James Braun

From Your Inmost Being

by TARANEH

O CHILDREN OF MEN!
Know ye not why We created you all from the same dust? That no one should exalt himself over the other. Ponder at all times in your hearts how ye were created. Since We have created you all from one same substance it is incumbent on you to be even as one soul, to walk with the same feet, eat with the same mouth and dwell in the same land, that from your inmost being, by your deeds and actions, the signs of oneness and the essence of detachment may be made manifest. Such is My counsel to you, O concourse of light! Heed ye this counsel that ye may obtain the fruit of holiness from the tree of wondrous glory. — Bahá’u’lláh, The Hidden Words, Part One, No. 68

I have always wondered how people around the world can be united, and I have always been saddened by the fact that people from different parts of the world often don’t understand or feel close to one another. We all live in different lands, and because of geographical distances and cultural differences, we do not and cannot share the same experiences. How can we overcome these distances and differences? When I read Hidden Word No. 68, I felt I found the answer. In it, Bahá’u’lláh explains God’s expectations of us, His beloved creatures.

At the beginning of the passage Bahá’u’lláh writes: “Know ye not why We created you all from the same dust? That no one should exalt himself over the other. Ponder at all times in your hearts how you were created.” Here, Bahá’u’lláh reminds us that God has created us “from the same dust,” and so we are all equal. No one should feel that he is better than the anyone else. We all smile when we are happy; we all cry when we experience pain; and we all feel proud when we achieve something good in our lives. No matter how much difference there is between people’s lives and their positions in life, they are, in the end, fundamentally the same — created by the same God and equal to one another.

In the next part of the Hidden Word, Bahá’u’lláh elaborates, telling us what this means for how we should live: “Since We have created you all from one same substance it is incumbent on you to be even as one soul, to walk with the same feet, eat with the same mouth and dwell in the same land.” Here, the Manifestation of God for this day is asking us to be satisfied with what we have and with who we are, and to be mindful at all times that we are part of a single body — the body of humanity — and that we should behave accordingly. We live on the same planet, walk with the same feet, sustain our lives in the same way, and experience the world with the same senses. God has created us as one soul and has designed this beautiful universe for that soul to live in. With kindness, contentment, and awareness of our deep connection with each other, we can bind our souls firmly together in an effort to honor the dwelling place God has given us.

“From your inmost being, by your deeds and actions, the signs of oneness and the essence of detachment may be made manifest. Such is My counsel to you, O concourse of light!” — in the final sentences of this Hidden Word, Bahá’u’lláh tells us how to accomplish this lofty goal: it is by our actions, He tells us, that we can demonstrate our essential unity.

As human beings, we must be devoted to our creator — God. We are equal to one another and must demonstrate this equality every day in our lives and so become worthy of the magnificent universe God has made for us. He has created us as one soul and asks us to live in harmony. When I read this Hidden Word, I felt that I had, at long last, found the answer to my question: if we follow our creator’s counsel, we will achieve unity the world over.