# Tablet of Shikkar Shikan Shavand

*Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-20 — 1 clipping.*

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> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Bahá'u'lláh, Tablet of Shikkar Shikan Shavand, bahai-library.com.
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> 
> Tablet of Shikkar Shikan Shavand
> 
> Bahá'u'lláh
> 
> Shahrokh Monjazeb, translator
> 
> 2003
> original title
> 
> Lawh-i-Shikkar Shikan
> 
> He is the Supreme, the Most Exalted.
> 
> Warblers, mellifluous-toned, all the parrots of Ind shall be,
> 
> Because of this Pársí sugar-cone which to Bengal goes. 1
> 
> Your letter having reached this mortal spot of isolation was brought forth and
> stored in Our treasury of submission and acquiescence. What thou had written was
> noted and everything expressed therein was found to be true and correct. However,
> they that yearn for the abode of the Beloved 2,
> they that circle round the sanctuary of the Desired One, are not apprehensive
> of trials and adversities, nor do they flee from that which is ordained by God.
> They receive their portion from the ocean of resignation and drink their fill
> from the soft-flowing stream of His mercy. They would not surrender the good-pleasure
> of the Friend in exchange for the kingdom of both worlds, nor would they barter
> that which the Well-Beloved hath decreed in return for dominion over the realms
> of the infinite. They would eagerly drink the venom of woe as if it were the water
> of life and would drain deadly poison to its bitter dregs just as a sweet and
> life-giving draught. In the arid wastes of desolation they are stirred with enthusiasm
> through the remembrance of the Friend, and in the dreary wilds of adversity they
> are eager and impatient to offer themselves as a sacrifice. Unhesitatingly have
> they renounced their lives and directed their steps towards the abode of the Best
> Beloved. They have closed their eyes to the world and fixed their gaze upon the
> beauteous countenance of the Friend, cherishing no desire but the presence of
> the loved One and seeking no attainment save reunion with Him. They fly with the
> feathers of trust in God, and soar with the wings of adherence unto His Will.
> In their estimation a blood-shedding blade is more desirable than finest silk
> and a piercing dart more acceptable than mother’s milk. ‘High-spirited
> souls by the myriad are deemed necessary in this path, To lay down a hundred lives
> with every fleeting breath.’ 3
> 
> It behoveth us to kiss the hand of the would-be assassin and to set out, dancing,
> on our way to the habitation of the Friend. How indescribably pleasant is that
> hour, how immeasurably sweet that moment when the inmost spirit is intent upon
> sacrificing itself, when the tabernacle of fidelity is hastening to attain the
> heights of self-surrender! With necks laid bare, we yearn for the stroke of the
> ruthless sword wielded by the hand of the Beloved. With breasts aglow with light,
> we eagerly await the dart of His decree. Contemptuous of name, we have detached
> ourselves from all else but Him, we shall not run away, we pray for calamity,
> that thereby we may soar unto the sublime heights of the spirit, seek shelter
> beneath the shade of the tree of reunion, attain the highest station of love,
> and drink our fill from the wondrous wine of everlasting communion with Him. Surely
> we will not forfeit this imperishable dominion, nor will we forgo this incomparable
> blessing. If hidden beneath the dust, we shall rear our heads from the bosom of
> the tender mercy of the Lord of mankind. No trial can suppress these companions,
> no mortal feet can traverse this journey, nor can any veil obscure this countenance.
> 
> Yea, it is clear and evident that in view of the multitudes of internal and external
> opponents who have raised the standards of opposition, who have girded the loins
> of endeavour to eliminate these poor creatures, it standeth to reason that one
> should turn away from them and flee from this land, nay, from the face of the
> earth. However, through the loving-kindness of God and by the aid of His invisible
> confirmations, we are as radiant as the sun and as shining as the moon. We are
> established upon the throne of tranquillity and seated upon the couch of fortitude.
> Of what importance is the shipwreck to the fish of the spirit? What doth a soul
> celestial care if the physical frame is destroyed? Indeed this body is for it
> a prison; and the ship but a place of confinement to the fish. What else but a
> nightingale can understand a Nightingale’s melody and who else but the intimate
> friend can recognize the familiar voice of the Friend?
> 
> Consider what was revealed in the bygone days unto Him Who is the Seal of the
> Prophets and the Beginning of His chosen Ones that thou may become weightless
> as a spirit, and like unto a breath, emerge from the cage of the body. While encompassed
> with sever tests and surrounded from all sides by enemies the most holy Bird descended
> down and brought forth this verse: “But if their opposition be grievous to
> Thee—if Thou canst, seek out an opening into the earth or a ladder into heaven.” 4
> Oh, that a thousand eyes would shed tears of blood and a hundred thousand lives
> would groan from the heart. On another occasion He saith: “And when the unbelievers
> were devising against thee, to confine thee, or slay thee, or to expel thee, and
> were devising, and God was devising; and God is the best of devisers.” 5
> Reflect well on these two blessed and holy verses, which have descended from the
> Source of Revelation, so that thou may become apprised of the unseen mysteries.
> 
> If the discerning eye of the people was open this outward establishment of this
> Servant upon His seat would have been sufficient enough for them all, that, despite
> being surrounded by enemies and having been plagued by numerous calamities, We
> are incandescent as a candle and radiant as the Beloved of Love in the assemblage
> of lovers. We have burnt all the veils and have become ablazed like the fire of
> love. But, alas, to what use? For all the people’s eyes are shut and all
> their ears are closed. They traverse the valley of heedlessness and roam the wilderness
> of error. “Ye are quit of what I do, and I am quit of what you do.” 6
> 
> Thou should be apprised to the fact that one of the divines 7
> in this land, who is preoccupied with amassing worldly treasures and who truly
> has not tasted from the cup of justice and equity, having neither seen this Servant
> nor met Him at any gathering—to befriend Him as much as even an hour, has
> now lifted his pen of tyranny and has passed judgment on shedding the blood of
> these wronged ones. ‘Willingly will I obey the judge who hath so strangely
> decreed that my blood be spilt at Hill and at Haram!’ 8
> 
> He, moreover, has spread some baseless rumors among a certain group of people
> and in the course of these days has imparted to the noted individual 9
> some expressions of his idle fancies. That individual, in turn, has taken these
> tales of fiction back to Tihrán. ‘Whatever malice and intrigue he
> has in his heart; It is manifest as the day before the one true God.’ 10
> 
> All these propositions are clear and evident, and the motive behind them has also
> been exposed and confirmed. Should he succeed to conceal his evil intentions from
> this Servant, how could he conceal it before the presence of the one true God,
> ‘the One Whom nothing is concealed from His Knowledge’? I know not at
> the end to what faith he will prescribe or with what proof he will choose to argue
> his case? After all it has been some time since this Servant hath secluded Himself
> from the world, closing His door to friend and stranger alike, and choosing the
> way of solitude. I know not from where this jealousy hath sprung or from which
> direction did this antagonism appear? And it is not known whether in the end this
> would bring him blessing and confirmation and cause his heart to be cheered!
> 
> Although, he treads the path of a corrupt inclination and this lowly One hath
> clung to the cord of the fear of God, and God willing will be led to the light
> of salvation—I have no ill-feeling towards him and have kept no resentment
> in My heart. I have left it to God and clung to the sure handle of justice. After
> achieving his intentions perhaps he may be led to drink from the boiling waters
> of Hell and be fed from the fire of the Wrath of God. For a powerful Ruler is
> presiding and He, indeed, doth not forgive oppression.
> 
> . . . . Until the ordained time cometh no one hath power over Us, and when the
> ordained time hath arrived it will find Our whole being longing for it. It would
> not be any sooner or later. ‘Surely we belong to God, and to Him we return.’ 11
> ‘If God helps you, none can overcome you; but if He forsakes you, who
> then can help you after Him?’ 12 ‘Peace
> be upon him who follows the guidance!’ 13
> 
> Notes:
> 
> 1 These two verses are from a lyric poem
> by the great Persian poet Khájih Shamsu’d-Dín
> Muhammad-i-Shírází better known as Háfiz
> of Shíráz (1320-91 C.E.).
> 
> 2 The italicized passages are the authorized translation excerpts
> of this Tablet published by the Universal House of Justice in The Bahá’í
> World Volume XVIII (1979-83) [Haifa: Bahá’í World Centre,
> 1986], p. 11. All other non-italicized text, except the opening verse of the Háfiz,
> are translated by Shahrokh Monjazeb and must be regarded as a provisional translation
> pending the publication of an authorized version by the Bahá’í
> World Centre.
> 
> 3 This poetic verse is from the Mathnaví
> of Jalálu’d-Dín Rúmí (1207-73 C.E.).
> 
> 4 Qur’án 6:35. In the Kitáb-i-Íqán
> Bahá’u’lláh, expounding on the meaning of this verse,
> writes: “The implication of this utterance is that His case had no remedy,
> that they would not withhold their hands from Him unless He should hide Himself
> beneath the depths of the earth, or take His flight unto heaven.” (Kitáb-i-Íqán
> [U.S. edition], p.110)
> 
> 5 Qur’án 8:30.
> 
> 6 Qur’án 10:41.
> 
> 7 This is a reference to Shaykh ‘Abdu’l-Husayn-i-Tihrání
> who was the arch-nemesis of Bahá’u’lláh, outside of the
> faith, during the years of Bahá’u’lláh’s banishment
> to Baghdad. He was also know as Shaykhu’l-‘Iráqayn.
> See God Passes By, p. 141.
> 
> 8 This verse is an Arabic poetic verse by
> Ibn al-Fárid (1182-1235 C.E.) the famous Arab Sufi teacher and poet who
> lived in Egypt.
> 
> 9 This is a reference to Mírzá
> Búzúrg Khán-i-Qazvíní the notorious
> accomplice of Shaykh ‘Abdu’l-Husayn-i-Tihrání
> mentioned above. Mírzá Búzúrg Khán was
> the Persian Consul-General in Baghdad from July 1860 to February 1863.
> 
> 10 This poetic verse is likely from the Mathnaví
> of Jalálu’d-Dín Rúmí (1207-73 C.E.).
> 
> 11 Qur’án 2:156.
> 
> 12 Qur’án 3:160.
> 
> 13 Qur’án 20:47.
> 
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> Views15880 views since posted 2003-09-07; last edit 2024-12-04 06:42 UTC;
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> previous at archive.org.../bahaullah_shikkar_shikan_monjazeb;
> URLs changed in 2010, see archive.org.../bahai-library.org
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> — *Tablet of Shikkar Shikan Shavand (Used by permission of the curator)*