radicalspirit

Greetings!

I recently came across the Tablet of the Holy Mariner (<-- link). A very interesting prophecy. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá says:

“Study the Tablet of the Holy Mariner that ye may know the truth, and consider that the Blessed Beauty hath fully foretold future events. Let them who perceive, take warning!”

Please take heed of the entire tablet, but pay close attention to specific lines in reference to the one who will descend from the heavens:

Thereupon the countenance of the favored damsel beamed above the celestial chambers even as the light that shineth from the face of the Youth above His mortal temple;
Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious!

She then descended with such an adorning as to illumine the heavens and all that is therein.
Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious!

She bestirred herself and perfumed all things in the lands of holiness and grandeur.
Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious!

When she reached that place she rose to her full height in the midmost heart of creation,
Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious!

And sought to inhale their fragrance at a time that knoweth neither beginning nor end.
Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious!

She found not in them that which she did desire, and this, verily, is but one of His wondrous tales.
Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious!


I'm just curious as to hear if any one else perceives it the way I do. The next prophet may be a woman. This makes sense to me, considering how the story of humanity is playing out with women gaining their rightful place in this physical kingdom.... Your thoughts?

tonyfish58

Could not this reference the Maid from Heaven that descended on Baha'ullah when He received His revelation?

Cheers Tony

arthra

I think it's possible the next Manifestation could be female but no one knows for sure..

Read the postscript of John Farraby's book "All Things Made New"... It's entitled "The Next Manifestation of God" on p. 306.

radicalspirit

In this case, I believe the Maid of Heaven sent down one of her handmaidens, so not the Maid herself:

Thereupon she summoned unto herself one maiden from her handmaidens,
Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious!

And commanded her: “Descend into space from the mansions of eternity,
Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious!

“And turn thou unto that which they have concealed in the inmost of their hearts.
Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious!

Also, I considered ‘Abdu’l-Bahá's statement:

“Study the Tablet of the Holy Mariner that ye may know the truth, and consider that the Blessed Beauty hath fully foretold future events. Let them who perceive, take warning!”

But maybe I don't know enough about the Maid of Heaven. Can you tell me more about what you think/know about her?

tonyfish58

No need - I see where you are coming from :-)

I have not read this for a while, I took it at meaning the unfolding of Baha'ullah's prophesy to the Kings and rulers

Boy there is so much reading to do, the knowledge disclosed in the Faiths Writings is astounding

How could you not see the wisdom in the words?

Cheers Tony

Eftekhar Be Khoda

I tend to suspect a male. When he talks about a false prophet of some sort Baha'u'llah states that he hopes God will bring "him" to repentance. If the next Rasullah is female, who would be fooled by a male Rasullah? It doesn't fit for me.

though maybe in Arabic when he talks about manifestations he uses a gender neutral term. We'll know in 1000 years I guess.

bravado

I can't think of any reason why the next manifestation would not be a woman or a girl. I am pretty sure that mankind will be tested by his/her advent and that test could just as easily be in the term "him". In a thousand years (at least) who knows what the spiritual level of understanding of humanity will be and how the issue of gender equality will play out by then? Speculation is fun though, isn't it?

Essence of GOD

that would make things interesting.
if the whole planet becomes bahai, and the UHJ at the top of the new world order.
All of a sudden a female prophet, keep in mind the rule of no females in UHJ.

hopefully she wont have to suffer like every other prophet.

Sboyce

by then we should have reached our spiritual maturity so perhaps there will be no suffering, as we have built a physical Abha kingdom to reflect the Spiritual Highest Heaven

Pollwr

I think this is interesting:

"The Nature and Function of the Manifestation

The Manifestations of God embody the names, the attributes and the perfections of God. While 'Abdu'l-Bahá has clearly affirmed that women and men both reveal the attributes of God and that "from the spiritual viewpoint there is no difference between them", the Manifestations have the particular function of revealing the Will of God to humanity. Bahá'u'lláh explains in the Gleanings that the Manifestation of God "representeth the Godhead in both the Kingdom of His Cause and the world of creation".

Concerning the sex of the Manifestations of God and the implications for the equality of women and men, the Universal House of Justice, in a letter dated 27 October 1986 written on its behalf to an individual believer, provides the following elucidation:

Even though there have been outstanding women such as Sarah, Asíyih, the Virgin Mary, Fatimih, Tahirih and the Greatest Holy Leaf in every Dispensation, it is an incontrovertible fact that all Manifestations of God known to us have been men. Moreover, it is a clear provision in Bahá'í administration that the Guardians were to be men and that membership on the Universal House of Justice is confined to men. Whether these facts point to a differentiation in function that is unalterable, or whether it was merely a characteristic of a period which will change when mankind attains its maturity is a matter that will, no doubt, become clear in the future. The important point for Bahá'ís to remember is that, in face of the categorical pronouncements in Bahá'í Scripture establishing the equality of men and women, even these facts are no evidence at all of the superiority of the male over the female sex. 'Abdu'l-Bahá has explained that equality does not mean identity of function. He has also stated that the few areas in which men and women are not equal are "negligible".

We must also remember that sex is a characteristic of this world, not of the spiritual world.

Hence, while no known Manifestations of God have, to date, been female, it is also true that throughout religious history outstanding women, who do not have the station of Manifestation or goddess, have performed many of the creative, nurturant and protective functions that have been ascribed to female deities and goddesses in ancient times. In other words, religious history provides examples of female role models who can inspire, motivate and empower the (women) believers. Further, it is interesting to observe that Bahá'u'lláh refers to His Revelation as the "Mother Book", which symbolizes, among other things, the creative and regenerative influence of His teachings, and in Some Answered Questions (Wilmette: Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1984), 'Abdu'l-Bahá likens the Law of God to a woman. See Chapter 13."

(The Universal House of Justice, 1992 Feb 23, Ancient Goddess Religions)

Iconodule

Since women are deficient in the mind (Muhammad) and are not fit to sit on the council of universal justice (Abdul'Baha?) I doubt it.

arthra

It's been over a year since I last posted on this thread and it seems to have continued to be a theme people are interested in.. Since John Farraby's book may not be readily available to some of us .. Allow me to cite a few passages as he writes a postscript in his book "All THings Made New" about the next manifestation on pp. 306 - 308.

He quotes a citation by Shoghi Effendi quoting Baha'u'llah in World Order of Baha'u'llah p. 117

"I am not apprehensive for My own self. My fears are for Him Who will be sent down unto you after Me - Him Who will be invested with great sovereignty and mighty dominion."

He then quotes passages from the Tablet of the Holy Mariner referring to the Maid of Heaven referred to above...in this thread.

He (John Farraby) closes with this statement:

"We cannot understand and it would not be profitable for us to attempt to understand, all that is implied by this statement. When the next Manifesattion of God comes, He will no doubt Himself expalin the significance of such passages; they will provide the pure of heart with evidence that the Maid of Heaven has come; but speculation now about their signicance would only hasten the errors of interpretation the blind in heart will foster, and thus add force to the idle fancies they hurl down on the Messenger of God."

"All Things Made New" is currently published by the Baha'i Publishing Trust of India

All Things Made New by John Ferraby

and can also be obtained from the Baha'i Distribution Service in the U.S.

ALL THINGS MADE NEW SC

John Farrably was appointed a Hand of the Cause of God in 1957 and served in the Holy Land... for his bio see:

John Ferraby - Bahaikipedia, an encyclopedia about the Bahá

cire perdue

Perhaps we will have matured enough that it will not matter if it is male or female. I think it in error to accept anything on the basis that the next Manifestation could be female.

Michael Sours' book on The Tablet of the Holy Mariner is interesting. I understood the lack of understanding that the Maid found was about the trials and tribulations of Baha'u'llah and the failure of the people to recognize Him. It is a truly sad state that so few have recognized Baha'u'llah.

"Despite unprecedented hardships and after enduring years of imprisonment, captivity and woeful trials, We now perceive that veils thicker than the ones We have already torn asunder have intervened, obstructing the vision and causing the light of understanding to be obscured. "

(Baha'u'llah, Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 41)

The above quote encapsulates what I perceive from this tablet. That fact should cause great grief to the Concourse.

LordOfGoblins

CP have you seen this?
Bad Publishing

Do you know if it's any good?

cire perdue

Not a clue. I am inclined to believe at this stage of the game that intellectual pursuit should be secondary to personal development. I failed to do enough of that in my life, and I find that the understanding and knowledge that I do have is less important than being more loving. I would trade what I know for more heart.