9 September 2013

Toward the One

Dear Companions on the Path,

May these lines find you well.

Following a summer of travels, I have just returned with my family to the Abode of the Message. It is good to be back.

These are some brief impressions of the places through which I have passed over the last weeks:

Istanbul, Turkey—soaring minarets, stirring hymns, and the warmest of hospitality. The old and the new stand in vivid juxtaposition here. Hearts are responding to Murshid’s message of unity.

Campra, Switzerland—higher ground, and neutral ground where seekers of many nations have for decades gathered each summer in rain- and sun-soaked tents, a microcosm of the planetary family.

Suresnes, France—in Murshid’s day almost rural, now fully urban, but still a sacred place. The newly painted Universel shines “like a wedding dress.” Soon children will take their seats at École Noor Inayat Khan dite Madeleine.

Katwijk, The Netherlands—a temple in the dunes, the dome an ear held up to the whispering sea breeze. Can travelers enrolled in different orders belong to the same caravan? If they walk together, yes.

More travels lie ahead in the fall—California, Washington, D.C., and Boulder—but for now I am happy to rest my feet for a time.

Meanwhile all eyes are on Syria, where over a hundred thousand lives have been lost in the unending civil war. What terrible heartache and misery has been wrought! The atrocity of a poison gas attack has now arrested the world’s attention. A response is needed—but what response? World leaders are conferring. Let us pray that wisdom will prevail, that reckless adventurism will be abjured, and that the path to peace, justice, and healing will show itself.

Spirit of Guidance, the world needs your light now.

Yours ever and always,

Pir Zia

P.S. Here at the Abode, two apartments have become available. If you are seeking a place in which to live in good fellowship, to join in regular prayers and meditations, and to add the work of your two hands to the worthy task of sustaining this unique place, community, and school, I heartily encourage you to visit and apply. www.theabode.org