Mirza āAli-Muhammad surnamed VarqĆ” became one of the Apostles of BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h. He has related the following two incidents that took place during his first pilgrimage in around 1878-9. The first time he gazed upon the face of His Lord VarqĆ” was surprised, because he thought that he had previously seen Him somewhere, but he could not remember the occasion or the place. He was puzzled by this until one day after several times coming into His presence, BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h said to him, 'VarqĆ”! Burn away the idols of vain imaginings!' On hearing these words, VarqĆ” immediately recalled a dream he had had when he was a child. He was in a garden playing with some dolls when 'God' arrived, took the dolls from him, and burned them in the fire. When he told this dream to his parents they pointed out to him that no one can see God. However, he had completely forgotten this dream until that day when the words of BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h exhorting him to burn the idols aroused his memory, and he knew that he had seen BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h in his dream as a child. The other incident took place during one of the occasions when Varqa was in the presence of BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h. On that occasion, a thought entered his mind as he gazed in adoration upon the countenance of BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h. He said to himself, 'I know that BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h is the supreme Manifestation of God, but I wish He would give me a sign to this effect.' At that same instant, the following verse from the Qur'Ć”n flashed into Varqa's mind: āThou seest the earth barren and lifeless, but when We pour down rain on it, it is stirred to life, it swells, and it puts forth every kind of luxuriant growth in pairs.ā (Surah 22, verse 1)At that very moment, VarqĆ” wished in his heart that BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h might repeat this verse to fulfill the sign he was looking for. After some time, in the course of His utterances, BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h recited that same verse from the Qur'Ć”n. VarqĆ”'s wish was fulfilled, but he said to himself, 'Could this have been a mere coincidence?' As soon as this thought occurred to VarqĆ”, BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h turned and said to him abruptly, 'Was this not sufficient proof for you?' VarqĆ” was dumbfounded. He was shaken but assured in his heart of the truth of these words of BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h: āO heedless ones! Think not the secrets of hearts are hidden, nay, know ye of a certainty that in clear characters they are engraved and are openly manifest in the holy Presence.ā (Persian Hidden Words)We know that it is not right for a man to test God. BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h seldom responded positively to those who demanded miracles from Him. But He often revealed a measure of His glory and power to those who had recognized Him in order to strengthen their Faith. VarqĆ” never doubted the station of BahĆ”'u'llĆ”h. He became a flame of fire, a tower of strength, a mine of knowledge and virtues. He served the Faith with heroism and wisdom.
The very opportunity of seeing the empowerment of junior youth being addressed brings these words of wisdom from Abdu’l-Baha to my mind shared in one of his Writings in the early 1860s called Secret of Divine Civilization, about the much neglected and misunderstood concept of “rightousness” and integrated education:
Is there any deed in the world that would be nobler than service to the common good? Is there any greater blessing conceivable for a man, than that he should become the cause of the education, the development, the prosperity and honor of his fellow-creatures? No, by the Lord God! The highest righteousness of all is for blessed souls to take hold of the hands of the helpless and deliver them out of their ignorance and abasement and poverty, and with pure motives, and only for the sake of God, to arise and energetically devote themselves to the service of the masses, forgetting their own worldly advantage and working only to serve the general good.
Keyvan Geula is a licensed Marriage, Family, and Child Therapist; LMFT. She received her Master of Science in Marriage, family, and Child Therapy from the University of La Verne, in La Verne, California. She employs the latest research in behavioral sciences, neuroscience, and the Bahaāi principle of the oneness of all humanity to serve the well-being of her clients.
She offers her services as a clinician, lecturer, trainer, and supervisor to a global set of clients in person and online. In her clinical work, she incorporates the wisdom of the Bahaāi Writings, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy research, Mindfulness meditation, and consultation skills, as well as knowledge of the spiritual self.
She is an adjunct professor of Behavioral Sciences at Citrus Community College, faculty of continued education at Claremont Graduate University. She teaches psychology online to students at Bahaāi Institute of Higher Education.
She is the Founder and Executive Director of Center for Global Integrated Education (CGIE), a non-profit Bahaāi-inspired educational organization, which explores oneness of all humanity, and teaches the integrated mind-body-spirit approach in education.
She has served for two years as the producer and host of a two-hour weekly live radio show for the Persian community in Sothern, California focusing on the role of the psychology of spirituality in personal and social transformation, creativity, emotional and social intelligence, and a greater sense of harmony in a global society. She also has been the host and producer of TV series called Transforming Human Consciousness for eight years. She regularly writes and blogs on www.cgie.org/blog on topics related to integrated education, the oneness of humanity, the powers of the human spirit in the betterment of global society, elimination of all prejudice, equality of women and men, and education reform. Some of her shows are posted on her; Keyvan Geula YouTube Channel.
Mrs. Geula has served in several Bahaāi institutions since her youth in Iran and USA.
