There are beautiful songs and poems from Baha’is that use the ancient
symbol of a hollow reed. (One example is the ravishing “Hollow Reed” written,
played and sung by the Baha’i science fiction author Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff. It is not the words of a prayer that was mistakenly attributed to Abdu'l-Baha.) This important image of a hollow reed is used in numerous
authorized Baha’i Writings and texts. Please see below.
[ Emphasis added below.]
***
"Be
thou of the people of hell-fire,
but
be not a hypocrite.
Be
thou an unbeliever,
but
be not a plotter.
Make
thy home in taverns,
but
tread not the path
of
the mischief-maker.
Fear
thou God,
but
not the priest.
Give
to the executioner thy head,
but
not thy heart.
Let
thine abode be under the stone,
but
seek not the shelter of the cleric.
"Thus doth the Holy Reed intone its melodies, and the Nightingale of Paradise warble its song, so
that He may infuse life eternal into the mortal frames of men, impart to the
temples of dust the essence of the Holy Spirit and the heavenly Light, and draw
the transient world, through the potency of a single word, unto the Everlasting
Kingdom."
(Baha’u’llah, “Trustworthiness:
A Cardinal Baha’i Virtue,” January 1987 Compiled by the Research Department of
the Universal House of Justice, The Compilation of Compilations vol II, p. 337)
***
[Baha’u’llah used the symbol of the hollow reed in other places in His Writings, including in Rashh-i-'Amá and extensively in Mathnaviyí-i Mubárak. However, these works have not yet been published in authorized English translations.]
***
'In Revelation [of St. John] 11:1-2 it is said:
"And
there was given me a reed like unto a
rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein. But
the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is
given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty
and two months."
'By this reed is meant a Perfect Man, and the reason for His being likened to a reed
is that when the latter is entirely freed and emptied of its pith, it becomes capable of producing wondrous melodies. Moreover, these songs and airs proceed not from the reed itself but from the player who blows into it. In the same way, the sanctified heart of that blessed Being is free and empty of
all save God, is averse to and exempt from attachment to every selfish inclination, and is intimately acquainted with the breath of the Divine Spirit. That which He utters proceeds not from Himself but from the ideal Player and from divine revelation. Hence He
is likened to a reed, and that reed is like a rod; that is, it is the succour of the weak and the support of every mortal soul.
It is the rod of the True Shepherd by which He guards His flock and leads it about in the pastures of the Kingdom.'
(Abdu'l-Baha, Some
Answered Questions, 11.1-2, pp. 52-3)
***
'When Bahá'u'lláh departed
from Baghdad, and traveled to Rumelia, the friends remained
behind. The inhabitants of Baghdad
then rose up against those helpless believers, sending them away as captives to
Mosul. Ustad [Ustad Isma'il] was old and feeble, but he
left on foot, with no provisions for his journey, crossed over mountains and
deserts, valleys and hills, and in the end arrived at the Most Great Prison. At one time, Bahá'u'lláh had written down
an ode of Rumi's for him, and had told him to turn his face toward the Báb and
sing the words, set to a melody. And so as he wandered through the long
dark nights, Ustad would sing these lines:
"I am
lost, O Love, possessed and dazed,
Love's
fool am I, in all the earth.
They
call me first among the crazed,
Though
I once came first for wit and worth.
O
Love, who sellest me this wine,
O
Love, for whom I burn and bleed,
Love, for whom I cry and pine --
Thou the Piper, I the reed.
If Thou wishest me to live,
Through me blow Thy holy breath.
The
touch of Jesus Thou wilt give
To
me, who've lain an age in death.
Thou,
both End and Origin,
Thou
without and Thou within --
From
every eye Thou hidest well,
And
yet in every eye dost dwell."
'He was like a bird with
broken wings but he had the song and it kept him going onward to his one true
Love.'
(Abdu'l-Baha, Memorials
of the Faithful, pp. 30-32)
***
Sunday, June 30, 1912 [New York]
'In the morning, after His
obligatory prayer and supplications, the Master invited us into His presence
and served us tea with His own hand. He spoke of the blessings and confirmations
of the Ancient Beauty, the Greatest Name:
“This
help and assistance are from Him and these confirmations are through His bounty
and favor; otherwise, we are nothing but weak servants. We are as reeds and all these melodies are from Him. We are ants
and this dignity of Solomon is from Him. We are servants and this heavenly
dominion is from Him. We must, therefore, offer our constant gratitude to Him
for His favors and must join heart and soul to praise Him for His blessings."'
(Attributed to Abdu’l-Baha, Mahmud's Diary, The Diary of Mirza
Mahmud-i-Zarqani Chronicling 'Abdu'l-Bahá's Journey to America, pp.153-54)
***
"What is needed to achieve
success in the teaching field is a complete dedication on the part of the
individual, consecration to the glorious task of spreading the Faith, and the
living of the Bahá'í life, because that creates the magnet for the Holy Spirit,
and it is the Holy Spirit which quickens the new soul. Thus the individual should
be as a reed, through which the Holy Spirit may flow, to give new life to the
seeking soul.
"One should search out those
who are receptive to the Faith, and then concentrate on these persons in their
teaching."
(From a letter dated 18
December 1953 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer)
AND
(From a letter dated 19
December 1953 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to two individual believers)
[The passage above is found in two different compilations
assembled by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice: “Guidelines
for Teaching” and “The Individual and Teaching - Raising the Divine Call.” It
appears that it was conveyed from the Guardian on two successive days.]
***
"Consecration, dedication and
enthusiastic service is the Keynote to successful teaching. One must become like a reed through which
the Holy Spirit descends to reach the student of the Faith.
"We give the Message, and
explain the Teachings, but it is the Holy Spirit that quickens and confirms."
(From a letter dated 16
February 1955 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer)
***
'Never must they let a day
pass without teaching some soul, trusting to Bahá'u'lláh that the seed will
grow. The friends should seek pure souls, gain their confidence, and then teach
that person carefully until he becomes a Bahá'í, and then nurture him until he
becomes a firm and active supporter of the Faith.
'Everyone must remember that
it is the "Holy Spirit that quickens" and therefore the teacher must become like a reed
through which the Holy Spirit may reach the seeking soul.
'The beloved Guardian has
stressed over and over again, that to effectively teach the Faith, the
individual must study deeply, the Divine Word, imbibe Its life-giving waters,
and feast upon Its glorious teachings. He should then meditate on the import of
the Word, and finding its spiritual depths, pray for guidance and assistance.
But most important, after prayer is action. After one has prayed and meditated,
he must arise, relying fully on the guidance and confirmation of Bahá'u'lláh,
to teach His Faith. Perseverance in action is essential, just as wisdom and
audacity are necessary for effective teaching. The individual must sacrifice
all things to this great goal, and then the victories will be won.'
(From a letter dated 30 May
1956 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to the Hands of the Cause in the
United States)
***
"He hopes you will be guided
and confirmed in your work, so many souls may find eternal life, through your
selfless services. It is important that you make contact with pure hearted
individuals, gain their confidence, they gain confidence in you, and then
gradually teach them. It is better to concentrate on a few, rather than attempt
to teach too many at a time. Consecration, devotion, dedication, humility are
essential, that the Holy Spirit may use
you as a reed for the diffusion of Its creative rays."
(From a letter dated 15 July
1956 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer)
***
"One should remember it is not
the individual who confirms another, but the Holy Spirit which confirms. Thus the individual must become as a reed, through which the spirit may
descend, and quicken souls. Thus the best way to develop capacity in
teaching the Faith, is to teach. As one teaches, he gains more knowledge himself,
he relies more on the guidance of the spirit, and expands his own character.
This is why Bahá'u'lláh made it incumbent on all to teach the Faith."
(From a letter written on
behalf of the Guardian to an individual believer, November 24, 1956)
