THE EARTH IS BUT ONE COUNTRY

JOHN HUDDLESTON

The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United Kingdom

1976/1988

PART IV

Chapter 2: The Time for World Unity

A – The Unifier

Bahá’u’lláh was born in Persia in 1817. His father was a minister of the Sháh. As a youth Bahá’u’lláh was known for his intelligence and sensitivity and it was expected that one day He also would be a minister of the crown. Instead, at an early age, He chose to lead a life of meditation and of giving assistance to the poor and He took no part in the activities of high society.

In 1844 another young man, named the Báb, publicly declared in Shíráz, Persia, that a great World Educator was about to appear to reform religion and society. Without a moment’s hesitation Bahá’u’lláh became one of His staunchest supporters. Thousands followed the Báb, and a frightened and reactionary priesthood and government, seeing a threat to their own position, organized a most ferocious persecution in the course of which the Báb was publicly executed (1850), and thousands of His followers were murdered, tortured, imprisoned, or driven into exile. Bahá’u’lláh was stripped of His property and rights, and He and His family were rendered destitute. He was beaten, imprisoned, tortured, imprisoned again and then exiled to Baghdád, in the Ottoman Empire.

During the period of imprisonment Bahá’u’lláh came to understand that it was his destiny to be that World-Educator foretold by the Báb. After several years of preparation for this immense task He announced His mission, first to His companions (1863) and then to the world at large (1867-68). After several years in Baghdád, the Ottoman Government ordered Him first to Constantinople, then to Adrianople and finally to Akká, Palestine, where He spent the last 24 years of His life until His death in 1892.

The Writings which Bahá’u’lláh left behind fill one hundred volumes. In this and the next six chapters an attempt will be made to outline some of the themes which run through these volumes and to say how they are related to the needs of mankind today. The discussion will first touch on the Bahá’í view of the nature of the universe and man’s place in it, then with man as a spiritual and intellectual being, and finally with man and society.

In addition to the words of Bahá’u’lláh, reference will be made to those of Abdu’l-Bahá (1844-1921) Who was Bahá’u’lláh’s eldest son and from youth onwards, His Father’s closest companion throughout His life and Whom He appointed to lead the nascent Bahá’í Community after His death. There will be many quotations too from the writings of Abdu’l-Bahá’s grandson, Shoghi Effendi Rabbani who, from 1921 until his death in 1957, guided the Faith in the establishment of its institutional framework.

After discussing these themes, there will be in Chapter 8 a short history of the Bahá’í Faith, including brief accounts of the lives of the Báb, Bahá’u’lláh, Abdu’l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi.

B – The Unknowable Essence

Bahá’í writings describe the physical universe as consisting of units of energy which are continually forming and reforming into larger units of matter according to a universal law of attraction, repulsion, composition and decomposition.

“Love is the most great law that ruleth this mighty and heavenly Cycle, the unique power that bindeth together the divers elements of this material world, the supreme magnetic force that directs the movements of the spheres in the celestial realms.”

The highest and most complex form of matter is that which has not only the power of growth, reproduction, and sensory perception but also the ability to conceive ideas beyond itself – transcendental power. This is man.
The Bahá’í view is that the universe is not an accident but the creation of some force outside itself. That unseen force is God.
Abdu’l-Bahá explained that it was unreasonable of man to think that he could know the essence of God.
Although provable by rational argument (see page 30), in the last resort having a sense of the existence of God is very much a personal experience and each person must resolve his own questions.

Nevertheless it is sometimes useful to hear of the experience of others because they may sound a note of recognition. Acceptance of the idea of God came to the writer, for instance, not so much from rational argument nor even from meditation on nature, though these approaches had provoked much reflection and self-questioning, as from straightforward study of the Bahá’í Writings. In those parts of the Writings where he felt competent to make an independent judgment as a normal thinking human being, it became clear that their profundity and breadth exceeded anything previously thought possible and he could not but take on trust from such an Author what was written on subjects of a nature which were outside our normal understanding. The evidence seemed to be overwhelming that the first steps toward a truly just civilization can be taken only after man humbles himself before God. It is suggested to the reader who has difficulties with the idea of God that he keep his patience awhile and discover more of what the Bahá’í Faith means in practical terms before making any judgment.

C – The nature of man

The Bahá’í view is that man has potential for both good and evil. Man has two sides to his nature: the lower self which is associated with his physical “animal” needs, and the higher self, the distinguishing characteristic of man, which is the ability to think and feel independently of his own immediate desire.
When his higher self is cultivated and grows then man is extending himself and he is on the way to fulfillment. If his lower self acquires a position of dominance then he sinks into himself, down to a level far below his potential, indeed below that of the animal, for an animal has powerful instinct against excess to protect itself.
Within limits man has the free choice of following the pull of either self.

This means responsibility for one’s own actions. However, Bahá’í Writings make it clear that the circumstances of men’s lives vary greatly, some having much greater difficulties to contend with than others, and that is what is important is not so much absolute standards as how far a man has progressed toward the highest standards from his point of departure. The Writings also show that as man responds to his higher nature it becomes easier to do so again. Nobility can be a habit just as easily as meanness. It is the function of religion, indeed of all true education, to cultivate the habit of nobility. When man stretches himself and begins to fulfil his potential then indeed he is the glory of creation!

D – The spiritual evolution of man

There have been numerous theories to explain the meaning of the history of man.

The Bahá’í view of history is that what is significant is spiritual history: man’s growth as a moral being, his understanding of the true nature of the universe, and his purpose in it.
History in reality is about the growth of the higher nature of man. Evolution did not stop at the creation of physical man but continues with the growth of his spiritual awareness.
Bahá’ís believe that though man is free to choose between the pull of the two parts of his nature, there are limits beyond which he cannot develop his higher potential without external assistance, for it takes inspiration and imagination beyond that of a man to show him his own unsuspected potentiality.
The normal sources of knowledge, empirical investigation and rational deduction and induction are inadequate. The required inspiration and imagination comes at certain critical points in the cycles of history from great “Educators”, or “Manifestations of God”, Who have perspective and extraordinary insight into the meaning of life.

The Educators are the Founders of the great religions. Many lived before recorded history; others have come to societies who have lost much of their record of the past. Those Whom we do have some knowledge of are Abraham, Moses, Krishna, Buddha, Zoroaster, Jesus, Muhammad, and now the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh.

Bahá’í Writings distinguish two aspects to the teachings of these Educators. First, they all have in common the same universal themes which must govern man’s attitude toward God, his fellowmen and the universe at large: love, justice, detachment from personal desire, honesty, selflessness, faithfulness, humility, forgiveness, charity, obedience, mercy, trustworthiness, sincerity, truthfulness, moderation. These truths are not just words. When a society forgets them, the resulting pain is sharp and deep. Secondly, each includes social teachings appropriate to the level of development of the society existing at the time. These social teachings are the practical guidelines for the application of the general themes in day-to-day life.

As a pupil progresses through a school, each teacher in turn builds on what the pupil was taught in his previous class.
So, too, with the great Educators; Each has the greatest love and respect for His Predecessors, speaks of Them as His equals and far from destroying Their work, strengthens and adds to it.
Not only did the Educators recognize Their Predecessors but They have also had the vision to see that the need would continue. In Their teachings They would refer to Their own return, not as a bodily reincarnation as some have mistakenly believed, but in the spirit.
Bahá’u’lláh Himself said that as new problems arose in the distant future then new guidance would be needed and a new Educator would arise to provide it. He said that such an Educator would not come for at least one thousand years.
In short, all the great religions have been as one for the worship of one God and for the advancement of mankind.

This theme is of the utmost importance in providing a basis for the unity of mankind. It means that men of all religions may have common belief concerning the most significant aspects of existence, without having to deny the essence of their previous belief. If men were to remain divided on questions concerning their deepest feelings and beliefs then there could be no true brotherhood, at best a fragile tolerance based on indifference. The theme is also of significance for those who have in the past turned against religion, because it shows that when religion is truly practiced it is not exclusive, narrow, and a source of incessant quarrelling but the instrument for establishing mutual understanding and appreciation between all men.

One distinguishing feature of the great Educators is the beauty of Their teachings which, if examined at their source with scrupulous absence of prejudice, are clearly for the good of all mankind.
Another is the example of their lives which fire love and respect in all men of sensibility.
The summer time of the new teachings is the phoenix-like rise of a new and more advanced civilization out of a previously moribund society.
Then comes the autumn. Over a period of time men gradually lose touch with the real nature of their Educator.
Different views appear and quarrels break out, superstition becomes widespread and the true religious spirit begins to die.
Thereafter the fabric of society itself begins to weaken and tear. New conditions and problems arise for which there seems no answer. Winter has come.

Then men begin to feel instinctively that something must happen to help society find its direction. It is time for the cycle of life to begin again and for a new Educator to bring new teachings. These teachings will be, of course, ahead of the thinking of contemporary society, but not so far ahead that all men cannot understand them. They will be so much in tune with the needs of the time that should there be excessive resistance by government or a prejudiced people, the agony which society is then undergoing will become all that much greater.

E – A new age

There is little doubt that the 19^th century was one of the most exhilarating periods of history. Quite suddenly the material wealth and scientific knowledge which had been accumulated since the late Middle Ages, especially since the Renaissance, began to bear fruit. New means of harnessing the power of water and steam laid the basis for an industrial economy.

The industrial revolution signified for the majority the possibility of a break from the age-long struggle to stay at or just above a subsistence level of life. For the first time in history it was not unreasonable to dream of a time when men could live free from want of the necessities of life.

With the growth of a world economy which followed from industrialization and the adoption of free trade policies by most of the rich and powerful countries men became conscious of a growing interdependence between all parts of the world.

For the first time men were beginning to understand though dimly, that no country is an island unto itself, but as Bahá’u’lláh said: “The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens.”

In France during the Revolution, and later in other countries, legal and parliamentary equality was won by the middle class whose power and significance had grown so much.
There followed the bitter fight of the agricultural workers and the factory workers in the new industrial towns to obtain social justice.
At last society grudgingly recognized how unbearably unjust and demoralizing for all concerned was the institution of slavery.
By the end of the century the more enlightened were calling attention to society’s oppression of women.

It was at such a time that Bahá’u’lláh recognized that He was to be the Educator for this age. His theme was the significance of this day in the history of man. This is the “promised day of all ages”, the time of fulfillment of religious prophecies, when swords would be beaten into ploughshares and the lion would lie down in peace with the lamb, the golden age when peace and justice would begin.

And yet all around men are in conflict, lost in a materialistic wilderness, without direction or purpose.
Bahá’u’lláh said that society can be given direction only by a new Faith which would breathe new life into and unite within its fold all existing religions.
Morality, ethics, systems of values which are the cement of civilization cannot be separated from the concept of the highest authority, God.

Often religion is thought of as being essentially other-worldly, or as the old saying goes, concerned with “pie in the sky”. This was never the case with true religion as originally expounded by the great Educators. It is true that They would provide information on the wider aspects of existence but this was basically to give perspective to the everyday life of man. The major emphasis was always on how to develop life on earth individually and collectively. This is also true of Bahá’u’lláh. His Writings are a practical guide to the achievement of self-fulfilment and the establishment of the true brotherhood of man on a global scale. They contain nothing that is arbitrary or irrational. Each law or ordinance is consistent with the other and all add up to a comprehensive plan for the establishment of a new civilization.

Chapter 3: A New Race of Men

A – Independent Investigation of the truth

The Earth is But One Country Part 4