It is often difficult to see where Baha’u’llah moves on to another theme, because they often flow seamlessly from one to the next. We just read about the fear of God being “the fountain-head of all goodly deeds and virtues.” And now He talks about some of these virtues. Seamless.
Even more, though, He has just said that this fear is also “the commander of the hosts of justice”, and the standard that is flying above. He also mentions the Crimson Ark, so maybe this army is a naval force. Sailing on the Ocean of His Writings? Never mind. Let’s move on before we get lost in the analogy.
These next few paragraphs begin with trustworthiness and piety, goodly deeds and a praiseworthy character. Baha'u'llah tells the people to adorn themselves with these qualities, while once again warning them against dissension and conflict.
Then comes the fear of God, once again. Here He describes it as the "chief commander" of His army, while a praiseworthy character and goodly deeds are its hosts, similar to what we just saw. And then, in the next paragraph, He returns to trustworthiness again. That's a number of paragraphs in a row touching on these same themes. It certainly feels as if He wants us to notice them.
At first I thought this little section was simply about character development. And it is, at least in part. But as I kept reading, I began to wonder if there was something else going on. Baha'u'llah doesn't seem interested in these qualities merely because they make us better people. He immediately begins showing us what they are for. He says that all He has done is for the purpose of summoning people to that which will exalt them and draw them nearer to God. Then He turns towards the divines and the Shah and says that they, too, should cleave to whatever will exalt the nation. He speaks of enlightening the people, improving their condition and helping them acquire useful knowledge. These qualities are not there just for our own amusement. They are supposed to be doing something.
And then He tells a little story that, at first, seemed like a bit of a change of subject. Kamal Pasha once visited Baha'u'llah and mentioned that he had studied several languages. Now, normally I would think that was rather impressive. I mean, I’m struggling to learn French right now. I know what’s involved. Learning another language takes work. Learning several would seem like quite an accomplishment. But Baha'u'llah's response is somewhat different. He tells him, essentially, that he has wasted his life. Gulp.
But I don't think the point is that learning languages is bad, or even that Kamal Pasha shouldn't have done it. Instead, Baha'u'llah takes his gift and points it towards something larger. Rather than spending years learning all these different languages, why not help establish a single language that everyone can learn? Then other people won't have to spend their lives doing what Kamal Pasha has done. Suddenly the question isn't whether learning languages is good or bad. The question is what all that effort was for.
And Baha'u'llah doesn't stop with Kamal Pasha. He hopes Persia will take the lead in establishing such a language, and then turns again towards the Shah, asking him to exert himself so that the people will experience justice. What began with trustworthiness, piety and good character in an individual has expanded into the actions of the divines and the Shah, the welfare of a nation, and finally something that might benefit the entire world.
This made me go back and look at those opening qualities again. What is our character for? What is our learning for? What is our influence for? What is political power for? Even, perhaps, what is our time for? Baha'u'llah doesn't seem particularly interested in our simply possessing qualities or capacities. He keeps pointing towards what they produce. Trustworthiness contributes to the prosperity of the world. Learning can be used to reduce the burden on others. The divines can use their influence to help exalt the nation. The Shah can use his power to establish justice.
And then, towards the end of this section, "Happy are they who act". Not merely those who know, or those who possess admirable qualities, but those who act. Character, knowledge and capacity seem to find their purpose in what we actually do with them.
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