Pause and Reflect: Meditations for Healing by BahaiBookstore.com

One Voice Press

1233 Central St., Evanston, Illinois 60201

ISBN 978-1-61851-341-0

Cover design by Carlos Esparza

Book design by Patrick Falso

INTRODUCTION

There is much in our modern world competing for our attention. Technology is changing at a pace so rapid that most of us cannot keep up, let alone take the time to process the ways in which it is affecting us. As we go about our daily lives we are seemingly assaulted with an endless series of distractions. The need to retreat from the stress and chaos that so often surround us, to center ourselves and reflect on our inner reality, has never been of more vital importance. It is with this in mind that One Voice Press is happy to present this, the eighth title in its Pause & Reflect series.

Pause & Reflect is a series that presents meditative passages from the writings of the Bahá’í Faith arranged around particular themes. While the Bahá’í Faith places a great deal of importance on meditation and the cultivation of spirituality, it is also a religion that calls for action and societal transformation. Meditation, from

a Bahá’í perspective, is not exclusively a means for personal growth but also a tool that should equip us with insights and awareness that can be translated into action both in our lives and in the communities in which we live.

The theme of this volume is one of universal relevance to all people: healing. At the core of the Bahá’í teachings is the belief that as humans we are both physical and spiritual beings. The Bahá’í writings present a holistic vision of healing that acknowledges this dual nature and embraces both dimensions of human life. While affirming the importance of material means—competent physicians, the sciences of medicine and nutrition, and the natural processes by which the body regains equilibrium—the texts also remind us that the human soul remains untouched by bodily infirmities. The true identity of a human being is manifest in the soul, which is exalted above physical suffering, and knowledge of this spiritual reality can enable us to face sickness with dignity, patience, and trust in God.

Physical and spiritual health then, from a Bahá’í perspective, are inextricably linked and have a dynamic relationship. One’s spiritual condition has an effect on one’s physical condition. And, while the writings emphasize the

Introduction

Resort ye, in times of sickness, to competent physicians; We have not set aside the use of material means, rather have We confirmed it through this Pen, which God hath made to be the Dawning-place of His shining and glorious Cause.

Knowthou that the soul of man is exalted above, and is independent of all infirmities of body or mind. That a sick person showeth signs of weakness is due to the hindrances that interpose themselves between his soul and his body, for the soul itself remaineth unaffected by any bodily ailments. Consider the light of the lamp. Though an external object may interfere with its radiance, the light itself continueth to shine with undiminished power. In like manner, every malady afflicting the body of man is an impediment that preventeth the soul from manifesting its inherent might and power. When it leaveth the body, however, it will evince such ascendancy, and reveal such influence as no force on earth can equal. Every pure, every refined and sanctified soul will be endowed with tremendous power, and shall rejoice with exceeding gladness.

As we suffer these misfortunes we must remember that the Prophets of God Themselves were not immune from these things which men suffer. They knew sorrow, illness and pain too. They rose above these things through Their spirits, and that is what we must try and do too, when afflicted. The troubles of this world pass, and what we have left is what we have made of our souls, so it is to this we must look to becoming more spiritual, drawing nearer to God, no matter what our human minds and bodies go through.

Every believer needs to remember that an essential characteristic of this physical world is that we are constantly faced with trials, tribulations, hardships and sufferings and that by overcoming them we achieve our moral and spiritual development; that we must seek to accomplish in the future what we may have failed to do in the past; that this is the way God tests His servants and we should look upon every failure or shortcoming as an opportunity to try again and to acquire a fuller consciousness of the Divine Will and purpose.

The Bahá’í approach to resolution of the manifold problems affecting human society rests upon the assertion by Bahá’u’lláh that these ills are but various symptoms and side effects of the basic disease, which the Divine Physician has diagnosed to be disunity. Bahá’u’lláh has made it abundantly clear that the first step essential for the health and harmony of the whole of mankind is its unification. He says, “The well-being of mankind, its peace and security are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established” (The World Order of Bahá’u’lláh, p. 203). By contrast, the approach of most people is the exact opposite: their concentration is on attempts to remedy the multitude of ills besetting mankind, with the expectation that the resolution of these problems will lead ultimately to unity.