Upstream
nava January 22nd, 2009
We swim upstream and currents strong
Heighten struggles to move along
We paddle hard, yet go so slow
Why so painful, it’s hard to know
But hearts seek beauty, and so we go
The voyage long, the distance far
The path uneasy, the goal so hard
For growth we battle, for truth we yearn
With guidance we move, through failure we learn
For nearness we strive, with longing we burn
Scars we accrue, and strength we amass
Wisdom we glean, and tests we pass
We pray, we beg, we bow, we cry
We worship, we kneel, we love, we die–
To ourselves, to the world, but in Him, we abide
In heart’s beloved, at last, we’re alive
- Arts & Culture , Inspiration
- Comments(2)
A drop of truth! We relax our grip
On ego’s oar and trust the ship
Now following the current, no longer upstream
Past complications and ways and means
All of our struggles were just a dream
Simple obedience meets all our needs.
I posted an introduction to the paradigmatic shift in the Baha’i community, the new culture of learning and growth that is at the heart of this paradigm, some 24 months ago. There is much in this article/book that provides a context for arts and culture from a Baha’i perspective within this new paradigm. I did this posting at several internet sites and have updated/revised that post in these last two years. It seemed like a good idea to give readers some specific steps on how to access this now revised article, what is now a book of 210 pages and 100,000 words at Baha’i Library Online(BLO). The Association for Bahá’í Studies New Zealand in 2007 launched its open access, internationally oriented, peer reviewed electronic periodical OJBS: Online Journal of Bahá’í Studies, but in January 2009 that initiative was discontinued. One of its first issues would have been devoted to an exploration of this new paradigm.
In that two year period there have been many thousand views of this analysis, this statement on the new paradigm at the few sites where it has been posted. In addition to googling “Baha’i Culture of Learning and Growth” and accessing my article in the process at several internet sites, readers can find my article at BLO by clicking on the following:
http://www.new.facebook.com/profile.php … 134&ref=mf.
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Readers can also access the latest edition of my article at BLO by taking the following steps: (i) type Baha’i Library Online or Baha’i Academics Resource Library into your search engine; (ii) click on the small box “By author” at the top of the access page at BLO; (iii) type “Price” into the small box that then appears and click on the word “Go;” and then (iv) scroll down to article/document item #46 and (v) click on that item and read to your heart’s content. When your eyes and your mind start to glaze over, stop reading. The article can be downloaded free and you will then have access to a revised article, a 210 page, 100,000 word context for all this new paradigmatic terminology that has come into the Baha’i community in the last 14 years.
The statement is a personal one, does not assume an adversarial attitude, attempts to give birth of as fine an etiquette of expression as I can muster and, I like to think, possesses both candour and critical thought on the one hand and praise and delight at the process on the other. I invite readers to what I also like to think is “a context on which relevant fundamental questions” regarding this new paradigm may be discussed within the Baha’i community. It is also my intention to update this article in the months and years ahead. One of the advantages of the BLO site is the freedom it gives to a writer to update the article right on the site in an ongoing process as new insights from major thinkers in the Baha’i community and information from the elected and appointed institutions of the Cause comes to hand.
If time and the inclination permit, check it out. No worries, no obligation, just if it interests you. You may find the piece of writing too long as I’m sure many readers do. You may also find it too personal due to the fact that I attempt to answer the question: “where do I fit into this new paradigm?” After a few paragraphs of reading, you will get the flavour of the exercise. Just keep reading if your mind and spirit are enjoying the process.