Spiritual Teachings/Independent Investigation of Truth
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man fulfill the other. For example, the more one learns to know and love God, the more he wants to obey the commandment to pray daily. The more regularly one prays, the more his knowledge and love grow.
5. Independent Investigation of Truth[edit]
In the past, faith was often blind and unquestioning. People believed in something because their family, friends, or religious leaders believed. They did not think and pray and investigate truth for themselves. This type of faith is no longer acceptable. Bahá’u’lláh teaches that each person must investigate truth for himself and come to his own conclusions without relying on someone else's thinking. Faith in this day must be built on knowledge and must be one's own decision.
Investigating truth takes much effort and courage, but God has given each person the capacity to recognize truth. Detachment also helps man in his search. Bahá’u’lláh advises the seeker to put aside all love and hate he feels toward the things of the world, for that love may pull him toward error and that hate may drive him away from the truth. Sometimes love makes one do things he knows are not right, and one's feelings may keep him from hearing the truth when it comes from someone he does not like. Detachment tears away some of the veils which blind man to the truth.
While Bahá’u’lláh requires man to investigate truth for himself, He has left man more guidance to help him in his search than has ever been given by a Manifestation. In addition to leaving hundreds of books and Tablets, Bahá’u’lláh appointed
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‘Abdu’l-Bahá the authorized interpreter of His Teachings, and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in turn appointed Shoghi Effendi the Guardian of the Cause. Their explanations are divinely inspired and must be accepted by all Bahá’í’s. No other Bahá’í, however learned, can force another to accept his understanding and explanations of the teachings.
One reason religion has become a source of disunity is that people have blindly followed the religion into which they were born. When they begin to investigate religious truth for themselves and with open minds, they will be able to see beyond the man-made differences which divide them. They will learn that the truth in their religion also appears in the other great religions of the world. Truth is truth wherever it is taught, just as light is light in whatever lamp it burns. Knowledge of this will help unite mankind, and religious belief will no longer be a cause of disunity.
6. Sacrifice[edit]
As one’s love for Bahá’u’lláh grows, he wants to find more ways of showing his love—living the life, teaching, and serving. Often the desire to serve involves giving up for the good of the Faith habits or possessions one cherishes. Such sacrifice draws one closer to God.
Sacrifice is a sign of love. When one sacrifices his own desires for the good of another, he demonstrates his love in a clear and unmistakable way. The Manifestations sacrificed everything to bring God’s message to man. Jesus gave His life on the cross, and Bahá’u’lláh suffered forty years as a prisoner. The early heroes and heroines of the Faith, such as Quddús and Ṭáhirih, sacrificed their homes, their families, their worldly goods, and their lives to serve the Cause of God.
While most Bahá’í’s today are not called upon to give their lives for the Faith, they have many opportunities to sacrifice their desires, time, energies, and material goods. What sacrifices should one make? Each Bahá’í must find his own answer. No one can judge the sacrifice of another. All Bahá’í’s,