punishment :: Baha'i Perspectives

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A Punishment to Fit

iman January 19th, 2009

Sometimes I’m disappointed in my words or actions especially if I feel I’ve contradicted my beliefs. Disappointed, not so much for fear of punishment, but more out of a sense of shame in the sight of God. Actually I’d be really happy (sort of) to accept my due punishment. How, then, would I know what the punishment is/was/will be? I realized its something too complex to ponder for too long and that we’ll never be able to fathom even the slightest of the essence of true reward and punishment, true Justice; God’s Justice. I read this quote, by the Bab, recently and it has had me thinking ever since:

Indeed shouldst Thou desire to confer blessing upon a servant Thou wouldst blot out from the realm of his heart every mention or disposition except Thine Own mention; and shouldst Thou ordain evil for a servant by reason of that which his hands have unjustly wrought before Thy face, Thou wouldst test him with the benefits of this world and of the next that he might become preoccupied therewith and forget Thy remembrance.

This quote threw my rudimentary ideas of reward and punishment into disarray….”hmmmmm, that lottery I won was a reward from God?…. no wait, was it a punishment?” It seems that to try to compartmentalize one’s life (our limited understanding may make us do so) into a series of ‘good’ and ‘bad’, ‘rewards’ and ‘punishments’ would be entirely false. With regards to justice, Baha’u'llah says:

The structure of world stability and order hath been reared upon, and will continue to be sustained by, the twin pillars of reward and punishment. And in another connection He hath uttered the following in the eloquent tongue: Justice hath a mighty force at its command. It is none other than reward and punishment for the deeds of men. By the power of this force the tabernacle of order is established throughout the world, causing the wicked to restrain their natures for fear of punishment.

Suggestions of what we can do — instead of dwelling on the dubieties of reward and punishment — are to reflect on our actions, strive to correct these actions if necessary, move on with the understanding that God’s grace and forgiveness will deal with us justly at some stage in our earthly life (or afterlife), and all the while to remember:

Worship thou God in such wise that if thy worship lead thee to the fire, no alteration in thine adoration would be produced, and so likewise if thy recompense should be paradise. Thus and thus alone should be the worship which befitteth the one True God. Shouldst thou worship Him because of fear, this would be unseemly in the sanctified Court of His presence, and could not be regarded as an act by thee dedicated to the Oneness of His Being. Or if thy gaze should be on paradise, and thou shouldst worship Him while cherishing such a hope, thou wouldst make God’s creation a partner with Him, notwithstanding the fact that paradise is desired by men. Fire and paradise both bow down and prostrate themselves before God. That which is worthy of His Essence is to worship Him for His sake, without fear of fire, or hope of paradise.”