“…and I thought I was crazy!”

A person with this affliction craving love from another human being will ultimately be disappointed and remain with that gnawing emptiness in his heart and stomach. The only way to fill this internal black-hole is to find another source of solace:-

“11. O SON OF BEING! Thou art My lamp and My light is in thee. Get thou from it thy radiance and seek none other than Me. For I have created thee rich and have bountifully shed My favor upon thee.” (Baha’u'llah, The Arabic Hidden Words)

!13. O SON OF SPIRIT! I created thee rich, why dost thou bring thyself down to poverty? Noble I made thee, wherewith dost thou abase thyself? Out of the essence of knowledge I gave thee being, why seekest thou enlightenment from anyone beside Me? Out of the clay of love I molded thee, how dost thou busy thyself with another? Turn thy sight unto thyself, that thou mayest find Me standing within thee, mighty, powerful and self-subsisting.” (Baha’u'llah, The Arabic Hidden Words)

“Likewise, reflect upon the perfection of man’s creation, and that all these planes and states are folded up and hidden away within him. “Dost thou reckon thyself only a puny form When within thee the universe is folded?”" [1] [1 Ali.] (Baha’u'llah, The Seven Valleys, p. 33)

As Whitney Houston sings, “the greatest of love of all is within”, though this is not “self”, but that link within our soul that has access to God, the Manifestation of God and The Holy Spirit.

“912. Thou has asked, very humbly, for certain things and all were worthy to be coveted. Especially the rescue from self-love. This is a strange trait and the means of the destruction of many important souls in the world. If man be imbued with all good qualities but be selfish, all the other virtues will fade or pass away and eventually he will grow worse.” (Compilations, Baha’i Scriptures, p. 477)

Once this link has been accessed, realised and made real, not illusory,

“Whensoever the light of Manifestation of the King of Oneness settleth upon the throne of the heart and soul, His shining becometh visible in every limb and member. At that time the mystery of the famed tradition gleameth out of the darkness: “A servant is drawn unto Me in prayer until I answer him; and when I have answered him, I become the ear wherewith he heareth….” For thus the Master of the house hath appeared within His home, and all the pillars of the dwelling are ashine with His light. And the action and effect of the light are from the Light-Giver; so it is that all move through Him and arise by His will. And this is that spring whereof the near ones drink, as it is said: “A fount whereof the near unto God shall drink….”" [1] [1 Qur'án 83:28.] (Baha’u'llah, The Seven Valleys, p. 22)

then we begin to see with His eyes, and once having begun to die to self, He lives in us:

“7. O SON OF MAN! If thou lovest Me, turn away from thyself; and if thou seekest My pleasure, regard not thine own; that thou mayest die in Me and I may eternally live in thee.” (Baha’u'llah, The Arabic Hidden Words)

Is climate change and global warming the primary issue facing mankind? What is the nature of the basis of the crisis confronting the global community? Where did this crisis start? The basic problem is that “civilisation” as it is currently operating is economically unsustainable and is wrecking our environment, irrespective of whether global warming is driven by man’s activities or not. Even if global warming is driven by an increase of activity in The Sun, as attested by some evidence by rumours of a diminishing ice cap on Mars, and a melting of ice on the moons of Jupiter and Saturn, and is nothing to do with mankind, the economically unsustainability of western civilization is still undoubted. The “Horizon-2009-2010: 7) How Many People Can Live on Planet Earth?” documentary presented by David Attenborough spells this out far more convincingly than “The Age of Stupid”. And what is lacking primarily in civilisation that it won’t be able to sustain itself? Unity! And what could have provided such unity? The Baha’i Faith. Its quite simple. If the Baha’i Faith had been accepted by mankind, and followed, and this refers to Baha’is as well as those who haven’t thrown in their lot with it, then the various conflicts and divisions of mankind would have been reconciled. In Israel/Palestine, Israelis and Palestinians as Baha’is would have found themselves united with each other. In Ulster, Cathlolics and Protestants would have found themselves united together, reconciled theologically and politically and at peace. Blacks and whites in the Deep South, oiks and toffs in England would have reconciled their differences, learned of and appreciated each others culture, values and talents, capitalist entrepreneurs and socialist workers would have recognised their interdependence on each other and learned to co-operate, the economic disparity in wealth between the industrialised northern bloc and the underdeveloped southern bloc would have been equalised, the aborigines of Australia would not have been neglected and left to languish in poverty, disease, despair, alcoholism and suicide, the native Americans of the US and Canada would have been afforded sovereignty over themselves, economically and politically, and enabled to take their part in the life of the world community as a community with equal billing with the rich and powerful WASPs, Muslim  and Christian theologians would have been reconciled, found themselves in harmony and unity, healing 1400 years of ignorance, prejudice and misunderstanding. The ecumenical unity of the Christian church would have been re-established, within the wider unity of all the world’s faiths regarding themselves as part of one coherent, harmonised religious process, thus creating out of the separate faith communities of Muslims, Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians, Buddhists, Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, Taoists, Confucians, Druzes, etc etc, one world-wide religion which accepts all the above faiths as part of one faith, as made possible through the Teachings and Spirit, Covenant and Unity of The Baha’i International Community. And the deepest and most intransigent disunity of all, the battle of the sexes, would have found a degree of reconciliation, unity and healing, that would have strengthened immeasurably the sanctity of the sacred institution of marriage, instead of the wholesale divorce, estrangement and lack of communication characterizing the relationship between the sexes currently worsening every day. But alas, the Baha’i Faith, though open to public view, available to all, is not seen for what it is, and, is seen by a vast proportion of the populace, as just yet another spiritual movement from the east, no more significant than that of a Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, or a Sri Bhagwan Rajneesh. Why? Partly because ordinary Baha’is like me do not as yet have an inner character that exemplify the virtues of humanity, that such a spiritual Revelation calls for. Those that do, able to teach people about Baha’u'llah, effectively, make a difference, and are helping to build a new global civilization, destined to flower in the future, but the number of such servants of God doing this harvesting in His Vineyard are as yet woefully few. Witness the comparative weakness of the Christian church in AD 165, in comparison to the disdain, ignorance and contempt of it shown by The Roman world. We know what happened to Christianity, despite the lack of imagination of most Romans in AD 165, but who knows what will happen to the Baha’i Faith by 3853 AD? When the Baha’i Faith is 2009 years old, not just 165 as at present, it will be well past 2852 AD which is the earliest that the next Manifestation of God after Baha’ullah will appear. In 3853 AD, with the benefit of hindsight, all mankind will know exactly what position the Baha’i Faith will have played in the epic history of mankind. Just as in 2009 AD, all mankind has a basic understanding of the history and significance of the Christian church, but in 165 AD, had no idea, so in 165 BE, 2009 AD, mankind has no idea what the future of the Baha’i Faith will be. The Baha’is however have an inkling of the future, just as the Christians of 165 AD had a faith in a future of Christianity that the Romans were blind to.

“God’s purpose is none other than to usher in, in ways He alone can bring about, and the full significance of which He alone can fathom, the Great, the Golden Age of a long-divided, a long-afflicted humanity. Its present state, indeed even its immediate future, is dark, distressingly dark. Its distant future, however, is radiant, gloriously radiant — so radiant that no eye can visualize it.” (Shoghi Effendi, The Promised Day is Come, p. 116)

The epitome of a lady and gentleman in the well-to-do, educated, respectable, middle classes of the nineteenth century Home Counties of England is a myth, and no basis in reality, except as a construct of the leaders of thought in their efforts at moral and social engineering. The image of a masculine hero and a feminine heroine in a Mills and Boon romantic fantasy is just that, a fantasy. The reality is far more prosaic, and infinitely less likely to result in a “happy ending”. The myth promotes sexual stereotypes that portray men as more forceful, stronger and passionate than they really are, and women as more vulnerable, weaker, romantic and less interested in practicality than they really are. The reality, underlying the stereotypes, is that men and women, in the range of their personality and character traits, despite thousands of years of hype, are remarkably similar. There are forceful men and forceful women, vulnerable men and vulnerable women, all hiding, to varying degrees, behind masks that they create to try to live up to an ideal of sexual attraction, created by society. We wear masks to attract a mate, and seek masks that society tells us to feel attracted to, whereas the reality behind those masks is that we are all pretty ordinary. According to “Families and how to survive them” by John Cleese and Robin Skynner, experiments have shown that people of the opposite sex are attracted to each other, primarily by subconsciously identifying in the other psychological character traits that we ourselves possess. As in:

“10. O SON OF DESIRE! Give ear unto this: Never shall mortal eye recognize the everlasting Beauty, nor the lifeless heart delight in aught but in the withered bloom. For like seeketh like, and taketh pleasure in the company of its kind.” (Baha’u'llah, The Persian Hidden Words)

So a man and women who have similar psychological issues featuring in their subconsciousness will find themselves drawn to each other, despite and irrespective of any superficial disparity and mismatch in their appearance or circumstances. The tragedy of life is sometimes that despite such underlying compatibility, superficial considerations can easily keep people apart, such as difference in class, education, social status, economic privilege etc. As Vladmir Nabokov and Tamara were not allowed by their families to get together, even before The Bolshevik Revolution parted them permanently, due to their disparity of class, he being from an aristocratic family, she being far too down-market for him, so many couples, naturally drawn together, find themselves separated by the mundane and material. Such is life, as in Romeo and Juliet, though not always so dramatic. And as Forrest Gump was wont to say, “And that’s all I’ve got to say about that!”

“Defying Gravity”, the latest sci-fi drama series for TV from the US is about a “Grand Tour” around the Solar System to pick up “fractal objects” that have beamed radio transmissions like whale song from the following locations:- Alpha object on Mars, Beta object from the Nazca plains of Peru, Earth, Gamma object on Venus, Delta object on Mercury, Epsilon object on Europa, Jupiter, Zeta object at the rings of Saturn, Eta object on Pluto, comprising 7 objects. But what of Uranus and Neptune? Where are the Theta and Iota fractal objects? Is that part hidden from us at the moment, because for hundreds of years, the “magic number” was 7, not 9? And why Seven anyway? 7 days of the week; 7 heavenly bodies in ancient cosmology, Sun, Moon, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, Mercury; “lucky” 7, 7th heaven, 7 deady sins, etc etc. But why 9? According to the numerological analysis of the Hebrew numerical values of words in the Bible, mentioned and explained in the books of author Adrian Michell, such as “City of Revelation” everything there is based on the number 9. And what is the 2 that is added to 7 to make Nine, apart from Uranus and Neptune, the Two Twin moderately sized gas giants of comparable size and colour. 9 in the abjad numerological system of assigning numbers to Arabic not Hebrew letters, is the value of the Arabic word, Baha, meaning Glory, Splendour and Light. It comprises a 2 for B, a 6 for H and a 1 for the second A, the first not being written in Arabic, being a short vowel, not a long one. According to Baha’i understanding, Baha is the greatest name of God, mentioned in Islam but not identified and known until the advent of The Baha’i Faith. Perhaps the writers of “Defying Gravity” either know of this, or are somehow writing in a mysterious symbolic feature into their drama, without knowing why. 9 is a more modern fashionable number with Revolution  Number 9 by The Beatles, Number 9 Dream by John Lennon, before Pluto was declassified as a planet, 9 planets in the Solar System, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. Although analogies break down after a while, when gone into in two much detail, and although such “ideas of reference” are regarded with contempt and derision by “rational scientists”, such associations and ideas are a staple food for artists in literature, music, drama etc. Also, it could be asserted that there are 7 major religions in Earth, based on Moses, Jesus, Muhammad, Buddha, Krishna, Zoroaster and that of China? And add the Twin Manifestations of The Baha’i Revelation in the persons of the Bab and Baha’u'llah and you get 9, though I do admit that this argument is at least a bit contrived. But the mystery remains in “Defying Gravity” as to why Uranus and Neptune are still missing after episode 9 in being targets for collecting “fractal objects”.

“Total Recall” starring Arnold Schwarzeneggar, postulates a future where there is a war between the northern bloc and the southern bloc. The recent walk-out from the UN Copenhagen Climate Change Conference by delegates from the developing world is a tentative piece of circumstantial evidence suggesting such a world struggle in the future is not only a fanciful nightmare in a sci-fi fantasy. As Willy Brandt’s report, known as “The Brandt Report” and “Common Crisis” point out, if “The Northern Bloc” allows the “Southern Bloc” to fail economically, the consequences to The Northern Bloc will be catastrophic, though there seems a moral indifference in the north to the plight of the south which will I feel in the future will turn around and become a slap in the face of the north. Since the north has failed to take on board the fact that the world is one unit, and the best interests of the part are met through the best interests of the whole, the north’s stupidity in not finding a way to treat the south with fairness and justice will come to haunt it. Jerad Diamond’s book “Guns, Germs and Steel” explain the factors that led to the gross disparity of wealth and power which has accumulated so heavily in the north, with Europe, and now North America. A revolutionary change is needed in the north, to regard all humanity as of equal value, not just the peoples of Europe and America, and a failure to expedite this change will result in the collapse and elimination of “Western Civilization”. As Ghandi remarked when asked what he thought of Western Civilization, he answered that he thought it would be a good idea! I imagine that watching “The Age of Stupid” tonight at 22:00 on BBC4 will only confirm these conclusions in my mind. One conclusion I am coming to on watching the film is that it isn’t a war between north and south, but rich and poor, though admittedly, the north is much richer in terms of finance and power than the south, which is richer in spirit and humanity.

“25 Banning nuclear weapons, prohibiting the use of poison gases, or outlawing germ warfare will not remove the root causes of war. However important such practical measures obviously are as elements of the peace process, they are in themselves too superficial to exert enduring influence. Peoples are ingenious enough to invent yet other forms of warfare, and to use food, raw materials, finance, industrial power, ideology, and terrorism to subvert one another in an endless quest for supremacy and dominion. Nor can the present massive dislocation in the affairs of humanity be resolved through the settlement of specific conflicts or disagreements among nations. A genuine universal framework must be adopted.” (The Universal House of Justice, 1985 Oct, The Promise of World Peace)

A genuine universal framework? The UN was a step in the right direction after The League of Nations but is woefully inadequate, since the anarchy inherent in absolute state sovereignty has not be curtailed by the survival of the UN. A democratisation of the UK, the EU and the UN, not to mention the US is needed, whereby peace can emerge not only in the minds of a few noble minded visionaries, but the bulk of humanity.

“True civilization will unfurl its banner in the midmost heart of the world whenever a certain number of its distinguished and high-minded sovereigns — the shining exemplars of devotion and determination — shall, for the good and happiness of all mankind, arise, with firm resolve and clear vision, to establish the Cause of Universal Peace. They must make the Cause of Peace the object of general consultation, and seek by every means in their power to establish a Union of the nations of the world. They must conclude a binding treaty and establish a covenant, the provisions of which shall be sound, inviolable and definite. They must proclaim it to all the world and obtain for it the sanction of all the human race. This supreme and noble undertaking — the real source of the peace and well-being of all the world — should be regarded as sacred by all that dwell on earth. All the forces of humanity must be mobilized to ensure the stability and permanence of this Most Great Covenant. In this all-embracing Pact the limits and frontiers of each and every nation should be clearly fixed, the principles underlying the relations of governments towards one another definitely laid down, and all international agreements and obligations ascertained. In like manner, the size of the armaments of every government should be strictly limited, for if the preparations for war and the military forces of any nation should be allowed to increase, they will arouse the suspicion of others. The fundamental principle underlying this solemn Pact should be so fixed that if any government later violate any one of its provisions, all the governments on earth should arise to reduce it to utter submission, nay the human race as a whole should resolve, with every power at its disposal, to destroy that government. Should this greatest of all remedies be applied to the sick body of the world, it will assuredly recover from its ills and will remain eternally safe and secure. (Abdu’l-Baha, The Secret of Divine Civilization, p. 64)

CXVII. The Great Being, wishing to reveal the prerequisites of the peace and tranquillity of the world and the advancement of its peoples, hath written: The time must come when the imperative necessity for the holding of a vast, an all-embracing assemblage of men will be universally realized. The rulers and kings of the earth must needs attend it, and, participating in its deliberations, must consider such ways and means as will lay the foundations of the world’s Great Peace amongst men. Such a peace demandeth that the Great Powers should resolve, for the sake of the tranquillity of the peoples of the earth, to be fully reconciled among themselves. Should any king take up arms against another, all should unitedly arise and prevent him. If this be done, the nations of the world will no longer require any armaments, except for the purpose of preserving the security of their realms and of maintaining internal order within their territories. This will ensure the peace and composure of every people, government and nation. We fain would hope that the kings and rulers of the earth, the mirrors of the gracious and almighty name of God, may attain unto this station, and shield mankind from the onslaught of tyranny. …The day is approaching when all the peoples of the world will have adopted one universal language and one common script. When this is achieved, to whatsoever city a man may journey, it shall be as if he were entering his own home. These things are obligatory and absolutely essential. It is incumbent upon every man of insight and understanding to strive to translate that which hath been written into reality and action…. That one indeed is a man who, today, dedicateth himself to the service of the entire human race. The Great Being saith: Blessed and happy is he that ariseth to promote the best interests of the peoples and kindreds of the earth. In another passage He hath proclaimed: It is not for him to pride himself who loveth his own country, but rather for him who loveth the whole world. The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens. (Baha’u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u'llah, p. 248)

“Some form of a world superstate must needs be evolved, in whose favour all the nations of the world will have willingly ceded every claim to make war, certain rights to impose taxation and all rights to maintain armaments, except for purposes of maintaining internal order within their respective dominions. Such a state will have to include within its orbit an international executive adequate to enforce supreme and unchallengeable authority on every recalcitrant member of the commonwealth; a world parliament whose members shall be elected by the people in their respective countries and whose election shall be confirmed by their respective governments; and a supreme tribunal whose judgement will have a binding effect even in such cases where the parties concerned did not voluntarily agree to submit their case to its consideration. A world community in which all economic barriers will have been permanently demolished and the interdependence of Capital and Labour definitely recognized; in which the clamour of religious fanaticism and strife will have been forever stilled; in which the flame of racial animosity will have been finally extinguished; in which a single code of international law — the product of the considered judgement of the world’s federated representatives — shall have as its sanction the instant and coercive intervention of the combined forces of the federated units; and finally a world community in which the fury of a capricious and militant nationalism will have been transmuted into an abiding consciousness of world citizenship — such indeed, appears, in its broadest outline, the Order anticipated by Bahá’u'lláh, an Order that shall come to be regarded as the fairest fruit of a slowly maturing age.” (28 November 1931, cf. “The World Order of Bahá’u'lláh: Selected Letters” (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1991), pp. 40-41) (The Universal House of Justice, 1996 May 09, Extracts on International Tribunal)

“The unity of the human race, as envisaged by Bahá’u'lláh, implies the establishment of a world commonwealth in which all nations, races, creeds and classes are closely and permanently united, and in which the autonomy of its state members and the personal freedom and initiative of the individuals that compose them are definitely and completely safeguarded. This commonwealth must, as far as we can visualize it, consist of a world legislature, whose members will, as the trustees of the whole of mankind, ultimately control the entire resources of all the component nations, and will enact such laws as shall be required to regulate the life, satisfy the needs and adjust the relationships of all races and peoples. A world executive, backed by an international Force, will carry out the decisions arrived at, and apply the laws enacted by, this world legislature, and will safeguard the organic unity of the whole commonwealth. A world tribunal will adjudicate and deliver its compulsory and final verdict in all and any disputes that may arise between the various elements constituting this universal system. A mechanism of world inter-communication will be devised, embracing the whole planet, freed from national hindrances and restrictions, and functioning with marvellous swiftness and perfect regularity. A world metropolis will act as the nerve center of a world civilization, the focus towards which the unifying forces of life will converge and from which its energizing influences will radiate. A world language will either be invented or chosen from among the existing languages and will be taught in the schools of all the federated nations as an auxiliary to their mother tongue. A world script, a world literature, a uniform and universal system of currency, of weights and measures, will simplify and facilitate intercourse and understanding among the nations and races of mankind. In such a world society,  204  science and religion, the two most potent forces in human life, will be reconciled, will cooperate, and will harmoniously develop. The press will, under such a system, while giving full scope to the expression of the diversified views and convictions of mankind, cease to be mischievously manipulated by vested interests, whether private or public, and will be liberated from the influence of contending governments and peoples. The economic resources of the world will be organized, its sources of raw materials will be tapped and fully utilized, its markets will be coordinated and developed, and the distribution of its products will be equitably regulated.
National rivalries, hatreds, and intrigues will cease, and racial animosity and prejudice will be replaced by racial amity, understanding and cooperation. The causes of religious strife will be permanently removed, economic barriers and restrictions will be completely abolished, and the inordinate distinction between classes will be obliterated. Destitution on the one hand, and gross accumulation of ownership on the other, will disappear. The enormous energy dissipated and wasted on war, whether economic or political, will be consecrated to such ends as will extend the range of human inventions and technical development, to the increase of the productivity of mankind, to the extermination of disease, to the extension of scientific research, to the raising of the standard of physical health, to the sharpening and refinement of the human brain, to the exploitation of the unused and unsuspected resources of the planet, to the prolongation of human life, and to the furtherance of any other agency that can stimulate the intellectual, the moral, and spiritual life of the entire human race.” (Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Baha’u'llah, p. 203)