A Favored Prayer of Praise...

Praise be Thou, O Lord my God! Every time I attempt to make mention of Thee, I am hindered by the sublimity of Thy station and the overpowering greatness of Thy might. For were I to praise Thee throughout the length of Thy dominion and the duration of Thy sovereignty, I would find that my praise of Thee can benefit only such as are like unto me, who are themselves Thy creatures, and who have been generated through the power of Thy decree and have been fashioned through the potency of Thy will. And at whatever time my pen ascribeth glory to any one of Thy names, methinks I can hear the voice of its lamentation in its remoteness from Thee, and can recognize its cry because of its separation from Thy Self. I testify that everything other than Thee is but Thy creation and is held in the hollow of Thy hand. To have accepted any act or praise from Thy creatures is but an evidence of the wonders of Thy grace and bountiful favors, and a manisfestation of Thy generosity and providence.

I entreat Thee, O my Lord, by Thy Most Great Name whereby Thou didst separate light from fire, and truth from denial, to send down upon me and such of my loved ones as are in my company the good of this world and of the next. Supply us, then, with Thy wonderous gifts that are hidden from the eyes of men. Thou art, verily, the Fashioner of all creation. No God is there but Thee, the Almighty, the All-Glorious, the Most High.

~Baha'u'llah

I like waking to praise. But I need to start memorizing some prayers and I think I will start with this one. Also, I have been encouraged to begin intoning them with melody - to chant them. Yesterday, I was privileged to hear a wonderful Baha'i singer on MySpace. Her name is Laurie Early and here is the link to her page. I bawled my eyes out when I heard the song she has in dedication to the 17 year old martyr Mona, and the Tablet of Ahmad is simply wonderful!