Obedience
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Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Darius K. Shahrokh, Obedience, bahai-library.com.
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OBEDIENCE

By Darius K. Shahrokh,M.D.
May 1995

Through this window from these windows to the past we will examine the subject
of obedience. Also, we will see, who do we obey, why should we obey, and
how obedience, instead of binding with limitation, will lead us all to true
liberty.

This talk was inspired from a speech by Judge James Nelson and many segn-ents
of it are directly quoted from The Revelation of &'ulll&       by Adib
Taherzadeh.

In an attempt to cover the subject adequately it was decided to address it
in the following order:
- The Most Great Infallibility, authority and knowledge of I3a.h; ' u ' llh,

- Obedience to 6' u ' llh,
- The Covenant of God with humanity,
- Finally the paradox of law being the instrument of liberation and
not limitation.
p.2   OBEDIENCE

Before talking about the sensitive issue of obedience, let us use the vantage
point of this window and view a revealing and remarkable garden laid open
before us.   In this very vast and lush garden, every beauty and pleasure

is available and every desire and appetite could be satisfied. Your
imagination can draw the picture.

On the far end of this garden is heaven which is the object and the goal.
Imagine two people are standing at the entrance gate. This garden, though
breathtaking, is not free of dangers. There are traps of self and ego,
vicious serpents of vice, thorny paths of pride and passion, and minefields
of lust and desire. Then there are those animals in the thick of the lush

and tall grass. Some are tamed and could safely be touched but some are
the entertaining animals of backbiting or drugs which will tear you apart
and devour your body and soul. Let us not forget that evil one, the creeping
monster of alcohol.

It sounds challenging and interesting, but rather scary.

One onlooker is anxious and can't wait to charge in and satisfy his sensuality
with every pleasure in sight.   The only warning for him is a sign posted
at the gate which states: BEWARE / P I T F U . He is lucky if he could see
or read the sign. The other person has a map indicating all the danger zones,
traps and pitfalls. Better yet he has faith and trust in the map-maker.
Which one has true liberty and feels free? Which one would you rather be?
p. 3 OBEDIENCE

Well, Friends! The garden of life with all its pleasures and challenges
is ours.    The choices are ours. We can feel free to go charging through
and hope for the best or use the guide map, trusting its Divine Author.

This is a good time to talk about the authority, infallibility and knowledge
of the Divine Author, ~ a h 'gu ' llk.

In the ~itb-i-~qdas , Bahs'u'll&     declares the doctrine of the Most Great
Infallibility of the Manifestations of God and that no one else can possess
it.    It is the inherent characteristic of the Manifestation of God, the
same way that light and heat are inherent to the sun.       The reason that His
power is hidden behind the veil of His human temple is that if His naked
glory were to be openly revealed, all human beings would instantly recognize
Him and by so doing they would lose their free will and become puppets of

God.   However, Bah~'u'll& at times revealed a measure of His hidden glory
to those who had recognized Him for further certitude and confirmation.

There are many stories.

Just one story at this time will suffice.
When the Hand of the Cause and the silver-tongued poet (Ali-~u@nmd~ a r q i

who eventually with his 1 2 year old son R&U' llh, drank the cup of martyrdom,
attained the presence of Baha'utll& for the first time in '6
he ,
found
d ' u 'll&' s face very familiar, as if he had seen Him before. He was losing
sleep trying to remember w h e r e he had seen Him.   In a market place?   In the

believers' gatherings?      He could not remember until after several times
p. 4    OBEDIENCE
in His presence, Bah;'u1 ll&       told him, " ~arq;, burn away the idols of vain
imagining."    All of a sudden he remembered his chidhood dream.       As a child

he saw in his dream that he was playing in the courtyard with some dolls
when God appeared to him and took his dolls and burned them in a fire.

When he woke up, he told his parents about his dream. He was told that no
one could ever see God and he must not repeat it, so he forgot all about
it.

Yes, that was when he had seen the face of &'ul          ll&.    Imagine, that was
15 or 20 years earlier when ~ah~'u'll&h
was in ~ac&hdd.           He appeared in
that child's dream, and infused in him such a potientiality that later on
made him an Apostle of Ba&'ul ll&         and a Hand of the Cause.

Another day when at the presence of h ' u 'll&         in adoration, a thought
occurrred to him that of course he recognized Bahi'u'll6h as the Supreme
Manifestation, but how grateful he would be if d ' u ' ll&       in the course
of His conversation would show him a sign. At that m e n t , like a flash
a sentence from the Qur'an came to his mind.         So, his wish was that if
Bah&'ull l h in the course of His conversation would mention that verse.
It did not take too long before Bah&'ulll& mentioned the very same verse.
Now listen to this. ~arqgwas delighted. He was overjoyed but told himself
that it may have been a mere coincidence.         Abruptly, 13ah~'u111& turned
to him and said,     "   h a m &f i n&d    "   meaning " Wasn't this sufficent proof
to you? "     He was dumbfounded, was shaken but assured.       No wonder later
on, he begged &'ul        llh that he and one of his sons could be accepted as
a sacrifice for 'Abdu' 1-Bahi when he heard Bah;' u ' l l h praising the station
P- 5       OBEDIENCE
of 'bdu'l-F?ahi. With this glance at the hidden glory of &'ulll&,       he
reached the pinnacle of faith and certitude which is difficult for many of
us to comprehend.

One believer, iqg ~i&-i-~a'idati, stated that in the gathering of friends
if &'ul     l l h turned his face to a believer, that person was unable to
to gaze upon His countenance. (Revelation of F?aha1u'lliih,
Vol III,p.303)

llah used to look to the right side of the person as he
Therefore, ~ahi'u'
spoke, so the friends might find it easier to look at His face, and if He
ever turned His face towards the friends, He would close His eyes and speak.

I can tell you the story of ~s&'~l, who looked into Bah~'ulll&'s eyes and
saw one hundred thousand sunlight and billowing seas surging upon His
countenance. Later, he ended his own life because he had seen a glimpse
of the glory of Bah~'ulll&, and could no longer bear the burden of this
life.     I wish there was time to tell you in detail.

There are many passages in His Writings about His exalted station; that He
is the Supreme Manifestation and the Inaugurator of the Day of God.

i. He corrected
Siyyid ~ihdi~~fah&, an influential person, became a 6'
many of his bad habits and shortcomings, as all of us try to, but could not
overcome his addiction to alcohol.    When the believers would smell alcohol
on his breath, he would say in defense, I' This addiction is very strong.
I do it in the privacy of my home and harm no else. Besides, I am too lowly
P* 6           OBEDIENCE
a servant for h ' u 'll&        to be concerned about my private life. "     Don't

many of us think the same way?         Finally he was permitted to go for
pilgrimage. One day as he and other believers were in the presence of
~ahi'u'
l l b while Bahi'u'll&        was pacing back and forth, a thought occurred

to Siyyid ~ i h d             that it is true that &'ulll&       is a great prophet,
but he wondered what He meant when He stated, "I am the Sender of the
Messengers and the Revealer of the Books        ?')   He had not finished his thought
when Bah;'ul ll&     walked to him, put His blessed hand on his should and said,
M;~~PI:
"   Siyyid, it is true,We are the Sender of the Messengers and the Revealer
A

of the heavenly Books. "          With this he became transformed and accepted
d ' u 'll&     with every fiber of his being.         Upon his return, no more smell
of alcohol on his breath, and upon inquiry, he told the friends that if
d l u ' l l & could read his mind, surely He could see his actions. He indeed
is Omnipresent and Omniscient.

While J3ah;'u1llh dealt with the believers with kindness and mercy, He did
not respond positively to those who did not believe in Him yet demanded a
miracle. He dealt with sovereigns and religious leaders with authority.

In the ~itab-i-Aqdasrevealed while a prisoner in confines of a small room,
He addressed the kings in a language ringing with authority. He states,
"   0 kings of earth!      He Who is the sovereign Lord of all is come. The Kingdan
is God's.    .. Ye are but vassals, 0 kings of the earth! He Who is the King
of Kings hath appeared, arrayed in His most wondrous glory, and is summoning
you unto Himself, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting. "          (~i&-i-A~das,
para. 78, 82)
p. 7        OBEDIENCE
His warning to all religious leaders in the KitL-i-~~das
starts with
"Say: 0 leaders of religion! Weigh not the Book of God with such standards
and sciences as are current amongst you, for the Book itself is the unerring
Balance established amongst men. .I' .                   para. 99)
(~iti;b-i-A~das,

Concerning His ever-present, supernatural knowledge,          ' u ' lfah addressing
/

Nabil-i-Akbar in the Tablet of Wisdom or Lawh-i-yikmat reveals the following
words ' I . . .whenever We desire to quote the saying of the learned and the wise,
presently there will appear before the face of thy Lord in the form of a
tablet all that which hath appeared in the world and is revealed in the Holy
Books and Scriptures.       Thus do We set down in writing that which the eye
perceiveth, Verily, His knowledge encompasseth the earth and the heavens.
This is a Tablet wherein the Pen of the Unseen hath inscribed the knowledge
of all that hath been and shall be - a knowledge that none other but my
wondrous tongue can interpret. "

/
No wonder He could reveal the K i h - i - ~ ~ aorn the Book of Certitude containing
over 200 pages within the span of 48 hours without a single reference book.

Now that we trust ~aha'lu'
ll& 's knowledge, wisdom and authority, obedience
should follow, but we often confuse the two subjects of obedience and
freedom.
Many think that freedom means freedom to disobey or go rampant while
&'u'       l l h states that this kind of freedom belongs to the animal kingdom.
" Liberty must, in the end, lead to sedition,
He states in the ~i&b-i-A~das
whose flames none can quench. Thus warneth you He Who is the Reckoner, the
P- 8             OBEDIENCE
All Knowing. Know ye that the embodiment of liberty and its symbol is the
animal. That which beseemeth man is submission unto such restraints as will

protect him from his own ignorance and guard him against the harm of the

mischief maker. Liberty causeth man to overstep the bounds of propriety,
and to infringe on the dignity of his station. It debaseth him to the level

of extreme depravity and wickedness. "

^I"s-
-31,
Who do we obey and where does it stop? The county, state or federal laws?
How about ah^'; laws? All constituted civil laws must be obeyed. You know
why? Because Bahi'u'll&          has abolished and forbidden anarchy. He states,
"      What mankind needeth in this day is obedience unto them that are in
authority, and a faithful adherence to the cord of wisdom. The instruments
which are essential to the Mediate protection, the security and assurance
of human race have been entrusted to the hands, and lie in the grasp, of
A2
the governors of human society. This is the wish of God and His decree.
(Gleanings, p. 207)

Is there a place that ~ " u llt
'& sanctions disobedience? Yes, there is.
The only law which Bahg'is are required to disobey is wherever they are
/   '
c m d e d to recant their Faith, meaning to say " I am not a Baha'i. "
/   '
In this regard, the Universal House of Justice states "...Baha'is must live
the &'i           life, fully and continuously, unless prevented by the authorities.
If local, state, or federal authorities actively prohibit I3ahA'; life or
some aspect of it, the &'is          must suhnit to these requirements in all cases
except where a spiritual principle is involved, such as denial of faith.
'
This, Baha'is cannot do under any circumstances. " (Lights of Guidance,
I

1983, p. 336)
P* 9        OBEDIENCE
Unfortunately, the believers in Iran have had and still face this cruel
requirement, but as E&'u       ' l l h describes them, they would rather lay down
a thousand lives than breathe the word desired by their enemies.

We have to becane so conscious about obeying our civil laws that we will
shine in this society. We must act and live with such integrity that the

world notices the transforming power of the words of E3aha"utllh.

As for obeying ah;' i laws, Shoghi ~ffendiknowing that the Persian believers
had been brought up in a society where the significance of religious laws

were understood, directed the Spiritual Assemblies to begin to enforce some
of the laws of the Kit&-i-Aqdas.         He urged them not to compromise and to
uphold the standard of justice and impartiality.

Up to now, only a few laws of the Ki&-i-Aqdas         have been given to the Western
World.      Although parts of the Kit&-i-Aqdas were accessible in the
translations by Shoghi Effendi, the first formal exposure of the Western
World to the Kit&-i-Aqdas      was the release of the Synopsis and Codification
of the Ki&i-Aqdas        in 1973, one hundred years after its revelation by
E M & ' u ' llh.   The translation of the Kit&-i-Aqdas    into English which became
available in 1993, has opened the door for its translation into all other
languages except Persian.       As you know, originally the K i G - i - ~ ~ d awas
s
revealed in Arabic.
p. 10        OBEDIENCE

Having the translation does not mean that all of the laws are mandatory to
the Western believers.         Only as the Western believers mature and at the
discretion of the Universal House of Justice, more laws will become

applicable.     Of course, it does not mean that we are prohibited from obeying
some laws, such as saying ~ l l & - ~ - ~ b95
h ~times daily.

About obedience to E3ah~'u1
ll&,       at the opening paragraph of the ~i&-i-~qdas,
He states that the first duty of every one is recognition of Himself as the
Manifestation of God for today and the second duty is to obey His laws.
These two are inseparable and one is not accepted without the other.
That is why J3ah~'u1ll& has attached such significance to one of the
principles of His faith, namely independent investagition of truth.
So first we have to recognize His station and then as He also states in the
~i&-i-~qdas, obey His laws for the love of Him.          Therefore we do not
obey His laws because of the fear of punishment or for reward in heaven.
You know, attachment to reward for our good deeds and obedience is one of
the three attachments we must detach ourselves from.          The other one is

attachment to self and ego which is the worst, and the last one is
attachment to the Kingdom of Names, meaning feeling superior or boasting
about acquiring various attributes of God, such as generosity, kindness,
justice and many others.

The fact that ~aha'lu   'll&   does not accept recognition of His station alone
without obedience to His laws is unique in the E3ahi1iFaith.
Some Christian sects claim that belief alone is sufficient for salvation.
P. 11           OBEDIENCE
First we have to know Him, then with trust and love for Him, we obey Him.
When He states read His writings twice a day, we must do it.      This    and

the obligatory prayer are the major keys to let &'ul      l l h get close to

us.      Doesn't He state in The Hidden Words, I' 0 Son Being! Love Me, that
I may love thee. If thou lovest Me not, My love can in no wise reach thee.
Know this, 0 servant. I'       The more we read, the mre we know and love Him.
The m r e we love Him, the more we obey and so on. This could be called a
righteous cycle.      The vicious cycle i$ot   obeying and gradually drifting
away, and I tell you, those who have become believers and then allow
smthing or someone rob them of their love for &'ulll&          are in deep
trouble.

You might say, Well, this is blind obedience which I and my ancestors have
abhorred and is against my individual rights.     With spiritual decline of
today and abuse of power by corrupt authorities and leaders, you have many

sympathizers who look upon the word obedience with suspicion and fear.
Upon hearing that word, dictatorship, blind acceptance and religious
fanatacism come to their mind.     Such fears are well understood and are
justifiable.     Look at the recent events and abuse by false prophets and
corrupt leaders.      The voice of religious leaders which in the past inspired

people is now heard mostly with indifference or hostility.     The reason is
that with the coming of &'ul     ll&,   religious leaders have become fallen
stars.     Listen to His momentous prophecy while these leaders were at the
peak of power and authority, and He was just a prisoner, I
' From two ranks
amongst men power hath been seized: kings and ecclesiastics. I
'
p. 12          OBEDIENCE
In Baha"ul llh's messages to Christian leaders, He declared "ye are the
stars of the heaven of My knowledge. My mercy desireth not that ye should
fall upon the earth. "       "When I came unto them, in My majesty, however,
they turned aside from Me.     They, verily, are of the fallen."      ( Promised

Day is Come, p. 19, 105)

As one studies human behavior, one sees that people wholeheartedly obey any
person or institution when it seems to be in their self-interest to do so.
The same person who rebels against blind obedience follows the highway signs
to get to his destination or a patient who trusts his physician, follows
his advice even if it is amputation of a limb to save his life.     Likewise,
I3aha'';s do not advocate blind obedience, but as we meditate on the allencompassing scope of the Revelation of Baha"ul llih and attain more mature
understanding, we can then see clearly that it is in our self-interest to
obey His laws.     As in the garden analcgy at the start of this presentation,
we recognize   ah;'u'llhlsknowing the path and showing us the way.
We cannot recognize and accept Him as the skilled Divine Physician for mankind
and neglect or ignore His prescription.      When He says twice a day reading
of His verses, that is it.     Just do it.    It does you good and the effect is
guaranteed.
H
Now let us discuss the covenant of God with us.     Mankind physically is an
animal and bound by the laws of nature, but is also a spiritual being and
therefore bound to the Covenant of God with him.
In every covenant there are two parties involved.     The mere act of creation
brings about the Covenant of God with each individual which has two sides.
p. 13           OBEDIENCE
God on His part creates us in His own image which means bestowing upon us
the capacity to reflect His attributes.      He provides us with our physical
needs in this life and sends His Messengers to guide us so we may grow closer
to God.

The part that we, who have free will, have to play in this covenant is to
be conscious of these bounties, to recognize His Manifestations as Divine
Teachers and abide by His teachings and laws.
The covenant of God is similar to the terms which a school principal lays
down for the students. The m e n t a child walks into a school, he, without

knowing it, enters into a covenant with the principal.      Again, this covenant
has two sides.     The principal provides the educationa$eeds,    appoints the
teachers and draws up a program.     The part that the child plays is to learn
the lessons and follow the instructions.     Only in this way he acquires
knowledge.
The terms of this covenant are drawn up by the principal and the child has
no say in it.     The princippal is strong, knowledgeable and wise.
The purpose of doing our part of the Covenant with God is to become a
spiritual being and acquire eternal life.      In view of past discussion,

we acknowledge the authority, knowledge and wisdombpf        'u ' ll&;   therefore
we will observe His commandments for love of His beauty.

Now a few words about reward and punishment.     In La@-i-~aq~;d, which is
' ll&
one of the supplementary tablets to the ~i&-i-~~das, ~ahd'u              states,
"   The structure of world stability and order hath been reared upon, and will
continue to be sustained by the twin pillars of reward and punishment. "
p. 14          OBEDIENCE
He has authorized the House of Justice to legislate new laws and modify the
punishments He has set for certain crimes such as arson and murder.
l ~the same tablet states, I' Justice hath a mighty force at
E Q h ~ ' u l l in
its c o m d . It is ,none other than reward and punishment for the deeds of
men. By the power of this force, the tabernacle of order is established
throughout the world ..I1
In the present-day society, justice is not served.      The tendency is towards
leniency, reudction of sentence, and to try to direct the blame on the
society.    As we witness, violence and crime have increased at alarming rate.
The teachings of E3ah&'u1ll&     advocate the opposite attitude.   Many people
today could disagree with E&'ulll&'s       teaching in this regard.        They would
rather advocate leniency and forgiveness instead of punishment, because they
are mainly concerned about this physical life and are not taking into account
the eternal, spiritual life.
To demonstrate the benefits to the soul when a person receives his punishment
in this life, d l u ' l l & gives the following example. ~f a man steals the
seed of a plant from someone in springtime and returns it soon, he does not
owe the owner anything mre, but if he waits until surrnner, he owes the owner
a plant with its fruits.       Similarly, the burden of sin is much lighter is
the sinner receives his punishment in this life.

As for kindness and forgiving an act of crime, the following story will shed
scme light on the subject.      ~awh-i-Duny; (The Tablet of the World) was
revealed in honor of        ~irzgiqs-i-~fn&, titled ~&id'-Dzn.
#'

This tablet was revealed after nine days that the pen of E3aha"u1llah had
been stilled due to the martyrdom of seven believers in Yazd in 1891, one
p. 15                  OBEDIENCE
year before His ascension.               In that tablet, He stated that He was so
overjoyed and grateful to God that His exhortations have had such effect
on His followers that the believers interceded on behalf of their enemies.
To appreciate this statement, the following explanation will help.
/   Z

In those days, lived the generation of believers who were previously Babis
and following 1 s l h c tradition used to draw their swords in their defense.
Such a transformation, to be martyred without defense and then the relatives
interceding on behalf of the murderers is worthy of appreciation.
The story behind this statement is as follows:

H&     Muhammad ~ic$ attained the presence of &'ul                ll&       in 'A.
/
He begged EIah~'u1
llah to accept him as a martyr.              Bal&'ul ll&           told him it
was not necessary as many souls already had sacrificed their lives, but
,
he was very insistent and to his second request, Bah;'ulllahremained
I   '

silent.Haji took His silence as a sign of consent.                Later he asked
/

&'ulll&                 to assign him to go to a city. 13ah~'u111ah
told him to go to

/       /
On July 1, 1889, Haji had invited all believers of '
lshq&'d                       to a feast.
On that day, he received a tablet £ran &'u1ll&                honoring and blessing
him for his services and assured him that his deeds were manifest before
Him.       In that tablet, He states that a great upheaval has occurred in that
city and described it as an attack of a serpent on a believer who is the
recipient of the bounties of his Lord.
,'   /

This tablet was read to the friends gathered in that feast.                       Mirza Abu'l-
/
Fad1 who was present explained that since ~ahg'u'
llah used the past tense,
,'                    .'
it was an absolute and inevitable.              Haji Mu@mnad-Ri+ got up and said he
believed that he was the one whose martyrdom ~aha"u'll&                     foretold.
l          /   /
IsJqabad               was a new city in Russian ~urkamanistgnclose to the
border of Iran.
p. 16           OBEDIENCE
Many persecuted ~ahg'
is found it peaceful, but the progress of the Faith
aggravated the Muslims in that city, who plotted the assassination of a number
of prominent believers.         About five weeks after the day that the tablet
was read, two Muslims attacked H& i in the marketplace with daggers and
stabbed him 32 times amidst great jubilation of the crowd who watched.

They were seen to lick their daggers. Russian police came and took them
into custody.     On discovering the plots, the believers sent a petition to
the government which investigated, and after trial sentenced the two murderers
to be killed by hanging and the rest of the plotters to life in Siberia.
This was unusual for Muslims who used to be rewarded by Persian authorities
for killing 6'
:s.            The family of the murderers and prominent Muslim
merchants begged the believers for intercession.       A gathering of prominent
believers was called and after consultation they told the government their
request for reduction of the sentence.       This was kept a secret by the
government.     The day of the execution arrived.     The gallows were erected
and the graves were dug.       The prisoners were led to the scaffolds.
When the moment came, the official of the government announced that because
of intercession of the honorable &'is,        the sentence was reduced to life
in Siberia.

This was the act that pleased ~aha"u'll&      and He called it a princely act
because the believers obeyed His injunction against the use of sword in
retaliation.     However, it should be understood that l3ahg1;s do not advocate
leniency and reduction of punishment for crime.       '~bdu'l-E&   has made it
clear that the victims have no right to forgive the punishment for a crime
since suffering from the punishment is negligible compared to the benefits

for the protection of society.      (Paris Talks, p. 154)
p. 17             OBEDIENCJ2

And now the paradox of law as the instrument of liberation.
In this Dispensation, I3ah;'u1ll&       has changed the meaning of law.
The dictionary describes law as rule of conduct enforced by a controlling
authority.       ~ ' u ' l l in
h the ~ i t b - i - ~ ~ dstates,
as     " Think not that We

have revealed unto you a mere code of laws.        Nay, rather, We have unsealed
the Choice Wine with the fingers of might and power. 'I
We might superficially consider this verse as poetic and beautiful but neglect
the metaphor.     With this sentence, ~aha"u'llk has opened a new phase in
the spiritual evolution and moral transformation of mankind.
What does the Choice Wine have to do with law?        In 1s1&   and the 6'

Faith drinking of wine is forbidden.         Obviously, the metaphor gives the
spiritual analogy of a good and strong wine.        Instead of binding with
limitation the one who drinks it, it eliminates inhibition and gives the
feeling of liberation.         Similarly, the Choice Wine of E3ah6'u111&'s laws
will free and liberate those who obey them.
With transformation of human nature, Bah&'u'llhls laws will become a part
of our conscience, freeing us from our baser nature.

You see, motivation for avoiding wrong-doing and crime is based on spiritual
strength and moral value.         Protection is built from within and not by
erecting walls outside.         This is a novel concept of law as the instrument
of liberation.
The primary agent for enforcement of d ' u 'llb's laws is not fear, but
the love of His beauty.        And if there is fear, it is not the fear of fire

of hell as taught in some other religions, but the fear of displeasing the

One wo love.
OBEDIENCE
In every civilized country there are bounds of constitutional law.

To overstep such bounds brings anarchy.   6' u' ll&   offers His laws and

ordinances which provide ample liberty within its framework.
Friends, as was said at the beginning, the garden of life is ours,
% obey
let us choose/(the Divine Guide.

end.
-- Obedience (Used by permission of the curator)