Tablet of the Holy Mariner
Lawḥ-i-Malláḥu'l-Quds, officially translated as the Tablet of the Holy Mariner, is a Tablet revealed by Bahá'u'lláh in both Arabic and Persian while He was in Baghdad. The Arabic section has been translated by Shoghi Effendi and his translation was first published in Star of the West. The Persian section has not yet been officially translated, but a provisional translation exists.
Subject and structure[edit]
Adib Taherzadeh writes that the Tablet was revealed in two halves, one in Persian and one in Arabic. He states that the topic of the Tablet is the Covenant and man's unfaithfulness to it, and notes that ‘Abdu’l-Bahá wrote that the Tablet predicted future events in a preface to the Tablet.
Michael Sours suggests that the Tablet is similar in structure to the Kitáb-i-Íqán but that it uses pure allegory. He writes that the Tablet describes how some do not have love for God or His Messenger and do not ascend to higher stations, being instead cast out, and that it encourages the believers to ascend beyond the station of recognition of God to religious practice. Sours suggests that the prediction of unfaithfulness in the community in the Tablet could be archetypal, referring to unfaithfulness at any point rather than a specific event. Jonah Winters notes that the Tablet uses the imagery of the Maid of Heaven.
History[edit]
Adib Taherzadeh places the revelation of the Tablet in 1863 during Naw-Rúz. Bahá'u'lláh had pitched His tent in the field Mazra'iy-i-Vashshásh outside Baghdad and was joined by some of the believers. He revealed the Tablet within the tent and Mírzá Áqá Ján chanted it to the believers gathered outside.
Official Translation[edit]
Provisional Translation[edit]
References[edit]
- Jonah Winters & Michael Sours, Lawh-i-Malláhu'l-Quds: Wilmette Institute faculty notes
- Adib Taherzadeh, Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, Vol. 1, pp 228-245.
