# World's Equilibrium, The

*Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-18 — 1 clipping.*

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> The following transcription consists of notes taken of a talk
> by Peter Khan, member of the Universal House of Justice. As notes, they
> provide no more than a rough estimation of the content of the talk. I have
> added some formatting to improve the online appearance of this text, but
> have not edited or proofread it. The transcriber of the talk, Carol
> Rutstein, writes: 
> 
> ...these are the notes I took from Peter Khan's (member of the
> Universal House of Justice) talk in NYC last Sat night. They are just
> NOTES - not to be taken as his literal statements. He always prefaces his
> talks with the statement that it is his own opinion and thought, not the
> House of Justice. And so this is my understanding of what he said.
> Sometimes it might not be so clear because he speaks very fast, and to
> keep up was not easy. Hope you will enjoy reading
> them.
> 
> 
> 
> August 22, 1998Baruch CollegeNew York City
> 
> The people are becoming more profoundly concerned about the world's
> condition. All the turmoil, uncertainty and searching for direction
> centers around the New World Order. To this we should look for direction. 
> I am going to give a personal impression of a progress report on where we
> are at this time. What is happening with the development of the World
> Order of Baha' u'llah.
> 
> In this progress report of the state and condition - I will make some
> general remarks about the World Order itself.
> 
> First: The Bahá'í Teachings are not unique in their ideals. (oneness of
> Mankind, equality of women and men). These are not unique to the Baha'I
> Faith. Most other traditions have these teachings. And thinking people
> will say "Yes, that's good. I already think that".
> 
> What IS unique is that this Revelation brings a realistic, practical
> approach to the attainment of ideals. It brings ideals into reality. What
> we call the world order is the vehicle and the means for doing this. 
> Second: The world order of Bahá'u'lláh is not something we have now
> started working on. It is an intrinsic element of the Faith. The Bab in
> the Bayan spoke of this and it was further developed by Bahá'u'lláh,
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Shoghi Effendi. It has been progressively clarified and its
> implementation set into being.
> 
> The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh rests on the Kitab-I-Aqdas - the laws of
> the future. The laws are complex, detailed and they combine together to
> create a structure of future civilization. Some of the laws are clear,
> some are mysterious. Some (at first sight) might appear strange. The
> future civilization will have a character far different from now. An
> example is the law about renewing the furnishings of your home every 19
> years. Why in a book of such spiritual tone, would there be such a mundane
> subject as this.  There is a profound spiritual purpose - and it will take
> the passage of decades perhaps centuries to understand the kernel of truth
> here. We may get insights into the psychological effects of environmental
> change. When humanity reaches a stable population, such a law will be
> understood to foster creativity, artistic endeavor. These laws lay the
> basis of future world civilization.
> 
> The World Order has three dimensions:
> 
>  The transformation of values of individuals - to occur generation
> after
>    generation - without compromise or corruption This is reflected in the
>    Tablets of the Divine Plan. 
> 
>  Creating new patterns of cooperation and social organization.
> Changing
>    the way people relate to one another, make decisions - collective
> decision
>    making. The Administrative Order. 
> 
>  The Central body - coordination: fostering of creative impulse (In
> the
>    past institutions tended to stifle innovation - to foster uniformity.) 
>    This will be absent, due to the Central Body of the Faith, which will
>    protect and foster the balance of central authority with individual
>    initiative.  Tablet of Carmel is the charter for the development of the
>    World Center.
> 
> The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh has three processes: The development of the
> World Center, the development of the Administrative Order and Propagation
> (Tablets of the Divine Plan). 
> 
> The challenge is to allow all three to grow in balance, organically, in an
> evolutionary manner. This development requires due attention to foster the
> three processes in the short term and the long term. Those of us who have
> been affected by Western thought think sequentially. First you do one
> thing and then when completed, you do another. These three processes must
> go on simultaneously, interacting with each other and in balance.
> 
> I will speak on these three processes in the Development of the World
> Order of Bahá'u'lláh: The World Center, The Administrative Order and
> Propagation.
> 
> 1. THE WORLD CENTER: There is physical turmoil at the World Center
> because of the construction. We are used to dust and machinery operating
> all the time. We are in the latter phase of the completion of the
> buildings on Mount Carmel, some of which will be ready for occupancy
> perhaps by the year 2000 or so. We have been beset by difficulties:
> receiving the funds necessary, the political instability, terrorism, the
> difficulty finding artisans who have the skills to maintain the very high
> standard required, permits, materials, etc. All are being solved.
> 
> There is a question: Why did we do it? If I were aware of how limited the
> means of the Bahá'í community is, and I were looking at this, I would
> wonder "why spend scarce resources on such expensive buildings? Why not
> spend it on direct alleviation of suffering, educational programs,
> scholarships around the world. The amount spent has never been announced,
> but it can be estimated to be in the realm of $200 million. What was the
> reason? There is no answer if one does not accept the spiritual dimension.
> There is no reasonable answer if the orientation is material. We, as
> Bahá'ís, are not people whose total focus is material.  There are great
> spiritual forces at the core of our belief.  This is a dimension of our
> faith - that the release of great spiritual forces is associated with the
> development of the World Center on Mount Carmel. There is a sacredness -
> these great spiritual forces.  This development is a response to the
> mechanism of those forces. The guidance in the Writings is the reason we
> have directed so much of the resources of the Faith to this development.
> Shoghi Effendi referred to the mysterious spiritual potency of the
> monument gardens. He spoke of the effect on the development of the cause
> all over the world. The establishment of the World Administrative Center
> is essential to the accomplishment of God's Purpose for mankind through
> the World Order.
> 
> It is spiritual, not material - more compelling. We make no apologies for
> this response to profound spiritual truths. Other reasons - more mundane -
> it is a collective act of worship of God. We offer it to our Lord as an
> element of our worship. This revelation is committed to beauty as well as
> worship. Most people's view of the future is not beautiful. (When we look
> at the films dealing with the future, there is ugliness). We are a
> religion of beauty as well as reason, we see the future as beautiful as
> well as peaceful and harmonious. Emergence of the Faith.
> 
> Question #2. At the World Center there are 600 people who serve. Why in
> the world do you need 600 people? ("This is an awkward question for me to
> be asking - if I were not a member of the House of Justice I'd probably
> lose my voting rights" - laughter). We are setting a foundation of the
> World Administrative of the Faith for centuries to come. Of the 600 - 300
> are concerned with paper. How could there be so much paper? There are 179
> NSA's, 81 Counselors, numbers of NSA's external agencies, office at the
> UN.  We get letters from NSA's - minutes. It is estimated that we get 10
> to 15 thousand letters. Someone has to answer them There are copies,
> retrieval techniques, statistics to keep (Four Year Plan), literature
> translation - 800 languages, legal affairs office, research department,
> library, newsletters, archives, photos, catalogued conservation ,
> restoring of documents, finance currencies of 179 countries constantly
> fluctuating, investments, real value.  The 300 others: gardens, weeding,
> lawns, shrubs. Why do we have 100 acres to beautify? Fundamentally for the
> worship of God. On the slopes of the Holy Mountain. Works office, restores
> and repairs Holy Places. They are subject to disrepair, wear and tear.
> Security, cleaning, maintenance office. We have 2000 pilgrims and
> visitors. Our Holy places and buildings still look brand new, due to the
> excellent care and maintenance. People who visit buildings that are 15
> years occupied are amazed to find they are not brand new. This is why 600
> people are at the World Center. We are expanding and developing the World
> Center in accordance to need, with economy. At present no more than a
> fraction of the space is occupied. Other offices will be added.
> 
> 2. ADMINISTRATIVE DEVELOPMENT: The International Convention this
> year was significantly more wonderful than any of the others. There was a
> far greater diversity of participants. In the past mostly Persian and
> American pioneers were delegates to the International Convention, because
> they went out to spread the Faith all around the world. There was a
> greater maturity.  A greater percentage were indigenous believers and the
> maturity of their consultation was greater. It was truly international.
> There was a far greater involvement of women in consultation. There are
> many cultures where women are shy and reticent. In the past many
> indigenous delegates would not speak. This year, they overcame their
> shyness and contributed freely. The inter NSA cooperation was routinized.
> A whole network of Inter NSA cooperation. Soon we will have more NSA's.
> Faroe Islands, Balkans States will be separated into Latvia, Lithuania,
> Estonia. Malta, French Polynesia.  The Universal House of Justice decision
> in Ridvan 1997 that Assembly formation could only occur on the first day
> of Ridvan was significant. Many said we would lose many Assemblies. The
> communities had to take the initiative themselves or lose their LSA's.
> There was drop of 6% - but the following year we regained most of those.
> This is a measure of the maturity of response. The LSA's are more mature,
> concerned with justice versus mercy, external relations, human rights,
> children, minorities, women.
> 
> 3. PROPAGATION: Tablets of the Divine Plan. It would be imaginary
> to say that we had had a vast increase in our numbers. It is more like
> modest.  What conclusion is to be reached from this fact? Should we be
> dissatisfied, disappointed? Of course, the Four Year Plan calls for an
> increase in the process of Entry by Troops. Always within that context,
> there is a great deal of satisfaction in human resource development. We
> have 10's, 1000s of Bahá'ís converted from passive to active. Through the
> Institute process.  The courses are training believers toward ACTION.
> Teaching of the Faith. In the Four Year Plan, there is an increase in
> people power, more serving the Faith. When we look for victory there is a
> striking increase in human resources. Systematic approach. "When we were
> working on the Ridvan Message at the beginning of the plan, there were
> several drafts, and different people were working on parts of it. When we
> put it all together, we found that we had used the word "systematic"
> eleven times on one page. We had to reduce it to about six. You see the
> point we were making - perhaps over-making" (Laughter) There is a variety
> of approaches - to meet a diversity of needs. We need to teach specific
> populations. Management, business (ethics) medical (concept of nature of
> human being) Ridvan Message speaks of the hunger in the world. There is a
> world-wide concern about racism. People of conscience. There is a
> transformation of values necessary to eradicate that evil. In countries
> where there is financial instability like Korea, Japan, some of the Asian
> countries, the NSA's there are reporting a sharp increase in receptivity,
> because people are realizing that material well-being cannot satisfy the
> spiritual hunger. There is social disintegration, disorder in Africa,
> tension in Europe. Social breakdown, corruption in government. Deep
> concern is part of spiritual hunger. The Bahá'í Faith had promoted racial
> unity, advancement of women, rights of all people in a consistent way.
> Other groups have latched on to these issues, but after a time, gone on to
> other issues. The Bahá'ís have been consistent in their promotion of these
> issues.
> 
> There are countries where values education for children is very
> successful.  In the state schools, religious education is compulsory. The
> Bahá'ís are offering it - in such a universal way, non-Bahá'ís are coming.
> In one community there are 10 Bahá'ís. They offer a class on spiritual
> education and 150 children attend. Every week. There is a yearning for a
> sense of community - we have a trust and are optimistic. We don't think
> that maybe it will happen. In the Ridvan Message of 1998 we find a
> certitude of the immanence of great victories, resounding victories.
> 
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá in the Star of the West - in the early part of the
> century said that the world was like a baby asleep in its crib, oblivious
> of the world around it. The troubles of the world are like shaking the
> crib. The baby sleeps more deeply. When the amplitude would increase,
> eventually the baby wakes up in fright. That is now happening. Turning to
> us is fear and insecurity, looking to us for direction. That is our
> job!
> 
> We need to relate our teaching to current issues. We should get together
> and talk about problems of society and analyze them at a deeper level.
> Find the values, which underlie the problem. Example: soccer violence, it
> arises from frustration - perhaps the people have a dead end job, unhappy,
> the fans are a tribe, there is cohesion in opposing the other team.
> Someone who deeply yearns for community. What are the Bahá'í teachings? We
> need to resist the tendency to have simplistic solutions to complex
> problems.  Youth and children: We can expect more from youth. Parents are
> stunned at the level of responsibility given to the young people who are
> serving at the World Center. We appeal to their better nature. Most of the
> time it works.  Of course there are a few who cannot measure up.
> 
> How can we help the world to achieve true lasting peace, with all the
> terrible things that are going on? That is a very important question. Is
> there time? We are reassured by the promise of peace. We are distinguished
> by our certitude that it will happen. We must work towards a future in the
> most effective and efficient way. The transformation of values is
> necessary.  I have been typecast - like Clint Eastwood - as the one who
> speaks on "mental tests" in the Western world. If we can identify certain
> subtle things we can take defensive measures - deepening in the Covenant. 
> It will immunize us from severe mental tests, which subtly seduce us to
> erosion of faith.
> 
> Question on creativity. The House of Justice is the first body concerned
> with the coordination of fostering creativity, innovation. What has it
> done to foster creativity and innovation? Two things.  It monitors the
> Bahá'í Community to avoid excessive uniformity. The House has to decide at
> what point it should call for each - second - The work of the House of
> Justice is to support, to stimulate growth, development - stretch - use of
> the arts in propagation of the Faith. It makes key interventions in order
> to stimulate new thinking.
> 
> Church and State. The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh deals in different way in
> different places. In the early years one way, later - during the Most
> Great Peace things will change. Ultimately in the future, maybe centuries
> and centuries, the House of Justice will be recognized as the government
> of the world. Subject is almost unintelligible at this stage. Nature of
> question is rooted in history - connotations regarding church and state.
> It is nothing like what you are thinking. Look closely at the WOB and get
> a deeper understanding.
> 
> Question: The vast projects on Mt Carmel - reaction of government &
> Israel? Answer: There is not one uniform view. We have good
> relations with the state of Israel. On the informal level there is a pride
> in people at the beauty being developed on Mt. Carmel. The City of Haifa
> particularly - partly in anticipation of greater tourism. Some are envious
> - there is no uniformity of attitude and response.
> 
> Question: Women on the House of Justice? Answer: I am
> also type cast for this question. Everything is speculation.  We wrote the
> book and decided that NOT deal with the question would be phony.  There is
> quite a large section on it.  Don't buy the book, borrow Billy Roberts
> copy and read it. We intended to write about the Advancement of Women, but
> it turned out to be a book on the Covenant.
> 
> Question: Training Institutes: There is a healthy degree of
> experimentation across the world. Encourage avoidance of generalization.
> Some are narrowly focused, some so diffuse that it does not lead to
> action.
> 
> Question: So little written about the women of the Holy Family.
>  Answer: Ruhiyyih Khanum is working on an unpublished
> manuscript about this. More will be done in the future. There is a small
> volume on Navvab.
> 
> Question on China. We were in China and the relations went well. We
> were invited to a private banquet in a large dining room with many
> delicacies, which we survived. When they offered the piece de resistance,
> it was a rice crisp with a large crisp scorpion on top. I looked at it and
> it looked at me. I was fortunate in that it was dead. So I poked it with
> my chopstick and it was cooked. It was a sign of great honor to be given
> this delicacy.  I grit my teeth and put it in my mouth and ate it.
> (Laughter)
>
> — *World's Equilibrium, The (Used by permission of the curator)*