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She stood precariously, one foot on the rocks and one in the sea, bare feet with tips of red, gripping earth and sand. She could only wait for so long, could only stand between worlds for as long as a flower took to fully bloom, or maybe as long as it takes for a child to learn the nature of laughter.
Those insistent pieces of her heart, scattered and pulling, tickling at her skin when she tried to forget, trying so hard to be complete again…there was a moment between worlds, and she hesitated. Or…no…perhaps it was he who hesitated, and her shattered, completely whole spirit fell between moments.
The point of falling is to be caught before hitting the ground, to be released before being trapped, and to be chased in order to fall again. That is the supposed order of things.
Clear words are binding, but she learned this
after she was taught clarity. So…all of these little strings tied to bigger strings, and the bigger strings disappeared into the distance behind her, and the beginning was lost.
She turned around, took out a pair of scissors, and with calm and in complete silence, cut every single string. The broken ends trailed after in delightful disarray, and she smiled in that moment.
I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.
How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only? Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust.
For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me; for he wrote of me.
But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words? After these things Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias.
And a great multitude followed him, because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were diseased. And Jesus went up into a mountain, and there he sat with his disciples.
(King James Bible, John)
This weekend I took an impromptu trip to the Sea of Galilee, also known as Lake Kinneret. It is fascinating to visit these places as a Baha’i…not only is there the wealth of Christian history in this area, but also Baha’i history. I’ve posted some pictures of my visit to the area here. I haven’t traveled a lot within Israel, especially since many of the historic places are not generally advisable to visit. It is such a gift to be able to see these places with my own eyes.
Growing up in a Christian country as a member of the Baha’i Faith, I absorbed a lot of things, but seeing these physical locations made me really want to read the Bible all the way through. I started in college, and even attended a Bible study (but was quickly written off as “unlikely to convert” haha), but now I want to gain a better understanding. Especially considering the fact that Baha’is believe in the Divinity of Jesus and consider Him to be a Manifestation of God, just as Abraham, Zoroaster, Krishna, Moses, Buddha, Muhammad, the Bab, and Baha’u'llah.
It also brought home the point that the above passage from the Bible illustrates: that whenever a new Manifestation of God appears on the earth, we reject Him, we turn away and we subject Them to the worst kinds of degredation. And yet God continues to send His Messengers to us. The ultimate form of love.
In any case, it was wonderful to be able to spend the day with my relatives and get out of the city. We were able to visit the resting place of Mirza Muhammad-Quli, a brother of Baha’u'llah. “This great man was known even from his childhood for nobility of soul….he was detached from every selfish thought, averse to every mention except to whatever concerned the Holy Cause.” -Abdu’l-Baha, Memorials of the Faithful, p. 69
This weekend was also interesting because several religious holy days all happened within a few days of each other…and of course, living in Israel, I saw this happening in front of my eyes. Naw-Ruz, of course, is the Baha’i New Year, and there was a celebration here that I attended…it was beautiful. Purim, a Jewish holiday; Good Friday & Easter…suffice to say Haifa was a noisy city for the last few days.
It was so warm on Friday that I spent the morning out on my balcony in the sun.
Sleeping/reading in the sun
homemade flan
old stones and large spaces
balconies
the mix of roses and jasmine at night
doorways
silence at the right moments
orange blossoms
conversations with people at least twice my age
details
Naw-Rúz (the Baha’i New Year)
(I Like: #1,#2,#3, #4, #5, #6)
I remember I listened to this song when he died,
about a car flipping on the turn,
and about God and death and birth.
and I remember I listened to live music through a CD,
cleaning my house to the cheering crowds
of music everyone loves.
and I remember the song with slow sadness
in the heat of summer
with sun-baked skin and sun-bright smiles.
I remember the powerful taste of the violins
as voices cut through phone lines
and history was remade.
and I remember how the music drifted in
at the beginning of spring
as we looked and never spoke.
and I remember the color of eyes
as the softness of “the past and pending”
floated through the hall.
Last night I dreamed
the wind nearly knocked us off of our feet
as the world ended…
my dress swirled in disturbed waves
and arms wrapped around me.
…dawn prayers, with the sun warming me as I looked out over the city, this drowsy and noisy place that is home. 4 hours sleep, but my soul was so alive that it was worth it.
I’ve learned a lot about silence in the last week or two…learning to appreciate it.
Wednesday was my first vacation day since October, and consisted of prayer, movies, talking to friends on the phone, spending time with Mojan and her beautiful baby, sleeping, and finally a talk about departing the World Center. Afterward I went with a friend for McFlurries (it has become a craving recently).
Made the mistake of drinking Persian tea with dinner tonight…was so exhausted. And then…watched “Houseboat” with a few girlfriends, which was perfect for tonight.
Goodnight.
I stood on a tower with darkness and lights below
and in our eyes I saw the doorways to the world
To dwell on memories is the fastest way to go
but our hearts will linger here, and in time I’ll let you know
The light will shine down on us in soundless moments
forever to remember the timeless silence.
The rain that refused to fall from the sky
came from my eyes instead
to wash away the dust that our tired feet raised.
It is easy to get caught up in the excitement of the current election in the USA, but I feel that it is important to be very clear about how I, as a Baha’i, discuss these matters. I decided to write this post after several conversations with friends, reading the news, and observations about the confusion that seems to exist among some Baha’is regarding this issue. These are obviously my personal opinions, and if you want more background I would recommend doing your own research (try downloading Ocean). If you are not a Baha’i, I hope this clarifies some points about how I, personally, respond to political discussions, as well as the nature of Baha’i elections.
I try to apply the principles of a Baha’i election (for which we have very clear guidance) to my attitude toward civil politics.
Bahá’í community life thus makes it a duty for every loyal land faithful believer to become an intelligent, well-informed and responsible elector, and also gives him the opportunity of raising himself to such a station. And since the practice of nomination hinders the development of such qualities in the believers, and in addition leads to corruption and partisanship, it has to be entirely discarded in a Bahá’í elections.”
(From a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer, February 4, 1935)
Baha’i elections are carried out by secret ballot and votes are confidential. Therefore, if I would not say something in reference to a Baha’i election, then I would not say it in reference to a civil election. For example, I would NOT say, “I think one of the members of the Local Spiritual Assembly should be re-elected.”, or “I think so-and-so’s policies are really great, people should vote for them.”
“As regards the non-political character of the Faith,… The friends may vote, if they can do it without identifying themselves with one party or another. To enter the arena of party politics is surely detrimental to the best interests of the Faith and will harm the Cause. It remains for the individuals to so use their right to vote as to keep aloof from party politics, and always bear in mind that they are voting on the merits of the individual, rather than because he belongs to one party or another. The matter must be made perfectly clear to the individuals who will be left free to exercise their discretion and judgement.
(From a letter written on the behalf of Shoghi Effendi to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada, March 16, 1933)
The focal point of the Baha’i Faith is the unification of mankind, and unfortunately the majority of society’s political processes are fundamentally divisive.
The central importance of the principle of avoidance of politics and controversial matters is that Bahá’ís should not allow themselves to be involved in the disputes of the many conflicting elements of the society around them. The aim of the Bahá’ís is to reconcile viewpoints, to heal divisions, and to bring about tolerance and mutual respect among men, and this aim is undermined if we allow ourselves to be swept along by the ephemeral passions of others. This does not mean that Bahá’ís cannot collaborate with any non-Bahá’í movement; it does mean that good judgment is required to distinguish those activities and associations which are beneficial and constructive from those which are divisive.
(The Universal House of Justice, 2003 Jan 12, Taking Positions on Political Decisions of Governments)
There are, of course, a lot of issues facing the world, and as Baha’is we are asked to be an active part of the world around us. We are also exhorted to uphold a high standard, and that includes our speech and how we express our personal opinions. I do think that it is my duty to exercise my right to vote (as long as I don’t have to state party affiliation), and I plan on doing so.
you let silence take us
you, with your wildly inaccurate dreams, me alone in a busy room…
out we went, our years between somehow left on a dusty shelf in your old apartment
the one that was never, ever clean.
I was your muse and sometimes you were mine, but mostly we were.
We are now.
for the first time in what was forever, I left and you left, in different ways.
I am. Always will be, have never changed, and was honest about that.
You will continue to be one of the most creative people I know.
But I no longer know you.
Gone we are down paths I said we would take, over and over,
“this is where you will go, and this is where I will go.”
and you just shook your head.
(remember, I said “I am always right.”)
Somehow, it just keeps happening.
