Wanderings

A topic I have written about before, I have been thinking a lot lately about language and how it can be used for so many different things.  Of course the most visible and obvious use is for communication, but it can be so much more.  Language is not just for the transmission of our basic thoughts and and intentions to another, we also use it to transmit knowledge and to discriminate.  Although language could be used as a manner of creating relationships between people by sharing our thoughts, it all too often becomes the criteria by which people are excluded.  I have long been fascinated by the ways in which different languages have the ability to express different thoughts due to their unique vocabularies, grammatical structures, and common usages.  Unfortunately, introducing a new language into a culture can be the difference that causes on to be excluded, rather than as a benefit to the potential breadth of thought and reasoning that could occur.

TeacherJay Reflections discrimination, language, unity

O members of parliaments throughout the world!  Select ye a single language for the use of all on earth, and adopt ye likewise a common script.

~ Baha’u'llah, The Kitab-i-Aqdas, paragraph 189

One of the tenets of the Baha’i Faith is the establishment of what we refer to as a “universal auxiliary language” and in a post of that same title, I mentioned the propensity for Baha’is to be polyglots.  There is no direction as to which language should be adopted, but it is made clear that it should be a second language and used in business and education.  In this way, it does not have to take away from a person’s native language.

As a student of linguistics and how language affects a person’s culture and thoughts, I would never want to see the removal of languages from our society as they do so much to enhance diversity, but can unfortunately also lead to divisions amongst us as well.  Several people have made comments on previous posts regarding the use of Esperanto.  What I find to be the most promising aspect of this language came from one of their websites, and it is the idea that because nobody is a native speaker of Esperanto, everybody will be at the same disadvantage.  While traveling in India I noticed some elements of this.  English was the common language for many Indians who spoke different dialects of other languages.

While I do see the merits of having a second language that was common to all, I have reservations as well.  It seems like such an overwhelming task.  Some people will resist.  Those that begrudgingly accept a second language may only speak it minimally rendering its use to only the most basic functions.  If people do not make a whole-hearted attempt at it, they will become frustrated, and feel that it is not working.  However, I do wish the world would try.  In my experiences, and travels, the first step to forging a true relationship and understanding something about each other was to… understand each other.

TeacherJay Kitab-i-Aqdas globalism, language, unity, world citizen

O God, guide me, protect me, make of me a shining lamp and a brilliant star. Thou art the Mighty and the Powerful.

~ ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Baha’i Prayer

This prayer is frequently the first one learned by many children of Baha’i parents.  It is probably the shortest of all of them, and, like a lot of Baha’i writings, its message at first appears to be direct, but upon deeper reflection we can see something more in it.  I ahv the opportunity to teach this prayer not only in English, but also in Spanish.  I have included it below as a side-by-side example of how the beautiful language of the Baha’i writings in English translates to other languages as well.

¡Oh Dios! Guíame, protégeme, ilumina la lámpara de mi corazón y haz de mí una estrella brillante.  Tú eres el Fuerte y el Poderoso.

TeacherJay Abdu'l-Baha, Prayers children, guidance, language, prayer, reflection

The Bahá’í Faith recognizes the unity of God and of His Prophets, upholds the principle of an unfettered search after truth, condemns all forms of superstition and prejudice, teaches that the fundamental purpose of religion is to promote concord and harmony, that it must go hand-in-hand with science, and that it constitutes the sole and ultimate basis of a peaceful, an ordered and progressive society. It inculcates the principle of equal opportunity, rights and privileges for both sexes, advocates compulsory education, abolishes extremes of poverty and wealth, exalts work performed in the spirit of service to the rank of worship, recommends the adoption of an auxiliary international language, and provides the necessary agencies for the establishment and safeguarding of a permanent and universal peace.

~ Shoghi Effendi, The Bahá’í Faith – The World Religion: A Summary of Its Aims, Teachings and History

I really appreciate this single paragraph that summarizes the beliefs of the Baha’is.  I ran across it in a collection of excerpts of the writings titled “Teachings for the New World Order.”  That term has been used several times during the 20th century and beginning of the 21st.  It was normally following wars, i.e. WWI, WWII and the Cold War, and used to describe the hopes of what would come—more specifically that after all of the death and destruction preceding those times, that people would change, that the world would have to change.

While it seems in those cases the world, though it may never be the same, did revert back to its previous pettiness—prejudice and poverty still persist.  However, as Baha’is we pray for the day when people will put these feelings aside and learn how we can live together and allow religion to be the cohesive force that binds us, not the wedge that divides us.

TeacherJay Shoghi Effendi diversity, independent investigation of truth, international, language, New World Order, poverty, prejudice, progress, science, unity, war, wealth, world peace

I have heard the comment many times that Baha’is seem to be bilingual.  After reflecting for a bit, I came to realize that most of the Baha’is I know have, at minimum, a basic working knowledge of at least one other language than their native tongue.  One of the basic beliefs and missions of the Baha’is is to establish a Universal Auxiliary Language that can be used all over the world for education and business.

“In order to facilitate complete understanding between all people, a universal auxiliary language will be adopted and in the schools of the future two languages will be taught — the mother tongue and this international auxiliary tongue.” (quoting Baha’u’llah)

~ Abdu’l-Baha, Divine Philosophy, p. 84

This would mean that all people of the could communicate with each other.  Baha’i doctrine does not mandate which language should be used for this purpose, though there is praise for Esperanto as it attempts to mix vocabulary and grammatical structures from several different languages.  In modern times, it would appear that English is becoming the de facto standard as an international language.

The concept of learning to speak in multiple languages is commonplace in many parts of the world—except the United States.  As an educator I am fascinated not just with how people learn different languages, but how multilingualism can help us to understand each other not just on the personal, but on the metaphysical one as well.

TeacherJay Divine Philosophy, Reflections education, globalism, language

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

TeacherJay Báb, The, Hidden Words, The, Prayers diversity, international, language, music, salvation, travel, unity