For reflection..
"Whosoever has lost himself, has found the universe and the inhabitants thereof! Whosoever is occupied with himself is wandering in the desert of heedlessness and regret! The master-key of self-mastery is self-forgetfulness. The road to the palace of life is through the path of renunciation."
-Abdu'l-Baha
What does it mean to be forgetful of self?
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Our Highest Destiny
My precious mama sent me this beautiful quote this morning, which I wanted to share because of the hope that it imparts:
"By thy life, O my beloved! if thou didst know what God had ordained for thee, thou wouldst fly with delight and thy happiness, gladness and joy would increase every hour."
-Abdu'l-Baha
These words are a reminder of the high destiny that we have been created to attain, which seems to include the full manifestation of the spiritual qualities with which we have been endowed. Baha'u'llah writes:
"How lofty is the station which man, if he but choose to fulfill his high destiny, can attain!"
"O friends! Be not careless of the virtues with which ye have been endowed, neither be neglectful of your high destiny."
"Imperishable glory I have chosen for thee..."
It is clear that a great destiny has been ordained for us. But there seem to be certain conditions that need to be fulfilled if we are to reach this high destiny. And this is where free will comes in. Although our destiny is great, will we choose to attain it? Will we choose to walk a path of selfless service, of sacrifice, rather than one of comfort and ease? Will we choose to put others before ourselves? Will we seek gifts and blessings for each other rather than wishing them only for ourselves? Will we rejoice in the successes of others? Will we choose to remember our inherent nobility and let our thoughts and actions radiate with the knowledge that we and others have been created noble? Will we choose to recognize the incredible potential that lies within each of us to develop the spiritual qualities and attributes that lie within us like seeds, waiting to be nurtured? Will we patiently persevere in developing these qualities, day after day, even when it seems we cannot try any harder? Will we seek to see in others only that which merits praise? Will we close our eyes to the faults of others and turn all our attention to perfecting our own characters? Will we believe from the deepest corners of our hearts that we are truly one people, regardless of race, religion, economic means, tribe, culture? Will we play our part in contributing to an ever-advancing civilization?
Luckily, we are not left to ourselves to somehow figure out the way..
God sends us His Messengers, who have included Zoroaster, Krishna, Buddha, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad, and today, Baha'u'llah, to guide us, educate us, and teach us how to transform ourselves and contribute to the transformation of society. We are told that, in truth, there is one religion of God, revealed over time through each of these Messengers whose Message is suited according to the needs of the particular age in which They have appeared.
So we know we have a high destiny, we know we have the free will to make certain choices that prepare us for this high destiny, and we have the Word of God revealed by His Messengers to educate us and fill us with the energy that we need to transform our own hearts and contribute to the creation of a new civilization.
So, yes, it's not an easy path, but could we ask for more?
"By thy life, O my beloved! if thou didst know what God had ordained for thee, thou wouldst fly with delight and thy happiness, gladness and joy would increase every hour."
-Abdu'l-Baha
These words are a reminder of the high destiny that we have been created to attain, which seems to include the full manifestation of the spiritual qualities with which we have been endowed. Baha'u'llah writes:
"How lofty is the station which man, if he but choose to fulfill his high destiny, can attain!"
"O friends! Be not careless of the virtues with which ye have been endowed, neither be neglectful of your high destiny."
"Imperishable glory I have chosen for thee..."
It is clear that a great destiny has been ordained for us. But there seem to be certain conditions that need to be fulfilled if we are to reach this high destiny. And this is where free will comes in. Although our destiny is great, will we choose to attain it? Will we choose to walk a path of selfless service, of sacrifice, rather than one of comfort and ease? Will we choose to put others before ourselves? Will we seek gifts and blessings for each other rather than wishing them only for ourselves? Will we rejoice in the successes of others? Will we choose to remember our inherent nobility and let our thoughts and actions radiate with the knowledge that we and others have been created noble? Will we choose to recognize the incredible potential that lies within each of us to develop the spiritual qualities and attributes that lie within us like seeds, waiting to be nurtured? Will we patiently persevere in developing these qualities, day after day, even when it seems we cannot try any harder? Will we seek to see in others only that which merits praise? Will we close our eyes to the faults of others and turn all our attention to perfecting our own characters? Will we believe from the deepest corners of our hearts that we are truly one people, regardless of race, religion, economic means, tribe, culture? Will we play our part in contributing to an ever-advancing civilization?
Luckily, we are not left to ourselves to somehow figure out the way..
God sends us His Messengers, who have included Zoroaster, Krishna, Buddha, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad, and today, Baha'u'llah, to guide us, educate us, and teach us how to transform ourselves and contribute to the transformation of society. We are told that, in truth, there is one religion of God, revealed over time through each of these Messengers whose Message is suited according to the needs of the particular age in which They have appeared.
So we know we have a high destiny, we know we have the free will to make certain choices that prepare us for this high destiny, and we have the Word of God revealed by His Messengers to educate us and fill us with the energy that we need to transform our own hearts and contribute to the creation of a new civilization.
So, yes, it's not an easy path, but could we ask for more?
Monday, September 1, 2008
Side by side
"So free must be your thoughts of any trace of prejudice--racial, religious, economic, national, tribal, class, or cultural--that even the stranger sees in you loving friends."
The above is an excerpt from a letter of the Universal House of Justice, supreme governing body of the Baha'i Faith, addressed this past spring to the Baha'is of the world.
A couple of days ago, I was thinking about the humility that is needed to overcome prejudice. If we feel we are completely free of it, then how will we be able to muster up (paraphrasing Shoghi Effendi): the ceaseless exertions called for, the care and vigilance demanded, the moral courage and fortitude required, the tact and sympathy necessitated, to eliminate every trace of prejudice from our minds and hearts?
Abdu'l-Baha writes about racial prejudice:
"Throughout the animal kingdom we do not find the creatures separated because of color. They recognize unity of species and oneness of kind. If we do not find color distinction drawn in a kingdom of lower intelligence and reason, how can it be justified among human beings, especially when we know that all have come from the same source and belong to the same household?"
May we strive to translate into reality this next quote on a daily basis:
"Let all associate, therefore, in this great human garden even as flowers grow and blend together side by side..."
(Abdu'l-Baha, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 69)
The above is an excerpt from a letter of the Universal House of Justice, supreme governing body of the Baha'i Faith, addressed this past spring to the Baha'is of the world.
A couple of days ago, I was thinking about the humility that is needed to overcome prejudice. If we feel we are completely free of it, then how will we be able to muster up (paraphrasing Shoghi Effendi): the ceaseless exertions called for, the care and vigilance demanded, the moral courage and fortitude required, the tact and sympathy necessitated, to eliminate every trace of prejudice from our minds and hearts?
Abdu'l-Baha writes about racial prejudice:
"Throughout the animal kingdom we do not find the creatures separated because of color. They recognize unity of species and oneness of kind. If we do not find color distinction drawn in a kingdom of lower intelligence and reason, how can it be justified among human beings, especially when we know that all have come from the same source and belong to the same household?"
May we strive to translate into reality this next quote on a daily basis:
"Let all associate, therefore, in this great human garden even as flowers grow and blend together side by side..."
(Abdu'l-Baha, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 69)
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