Pilgrimage Day 6

Today was Independence Day. Either there is some kind of holiday or holy day every other day in this country or I just happened to hit the right season. Apparently the standard way to celebrate an independence day anywhere in the world is with fireworks. I don't know if people are following our lead or the fireworks industry has a powerful international lobby, but either way you'd think of all places Israel might tone down the whole "Let's celebrate with explosives!" thing. But much like your earlier assumption that the grocery store would be open on Saturday or Sunday or before 4:00 PM, you'd be wrong. 

Oh yes indeed, Israelis love fireworks. They love them so much that I've been here on two different celebratory occasions when they've set them off. The first time they set them off they were lighting firecrackers, which to the untrained ear sounds just like gunfire. The second time was last night for Independence Day. This was a big municipal ordeal. "Where did the city gather to watch them?" you ask. Why, right under my room, of course! Oh yes, hundreds of people were packed onto Ben Gurion Avenue to watch the fireworks. The explosive thud of the first three fireworks had me convinced we were under artillery attack from Lebanon or Syria. I didn't hear anyone screaming or sirens going off, so I poked my head out the window and saw the sky light up with the fourth one.

I loaded up on cold medicine in order to get some sleep, which turned out to be a mistake. Because of the holy day, our pilgrimage was suspended, and we had the day to ourselves. I'd planned to go see some of the other sites not covered by our tour but then again I plan for a lot of things: I ended up sleeping until 12:00 noon. When I woke up I had lunch, took a shower and then took a taxi up to the Pilgrim Reception Center (the buses were running very slow because of Independence Day). I'd intended to have lunch with James & Annette, but we worked out dinner plans instead.

Back down the mountain, I took it easy until it was time to head back up for the Ninth Day of Ridvan observance. It was held in the gardens in front of the Haifa Pilgrim House next to the Shrine of the Bab. One of the members of the Universal House of Justice delivered a small address on the occasion and then nine readings were given in three languages: Arabic, English and Persian. My favorite was from Selections from the Writings of `Abdu'l-Baha:

O ye beloved of the Lord! This day is the day of union, the day of the ingathering of all mankind. ‘Verily God loveth those who, as though they were a solid wall, do battle for His Cause in serried lines!’ Note that He saith ‘in serried lines’—meaning crowded and pressed together, one locked to the next, each supporting his fellows. To do battle, as stated in the sacred verse, doth not, in this greatest of all dispensations, mean to go forth with sword and spear, with lance and piercing arrow—but rather weaponed with pure intent, with righteous motives, with counsels helpful and effective, with godly attributes, with deeds pleasing to the Almighty, with the qualities of heaven. It signifieth education for all mankind, guidance for all men, the spreading far and wide of the sweet savours of the spirit, the promulgation of God’s proofs, the setting forth of arguments conclusive and divine, the doing of charitable deeds.

Whensoever holy souls, drawing on the powers of heaven, shall arise with such qualities of the spirit, and march in unison, rank on rank, every one of those souls will be even as one thousand, and the surging waves of that mighty ocean will be even as the battalions of the Concourse on high. What a blessing that will be—when all shall come together, even as once separate torrents, rivers and streams, running brooks and single drops, when collected together in one place will form a mighty sea. And to such a degree will the inherent unity of all prevail, that the traditions, rules, customs and distinctions in the fanciful life of these populations will be effaced and vanish away like isolated drops, once the great sea of oneness doth leap and surge and roll.

After the readings were concluded, the Tablets of Visitation - two portions of the Writings specifically for special holy days and use at the Shrines - were recited. Then we were led in circumambulating the Shrine of the Bab by the members of the Universal House of Justice and their spouses. We did so in absolute silence. The only thing you could hear was the sound of footsteps crunching on the broken tiles that made up the path below our feet, the wind blowing through the palm trees and the birds singing.

I think I enjoyed the silence most of all but I was also touched by the faces I passed when circumambulating the Shrine. I passed Caucasian-Americans and African-Americans holding hands, the children of an Ethiopian wife and Danish husband, a Korean man and his Persian wife, a Canadian boy and his new friend from India... It was truly a wonder to see so many people from so many different places walking together without so much as a single trace of enmity or prejudice. They believe one and all that no matter where they're from - Kolkata or Kampala, Vancouver or Vienna, Santiago or Sydney - that we all belong to one human family.

After the holy day celebration, I went with James & Annette by sherut to the top of Mt. Carmel for the first time. We had dinner at a nice little restaurant where I learned about a new kind of cheese - halumi. It has a firm texture and it's generally fried. We all shared a halumi salad, a pizza and some kind of delicious cake. 

When we finished dinner, we took a walk along the Louis Promenade which gives you breathtaking views of Haifa and the bay (you can even see Lebanon!). They used one of the perks of being a World Centre employee - a key to most of the gates of Baha'i properties - to take us down the upper terraces on the way back to my guesthouse. We were the only ones there, and it was so quiet and peaceful in the gardens- no fireworks at all!