Rumbling, Rocking, Stunning comes Naw-Rúz 2009! Ah, God’s Major Plan has shifted gears, convulsing the planet as never before. Global financial meltdown, hey! we live in the age of depression and recession engulfed in crises upon crises.
Perhaps, the worst of all is “international terrorism”. How can we ever forget or forgive New York 9/11, London 7/7, New Delhi 13/12, Mumbai 26/11, to cite just a few.
Wake up calls, one and all. Globalization, democratization and liberalization counted as the three great powerhouses of change in our times have come a cropper. The only remedy for humanity is the Divine Program of Bahá’u’lláh. The world must learn the need for universal responsibility, cooperation and justice, and a movement away from consumption and greed. Other alternatives are mere palliatives and grossly short-sighted.
Charged and enthused by the overwhelming success of the 41 Regional Conferences convened by the Universal House of Justice, there is a mighty reverberation of a different kind sweeping the face of the earth. Some 80,000 believers rose to the occasion, of which 6,000 + at Bangalore, Kolkata and New Delhi respectively. Bravo my friends! Opening of neighbouring clusters, through "seed-bed" clusters is bringing amazing victories. Nothing should stop us now from our goal of 1,500 intensive programs of growth.
“That the continued strengthening of the community should be matched by a further decline in the old world order comes as no surprise. Indeed, the friends should be on their guard, lest the development of capacity in the community not keep pace with the rise in receptivity of a disillusioned humanity."
God’s Faith is striding forward majestically everywhere and India takes the lion’s share of the successes. O what a joy it is to be part of Delhi cluster! This Naw-Rúz is truly special. On this day in 1909, the beloved Master laid to rest the mortal remains of the Báb. 'Abdu'l-Bahá personally placed the precious trust in its place in a building on Mount Carmel in Haifa, now world renowned for its exquisite beauty and terrace gardens.
II
Make haste, dear friends! Action, reflection and consultation is our new trajectory. Thousands upon thousands are waiting to come to our study circles, devotional meetings and empowerment of children and junior youth classes. Regular home visits and resourceful tutors are urgently needed. No more procrastination, dear R/7 graduates! And now a wider horizon--Discourses on Social Action and Participation in Discourses of Society. Conjoinedly, these 3 are the broad areas for extending the process of systematic learning in every continent, in nearly every land, so that humanity may find hope and turn on the lights. Achieving coherence is the best guarantee for success. “Sharp as the razor’s edge and hard to traverse is that difficult path, so the sages say.” (Kathopanishad)
A personal aside: the unexpected and exhilarating FOGSI cruise to Singapore and Malaysia.
These are times of small men and great events. Behold the success of Chandrayan I as we join the peeping Toms at the key hole of eternity? Look out for spectacular happenings during the 2009 International Year of Astronomy celebrating 400 years of the first telescopic peep by Galileo into the heavens above and publication of Kepler’s Astronomia Nova on planetary motions. Lest we forget, this year is also the 150th anniversary of Darwin’s legacy—The Origin of Species; the 150th birth anniversary of Sir Jagdish Chandra Bose (1858-1937). Remember too, two upcoming world summits in December—at Copenhagen, the U.N. Conference on Climate Change; at Melbourne, Parliament of the World’s Religions. Here is one more opportunity to “Make a World of Difference: Hearing each other, Healing the earth!”
Our dear and precious former Counsellors Perin Olyai, India’s iron lady, and Vic Samaniego, our self-effacing mentor of the Philippines, are no more! May their souls gathered up in the Abhá Kingdom rejoice in peace and continue to inspire generations yet unborn.
With the departure of President George W. Bush and the election of President Barack H. Obama, the unthinkable becomes thinkable. Listen to his reassuring words: “…Know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity and we are ready to lead once more… that the old hatreds shall someday pass, that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve, that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself….”
Come April and May, 714 millions Indians shall exercise their franchise in 543 constituencies for the 15th Lok Sabha at a time when the nation commemorates the centenary of Hind Swaraj. Corruption of the system and mistrust of governments as institution is a worldwide phenomenon. Read again, the message of 25 March 2007 from the Supreme Body and you shall know. What a great contrast--governance in a lamentably defective Order and the rising glory of Bahá’u’lláh’s Administrative Order.
Read The White Tiger by Arvind Adiga and watch Slumdog Millionaire by Danny Boyle. A new India must emerge out of the slums and poverty stricken rural masses. Honestly “we don’t know one millionth of one percent about anything,” said T. A. Edison in all humility.
In this earthly journey, don’t be afraid to try. Just take your soul by the hand and let your spirit fly.
“Life is Light/ If only one living tree was left on earth/ It will be the source resurrecting everything/ Because it is the light which cannot be destroyed/”
This is the message from our beleaguered brethren of Iran. We just commemorated 60 years of Universal Declaration of Human Rights to champion “dignity and justice for all of us”. The whole world is taking note and soon shall the tables turn and justice done to the Bahá’í community over there.
“By the rectitude of their conduct, the sincerity of their love for their fellow human beings, and the ardour of their desire to serve the peoples of the world, may they vindicate the truth proclaimed by Bahá’u’lláh that humanity is one..."
As we celebrate the victory of the Bahá’ís in Egypt, let’s greet the Unseen with cheers of Naw-Rúz 2009, and always remember. There’s a divinity that shapes our ends.
“Nahin kuch tasbih aur junnar ke phande mein girai / Vafadari mein sheikh-o barhaman ke aazmaish hai
--Mahnaz, Martha, Vivian & AK Merchant--
Endnotes:
1. To learn more of this subject read the letter of the Universal House of Justice dated 7 July 1976
2. Message of the Universal House of Justice dated 20 October 2008 to the Bahá’ís of the World.
3. This was a thrilling experience of teaching the Faith to a group of 300+ doctors on a cruise ship organized by the Federation of Obstetrics & Gynaecologists of India (FOGSI), 18-21 November 2008; (thanks to Drs. Nayson & Roza Olyai)
4. Excerpts from the inaugural address of President Barack Obama, 20 January 2009.
5. From a poem of Marianna Bocian.
6. Message of the Universal House of Justice dated 20 October 2008 to the Bahá’ís of the World.
7. Couplet by Mirza Ghalib: “Amulet of a Muslim or sacred thread of a Hindu, is no proof of one’s faith. True test of a Sheikh or Brahman is loyalty to the highest ideals of humanity
