tag name Deepening type: Administration; Miscellaneous; Practices web link bahai-library.com/tags/Deepening related tags - Bahá'í Writings; – Bahá'í activities; – Scripture referring tags Guidance, Study of the; Home visits; New believers; Reading; Reading the Writings; Study classes; Studying Inventory subject Study; deepening notes "The study of the Bahá'í Faith in all its aspects. Shoghi Effendi has stated, in a letter written on his behalf: "To deepen in the Cause means to read the writings of Bahá'u'lláh and the Master [`Abdu'l-Bahá] so thoroughly as to be able to give it to others in its pure form." In addition to the thorough study of the history, literature and teachings of the Bahá'í Faith, to deepen in the Faith also means to "assimilate its Laws and principles, ponder its admonitions, tenets and purposes, commit to memory certain of its exhortations and prayers, master the essentials of its Administration, and keep abreast of its current affairs and latest developments."..."
– from A Basic Bahá'í Dictionary (1989)
See also:
– Compilation The Importance of Deepening Our Knowledge and Understanding of the Faith.
– Covenant Library Unified Index
selected quotations
(authoritative sources)These quotations reflect common presentations of Bahá’í views; the materials below may show a wider range of interpretations and contexts:
"... that you may investigate and study the Holy Scriptures word by word so that you may attain knowledge of the mysteries hidden therein. Be not satisfied with words, but seek to understand the spiritual meanings hidden in the heart of the words... The divine Words are not to be taken according to their outer sense. They are symbolical and contain realities of spiritual meaning...
It is not the reading of the words that profits you; it is the understanding of their meanings..."
– 'Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, talk no. 137, 3 December 1912 (ABU0523)
"... Read ye The Hidden Words, ponder the inner meanings thereof, act in accord therewith. Read, with close attention, the Tablets of Tarazát (Ornaments), Kalímát (Words of Paradise), Tajallíyyát (Effulgences), Ishráqát (Splendours), and Bishárát (Glad Tidings), and rise up as ye are bidden in the heavenly teachings..."
– Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Bahá, no. 17 (AB00397)
"... Of special importance is the Book of the Íqán which explains the attitude of the Cause towards the prophets of God and their mission in the history of society. Besides this there is 'Some Answered Questions' of the Master and the 'Dawn-Breakers' of Nabíl. Every Bahá’í should master these books and be able to explain their contents to others. Besides their importance, they are interesting and most absorbing."
– From a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer, February 9, 1932, in Lights of Guidance, no. 1931"Praise be to God that the spirit of the Holy Writings and tablets which have been revealed in this wondrous Dispensation concerning matters of major or minor importance, whether essential or otherwise, related to the sciences and the arts, to natural philosophy, literature, politics or economics, have so permeated the world that since the inception of the world in the course of past Dispensations and bygone ages nothing like it has ever been seen or heard. Indeed if an avowed follower of Bahá'u'lláh were to immerse himself in, and fathom the depths of, the ocean of these heavenly teachings, and with utmost care and attention deduce from each of them the subtle mysteries and consummate wisdom that lie enshrined therein, such a person's life, materially, intellectually and spiritually, will be safe from toil and trouble, unaffected by setbacks and perils, or any sadness or despondency."
– Shoghi Effendi, from a letter dated 13 January 1923, cited in compilation The Importance of Deepening Our Knowledge and Understanding of the Faith, no. 69
"... The beloved Guardian wrote, “To strive to obtain a more adequate understanding of the significance of Bahá’u’lláh’s stupendous Revelation must, it is my unalterable conviction, remain the first obligation and the object of the constant endeavor of each one of its loyal adherents,” a statement which places the obligation of deepening in the Cause firmly on every believer...
A detailed and exact knowledge of the present structure of Bahá’í Administration... or of the many and varied applications of Bahá’í law under the diverse conditions prevailing around the world, while valuable in itself, cannot be regarded as the sort of knowledge primarily intended by deepening. Rather it is suggested a clearer apprehension of the purpose of God for man, and particularly of His immediate purpose as revealed and directed by Bahá’u’lláh, a purpose as far removed from current concepts of human well-being and happiness as is possible...
... this is the theme we must pursue in our efforts to deepen in the Cause. What is Bahá’u’lláh’s purpose for the human race? For what ends did He submit to the appalling cruelties and indignities heaped upon Him? What does He mean by “a new race of men”? What are the profound changes which He will bring about? The answers are to be found in the Sacred Writings of our Faith and in their interpretation by ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá and our beloved Guardian. Let the friends immerse themselves in this ocean..."
– Universal House of Justice, Riḍván message 1967
bahaidata.org Q4230 · Links to Bahá'í wikis (bahai9, bahaipedia, etc.) references bahaiquotes.com/subject/deepening; www.bahai.org/library/authoritative-texts/search#q=Deepening
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