There are moments in art when a work does more than tell a story. It invites reflection. It opens space for dialogue. At times, it can even help us see the world,... Read more »
Know then that the Lord God possesseth invisible realms which the human intellect can never hope to fathom nor the mind of man conceive. When once thou hast cleansed the channel of... Read more »
(This conversation took place on an American Airlines flight on Memorial Day.) I get on the plane and find my aisle seat. A GI in digital desert combat fatigues sits at the... Read more »
Religions begin when a prophet first announces a new revelation, just as Christ did to John the Baptist or the Buddha did to his first two disciples, Trapusa and Bahalika. That’s how... Read more »
We all have moments of joy in life – but how would you like to live in a lasting state of joy, rather than just experiencing those quickly passing moments of transitory... Read more »
I was struck with a severe mental illness—rapid cycling bipolar disorder, Type I—at the age of 51. Most people who get bipolar—which used to be called manic depression—have their first… The post... Read more »
Modern society puts an inordinate amount of pressure on mothers, expecting them to ensure that their children are “successful” — that they have every advantage, that they have money, status,… The post... Read more »
O SON OF MAN! Divest not thyself of My beauteous robe, and forfeit not thy portion from My wondrous fountain, lest thou shouldst thirst for evermore. O SON OF BEING!… The post... Read more »
Do you ever think “I really need more spirituality in my life?” You’re not alone—just about everyone feels that way, at some point in their development. But how, and where,… The post... Read more »
Some BahaiTeachings.org readers, after reading my recent essay called Dreams and Visions of the Soul, wondered about human dreams and how they compare to animal dreams. They left these comments… The post... Read more »
…in the search for truth man must weigh religious questions in the balance of science and reason. God has given us rational minds for this purpose, to penetrate all things,… The post... Read more »
Have you ever done something you deeply regretted? We all have. Afterwards you probably asked yourself: how can I avoid doing that again? We can scarcely get through life without… The post... Read more »
Today, more and more people recognize that we are spiritual beings, that we can only obtain the ultimate happiness if we learn how to live an inner life. How can… The post... Read more »
We’ve all been through this: you go somewhere, and even though you’ve never been there before, you know you’ve been there before. Or you have a new experience, meet a… The post... Read more »
The Baha’i teachings advise everyone to seek competent physicians when they’re ill — yet another reflection of the primary Baha’i principle of the agreement of science and religion. Seeking the… The post... Read more »
Every religion asks us an important question: what’s our spiritual responsibility? In other words, does each person have a personal duty to God? In our modern, individualistic, materialistic, largely ego-centered… The post... Read more »
We can only understand the afterlife by analogy – because we can’t describe the soul in absolute terms like the physical phenomena of this world, or explain it in conditional… The post... Read more »
Why are we here? What’s our purpose? What is it that we’re supposed to do in this life? Have you ever asked yourself these perplexing questions? You’re not alone –… The post... Read more »
Spring, that joy-drenched season when the heart feels that all things are once again imaginable, renews our inner and outer worlds. Everything grows, blooms and begins to bear fruit. Rain… The post... Read more »
Who remembers “the Thumperian Principle,” also known as “Thumper’s Rule?” If you ever saw the Disney film Bambi, you already know the answer. In the movie, Thumper the young rabbit… The post... Read more »
We can seek guidance from prayer and meditation, but even when we get inspiration, we can’t be guided if we don’t take action. Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Baha’i… The post... Read more »
Our words can create a mini-reality for us. How do our lives change if we wake up in the morning and say, “Today is going to be so wonderful” versus… The post... Read more »
Lately I’ve tried to think more intentionally and carefully about how I expend my energy—almost like conducting an energy inventory of sorts. This reflection has made me pay more attention… The post... Read more »
Baha’i consultation – an essential tool for reaching an agreement or consensus and deciding a course of action – asks every participant to master a set of communication skills based… The post... Read more »
You’ve definitely heard the term “politically correct” a lot lately—but what do you think it means? To get a clear, unbiased definition, let’s look at the roots of the phrase…. The post... Read more »
In this installment of our extensive series of BahaiTeachings.org articles on Indigenous messengers of God, Chris Buck and Kevin Locke consult together on why those messengers matter to the modern… The post... Read more »
In his book Some Answered Questions, Abdu’l-Baha offers a stunning explanation of the story of Adam and Eve in Genesis – one that makes the myth meaningful and relevant at… The post... Read more »
To say that Buddhism is atheistic may be an overstatement, a generalization, and a misunderstanding of the Buddha’s purpose, so let’s look at that subject in a different way. RELATED:… The post... Read more »
When I’m fearful, when I’m not so sure of things, my simple daily mantra comes from a Baha’i prayer that says; “Be calm, be strong, be grateful.” That brief, reassuring… The post... Read more »
As an actor and a writer, I present workshops related to art and spirituality. Invariably, at least one participant admits to suppressing their artistic urges to give more time to… The post... Read more »
Looking out over the Great Plains of North America from an airplane, I’m always struck by the way a rigid grid pattern has been superimposed on the vast prairie biome…. The post... Read more »
If a single sentence can summarize an entire Faith, these thirteen words from the Baha’i teachings do it quite nicely: The religion of God is one religion, but it must… The post... Read more »
The arts, according to the Universal House of Justice, the democratically-elected leadership body of the Baha’i Faith, are an “integral … part of the development of a community.” What does… The post... Read more »
Have you ever tried to fix something, and in the process ended up destroying it even more? I think the irritation we feel at that moment can be likened to… The post... Read more »
You’ve probably heard of the Protestant work ethic from the renowned sociologist Max Weber’s classic treatise, “The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism,” which links Puritanism to modern capitalism. … The post... Read more »
My neo-atheist acquaintance, “Maynard”, asked believers in general a series of questions about God. Here’s question #3: Is God a sentient being like us, with thoughts and feelings? The scriptural… The post... Read more »
March is Women’s History month — which makes it a perfect time to become more familiar with some of the trailblazing American Baha’i women who broke down barriers wherever they… The post... Read more »
The nature of Christ’s return — “in”, “on”, and “with” the clouds of heaven – has become so widely known that even non-Christians recognize the prophecies about how Christ will… The post... Read more »
You’ve probably heard that “There are many paths to the one true God.” Lots of people have said it, but it may have originally come from the ancient Hindu Rig… The post... Read more »
If you keep up with the news today, you undoubtedly know of the extraordinary perils of our time, from wars and rumors of wars to the deepening divisions and decline… The post... Read more »
“All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well, for there is a force of love moving through the universe that holds us… The post... Read more »
For this material fast is an outer token of the spiritual fast; it is a symbol of self-restraint, the withholding of oneself from all appetites of the self, taking on… The post... Read more »
The Baha’i teachings ask humankind to end its incessant wars—but that core Baha’i principle is no mere hope. In fact, the Baha’i teachings go far beyond any other religion in… The post... Read more »
The central purpose and principle of the Baha’i Faith – the promulgation of universal peace – is not just a Baha’i goal. As Abdu’l-Baha said in the U.S. in 1912,… The post... Read more »
As I’ve pondered more deeply about the question of creating a lifelong habit of prayer, I’ve thought about what encourages the development of a habit. Things that tend to become… The post... Read more »
When you gaze up into the starry sky at night, does its vastness humble you? Two trillion galaxies—a recent scientific guestimate—should humble any one of us. If, then, the physical… The post... Read more »
We all need food. An empty stomach sends an urgent message: find nutrition! Eat or starve! So, does a hungry soul send us the same message? Do our souls need… The post... Read more »
Over the last year, I felt as if I had reached an impasse in my life. I likened my life to a sturdy tree, one built on the roots of… The post... Read more »
The Baha’i teachings suggest meditation as one way we can become acquainted with God and our spiritual nature – and recommend developing a daily meditative practice. As we grow closer… The post... Read more »
Like the image we infer from the Qur’an, the concept of God in the Baha’i Faith is likewise a Being beyond exact or complete comprehension, an essentially unknowable Creator of… The post... Read more »