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CHAPTER 2
BAHA'I AND GLOBALISATION
Globalization and the Hidden Words
Edited by Margit Warburg,
Todd Lawson
Annika Hvithamar & Morten Warmind
From Tehran to Baghdad
Baghdad (traditionally known as 'the City of Peace') is, we have all recently come to learn, a very diverse place both ethnically and religious-
ly.1 As such, it may be thought a faithful emblem of islamicate culture
and history.2 There are Sunni Muslims, Shi'i Muslims, Sutuu Kurds,
Syriac Christians, and Jews, among others. Moreover, it has been this
way for a very long time indeed. Seventeenth century travelers 'were
impressed with the great admixture of race, the diversity of speech
and the rare freedom enjoyed by non-Muslims and the great toleration
among the masses' (Durri 1975: 934b). Contrasted with the capital of
its Eastern neighbor Iran, Baghdad was infinitely more cosmopolitan
than the mainly Shi'i population of Tehran. Tehran, monochrome by
comparison, had been mainly Shi'i for several hundred years as well.
The significance this fact might have for the growth and development
of the Bahai Faith is the main question treated here. The proposition is
that the relatively communalistic and parochial Shi'i Babi tnovement
1 Note the prolonged difficulty the recently American-appointed Iraqi ruling council had in choosing a leader from amongst twenty-five members,
finally settling on the Shi'i Ja fari as the first p resident. Note also that
'
this office is meant to rotate on a monthly (!) basis in al phabetical order.
http:j fwww.salon.com/news/wire/2003/07/30/ interim/
AARHUS UNIVERSITY PH.ESS 2 The term 'islamicate' may require some explanation. lt was coined by
2..005
to avoid doctrinal and normative complications by the use of 'Islamic' in
such contexts.
was transformed as changes in audience occurred. If the Bahai prophet- by which a relatively marginal Islamic sect became a global 'World
founder Baha' u'llah had not been exiled to Iraq, and then Turkey and Religion' and in the process lost much of its original Islamic identity.
finally Ottoman Palestine (modern day Israel), it is possible that his No other similar movement of the last two hundred years has so comwritings would have remained more identifiably Shi'i than they did.
In Baghdad, faced with an audience of widely divergent background
and composition, Baha'u'llah was also faced with the task of distilling where than in the words of Shoghi Effendi Rabbani (d. 1957) when he
the vast complex of arcana and esoterica that was the revelation of
the Bab into an essence that could move a much broader spectrum of
believer than the virtually all-Shi'i audience of the Bah. In the proccss, sect of Shi'a lslam into a world religion' (Rabbani 1970: xii).
his message was being universalized for an even wider audience than
19th century Baghdad. In order to demonstrate this proposition, we
will analyze the opening passages of Baha'u'llah's Hidden Words with
this factor of audience in mind.
Ahmad al-Ahsa'i (d. 1826) plays a crucial and essential role. It was the
The Sacralization of Globalization
the dramatic events associated with tbe chiliastic-cum-revolutionary
How does such a discussion find its way into a book of essays devoted activities of Sayyid Ali Muhammad Shirazi (b. 1819). This young charto the problem of the Bahai Faith and Globalization? To begin with,
the doctrinal content of the Bahai Faith is nothing if not universaI. One Gate), was executed by Iranian state and religious authorities in 1850.
assumes that there is some kind of important connection betvveen 1the Afterwards, many of his followers one of whom was Mirza Husayn
'universal' and the ' global'. Traditionally, a 'universal' truth or featun is Ali Mazandarani, Ba!Ja'u'llah (Arabic for Glory ofGod; d. 1892) would be
thought to be one that migrates across long-standing boundaries or bar- dispersed throughout the Middle East. What the above quotation refers
riers of ethnos, nationality, language, culture, and geography to spE!ak to is the move away from the extremely arcane, esoteric and highly
of something inherently, irreducibly and 'universally' human. To spe!ak exclusivist worldview of that Shi'i movement (Amanat 1989: 188-207)
o f a universal idea is to speak of one that is eminently susceptible of glo- into a world religion with universal and global appeal (Smith 1987:
balization - of being relevant or pertinent or even merely registrable, 31-45 & 136-156). Some have characterized this trajectory as a move
to human beings wherever they might be on planet Earth.3
Here, a unique phenomenon that has occurred in the growth and
development of the Bahai Faith will be examined, namely the process
say, a New Religious Movem en t or, 'NRM' (Internet discussion 1997),
it is not debatable that there are now Dahai communities all over the
3 1 should like to thank Professor Margit Warburg for her very he lpful sugworld in regions and localities as culturally different as they could pos-
gestions a11d comments on an earlier draft of this paper. r wo uld also liko: to
sibly be. So, whether as a bona fide World Religion or 'merely' an NRM
tha nk the editorial team, Dr Morten Warmind and Dr An ni ka Hvithamar,
for their guidance and patience. Professors Peter Beyer of the Univ emity (it may be more accurate in tbis instance to speak of New Religious
of Ottawa and Barbara Lawson, Ethnology Curator, Redpath Museum, Identities), the Bahai Faith is a global phenom.e non in the process of
McGill University, also read earlier drafts and made severa l very helpful constructing a global identity with the aid of universal teachings that
suggestions touching both content and style, for which I am most gratefu l . apply to the human condition (Beyer 1998: Ch. 6; McMullen 2000:
Obviously, none of these kind readers is responsible for the remain ing passim, esp. 109-125).
flaws.
Of interest here is the stark contrast that its early, extremely paro-
chial and exclusivist origin s in lhe Sh ay k hi movement and the Babi
Enchanted Ontology
faith pro vide to its current profile as promote r of the oneness of mankind, unity in diversity, tolerance, the abolition of prejudices and the One of the more prominent fea tures of later islamicate spirituality
honoring and valuing of the differences amongst the human family. A and mysticism i s the degree to which it is concerned with ontology,
more compelling interest is precis ely the manner in which this trans- the nature of Being and/or Existence. Taking as a starting point traformatio n occurred, what were its stage s and how do we measure the ditional hylomorphism, Muslim sages and mystics would evolve a
process? (Smith 1987: 2-3).
Baha' u'llah, - who may be seen as a 19th century Persian theorist of tbeism which resulted in the divine unity of God b eing reflected and
modernism and globalization ( Cole 1998: 14-15 & 32-47)- formulated refrac te d, if not consu bs t an ti ated, in the resp le n d en t mul tiplic ity of
his teachings in the mid to later 191h cen t ury , a crucial period in the creation. This basic apperception or spiritual axiom would be conrise of globalization. So, 'Bahai' has grown concomitantly with globaliz- figured and articulated in a variety of ways. But the main idea, that
ation, and there is reason to believe that there exists a dose connection creation was a mysterious expression of divine unity - that between
between the Bahai Faith and globalization from a hi s t orica l as well as and amongst all created things (including human beings) there was a
a sociologica l perspective. This connection can be elucidated by using l ivi ng and sacred connection- would never be challenged. This basic
mate rial that comes from members of the Bahai commmti ty today
(e.g , van den Hoonaard 1996, McMullen 2000). But it may be that the
.
r ela tion s hip between Bahai and globa lizati on can also be studied and current term, enchanted. lt is also the source and background of the
appreciated by working with religious texts. Here, another perspec- teachings of Baha'u'llah (Cf. Rabbani 1973: 226).
tive may be illuminating, namely, the influence that the philosophical
mysticism of Islam has had on the 'globalistic' doctrinal content of the sought authoritative, logical explanations for this enchanted ontolBahai Faith.
It i s assumed that one of the chief factors faci li t atin g th e glob al iz- '1-knthrat), a frequ en t Bahai watchword (Baha'i International Comation of the Bahai Faith has been the relatively high d egree to which m unity 1997: 9; d. Amuli 1989: 310) A ccording to Islamic tradition,
people around the world have recognized t hemselv es - their questions, problems, hopes, fears, sufferings and joys- as being addressed God himself. The answer has become one of the most important foci
directly and in compelling ways by the Bahai teachings This coupled
. of meditation for Islamic spirituality and is p reserve d in the literary
with a dissatisfaction with their 'native' religions, has caused many to form known as Hadith Qudsi, extra-Quranic 'Sacred Saying of God',
see in Bahai a fresh statement of what is most essential to r el igion as Who informed the Prophet:
such. One of the best loved and mo s t wid el y distributed and translated
small compen d i a of Bal1ai teachings is a coll ect ion of Arabic and Per- L was a I-Udden Treasure and yearned to be known
sian apothegms known as The Hidden Words ofBnltn'u'lln/J. Quit e apart So, l created mankind (lit. 'creation').4
from their literary beauty, a look at the circumstances of comp osition
and the doctrinal contents of Baha'u'llah's Hidden Words will, it is Thus the answer to the metaphysical question 'Why is there som ething
hoped, offer us an insight into the transformation we are concerned
with here. But before turning directly to this text, a bit of background 4 Arabic: kuntu klmnzan maklifiynn 'ahbabtu 'au 'urafit fnklmlaqtu nl-klmlqn
is required.
the other transliterations to follow, 'ayn is represented by a simple apostrophe, nor is it possible lo show vclars and other similar sounds with the
use of under dots.
------- -------
rather than nothing- why arc we here?' is linked to God's desire (lit. in a work by the above-mentioned Shaykh Ahmad ai-Ahsa'i himself.
'love') to be known. As a result, knowledge and love are indissolubly Here, Shaykh Ahmad takes to task, in virulent terms, one of the pillars
bound in a syzygical noetic and experiential dynamic that points to
Being or Beyond.5 It should also be mentioned that a standard hadith virtually accuses h.im of Ullbelief (the most serious of crimes) for the
is composed of two equally important parts, its 'text' (matn, i.e. the doctri11es he propagates. As a spokesman against the Unity of Being
part quoted above) and its credential or pedigree, known in Arabic by 'school', Shaykh Ahmad sought to elevate the Godhead beyond such
the word isnad, literally 'chain [of authority]', a long list of the names terrestrial notions as 'being' and'existence' .7 This theological position
of teachers - 'spiritual ancestors'- who passed the knowledge from
one to another. In Islamic learned discourse, one reveals (or conceals) part of basic Bahai belief (Lawson 2001). However, attachment and
one's deepest religious allegiaJ\Ces according to the composition of assent to the actual hadith qudsi was not restricted to so-called wuju.isnads one uses for textual support. In the case of the kind of hadith di s, for the shuhudis could easily find in it support for their opposing
represented here, namely hadith qudsi, there is an isnarl, but these are doctrine. Shaykh Ahmad himself comments on it and 'Abdu'l-Baha
frequently left out in published collections perhaps indicating that the wrote an important, extensive commentary on it (Momen 1985). And,
important aspect is God's speaking directly to Muhammad, presumably through Gabriel, the angel of revelation, or in a dream (Robson almost verbatim (see above, note 5).
1971: 28-29). Thus, such statements are frequently unencumbered by
the kind of sectarian sub-text afflicting other hadith. This type of ha- (Taherzadeh 1980: 71-83). At that time, what we now call Iraq was
dith found favour amongst an earlier group of Islamic 'universalists', govemed. by the Sunni Ottomans, although there was a very large, if
namely the Sufis. This particular hadith happens to be a favorite and not majoritarian, Shi'i element there. Not quite 25 yeaJs had passed
may be seen as providing the foundational scriptural basis for the
doctrine of the Unity of Being (wahdat al-wujud) associated with the (during which the second leader of the Shaykhi. community, Sayyid
greatest mystic of them all, Ibn Arabi (d.1240) and embraced by the
many generations of his followers (and critics) who populate the world The Ottoman government eventually intervened. Thousands were
of Islam. Amongst such followers there are both Sunni.s and Shi'is; in killed and Iran was nearly forced to declare war against the Turkish
time, these followers would be criticized harshly for their 'pantheistic' authority (Cole and Momen 1986). The proposition put forth here is
beliefs. One of these opposing tendencies is referred to as Unity of that 'Bahai universalism' would get its earliest impetus in works like
Seeing (wahdat nl-shuhud). Apparently at stake in the controversy is the the Hidden Words inasmuch as they were addressed to a previously
transcendence of God.6 The ' wujudis' were seen by some of their critics unknown- i.e., in the case of Babism- heterogeneous (and potentially
to violate this in their teachings. At times the debate would become explosive) audience composed of Sumus and Shi'is.8 At the time of
quite intense. One example of such a heated controversy may be found the revelation of the Hidden Words, Baha' u'llah's audience would have
been divided into at least four major more or less mutually exclusive
5 Note the Baha'i noonday prayer,' I testify 0 my God,that Thou hast created me to know Thee and to worship Thee.' (ashiladrt yri iliihi bi-'annaka 7 'TI1ere is no space here to discuss this i.n detail. The interested reader is
klza/aqtan( li-'irjtinika wn-'ibtidntika). Here ' wors hip' may be considered a referred to Lawson, 2005.
near synonym for love. (Baha'u'llah 1982: 21i English translation by Shoghi 8 This is not to suggest that religious and confessional tensions did not exist
Effendi in 8afui'( Pmyers1982: 4).
6 For a deeper Jeading of the terms of the debate, see Landolt 1971. Here, al-wujud. This is only one example; see below the reference to Akhbaris
incidentally, it is pointed out that the term wahdat al-w11jud, does not ap- and Usulis. And there are many other lines of fracture. It is true, however,
pear in any of Ibn Arabi's known writings.
groups: the Surulis, the Shi'is, the Wujudis and the Shuhudis. Jn t ur n, to the fulfillment of the Shi'i Islamic eschaton which was to see,
each of these groups, like the Shi'is, would be further divided into op- among other things, a number of books that had heretofore been
posiJ,g factions, such as Akhbaris, the Usulis and the Shaykhis. This hidden with the occulted and awaited lmam, and were expected to
does not begin to take into account the stratified social variegation of be published with his emergence from hiding (zulwr) (Lawson 2002,
19th century Baghdad (Batatu 1978). Addressing such an audience, Amir-Moezzi 1992). The title was changed to its current status at
Baha'u'llah reduced the spil'itual teachings of his religion to their some point, but we do not know exactly when (Taherzadeh 1980: 71).
m.ost essential elements and thereby avoided placing unnecessary The change of title really underlines the overall achievement of the
obstacles in the path of seekers of truth in the form of communalistic Hidden Words.
cues and insignia so common to much of Islamic religious literature In the text at hand, brief quotations functioning almost like musiof the time.9 Tndeed, he himself says so in the opening brief prologue cal notes and phmses, are taken from the Qur' an, and Hadith, and
to the Hidden Words (to which we will return).
What follows, is simply a demonstration of some of the ways i n also Lewis 1998). While the composition may be full of traditional
which the Hidden Words recasts traditional and contemporary Islamic Sufi terminology, there is no assumed allegiance to any of the many
teachings in a form itu1ocent of any discemable communalistic prov- existing Sufi organizations. There can be no question of plagiarism
enance or allegiance, whether Shi'i, Sunni or orgatuzed Sufism. What here. The reader or hearer would instantly recognize these various
emerges is a kind of catholic islamicate breviary, destined to appeal cues and would deem it jarring if not insulting for the author to have
to a literary taste that had been cultivated in an islamicate milieu over disrupted the flow of the 'heavenly' discourse/performance to cite
the centuries and whose key reference points and inspirations, from a 'source'. And, what is absent is just as important as what is there:
the perspective of literary history, are the Qur'an, the Hadith and nowhere in the book is there any mention of a proper name (not
distinctive Sufi religio-literary presuppositions. But it is also a taste even Muhammad's) that could signal an allegiance to either Suruu,
that is certainly not exclusively Muslim, let alone Shi'i. Obviously, it: Shi'i or Sufi Islam. There are no isnads.10 There are no legalistic docwill not be possible to analyze the entire contents of this work Only trines or cultic pronouncements that could also be conununalisti-
a few key examples have been chosen.
appear to the mid-19th century Baghdadi, whether Sunni, Shi'i or
The Hidden Words
encumbered by the tragedy of history, appearing as a restatement of
In the Hidden Words, no group or faction is preferred over another. basic truths through the medium of a compelling religious literary
Certainly, Baha'u'llah would have been known as a 'Babi'; but the art in both languages of the city: Arabic (71'verses' and Persian (82
vast majority of Baghdadis (along with a vast majority of Babis them.. 'verses').
selves) did not necessarily know what tllis meant as far as doctrinal Let us now turn to the text itself in order to illustrate this complex
detail might be concerned, apart from the general messianic moocl and seamless process. We will begin with the above-mentioned proof the movement. One indication of this mood is in the origit1al title logue to the Hidden Words:
of the work at hand: The Hidden Book of Fatima. This explicitly points
He is the Glory of Glories
9 As just one example from among literally thousands, the work mentioned This is that which hath descended from the realm of glory, uttered by the
above by the great scholar Mulla Muhsin Fayz Kashani, may be distin- tongue of power and might, and revealed unto the Prophets of old. We have
guished from Baha'u'llah's composition of the same name, in part, by tht!
constant references to the authority of 'Ali and the Imams. See Lawson 10 See the similar phenomenon in the writings of the Bab, specifically his first
2002.
taken the inner essence thereof and clothed it in the garment of brevit y, as less, pere.tmial truth of prophecy. But no prophets are named, only
a token of grace unto the righteous, t ha t t bey may stand faithful unto the God, as in' covenant of God' ('nhd allah). Allah is the word .for God in
Covenant of God, may fulfil in their lives His t rust , and in the realm of spirit Arabic and is used by Arabs, whether Jewish, Christian, Muslim or
obtain the gem of Divh1e virtue .n
Although the word is habitually associated with Islam, there is nothWith this statement, which is completely free of Shi'i-specific refer-
ences or cues, the message of oneness, unity, social harmony, social
justice and peace may be seen as not merely emerging directly but
literally escaping from the caldron of religious animosity exacerbated
by the Safavid moment in hi stor y and continued to some degree by
the 19th century socio-political reality of the Middle East. What is
more, Baha'u'llah addresses his audience with a somewhat unusual
but quite telling designation. In the English text, the word 'righteous'
translates the Arabic word ahbat, a Quranic term meaning 'priests'
but which likely means here in the first instance 'learned ones'. Such
'learned ones' are not identifiable as Muslims of any particular stripe.
Indeed, the dictionary definition of the word is explicit: 'non-Muslim
religious leaders'. If Baha'u'llah had wanted to designate Muslims
specifically here, he could have chosen from a whole lexicon of alternate terms: 'learned Muslim religious scholars' (ulema), 'gnostic
Muslims' (urafa), 'mystic philosophers' (hukama), not to mention the
standard 'Muslims' (muslimun) or 'Believers [in Islam]' (mu'mimm).
Any of these other terms, includn i g perhaps the most inclusive (but
simultaneously exclusive) Quranic designation, 'people of the Book'
(nhl nl-kitab), used here would have lent an entirely different elan to
this prologueP With such a .form of address, Baha'u'llah seeks to
circumvent the exceedingly vexed problem of a 'correct' Islam as
such, and attempts to create a new audience.13 The mood is the im t e-
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
11 Hidden Words-English: 4-5; Arabic: lwwa 'l-balui'u 1-abhti luidlui mti nuzzila
shalt know of thine own knowledge and not through the knowledge of thy
mill jrrbaniti 'l-'izzati bilisd11 i '1-qudrati wn'l-quwwnti 'aid al-nabyyfn min qablu
neighbour. Pnder this in thy heart; how it behoveth thee to be. Verily justice
wn'imui 'akhadhnajmvdhimhu wn 'q masm ilw qnmisa '1-ikhtisrirfadlan 'ala '1-allbar
liyufti bi'ahdi '!lahi wa yu'addri 'nmdndtil!i fi 'anjusil1im wnliyaklimmnn bija whari
'1-tuqa fi 'ardi 'rnih mina '1-fd'izfn a (Hidden 11\ford s-Ara bic: 3)
12 Note'Abdu'I-Baha' s remark that long-standing Qur'anic no tion of'people
of the Book' has been expunged from Baha'i teach ing s (Balui'i World Faitlr 2000.
1956: 246}.
l3 TI1ere are Shi'i hadiths identifying the Imams as alrbrir (Isfahani1954: 125}. It jayyidan hasa.nnn mwtfrnn litamlilm mulka da'iman btfqiynn 'azalrm qadfman
is unlikely, but of course possible, that the word carries this meaning here.
(Hidden W rds-A rabic: 1: 4).
is My gift to thee and the sign of My loving-kindness. Set it then before thine
y
e es.15
Ahmad (Cole 2001: 88ff) that would characterize much of the Bahai mesApart from the standard themes of ethical monotheism so beautifully
expressed here, there are one or two clues to the mystic-philosophical tradition discussed above and out of which the Bahai Faith was
born. But these are not explicitly identified with Shi'ism, or mysticism or philosophy. The reference to 'Justice' comes close to alluding
to Shi'ism, and no doubt did so for a Shi'i audience. It is one of the
prime rel igio us preoccupations of that tradition, a tradition molded in
mal"ginalization and persecution. One of the hallmarks of the return
i
of the Hidden Jmam would be that he 'fill the earth with Justice as it
is now filled with injustice.' (Amuli 1989: 102. Note that here the 151h
cent ury author connects this with the hadith 'I was a hidden treasure'
discussed above.) But even here, Baha'u'llah makes a very deft adjustt
ment. In Arabic, there are tvvo closely related words to express the idea
of justice . The one found most frequently in messianic texts of Shi'ism
is a d/. The word used hexe is insafand denotes fairness or equity more
'
than justice. Thus, with a single word Baha'u'llah not only orients the
discourse away from explicit and exclusive messianic Shi'ism, but
also beyond the realm of Islami c Jaw, whether Sunni or Shi' i. lnsaf as
equity i mplies a kind of Golden Rule in which it is necessary first to be
equitable to oneself and then to others (Arkoun 1971: 1237). Certainly,
the word can mean 'justice' but this concept, in an Islamic milieu is
more accurately represented by the word 'adl.
The topic of knowledge is also broached in this passage. The Arabic
'
word ma'rifo refers to a specific kind of knowledge, namely spiritual or
mystical, as distinct from the word 'ilm which by comparison means
religious , sacerdotal or legalistic knowledge. The exhortation is to 'know
of thine own knowledge' (ta'rifbima'rijatika). This is quite a remarkable
statement in the context of 19th century Shfism when the powerful office
of the Marja' Taqlid - the so-called 'Shi'i pope' -was in the process of
16 See abo e note 5; Arabic: man 'amfn ruifsaiiJI fnqad 'nrai
1989: 270, 307, 308, 315, 464, 675).
15 idden_words-English 2: 6; Arabic: ya 'bnn 'r-ni/z 'alznbbu al-nshyn 'huff nlstifit. In tnrghab 'n11/w in tnku11 i lnya raglzibti wn Iii taglifnlminlw litnkzmn If a trilingual Arabic, Persian and English edition. He re it is refered to as
.
m (nnu wn 'aula tuwnjfarpr bidluflikn 'an tusluihida al-'asltyti bi'nyuikn tn /Ji'nyni Hidden Words- Arabic, Hidden Words-Persian, or Hidde11 Wurtls-Enghsh as
,1- zbtfdz wntn'r(nlztf bimn'rifntikn lri bima'r ifnt i 'aluul fi 'l-bilrid. fnkkirf dluflika appropriate. The English is the translation of Shoghi llffndi 'with the
<yfn yazbag!ztf ' Ill! takziun. dhrilikn min 'ntiyyntf 'alnykn wn 'inayatf /akafrij'allzu assistance of sotne English friends'(!lidden Words-English: 1).
: 111 tlllln nyllnyka.(I-Iirfrlen Words-Arabic: 2: 4).
18 kzmtu /dwm
OSon of Man
Veiled in My immemorial being and in the ancient eternity of My essence, I Imams to support the 'argument'.20 Rather, Baha'u'llah's Hidden Words
knew My Jove for thee: therefore I created thee, have engraved on thee Mine are presented by Him as being comple tely their own authori ty. And of
image and revealed to thee 1\ly beauty.
sidered the essence of the matter in a brief - and therefore, according
OSon of Man
I loved thy creation, hence I created thee. Wherefore, do thou love Me, that way than lengthier scholastic discussions - through the irresistible
J may name thy name and fill thy soul with the spirit of Iiie.
themselves to memorization and as such can cross another barrier,
0 Son of Being
Love Me, that I may love thee. If thou lovest Me not, My Jove can in no wise Standard Shi'i works seek to demonstrate the truth of a specific and
reach thee. Know this, 0 scrvant l9
rely very heavil y on discursive argumenta tion. As such they frequently
It should be borne in mind that the literary cultme of the audience
was a ' trad itional' one; that is, as far as literary productions were
concerned, a good commentary might stand for what our contemporary tastes would consider an original composition . Indeed, it could
be argued that the literary tradition (and culture) with which we are
concemed is in some ways, in its entirety, a conunentary on the Qur'an
(Lecomte 1965: 2). In the above three excerpts from the Hidden Words
there is embedded in Baha'u'llal1's text enough 'explicit allusions' to
the original hndith qudsi to blur the line between original composition
and commentary. The same literary method s i the Bab's
i at work n
Qnyyrmr nl-as11rn (Lawson 1988a&b/1990) and in numerous other works
of Baha'u'llah (Lewis 1999/2000 & 1994).
The differences between Bal1a' u'llah's treatment of the themes of
love, knowledge and creation here, and that found in other works by
i e
Shi'i religious thinkers and writers, are characteristic and quite illus- attention from the reli giously diverse Baghdadi audience.
trative of the point being made here. Ultimately, these differences are
very revealing about the basic relationship between the Baha'i Faith
and Islam. In Baha' u'i lah's Hidden Words there is no partisan polemic
on the scholastic problems of the primacy of being over quiddity or
Baghdad'. Of course such woul d eventually entail another allegiance.
19 (Hidden Words-English: 3-5: 7-8); Arabic: ya 'bun 'l-'insti11i lnmtu jf qidnm But that is a subject for another time. Today, this literary accomplishdh.ntf wn'znliyynti knymluat[ 'araftu lw.bbifika khalaqtuka. wn'lqnytu 'nlaykn ment, transposed onto a global scale with its attendant and exponen-
nutluilf w'zflilrfu /aka jnmrilf; ya 'bun 'l-'insti11i 'ahbabt:u khnlqaknfnkhalqt'ulm tially more variegated audience, serves the idea of the greater uni ty
a'nllb'ibtt( kay 'ndltknrakn wn Ji nihi '1-lrnytit 'utlmbbitukn; yti 'bnn 'l-wujlirli
nhbilmf li'uhibbalw 'i11 lalll tullibbauf /au 'uhibbaf<n 'nbndrmfa'rifyri 'nbdu 20 Not:, however, Amuli's lreading of this hnclith as a cllte to the understand(H1dden Words-Arabic: 5: 5).
of the human race taught by the Bahai community.21 It was an accorn- Batatu, Hanna (1978). T11e Old Social Classes ami tile Revolutionary Moveplishment in part inspired by and fashioned in response to the various ments ofIraq: A Study of 1raq's old Lauded nud Commercial Classes and
dislocations attendant upon an earlier islamicate globalization.
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Trust.
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Bahti.'u'l/ah a11d 'Abdu'l-Balui, Wilmette, lll. : Baha'i Publishing Trust, Gardet, Louis (1975). 'ALLAH', in Encyclopaedia of Islam, new edition,
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. ,
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5/w/ie::, 5:10,000 words; nnline <lt: http:/ jwww.h-nct.org/-bnhai/
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Ocu vrt', St:s Idees. Dmnascw;: Jnstitu tc Fnm<;ais de IJ;nnas.
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libr<ry .org/ articles/lewis.scriptme.html (A u gust 19, 200:1)
BAHA'I AND GLOBALISATION
Globalization and the Hidden Words
Edited by Margit Warburg,
Todd Lawson
Annika Hvithamar & Morten Warmind
From Tehran to Baghdad
Baghdad (traditionally known as 'the City of Peace') is, we have all recently come to learn, a very diverse place both ethnically and religious-
ly.1 As such, it may be thought a faithful emblem of islamicate culture
and history.2 There are Sunni Muslims, Shi'i Muslims, Sutuu Kurds,
Syriac Christians, and Jews, among others. Moreover, it has been this
way for a very long time indeed. Seventeenth century travelers 'were
impressed with the great admixture of race, the diversity of speech
and the rare freedom enjoyed by non-Muslims and the great toleration
among the masses' (Durri 1975: 934b). Contrasted with the capital of
its Eastern neighbor Iran, Baghdad was infinitely more cosmopolitan
than the mainly Shi'i population of Tehran. Tehran, monochrome by
comparison, had been mainly Shi'i for several hundred years as well.
The significance this fact might have for the growth and development
of the Bahai Faith is the main question treated here. The proposition is
that the relatively communalistic and parochial Shi'i Babi tnovement
1 Note the prolonged difficulty the recently American-appointed Iraqi ruling council had in choosing a leader from amongst twenty-five members,
finally settling on the Shi'i Ja fari as the first p resident. Note also that
'
this office is meant to rotate on a monthly (!) basis in al phabetical order.
http:j fwww.salon.com/news/wire/2003/07/30/ interim/
AARHUS UNIVERSITY PH.ESS 2 The term 'islamicate' may require some explanation. lt was coined by
2..005
to avoid doctrinal and normative complications by the use of 'Islamic' in
such contexts.
was transformed as changes in audience occurred. If the Bahai prophet- by which a relatively marginal Islamic sect became a global 'World
founder Baha' u'llah had not been exiled to Iraq, and then Turkey and Religion' and in the process lost much of its original Islamic identity.
finally Ottoman Palestine (modern day Israel), it is possible that his No other similar movement of the last two hundred years has so comwritings would have remained more identifiably Shi'i than they did.
In Baghdad, faced with an audience of widely divergent background
and composition, Baha'u'llah was also faced with the task of distilling where than in the words of Shoghi Effendi Rabbani (d. 1957) when he
the vast complex of arcana and esoterica that was the revelation of
the Bab into an essence that could move a much broader spectrum of
believer than the virtually all-Shi'i audience of the Bah. In the proccss, sect of Shi'a lslam into a world religion' (Rabbani 1970: xii).
his message was being universalized for an even wider audience than
19th century Baghdad. In order to demonstrate this proposition, we
will analyze the opening passages of Baha'u'llah's Hidden Words with
this factor of audience in mind.
Ahmad al-Ahsa'i (d. 1826) plays a crucial and essential role. It was the
The Sacralization of Globalization
the dramatic events associated with tbe chiliastic-cum-revolutionary
How does such a discussion find its way into a book of essays devoted activities of Sayyid Ali Muhammad Shirazi (b. 1819). This young charto the problem of the Bahai Faith and Globalization? To begin with,
the doctrinal content of the Bahai Faith is nothing if not universaI. One Gate), was executed by Iranian state and religious authorities in 1850.
assumes that there is some kind of important connection betvveen 1the Afterwards, many of his followers one of whom was Mirza Husayn
'universal' and the ' global'. Traditionally, a 'universal' truth or featun is Ali Mazandarani, Ba!Ja'u'llah (Arabic for Glory ofGod; d. 1892) would be
thought to be one that migrates across long-standing boundaries or bar- dispersed throughout the Middle East. What the above quotation refers
riers of ethnos, nationality, language, culture, and geography to spE!ak to is the move away from the extremely arcane, esoteric and highly
of something inherently, irreducibly and 'universally' human. To spe!ak exclusivist worldview of that Shi'i movement (Amanat 1989: 188-207)
o f a universal idea is to speak of one that is eminently susceptible of glo- into a world religion with universal and global appeal (Smith 1987:
balization - of being relevant or pertinent or even merely registrable, 31-45 & 136-156). Some have characterized this trajectory as a move
to human beings wherever they might be on planet Earth.3
Here, a unique phenomenon that has occurred in the growth and
development of the Bahai Faith will be examined, namely the process
say, a New Religious Movem en t or, 'NRM' (Internet discussion 1997),
it is not debatable that there are now Dahai communities all over the
3 1 should like to thank Professor Margit Warburg for her very he lpful sugworld in regions and localities as culturally different as they could pos-
gestions a11d comments on an earlier draft of this paper. r wo uld also liko: to
sibly be. So, whether as a bona fide World Religion or 'merely' an NRM
tha nk the editorial team, Dr Morten Warmind and Dr An ni ka Hvithamar,
for their guidance and patience. Professors Peter Beyer of the Univ emity (it may be more accurate in tbis instance to speak of New Religious
of Ottawa and Barbara Lawson, Ethnology Curator, Redpath Museum, Identities), the Bahai Faith is a global phenom.e non in the process of
McGill University, also read earlier drafts and made severa l very helpful constructing a global identity with the aid of universal teachings that
suggestions touching both content and style, for which I am most gratefu l . apply to the human condition (Beyer 1998: Ch. 6; McMullen 2000:
Obviously, none of these kind readers is responsible for the remain ing passim, esp. 109-125).
flaws.
Of interest here is the stark contrast that its early, extremely paro-
chial and exclusivist origin s in lhe Sh ay k hi movement and the Babi
Enchanted Ontology
faith pro vide to its current profile as promote r of the oneness of mankind, unity in diversity, tolerance, the abolition of prejudices and the One of the more prominent fea tures of later islamicate spirituality
honoring and valuing of the differences amongst the human family. A and mysticism i s the degree to which it is concerned with ontology,
more compelling interest is precis ely the manner in which this trans- the nature of Being and/or Existence. Taking as a starting point traformatio n occurred, what were its stage s and how do we measure the ditional hylomorphism, Muslim sages and mystics would evolve a
process? (Smith 1987: 2-3).
Baha' u'llah, - who may be seen as a 19th century Persian theorist of tbeism which resulted in the divine unity of God b eing reflected and
modernism and globalization ( Cole 1998: 14-15 & 32-47)- formulated refrac te d, if not consu bs t an ti ated, in the resp le n d en t mul tiplic ity of
his teachings in the mid to later 191h cen t ury , a crucial period in the creation. This basic apperception or spiritual axiom would be conrise of globalization. So, 'Bahai' has grown concomitantly with globaliz- figured and articulated in a variety of ways. But the main idea, that
ation, and there is reason to believe that there exists a dose connection creation was a mysterious expression of divine unity - that between
between the Bahai Faith and globalization from a hi s t orica l as well as and amongst all created things (including human beings) there was a
a sociologica l perspective. This connection can be elucidated by using l ivi ng and sacred connection- would never be challenged. This basic
mate rial that comes from members of the Bahai commmti ty today
(e.g , van den Hoonaard 1996, McMullen 2000). But it may be that the
.
r ela tion s hip between Bahai and globa lizati on can also be studied and current term, enchanted. lt is also the source and background of the
appreciated by working with religious texts. Here, another perspec- teachings of Baha'u'llah (Cf. Rabbani 1973: 226).
tive may be illuminating, namely, the influence that the philosophical
mysticism of Islam has had on the 'globalistic' doctrinal content of the sought authoritative, logical explanations for this enchanted ontolBahai Faith.
It i s assumed that one of the chief factors faci li t atin g th e glob al iz- '1-knthrat), a frequ en t Bahai watchword (Baha'i International Comation of the Bahai Faith has been the relatively high d egree to which m unity 1997: 9; d. Amuli 1989: 310) A ccording to Islamic tradition,
people around the world have recognized t hemselv es - their questions, problems, hopes, fears, sufferings and joys- as being addressed God himself. The answer has become one of the most important foci
directly and in compelling ways by the Bahai teachings This coupled
. of meditation for Islamic spirituality and is p reserve d in the literary
with a dissatisfaction with their 'native' religions, has caused many to form known as Hadith Qudsi, extra-Quranic 'Sacred Saying of God',
see in Bahai a fresh statement of what is most essential to r el igion as Who informed the Prophet:
such. One of the best loved and mo s t wid el y distributed and translated
small compen d i a of Bal1ai teachings is a coll ect ion of Arabic and Per- L was a I-Udden Treasure and yearned to be known
sian apothegms known as The Hidden Words ofBnltn'u'lln/J. Quit e apart So, l created mankind (lit. 'creation').4
from their literary beauty, a look at the circumstances of comp osition
and the doctrinal contents of Baha'u'llah's Hidden Words will, it is Thus the answer to the metaphysical question 'Why is there som ething
hoped, offer us an insight into the transformation we are concerned
with here. But before turning directly to this text, a bit of background 4 Arabic: kuntu klmnzan maklifiynn 'ahbabtu 'au 'urafit fnklmlaqtu nl-klmlqn
is required.
the other transliterations to follow, 'ayn is represented by a simple apostrophe, nor is it possible lo show vclars and other similar sounds with the
use of under dots.
------- -------
rather than nothing- why arc we here?' is linked to God's desire (lit. in a work by the above-mentioned Shaykh Ahmad ai-Ahsa'i himself.
'love') to be known. As a result, knowledge and love are indissolubly Here, Shaykh Ahmad takes to task, in virulent terms, one of the pillars
bound in a syzygical noetic and experiential dynamic that points to
Being or Beyond.5 It should also be mentioned that a standard hadith virtually accuses h.im of Ullbelief (the most serious of crimes) for the
is composed of two equally important parts, its 'text' (matn, i.e. the doctri11es he propagates. As a spokesman against the Unity of Being
part quoted above) and its credential or pedigree, known in Arabic by 'school', Shaykh Ahmad sought to elevate the Godhead beyond such
the word isnad, literally 'chain [of authority]', a long list of the names terrestrial notions as 'being' and'existence' .7 This theological position
of teachers - 'spiritual ancestors'- who passed the knowledge from
one to another. In Islamic learned discourse, one reveals (or conceals) part of basic Bahai belief (Lawson 2001). However, attachment and
one's deepest religious allegiaJ\Ces according to the composition of assent to the actual hadith qudsi was not restricted to so-called wuju.isnads one uses for textual support. In the case of the kind of hadith di s, for the shuhudis could easily find in it support for their opposing
represented here, namely hadith qudsi, there is an isnarl, but these are doctrine. Shaykh Ahmad himself comments on it and 'Abdu'l-Baha
frequently left out in published collections perhaps indicating that the wrote an important, extensive commentary on it (Momen 1985). And,
important aspect is God's speaking directly to Muhammad, presumably through Gabriel, the angel of revelation, or in a dream (Robson almost verbatim (see above, note 5).
1971: 28-29). Thus, such statements are frequently unencumbered by
the kind of sectarian sub-text afflicting other hadith. This type of ha- (Taherzadeh 1980: 71-83). At that time, what we now call Iraq was
dith found favour amongst an earlier group of Islamic 'universalists', govemed. by the Sunni Ottomans, although there was a very large, if
namely the Sufis. This particular hadith happens to be a favorite and not majoritarian, Shi'i element there. Not quite 25 yeaJs had passed
may be seen as providing the foundational scriptural basis for the
doctrine of the Unity of Being (wahdat al-wujud) associated with the (during which the second leader of the Shaykhi. community, Sayyid
greatest mystic of them all, Ibn Arabi (d.1240) and embraced by the
many generations of his followers (and critics) who populate the world The Ottoman government eventually intervened. Thousands were
of Islam. Amongst such followers there are both Sunni.s and Shi'is; in killed and Iran was nearly forced to declare war against the Turkish
time, these followers would be criticized harshly for their 'pantheistic' authority (Cole and Momen 1986). The proposition put forth here is
beliefs. One of these opposing tendencies is referred to as Unity of that 'Bahai universalism' would get its earliest impetus in works like
Seeing (wahdat nl-shuhud). Apparently at stake in the controversy is the the Hidden Words inasmuch as they were addressed to a previously
transcendence of God.6 The ' wujudis' were seen by some of their critics unknown- i.e., in the case of Babism- heterogeneous (and potentially
to violate this in their teachings. At times the debate would become explosive) audience composed of Sumus and Shi'is.8 At the time of
quite intense. One example of such a heated controversy may be found the revelation of the Hidden Words, Baha' u'llah's audience would have
been divided into at least four major more or less mutually exclusive
5 Note the Baha'i noonday prayer,' I testify 0 my God,that Thou hast created me to know Thee and to worship Thee.' (ashiladrt yri iliihi bi-'annaka 7 'TI1ere is no space here to discuss this i.n detail. The interested reader is
klza/aqtan( li-'irjtinika wn-'ibtidntika). Here ' wors hip' may be considered a referred to Lawson, 2005.
near synonym for love. (Baha'u'llah 1982: 21i English translation by Shoghi 8 This is not to suggest that religious and confessional tensions did not exist
Effendi in 8afui'( Pmyers1982: 4).
6 For a deeper Jeading of the terms of the debate, see Landolt 1971. Here, al-wujud. This is only one example; see below the reference to Akhbaris
incidentally, it is pointed out that the term wahdat al-w11jud, does not ap- and Usulis. And there are many other lines of fracture. It is true, however,
pear in any of Ibn Arabi's known writings.
groups: the Surulis, the Shi'is, the Wujudis and the Shuhudis. Jn t ur n, to the fulfillment of the Shi'i Islamic eschaton which was to see,
each of these groups, like the Shi'is, would be further divided into op- among other things, a number of books that had heretofore been
posiJ,g factions, such as Akhbaris, the Usulis and the Shaykhis. This hidden with the occulted and awaited lmam, and were expected to
does not begin to take into account the stratified social variegation of be published with his emergence from hiding (zulwr) (Lawson 2002,
19th century Baghdad (Batatu 1978). Addressing such an audience, Amir-Moezzi 1992). The title was changed to its current status at
Baha'u'llah reduced the spil'itual teachings of his religion to their some point, but we do not know exactly when (Taherzadeh 1980: 71).
m.ost essential elements and thereby avoided placing unnecessary The change of title really underlines the overall achievement of the
obstacles in the path of seekers of truth in the form of communalistic Hidden Words.
cues and insignia so common to much of Islamic religious literature In the text at hand, brief quotations functioning almost like musiof the time.9 Tndeed, he himself says so in the opening brief prologue cal notes and phmses, are taken from the Qur' an, and Hadith, and
to the Hidden Words (to which we will return).
What follows, is simply a demonstration of some of the ways i n also Lewis 1998). While the composition may be full of traditional
which the Hidden Words recasts traditional and contemporary Islamic Sufi terminology, there is no assumed allegiance to any of the many
teachings in a form itu1ocent of any discemable communalistic prov- existing Sufi organizations. There can be no question of plagiarism
enance or allegiance, whether Shi'i, Sunni or orgatuzed Sufism. What here. The reader or hearer would instantly recognize these various
emerges is a kind of catholic islamicate breviary, destined to appeal cues and would deem it jarring if not insulting for the author to have
to a literary taste that had been cultivated in an islamicate milieu over disrupted the flow of the 'heavenly' discourse/performance to cite
the centuries and whose key reference points and inspirations, from a 'source'. And, what is absent is just as important as what is there:
the perspective of literary history, are the Qur'an, the Hadith and nowhere in the book is there any mention of a proper name (not
distinctive Sufi religio-literary presuppositions. But it is also a taste even Muhammad's) that could signal an allegiance to either Suruu,
that is certainly not exclusively Muslim, let alone Shi'i. Obviously, it: Shi'i or Sufi Islam. There are no isnads.10 There are no legalistic docwill not be possible to analyze the entire contents of this work Only trines or cultic pronouncements that could also be conununalisti-
a few key examples have been chosen.
appear to the mid-19th century Baghdadi, whether Sunni, Shi'i or
The Hidden Words
encumbered by the tragedy of history, appearing as a restatement of
In the Hidden Words, no group or faction is preferred over another. basic truths through the medium of a compelling religious literary
Certainly, Baha'u'llah would have been known as a 'Babi'; but the art in both languages of the city: Arabic (71'verses' and Persian (82
vast majority of Baghdadis (along with a vast majority of Babis them.. 'verses').
selves) did not necessarily know what tllis meant as far as doctrinal Let us now turn to the text itself in order to illustrate this complex
detail might be concerned, apart from the general messianic moocl and seamless process. We will begin with the above-mentioned proof the movement. One indication of this mood is in the origit1al title logue to the Hidden Words:
of the work at hand: The Hidden Book of Fatima. This explicitly points
He is the Glory of Glories
9 As just one example from among literally thousands, the work mentioned This is that which hath descended from the realm of glory, uttered by the
above by the great scholar Mulla Muhsin Fayz Kashani, may be distin- tongue of power and might, and revealed unto the Prophets of old. We have
guished from Baha'u'llah's composition of the same name, in part, by tht!
constant references to the authority of 'Ali and the Imams. See Lawson 10 See the similar phenomenon in the writings of the Bab, specifically his first
2002.
taken the inner essence thereof and clothed it in the garment of brevit y, as less, pere.tmial truth of prophecy. But no prophets are named, only
a token of grace unto the righteous, t ha t t bey may stand faithful unto the God, as in' covenant of God' ('nhd allah). Allah is the word .for God in
Covenant of God, may fulfil in their lives His t rust , and in the realm of spirit Arabic and is used by Arabs, whether Jewish, Christian, Muslim or
obtain the gem of Divh1e virtue .n
Although the word is habitually associated with Islam, there is nothWith this statement, which is completely free of Shi'i-specific refer-
ences or cues, the message of oneness, unity, social harmony, social
justice and peace may be seen as not merely emerging directly but
literally escaping from the caldron of religious animosity exacerbated
by the Safavid moment in hi stor y and continued to some degree by
the 19th century socio-political reality of the Middle East. What is
more, Baha'u'llah addresses his audience with a somewhat unusual
but quite telling designation. In the English text, the word 'righteous'
translates the Arabic word ahbat, a Quranic term meaning 'priests'
but which likely means here in the first instance 'learned ones'. Such
'learned ones' are not identifiable as Muslims of any particular stripe.
Indeed, the dictionary definition of the word is explicit: 'non-Muslim
religious leaders'. If Baha'u'llah had wanted to designate Muslims
specifically here, he could have chosen from a whole lexicon of alternate terms: 'learned Muslim religious scholars' (ulema), 'gnostic
Muslims' (urafa), 'mystic philosophers' (hukama), not to mention the
standard 'Muslims' (muslimun) or 'Believers [in Islam]' (mu'mimm).
Any of these other terms, includn i g perhaps the most inclusive (but
simultaneously exclusive) Quranic designation, 'people of the Book'
(nhl nl-kitab), used here would have lent an entirely different elan to
this prologueP With such a .form of address, Baha'u'llah seeks to
circumvent the exceedingly vexed problem of a 'correct' Islam as
such, and attempts to create a new audience.13 The mood is the im t e-
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
11 Hidden Words-English: 4-5; Arabic: lwwa 'l-balui'u 1-abhti luidlui mti nuzzila
shalt know of thine own knowledge and not through the knowledge of thy
mill jrrbaniti 'l-'izzati bilisd11 i '1-qudrati wn'l-quwwnti 'aid al-nabyyfn min qablu
neighbour. Pnder this in thy heart; how it behoveth thee to be. Verily justice
wn'imui 'akhadhnajmvdhimhu wn 'q masm ilw qnmisa '1-ikhtisrirfadlan 'ala '1-allbar
liyufti bi'ahdi '!lahi wa yu'addri 'nmdndtil!i fi 'anjusil1im wnliyaklimmnn bija whari
'1-tuqa fi 'ardi 'rnih mina '1-fd'izfn a (Hidden 11\ford s-Ara bic: 3)
12 Note'Abdu'I-Baha' s remark that long-standing Qur'anic no tion of'people
of the Book' has been expunged from Baha'i teach ing s (Balui'i World Faitlr 2000.
1956: 246}.
l3 TI1ere are Shi'i hadiths identifying the Imams as alrbrir (Isfahani1954: 125}. It jayyidan hasa.nnn mwtfrnn litamlilm mulka da'iman btfqiynn 'azalrm qadfman
is unlikely, but of course possible, that the word carries this meaning here.
(Hidden W rds-A rabic: 1: 4).
is My gift to thee and the sign of My loving-kindness. Set it then before thine
y
e es.15
Ahmad (Cole 2001: 88ff) that would characterize much of the Bahai mesApart from the standard themes of ethical monotheism so beautifully
expressed here, there are one or two clues to the mystic-philosophical tradition discussed above and out of which the Bahai Faith was
born. But these are not explicitly identified with Shi'ism, or mysticism or philosophy. The reference to 'Justice' comes close to alluding
to Shi'ism, and no doubt did so for a Shi'i audience. It is one of the
prime rel igio us preoccupations of that tradition, a tradition molded in
mal"ginalization and persecution. One of the hallmarks of the return
i
of the Hidden Jmam would be that he 'fill the earth with Justice as it
is now filled with injustice.' (Amuli 1989: 102. Note that here the 151h
cent ury author connects this with the hadith 'I was a hidden treasure'
discussed above.) But even here, Baha'u'llah makes a very deft adjustt
ment. In Arabic, there are tvvo closely related words to express the idea
of justice . The one found most frequently in messianic texts of Shi'ism
is a d/. The word used hexe is insafand denotes fairness or equity more
'
than justice. Thus, with a single word Baha'u'llah not only orients the
discourse away from explicit and exclusive messianic Shi'ism, but
also beyond the realm of Islami c Jaw, whether Sunni or Shi' i. lnsaf as
equity i mplies a kind of Golden Rule in which it is necessary first to be
equitable to oneself and then to others (Arkoun 1971: 1237). Certainly,
the word can mean 'justice' but this concept, in an Islamic milieu is
more accurately represented by the word 'adl.
The topic of knowledge is also broached in this passage. The Arabic
'
word ma'rifo refers to a specific kind of knowledge, namely spiritual or
mystical, as distinct from the word 'ilm which by comparison means
religious , sacerdotal or legalistic knowledge. The exhortation is to 'know
of thine own knowledge' (ta'rifbima'rijatika). This is quite a remarkable
statement in the context of 19th century Shfism when the powerful office
of the Marja' Taqlid - the so-called 'Shi'i pope' -was in the process of
16 See abo e note 5; Arabic: man 'amfn ruifsaiiJI fnqad 'nrai
1989: 270, 307, 308, 315, 464, 675).
15 idden_words-English 2: 6; Arabic: ya 'bnn 'r-ni/z 'alznbbu al-nshyn 'huff nlstifit. In tnrghab 'n11/w in tnku11 i lnya raglzibti wn Iii taglifnlminlw litnkzmn If a trilingual Arabic, Persian and English edition. He re it is refered to as
.
m (nnu wn 'aula tuwnjfarpr bidluflikn 'an tusluihida al-'asltyti bi'nyuikn tn /Ji'nyni Hidden Words- Arabic, Hidden Words-Persian, or Hidde11 Wurtls-Enghsh as
,1- zbtfdz wntn'r(nlztf bimn'rifntikn lri bima'r ifnt i 'aluul fi 'l-bilrid. fnkkirf dluflika appropriate. The English is the translation of Shoghi llffndi 'with the
<yfn yazbag!ztf ' Ill! takziun. dhrilikn min 'ntiyyntf 'alnykn wn 'inayatf /akafrij'allzu assistance of sotne English friends'(!lidden Words-English: 1).
: 111 tlllln nyllnyka.(I-Iirfrlen Words-Arabic: 2: 4).
18 kzmtu /dwm
OSon of Man
Veiled in My immemorial being and in the ancient eternity of My essence, I Imams to support the 'argument'.20 Rather, Baha'u'llah's Hidden Words
knew My Jove for thee: therefore I created thee, have engraved on thee Mine are presented by Him as being comple tely their own authori ty. And of
image and revealed to thee 1\ly beauty.
sidered the essence of the matter in a brief - and therefore, according
OSon of Man
I loved thy creation, hence I created thee. Wherefore, do thou love Me, that way than lengthier scholastic discussions - through the irresistible
J may name thy name and fill thy soul with the spirit of Iiie.
themselves to memorization and as such can cross another barrier,
0 Son of Being
Love Me, that I may love thee. If thou lovest Me not, My Jove can in no wise Standard Shi'i works seek to demonstrate the truth of a specific and
reach thee. Know this, 0 scrvant l9
rely very heavil y on discursive argumenta tion. As such they frequently
It should be borne in mind that the literary cultme of the audience
was a ' trad itional' one; that is, as far as literary productions were
concerned, a good commentary might stand for what our contemporary tastes would consider an original composition . Indeed, it could
be argued that the literary tradition (and culture) with which we are
concemed is in some ways, in its entirety, a conunentary on the Qur'an
(Lecomte 1965: 2). In the above three excerpts from the Hidden Words
there is embedded in Baha'u'llal1's text enough 'explicit allusions' to
the original hndith qudsi to blur the line between original composition
and commentary. The same literary method s i the Bab's
i at work n
Qnyyrmr nl-as11rn (Lawson 1988a&b/1990) and in numerous other works
of Baha'u'llah (Lewis 1999/2000 & 1994).
The differences between Bal1a' u'llah's treatment of the themes of
love, knowledge and creation here, and that found in other works by
i e
Shi'i religious thinkers and writers, are characteristic and quite illus- attention from the reli giously diverse Baghdadi audience.
trative of the point being made here. Ultimately, these differences are
very revealing about the basic relationship between the Baha'i Faith
and Islam. In Baha' u'i lah's Hidden Words there is no partisan polemic
on the scholastic problems of the primacy of being over quiddity or
Baghdad'. Of course such woul d eventually entail another allegiance.
19 (Hidden Words-English: 3-5: 7-8); Arabic: ya 'bun 'l-'insti11i lnmtu jf qidnm But that is a subject for another time. Today, this literary accomplishdh.ntf wn'znliyynti knymluat[ 'araftu lw.bbifika khalaqtuka. wn'lqnytu 'nlaykn ment, transposed onto a global scale with its attendant and exponen-
nutluilf w'zflilrfu /aka jnmrilf; ya 'bun 'l-'insti11i 'ahbabt:u khnlqaknfnkhalqt'ulm tially more variegated audience, serves the idea of the greater uni ty
a'nllb'ibtt( kay 'ndltknrakn wn Ji nihi '1-lrnytit 'utlmbbitukn; yti 'bnn 'l-wujlirli
nhbilmf li'uhibbalw 'i11 lalll tullibbauf /au 'uhibbaf<n 'nbndrmfa'rifyri 'nbdu 20 Not:, however, Amuli's lreading of this hnclith as a cllte to the understand(H1dden Words-Arabic: 5: 5).
of the human race taught by the Bahai community.21 It was an accorn- Batatu, Hanna (1978). T11e Old Social Classes ami tile Revolutionary Moveplishment in part inspired by and fashioned in response to the various ments ofIraq: A Study of 1raq's old Lauded nud Commercial Classes and
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