth, and of separation amongst the nations, so that all menmay be sanctified from every earthly attachment, and be set free to occupy themselveswith their own interests. We entreat Our loved ones not to besmirch the hem of Ourraiment with the dust of falsehood, neither to allow references to what they haveregarded as miracles and prodigies to debase Our rank and station, or to mar the purityand sanctity of Our name.

Gracious God! This is the day whereon the wise should seek the advice of thisWronged One, and ask Him Who is the Truth what things are conducive to the gloryand tranquility of men. And yet, all are earnestly striving to put out this glorious andshining light, and are diligently seeking either to establish Our guilt, or to voice theirprotest against Us. Matters have come to such a pass, that the conduct of this WrongedOne hath, in every way, been grossly misrepresented, and in a manner which it wouldbe unseemly to mention. (Epistle 33)


11. See Bahullh, Kitb-i-Bad 218, 273;thr-i-Qalam-i-Al1:27273.12. Panj Kanz is not strictly a tablet but consists of statements of Bahullh recorded by Nabl-i-

Az. am. The Persian text is found in Andalb 10.40 (Fall 1991): 1013. Excerpts in English arequoted in Taherzadeh,Revelation of Bahullh 4:14043.

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As we can see in this passage, Bahullh asks his followers not to attributerumors of miracles to him, in exactly the same way that he rejects the rumors ofmiracles in the Book of the River. Indisputably, in the Akk period Bahullhdid consider himself both a Manifestation of God and capable of performingmiracles.

But in fact, in the Book of the River Bahullh discusses miracles preciselyin order to establish that he is a Manifestation of God. If Bahullh hadwritten nothing other than this tablet, it would have been sufficient evidencethat he claimed to be a Manifestation of God and the Promised One of the Bb.But to see that point, one must note that here Bahullh is dealing in subtleways with one of the ordinances of the Persian Bayn.

A Mysterious ParadoxIf one reads the tablet carefully, a mysterious paradox becomes evident. On theone hand Bahullh denies the specific miracles rumored of him, yet he engagesin a lengthy analysis concerning the present time, the evidence and justificationof his own authority, and the irrelevance of miracles to justify his truth.

Now why does Bahullh differentiate himself from the Bb and the

Mirrors of the Bb at the beginningaffirming the miracles attributed to themwhile denying those ascribed to himself? And why does he continue to justifyhis legitimacy without dependence on any miracle? If he is an independentManifestation of God, he must offer evidence and proof. But he is not anordinary Bb leader like any of the Mirrors. Even the Mirrors could performmiracles, but none of them could reveal verses. In the Persian Bayn the Bbhas explicitly and frequently stated that no one else except the Bb and HimWhom God shall make manifest can reveal verses. Because verses are the onlylegitimate evidence, no Bb is allowed to report and attribute miracles to theManifestation (Persian Bayn, vh. id 6, ch. 8). Bahullh distances himselffrom the miracle talk because he is affirming in a subtle way that his ownstation is far beyond that of any miracle worker. His refusal to report miraclesfor himself while admitting them for the Bb and the Bb Mirrors indirectlyindicates that he is initiating a new revelation and affirming his own authorityand station as the Manifestation of God. Since the Promised One has appearedin his own person, it is the rumors of miracles attributed to himself thatBahullh rejects. Here, the appearance of humility is the secret ofBahullhs sovereignty.

If we look at the other writings of Bahullh, this issue becomes muchclearer. In the Kitb-i-Bad, revealed in Adrianople, Bahullh responds tothe objections and accusations of the Bbs against his claim to be the PromisedOne of the Bayn. Repeatedly he emphasizes that his enemies among the Bbshave always tried to insist on miracles, and not the revelation of verses, as theproof of the Promised One. In fact they had to argue for the insufficiency of


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revealing verses as proof because otherwise they would have had to acceptBahullhs claim. Bahullh, however, demonstrates that the Bb has madeit clear in all his writings that the only evidence of the Bbs station is hisability to reveal the verses of God, and that the same would constitute the soleevidence of the Promised One (Kitb-i-Bad 34750). We can now understand

the reason why Bahullh in the Book of the River refuses to accept therelevance or necessity of miracles, rejects the rumors of miracles about himself,and emphasizes instead the revelation of verses as the true divine standard.

And yet, in the Book of the River, even while Bahullh rejects the relevance ofmiracles for his authority, he implicitly identifies himself as the source of allmiracles. He writes: If anything else appeared from the mine of bounty and glory[Bah], that was but a token of Gods grace. Here again, the apparent humilityat the beginning of the tablet is nothing less than the mysterious evidence ofhis exalted station. It is in a beautiful way the fulfillment of the Immsstatement that Servitude is a substance the essence of which is Divinity.

Bahullhs discussion of miracles has a parallel in the Bbs insistence thathe should not be judged in terms of the literary rules and conventions ofscholars and grammarians because his own station is far superior to the makers

of those rules and traditions. Bahullh himself is surprisingly generous inaccepting as true all the miracles attributed to any famous Bb, even while hedifferentiates himself from all of them. He is so generous because he is reallysaying that miracle making is no extraordinary feat! His gracious affirmation ofthe miracles attributed to various Bb Mirrors is most interesting. It suggeststhat Bahullh did not wish to provide a pretext for disunity and conflictwithin the Bb community by denying the miracles attributed to prominentBbs, even while at the same time he affirms his superior authority over all ofthem.

In addition to indicating that many can perform miracles but the revelation ofdivine verses is the unique ability of the Manifestations, he refers to Qurnicpassages to the effect that all created beings are truly the miracles of God. Sincea great number of Qurnic statements affirm the miraculous nature of all

things, Bahullh very likely does not intend reference to any one specificverse but indicates the general meaning of those numerous verses on this theme.Of all miracles, the greatest and most amazing is the creative act of God, WhoseWord brings all reality into beingand this ability belongs only to the PrimalWill. Here, Bahullh implicitly equates himself with Gods creative act. Hisevidence and justification is the same as Gods supreme miracle: the creation ofthe world and the revelation of a new spiritual reality.

To see more clearly this mysterious paradox of Bahullhs tablet, let usconsider these five related points.

1. In his justification of his own station, Bahullh asserts that the samething that the Bbs accept as true with regard to the Bbs Bayn applies to


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Bahullh as well. Javd has asked why God does not reveal His might so thatthe Cause of God would be rendered victorious and the believers would beuplifted and exalted. Bahullh answers that this is indeed true in the sameway as thou dost affirm it with regard to the Bayn (Bimithl-i-m antum fil-Bayn tant.i q n). That is, just as the Bbs revelation disclosed an absolute

divine majesty and yet only the spiritually mature recognized it, in the sameway Bahullhs revelation at the present time is magnificent and mostpowerful in itself, but this does not mean that all can recognize and believe inhim.

However, Cole has translated Bahullhs reference to the Bayn literally,resulting in a meaningless redundancy. He renders the passage: Indeed this is atruth, the like of which you speak forth in utterance (Book of the Tigris). Butthe Bayn Bahullh mentions here is not just any utterance; it is the Bookand Revelation of the Bb. By missing Bahullhs reference to the Bayn andthe Bbs evidencea reference establishing a clear parallel with Bahullhse v i d e n c e1 3the translation has made it more difficult for the reader to seeBahullhs majestic language and his claim in this tablet.

The context of the phrase makes its meaning clear. Bahullh first refers to

Javds argument that divine power requires a demonstration of its dominionover all people, and then he confirms that statement by saying that this is correctin the same way that you affirm it with regard to the Bayn. But if Colestranslation were accurate, then Bahullhs confirmation of the statementwould make no sensebecause he has just explained that miracles are notnecessary proof of divine dominion. Javds statement is not accurate in theway that Javd asserts it; it is only accurate when the Bbs divine dominionand majesty is seen as being expressed in the Bayn itself.

In the Kitb-i-qn Bahullh addresses a similar question as posed by thematernal uncle of the Bb concerning the nature of divine sovereignty.Bahullh explains that by sovereignty is meant the all-encompassing, all-pervading power which is inherently exercised by the Qim whether or not Heappear to the world clothed in the majesty of earthly dominion, his spiritualascendancy which He exerciseth to the fullest degree over all that is in heavenand on earth, and which in due time revealeth itself to the world in directproportion to its capacity and spiritual receptiveness (Kitb-i-qn 1 0 7 8 ) .That sovereignty and power is present in the divine words themselves: Hastthou not heard how with one single verse He hath sundered light from darkness,the righteous from the ungodly, and the believing from the infidel? . . . Somercilessly trenchant was this wondrous sword of God that it cleft asunder


13. Bahullh uses the same form of expression frequently in discussing the book of the Bayn.See for example, Gleanings 149.

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every relationship! On the other hand, consider the welding power of Hisword, which fused and blended former enemies through their allegiance tothis wondrous and transcendent Revelation (Kitb-i-qn 11112).

2. Bahullhs river metaphor is a reference to his own divine revelation andhis own verses. His claim to be the Promised One of the Bayn is clearly visible

in the paragraph in which he speaks of the unprecedented and unusual surgingof the divine river at the present time. The flooding of the river, as Bahullhexplicitly says in the tablet itself, is a symbol for the appearance of a newRevelation. At this very moment, he says, the divine river is rushing forth fromthe North of divine unity (shuml-i-ah. adyyat), and is stirred by the EasternWinds (ary h.-i-s har qy y i h)terms which have multiple symbolic meaningsrelated to the revelation of the Primal Will.

Another subtle expression of Bahullhs station is his mention of thehidden allusions concealed in his words and his praise of those who haveunderstood them: Blessed is the one who hath seized these pearls, recognizedtheir value, and attained the presence of their Supreme Meaning. Here, themeaning of the word becomes the same as the being of Bahullh himself.

3. Bahullhs concluding statement in the tablet is a subtle reference to his

own station as the Promised One of the Bb: Glory be upon those who believein Him on the day of His meeting and who observe what He hath decreed. Theword glory (Bah) is used here in a significant way in reference to theexpectation of the Promised One. A full explication of this question isimpossible here, but in sum: in the Bayn, the Bb made it clear that Bah isthe title of the Promised One. We also know that Bahullh signed many ofhis Baghdad tablets as Bah and he began his Hidden Words with HuvalB a h y y u l - A b h (He is the Glory of Glories). That in itself is a subtle andconcealed declaration.

4. After disclosing wondrous spiritual truths through the use of the rivermetaphor, Bahullh tells Javd to ponder and reflect so that the hiddenmysteries may become disclosed to him; to [r]ecognize this Sea of Seascompared to which all others are like a drop; and to observe how it surgeth

within the Wellspring of its own blessed Essence and the mine of its ownattributes. Then he directs Javd to thank God for teaching him knowledgethrough the tongue of the Manifestation of Thyself and the Wellspring ofThine Essence, He Who is the Fountainhead of Thy Cause and the Repositoryof Thy Decree. Given the fact that it was through Bahullh that the analogyof the river became the vehicle for all knowledge, it becomes clear that by theSea of Seas Bahullh is referring to himself and is identifying his tablet asthe revelation of the Manifestation of God. The reference to the Sea of Seassurging within The Wellspring of its Own blessed Essence is again probably areference to his concealed station.

Likewise, a most beautiful and powerful declaration of his true station is


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visible in the subtle equation of the river of revelation with the movement of hisPen. After discussing the river as the symbol of divine revelation, Bahullhdescribes his unveiling of the river analogy as the onrush of the Pen. In otherwords, the movement of his Pen is the same as the river that dispenses the waterof divine revelation.

5. Another implicit reference to Bahullhs majestic station can be foundin his quotation, in the tablet, of the first Arabic Hidden Word: Possess a pure,kindly and radiant heart, that thine may be a sovereignty ancient, imperishableand everlasting. He states that this passage is taken from the essence of theholy Books (that is, the Hidden Words). He also expounds the specialsignificance of this particular command, calling it a treasure that pertaineth toHeaven, a light that shall never be extinguished, a treasure that perisheth not,a raiment that shall never be outworn, and a revelation that will never beconcealed. Moreover, he refers to it as the All-Encompassing Word(kalimiy-i-jmiih)a clear reference to the revealed Word of God embracingall spiritual truth. He tells Javd to preserve this counsel if thou desirest tofind a path to the Lord of the Mighty Throne.

A more subtle declaration of Bahullhs station is evident in the fact that

he is here using All-Encompassing Word to describe not only his revealedWord in the Hidden Words, but also his own being as the Manifestation of God.In the writings of both the Bb and Bahullh, the title All-EncompassingWord is applied to both the Manifestation and his Revelation.

The significance of mentioning this particular statement from the HiddenWords becomes apparent through a careful comparison with the Kitb-i-qnand the Kitb-i-Bad. In these texts Bahullh outlines the preconditions ofthe spiritual search to recognize the Manifestation of God for the age. He callsupon the seeker to renounce all preconceived ideas and conditions, and torecognize the Manifestation through the Manifestation himself. In other words,one should not take human understandings of the previous words of God, or theconceptions of the scholars, as the standard by which to judge the authenticityof divine revelation. In the Book of the River, after rejecting peoples notions ofmiracles as a standard for recognizing divine revelation, Bahullh quotes thisHidden Word, which emphasizes the principle of sincerity of heart, as a conciseepistemological principle which is the true path leading to recognition of theManifestation of God.

Bahullh as the Living CountenanceBahullhs reference in the Book of the River to the Living Countenance(T.alat-i-H. ayy) is a reference to none other than himself. The title has a complexmeaning and is an implicit claim to be the Promised One of the Bayn.However, the assumption that one should consult the Bb literature to find outwhat Bahullh means by the Living Countenance is a methodological


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mistake. It is only in the writings of Bahullh himself that we can find theexplanation of what he means by Living Countenance. In this passage he writes:

Today, every soul who believeth in the Most Exalted Countenance, and recognizethwith certitude His station as manifested after Him on the Throne, this shall sufficethhim above any other knowledge or deed. But His good pleasure and faith in Himcannot be realized except through obedience unto His command in all things. This isthe greatest, most excellent, and consummate fruit of existence. There is no goalbesides God and no end save Him. . . .

[W]ith a swordlike tongue sing and chant in ringing tones, clap and drum, that thereis no God but Him, that Al Muh.ammad is the Essence of God and His eternal Being,and Muh. ammad Al is the Mine of the Cause of God and His everlasting Self, that theLiving Countenance is the Repository of Gods authority and His self-subsistingIdentity, and the Letters of the Living are the first to have believed in God and Hisverses. We all, verily, cleave unto them.

If we examine the passage, we can see that the Bb is called the MostExalted Countenance, followed by an immediate reference to His station asmanifested after Him on the Throne which indicates the return of the Bb after

his martyrdom in the form of a new Throne. In addition, Bahullh speakshere of the Living Countenance as a person different from the Bb and fromQudds. The meaning of the title Living Countenance becomes obvious fromthe Bbs and Bahullhs writings: the Living Countenance refers to thereturn of the Bb (who is the Most Exalted Countenance), but a f t e rhis ownmartyrdom, and in a l i v i n g form. This is clearly a reference to the famousstatement of the Bb: Verily, I am He that liveth in the Abh Realm of Glory!(Innany ana h. ayyun f i l - u f u q i l - A b h ), a statement quoted frequently byBahullh. In other words, the Living Bb, or the Living Countenance, isAbh (Bah).

A clear parallel with the statement in the Book of the River can be seen in oneof Bahullhs tablets in which he interprets the Qurnic statement Westrengthened the two by the third. In that tablet Bahullh first states: Thus

doth the Tongue of God proclaim to all beings that verily I am He that liveth inthis Horizon which hath in truth been manifested, Who among the Concourseon high hath been named the Most Exalted Al [the Bb], and Who in the citiesof Names beareth the glorious name of Abh [Bahullh]. Here we can seethat Bahullh is affirming the identity of the Bb and Bahullh, anddefining the latter as the living manifestation of the former. After that,Bahullh interprets the Qurnic statement by saying: Verily, the firstWhom We sent down in truth was Al. We, verily, made Him shine forth fromthe horizon of Frs [Shrz] . . . and the other whom We sent down was alsoAl and We called him among the Concourse on high by our name Qudds . . .and We strengthened both of them by this Beauty Who hath appeared, shining


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above the the horizon of Command with manifest dominion (Ishrq Khvar,Rah. q-i-Makhtm 2:1046; provisional translation).

But the more interesting point is that Bahullh himself in the Tablet of AllFood (Lawh. -i-Kullut. -T. am), revealed in the first year of Bahullhs arrivalin Baghdad, before the Book of the River, explicitly identifies the Living

Countenance as both Qudds and Him Whom God shall make manifest! Giventhe high station of Qudds, and his being the last of the primary Unity(Vh. id) of the Bb dispensation,14 he is also the representative of the Bb inthe Bbs lifetime. However, after the martyrdom of the Bb, the LivingCountenance can be only the next Manifestation, who will be living in thehorizon of Abh. In the Tablet of All Food, Bahullh interprets theenigmatic verse in the Qurn: All food was allowed to the children of Israel.. . . (3:93). After interpreting it in several different ways, he tells the addresseethat were he to wish to interpret this verse from today until the day ofMustaghth, the Day in which people arise for the new Living Countenance, hewould assuredly be able to do so by virtue of that which God has conferredupon him by His bounty and grace. Bahullh explains this by saying that theMystery of Unity has moved and the Ocean of eternity billowed and the

Countenance of Light shone forth in the Heavens ofAm from the right sideof the Tree of Revelation in these matchless days of the Revelation of the Sun,and yet, people do not recognize its majesty. A few paragraphs later,Bahullh speaks of the cruelty surrounding him and says that if Qudds, whowas the Last Point and the Living Countenance, were alive, he would besaddened and would weep at seeing Bahullhs sufferings (Ishrq Khva r,

Rah. q-i-Makhtm 2: 41626).In the Book of the River, Bahullh is already affirming the advent of the

Bb, Qudds, and the Living Countenance. Given Bahullhs concept of theLiving Countenance, this can only mean that Bahullh, emerging from theAbh horizon, is the Promised One of the Bayn. Interestingly, the Bb makesthe statement regarding his living in the horizon of Abh in a tablet addressed toYah. y Azal. To understand the complexity and beauty of this statement itshould be remembered that Yah.y was one of the Mirrors. According to boththe Bb and Bahullh, a mirror has no significance by itself. It becomes therecipient of light only when it turns toward the sun; at that moment, all the mostexcellent names and attributes of God are reflected by and thus pertain to themirror. However, the moment that the mirror turns away from the sun, itbecomes darkened and deprived of all those names. The Bb is telling Yah.ythat his titles are valid as long as Yah. y turns toward the Bb, and that


14. In this context Unity (Vh. id) refers to The Primal Point and his eighteen Letters of theLivingQudds was the last of the Letters of the Living.

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afterward the Bb will continue to be manifest in the Realm of Abh Glory.Therefore, as long as Yah.y is obedient to Bah, he will retain all his titles;otherwise he will turn into nothing. Bahullhs reference to the LivingCountenance in conjunction with the Bb is therefore a subtle but clearreference to Bahullh as the return of the Primal Point, the Sun of Truth.

Furthermore, not only is the title Living Countenance not a reference toYah.y Azal but, on the contrary, it is an affirmation that Yah.yas station issubordinate to Bahullh.

In many of his writings, Bahullh uses this same statement of the Bb toprove that he is the return of the Bb in the form of Bah. For instance in theKitb-i-Bad He writes: If the people of the Bayn had the necessary insight,the blessed verse of the Bb, Verily, I am He that liveth in the Abh Realm ofGlory! would have been sufficient unto them and unto all that dwell in heavenand on earth (227; provisional translation). He emphasizes the same idea inother parts of that text as well (21920, 348).

The Book of the River is not an ordinary text. As Bahullh himselftestifies, divine mysteries and secrets are hidden in this short tablet, which ischaracterized by the dialectical tension between expression and silence. The

result is a magnificent work of symbols and metaphors which affirm the exaltedstation of Bahullh in a beautiful, majestic, and yet concealed way.

Bahullhs Reference to His 1852 RevelationThroughout his writings, Bahullh frequently and explicitly affirms that hereceived a revelation in the year nine in the Syh-Chl, and that he declared hisstation as the Promised One of the Bayn to certain individuals during the earlyBaghdad period. Of course, Bahullhs statement in the Tablet to the Shah ofIran is a well-known and clear testimony concerning the beginning of hisRevelation in the Syh-Chl:

O King! I was but a man like others, asleep upon My couch, when lo, the breezesof the All-Glorious were wafted over Me, and taught Me the knowledge of all thathath been. This thing is not from Me, but from One Who is Almighty and All-Knowing.And He bade me lift up My voice between earth and heaven, and for this there befellMe what hath caused the tears of every man of understanding to flow. (Epistle 1 1)

Although this is sufficient evidence in itself, Cole insists that here Bahullhis simply reporting a spiritual experience calling him to reform the Bbcommunity. It is curious that this most explicit statement should be termedambiguous. In it Bahullh speaks of the breezes of the All-Gloriousaclear mystic symbol of revelationand he describes the experience as theinstantaneous knowledge of all that hath been! Similarly, the statement in theSratul-Haykal dealing with the same experience completely settles the


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issue.15 However, Cole, in discussing his own interpretation of the Book of theRiver, suggests that the tablet

raises the most acute questions about the nature of the intimation Bahaullah is saidto have experienced in the Siyah Chal. If one reads the account in Epistle to the Son of

the Wolf carefully, it appears that it consisted more of ilham or inspiration than ofwahy or revelation, and that Bahaullah began thinking of islah or reform of Babismrather than of making any claim of his own. (Commentary)

But in fact, Bahullh has explicitly used the term wahy (vah.y) and not ilhamwith regard to his Syh-Chl experience. In another tablet, Bahullh givesthe same account of the experience in different words and adds that this isalready mentioned in the Tablet to the Shahobviously he means the sameaccount of what happened in the Syh-Chl. However, here he uses the wordvah.y. Bahullh says:

By God! Verily I was asleep, when lo! the breezes of Revelation [vah.y] bestirredMe. I was silent, and thy Lord, the Almighty, the All-Powerful, caused Me to speakforth. Were it not for His behest I would not have revealed Myself. Verily, His Willprevailed over My will and raised Me up to establish a Cause which hath made Methe target of the darts of the infidels. Read what We have revealed to the kings thatthou mayest be assured that this Servant speaketh as bidden by the All-Knowing,the All-Informed. (Majmiy-i-Alvh. 234; provisional translation)

It should also be noted in this connection that Bahullh uses the sameconcept and same wording in the Kitb-i-Bad, which was written at the end ofthe Adrianople periodthe same period as the revelation of the Tablet to theShahto discuss his station explicitly as the Manifestation of God and thePromised One of the Bayn. These repeated statements of Bahullh clearlyshow that the statement in the Tablet to the Shah unequivocally refers to theinception of Bahullhs new Revelation. For instance, asserting that he is thePromised One of the Bayn, Bahullh writes the following:

O people! I am Al Himself [the Bb] and the Beauty of Muh. ammad amongst youand the essence of Spirit [Jesus] between the heavens and the earth. O people, fearye God! Verily, I am a servant Who truly believeth in God and in His verses. I wasasleep upon My couch, when lo, the breezes of the All-Glorious were wafted overMe, and awakened Me to the Truth, and taught Me the knowledge of all that hathbeen and all that is to be, and revealed Me by the ornament of His own Self, andcaused Me to speak His praise, should ye understand. O people! even if ye fail tobelieve in Me, at least do not protest against Me. . . . O people, fear ye God. I was


15. See Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By 1012.

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but a man like you, and wished to remain silent, but the Spirit stirred Me and movedMe to the Truth, and bade Me reveal the verses of God and His proofs, and thisthing is not from Me, but from the All-Knowing, All-Mighty, and Beloved God.(Kitb-i-Bad 8788; provisional translation)

Even a cursory look at this passage resolves any doubt concerning the meaningof the similar statement about Bahullhs Syh-Chl experience found in theTablet to the Shah of Iran. Bahullhs statements resolving in the Syh-Chlto reform the Bb community are themselves evidence of the abrogation ofthe Bayn and the initiation of a new dispensation.

Discussing his Syh-Chl experience, Bahullh writes: One night, in adream, these exalted words were heard on every side: Verily, We shall renderThee victorious by Thyself and by Thy pen (Epistle 21). This statement is acategorical demonstration and declaration of the prophetic station ofBahullh. A detailed discussion of its implications is beyond the scope of thispaper. However, two fundamental points should be mentioned. First byThyself and by Thy pen means by his being and by his verses. Anyone familiarwith the Persian Bayn and the Kitb-i-qn knows that these are both the

conclusive proof for the claim of the Manifestation of God. That reference issufficient to categorize the nature of the Syh-C hl experience. Second, thesame statement can also be seen as an implicit assertion of the annulment orremoval of the swordone of the principles announced by Bahullh on thefirst day of his Rid.vn declaration, signaling the beginning of a new era and theeffective abrogation of specific laws of the Qurn and Bayn (Mzandarn,

Asrrul-thr4:22).In addition to these tablets, Bahullh has made numerous other statements

affirming that he revealed himself as the Promised One of the Bayn in the yearnine and revealed his station to a few individuals in the early Baghdad years.The following are a few examples. In Epistle to the Son of the Wolf,Bahullh refers to the prophecies of the Bb concerning the advent of thePromised One in the year nine and affirms that he appeared in the year nine:

He (the Bb) saithglorified be His utteranceaddressing his honor, Az. m :This, verily, is the thing We promised thee, ere the moment We answered thy call.Wait thou until nine will have elapsed from the time of the Bayn. Then exclaim:Blessed, therefore, be God, the most excellent of Makers! Say: This, verily, is anAnnouncement which none except God hath comprehended. Ye, however, will beunaware on that day. In the year nine this Most Great Revelation arose and shoneforth brightly above the horizon of the Will of God. None can deny it save he whois heedless and doubteth. (Epistle 142)

In his tablet to Kamlud-Dn Narq (the recipient of Bahullhs Tablet ofAll Food), Bahullh testifies that the Bbs prophecy concerning the


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appearance of the Promised One in the year nine and the experience of allgood in that same year has been fulfilled. He writes:

O Kaml! Thou hast attained two great bounties. First, thou wert blessed by theencounter with God in the year nine, and this is what the Primal Point had promisedall in His statement, In the year nine ye shall attain unto the presence of God.Likewise, thou wert honored to receive the Divine Word in the Qurnic verseconcerning All Food, and that is the good which the Primal Point has promised inHis assertion, In the year nine ye shall attain unto all good. (Is hrq K h v a r ,

Muh. d. irt1:192; provisional translation)

In his tablet concerning the Bbs Tablet of Nineteen Temples, Bahullhwrites:

Verily, by nineteen He [the Bb] intended naught but this preeminent and mostexalted Revelation. But the promise made unto you in the Book concerning nine,through His assertion in the year nine ye shall attain unto all good was fulfilled inthat year when the dawning of Gods Manifestation was divulged according to apreordained measure. By nineteen He meant those appointed years of delay as set

forth in the Bayn. At the end of that period the promise was fulfilled; the PromisedOne appeared unto all creation in His all-embracing sovereignty. (Ishrq K h v a r ,Muh. d. irt1:397; provisional translation)

Note in that passage Bahullhs discussion of his concealed revelation in theyear nine, and the stage of nineteen years preparation, followed by thecomplete unveiling of his station.

In the Kitb-i-Bad Bahullh discusses the argument of Azals followers,according to which the Promised One of the Bayn would not appear before thecompletion and perfection of the dispensation of the Bayn. Bahullh affirmsthat, according to the Bbs prophecies, that completion would take place innine years, and this was exactly fulfilled in the year nine by his own revelation.He writes:

Thou hast made mention of the termination of the [Bbs] Dispensation. Hearken untothe utterance of the Revealer of the Bayn, may the realities of all things be a sacrificeunto Him, who stateth explicitly, Ere nine will have elapsed from the inception ofthis Cause, the realities of the created things will not be made manifest. All that thouhast as yet seen is but the stage from the moist germ until We clothed it with flesh. Bepatient until thou beholdest a new creation. Say: Blessed, therefore, be God, the MostExcellent of Makers! I testify that the difference between the Qim and theQayym is the number nine, which marketh the period when sanctified souls wereconsummated and established in their own stations. That is also the differencebetween Az.am and Az. m . And in another passage He saith, Observe thedifference between Qim and Qayym, then in the year nine ye shall attain untoall good. Concerning this He further saith: This, verily, is the thing We promised


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thee, ere the moment We answered thy call. Wait thou until nine will have elapsedfrom the time of the Bayn. Then exclaim: Blessed, therefore, be God, the mostexcellent of Makers! O thou who claimest to have seeing eyes and to be an upholderof justice and fairness! Open thou thine eyes to behold how a new creation hath comeinto being since the year nine and say: Blessed, therefore, be God, the Most Excellentof Creators. And again, Hallowed be the Lord, the Most Excellent and the Most

Wondrous of Creators. Observe how He hath referred to both the maturation of thepeople of the Bayn and the superiority of the next Revelation through His explicitand unambiguous reference to the difference between Qim and Qayym andA z.am and Az. m. And when the period was consummated and the appointedtime ordained by God completed, the Beauty of Nine was revealed with manifestdominion. (Kitb-i-Bad 11415; provisional translation)

It should be mentioned that the numerical difference between Az. a m , meaning the most great, and Az. m, meaning the great, is ninethesame as the difference between Qim and Qayym. Bahullh states thatthe Beauty of Nine (namely Bah, which is equal to nine) appeared in theyear nine as the fulfillment of the prophecies of the Bayn. That same point ismade in many other tablets, such as the following:

Ponder upon this exalted word revealed by the Dayspring of the utterance of the Lordof Names, the Primal Point, which is truly of the essence of the Bayn. He saith: Inthe year nine ye shall attain unto all good and in the year nine ye shall attain unto thepresence of God. And addressing his honor Az.m, rest upon him the glory and theloftiness of God, Hemay He be glorifiedsaith: This, verily, is the thing Wepromised thee, ere the moment We answered thy call. Wait thou until nine will haveelapsed from the time of the Bayn. Then exclaim: Blessed, therefore, be God, themost excellent of Makers! Now be fair: who is the One Who appeared in the yearnine? (Ishrq Khvar, Qms-i-Tawq 2:487; provisional translation)

One of those to whom Bahullh disclosed his station was Dayyn (MrzAsadullh Khu). In some of his writings, Bahullh mentions that the Bbhad written of Dayyn as the third to recognize Him Whom God shall makemanifest, and Bahullh testifies that this did in fact happen in the earlyBaghdad period:

The Primal Point has written to him, O thou the third Letter to believe in Him WhomGod shall make manifest, and this is the station that supersedeth all stations, and thenHe mentioned something in this regard which implied that Dayyn would becomeblessed by the encounter with God in the next Revelation, and that the Eternal Templewould declare Himself to him, as in reality he attained the presence and the Tongue ofGod spoke to him . . . and the Most Glorious Beauty showered him with kindness andhe attained the station ordained in the tablet. (Kitb-i-Bad 10214; provisionaltranslation)


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Note that if Dayyn was the third to recognize Bahullhs station in Baghdad,two others should have preceded him. Of Dayyns recognition and hismartyrdom, Bahullh writes:

We mention at this moment the Third Letter who believed in Me, who wascondemned by the source of cruelty without any justification or authority. He

journeyed to Baghdad till he reached and waited at the door and after permissionentered and attained the presence of This Countenance and listened and said, Praisebe to Thee, the Lord of the invisible and the visible, and glory upon Thee, the Lord ofLords. I bear witness that Thou wert hidden from all eternity and that today Thou hastrevealed Thyself. Blessed is the one who believeth in Thee and quaffeth the wine fromThy hand of Generosity. (thr-i-Qalam-i-Al 2:34; provisional translation)

In at least two tablets, Bahullh demonstrates the fulfillment of Qurnicprophecies in his Revelation by referring to the verse relating to After Hn(Bada Hn). He explains that Hn is numerically 68 and after 68 is 69namely, nine years after the Bbs declaration. The same Qurnic passage hadbeen mentioned by S hayk h- Ah.m a d - i - Ah.s, Siyyid Kz. i m - i- R as ht, and theBb in regard to the Promised One. Bahullh writes:

Ponder upon the reference to the verse Ye shall know of His Announcement afterHn. This blessed verse has been mentioned by his honor the late Siyyid, upon himrest the glory of God, and likewise earlier by the S ha yk h, upon him rest the mostglorious of all glories, and again by the Primal Point, may the souls of all that dwellwithin the kingdom be a sacrifice unto Him! All of them related the verse to this MostGreat Revelation, for it was after the completion of the year sixty-eight and theappearance of the nine that this Most Great, Most Wondrous, and Most Exalted Causewas revealed from the horizon of the Will of the Lord of People. That is why thePrimal Point, may the life of all be a sacrifice unto Him, saith: In the year nine yeshall attain unto all good and elsewhere: In the year nine ye shall attain unto thepresence of God. (Ishrq Khvar,Rah. q-i-Makhtm 1:567; provisional translation)

Finally, in a long tablet revealed in 186364, Bahullh describes in detailhis revelation in the name of the Bb in 1844 (twenty years before the tablet),and the Bbs prophecy of his return in the form of the Promised One in theyear nine, as well as his concealment during the

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