Chapter 22
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Conflicting writings on the word "Cord".

In passage 1, Shoghi Effendi says, "The word 'cord' so often mentioned in the Teachings means both the Faith itself and also the power of the Faith which sustains those who cling to it", which is misleading, as it obscures an important term used to refer to the two classes of Prophets: the Cord of God. In passages #2, the Cord of God is the Bab, an Independent Prophet. In passages #3, the Cord of God is Baha'u'llah, an Independent Prophet. In passages #4, the Cord of God is Imam Ali, the first Dependent Prophet in the era of Muhammad. In passages #5, the Cord [of God] is Abdu'l-Baha, the first Dependent Prophet in the era of Baha'u'llah, who is also the "Ark of Salvation". Similarly, in the next passage Imam Ali states, "Adhere steadfastly to the Successor of your Prophet in Whom resides your salvation".

1)
101 CORD (Meaning of)
"The word 'cord' so often mentioned in the Teachings means both the Faith itself and also the power of the Faith which sustains those who cling to it."
-- Shoghi Effendi, Directives from the Guardian, p. 38

2)
Seek ye refuge in God from whatsoever might lead you astray from the Source of His Revelation and hold fast unto His Cord, for whoso holdeth fast unto His allegiance, he hath attained and will attain salvation in all the worlds.
-- The Bab, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 85

O peoples of the earth! Cleave ye tenaciously to the Cord of the All-Highest God, which is but this Arabian Youth, Our Remembrance--He Who standeth concealed at the point of ice amidst the ocean of fire. Chapter XXIX.
-- The Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 54

3)
Convey My greetings unto those whose faces mirror forth the radiance of Bahá, then mention to them this utterance which cheereth the eyes of the righteous. The glory of God rest upon thee and upon such as have firmly clung to the Cord of God, the Revealer of verses....
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 198

Cling thou to the hem of the Robe of God, and take thou firm hold on His Cord, a Cord which none can sever. Beware that the clamor of them that have repudiated this Most Great Announcement shall not deter thee from achieving thy purpose. Proclaim what hath been prescribed unto thee in this Tablet, though all the peoples arise and oppose thee. Thy Lord is, verily, the All-Compelling, the Unfailing Protector.
-- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 307

4)
GOD says in the Qur'án: "Take ye hold of the Cord of God [Imam Ali], all of you, and become ye not disunited."[1]
[1 Qur'án 3:103.]
-- Abdu'l-Baha, Tablets of the Divine Plan, p. 101

The truth is Mine and certitude is at My side. Leadership is Mine and the righteous shall follow Me. I am the first to acknowledge faith, the Cord of God that shall not be broken, the One who will raise the world to justice even as it hath been brought low by oppression. I am the companion of Gabriel and the archangel Michael is beside Me. I am the tree of guidance, and the essence of righteousness. I shall gather together the world of creation through the Word of God that gathers together all things. I give life unto humanity and I am the treasury of all divine commands. To Me hath been given the Luminous Pen and the Crimson Camel.
-- Imam Ali, Sermon of Glorification (translation by K. Fananapazir).

5)
... [Abdu'l-Baha is] glorified by Him, in other passages of His writings, as the "Ark of Salvation" and as "the Cord stretched betwixt the earth and the Abha Kingdom,"
-- Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By, p. 238

People! turn ye repentantly unto My faction (shi'ah) and adhere to a pledge of fealty to Me. Remain steadfast and persevering in the Faith with the best certainty. Adhere steadfastly to the Successor of your Prophet in Whom resides your salvation and in Whose love on the Day of Resurrection is your safe haven! In Me resides the Hope and I am the One to be hoped for. I am the One that standeth upon the Two Gulfs! (tutunj) I am the One that looketh unto the Twin Rising-Places [or "Orients"] and the Twin Setting Places [or "Occidents"]. I truly did see with My own eyes [the Bounty of] God and the Paradise! And this was as the seventh Heaven was moving in its orbit and there in the great surging seas were the stars and their own orbits. I saw also the earth rolled up as a short garment would be rolled up and it was within a shell on the right sided Gulf which faces the East and the Twin Gulfs.
-- Imam Ali, The Sermon of the Twin Gulfs. Translation by K. Fananapazir.


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