the other day i was teaching my "lifespan development" class about encoding. (encoding is our ability to make a mental representation of something. in other words, to see something in your mind). i wanted to illustrate the idea that the encoding process is usually not crystal clear for any of us, so i drew two circles on the board and had them tell me what was on the penny.this is always a pretty fun exercise. i make lincoln look like a goof, and they usually get big chunks of it wrong, which is enlightening for them. when we got to the stage where we examined a real penny to see how (in)accurate we were, i read the phrase "e pluribus unum".
i asked them what it meant and they stared at me like deer in headlights. i waited. finally one guy in the front row said "the many are one?"
"yes, the many unite into one." then i said "what's the phrase? united we stand..."
"...divided we fall!" they all chimed in, in unison. they sounded very excited to know the answer this time, despite the inherently sad nature of it.
"are we united or divided?" i asked.
"divided!" they said, without hesitation, like an ocean wave washing over me.
divided. it's so obvious.
"what does that mean for us?" i wondered.
silence.
"it's not looking good, i guess." they shook their heads. nope. not looking good.
what does this mean i wonder? are we falling? can we stop it?
a dear man in india saw one of our videos and later sent us a book that his father wrote. it's a book of daily devotionals. here is the reading for today:
October 25
"Khuda" (God) is an Urdu word. When it is written, a dot is placed above. If the dot be placed below, then the word does not change much, but changes entirely in meaning. It becomes "Juda" i.e. separate.
"Khuda" is the word in which resides the Greatness of God and which manifests itself in all, containing in itself the Universe, and containing itself in itself. "Khuda" is He who is in Union with Himself. "Juda" is a word that signifies separation from everything, even from itself, for it is separation.
A single dot when placed differently can create such a wide difference. A change in the angle of vision creates a complete change in meaning.
Thou who hast with thee the Perfect, place not the dot at the bottom!
But place the dot of "Juda" on top and let it become "Khuda"!
Why go from love to hate?
Go towards love and union from hate and separation.
By Nath
Gulam Rue Zamin (Servant of the Earth)
excerpt from the book: "The First Rays of Dawn"
Published by Priya Nath Metha; 1973
Thanks Priya for passing this beautiful book along to us.
(cue song: people get ready... )
2 comments:
Thank you, Amy, for using such a meaningful quotation from my father's book, "The First Rays of Dawn". It amply illustrates the quality of your own good soul and the unity that lies therein. When my father first wrote the book in 1959 he had wanted it to help as many people as it could. I am glad you have helped further this. It is only through good souls like yourself that goodness can spread in the world.
Yours,
Priya
thank you for taking the time to read and comment, priya. you are very dear. we appreciate your father's work very much! thank you for allowing me to use a bit of it.
Post a Comment