4 Nine Rak'ahs #6
Categories: NOTESSources: The Kitab-i-aqdas
A rak'ah is the recitation of specifically revealed verses accompanied by
a prescribed set of genuflections and other movements.
The Obligatory Prayer originally enjoined by Baha'u'llah upon His
followers consisted of nine rak'ahs. The precise nature of this prayer and
the specific instructions for its recitation are unknown, as the prayer
has been lost. (See note 9.)
In a Tablet commenting on the presently-binding Obligatory Prayers,
'Abdu'l-Baha indicates that in every word and movement of the Obligatory
Prayer there are allusions, mysteries and a wisdom that man is unable to
comprehend, and letters and scrolls cannot contain.
Shoghi Effendi explains that the few simple directions given by
Baha'u'llah for the recital of certain prayers not only have a spiritual
significance but that they also help the individual to fully concentrate
when praying and meditating.
More
-
35: O Son Of Man! Sorrow Not Save That Thou Art Far From Us Rejoice
O SON OF MAN! Sorrow not save that thou art far from Us. Rejoice not save that thou art drawing near and returning unto Us. ... 36
Know thou of a truth that the seeker must, at the beginning of his quest for God, enter the Garden of Search. In this journey it behoveth the wayfarer to detach himself from all save God and to close his eyes to all that is in the heavens and on the ... 36 Or Adultery #19
The Arabic word zina, here translated as adultery, signifies both fornication and adultery. It applies not only to sexual relations between a married person and someone who is not his or her spouse, but also to extramarital sexual interco... 36: O Son Of Dust! The Wise Are They That Speak Not Unless They
O SON OF DUST! The wise are they that speak not unless they obtain a hearing, even as the cup-bearer, who proffereth not his cup till he findeth a seeker, and the lover who crieth not out from the depths of his heart until he gazeth upon the beaut... 36: O Son Of Man! Rejoice In The Gladness Of Thine Heart That Thou
O SON OF MAN! Rejoice in the gladness of thine heart, that thou mayest be worthy to meet Me and to mirror forth My beauty. ... 37
In this journey the seeker becometh witness to a myriad changes and transformations, confluences and divergences. He beholdeth the wonders of Divinity in the mysteries of creation and discovereth the paths of guidance and the ways of His Lord. Such i... 37 Backbiting Or Calumny #19
Backbiting, slander and dwelling on the faults of others have been repeatedly condemned by Baha'u'llah. In the Hidden Words, He clearly states: O Son of Being! How couldst thou forget thine own faults and busy thyself with the faults of o... 37: O My Servant! Abandon Not For That Which Perisheth An Everlasting
In the first line of the Tablet it is recorded and written, and within the sanctuary of the tabernacle of God is hidden: O MY SERVANT! Abandon not for that which perisheth an everlasting dominion, and cast not away celestial sovereignty for a worl... 37: O Son Of Man! Divest Not Thyself Of My Beauteous Robe And Forfeit
O SON OF MAN! Divest not thyself of My beauteous robe, and forfeit not thy portion from My wondrous fountain, lest thou shouldst thirst for evermore. ... 38
When once the seeker hath ascended unto this station, he will enter the City of Love and Rapture, whereupon the winds of love will blow and the breezes of the spirit will waft. In this station the seeker is so overcome by the ecstasies of yearning an... 38 We Have Divided Inheritance Into Seven Categories #20
The Baha'i laws of inheritance apply only in case of intestacy, that is, when the individual dies without leaving a will. In the Kitab-i-Aqdas ( 109), Baha'u'llah instructs every believer to write a will. He elsewhere clearly states that the indiv... 38: O Son Of Being! Walk In My Statutes For Love Of Me And Deny Thyself
O SON OF BEING! Walk in My statutes for love of Me and deny thyself that which thou desirest if thou seekest My pleasure. ... 38: O Son Of Spirit! Burst Thy Cage Asunder And Even As The Phoenix
O SON OF SPIRIT! Burst thy cage asunder, and even as the phoenix of love soar into the firmament of holiness. Renounce thyself and, filled with the spirit of mercy, abide in the realm of celestial sanctity. ... 39
And when this stage of the journey is completed and the wayfarer hath soared beyond this lofty station, he entereth the City of Divine Unity, and the garden of oneness, and the court of detachment. In this plane the seeker casteth away all signs, all... 39 To The Brothers Five Parts To The Sisters Four Parts #20
Questions and Answers amplifies the provisions of the law as it relates to the shares of the inheritance allocated to the brothers and sisters of the deceased. If the brother or sister is from the same father as the deceased, he or she will inheri... 39: O Offspring Of Dust! Be Not Content With The Ease Of A Passing Day
O OFFSPRING OF DUST! Be not content with the ease of a passing day, and deprive not thyself of everlasting rest. Barter not the garden of eternal delight for the dust-heap of a mortal world. Up from thy prison ascend unto the glorious meads above,... 39: O Son Of Man! Neglect Not My Commandments If Thou Lovest My
O SON OF MAN! Neglect not My commandments if thou lovest My beauty, and forget not My counsels if thou wouldst attain My good pleasure. ... 3: O Friend! In The Garden Of Thy Heart Plant Naught But The
O FRIEND! In the garden of thy heart plant naught but the rose of love, and from the nightingale of affection and desire loosen not thy hold. Treasure the companionship of the righteous and eschew all fellowship with the ungodly. ... 3: O Son Of Man! Veiled In My Immemorial Being And In The Ancient
O SON OF MAN! Veiled in My immemorial being and in the ancient eternity of My essence, I knew My love for thee; therefore I created thee, have engraved on thee Mine image and revealed to thee My beauty. ... 4
O thou who hast set foot in the wilderness of knowledge and taken abode within the ark of wisdom! Not until thou hast grasped the mysteries concealed in that which We shall relate unto thee canst thou hope to attain to the stations of faith and certi... 4 Nine Rak'ahs #6
A rak'ah is the recitation of specifically revealed verses accompanied by a prescribed set of genuflections and other movements. The Obligatory Prayer originally enjoined by Baha'u'llah upon His followers consisted of nine rak'ahs. Th... 40
In this station, were He Who is the Embodiment of the End to say: "Verily, I am the Point of the Beginning", He would indeed be speaking the truth. And were He to say: "I am other than Him", this would be equally true. Likewise, were He to proclaim: ... 40 The Teachers #20
In a Tablet, 'Abdu'l-Baha compares teachers who are involved with the spiritual education of the child to the spiritual father who endoweth his child with everlasting life. He explains that this is the reason that teachers are listed amon... 40: O My Servant! Free Thyself From The Fetters Of This World And
O MY SERVANT! Free thyself from the fetters of this world, and loose thy soul from the prison of self. Seize thy chance, for it will come to thee no more. ... 40: O Son Of Man! Wert Thou To Speed Through The Immensity Of
O SON OF MAN! Wert thou to speed through the immensity of space and traverse the expanse of heaven, yet thou wouldst find no rest save in submission to Our command and humbleness before Our Face. ... 41
In this station the truth of the unity of God and of the signs of His sanctity is established. Thou shalt indeed see them all rising above the bosom of God's might and embraced in the arms of His mercy; nor can any distinction be made between His bos... 41 When We Heard The Clamour Of The Children As Yet Unborn We Doubled
their share and decreased those of the rest. 20 In the Bab's laws of inheritance the children of the deceased were allotted nine parts consisting of 540 shares. This allocation constituted less than a quarter of the whole estate. Baha'u'llah doubl... 41: O Son Of Man! Magnify My Cause That I May Reveal Unto Thee The
O SON OF MAN! Magnify My cause that I may reveal unto thee the mysteries of My greatness and shine upon thee with the light of eternity. ... 41: O Son Of My Handmaid! Didst Thou Behold Immortal Sovereigntythou
O SON OF MY HANDMAID! Didst thou behold immortal sovereignty, thou wouldst strive to pass from this fleeting world. But to conceal the one from thee and to reveal the other is a mystery which none but the pure in heart can comprehend. ... 42
Hast thou not heard: "No change is there in God's creation"?(29) Hast thou not read: "No change canst thou find in God's mode of dealing"?(30) Hast thou not borne witness to the truth: "No difference wilt thou see in the creation of the God of Mercy"... 42 The House Of Justice #21
In referring to the House of Justice in the Kitab-i-Aqdas, Baha'u'llah does not always explicitly distinguish between the Universal House of Justice and the Local House of Justice, both of which institutions are ordained in that Book. He ... 42: O My Servant! Purge Thy Heart From Malice And Innocent Of
O MY SERVANT! Purge thy heart from malice and, innocent of envy, enter the divine court of holiness. ... 42: O Son Of Man! Humble Thyself Before Me That I May Graciously
O SON OF MAN! Humble thyself before Me, that I may graciously visit thee. Arise for the triumph of My cause, that while yet on earth thou mayest obtain the victory. ... 43
Great God! This sea had laid up lustrous pearls in store; The wind hath raised a wave that casteth them ashore. So put away thy robe and drown thyself therein, And cease to boast of skill: it serveth thee no more! ... 43 Should The Deceased Leave Offspring But None Of The Other Categories Of Heirs #22
Baha'u'llah clarifies that This ruling hath both general and specific application, which is to say that whenever any category of this latter class of heirs is absent, two thirds of their inheritance pass to the offspring and the remaining third to... 43: O My Friends! Walk Ye In The Ways Of The Good Pleasure Of
O MY FRIENDS! Walk ye in the ways of the good pleasure of the Friend, and know that His pleasure is in the pleasure of His creatures. That is: no man should enter the house of his friend save at his friend's pleasure, nor lay hands upon his treasu... 43: O Son Of Being! Make Mention Of Me On My Earth That In My
O SON OF BEING! Make mention of Me on My earth, that in My heaven I may remember thee, thus shall Mine eyes and thine be solaced. ... 44
If thou be of the inmates of this city within the ocean of divine unity, thou wilt view all the Prophets and Messengers of God as one soul and one body, as one light and one spirit, in such wise that the first among them would be last and the last wo... 44 We Have Assigned The Residence And Personal Clothing Of The Deceased
to the male, not female, offspring, nor to the other heirs. 25 In a Tablet, 'Abdu'l-Baha indicates that the residence and personal clothing of a deceased man remain in the male line. They pass to the eldest son and in the absence of the eldest son... 44: O Companion Of My Throne! Hear No Evil And See No Evil Abase Not Thyself
O COMPANION OF MY THRONE! Hear no evil, and see no evil, abase not thyself, neither sigh and weep. Speak no evil, that thou mayest not hear it spoken unto thee, and magnify not the faults of others that thine own faults may not appear great; and w...