...continuation
For introduction, click here for Part 1
March 09, 2018
Food for the soul: Kalimat (Words)
"The essence of charity is for the servant to recount the blessings of his Lord, and to render thanks unto Him at all times and under all conditions. The essence of faith is fewness of words and abundance of deeds; he whose words exceed his deeds, know verily his death is better than his life. The essence of true safety is to observe silence, to look at the end of things and to renounce the world. The beginning of magnanimity is when man expendeth his wealth on himself, on his family and on the poor among his brethren in his Faith. The essence of wealth is love for Me; whoso loveth Me is the possessor of all things, and he that loveth Me not is indeed of the poor and needy.
This is that which the Finger of Glory and Splendour hath revealed."
This is that which the Finger of Glory and Splendour hath revealed."
Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh
Food for the body:
 |
| My mom prepared some monggo beans with veggies for dinner |
The last thing I wrote in my blog yesterday was about the hot weather, and immediately after I clicked published, I looked out my window and saw it was drizzling! We had our first rain in several weeks, so the weather cooled down a great deal. It was still drizzling this morning, which means that for the first time this week, I didn't see the sun rise; the sky changed from dark blue to dark grey while we were having breakfast.
Today's quotation reminded me so much of Ayyam-i-há, because a lot of the readings I selected for one of our celebrations the other week was about wealth. It's really interesting how the four days before the Fast are all about charity, giving gifts, giving away something from you to others... then comes the Fast which is about giving up. We give up food, water and our carnal desires. We give away and give up so that we learn to see what's left...what's really important...what remains at the end of the day which is "The essence of wealth is love for Me; whoso loveth Me is the possessor of all things..."
Today's quotation reminded me so much of Ayyam-i-há, because a lot of the readings I selected for one of our celebrations the other week was about wealth. It's really interesting how the four days before the Fast are all about charity, giving gifts, giving away something from you to others... then comes the Fast which is about giving up. We give up food, water and our carnal desires. We give away and give up so that we learn to see what's left...what's really important...what remains at the end of the day which is "The essence of wealth is love for Me; whoso loveth Me is the possessor of all things..."
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March 10, 2018
Food for the soul: Kamal (Perfection)
"Man reacheth perfection through good deeds, voluntarily performed, not through good deeds the doing of which was forced upon him. And sharing is a personally chosen righteous act: that is, the rich should extend assistance to the poor, they should expend their substance for the poor, but of their own free will, and not because the poor have gained this end by force. For the harvest of force is turmoil and the ruin of the social order. On the other hand voluntary sharing, the freely-chosen expending of one's substance, leadeth to society's comfort and peace. It lighteth up the world; it bestoweth honour upon humankind."
Abdu'l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Bahá
Food for the body:
 |
| My mom and I tried something new this evening - a delicious flavorful Japanese street food called Takoyaki (octopus dumpling) |
My fasting nightmare just happened... period! So, I'm not fasting today. FYI, I only learnt about this Fast exemption (for women who are menstruating) only two years ago. I was with my Dad when he told me I didn't need to fast, then I said, "I don't mind, I can still fast because I don't experience any pain or discomfort; it really doesn't make any difference," then he said "there's a reason Bahá'u'lláh exempted you". Just to be completely sure, I decided to look it up in the Kitab-i-Aqdas and here's what I found written in the Notes section at the back - Page 173, paragraph 20:
"Exemption from obligatory prayer and fasting is granted to women who are menstruating; they should, instead, perform their ablutions and repeat 95 times a day between one noon and the next, the verse "Glorified be God, the Lord of Splendour and Beauty". This provision has its antecedent in the Arabic Bayán, where a similar dispensation was granted.
In some earlier religious Dispensations, women in their courses were considered ritually unclean and were forbidden to observe the duties of prayer and fasting. The concept of ritual uncleanliness has been abolished by Bahá'u'lláh.
The Universal House of Justice has clarified that the provisions of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas granting exemptions from certain duties and responsibilities are, as the world indicates, exemptions and not prohibitions. Any believer is, therefore, free to avail himself or herself of an applicable exemption if he or she so wishes. However, the Universal House of Justice counsels that, in deciding whether to do so or not, the believer should use wisdom and realize that Bahá'u'lláh has granted these exemptions for good reason..."
After reading this, it became very clear to me that this is an exemption, not a prohibition. Out of curiosity, I decided to look up on the Why? You're not going to find these reasons in the Holy Book; that's why in the Bahá'i Faith science and religion should go hand in hand and support each other. So I read a couple of articles about this topic, written by nutritionists and in the process I learnt a lot about my body, my health and well-being. I really appreciate how in the Writings, there are no rigid laws. When certain things are not explicitly covered, we're encouraged to make "prayerful and conscientious consideration of the principles and carry out our decision with a clear conscience." As the Universal House of Justice puts it, "the believe should use wisdom". See, even though my Dad told me about this, I still made sure to read it through my own eyes and reflect further because you'll appreciate the laws/teachings more when you try to understand why you do what you're doing. "Man reacheth perfection through good deeds, voluntarily performed, not through good deeds the doing of which was forced upon him."
March 11, 2018
Food for the soul: Asma (Names)
"But the question may be asked: How shall we know God? We know Him by His attributes. We know Him by His signs. We know Him by His names. We know not what the reality of the sun is, but we know the sun by the ray, by the heat, by its efficacy and penetration. We recognize the sun by its bounty and effulgence, but as to what constitutes the reality of the solar energy, that is unknowable to us. The attributes characterizing the sun, however, are knowable. If we wish to come in touch with the reality of Divinity, we do so by recognizing its phenomena, its attributes and traces, which are widespread in the universe."
Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace
Food for the body:
 |
| Cream cheese and strawberry jam on toasted bread for breakky (and meet our new kitten!) |
Even though I'm still not fasting today, I woke up very early, prepared some toasted bread and spreads for my mom, woke her up then I went back to bed. I was planning to get a short nap before my friends come over for our Ruhi book 6 study but suddenly, my brother showed up at home with a stray kitten he had rescued! My brother and I have a history of rescuing and raising kittens. So as expected, I stayed up, gave the little cutie a bath and some warm milk.... and no, I did not feed her toasted bread; I just wanted her beautiful little face to make it on my blog!
Book 6 was pretty interesting today. We got to an exercise where we had to write about how the Word of God has personally transformed our minds, hearts, thoughts, goals, view of the world, etc. We had a long conversation about this because we couldn't write our answers right away! Me and my two friends were born Bahá'is, meaning we were raised in a Bahá'i family... so did we experience any transformation, especially since Bahá'u'lláh's teachings are all we've ever known? I said yes, I still get to experience changes... because there are so many other things that influence our personality, our habits... sometimes we don't realize that certain opinions we hold or decisions we make are contrary to what the Word of God is. The more we read and study the Writings, the more hidden gems we discover, so there's always room for growth. For example when I attended the ISGP seminar last December, I learnt new concepts that honestly did transform my ideas about what my goals are.
My mom (our tutor) shared with us her story about how she became a Bahá'i (five years after marrying my Dad) -- a lot of details I hadn't known before! She grew up Christian in a little town here in the Philippines. In her early 20s she met my Dad and they got married in Nigeria. Back in Port Harcourt (the city I grew up in), there was no Bahá'i Center, so most of the meetings (Feasts, Holy Days, and even NSA meetings back when my Dad was a member) were held at our house. That way, my Mom was always surrounded with Bahá'is and there were lots of Bahá'i books lying around on our tables and shelves. My Dad never forced her to attend even the gatherings at our home, but she liked the company and also found herself scanning through the books. She liked the prayers, so even before she declared, she taught me and my brother Bahá'i prayers. She said that the first quotation she came across was "The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens" by Bahá'u'lláh. She said my Dad was obsessed with this quotation because it was written on every single page of my Dad's company invoice (my Dad's company logo back then was the globe!), and the quotation was also printed on his workers' t-shirts (hilarious!) My brother and I went to an international day care and school, and after dropping the kids off at school, all the moms (majority being house wives) would often hang out at each other's homes, teach each other some food recipes etc. This was a very new culture for my Mom, and seeing how Italian, Lebanese, British, Nigerian, Colombian, Filipino women interacted very pleasantly with each other strengthened her belief in the words and teachings of Bahá'u'lláh. It's like she got to see the Teachings and reality being coherent and it transformed her way of thinking. "...we know the sun by the ray, by the heat, by its efficacy and penetration..."
I always love listening to the stories of new Bahá'is, because it's so inspiring to learn about what they found/what drew them to the Faith. A lot of my born-Bahá'i friends and I agree that we often take our "comfort zone", the literature and teachings for granted. Especially for me, having a Persian father, I used to rely heavily on the stories he'd pass down to me about his incredible childhood/early adolescence years in Iran and the things he'd learn in dars akhlaq.
Book 6 was pretty interesting today. We got to an exercise where we had to write about how the Word of God has personally transformed our minds, hearts, thoughts, goals, view of the world, etc. We had a long conversation about this because we couldn't write our answers right away! Me and my two friends were born Bahá'is, meaning we were raised in a Bahá'i family... so did we experience any transformation, especially since Bahá'u'lláh's teachings are all we've ever known? I said yes, I still get to experience changes... because there are so many other things that influence our personality, our habits... sometimes we don't realize that certain opinions we hold or decisions we make are contrary to what the Word of God is. The more we read and study the Writings, the more hidden gems we discover, so there's always room for growth. For example when I attended the ISGP seminar last December, I learnt new concepts that honestly did transform my ideas about what my goals are.
My mom (our tutor) shared with us her story about how she became a Bahá'i (five years after marrying my Dad) -- a lot of details I hadn't known before! She grew up Christian in a little town here in the Philippines. In her early 20s she met my Dad and they got married in Nigeria. Back in Port Harcourt (the city I grew up in), there was no Bahá'i Center, so most of the meetings (Feasts, Holy Days, and even NSA meetings back when my Dad was a member) were held at our house. That way, my Mom was always surrounded with Bahá'is and there were lots of Bahá'i books lying around on our tables and shelves. My Dad never forced her to attend even the gatherings at our home, but she liked the company and also found herself scanning through the books. She liked the prayers, so even before she declared, she taught me and my brother Bahá'i prayers. She said that the first quotation she came across was "The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens" by Bahá'u'lláh. She said my Dad was obsessed with this quotation because it was written on every single page of my Dad's company invoice (my Dad's company logo back then was the globe!), and the quotation was also printed on his workers' t-shirts (hilarious!) My brother and I went to an international day care and school, and after dropping the kids off at school, all the moms (majority being house wives) would often hang out at each other's homes, teach each other some food recipes etc. This was a very new culture for my Mom, and seeing how Italian, Lebanese, British, Nigerian, Colombian, Filipino women interacted very pleasantly with each other strengthened her belief in the words and teachings of Bahá'u'lláh. It's like she got to see the Teachings and reality being coherent and it transformed her way of thinking. "...we know the sun by the ray, by the heat, by its efficacy and penetration..."
I always love listening to the stories of new Bahá'is, because it's so inspiring to learn about what they found/what drew them to the Faith. A lot of my born-Bahá'i friends and I agree that we often take our "comfort zone", the literature and teachings for granted. Especially for me, having a Persian father, I used to rely heavily on the stories he'd pass down to me about his incredible childhood/early adolescence years in Iran and the things he'd learn in dars akhlaq.
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March 12, 2018
Food for the soul: Izzat (Might)
"O Son of Beauty! By My spirit and by My favor! By My mercy and My beauty!
All that I have revealed unto thee with the tongue of power,
and have written for thee with the pen of might,
hath been in accordance with thy capacity and understanding,
not with My state and the melody of My voice."
All that I have revealed unto thee with the tongue of power,
and have written for thee with the pen of might,
hath been in accordance with thy capacity and understanding,
not with My state and the melody of My voice."
Bahá'u'lláh, Arabic Hidden Words
Food for the body:
 |
| I made delicious baked ziti last night, and we got to share it with a Bahá'i family who came over to break the Fast. This morning, I reheated the left-overs for our breakfast |
Last night I was convinced that my period was already ending, so I decided to resume the Fast today. I was completely fine in the morning, then when I woke up after a short nap in the afternoon, the flow suddenly became heavy and I had an excruciating headache; something I've never had before. It was already 4 pm, so I decided to force myself to sleep some more/sleep it out just for another two hours before I can finally have a Panadol, but I was only getting worse. Each time I closed my eyes, I started having nightmares/disturbing visions (this happens when I am extremely stressed). It was 5 pm and I started to talk to my Mom asking what she thought; >> can I break my Fast now? >> I just need a tablet and water... should I really try to wait since there's only one more hour to go? >> I stopped eating 30 minutes before sunrise today, so if I break my fast 30 minutes before sunset that will be okay, right? >>My period didn't really end, so I technically wasn't supposed to fast in the first place today. >>Does a migraine count as being ill?
She turned to me and said "Do what you want! I'm not a Fasting police!" I burst into laughter. I suddenly remembered a letter written by the Universal House of Justice to a believer who asked about brushing one's teeth during the Fast, and it's written "Keeping the Fast is a spiritual obligation and it is a matter between each believer and God."
One of the things I understand from today's quotation is that God doesn't give us more than we can handle. Bahá'u'lláh wouldn't have given us these laws if they would not benefit us greatly. "All that I have revealed unto thee with the tongue of power, and have written for thee with the pen of might, hath been in accordance with thy capacity and understanding..." Yes, fasting is obligatory but it has its limits too. Abdu'l-Bahá even warned us about being too hard on ourselves: "Exaggerated fasting destroys the divine forces."
She turned to me and said "Do what you want! I'm not a Fasting police!" I burst into laughter. I suddenly remembered a letter written by the Universal House of Justice to a believer who asked about brushing one's teeth during the Fast, and it's written "Keeping the Fast is a spiritual obligation and it is a matter between each believer and God."
One of the things I understand from today's quotation is that God doesn't give us more than we can handle. Bahá'u'lláh wouldn't have given us these laws if they would not benefit us greatly. "All that I have revealed unto thee with the tongue of power, and have written for thee with the pen of might, hath been in accordance with thy capacity and understanding..." Yes, fasting is obligatory but it has its limits too. Abdu'l-Bahá even warned us about being too hard on ourselves: "Exaggerated fasting destroys the divine forces."
March 13, 2018
Food for the soul: Mashiyyat (Will)
"The purpose of the one true God in manifesting Himself is to summon all mankind to truthfulness and sincerity,
to piety and trustworthiness, to resignation and submissiveness to the Will of God,
to forbearance and kindliness, to uprightness and wisdom.
His object is to array every man with the mantle of a saintly character,
and to adorn him with the ornament of holy and goodly deeds."
to piety and trustworthiness, to resignation and submissiveness to the Will of God,
to forbearance and kindliness, to uprightness and wisdom.
His object is to array every man with the mantle of a saintly character,
and to adorn him with the ornament of holy and goodly deeds."
Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh
Food for the body:
 |
| Nigerian goat meat pepper soup for dinner |
My mom travelled very early this morning, which means I was all alone for breakfast. It really felt different (pretty lonely/boring); I ate so quickly that I was done 30 minutes before sunrise. Come dinner time, I just reheated some amazing goat meat pepper soup (a spicy Nigerian soup with meat and intestines, Cameroonian pepper and scent leaves) which my mom prepared a few days ago.
I really like today's quotation, and I also like relating all these quotes to the Fast. With the different sorts of pressures exerted upon us by our social circles, the demands of making a living, the distractions of the media... it's so easy for us to get carried away and forget ourselves. But it was never God's Will for humanity to be left alone. If we really open our eyes, we'll see all these signs and arrows pointing us back on track, and one of such blessings are these 19 days... a whole (Badi) month to detoxify our minds and purify our souls from all the distractions that hinder us from growth and from manifesting spiritual attributes we were born to show forth (in the quotation - truthfulness and sincerity, piety and trustworthiness, forbearance and kindliness). A whole month set aside, for us to reflect on our purpose so that we can fulfil God's Will. And all this culminates with Nawruz... new year, new you, new me...😄
I really like today's quotation, and I also like relating all these quotes to the Fast. With the different sorts of pressures exerted upon us by our social circles, the demands of making a living, the distractions of the media... it's so easy for us to get carried away and forget ourselves. But it was never God's Will for humanity to be left alone. If we really open our eyes, we'll see all these signs and arrows pointing us back on track, and one of such blessings are these 19 days... a whole (Badi) month to detoxify our minds and purify our souls from all the distractions that hinder us from growth and from manifesting spiritual attributes we were born to show forth (in the quotation - truthfulness and sincerity, piety and trustworthiness, forbearance and kindliness). A whole month set aside, for us to reflect on our purpose so that we can fulfil God's Will. And all this culminates with Nawruz... new year, new you, new me...😄
March 14, 2018
Food for the soul: Ilm (Knowledge)
"O SON OF SPIRIT! 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. Set it then before thine eyes."
Bahá'u'lláh, Arabic Hidden Words
Food for the body:
 |
| breakfast: bangus and rice |
March 15, 2018
Food for the soul: Qudrat (Power)
"Say: The first and foremost testimony establishing His truth is His own Self. Next to this testimony is His Revelation. For whoso faileth to recognize either the one or the other He hath established the words He hath revealed as proof of His reality and truth. This is, verily, an evidence of His tender mercy unto men. He hath endowed every soul with the capacity to recognize the signs of God. How could He, otherwise, have fulfilled His testimony unto men, if ye be of them that ponder His Cause in their hearts. He will never deal unjustly with any one, neither will He test a soul beyond its power.
He, verily, is the Compassionate, the All-Merciful."
He, verily, is the Compassionate, the All-Merciful."
Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh
Food for the body:
 |
| Sunset and Persian tea |
I decided to combine yesterday and today's reflections into one, because I feel like I've reflected on/written about yesterday and today's quotation "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." and "He will never deal unjustly with any one, neither will He test a soul beyond its power." in the first two period posts.
We're down to the last five days, and I wanted to take a moment to reflect on how everything has been so far. There were definitely a lot of ups and downs. I feel like not eating and not drinking for 12 hours was the easiest part - that's just the tip of the iceberg. The hard part, the bigger test, for me personally was always after sunset. How I'd approach that glass of water... how I preferred to do all my work in the evening (because I'd be afraid to make myself tired during the day)... how I chose to recite the short Fasting prayers every evening before breaking the fast, rather than the long ones (not even once!)... It will really require a lot more perseverance and discipline for us to keep the "Fasting spirit" beyond those twelve hours and all through the days of our lives.
On the up side, I'm really glad I decided to do this diary again year; if it weren't for this, I don't think I would have read the Writings this much. I know I need to keep this up, because Bahá'u'lláh did instruct us to immerse ourselves in the ocean of His words and recite the verses of God every morning and evening. If I had to pick one theme I found predominant during my Fasting experience so far, it would be the concept of "moderation". Not only did I learn that we are not supposed to physically exaggerate the Fast, but even spiritually! These Fasting days are not meant for us to just sit down and pray, pray, pray... read, read, read,...reflect, reflect, reflect. That's not the point, and we don't transform in isolation. That's not what's expected of us. Take a look at this passage from the Kitab-i-Aqdas, "Take heed lest excessive reading and too many acts of piety in the daytime and in the night season make you vainglorious. Should a person recite but a single verse from the Holy Writings in a spirit of joy and radiance, this would be better for him than reciting wearily all the Scriptures of God, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting. Recite ye the verses of God in such measure that ye be not overtaken with fatigue or boredom. Burden not your souls so as to cause exhaustion and weigh them down, but rather endeavour to lighten them, that they may soar on the wings of revealed Verses unto the dawning-place of His signs. This is conducive to nearer access unto God, were ye to comprehend."
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Part 3 scheduled to be published on March 21st