ellen@ucla-cs.UUCP (12/04/84)
[hail to thee, bugs of the watchtowers...]
when i was a kid (adolescent... about 14), and beginning my conscious search
along the paths of spirituality (as distinct from spiritualism :-), i came
across Ba'hai in a book writting by ?Leo Rosten?, something like that,
which sought to compare major religions in a non-judgemental way . i no longer
remember the scope of the work, that is, whether or not it covered religions
outside the range of Judaeo-Christian-Islamic faiths.
anyway, i was trying to see if there was a religion around which i could find
acceptable, one which DID NOT say, "only those who believe in MY GOD are right!"
of the MANY discussed in the book (after all, there are SO MANY different
X-ian religions, each claiming to be the only one that's true/right)(and Judaism
was included, i just can't remember which others; Islam must have been), Ba'hai
seemed to be the best of the bunch because it didn't claim exclusivity to god
and accepted that there could be truths within the teachings of other previously
established religions. this makes sense to me to a certain point. there are
numerous books, for example those by catholics, often clergy, who have found
valuable teachings in Hinduism, Buddhism, for example.
Bah'hai still seems pretty good, from the above-mentioned Judaeo-Christian-
Islamic point of view, but my beliefs, [see previous comments i have made
regarding the position of the feminine within many establishment religions]
leads me to reject Ba'hai. the prophets mentioned are all MALE. nothing against
men (i find them useful :-) but where are the spiritual WOMEN?
the three above mentioned groups, and Buddhism and most forms of Hinduism put
the MALE at the pinnacle of spiritual life; the female is not as spiritually
advanced. women are considered the cause of all sin by Christians; Jewish men
thank G-d that that they were not born female; Buddhists consider women unable
to reach release, because life in this wheel of suffering is born of the female
body, so women are obviously closer to suffering and causing it than men (be
good in this life and maybe in your next you'll get to be born a man); Islam so
obviously subjugates women, that i have a hard time being at all objective about
it in its most traditional/orthodox forms (Sufis seem to be better about it).
so, what exactly is the position of Ba'hai about the place of women on its
spiritual path. no nice, comforting remarks; give me some quotes out of the
basic texts that Ba'hais look to as guide-posts.
in the name of the Goddess in Her triple aspect, and the Horned One
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''' ``` walker@noscvax.UUCP (Janet M. Walker) (12/06/84)
>so, what exactly is the position of Ba'hai about the place of women on its >spiritual path. no nice, comforting remarks; give me some quotes out of the >basic texts that Ba'hais look to as guide-posts. >where are the spiritual WOMEN? From the Baha'i writings: "Humanity is like a bird with its two wings - the one is male, the other female. Unless both wings are strong and impelled by some common force, the bird cannot fly heavenwards. According to the spirit of this age, women must advance and fulfill their mission in all departments of life, becoming equal to men. They must be on the same level as men and enjoy equal rights. This is my earnest prayer and it is one of the fundamental principals of Baha'u'llah." "When men bring forward ...proof of their superiority the assertion that women have not achieved as much as men, they use poor arguments which leave history out of consideration. If they kept themselves more informed historically, they would know that great women have lived and achieved great things in the past, and that there are many living and achieving great things today." "Women must go on advancing ; they must extend their knowledge of science, literature, history, for the perfection of humanity. Erelong they will receive their rights. Men will see women in earnest, bearing themselves with dignity, improving the civil and political life, opposed to warfare, demanding suffrage and equal opportunities. I expect to see you advance in all phases of life; then will your brows be crowned with the diadem of eternal glory." "The world in the past has been ruled by force, and man has dominated over woman by reason of his more forceful and aggressive qualities both of body and mind. But the balance is already shifting - force is losing its weight and mental alertness, intuition, and the spiritual qualities of love and service, in shich woman is strong, are gaining ascendancy. Hence the new age will be an age less masculine, and more permeated with the feminine ideals - or, to speak more exactly, will be an age in which the masculine and feminine elements of civilization will be more balanced." Abdu'l-Baha (son of Baha'u'llah - founder of Baha'i Faith) There is much more. Equality of men and women is one of 12 major principals of the Baha'i Faith. Also the elimination of ALL forms of prejudice (sexual, racial, religious, ethnic, economic - you name it) is another. AS for spiritual women - there are many. Read the story of Tahirih, the first 'suffragette'. She publically removed her veil, among many other things, in 19th century Iran. In fact, the thought of the equality of men and women was virtually unheard of until Baha'u'llah proclaimed it in the mid 19th century. Look what's happened since! (You don't have to be a Baha'i to be influenced by the principals we feel God has declared for this day!) -- Janet M. Walker MILNET/ARPANET: walker@nosc UUCP: [ihnp4,akgua,decvax,dcdwest,ucbvax]!sdcsvax!noscvax!walker ---------- "O Friend! In the garden of thy heart plant naught but the rose of love." ---------------------------------------------------------------------