Finding the truth about being truthful means recognising that being truthful can sometimes be a tricky thing to do. “Tell the truth!” people say, as if it is as easy as that. But what if no one else is telling the truth? In that situation, not telling the truth does not necessarily mean lying, it can mean saying nothing. In that case, telling the truth is a challenging thing to do.
The natural reaction when people are spreading clear falsehoods is to assume that speaking out is pointless. Baha’u’llah lived much of his life subjected to disinformation. In one such case, he criticized his followers for not sticking up for him.1 It involved Baha’u’llah’s half-brother Mirza Yahya, who claimed to be the rightful successor to the Bab, in opposition to Baha’u’llah’s claim. To back up his claim, Mirza Yahya stated that producing divine verses was no longer a sufficient proof of a person’s divine mission. This was a lie. The Bab had unambiguously stipulated that producing divine verses was the only proof people were to accept of a person’s claim. Mirza Yahya said this because Baha’u’llah was, in fact, producing numerous divine verses that were beyond what others could write.
What did community members do? They remained silent. Baha’u’llah commented on the situation with this rhetorical question: How is it that Mirza Yahya gets away with brazenly asserting something that is clearly false? Because community members remained silent, which gave Mirza Yahya tacit support. Without that, he would never have felt able to make statements that contradicted the Bab’s teachings.
Now, consider in sum and for the sake of God, what could be the reason for which they strive so impudently to violate the purity of the divine book? It is clear and obvious that the reason is the acquiescence therein of some of the people of the Bayan. Otherwise, . . . if they had not been assured of that support, they would never have dared be so bold. (Tablet of the Son, para. 31)
Baha’u’llah’s comments suggest that speaking up does make a difference. It discourages mischiefmakers from spreading disinformation and hinders them from shoring up support.
A counterbalancing factor to this principle is that Baha’u’llah forbade people from engaging in contention and conflict.2 I take that to mean that we should avoid getting into spats with people, especially protracted ones. Baha’u’llah’s advice on how to proceed in those tricky situations is to tell one’s truth courteously. If the person rejects it, then leave them alone.3 This approach is consistent with Baha’u’llah’s approach to proper human conduct in general, which was to take the long-term view. By “long-term” I mean not just a few months or years ahead but an entire realm of existence ahead. He saw disputes and indeed any care about the world as ephemeral and temporary, because these cares evaporate when a person finds themselves in the next world.
The requirement to tell the truth in the face of lies is also subject to this long-term view, in the sense that speaking up is not just about making life difficult for troublemakers. It has to do with a person building character, developing wisdom, and showing virtue through deeds. It is not enough to sit, self-satisfied, on the sidelines of life and say: “I don’t get involved. I believe in unity.” Baha’u’llah requires people to sculpt out of themselves their God-given purpose and to display it to the world through their character and actions.4 An attitude of cloistered piety will never achieve that purpose. Baha’u’llah states that, in his great dispensation, “all must appear with branches of knowledge and sayings of wisdom.”5 Doing that requires positive action, uncovering the truth, and expressing one’s point of view, not remaining silent.
The principle at work here, Baha’u’llah explains, is that the fruit of the human soul is the influence it has on others. He describes this fruit as “beloved,” and states that a soul without fruit is destined for the fire just like an unproductive fruit tree.
The influence of individual souls is and always will be beloved. For the influence of each soul is its fruit, and a soul without influence is considered a tree without fruit in the most great realm. (Tablet of the Son, para. 33)
Neutrality is not a divine perfection. It is an action based in fear and a means of sidestepping the messiness of life. Divine perfections are positive realities like justice, power, wisdom, and courage. If a person is to display these perfections, they must participate in the world and deal with trying situations. Only in these situations does it become clear who we are, and only through who we are do we have an influence.
In a work called Surah of the Almighty, Baha’u’llah makes some striking statements about the power of people who act boldly in the world.6 He asserts that it is of great importance for people to reflect the power of God. They do this by reflecting in their hearts the name of God, the Almighty. It is not enough for a person to simply confess their powerlessness before God and hope for the best. They must try to reflect the splendor of the Almighty in their hearts so that they can manifest its influence through their actions. Simply confessing to one’s powerlessness means never truly experiencing the power of the Almighty in oneself. Baha’u’llah puts it this way:
Whoever is deprived of the effulgence of this Name will never succeed in establishing the power of his Lord, the August, the Ordainer. Even should he confess his inability, this confession would fall short of the reality, for how could he ever truly know what he had lost? (Surah of the Almighty, para. 2)
It is therefore very important for everyone to play their part. God has given each person a part to play and a responsibility to play it as best they can. In the end, it does not matter whether others agree with us, it matters that we became the person we were destined to be.
- The details are found in Tablet of the Son, paras. 30 and 31, https://alisonelizabethmarshall.com/tablet-of-the-son/. See also para. 3, “No one among the divine friends has arisen, out of sincerity and for his sake, to forbid the idolaters from committing these perfidious deeds.” ↩︎
- “Conflict and contention are categorically forbidden in His Book.” Baha’u’llah, “Kitab-i-‘Ahd (Book of the Covenant)” in Tablets of Baha’u’llah, https://www.bahai.org/r/290168047. ↩︎
- The thirteenth Glad-Tidings, “Bisharat (Glad-Tidings),” in Tablets of Baha’u’llah, https://www.bahai.org/r/669423117. ↩︎
- Persian Hidden Word no. 72, from The Hidden Words, https://www.bahai.org/r/261142065. ↩︎
- Tablet of the Son, para. 28, “In this greatest of dispensations, all must appear with branches of knowledge and sayings of wisdom. For in these days wherein doubt has been banished, celestial gales have rendered all human beings – indeed, all things – bearers of the divine emanations to the extent of their capacity.” ↩︎
- See Surah of the Almighty, paras. 2 and 3, https://alisonelizabethmarshall.com/surah-of-the-almighty/. ↩︎