Lawh-i-Madinatut-Tawhid (Tablet of the City of Unity)

1 His Holiness says: This is the city of unity, enter it, O assembly of the monotheists, so that you may be with the good news of the spirit for those who have insight.

He is the Mighty, the One, the Most High, the Supreme, the Unique.

The Oneness of Allah

2 These are the verses of the Book. Its verses have been detailed in a manner that is free of crookedness. They are the verses of Allah, providing guidance and light, and a reminder for those in the heavens and on the two earths. Within it, there is what brings people close to the realm of the sanctified, and indeed, it is a book in which every wise matter is remembered. It descended truthfully from the Wise and the Knowing. Within it, there is what makes people independent of everything else, and from it emanates the fragrances of the holy onto the worlds. It asserts that there is no deity but He, He does what He wills by His command, and rules as He pleases. There is no god but Him; creation and command belong to Him. He gives life and death, then causes death and gives life again. Indeed, He is the Living, who governs as He pleases in the power of perpetuity. He is not questioned about what He wills, and in His grasp is the dominion of creation. There is no god but He, the Mighty, the Beautiful. Indeed, He is the Truth. There is no god but He. He has always been sanctified, exalted beyond description of anything other than Him, and no one precedes Him in knowledge. He encompasses all things, and none of His creation has ever fully comprehended His existence, and certainty will never reach Him, nor will self-knowledge. Indeed, He is the Independent, the Wise. He was singular in His essence, singular in His attributes, and singular in His actions. He has always been unified on the throne of majesty and will continue to be unique on the seat of honor. Indeed, He is the Eternal, from whom nothing departs or with whom nothing associates. He is the High, the Capable, the Great. No one has singled Him out other than Himself, and no one knows Him other than His own existence. Everything He created and manifested in invention, He created with a word of His command. There is no god but He, the Mighty, the Generous. Indeed, what the knowers know at their highest stations, and what those who have attained reach at their utmost ranks, is the recognition of a verse that reveals itself to itself, and this is the ultimate knowledge if you are seeking the stairways of knowledge. When the doors of attainment were sealed off from His eternal essence and the wings of knowledge were cut off from flying to the dominion of His command, He sent messengers from Himself and revealed books to them from His presence. He made their knowledge his own knowledge. This is what He bestowed on the possible things generously from Himself and graciously from His presence to everyone in the kingdom. Whoever acknowledges them as if they acknowledge Allah, and unify His essence, and whoever draws close to them as if they draw close to the plain of holy sanctity, and whoever obeys them obeys Allah, and whoever turns away from them turns away from the face of Allah, the Mighty, the Capable, the Living, the High. Allah has measured His knowledge in the knowledge of their selves, and this is what has been determined in the tablets of command from the Capable and the Mighty. This is the attainment of the knowers at the end of their ascents if you are of the knowers. And what Allah has determined beyond this, no one has a share, and no self has a way to it. This is what the Truth has written upon itself if you are of the knowers. Can the weak ascend to the ancient powerful? Say, Glory be to Allah, all are needy of Him, and all are incapable in their knowledge of Him. And is it appropriate for the mortal to fly in the power of the Eternal? Say, Glory be to Allah, all are powerless with Him, and all are bewildered in the manifestations of His command.

Command to Salman (Shaykh Khanjar): Part 1

3 Indeed, you are, O Salman, bear witness in your soul, spirit, tongue, and all your limbs, that there is no deity but He, and all are His servants and all worship Him. Then, O Salman, submit in your soul to the command of Allah, and to what you have been commanded in the book, and do not be among the oblivious. Then recognize the value of those days, and do not forget the grace within yourself, and be among the thankful. Then detach from your self and your desires, so Allah may inspire you with His bounty, which sets you apart from the worlds. And beware that you do not deprive yourself of the breezes of this spirit, for indeed, this is a clear loss. Then, complete your proximity to Allah, the Sovereign, the Living, the Capable, the Ancient. Say, this is a chapter from the chapters of Allah that has appeared by His grace, and nothing will change it from what is in the heavens and the two earths. Say, by Allah, this is the spring that decorated Paradise with its embroidery, and autumn will not follow it in the eternity of eternities. Indeed, this is a chapter that no chapter has preceded on earth, for it has sought shade in the shadow of a Great Ali.

To the Residents of Paradise

4 O residents of Paradise, take your share of this breeze by which the structures of the worlds have been renewed, and within it the spirit of life has been breathed onto ancient bones. O people of the depth of unity, sever your understanding and everything by which you have unified your Creator, and unify Allah in these days with what has been detailed for you truthfully, and do not be among the oblivious. Then, take your portion in this chapter in which everything is colored with the dye of Allah, the Mighty, the Praiseworthy. O residents of eternity, cut off everything you have taken for yourselves, then turn towards the pleasure of Him who opened in the name of Allah the High, in the secret of a unique sanctity. O people of the heavens, glorify Allah by the name from which the letter Kaf is attached to its pillar, the Ra and the Meem, then listen to the melodies of the spirit from this bird that sings with all melodies at all times.

5 Say, O people of the Earth, by Allah, this is the dove that reminds you of the best remembrance so you can be among those who remember. It doesn’t want anything from you and will not ask you for reward. Its reward is only that you bear witness to the love of Allah, the Mighty, the Wise. Say, by Allah, whoever does not seek for himself what I mentioned then, truly, he is at a clear loss. Say, those who flee from death in the path of their Creator, they are in doubt of meeting Allah. They are the heedless ones. They did not find the fragrances of the sanctuary from this luminous shirt, and they slept on the bed of heedlessness and turned away from what is better for them from the dominion of the King of the worlds. Say, Allah will fold the earth and whoever is on it and will gather you in truth in a secure sanctuary when you witness the secrets of the matter, and you observe what has been destined by Allah, the High, the Wise, and you say in yourselves, “Woe to us for what we were heedless of Allah’s remembrance, and we were in clear misguidance.” By Allah, if the cover is removed from the faces of the servants and they see what their hands earned in days, the soul would cut off from their bodies. This is a certain truth.

Remind Yourself and the Souls of the Servants

6 And indeed, you are Salman, so take counsel with what we have advised you by grace and commanded you with justice, and do not be among those who are asleep. Then, remind yourself and the souls of the servants of what we have sent down to you in truth so that people may turn in their hearts to a seat of honor and nobility.

About the Verse of Monotheism and the Word of Abstraction

7 As for what you asked about the verse of monotheism and the word of abstraction, know that this is beyond my status and I am nothing but a humble servant. He who holds the kingdom of knowledge in his hand and in his grasp the force of wisdom, He knows what He wills in what He wills, there is no god but He, the Mighty, the Beautiful. And to Him belongs the command of everyone in the heavens and the earth, He does what He wills, and He is the mighty, powerful sovereign. No knowledge of His will escape Him, and nothing will overcome Him. He is not questioned about what He does and indeed He is the victorious, the conqueror, the mighty, the elevated. But indeed, with my weakness, my distress, my poverty, and my lack of what I love to express in myself, I express what God has given me by His grace, lest I be among those whom God described in His mighty, preserving book saying the truth: “Those who are stingy and bid people to be stingy and hide what Allah has given them of His bounty” Therefore, I cast upon you what God inscribes on my pen so that you may take pride in what we have singled you out for among people, and perhaps you will be among those who are detached, and thank God for what He has given you by His grace and revealed to you the signs that baffle the knowledgeable.

8 You should know, then, that monotheism has ranks, worlds, and stations which no one knows or can enumerate except Allah the Almighty, the Powerful, the Beautiful. Indeed, if I tried to detail for you this station and what Allah has taught me through His Grace, it would be too much for any inscriptions or oceans to bear, even if they were to be ink for these sacred, lofty, mighty, and noble words. This is because there is no limit to Allah’s bounty, and nothing can obstruct His command. He is the One who derived from the primordial point of knowledge all that is and all that will be, if you have understanding. He will detail, in the pattern of this particular point, sciences that no ear has ever heard, and no one will know among all people. Say: If He wanted to fold all these sciences and unfold them in the realm of kings, from the beginning which has no beginning, He could do it and it would be closer than the twinkling of an eye. There is no god but Him, the Sovereign, the Mighty, the Powerful. He is the One in whose grasp is the dominion of the heavens and the earth; He erases and establishes what He wills by His command and power. With Him is a holy, preserving tablet. Say: He is the One who has always been sanctified from all that you know and comes with knowledge in every matter with unique wisdom. Say: The essence of monotheism and determination is with Him in the same limit, but most people lie in the bed of ignorance. Say: If He were to erase the verses of monotheism and decree determination, this would be a manifest truth, and no one has the right to say why or how, because the command appears from Him, and the judgment is decreed from Him. He is the Powerful, the Capable.

9 So bear witness, O Salman, that in the treasuries of the knowledge of Allah there are sciences, of which not a single piece of knowledge about any person, nor the unity by which they unify Allah with His servants, nor the highest jewels of singling out is mentioned. But when His mercy preceded all His servants, He accepted from them what He commanded in the time of each messenger and the covenant of each prophet as a favor from Him to all creation. So bear witness that there is no god but Him, whom no one will know, and no soul will reach the beginning of His knowledge, nor will it be attained by all those in the kingdom. If you are in the secrets of the matter, then be observant. Would that there were sanctified baths and pure hearts for them to fly with this servant in the atmosphere of this knowledge, by which the wings of those who approach have burned. Allah will soon bring forth on earth servants who will not be deterred by the prohibitions of the possessive, and they will fly with the wing of sanctity, walk in the realms of immortality, enter into the pavilion of eternal glory, and not be distracted by affairs in the kingdom or the allurements of the earth from the remembrance of Allah, the Most High, the All-Powerful, the Almighty. When they hear the melodies of the spirit, their eyes will overflow with tears, and they will rejoice with the spirit of Allah and turn towards the beauty of the incomparably holy sanctuary. They will not exchange the signs of Allah for anything, even if they spend all that is in the heavens and the earth. Whenever they hear the melodies of Allah, they incline towards the homeland of nearness and sacrifice themselves at every moment. At that time, it is appropriate to begin mentioning what I have intended to before and conclude this praise, which will not be reached by the hearts of the advanced.

10 Know, O Salman, that we bear witness to the oneness of God in His Essence, that He is One in His Essence and has always been established on the throne of unity and the seat of exclusiveness, and there was nothing with Him and no one will be mentioned with Him. He is the Everlasting, the Self-Subsisting, the Mighty, the Generous, and He has always been in His self-sustenance, and there was no mention of anything with Him, nor recognition of self, nor the oneness of anyone, except that it be like what was in the eternal past. There is no god but He, the Mighty, the Wise. The knowledge of the knowers and the attainment of the attainers cease at this station, because below Him there is nothing to be found and lost and exists by His command. There is no god but He, to Him belongs the command and the creation, and He is, on all things, an Expert. Indeed, He is Allah. There is no god but He, who has not taken for Himself a guardian or a helper or a partner or a likeness or a minister. There is no god but He, the Mighty, the Able, the All-Encompassing.

11 Then we bear witness that He was unique in His attributes, and all attributes have been cut off from His holy presence, and this is what He ordained for Himself if you are among the knowledgeable ones. Then you should know that the multitudes of the worlds of attributes and names will not be associated with His essence because His attributes are exalted above His essence, and none will know how but He, the Mighty, the Exalted, the Forgiving, the Merciful. And all these names and attributes are returned to His prophets, messengers, and chosen ones because they are the mirrors of the attributes and the horizons of the names. Otherwise, He is exalted in His essence and attributes and manifests all of this in His prophets of the most beautiful names and the highest attributes so that no soul shall be deprived of the knowledge of the attributes in the dominion of the names. And indeed this favor is from Him upon the worlds. And for the monotheist in this position, it is right that he is in harmony with himself in that the appearance of those attributes in the messengers of Allah was nothing but His attributes, exalted be He, so that he will not witness any difference between Him and them except that their attributes appeared by His command and were created by His will. And this is the truth of monotheism in this position. We have bestowed upon you the favor that you may be among the steadfast ones. And the knower will not witness anything, neither in the heavens nor on the earth, except that he will see Allah standing upon it and witnessing everything with the tongue of its secret, declaring that there is no god but He, the Mighty, the Great. And the knower ascends to a position where he witnesses the traces of Allah’s manifestation in everything, and thereby establishes within himself that He was and there was nothing with Him. So, glory and exalted be He above what these polytheists say.

12 For the monotheist, it is his right not to distinguish between the words of Allah and to bear witness by himself and his own soul that all the verses were revealed from Him. All that was revealed to the messengers is true and there is no doubt in it, and it was detailed from Allah, the Ever-Present, the Omnipotent. All the religious laws were detailed from one point, and were established from Allah and return to Him. There is no difference between them if you are among the certain believers. Despite their differences in all times and ages, there is no disagreement in them because all of them have appeared from the command of Allah, and the command is one in the eternity of eternities. This is what was then engraved with a luminous holy pen.

13 And I warn you, the people of monotheism, not to split into factions regarding the signs and revelations of Allah Almighty and to realize the truth of monotheism if you are among the believers. Similarly, do not differ in your actions and deeds, and whatever appears from them or through them, since all of it is by the command of Allah. Whoever distinguishes between them and their words or their conditions and actions will have, undoubtedly, associated partners with Allah, His verses, and His messengers, and will be considered one of the polytheists. We teach you the paths of knowledge and wisdom so that you may stand under the tent of honor, and be among those who enter it. Whenever we mention the matter among them about the essence of monotheism and the truth of uniqueness, it is only in the position of the revelation because they all began with Allah and returned to Him, ruling by His command and speaking by His permission. Thus, the ruling of monotheism is established upon them in this position. So we present to you the verses so that you may be convinced. However, in the position of distinction, Allah has favored some over others, like a master over his slaves. In this position, witness the status of some of the messengers who are like the point in the center of the alphabet letters. Just as the letters separate from the point and revolve around it, so must you recognize the ranks of the prophets and confess that the one who came to you with the name Ali is the point and around it revolve the souls of the messengers. Exalt Allah, the best of creators, and confess in the position of actions that they all appeared by His command, created by His word, and were sent according to his decree. It returns to the position of the one who has determined it for them from Himself. This is Allah, my Lord, your Lord, and the Lord of your early ancestors. Can anyone move in the dominion against what Allah has decreed in the Book? Say, “Glory be to Allah!” All things are set into motion by His command, and all shall return to Him. There is no god but He, who takes away what He wants, from whom He wants, and determines for everything what He wants. He is the Omnipotent, the All-Knowing. There is nothing that was not taken by His knowledge before and after its appearance, and has been determined for it what is best for it in everything in the heavens and the earth. This is what has been written by the pen of a wise and powerful authority.

14 Beware, O eloquent beings! Do not confuse yourselves with the thought that the actions of people would become clear, showing how He punishes his disobedient slaves in the layers of Hell, and thus, know that the Almighty has sent the messengers with truth so that they may command people to do righteous deeds and observe piety, and forbid them from transgression and immorality. The messengers also give them glad tidings of meeting Allah on the day when the lights will shine from the throne of the Glorious and Illuminated One. This is that which has been decreed as truth from Him for all beings and through them, He has made known the paths of guidance and misguidance and explained to them in the language of His messengers all that He intends for them such that there is no good except in a clear book. Thus, when the truth is made clear to them and the paths of holiness and the ways of paradise are revealed to them, He commands them in all that will lead them to these holy stations and will bring them closer to the Almighty God. He forbids them from all that may harm them, and thus, He raises the obedient ones to the level of nearness and puts down the arrogant ones. He has given them a choice between these two paths after they have learned and recognized the ways of guidance and misguidance, and He supports them in whatever they choose for themselves. This is fairness from Him for everyone in His kingdom; they bear witness in themselves that Allah has not oppressed any being even to the extent of a mustard seed and will never oppress them. He is indeed the giver, the bestower, and the generous. When the paths of truth and falsehood, guidance and misguidance become clear to the servants, Allah will make them happy with what they want and execute His decree upon them after their will. Likewise, we direct to you the verses and cast upon you the words of wisdom so that your hearts and the hearts of your near ones will be filled with joy. Indeed, if the Almighty were to restrain His servants from doing something and force them to do something else, it would be oppression from Him- exalted be He and high above oppressing a being even to the extent of a small fraction, while He is capable of everything and His decree runs through everything. He extends all possibilities in their actions after recognizing the distinction between light and darkness. This is grace from Him. If you were able to witness with the insight of wisdom the secrets of the matter, you would be among the observers. Whoever says other than what we have inspired you or says what we have not revealed to you is a criminal according to the text of the book, and Allah is innocent of them unless they repent and return to Allah, becoming among those who seek forgiveness. Indeed, He forgives whom He wills, gives to whom He wills, and withholds from whom He wills. He is not questioned about what He wills. In His hands are the dominions of command and creation, and within His grasp is the might of the heavens and the earth. He gives life and causes death, then causes death and gives life again. He is the Ever-Living who does not die, and there is nothing beyond His knowledge. His grace encompasses all possibilities, and He knows the hidden depths of hearts and what is revealed from them. There is no god but Him, the All-Knowing, the Dominant, the Ruler, the Subtle, the Expert.

15 Then know, O people of eloquence, that Allah does not desire for His servants anything but that which leads them to the highest realms of eternal glory and has ordained for them only that which purifies them from selfishness and vain desires, so that the dominion remains exclusively for the truth itself and the earth and those upon it are purified from the filth of those who associate in worshiping others with Allah. We bear witness in the place of monotheistic worship that it all returns to Allah, the Mighty, the Most High, the All-Knowing, and all things emerged from one command from before the Wise and the Competent. All things began with Allah and will return to Him, and all things to Him are bound. To Him ascends the good word, and all faces prostrate before Him, and all who are in the heavens and the earth worship Him. There is nothing, but it glorifies Him with praise and fears from His reverence, there is no god but He, the Mighty, the Eternal, all necks are submissive to His sovereignty, and all hearts are humbled to His command and remember His remembrance. He, whom all things worship and all things in the heavens and the earth, those who are established on the throne of monotheism and the seats of abstraction bear witness in themselves that all that is worshiped by the servants in their retreat and mosques has come down from Allah and returns to Him; because the worshiped is one, Glorified and Exalted, we are all worshipers of Him. If the worshipers are negligent in their worship and forget their Creator, the very act of worship and remembrance hastens them to their Creator and Maker, and all of them are eager to return to Him. All that you witness in the various religious persuasions on earth, their worship and their remembrance has all been explained by Allah in the time of His messengers and envoys and all our worshipers according to His command. But when they were veiled from the intended purpose and what Allah had ordained for them, they were veiled from what Allah had chosen for them in those days in which the unique language of monotheism was adorned with all the beautiful tunes that emanated from it. When they turned away from Allah after waiting and chose for themselves, the judgment of fate befell them, and that was in the scrolls of the holy preserver. We bear witness then that the stations of monotheism and the degrees of abstraction have all manifested in the beauty which appeared in the sixties by the command of Almighty, the Wise, the All-knowing Allah. Verily, He is the One who is unique in His essence, attributes and actions, and He has neither likeness nor equal nor opposition. All creation exists by His command, and all are established according to His command. No one can share in His command or oppose His decision. He cannot be questioned about what He does, and all are bound by His presence.

16 So listen on the day when the caller calls at the axis of eternity, and the dove of Hejaz sings in the land of Iraq, and everyone is invited to join in. On this day, the gates of paradise will open for all creatures, and it will be a day where darkness will not follow. The sun will shine from it because it has taken its light from the radiant face. By Allah, a unique and sacred carpet will be spread, from Allah the Almighty and the protected. Say, by Allah, it will indeed be a day when none will bear the throne of your Lord except Himself, and we shall be witnessing it. In it, positions will be revealed where the unity of God will not be mentioned, and the truths of the individuality will not reach, and the highest knowledge of the knowledgeable will not fly in it except by the will of your Lord. So congratulations to those whose eyes will be delighted on this day by meeting Allah, the King, the Exalted, the Mighty.

17 Say, O people of the East and the West, that this is truly a melody reminiscent of the tunes when it passed through the Valley of Sanaa in the Sinai of the soul, a place where only the name of Allah, the Mighty, the Subtle, is mentioned. And when it enters therein, it takes the letter “Seen” from the first valley for the love that connected them in the grain of existence, when the letters of the communities appeared in the worlds of names and attributes by His command from Allah, the Mighty, the Beautiful. Say, this is a city wherein if the sick enters, he will be cured and healed faster than the utterance of the name of the present time. And if the kingdom of names passes over it, all of them would become greater and all of them would narrate about Allah, so that with one of their names, everyone in the heavens and the earth would turn upside down.

Command to Salman: Part 2

18 And verily you, O Salman, strive with your soul to enter this city, and if you are unable to enter it, listen with your spirit, perhaps you will pass near it and the breezes that emanate from it will blow upon you. By Allah, this is better for you than the kingdom of the ancients and the latters! This is my command to you and to those who have ascended to the abode of the manifest Sultan. And when you enter the land of Saad, remember the letter Zaa with invocations of the impregnable holiness. Say and listen to what the dove of holiness sings to you when it flies from air to air, lofty and exalted. Do not be disturbed by this, for in it is the secret of secrets, if you are among the insightful. Trust in Allah in your affairs, do not fear anyone, and do not be among the fearful. This is what we informed you of before in the tablets of preserving holiness. Turn your face and heart to Allah, the Sovereign, the Mighty, the Generous. By Allah, the call of Allah will not be cut off at any time, and He will call with the loudest voice at all times. Whoever purifies their ears from the words of creation, they hear the call in the might of glory and will not pay attention to anyone in the kingdom, they will be attracted by the call of Allah and turn to the hidden sanctuary of holiness. Likewise, remind Meem of the invocations of the exalted wonder, and when you reach the land of Sheen, spread those tablets before the hands of those who have believed in it so that they may be reminded by it and become among the mindful. Whoever remembers it will have better than everything created by the hands of the Power in the clear might of glory, for in it none shall witness but Allah alone, and below Him, creation with a letter from it, if you are among the knower. It is from us that we have bestowed upon you, O Salman, the truth and explained to you the secrets of monotheism, and guided you to this path wherein flows the Salsabil from this spring, which will not cease with the continuous command of Allah and will not perish in the eternity of eternities.

19 Then know, O Salman, that those who do not possess the qualities of monotheism will not be considered as monotheists, even if you are among the poets. No one will attain the status of monotheism by merely saying it, so you, O eloquent ones, should strive hard within yourselves to possess the qualities of Allah to be among those who are characterized by them. Whoever does not receive the breaths of Allah and His attributes will not achieve this status and will not be counted among the monotheists. We conclude by saying that there is no god but He, and we are all His servants, and to Him we shall all return. All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds.