y turned away from Thee and repudiated Thee and rejected that
which Thou didst unveil before their eyes through the potency of Thy might
and Thy power. They rose up to inflict harm upon Thee, to extinguish Thy
light and to put out the flame that blazeth in Thy Burning Bush. Their
iniquity waxed so grievous that they conspired to shed Thy blood and to
violate Thy honour. And likewise acted he(36) whom Thou hadst nurtured
with the hand of Thy loving-kindness, hadst protected from the mischief of
the rebellious among Thy creatures and the froward amidst Thy servants,
and whom Thou hadst set the task of writing Thy holy verses before Thy
throne.

Alas! Alas! for the things he perpetrated in Thy days to such an extent
that he violated Thy Covenant and Thy Testament, rejected Thy holy Writ,
rose up in rebellion and committed that which caused the denizens of Thy
Kingdom to lament. Then no sooner had he found his hopes shattered and had
perceived the odour of utter failure than he raised his voice and gave
tongue to that which caused Thy chosen ones, who are nigh unto Thee, and
the inmates of the pavilion of glory, to be lost in bewilderment.

Thou seest me, O my God, writhing in anguish upon the dust, like unto a
fish. Deliver me, have mercy upon me, O Thou Whose aid is invoked by all
men, O Thou within Whose grasp lie the reins of power over all men and
women. Whenever I ponder my grievous shortcomings and my great trespasses,
despair assaileth me from every direction, and whenever I pause to
meditate upon the ocean of Thy bounteousness and the heaven of Thy grace
and the day-star of Thy tender compassion, I inhale the fragrance of hope
diffused from right and left, from north and south, as if every created
thing imparteth unto me the joyous tidings that the clouds of the heaven
of Thy mercy will pour down their rain upon me. By Thy might, O Thou Who
art the Mainstay of the sincere ones and the Desire of them that enjoy
near access unto Thee! Thy manifold favours and blessings and the
revelations of Thy grace and loving-kindness have truly emboldened me.
How, otherwise, can utter nothingness magnify the Name of Him Who hath, by
a word, brought creation into being, and how can an evanescent creature
extol Him Who hath demonstrated that no description can ever express Him
and no word of praise magnify His glory? He hath from everlasting been
immeasurably exalted above the understanding of His creatures and
sanctified from the