Ruhi Institute

 

TO THE COLLABORATORS The Ruhi Institute uses the term "collaborator" to refer to all who study, teach, or apply its courses, wherever they may reside. These participants are indeed collaborators, because all share the institute's purpose: to use the courses as means of serving the Cause and promoting the well-being of humanity. In every study group there is always a more experienced person who acts as a tutor. The other members of the group constitute the "students" who seek the tutor's help with their studies. However, it is clearly understood by all participants that they are engaged in a reciprocal process, one in which everyone learns. The responsibility of learning rests with each participant. It is the student who undertakes the active work of learning. The tutor facilitates this process, and also gains new insights into the material. The relationship is not that of a learned one with a group of ignorant people. "Understanding the Bahá’í Writings", "Prayer", and "Life and Death" are often the first units that a group of collaborators chooses for its studies. We hope the tutor will carefully study this introduction and discuss with the other collaborators the ideas presented here. Those who are studying these units for the first time should be aware that they will have to analyze the same ideas later, when they themselves act as tutors of this book for other groups of beginners. In studying the courses of the Ruhi Institute, participants are expected to achieve three levels of comprehension. The first is a basic understanding of the meaning of words and sentences of passages from the Writings, which constitute the core of these courses. Thus, for example, after reading the quotation, "The betterment of the world can be accomplished through pure and goodly deeds, through commendable and seemly conduct", the student is asked, "How can the betterment of the world be accomplished?" At first glance, this type of question may appear too simple. But the following two observations from actual experience point to some of the reasons for the adoption of a simple approach to this first level of understanding. Often, the tutor will divide the study group into pairs; one person in each pair is asked to read the quotation aloud, and the other is asked to formulate a question, the answer of which would be the quotation. This task of constructing a question from a sentence does not turn out to be as simple as it appears. The majority of participants need much practice in order to acquire this apparently simple skill. The second observation has to do with the participants who insist on giving their own opinions and strongly resist giving a simple repetition of the quotation as the answer to a question. Clearly, there is nothing wrong in having and expressing one's own ideas; but an understanding of the Writings must begin by focusing the mind on what is being read before allowing one's imagination to roam and personal opinions to flow freely. It is quite likely that by first developing in the believers, early in their study of the Faith, a capacity to focus attention on the immediate and explicit meaning of sentences they read from the Holy Writings, we will be contributing to the achievement of unity of thought in our communities, since such a unity can only be achieved when personal opinions are illuminated by Divine Wisdom. It is important to note here that achieving this first level of comprehension never involves a long discussion on the meaning of single words outside the context of the material being studied. In fact, most tutors find that using a dictionary to help the participants understand difficult words actually interferes with their learning. It seems far more useful to help them learn how to infer the meanings of words through discussion of whole phrases and paragraphs. The second level of comprehension is concerted with applying some of the concepts in the quotations; to one's daily life. For example, exercise number six in the first section of the unit "Understanding the Bahá’í Writings", which asks the participant to identify certain types of conduct as commendable, is easy to answer; yet it requires the group to think about some of the obvious applications of the corresponding quotation in the lesson. However, not all die exercises of this level can receive immediate and obvious answers. For example, in order to decide if the statement "There are so few good people in the world that their actions do not have any effect" is true or false, the students have to establish how this statement contradicts the corresponding quotations they have studied from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh The third level of understanding requires the participants to think about the implications of the quotations for situations with no apparent or immediate connection with the theme of the quotation. For example, the question of whether Bahá’ís may confess their sins to others refers to the prohibition against confession as a means of absolving sin, a deeply-rooted practice of Catholicism. The tutor should present this prohibition as the group consults on the implications of die verse, "Bring thyself to account each day ere thou art summoned to a reckoning." Many years of experience with the courses of the Ruhi Institute have shown that examining ideas at these three levels of understanding helps collaborators create the conscious basis of a life of service to the Cause. But what may surprise someone who is unfamiliar with this experience is that efforts to prolong consultation on each idea beyond these levels, by introducing too many related concepts, actually diminish to a great extent the effectiveness of the course. This is partly because each course should establish a rhythm of progress, so that students will have a distinct sense that they are advancing rapidly according to their own capacities. This does not mean that lessons should be passed over quickly and superficially without careful analysis of the exercises. Groups that have taken this superficial approach, merely filling in answers, have never lasted beyond a few sessions. The point to remember is that once an idea is understood and some insight into its applications have been gained, the group should advance to the next point in the lesson. Another reason for the caution against prolonged discussions has to do with the habit of speculation that unfortunately sometimes develops in some of our communities. It is natural that a verse from the Writings should bring to mind myriads of noble and beautiful ideas. To share these ideas with the friends on appropriate occasions conduces to joy and happiness. But care must be exercised so that this practice does not become an exercise in the expression of ego and an insistence on the sovereignty of personal opinion. The experience of the Ruhi Institute has shown that we do not suppress the imagination or the personality of the participants when we refrain from posing questions such' as, "What does this mean to you?"; on the contrary, we are helping to nurture the development of communities which look first to the Writings as the principal basis of consultation whenever they are faced with a question. We believe that the habit of thinking about the implications of the Writings with the minimum of personal interpretation would eliminate a great share of the disagreements which afflict consultation in many communities, and would make the activities of our communities more effective. In preparing to teach the three units of this book, the tutor would do well to examine each section, categorize the exercises according to the three levels of comprehension and, if necessary, think of additional exercises that will stimulate consultation about each concept. The purpose of the first unit of this book, "Understanding the Bahá’í Writings", is to develop in the participants the habit of reading the Writings and thinking about them, beginning at first with one-sentence statements. To read the Holy Writings every day, at least in the morning and at night, is one of the very important ordinances of our Faith. But reading the Writings is not the same as reading the thousands of pages that a literate person sees during a lifetime. To read the Sacred Word is to drink from the ocean of Divine Revelation. It leads to true spiritual understanding and generates forces that are necessary for the progress of the soul. In order to reach true understanding, however, one must think deeply about the meaning of each statement and its applications in one's own life and in the life of society. "Prayer" is the second unit included in this book. In preparing to teach the unit, the tutor needs to reflect on its three principal objectives. The first is to clarify the concept of prayer itself and to help the participants understand its great importance as one of the laws of this Dispensation. In order to achieve this objective, it is sometimes necessary to dissipate doubts and carefully clarify ideas that may have their roots in erroneous interpretations of the past. Above all, this objective implies clear understanding of the necessity to observe this law, a need that is no less essential than that of nourishing our bodies every day. Beyond observing the law of prayer, each person must feels a profound desire to pray. Therefore, the second objective of this course is to awaken in participants the desire to ..converse with God" and to feel the joy of being near to Him. Moreover, from an early age, everyone should develop spiritual habits; the habit of praying daily is among the most important of these. The third objective of this course has to do with the attitudes with which prayer should be approached. Unfortunately, humanity is steadily losing its understanding of how to pray, substituting empty and meaningless rituals for indispensable inner conditions. Therefore, the study groups should consult a great deal on the sections of the unit which refer to the attitudes of heart and mind that help one enter the state of prayer, and to the conditions that should be created in one's surroundings at the time of prayer. The third unit of this book, "Life and Death", is a special challenge for the collaborators of the Ruhi Institute when they study it for the first time and also, later, when as tutors, they help others learn its content. The theme of life and death has been included in the first book of the Institute's program because it is considered essential for the participants' understanding of the paths of service they will choose to follow. Service in this world has to be understood in the fullest context of life which extends beyond our earthly existence and continues forever as our souls progress through the worlds of God. In a process of education, as contrasted with training for specific tasks, it is essential that participants become increasingly conscious of the meaning and significance of what they are doing. As this consciousness emerges, students come to see themselves as active, responsible "owners" of their learning, and not as passive recipients of information given to them by their teachers. Each section of this unit opens with a thematic statement or quotation from the Bahá’í Writings, and continues with a series of exercises designed to help participants comprehend the language and the concepts of the statement. Unlike the other two units which include exercises to help participants think about the application of ideas in their own lives and their communities, here, owing to the abstract nature of the material, all the exercises operate at the conceptual level. Only in the last section are participants asked to reflect on the implications of the course in their lives. As mentioned before, participants in the Ruhi Institute courses should be encouraged to avoid unnecessary speculation, and to be content with concrete answers that can be deduced directly from the statements. Yet, a few of the exercises contain questions that cannot be answered quickly or in a clear-cut way. These questions are designed to raise awareness about the subject; if participants merely think about such questions, the objective of learning will be fulfilled. It should also be mentioned that the language of the quotations presented in this unit is more difficult than that of the other two units. The tutor must be very careful not to give too much attention to difficult words, but to ensure that participants understand the central idea of each quotation, which is precisely what the exercises try to bring out. In order to achieve good results from the study of this unit, it is important to avoid introducing too many ideas into a single session. Above all, it is important to follow the sequence of ideas as presented: 1 . How life begins, and what is death. The soul is a spiritual entity, created by God. Together, the soul and the body constitute the human being. Death is just a change of condition; afterward, the soul progresses 2. The purpose of our lives. The purpose of life is to know God and attain His Presence. One who recognizes the Manifestation draws near to God, and one who rejects Him condemns himself to a life of misery and remoteness from God. Just as in the womb of the mother one acquires the powers needed forso in this world should we acquire the powers needed for the next world 3. The nature of the soul. The soul is a sign of God. A soul which is faithful to God will reflect His light and be drawn to Him. Worldly attachments and vain desires impede the soul's flight towards God and finally make it weak and impotent.         God has bestowed on man the capacity to reflect all His names and at 4. The soul does not progress by itself-, it needs the Manifestation of God. The capacities of the human being are latent; they can only be developed with the help of the Manifestations of God.        To know the Manifestation of God is to know God.        Through spiritual education, the treasures hidden within us can be revealed. 5. The condition of the soul after death. The faithful soul will attain a sublime position and eternal happiness, but the unfaithful soul will recognize its loss and be consumed in eternal remorse. No one knows his own end; therefore, we should forgive others and not feels superior towards them. In the next life, the holy souls become acquainted with all mysteries and behold the beauty of God. In the next life, we will recognize our loved ones and enjoy companionship, with the friends of God; we will remember the hfe we had in this material world. 6. The appropriate attitude towards the present conditions of our lives. Nothing should sadden us in this world, because days of blissful joy await us.

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This page updated on Sunday, January 11, 2004 10:00:04 PM