Behvaraq: THE MIDDLE IRAQ YEARS OR THE KURDISTAN PERIOD OF Bahā'-Allāh'S LIFETIME (1271-1273 / 1854-1856)

از اشعار جمال اقدس ابهي در دوره هجرت به كوه هاي سليمانيه كردستان عراق

آوریل،۱۸۵۴(1271-1273 / 1854-1856

:عزیمت جمال اقدس ابهی به کوههای سلیمانیه کردستان برای دو سال

حضرت بهاءالله، تنها، حدود یک سال پس از ورود به بغداد، به سرزمین غیر مسکونی و کوهستانی کردستان مهاجرت کردند و حدود دو سال به تنهایی در آنجا زندگی کردند. ایشان وقت خود را صرف تفکر و تأمل دربارۀ اشارات و مفاهیم هدف آسمانی که به آن فرا خوانده شده بودند، نمودند. این دوره یادآور هجرت حضرت موسی به کوه سینا، ۴۰ شبانه روز حضرت مسیح در صحرا، و انزوای حضرت محمد در غار حرا است.

خلوت در کوههای کردستان

حضرت بهاءالله، تنها حدود یک سال پس از ورود به بغداد، به سرزمین غیر مسکونی و کوهستانی کردستان مهاجرت کردند و حدود دو سال به تنهایی در آنجا زندگی کردند. ایشان وقت خود را صرفِ تفکر و تامّل دربارۀ اشارات و مفاهیم هدف آسمانی که به آن فرا خوانده شده بودند، نمودند. این دوره یادآور هجرت حضرت موسی به کوه سینا، ٤٠ شبانه روز حضرت مسیح در صحرا، و انزوای حضرت محمد در غار حرا است.
عکس : منظرۀ کوهستانهای سلیمانیه که حضرت بهاءالله حدود دو سال در آنجا به سر بردند.

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TB-2B

THE MIDDLE IRAQ YEARS OR THE KURDISTAN PERIOD

OF Bahā'-Allāh'S LIFETIME (1271-1273 / 1854-1856)

TB2B: 01 (Per.) lawḥ-i

TB2B: 02 (Per.) lawḥ-i

ساقی از غيب بقا

("The Cupbearer of the Invisible Eternity")

TB2B: 03 (Per.) Sāqī āz ghayb-i baqā'

According to Ishrāq Khavarī this poem dates to the years 1270-71 or between 4th Oct. 1853 and 13th Sept. 1855 (Ganj:12), dating to the time of Bahā'-Allāh's residence in Sulaymaniyah (Iraqi Kurdistan).

The text of the Sāqī āz ghayb-i baqā' is contained Ma'idih 4:209-211 (see below) and INBMC 36:455.

This text as cited from Ganj: 12 opens as follows:

ساقی از غيب بقا برقع برافكن از عذار

تا بنوشم خمر باقی از جمال ذوالجلال

آنچه در خم خانه داری نشكند صفرای عشق

زان شراب معنوی ساقی همی بحری بيار

The concluding lines are:

گر خيال جان همی هستت بدل اينجا ميا

ور نثار جان و سر داری بياو هم بيار

رسم ره اينست گر وصل بهأ داری طلب

ور نباشی مرد اين ره دور شو زحمت ميار

Commonly referred to by means of its opening words, Saqī az ghayb-i baqā' this Persian qaṣīda (ghazal) is fifteen couplets long and is usually dated to the period of Baha'-Allah's withdrawal in Iraqi Kurdistan (Ganj. :12., Taherzadeh RB I:64). In it Baha'-Allah implores the Divine Beloved, the celestial Cupbearer, to unveil herself so that he might quaff the "wine of eternity" (khamr-i baqā') from the all-beauteous Creator. He underlines the intense ardour his desire for her mystic wine and dwells on the consuming fire of his love for her beauty (see line lff). In response to his pleading the Divine Beloved speaks of the sublime detachment necessary for the mystic wayfarer who aspires to enter her court or attain true reunion (see line 7ff). The lover who seeks to become privy to the "mysteries of love" (asrár-i `ishq) must so open his inner eye that he will perceive the Mount of Moses (ṭūr-i mūsa) circumambulating the Divine Beloved and the Spirit of Jesus (rūḥ-i `īsā) unsettled by her love (line 10, text in Ma'idih 4:210 + INBMC 36:45). It appears that Baha'-Allah addresses the Divine Beloved in line 13(b) as the "Messiah of the Age" (masīḥa-yi zamān) and, in the final couplet (15) refers to himself as the "Dervish of the World" (darwīsh-i jihān) who is passionately on fire on account of the "brand of the Divine Ravisher of Hearts".

It may be that the Saqī az ghayb-i baqā' is expressive of Baha'-Allah's own burning desire to disclose his secret messianic calling, the revelatory potentialities of his celestial Logos-Self, this being the reality of the Heavenly Cupbearer with whom union is to be sought and about which Moses and Jesus are enraptured. Worth noting in this respect is the fact that in line 8(a) it is reunion with Bahā' (waṣl-i bahā) that is to be sought.

THE TEXT OF THE SĀQĪ ĀZ GHAYB-I BAQĀ'

AS PRINTED IN MA'IDIH ASMANI VOL. 4:209-211

ساقی از غيب بقا برقع بر افكن از عذار

تا بنوشم خمر باقی از جمال كردگار "

آنچه در خمخانه داری نشكند صفرای عشق

زان شراب معنوی ساقی همی بحری بيار "

Ma'idih 4 : :210

تا كه اين مستور شيدائی در آيد در خروش

تا كه اين مخمور ربانی بر آيد زين خمار

نار عشقی بر فروز و جمله هستیها بسوز

                   پس قدم بردار و اندر كوی عشاقان گذار

تا نگردی فانی از وصف وجود ای مرد راه

                           كی چشی خمر بقا از لعل نوشين نگار

پای نه بر فرق ملك آنگه درآ در ظل فقر

                           تا به بينی ملك باقی را كنون از هر كنار

گر خيال جان همی هستت بدل اينجا ميا

                           گر نثار جان و دل داری بيا و هم بيار

رسم ره اينست گر وصل بها داری طلب

                           گر نباشی مرد اين ره دور شو زحمت ميار

گر همی خواهی كه گردی واقف از اسرار عشق

                            چشم عبرت برگشا بربند راه افتخار

تا ببينی طور موسی طائف اينجا آمده

                            تا ببينی روح عيسی را ز عشقش بيقرار

تا بيابی دفتر توحيد از زلفين دوست

                            تا بخوانی مصحف تجريد از خدين يار

                    هين بكش خمر فرح از چشمه حيوان عشق

                    تا به فيروزی سر اندازی همی در پای يار

Ma'idih 4 : 211

مردگانند در اين انجمن اندر ره دوست

ای مسيحای زمان هان نفسی گرم برآر

تا كه برپرند اطيار وجود از سجن تن

                           تا فضای لا مكان در ظلّ صاحب اقتدار

                   درويش جهان سوخت از اين شعلهء جانسوز الهی

                   وقت آنست كه كنی زنده از اين نغمه زار

                          ا

قصيده عز ورقائيه

TB2B: 04 (Ar.) Qaṣīdih `izz varqā'iyya ("The Mighty Ode of the Dove", c. 1272/1855).

During his residence in Sulaymaniyya (Iraqi Kurdistan) Bahā'-Allāh, in view of the very considerable reputation for mystic learning he had gained among resident Sufis, was invited to compose an ode in the metre and rhyme of Ibn al-Fāriḍ's al-Qaṣīda al-ṭā'iyya ("Ode Rhyming in Tā'"), also known as the Naẓm al-sulūk ("Poem of the Way").

Fn. = On the Egyptian mystic Ibn al-Fāriḍ (1181-1235 AD) and his Qaṣīda see, for example, R. A. Nicholson, Studies in Islamic Mysticism (Cambridge: CUP 1921) and A. J. Arberry The Mystical Poems of Ibn al-Farid (London: 1952) and The Poem of the Way (London: 1952).

This led Bahā'-Allāh to compose around 2,000 Arabic verses in an "irregular catalectic tawīl metre" and to select 127 of them for circulation.

Fn = fn. Bahā'-Allāh apparently considered all but 127 of the verses he composed beyond the capacity or comprehension of his devotees; possibly because they only thinly veiled his Bābī orientation or secret messianic claims. Alternatively, it is worth noting that in certain circles it was not considered proper for the qaṣīda to be excessively long (e.g. more than 175 couplets) or too short (e.g. less than 25 couplets) (see D. Forbes, Persian Grammar, London 1920, 25).

It should be noted is point that Bahā'-Allāh's comments on select lines and terms occurring in his Qaṣīda al-warqa'iyya probably date from the late Baghdad or early Edirne [Adrianople] period (1857-1866?). The text is printed in AQA III:196f along with the Qaṣīda itself.

Translations

(1) Hippolyte Dreyfus (Fr.) in Les Oeurves

(2) When lecturer in Islamic Studies at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne (1982-87; England, UK) Denis MacEoin translated the whole of the Qaṣīda into English for the BSB. See D. MacEoin, `A Provisional Translation of the Qaṣīda al-warqā'iyya' in BSB. 2:2 (198X) pp xx-xx. See BSB² this website.

(3) Juan Cole made a translation of the Ode of the Dove in 198X which is referred to in BSB

(4) Dr. Brian A. Miller established the text, translated and commented upon aspects the Qaṣīda in the course of researching his doctoral thesis (UCLA. Berkeley, CA, USA): “The Lover’s Way: A Critical Comparison of the ‘Nazm al-Suluk’ by Ibn al-Farid with the ‘Qasidiyyi-Varqa’iyyih’ by Bahá’u’lláh.” Dr. Miller also delivered a paper upon this Qaṣīda at the MESA conference in 2001

Thus originated the "Mighty Dove's Ode" which has been well characterized as a "fusion of Sufi mysticism with Bábi theological and eschatological teachings" (Cole, `Bahá'u'lláh and the Naqshbandi Sufis',198X:9).

In the first part of the Dove's Ode Bahā'-Allāh lauds the dazzling beauty of a celestial maiden, his divine Beloved (lines 1-16). The female divine Beloved of the Qaṣīda is the locus of spiritual perfections. She plays a role in the eschatological Bābī drama and may be symbolic of Bahā'-Allāh's own celestial self. His quest for union with her may express his desire to announce his own secret divinity. In the opening lines Bahā'-Allāh associates her with the realization of eschatological events and draws on Moses-Sinai motifs in order to underline her exaltedness. It was on account of her radiance that the ṭūr al-baqā' ("Mount [Sinai] of Eternity") was made manifest (line 5a). The fire of her countenance and his qa da (or "love") led to the purification of the "Logos-Soul of the Speaker" (= Moses, nafs al-kalīm); the divine Maiden is identified with the Fire of the Sinaiatic theophany which burned away Moses' human limitations (line 8b). In commenting on this imagery, in line 8 of his Qaṣīda, Bahā'-Allāh has written an interesting mystical midrash on the (loosely) commissioning of Moses as detailed in the Qur'án:

In this highly allegorical treatment of Moses' experience of the divine, the Israelite Prophet becomes a type or model of the mystic wayfarer who should so strive that their whole being becomes irradiated with the divine effulgence (tajallī). The eternal Reality that is the interiority of Moses is the locus of divinity. Moses' outer words and actions as detailed in the Qur'ān express his transcendence of outer reality in the quest for mystic union.

In part II of his Qaṣīda Bahā'-Allāh laments his separation from the divine Beloved and pleads for mystic union (see lines 17-36). In expressing his burning desire for this union he makes mention of the "fire of the Friend (nār al-khalīl), the blazing furnace into which Abraham (= "the Friend") was cast:

"Compared with my burning, the fire of the Friend is but a torch" (line, 26b)

Part III (lines 37-61) of Bahā'-Allāh's Qaṣīda consists of the response of the divine Beloved to his plea for mystic union; she "rebukes him for his presumption, stresses her exaltation, accuses him of mistaking limited attributes for her unlimited essence and calls on him to seek martyrdom in her path" (see Cole, art. cit., 14). In underlining her exaltedness the divine Beloved represents herself as one the fire of whose love is more intense than the fire-brand perceived by Moses (line 42b, see Q. 20:10, comm. in AQA III:xxx) and the source of the radiance of Moses' snow-white hand/palm :

"[It was] from my Palm [Hand] that the Radiant Palm [Hand of Moses] was irradiated [lit. drawn near]" (line 43b).
In his comments on this hemistich (see AQA III:204) Bahā'-Allāh refers to Qur'ān 20:22 (+ Q. 27:12, 28:32)

The divine Beloved also identifies herself with the divine Being at whose glance (see Q.7:43) the archetypal Moses swooned away and on account of whose brilliance the Sinaitic mountains were leveled:

"At my glance the Moses of Eternity swooned away, and at a flash from me the Sinai of the Mountains was leveled" (line 46). Fn =

Fn. trans., MacEoin (BSB 2:2, 10). This verse is based on Qur'ān 7:143 (see AQA III:204 for the comment of Bahā'-Allāh). The following line of the Qaṣīda (line 47) may allude to Jesus' power of resurrection

In part IV of his Qaṣīda (lines 62-97) Bahā'-Allāh defends himself against the divine Beloved's charge of his unworthiness for mystic union. He represents himself as one ready to suffer all manner of oppression and indignity for her sake and dwells on the intense tribulations he has already endured. In so doing he "identifies his plight with that of holy figures and prophets of the past";

"The grief of Jacob and the suffering of Joseph, the pain of Job and Abraham's fire. The regret of Adam and the separation of Jonah, and the outcry of David and the lamentation of Noah. The separation of Eve and the burning of Mary, the tribulation of Isaiah and the suffering of Zachariah.. From the sprinkling of my sadness, there befell them all what befell them, from the overflowing of my grief, there appeared every affliction." (lines 72-5). (trans. MacEoin BSB 2:2, 11[adapted]).

In these lines the grief of Jacob is that which he experienced as a result of his separation from Joseph (see Q. 12:84) whose own imprisonment is also alluded to (see Q. 12:33ff). Job's afflictions are referred to in Qur'ān 21:83 and elaborated upon in various Islamic literatures (see below on the Lawḥ-i Ayyūb). Abraham's fire is that of the furnace into which he was believed to have been cast (cf. above on Qaṣīda line 26b). Adam was given to mourning and regret as a result of his expulsion from Paradise.

Dhu'l-Nūn, identified by Bahā'-Allāh as Yūnus (Jonah, Q. 37:139f; 68:48f; cf. 10:98; 4:163; 6:86?) "went forth enraged" and heedless of God's "power over him" according to Qur'an 21:87. David and Noah, Bahā'-Allāh himself comments, "lamented a great deal". The tale of Noah is well-known (frequently told in the Qur'án): as for the matter of David and his crying out, it is clear from the Psalms (zabūr) how much vexation he endured and to what extent he was afflicted by it."

Eve wept much, for 40 days or more according to the ḥadīth and Qisas al-anbiya' literatures, when, on the expulsion from Paradise, she was separated from Adam. The burning agony of the Virgin Mary resulted from her being pregnant with the `fatherless' child Jesus (see Q.3:35;19:16f).

Isaiah's tribulations are not mentioned in the Qur'ān though Jewish, Christian and Islamic sources picture him, in one way or another, as an Israelite prophet who suffered much and was martyred by being sawn in half. Shī`ī sources relate how the Israelites persecuted Isaiah for his prophecies and rebukes. He sought refuge by hiding in a tree but Satan held the fringes of his garment so that he could be seen and he was cut through with a saw (EJ 9: col. 68 and Biḥār al-anwār, 14:162); This account was handed down by Wahb ibn-Munabbih and is rooted in Jewish sources (on which see, for example, The Martyrdom of Isaiah [Part of the Christian apocalypse The Ascension of Isaiah] trans., in R. H. Charles, The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament, Vol.II ( ), p. f ; cf. EJ 9:71-2, and L. Ginsberg, Legends of the Jews, Vol. IV:277f and Vol. VI:374. n.103). By the Zechariah who suffered, the father of John the Baptist is doubtless intended (Q. 3:38-41; 19:2-12; 21:89fcf. 3:37; 6:85). Islamic sources also record the martyrdom Zechariah the father of Yaḥyā (= John the Baptist).

Part V (lines 98-127) of the Qaṣīda in which the divine Beloved urges Bahā'-Allāh to "go beyond the limited truth he has found" and again underlines her sanctified transcendence contains a few points of prophetological interest. The celestial female expresses her exaltedness by claiming that the theophanic splendour of Sinai (abhā' bahā al-ṭūr) is an inadequate expression of her divinity:

"The most glorious splendor of Sinai is to me mere rubbish" (line 100a).

She claims that her interior reality is the source of divine revelation; the locus confirmatory of the "heavenly writ" (zubur al-samá'). Her "scroll" (sahifa) is the source of the revelation of the "radiant scrolls" (ṣuḥuf al-saná') (see line 106). The "Sinaitic Throne" (`arsh al-ṭūr) is too narrow a celestial locale for the magnanimity of her being (line 111b [such may be the sense of this line]). Sinaitic motifs are again drawn on in expressing the elevated holiness of Bahā'-Allāh's divine Beloved.

The prophetological motifs in Bahā'-Allāh's Qaṣīda are illustrative of his considerable familiarity with qur'ánic stories of the prophets. In commenting on part IV of this work Cole has written that the reference to the non-qur'ánic prophet Isaiah (in line 74b) "betokens [Bahā'-Allāh's] familiarity with the Bible" (Cole art. cit. p. 17) though this bypasses the many extra-qur'anic Islamic sources in which Isaiah is a not insignificant figure (see Qisas al-anbiyā' ; Majlisi, Bihar, ). Whether or not Bahā'-Allāh had access to the Bible prior to the mid 1850's cannot be confidently asserted on the basis of the Qaṣīda prophetology.

Other early poetical writings possibly of this period.

In addition to the writings commented on above a number of ghazals and other early poetical writings of Bahā'-Allāh are printed in pages 176-196 in vol. 4. of Ishrāq Khāvarī's compilation Mā'ida-yi asmānī . Apart from the Rashḥ-i `amā' (pp. 184-186) one of these writings is known to date from the late Iraq period (c. 1862-3?), namely, the Bāz āv Bidih Jāmī . The date of the others is uncertain though they probably belong to the mid-late Iraq period (1855-1863). It will be convenient until their dating is established to cite them here along with a few of my 20 year old notes on prophetological and related motifs contained within them. I shall refer to these poetical writings by means of the opening words of their first hemistich or line.

بجانان جان همی دريافت

TB2B: 05 Bi-janān jān hamī daryāft

(Persian; 19 couplets).

Text in Ma'idih 4:176-8.

INBMC 36:

This poem has the heading :

"He is the One who crieth out with the tongue of the enraptured lover"

Ma`idih 4:176f

هو النّاطق فی لسان العاشق

بجانان جان همی دريافت ره از بوی او

مهر و مه آميخت با هم روی او و ابروی او

بوی عطر بر وزيد از پرچم زلفين او

مشگ و عنبر شد معطّر در جهان از بوی او

پرده بگرفت از جمال آمد بطرز ذوالجلال

منصعق شد جملهء عالم ز نور روی او

هوش و بيهوشی ز عشق روی او مدهوش شد

مست وهشياری شده طائف همی در كوی او

Ma`idih 4:177

عاشقان تشنه را ايندم بشارت در دهيد

كوثر باقی شده جاری همی در جوی او

اين عجب نيست كه عاشق به كمندش افتاده

گردن شاهان جان اندر خم گيسوی او

موسی از عشق رخش در طور معنی ميشتافت

عيسی جان زنده آمد از دم دلجوی او

صدر عشاق جهان شد خالی از صبر اين زمان

زانكه انوار رخش شد ظاهر از مينوی او

باد غفاری وزيد از گلشن باقی كنون

چون پديد آمد بعالم شمه از خوی او

رسم بدكاران شكست و دست مكاران ببست

نقش عالم تازه شد از قوّت بازوی او

عكسی از خال رخش در آينه وحدت فتاد

چون جمال خويش ديد آمد بجستجوی او

يك سخن ناگفته از سرّ خدائی در جهان

عالمی بينی تو پرغوغا ز گفتگوی او

Ma`idih 4:178

حشر بينی و هم نشر بينی آشكار

گر وزد در ملك هستی نفحهء از موی او

كی توانستی خليل اصنام عالم برشكست

گر نبودی قوتش از نعره يك هوی او

من بهر سوئی سجود آرم كنون از بهر

زانكه باشد سویها را رو همی بر سوی او

گر همی خواهی كه چشم تو شود روشن ز نور معرفت

جهد آن كن تا بيابی كحلی از داروی او

جان عاشق برپرد تا سدره قرب اله

گر بگوش او رسد يك نغمه يا هوی او

چشم سربگشای و انگه طالب ديدار شو

ورنه رخسارش نبينی گر نشينی تو همی پهلوی او

ميدود درويش در صحرای عشقش همچنان

كه دود در بر وحدت گله آهوی او

This ghazal is focused upon the theme of the ravishing beauty of the Divine Beloved. So desirous is her mystic charm that,

"Out of love for her cheek Moses hastens [to meet her?] in the Mystic Mount [Sinai]; Through her comforting breath the soul of Jesus is enlivened [or, `Jesus came soul enlivened']) (line 7)].

The first hemistich of this couplet may imply that Moses, whilst on Sinai, was so enamoured of the Divine Beloved that he hurried to catch a glimpse of her cheek, the source of spiritual light (see line 8b). The breath dam, (less likely, blood, damm) of the Divine Beloved, the second hemistich may indicate, was so powerful as to enliven the very soul of Jesus whose own breath was traditionally that which gave life.

Once again prophetological motifs are utilized in order to expresss the exaltedness of the Divine Beloved cf. also line 14 (a) (Ma'idih 4:178) where the theme of Abraham's breaking the idols is drawn upon (cf. Q. and Qisas lit. ).

عشق از سدره اعلی آمد با شعله فارانی

TB2B: 06 (Per.) `Ishq āz sidrā-yi a`lā āmad

"Enraptured love did come from the Most Exalted Lote-Tree

with a firebrand from Paran"

Persian; 18 couplets text in Ma'idih 4:179-180.

Also ADD

Text as published in Ma'idih 4:179-80

هو اللّه

عشق از سدره اعلی آمد با شعله فارانی

هم با جام بلا آمد از ساحت سبحانی

اول كوب فنا بخشد بر زمره عشّاق

وانگاه كند باقی از نفحه روحانی

ای عشق توئی سلطان در مركز امكان

كز سينه ببردی تو همه صبر و شكيبائی

گه آتش و گه موسائی گه صوت انااللّهی

گه بنده و گه شاهی از جلوه ربّانی

خلقی بره افتاده هم مرده و جان داده

يك نفسی بر كش ای روح مسيحائی

ناسوت بروز تو لاهوت ظهور تو

هاهوت حضور تو ای گوهر رحمانی

هان دلكم بر سوز وانگه جگرم بر دوز

از نار جمال خود وز ابره ثعبانی

ای بيخبر عالم از خود خبرم ده

من گم شده راهم تو شعله نورانی

گر لطف همی خواهی يك قدحی در ده

من تشنه جامم تو كوثر يزدانی

Ma`idih 4:180

آن زلف سياهت را از روی چو ماهت برگير

تا شمس برون آيد از پرده ظلمانی

من صيد دو ابرويت هم بسته گيسويت

گه بكمندم بندی هم گاه تو بگشائی

هم تو لبانم بستی هم تو ز جانم رستی

هم از تو كنم مستی ای باده رمانی

گر روی كنی پنهان يك لحظه تو از امكان

رسم بقا برخيزد عالم همه گردد فانی

ای از تو فغان من زنده ز تو جان من

هم كون و مكان من ای مصرك سلطانی

اين بس عجبم آيد زين نكته كه بنمودی

موجود بهر چشمی و از چشم تو پنهانی

ای بلبل باغ من ای قمری بستان من

و ايطوطی رضوان من يك رنّه بزن سريانی

عيسی ز سما آيد موسی ز سنا آيد

جانها همه بشتابد در محضر قدسائی

درويش ميازار زين گفته بسيار

كز حرفی شده موجود اين گنبد مينائی

As in the ghazal mentioned above this similar piece is in praise of the divine Beloved and draws upon Moses-Sinai and related motifs. Its opening line reads,

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"The Beloved came with the flame of Paran from the Most-Exalted Lote-Tree;

She came also with the Goblet of Calamity from the sublime Court."

Here the Divine Beloved, like Moses, is represented as coming with a brand of the burning bush, the "flame of [Mount] Paran" (shu`la-yi fārān) from the "Most Exalted Lote-Tree" (sidra-yi a`lā’ [symbolically] the `Burning Bush'). On the use of the term fārān (= Paran ) in babi-baha'i scriptures see the web reprint of the appendix to my article about Deut. 33:2 originally published in BSB X:xx.

In line 4 she is pictured as appearing in paradoxical symbolic forms;

"At one time the [Sinaitic] Fire,

at another [the human] Moses

as well as the Trumpet of "I am Divine";

At one time a slave, at another a king from the Lordly Splendour"

and in line 5 she is addressed as the "Messianic Spirit"

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Moses and Jesus also figure in line 17;

"Jesus cometh from heaven; Moses comes from the [realm of] splendour

All souls hasten to attain thy holy presence." ^{^[6]}

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TB2B: 07 (Per.) Saḥar āmad bi-sitram.. Persian; 34 couplets

(incomplete?) printing in Ma'idih 4:181-184

"He is the One Self-Sufficient on all levels"

Text as published in Ma'idih 4:181ff

هو المغنی فی كلّ شأن

سحر آمد ببسترم يار كای

شوريده ز عشق وی دل افكار

ای از برايم فتاده بهر سوئی

وی در راهم گشته اسير هر ديار

گه بر پای همی پيچيده افعی

گه بر گردنت زنجير شرر بار

ای نخفته يك شبی بر بستر راحت

وی نياسوده دمی از فتنه روزگار

زاتش آهت كبد عالم سوخت

وز دردت چشم جهان آتشبار

گه طوق بگردن چو عبدی عاصی

گه با سلسله بردند همی بر سر بازار

گه مظلوم فتادی تو بدست ظالم

گه در سجن جفا بسی ليل و نهار

از دردت دل دوستان در آتش

وز آهت رخ عاشقان تيره و تار

چشمت از خون ياقوت برافشاند

زان گشته همی چشم شفق گلنار

Ma'idih 4:182

با اينهمه محنت كه براهم ديدی

سرد نگشتی و نناليدی زار

از چيست كه امشب تو نياسائی

وز چيست كه گشته بدنت چون تار

شب غلطی و پيچی تو همی بر بالين

غلطيدن و زاری كه گزيدش مار

اكنون ز چه ميپيچی و مينالی

وز چه پريدت رنگ همی از رخسار

گفتم ای يار ای طبيب جانم

چه عجب كه آمدی بر سر بيمار

ای از رويت شمس سمإ مشرق

وی از عشقت نفس سكون بيقرار

آسمان دامان گوهر زان گرفت

تا كند بر مقدم عزّت نثار

گر تو از حال حبيبت پرسی

از زردی رخسار شنو اسرار

سرّ دل باشد ز آهم مشتهر

رمز جان ظاهر ز چشم اشگبار

گر چه ز عشقت بسی تير جفا خوردم

هم گشته اسير دست كفّار

Ma'idih 4:183

گه بكشندم بسر كوه و در دشت

گه ببرندم در محضر فجّار

گر گويم آنچه بديدم از عشقت

البته زبان بماند از گفتار

ليكن ننالم از تيغ جفات ايدوست

دردت را چون دل گيرم همی اندر كنار

قضايت را چون جان گيرم در آغوش

بلايت را روان باشد خريدار

جان رشته حبّ تو همی نگسلد

گر ببرندش سر از خنجر جرار

نه چنان بستم دل بخم گيسويت

كه شود باز همی تا روز شمار

من آن نيم كه پيچم سر از عشقت

كه بكشندم بدمی صد هزار

شب در آتش غم زان ميسوزم

كه نديدی سرم ايدوست همی بر سر دار

تا بيجسد ببينم رويت ای احد

بی حجاب آيم برت ای كردگار

اطيار بقا باشيان برگشتند

ما مانده در اين تراب بسی ذليل و خوار

Ma'idih 4:184

وقت آن آمد كه بفرازی علم

ای سرّ خدا دستی از غيب بر آر

تا رهانی خاكيان را تو ز خاك

هم زدائی زاينه دل زنكار

هم تو ز قيد اين جهان برهان

اين جمله مهاجرين و انصار

بر سرشان نه از تاج قبول تاجی

بر هيكلشان بربند ز حبّ زنّار

بس كن درويشا زين بيش مزن نش

كافتاد شرر همی از اين گفتار

...... انتهی

بت ما آمد با بطی و باده

TB2B: 08 (Per.) But-i mā āmad bā buṭī wa bādih..

Persian 41 Couplets.

Mai'dih 4:188-192;

This poem is in celebration of the beauty of the Divine Beloved and again contains a couplet (line 27) in which Moses-Sinai imagery is drawn upon;

"From her "Tree" I heard that subtlety which Moses did not hear from the Sinaitic Lote-Tree."

There is also reference (line 39) to the enlivening power of the breath of the Divine Beloved;

"And from her breath the Messianic Spirit was enlivened".

Text from Mai'dih 4:188ff

بت ما آمد با بطی و باده

با رخ چون آفتاب با دلی ساده

ساده ز چه از دنيا و از عقبی

وز نقشه امكان فارغ و آزاده

از روی چو ماهش شكل مه نو پيدا

وز موی سياهش چشمه هور پوشيده

پر خم پر خم آن زلف چو زنجير

مبهم مبهم آن لب ناديده

غبغب دارد چون كوی سيمين

دهن دارد چون حقه بيجاده

از خنده او تنگ شكر شد ارزان

وز غضب او نار جحيم آماده

لعل نمكينش ياقوت بدخشان

گشته در او مضمر لؤلؤ ناسوده

آمد با چشمی مست و دلی هشيار

سبحان اللّه زين مست غضب آورده

گفتم شاها قدحی در ده

گفتا حاشا زين طمع بيهوده

Mai'dih 4:189

اين خمر حياتست و ميالايش

وين آب بقا را تو مكن آلوده

اول تو دهان بربند ز گفتار

هم ز خيالت شو ساكن و آسوده

هم تو بشو دل را زانچه بود ظاهر

وانگاه ز باطن شو پاك و گزيده

چونكه شدی خالص از بوته وحدت

آنگه دو سه پيمانه دهمت زين باده

گفتم ای از دستت حكم قضا امضإ

وی از قدرت تو نور قدر تابيده

گر در خور باشم امر بديعت را

ور دارا آيم اين وصف شمرده

ديگر ز چه گيرم ساغر از دست بلورينت

وز چه خورم باده در اينشب كادينه

گفتا هی هی تو چه در وهمی

وز راه حقيقت بس دور بمانده

اين جامم را وصف كجا لايق

وين آتش كی در خور هر افسرده

گر قطره از بحرم تو بياشامی

بينی تو بسی ناگفته و ناديده

Text from Mai'dih 4:190

گفتم ز چه تأخير ای مهتر دوران

در ده جامی زان كوثر رخشنده

گر جان همی خواهی دهمت صد بار

ور سر خواهی در پات فتاده

آنگه بخشيدم آن كوثر روحانی

نوشيدم وديدم عالم جاويده

صبحی ديدم شمس از او مشرق

فجری ديدم كز جان بدميده

رضوانی ديدم چون روی نگار

بهاری ديدم از چشم خزان پوشيده

در صورت گل معنی بلبل مستور

وز بلبل سرّ الهی بشنيده

ظاهر با باطن دست در آغوش

صورت با معنی در يكجامه خزيده

از شجرش بشنيدم آن نكته كه موسی

از سدرهء سينا آن نشنيده

قومی ديدم از خم الهی مدهوش

وز هستی و نيستی بسی رهيده

همگی مست از صبوح صبحگاهی

وز كون و مكان بلامكان پريده

Mai'dih 4:191

الحق ديدم آنچه بگفتن نايد

سبحان اللّه زين دولت سترده

بودم در حيرت از اينجهان عالی

كز چه شد اين بساط گسترده

ذهنم نبرده راه بجائی

فكرتم از سير بسی وامانده

گفتم دليلی بايد بسی خجسته

گفتم رهبری بايد بسی پسنديده

با خود گفتم كه در عالم حيرت

عقل است معين هر لغزيده

گفتم ای عقل ای پيمبر قدسی

وی خرد ای رهبر هر درمانده

اين چه بساطست جان در او خادم

وين چه نشاطست كه هستی داده

بودم با خرد در اين گفت

كامد از غيبم اين مژده

كای واله و شيدا ميدان اين

از قدم آن شه نورسيده

آنشه كز امرش عالمی تازه

وز نفخه او روح مسيحا زنده

Mai'dih 4:192

آن فرّ الهی كز قدرش

روح القدسش كمينه بنده

بس كن درويشا زين بيش مگو

خوشتر باشد سرّ جانان پوشيده

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TB2C: 09 (Per.) Saqī bidih ābī..

Persian 20 Couplets ).

Ma'idih 4:192-4;

In the opening line of this poem the divine Cupbearer (saqī) is requested to pour down heavenly water to the end that the soul be cleansed from the whisperings of self. This heavenly water is associated with celestial fire (line 2) and the "spiritual [Fount of] Kawthar". Its wonderful potency is extolled (line 3l). A single effulgence (jilvā) of its image (`aks) falling upon the pages of the soul ADDuf-jān) would suffice to confound Greek maxims (ikmat-i yūnānī;) or, perhaps, stupify 100 Greek sages (line 3). But a brand (jidhwat) of that Flame ignited in the Sinaitic Lote-Tree (`the burning bush') would throw 100 Imranite Moses' into a state of bewildered astonishment (line 4).

In line 5 allusion is made to Adam's primordial state, his being, "between water and clay" and in line 6 the " xx of Luqmān" (ikmat-i Luqmānī) is mentioned. Without going into details it should also be noted that much of the Sāqī bidih Ābī is oriented around the theme of the transcendent status of the Divine Beloved (see esp. lines 7ff). In the 11th line she is represented as being the source of the "scent of Joseph's Garment" (buy-i qamī cf, Q. 12:93f), the "Spirit of the Messiah" ruh-i masī the spirit of Jesus), "Moses' snow-white hand" (musā-yi baydā'ī) and the "flame [or fire] of [Mount Parān" (shu`la-yi fārānī).

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TB2B: 10 (Per.) Mastand bulbulān naghma-yi yā huwa

Ma'idih 4:194-6; Persian; 22 Couplets.

In celebration of the spiritually intoxicating and eschatological consequences of the Divine Beloved's rhythmic chant "O He" (yā huwa) this poetic piece again contains Moses-Sinai imagery.

Reference is made in line 5 to the "Moses of the soul" (? mãsā-yi jān) falling down in a swoon on the "mystic Mount" (ṭūr-i ma`anī) in connection with the burning of the "firebrand" (jadhwa) of the Divine Beloved's "O He! " (yā huwa) on Mount Sinai (cf. Qur'ān and line 6). Jesus, the Messiah's ascending beyond the sublime heavenly vault (gunbad-i a`lā) is, in line 18, related to his having the utterance "O He" (yā huwa) as his guide.