Thought vs. action

There are numerous places in the Baha'i writings where the value of deeds over words is highly exalted. Baha'u'llah says in the Hidden Words, "Say, O brethren! Let deeds, not words, be your adorning."

The word "adorning" is rather appropriately used here, and I'll let you muse about it on your own. Meanwhile, it seems like there are two ways in which we could slip into the tendency of making words, and not deeds, our adorning.

1. Doing some good deeds, but also talking a lot about them: This is where our ego comes into play - we do something good, kind, noble - but want to publicize it to everyone so the world can know how good, kind and noble we are. Unfortunately this thought process in itself pushes us backward along the spiritual path and in some subtle way reduces our goodness, kindness or nobility. Abdu'l Baha, in one of his Paris talks, says, "A man who does great good, and talks not of it, is on the way to perfection." Apart from making us proud and egoistic, talking a lot about our deeds with the intention of glorifying ourselves also prevents us from doing more good deeds - after all, we do have a finite amount of time in our lives, and a minute spent in the adulation of oneself is a minute lost in doing service to the world. It behooves us, therefore, to focus our energies on action, rather than speech. Of course, this does not negate the importance of communication - one does need to share one's ideas with others, communicate the need for good deeds and so on. However, the attitude with which this is done is of paramount importance.

2. Having great, noble and idealistic thoughts - but not translating them into action: This is the classical philosopher's stance - of one who thinks/says and lot and does little. Such an attitude is the result both of indolence and egotism. We like to think noble, idealistic thoughts - and feel happy in the knowledge that at least we are thinking good. But we often lack the motivation to actually go and do something that expresses the idea behind those thoughts/ideals - or other, more mundane things take priority and we just lose sight of the larger picture. Either way, we often theorize a lot without actually acting.

Abdu'l Baha beautifully summarizes how this serves as a true litmus test to distinguish the philosopher from the realized spiritual teacher. He says:

"To this class the majority of philosophers belong, their teachings being high above their actions. This is the difference between philosophers who are Spiritual Teachers, and those who are mere philosophers: the Spiritual Teacher is the first to follow His own teaching; He brings down into the world of action His spiritual conceptions and ideals. His Divine thoughts are made manifest to the world. His thought is Himself, from which He is inseparable. When we find a philosopher emphasizing the importance and grandeur of justice, and then encouraging a rapacious monarch in his oppression and tyranny, we quickly realize that he belongs to the first class: for he thinks heavenly thoughts and does not practice the corresponding heavenly virtues."

Fly high

O SON OF DESIRE!

How long wilt thou soar in the realms of desire? Wings have I bestowed upon thee, that thou mayest fly to the realms of mystic holiness and not the regions of satanic fancy. The comb, too, have I given thee that thou mayest dress My raven locks, and not lacerate My throat.

-- Baha'u'llah

The flowering of knowledge

O SON OF MY HANDMAID!

Quaff from the tongue of the merciful the stream of divine mystery, and behold from the dayspring of divine utterance the unveiled splendor of the daystar of wisdom. Sow the seeds of My divine wisdom in the pure soil of the heart, and water them with the waters of certitude, that the hyacinths of knowledge and wisdom may spring up fresh and green from the holy city of the heart.

-- Baha'u'llah

The greatest gift

The greatest gifts, I realized this weekend, that God has generously showered upon each one of us, are our friends and loved ones. I feel truly blessed to have the friends I have, for the love they express, the thoughtfulness of their actions, and the care they lavish upon me. I can only hope that I am able to return that in equal measure.

Reaffirming what I said in a previous post, life truly is ever so precious.

Good vs. bad

Something very interesting I just read - contrary to many philosophies, in the Baha'i faith, there is no dualism of Good and Bad. The Baha'i concept of bad is that it is either

1. the absence of good: and so darkness is the absence of light, dishonesty is the absence of honesty, and so on.

or

2. the incompatibility between two good things: and so, for example, men and poisonous snakes are incompatible, but that does not make snakes "bad".

If we really think about it, all the different occasions we label people or actions as "bad" can easily be fit into these two categories. It is when we believe that things/people are intrinsically bad that we let negative emotions take over positive emotions - and so hate replaces love, war replaces unity. Instead if we believed that people were innately good (as they all come from God), and have all the virtues of God embedded in them, but commit "bad" actions because they have not realized this, it changes the complete attitude we have towards them. Our role, in our interactions with others, then, is not to find the faults in them, but rather to harvest the fruits of goodness in them.

Prayer

Yesterday's study circle discussion revolved largely around prayer - and there is a lot to say about that. But I'm just going to be lazy and refer you back to a previous post of mine on prayer here

Happy reading! :)

Color

Today as i biked in to campus, I saw this house with a path leading up to it. And covering that path was the most beautiful arched canopy of deep lilac flowers. It was just the most lovely thing ever...

Every day as i bike to work this spring i notice something new, something different, some bit of color here, a unique flower there. And it just makes me realize how beautifully varied and colorful God has made this world, what an intricate tapestry he has woven for us to rejoice and revel in. The never-ending bounties of nature always seem to me to be one of the purest reflections of the infinite beauty of God...

It also reminded me of these lines from the song "Bum bum bole" from the recently released Hindi movie, Taare Zameen Par (a must see for all those who haven't seen it). This part of the song goes:

"Aisi rangon bhari apni duniya hai kyun
Socho toh socho na
Pyar se chunke in rangon ko
Kisi ne sajaya yeh sansar hai
Jo itni sundar hai apni duniya
Upar wala kya koi kalakaar hai"

Loosely translated, it says, "Why is our world so full of color? Think and wonder... Someone has lovingly chosen all these colors and decorated it. Our world is so beautiful, surely the One above (God) must be an artist?"

Life is so precious, isnt it?

This is the day

"This is the Day in which God's most excellent favors have been poured out upon men, the Day in which His most mighty grace hath been infused into all created things. It is incumbent upon all the peoples of the world to reconcile their differences, and, with perfect unity and peace, abide beneath the shadow of the Tree of His care and loving-kindness. It behoveth them to cleave to whatsoever will, in this Day, be conducive to the exaltation of their stations, and to the promotion of their best interests."

-- Baha'u'llah

A mine of gems

"Regard man as a mine rich in gems of inestimable value. Education can, alone, cause it to reveal its treasures, and enable mankind to benefit therefrom."

-- Baha'u'llah

We studied the above quote today in our newly begun study circle in the context of the education of children. The quote gives a very strong sense of the ideal attitude of a teacher towards teaching children. The standard view of education is one where one views it as filling empty vessels - so we all supposedly come into the world with no knowledge, and the purpose of education is to give us that knowledge.

In sharp contrast, the above quote talks about humans not as empty vessels, but as "mines rich in gems of inestimable value". Therefore, we are already born with a lot of talents and qualities and virtues lying latent within us - and so the true role of a teacher is really to mine those qualities and bring them out.

This is in particular true when it comes to spiritual education - and so we do not teach our kids values that they never possessed - rather, our job is to bring out those virtues that already exist within them in a potential form. Humans are intrinsically regarded as noble beings - and therefore we are all credited with a Higher Self, one which has the capacity to reflect all the qualities of God. And it is true spiritual education that enables us to tap these capacities, bring them out and express them for the benefit of mankind. It is therefore the teacher's responsibility to enable each child to realize the existence of these priceless gems within himself/herself, and bring them to fruition. Such an act is considered the highest form of service, and equivalent to the worship of God.

This view of humans and education seems totally remarkable to me - especially when I think back to my days in school, and consider the nature of our entire education system. If only it were based on love, and a recognition that each child is special and possesses innate talents, how different would the interactions between teachers and students be! If teachers taught of their students not just as some people they are required to teach - but if instead each student were considered a unique and beautiful creation of God - how much more rewarding would the processes of both teaching and learning be!

Thoughts

"When a thought of war comes, oppose it by a stronger thought of peace. A thought of hatred must be destroyed by a more powerful thought of love. "

-- Abdu'l Baha

Through this period of fasting, I have found myself ruminating on the above quote to a greater and greater extent. I find myself much more conscious of my thoughts, words and actions, and on multiple occasions have caught myself thinking/doing something which I probably shouldn't be - and have tried to change that. This has made me realize how much power there is in one's thoughts - and how, through the power of one's will and determination, one can overcome the most negative of emotions. And the key, as the quote says above, is not to just try and not think negative thoughts - but rather, to replace any negative thought with a more powerful positive one. If you dislike something about a situation - find something positive in it to focus on. If you feel turned off by something a friend says/does - focus on their positive actions instead. If you're angry at someone - think of the last thing they did that made you very happy. If you are repelled by some quality in someone - find some quality in them that really attracts you to them.

The more I'm able to incorporate this principle in my most routine daily thoughts and actions, the more I find it gives me peace of mind and a feeling of well-being towards all.

There is of course a looooooong way to go yet... :)