I swear by Thy Beauty, O King of eternity Who sittest on Thy
most glorious Throne! He Who is the Day-Spring of Thy signs and the Revealer of
Thy clear tokens hath, notwithstanding the immensity of His wisdom and the
loftiness of His knowledge, confessed His powerlessness to comprehend the least
of Thine utterances, in their relation to Thy most exalted Pen,—how much more
is He incapable of apprehending the nature of Thine all-glorious Self and of
Thy most august Essence!
I cannot think, O my God, of any words wherewith to make
mention of Thee, and know not how to express or extol Thee. Were I to attempt
to describe Thee by Thy names, I would readily recognize that the kingdom of
these names is itself created through the movement of Thy fingers, and
trembleth for fear of Thee. And were I to venture to extol Thine attributes, I
would be forced to admit that these attributes are Thine own creation, and lie
within Thy grasp. It behooveth not Them Who are the Manifestations of these
names and attributes to stand before the gate of the city of Thy Revelation,
how much less to scale the heights whereon Thou didst stablish the throne of
Thy majesty.
I swear by Thy might, O Thou Who art the King of names and
the Maker of the heavens! Whatsoever hath been adorned with the robe of words
is but Thy creation which hath been generated in Thy realm and begotten through
the operation of Thy will, and is wholly unworthy of Thy highness and falleth
short of Thine excellence.
- Baha’u’llah (‘Prayers and Meditations by
Baha’u’llah’)