After a long hiatus, we return to the second of the twelve principles of the Bahá'í Faith. This would be the Independent Investigation of the Truth. Previously, we have covered this idea while studying the first two paragraphs of the Kitáb-i-Íqán. The first paragraph begins with the deceleration, "No man shall attain the shores of the ocean of true understanding except he be detached from all that is in heaven and on earth."
Before we continue, we must define what man is. In The Divine Philosophy, 'Abdu'l-Bahá breaks up the idea into three parts. You have the soul, the mind and the spirit. He writes, by "the soul we mean the motive power of this physical body which lives under its entire control in accordance with its dictates." Thus, the soul is in control of everything we do. There are two natures of the soul, one which may be compared to darkness and the other to light. The soul is in charge of our free will, thus it allows us to go either way. However, referring to the Seven Valleys, we need to make it the Will of God, hence we teach and pray to give life to our soul, thus allowing us to make good decisions (by good, meaning to following the Will of God).
After the soul, we fall to the mind "which unfolds to his vision the secrets of existence... whereby he may investigate the reality of every object." The mind is the power of comprehension. We are very curious beings, taking our surroundings and manipulating them to our advantage. Though many of our thoughts are simply neurons charging through the brain as action potentials, there must be more to it than that. It really comes together from evolution. As animals evolved from the sponge to anemone to shellfish, sensory organs began to form. Eyes sensed the light and changes in light would be noticed and could either mean danger or safety. Taste and smell became tests for food with many nutrients or food which was dangerous to eat. Hearing could sense nearby enemies or prey to catch. Touch allowed the body to know it was being attacked. These senses became centralized in a super-organ called the brain. Here, the mind and storage areas were created as memories so that we could keep everything we had learned and build from it. It allowed for greater and more efficient survival. Today, rather than solely memorizing places good for food, we also use the mind for discovery of natural laws which guide our world and which we can manipulate to our advantage.
Finally, we come to the spirit "which is an emanation from the divine bestower... the effulgence of the sun of reality, the radiation of the celestial world, the spirit of faith..." It can perhaps be better described as the divine energy which gives us eternal life. We learn about the twin dichotomies of being and doing. Being is simply the existence where the mind and soul exist. However doing is within the realm of the spirit as it is what causes us to rise above simple existence and use whatever capabilities we have for our own benefit. 'Abdu'l-Bahá writes, "that although the souls of humanity are living, yet if they are deprived of contact with the spirit they are as dead." Since it is with our free will that we learn to worship God, praying and service are as life to the soul while wandering in the mist of promiscuity is as death. The spirit is our desire to reach this highest end-both physically (witnessed through our lives) and spiritually (witnessed through our dreams). We need to learn to activate both ends of the spectrum in order to complete our lives.
Through the soul, man chooses good or evil; through the mind, man comprehends his surroundings; through the spirit, man has energy for both the soul and the mind. The three work together in order to create our being. So when Bahá'u'lláh writes, "No man shall attain the shores of the ocean of true understanding except he be detached from all that is in heaven and on earth," He is speaking of all three components of our existence. The soul must follow the right path towards God, the mind must give up what it has stored as knowledge which will keep it from falsely negating truth and the spirit must be the energy which causes this detachment on both ends.
So why is this Independent Investigation of the Truth a good idea? In religions of old, there were priests and other clergymen which controlled the day to day activities of everybody. They interpreted the Writings and the commoners accepted whatever was told of them as true. However, during those times, many people did not have the ability to read or write-they did not have the time to learn. Instead, they would have one person designated to do this job and he was almost as a keeper of knowledge.
Today, literacy is becoming universal. Due to education becoming available for all people (hence the Universal Education as another major principle of the Bahá'í Faith), almost everybody has the ability to read and write and decide for themselves what they think is true rather than simply blindly following somebody else. Our minds were made to manipulate and understand; what is its use if we simply listen to another person? Man "can never enter the abode of immortality, nor partake of the cup of divine nearness and favour, unless and until he ceases to regard the words and deeds of mortal men as a standard for the true understanding and recognition of God and His Prophets." It is not to the words of other people we turn to when trying to comprehend but to the words of God and our own minds to see what we can understand.
This does not mean we should not try to explain things to others. It is wonderful to share our own ideas and build upon each other. We are social beings and have the ability to teach one another. Why waste time learning something for oneself if one can learn it faster from another? However, we need to always have proof and validation for whatever is claimed. We must also never force somebody else to accept an idea which they do not believe. This is contrary to the Independent Investigation of Truth.
The spirit is necessary for both ends for our progression.
Next time we will cover the Unity of Religion
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Friday, September 4, 2009
The Oneness of the World and Humanity
Many people look at the Twelve Principles of the Bahá'í Faith and scoff. "The Oneness of the World and Humanity? Of course we are all equal! How is that a principle of your religion?" These principles were brought right after the American Civil War, at a time when the Jim Crow Laws were just being formed. Now, today, I walk around my college campus and see Asians, Indians, Africans, Caucasians, Latin Americans, Middle Easterners and many other races merged together, studying together and working together.
But I step outside and into the world. I see bigotry and hatred. People think that their race is the supreme race. That they are the most important, the wisest.
The beauty of the First Principle is that the other Eleven stem from it. We always talk about World Peace. We want peace on earth, but how can this be accomplished without unity? This Oneness of the World and Humanity is the beginning. The next Eleven Principles build the idea of Peace on Earth.
As 'Abdu'l-Bahá puts it in His Paris Talks, "All men are servants of the One God. One God reigns over all the nations of the world and has pleasure in all His children. All men are of one family; the crown of humanity rests on the head of every human being." If this be the case, why then do we fight amongst ourselves. It is funny really. When we go to war over land, we are essentially going to war over land in which we will be buried. Yes, we may grow crops on this land-but this is only temporary. This physical life is momentary while the life after death is eternal.
It is very true that one can say we have different talents and capabilities. The Valley of Unity from Bahá'u'lláh's Seven Valleys makes note of this fact. However, it is this inequality that we are equal. Somebody is a good runner, while another is an incredible swimmer. Somebody is excellent at logic and reasoning, while another is a talented speaker. We have different qualities to share amongst ourselves.
So, how do we bring about unity? Let us think about from the perspective of the Seven Valleys. The first valley, the Valley of Search, brought the idea of being detached from our bias. The second valley, the Valley of Love, made us realize we love everything for the sake of our love for God. The third valley, the Valley of Knowledge, allows us to see our own knowledge is nothing in comparison to the Knowledge of God. After surpassing these three valleys, we enter the Valley of Unity. Now let us look at this in terms of humanity. If we as humanity leave behind our biases of each other, love one another as brothers and sisters and realize our own knowledge (we can assume this to mean forms of government as sources of unity that mortals created) is nothing in the sight of God's Knowledge, then we can enter the Valley of Unity and truly be united as humanity. We can thus understand that the Seven Valleys are more than just a singular journey, but also a plural one.
In The Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, Bahá'u'lláh asserts, "Justice and equity are twin Guardians that watch over men. From them are revealed such blessed and perspicuous words as are the cause of the well-being of the world and the protection of the nations." This idea of justice stems from the Kitáb-i-Aqdas where the laws of the Bahá'í Faith may be found. Such laws are to bring about justice in a united society and make sure that humanity is kept in order. Without order, anarchy is born and anarchy is simply a state where every man is for himself and there is no unity.
"Ye are the fruits of one tree, and the leaves of one branch. Deal ye one with another with the utmost love and harmony, with friendliness and fellowship... So powerful is the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth... Exert yourselves that ye may attain this transcendent and most sublime station, the station that can insure the protection and security of all mankind. This goal excelleth every other goal, and this aspiration is the monarch of all aspirations. So long, however, as the thick clouds of oppression, which obscure the daystar of justice, remain undispelled, it would be difficult for the glory of this station to be unveiled to men’s eyes..."
-Epistle to the Son of the Wolf
Oppression of the peoples of the earth is another barrier to complete unity. In His letters to the kings and rulers of earth (see Summons of the Lord of Hosts), Bahá'u'lláh lays this foundation and offers each ruler the key to unity, but they all refused-from Napoleon III of France to Sultan Abdu'l-Aziz of the Ottoman Empire. Looking at history, you see every ruler which did not follow the rules of unity (forced or by choice) had his empire collapse.
Unity is the key to peace and stability.
But I step outside and into the world. I see bigotry and hatred. People think that their race is the supreme race. That they are the most important, the wisest.
The beauty of the First Principle is that the other Eleven stem from it. We always talk about World Peace. We want peace on earth, but how can this be accomplished without unity? This Oneness of the World and Humanity is the beginning. The next Eleven Principles build the idea of Peace on Earth.
As 'Abdu'l-Bahá puts it in His Paris Talks, "All men are servants of the One God. One God reigns over all the nations of the world and has pleasure in all His children. All men are of one family; the crown of humanity rests on the head of every human being." If this be the case, why then do we fight amongst ourselves. It is funny really. When we go to war over land, we are essentially going to war over land in which we will be buried. Yes, we may grow crops on this land-but this is only temporary. This physical life is momentary while the life after death is eternal.
It is very true that one can say we have different talents and capabilities. The Valley of Unity from Bahá'u'lláh's Seven Valleys makes note of this fact. However, it is this inequality that we are equal. Somebody is a good runner, while another is an incredible swimmer. Somebody is excellent at logic and reasoning, while another is a talented speaker. We have different qualities to share amongst ourselves.
So, how do we bring about unity? Let us think about from the perspective of the Seven Valleys. The first valley, the Valley of Search, brought the idea of being detached from our bias. The second valley, the Valley of Love, made us realize we love everything for the sake of our love for God. The third valley, the Valley of Knowledge, allows us to see our own knowledge is nothing in comparison to the Knowledge of God. After surpassing these three valleys, we enter the Valley of Unity. Now let us look at this in terms of humanity. If we as humanity leave behind our biases of each other, love one another as brothers and sisters and realize our own knowledge (we can assume this to mean forms of government as sources of unity that mortals created) is nothing in the sight of God's Knowledge, then we can enter the Valley of Unity and truly be united as humanity. We can thus understand that the Seven Valleys are more than just a singular journey, but also a plural one.
In The Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, Bahá'u'lláh asserts, "Justice and equity are twin Guardians that watch over men. From them are revealed such blessed and perspicuous words as are the cause of the well-being of the world and the protection of the nations." This idea of justice stems from the Kitáb-i-Aqdas where the laws of the Bahá'í Faith may be found. Such laws are to bring about justice in a united society and make sure that humanity is kept in order. Without order, anarchy is born and anarchy is simply a state where every man is for himself and there is no unity.
"Ye are the fruits of one tree, and the leaves of one branch. Deal ye one with another with the utmost love and harmony, with friendliness and fellowship... So powerful is the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth... Exert yourselves that ye may attain this transcendent and most sublime station, the station that can insure the protection and security of all mankind. This goal excelleth every other goal, and this aspiration is the monarch of all aspirations. So long, however, as the thick clouds of oppression, which obscure the daystar of justice, remain undispelled, it would be difficult for the glory of this station to be unveiled to men’s eyes..."
-Epistle to the Son of the Wolf
Oppression of the peoples of the earth is another barrier to complete unity. In His letters to the kings and rulers of earth (see Summons of the Lord of Hosts), Bahá'u'lláh lays this foundation and offers each ruler the key to unity, but they all refused-from Napoleon III of France to Sultan Abdu'l-Aziz of the Ottoman Empire. Looking at history, you see every ruler which did not follow the rules of unity (forced or by choice) had his empire collapse.
Unity is the key to peace and stability.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
The Basic Twelve Principles of the Bahá'í Faith
Thus far, we have focused on the Bahá'í Faith as an individualistic effort to come to peace and reach complete detachment from all things but God. It may seem that the Bahá'í Faith is a very Dharmastic religion, but there is much more to it than that.
As mentioned in the first post, the Bahá'í Faith is a universal religion whose purpose is the unification of all the people's of the earth under one universal cause and one common faith. Through prayer and detachment, we only reach unity within ourselves, but there is an idea of outer unity. This is the idea of the unification of the world.
Bahá'u'lláh gave us the blue prints for personal and global unity. The Seven Valleys and the Hidden Words offer us advice and methods for our growth and for own personal unity. Much of the rest of His work, including, but not limited to, the Kitáb-i-Íqán (Book of Servitude), Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, Summons of the Lord of Hosts and His Tablets (some of which are found in Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh), focus on the idea of global unity.
Every day for the next twelve days we will focus on the Twelve Principles of the Bahá'í Faith.
Do not take these as the only principles of the Bahá'í Faith. In Paris Talks, 'Abdu'l-Bahá offers the following eleven as the Teachings of Bahá'u'lláh to focus on. Whenever we can, we will draw from His Wisdom to understand the twelve mentioned above. From 'Abdu'l-Bahá:
Do not take the next few entries as what the Bahá'í Faith is. Rather, they are teachings that the Bahá'í Faith offers amidst an ocean of many more.
What we studied together regarding our journey to God merges with the principles of the Bahá'í Faith and its Teachings under on single book- Kitáb-i-Aqdas.
Until next time.
As mentioned in the first post, the Bahá'í Faith is a universal religion whose purpose is the unification of all the people's of the earth under one universal cause and one common faith. Through prayer and detachment, we only reach unity within ourselves, but there is an idea of outer unity. This is the idea of the unification of the world.
Bahá'u'lláh gave us the blue prints for personal and global unity. The Seven Valleys and the Hidden Words offer us advice and methods for our growth and for own personal unity. Much of the rest of His work, including, but not limited to, the Kitáb-i-Íqán (Book of Servitude), Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, Summons of the Lord of Hosts and His Tablets (some of which are found in Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh), focus on the idea of global unity.
Every day for the next twelve days we will focus on the Twelve Principles of the Bahá'í Faith.
- The Oneness of the World and Humanity
- The Independent Investigation of Truth
- The Foundation of Religion is One
- Religion Must be the Source of Unity
- Religion Must be in Accord with Science and Reason
- The Equality of Man and Woman
- Removal of all Prejudice (including but not limited to religious, racial, national or political
- Universal Peace
- Universal Education
- A Spiritual Solution to Economic Problems
- A Universal Language
- An International Tribunal, or Parliament of Nations-The Universal House of Justice with the Davidic Gardens
Do not take these as the only principles of the Bahá'í Faith. In Paris Talks, 'Abdu'l-Bahá offers the following eleven as the Teachings of Bahá'u'lláh to focus on. Whenever we can, we will draw from His Wisdom to understand the twelve mentioned above. From 'Abdu'l-Bahá:
I.—The Search after Truth. |
Do not take the next few entries as what the Bahá'í Faith is. Rather, they are teachings that the Bahá'í Faith offers amidst an ocean of many more.
What we studied together regarding our journey to God merges with the principles of the Bahá'í Faith and its Teachings under on single book- Kitáb-i-Aqdas.
Until next time.
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