G MACRON BELOW~} Tabarsi and perished during that siege.

180. Take heed lest the word "Prophet" withhold you from this Most Great
Announcement #167

Baha'u'llah cautions people "of insight" not to allow their
interpretations of the Holy Scriptures to prevent them from recognizing
the Manifestation of God. Followers of each religion have tended to allow
their devotion to its Founder to cause them to perceive His Revelation as
the final Word of God and to deny the possibility of the appearance of any
subsequent Prophet. This has been the case of Judaism, Christianity and
Islam. Baha'u'llah denies the validity of this concept of finality both in
relation to past Dispensations and to His own. With regard to Muslims, He
wrote in the Kitab-i-Iqan that the "people of the Qur'an ... have allowed
the words 'Seal of the Prophets' to veil their eyes", "to obscure their
understanding, and deprive them of the grace of all His manifold
bounties". He affirms that "this theme hath ... been a sore test unto all
mankind", and laments the fate of "those who, clinging unto these words,
have disbelieved in Him Who is their true Revealer". The Bab refers to
this same theme when He warns: "Let not names shut you out as by a veil
from Him Who is their Lord, even the name Prophet, for such a name is but
a creation of His utterance."

181. any reference to "Vicegerency" debar you from the sovereignty of Him
Who is the Vicegerent of God #167

The word here translated "Vicegerency" is, in the original Arabic,
"vilayat", which has a range of meanings including "vicegerency",
"guardianship", "protectorship" and "successorship". It is used in
relation to God Himself, to His Manifestation, or to those who are the
appointed Successors of a Manifestation.

In this verse of the Aqdas, Baha'u'llah warns against allowing such
concepts to blind one to the "sovereignty" of the new Divine
Manifestation, the true "Vicegerent of God".

182. Call ye to mind Karim #170

Haji Mirza Muhammad Karim K{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}an-i-Kirmani (1810- circa 1873) was the
self-appointed leader of the S{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}ayk{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}i community after the death of
Siyyid Kazim, who was the appointed successor to S{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}ayk{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~} Ahmad-i-Ahsa'i
(see not