A Breath of Wisdom

We so often ignore the potential for harm or healing in the words we utter.

From the Indian's gaining power over an animal when they discover its true name to all the varieties of Positive Thinking, people have found ways to tap into the tremendous influence of Speech.

"Utterance must needs possess penetrating power. For if bereft of this quality it would fail to exert influence.

"And this penetrating influence dependeth on the spirit being pure and the heart stainless.

"Likewise it needeth moderation, without which the hearer would be unable to bear it, rather he would manifest opposition from the very outset.

"And moderation will be obtained by blending utterance with the tokens of divine wisdom which are recorded in the sacred Books and Tablets.

"Thus when the essence of one’s utterance is endowed with these two requisites it will prove highly effective and will be the prime factor in transforming the souls of men. This is the station of supreme victory and celestial dominion. Whoso attaineth thereto is invested with the power to teach the Cause of God and to prevail over the hearts and minds of men."

Bahá’u’lláh: Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh, "Tablet to Siyyid-i-Mihdíy-i-Dahají", pp. 198-199

What is Divinity ?

It always surprises me the way so many folk try to drag God down to the human level.

I guess the simplest way I can put it is: the creatures are never as exalted as their Creator and cannot fully understand Him.

Even that word "Him" is a poor human excuse for representing God's true Nature...

"The pictures of Divinity that come to our mind are the product of our fancy; they exist in the realm of our imagination. They are not adequate to the Truth; truth in its essence cannot be put into words.

"Divinity cannot be comprehended because it is comprehending. Man, who has also a real existence, is comprehended by God; therefore, the Divinity which man can understand is partial; it is not complete.

"Divinity is actual Truth and real existence, and not any representation of it.

"Divinity itself contains All, and is not contained."

‘Abdu’l-Bahá: ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in London, "Discourse of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá at St. John’s, Westminster. September 17th, 1911", p. 22

"In the Beginning"?

"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth."

King James Bible, Genesis

This statement from the Bible is true within the context of its Revelation: the book of Genesis was composed between 950 and 750 B.C.

According to our Age and the Gift of Knowledge that God gives us through Science, we could say that the Universe has existed forever [the Big Bang is not the last word in Science's Book . . .]; yet, our Earth and its Heaven or Sky were created within the infinite expanses of Universal Time.

"Know that it is one of the most abstruse spiritual truths that the world of existence — that is to say, this endless universe — has no beginning."

‘Abdu’l-Bahá: Some Answered Questions, Chapter 47: "The Universe is Without Beginning; The Origin of Man", p. 180

"Know assuredly that God’s creation hath existed from eternity, and will continue to exist forever. Its beginning hath had no beginning, and its end knoweth no end. His name, the Creator, presupposeth a creation, even as His title, the Lord of Men, must involve the existence of a servant."

Bahá’u’lláh: Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, Selection LXXVIII, p. 150

"The process of His creation hath had no beginning, and can have no end.

"In every age and cycle He hath, through the splendorous light shed by the Manifestations of His wondrous Essence, recreated all things, so that whatsoever reflecteth in the heavens and on the earth the signs of His glory may not be deprived of the outpourings of His mercy, nor despair of the showers of His favors."

Bahá’u’lláh: Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, Selection XXVI, pp. 61-62

Let's Not Kid Ourselves . . .

If I can exaggerate just a bit for effect: there are as many conceptions of God as there are stars in the sky.

All the way from a friendly Grandpa to a Power that goes beyond anything we creatures can imagine:

"All that the sages and mystics have said or written have never exceeded, nor can they ever hope to exceed, the limitations to which man’s finite mind hath been strictly subjected.

"To whatever heights the mind of the most exalted of men may soar, however great the depths which the detached and understanding heart can penetrate, such mind and heart can never transcend that which is the creature of their own conceptions and the product of their own thoughts.

"The meditations of the profoundest thinker, the devotions of the holiest of saints, the highest expressions of praise from either human pen or tongue, are but a reflection of that which hath been created within themselves, through the revelation of the Lord, their God.

"Whoever pondereth this truth in his heart will readily admit that there are certain limits which no human being can possibly transgress. Every attempt which, from the beginning that hath no beginning, hath been made to visualize and know God is limited by the exigencies of His own creation—a creation which He, through the operation of His own Will and for the purposes of none other but His own Self, hath called into being.

"Immeasurably exalted is He above the strivings of human mind to grasp His Essence, or of human tongue to describe His mystery. No tie of direct intercourse can ever bind Him to the things He hath created, nor can the most abstruse and most remote allusions of His creatures do justice to His being.

"Through His world-pervading Will He hath brought into being all created things. He is and hath ever been veiled in the ancient eternity of His own exalted and indivisible Essence, and will everlastingly continue to remain concealed in His inaccessible majesty and glory. All that is in heaven and all that is in the earth have come to exist at His bidding, and by His Will all have stepped out of utter nothingness into the realm of being.

"How can, therefore, the creature which the Word of God hath fashioned comprehend the nature of Him Who is the Ancient of Days?"

Bahá’u’lláh: Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, Selection CXLVIII, pp. 317-318

Through the Eyes of God . . .

Science has shown that we see from the inside out.

We aren't merely passive acceptors of exterior information.

Unless we believe strongly that sight happens from the outside, in.

Then, we become materialists: "If I can't see it, I don't believe it."

Today's quotes are all about Believing and having that improve our Vision !

"Open Thou, O my Lord, mine eyes and the eyes of all them that have sought Thee, that we may recognize Thee with Thine own eyes."

Bahá’u’lláh: Prayers and Meditations, Selection LVI, pp. 80-81

"Only when the lamp of search, of earnest striving, of longing desire, of passionate devotion, of fervid love, of rapture, and ecstasy, is kindled within the seeker’s heart, and the breeze of His lovingkindness is wafted upon his soul, will the darkness of error be dispelled, the mists of doubts and misgivings be dissipated, and the lights of knowledge and certitude envelop his being. At that hour will the Mystic Herald, bearing the joyful tidings of the Spirit, shine forth from the City of God resplendent as the morn, and, through the trumpet-blast of knowledge, will awaken the heart, the soul, and the spirit from the slumber of heedlessness. Then will the manifold favors and outpouring grace of the holy and everlasting Spirit confer such new life upon the seeker that he will find himself endowed with a new eye, a new ear, a new heart, and a new mind. He will contemplate the manifest signs of the universe, and will penetrate the hidden mysteries of the soul. Gazing with the eye of God, he will perceive within every atom a door that leadeth him to the stations of absolute certitude. He will discover in all things the mysteries of Divine Revelation, and the evidences of an everlasting Manifestation."

Bahá’u’lláh: Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, Selection CXXV, p. 267

Independent Investigation

If we are to be spiritually just, fair, and equitable, we must objectively, independently search out the Truth.

Sometimes, the harder task is to take the portion of Truth we've uncovered and Act On It . . .

"Among these teachings was the independent investigation of reality so that the world of humanity may be saved from the darkness of imitation and attain to the truth; may tear off and cast away this ragged and outgrown garment of a thousand years ago and may put on the robe woven in the utmost purity and holiness in the loom of reality."

‘Abdu’l-Bahá: Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selection #227, p. 298

"The people, therefore, must be set completely free from their old patterns of thought, that all their attention may be focused upon these new principles, for these are the light of this time and the very spirit of this age.

"Unless these Teachings are effectively spread among the people, until the old ways, the old concepts, are gone and forgotten, this world of being will find no peace, nor will it reflect the perfections of the Heavenly Kingdom.

"Strive ye with all your hearts to make the heedless conscious, to waken those who sleep, to bring knowledge to the ignorant, to make the blind to see, the deaf to hear, and restore the dead to life."

‘Abdu’l-Bahá: Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selection #205, pp. 252-253

"...the Company on high..."

There have been a number of posts here that I began with a disclaimer--because many spiritual ideas don't mean what, at first, might be imagined.

Also, many of the posts are what I consider "strong medicine".

I'm certainly not preaching in this blog--fact is, I'm doing it, primarily, as a personal spiritual discipline.

I feel, though, I should interpret one particular phrase of today's quote:

"...this rubbish-heap, the world...".

In other Writings, it's explained that the "world" indicates whatever interposes itself between us and God . . .

"Soon will your swiftly-passing days be over, and the fame and riches, the comforts, the joys provided by this rubbish-heap, the world, will be gone without a trace. Summon ye, then, the people to God, and invite humanity to follow the example of the Company on high. Be ye loving fathers to the orphan, and a refuge to the helpless, and a treasury for the poor, and a cure for the ailing. Be ye the helpers of every victim of oppression, the patrons of the disadvantaged. Think ye at all times of rendering some service to every member of the human race. Pay ye no heed to aversion and rejection, to disdain, hostility, injustice: act ye in the opposite way.

"Be ye sincerely kind, not in appearance only. Let each one of God’s loved ones centre his attention on this: to be the Lord’s mercy to man; to be the Lord’s grace. Let him do some good to every person whose path he crosseth, and be of some benefit to him. Let him improve the character of each and all, and reorient the minds of men. In this way, the light of divine guidance will shine forth, and the blessings of God will cradle all mankind: for love is light, no matter in what abode it dwelleth; and hate is darkness, no matter where it may make its nest. O friends of God! That the hidden Mystery may stand revealed, and the secret essence of all things may be disclosed, strive ye to banish that darkness for ever and ever."

‘Abdu’l-Bahá: Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selection #1, p. 3

The Danger of Borrowed Faith

Believe it or not, it appears God does not want us to blindly follow His Will.

We must make our own spiritual decisions so we can truly Own our Spirituality...

"How often the most insignificant of men have acknowledged the truth, while the most learned have remained wrapt in veils. Thus in every Dispensation a number of souls enter the fire by reason of their following in the footsteps of others."

The Báb: Selections from the Writings of the Báb, "Excerpts from the Persian Bayán", pp. 90-91, citing Váhid IV, Chapter 18

How Serious Is Our Spirituality ?

Ever watched one of those preachers that shouts out the message: "God wants you to have whatever you desire!"

Hmmm...

I think I can agree that God gave us this world as a magnificently provisioned space in which to educate our souls, but . . .

I think some clergy, acting from a desire to swell their membership, preach a rather materialistic brand of spirituality.

A careful reading of today's excerpt will reveal an attitude that appreciates our world while not letting it ensnare our hearts...

"… they that tread the path of faith, they that thirst for the wine of certitude, must cleanse themselves of all that is earthly—their ears from idle talk, their minds from vain imaginings, their hearts from worldly affections, their eyes from that which perisheth. They should put their trust in God, and, holding fast unto Him, follow in His way. Then will they be made worthy of the effulgent glories of the sun of divine knowledge and understanding, and become the recipients of a grace that is infinite and unseen, inasmuch as man can never hope to attain unto the knowledge of the All-Glorious, can never quaff from the stream of divine knowledge and wisdom, 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."

Bahá’u’lláh: The Kitáb-i-Íqán, paragraphs 1-2, pp. 3-4