HUMAN RIGHTS IN IRAN

Who was Abdul-Baha?

Who was Abdul-Baha? 

Abdul-Baha Comes to the West to New York City

 after a Lifetime in Captivity.

Part 1

//www.bahai-videos.com/videos/documentaries/city-of-the-covenant-1-of-2.html

Part 2

//www.bahai-videos.com/videos/documentaries/city-of-the-covenant-2-of-2.html

ABDUL BAHA SAID:

Dear Friends ,

Pleaese READ EVERYTHING IN CONTEXT...

The Aim of this MALICIOUS blogger "Covenant", by quoting out of context, omitting and rearranging sentences  is simply to cause the kind of confusion that  some see here..

If you see the whole thing in context, it reads completely differently although the language and translation of 1909 , might seem politically incorrect for th reader in the 21st century.

Clearly, judging by the Life led by Abdul Baha Himself and the Body of his writings, he was a champion of racial equality and  harmony.

Here is the Text in context:

O ye beloved of God and maid-servants of the Merciful!

The republic of wise men believes that the difference in minds and opinions is due to the difference of education and the acquisition of ethics. That is, that minds are equal in origin, but education and the acquisition of ethics cause minds to differ and comprehensions to be at variance; that this difference is not in entity but in education and teaching; that there is no individual distinction 577 for any soul. Hence, the members of the human race all possess the capacity of attaining to the highest station, and the proof they adduce therefor is this: “The inhabitants of a country like Africa are all as wandering savages and wild animals; they lack intelligence and knowledge; all are uncivilized; not one civilized and wise man is to be found among them. On the contrary, consider the civilized countries, the inhabitants of which are living in the highest state of culture and ethics, solidarity and inter-dependence; possessing, with few exceptions, acute power of comprehensions and sound mind. Therefore, it is made clear and evident that the superiority and inferiority of minds and comprehensions arises from education and cultivation, or from their lack and absence. A bent branch is straightened by training and the wild fruit of the jungle is made the product of the orchard. An ignorant man by learning becomes knowing, and the world of savagery, through the bounty of a wise educator, is changed into a civilized kingdom. The sick is healed by medication, and the poor man, by learning the arts of commerce, is made rich. The follower, by attaining the virtues of the leader, becomes great, and the lowly man, by the education of the teacher, rises from the nadir of oblivion to the zenith of celebrity.” These are the proofs of the wise men.

The prophets also acknowledge this opinion, to wit: That education hath a great effect upon the human race, but they declare that minds and comprehensions are originally different. And this matter is self-evident; it cannot be refuted. We see that certain children of the same age, nativity and race, nay, from the same 578 household, under the tutorship of one teacher, differ in their minds and comprehensions. One advanceth rapidly, another is slow in catching the rays of culture, still another remaineth in the lowest degree of stupidity.

No matter how much the shell is educated (or polished), it can never become the radiant pearl. The black stone will not become the world illumining gem. The calocynth 1 and the thorny cactus can never by training and development become the blessed tree. That is to say, training doth not change the human gem (i.e., human nature or entity), but it produceth a marvelous effect. By this effective power all that is registered latent of virtues and capacities in the human reality will be revealed.

Cultivation by the farmer maketh of the grain the harvest, and the effort of the gardener maketh of the seed a noble tree. The gentle teacher promoteth the children of the school to the lofty altitude and the bestowal of the trainer placeth the little child upon the throne of ether. Therefore, it is demonstrated and proven that minds are different in the original entity or nature, and that education commandeth a decided and great influence. Were there no educator, all souls would remain savage, and were it not for the teacher, the children would be ignorant creatures.

//reference.bahai.org/en/t/ab/TAB/tab-625.html.iso8859-1?query=africa&action=highlight#pg577

Abdul Baha says :

"The inhabitants of a country life Africa are all as wandering savages and wild animals. They lack intelligence and knowledge; all are uncivilized; not one civilized and a wise man is not to be found among them. These are the proofs of the wise men. The prophets also acknowledge this opinion, towit: That education hath a great effect upon the human race, but they declare that minds and comprehensions are originally different. And this matter is self-evident; it cannot be refuted. We see that certain children of the same age, nativity and race, nay, from the same household, under the tutorship of one teacher, differ in their minds and conprehensions. One advanceth rapidly, another is slow in catching the rays of culture, still another remaineth in the lowest degree of stupidity. No matter how much the shell is educated (or polished), it can never become a radiant pearl. The black stone will not become the world-illumined gem." (Tablets of 'Abdu'l-Baha p.567 vv.3-4)

deliriously happy all over the earth

What if there was a Faith that made us feel so looney with love and desire for human decency, unity and peace that we no longer cared if all the world wanted to insult and threaten us for it?

What if every insult and slur was only a pathway to the Beloved of the Worlds?

What if this Faith made us so happy that we could live within the world's present misery knowing in our souls that our belief will be one of the little pebbles in a great wall of justice that will overcome forever, the roots of evil?

(Faryarm, you are wonderful, thank you for your notes!)

By the way . . . THERE IS A FAITH LIKE THIS and (wonder of wonders), it originated with an Iranian in Iran!!!

Check it out . . . it is already making millions of believing people deliriously happy all over the earth!!!

Thank you Mona Joon..

Greetings from Subzero NE USA to all around the Globe..

Faryarm 

PUBLIC RADIO (NPR report on Iranians in Africa..)

He is sooooooooo "Cute" :)

“A home where a child is welcomed and loved is the happiest home
anywhere.”

What a beautiful addition to their family!....Aref is adorable, and I really like the way he talks in farsi.

Very nice video Faryar jan,...Have a Great Holiday with your dear family.

Mona ;)

To 007

! چا کرم 

To:Faryarm, Alborz, Adoptive mother, Adib, Mrs.Javaneh29

دمتون گرم

To Iranian 1 : read my motives, in adopting my son!

You said ~~was there a hidden motive behind their act?~~
Well my motive to adopt a German son was to stay up late nights with him when he was sick, to care for him when he was teething, to help him walk and talk, to teach him that love does not have boundaries of color and race. To tell him when he asked me why he has blue eyes and we have black eyes, that he is from my soul not my flesh. To help him through school years and reaching his full potential, to help him fight his demons of being given away by his birth parents. To provide him with a Persian mother and father who love him the Persian way, to give him a sense of belonging, to a family , community and faith .To support him through his first love at school, to hold him when he failed, and to praise him when he succeeded.
I can go on and on for you..., but I guess it will not be good enough because I am a Bahai!!!

To AJ and Anonymous Iranian:

Why don't you two listen to Ebi Amirhosseini and watch this clip without prejudice, because as he said beauty is in the eye of beholder!

It seems to me that you two can not find beauty in any act of love or kindness if there is a bahai involved, such a shame, pity!

Tahirih

Iranian1- hidden motivations and what's different in this Faith

I am going to ignore the tone with which you have asked two questions and go out on a limb and assume that by asking these questions you are seeking an answer and not simply making insinuations in the form of questions.

Was there a hidden motive in their act? I see nothing hidden about their motivations.  "The essence of faith is conscious knowledge and the practice of good deeds".  This couple believes in the Unity of Mankind as a result of their Faith. Their conscious, as opposed to blind, faith has moved them to a location that places them amongst people of different physical and cultural characteristics. They have taken, what I, and hopefully you, consider the supreme act of integrating themselves into that society by adopting a child from that society and have made manifest the essential Oneness of Mankind.  This act along with their engagement in the spiritual and physical development of a soul, their son Aref, is a testament to the transformative power of Faith on this family unit.  Those that see this in any other way, are free to do so.  Those that see it for what it is and are inspired, will see a glimpse of hope in an otherwise conspiracy filled and deception laden world in which every institution is crumbling.

What makes your religion stand out and what does it offer that others do not offer?  Far be it for me to interpret anything for anyone, but I suggest that you determine that for yourself by the multitude of examples that surrounds you.  Your ability to differentiate is yours to develop and sharpen.  We should not see the world through the eyes of others just as we should not learn through the interpretation of others.  This pracice has had disasterous consequences in Islam, Christianity and other faiths.

Independent investigation of truths is just one principle in the Baha'i Faith that encourages us to Question and then Investigate with a mind that is trained to be objective and a heart devoid of the stains of malice and prejudice.

Iranian 1, I hope that you continue to question, but that you are also moved to investigate.  I also hope that you begin this journey with the preparations necessary for all investigations, a pure and kindly heart and a trained and objective mind. 

Happy Holidays,

Alborz

To Anonymous 1:

Dear I am aware of Germans adopting from different countries and races, it happens a lot in Europe and America and Canada. I was referring to Non bahai Iranians. Are there any Iranians who are not bahais and have adopted a black, Asian or Caucasian child?

To iranian 1

I realize I'm not Faryar jan, but I'd like to give my two cents regardless. 

"but was there a hidden motive behind their act?"

Is there a motive behind the decisions made by people of any religion that decide to adopt a child? I don't know and neither do you - that is outside the realm of certainty as far as spectators are concerned, meaning we can only do what spectators do best: speculate.

"By the way what make your religion stands out and what you religion offers that other religions do not offer." 

I don't think this particular post is the appropriate place to respond to this fair question, but if Faryar feels it's appropriate then that's great. In the meantime, Faryar does have another post which might be pertinent to your question - perhaps read the post itself and some of the comments therein:

//iranian.com/main/blog/faryarm/making-se...

Faryam, lets not use a bull horn!

Lets not use a bull horn in order to advertise your faith.What those couple did was indeed a nice humanitarian act,but was there a hidden motive behind their act?By the way what make your religion stands out and what you religion offers that other religions do not offer.

The Boy will have to decide >>>

The boy will be raised with values, but according to Bahai law and principle

he has to make the decision for himself when he reaches the age of maturity.

Belief is not something that can be inherited; it is not even a matter of intellectual acceptance but a definite love relationship between one's creator and oneself; a desire to live according to spiritual laws ; laws that are just as important to physical laws for one's health  and well being.

That is why you can not make someone believe or convert etc.. 

The boy will have to decide for himself.

Faryarm 

Dear AJ, No Judgments made...

Dear AJ, No Judgments made...

I do not know this person... 

I was speaking generally about some of our  shortcomings... with regard to 

perfection, including yours truly !

best

Faryarm 

Anonymous irani

In the Baha'i Faith, a child reaches the age of maturity at 15. When he reaches that age, he will be able to decide for himself what religion he wants to be - it is entirely up to him, and if he does not choose the Baha'i Faith, there will not and should not be any stigma attached to him or his decision by the community.

He was probably raised as a Baha'i the way most Baha'i parents raise their children, but all of us still choose for ourselves at age 15. 

open-mindedness!

"open mind is like parachute,
it works when it is open"

Merry Xmas.

Carmel

I dont understand

I really have trouble understanding why some ppl here relentlessly slaunder each others believes.

Religion/ belief is a personal choice and a personal experience. Why cant we just accept that we make different choices and respect that. What is gained from making issues over it here? There's too much trouble in the world as it is, as a result of religious choice,  without bringing it here.

I really dont understand this persecution of others based on their beleifs ... it's pointless, its discrimination, its narrow minded.

Which ever god you believe in, I wish you all well.

Javaneh

I am extremely surprised

Dear Faryarm,

I am extremely surprised at you for being so judgmental about someone you do not know!

Of the human qualities you mention, rest assured this friend has an abundance of humanity, sacrifice, patience, love, forgiveness...
I am not bestowing sainthood upon him, because he is no saint, but believe me his shortcomings are far fewer than many of those who consider themselves at the threshold of perfection!

He does all his humanitarian work both here and abroad quietly, and definitely without a megaphone!

I will not elaborate on his issues with his religion any more than I have, because I am not trying to convince anyone. I was merely repeating what I had heard and know.

Best of luck,
AJ

Dear Faryam,Is the boy is Bahai as well?

Is he going to have a choice of what religion he is going to take or is he a Bahai already.

Dear IRI Intel Service...AKA Anon Extrodinaire!

I hope the bosses back home are paying attention to your brilliant vigilance and thoughtful responses to anything with "Bahai" in it...

Do you know of any plans to send one of you guys to Africa, where you can spread your love and compassion, and perhaps "Adapt"  a few local orphans and teach them about the love that radiates from the heart of the IRI intelligence service.

By the way..can you post something about your training  do yo have to have a BA or is BS enough?

merry christmas

Faryarm 

Adapting a boy,not a big deal!

Thousands of couples who can not have kids of their own adapt kids.Lets not make a big deal of it.What if he speaks farsi and sings Persian songs and eats chelo kabab.What else do you people expect,he is raised by an Iranian couple.

Adoptive Mother

I'm surprised you haven't seen German parents adopt kids from other countries, specially from Southeast Asia. And no, not all are Bahais, Christian maybe?!

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder..

Let's once more watch this clip through the eyes of an Iranian without any religious prejudice .

Ebi aka Haaji

Dear Javaneh.

It always saddens me, when a fellow Iranian can ignore the good and display an obvious deep  seated resentment or prejudice at the very mention of a word they know little about and far worse, with no capacity to learn or digest anything new.

Clearly these people have faith in a Religion that is binding and has inspired them to have the courage to go where they can be of service; to a place far away from family and other large populations of Iranians; where they seem to have prospered and be loved by the local africans.

Anon: Disturbed at the mention of Bahai..

Dear Anon 123..

The use of "disturbed" was because the "Anon I" seemed disrturbed by the very mention of the word... Bahai.

Sorry it was'nt made more obvious..... 

;)

faryarm 

amazing story

What a lovely story. I am always humbled when I hear about the generosity of people like these two parents. Its a shame that some ppl have had to resort to insults about religion on this great story, when the message here is about the capacity of the human heart to love

What a great little guy too.

Javaneh

Anonymous 123

I don't think Faryam said anything that is not true about IRI. So, please stop twisting his words and offering your advice to him.