Bahá'í Epistolary

Sunday 29 November 2009

Where do we go when we die? Yes, but where is that?

Another podcast. This is a recent lecture I gave in Cambridge University, on the matter of life after death. While reviewing the well-known fundamentals of the Baha'i perspective on the after-life, it goes further, to approach matters that I have seldom if ever seen addressed in the literature, namely, once we grant that the Baha'i teachings posit the survival of the soul after death, how do we answer the question of where exactly is the after-life? And what connection, if any, does it have to this life, beyond bringing it to fruition. Can we reach that world, or those worlds, in this life? Are we already there? And what does all this have to do with traditional notions of union with God, of nirvanna, of enlightenment? And can we take our dog?

7 comments:

Unknown said...

Sure - take yer dog, if'n ye want. The master said, animals are one of the mysteries of this life cycle. See if he [she] will come when ya call 'im. That'll be interesting, fer sure!!

Leaper, darlin' here boy!! C'mon!! Good dog!! (He was my 'growing up' dog, bestest friend and compendium. [don't worry - all the puns are intended ...]

Anonymous said...

Abdu'l Baha told someone who asked that their dog would be there IF THEY NEEDED IT. With all the realms of God before you what is the chance that you will need your dog? None really. It was a way of making someone happy without really committing to an afterlife for animals, it was quite clever actually.

The whole message is don't worry, nothing you really need will be missing and everything is in front of you. In more vernacular terms, don't sweat the small stuff.

Unknown said...

OMG then to be fair we might have to bring along the Great White...maybe we might have to be lunch over there too. No not really,that irreplaceable dog love is a womb world beautiful thing.near impossible to understand from this perspective,hardwired with veils, can not see well in the half-light...but maybe if we could see we forfit our blind journey through the 7 valleys, farewell free will....no security but submission,face that Door at the right moment washed face and mumble His words...By the way were on the big screen there

,they (ancestors,etc) know us better than we know ourselves...no secerets as that world is mysterously patterened after this unbelievable all to short womb world experience.

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Anonymous said...

Hello. And Bye.

Anonymous said...

Aprendi mucho

Anonymous said...

good points and the details are more precise than somewhere else, thanks.

- Murk