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| Bahá’í News | December 1980 | Bahá’í Year 137 |
House of Worship in India
‘Actual construction Mashriqu’l-Adhkár scheduled for 30th July 11:00 a.m. with first pouring filler concrete innermost columns. Humbly solicit prayers steady unhindered progress construction ...’
Contents[edit]
Temple in India |
|
Architect answers questions about this most remarkable structure | 2 |
The lotus design |
|
Deep religious symbolism led to India Temple’s unique design | 7 |
The Mashriqu’l-Adhkár |
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The Guardian explains purposes of the central Edifice of Faith | 12 |
Around the world |
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News from Bahá’í communities in every corner of the globe | 14 |
Cover
The exquisite lotus-petal design of the Bahá’í House of Worship in India has already become familiar to Bahá’ís the world over. In this issue the architect, Fariburz Saḥba, discloses how the idea for the lotus design came about, and answers other questions about the lovely Temple in an interview that begins on Page 2. Also in this issue are an excerpt from Mr. Sahḥa’s report to the Universal House of Justice, and a statement by the beloved Guardian, Shoghi Effendi, about the deeper significance of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár.
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AN INTERVIEW WITH THE ARCHITECT[edit]
Questions and answers about the design and construction of the Bahá’í Temple in Delhi, India[edit]
(The following interview with Fariburz Saḥba, the architect of the Bahá’í House of Worship in India, is reprinted from Bahá’í News India, No. 37, May-June 1980.)
Question: Did you ever think of designing a Bahá’í Temple before the Indian Temple plan was advanced?
Answer: I have always considered the House of Worship as a sacred building of immense spiritual significance that in time may become a distinct element of the foundation of a school of Bahá’í architecture. In view of this, I have never desired or attempted to design one. I often had ideas and imagined different elements or parts of a Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, but I did not envisage a form or shape for the total structure. The Mashriqu’l-Adhkár being so exalted and glorious an institution, I entertained grandiose thoughts and speculated on innovative usages of illumination and water, for instance, for enhancing its grandeur, but I never harbored the desire nor dared to commit to paper the thoughts and ideas that kept recurring to my mind. In fact, it was the beloved Hand of the Cause of God, Dr. Muhájir, who first suggested that I design the House of Worship for India. At that time I was working as associate architect on the design of the Seat of the Universal House of Justice.
On a cold winter night in Tehrán I had the pleasure of driving Dr. Muhájir to his residence after a meeting of the Publishing Trust Committee. He affectionately asked me many questions regarding the design of the Seat of the Universal House of Justice, and then quite unexpectedly inquired if I had any plan for the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár of India. When I replied that I had
never even thought of it, Dr. Muhájir urged me to prepare a design. This suggestion and the thought of such an undertaking kept me awake that night, but from then on I gave serious thought to preparing some design. Now I just had to commit to paper the obscure images I had formed in my mind. Strangely enough, Dr. Muhájir did not forget this matter and kept encouraging me to pursue the work.
When I met Dr. Muhájir for the last time, the Universal House of Justice already had approved the design for the Mother Temple of the Indian subcontinent. He was at the airport, leaving Írán after a brief visit, when he inquired about the progress of the Temple, and with great interest he described the Delhi climate and the frequent dust storms of the area.
For the last time, a week before his ascension, Dr. Muhájir, eager to know about Bahá’í developments in India, talked to me on the phone and inquired about the progress in the work of the Temple. I am happy and grateful that your question has revived the memory of our dear Dr. Muhájir and that snowy winter night that determined my role in the erection of the House of Worship in India.
Q.: How did the idea of the lotus occur to you? Did you have other ideas besides the lotus?
A.: It was almost three years ago that I came to India to study the architecture and culture of this land. I did have different thoughts but I kept my mind completely open to fresh ideas and influences. At this juncture I was trying not to be tied down to the first or any particular idea so that I might benefit fully from my studies. I tried to study, with detachment, the temples of India so that I might imbibe the maximum from the rich Indian culture. During this journey, which took me across the length and breadth of India and, later, Sri Lanka, I visited many cities and villages and the holy places of different religions. I spoke with many Indians and inquired from those I met about their vision and ideal image of the Temple.
I will always remember the sweet memories of this journey and the conversations of pure-hearted people who spoke of their temples and their aspirations. This journey provided me with fresh insights into the boundless horizons of Indian culture, and I came to realize that I should consider with respect and humility, more than ever, this culture. I also realized what a very difficult task I was faced with, for I had to design a House of Worship that would, on the one hand, reveal the simplicity, clarity, and freshness of the Bahá’í Revelation in distinction to the beliefs and man-made concepts of the many divided sects, and, on the other, show respect for the basic beliefs of all the religions of the past and act as a constant reminder to the followers of each Faith that all the religions of God are one. Differing beliefs and opposing views had to be reconciled in the design of our Temple.
It was an Indian Bahá’í friend in a small city who, for the first time, spoke to me about the lotus flower as an idea for the Temple. At that time I was more impressed by his pure-heartedness, simplicity and kindness than by his concept and idea for a Temple.
Next, in the Ajanta and Ellora caves, the impression of lotus flowers on the surface of the walls depicting the “throne of prophets” drew my attention to this flower. In South India, another Indian Bahá’í, on learning of my interest in the lotus flower, showed so much enthusiasm that he took great pains to locate a pond covered with this beautiful flower, and, brimming over with excitement took me to see the magnificent blooms. His earnest description and explanations of whatever he knew about the lotus impressed upon me the deep-rooted significance of this flower in India.
Later, I studied the art, culture and religions of India from books I had collected. The deep respect for the lotus that spontaneously emerged from Indian hearts everywhere, the excitement in the eyes and their loving attachment to this sacred flower, kept me from considering other ideas for the design. My attention was now focused upon this concept. However, the critical question had yet to be answered as to how a flower could be translated into a building. However symbolic or sensational it might be, such a design could also be regarded as trite and formalistic, and consequently vulgar and bereft of any architectural value.
When I recall my visit to India, I am convinced that at every step the blessings of Bahá’u’lláh assisted and guided this work. The difficulties and problems resolved themselves in an amazing manner. This could not have been possible without the prayers of the Universal House of Justice, which I had solicited before coming to India. God willing, the dear friends in India will join me in supplicating the Sacred Threshold of Bahá’u’lláh that this work may be completed without hindrance and to the entire satisfaction of the Universal House of Justice.
Q.: What are the significant non-technical aspects of the design?
[Page 5]
Architect Fariburz Saḥba points out some of the significant design aspects of the Bahá’í House of Worship in India.
A.: I have already presented to you a copy of my report to the Universal House of Justice concerning the research on the lotus and the basic ideas for the design of the Temple. I shall briefly refer to them again here.
The lotus represents the Manifestation of God and is also the symbol of purity and tenderness. Its significance is deeply rooted in the minds and hearts of the Indians. In the epic poem of the Mahabharta the Creator, Brahma, is described as having sprung from the lotus that grew out of Lord Vishnu’s navel when that deity lay absorbed in meditation. There is a deep and universal reverence for the lotus, which is regarded as a sacred flower, being associated with worship throughout many centuries. In Buddhist folklore the bodhisattva Avalokiteswara is represented as born from a lotus and is usually depicted as standing or sitting on a lotus pedestal and holding a lotus bloom in his hand. Buddhists glorify him in their prayers, “Om Mani Padme Hum”—Yea! Jewel in the Lotus.
So you realize that the lotus, associated with worship, has been a part of their life and thought for ages. It will be as though they had been worshipping in this Temple in their dreams for years. Now their vision becomes a reality, and, God willing, some day they will enter and worship in it.
Q.: You mentioned the importance of water and light. What is the concept of lighting and use of water in your design?
A.: The whole superstructure is so designed as to function as a skylight. The interior dome is spherical and patterned after the innermost portion of the lotus flower. Light enters the hall in the same way as it passes through the inner folds of the lotus petals. The interior dome therefore is like a bud consisting of 36 petals, and light filters through these inner folds and is diffused throughout the hall. The central bud is held by nine open petals, each of which functions as a skylight. Nine entrance petals complete the design.
The external illumination is so arranged as to create the impression that the lotus structure is afloat upon water and not anchored to its foundation by having the light focused brightly on the upper edges of the petals.
Regarding the use of water, a glance at the design will show that the nine pools around the building form the principal landscaping. At the same time, they represent the green leaves of the lotus plant, thus completing the picture of a lotus afloat on water. Moreover, the pools and fountains in them help to cool the air that passes over them into the hall. The superstructure, the podium and the pools are designed as an integrated whole and the parts cannot be separated.
Q.: You must have worked into the design some requirements of the environment. Can you explain something in that regard?
A.: This is a matter to which a great deal of thought has been given. Since the climate in Delhi is very hot for several months in the year, and the degree of humidity varies effectively, it seems that the only solution for the ventilation problem is air-conditioning. However, this is very expensive to install and maintain, and therefore not feasible for a Temple in India. On the basis of the methods of ventilation used in ancient buildings a different, though complicated, solution to the ventilation problem has been devised. This in a way could be called “natural ventilation,” and is based on the results of experiments known as “wind tunnel tests” and “smoke tests” at the Imperial College of London on the model of the Temple. The results demonstrated that with openings in the basement and at the top, the building would act like a chimney, drawing warm air up within the hall and expelling it through the top of the dome. Moreover, the air at high speed and the pressure passing over the opening in the top of the dome acts exactly like an expeller, evacuating the air from within and causing fresh air to be drawn in from below into the hall. Thus a constant draft of cool air passing over the pools and through the basement flows into the hall and out through the opening at the top. This ventilation is complemented in two other ways. A set of exhaust fans is arranged in the dome to cool the concrete shell and prevent transference of heat into the Temple, while another set of fans will funnel air from the auditorium into the cold basement that, upon being cooled, will then be recycled back into the auditorium. Although this system and its maintenance is cheaper by far, our calculations forecast pleasant and agreeable temperatures inside the Temple.
Q.: Structurally, will the Temple be a unique engineering feat?
A.: From the structural and technical point of view,
[Page 6]
the design is very complicated and its construction will
be quite difficult. In the preparation of the working
drawings and calculations, we have taken recourse to
the best computer facilities available in London.
One of the most highly reputed firms of structural consultants, Messrs. Flint & Neill Partnership of London, has collaborated with us in this project. They have to their credit structural designs of many important buildings including the Panama Temple and the National Theatre of London, which is among the distinguished buildings of recent years. It has been a privilege and a pleasure for me to work with this firm, and especially with Dr. Flint who has supported us with his invaluable experiences. The Bahá’í world will long remember Dr. Flint for his services in the erection of two Bahá’í Temples.
Another firm of consultants that has extended its fullest cooperation to us in checking our structural drawings and calculations is based in Switzerland and is headed by Dr. Naimi, a distinguished Bahá’í engineer and university professor. I am very obliged to dear Dr. Naimi for his loving kindness and important advice.
There are many others, Bahá’ís and non-Bahá’ís, to whom we owe a debt of gratitude for the sincere services they have rendered to this project. Chief among these are Miss H. Sedigh, a young Bahá’í architect who has helped in researching into Indian culture; Mr. K. Rouhani for his invaluable help in preparing different models from the design, and many other assistants, especially Mr. M. Ashraf, whose significant role as associate architect in Phase II of the project is deeply appreciated. Mention must also be made of the fact that we have engaged the services of three other consultants for electrical, plumbing and mechanical works, as well as two Indian consultants as structural and architectural advisers.
The design of our Temple has already attracted the attention of several architectural organizations and institutions, and several articles on it have appeared in professional journals. The Science Museum of London, an institution of the highest repute, has decided to make a model of the design of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár for display in their building materials collection.
Q.: Can you give some idea of the size, capacity and dimensions of the Temple?
A.: The height of the building from the main entrance level is 40.80 meters (134.64 feet). The height of the interior dome from the auditorium is 28 meters (92.4 feet). From the podium level the height of the entrance, outer and inner petals, respectively, are 7.8 meters (25.24 feet), 22.5 meters (74.25 feet), and 33.6 meters (110.88 feet).
The diameter of the central dome is 34 meters (112.2 feet) and the seating capacity in the central hall is 1,200. This capacity can be increased to more than 2,000 by using the entrance corners or galleries.
The diameter of the superstructure across the entrance petals is 70 meters (231 feet). The external diameter across the lotus pools is 130 meters (429 feet).
If these details are read and studied with a photograph, you will get a good idea of the size and proportions of the Temple.
Q.: After the initial approval of the design, what was involved in the preparation of the plan?
A.: The most difficult step in the project was making the concept scientifically feasible. It took us almost 18 months to translate the concept into structural designs and working drawings. The first task was to evolve a geometry on the basis of which the layout could be prepared and structural dimensions given to the building. This was achieved with the assistance of our structural engineer. We established an office in England and had long and detailed consultations until a feasible structure was devised. Some 400 drawings were prepared showing every detail to enable to contractors to understand the structure completely and build accordingly. The specifications not only conform to international standards, but also take into consideration local construction techniques and materials available in India. In spite of all this, both we and the contractors have a difficult task ahead.
The process of the appointment of contractors has taken us almost eight months. Investigations were carried out by us, and only eight of the most highly reputed contractors in the country were singled out, to whom tender forms were issued. These were firms with the highest expertise and equipment, and through a process of elimination the contract was eventually awarded to M/s Engineering Construction Corporation Ltd. This is the most prestigious firm of contractors specializing in the field of complicated concrete structural work. Their machinery and equipment has already arrived at the site, and work is going on.
Q.: How long will construction take?
A.: According to our contract, the work is expected to be completed in three years’ time. This period is estimated in the hope that all the materials needed for the unimpeded progress of the construction will be available and procured in good time. It is also hoped that no other important technical or financial problems may arise during this period. Of course, we place our hopes on the grace and bounty of Bahá’u’lláh.
Q.: What has been the general reaction of those who have been introduced to the Temple concept in India?
A.: All who have come to know the design and other details have appreciated it. People of importance, both in technical and non-technical fields, have expressed admiration for the design, and those concerned have extended their fullest cooperation to the project.
THE LOTUS DESIGN[edit]
Powerful religious symbolism led architect to choose exquisite Temple concept
(The following is an excerpt from architect Fariburz Saḥba’s report to the Universal House of Justice on the proposed design for the Bahá’í House of Worship in India.)
It is possible to see in the architecture of India, to an extent probably unknown elsewhere, the roots of religion in a most clear and distinct manner. The meaningful, significant, and powerful symbols which can be seen in the buildings and in their ornamentation, and even in the surroundings in which they have been placed, draw their inspiration from the religious convictions of the people, convictions which form an integral part of the Indian way of life. The very bushes growing in the corner of a temple courtyard or the color of the courtyard wall can tell us which religion the temple belongs to. In this way we can discover the allegorical meanings which the forms, the colors, the statues in a temple are meant to convey, to such an extent that we can call Indian architecture an architecture of allegory, of symbol, in that hidden meanings dwell in every shape and form. These hidden meanings have a close and inspiring connection with the life of the people of this country.
Against such a background, we find ourselves faced with two major questions regarding the design of a Mashriqu’l-Adhkár for India. We understand from some of the beloved Guardian’s statements, for example in his letter to the Bahá’ís of the U.S. and Canada (dated October 29, 1929), that a Mashriqu’l-Adhkár should be a symbol manifesting the Bahá’í Faith, revealing the simplicity, clarity, and freshness of this new Revelation, in distinction to the beliefs of the many divided sects who are clinging to dead, man-made concepts, each desiring to pray in his own fashion, or to display the symbols of his own faith.
On the other hand, in showing respect for the basic beliefs of the religions of the past the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár must act as a constant reminder to the followers of each faith that all the religions of God are one and that the Bahá’í Faith, for all that it may have many new features, is in no way cut off or
[Page 8]
detached from the life of the Indian people, but rather looks upon
them all with respect and love.
Basing our researches on the above sentiments, and seeking at all times to discover a common strand running through the symbolism of the many religions and sects to be found today in India, we undertook a study in the hope that we could prepare a design which, while it would in no way imitate any of the existing architectural schools of India, would remain familiar to the Indian people, in the same way that, when one speaks to them of the teachings and principles of the Bahá’í Faith they sense that here is a vision become reality, a dream fulfilled, albeit expressed in words that are new and even unheard of.
Sacred symbol[edit]
Researches on India and Indian architecture clearly show that, despite the outward dissimilarities to be seen between various temples, we can sometimes discover significant and sacred symbols regarded as holy and divine by all the Indian religions, symbols which have even penetrated to other countries and other religions such as Islam. One of these symbols is the sacred flower of the Indians, the lotus.
Although it would be preferable to begin a discussion of the lotus with a survey of the Mandala, one of the oldest religious symbols in the world, we shall move directly into our discussion without such preamble.
To the Indian taste the lotus has always been the fairest flower; it has enjoyed an unparalleled popularity throughout the length and breadth of India from the earliest times down to the present day, as shown by its predominance in literature and art. Beginning to be mentioned in the oldest Veda it plays a prominent part in the mythology of Brahmanism. To the later Sanskrit poets it is the emblem of beauty to which they constantly compare the faces of their heroines. The lotus, moreover, enters into Indian art of all ages and all religions as a conspicuous decorative element. It appears thus on the oldest architectural monuments of Hinduism as well as later on those of Buddhism and Jainism all over India. With the spread of Buddhism to the countries of the Farther East, its use as an ornament in religious art has extended as far as Japan.
1. In literature—The lotus is already named in the Rigveda and is mentioned with increasing frequency in the later Samhitas. In the Atharvaveda the human heart is compared with the lotus, and the Panchavimsa Brahmana speaks of its flower being “born of the light of the Constellations.” In the Brahmanas the lotus first appears associated with the Creator Prajapati in cosmogonic myths. Thus the Taittiriya Brahmana tells hoe Prajapati, desiring to evolve the universe, which in the beginning was fluid, saw a lotus-leaf (puskara-parna) standing erect out of the water. Thinking that it must rest on something, he dived in the form of a boar, and, finding the earth below, broke off a fragment, rose with it to the surface, and spread it out on the leaf. Again, the Taittiriya Aranyaka relates that, when the universe was still fluid, Prajapati alone was produced on a lotus-leaf.
Later, in the epic poetry of the Mahabharata, the Creator, under the name of Brahma, is described as having sprung from the lotus that grew out of Vishnu’s navel, when that deity lay absorbed in meditation. Hence one of the epithets of Brahma is lotus-born (abja-ja, abja-yoni, etc.) The lotus
is thus also connected with Vishnu,
one of whose names is accordingly
padma-nabha, “lotus-naveled.” It
is further associated with Vishnu’s
wife Lakshmi, goddess of fortune
and beauty, in the Mahabharata,
where the myth is related that
from Vishnu’s forehead sprang a
lotus, out of which came Sri (another name of the goddess), and
where one of Lakshmi’s epithets is
padma, “lotus-hued.” The Mahabharata, in its account of Mount
Hailasa, the abode of Kubera, the
god of wealth, describes his lake
Nalini and his river Mandakini as
covered with golden lotuses.
2. In art—As regards its application in religious art, the lotus figures, with the rise of that art in India, on all the Buddhist monuments which came into being in different parts of the country from about 200 B.C. onward. In its simplest form the expanded lotus is very frequent as a circular ornament in the sculptures at Sanchi, Bharhut, Amravati, and Bodh Gaya, as well as in the rock-cut Buddhist temples of Western India, being introduced as a medallion on pillars, panels, and ceilings. Very elaborately carved half-lotuses sometimes appear used thus, or, in Sri Lanka (Ceylon), as so-called-moon-stones—semi-circular stone slabs at the foot of staircases. Lotuses growing on stalks also occur in the sculptures of Bandhara and of Mathura, and often figure in elaborate floral designs on pillars of Sanchi or the panels of Amaravati.
The lotus is further found from the earliest times conventionalized either as a seat or as a pedestal on which divine or sacred beings rest in a sitting or standing posture. The oldest and most striking example of this use is exhibited in the figure of the Hindu goddess Lakshmi, in the Buddhist sculptures at Udayagiri, at Bharhut, and especially at Sanchi, where it is frequently repeated on the gateways of the Great Stupa. Lakshmi is portrayed sitting or standing on a lotus and holding in each hand a lotus-flower which is watered by two elephants from pots raised aloft by their trunks. This ancient type is found all over India at the present day; it even occurs among the old sculptures at Polonnaruwa in Sri Lanka.
Widespread use[edit]
After Buddha began to be represented in sculpture, his image constantly appears sitting cross-legged on a lotus seat, occasionally also standing on a lotus pedestal. In this form it occurs, for instance, at, Rajgir in Behar, in the Kanheri caves near Bombay, and often in the Gandhara monuments of the Northwest. From the latter region this type spread beyond the confines of India, reappearing in Nepal, Burma, China and Japan. Even when the seat is not actually the flower itself, two, three, or four lotuses are, in the Gandhara sculptures, carved on its front. Such lotuses are even found delineated on a footstool on which Gautama rests his feet instead of sitting cross-legged. The number of the petals of such lotuses varies from four to six.
The use of the lotus seat has been extended to images of bodhisattvas not only in India but in Buddhist countries beyond its border. Thus Manjusri is represented sitting in this way not only at Sarnath, near Benares, but also in Java and Tibet. In a modern Tibetan picture Maitreya is depicted on a lotus seat, and the figure of a Persian bodhisattva sitting on a seat adorned with lotuses and pained on a wooden panel was discovered by M.A. Stein during his first expedition to Central Asia. Even in China the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara occurs sitting on a lotus seat, and in Nepal also as standing on a lotus pedestal. The lotus is otherwise intimately connected with this bodhisattva; for he is represented as born from a lotus, and he regularly holds a lotus in his hand, whence is derived his epithet of Padmapani, “lotus-handed.” To him, moreover, refers the Buddhist formula Om Mani Padme Hum (“Yea O jewel in the lotus! Amen”), which at the present day is the most sacred prayer of the Buddhists in Tibet. The persistence of this application of the lotus is indicated by the fact that it often appears not only in modern Indian brass images of Hindu gods, but even in seated portraits of Maharajas of the 19th century.
The lotus seat and pedestal have an almost universal application in connection with the figures of Hindu mythology. Thus Brahma appears seated on Vishnu’s navel lotus. The three great gods of the Hindu triad, Brahma, Shiva, and Vishnu, with their respective wives, Sarasvati, Parvati, and Lakshmi, as well as Agni, god of fire, Pavanna, god of wind, Gan-
esa, god of wisdom, Vishnu’s incarnation Rama, and the demon Ravana, are all found represented on a lotus seat. Vishnu, in addition, regularly holds a lotus in one of his four hands. A lotus pedestal also serves as a stand for images of the god India, of Vishnu and nearly all his incarnations, and of the sun-god Surya; in Sri Lanka also of Shiva and Parvati, as well as of Kubea, god of wealth, and in Tibet of Sarasvati, goddess of learning.
Creative force[edit]
Similarly, in the ancient Jain sculptures found at Mathura the lotus constantly occurs as a medallion or in more elaborate floral decoration. It also appears as the symbol of the sixth Jina, or Saint. At the present day it is worshipped generally by the Hindus in India, and even by some Muslims in some parts of the country.
3. In Buddhism—The symbolism of the lotus-flower (padma, pundarika, utpala) was borrowed by the Buddhists directly from the parent religion Brahmanism. Primarily, the lotus-flower appears to have symbolized for the Aryans, from very remote times, the idea of superhuman or divine birth; and secondarily, the creative force and immortality. The traditional Indian and Buddhist explanation of it is that the glorious lotus-flower appears to spring not from the sordid earth but from the surface of the water, and is always pure and unsullied, no matter how impure may be the water of the lake. It thus expresses the idea of supernatural birth, and the emergence of the first created object from the primordial waters of chaos; hence also the flower was regarded as the matrix of the Hindu creator himself, Narayana, and of his later form as the god Brahma, who are respectively figured and described as reclining and seated upon a lotus-flower. As an emblem of divine purity, the lotus-flower is instanced in the pre-Buddhist Vaishnavite Bhagavad-Gita; and this was possibly its significance when it was first applied to the historical Buddha, Sakyamuni.
As an emblem of divine birth, the lotus is the commonest of motives in Buddhist art and literature, as has been noted above. In the Buddhist paradise of Sukhavati, the goal of popular Mahayana Buddhists, where no women exist, everyone is born as a god upon a lotus-flower (Soddhama-pundarika) and there are lotus-flowers of manigems. The Western notion of the beauty of “lotus-eating” is possibly a memory of this old tradition of divine existence.
A form of this myth of divine lotus birth is probably the myth which invests Buddha with the miraculous power of imprinting the image of a lotus-flower on the earth at every step that he took. The references to this are innumerable in the Pali canon; but in the book which the present writer has shown to be manifestly the earliest of all the books of that canon, the Mahapadana Suttanta, the account of the infant Buddha’s first seven steps makes no mention of the lotus-flower imprints that appear in the later versions.
The lotus was especially identified with the sun. This association doubtless rested upon the natural observation that the flower opened when the sun rose and closed at sunset, so as to suggest to the primitive mind the idea that the flower might be the residence of the sun during its nocturnal passage through the underworld, or that it might be the re-vivifier, resurrector, or regenerator of the fresh or refreshened sun of the next day. Its very large multirayed flowers would also contribute to this association. It is probably from its association with the sun that we find the lotus-flower in the Gandhara sculptures, and often subsequently, taking the place on Buddha’s footprints of the “wheeled disk of the sun with its thousand spokes.” This possibly was the Aryan queen of heaven, the Brah-prints.
Architectural traces[edit]
The device of a lotus-flower in the hand seems to have symbolized not merely divine birth but the possession of life everlasting, and the preservation and procreation of life. Such was it with the Aryan queen of heaven, the Brahmanist goddess Sri, and her derivative, the Buddhist Tara, both of whom have the title “Garlanded by Lotuses.” In the mystical Vedic, pre-Buddhist Satapatha Brahmana, the lotus was a symbol of the womb, and as we have seen, it appears to have this sense in the famous “Om Mani Padme Hum” formula. Probably, therefore, such a meaning may be in part implied
[Page 11]
in the lotus held in the hand of
Avalokita, the consort of Tara, to
whom that formula is now specially addressed. In the hand of Maitreya, the next coming Buddha,
and other divine bodhisattvas of
Gandhara, the lotus in the hand,
however, may have had a metaphysical significance and have devoted the preservation of the life
of the law and the revivifying of
the same. It was possibly in this
sense as cherishers of the law that
we find that a lotus-flower adorns
the hands of many of the images
of Buddhas and bodhisattvas who
do not specially possess the attribute of a lotus held in the hand.
The lotus symbol can be easily
traced in Zoroastrian architecture.
The carving of Ardashir II at Taq-i-Bustan shows Mithra standing on
a lotus flower. In the bas-relief at
Persepolis the king and most of his
nobles each hold a lotus in their
hands. The lotus flower is one of
the oldest and most beautiful elements used in the patterns of Persian carpets, and it can often be seen in Islamic architecture of the
Seljuq and later periods. For example, the shape of a lotus occurs
in the design of the perforated
plaster work in the mihrab (prayer-niche) of the Malik mosque in
Kirman.
The points mentioned above in
connection with the lotus serve to
show how the lotus is a unifying
symbol in all the Indian religions,
but in the design of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, the symbol has been employed in an unprecedented fashion. It should be said that the most
basic idea in the design is that light
and water should be used as its
two fundamental elements and
that these two elements are alone
responsible for the ornamentation
of the House of Worship, in place
of the thousands of statues and
carvings to be found in other temples.
THE MASHRIQU’L-ADHKÁR[edit]
The Guardian explains the vital purposes of worship and service that combine to animate the central Edifice of the Faith[edit]
October 25, 1929:
It should be borne in mind that the central Edifice of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, round which in the fullness of time shall cluster such institutions of social service as shall afford relief to the suffering, sustenance to the poor, shelter to the wayfarer, solace to the bereaved, and education to the ignorant, should be regarded apart from these Dependencies, as a House solely designed and entirely dedicated to the worship of God in accordance with the few yet definitely prescribed principles established by Bahá’u’lláh in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas. It should not be inferred, however, from this general statement that the interior of the central Edifice itself will be converted into a conglomeration of religious services conducted along lines associated with the traditional procedure obtaining in churches, mosques, synagogues, and other temples of worship. Its various avenues of approach, all converging towards the central Hall beneath its dome, will not serve as admittance to those sectarian adherents of rigid formulae and man-made creeds, each bent, according to his way, to observe his rites, recite his prayers, perform his ablutions, and display the particular symbols of his faith within separately defined sections of Bahá’u’lláh’s Universal House of Worship. Far from the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár offering such a spectacle of incoherent and confused sectarian observances and rites, a condition wholly incompatible with the provisions of the Aqdas and irreconcilable with the spirit it inculcates, the central House of Bahá’í worship, enshrined within the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, will gather within its chastened walls, in a serenely spiritual atmosphere, only those who, discarding forever the trappings of elaborate and ostentatious ceremony, are willing worshippers of the one true God, as manifested in this age in the Person of Bahá’u’lláh. To them will the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár symbolize the fundamental verity underlying the Bahá’í Faith, that religious truth is not absolute but relative, that Divine Revelation is not final but progressive. Theirs will be the conviction that an all-loving and ever-watchful Father who, in the past, and at various stages in the evolution of mankind, has sent forth His prophets as the Bearers of His Message and the Manifestations of His Light to mankind, cannot at this critical period of their civilization withhold from His children the Guidance which they sorely need amid the darkness which has beset them, and which neither the light of science nor that of human intellect and wisdom can succeed in dissipating. And thus having recognized in Bahá’u’lláh the source whence this celestial light proceeds, they will irresistibly feel attracted to seek the shelter of His House, and congregate therein, unhampered by ceremonials and unfettered by creed, to render homage to the one true God, the Essence and Orb of eternal Truth, and to exalt and magnify the name of His Messengers and Prophets Who, from time immemorial even unto our day, have, under divers circum-
stances and in varying measure, mirrored forth to a
dark and wayward world the light of heavenly guidance.
But however inspiring the conception of Bahá’í worship, as witnessed in the central Edifice of this exalted Temple, it cannot be regarded as the sole, nor even the essential factor in the part which the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, as designed by Bahá’u’lláh, is destined to play in the organic life of the Bahá’í community. Divorced from the social, humanitarian, educational and scientific pursuits centering around the Dependencies of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, Bahá’í worship, however exalted in its conception, however passionate in its fervor, can never hope to achieve beyond the meagre and often transitory results produced by the contemplations of the ascetic or the communion of the passive worshipper. It cannot afford lasting satisfaction and benefit to the worshipper himself, much less to humanity in general, unless and until translated and transfused into that dynamic and disinterested service to the cause of humanity which it is the supreme privilege of the Dependencies of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár to facilitate and promote. Nor will the exertions, no matter how disinterested and strenuous, of those who within the precincts of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár will be engaged in administering the affairs of the future Bahá’í Commonwealth, fructify and prosper unless they are brought into close and daily communion with those spiritual agencies centering in and radiating from the central Shrine of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár. Nothing short of direct and constant interaction between the spiritual forces emanating from this House of Worship centering in the heart of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, and the energies consciously displayed by those who administer its affairs in their service to humanity can possibly provide the necessary agencies capable of removing the ills that have so long and so grievously afflicted humanity. For it is assuredly upon the consciousness of the efficacy of the Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh, reinforced on one hand by spiritual communion with His Spirit, and on the other by the intelligent application and the faithful execution of the principles and laws He revealed, that the salvation of a world in travail must ultimately depend. And of all the institutions that stand associated with His Holy Name, surely none save the institution of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár can most adequately provide the essentials of Bahá’í worship and service, both so Vital to the regeneration of the world. Therein lies the secret of the loftiness, of the potency, of the unique position of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár as one of the outstanding institutions conceived by Bahá’u’lláh. (Shoghi Effendi, in The Bahá’í World, Volume XIV, pp. 476-477)
Worshippers gather for silent prayer in the auditorium of the Bahá’í House of Worship in Wilmette, Illinois.
Around the world[edit]
Portugal[edit]
One hundred seventy-five delegates and guests attended the 19th National Bahá’í Convention in Lisbon, Portugal, April 26-27. It was reported at the Convention that the Portuguese community had achieved a goal established last year by making its summer school financially self-sufficient.
One hundred seventy-five people attended a proclamation meeting June 20 at the University of Lisbon, Portugal, sponsored by the National Spiritual Assembly of Portugal.
Fernando Mesquita, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly, spoke on the topic “Humanity: Where is it Heading?” The proclamation program included music, the presentation of a film on the dedication of the House of Worship in Panama, and a panel discussion by three believers who later answered questions from the audience.
Many people in the audience congregated at the literature display after the program to talk with believers.
The National Spiritual Assembly described the proclamation as a success and indicated that it plans to sponsor other proclamations at the University of Lisbon.
The Netherlands[edit]
Shown here is the cover of the November 30, 1979 issue of Actueel Onderwerp (Topical Subject), a weekly publication popular with young people in The Netherlands. This issue was written by a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of The Netherlands at the invitation of the publisher, the Foundation for Individual Education. In addition to newsstand sales, Actueel Onderwerp has 80,000 subscribers including most school libraries in The Netherlands. This issue on the Faith was ranked fourth out of 52 in a year-end reader interest survey conducted by the publisher.
Dominican Republic[edit]
The July 12 edition of El Caribe, a daily newspaper in the Dominican Republic, carried a full-page story on Sheila Rice-Wray, a 30-year pioneer to that country from the United States.
Several attractive photographs accompanied the article that appeared on Page 1 of the paper’s second section and included a sympathetic description of the Faith, its history and tenets.
Miss Rice-Wray’s “instant fascination with the country” during her 1947 visit is related along with a description of her career teaching English in the Dominican Republic.
India[edit]
Eighty-seven people declared their belief in Bahá’u’lláh during a nine-day proclamation effort May 29-June 6 in Tumkur, India, during which the Bahá’í message reached an estimated 70,000 residents.
Teams of believers, one of which included an Auxiliary Board member and a visiting Bahá’í from Iceland, distributed 16,000 brochures inviting residents to the various proclamation activities.
Believers staffed a Bahá’í exhibit that was set up in donated space in the center of the city during the proclamation period.
The headmaster of Bapuji High School purchased a set of 17 Bahá’í books for his school’s library, arranged for a Bahá’í talk for his students, and asked them to prepare reports on the books.
The headmaster at the state-supported Orphanage School invited believers to conduct classes each Sunday.
Thousands of residents attended a public meeting June 3, during which the city’s superintendent of police and a highly-respected merchant spoke highly of the Faith.
A group of Bahá’í women who concentrated on reaching other women of Tumkur during the proclamation effort now conducts weekly firesides and makes trips to a nearby village to conduct weekly children’s classes and to encourage new believers.
Trinidad/Tobago[edit]
Peter McLaren, a Continental Counsellor for South America, was one of the speakers at a National Teaching Conference held July 6 at the Palmyra Bahá’í Center that was attended by believers from all parts of Trinidad and Tobago.
A new National Teaching Plan with a goal of 10,000 deepened believers was announced by the National Teaching Committee. The plan includes specific goals for certain communities in Trinidad and Tobago as well as the planning of children’s classes and youth activities.
The believers of Tobago voluntarily decided to increase their assigned teaching and consolidation goals.
A total of 3,700 students at three schools in southern Trinidad heard about the Faith during the past year. Each of the proclamation programs was first requested by a Bahá’í student at each school. The Bahá’í speakers then met with the school’s principal.
The principal at one school was so favorably impressed with the Bahá’í presentation that he invited the believers to return to offer the students weekly sessions on the Faith.
Auxiliary Board member Lawrence Coward and four other believers participated in a program June 22 on prayer and meditation for peace that was sponsored by a Christian group in South Diego Martin, Trinidad, and attended by approximately 100 people.
The Bahá’ís were invited to participate along with various churches and religious groups in Trinidad.
The half-hour Bahá’í presentation that included quotations from the Writings and an explanation of Bahá’í views on unity and peace was followed by several questions from the audience.
A delegation of three believers in Port of Spain, Trinidad, presents Bahá’í books to the mayor of the city during a week of proclamation activities June 15-21. Pictured (left to right) are Edna Ruth Caverly; Mr. S. Nagaratnam (seated), a traveling teacher from Malaysia; Mayor George Nehall; and Roderick Moze. Mayor Nehall told the believers that his predecessor had urged him to extend every assistance to the Bahá’ís. Other activities during ‘Bahá’í Week’ in Port of Spain included the presentation of books to the public library and to a center for handicapped children; a children’s class that was followed by a visit to the zoo, and a potluck dinner and evening of entertainment.
Turkey[edit]
Ninety-two believers attended a Bahá’í summer school June 21-27 in southern Turkey.
The school, the first held in the southern part of the country, was organized by the Southern Anatolia Teaching Committee. Participants included students from Turkey, Cyprus and several Arabian countries.
Mexico[edit]
The National Spiritual Assembly of Mexico, in an effort to bring its presence closer to the believers throughout the country, has been conducting some of its regular meetings outside of Mexico City, the location of the National Bahá’í Center.
This has allowed the Assembly to consult with local believers and regional teaching committees, inspire pioneers, and make further progress in the goal of proclaiming the Faith to governmental leaders.
In July, a Bahá’í delegation presented a copy of Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era to General Eliseo Jiménez Ruiz, governor of the state of Oaxaca (pronounced “wa-HAC-ca”). The delegation was composed of members of the National Spiritual Assembly and two local believers who are members of the Chinanteco and Zapoteco tribes.
Members of the National Spiritual Assembly were interviewed twice on Oaxaca radio and spoke at a public meeting in Oaxaca, the capital city of Oaxaca State.
The National Spiritual Assembly hopes that Oaxaca, which contains many indigenous peoples, will soon become a mass teaching area similar to the Yucatan peninsula, where there are now 100 Spiritual Assemblies.
Progress has been made on Mexico’s goal of translating Bahá’í prayers into indigenous languages. The short Obligatory Prayer has recently been translated into 10 indigenous languages spoken in the state of Oaxaca, where approximately 60 different languages are spoken and where approximately one-fourth of Mexico’s indigenous people live.
Liberia[edit]
Quotations from the Bahá’í Writings are broadcast twice a day over a radio station in Monrovia, Liberia, at no charge to the Bahá’í community.
Five minutes of Bahá’í quotations are heard at the start and end of each day’s programming on the radio station.
Taiwan[edit]
The seventy-three believers and their guests who attended the Bahá’í Summer School July 26-28 at Taichung, Taiwan, posed for this group photograph. Participants attended classes on Bahá’í history, teaching methods, and Bahá’í law. Five people declared their belief in Bahá’u’lláh on the last evening of the summer school that was held at a Taichung campground.
Bahá’í proclamation kits were presented to government officials, radio station personnel and police officers during a month-long teaching campaign in July, in Hsin Ying, Taiwan. Approximately 1,000 pamphlets were distributed in this small town in southern Taiwan.
Four residents of Hsin Ying declared their belief in Bahá’u’lláh, and the Southern Teaching Committee extended the campaign for another two weeks in hopes of raising an Assembly in this goal area of Taiwan.
Yan Kee Leong, a Continental
Counsellor for South East Asia,
paid a brief visit to Taiwan in June,
visiting Bahá’í communities in
Taipei, Hsin Chu, Taichung,
Taiping and Tainan.
Mr. Leong described the South East Asia Chinese Teaching Campaign and the importance of teaching the Chinese people everywhere. He also related some of his experiences during a recent visit to the United States and Canada.
Finland[edit]
Dr. Habib’u’lláh Zabihian, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Finland, has been appointed an associate member of the World Medical Association. In response to this news the Universal House of Justice wrote on November 7, 1979, ‘... The possibility of making important contacts for the Faith that this appointment gives you can be very valuable ...’ Dr. Zabihian, a fifth generation believer, has served on the National Spiritual Assembly of Finland since its formation in 1962.
Australia[edit]
In April, Bahá’í communities throughout Australia commemorated the 60th anniversary of the opening of Australia to the Faith by the arrival in 1920 of John and Clara Hyde-Dunn, who later were to be named Hands of the Cause of God.
Thirty-six Australian newspapers published stories about the Bahá’í community’s observance of this anniversary.
Most newspaper accounts included photographs of the Dunns and mentioned their sacrificial pioneering work in Australia. They were in their late 50’s when they left the United States for Australia.
Many newspaper reports included explanations of the Faith, invitations to local Bahá’í events, and notices of the National Convention.
The Bendigo Advertiser wrote of “people from all over Australia who pause for thanksgiving and celebration tomorrow as the 60th year opens since the bringing of the Bahá’í dream to this continent.
“Sixty years after its introduction to this country,” the article continues, “the spiritual contagion has multiplied by thousands, as it is doing the world over, in the fastest growing religion on earth.”
Luxembourg[edit]
Delegates and friends at the Bahá’í National Convention of Luxembourg held April 26-27 posed for this group photograph in front of the new National Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds of Luxembourg.
Bolivia[edit]
A special conference was held this summer in Bolivia at which the more than 200 Bahá’ís present promised to bring 5,000 new believers into the Faith by the end of 1980. Continental Counsellors for South America Athos Costas, Mas’ud Khamsí and Raúl Pavón attended the conference that was called by some of the older Indian Bahá’ís who wished to share the responsibility for teaching in the remote mountain areas of the country with their younger counterparts.
almost the entire period of the Guardianship. They are an invaluable historical chronicle of the development of the Faith during the early years of the Formative Age—a must for teachers, administrators, historians, new and deepened Bahá’ís, anyone interested in the growth and spread of the Bahá’í Faith.
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