doberman pizza. a baha'i (bahai, bahá'í) blog.

Waft, then, unto me, O my God and my Beloved, from the right hand of Thy mercy and Thy loving-kindness, the holy breaths of Thy favors, that they may draw me away from myself and from the world unto the courts of Thy nearness and Thy presence. (Bahá’u'lláh)

lost in a sea of subtle fragrance
and deep abounding joy i sigh

you ask me hello are you there you
need to concentrate what are you
thinking of

looking
longing
across the bay
like a magnet it draws me back

it feels like flying
like being there and curling into
a stance of prayer my forehead
touches the carpet and
as the faithful utter wordless devotions
i smell the scent of roses in the air
turning to face that sacred spot that
holy threshhold

drink deep from the cup of His presence
for in nine days you return to your previous life
to find that it can no longer be lived the same way

back at work on a grey day I hear chatter
while deep inside noiseless waves
crash and break upon my heart
and their silent roar echoes in my ears
and shakes this dusty shell that surrounds me

I turn aside and I sigh
and you look on wondering
if one day you look upon my Beloved
you might know why

I know it’s a little bit early to be thinking about the Baha’i Fast, but I thought I’d take this opportunity to remind you all of important changes to Daylight Savings Time that will affect all fasting Baha’is in North America. As you probably heard, a congressional act was passed into law in the United States that changes the official beginning and ending dates for Daylight Savings Time. According to Canada’s National Research Council, the Canadian provinces and territories have agreed to follow this new standard as well. Beginning in 2007, Americans and Canadians (unless stated otherwise, e.g. Arizona or Saskatchewan) will begin observing DST on the second Sunday in March and end the first Sunday in November.

For American and Canadian Baha’is, this will introduce a new level of difficulty in observing the Baha’i Fast: setting clocks ahead one hour in the middle of the Fast. Daylight Savings Time will come into effect in the wee hours of March 11, 2007, or the ninth day of the Baha’i Fast.

I’ve compiled a list of links to fasting calendars for major Canadian cities, along with the 2007 fasting times for Ottawa. You’ll note that all of these include the changeover to DST on March 11; sunrise and sunset will appear to jump ahead one hour.

Learn more about the nature of the Baha’i Fast.

I just got this email from a friend:

Jack Lenz is in the process of producing a film on Mona [note: Mona Mahmudnizhad, a 16-year-old woman who was executed in Shiraz, Iran along with nine others because of her beliefs]. See more information at: www.monasdream.com.

For those who would like to dedicate service projects to Mona, please click on “service” as he would like to compile a list of those projects on his web site.

Also read the Story of Mona: 1965-1983.

Praise be unto Thee, O our God, that Thou hast sent down unto us that which draweth us nigh unto Thee, and supplieth us with every good thing sent down by Thee in Thy Books and Thy Scriptures. (Bahá’u'lláh)

It’s been over two months since we returned from pilgrimage. Life, as life does, has once again returned to a regular, somewhat insistent rhythm. I can’t rightly say that it’s “returned to normal” or that it’s achieved any sort of equilibrium; after all, has not the whole world’s equilibrium “been upset through the vibrating influence of this most great, this new World Order”?^[1]

Still, out of sight, out of mind, as the saying goes. I’ve been finding it harder and harder to nurture that conscious connection with God that seemed to come so naturally when I found myself kneeling in the Shrines. Some days are pretty good; I feel focused, conscious, resolute, and my prayers feel like loving conversations with God. Other days, I feel hazy, distracted, and weak, and my prayers feel just like words. On those days, I just find it difficult to pray because I feel so distracted by random worries—like the hosts of idle fancies and vain imaginings are launching an assault on my head.

I gather similar things happen to everyone; that’s why we always have to work at it. There’s no magic bullet to become more spiritual or to improve the quality and depth of your prayer, it seems. Instead, in His unerring wisdom as the Divine Physician for this age, Bahá’u'lláh has prescribed a number of spiritual habits for us to adopt to help our spirits grow and flourish. For those of us who worry so much that we find ourselves unable to pray, it would seem that the solution is to bite the bullet and pray anyway. In writing to a physician about health, Bahá’u'lláh said: “Verily, the most necessary thing is contentment under all circumstances; by this one is preserved from morbid conditions and lassitude. Yield not to grief and sorrow: they cause the greatest misery.”^[2] Letting go of one’s anxiety and being content with the will of God, as suggested in the famous prayer, will “refresh and gladden” one’s spirit.

O God! Refresh and gladden my spirit. Purify my heart. Illumine my powers. I lay all my affairs in Thy hand. Thou art my Guide and my Refuge. I will no longer be sorrowful and grieved; I will be a happy and joyful being. O God! I will no longer be full of anxiety, nor will I let trouble harass me. I will not dwell on the unpleasant things of life. O God! Thou art more friend to me than I am to myself. I dedicate myself to Thee, O Lord. (’Abdu’l-Bahá)

[1]: Bahá’u'lláh, Proclamation of Bahá’u’lláh, p. 118.
[2]: Bahá’u'lláh, quoted in Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era, p. 108.

Last Saturday in Kingston, two good friends of mine, Shameem and Sarah, were married in a charming ceremony full of love, joy, unity and profound caring. It was a beautiful evening to behold; roses were abundant and candles dotted the halls everywhere. I’ve posted up the wedding photos for posterity in a flickr photoset. Check them out and relive it with us!

Once you’re done, you should also view Martin’s photos and Louis’s photos. The latter were taken with a Nikon D70s and are of excellent quality. Check them out or you’re e.

January 15th, 2007 is Martin Luther King Day, an American national holiday that celebrates the birthday—and the life and times—of Martin Luther King Jr., a Christian minister who championed the Civil Rights movement in America in the 1960s. You may be familiar with his “I Have a Dream” speech, given at the March on Washington in 1963, when he expressed the hope that the black and white races would one day live in perfect equality, harmony and unity. This sentiment is echoed in Bahá’u'lláh’s command unto humanity: “Close your eyes to racial differences, and welcome all with the light of oneness.”

Read more about the Baha’i perspective on Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream.

Since Martin Luther King Day is celebrated as a Day of Service, we may also want to consider today ways in which we can serve humanity. Visit the US Government’s official MLK Day website for service ideas, or consider your own ways you can volunteer or be of service. (Hint: to go along with the picture above, you may want to help out at your friendly neighbourhood children’s class!)

My family’s pilgrimage to the Baha’i World Centre is over, but the journey of others has only just begun. Several friends and acquaintances—Sham, Sahba and Melody are among those leaving for pilgrimage this season; the Moradipours (you may know Tassnim, Basim or Salim) just returned from their pilgrimage last week, and their photos are already up on flickr—good time, considering mine weren’t up for an entire month.

Maruška from Slovenije, er, I mean Slovenia—took time away from writing her thesis to write up her pilgrimage experiences for everyone to read. Go check them out, it’s definitely worth the read. Maruška is one of the Baha’is who stayed with us at the well-recommended hostel, the Port Inn, in Haifa. She taught me that cmrlj means “bumblebee” in Slovenian. We have fond memories of the good times shared with our fellow “Port Inners”. We miss Rachel too :(

A few more friends we met on pilgrimage have made their presence known on the Internet. Seth from Georgia, Nina from NZ and Farideh from Saskatoon were all part of our 250-strong set of pilgrims. See Farideh’s photos, Nina’s photos and Seth’s photos on flickr. Juliette was part of our group—the French group—and has posted her photos to flickr as well.

A few folks have asked me questions about pilgrimage tips—what to do, what not to do, where to go, etc. Here are a few tips that might be helpful to those visiting the Baha’i World Centre in Haifa and ‘Akká:

• Spend as much time in the shrines as possible, and attend the evening talks. You’ll probably find that they help you understand the nature of pilgrimage and your role as a pilgrim.
• Make effort to say the long obligatory prayer as much as you can. Make a special effort to say it within the Shrine of Bahá’u'lláh at Bahji if you can.
• Use your time in the shrines to say the Tablets of Visitation. That’s what they were revealed for and you will find that they will really come alive when you say them in the Shrines.
• Crying is not mandatory, so don’t feel bad if you don’t.
• When visiting, try and stick with a group of six to ten people; that way, it’ll be easier for you to fill up a sherut (communal taxi). Travel by sherut as much as you can, whether within the city or outside; it’s the cheapest way to get around and is reasonably comfortable. Taxi drivers (driving normal-sized taxis) will stop whenever they see you to ask if you need a taxi; tell them that you’re waiting for a sherut. Taxis are ridiculously expensive, sheruts are not. Sheruts usually look like minibuses, and can hold ten people.
• Spend a day in the Old City of ‘Akká if you have the time. We did it and enjoyed it a lot. You should be able to get a map of a walking tour of ‘Akká that you can follow on your own; if you know someone who lives in Haifa who can show you around, that’s even better.
• Use the time spent visiting the Holy Places to call to mind the sufferings of Bahá’u'lláh and the Holy Family.
• Read the pamphlets you received from the Department of Pilgrimage; read them carefully and all the way through. They include a lot of really useful information that you will really be glad you knew.

That’s it for now. I’ve been pretty busy lately, but you should be able to look forward to a continuation of the “post-pilgrimage” series in the next few weeks, sharing more of my impressions of pilgrimage as they relate to my understanding of the Baha’i Writings.

On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations back in October, the Baha’i International Community, the non-government organization (NGO) representing the world’s Baha’i population at the United Nations, published a statement titled “The Search for Values in an Age of Transition“. The statement focuses on “the importance of the oneness of humanity and religious freedom as critical values in the process of UN reform”. From the press release:

“The blurring of national boundaries in the face of global crises has shown, beyond a doubt, that the body of humankind represents one organic whole,” says the statement, which is titled “The Search for Values in an Age of Transition.”

Accordingly, the oneness of humanity must become the overriding focus as humanity searches for solutions to global challenges such as poverty, AIDS, environmental degradation, terrorism, and the proliferation of weapons.

“It is clear that none of the problems facing humanity can be adequately addressed in isolation from one another,” the statement says.

“The increasingly apparent interconnectedness of development, security and human rights on a global scale confirms that peace and prosperity are indivisible — that no sustainable benefit can be conferred on a nation or community if the welfare of the nations as a whole is ignored or neglected.”

Moreover, the statement asserts that the issues surrounding religion and freedom of belief have now risen to a level of “consuming global importance, which the United Nations cannot afford to ignore.”

“While the General Assembly has passed a number of resolutions addressing the role of religion in the promotion of peace and calling for the elimination of religious intolerance, it struggles to grasp fully both the constructive role that religion can play in creating a peaceful global order and the destructive impact that religious fanaticism can have on the stability and progress of the world,” the statement says.

“A growing number of leaders and deliberative bodies acknowledge that such considerations must move from the periphery to the center of debate — recognizing that the full impact of religion-related variables on governance, diplomacy, human rights, development, notions of justice, and collective security must be better understood.”

You can read and study the full text of the statement yourself. Or, if you’re the type who likes indepth reading, you can check out the Baha’i Statement Library, which allows you to search through every statement released by the BIC since the inception of the United Nations in the 1940s.

Here’s news from the Baha’i World News Service regarding the latest resolution adopted by the UN’s General Assembly on the situation of human rights in Iran. A recent story mentioned a similar resolution being passed by the General Assembly’s Third Committee.

UN General Assembly approves resolution expressing concern on human rights in Iran

UNITED NATIONS, 20 December 2006 (BWNS) — The United Nations General Assembly yesterday adopted a resolution expressing “serious concern” over the human rights situation in Iran, including the escalation of violations against Iranian Baha’is. […]

Put forward by Canada and co-sponsored by 43 countries, the resolution calls on Iran to “eliminate, in law and in practice, all forms of discrimination based on religious, ethnic or linguistic grounds, and other human rights violations against persons belonging to minorities, including Arabs, Azeris, Baha’is, Baluchis, Kurds, Christians, Jews, Sufis, and Sunni Muslims.”

The resolution takes particular note of the worsening situation facing Iran’s 300,000-member Baha’i community, noting “reports of plans by the state to identify and monitor Baha’is,” “an increase in cases of arbitrary arrest and detention,” and “the denial of freedom of religion or of publicly carrying out communal affairs.”

The resolution also expresses concern over the “destruction of sites of religious importance” to Baha’is and “the suspension of social, educational and community-related activities and the denial of access to higher education, employment, pensions, adequate housing and other benefits” for Baha’is.

Read the whole story.

the energetic and irrepressible duo of Misagh and Jamál were married in Edmonton on the evening of December 28, 2006, surrounded by friends and family. I’ve posted up the wedding photos, including pics from the rehearsal, ceremony, and reception. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again here: this must have been the shortest, the most moving and the most fun wedding I’ve ever been to, and that’s saying a lot. congrats to the newlyweds, and manifold blessings and confirmations be upon their newfound union :)

As well, do check out some video clips of freestyle raps by Ashraf and Karim of Edmonton-based, Bahá’í-inspired rap group Dialektika, who performed at the wedding reception. There’s the impromptu wedding freestyle:

and then there’s Karim’s freestyle at Denny’s after the wedding:

And no, that video isn’t online, but you can contact me to see it.

You haven’t lived until you’ve seen the adventures of Super Baha’i Girl. It’s a video put together by Junior Youth from (somewhere in the British Isles?), and it’s fantastically hilarious. Super Baha’i Girl invites her fellow super-heroes to a study circle, but the evil doings of Peer Pressure Girl disrupt the occasion. Can Super Baha’i Girl help establish unity and restore order to society?? Watch it now!

hey, I’m back from vacation in Vancouver, Edmonton and Winnipeg. I can finally say that I’ve visited Canada from coast to coast. Check out the map below. Green provinces are ones I’ve visited, and red stars are major cities I’ve visited (including brief stopovers in Calgary and Saskatoon - hey, hanging around in the airport waiting for flights counts). Vancouver was mild and rainy, Edmonton was cold, and Winnipeg was cold and snowy.

Oh, and if you’re looking for vacation pictures—including the Baha’i wedding of Misagh and Jamál—look no further than flickr.