The Bab and Modernity

letters. For the Bab this means that they symbolize the Bab and the 18 letters of the Living. The truth of this 19 is present in the letter B namely in the truth of the Bab. And his truth is the same as the truth of his next revelation as Baha’u’llah. But this interpretation is a reflection of a deeper spiritual truth. How is it that all truth is contained in the letter B, symbolized by the Bab or Baha’u’llah? The answer is the perspective of revelation. The truth of everything is none other than utter pure revelation of God in the heart of all things. The letter B refers to the utter revelation of God which is also the truth of all prophets of God, and it is the glory of God enshrined in all beings. From the point of view of the Bab this strange tradition is expressing a spiritual fact, namely that all beings are reflections of God, and therefore, all beings are sacred and beautiful. Both human beings and nature are to be seen as mirrors The second example deals with the logic of interpretation in the writings of the Bab. according to him everything and particularly the divine words possess infinite meanings. But among these infinite meanings there is one meaning that is superior to all other meanings. Unveiling that supreme meaning is the highest form of interpretation. The key to understand that highest meaning is to go beyond the differences of words, sentences, paragraphs and chapters. Therefore, the highest meaning of the Qur’an is understood when in reading of the Qur’an we do not pay attention to the diversity of the letters and words and chapters of the text. Rather we see the entire Qur’an as one thing, namely its supreme truth, which is the pure revelation of God. In this way the main message and meaning of the Qur’an becomes affirmation of the ultimate truth of everything, namely the pure divine revelation. In this way the Qur’an is also the same as Gospel, Torah, Avesta, and all other sacred scriptures. Unlike the interpretation by the clerics of different religions who emphasize the differences and oppositions of various scriptures, the Bab sees in all scriptures their common truth which is the utter pure revelation of God, and that is the very truth of everything. Consequently, for the Bab the highest meaning of the Qur’an or other scriptures is the unity of all beings, the sacred character of all, and the necessity of respecting and loving all human beings and all nature. 2. Perspective of revelation: From Identity to Equality Unlike the perspective of resemblance, the perspective of revelation leads to a new concept of identity which affirms the sanctity of all things, and highlights the equality of human beings. The concept of identity refers to the truth of human beings. As a reaction to the failed promise of modern rationalism, we have now moved to a postmodern definition of identity. Now in fact we no longer believe in any concept of the human being. Instead, there are only biological and social categories. The identity of people is nothing but their group characteristic. We are either male or female, black or white, Muslim or Christian, Japanese or Egyptian, rich or poor, Persian speaking or English speaking, but we have nothing in common. Although the intention of the postmodern view is good, its conclusion is the same as the pre-modern ideology. Since we have nothing in common, there is nothing universally good or bad. Therefore, the only criterion of truth and value becomes one’s own culture and tradition. Therefore, return to one’s tradition becomes the only criterion of ethics and justice. The problem with all these definitions of identity is that they define human identity in terms of what separates us from each other. The result is that humans are perceived to be either strangers or enemies of each other. It is here that the worldview of the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh offer an entirely different perspective. For the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh, humans are spiritual beings, and therefore their identity is of God, and treated with respect and dignity. B. The Supreme Meaning of Sacred Texts