er, both in the beginning and in the
end. O God, my God! Thy forgiveness hath emboldened me, and Thy mercy hath
strengthened me, and Thy call hath awakened me, and Thy grace hath raised
me up and led me unto Thee. Who, otherwise, am I that I should dare to
stand at the gate of the city of Thy nearness, or set my face toward the
lights that are shining from the heaven of Thy will? Thou seest, O my
Lord, this wretched creature knocking at the door of Thy grace, and this
evanescent soul seeking the river of everlasting life from the hands of
Thy bounty. Thine is the command at all times, O Thou Who art the Lord of
all names; and mine is resignation and willing submission to Thy will, O
Creator of the heavens!

Let him then raise his hands thrice, and say:

Greater is God than every great one!

Let him then kneel and, bowing his forehead to the ground, say:

Too high art Thou for the praise of those who are nigh unto Thee to ascend
unto the heaven of Thy nearness, or for the birds of the hearts of them
who are devoted to Thee to attain to the door of Thy gate. I testify that
Thou hast been sanctified above all attributes and holy above all names.
No God is there but Thee, the Most Exalted, the All-Glorious.

Let him then seat himself and say:

I testify unto that whereunto have testified all created things, and the
Concourse on high, and the inmates of the all-highest Paradise, and beyond
them the Tongue of Grandeur itself from the all-glorious Horizon, that
Thou art God, that there is no God but Thee, and that He Who hath been
manifested is the Hidden Mystery, the Treasured Symbol, through Whom the
letters B and E (Be) have been joined and knit together. I testify that it
is He Whose name hath been set down by the Pen of the Most High, and Who
hath been mentioned in the Books of God, the Lord of the Throne on high
and of earth below.

Let him then stand erect and say:

O Lord of all being and Possessor of all things visible and invisible!
Thou dost perceive my tears and the sighs I utter, and hearest my
groaning, and my wailing, and the lamentation of my heart. By Thy might!
My trespasses have kept me back from drawing nigh unto Thee; and my sins
have held me far from the court of Thy holiness. Thy love, O my Lord, hath
enriched me, and separation from Thee hath destroyed me, and remoteness
from Thee hath consumed me. I entreat Thee by Thy footsteps in this
wilderness, and by the wor