ixt earth and heaven. Ye are the
manifestations of steadfastness amidst men and the daysprings of Divine
Utterance to all that dwell on earth. Well is it with him that turneth
unto you, and woe betide the froward. This day, it behoveth whoso hath
quaffed the Mystic Wine of everlasting life from the Hands of the
loving-kindness of the Lord his God, the Merciful, to pulsate even as the
throbbing artery in the body of mankind, that through him may be quickened
the world and every crumbling bone.

174 O people of the world! When the Mystic Dove will have winged its
flight from its Sanctuary of Praise and sought its far-off goal, its
hidden habitation, refer ye whatsoever ye understand not in the Book to
Him Who hath branched from this mighty Stock.

175 O Pen of the Most High! Move Thou upon the Tablet at the bidding of
Thy Lord, the Creator of the Heavens, and tell of the time when He Who is
the Dayspring of Divine Unity purposed to direct His steps towards the
School of Transcendent Oneness; haply the pure in heart may gain thereby a
glimpse, be it as small as a needle's eye, of the mysteries of Thy Lord,
the Almighty, the Omniscient, that lie concealed behind the veils. Say:
We, indeed, set foot within the School of inner meaning and explanation
when all created things were unaware. We saw the words sent down by Him
Who is the All-Merciful, and We accepted the verses of God, the Help in
Peril, the Self-Subsisting, which He(11) presented unto Us, and hearkened
unto that which He had solemnly affirmed in the Tablet. This we assuredly
did behold. And We assented to His wish through Our behest, for truly We
are potent to command.

176 O people of the Bayan! We, verily, set foot within the School of God
when ye lay slumbering; and We perused the Tablet while ye were fast
asleep. By the one true God! We read the Tablet ere it was revealed, while
ye were unaware, and We had perfect knowledge of the Book when ye were yet
unborn. These words are to your measure, not to God's. To this testifieth
that which is enshrined within His knowledge, if ye be of them that
comprehend; and to this the tongue of the Almighty doth bear witness, if
ye be of those who understand. I swear by God, were We to lift the veil,
ye would be dumbfounded.

177 Take heed that ye dispute not idly concerning the Almighty and His
Cause, for lo! He hath appeared amongst you invested with a Revelation so
great as to encompass all things, whether of the past o