> However, one must begin with a literal understanding of a word (one may even > find it necessary to repair to a dictionary). One must also begin with > fundamental principles. It is, I think, better to adhere to plain meanings, > dictionary definitions and fundamental principles rather than step into the > unknown world of the concepts of another human being who will be judged by > the same God.
I agree that one needs to start with the plain, literal meanings; however, I think that these are simply the first steps for greater understanding, within the framework given by the Manifestations. One of Paul's statements that I can actually cite by chapter and verse (like many Christians know John 3:16) is II Corinthians 3:6 where God ". . . hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life." I think that the ability to "minister" and understand the spirit comes with believers who live the principles of the spirit--love, joy, humility, justice, obedience to God's laws, etcetera. It is way too easy to get caught up in the "letter", whether in a literal meaning or esoteric interpretation. In whatever measure, the opposite characteristics--ego, vanity, selfishness, fear, greed and hatred--can lead to misinterpretations of scripture whenever they are included (knowingly or unknowingly) in the evaluation. Baha'u'llah also wrote that "Whoso interpreteth what hath been sent down from the heaven of Revelation, and altereth its evident meaning, he, verily, is of them that have perverted the Sublime Word of God, and is of the lost ones in the Lucid Book. (ESW, p. 129) In other words, we can't ignore obvious meanings. One literal statement in Baha'u'llah's writings comes to mind. I have seen it used on a non-Baha'i web site to say that Baha'u'llah is scientifically wrong and therefore can't be a Manifestation. The statement is: "For instance, consider the substance of copper. Were it to be protected in its own mine from becoming solidified, it would, within the space of seventy years, attain to the state of gold." (Iqan, p. 157) One could argue for a long time about whether or not this might be literally possible, but there is already a spiritual solution to this in the Holy Writings that requires little interpretation and (at least in my opinion) has much greater import and significance. Baha'u'llah compared a man to "a mine rich in gems of inestimable value." (Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 161) So clearly, it could be a logical step to take this concept to a 70 year life span of a man, and the transformative power that can be found in the protection of God's teachings during this life span. In context, in the previous paragraph He is talking about the "Divine Elixir". This can also be reinforced by the historic and theological context in which He made the statement. Rumi, who Baha'u'llah validated through references in works such as the Seven Valleys, wrote of men that : "Inside they are precious pearls, big and little. These men also resemble the musk deer's bag; Outside it is blood, but inside pure musk; Yet, say not that outside 'twas mere blood, Which on entering the bag becomes musk. Nor say that outside the alembic 'twas mere copper, And becomes gold inside, when mixed with elixir." (The Mathnavi, Vol. 1) This is completely consistent with (and provides precedent for) Baha'u'llah's teaching about copper to gold in the Iqan. This can be taken even further in that the "Choice sealed wine shall be given them to quaff, The seal of musk" of the Qur'an in Sura 83 (the Deceivers in Measure) becomes in the Aqdas the unsealed, transformative "choice wine" that is no "mere code of laws". In my opinion, in the divine alchemy of the soul, the "spirit" and its interpretations, as provided by the Manifestations, are of primary importance, while literal interpretations, or interpretations for which there is no basis in the Holy Writings (and ones that can lead to contention and discord) are a distant second. Patti __________________________________________________ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send a blank email to mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Baha'i Studies is available through the following: Mail - mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Web - http://list.jccc.edu/read/?forum=bahai-st News - news://list.jccc.edu/bahai-st http://www.escribe.com/religion/bahaist (public) http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED] (public)
