Unless and until the believers really come to realize they are one spiritual family, knit together by a bond more lasting than mere physical ties can ever be, they will not be able to create that warm community atmosphere which alone can attract the hearts of humanity, frozen for lack of real love and feeling. (Shoghi Effendi, Unfolding Destiny, p. 439)
A friend of mine passed away this week. We knew it was coming, but because of COVID, my biggest fear was that she would die alone, with people unable to be with her. I had to give this one over to God, and He came through, big time. She went into palliative care in her local hospital on Friday, after being able to live alone up till then, and died on Sunday. Because she lives in a small town, and all the COVID cases were sent to a large centre, she was allowed to have visitors. We were all notified when her breathing changed early in the morning and 5 of her closest Bahá’í friends were at her bedside for several hours before she passed. I live 6 hours away and am her executor, so I too was notified as were her friends around the world, all of us praying for her steadfastness till the end of her life and for the advancement of her soul in the next world. In case you haven’t seen it, here is a newly translated prayer many of us were saying (in addition to a whole lot of others):
He is God! O Lord! Grant me such grace and bounty, such protection and support, such kindness and security that the last of my days may excel their beginning, and the end of my life commence the bestowal of manifold favours. May some gift or blessing of Thine reach me at every moment, and one of Thy pardons and mercies be granted me with every breath, that beneath the vast shade cast by the hoisted standard, I may return to that Kingdom which is worthy of praise. Thou art the Beneficent, the Kind, and Thou art the Lord of grace and bounty. (Provisional Translation. A prayer for a favorable end to one’s life (extracted from a Tablet of ʻAbdu’l-Bahá written for Áqá Mírzá Áqáy-i-Afnán)
Her non-Bahá’í cousins and neighbors were all watching this unfold and saw first hand that we were able to “create that warm community atmosphere”. Please God, let this attract the hearts of everyone watching and let them be impressed by this outpouring evidence of “real love and feeling”. What better legacy could she leave than that?
Knowing that there are times we get this right, I am grateful!
What jumped out for you as you read today’s meditation? I’d love it if you would share so we can all expand our knowledge of the Writings!
If you liked this meditation, you might also like my book Learning How to Forgive
That was a beautiful story and a great example of community togetherness. thank you for sharing that prayer. I have copied it to keep for some future use.
I’m glad Deborah. The older I get the more opportunities I have to say it; and some days I just say it for my own hour of death, in case there’s no one available to pray me into the next world!
Thank you Susan for this reminder that community must be expanded even during this pandemic. The love and respect you and the community showered upon your dying friend is touching and must have made her transition joyful. Even if we cannot be at a friends side, there are ways to stay in touch; the other day four of us friends were able to facetime (with help of the nurse) another Baha’i who has covid and is in coma and on a validator – we said the long healing prayer to him. God bless our medical personnel!
Thank you for the newly translated prayer, I love that we keep getting new information and encouragement from our NSA and the UHJ!
Wow, Bertha! What an incredible story! What amazing medical personnel to be so compassionate as to enable this to happen. I’m so happy to hear this amazing use of technology. This would have had an incredible impact on his soul, which was definitely attentive, and he may have even heard you and be comforted, even in a coma, even if he couldn’t show you. You improved the quality of his last days, and no doubt it made a big impact on the people at the hospital who may have never seen such a thing happen ever before. An amazing act of teaching and service. Ya Baha’u’l-Abha!
When I sat with a dying friend all the prayers I read felt “wrong” until I came to prayers for forgiveness. Those felt so “right.” I didn’t understand until later that, though she had lived a “better” life than I could imagine, there is still need for God’s mercy and forgiveness. She died a few hours after I left. I have dreampt about her a few times since then, and she has continued to progress. Her daughter had called me specially on her last day because she was aware of the bond between us. I remain grateful for that.
What a wonderful story, Duane. Thank you for sharing! It’s a precious experience to act as a “spiritual midwife” ushering someone into the next world. I’ve had this experience too, which I might share in my next post.
What comes to mind with your story though is this: recently a friend of mine committed suicide and it troubled me greatly. When I was pouring my heart out to God, I was instructed to say prayers for his steadfastness, to help him turn towards God in the last second of his life, remembering that there is no time or space in the next world. I pray that it worked. I won’t know for sure till I get there myself, but it gives me great comfort to believe that I can still perform this act retroactively.
Dear Susan,
Thank you and the commenters for this article!
I love our community of commenters too, Steve and I appreciate your enthusiasm and encouragement of my work.