tongue tied and twisted
just an earth bound misfit
God, I am earthly, make me heavenly.
BURST this cage asunder.
Become free from this earthly prison of self.
Accept dire vicissitudes with radiant acquiescence
And with these hands of renunciation, draw forth from the life giving waters.
Seize this chance for it will come to thee no more.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Resurrection of Christ
It's Easter this weekend and I'm learning new things about Christianity everyday :)
So - there was a talk today about the meaning of Easter, and I feel the speaker made a couple of really good points:
1. Evidence will never be overwhelmingly convincing, because that would negate our role in terms of searching, in having Faith - a means by which the believer can be distinguished from the non-believer. As Baha'u'llah comments in the Kitab-i-Iqan, the general reason that God conceals His meanings in His words, appears to be to divide the peoples of the world:
"Know verily that the purpose underlying all these symbolic terms and abstruse allusions, which emanate from the Revealers of God's holy Cause, hath been to test and prove the peoples of the world; that thereby the earth of the pure and illuminated hearts may be known from the perishable and barren soil. From time immemorial such hath been the way of God amidst His creatures, and to this testify the records of the sacred books." (Baha'u'llah)
The book of Daniel states: "Go thy way Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand."
2. Christ means nothing without the context of God - it doesn't make sense. In the same way now, Christ Himself, doesn't make sense without Baha'u'llah. Even extended to: God, this eternal religion, doesn't make sense without Baha'u'llah. Our creation, our existence, doesn't make sense without Baha'u'llah - just as our existence doesn't make sense without God.
Interesting things he commented on, that I disagree with:
1. That Christ was physically resurrected
2. If Christ wasn't physically resurrected, there would be no point in believing in Him
3. The Kingdom of God refers to conduct of believers on an individual level, as opposed to a social transformation
How could the early believers have accepted Christ before his "resurrection" - what was the grounds whereby they accepted Him?
Is it possible to believe in the Second Coming of Christ, while not believing in a bodily resurrection?
In the context of the Second Coming of Christ having already taken place - what does this mean for the resurrection?
What of the tomb that was found empty?
So, here, as a beautiful summary is 'Abdu'l-Baha's explanation regarding the resurrection:
Question.—What is the meaning of Christ’s resurrection after three days?
Answer.—The resurrections of the Divine Manifestations are not of the body. All Their states, Their conditions, Their acts, the things They have established, Their teachings, Their expressions, Their parables and Their instructions have a spiritual and divine signification, and have no connection with material things. For example, there is the subject of Christ’s coming from heaven: it is clearly stated in many places in the Gospel that the Son of man came from heaven, He is in heaven, and He will go to heaven. So in chapter 6, verse 38, of the Gospel of John it is written: “For I came down from heaven”; and also in verse 42 we find: “And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that he saith, I came down from heaven?” Also in John, chapter 3, verse 13: “And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.”
Observe that it is said, “The Son of man is in heaven,” while at that time Christ was on earth. Notice also that it is said that Christ came from heaven, though He came from the womb of Mary, and His body was born of Mary. It is clear, then, that when it is said that the Son of man is come from heaven, this has not an outward but an inward signification; it is a spiritual, not a material, fact. The meaning is that though, apparently, Christ was born from 104 the womb of Mary, in reality He came from heaven, from the center of the Sun of Reality, from the Divine World, and the Spiritual Kingdom. And as it has become evident that Christ came from the spiritual heaven of the Divine Kingdom, therefore, His disappearance under the earth for three days has an inner signification and is not an outward fact. In the same way, His resurrection from the interior of the earth is also symbolical; it is a spiritual and divine fact, and not material; and likewise His ascension to heaven is a spiritual and not material ascension.
Beside these explanations, it has been established and proved by science that the visible heaven is a limitless area, void and empty, where innumerable stars and planets revolve.
Therefore, we say that the meaning of Christ’s resurrection is as follows: the disciples were troubled and agitated after the martyrdom of Christ. The Reality of Christ, which signifies His teachings, His bounties, His perfections and His spiritual power, was hidden and concealed for two or three days after His martyrdom, and was not resplendent and manifest. No, rather it was lost, for the believers were few in number and were troubled and agitated. The Cause of Christ was like a lifeless body; and when after three days the disciples became assured and steadfast, and began to serve the Cause of Christ, and resolved to spread the divine teachings, putting His counsels into practice, and arising to serve Him, the Reality of Christ became resplendent and His bounty appeared; His religion found life; His teachings and His admonitions became evident and visible. In other words, the Cause of Christ was like a lifeless body until the life and the bounty of the Holy Spirit surrounded it.
Such is the meaning of the resurrection of Christ, and this was a true resurrection. But as the clergy have neither understood the meaning of the Gospels nor comprehended 105 the symbols, therefore, it has been said that religion is in contradiction to science, and science in opposition to religion, as, for example, this subject of the ascension of Christ with an elemental body to the visible heaven is contrary to the science of mathematics. But when the truth of this subject becomes clear, and the symbol is explained, science in no way contradicts it; but, on the contrary, science and the intelligence affirm it.
My favourite thing from His explanations - is how it is emphasized that the spiritual meaning is so much more significant than the literal meaning.
So - there was a talk today about the meaning of Easter, and I feel the speaker made a couple of really good points:
1. Evidence will never be overwhelmingly convincing, because that would negate our role in terms of searching, in having Faith - a means by which the believer can be distinguished from the non-believer. As Baha'u'llah comments in the Kitab-i-Iqan, the general reason that God conceals His meanings in His words, appears to be to divide the peoples of the world:
"Know verily that the purpose underlying all these symbolic terms and abstruse allusions, which emanate from the Revealers of God's holy Cause, hath been to test and prove the peoples of the world; that thereby the earth of the pure and illuminated hearts may be known from the perishable and barren soil. From time immemorial such hath been the way of God amidst His creatures, and to this testify the records of the sacred books." (Baha'u'llah)
The book of Daniel states: "Go thy way Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand."
2. Christ means nothing without the context of God - it doesn't make sense. In the same way now, Christ Himself, doesn't make sense without Baha'u'llah. Even extended to: God, this eternal religion, doesn't make sense without Baha'u'llah. Our creation, our existence, doesn't make sense without Baha'u'llah - just as our existence doesn't make sense without God.
Interesting things he commented on, that I disagree with:
1. That Christ was physically resurrected
2. If Christ wasn't physically resurrected, there would be no point in believing in Him
3. The Kingdom of God refers to conduct of believers on an individual level, as opposed to a social transformation
How could the early believers have accepted Christ before his "resurrection" - what was the grounds whereby they accepted Him?
Is it possible to believe in the Second Coming of Christ, while not believing in a bodily resurrection?
In the context of the Second Coming of Christ having already taken place - what does this mean for the resurrection?
What of the tomb that was found empty?
So, here, as a beautiful summary is 'Abdu'l-Baha's explanation regarding the resurrection:
Question.—What is the meaning of Christ’s resurrection after three days?
Answer.—The resurrections of the Divine Manifestations are not of the body. All Their states, Their conditions, Their acts, the things They have established, Their teachings, Their expressions, Their parables and Their instructions have a spiritual and divine signification, and have no connection with material things. For example, there is the subject of Christ’s coming from heaven: it is clearly stated in many places in the Gospel that the Son of man came from heaven, He is in heaven, and He will go to heaven. So in chapter 6, verse 38, of the Gospel of John it is written: “For I came down from heaven”; and also in verse 42 we find: “And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that he saith, I came down from heaven?” Also in John, chapter 3, verse 13: “And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.”
Observe that it is said, “The Son of man is in heaven,” while at that time Christ was on earth. Notice also that it is said that Christ came from heaven, though He came from the womb of Mary, and His body was born of Mary. It is clear, then, that when it is said that the Son of man is come from heaven, this has not an outward but an inward signification; it is a spiritual, not a material, fact. The meaning is that though, apparently, Christ was born from 104 the womb of Mary, in reality He came from heaven, from the center of the Sun of Reality, from the Divine World, and the Spiritual Kingdom. And as it has become evident that Christ came from the spiritual heaven of the Divine Kingdom, therefore, His disappearance under the earth for three days has an inner signification and is not an outward fact. In the same way, His resurrection from the interior of the earth is also symbolical; it is a spiritual and divine fact, and not material; and likewise His ascension to heaven is a spiritual and not material ascension.
Beside these explanations, it has been established and proved by science that the visible heaven is a limitless area, void and empty, where innumerable stars and planets revolve.
Therefore, we say that the meaning of Christ’s resurrection is as follows: the disciples were troubled and agitated after the martyrdom of Christ. The Reality of Christ, which signifies His teachings, His bounties, His perfections and His spiritual power, was hidden and concealed for two or three days after His martyrdom, and was not resplendent and manifest. No, rather it was lost, for the believers were few in number and were troubled and agitated. The Cause of Christ was like a lifeless body; and when after three days the disciples became assured and steadfast, and began to serve the Cause of Christ, and resolved to spread the divine teachings, putting His counsels into practice, and arising to serve Him, the Reality of Christ became resplendent and His bounty appeared; His religion found life; His teachings and His admonitions became evident and visible. In other words, the Cause of Christ was like a lifeless body until the life and the bounty of the Holy Spirit surrounded it.
Such is the meaning of the resurrection of Christ, and this was a true resurrection. But as the clergy have neither understood the meaning of the Gospels nor comprehended 105 the symbols, therefore, it has been said that religion is in contradiction to science, and science in opposition to religion, as, for example, this subject of the ascension of Christ with an elemental body to the visible heaven is contrary to the science of mathematics. But when the truth of this subject becomes clear, and the symbol is explained, science in no way contradicts it; but, on the contrary, science and the intelligence affirm it.
My favourite thing from His explanations - is how it is emphasized that the spiritual meaning is so much more significant than the literal meaning.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
First teach them...
It is said, one of the ways the earlier believers would teach the Faith, is to first teach that person what their religion truly was. If they're Christian, teach them first about Christ. If they're Muslim, teach them first about Muhammad.
How's this for starting with Christ? I shared it with my Christian friend earlier today, and we had an epic talk about the Baha'i Faith stemming from that. And I want to share this quotation with all of my Christian (and non-Christian friends too), not with the primary purpose of teaching them about the Baha'i Faith, but to share this overwhelming love I feel for Christ, in this beautiful passage - especially the latter half from Baha'u'llah.
Oh, to weep with a great weeping.
"As to the position of Christianity, let it be stated without any hesitation or equivocation that its divine origin is unconditionally acknowledged, that the Sonship and Divinity of Jesus Christ are fearlessly asserted, that the divine inspiration of the Gospel is fully recognized, that the reality of the mystery of the Immaculacy of the Virgin Mary is confessed, and the primacy of Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, is upheld and defended. The Founder of the Christian Faith is designated by Baha'u'llah as the "Spirit of God," is proclaimed as the One Who "appeared out of the breath of the Holy Ghost," and is even extolled as the "Essence of the Spirit." His mother is described as "that veiled and immortal, that most beauteous, countenance," and the station of her Son eulogized as a "station which hath been exalted above the imaginings of all that dwell on earth," whilst Peter is recognized as one whom God has caused "the mysteries of wisdom and of utterance to flow out of his mouth." "Know thou," Baha'u'llah has moreover testified, "that when the Son of Man yielded up His breath to God, the whole creation wept with a great weeping. By sacrificing Himself, however, a fresh capacity was infused into all created things. Its evidences, as witnessed in all the peoples of the earth, are now manifest before thee. The deepest wisdom which the sages have uttered, the profoundest learning which any mind hath unfolded, the arts which the ablest hands have produced, the influence exerted by the most potent of rulers, are but manifestations of the quickening power released by His transcendent, His all-pervasive and resplendent Spirit. We testify that when He came into the world, He shed the splendor of His glory upon all created things. Through Him the leper recovered from the leprosy of perversity and ignorance. Through Him the unchaste and wayward were healed. Through His power, born of Almighty God, the eyes of the blind were opened and the soul of the sinner sanctified.... He it is Who purified the world. Blessed is the man who, with a face beaming with light, hath turned towards Him." -- Shoghi Effendi, The Promised Day is Come, p. 109
How's this for starting with Christ? I shared it with my Christian friend earlier today, and we had an epic talk about the Baha'i Faith stemming from that. And I want to share this quotation with all of my Christian (and non-Christian friends too), not with the primary purpose of teaching them about the Baha'i Faith, but to share this overwhelming love I feel for Christ, in this beautiful passage - especially the latter half from Baha'u'llah.
Oh, to weep with a great weeping.
"As to the position of Christianity, let it be stated without any hesitation or equivocation that its divine origin is unconditionally acknowledged, that the Sonship and Divinity of Jesus Christ are fearlessly asserted, that the divine inspiration of the Gospel is fully recognized, that the reality of the mystery of the Immaculacy of the Virgin Mary is confessed, and the primacy of Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, is upheld and defended. The Founder of the Christian Faith is designated by Baha'u'llah as the "Spirit of God," is proclaimed as the One Who "appeared out of the breath of the Holy Ghost," and is even extolled as the "Essence of the Spirit." His mother is described as "that veiled and immortal, that most beauteous, countenance," and the station of her Son eulogized as a "station which hath been exalted above the imaginings of all that dwell on earth," whilst Peter is recognized as one whom God has caused "the mysteries of wisdom and of utterance to flow out of his mouth." "Know thou," Baha'u'llah has moreover testified, "that when the Son of Man yielded up His breath to God, the whole creation wept with a great weeping. By sacrificing Himself, however, a fresh capacity was infused into all created things. Its evidences, as witnessed in all the peoples of the earth, are now manifest before thee. The deepest wisdom which the sages have uttered, the profoundest learning which any mind hath unfolded, the arts which the ablest hands have produced, the influence exerted by the most potent of rulers, are but manifestations of the quickening power released by His transcendent, His all-pervasive and resplendent Spirit. We testify that when He came into the world, He shed the splendor of His glory upon all created things. Through Him the leper recovered from the leprosy of perversity and ignorance. Through Him the unchaste and wayward were healed. Through His power, born of Almighty God, the eyes of the blind were opened and the soul of the sinner sanctified.... He it is Who purified the world. Blessed is the man who, with a face beaming with light, hath turned towards Him." -- Shoghi Effendi, The Promised Day is Come, p. 109
Monday, March 8, 2010
re: I know I belong somewhere, but where?
Heya ^__^ Last year I found this awesome video about homosexuality and the Baha'i Faith. It explained the rationale for the position of the Baha'i Faith, and what this actually means. The video file is now, corrupted :(, but when I did find it, I actually copied down the words lol so... here are a couple of paragraphs from the talk :)
To understand the Baha'i Faith and its teachings, there's a very central theological concept about the Bahai Faith that needs be considered: that we are essentially spiritual beings that happen to be in a material matrix - that this world, the material world and its impulses are marginal - secondary to our purpose here, which is to develop spiritually. If you're spiritually atoned, you can really just see outside of this material construct. Realizing this is what will bring us closer to God, spirituality and spiritual growth; and contribute to the betterment of the world around us .
If we can break free from these material constructs, we can stop being so materially obsessed. Our passions for luxury and greed, and prestige and whatnot, these things that cause destruction in our world will also dissolve. Fundamentally, as individuals, we need to be free from this material construct.
Realizing we are spiritual beings in a material world, such impulses become marginal and we aren't slaves to them. This idea applies to all facets of Baha'i law. Our laws also keep us from exploiting our material impulses, we're to be free from that...we're to be free from obsessing over those material desires and impulses, we should be outside of that.
In a heterosexual relationship, you cannot have sexual acts outside of marriage, before marriage, and extramarital. For a heterosexual, you're supposed to have pure thoughts, you're supposed to atone yourself. While we can enjoy this material world, it should not be the primary determinant of our actions. However, this is a concept that is very deep and profound, requiring much reflection and study.
The Baha'i writings explain that the primary purpose of marriage is the procreation of children. That's the primary purpose of marriage, and within marriage, the sex impulse is contained. Outside of that, the heterosexual relationship say before marriage and outside of marriage, is exploitation of the material impulse – exploiting it, just seeking physical pleasure from it.
Likewise, in sexual acts of a homosexual nature – there's no practical purpose to it outside of material pleasure That's not to say the Baha'i faith has problems against homosociality – which is often appointed as one and the same as homosexuality. In the Baha'i Writings, when homosexuality is prohibited, it's specifically talking about the sexual impulse. Because this action is fundamentally exploitation of the material impulse.
That's not to say that homosociality, homoromantisism is something that's prohibited in the Baha'i Faith. In fact, the quote from Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Baha'i Faith, on homosexuality, defines that no matter how fine a love between two people of the same sex to let it take form in sexual acts, is really wrong. It's not saying that love between two people of the same sex is wrong. It's not saying that that relationship that you can have between two people of the same sex, is wrong.
It's referring strictly to the sexual act. It's just like two heterosexual people committing sexual acts outside of marriage. Homosexual Baha'is are completely welcome into the Faith, no one's going to tell them what to do...there's a choice, everyone knows what it is...they can participate in the Baha'i Community like anyone else. It's just that sexual act is prohibited in the Baha'i Faith... Just as heterosexuals cannot commit sexual acts that are prohibited in the Baha'i Faith.
Hope you find that interesting/helpful :-)
To understand the Baha'i Faith and its teachings, there's a very central theological concept about the Bahai Faith that needs be considered: that we are essentially spiritual beings that happen to be in a material matrix - that this world, the material world and its impulses are marginal - secondary to our purpose here, which is to develop spiritually. If you're spiritually atoned, you can really just see outside of this material construct. Realizing this is what will bring us closer to God, spirituality and spiritual growth; and contribute to the betterment of the world around us .
If we can break free from these material constructs, we can stop being so materially obsessed. Our passions for luxury and greed, and prestige and whatnot, these things that cause destruction in our world will also dissolve. Fundamentally, as individuals, we need to be free from this material construct.
Realizing we are spiritual beings in a material world, such impulses become marginal and we aren't slaves to them. This idea applies to all facets of Baha'i law. Our laws also keep us from exploiting our material impulses, we're to be free from that...we're to be free from obsessing over those material desires and impulses, we should be outside of that.
In a heterosexual relationship, you cannot have sexual acts outside of marriage, before marriage, and extramarital. For a heterosexual, you're supposed to have pure thoughts, you're supposed to atone yourself. While we can enjoy this material world, it should not be the primary determinant of our actions. However, this is a concept that is very deep and profound, requiring much reflection and study.
The Baha'i writings explain that the primary purpose of marriage is the procreation of children. That's the primary purpose of marriage, and within marriage, the sex impulse is contained. Outside of that, the heterosexual relationship say before marriage and outside of marriage, is exploitation of the material impulse – exploiting it, just seeking physical pleasure from it.
Likewise, in sexual acts of a homosexual nature – there's no practical purpose to it outside of material pleasure That's not to say the Baha'i faith has problems against homosociality – which is often appointed as one and the same as homosexuality. In the Baha'i Writings, when homosexuality is prohibited, it's specifically talking about the sexual impulse. Because this action is fundamentally exploitation of the material impulse.
That's not to say that homosociality, homoromantisism is something that's prohibited in the Baha'i Faith. In fact, the quote from Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Baha'i Faith, on homosexuality, defines that no matter how fine a love between two people of the same sex to let it take form in sexual acts, is really wrong. It's not saying that love between two people of the same sex is wrong. It's not saying that that relationship that you can have between two people of the same sex, is wrong.
It's referring strictly to the sexual act. It's just like two heterosexual people committing sexual acts outside of marriage. Homosexual Baha'is are completely welcome into the Faith, no one's going to tell them what to do...there's a choice, everyone knows what it is...they can participate in the Baha'i Community like anyone else. It's just that sexual act is prohibited in the Baha'i Faith... Just as heterosexuals cannot commit sexual acts that are prohibited in the Baha'i Faith.
Hope you find that interesting/helpful :-)
Life on other planets etc
Regarding the teaching that “every planet its own creatures”, it may be important to consider the meaning of the Persian/Arabic word “khaq”, which is translated as “creature” and can signify any created thing, animate or inanimate. Also, the writings of ‘Abdu’l-Baha state that even “minerals are endowed with a spirt and life according to the requirements of that stage…even as He saith in the Qur’an, ‘All things are living.’” Furthermore, Shoghi Effendi stated that “the creatures which Baha’u'llah states to be found on every planet cannot be considered to be necessarily similar [to] or different from human beings on this earth…It remains for science to discover one day the exact nature of these creatures.” from http://www.onethread.org/arise/?p=132 n__n
I'm just going thru my old stuff@soulpancake.com and finding my favourite stuffs to move here :)
I'm just going thru my old stuff@soulpancake.com and finding my favourite stuffs to move here :)
What of 9?
People ask me all the time.
There's this nifty quote from Shoghi Effendi that really prevents the flourishing of myth, rumour and superstition, where he says,
"Concerning the number nine: the Bahá'ís reverence this for two reasons, first because it is considered by those who are interested in numbers as the sign of perfection. The second consideration, which is the more important one, is that it is the numerical value of the word "Bahá’...
"Besides these two significances the number nine has no other meaning. It is, however, enough to make the Bahá'ís use it when an arbitrary number is to be chosen."
:)
There's this nifty quote from Shoghi Effendi that really prevents the flourishing of myth, rumour and superstition, where he says,
"Concerning the number nine: the Bahá'ís reverence this for two reasons, first because it is considered by those who are interested in numbers as the sign of perfection. The second consideration, which is the more important one, is that it is the numerical value of the word "Bahá’...
"Besides these two significances the number nine has no other meaning. It is, however, enough to make the Bahá'ís use it when an arbitrary number is to be chosen."
:)
Another reason to fast
delayed gratification - to have the self discipline, to delay gratification for longer term good. Something so important that people often don't develop enough in their lives and is really necessary for success - Mum
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