Chapter C70
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Compilation on the Resurrection attained through recognition of Independent Prophets and Dependent/Lesser Prophets.
1)
Resurrection attained through recognition of the Bab, the Independent Prophet.
And from the moment when the Tree of the Bayán appeared until it
disappeareth is the Resurrection of the Apostle of God, as is divinely
foretold in the Qur'án; the beginning of which was when two hours and
eleven minutes had passed on the eve of the fifth of Jamádiyu'l-Avval,
1260 A.H., which is the year 1270 of the Declaration of the Mission of
Muhammad. This was the beginning of the Day of Resurrection of the
Qur'án, and until the disappearance of the Tree of divine Reality is
the Resurrection of the Qur'án. The stage of perfection of everything
is reached when its resurrection occurreth. The perfection of the
religion of Islám was consummated at the beginning of this Revelation;
and from the rise of this Revelation until its setting, the fruits of
the Tree of Islám, whatever they are, will become apparent. The Resurrection of the Bayán will occur at the time of the appearance of
Him Whom God shall make manifest.
-- The Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 107-108
THE Day of Resurrection is a day on which the sun riseth and setteth
like unto any other day. How oft hath the Day of Resurrection dawned,
and the people of the land where it occurred did not learn of the
event. Had they heard, they would not have believed, and thus they were
not told!
When the Apostle of God [Muhammad] appeared, He did not announce unto
the unbelievers that the Resurrection had come, for they could not bear
the news. That Day is indeed an infinitely mighty Day, for in it the
Divine Tree proclaimeth from eternity unto eternity, 'Verily, I am God.
No God is there but Me'. Yet those who are veiled believe that He is one like unto them, and they refuse even to
call Him a believer, although such a title in the realm of His heavenly
Kingdom is conferred everlastingly upon the most insignificant follower
of His previous Dispensation. Thus, had the people in the days of the
Apostle of God regarded Him at least as a believer of their time how
would they have debarred Him, for seven years while He was in the
mountain, from access to His Holy House [Ka'bah]? Likewise in this
Dispensation of the Point of the Bayan, if the people had not refused
to concede the name believer unto Him, how could they have incarcerated
Him on this mountain, without realizing that the quintessence of belief
oweth its existence to a word from Him? Their hearts are deprived of
the power of true insight, and thus they cannot see, while those
endowed with the eyes of the spirit circle like moths round the Light
of Truth until they are consumed. It is for this reason that the Day of Resurrection is said to be the greatest of all days, yet it is like
unto any other day. VIII, 9.
-- The Bab, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 78
O people of the city [religion of Islam]!
Ye have disbelieved your Lord. If ye are truly faithful to Muhammad,
the Apostle of God and the Seal of the Prophets, and if ye follow His
Book, the Qur'án, which is free from error, then here is the like of it
-- this Book, which We have, in truth and by the leave of God, sent
down unto Our Servant. If ye fail to believe in Him, then your faith in
Muhammad and His Book which was revealed in the past will indeed be
treated as false in the estimation of God. If ye deny Him, the fact of
your having denied Muhammad and His Book will, in very truth and with
absolute certainty, become evident unto yourselves. Chapter IV.
-- The Bab, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 45
2)
Resurrection attained through recognition of Christ, the Independent Prophet.
Such things have come to pass in the days of every Manifestation of
God. Even as Jesus said: "Ye must be born again."[1] Again He saith:
"Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into
the Kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that
which is born of the Spirit is spirit."[2] The purport of these words
is that whosoever in every dispensation is born of the Spirit and is
quickened by the breath of the Manifestation of Holiness, he verily is
of those that have attained unto "life" and "resurrection" and have
entered into the "paradise" of the love of God. And whosoever is not of
them, is condemned to "death" and "deprivation," to the "fire" of
unbelief, and to the "wrath" of God. In all the scriptures, the books
and chronicles, the sentence of death, of fire, of blindness, of want
of understanding and hearing, hath been pronounced against those whose
lips have tasted not the ethereal cup of true knowledge, and whose
hearts have been deprived of the grace of the holy Spirit in their day.
Even as it hath been previously recorded: "Hearts have they with which
they understand not."[3]
[1 John 3:7].
[2 John 3:5-6]
[3 Qur'án 7:178].
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 117
11:25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that
believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
11:26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?
11:27 She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.
-- King James Bible, John
3)
Resurrection attained through recognition of Imam Ali, the first Dependent/Lesser Prophet in the era of Muhammad.
In like manner, two of the people of Kufih went to Ali [Imam Ali], the Commander of the
Faithful. One owned a house and wished to sell it; the other was to be
the purchaser. They had agreed that this transaction should be effected
and the contract be written with the knowledge of Ali. He, the exponent
of the law of God, addressing the scribe, said: "Write thou: 'A dead
man hath bought from another dead man a house. That house is bounded by
four limits. One extendeth toward the tomb, the other to the vault of
the grave, the third to the Sirat, the fourth to either Paradise or
hell.'" Reflect, had these two souls been quickened by the trumpet-call
of Ali, had they risen from the grave of error by the power of his
love, the judgment of death would certainly not have been pronounced
against them.
In every age and century, the purpose of the Prophets of God and their chosen ones
hath been no other but to affirm the spiritual significance of the
terms "life," "resurrection," and "judgment." If one will ponder but
for a while this utterance of Ali in his heart, one will surely
discover all mysteries hidden in the terms "grave," "tomb," "sirat,"
"paradise" and "hell."
--Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 119
Know then that "life" hath a twofold meaning. The first pertaineth to
the appearance of man in an elemental body, and is as manifest to thine
eminence and to others as the midday sun. This life cometh to an end
with physical death, which is a God-ordained and inescapable reality.
That life, however, which is mentioned in the Books of the Prophets and
the Chosen Ones of God is the life of knowledge; that is to say, the
servant's recognition of the sign of the splendours wherewith He Who is
the Source of all splendour hath Himself invested him, and his
certitude of attaining unto the presence of God through the
Manifestations of His Cause. This is that blessed and everlasting life
that perisheth not: whosoever is quickened thereby shall never die, but
will endure as long as His Lord and Creator will endure.
-- Baha'u'llah, Gems of Divine Mysteries, p. 48
4)
Resurrection attained through recognition of Muhammad, the Independent Prophet.
Know then that when Muhammad, the Point of the Qur'án and the Light of
the All-Glorious, came with perspicuous verses and luminous proofs
manifested in such signs as are beyond the power of all existence to
produce, He bade all men follow this lofty and outstretched Path in
accordance with the precepts that He had brought from God. Whoso
acknowledged Him, recognized the signs of God in His inmost Being, and
saw in His beauty the changeless beauty of God, the decree of
"resurrection", "ingathering", "life", and "paradise" was passed upon
him. For he who had believed in God and in the Manifestation of His
beauty was raised from the grave of heedlessness, gathered together in
the sacred ground of the heart, quickened to the life of faith and
certitude, and admitted into the paradise of the divine presence. What
paradise can be loftier than this, what ingathering mightier, and what
resurrection greater? Indeed, should a soul be acquainted with these
mysteries, he would grasp that which none other hath fathomed.
-- Baha'u'llah, Gems of Divine Mysteries, p. 39
IT is recorded in a tradition that of the entire concourse of the
Christians no more than seventy people embraced the Faith of the
Apostle of God [Muhammad].
The blame falleth upon their doctors, for if these had believed, they
would have been followed by the mass of their countrymen. Behold, then,
that which hath come to pass! The learned men of Christendom are held
to be learned by virtue of their safeguarding the teaching of Christ,
and yet consider how they themselves have been the cause of men's
failure to accept the Faith and attain unto salvation! Is it still thy
wish to follow in their footsteps? The followers of Jesus submitted to
their clerics to be saved on the Day of Resurrection, and as a result
of this obedience they eventually entered into the fire, and on the Day
when the Apostle of God appeared they shut themselves out from the
recognition of His exalted Person. Dost thou desire to follow such
divines?
Nay, by God, be thou neither a divine without discernment nor a
follower without discernment, for both of these shall perish on the Day of Resurrection.
Rather it behooveth thee to be a discerning divine, or to walk with
insight in the way of God by obeying a true leader of religion.
-- The Bab, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 123
5)
The Bab foretells the appearance of Baha'u'llah ("Him Whom God
shall make manifest") on the Day of the Latter Resurrection.
A SECOND TABLET ADDRESSED TO `HIM WHO WILL BE MADE MANIFEST'
May the glances of Him Whom God shall make manifest illumine this letter at the primary school.
He is the Most Glorious.
He is God, no God is there but Him, the Almighty, the Best Beloved. All
that are in the heavens and on the earth and whatever lieth between
them are His.
Verily He is the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting.
This is a letter from God, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting, unto
God, the Almighty, the Best Beloved, to affirm that the Bayán and such
as bear allegiance to it are but a present from me unto Thee and to
express my undoubting faith that there is no God but Thee, that the
kingdoms of Creation and Revelation are Thine, that no one can attain
anything save by Thy power and that He Whom Thou hast raised up is but
Thy servant and Thy Testimony. I, indeed, beg to address Him Whom God
shall make manifest, by Thy leave in these words: `Shouldst Thou
dismiss the entire company of the followers of the Bayán in the Day of
the Latter Resurrection by a mere sign of Thy finger even while still a
suckling babe, Thou wouldst indeed be praised in Thy indication. And
though no doubt is there about it, do Thou grant a respite of nineteen
years as a token of Thy favour so that those who have embraced this
Cause may be graciously rewarded by Thee. Thou art verily the Lord of
grace abounding. Thou dost indeed suffice every created thing and
causest it to be independent of all things, while nothing in the
heavens or on the earth or that which lieth between them can ever
suffice Thee.'
Verily Thou art the Self-Sufficient, the All-Knowing; Thou art indeed potent over all things.
-- The Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 8
The Báb, the Lord, the most exalted -- may the life of all be a
sacrifice unto Him, -- hath specifically revealed an Epistle unto the
divines of every city, wherein He hath fully set forth the character of
the denial and repudiation of each of them. "Wherefore, take ye good
heed ye who are men of insight!"[1] By His references to their
opposition He intended to invalidate the objections which the people of
the Bayan might raise in the day of the manifestation of
"Mustaghath,"[2] the day of the Latter Resurrection,
claiming that, whereas in the Dispensation of the Bayan a number of
divines have embraced the Faith, in this latter Revelation none of
these hath recognized His claim. His purpose was to warn the people
lest, God forbid, they cling to such foolish thoughts and deprive
themselves of the divine Beauty. Yea, these divines to whom We have
referred, were mostly unrenowned, and, by the grace of God they were
all purged of earthly vanities and free from the trappings of
leadership. "Such is the bounty of God; to whom He will He giveth it."
[1 Qur'án 59:2.]
[2 He Who is invoked.]
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 228
6)
Resurrection attained through recognition of the Manifestation of God.
In like manner, strive thou to comprehend from these lucid, these
powerful, conclusive, and unequivocal statements the meaning of the
"cleaving of the heaven" -- one of the signs that must needs herald the
coming of the last Hour, the Day of Resurrection.
As He hath said: "When the heaven shall be cloven asunder."[1] By
"heaven" is meant the heaven of divine Revelation, which is elevated
with every Manifestation, and rent asunder with every subsequent one. By "cloven asunder" is meant that the former Dispensation
is superseded and annulled. I swear by God! That this heaven being
cloven asunder is, to the discerning, an act mightier than the cleaving
of the skies! Ponder a while. That a divine Revelation which for years
hath been securely established; beneath whose shadow all who have
embraced it have been reared and nurtured; by the light of whose law
generations of men have been disciplined; the excellency of whose word
men have heard recounted by their fathers; in such wise that human eye
hath beheld naught but the pervading influence of its grace, and mortal
ear hath heard naught but the resounding majesty of its command -- what
act is mightier than that such a Revelation should, by the power of
God, be "cloven asunder" and be abolished at the appearance of one
soul? Reflect, is this a mightier act than that which these abject and
foolish men have imagined the "cleaving of the heaven" to mean?
[1 Qur'án 82:1.]
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 43
And were they to say that by "divine Presence" is meant the "Secondary
Revelation of God," interpreted as the "Holy Outpouring," this is
admittedly applicable to the world of creation, that is, in the
realm of the primal and original manifestation of God. Such revelation
is confined to His Prophets and chosen Ones, inasmuch as none mightier
than they hath come to exist in the world of being. This truth all
recognize, and bear witness thereto. These Prophets and chosen Ones of
God are the recipients and revealers of all the unchangeable attributes
and names of God. They are the mirrors that truly and faithfully
reflect the light of God. Whatsoever is applicable to them is in
reality applicable to God, Himself, Who is both the Visible and the
Invisible. The knowledge of Him, Who is the Origin of all things, and
attainment unto Him, are impossible save through knowledge of, and
attainment unto, these luminous Beings who proceed from the Sun of
Truth. By attaining, therefore, to the presence of these holy
Luminaries, the "Presence of God" Himself is attained. From their
knowledge, the knowledge of God is revealed, and from the light of
their countenance, the splendour of the Face of God is made manifest.
Through the manifold attributes of these Essences of Detachment, Who
are both the first and the last, the seen and the hidden, it is made
evident that He Who is the Sun of Truth is "the First and the Last, the
Seen, and the Hidden."[1] Likewise the other lofty names and exalted
attributes of God. Therefore, whosoever, and in whatever Dispensation,
hath recognized and attained unto the presence of these glorious, these
resplendent and most excellent Luminaries, hath verily attained unto
the "Presence of God" Himself, and entered the city of eternal and
immortal life. Attainment unto such presence is possible only in the
Day of Resurrection, which is the Day of the rise of God Himself
through His all-embracing Revelation.
[1 Qur'án 57:3.]
This is the meaning of the "Day of Resurrection," spoken of in all the
scriptures, and announced unto all people. Reflect, can a more
precious, a mightier, and more glorious day than this be conceived, so
that man should willingly forego its grace, and deprive himself of its
bounties, which like unto vernal showers are raining from the heaven of
mercy upon all mankind? Having thus conclusively demonstrated that no
day is greater than this Day, and no revelation more glorious than this
Revelation, and having set forth all these weighty and infallible
proofs which no understanding mind can question, and no man of learning
overlook, how can man possibly, through the idle contention of the
people of doubt and fancy, deprive himself of such a bountiful grace?
Have they not heard the well-known tradition: "When the Qá'im riseth,
that day is the Day of Resurrection?" In like manner, the Imams, those
unquenchable lights of divine guidance, have interpreted the verse:
"What can such expect but that God should come down to them
overshadowed with clouds,"[1] -- a sign which they have unquestionably
regarded as one of the features of the Day of Resurrection -- as
referring to Qá'im and His manifestation.
[1 Qur'án 2:210.]
Strive, therefore, O my brother, to grasp the meaning of
"Resurrection," and cleanse thine ears from the idle sayings of these
rejected people. Shouldst thou step into the realm of complete
detachment, thou wilt readily testify that no day is mightier than this
Day, and that no resurrection more awful than this Resurrection can
ever be conceived. One righteous work performed in this Day, equalleth
all the virtuous acts which for myriads of centuries men have practised
-- nay, We ask forgiveness of God for such a comparison! For verily the
reward which such a deed deserveth is immensely beyond and above the
estimate of men. Inasmuch as these undiscerning and wretched souls have
failed to apprehend the true meaning of "Resurrection" and of the
"attainment unto the divine Presence," they therefore have remained
utterly deprived of the grace thereof. Although the sole and
fundamental purpose of all learning, and the toil and labour thereof,
is attainment unto, and the recognition of, this station, yet they are
all immersed in the pursuit of their material studies. They deny
themselves every moment of leisure, and utterly ignore Him, Who is the
Essence of all learning, and the one Object of their quest! Methinks,
their lips have never touched the cup of divine Knowledge, nor do they
seem to have attained even a dewdrop of the showers of heavenly grace.
-- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 141
7)
Resurrection attained through
recognition of the Baha'u'llah, the Independent Prophet, who was
imprisoned in Akka, and recognition of the Dependent/Lesser Prophets of
Baha'u'llah (referred to as "the black-eyed damsels").
The Apostle of God -- may the blessings of God and His salutations be
upon Him -- is reported to have said: "Blessed the man that hath
visited 'Akká, and blessed he that hath visited the visitor of 'Akká.
Blessed the one that hath drunk from the Spring of the Cow and washed
in its waters, for the black-eyed damsels quaff the camphor in
Paradise, which hath come from the Spring of the Cow, and from the
Spring of Salvan (Siloam), and the Well of Zamzam. Well is it with him
that hath drunk from these springs, and washed in their waters, for God
hath forbidden the fire of hell to touch him and his body on the Day of Resurrection."
-- Baha'u'llah, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 179
TWELVE hundred and seventy years have elapsed since the declaration of
Muhammad, and each year unnumbered people have circumambulated the
House of God [Mecca]. In the concluding year of this period He Who is
Himself the Founder of the House went on pilgrimage. Great God! There
was a vast concourse of pilgrims from every sect. Yet not one
recognized Him, though He recognized every one of them -- souls tightly
held in the grasp of His former commandment. The only person who
recognized Him and performed pilgrimage with Him is the one round whom
revolve eight Vahids,[1] in whom God hath gloried before the Concourse
on high by virtue of his absolute detachment and for his being wholly
devoted to the Will of God. This doth not mean that he was made the
object of a special favour, nay, this is a favour which God hath
vouchsafed unto all men, yet they have suffered themselves to be veiled
from it. The Commentary on the Surih of Joseph had, in the first year
of this Revelation, been widely distributed. Nevertheless, when the
people realized that fellow supporters were not forthcoming they
hesitated to accept it; while it never occurred to them that the very
Qur'án whereunto unnumbered souls bear fealty today, was revealed in
the midmost heart of the Arab world, yet to outward seeming for no less
than seven years no one acknowledged its truth except the Commander of
the Faithful [Imam
Ali] -- may the peace of God rest upon him -- who, in response to the
conclusive proofs advanced by God's supreme Testimony, recognized the
Truth and did not fix his eyes on others. Thus on the Day of
Resurrection God will ask everyone of his understanding and not of his
following in the footsteps of others. How often a person, having
inclined his ears to the holy verses, would bow down in humility and
would embrace the Truth, while his leader would not do so. Thus every
individual must bear his own responsibility, rather than someone else
bearing it for him. At the time of the appearance of Him Whom God will
make manifest the most distinguished among the learned and the lowliest
of men shall both be judged alike. How often the most insignificant of
men have acknowledged the truth, while the most learned have remained
wrapt in veils. Thus in every Dispensation a number of souls enter the
fire by reason of their following in the footsteps of others. IV, 18.
[1 This is a reference to Quddus, 'whom the Persian Bayan extolled as
that fellow-pilgrim round whom mirrors to the number of eight Vahids
revolve'. (God Passes By, p. 49).]
-- The Bab, Selections from the Writings of the Bab, p. 90
8)
A prophecy of the appearance of the Bab. "Sun" is a symbolic reference to the Independent Prophet while "Moon" is a symbolic reference to the Dependent Prophet. The Bab, being an Independent Prophet bringing a new book (the Bayan)
as well as being the Twelfth Imam (Imam Mihdi) represents the "sun and
moon being joined together" (Qur'an: 75:9 below) on the Day of Resurrection.
75:6 He questions: "When is the Day of Resurrection?"
75:7 At length, when the sight is dazed,
75:8 And the moon is buried in darkness.
75:9 And the sun and moon are joined together,-
-- Qur'an: 75 - AL-QIYAMAH.
Have they not heard the well-known tradition: "When the Qá'im
[the Bab] riseth, that day is the Day of Resurrection?" In like manner, the
Imáms, those unquenchable lights of divine guidance, have interpreted
the verse: "What can such expect but that God should come down to them
overshadowed with clouds," -- a sign which they have unquestionably
regarded as one of the features of the Day of Resurrection -- as
referring to Qá'im and His manifestation.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 144
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