Wanderings

O Lord! Thou art the Remover of every anguish and the Dispeller of every affliction. Thou art He Who banisheth every sorrow and setteth free every slave, the Redeemer of every soul. O Lord! Grant deliverance through Thy mercy, and reckon me among such servants of Thine as have gained salvation.

~ The Báb, Baha’i Prayer

I first ran across this prayer a few years ago when I first declared as a Baha’i.  However, it was not until a few years later that a friend gave me the Elika Mahony CD, Fire & Gold, in which she sings these words so beautifully that it really had an impact on me.

Of course this is praise for the way in which God’s love and presence can mitigate the difficulties and trials in our lives, but there is more.  It has become a symbol to me of the diversity of the Baha’i Faith and its ability to cross international borders.  Although people in different parts of the world face different afflictions, they can all find redemption and salvation in the same God and this is one of the unifying principles of the Faith.

Mahony’s parents are from Iran, though she was born in the United States, raised in Kenya and now lives in China.  I was in India, on my way to Bangladesh and then Honduras, visiting a friend I knew from NYC who was born in Panama and had also lived in Argentina, who introduced me to her new friend who was India, but had lived in China.  All of us had led different lives, in different places, and yet we all knew this same prayer.

To add to the international flavor, a second woman enters into the song for the following words from Baha’u’llah:

¡OH HIJO DE LA LUZ!
Olvídate de todo menos de mí y entra en comunión con mi espíritu. Esto pertenece a la esencia de mi mandamiento, por tanto vuélvete a él.

~ Baha’u'llah, Palabras Ocultas del Árabe no. 16

in English:

O SON OF LIGHT!
Forget all save Me and commune with My spirit. This is of the essence of My command, therefore turn unto it.

~ Baha’u'llah, The Arabic Hidden Words #16

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