Days of Remembrance #15, Riḍván
Days of Remembrance - Selections from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh for Bahá’í Holy Days.
Riḍván- 15 -
Praise be to Thee, O my God, for having cast in this Day the radiance of all Thy names upon all created things, O Thou Who art the Lord of glory, majesty, and grandeur; of power, might, and blessings! This is the Day whereon He Who is the Mouthpiece of God, the All-Possessing, the Inaccessible, the Most High, hath called out from the realm of eternity, saying: “The Kingdom is God’s, the Almighty, the Most Exalted, the Most Glorious!”
Lauded be Thy name, O Thou Who causest the winds to blow and the dawn to break, Who revealest the verses and unveilest the proofs! All things proclaim that Thou art God, and that there is none other God but Thee, the Sovereign, the All-Powerful, the Most Exalted, the Most Great. Magnified be Thy name, O Thou Who art the Fashioner of the heavens and the Creator of all names, Who sheddest Thy splendour upon all things through the power of Thy Most Great Name. This, verily, is the name whereby the Mystic Dove hath warbled upon the celestial bough, proclaiming: “All dominion belongeth forever unto God, our Lord, the Most Merciful!”
Glorified art Thou, O King of eternity, and Ruler of the nations, and Quickener of every mouldering bone! Praise be unto Thee, a praise that no earthly tongue can ever befittingly extol, a praise through which the outpourings of Thy mercy have rained upon all created things and the light of Thy countenance hath shone upon all who are in heaven and on earth. Praise be unto Thee, a praise that hath unloosed the tongue of every stammerer in Thy celebration, that hath drawn every remote one nigh unto the seat of Thy mighty throne, and that hath guided every thirsty one to the living waters of Thy bounty and the soft-flowing streams of Thy favour. Praise be unto Thee, a praise through which the fragrance of the robe of Thy mercy hath been wafted upon all who are in heaven and on earth, and the sweet smell of the roses of Thy Paradise hath been diffused over the dwellers of the cities of eternity, and every name hath been made to extol Thy remembrance and glory. Praise be unto Thee, a praise that hath endued the hearts of Thy loved ones with such constancy that no earthly veil can hinder them from fixing their gaze upon the horizon of Thy bounties, nor can the ascendancy of the oppressors deter them from beholding the wondrous light of Thy countenance. Praise be unto Thee, a praise that hath blotted out from the hearts of Thy servants the mention of aught else save Thee and aided them to teach Thy Cause and to blazon Thy remembrance in every region.
I beseech Thee, O my God, by Thy most excellent names and Thy most exalted attributes, and by them that have soared in the atmosphere of Thy nearness and good-pleasure and taken flight upon the wings of trust and detachment towards the Dayspring of Thy name, the All-Merciful, and by the blood that hath been shed for Thy sake, and by the sighs that have been uttered for Thy love, to accept from us on this day all our works in Thy path.
This is the Day whereon the All-Merciful shed the splendour of His effulgence upon all names. All glory be to that which God hath bestowed upon us!
This is the Day whereon He Who is the Hidden and the Unseen appeared before the eyes of all creation. All glory be to that which God hath bestowed upon us!
This is the Day whereon the Most Great Idol was shattered. All glory be to that which God hath bestowed upon us!
This is the Day whereon the Lord of mercy revealed Himself unto all creation. All glory be to that which God hath bestowed upon us!
This is the Day whereon Pharaoh was drowned and Moses beheld Him Who is the Beauty of the All-Glorious Lord. All glory be to that which God hath bestowed upon us!
This is the Day whereon the false gods of idle fancy were overthrown through the power of our Lord, the Almighty, the All-Knowing. All glory be to that which God hath bestowed upon us!
This is the Day whereon the billows of the Most Great Ocean were made manifest in the Scene of transcendent glory. All glory be to that which God hath bestowed upon us!
This is the Day whereon all created things were summoned to the presence of their Lord, the Inaccessible, the Most High. All glory be to that which God hath bestowed upon us!
This is the Day whereon all things testified to that whereunto the Tongue of Power hath testified before the Divine Lote-Tree. All glory be to that which God hath bestowed upon us!