Note 33

33. It hath been ordained that every believer in God ... shall, each day ... repeat "&Allah-u-Abha" ninety-five times. # 18

"&Allah-u-Abha" is an Arabic phrase meaning "God the All-Glorious". It is a form of the Greatest Name of God (see note 137). In &Islam there is a tradition that among the many names of God, one was the greatest; however, the identity of this Greatest Name was hidden. &Baha'u'llah has confirmed that the Greatest Name is "&Baha".

The various derivatives of the word "&Baha" are also regarded as the Greatest Name. Shoghi Effendi's secretary writing on his behalf explains that

The Greatest Name is the Name of &Baha'u'llah. "&Ya &Baha'u'l-Abha" is an invocation meaning: "O Thou Glory of Glories!". "&Allah-u-Abha" is a greeting which means:

"God the All-Glorious". Both refer to &Baha'u'llah. By

Greatest Name is meant that &Baha'u'llah has appeared in

God's Greatest Name, in other words, that He is the supreme Manifestation of God.

The greeting "&Allah-u-Abha" was adopted during the period of &Baha'u'llah's exile in Adrianople.

The repetition of "&Allah-u-Abha" ninety-five times is to be preceded by the performance of ablutions (see note 34).

34. Perform ye ... ablutions for the Obligatory

Prayer # 18

Ablutions are specifically associated with certain prayers. They must precede the offering of the three Obligatory Prayers, the daily recitation of "&Allah-u-Abha" ninety-five times, and the recital of the verse prescribed as an alternative to obligatory prayer and fasting for women in their courses (see note 20).

The prescribed ablutions consist of washing the hands and the face in preparation for prayer. In the case of the medium Obligatory Prayer, this is accompanied by the +P181 recitation of certain verses (see Some Texts Revealed by &Baha'u'llah Supplementary to the &Kitab-i-Aqdas).

That ablutions have a significance beyond washing may be seen from the fact that even should one have bathed oneself immediately before reciting the Obligatory Prayer, it would still be necessary to perform ablutions (Q and A 18).

When no water is available for ablutions, a prescribed verse is to be repeated five times (see note 16), and this provision is extended to those for whom the use of water would be physically harmful (Q and A 51).

The detailed provisions of the law concerning ablutions are set out in the Synopsis and Codification, section IV.A.10.a.-g., as well as in Questions and Answers numbers 51, 62, 66, 77 and 86.