Scholarship and spirituality blend seamlessly at Baha'i conferencePosted : September 14, 2007 - 4:13pm | Terms : News | Human Interest
Michael Penn, a Baha'i and an associate professor of psychology at Franklin and Marshall College in Pennsylvania, was headed for the 31st Annual Conference of the ABS (Association for Baha'i Studies-North America) in Ontario, Canada, and found himself seated next to another scholar on the plane.
Michael PennDuring the course of their conversation, Mr. Penn felt moved to share how the spiritual forces of intellect, will and love help shape civilization. "Your ideas are wrong," the man responded, and then proceeded to soliloquize for half an hour on Mr. Penn's "inadequate thinking." This caused Mr. Penn, for all his learning and convictions, to feel very small indeed -- and thankful he soon would be among those who not only welcomed, but sought out, others' opinions.
Indeed, the Association for Baha'i Studies was formed in 1975 to offer scholars an opportunity to present the results of their research and exchange ideas. The Baha'i approach to scholarship encourages people to assume "a humble posture of learning" and opens up dialogue to more than just those with a PhD. Anyone who can demonstrate a serious approach to the study of a subject may apply to present his or her findings at an ABS conference.
This year's ABS conference, "Scholarship and Community Building," offered presentations by Baha'is and non-Baha'is on the intersection of the Baha'i writings with research in the fields of science, literature and the arts. Approximately 1,200 participants came from a variety of backgrounds and ranged in age from a 15-year-old high school junior to an 85-year-old English professor.
Mr. Penn's paper centered on the protection and refinement of the human spirit, inspired by the words of Abdu'l-Baha:
"Verily, Thy lovers, thirst, O my Lord . . . robe them in the garments of learning and knowledge."
Mr. Penn's talk was poetic and incisive, encouraging as well as scholarly, full of hope and meaning, calling humanity to its noble destiny. Using the knowledge of scholar-activists from Confucius and Socrates to present-day thinkers, he emphasized that the development of civilization and knowledge must include the cultivation of spiritual forces that animate the mind and heart.
Mr. Penn concluded by saying he was in the presence, at this conference, of many of the most cultivated minds on this planet. A rousing ovation followed his words, and no listener was made to feel small.
I]t is our duty to put forth our greatest efforts and summon all our energies in order that the bonds of unity and accord may be established among mankind. ... Now is the time to associate together in love and harmony." --'Abdu'l-Bahá
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The blog spirit :---> UNITY UNITY UNITY
The well-being of mankind, its peace and security, are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established. Bahá'u'lláh
-- We must seek the fragrance of the rose from whatever bush it is blooming -- whether oriental or western.
Be seekers of light, no matter from which lantern it shines forth.
Be not lovers of the lantern.
At one time the light has shone from a lantern in the East, now in the West. If it comes from North, South, from whatever direction it proceeds, follow the light.
DISCLAIMER : THIS BLOG IS A PERSONAL INITIATIVE
Opinions expressed or implied
does not necessarily constitutes
the opinions of the Bahá'í Faith
-- We must seek the fragrance of the rose from whatever bush it is blooming -- whether oriental or western.
Be seekers of light, no matter from which lantern it shines forth.
Be not lovers of the lantern.
At one time the light has shone from a lantern in the East, now in the West. If it comes from North, South, from whatever direction it proceeds, follow the light.
DISCLAIMER : THIS BLOG IS A PERSONAL INITIATIVE
Opinions expressed or implied
does not necessarily constitutes
the opinions of the Bahá'í Faith
Is peace possible on the planet
Human-kind have come to the world in innumerable numbers, and passed away; their physical bodies and that which belonged to them passes away with them.Their health and disease both passed away. Their restand hardship both vanished. Their wealth and povertyended. Their honor and misery terminated. But the reality of man is immortal. The spirit of man is everlasting.It is the spirit to which importance is to be attached.The difference (between spirit and body) is this, thatone will enter the realm of enlightenment whereas the other will fall into the world of darkness.
--Star of the West Magazine
Vol. 14, No. 1, April, 1923
From the Pilgrim Notes of
Mrs. I. D. Brittingham
Acca, October, 1909
================
O people of the earth! The first Glad-Tidings which the Mother Book hath, in this Most Great Revelation, imparted unto all the peoples of the world is that the law of holy war hath been blotted out from the Book. Glorified be the All-Merciful, the Lord of grace abounding, through Whom the door of heavenly bounty hath been flung open in the face of all that are in heaven and on earth. -- Baha'u'llah
Tablets of Baha'u'llah p. 21
===========================
Islam attained a very high spiritual state, but western scholars are prone to judging it by Christian standards. One cannot call one world Faith superior to another, as they all come from God; they are progressive, each suited to certain needs of the times. Shoghi Effendi
From a letter written on his behalf
to an individual believer.
November 19, 1945
Compilations Lights of Guidance p. 494
=========================
...By Thy glory! Every time I lift up mine eyes unto Thy heaven, I call to mindThy highness and Thy loftiness, and Thine incomparable glory and greatness;and every time I turn my gaze to Thine earth, I am madeto recognize the evidences of Thy power and the tokensof Thy bounty.And when I behold the sea, I find that it speaketh to me ofThy majesty, and of the potency of Thy might, and of Thy sovereignty and Thy grandeur.And at whatever time I contemplate the mountains, I am led to discover the ensigns of Thy victory and the standards of Thine omnipotence. Baha'u'llah
Prayers and Meditations p. 271
===========================
--Star of the West Magazine
Vol. 14, No. 1, April, 1923
From the Pilgrim Notes of
Mrs. I. D. Brittingham
Acca, October, 1909
================
O people of the earth! The first Glad-Tidings which the Mother Book hath, in this Most Great Revelation, imparted unto all the peoples of the world is that the law of holy war hath been blotted out from the Book. Glorified be the All-Merciful, the Lord of grace abounding, through Whom the door of heavenly bounty hath been flung open in the face of all that are in heaven and on earth. -- Baha'u'llah
Tablets of Baha'u'llah p. 21
===========================
Islam attained a very high spiritual state, but western scholars are prone to judging it by Christian standards. One cannot call one world Faith superior to another, as they all come from God; they are progressive, each suited to certain needs of the times. Shoghi Effendi
From a letter written on his behalf
to an individual believer.
November 19, 1945
Compilations Lights of Guidance p. 494
=========================
O CONCOURSE of Christians! .....
Ye make mention of Me, and know Me not. Ye call upon Me, and are heedless of My Revelation.... O people of the Gospel! They who were not in the Kingdom have now entered it, whilst We behold you, in this day, tarrying at the gate. Rend the veils asunder by the power of your Lord, the Almighty, the All-Bounteous, and enter, then, in My name My Kingdom. Thus biddeth you He Who desireth for you everlasting life... Baha'u'llah
The Proclamation of Baha'u'llah p. 91
And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name. Isaiah 62:2
Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.
===========================
...By Thy glory! Every time I lift up mine eyes unto Thy heaven, I call to mindThy highness and Thy loftiness, and Thine incomparable glory and greatness;and every time I turn my gaze to Thine earth, I am madeto recognize the evidences of Thy power and the tokensof Thy bounty.And when I behold the sea, I find that it speaketh to me ofThy majesty, and of the potency of Thy might, and of Thy sovereignty and Thy grandeur.And at whatever time I contemplate the mountains, I am led to discover the ensigns of Thy victory and the standards of Thine omnipotence. Baha'u'llah
Prayers and Meditations p. 271
===========================
THE SPIRITUAL COUPLETS
OF MAULANA JALALU-'D-DlN MUHAMMAD RUMI
HEARKEN to the reed-flute, how it complains,Lamenting its banishment from its home:"Ever since they tore me from my osier bed,My plaintive notes have moved men and women to tears.I burst my breast, striving to give vent to sighs,And to express the pangs of my yearning for my home.He who abides far away from his homeIs ever longing for the day ho shall return.My wailing is heard in every throng,In concert with them that rejoice and them that weep.Each interprets my notes in harmony with his own feelings,But not one fathoms the secrets of my heart.My secrets are not alien from my plaintive notes,Yet they are not manifest to the sensual eye and ear.Body is not veiled from soul, neither soul from body,Yet no man hath ever seen a soul."This plaint of the flute is fire, not mere air.Let him who lacks this fire be accounted dead!'Tis the fire of love that inspires the flute,l'Tis the ferment of love that possesses the wine.The flute is the confidant of all unhappy lovers;Yea, its strains lay bare my inmost secrets.Who hath seen a poison and an antidote like the flute?Who hath seen a sympathetic consoler like the flute?The flute tells the tale of love's bloodstained path,It recounts the story of Majnun's love toils.None is privy to these feelings save one distracted,As ear inclines to the whispers of the tongue.Through grief my days are as labor and sorrow,My days move on, hand in hand with anguish.Yet,, though my days vanish thus, 'tis no matter,Do thou abide, O Incomparable Pure One! 2But all who are not fishes are soon tired of water;And they who lack daily bread find the day very long;So the "Raw" comprehend not the state of the "Ripe;" 3Therefore it behoves me to shorten my discourse.Arise, O son! burst thy bonds and be free!How long wilt thou be captive to silver and gold?Though thou pour the ocean into thy pitcher,It can hold no more than one day's store.The pitcher of the desire of the covetous never fills,The oyster-shell fills not with pearls till it is content;Only he whose garment is rent by the violence of loveIs wholly pure from covetousness and sin.Hail to thee, then, O LOVE, sweet madness!Thou who healest all our infirmities!Who art the physician of our pride and self-conceit!Who art our Plato and our Galen!Love exalts our earthly bodies to heaven,And makes the very hills to dance with joy!O Iover, 'twas love that gave life to Mount Sinai, 4When "it quaked, and Moses fell down in a swoon."Did my Beloved only touch me with his lips,I too, like the flute, would burst out in melody.But he who is parted from them that speak his tongue,Though he possess a hundred voices, is perforce dumb.When the rose has faded and the garden is withered,The song of the nightingale is no longer to be heard.The BELOVED is all in all, the lover only veils Him; 5The BELOVED is all that lives, the lover a dead thing.When the lover feels no longer LOVE's quickening,He becomes like a bird who has lost its wings. Alas!How can I retain my senses about me,When the BELOVED shows not the light of His countenance?LOVE desires that this secret should be revealed,For if a mirror reflects not, of what use is it?Knowest thou why thy mirror reflects not?Because the rust has not been scoured from its face.If it were purified from all rust and defilement,It would reflect the shining of the SUN Of GOD.6O friends, ye have now heard this tale,Which sets forth the very essence of my case.*NOTES:1. Love signifies the strong attraction that draws all creatures back to reunion with their Creator.2. Self-annihilation leads to eternal life in God the universal Noumenon, by whom all phenomena subsist. See Gulshan i Raz, I. 400.3. "Raw" and "Ripe" are terms for "Men of externals" and "Men of heart" or Mystics.4. Alluding to the giving of the law on Mount Sinai. Koran vii. 139.5. All phenomenal existences (man included) are but "veils" obscuring the face of the Divine Noumenon, the only real existence, and the moment His sustaining presence is withdrawn they at once relapse into their original nothingness. See Gulshan i Raz, I. 165.6. So Bernard of Clairvaux. See Gulshan i Raz, I. 435.
(Mathnavi of Rumi (E.H. Whinfield tr), The Masnavi Vol 1)
OF MAULANA JALALU-'D-DlN MUHAMMAD RUMI
HEARKEN to the reed-flute, how it complains,Lamenting its banishment from its home:"Ever since they tore me from my osier bed,My plaintive notes have moved men and women to tears.I burst my breast, striving to give vent to sighs,And to express the pangs of my yearning for my home.He who abides far away from his homeIs ever longing for the day ho shall return.My wailing is heard in every throng,In concert with them that rejoice and them that weep.Each interprets my notes in harmony with his own feelings,But not one fathoms the secrets of my heart.My secrets are not alien from my plaintive notes,Yet they are not manifest to the sensual eye and ear.Body is not veiled from soul, neither soul from body,Yet no man hath ever seen a soul."This plaint of the flute is fire, not mere air.Let him who lacks this fire be accounted dead!'Tis the fire of love that inspires the flute,l'Tis the ferment of love that possesses the wine.The flute is the confidant of all unhappy lovers;Yea, its strains lay bare my inmost secrets.Who hath seen a poison and an antidote like the flute?Who hath seen a sympathetic consoler like the flute?The flute tells the tale of love's bloodstained path,It recounts the story of Majnun's love toils.None is privy to these feelings save one distracted,As ear inclines to the whispers of the tongue.Through grief my days are as labor and sorrow,My days move on, hand in hand with anguish.Yet,, though my days vanish thus, 'tis no matter,Do thou abide, O Incomparable Pure One! 2But all who are not fishes are soon tired of water;And they who lack daily bread find the day very long;So the "Raw" comprehend not the state of the "Ripe;" 3Therefore it behoves me to shorten my discourse.Arise, O son! burst thy bonds and be free!How long wilt thou be captive to silver and gold?Though thou pour the ocean into thy pitcher,It can hold no more than one day's store.The pitcher of the desire of the covetous never fills,The oyster-shell fills not with pearls till it is content;Only he whose garment is rent by the violence of loveIs wholly pure from covetousness and sin.Hail to thee, then, O LOVE, sweet madness!Thou who healest all our infirmities!Who art the physician of our pride and self-conceit!Who art our Plato and our Galen!Love exalts our earthly bodies to heaven,And makes the very hills to dance with joy!O Iover, 'twas love that gave life to Mount Sinai, 4When "it quaked, and Moses fell down in a swoon."Did my Beloved only touch me with his lips,I too, like the flute, would burst out in melody.But he who is parted from them that speak his tongue,Though he possess a hundred voices, is perforce dumb.When the rose has faded and the garden is withered,The song of the nightingale is no longer to be heard.The BELOVED is all in all, the lover only veils Him; 5The BELOVED is all that lives, the lover a dead thing.When the lover feels no longer LOVE's quickening,He becomes like a bird who has lost its wings. Alas!How can I retain my senses about me,When the BELOVED shows not the light of His countenance?LOVE desires that this secret should be revealed,For if a mirror reflects not, of what use is it?Knowest thou why thy mirror reflects not?Because the rust has not been scoured from its face.If it were purified from all rust and defilement,It would reflect the shining of the SUN Of GOD.6O friends, ye have now heard this tale,Which sets forth the very essence of my case.*NOTES:1. Love signifies the strong attraction that draws all creatures back to reunion with their Creator.2. Self-annihilation leads to eternal life in God the universal Noumenon, by whom all phenomena subsist. See Gulshan i Raz, I. 400.3. "Raw" and "Ripe" are terms for "Men of externals" and "Men of heart" or Mystics.4. Alluding to the giving of the law on Mount Sinai. Koran vii. 139.5. All phenomenal existences (man included) are but "veils" obscuring the face of the Divine Noumenon, the only real existence, and the moment His sustaining presence is withdrawn they at once relapse into their original nothingness. See Gulshan i Raz, I. 165.6. So Bernard of Clairvaux. See Gulshan i Raz, I. 435.
(Mathnavi of Rumi (E.H. Whinfield tr), The Masnavi Vol 1)
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