Translation, Commentary Surih of Kawthar

and only crystal water of Kawthar. They are all fire, all air, all water, all dust, and all are the majestic identity, the everlasting bestowal and the effulgent Kawthar…. Shouldst thou dwell beneath the shadow of the Primal Will, within the station of the Wish (irádih), upon the land of Dominion, and recite this holy verse, thou must comprehend the meaning of the letters of the first word of the verse: the letter Alif referreth to the fire of divine creation, the letter Nún intendeth the air of divine generation, the manifest letter of Alif pointeth to the water of divine fashioning, and the invisible letter, the Hidden Pillar, constituted for the manifestation of the other three pillars, hinteth at the element of dust. 5 Follow the same rule that I conferred upon thee within the veils of these allusions, of the crystal water of Kawthar, concerning the sacred words of this blessed verse. Interpret thou, in the same way, that which thou desirest of the rest of the verse, in terms of the stations of divine Action subsequent to Wish, namely Destiny, Decree, Permission, Term and the Book…. Shouldst thou descend from the stations of divine Action, abide upon the summit of the Throne, and desire to break down each single word, thou must recognise the meaning of all letters. 6 Thus, the letter Alif in the first word of the verse referreth first to the favours (álá’) of thy Lord in the heaven of the supreme Cloud of Subtlety (‘amá’). Then it pointeth to the favours of thy Lord in the Throne of radiant Praise. Next it hinteth at the favours of thy Lord in the heaven of Decree. Know thou that verily this blessed verse is endowed with universal meanings in the outward station. Among them is this: understand thou the Kawthar fount as the truth of Vicegerency addressed unto Muhammad the Apostle of God, the blessings of God rest upon Him. Thus God hath verily “conferred upon Thee” ‘Alí, peace be upon Him. Then in the exalted verse of God, “Therefore pray unto Thy Lord” referreth unto the Vicegerency of Hasan, peace be upon Him. His magnified word, “and sacrifice” pointeth to the martyrdom of Husayn, peace be upon Him. 5 The writings of the Báb frequently speaks of the fourth or the invisible letter which together with the three visible letters constitutue the most great name. The beginning phrse of the Qur’án, the word Bism (or bsm, in the Name of), is usually associated with these three visible letters, with the invisible alif between B and S. The Báb here identifies the word We verily (inná) which consists of three letters A, N, and A, as three visible letters hiding the invisible one. This invisible letter is a reference to the Báb Himself. Together the four are the four pillars of covenant. 6 Taksír is the process of breaking down the words in to their single component letters and then looking at the totality of those words. Ahsá’í frequently uses it as one of the techniques of calculating numerical values of different words. 7 The word favours is álá’ which begins with the letter Alif. 8 Here follows a long incredible interpretation of every single letter of the verses of the Súrih in four stations. Finally it indicateth the favours of thy Lord in the Throne of Bahá. 7 Then the letter Nún referreth first to the light (núr) of thy Lord…. 8