Writing the Sacred Journey

"Writing the Sacred Journey: the Art and Practice of Spiritual Memoir", by Elizabeth J. Andrew, was an anniversary gift from our daughter, Kari.

"Gate of the Heart: Understanding the Writings of the Bab", by Nader Saiedi, I bought at the 50th Green Lake Baha'i Conference the week before our anniversary.

Both are appropriate for the moment. I haven't posted much on Blogger about my religious beliefs. Dave's Travel Blog is in fact memoir writing. I've done more on the Baha'i Faith, and more memoir writing, in my WordPress blog. See the sidebar to this blog for links.

"Writing the Sacred Journey" brings me back to some of the basics of journal writing I learned more than twenty years ago. Write as if no one would ever read it. Don't think about the bias of the audience or critics. Don't worry about grammar; go back and edit later if you feel like it. One thing I haven't practiced is the self-discipline of daily writing. Blogs help in that regard, but now I have five blogs, and it can be months between updates. I'd rather write about the weather.

Those of you who do follow this blog will notice that I changed to a simpler template today. That's to get your attention, as well as to comfort your eyes. I noticed right away that this template does not offer an underscore to highlight the title of a book.

"Gate of the Heart" is tough reading. I'll buy anything Nader Saiedi writes on the Baha'i Faith. I hope to do several posts as I make my way through the book. "Logos and Civilization" is another of his works, on the mystical writings of Baha'u'llah.

The Writings of the Bab, and the Writings of Baha'u'llah, are the Word of God. Not only is that my statement of belief, but certainty comes from reading the Writings. In fact, that's all you've got to go on to prove the existence of God, or that the written Word is divine revelation. It is fundamentally important that you prepare to read the Writings by placing your trust in God, as you do with any prayer.

In brief, the "Bab" is a title that means "the Gate". He describes His Eternal Being with many such titles. Perhaps the most important concept to grasp from Saiedi's book is the title "Primal Point". Literally, the primal point is the first mark of a quill pen as it meets the paper. In the Primal Point all Creation begins with a mere indication of the Will of God. All of Creation, all created beings, and everything that we can know about God is in that Primal Point. Proceeding from the Primal Point is the Creative Word of God, the Logos. Read the first chapter of the Gospel According to John.

One of the most audacious things the Bab did was to stop midway between Mecca and Medina, and issue a Revelation that in that spot He is the Gate between the House of Divinity and the Shrine of the Prophet (or servitude). His mission on that pilgrimage was to announce to the secular and religious leaders of Islam that He is the Promised One.

Such statements have everything to do with the ongoing persecution of Baha'is in Iran. The Bab was shot by a firing squad for these challenges to fundamentalist leaders of Islam.