THE DU`A AL-ḤĀJAT
An Acrostic Supplication of the Bāb for the fulfillment of one’s wishes
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Translation Stephen Lambden UCMerced.
1980s Trans. Last updated 12-02-2017
PDf. ACROSTIC PEAYER.- TEXT pdf
TRANSLATION UNDER REVISION 2017
In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
He is the Unique, the Living, the Self-Subsisting.
He hath decreed justly, with sanctity.
(Repeat this 19 times)
Thee do we worship, and unto Thee do we turn for help.
Lord, blessings be upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, and His Shī`ī party
Thereafter raise up thy hands towards heaven, that is to say the heaven of the Divine Bounty, and then say:
In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
- [1] O my God, I ask Thee by the letter ‘F’ of the Divine Singularity (al-fardāniyyat).
- [2] And the ‘R’ of Lordship (al-rubūbiyyat).
- [3] And the letter ‘D’ of Endless Duration (al-dawwām) which is All-Eternal (al-daymūmiyyat),
- [4] And the ‘Ḥ’ of Life (al-ḥayyat) which is of perpetual duration (sarmadiyya).
- [5] And the ‘Y’ of the Sources of Wisdom (al-yanābi’ al-ḥikmat),
- [6] And the ‘Q’ of (al-qudrat) the All-Powerful,
- [7] And the ‘Y’ of the Certitude (al-yaqīn), and the ‘W’ of Existence (al-wujūd),
- [8] And the ‘M’ of the dominion (al-mulk),
- [9] And he ‘Ḥ’ of the Divine Decree (al-ḥukm),
- [10] And the ‘K’ of His Greatness (al-kibriyā),
- [11] And the ‘M’ of the Kingdom (al-malakūt),
- [12] And the ‘’Ayn’ of His Providence (al-`inayat),
- [13] And the ‘D’ of the Divine Evidence (al-dalalat),
- [14] And the ‘L’ of the Divine Subtlety (al-luṭf),
- [15] And the ‘Q’ of the Self-Subsisting [Deity] (al-qayyūm),
- [16] And the ‘D’ of the Judge (al-dayyān),
- [17] And the ‘W’ of providential Guidance (al-wilāya),
- [18] And the ‘S’ of the divine Repose (al-sakīna) which is spiritual, luminous.
[Know O ] Servants (khuddām)
that these are the letters (al-ḥurūf) and weighty verses (āyāt), [yielding] the resplendent, noble, beneficent Names (al-asmā' al-mushriqāt) through which I supplicate Thee in my petition... regarding the fulfillment of my wishes.
[At this point] make mention of thine own wishes and say:
By the Reality of the Light of the Countenance of God, the Mighty, the Most Great! May His Grandeur and His Strength be upon thee. And inasmuch as it is impossible for the theologians (al-wāṣifūn) to depict His Ultimate Essence, may His Reality be upon thee through the sacredness of His Power (ḥurmat al-qudrat) [made manifest] before thee. Thus may the very blessedness of God be within thee and upon thee.
Wherefore shall they [the suppliants] say:
` We have heard and have acknowledged Thy forgiveness. Then empower us with vision for with Thee is the goal (al-muṣīr). So take account of us and give the ease of comfort unto the Trustee (wakīl). Comfort with ease the Master (al-mawlā) and comfort also the Supporter (al-naṣīr)! There is no power and no strength except in God, the Elevated, the Mighty.'
His Holiness and First Point (= the Bāb) -- may the spirits of all save Him be His sacrifice -- said:
`Anyone who ....
TO BE COMPLETED
Note by translator
In this acrostic Prayer of the Bab the individual letters spelled out in successive lines yield consonants that spell out when combined SIX significant Arabic Names or Attributes of God. Three of them are used immediately following the basmala which opens this prayer. Others occur again in the 18 lines of the supplication. e.g. Qayyum in line 15. Repetition empowers, strengthens and underlines.
Thus, lines 1-3 when combined yield the Arabic consonants F+R+D = fard = "the Divine Singularity" (as in line 1).
Then lines 4-5 yield the consonants Ḥ+ Y when combined spelling Ḥayy = "the Living One" .
Lines 6-8 spell when these consonants are combined Q+Y+M yielding Qayyūm = "Self-Subsisting" (cf. Line 15).
Lines 9-11 when these consonants are combined as H-K-M thus yielding as Ḥukm "The Divine Decree".
Lines 12-14 when these consonants are combined yield `-D-L spelling `Adl "Justice".
Lines 15- 18 when these consonants are combined they yield Q-D-W-S = Quddūs = "the Most Holy".
The following succession of six words is thus yielded: [1] Fard + [2] Ḥayy + [3] Qayyūm + [4] Ḥukm [Ḥakim] + [5] `Adl + [6] Quddus.
These six words form a succession of highly potent and significant Names or Attributes of God having a special relationship with the Divine Essence. In Islamic theological and mystical literatures they are sometimes characterized as `Attributes of the Divine Essence'.
