Baha'i Perspectives

Baha'i Perspectives January 24th, 2009

The BBC is in the midst of screening a captivating documentary series entitled “Around the World in 80 Faiths“. Anglican vicar, Peter Owen Jones, visits each continent in a quest to examine the religions, beliefs and traditions that characterize and give expression to man’s spiritual nature.

In Episode 4, he travels to the Middle East to explore the roots of religious conflict in the region, but ends the episode on a rather different note: proclaiming the unifying message of the Baha’i Faith! In spite of some factual inaccuracies, this is an interesting clip to watch. Skip through to minute 5:30:

“I hope that this is the future” declares Owen Jones, emotionally, as he brings the episode to a conclusion. It surely will be.

Hearken unto the Voice of the Lord of Names, Who from His Prison hath directed His gaze towards thee and is making mention of thee.

He hath extended assistance to every wayfarer, hath graciously responded to every petitioner and granted admittance to every seeker after truth. In this Day the Straight Path is made manifest, the Balance of divine justice is set and the light of the sun of His bounty is resplendent, yet the oppressive darkness of the people of tyranny hath, even as clouds, intervened and caused a grievous obstruction between the Day-Star of heavenly grace and the people of the world. Blessed is he who hath rent the intervening veils asunder and is illumined by the radiant light of divine Revelation.

(Baha’u'llah, Tablets of Baha’u'llah, p. 255)

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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

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nava November 21st, 2008

All men have been created to carry forward an ever-advancing civilization. The Almighty beareth Me witness: To act like the beasts of the field is unworthy of man. Those virtues that befit his dignity are forbearance, mercy, compassion and loving-kindness towards all the peoples and kindreds of the earth.

To act like the beasts of the field is unworthy of man.

I’m not sure what marked the turning point, but it certainly came. The point when it actually became the praiseworthy goal for men to act like buffoons, the point when women were all too happy to live up to their objectified status.  And it’s not just confined to Western society; evidence of the spread of both of these phenomena across cultures is undeniable (take Japanese extreme reality TV, for instance.) The US culture, the one I am most familiar with, however, is rife with examples of this. Take the  television shows that are or have been incredibly popular in recent times. Shows like  ”Fear Factor” where you eat the most vile and disgusting things imaginable, “Jackass” where you live to prove you are just that — do shows like this promote the dignity of man, or do they rather encourage him to act like the beasts of the field? To degrade himself and humiliate himself for fifteen minutes of a very odd kind of fame, and some potential monetary gain?

Humor is good, of course. One of God’s titles is the Humorist, after all. But there is a difference between tasteful playfulness and wit, and ridiculous, debasing, meaningless, unintelligent attempts at humor. The young men of the world encouraged to act like beer-guzzling idiots who are only as cool as their next stunt, as humorous as their willingness to engage in physical pain, and as appealing as their ability to ape the basest of creatures in their attempts to be “men”.

Gone is chivalry. Gone is wit. Gone is dignity.

And what about women? There was a time, one hears, when women were respected for their chastity, for their modesty. True that men were not held equally accountable for embodying these virtues. So did we decide that true equality meant women should degrade themselves rather than demand that men arise to the station which was already theirs [women's]? Now it seems women are only as appealing as the flatness of the tummies they show off in midriff bearing t-shirts; as attractive as the curves of the body all their figure-hugging clothes expose; as fun as an experimental nature which would allow them to sample in all things, irrespective of what common decency and even the most basic of morals should still their hands from doing.

Gone is modesty. Gone is personality. Gone is dignity.

Even shows like “The Bachelor” (let’s not even talk about their VH1 counterparts like, “Flavor of Love” or “Rock of Love”) are examples of — perhaps perpetuators of — a society eating away at the most basic foundations of decency and dignity left in the human race. Hordes of women chase away after one man (or hordes of men after one woman); and no one even blinks at the fact that these people are engaging promiscuously with one another, IN FRONT of one another, all in an attempt to find love — it’s absolutely astonishing.

We’re living in a decadent age which promotes materialism over virtue, self-love over any true and meaningful love, and self-interest over the promotion of the well-being of the generality of mankind. And as the manifestations of all the virtues wane and fade, dignity suffers the unfortunate fate of no longer being looked upon as a virtue.  Most people today will still acknowledge that honesty is important, for example. And while some may pay lip service to dignity, most of us don’t even know what it looks like anymore. The balance of the world around us is so completely askew that our perception of right and wrong has been completely watered down. It’s no wonder then that we often struggle to grasp what it means to be truly modest. Noble.

Noble have I created thee, yet thou hast abased thyself. Rise then unto that for which thou wast created.

If and when when we try to arise, I hope we know what it is we’re arising to.

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ronnie October 24th, 2008

So you have just taken the red pill in Part 1 and hopefully opened up your inner eye to reality, thus beginning your journey.

So now what?

In the film ‘The Matrix,’ after making that choice, Neo embarks on a process that is the acquiring of Knowledge…..in this case, one of the first things he learns is ‘Kung Fu.’ Or at least he thinks he learns it. Watch scene here

He then practices this new found skill before using it out in the material world, where he almost dies in the process.

Soon after this, he really learns it.

This is part of the journey of the soul.

Baha’u'llah, founder of the Baha’i Faith, talks about the journey of the soul through seven stages.

He uses poetry to describe the stages of the soul’s journey, in the style of 12th Century Sufi poet Farid al-Din Attar, as used in the Conference of the Birds.

The seven stages of the journey of the soul are called Valleys, and thus the imagery is that of a seeker making a journey through a series of valleys. Thus the book is called ‘The Seven Valleys.’

The first Valley is called the Valley of Search, the Second Valley, the Valley of Love…..

The third Valley is the Valley of Knowledge.

In the Matrix, Neo begins his journeying with the Valley of Search by choosing the red pill.

I guess the film skipped out the Valley of Love because it wasn’t commercially viable (or more likely because it’s just a film and not a comprehensive religious text).

The Knowledge sought in the third Valley is the Knowledge of God and not one based on conventional learning. The seeker begins to understand and find wisdom when faced with pain, suffering, tests and trials. About the Valley of Knowledge, Baha’u'llah says:

With inward and outward eyes he witnesseth the mysteries of resurrection in the realms of creation and the souls of men, and with a pure heart apprehendeth the divine wisdom in the endless Manifestations of God. In the ocean he findeth a drop, in a drop he beholdeth the secrets of the sea.

(Baha’u'llah, The Seven Valleys, p. 11)

He also uses his newly acquired skills, constantly learning new ones and improving the ones he has.

These ‘skills,’ from a Baha’i point of view are universal religious truths known as ‘virtues’ and are used to battle the forces of darkness, which in reality is the human ego, symbolically represented as Satan or Agent Smith in this case.

Armed with the power of Thy name nothing can ever hurt me, and with Thy love in my heart all the world’s afflictions can in no wise alarm me.

(Baha’u'llah, Prayers and Meditations by Baha’u'llah, p. 208)

We may read about virtues all day long and Neo may download as much as he wants about Kung Fu, however, until we apply it, through service to others, we will not really understand and learn.

The ‘Kung Fu’ we need is Patience, Justice, Humility, Truthfulness, Love, Generosity, and the list goes on (for a more comprehensive list click here)

When confronted with Agent Hate, we destroy him with Love. Agent War is stopped with Peace. Agent Greed is neutralised with Generosity.

I’m sure you get the idea. Sounds easy, but we know it’s not.

If ignorance is bliss, what is knowledge, pain?

I know what you’re thinking, ’cause right now I’m thinking the same thing. Actually, I’ve been thinking it ever since I got here: Why oh why didn’t I take the BLUE pill?

(Cypher, the ‘Judas’ of the Matrix.)

Like Judas, he too was tempted by the inner promptings of the human ego (Agent Smith), betraying Neo and the life of hardship for an apparently easier life of material happiness. (watch scene here)

Baha’u'llah, in The Hidden Words, says:

….Busy not thyself with this world, for with fire We test the gold, and with gold We test Our servants.

So we have to bring ourselves to account and ask, what’s our gold? What’s our kryptonite? Since we’re conveniently on the subject of kryptonite, we can talk about other superheroes briefly. Continue reading >

Tags: afterlife, reality, soul

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geoffrey October 17th, 2008

When looking at the collective history of Man, when peering through the ages, we may find those pivotal moments that appear periodically which have served as catalysts for the advancement of the world.

Baha’is believe that throughout history God has sent Messengers to guide mankind to its next level of development; have come to bring about the order of the world in ever increasing and complex modes of organization.

Inevitably, though, due to the weakness of Man, we reject these Prophets and turn away.

I know, O my Lord, neither their reasoning with which they have acknowledged Thee and believed in Thy signs, nor their argument whereby they have repudiated Thy sovereignty. Every time I call them to Thee and say: ‘O people! Consider the utterances of the Lord your God which are in your possession and those that have been sent down from the heaven of His will and power,’ they cavil at Thee, and turn their backs to Thee, though — as Thou art aware — each of the words that have gone out of the mouth of Thy will sheddeth the fragrance of the breaths of Thy mercy.

(Baha’u'llah, Prayers and Meditations by Baha’u'llah, p. 179)

Hollow, empty echoes meet my ears.

The only sounds of my soft footsteps.

My breath catches,

And I feel pressed for air.

Suddenly, I am paralyzed by the pain of sorrow.

When it should drive me to love,

I am overwhelmed by fear and loss.

My Ears are stopped,

And I cannot hear the Ancient Song.

One sung by Poets and seers,

Ever heard at the breaking of Dawn.

How do I measure the seasons of life?

How may I test the strength of love’s bonds?

Every thought, every whisper,

Has become an expression of Faith and Reason,

Will Man be able to love,

Without understanding what is loved.

Then we may see the changeless face of God.

For Day will come,

But first the sun must fall.

And with each winter in Man’s heart,

A single Seed is set.

This is the rebirth of the Heavenly Tree.

How often is it neglected and misshapen?

How often is it cast aside,

Where It’s splinters are used as fuel

To feed the fires of hate?

Or to be left withering,

As it falls in a graceful decay,

Devoid of purpose and meaning.

I have within my own Heart

The universal life of Mankind.

Its joy and hope,

Its pain and mystery.

I contain the fertile field,

Where a fruit laden Tree sinks its roots.

With leaves upturned

It catches the light and sustaining rain

That falls ceaselessly

On those that have let it grow there.

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ronnie October 4th, 2008

This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill – the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill – you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes.

…Morpheus says to Neo, Keanu Reeves character in Warner Brothers’ movie; ‘The Matrix.’ (here is the scene on YouTube)

Before I hear you sigh; ‘oh dear, sci-fi geek alert!,’ I’m kindly requesting a few minutes of your precious time, even if you found Mamma Mia! far more riveting than the Matrix.

Now, what if I told you that this piece of science fiction is far closer to reality than might first appear? And we’re not talking about Keanu Reeves’ acting skills either.

“The Matrix describes a future in which the reality the perceived by humans is actually the Matrix, a simulated reality created by sentient machines.” says Wikipedia.

In the aforementioned movie quote, Morpheus a prophet of sorts is giving the film’s protagonist, Neo, a computer programmer, the option to see the world for what it really is.

If he takes the blue pill, he stays ‘asleep,’ carrying on with his daily routine but if he takes the red pill he awakens to his inner reality, another world:

In the beginning of his human life man was embryonic in the world of the matrix. There he received capacity and endowment for the reality of human existence. The forces and powers necessary for this world were bestowed upon him in that limited condition. In this world he needed eyes; he received them  potentially in the other. He needed ears; he obtained them there in readiness and preparation for his new existence. The powers requisite in this world were conferred upon him in the world of the matrix, so that when he entered this realm of real existence he not only possessed all necessary functions and powers but found provision for his material sustenance awaiting him.

(Abdu’l-Baha, Foundations of World Unity, p. 63)

This quote from Abdu’l-Baha, pre-dates the movie by about 80 years. Abdu’l-Baha is talking about the world inside a mother’s womb being the ‘world of the matrix.’ This world, the only world we know as an embryo, is preparing us for the world we know now, the ‘post-birth’ world.

Both worlds are connected of course, and this starts at conception. You just don’t realise this until you actually arrive here, whether it’s by c-section or naturally.

You can discern hints of it, however, like the muffled voices of our louder relatives.

Conversely you can also make impressions in it, by kicking your chubby baby legs to the glee of your mother’s co-workers.

Now how does this relate to the Matrix film? Well, from my limited understanding of the Baha’i Faith, THIS world, the world of Poverty, Climate Change, Racism, Consumerism, War, Climate change and Sex in The City (okay, it’s not that bad!) is OUR world of the Matrix.

Here we develop our capacity and endowment for the next world, through tests:

Therefore, in this world he must prepare himself for the life beyond. That which he needs in the world of the Kingdom must be obtained here. Just as he prepared himself in the world of the matrix by acquiring forces necessary in this sphere of existence, so, likewise, the indispensable forces of the divine existence must be potentially attained in this world…

(Abdu’l-Baha, Foundations of World Unity, p. 63)

In the womb, we had no choice.

In this world, it’s like the red pill or the blue pill.

Every Manifestation from God, whether Moses, Buddha, Krishna, Muhammad, Jesus or Baha’u'llah, has offered us a choice like this; the choice of true liberty or to go back to sleep wearing shackles of ignorance and blinded by our ego.

Baha’u'llah tells us when He was ‘awakened’:

O King! I was but a man like others, asleep upon My couch, when lo, the breezes of the All-Glorious were wafted over Me, and taught Me the knowledge of all that hath been.

(Baha’u'llah, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 11)

He also gives us a choice, rather than a red pill or blue pill, to look with the inner eye rather than the outer one:

O MAN OF TWO VISIONS!

Close one eye and open the other. Close one to the world and all that is therein, and open the other to the hallowed beauty of the Beloved

(Baha’u'llah, The Persian Hidden Words)

The quote above must not be taken out of context. It is not suggesting that we become aloof from human affairs in this material world. In fact, Baha’u'llah teaches the contrary and I’ll expand on this topic in greater detail in part 2.

The quote above, according to my understanding, is saying that we look at things in this world with a ‘spiritually attuned’ eye, rather than looking at things viscerally. The spiritual world is not another location, or to be experienced solely after we die. It is intricately interwoven into the very fabric of our existence. Like lines of code which make up the physical world in the Matrix movie, in this world we have to read in-between these lines:

The one true God is My witness! This most great, this fathomless and surging Ocean is near, astonishingly near, unto you. Behold it is closer to you than your life-vein! Swift as the twinkling of an eye ye can, if ye but wish it, reach and partake of this imperishable favor, this God-given grace, this incorruptible gift, this most potent and unspeakably glorious bounty.

(Baha’u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u'llah, p. 326)

Now the main difference between the film’s premise and the Baha’i Faith is that in the film, the ‘real’ world, the world that Neo will see if he chooses to know reality, is actually quite dark, and not a nice place at all.

The Baha’i view point is quite the opposite. Should we choose to know the Truth, that reality, that world is paradise.

Thus to conclude, if I were sitting in the dusty old chair that Neo was, and given a choice between ignorance and paradise, I don’t think I’d hesitate to take that leap of Faith to investigate further.

I mean what do you have to lose? Only something to gain.

Other than a few calories from a red jelly bean.

Part 2-Coming Soon

“So, you’ve chosen the pill (presumably). What do you do next? What does this mean? Will it mean you have to take part in two poorer sequels? These questions (except the 3^rd) plus more will be answered in Part 2.”

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geoffrey September 22nd, 2008

Sometimes I think back to when I was younger; well, I mean, I only just turned 24. So “younger” is a relative term. I guess also with turning 24 I think of myself less of as a “youth” and certainly not a “pre-youth” or “junior youth”. I’ve hit an age that, at least in my mind, brings with it connotations of blooming adulthood, where life may become more serious. But certainly, how you take life doesn’t have to. In this third post, I promised to talk briefly on the power of youth with regards to language.

I see that one of my co-posters, Negin, has recently published a post entitled “Youth Can Move the World”. I’ll make sure that repetition is limited or negated all together. What I want to talk about today is “horizontal thinking”. Recently I watched a YouTube video of Thomas Friedman on his book “The World is Flat“. He was giving a keynote address at MIT, and though he covered a lot of material, some of which I did not agree with (but this is for another post perhaps), he did touch on one thing that I was really able to latch on to – it was this process of “horizontal thinking“.

The main thrust of this conjecture about the state of the world is that growth in opportunity, coupled with the integration and growing connectivity of the world, has basically made it flat. And that a person’s ability to access a much larger market, or to interact with a variety of other people across the world, has increased at an incredible rate. Thus, our orientation with respect to the rest of the world is side-to-side rather than top-down, which is a break from traditional vertical thinking (where hierarchy rules and systems of class dominance are perpetuated). Horizontal thinking allows us to see greater opportunities for equality and implies devolution of authority and an increased sense of autonomy for the individual.

Now, in one respect, this does nothing to stem the tide of, what a good friend has called, the cult of individualism, but what it does do is allow greater chances for influence — particularly for youth.

I’ve also recently been getting increasingly fascinated with the medium of podcasting. I mean, I’m only about three years late in becoming interested in this form of media. But it’s never too late I guess. And I look at blogging too, of course. Here I am, writing to… no one and everyone… about things just spinning around in my head… and I hope against hope that it is somehow interesting to someone, somewhere.

And now we find ourselves in a burgeoning world of global connectivity, creating these golden threads of light that circumnavigate the world — creating what though? That we can only guess — what will be the outcome of all this? The only thing we can do is to grasp it, use it and exploit it to its fullest and make sure that this mode of connection can help bring us together.

Where are the poets? We are here; we are everywhere.

This servant appealeth to every diligent and enterprising soul to exert his utmost endeavour and arise to rehabilitate the conditions in all regions and to quicken the dead with the living waters of wisdom and utterance, by virtue of the love he cherisheth for God, the One, the Peerless, the Almighty, the Beneficent.

(Baha’u'llah, Tablets of Baha’u'llah, p. 172)

It would be exhaustive at this point to speak of the power of youth, about their potential. What is more important perhaps is how this potential is used. Wisdom and utterance are of the utmost significance with regards to communication. They are the foundations of mutual understanding and beneficial interactions. The youth of today, as we continue to create a virtual mesh over the entirety of the world, need to utilize, must tap into and be educated in these processes that lead to the “quickening” of men.

And especially in a horizontal world, where communication has become the catalyst for so much, the use of wisdom in incredibly important.  There is a passage in the Baha’i writings that says “Be anxiously concerned with the needs of the age in which ye live, and certain your deliberations and exigencies upon it”.  The use of language as a means of power, influence and ultimately love are, in reality, among the greatest goals of today, whether we realize it or not.

The youth of today, indeed, are the vanguard of this endeavor.

O SON OF DUST!
The wise are they that speak not unless they obtain a hearing, even as the cup-bearer, who proffereth not his cup till he findeth a seeker, and the lover who crieth not out from the depths of his heart until he gazeth upon the beauty of his beloved. Wherefore sow the seeds of wisdom and knowledge in the pure soil of the heart, and keep them hidden, till the hyacinths of divine wisdom spring from the heart and not from mire and clay…

(Baha’u'llah, The Persian Hidden Words)

Let me retract me initial statement.  I am a youth.  This is where the real power of civilization-building lies.

O Lord! Make this youth radiant, and confer Thy bounty upon this poor creature. Bestow upon him knowledge, grant him added strength at the break of every morn and guard him within the shelter of Thy protection so that he may be freed from error, may devote himself to the service of Thy Cause, may guide the wayward, lead the hapless, free the captives and awaken the heedless, that all may be blessed with Thy remembrance and praise. Thou art the Mighty and the Powerful.

(Abdu’l-Baha, Baha’i Prayers)

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