Lauded And Glorified Art Thou O Lord My

Sources: Gleanings From The Writings Of Baha'u'llah

Lauded and glorified art Thou, O Lord, my God! How can I make mention of

Thee, assured as I am that no tongue, however deep its wisdom, can

befittingly magnify Thy name, nor can the bird of the human heart, however

great its longing, ever hope to ascend into the heaven of Thy majesty and

knowledge.



If I describe Thee, O my God, as Him Who is the All-Perceiving, I find

myself compelled to admit that They W o are the highest Embodiments of

perception have been created by virtue of Thy behest. And if I extol Thee

as Him Who is the All-Wise, I, likewise, am forced to recognize that the

Well Springs of wisdom have themselves been generated through the

operation of Thy Will. And if I proclaim Thee as the Incomparable One, I

soon discover that they Who are the inmost essence of oneness have been

sent down by Thee and are but the evidences of Thine handiwork. And if I

acclaim Thee as the Knower of all things, I must confess that they Who are

the Quintessence of knowledge are but the creation and instruments of Thy

Purpose.



Exalted, immeasurably exalted, art Thou above the strivings of mortal man

to unravel Thy mystery, to describe Thy glory, or even to hint at the

nature of Thine Essence. For whatever such strivings may accomplish, they

never can hope to transcend the limitations imposed upon Thy creatures,

inasmuch as these efforts are actuated by Thy decree, and are begotten of

Thine invention. The loftiest sentiments which the holiest of saints can

express in praise of Thee, and the deepest wisdom which the most learned

of men can utter in their attempts to comprehend Thy nature, all revolve

around that Center Which is wholly subjected to Thy sovereignty, Which

adoreth Thy Beauty, and is propelled through the movement of Thy Pen.



Nay, forbid it, O my God, that I should have uttered such words as must of

necessity imply the existence of any direct relationship between the Pen

of Thy Revelation and the essence of all created things. Far, far are They

Who are related to Thee above the conception of such relationship! All

comparisons and likenesses fail to do justice to the Tree of Thy

Revelation, and every way is barred to the comprehension of the

Manifestation of Thy Self and the Day Spring of Thy Beauty.



Far, far from Thy glory be what mortal man can affirm of Thee, or

attribute unto Thee, or the praise with which he can glorify Thee!

Whatever duty Thou hast prescribed unto Thy servants of extolling to the

utmost Thy majesty and glory is but a token of Thy grace unto them, that

they may be enabled to ascend unto the station conferred upon their own

inmost being, the station of the knowledge of their own selves.



No one else besides Thee hath, at any time, been able to fathom Thy

mystery, or befittingly to extol Thy greatness. Unsearchable and high

above the praise of men wilt Thou remain for ever. There is none other God

but Thee, the Inaccessible, the Omnipotent, the Omniscient, the Holy of

Holies.