Chapter 34
---------------
Conflicting passages on the effects of
a lack of formal education, and the use of references based on highly
offensive racist views. Last updated: June 3rd, 2024.
The following passage from
Selections from the writings of Abdu'l-Baha explains that formal
education can exert a strong influence on humans, but cannot alter the
inner essence of man. It's followed by a second passage indicating that
person who has no formal education but is clothed with divine
attributes will contribute to the welfare society.
104. O loved ones of God and handmaids of the Merciful! A large body of
scholars is of the opinion that variations among minds and differing
degrees of perception are due to differences in education, training and
culture. That is, they believe that minds are equal to begin with, but
that training and education will result in mental variations and
differing levels of intelligence, and that such variations are not an
inherent component of the individuality but are the result of
education: that no one hath any inborn superiority over another....
The Manifestations of God are likewise in agreement with the view that
education exerteth the strongest possible influence on humankind. They
affirm, however, that differences in the level of intelligence are
innate; and this fact is obvious, and not worth debating. For we see
that children of the same age, the same country, the same race, indeed
of the same family, and trained by the same individual, still are
different as to the degree of their comprehension and intelligence. One
will make rapid progress, one will receive instruction only gradually,
one will remain at the lowest stage of all. For no matter how much you
may polish a shell, it will not turn into a gleaming pearl, nor can you
change a dull pebble into a gem whose pure rays will light the world.
Never, through training and cultivation, will the colocynth and the
bitter tree change into the Tree of Blessedness. That is to say,
education cannot alter the inner essence of a man, but it doth exert
tremendous influence, and with this power it can bring forth from the
individual whatever perfections and capacities are deposited within
him. A grain of wheat, when cultivated by the farmer, will yield a
whole harvest, and a seed, through the gardener's care, will grow into
a great tree. Thanks to a teacher's loving efforts, the children of the
primary school may reach the highest levels of achievement; indeed, his
benefactions may lift some child of small account to an exalted throne.
Thus is it clearly demonstrated that by their essential nature, minds
vary as to their capacity, while education also playeth a great role
and exerteth a powerful effect on their development.
--`Abdu'l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 131-132
If a person be unlettered, and yet clothed with divine excellence, and
alive in the breaths of the Spirit, that individual will contribute to
the welfare of society, and his inability to read and write will do him
no harm. And if a person be versed in the arts and every branch of
knowledge, and not live a religious life, and not take on the
characteristics of God, and not be directed by a pure intent, and be
engrossed in the life of the flesh -- then he is harm personified, and
nothing will come of all his learning and intellectual accomplishments
but scandal and torment.
-- Compilation on Bahá'í Education, p. 32.
In the passage below, attributed
to Abdu'l-Baha, from Tablets of Abdu'l-Baha p. 576-580, the words and
views of racists (a most prejudiced and erroneous base of "knowledge")
is used to explain the Baha'i principle regarding the importance of
formal education, and the requirement that all Baha'is educate their
children. However, the reference from "the proofs of the wise men"
attributes the most derogatory qualities to those who have not had a
formal education, using Africans as an example: "The inhabitants of a country like Africa are all as wandering savages and wild animals; they lack intelligence.." It also says, "Verily, if that
babe [one lacking formal education] depart from this world at the age
of infancy, it is sweeter and better", "the grave better than the
spacious, regal home; for in the sight of mankind that child is abased
and degraded and in the sight of God weak and defective".
This
contradicts the passages above where it's explained that education can
exert a strong influence on humans but cannot alter their inner
essence -- that is, a lack of formal education makes them savage, etc.
It also states that person who has no formal education but is
clothed with divine attributes will contribute to the welfare society.
It also contradicts common knowledge on this issue (for anyone who has
lived in countries where there are many people who have not had a formal
education).
O ye beloved of God and maid-servants
of the Merciful! The republic of wise men believes that the difference
in minds and opinions is due to the difference of education and the
acquisition of ethics. That is, that minds are equal in origin, but
education and the acquisition of ethics cause minds to differ and
comprehensions to be at variance; that this difference is not in entity
but in education and teaching; that there is no individual distinction
for any soul. Hence, the members of the human race all possess the
capacity of attaining to the highest station, and the proof they adduce
therefor is this: "The
inhabitants of a country like Africa are all as wandering savages and
wild animals; they lack intelligence and knowledge; all are
uncivilized; not one civilized and wise man is to be found among them.
On the contrary, consider the civilized countries, the inhabitants of
which are living in the highest state of culture and ethics, solidarity
and inter-dependence; possessing, with few exceptions, acute power of
comprehensions and sound mind. Therefore, it is made clear and evident
that the superiority and inferiority of minds and comprehensions arises
from education and cultivation, or from their lack and absence. A bent
branch is straightened by training and the wild fruit of the jungle is
made the product of the orchard. An ignorant man by learning becomes
knowing, and the world of savagery, through the bounty of a wise
educator, is changed into a civilized kingdom. The sick is healed by
medication,and the poor man, by learning the arts of commerce, is made
rich. The follower, by attaining the virtues of the leader, becomes
great, and the lowly man,by the education of the teacher, rises from
the nadir of oblivion to the zenith of celebrity." These are the
proofs of the wise men.
The prophets also acknowledge this
opinion, towit: That education hath a great effect upon the human race,
but they declare that minds and comprehensions are originally
different. And this matter is self-evident; it cannot be refuted. We
see that certain children of the same age, nativity and race, nay, from
the same household, under the tutorship of one teacher, differ in their
minds and comprehensions. One advanceth rapidly, another is slow in
catching the rays of culture, still another remaineth in the lowest
degree of stupidity.
The first paragraph above about
"civilised countries" living in "the highest state of culture and
ethics" (which is used as a reference) conflicts with the passages below
from the writings of Baha'u'llah and Abdu'l-Baha, and the well-known
history of grave injustices committed by the West (slavery in the
Americas, holocaust of the Jews, apartheid in South Africa, etc)
despite their formal education and other advancements.
At present the light of reconciliation is dimmed in most countries and
its radiance extinguished while the fire of strife and disorder hath
been kindled and is blazing fiercely. Two great powers who regard
themselves as the founders and leaders of civilization and the framers
of constitutions have risen up against the followers of the Faith
associated with Him Who conversed with God [followers of Moses -
reference to persecution of Jews?]. Be ye warned, O men of
understanding. It ill beseemeth the station of man to commit tyranny;
rather it behoveth him to observe equity and be attired with the
raiment of justice under all conditions. Beseech ye the One true God
that He may, through the power of the hand of loving-kindness and
spiritual education, purge and purify certain souls from the defilement
of evil passions and corrupt desires, that they may arise and unloose
their tongues for the sake of God, that perchance the evidences of
injustice may be blotted out and the splendour of the light of justice
may shed its radiance upon the whole world. The people are ignorant,
and they stand in need of those who will expound the truth.
--Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 170
All the peoples of Europe, notwithstanding their vaunted civilization,
sink and drown in this terrifying sea of passion and desire, and this
is why all the phenomena of their culture come to nothing. Let no one
wonder at this statement or deplore it. The primary purpose, the basic
objective, in laying down powerful laws and setting up great principles
and institutions dealing with every aspect of civilization, is human
happiness; and human happiness consists only in drawing closer to the
Threshold of Almighty God, and in securing the peace and well-being of
every individual member, high and low alike, of the human race; and the
supreme agencies for accomplishing these two objectives are the
excellent qualities with which humanity has been endowed.
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, The Secret of Divine Civilization, p. 60
(Original passage continued...)
No matter how much the shell is
educated or polished, it can never become the radiant pearl. The black
stone will not become the world illumining gem. The calocynth and the
thorny cactus can never by training and development become the blessed
tree. That is to say, training doth not change the human gem (i.e.,
human nature or entity), but it produceth a marvelous effect. By this
effective power all that is registered latent of virtues and capacities
in the human reality will be revealed.
Cultivation by the farmer maketh of
the grain the harvest, and the effort of the gardener maketh of the
seed a noble tree. The gentle teacher promoteth the children of the
school to the lofty altitude and the bestowal of the trainer placeth
the little child upon the throne of ether. Therefore, it is
demonstrated and proven that minds are different in the original entity
or nature, and that education commandeth a decided and great influence.
Were there no educator, all souls would remain savage, and were it not
for the teacher, the children would be ignorant creatures.
It is for this reason that, in this
New Cycle, education and training are recorded in the Book of God as
obligatory and not voluntary. That is, it is enjoined upon the father
and mother, as a duty, to strive with all effort to train the daughter
and the son, to nurse them from the breast of knowledge and to rear
them in the bosom of sciences and arts. Should they neglect this
matter, they shall, be held responsible and worthy of reproach in the
presence of the stern Lord.
This is a sin unpardonable, for they
have made that poor babe a wanderer in the Sahara of ignorance,
unfortunate and tormented; to remain during a lifetime a captive of
ignorance and pride, negligent and without discernment. Verily, if that
babe depart from this world at the age of infancy, it is sweeter and
better. In this sense, death is better than life; deprivation than
salvation; non-existence lovelier than existence; the grave better than
the spacious, regal home; for in the sight of mankind that child is
abased and degraded and in the sight of God weak and defective. in
gatherings it is ashamed and humiliated and in the arena of examination
subdued and defeated by young and old. What a mistake is this! What an
everlasting humiliation!
Therefore, the beloved of God and the
maid-servants of the Merciful must train their children with life and
heart and teach them in the school of virtue and perfection. They must
not be lax in the matter; they must not be inefficient. Truly, if a
babe did not live at all it were better than to let it grow ignorant,
for that innocent babe, in later life, would become afflicted with
innumerable defects, responsible to and questioned by God, reproached
and rejected by the people. What a sin this would be and what an
omission!
The paragraphs above conflict
with what Baha'u'llah states below regarding responsibilities to
educate children. If parents fail in this (or cannot afford to), the
House of Justice has the responsibility to ensure the education of that
child.
The seventh Ishráq The Pen of Glory counselleth everyone regarding the
instruction and education of children. Behold that which the Will of
God hath revealed upon Our arrival in the Prison City and recorded in
the Most Holy Book. Unto every father hath been enjoined the
instruction of his son and daughter in the art of reading and writing
and in all that hath been laid down in the Holy Tablet. He that putteth
away that which is commanded unto him, the Trustees are then to take
from him that which is required for their instruction, if he be
wealthy, and if not the matter devolveth upon the House of Justice.
Verily, have We made it a shelter for the poor and needy. He that
bringeth up his son or the son of another, it is as though he hath
brought up a son of Mine; upon him rest My Glory, My Loving-Kindness,
My Mercy, that have compassed the world.
--Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 128
(Original passage continued...)
the first duty of the beloved of God
and the maid-servants of the Merciful is this: They must strive by all
possible means to educate both sexes, male and female; girls like boys;
there is no difference whatsoever between them. The ignorance of both
is blameworthy, and negligence in both cases is reprovable. "Are they
who know and they who do not know equal?" (Koran)
39:9 Is one who worships devoutly during the hour of the night prostrating
himself or standing (in adoration), who takes heed of the Hereafter, and
who places his hope in the Mercy of his Lord - (like one who does not)?
Say: "Are those equal, those who know and those who do not know? It
is those who are endued with understanding that receive admonition.
39:10 Say: "O ye my servants who believe! Fear your Lord, good is (the reward)
for those who do good in this world. Spacious is God's earth! those who
patiently persevere will truly receive a reward without measure!"
39:11 Say: "Verily, I am commanded to serve God with sincere devotion;
39:12 "And I am commanded to be the first of those who bow to God in Islám."
-- Qur'an: 39 - AZ-ZUMAR.
The command is decisive concerning
both. If it be considered through the eye of reality, the training and
culture of daughters is more necessary than that of sons, for these
girls will come to the station of motherhood and will mould the lives
of the children. The first trainer of the child is the mother. The
babe, like unto a green and tender branch, will grow according to the
way it is trained. If the training be right, it will grow right, and if
crooked, the growth likewise, and unto the end of life it will conduct
itself accordingly.
Hence, it is firmly established that
an untrained and uneducated daughter, on becoming a mother, will be the
prime factor in the deprivation, ignorance, negligence and the lack of
training of many children.
O ye beloved of God and the
maid-servants of the Merciful! Teaching and learning, according to the
decisive texts of the Blessed Beauty (Baha'u'llah), is a duty. Whosover
is indifferent therein depriveth himself of the great bounty.
Beware! Beware! that ye fail not in
this matter. Endeavor with heart, with life, to train your children,
especially the daughters. No excuse is acceptable in this matter.
Thus may eternal glory and
everlasting supremacy, like unto the mid-day sun, shine forth in the
assemblage of the people of Baha', and the heart of `Abdul-Bahá become
happy and thankful.
--`Abdu'l-Bahá, Tablets of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 576-580
When the two passages from
Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 131-132 and Tablets of
Abdu'l-Baha, p. 576-580 are compared with sections from one following sections from the other (plain font vs italics),
they are quite similar except for the inclusion of the racist and other
very derogatory and offensive views in the second passage (highlighted),
suggesting the second passage from Tablets of Abdu'l-Baha may be a
falsified version of the first... It has also been suggested that the
passage from Tablets of
Abdu'l-Baha, p. 576-580 is authentic, but was altered by the
Administration to edit out the offensive material, without providing an
official explanation...
********************************
104. O loved ones of God and handmaids of the Merciful! A large body of
scholars is of the opinion that variations among minds and differing
degrees of perception are due to differences in education, training and
culture. That is, they believe that minds are equal to begin with, but
that training and education will result in mental variations and
differing levels of intelligence, and that such variations are not an
inherent component of the individuality but are the result of
education: that no one hath any inborn superiority over another....
O ye beloved of God and maid-servants
of the Merciful! The republic of wise men believes that the difference
in minds and opinions is due to the difference of education and the
acquisition of ethics. That is, that minds are equal in origin, but
education and the acquisition of ethics cause minds to differ and
comprehensions to be at variance; that this difference is not in entity
but in education and teaching; that there is no individual distinction
for any soul.
Hence,
the members of the human race all possess the capacity of attaining to
the highest station, and the proof they adduce there for is this: "The
inhabitants of a country like Africa are all as wandering savages and
wild animals; they lack intelligence and knowledge; all are
uncivilized; not one civilized and wise man is to be found among them.
On the contrary, consider the civilized countries, the inhabitants of
which are living in the highest state of culture and ethics, solidarity
and inter-dependence; possessing, with few exceptions, acute power of
comprehensions and sound mind. Therefore, it is made clear and evident
that the superiority and inferiority of minds and comprehensions arises
from education and cultivation, or from their lack and absence. A bent
branch is straightened by training and the wild fruit of the jungle is
made the product of the orchard. An ignorant man by learning becomes
knowing, and the world of savagery, through the bounty of a wise
educator, is changed into a civilized kingdom. The sick is healed by
medication,and the poor man, by learning the arts of commerce, is made
rich. The follower, by attaining the virtues of the leader, becomes
great, and the lowly man,by the education of the teacher, rises from
the nadir of oblivion to the zenith of celebrity." These are the
proofs of the wise men.
********************************
The Manifestations of God are likewise in agreement with the view that
education exerteth the strongest possible influence on humankind. They
affirm, however, that differences in the level of intelligence are
innate; and this fact is obvious, and not worth debating. For we see
that children of the same age, the same country, the same race, indeed
of the same family, and trained by the same individual, still are
different as to the degree of their comprehension and intelligence. One
will make rapid progress, one will receive instruction only gradually,
one will remain at the lowest stage of all.
The prophets also acknowledge this
opinion, towit: That education hath a great effect upon the human race,
but they declare that minds and comprehensions are originally
different. And this matter is self-evident; it cannot be refuted. We
see that certain children of the same age, nativity and race, nay, from
the same household, under the tutorship of one teacher, differ in their
minds and comprehensions. One
advanceth rapidly, another is slow in catching the rays of culture,
still another remaineth in the lowest degree of stupidity.
********************************
For no matter how much you may polish a shell, it will not turn into a
gleaming pearl, nor can you change a dull pebble into a gem whose pure
rays will light the world. Never, through training and cultivation,
will the colocynth and the bitter tree change into the Tree of
Blessedness. That is to say, education cannot alter the inner
essence of a man, but it doth exert tremendous influence, and with this
power it can bring forth from the individual whatever perfections and
capacities are deposited within him.
No matter how much the shell is
educated or polished, it can never become the radiant pearl. The black
stone will not become the world illumining gem. The calocynth and the
thorny cactus can never by training and development become the blessed
tree. That is to say, training doth not change the human gem (i.e.,
human nature or entity), but it produceth a marvelous effect. By this
effective power all that is registered latent of virtues and capacities
in the human reality will be revealed.
********************************
A grain of wheat, when cultivated by the farmer, will yield a whole
harvest, and a seed, through the gardener's care, will grow into a
great tree. Thanks to a teacher's loving efforts, the children of the
primary school may reach the highest levels of achievement; indeed, his
benefactions may lift some child of small account to an exalted throne.
Thus is it clearly demonstrated that by their essential nature, minds
vary as to their capacity, while education also playeth a great role
and exerteth a powerful effect on their development.
--`Abdu'l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 131-132
Cultivation by the farmer maketh of
the grain the harvest, and the effort of the gardener maketh of the
seed a noble tree. The gentle teacher promoteth the children of the
school to the lofty altitude and the bestowal of the trainer placeth
the little child upon the throne of ether. Therefore, it is
demonstrated and proven that minds are different in the original entity
or nature, and that education commandeth a decided and great influence.
Were there no
educator, all souls would remain savage, and were it not for the
teacher, the children would be ignorant creatures.
It
is for this reason that, in this New Cycle, education and training are
recorded in the Book of God as obligatory and not voluntary. That is,
it is enjoined upon the father and mother, as a duty, to strive with
all effort to train the daughter and the son, to nurse them from the
breast of knowledge and to rear them in the bosom of sciences and arts.
Should they neglect this matter, they shall, be held responsible and
worthy of reproach in the presence of the stern Lord.
This
is a sin unpardonable, for they have made that poor babe a wanderer in
the Sahara of ignorance, unfortunate and tormented; to remain during a
lifetime a captive of ignorance and pride, negligent and without
discernment. Verily, if that babe depart from this world at the age of
infancy, it is sweeter and better. In this sense, death is better than
life; deprivation than salvation; non-existence lovelier than
existence; the grave better than the spacious, regal home; for in the
sight of mankind that child is abased and degraded and in the sight of
God weak and defective. in gatherings it is ashamed and humiliated and
in the arena of examination subdued and defeated by young and old. What
a mistake is this! What an everlasting humiliation!
Therefore,
the beloved of God and the maid-servants of the Merciful must train
their children with life and heart and teach them in the school of
virtue and perfection. They must not be lax in the matter; they must
not be inefficient. Truly, if a babe did not live at all it were better
than to let it grow ignorant, for that innocent babe, in later life,
would become afflicted with innumerable defects, responsible to and
questioned by God, reproached and rejected by the people. What a sin
this would be and what an omission!
the
first duty of the beloved of God and the maid-servants of the Merciful
is this: They must strive by all possible means to educate both sexes,
male and female; girls like boys; there is no difference whatsoever
between them. The ignorance of both is blameworthy, and negligence in
both cases is reprovable. "Are they who know and they who do not know
equal?" (Koran)
The
command is decisive concerning both. If it be considered through the
eye of reality, the training and culture of daughters is more necessary
than that of sons, for these girls will come to the station of
motherhood and will mould the lives of the children. The first trainer
of the child is the mother. The babe, like unto a green and tender
branch, will grow according to the way it is trained. If the training
be right, it will grow right, and if crooked, the growth likewise, and
unto the end of life it will conduct itself accordingly.
Hence,
it is firmly established that an untrained and uneducated daughter, on
becoming a mother, will be the prime factor in the deprivation,
ignorance, negligence and the lack of training of many children.
O
ye beloved of God and the maid-servants of the Merciful! Teaching and
learning, according to the decisive texts of the Blessed Beauty
(Baha'u'llah), is a duty. Whosover is indifferent therein depriveth
himself of the great bounty.
Beware!
Beware! that ye fail not in this matter. Endeavor with heart, with
life, to train your children, especially the daughters. No excuse is
acceptable in this matter.
Thus
may eternal glory and everlasting supremacy, like unto the mid-day sun,
shine forth in the assemblage of the people of Baha', and the heart of
`Abdul-Bahá become happy and thankful.
--`Abdu'l-Bahá, Tablets of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 576-580
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