Note 171

171. the "mystery of the Great Reversal in the Sign of the Sovereign" # 157 &Shaykh &Ahmad-i-Ahsa'i (1753-1831), who was the founder of the &Shaykhi School and the first of the "twin luminaries that heralded the advent of the Faith of the &Bab", prophesied that at the appearance of the Promised One all things would be reversed, the last would be first, the first +P240 last. &Baha'u'llah in one of His Tablets refers to the "symbol and allusion" of the "mystery of the Great Reversal in the Sign of the Sovereign". He states: "Through this reversal He hath caused the exalted to be abased and the abased to be exalted", and He recalls that "in the days of Jesus, it was those who were distinguished for their learning, the men of letters and religion, who denied Him, whilst humble fishermen made haste to gain admittance into the Kingdom" (see also note 172). For additional information about &Shaykh &Ahmad-i-Ahsa'i see The Dawn-Breakers, chapters 1 and 10.

172. the "Six" raised up by virtue of this "Upright

Alif" # 157

In his writings, &Shaykh &Ahmad-i-Ahsa'i placed great emphasis on the Arabic letter "&Vav". In The Dawn-Breakers, &Nabil states that this letter "symbolized for the &Bab the advent of a new cycle of Divine Revelation, and has since been alluded to by &Baha'u'llah in the &Kitab-i-Aqdas in such passages as `the mystery of the Great Reversal' and `the Sign of the Sovereign'".

The name for the letter "&Vav" consists of three letters: &Vav, Alif, &Vav. According to the abjad reckoning, the numerical value of each of these letters is 6, 1 and 6 respectively. Shoghi Effendi in a letter written on his behalf to one of the believers in the East provides an interpretation of this verse of the Aqdas. He states that the "Upright Alif" refers to the advent of the &Bab. The first letter with its value of six, which comes before the Alif, is a symbol of earlier Dispensations and Manifestations which predate the &Bab, while the third letter, which also has a numerical value of six, stands for &Baha'u'llah's supreme Revelation which was made manifest after the Alif.