Yesterday, I received a wonderful e-mail from a friend who is studying the Kitab-i-Iqan. They asked what the following sentence, found in paragraph 65, meant to me: "Verily, I say, so fierce is the blaze of the Bush of love, burning in the Sinai of the heart, that the streaming waters of holy utterance can never quench its flame."
What a great question.
I must have read this sentence at least a dozen times, and it never occurred to me just how... mystic? mystifying? puzzling?... it can be. I feel as if I had just skimmed past it, taking it in stride as a simple poetic metaphor, but never actually questioning what it could be a metaphor for.
In an attempt to come to some understanding of it, I found that I needed to look at this quote in the context of the book itself. It occurs at the end of the section in which Baha’u’llah examines the phrase, “the powers of the earth shall be shaken”. After all, Part 1 is mostly an exploration and explanation of the quote from Jesus found in paragraph 24. As you know, He goes through this quote phrase by phrase, explaining it to the uncle of the Bab to help him get a better foundation of why he is a Muslim, which he can then apply to his relationship to the faith of the Bab.
Here, Baha’u’llah is at the end of this particular phrase’s explanation, and has just alluded to the Bab for the very first time, when He said, “How severe the persecutions inflicted upon Him...” at the end of paragraph 63.
Paragraph 64 seems to be a celebration of this mere allusion to the Bab. In it He refers to “the sweet savours of God” wafting “from the day-spring of Revelation”, and talks about all the wonderous and marvelous things It does. For a full page He goes on about the glorious nature of this bounty.
Then, in paragraph 65, He offers another interlude. “The universe if pregnant”, He says. When will it give birth? When will we be able to attain the presence of the One Whom God shall make Manifest, as promised by Bab? This, to me, is the implied question in paragraph 65. I mean, I may be wrong, for this commentary is nothing official, but just my own personal opinion, but still. That seems to be the implie question.
As of the writing of this Book, Baha’u’llah has not yet revealed Himself, so He can legitimately ask “In the soil of whose heart” will all these things be born? “From the garden on whose soul” will we see all these great bounties? These are question that must have been asked by all the Babis alive at that time. “Who is He Who is promised?”
Then Baha’u’lllah seems to answer that very question. “Verily, I say, so fierce is the blaze of the Bush of love, burning in the Sinai of the heart, that the streaming waters of utterance can never quench its flame.” He continues on in a similar vein with the next few sentences, with His references to "this Leviathan" an "this Phoenix", with emphasis on the "this"es, but let’s unpack this one sentence, as my friend requested.
To begin, He is alluding, very obviously, to the Burning Bush in which God spoke to Moses, and He is further elevating the station of the heart, His heart, to that of the Sacred Mount. And remember, He has just referred to this story a few paragraphs earlier, in paragraph 57, in which He described this Burning Bush as “the King of glory from the ‘Tree that belongeth neither to the East nor to the West’.” Within that flame, “He heard the soul-stirring Voice of the Spirit speaking from out the kindled Fire, bidding Him to shed... the light of divine guidance.” In the story, He, Moese, is being asked to give to the peoples the Word of God.
Now, earlier in the Book, in paragraph 27, Baha'u'llah refers to “the overpowering majesty of the Word of God” and how it can “prevent them from attaining unto the ocean of His names and attributes”, and even “deprive them of recognizing the Lamp of God”. Of course, in that reference, He is talking about how the majesty of the Word of God as revealed by Moses or Jesus or Muhammad is so powerful that its light can blind people to accepting the light from the next Revelation.
In fact, as my wife pointed out, these "life-giving waters", the holy Word of previous Revelations, can be seen as the ocean in which He was swimming in His father's dream. Baha'u'llah, in that dream, moved as He willed, and was unharmed by any turmoil around Him.
It seems to me that He is saying, in paragraph 65, that these “streaming waters” of the Words of God cannot stop Him from giving His message. So strong is the light that He is shedding that nothing can prevent it from shining forth to all peoples. And even the next few passages give further emphasis to this point, but no need to go on here.
So, given the context, in which this sentence is found, it seems as if He is talking about His own heart, and the light blazing within it, the light of the Love of God. And nothing, no tests, no trials, not even the overpowering Word of God, can ever cause that light to fade.
And to continue this, He goes on and seems to talk about how we can also emulate this strong, unconquerable love. "Therefore, O brother! kindle with the oil of wisdom the lamp of the spirit within the innermost chamber of thy heart, and guard it with the globe of understanding, that the breath of the infidel may extinguish not its flame nor dim its brightness." For here, He is now telling the reader to kindle this same flame within their own heart. How? With wisdom. And we are to guard this precious flame with understanding. Isn't this why He is explaining so much of the prophecy of Jesus here? So that we can better understand the profound wisdom of the past? After all, this is why He has "illuminated the heavens of utterance with the splendours of the Sun of divine wisdom and understanding". It is so that our "heart may find peace", and that we may "be of those who, on the wings of certitude, have soared unto the heaven of the love of their Lord, the All-Merciful."
Not only is He describing His own love, but also helping us understand what our love should be like.
