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"In the world of existence man has traversed successive degrees until he has attained the human kingdom. In each degree of his progression he has developed capacity for advancement to the next station and condition. While in the kingdom of the mineral he was attaining the capacity for promotion into the degree of the vegetable. In the kingdom of the vegetable he underwent preparation for the world of the animal, and from thence he has come onward to the human degree, or kingdom. Throughout this journey of progression he has ever and always been potentially man. "
In another text He says: Man has always been potentially man, only he has not always looked the way he does today.(The quote is not exact but this is the gist of it.)
"In the beginning of his human life man was embryonic in the world of the matrix. There he received capacity and endowment for the reality of the human existence.The forces and powers necessary for this world were bestowed upon him in that limited condition. In this world he needed eyes; he received them potentially in the other. He needed ears; he obtained them there in readiness and preparation for his new existence. The powers requisite in this world were conferred upon him in the world of the matrix so that when he entered this realm of real existence he not only possessed all necessary functions and powers but found provision for his material sustenance awaiting him."
Conclusion is ...
"Therefore, in this world he must prepare himself for the life beyond. That which he needs in the world of the Kingdom must be obtained here. Just as he prepared himself in the world of matrix by acquiring forces necessary in this sphere of existence, so, likewise, the indispensable forces of the divine existence must be potentially attained in this world.
What is he in need of in the Kingdom which transcends the life and limitation of this mortal sphere?
That world beyond is a world of sanctity and radiance; therefore it is necessary that in this world he should acquire these divine attributes.In that world there is need of spirituality, faith , assurance, the knowledge and love of God."
I conclude :We might call those features as some of the constituents of the Image of God. Thus, "In the Image of God" doesn't refer to our bodily appearance, it is solely spiritual. God is a Spirit, not a physical reality.
"These", (spiritual features)"he must attain in this world so that after his ascension from the earthly to the heavenly Kingdom he shall find all that is needful in that eternal life ready for him."
"In the next world we will not miss anything".
"That divine world is manifestly a world of lights; therefore, man has need of illumination here. That is a world of love, the love of God is essential. It is a world of perfections; virtues, or perfections, must be acquired. That world is vivified by the breaths of the Holy Spirit; in this world we must seek them. This is the Kingdom of everlasting life; it must be attained during this vanishing existence."
I conclude, you do not have to die to get the virtues of heaven. If you are endowed with the love and other good things from God, you are already there. And happy.
I conclude, science and religion are in harmony, from the Bahai approach of view. How much simpler is that and pleasing to the mind, OK?.You see, our intellect is respected. It bestows tranquility to our hearts and we come nearer to God.
Abdu'l-Bahá again:
"No one truth can contradict another truth. Light is good in whatsoever lamp it is burning!. A rose is beautiful in whatsoever garden it may bloom" A star has the same radiance if it shines from the East or from the West!
Be free from prejudice; so will you love the Sun of Truth from whatever point in the horizon it may arize. You will realize that if the Divine Light of Truth shone in Jesus Christ, it also shone in Moses and Buddha. This is what is meant by the search after truth.
It also means that we must be willing to clear away all what we previously have learned, all that would clog our steps on the WAY TO TRUTH;...WE MUST NOT ALLOW OUR LOVE FOR ANY ONE RELIGION OR ANY ONE PERSONALITY SO TO BLIND OUR EYES THAT WE BECOME FETTERED BY SUPERSTITION. WHEN WE ARE FREED FROM ALL THESE BONDS, SEEKING WITH LIBERATED MINDS, THEN WE SHALL BE ABLE TO ARRIVE AT OUR GOAL."
(Big letters, sorry I did not mean to shout).
I know that many people believe that the first man was just like us. According to what I have studied of paleoantropology the first human being that had a scull like ours lived in Africa about 200 000 years ago. Anyone who is interested in this can look back into what I have written on this issue.See the findings by the Leakey family and other paleoantropologists.
My conclusion is that the old stories about Adam and Eve is a spiritual story teaching us that we must obey God. That's the gist of it.Together with God means a condition of paradise or Eden, not to be with God is a condition of bereavement and utter loss whatever world we live in.. Briefly, That Tree of Knowledge is the Tree of the World of Being,(according to my assumption=the knowledge we can grasp intellectually, measure and weigh), a symbol for all the stuff from which we carefully have to choose the right things, where we are schooled in order to grow spiritually and come nearer to God,or in other words in order to become like the Image of God.
In my view it is like this;Since people like storytelling, moralities were taught by storytelling,packed with symbols carrying spiritual truths. Do we not tell stories to teach children the good things. In the childhood of humanity the same thing were prevalent among all the peoples of the world, many many thousands of years ago. Because science wasn't developed.
This is how i see it. And apropos Darwin who said that he told lies as a child, just to see how people reacted.
I believe many children tell "lies", does it mean that they will become thourough-paced liars all their lives? I think they're probably making research this way, to find out how life is. It like babies dropping spoons while eating at the table.Nothing more.
Kindest regards from
Laila in Sweden.
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