The current pandemic, like any previous crisis, has brought out the best and the worst of human nature. There are those in this country who are convinced the ONLY reason that there is a big deal being made about COVID-19 is to keep their favoured candidate(s) for political office from winning. Their opposites are saying pretty much the same thing about the handling of emergency funds. The bottom line: It’s about ME!
Yes, and no. Every human being has to take stock of a situation, no matter how widespread or dire, with regard to his/her personal circumstances. That’s fine, but then. the considerations must become more community-focused, then nation-focused, and, finally, globally-focused. To their credit, there are people at all points along the political spectrum, and in all Faiths, who see the big picture. Christians recognize that God is calling us all to the Altar. Buddhists are having global chants via digital platforms. Muslims have, by and large, not insisted on in-house gatherings, during this season of Ramadan. We Baha’is, likewise, are thriving with digital meetings, of various kinds, as well. There are those, in both the conservative camp and the liberal camp, who resist the loud voices calling for “liberation” and defiance of any regulation, on the one hand, and for open-ended quarantine and forced digital identification, on the other.
The future course of action will be decided, in my humble opinion, by conditions that exist at the ground level. I also feel, very strongly, that the length of the pandemic will be determined, to a huge extent, by how much of a community dedication there is to revamping the way we go about our community life. Do we respect those who have no choice but to go to work? Do we respect our children enough to find ways to honour their needs for exploration and activity-indeed, do we respect those needs in EVERYONE? Are we willing to stop the daily dogpiles on those who see things differently than we do, and just listen for once? Do we want to honour the health of our elders and those whose immune systems are compromised?
One of my advisers says that we are rapidly approaching a fork in the road, as to how our society, how all societies on Earth, will go forward. There will be a choice between communal thinking, based on “the hurt of one is the hurt of all”, and a positive view of the future AND a greed-based, control-oriented mindset (seen on both right and left), with a cynical, negative view of this life. I, for one, think the choice is quite clear.
I joined a small talking circle, as part of a weekly class on the subject. One of the members began talking. His talk led him from one painful episode of his past to another. When he reached the end of his often tearful recounting-and expressed gratitude for the place his journey had brought him, we were all awestruck, and humbled.
The customary rule of a talking circle is that everyone gets a chance to speak. With three minutes left, before we were brought back into the Great Circle, the remaining three of us each managed to make a meaningful introduction of ourselves. It was not a hard thing to do.
These are far from normal times. The task of those involved in imparting healing energy is, more than ever, to do so one soul at a time. This was an intense twenty minutes, and I believe it made all the difference in the world, to someone who had likely not been really heard, for a good long time.
He spoke softly, but his story reached crescendo levels.
(I am, at the age of 69, unlikely to be called to serve in any real capacity, by humanitarian agencies, but it helps to gain this perspective, in case of any unforeseen emergencies, even in this country.)
As I bid farewell to my Baha’i friends, after the Zoom call that commemorated the First Day of Ridvan, I found a message, essentially telling me I was part of a greater problem, for having attended the Holy Day observance.
Ridvan is Persian for “paradise”. The Garden of Ridvan was a salubrious place, just outside Baghdad. In 1863, Baha’u’llah and His family were preparing to obey the edict of the Ottoman Empire’s Sultan, and depart Baghdad for Constantinople (Istanbul). They camped in Ridvan Garden for twelve days, April 21-May 2. As we use a lunar calendar, called the Badi Calendar, to reckon our Holy Days, the actual dates may fluctuate, as they have this year. So, today is the Festival’s first day and May 1, the twelfth day. In between, there is a commemoration of the ninth day, during which Baha’u’llah revealed His Station, as Messenger of God, to His family and camp followers. We Baha’is commemorate all three days, as sacred.
No one who knows me really thinks I sit around and am content to merely observe ritual or tradition. At the same time, observing special occasions with friends is NOT wrong, nor is it wasteful. There are those, however, who feel it their duty to savage people, for whatever reason they have cooked up in their minds. My inclination is to not let their diatribes turn me aside from what I know to be my spiritual path. One of my spiritual advisers urges me to stay on my path, and I’m sure that. were I to consult the others, they would agree.
There will, no doubt, be many changes coming our way, in the immediate future and throughout this decade. The 24/7 nature of our news and communications have many people in an uproar. Some will make risky choices and suffer for them, possibly taking others down with them. Others will want to make choices FOR others, offering to take control of many lives-“in the name of scientific progress”. I will, as I’ve said recently, make my own choices and they will take both my needs, and those of the multitude whom I love, into consideration. For that matter, I will consider the safety and well-being of those who attack me, as well. God created them, too, even if they don’t see it.
This has been a year of meticulously taking one day at a time-and it will continue as such, well after COVID19 has subsided.
Today would have been the start of Earth Week, commemorating the 50th anniversary of Earth Day One. As it happened, I spent quality time (2 hours) watching and listening to young people talking about their concerns regarding Mother Earth. Few are really blaming all of the mess on the human race, but each made the point that we are not blameless, nor are we powerless, in the face of the climate challenge. Youth groups and the Farmers’ Market are my anchors, in this Center that is my Home Base.
There are also four spiritual posts, one in each direction, that help me stay centered, and which have connections to one another, and to the Center.
East– The Baha’i Faith originated in Iran, spread gradually in all directions, and is now found in nearly every nation on Earth, with its World Centre being in Haifa, Israel. The Teachings of Baha’u’llah have confirmed my lifelong conviction that there is only one Race,the Human Race, and that all religious teachings emanate from One Creator. This eastern spiritual post has led me to the others. http://www.bahai.org
South– Elizabeth Peru is based in Adelaide, South Australia. I was drawn to her website, was introduced to her daily guided meditations and insights into the interaction between Earth and all other elements of the Cosmos. These meditations and observations both affirm and enrich my own. The southern spiritual post affirms my connectedness with all living beings. http://www.elizabethperu.com
West– Earth Rising, based in San Francisco, also focuses on the connectedness of all beings on the planet and in the innate spirituality of mankind. I was drawn to this site, through other Baha’i friends on social media. It’s a private group on Facebook, yet I feel abundantly welcome, and affirmed here. I join in regular digital conferencing of this group and its affiliate, Gaia Calling. New members are welcomed, through Earth Rising’s Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/groups/1039631319395983/
North– Chief Phil Lane is a longtime Baha’i friend and well-deepened Lakota spiritual guide. His Four Worlds International Institute, in the Vancouver area of British Columbia, is in many ways a North Star. I have deep genetic memory of being connected to First Nations people, especially those of the eastern woodlands. Four Worlds has graciously welcomed me into its fold, with regular digital conferencing, for the time being. http://www.fwii.net
In the midst of the current turmoil, I have increasingly felt the need for these four posts, and for my center. There is, I feel, a new society rising out of all that is happening, and all that remains to happen, in the foreseeable future. Those who live their truth have little cause for alarm.
The young girl read her poem She thanked Coronvirusdisease2019, for bringing things to a halt, for making us take notice of one another and for showing us that we need to use our time more wisely.
I joined a Zoom call this morning, with people from Jordan to New Zealand, from Bolivia to Alaska, joining together in prayer, and a short series of Talking Circles, organized by the Four Worlds International Institute, a spiritual connectedness center, run by First Nations people, in Surrey, BC-south of Vancouver.
Most of the time was spent in prayer and thoughtful remarks. The young girl and her father, Bedouins from Jordan, offered very cogent remarks about the state of the planet and fervent prayers for all humanity to recover fully, from the current crisis. They were followed, not long after, by an Israeli Jew, singing a prayer in Hebrew.
This session lasted two hours, and will be followed, on a daily basis, by a Mayan gentleman, offering a prayer at sunrise. It will be followed, on a weekly basis, each Thursday until May 21, by a similar prayers and Talking Circle format.
A Talking Circle, for those not familiar with it, is a small group of people talking from their hearts, one at a time. Customarily, a Talking Stick is held by the person whose turn it is to speak. No one else may speak until that person finishes. A person may not have a second turn holding the stick, until everyone in the circle has had a chance to speak-though one with nothing to share may pass the stick to the next person.
In the current, digital format, the unmute button serves as Talking Stick. Everyone remains muted, except the person whose turn it is to speak. Six of us, three from Arizona and others from as far away as Norway and Fiji, spoke briefly in introduction to one another. I am sure the conversations will become deeper, as the weeks progress.
This sort of discourse will be where the ideas for spiritual regeneration come.
When Jesus the Christ was slain on the cross, He did not give up the ghost and simply resurrect Himself, on the third day after His demise. More importantly, He rekindled the Faith of His disciples and sent them forth to spread His Teachings, which alone were able to redirect a distracted and frightened world, as the Roman Empire was starting to witness the seeds of its hubris grow into the trees of destruction.
Millions around the world take solace, each Spring/Fall, in the knowledge that we are never left alone, by our Creator. Buddhists have recently commemorated the Birth of Gautama Siddhartha. For Jews, this comfort comes with Pesach(Passover). Christians find it in today’s observance of Resurrection Sunday and next Sunday’s Pascha, the Day of Resurrection observed by Orthodox Christians. Muslims will begin Ramadan at the end of this month. We Baha’is will observe Ridvan, the twelve day festival, commemorating Baha’u’llah’s first proclamation of His Station, from April 20-May 1, the time when He and His family were preparing for exile from Baghdad to Istanbul (then still called Constantinople).
This sacred time, if we see with open eyes and hearts, blesses humanity, and our earthly home, as a whole. Naturists and animists recognize the Divine Presence that comes around the time of the Vernal Equinox and which revisits us, in Autumn. Thus has the Resurrection of Christ had implications for all humanity, from the day of its occurrence on forward. God has blessed us with bounty and fertility, which are apparent to all who see with unclouded eyes.
It is now our turn to resurrect all that is sacred about life on Earth: Compassion, listening with both ear and heart, a collective consciousness and plan of action, a workable and universal plan for distribution of the Earth’s bounty-so that none feel useless, starve or go without a measure of comfort. These cannot be accomplished from the top down, as some have suggested. Things which are forced on people, breed resentment and a desire for vengeance. This is something that both “high” and “low” alike need to bear in mind. It is essential that neither greed, nor a false sense of superiority, motivate the former. It is also needful that neither envy nor despair compel the latter to act in ways that will bring everyone down further. We need look no further than the French Revolution, or the rise and fall of the totalitarians of mid-20th Century Europe and Japan, to draw the necessary lessons.
Our resurrection, and that of Earth itself, will require heartfelt movement from both top and bottom.
“God works in mysterious ways.” “Nothing happens until something moves”. “_____________died for your sins.”
Today is Good Friday, the “good” part was explained to me, when I was a child, as being due to the sacrifice made by Jesus the Christ on that day; a sacrifice that showed God’s love for mankind and gave the human race another lease on the life of the spirit. There is a great case to be made for the poswer of atonement. For Christians, and all those who came after them-Muslims, Sikhs and Baha’is, that atonement includes recognizing the Divine Nature of Jesus.
I will not go into theology any further, here. The most meaningful aspect of Good Friday, for me as a Baha’i, is that it serves as an ever present example, and presently the most universally well-known example, of God showing each of us how to face a situation of supreme, and supremely unjust, deprivation and suffering, and then turn it around to shower love upon all-even those who perpetrated the injustice. It is God telling all men-“Even when you hurt Me, My love for you is undiminished.”
The life stories of all Messengers of God contain persistent and often misunderstood, elements of intense personal suffering. The Passion of the Christ is the best known of these, and it’s well that His Crucifixion and Death serve to remind us of the supremacy of the Creator’s eternal Love. That Love would be further demonstrated, three days later.
A Sagittarian Seeker 