Paragraph 177

It is clear and evident that whenever the Manifestations of Holiness were revealed, the divines of their day have hindered the people from attaining unto the way of truth. To this testify the records of all the scriptures and heavenly books. Not one Prophet of God was made manifest Who did not fall a victim to the relentless hate, to the denunciation, denial, and execration of the clerics of His day! Woe unto them for the iniquities their hands have formerly wrought! Woe unto them for that which they are now doing! What veils of glory more grievous than these embodiments of error! By the righteousness of God! to pierce such veils is the mightiest of all acts, and to rend them asunder the most meritorious of all deeds! May God assist us and assist you, O concourse of the Spirit! that perchance ye may in the time of His Manifestation be graciously aided to perform such deeds, and may in His days attain unto the Presence of God.

We are now at paragraph 17 of these thirty paragraphs focusing on the first of the two stations of the Manifestations of God, namely that of "pure abstraction and essential unity".

And just so we don't forget, this also comes under the larger heading of understanding what is meant by "Return", in the sense of the return of the Messenger of God. He began this particular section by talking about seeing them all as absolutely identical, and what any one of them said about themselves can also refer to them each and all.

He then went on to talk about how many people deny them merely because they don't want to change from the faith of their ancestors. There were some, though, who did and they were truly transformed, as incredibly transformed as copper would be if it suddenly became gold. In every age we can find stories of people who were changed like this, and in this sense we can begin to see a bit of what is meant by "return".

After touching on this subject, He reminded us that just as any of them can claim to be like any of the previous Messengers, they can just as easily and just as truthfully claim to be the last. For in the realm of the Messengers, there is no difference between any of them.

This, however, confuses many lay people. Some blindly follow their religious leaders, and others are blinded by the pomp of the learned and upper classes. They will refuse to accept anything from anyone who does not shine in their eyes, regardless of the sensibility and wisdom these people may teach.

Now, here, in this paragraph, He turns His attention back to the religious leaders. He reminds us that all the Messengers have suffered at the hands of these misguided leaders, and that these same clergy suffered and will suffer for having done so. He points out that teaching people, despite the veils put up by these leaders, is one of the greatest acts we can perform. Then He concludes this paragraph with a prayerful request for aid and assistance.

But let's take a closer look at this paragraph.

The first half is nothing short of a reminder to "Consider the past". We are all familiar with the trend, but so few are willing to admit that it might happen in their lifetime, or that they might not recognize His return. But let's face it, the clerics can be a grievous veil. After all, if we are religious, and love our faith, then we probably also revere our religious leaders, whether or not they are worthy of it. We probably confuse the position for the person. After all, the position of a religious leader is a noble station and worthy of admiration. But unfortunately that position is sometimes filled by someone who is not worthy to be there. The position itself can be like a veil, making them seem glorious, all the while hiding their flaws. It's kind of like a warthog with a wedding veil. Some may be fooled into thinking the animal a beautiful bride.

But then Baha'u'llah offers us some encouragement. He tells us that it is a mighty act to just pierce that veil.

Let's think about that, though. Piercing the veil? Isn't that like poking a hole in it? Allowing us to see a tiny bit of what's underneath? Sure.

And maybe that's why He continues with that "most meritorious of all deeds": completely rending that veil. Ripping it to shreds. Seizing it and tearing it to pieces so that there is nothing left. Fully exposing what is underneath that veil for all to see.

This is His prayer.

"May God assist us", Baha'u'llah Himself, and us, the readers, who He seems to be referring to as the "concourse of the Spirit", to be able to do this in the time of the next Messenger, which is, of course, His own Dispensation.

Paragraph 176

Notwithstanding the divinely inspired admonitions of all the Prophets, the Saints, and Chosen ones of God, enjoining the people to see with their own eyes and hear with their own ears, they have disdainfully rejected their counsels and have blindly followed, and will continue to follow, the leaders of their Faith. Should a poor and obscure person, destitute of the attire of men of learning, address them saying: “Follow ye, O people! the Messengers of God," they would, greatly surprised at such a statement, reply: “What! Meanest thou that all these divines, all these exponents of learning, with all their authority, their pomp and pageantry, have erred, and failed to distinguish truth from falsehood? Dost thou, and people like thyself, pretend to have comprehended that which they have not understood?” If numbers and excellence of apparel be regarded as the criterions of learning and truth, the peoples of a bygone age, whom those of today have never surpassed in numbers, magnificence and power, should certainly be accounted a superior and worthier people.

 

We're still looking at the concept of the first of the two stations of the Manifestations of God, that of "pure abstraction and essential unity". And this is the sixteenth of thirty paragraphs dedicated to this lofty theme.

As we read over this paragraph, the phrases about seeing with our own eyes and hearing with our own ears really struck us. Why, we wondered, does Baha'u'llah repeat this here? What is He trying to show us?

As we discussed it, we were also reminded of the second Hidden Word in Arabic, which says, "...The best beloved of all things in My sight is Justice; turn not away therefrom if thou desirest Me, and neglect it not that I may confide in thee. By its aid thou shalt see with thine own eyes and not through the eyes of others, and shalt know of thine own knowledge and not through the knowledge of thy neighbor. Ponder this in thy heart; how it behooveth thee to be. Verily justice is My gift to thee and the sign of My loving-kindness..."

What is He saying here? And how does it relate to our recognition of the Manifestation in their own lifetime?

We already know that the religious leaders He is condemning have their own agenda. They are not concerned about Truth, but more concerned about maintaining and expanding their own power. Anything that threatens that power is immediately condemned by them. Naturally, if someone comes along and claims that these leaders are not being obedient to the laws of their own faith, these petty leaders will lash out and attack them.

If we blindly follow these leaders, then we, too, will follow through on those attacks.

But now, look at concept of justice and being fair to others. If we ignore what others say, and look at the actual lives of these Messengers, what do we think? In part one of this book, Baha'u'llah gave us the tools to make a fair comparison and see their unity. If we look back at paragraph 6, He tells us to look at "the indignities heaped upon the Prophets of God", and points out "the more closely you observe the denials... the firmer will be your faith..." He then goes on for another dozen or so paragraphs comparing the lives of some of the Messengers, showing us how they all follow the same arc. Through all of this, He is exhorting us to look at their lives. He is also pointing out to us the problem with taking the word of others regarding these issues

And most importantly, if approach these issues with fairness and justice, ignoring the prejudices of our day, then we will recognize the truth of these divine Messengers.

But if we allow ourselves to be swayed by what others say or think, then we probably will not recognize them in their lifetime.

All of this is to say that it is through our purity of heart, by solely seeking the truth and not the acclamation of our peers nor power within our society, that we will be able to recognize. Anything else will merely get in the way.

After all this, He also points to the issue of the one who may introduce us to these ideas. What if they are poor? What if they are not a recognized authority on religion?

So what?

If what they say is true, or makes sense, why wouldn't we acknowledge it?

How often did the early Babis or Baha'is remind the people of their day that Muhammad told them to be kind to the stranger? How often did they remind them that their own Prophet encouraged them to listen to others and consider what they said? Even if we disagree with someone else, we are still to show them all courtesy. But over and over, these people were being encouraged to attack or even kill those that said anything different from what was the norm of the day.

"Be kind. Show mercy. Treat others with compassion." How, in the name of justice, could anyone find fault with these ideas?

In truth, they couldn't. Instead, they tried to find fault with the one delivering that message. They would point to the messenger's lack of authority, or the state of their clothing. They would point to the fewness of followers of this new way.

They would say, "See? This person wears a big hat. He has golden robes. He must know what he's talking about."

We can, of course, see the shallowness of that argument. After all, Jesus wore simple clothing, and was not a member of the Sanhedrin. Does that mean that He was not telling the truth? Of course not.

All of this is but another of those "veils of glory" obscuring the Messenger from our eyes. We need to be detached, as He says back in paragraph one, "from all that is in heaven and on earth" if we want to have a chance to recognize the Manifestation of God.

Paragraph 175

And, now, strive thou to comprehend the meaning of this saying of ‘Alí, the Commander of the Faithful: “Piercing the veils of glory, unaided.” Among these “veils of glory” are the divines and doctors living in the days of the Manifestation of God, who, because of their want of discernment and their love and eagerness for leadership, have failed to submit to the Cause of God, nay, have even refused to incline their ears unto the divine Melody. “They have thrust their fingers into their ears.” And the people also, utterly ignoring God and taking them for their masters, have placed themselves unreservedly under the authority of these pompous and hypocritical leaders, for they have no sight, no hearing, no heart, of their own to distinguish truth from falsehood.

Paragraph fifteen of thirty paragraphs looking at the first of the two stations of the Manifestations of God, that of "pure abstraction and essential unity". Whew. We're halfway there.

Now, it may seem that this paragraph is familiar. The theme certainly is. We encountered it over and over again in Part 1.

Looking at this paragraph, it seems useful to put it into simple language, ensuring that we understand the very basic message Baha'u'llah is giving here. First, those that are considered "learned" in the time of the Messenger can be seen as veils blocking our vision of the Manifestation. This goes back to many passages in part one, such as paragraph 15. There are too many examples for us to go into here, but simply looking back at part one will amply demonstrate this. The question, though, is why they are like veils in this instance. The answer is, as He states here, "want of discernment and their love and eagerness for leadership". It is because of these two qualities that they have strayed from the guidance given to them in their own scriptures. They have placed leadership above what is being taught to them. Second, though, the people have fallen prey to their sway. These people believe these leaders and follow, without question, what they say. They are seemingly enamoured by the pomp these leaders show, and utterly ignore the hypocrisy.

Understanding this is the basis for the paragraphs to come. All the troubles, all the tribulations, all the trials these great Teachers face is due to the fact that these leaders love the thought of leadership beyond the truth found within their own Writings. And this, too, is one of the reasons that the Messengers need to come. Their love of leadership has led these foolish leaders astray, and the effect of the Writings has been diminished. Society has fallen to pieces. Injustice runs rampant. All the signs He talked about in part one are the result of this. Therefore the next Messenger needs to come and put things right again.

Of course, this is not to condemn all religious leaders. He is not doing that. He is specifically condemning those who have ignored what is in their Scriptures because of their love of leadership. There are others who, as stated back in part one, are merely ignorant. But here it is a very specific condemnation against those who have both this "want of discernment" combined with this love of leadership.

Now, the next question is why does Baha'u'llah bring this up here? What is His methodology in helping bring the uncle closer to recognition?

Earlier on He offered some condemnation of some of the religious leaders, but not so much that it would repel a good Muslim. He drew on what was obvious to any student of religion, and pointed out that there were some today who also loved leadership more than truth. However, He is much further in His argument. The uncle is already far more aware of the similarities between the days of Muhammad and his own day. Baha'u'llah can be much more direct without fear of driving the uncle away. Slowly He builds His argument, allowing the uncle the time to come to agreement. He is so careful to not put any ideas or concepts between the uncle and the truth.

All of this leads us to a strange question. What is the difference between these "veils" and the "clouds" He talked about earlier?

The "clouds", as described in paragraphs 79 - 82, are those things about the Messenger that prevent us from recognizing them and their glory. For example, He cites the fact that they walk and talk just like us, while changing the laws such as altering where we face when praying. They are the things that get us to ask, "Who does he think he is?" They are also things that everyone knows and witnesses.

The "veils", though, cover our own eyes. A desire for leadership, for example, does not get us to question the Messenger specifically. They get us to question anything contrary to our own thoughts. Our love of the pomp that the religious leaders show do not make us question whether or not Baha'u'llah is who He says He is. It has nothing to do with Him. Instead, this pomp distracts us individually from what is important. It is a veil over us, and not the Messenger.

The clouds are there for everyone. The veils are specific to the individual. Everyone knew that Moses stuttered, and the Jesus was regarded as fatherless. Even their followers recognized these truths. They were just not distracted by it.

The veils are specific. Not everyone loves the pomp, but those that do will be prevented from recognizing. For others, the veil might be their own love of leadership. For some, the veil might be the fact that they love their leaders and believe them with absolute certainty.

In these paragraphs, Baha'u'llah is no longer dealing with abstract generalities. He is talking about very specific things that apply to actual people and showing how their misplaced priorities get in the way of them recognizing the next Messenger.

All of this shows how those that turn away have placed something else besides the Messenger at the centre of their heart.

For some, if they have to choose between obedience to their own teachings or doing things that will give more power in a leadership position, they will choose the latter.

For others, if they have to choose between what they read in their own Writings and following the leader of their particular religion, they will choose the leader.

Here, Baha'u'llah is beginning to remind us that the Messenger is the absolute Sovereign. Nothing should be more important than what they say.

All of this is in part two of this incredible book, and the main theme of part two is this sovereignty. So you see how this all ties together? You see how it all flows?

And more importantly, you see where this is all leading?

As we come to recognize the absolute unity of the Messengers, we will see these same themes over and over in their stories. We will recognize the problems of the past in the problems of the present. We can clearly see how the people in the days of Muhammad put obedience to their leaders over obedience to Jesus or Muhammad. And by applying this same keenness of sight to today, we can see the same issues again.