HEALING THROUGH UNITY
APRIL 1998
A monthly newsletter dedicated to serving the principles of
physical and spiritual health envisioned in the Baha'i Teachings.
Volume 1, Issue #9
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"Man, therefore, on the plane of the contingent world is the most perfect being. By
man is meant the perfect individual, who is like unto a mirror in which the divine
perfections are manifested and reflected. But the sun doth not descend from the height of
its sanctity to enter into the mirror, but when the latter is purified and turned towards
the Sun of Truth, the perfections of this Sun, consisting of light and heat, are reflected
and manifested in that mirror. These souls are the Divine Manifestations of God."
( 'Abdu'l-Baha, Selections From The Writings of 'Abdu'l-Baha, p. 62)
LIGHT OF SELF
By Marcus Bach, Ph.D., D.D.
One of life's greatest discoveries is that you carry a light and that this light is seen
by those who see you. This light is the true you. How you dress, what make-up you use,
what you say, the life-style you develop may be reflections of the light, but the true
light is deeper than all these. It is innate. You really can't see it the way you see
yourself in a mirror. It is best seen by others. It is that which betrays and reveals the
real you.
Call it an aura, an emanation, an energy, radiance, spirit, charisma or what you will -
you carry a light. The way you feel, think, believe, the mood you are in, the thoughts you
harbor, the way you treat your physical body, the reach of your mind, the consciousness of
your spiritual awareness, all reflect themselves in this light of self.
The light is not only seen by others, it is felt. It is caught by an inner eye, recognized
by something intuitive, triggered by something psychic, responds to something spiritual.
Whatever it is, the more you walk in the light of honesty, truth, health and well-being,
the greater is the reflection. The Galilean said", You are the light of the
world" and those who understood Him knew that here was a Man who saw the commonly
unseen and who knew that the deep things of life are never obvious. The outer self is
often the make-believe, a masquerade. The real self is the light and the challenge is to
live so that you show forth the Light, not righteously, but naturally...as naturally as
the sun lights the world.....
Seen through the eyes of religion or science, you carry a light and this light is seen by
those who see you. Baha'u'llah, founder of the Baha'i Faith,... more than 100 years ago He
made a statement worthy of an atomic physicist. He said, 'Split an atom and you will find
the universe.' Baha'i literally means: a follower of the Light.
In this connection I had an unforgetable experience several years ago in Australia when I
attended a Baha'i meeting one Sunday afternoon. The speaker was a black from Nigeria, an
official in the Baha'i movement named Enoch Olinga (Hand of the Cause of God). I was
sitting in the auditorium among Baha'i followers. He was on the platform speaking when I
gradually saw his aura, a golden-white emanation encircling his body. I am not an auric
reader and there are only rare occasions I can attest to seeing these luminous
manifestations. This one was so vivid and real that I moved from one part of the
auditorium to another in order to assure myself it was not a matter of lights and shadows
in the room or merely a reflection of some kind. Apparently it was real. Very real, and
the luminosity ebbed and flowed with the passion of his speech.
After the meeting I hesitated speaking to him because he was continually surrounded by his
friends. At one point, however, our eyes met and we were involuntarily drawn to each
other. As we shook hands, I said to him, 'May I
tell you that I saw your aura this afternoon?' He put his arms around me and I
instinctively put my arms around him as he whispered, 'I know, I know.'
What does it mean to me? What does it mean to you? Simply this: we are living in a highly
sensitized age in which we are being forced to add new dimensions and new perspectives to
life. We are being compelled to live the life that we profess. The gap is closing between
profession and practice, between faith and work, between science and religion. The real
you eventually comes to light because it is the Light! The integrated, orderly life cannot
be staged for long. It must be lived in order to endure. One thing good about science and
religion is that both eventually come face to
face with God's love and eventually brings everything to light.
Let us learn to work from the center of that Light. Let us fix our mind on that Light.
When things are dark in the world or in our mind, let us turn on that inner Light. Let us
follow the Light and learn that we will not walk in darkness. ( The above is an excerpt
from the article that appeared in Today's Chiropractic, March-April 1975, p. 26)
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THE EXCHANGE
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Question:
In the March, 1998 issue, the question was asked: "How do we bring ourselves
into account?"
Answers:
One woman tried something new. She always kept a journal which she reviewed periodically
to review the growth and struggles of life. This year she decided to try an experiment
when she received a new journal from her
niece. On pilgrimage she learned from a member of the Universal House of Justice that we
do not bring our negative qualities to the next world but only positive attributes.
"The soul carries with it divine attributes and spiritual qualities to the next
world, but cannot take with it bad qualities for badness has no existence of its own; it
is only the lack of goodness." (Adib Tahirzadih, The Human Soul, p. 13) This person
had always considered bringing herself to account was to reflect both the positive and
negative aspects of the day. She felt that she was very good at seeing the
negative aspects of herself and thought she would attempt to only write about the positive
aspects of bringing herself to account each day. At first she felt very doubtful, and
decided to give this experiment one year to try it out.
Two months later, she reflected that each time she reviewed the journal it uplifted her
soul. She perceived how it simplified and purified her attitude when she looked back on
past events and how encouraging it was to her spiritual journey. Focusing on her inner and
outer accomplishments now serves as a basis to give her strength to do her service and to
validate her own value. She encourages us all to try this. This quote from Velda Piff
Metelmann, Denmark, demonstrates this explicitly.
"To bring oneself to account is essentially to find one's strengths, abilities and
nobility so that one can value these attributes sufficiently to use them for others. One
cannot advance on the spiritual path on one's drawbacks - just as one cannot invest debt
for profit. We need to be conscious of ourselves as God's creation - noble beings, capable
of
reflecting His Glory - in order to act well. Any set of books that shows only liabilities
and does not include assets is useless. Even if, when we evaluate our lives, our faults
seem overpowering, still by the grace and mercy of God, we can go forward. Each soul is
unique, with a precious, individual point of view, a way of seeing and speaking no other
soul can do. If we withhold these inner gifts, it is the whole of mankind - the Cause of
God itself - that suffers. The Cause will triumph without us, but our note in the great
orchestra of life will not be sounded."
Dorothy Baker, Hand of the Cause of God, said: "I tell myself that one's powers must
be turned to creative impulses, not to negativity even of oneself. Lingering on one's
frailties is pure egotism."
( Ilona Weinstein,Tending the Garden, p. 84)
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A local 5th grade class has come up with a wonderful way to bring themselves to account
each day and to strive to better serve others. The class decided to have each student keep
a journal of the good deeds he/she had done. Each day the student would enter something
they had done that they considered to be a good deed. The goal of the class was to have
many good deeds at the end of the year. Now, mind you, nobody is judging these good deeds
- they are private and confidential journals. The children aren't rewarded for quantity or
quality of these deeds and nobody is
encouraging boastfulness.
Each day the students sit down to write in their journals and think about what they did
that day. No doubt they are excited about the good things they have done, and disappointed
in the opportunites they have missed. Even better, throughout the day they are more
conscious of the opportunities that pop up - opportunities to do a good deed.
And there is one more thing these students have learned - they feel good about themselves
when they serve others. And that makes me feel good, too!
Kendra Steel, Topsham, Maine, U.S.A.
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A SHORT STORY
The Wemmicks were small wooden people. Each of the wooden people was
carved by a Woodworker named Eli. His workshop sat on a hill overlooking their village.
Every Wemmick was different. Some had big noses, others had large eyes. Some were tall and
others were short. Some wore hats, others wore coats. But all were made by the same
carver.
And all day, every day, the Wemmicks did the same thing; they gave each
other stickers. Each Wemmick had a box of golden star stickers and a box of grey dot
stickers. Up and down the streets all over the city, people could be seen sticking stars
or dots on one another.
The pretty ones, those with smooth wood and fine paint, always got
stars. But if the wood was rough or the paint chipped, the Wemmicks gave dots. The
talented ones got stars too. Some could lift big sticks high above their heads or jump
over tall boxes. Still other knew big words or could sing very pretty songs. Everyone gave
them stars. Some Wemmicks had stars all over them! Every time they got a star it made them
feel so good that they did something else and got another star. Others, though, could do
little. They got dots.
Punchinello was one of these. He tried to jump high like the others,
but he always fell. And when he fell, the others would gather around and give him dots.
Sometimes when he fell, it would scar his wood, so the people would give him more dots.
He would try to explain why he fell and say something silly and the
Wemmicks would give him more dots. After a while he had so many dots that he didn't want
to go outside. He was afraid he would do something dumb such as forget his hat or step in
the water, and then people would give him another dot; in fact, he had so many grey dots
that some people would come up and give him one without reason.
'He deserves lots of dots', the wooden people would agree with one
another. 'He's not a good wooden person.'
After a while, Punchinello believed them. 'I'm not a good Wemmick.' he
would say. The few times he went outside, he hung around other Wemmicks who had a lot of
dots. He felt better around them.
One day he met a Wemmick who was unlike any other he'd ever met. She
had no dots or stars. She was just wooden. Her name was Lucia. It wasn't that people
didn't try to give her stickers, it's just that the stickers didn't stick. Some admired
Lucia for having no dots, so they would run up and give her a star. But it would fall off.
Some would look down on her for having no stars, so they would give her a dot. But it
wouldn't stay either.
'That's the way I want to be,' thought Punchinello. I don't want
anyone's marks.' So he asked the stickerless Wemmick how she did it.
'It's easy,' Lucia replied, 'Every day I see Eli'
'Eli?'
'Yes, Eli. The wood-carver. I sit in the workshop with Him.'
'Why?'
'Why don't you find out for yourself. Go up the hill. He's there. And
with that the Wemmick with no marks turned and skipped away.
'But he won't want to see me!' Punchinello cried out. Lucia didn't
hear. So Punchinello went home. He sat near a window and watched the wooden people as they
scurried around giving each other stars and dots.
'It's not right.' he muttered to himself. And he resolved to go see
Eli. He walked up the narrow path to the top of the hill and stepped into the big shop.
His wooden eyes widened at the size of everything. The stool was as tall as he was. He had
to stretch on his toes to see the top of the workbench. A hammer was as long as his arm.
Punchinello swallowed hard.
'I'm not staying here!' and he turned to leave. Then he heard his name.
'Punchinello?' The voice was deep and strong. Punchinello stopped.
'Punchinello! How good to see you. Come and let me have a look at you.'
Punchinello turned slowly and looked at the large bearded craftsman.
'You know my name?' the little Wemmick asked.
'Of course I do. I made you.'
Eli stooped down and picked him up and set him on the bench. 'Hmm,' the
maker spoke thoughtfully as he inspected the grey circles. 'Looks like you've been given
some bad marks.'
'I didn't mean to, Eli I really tried hard.'
'Oh, you don't have to defend yourself to me, child. I don't care what
the other Wemmicks think.'
'You don't?'
'No, and you shouldn't either. Who are they to give stars or dots?
They're Wemmicks just like you. What they think doesn't matter, Punchinello. All that
matters is what I think - and I think you are pretty special.'
Punchinello laughed. 'Me, special? Why? I can't walk fast. I can't
jump. My paint is peeling. Why do I matter to you?'
Eli looked at Punchinello, put his hands on those small wooden
shoulders, and spoke very slowly. 'Because you're mine. That's why you matter to me.'
Punchinello had never had anyone look at him like that - much less his
maker. He didn't know what to say.
'Every day I've been hoping you'd come,' Eli explained.
'I came because I met someone who had no marks.'
'I know. She told me about YOU.'
'Why don't the stickers stay on her?'
'Because she has decided that what I think is more important then what
they think. The stickers only stick if you let them.'
'The stickers only stick if they matter to you. The more you trust my
love, the less you care about the stickers.'
'I'm not sure I understand.'
'You will but it will take time. You've got a lot of marks. For now,
just come to see me every day and let me remind you how much I care.'
Eli lifted Punchinello off the bench and set him on the ground.
'Remember,' Eli said as the Wemmick walked out the door, 'You are special because I made
you. And I don't make mistakes.'
Punchinello didn't stop, but in his heart he thought, 'I think he really means it.'
And when he did a dot fell to the ground.
(This story is taken from "Magazyn Baha'i Polsce" (Polish Baha'i Magazine)
English Edition, January 1998, Vol 4, No.1, pp 10-11)
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HEALTH AND HEALING SEMINAR
Our community organized for the first time a seminar on 'Health and Healing' and to our
joy it attracted many friends from the local area. A chiropractor who is a Baha'i and
works at a Community Health Centre, discussed the evolution of medicine, alternatives in
health care such as homeopathy, isopathy, diet and food combining, the need for harmony
between science and religion as it relates to medicine and new methods of diagnosis. He
prepared a very attractive handout containing many quotes from the Baha'i writings related
to spiritual and physical health. There
was a dynamic spiritual force occuring in the room. The participants felt free to express
their views and questions. They requested that the speaker return in the Fall for a follow
up. What was new to them was the religion component to the field of medicine. We are
excited that we identified a topic that interests our community and we encourage you to
organize a similar event. We would be delighted to hear of your experiences of applying
the healing teachings in your community and will include them in the newsletter. This
quote by 'Abdu'l-Baha stresses this importance.
"Thou shouldst endeavour to study the science of medicine. It is extremely useful and
serveth as the greatest instrument for the dissemination of the Cause."
('Abdu'l-Baha, From a Tablet - translated from the Persian)
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LETTERS
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The staff at "Health for Humanity" would like to thank you for sending us copies
of your "Healing through Unity" Newsletter. There are always wonderful insights
in the articles offered by the contributors, and it is good to have a place where
questions can be asked and answered. It is very important to have established an ongoing
dialogue among those of us who are concerned with the spiritual as well as the physical
healing of mankind.
Caterina Bosio, Health for Humanity, Glencoe, Illinois, U.S.A
...............................
Thank you for your beautiful initiative. I was touched by the content of your newsletter
and by your own story and hope this endeavour will be blessed with continuity, inspiration
and discoveries.
Denise Belisle, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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(Editor's note: The following are responses to the Ayyam-i-Ha greetings.)
We learn from each other's experiences and in this way we grow in spirit and it helps us
all to become more united, to love and enjoy fellowship with all without fear and
restriction. Baha'is are called upon to be the Community of the Most Great Name, to be a
model of unity, so we have to start with ourselves as nobody else is going to do it for
ourselves. Little by little, day by day, this Community tries to live up to the law of
unity, and in so doing we grow bonds of unity around the world.
Thank you once again for all that you are doing through your newsletter. We are grateful
that you have included Papua New Guinea on your list. Perhaps you can consider some
practical way to foster "Healing Through Unity"
seminars in different areas around the world. People everywhere are basically looking for
spiritual health although outwardly they think and believe that their material well-being
and physical health is what really matters.
Mariette & Ho-San Leong, Papua New Guinea
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Thank you for your wonderful scroll and words. Our family sat down last night and the
children with a great deal of love and laughter created 50 origami balloons from paper
they had washed with watercolour. They then carefully inserted small bookmarks with
'illuminated' Hidden words that are laminated. Tomorrow night they will distribute them to
all the friends at our Community party. It was wonderful to me to see my children having
such a marvellous time making such simple gifts and the true love they have for so many
friends. (They are 6 and 7) Jane Baker Jones, Palmerston, NT, Australia
.....................................
You don't know how my heart has been cheered by your healing newsletter which contains so
many priceless rays of hope and comfort. Your Ayyam-i-Ha quotes were just icing on the
cake.
Brit Regan, Scarborough, Ontario, Canada
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QUESTION OF THE MONTH
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The question for this month is: How can we arrange to make the time for prayers and
devotions special?
Please share all your responses or if you have other comments for the newsletter, please
write to Frances Mezei by e-mail: -- .
Other than the quoted Writings, the material in this newsletter represents the thoughts
and opinions of the writers and has no authority. You are free to copy articles, provided
you indicate the source of the article.
Love to your wonderful and blessed self,
Frances Mezei
Ontario, Canada
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