Baha'i Perspectives

iman September 8th, 2008

Welcome to the first in a multi-part series on happiness.

So, apparently, its rather easy: Happiness = P + (5xE) + (3xH)

Some of the variables used by scientists in deriving this formula were health, financial stability, friendship ambitions, having a sense of humour and romance. If these, and other scientifically suggested criteria, are the basis of happiness, we are always going to be unhappy… always. At any given moment we aren’t…

1. with family and friends,
2. with lots of money,
3. with perfect health,
4. with a sense of humour,
5. in cyberspace,
6. living in Denmark,
7. with an electrode brain implant, (?!)
8. etc.,

…all at the same time. I would be incorrect in saying that these things don’t make us happy; they do, temporarily. But, why temporarily? Where do we run to when we have less money, when we are sick, when a family member or close friend isn’t there anymore? Do we just find another temporary escape? Enter sports, television, music, computer games. Again, these can bring about a  certain degree of happiness and, in moderation, there is probably no harm in them. Now let’s consider that these activities get boring after a while so on we go to another level; drugs, alcohol, pornography. Still alright? Addiction to these…still ok? This chain of events introduces dependency on the temporal and seems to shackle us to this world more and more. We can’t be truly happy.

…the more he becomes immersed in material progress, the more does his spirituality become obscured.

(Abdu’l-Baha, Paris Talks, p. 106)

The soul is our reality, not the body. When the inevitable happens and we die, our body remains here and all our riches and embellishments stay with it.

True happiness depends on spiritual good and having the heart ever open to receive the Divine Bounty.

If the heart turns away from the blessings God offers how can it hope for happiness? If it does not put its hope and trust in God’s Mercy, where can it find rest? Oh, trust in God! for His Bounty is everlasting, and in His Blessings, for they are superb. Oh! put your faith in the Almighty, for He faileth not and His goodness endureth for ever! His Sun giveth Light continually, and the Clouds of His Mercy are full of the Waters of Compassion with which He waters the hearts of all who trust in Him. His refreshing Breeze ever carries healing in its wings to the parched souls of men! Is it wise to turn away from such a loving Father, Who showers His blessings upon us, and to choose rather to be slaves of matter?

God in His infinite goodness has exalted us to so much honour, and has made us masters over the material world. Shall we then become her slaves? Nay, rather let us claim our birthright, and strive to live the life of the spiritual sons of God.

(Abdu’l-Baha, Paris Talks, p. 108)

What makes our reality happy is our efforts to draw closer to our Creator (subsequent posts will expound on this). And, though we may find this difficult at times, we can always rely on the fact that His infinite love and assistance are always accessible to us, if only we seek it.

Tags: happiness

• General Interest , Society
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negin September 4th, 2008

When discussing the situation of society today, and the many challenges that humanity is facing in regard to the decay in morals and ethics, it is not unusual that the habits, lifestyle and behaviour of teens are brought up as a deterrent example. A rise in drug abuse among youth, a rise in violence among young people and a rise in teenage pregnancies are just a few examples that we hear about.

At the same time, there is rising awareness among youth around the world when it comes to global issues like poverty, racism and the environment. They engage — with heart and soul — in promoting the good of their fellow man, being able to look beyond race, sex and colour to a degree that is touching and inspiring to many.

This age group is, therefore,  a unique one, possessing great potential for awareness and commitment, but also facing an obvious risk of error and degeneration.

Abdu’l-Bahá describes the period of youth in these words:

After a time he enters the period of youth in which his former conditions and needs are superseded by new requirements applicable to the advance in his degree. His faculties of observation are broadened and deepened, his intelligent capacities are trained and awakened, the limitations and environment of childhood no longer restrict his energies and accomplishments.

Youth are thus very sensitive to influences in their environment, one of which has to do with society’s view of them. A prevalent understanding is that adolescence is a time when the individual goes through physical and psychological changes, which must inevitably lead to confusion and crisis. One more or less expects teenagers to misbehave and to be rebellious and self-centered. They are assumed to only care about pleasure and amusement and shouldn’t be bothered with responsibility.

In a letter to a youth, Abdu’l-Bahá says:

The period of youth is characterized by strength and vigor and stands out as the choicest time in human life. Therefore you should strive day and night so that endowed with heavenly strength, inspired with brilliant motives and aided by His celestial power and heavenly grace and confirmation, you may become the ornaments of the world of humanity…

As described in the above two quotations by Abdu’l-Baha, the period of youth is a time when the potential for development and progress is great. During so critical a period, education and encouragement can empower youth to take responsibility of their lives and their surroundings and “become the ornaments of the world of humanity”. But, as rightly pointed out by a previous author, the approach taken must be creative, one that will both engage their interests and be sensitive to their growing potentialities. In the context of Baha’i junior youth programmes, this means avoiding the boredom and monotony of classroom-style lectures in favour of smaller, interactive groups — usually guided by a facilitator who is, in effect, a friend to the participants. This also means entirely steering clear of a patronizing attitude towards the participants, and instead promoting a positive environment where each participant’s talents and opinions are highly valued and allowed to develop.

This is the purpose of the “Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program” that is used by the Baha’is, and has been described in previous articles.

Tags: youth

• Baha'i Concepts , Principles in Action , Society
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nadim September 1st, 2008

I find it fascinating how so many profound theological concepts are explained in the Baha’i Writings using simple metaphors.

Trawling through the Web one day, I came across this marvellous story that demonstrates, so lucidly, the nature and interconnectedness of justice in this world and the next. In it, Baha’u'llah explains to us that justice, and the manifestations thereof, exist on multiple realms beyond our own and take on countless different forms. This story, I find, resolves a number of questions that invariably come to the mind when examining world affairs, when witnessing inequity and injustice and wondering what, if any, are the consequences faced by perpetrators of these acts. And what, if any, are the reparations for the helpless victims?

Before carrying on, here is the story. It is a commentary on the original Tablet revealed by Baha’u'llah:

Let us imagine that in the springtime a powerful man robs a weak man of his provision of seeds and that he plants these seeds in his own garden. The seeds germinate and in summer produce plants, trees and ultimately fruits. Then, it befalls that a just king decides to redress the wrong that was done to the weak one. In what manner should this just king proceed? Should he require from the oppressor that he return the same quantity of seeds? At harvest-time the seeds are of no immediate utility. Or should he return to him the product of the seeds that were stolen from him? We understand immediately that justice requires that we return to the victim not the original seeds but that which they produced. The seeds changed in form, they were transformed into something else, the appearance and the qualities of which are only distantly related to their first appearance and qualities. The relationship between this world and the other world is of the same nature, and of the same nature also is the nature of justice that links the two. Here below things exist only in the state of seed. When they evolve in the divine worlds, they are completely transformed in form, appearance and qualities. Nevertheless, the qualities of the tree and of the fruit depend upon the qualities of the seed that produced them.

In this Tablet, Baha’u'llah proceeds with a digression of a moral rather than a metaphysical character. In this life, the material things that we might lose do not matter. In due course, these materials things show their true colors, becoming tests and of calamities in our spiritual evolution, while tests and calamities prove to be the source of true riches. At the final count, the fact that we have lost material goods for spiritual reasons, whether we have offered them to God in a spirit of detachment, or lost them because of the oppression of men, makes no difference… However he who has unjustly seized the goods of another in order to accumulate his own riches in fact has but accumulated obstacles to his own spiritual development. Without fail, the consequences of our actions follow us from one world to the next.

(Jean-Marc Lepain, An Introduction to the Lawh-i Haqqu’n-Nas, commentary on a provisional translation of this Tablet of Baha’u'llah)

There is indeed a lot to digest here. In considering Divine justice and it’s application, the picture that comes to mind is one of a weighing scale that tips from side-to-side during the course of one’s life, yet ultimately achieves perfect balance. In other words, imbalances that manifest themselves during the course of this life are always compensated, be it in this world or those to come. This is certainly reassuring for victims of injustice and, I would imagine, equally worrying for the perpetrators.

What I also find interesting is the assertion that accumulating material goods is, in a sense, a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it is praiseworthy to earn an honest living and enjoy the benefits that may present themselves. But there also exists a paradox — that if we aren’t vigilant, we can easily find ourselves moving from a state of ownership to that of being owned by our possessions. I’m sure we’ve all witnessed cases of people wasting all their time and energy in the feverish pursuit of getting more “stuff”, often compromising their values along the way, while we sit and wonder when it will finally dawn on them — that in their pursuit of freedom through material means, they have, in reality, taken on a life of slavery. But it’s not just them. Avoiding the pitfalls of materialism is a mighty test for every one of us, for in the blink of an eye, we can completely lose sight of our ultimate spiritual purpose. As Christ said:

It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God.

(Mark 10:25)

Finally, I believe the moral of this story can be applied beyond the realms of the powerful exploiting the weak. It can be applied to our own daily lives. Have we been kind and just towards those around us? Are we truly preferring others before ourselves? Do we avoid backbiting and slander? It seems fair to suggest that all human beings have a role to play in promoting a just society. Both individual and societal justice is required, and there exists a reciprocal relationship between the two. Indeed, to pay little attention to one’s own behaviour, while simultaneously expecting a perfect system of justice to be imposed from above, is surely counterproductive.

Do you have any additional thoughts to share on reading this story?

Tags: justice, materialism

• Baha'i Concepts , Inspiration , Society
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