Tablet of the Howdah is a largely unknown work of Baha’u’llah. The translation by Stephen Lambden appears in volume 3 of Eric Michot’s four-volume pdf series of provisional translations of Baha’u’llah. Baha’u’llah wrote the tablet during his journey from Baghdad to Istanbul, which took him across Turkey and up to the northern coast, where he…
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The kingdom of God is within
Where is the kingdom of God? Where is the entrance that goes through from this physical world into the kingdom of God? The kingdom of God is found in a mysterious and unexpected place. Just as the entrance to Narnia was unexpectedly discovered at the back of a wardrobe, the entrance to the kingdom of…
Love is what unites us
I believe love is what unites us. The theme of unity pervades the Baha’i writings, and believers talk about it constantly, and pray for a world filled with united people. But what exactly is it that unites humanity? I say it is love. What is love? I say it is Baha’u’llah, his Word, and his…
Baha’u’llah on the greatest martyrdom
Baha’u’llah on the greatest martyrdom. Thanks to Adib Masumian, we have more information on Baha’u’llah’s attitude to martyrdom. In a previous post, I shared my translations of Arabic hidden words 44-46, and showed that there is a conceptual link between them. The link is between the idea of testifying to one’s truth and the idea…
Soul Boom is brilliant!
Rainn Wilson’s latest book, Soul Boom: why we need a spiritual revolution, is out. I didn’t think I’d read it. I have never related to Rainn’s public persona, and assumed his book would not interest me. But in the end, I was intrigued to know how he’d put the book together; after all, I’m writing…
The Tablets of Holiness
Throughout April, our intrepid translator Adib Masumian has been uploading to his website a series of tablets all with the title Lawh-i-quds (Tablet of Holiness). There are seven Tablets of Holiness. Adib seems to like this approach of translating in batches according to the title, for he has also covered the Tablets of the Hair,…
GPT-4 translates Baha’u’llah
GPT-4 translates Baha’u’llah. I am now converted to the idea that artificial intelligence can translate Baha’u’llah’s writings. My conversion was brought on by the release of GPT-4, which has amazed the world. It has amazed me too. I would never have believed what GPT-4 can do, but you can’t deny the truth when it stands…
Post-Naw Ruz and pre-Ridvan prayer
In the compilation of prayers by Baha’u’llah called Supplications is a post-Naw Ruz and pre-Ridvan prayer. It is meant to be read during the month between Naw Ruz and Ridvan. Supplications is a collection of 200 prayers translated by Joshua Hall. Because it is not well known, the prayer is not well known either, so…
YouTube as a mashriqu’l-adhkar
I learned pretty much everything I know about the Baha’i mashriqu’l-adhkar (house of worship) from a handbook by Sen McGlinn called A Mashriqu’l-Adhkar Handbook, which is available on Amazon in kindle format for a couple of dollars. For those without a Kindle, Laura Foster has written an excellent essay about the mashriqu’l-adhkar, which gives a…
Laws that never change and apply in all religions
Laws that never change and apply in all religions – what are they? Baha’u’llah explains that religious laws are of two kinds – the ones that don’t change and the ones that do. From what I can make out, most laws do in fact change. This is in keeping with the law of change in…