Asking Questions, Seeking Answers & Celebrating Baha'u'llah

Formal gardens surrounding Bahji, where Baha'u'llah spent His last years. Also His resting place, the holiest place to Baha'is. [Baha'i Media]

"I never dreamed, when I first encountered the Baha'i Faith as a young adult, that one day I would write a book about the Founder, Baha'u'llah, whose birthday Baha'is celebrate around the world November 12. Yet hearkening back to that time of search I clearly recall that my attention was captured by two things: the extraordinary life of Baha'u'llah and the exquisite beauty of His writings. How could someone who lived the better part of His life as a prisoner and exile - often in the most deplorable and hostile conditions - not only endure, but consistently produce the most inspiring and insightful writings?"

You can read the rest of Journey to a Sacred City, a short essay about my spiritual questions and how I eventually answered them in The Story of Baha'u'llah: Promised One of All Relgions, on the U.S. Baha'i site.

I enjoy listening to other people's personal stories, too, like this short video of a handful of new Baha'is who share a few of their own questions and something of their spiritual journeys - part of the new U.S. Baha'i Video Library.

Baha'u'llah Himself took seriously the questions of those sincerely looking for the truth. He wrote the Book of Certitude in response to the questions of the Bab's eldest uncle - whom Baha'u'llah told to write down all of his questions and bring them to Him. In answering this one man's questions, Baha'u'llah changed profoundly our vision of the religions we thought we knew.

As Baha'is celebrate this Holy Day we celebrate this new vision brought by Baha'u'llah: that the religions called by different names are, in reality, one religion unfolding over time, their separate Prophets inspired by One Source, their sacred guidance flowing together into one divine purpose - the upliftment of the human spirit and the evolution of human consciousness.

But don't take someone else's word for it. Investigate for yourself. You might like to begin with this video on the life of Baha'u'llah, with highlights of Baha'i community. Of course, for more compelling detail I recommend you read The Story of Baha'u'llah.

Asking Questions, Seeking Answers & Celebrating Baha'u'llah

Blog Talk Radio Interview

A few months ago Francine Silverman, author and creator of the Book Promotion Newsletter – one of my favorites – connected me with Anjuelle Floyd on BlogTalkRadio. Anjuelle is a fiction author (and therapist) on the west coast, who also interviews authors on her radio show Book Talk, Creativity & Family Matters. The great thing about the net is you can listen to these interviews anytime. Listen here to my October 3rd interview with Anjuelle.

Let me share a few highlights and generally where they come up in the interview. First let me say that I appreciated Anjuelle’s approach. She was courteous, asked interesting questions, listened well, and drew from her own experience, so that the interview warmed up as we went along, and felt more like a conversation between friends. Anjuelle’s questions opened topics that became lines of discussion throughout the interview.

The interview began, naturally enough, with questions about Baha’u’llah and how I came to write The Story of Baha’u’llah. Had I always been a Baha’i? she asked, and I talked briefly about my spiritual journey, how it connected to that of my ancestors, and what I had found compellng about Baha’u’llah.

About Baha’u’llah: Who was He and how did His life and message compare to that of the Prophet Muhammad? To Buddha? Early on Anjuelle shared the fact that she is Muslim. and her natural interest allowed us to discuss how my book can bridge understanding between Christians and Muslims.

About writing: What was my process? What worked for me? See 12’-18’ and 66’-69’ for answers and what I share with other writers about creative process.

About Baha’is: How do Baha’is practice their faith? How does the Baha’i Faith differ from Islam? How is it the same? See 19’-49' for a conversation that touched upon a range of topics here: Baha’i marriage, gossip, race relations, community life and attitudes that embrace all children.

“I wonder what would Baha’u’llah say to this?" Anjuelle would say, and at the end, remarked that our interview had “opened up another reality for me.”

Finally, Anjuelle suggested I really needed to get on Twitter!! – She was not only persuasive but after the interview she actually helped me sign up. Now I have another whole new world to explore. So if you’re on Twitter, look me up! I'm @LuminousMusings. You can also find Anjuelle at her blog The Writing Life.

Blog Talk Radio Interview

The Bab: 'Gate' to an Era of Maturity

Upper terraces of the Baha' gardesn and the golden-domed Shrine of the Bab in Haifa, Israel. [With permission of Baha'i Media, Baha'i International Community] View Slideshow for more on the Shrine of the Bab. View Video of the Bab's role in the early history of the Baha'i Faith. (begins at 5 minutes in) - on new U.S. Baha'i Video Library

This evening begins the Birth of the Bab, a Baha'i holy day. The life of the Bab is a compelling story, which you can read in Part One of my book The Story of Baha’u’llah: Promised One of All Religions. The excerpt below is from my short essay for the holy day and gives you a taste of that story and of why the Bab is a key figure in the story of Baha'u'llah. (Read the whole essay here.)

“Today’s sun is the same sun that rose, over a century ago, on the Kurdish villagers of Mah-Ku in a remote corner of Persia, where, in the summer of 1847, a mountain-fortress kept a new prisoner, the Bab, whose name means “Gate” in Arabic.

“Mah-Ku’s villagers knew nothing about the Bab’s claim to be a Messenger of God. They had not heard about His Mission: to prepare the way for the Promised One of all religions. What they did hear, reverberating from that fortress-prison set in a pocket of the mountain, was the voice of the Bab, strong and melodious, as He chanted verses of such soul-stirring beauty that the villagers were captivated.

“Surely this must be a holy man, they said to one another, and they gathered at the foot of the mountain to begin each day with a blessing from the Bab.

“For nearly a year the Bab was kept in Mah-Ku, housed in a mud-walled cell without even a lamp for light, through the sweltering summer when the sun baked the rocky mountain, through the harsh winter when water froze in droplets on the Bab’s face as He washed. But the Bab let nothing deter Him.

“Day after day He revealed new divine teachings – 8,000 verses – and woven throughout, a myriad allusions to the great Divine Messenger soon to appear – “Him Whom God will make manifest” – eventually known to humanity as Baha’u’llah, the Founder of the Baha'i Faith.

“Two Messengers from God in one lifetime: because humanity was about to step over a critical threshold and enter a whole new era – the maturity of the human race. It was ’Ali Muhammad of Shiraz, Persia, Who by divine appointment took the title “the Bab” meaning “the Gate” and opened the way.

“Maturity? Our own human wisdom acknowledges that maturity does not visit us overnight, on a particular birthday. So it should not be surprising to learn that maturity of the human race does not appear instantly, in one historical moment. Maturity by its nature is the fruit of process, with its own cycles and seasons. [READ the rest of the essay.]

The Bab: 'Gate' to an Era of Maturity

Blog Action Day Follow-Up

If you missed it, do watch this cool video (2 minutes) for Blog Action Day ‘09 Climate Change – which claims to be the “largest social change event on the web EVER.”

Here are the numbers from their wrap-up page. By the end of yesterday Blog Action Day had 27,000 posts on 13,231 blogs from bloggers in 155 countries – with posts from the UK’s Prime Minister, the government of Spain, and The White House blog.

In one day over 17 million readers read about climate change. Whether they gained new knowledge, were inspired to take action, or connected via blog with a real-world project, all were part of a planetary grassroots organized initiative, powered on the internet, and providing a voice for the billions whose lives are affected by climate change.

Grassroots initiative is exactly what is called for, according to Dr. Rajendra K. Pachauri, chairman of the Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. “I feel you really cannot rely on the leaders . . . the nation states,” says Dr. Pachauri. “You really need a groundswell of grassroots action and grassroots consciousness on what needs to be done. If that is happening, then leaders will follow.” Let’s hope that Copenhagen will be listening.

Blog Action Day Follow-Up

Blog Action Day | Climate Change: Thinking at a Much Higher Level

In 1860 the first ever aerial image of a city was photographed from a hot-air balloon over Boston and published a few days later in the Boston Herald. Just over a century later, in 1968, Apollo 8 gave us Earthrise, the photo of Earth from the moon that “began to bend human consciousness.”**

Even before that first aerial image Baha’u’llah was born in Tehran in 1817; and long before we could begin to wrap our minds around the image of a planet with no political boundaries, Baha'u'llah had called the peoples and nations of the world to the next step in our collective life: to establish the unity of the entire human race and from that to raise up a new, world-wide civilization of peace and justice. Not only a call, but with specific guidance on how to get there.

Fast forwad to today and our Blog Action Day topic: Climate Change. Do I care about only the climate around my house or in my neighborhood? How foolish. Such a mind-set not only draws too small a circle, but is out of touch with reality. Climate is global. And solving the climate challenges that now confront us requires a new mind-set, one with a vastly different ethic.

“The impacts of climate change are going to be inequitable, unequal, and severe in many parts of the world,” says Dr. Rajendra K. Pachauri, Chairman of the Nobel Prize-winning Panel on Climate Change. “We have to think at a much higher level.”

In fact, we need a mind-set that fits the image we now hold of the planet we all call home. In the words of Baha’u’llah: “The world is but one country and mankind its citizens.” Words that embrace a wider set of people to care about, that suggest a larger neighborhood.

But the biggest leap in mind-set from Baha’u’llah seems at first counter-intuitive: “The well-being of mankind, its peace and security, are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established.” Unity first, then peace; or unity first, then climate change. Gee, if we wait for world unity before we address climate change, a good many of us may be under water. Then again, think of unity, not as a single historical event, but as a process, and the picture changes, expands.

Consider this view from a document of appeal to world leaders, drafted by the Baha’i International Community at the United Nations: “. . . the quest for climate justice is not a competition for limited resources but part of an unfolding process towards greater degrees of unity among nations as they endeavor to build a sustainable, just and peaceful civilization.”

Unity defined as a process of learning how to work together, even as we strive to solve this grave global challenge. That we can do. Because solving difficult problems is what we do as creative beings. Because working together is what we do, too. The science of evolution has discovered that survival actually favors the most cooperative.

So, to tackle the crisis of climate change we must take it in hand as an opportunity to create a new mind – in us as individuals, in the human race as a whole; and choose to work together in ever “greater degrees of unity.” And we must never forget the relationship of unity to justice. “The purpose of justice is the appearance of unity among men,” Baha’u’llah has written, and states “No radiance can compare with that of justice . . . The organization of the world and the tranquility of mankind depend upon it.”


**Quote in first paragrah from Whole Earth Catalogue

Blog Action Day | Climate Change: Thinking at a Much Higher Level

"Resistance always has Meaning"

This nine-pointed star is a paradigm for how to develop a sustained creative process - and a writer's brain!

I came home from my writer retreat disappointed. I had enjoyed peaceful surroundings, the company of other writers, and time to focus. But I did not bring home the sheaf of pages I had hoped to write. Instead I carried the same nagging question: Why did writing in these last few weeks feel like slogging through thigh-high mud? Where was the joy – and the pages?

“Resistance always has meaning,” writes Henriette Klauser in Writing on Both Sides of the Brain. When my writing feels stuck I experiment. Do I need to do more research on the topic? To find out more about craft? To spend more hours BIC – butt in chair (Jane Yolen) simply writing?

At home I picked up two books on writing craft to explore story structure. Both were mentioned at our retreat. New to me was BAM - Book a Month by Cyn Mobley, who writes and sells/publishes “six to seven books a year.” Not quite my intended pace, but I wanted to read what she had to say about story “fly-to points” – dramatic points to write toward. An old favorite was the book Writing for Story, a classic on creative nonfiction by Pulitzer prize-winning author Jon Franklin. His insights on craft and connecting with readers is wisdom worth revisiting.

In the days that followed I was reading, writing, and still frustrated. I had a conversation with my spouse. Since he is writing a fantasy novel these days he has a better understanding of a writer’s challenges and offers a more compassionate ear, even if he can’t supply all the answers. I had a conversation with God, too, one morning on my back porch. Not that I expect a divine post-it note to appear with how-to-write-the-book answers, but the retreat reminded us that we do receive divine assistance, that we can ask for what we want – and that we need to pay attention. As I sat on the porch and poured over notes for my book, I felt a growing sense of rebellion, as though I had a big homework assignment which I simply did not want to do.

And then I realized – I didn’t have to! Are there rules here? Who says I have to write this story in just this way? Well, actually, the only one who had been saying that was me! I had set up certain parameters which apparently held no appeal for the creative spirit that needed to do the work. But those parameters could be changed. All of a sudden I saw the material with fresh eyes. A new approach, a new plan, emerged – as though a fuzzy picture had just come into focus. In that moment resistance dissolved, my creative energy was recharged – and the joy returned!

I say “all of a sudden” but it is also clear that this flash of insight was the fruit of process. The writers retreat – where I focused on the endeavor of writing, networked with other writers, and pursued knowledge of craft – was integral to my own creative process. So was listening to myself, really tuning in, as well as making a larger spiritual connection. The whole experience is a good example of the creative process paradigm that I share with writers in workshops, which came together from what I learned in writing my first book.

The nine-pointed star that represents the paradigm is made of straight lines, but the actual path of creative process is not a straight line so much as a winding spiral, one that fairly crackles with moving energy. We discover new levels of learning and insight as we visit familiar practices again and again: I write on a regular basis, continue to read about craft, network with other writers engaged in learning process – and all of it nourishes my evolution as a writer. The more awareness I bring to the process, the more systematically I engage it, the more certain it is that I will connect to my creative spirit, and in the process, grow a writer’s brain – and that makes all the difference.

"Resistance always has Meaning"

Writers: Kill the Dragon & Write Letters of Love

The Sarah Farmer Inn at Green Acre and a view from between the fir trees that stood on the grounds when 'Abdu'l-Baha walked there in 1912.

We began each writing day of our writer retreat with breakfast together, then gathered for inspiration from Baha’i prayers and passages, along with words of writing wisdom from other authors.

‘Abdu’l-Baha, who had in 1912 walked the very grounds we walked now, encouraged many an artist. To one He wrote: “I rejoice to hear that thou takest pains with thine art, for in this wonderful new age, art is worship. The more thou strivest to perfect it, the closer wilt thou come to God.” He exhorted individuals to "acquire knowledge and the sciences and arts . . . to be . . . piercing rays of the mind shedding forth their light in this, 'the first life.'"

One morning we read words from Joseph Campbell, reknown for his writing about mythology, who said about the writing process: “You have to suspend all criticism to do your work . . . Suspending criticism is killing the dragon Thou Shalt. Kill him. . . then think of someone you know who would resonante to your statement and write for that person. . . .

. . . . "The two things, then, that I’d say are necessary for breaking through what’s called writer’s block are, first to have a person to whom you are addressing yourself and, second, to set aside a couple of hours a day when . . . you’re writing letters of love to that person.” [A Joseph Campbell Companion]

Even in that small group of ten writers we shared resources, information, contacts. We had no idea of the value of these to one another until we came together. That is the bounty and wisdom of networking: one of the three core domains -- Knowledge – Endeavor – Network -- at the heart of a creative life. We simply do not know where we will find valuable nuggets, or what priceless piece we hold that will serve another. Networking uncovers pearls.

You might say networking, like friendship itself, is a form of love, and love is a reflection of the divine. “All things are beneficial if joined with the love of God,” wrote ‘Abdu’l-Baha, “and without His love, all things are harmful and act as a veil between man and the Lord of the Kingdom. When His love is there, every bitterness turneth sweet, and every bounty rendereth a wholesome pleasure.”

So what did I get out of this writer’s retreat? More on that in another post.

Writers: Kill the Dragon & Write Letters of Love

Workshop or Retreat?

Our writers retreat space at Green Acre let us each find a writing spot that worked for us. We wrote at table or ensconced in a comfy chair, alone or in pairs or threesomes as we scattered about in our favorite nooks and crannies. If you walked by you might hear the light tapping of laptop keyboards or the soft sound of pencil capturing a flow of thought on paper.

I usually joined another writer in a small parlor of the main Sarah Farmer Inn, sharing an occasional few words, but mostly working, each immersed in our own creative world until mid-morning/afternoon break, then back to work again.

Another writer friend asked if a retreat is a good thing for amateurs. It’s not so much about your level of expertise, but about what you need at a particular juncture of your writing process. Do you need a retreat or a workshop? What’s the difference?

A workshop teaches. Experienced authors share specific writing principles, resources, practical how-to’s, and may or may not provide time to write. (I prefer the ones that do.) A retreat is for the writer who has a project in hand, or wants to generate specific work– a poet who wants to generate poetry, a fiction writer with a particular novel to develop. A retreat writer needs to be able to write for stretches of time and feel comfortable with the time unstructured.

A writer in early stages of learning craft might enjoy workshop experience before attending a writer retreat. Even an experienced writer will attend a workshop to learn more about her craft at one time, and at another time retreat to focus on specific work.

If you would like to experiment with a retreat you can always do what I did. Plan to take different things to do: perhaps research for note-taking and books to read on writing craft, as well as the writing you want to generate. Trying something new is one way to discover what works best for your writing process.

Workshop or Retreat?

Writers in Retreat

Here we are around the table: Phyllis, Jane, Ilona, Patti, Rick, Mary Lou, Faye, Laura. (Not in the picture: Ollie and myself)

Writers in retreat indeed – not from the endeavor of writing, but from the 10,000 distractions that tug at our attention every day: phones, families, friends, work, pets, email, facebook – all the stuff we love (or don’t). Ten of us gathered around the large table on Thursday evening in a lovely cottage just for us. How we all looked forward to a long week-end of quietude, and a little socializing with other writers – “my people” said one writer with a contented sigh.

But first introductions all around, which included a little about our current writing projects and what we hoped to glean from this time of retreat. We came from states in the northeast and from Canada, with familiar faces from previous writer workshops. And what an interesting array of writing work we brought: Biography, memoir, suspense, children’s literature, fiction, nonfiction. A lot of creative process represented around that table at Green Acre.

How do you know if a writer retreat is for you? See my next post Workshop or Retreat?

Writers in Retreat

Luminous Realities in Top 100 - The Daily Reviewer

Top Blogs

Click on badge to go to The Daily Reviewer

My thanks to The Daily Reviewer– a blog aggregate – for selecting Luminous Realities as one of the top 100 blogs on its Baha’i Faith page. I appreciate being included in the company of some very fine fellow bloggers. Of course the Baha’i Faith is only one of many topic pages on The Daily Reviewer. An aggregate is a handy tool for a reader to peruse a variety of topics, delve more deeply into one, and even set up a personal page to follow your favorites.

One of the features I like about The Daily Reviewer is its slide-show of sample blog pictures on each topic page, which is an attractive way for a reader to see what looks interesting. Run your mouse over a blog post link for its opening lines.

One small critique of this aggregate. Although it has topic pages on various religions, its headline links do not include “Religon” or “Spirituality,” which seems something of an oversight and a navigational hurdle for the browsing reader. Here’s how it works as I write:

To find a particular blog, or a blog page for a particular religion, you need to use the alphabet links. To find my blog, for example, first select “B.” From the tags presented on that page select “baha’i faith.” Luminous Realities appears as one of the blogs on that page. The same works for blog pages related to other religions.

For a kind of aggregate within the aggregate on the topic of religon check out Beliefnet, which you can access on the “religion” topic page. Beliefnet is also a permanent link on my blog. Scroll down to find it as a link under my Amazon-linked slideshow “Explore Baha’i Books.”

Enjoy exploring The Daily Reviewer. More when I return from my Green Acre writer retreat.

Luminous Realities in Top 100 - The Daily Reviewer