Spiritual Springtime

Of all Bahá’í holy days Naw-Rúz on the 21st of March is the one I love the most. The historical roots of Naw-Rúz (or ‘New Day’ in Persian) are in the ancient Iranian New Year festival, which apart from being celebrated in Iran itself is also marked within the broader sphere of Persian cultural influence. This includes parts of the Middle East, West Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, North Western China and the Caucasus. As well as being sacred to Baha’is Naw-Rúz is also a holy day for Alawites, Alevis, Ismaili Muslims and Zoroastrians. I also note with interest that the Vernal Equinox is also marked by Pagans- for example as the ‘High Feast of Ostara’ sacred to the Norse Pantheon. Occurring as it does on the Vernal Equinox I associate the festival of Naw-Rúz with both spiritual and physical renewal. Indeed `Abdu’l-Bahá describes the revelation of God as the ‘Sun of Reality’ bringing life to a spiritually dead world.

Furthermore, just as the solar cycle has its four seasons, the cycle of the Sun of Reality has its distinct and successive periods. Each brings its vernal season or springtime. When the Sun of Reality returns to quicken the world of mankind a divine bounty descends from the heaven of generosity. The realm of thoughts and ideals is set in motion and blessed with new life. Minds are developed, hopes brighten, aspirations become spiritual, the virtues of the human world appear with freshened power of growth and the image and likeness of God become visible in man. It is the springtime of the inner world. After the spring, summer comes with its fullness and fruitage spiritual; autumn follows with its withering winds which chill the soul; the Sun seems to be going away until at last the mantle of winter overspreads and only faint traces of the effulgence of that divine Sun remain. Just as the surface of the material world becomes dark and dreary, the soil dormant, the trees naked and bare and no beauty or freshness remain to cheer the darkness and desolation, so the winter of the spiritual cycle witnesses the death and disappearance of divine growth and extinction of the light and love of God. But again the cycle begins and a new springtime appears. In it the former springtime has returned, the world is resuscitated, illumined and attains spirituality; religion is renewed and reorganized, hearts are turned to God, the summons of God is heard and life is again bestowed upon man. For a long time the religious world had been weakened and materialism had advanced; the spiritual forces of life were waning, moralities were becoming degraded, composure and peace had vanished from souls and satanic qualities were dominating hearts; strife and hatred overshadowed humanity, bloodshed and violence prevailed. God was neglected; the Sun of Reality seemed to have gone completely; deprivation of the bounties of heaven was a fact; and so the season of winter fell upon mankind. But in the generosity of God a new springtime dawned, the lights of God shone forth, the effulgent Sun of Reality returned and became manifest, the realm of thoughts and kingdom of hearts became exhilarated, a new spirit of life breathed into the body of the world and continuous advancement became apparent.

‘On Neo-Mithraism…’

Double-faced Mithraic relief. Rome, second to third century CE. Louvre Museum.

Having an interest in such matters I was intrigued to come across the phenomenon of Neo-Mithraism. Although popularly considered to be an ancient Iranian mystery religion which was exported to the Roman Empire there is debate in scholarly circles as to whether Mithraism started in Iran at all. For example Roger Beck says in the Encyclopædia Iranica that 

 For most of the twentieth century the major problem addressed by scholarship on both Roman Mithraism and the Iranian god Mithra was the question of continuity. Did Mithra-worship migrate from Iran to the Roman Empire in some institutional form or was Mithraism invented in the West (with a few Iranian trappings) as a new institution altogether?

Whatever it’s ultimate origins there seems be a revival of interest in Mithraism with a number of new books and journals being published recently. This includes one written by Anglo-Iranian author Payam Nabarz called ‘The Mysteries Of Mithras’. I wish the revival of Mithras good luck- though personally I favour a faith that originated in Iran more recently…

‘Midsummer And The Generosity Of God’

Summer Solstice celebrations are being held in the United Kingdom. Sometimes known as Midsummer, Litha, or St. John’s Day it is the longest day of the year and the beginning of summer. As I understand it for some contemporary pagans the Summer Solstice is seen as the day the ‘Goddess’ manifests as ‘Mother Earth’ and the ‘God’ as the ‘Sun King’. A union from which will come forth the fruit of the future harvest.

Of course I am a believer in Divine Unity but I still find this a moving metaphor for the generosity of God, one of the ‘divine attributes’. In this sense the fruitfulness of the earth itself can be seen as a metaphor for divine generosity. This reminds me of the words of Bahá’u'lláh-

‘Whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth is a direct evidence of the revelation within it of the attributes and names of God, inasmuch as within every atom are enshrined the signs that bear eloquent testimony to the revelation of that Most Great Light..’

Gleanings From the Writings of Bahá’u'lláh: US Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1990