The Three Kinds of Revelation

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Sent: Thursday, October 10, 2002 6:53 AM

Subject: The Three Kinds of Revelation

Dear All

Paragraphs 149-151 make reference to the three kinds of revelation. Below are some comments on this subject. I apologize for its length.

With much love

Farzin

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One of the promises in the Qur'an is that the faithful shall "attain unto the Presence of God" (Laqa'u'llah) in the Day of Judgment. But how does one attain the Presence of God? One common interpretation of this is attainment to the "Revelation" of God in the Day of Resurrection. Baha'u'llah refers to three forms of "Revelation" taken from Islamic writers (i.e. those Muslim scholars who have written interpretation on the Qur'an). These are:

(1) the Universal Revelation (Tajalliy-i-'Am): This is a reference to the attributes of God being present in His creation. The Iqan says:

"...the light of divine knowledge and heavenly grace hath illumined and inspired the essence of all created things,..." [28]

"... whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth is a direct evidence of the revelation within it of the attributes and names of God, inasmuch as within every atom are enshrined the signs that bear eloquent testimony to the revelation of that most great Light." [107]

"... it is clear and evident that such revelation already existeth in all things." [149]

".. We have demonstrated that all things are the recipients and revealers of the splendours of that ideal King, and that the signs of the revelation of that Sun, the Source of all splendour, exist and are manifest in the mirrors of beings." [149]

"... all created things eloquently testify to the revelation of that inner Light within them." [149]

Regarding this universal revelation the following passage is in the Gleanings, page 184:

"Know thou that every created thing is a sign of the revelation of God. Each, according to its capacity, is, and will ever remain, a token of the Almighty. Inasmuch as He, the sovereign Lord of all, hath willed to reveal His sovereignty in the kingdom of names and attributes, each and every created thing hath, through the act of the Divine Will, been made a sign of His glory. So pervasive and general is this revelation that nothing whatsoever in the whole universe can be discovered that doth not reflect His splendor. Under such conditions every consideration of proximity and remoteness is obliterated.... Were the Hand of Divine power to divest of this high endowment all created things, the entire universe would become desolate and void."

Others have also referred to studying the "book of nature". Albert Einstein for instance has said that he is interested in physics in order to "get to know the mind of God".

(2) The Specific Revelation (Tajalliy-i-Khass):

This is a reference to the reflection or revelation of God in the mirror of His own Self. Naturally this form of Revelation is beyond our comprehension, and not accessible to us humans. The Iqan says:

"... the "Specific Revelation of God," expressed by certain Sufis as the "Most Holy Outpouring," (Fayd-i-Aqdas)," [150]

"... it hath been eternally in the divine Knowledge." [150]

"... this revelation is confined to the innermost Essence, unto which no man can attain." [150]

"... The minds of the favourites of heaven, however high they soar, can never attain this station, how much less the understanding of obscured and limited minds." [150] -- therefore even the prophets of God cannot understand this form of revelation.

(3) The Secondary Revelation (Tajalliy-i-Thani):

This is a reference to the "Revelation" of God to His Prophets (Messengers or Manifestations). As was mentioned in a previous email, in Baha'i terminology any one who receives direct revelation from God is referred to as Manifestation. They may also be called Prophets or Messengers of God, and often individual Prophets are referred to with specific titles such as Spirit (Jesus), Friend of God (Abraham) etc. If additionally they have founded an independent religion then they are major prophets, otherwise they are referred to as minor prophets. In Islamic terminology these two categories are referred to as Messengers (Rasul, for major prophets) and Prophets (Nabbi, for minor ones). In Christianity, Jesus is accorded a special station and referred to as the Son of God and according to Trinity He is God-Like while all other prophets (minor or major) are simply referred to as prophets and are said to be mere humans in their essence.

Regarding this "Secondary Revelation" Iqan uses the phrase "Holy Outpouring," (Fayd-i-Muqqadas) which is in the terminology of some Sufis.

Notice and contrast these two words: Holy (Moqqadas) and Most Holy (Aqdas). In Arabic the New Testament is called Kitab-i-Moqqadas, and our book of laws is called Kitab-i-Aqdas. It is interesting to see the relationship between these two names and these two kinds of Revelation referred to in these 3 paragraphs of the Iqan.

This is how the Iqan characterizes this "Secondary Revelation":

"... this is admittedly applicable to the world of creation, that is, in the realm of the primal and original manifestation of God." [150]

"Such revelation is confined to His Prophets and chosen Ones, inasmuch as none mightier than they hath come to exist in the world of being." [150]

"... Through them is transmitted a grace that is infinite, and by them is revealed the light that can never fade." [106]

"... all else besides these Manifestations, live by the operation of their Will, and move and have their being through the outpourings of their grace." [109]

Mr. Dunbar writes from Ishraq-Khavari's Encyclopedia of Iqan (Qamus-i-Iqan) that:

"The two phrases "Holy Outpourings" and "Most Holy Outpourings" are mentioned in the works of a number of Muslim Sufi writers such as Ibn'ul-Arabi, Rumi, and Jami. The Most Holy Outpouring is said to refer to the manifestation of God unto Himself. In this state every attribute of God is the same as God Himself. He is the essence of love, of knowledge, etc. He is Himself love. The Holy Outpouring refers here to effulgences of God witnessed in the Manifestations of God"

Regarding the "Presence of God" we read in Baha'u'llah's tablet of visitation " ... he who hath attained unto Thy presence hath attained unto the presence of God..."

Further regarding the Presence of God we find these explanations in the Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, page 118:

"In all the Divine Books the promise of the Divine Presence hath been explicitly recorded. By this Presence is meant the Presence of Him Who is the Dayspring of the signs, and the Dawning-Place of the clear tokens, and the Manifestation of the Excellent Names, and the Source of the attributes, of the true God, exalted be His glory. God in His Essence and in His own Self hath ever been unseen, inaccessible, and unknowable. By Presence, therefore, is meant the Presence of the One Who is His Vicegerent amongst men. He, moreover, hath never had, nor hath He, any peer or likeness. For were He to have any peer or likeness, how could it then be demonstrated that His being is exalted above, and His essence sanctified from, all comparison and likeness? Briefly, there hath been revealed in the Kitab-i-Iqan (Book of Certitude) concerning the Presence and Revelation of God that which will suffice the fair-minded."

Finally we can loosely say that we can meet God in the following places: in nature (when we study its beauty and order), in human soul (when there are reflections of nobility, or more generally religious experiences of rapture), in Spiritual Assemblies (when they consult in unity), and in the person of the Manifestations of God (both through their words and their personal beings).