Sydney, Australia
A day of location scouting with my favorite partner in life.
“Dost thou reckon thyself only a puny form When within thee the universe is folded?” -Baha’u’llah: The Seven Valleys and The Four Valleys, “The Valley of Wonderment”
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Adelaide, Australia
Chains can be a symbol of power and of exercising power over others. They may keep you imprisoned, but the greater bonds we must break are those of the prison of self. As ‘Abdu’l-Bahá states: “When one is released from the prison of self, that is indeed release, for that is the greater prison. When this release takes place, then one cannot be outwardly imprisoned.”
“O My Servant! Free thyself from the fetters of this world, and loose thy soul from the prison of self. Seize thy chance, for it will come to thee no more.” -Baha’u’llah, The Hidden Words of Baha’u’llah, no. 40
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St. Peter, USA
“Man has a sacred power which permits him to discover the inner significances, the reality of invisible things.” -‘Abdu’l-Bahá
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Bahji, Israel
“…Spiritual empowerment, which seeks to express itself through unity-building, is different from concepts of power that accept conflict and even violence valid means of constructing a new society. …the development of skills is part of our concept of basic education, skills are to be used in service to humanity, and not only for the improvement of one’s own economic and social condition. Economic development and full employment occur naturally in a civilization established on sound spiritual principles and, for us, do not define the purpose of society and its educational system.” -Baha’i International Teaching Centre, 1989 Jan 01,Task Force on Education
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Sydney, Australia
When the tender Spring breeze pushes through the branches of the trees to rest upon your shoulders, you momentarily feel the strength of everything that led to that point through time. The canopy weighs heavy to shelter your journey, as the pine-cones feed the power of one person’s imagination.
“Unlock the gates of true understanding and let the light of faith shine resplendent. Gather all people beneath the shadow of Thy bounty and cause them to unite in harmony, so that they may become as the rays of one sun, as the waves of one ocean, and as the fruit of one tree.” -‘Abdul-Baha
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Vancouver, Canada
“O Son Of Spirit! My claim on thee is great, it cannot be forgotten. My grace to thee is plenteous, it cannot be veiled. My love has made in thee its home, it cannot be concealed. My light is manifest to thee, it cannot be obscured.” -Baha’u’llah
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Chicago, USA
oh, the powers we humans wish we had!
“Exalted, immeasurably exalted art Thou, O my Beloved, above the strivings of any of Thy creatures, however learned, to know Thee; exalted, immensely exalted art Thou above every human attempt, no matter how searching, to describe Thee! For the highest thought of men, however deep their contemplation, can never hope to outsoar the limitations imposed upon Thy creation, nor ascend beyond the state of the contingent world, nor break the bounds irrevocably set for it by Thee. How can, then, a thing that hath been created by Thy will that overruleth the whole of creation, a thing that is itself a part of the contingent world, have the power to soar into the holy atmosphere of Thy knowledge, or reach unto the seat of Thy transcendent power?” -Baha’u’llah
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Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
“Throughout the universe the divine power is effulgent in endless images and pictures. The world of creation, the world of humanity may be likened to the earth itself and the divine power to the sun. This Sun has shone upon all mankind. In the endless variety of its reflections the divine Will is manifested. Consider how all are recipients of the bounty of the same Sun. At most the difference between them is that of degree, for the effulgence is one effulgence, the one light emanating from the Sun. This will express the oneness of the world of humanity.” -‘Abdu’l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace
I love that we are all here because of the power of a simple image. Images convey more than words can, but the two together can be breathtaking. Keep up the amazing work to everyone involved in this project.