Kitáb-i-Aqdas

Notes
Index by Opening Phrase
1 the sweet-smelling savour of My garment • This is an allusion to the ...
2 We have unsealed the choice Wine with the fingers of might and power.
3 We have enjoined obligatory prayer upon you • In Arabic, there are several words ...
4 nine rak'ahs • A rak'ah is the recitation of specifically revealed verses accompanied by ...
5 at noon and in the morning and the evening • Regarding the definition of the words ...
6 We have relieved you of a greater number • The requirements for obligatory prayer ...
7 When ye desire to perform this prayer, turn ye towards the Court of ...
8 and when the Sun of Truth and Utterance shall set, turn your faces ...
9 We have set forth the details of obligatory prayer in another Tablet. • The ...
10 the Prayer for the Dead • The Prayer for the Dead (see Some Texts ...
11 six specific passages have been sent down by God, the Revealer of Verses
12 Hair doth not invalidate your prayer, nor aught from which the spirit hath ...
13 We have commanded you to pray and fast from the beginning of maturity
14 He hath exempted from this those who are weak from illness or age
15 God hath granted you leave to prostrate yourselves on any surface that is ...
16 Let him that findeth no water for ablution repeat five times the words ...
17 In regions where the days and nights grow long, let times of prayer ...
18 We have absolved you from the requirement of performing the Prayer of the ...
19 Save in the Prayer for the Dead, the practice of congregational prayer hath ...
20 God hath exempted women who are in their courses from obligatory prayer and ...
21 When travelling, if ye should stop and rest in some safe spot, perform ...
22 Upon completing your prostrations, seat yourselves cross-legged • The Arabic expression "haykalu't-tawhíd", translated ...
23 Say: God hath made My hidden love the key to the Treasure • There ...
24 O Pen of the Most High! • "Pen of the Most High", "the Supreme ...
25 We have enjoined upon you fasting during a brief period • Fasting and obligatory ...
26 and at its close have designated for you Naw-Rúz as a feast • The ...
27 Let the days in excess of the months be placed before the month ...
28 We have ordained that these ... shall be the manifestations of the letter Há
29 these days of giving that precede the season of restraint • Bahá'u'lláh enjoined upon ..
30 The traveller ... not bound by the Fast • The minimum duration of a journey ...
31 The traveller, the ailing, those who are with child or giving suck, are ...
32 Abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sundown • This relates to the ...
33 It hath been ordained that every believer in God ... shall, each day ... repeat ...
34 Perform ye ... ablutions for the Obligatory Prayer • Ablutions are specifically associated with certain ...
35 Ye have been forbidden to commit murder • The prohibition against taking another's life ...
36 or adultery • The Arabic word "ziná", here translated as "adultery", signifies both fornication ...
37 backbiting or calumny • Backbiting, slander and dwelling on the faults of others have ...
38 We have divided inheritance into seven categories • The Bahá'í laws of inheritance apply ..
39 to the brothers, five parts ... to the sisters, four parts • Questions and Answers ...
40 the teachers • In a Tablet, 'Abdu'l-Bahá compares teachers who are involved with the ...
41 When We heard the clamour of the children as yet unborn, We doubled ...
42 the House of Justice • In referring to the House of Justice in the ...
43 Should the deceased leave offspring, but none of the other categories of heirs
44 We have assigned the residence and personal clothing of the deceased to the ...
45 Should the son of the deceased have passed away in the days of ...
46 If the deceased should leave children who are under age, their share of ...
47 Division of the estate should take place only after the Huqúqu'lláh hath been ...
48 This is that hidden knowledge which shall never change, since its beginning is ...
49 The Lord hath ordained that in every city a House of Justice be ...
50 the number of Bahá • The abjad numerical equivalent of "Bahá" is nine. The ...
51 It behoveth them to be the trusted ones of the Merciful among men
52 take counsel together • Bahá'u'lláh has established consultation as one of the fundamental principles ...
53 Build ye houses of worship throughout the lands • The Bahá'í House of Worship ...
54 The Lord hath ordained that those of you who are able shall make ...
55 and from this He hath exempted women as a mercy on His part
56 to engage in some occupation • It is obligatory for men and women to ...
57 The kissing of hands hath been forbidden in the Book. • In a number ...
58 To none is it permitted to seek absolution from another soul • Bahá'u'lláh prohibits ...
59 Amongst the people is he who seateth himself amid the sandals by the ...
60 And among the people is he who layeth claim to inner knowledge • This ...
61 How many a man hath secluded himself in the climes of India, denied ...
62 Whoso layeth claim to a Revelation direct from God, ere the expiration of ...
63 This is that of which We gave you forewarning when We were dwelling ...
64 Amongst the people is he whose learning hath made him proud ... who, when ...
65 Nimrod • The Nimrod referred to in this verse is, in both Jewish and ...
66 Aghsán • "Aghsán" (plural of Ghusn) is the Arabic word for "Branches". This term ...
67 revert to the people of Bahá • Bahá'u'lláh provides for the possibility that the ...
68 Shave not your heads • In some religious traditions it is considered desirable to ...
69 it is not seemly to let the hair pass beyond the limit of ...
70 Exile and imprisonment are decreed for the thief • Bahá'u'lláh states that the determination ...
71 on the third offence, place ye a mark upon his brow so that, ...
72 Whoso wisheth to make use of vessels of silver and gold is at ...
73 Take heed lest, when partaking of food, ye plunge your hands into the ...
74 Adopt ye such usages as are most in keeping with refinement. • This is ...
75 He Who is the Dawning-place of God's Cause hath no partner in ...
76 Unto every father hath been enjoined the instruction of his son and daughter ...
77 God hath imposed a fine on every adulterer and adulteress, to be paid ...
78 nine mithqáls of gold, to be doubled if they should repeat the offence
79 We have made it lawful for you to listen to music and singing.
80 O ye Men of Justice! • It has been elucidated in the writings of ...
81 The penalties for wounding or striking a person depend upon the severity of ...
82 Verily, it is enjoined upon you to offer a feast, once in every ...
83 If ye should hunt with beasts or birds of prey, invoke ye the ...
84 hunt not to excess • While hunting is not forbidden by Bahá'u'lláh, He warns ...
85 He hath granted them no right to the property of others. • The injunction ...
86 Should anyone intentionally destroy a house by fire, him also shall ye burn; ...
87 Should ye condemn the arsonist and the murderer to life imprisonment, it would ...
88 God hath prescribed matrimony unto you. • Bahá'u'lláh, in one of His Tablets, states ...
89 Beware that ye take not unto yourselves more wives than two. Whoso contenteth ...
90 he who would take into his service a maid may do so with ...
91 This is My bidding unto you; hold fast to it as an assistance ...
92 We have conditioned it ... upon the permission of their parents • In a letter ...
93 No marriage may be contracted without payment of a dowry • The Synopsis and ...
94 for city-dwellers at nineteen mithqáls of pure gold, and for village-dwellers ...
95 Whoso wisheth to increase this sum, it is forbidden him to exceed the ...
96 should any one of His servants intend to travel, he must fix for ...
97 it behoveth her to wait for a period of nine months, after which ...
98 she should choose the course that is praiseworthy • Bahá'u'lláh defines "the course that ...
99 two just witnesses • Bahá'u'lláh sets out "the criterion of justness" in relation to ...
100 Should resentment or antipathy arise between husband and wife, he is not to ...
101 The Lord hath prohibited ... the practice to which ye formerly had recourse when ...
102 He who hath divorced his wife may choose, upon the passing of each ...
103 semen is not unclean • In a number of religious traditions and in Shí'ih ...
104 Cleave ye unto the cord of refinement • 'Abdu'l-Bahá refers to the effect of ...
105 Wash ye every soiled thing with water that hath undergone no alteration in ...
106 God hath ... abolished the concept of "uncleanness," whereby divers things and peoples have ...
107 first day of Ridván • This is a reference to the arrival of Bahá'u'lláh ...
108 the Bayán • The Bayán, the Mother Book of the Bábi Dispensation, is the ...
109 the destruction of books • In the Tablet of Ishráqát Bahá'u'lláh, referring to the ...
110 We have permitted you to read such sciences as are profitable unto you, ...
111 He Who held converse with God • This is a traditional Jewish and Islamic ...
112 Sinai • The mountain where the Law was revealed by God to Moses.
113 the Spirit of God • This is one of the titles used in the ...
114 Carmel ... Zion • Carmel, the "Vineyard of God", is the mountain in the Holy ...
115 the Crimson Ark • The "Crimson Ark" refers to the Cause of Bahá'u'lláh. His ...
116 O Emperor of Austria! He Who is the Dayspring of God's Light dwelt ...
117 O King of Berlin! • Kaiser William I (Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig, 1797-1888), the seventh ...
118 the one whose power transcended thy power, and whose station excelled thy station
119 O people of Constantinople! • The word here translated as "Constantinople" is, in the ...
120 O Spot that art situate on the shores of the two seas! • This ...
121 O banks of the Rhine! • In one of His Tablets written before the ...
122 O Land of Tá • "Tá" is the initial letter of Tihrán, the capital ...
123 within thee was born the Manifestation of His Glory • This is a reference ...
124 O Land of Khá! • A reference to the Iranian province of Khurásán and ...
125 Should anyone acquire one hundred mithqáls of gold, nineteen mithqáls thereof are God's ...
126 Various petitions have come before Our throne from the believers, concerning laws from ...
127 crimson Spot • This is a reference to the prison-city of Akká. In ...
128 the Sadratu'l-Muntahá • Literally "the furthermost Lote-Tree", translated by Shoghi Effendi as "the Tree ...
129 the Mother Book • The term "Mother Book" is generally used to designate the ...
130 Whoso interpreteth what hath been sent down from the heaven of Revelation, and ...
131 approach not the public pools of Persian baths • Bahá'u'lláh prohibits the use of ...
132 Avoid ye likewise the malodorous pools in the courtyards of Persian homes • Most ...
133 It is forbidden you to wed your fathers' wives. • Marriage with one's stepmother ...
134 the subject of boys • The word translated here as "boys" has, in this ...
135 To none is it permitted to mutter sacred verses before the public gaze ...
136 Unto everyone hath been enjoined the writing of a will. • According to the ...
137 the Most Great Name • As explained in note 33, the Greatest Name of ...
138 All Feasts have attained their consummation in the two Most Great Festivals, and ...
139 the first day of the month of Bahá • In the Bahá'í calendar the ...
140 The Most Great Festival is, indeed, the King of Festivals • A reference to ...
141 God had formerly laid upon each one of the believers the duty of ...
142 the hour of dawn • With reference to attending dawn prayers in the Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, ...
143 These Tablets are embellished with the seal of Him Who causeth the dawn ...
144 It is inadmissible that man, who hath been endowed with reason, should consume ...
145 turn your faces toward Him Whom God hath purposed, Who hath branched from ...
146 In the Bayán it had been forbidden you to ask Us questions. • The ...
147 The number of months in a year, appointed in the Book of God, ...
148 the first hath been adorned with this Name which overshadoweth the whole of ...
149 The Lord hath decreed that the dead should be interred in coffins • In ...
150 the Point of the Bayán • The "Point of the Bayán" is one of ...
151 the deceased should be enfolded in five sheets of silk or cotton • In ...
152 It is forbidden you to transport the body of the deceased a greater ...
153 God hath removed the restrictions on travel that had been imposed in the ...
154 Raise up and exalt the two Houses in the Twin Hallowed Spots, and ...
155 Take heed lest ye be prevented by aught that hath been recorded in ...
156 tribute to this Revelation, from the Pen of Him Who was My Herald
157 "The Qiblih is indeed He Whom God will make manifest; whenever He moveth, ...
158 It is unlawful to enter into marriage save with a believer in the ...
159 The Point of the Bayán • One of the titles of the Báb.
160 Verily, there is none other God besides Me • The Bahá'í Writings contain many ...
161 payment of Zakát • Zakát is referred to in the Qur'án as a regular ...
162 It is unlawful to beg, and it is forbidden to give to him ...
163 A fine ... had formerly been prescribed ... for anyone who was the cause of ...
164 the sacred Lote-Tree • The "sacred Lote-Tree" is a reference to the ...
165 Recite ye the verses of God every morn and eventide. • Bahá'u'lláh states that ...
166 Ye have been enjoined to renew the furnishings of your homes after the ...
167 Wash your feet • The believers are exhorted in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas to bathe regularly, ...
168 Ye have been prohibited from making use of pulpits. Whoso wisheth to recite ...
169 Gambling • The activities that are included in this prohibition have not been outlined ...
170 the use of opium ... any substance that induceth sluggishness and torpor • This prohibition ...
171 the "mystery of the Great Reversal in the Sign of the Sovereign"Shaykh ...
172 the "Six" raised up by virtue of this "Upright Alif" • In his writings, ...
173 It hath been forbidden you to carry arms unless essential • Bahá'u'lláh confirms an ...
174 and permitted you to attire yourselves in silk • According to Islamic practice, the ...
175 The Lord hath relieved you ... of the restrictions that formerly applied to clothing ...
176 O Land of Káf and Rá! • Káf and Rá are the first two ...
177 We perceive that which secretly and stealthily diffuseth from thee. • This passage is ...
178 Call ye to mind the shaykh whose name was Muhammad-HasanShaykh Muhammad-Hasan, one ...
179 a sifter of wheat and barley • This is an allusion to Mullá Muhammad ...
180 Take heed lest the word "Prophet" withhold you from this Most Great Announcement
181 any reference to "Vicegerency" debar you from the sovereignty of Him Who is ...
182 Call ye to mind Karím • Hají Mírzá Muhammad Karím Khan-i-Kirmání (1810- circa 1873) ...
183 O ye the learned ones in Bahá • Bahá'u'lláh eulogizes the learned among His ...
184 refer ye whatsoever ye understand not in the Book to Him Who hath ...
185 the School of Transcendent Oneness • In this verse and the ones which immediately ...
186 We accepted the verses of God ... which He presented unto Us • In His ...
187 O people of the Bayán! • Reference to the followers of the Báb.
188 the letters B and E were joined and knit together • Shoghi Effendi, in ...
189 this new World Order • In the Persian Bayán, the Báb stated: "Well is ..
190 O source of perversion! • This is a reference to Mírzá Yahyá, known as ...
191 remember how We nurtured thee by day and by night for service to ...
192 God hath laid hold on him who led thee astray. • A reference to ...
193 Select ye a single language ... adopt ye ... a common script. • Bahá'u'lláh enjoins the ...
194 We have appointed two signs for the coming of age of the human ...

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