Day 1 of 19-Day Fast
59Shrine of the Bab in Haifa Israel
The Baha'i Fast
I'm a Baha'i.
The Baha'i calendar is made up of 19 months of 19 days each. The last month of the Baha'i year is a month of Fasting. That month begins today and ends the day before the Spring Equinox. The Baha'i New Year falls on the first day of spring.
The sun rose at 6:17am today. I was up at 5am so I could enjoy a slow cup of coffee before eating. French Roast is my favorite ground, so I was a teeny bit disappointed that I had accidentally bought "French Toast" coffee and not "French Roast". I laughed, however, because it is quite funny and the coffee didn't tast that bad.
The Baha'i Fast, in addition to abstaining from all food and drink (including smoking) from sunrise to sunset, is a time of prayer, meditation and reflection in preparation for the New Year. To help me in the reflection process, I have decided to hub about my fasting experience. I don't keep a journal so this is the first time I've attempted to use writing during the fasting period. I'm excited to see how writing expands the experience.
Since the fasting period is a time of meditation, I will be choosing a quotation from the Baha'i Writings to reflect on each day. Today's quotation is below just above the "comments" section.
I will update this hub this evening after the sun sets and I have broken my fast.
Fast Day 1 - Reflection Quotation
O SON OF SPIRIT! The best beloved of all things in My sight is Justice; turn not away therefrom if thou desirest 4 Me, and neglect it not that I may confide in thee. By its aid thou shalt see with thine own eyes and not through the eyes of others, and shalt know of thine own knowledge and not through the knowledge of thy neighbor. Ponder this in thy heart; how it behooveth thee to be. Verily justice is My gift to thee and the sign of My loving-kindness. Set it then before thine eyes. - Bahá'u'lláh
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Comments
Thanks for coming by, Robie. Yes, I've been to the Temple in Wilmette several times. It is a beautiful place. It's under renovation now so it's not the best time to go.
way to go bro....
Thanks Barb! You should start an account here at hubpages.
The day went surprisingly well. I usually have a hard time in the afternoons. Today was an exception.
Justice - A poem
Listen not to others, or be lied to
Look not through the eyes of others, or be deceived
Be not guided by others, or be led astray
The truth is only the truth when it falls on your ears
Reality is only a mirage unless your eyes witness it
only your feet can take you to your destination
Peace-
wow- that is amazingly beautiful. Can't wait till you are starvin to see what message you get. Makes my heart tingle.
Thanks Sandra!!! You are funny! There have been fasts where I was starving and I certainly felt like I was getting messages.
Thanks vreccc! This will help the month of 'Ala' be even more joyous and upliting!
Louise,
Thanks for stopping by.
I wasn't able to get Day 2 up this morning. I woke up later than I wanted to and only had time to eat before the sun rose. I'll put today's quotation I've chosen to focus up tonight in its own hub.
Cheers,
Jonathan
Take your time and we are with ya. Excellent idea for a HUB.
One thing I have always found true as a writer is you write better in pain.
Heartbreak is captured in song all the time. Probably written at the worst time as a measure of healing. As you deal with hunger, you should write about hunger.
Especially for the benefit of those of us in the states whose bellies are always so full.
just thought I'd see how day 2 went, vreccc--sun is down now--bon appetit:-)
french toast coffee, just saw that. :)
sounds good eh? Hey the socks are back--I must admit I like the socks--the have a certain "je ne sais quoi"
ty ty, I told you they always come back, just like jason or freddy or whoever in those teen horror movies.
have to admit to something of a lack of interest in discussing religion seriously in general (any of them), but the coffee thing caught my attention. sorry, jon. :p
Dj,
Surprisingly, this fast is going quite well for me. It's too easy. I actually do like it when it gets a little difficult. Neat stuff happens during those times.
thanks for stopping by.
Robie,
Always nice to see you come by. Thanks for thinking of mean as the sun was going down. I was on the commute home when the sun said bye bye.
Iðunn,
How did i know you would comment on the coffee:-) I knew you would say something about that.
I love those socks!!! however, I did like the tattoo as well.
:) ah, you are very astute. I do have to ask - is there really such a thing as "french toast" coffee, or did you just throw that in there to crack me up. ;)
I'll take a picture of the french toast coffee bag so you can 'see with your own eyes" he he.
I was a little ticked. I think they did it on purpose to trick us french roast lovers.
lol, I would take your word for it. I just thought in light of the recent billy mays fad maybe you stuck in there to lighten the hub.
I admit to not liking french roast and never hearing of french toast coffee. I like colombian. :)
I was thinking about the Baha'i calendar made up of 19 months of 19 days each.Can you name the months.Must be hard to keep it in mind.......we are so used to the usual 12 month calender.
Abhinaya,
Here are the sames of the Baha'i months and the Gregorian months they correspond to. Also, below is a link to a Wikipedia page on the Baha'i Calendar.
Splendour 21 March - 8 AprilGlory 9 April - 27 AprilBeauty 28 April - 16 MayGrandeur 17 May - 4 JuneLight 5 June - 23 JuneMercy 24 June - 12 JulyWords 13 July - 31 JulyPerfection 1 August - 19 AugustNames 20 August - 7 SeptemberMight 8 September - 26 SeptemberWill 27 September - 15 OctoberKnowledge 16 October - 3 NovemberPower 4 November - 22 NovemberSpeech 23 November - 11 DecemberQuestions 12 December - 30 DecemberHonour 31 December - 18 JanuarySovereignty 19 January - 6 FebruaryDominion 7 February - 25 FebruaryThe Days of Há 26 February - 1 MarchLoftiness 2 March - 20 March (Month of fasting)
Thanks vreccc.Nice to know about such calenders.I have to go thru the wikipedia for more info.Thanks again.
Abhinaya,
my pleasure!
I actually laughed out loud at the French roast/toast thing... they MUST have done that on purpose! Who would intentionally buy French toast coffee?
I KNOW!!!
I was ticked! I'm just trying to finish the bag off so I can get back to my tasty french roast.
Thanks for coming by, Helen.
robie2 says:
2 years ago
Very interesting. Will follow your fast journal. Once visited the Baha'i temple near Chicago--very beautiful building and gardens Hope you enjoyed your "french toast" coffee:-)