A Kindly Tongue

Do you realize that in all the years I've been writing this blog I've never looked at one of my favourite quotes from the Writings? On the one hand, I'm sure you do, for you are so attentive, dear Reader, but on the other hand, of course not. How would you know it's one of my favourites if I've never told you?

By the way, this is a point that I've also never addressed: We're not psychic. Too often have I come across people who seem to think that we are. They probably figure that if Robin was psychic, we should be, too. What? Oh, yeah. Robin was Batman's psychic. (Sorry, couldn't resist.)

But seriously, we too often expect others to just somehow know what we're thinking and that's not fair. I was once asked by an Assembly to talk to someone that had been asked to give a presentation at Naw Ruz, to ensure that his topic was going to be appropriate. I asked him what he was going to talk about and he said, "I'm going to tell them what Naw Ruz is." Badda boom, that was it. "Really", I asked? "Naw Ruz is the beginning of our calendar? That's all?"

He then got all huffy and said, "Well, no, I'll talk about more than just that, of course." You see, he somehow expected that I was going to just know what he was going to say. I pointed out to him that one of my many failings was not being able to read minds, and asked him if he could please give me some clue about what he would talk about so that I could let the Assembly know.

Yeah, we're not psychic. Sorry about that.

Anyways, one of my favourite quotes. You've probably guessed by now, presuming you've looked at the title of this article.

But I have to admit, I did not notice this on my own. I actually was bored before starting this post and asked google to give me a quote from the Writings that I hadn't addressed yet. And it gave me this one. I tell you, google is good. Google. Good. God. They all begin with "go", which is what I should with this post. So, here we go.

A kindly tongue is the lodestone of the hearts of men. It is the bread of the spirit, it clotheth the words with meaning, it is the fountain of the light of wisdom.

I just love that quote. I really do. I mean, it has a word like "lodestone" in it. How awesome is that?

But let's take a look at it a little bit at a time, with the standard caveat that all of this is just my own opinion, nothing official. Take it or leave it, it's up to you. That said, onward ho!

It begins, like most things in the Writings, with the heart. This time, though, it is us addressing the heart of another. But to be effective, we have to use a kindly tongue. It has to be warm, gentle. It should be generous, sympathetic, easygoing, patient, helpful, and considerate. Kindly implies so many things, but they are all things that just make you smile and feel all warm and fuzzy inside. (Hmm. I may need to re-think that phrase. I mean, if I was fuzzy on the inside, a visit to the doctor might be in order.)

But aside from the obvious, why would we need our tongue, the words we use and the way we say them, to be kindly for all the rest to follow? (Great question, glad I asked.)

Well, our use of language is like a magnet, for that's what a lodestone is. "Lode" is literally an olde English word for "way" or "guide". A lodestone is a stone that shows the way, just like we can use our language to "show the way" when we share the teachings.

But what if we're abrupt in our speech? Or not patient with the time it takes another to begin to see what it is we're talking about? Do you think they'll be attracted to what we have to say? Probably not. They'll likely stop listening.

And to take it a step further, the Word of God may be the "Bread of Life", but if they are not listening to it, then it can never feed them.

If the person is not listening to what we are sharing, then the words that we are saying literally become devoid of meaning by the time they reach their ears.

To give an extreme example, we may have the most wonderful and powerful and inspiring quote from Baha'u'llah written down on a piece of paper. But if we yell at someone and tell them that they're going to be condemned for all eternity if they don't read it and accept it, how do you expect them to react? Do you think they'll jump up and down with excitement, begging us to share it with them? I wouldn't. If someone approached me like that, I'd think they're nuts and just walk away. Whatever was written down on that paper would, to me, be meaningless, for I would never get any meaning out of it, for the meaning is only in the sharing. Without that, they are nothing more than some splotches of ink.

But now suppose that someone came up to me with that exact same piece of paper, wrapped up as a scroll, with a beautiful ribbon tied around it. Suppose they saw that I was struggling with something and offered to help me with it. Suppose they talked to me as a dear friend, asked me about my day, how I was feeling, what they could do to ease my burdens and concerns, and worked alongside me on those projects I felt were important. Suppose they invited me into their confidence, too, and shared with me their burdens and concerns, asked for my help, trusted me with their heart. Suppose they said they found great comfort in the words on that scroll, as well as inspiration and joy. Now how do you think I would respond?

Those words may be from that divine Ocean, they may contain the Water of Life, they may be from the "fountain of the light of wisdom", but in the former case, I would never know. I would most likely toss them away, given the person who passed them on to me. But in the latter case, I would treasure them right from the beginning, given that they were now a reminder of that dear soul who entrusted me with their care.

If the tongue is not kindly, if the way we share the words is not conducive to the opening of the heart of the recipient, it does not matter what we say, for it will never get past that great barrier that divides us all. That can only be done with love.

 

97 more to go to hit my goal of 100 this year. Any thoughts on other quotes to explore?