Study compilations

Abstract: The Tablet of the Holy Mariner, a mystical tablet, was revealed in 1863 on the fifth day of Naw-ruz, a few weeks before Baha'u'llah declared his Prophethood and mission on the first day of Ridvan; in fulfillment of Prophecies in the era of Moses, Prophecies in the era of Christ, Prophecies in the era of Muhammad, and Prophecies in the era of the Bab. The first part of the tablet speaks of the forthcoming declaration of Baha'u'llah. A number of symbolic terms used related to the Revelation of Baha'u'llah include: "the Holy Mariner", "The ark of eternity", "the deathless tree" and "the Maid of Heaven". At the following link is a brief compilation on qualities needed to understand the Holy Writings and their inner meanings. Brief compilations on various symbolic and related terms used in the tablet (e.g. Maid of Heaven, Arabian Youth, Youth, descent, mansions, eternity, Countenance, Manifestations, Signs, pre-existence of Prophets, Revelation, and so on) can be found by clicking on the associated links, as needed, which will open a new page/tab.

The latter part of the tablet is about one Maiden of the Maid of Heaven's handmaidens, who is commanded to descend from the mansions of eternity (to earth). As reflected in Prayers and Meditations CLXXXIV, "handmaidens" is a symbolic term used to refer to God's Chosen Ones, who are pre-existent and are one of the two classes of Prophets/Messengers that appear in major dispensations (for example, the Twelve Imams in the era of Muhammad, referred to in many places in the Quran; the Twelve Apostles in the era of Christ; and so on). They are also referred to as "divine assayers" in the Tablet of the Holy Mariner revealed in Persian. A compilation of over thirty references on them from the writings of Baha'u'llah can be found in Chapter 3, which the reader can go to directly before reading Chapters 1 and 2. The text of the tablet is in bold italic, references are in black regular font, and comments are in blue. The amount of commentary is limited, in many cases relying on references, or brief compilations, from which the reader can infer the meaning of particular passages; some related portions of specific passages and references being highlighted in red. The references are taken primarily from the writings of Bahá'u'lláh, the Independent Prophet; also including some references from the writings of Abdu'l-Bahá, the Bab, the Quran, the Holy Imams, and the Bible.

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