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deter them from beholding Thy beauty, or from meditating on the wondrous
evidences of Thine everlasting handiwork, that he may have fellowship with
none except Thee, and turn to naught save Thyself, and discover in
whatever hath been created by Thee in the kingdoms of earth and heaven
nothing but Thy wondrous Beauty and the revelation of the splendors of Thy
face, and be so immersed beneath the billowing oceans of Thine overruling
providence and the surging seas of Thy holy unity, that he will forget
every mention except the mention of Thy transcendent oneness, and banish
from his soul the traces of all evil suggestions, O Thou in Whose hands
are the kingdoms of all names and attributes!
Lauded be Thy name, O Thou Who art the Goal of my desire! I swear by Thy
glory! How great is my wish to attain unto a detachment so complete that
were there to appear before me those countenances which are hid within the
chambers of chastity, and the beauty of which Thou didst veil from the
eyes of the entire creation, and whose faces Thou didst sanctify from the
sight of all beings, and were they to unveil themselves in all the glory
of the splendors of Thine incomparable beauty, I would refuse to look upon
them, and would behold them solely for the purpose of discerning the
mysteries of Thy handiwork, which have perplexed the minds of such as have
drawn nigh unto Thee, and awed the souls of all them that have recognized
Thee. I would, by Thy power and Thy might, soar to such heights that
nothing whatsoever would have the power to keep me back from the manifold
evidences of Thy transcendent dominion, nor would any earthly scheme shut
me out from the manifestations of Thy Divine holiness.
Glorified, immeasurably glorified art Thou, O my God, and my Beloved, and
my Master, and my Desire! Shatter not the hopes of this lowly one to
attain the shores of Thy glory, and deprive not this wretched creature of
the immensities of Thy riches, and cast not away this suppliant from the
doors of Thy grace, and Thy bounty, and Thy gifts. Have mercy, then, upon
this poor and desolate soul who hath sought no friend but Thee, and no
companion except Thee, and no comforter save Thee, and no beloved apart
from Thee, nor cherished any desire but Thyself.
Cast, then, upon me, O my God, the glances of Thy mercy, and forgive me my
trespasses and the trespasses of them that are dear to Thee, and which
come in between us and the revelation of Thy triumph and Thy grace. Cancel
Thou, moreover, our sins which have shut off our faces from the splendors
of the Day-Star of Thy favors. Powerful art Thou to do Thy pleasure. Thou
ordainest what Thou willest, and art not asked of what Thou wishest
through the power of Thy sovereignty, nor canst Thou be frustrated in
whatsoever Thou prescribest through Thine irrevocable decree. No God is
there save Thee, the Almighty, the Most Powerful, the Ever-living, the
Most Compassionate.