day nine

“Do all ye can to become wholly weary of self, and bind yourselves to that Countenance of Splendors; and once ye have reached such heights of servitude, ye will find, gathered within your shadow, all created things. This is boundless grace; this is the highest sovereignty; this is the life that dieth not. All else save this is at the last but manifest perdition and great loss.”

‘Abdu’l-Bahá

“O SON OF EARTH! Wouldst thou have Me, seek none other than Me; and wouldst thou gaze upon My beauty, close thine eyes to the world and all that is therein; for My will and the will of another than Me, even as fire and water, cannot dwell together in one heart.”

Bahá’u’lláh

brendan (chicago, u.s.a.) left: I think my stomach has quit working. It used to tell me I was hungry. Now, it just kind of lingers there, waiting for me to fill it up with something edible. About halfway through any fast, my body adapts to the constraints of twice daily ingestion. It’s around this time I can stop thinking about eating my own arm and start focusing more on the real reasons for the Fast. These are the best days.

leili (haifa, israel) right: For me, every year the Fast takes on a different face and brings with it different challenges and blessings. Every action and every thought count to realign oneself in preparation for the year ahead. And at the end of the day, the satisfaction of having achieved just a portion of one’s goals is much more rewarding than a delicious meal. All that is left is for our Fast to be accepted.