Turn of Events and Spiritual Causality Part 2

Turn of events and Spiritual causality according to Daheshist concepts.
Nations, just like individuals, do create their own destiny.
Excerpts taken from an article published in Dahesh Voice magazine, Vol. 11, No. 1, 2005.

By: Dr. Ghazi Brax

I have showed in part 1 of this study (see Vol. 10, No. 3, 2005 of Dahesh Voice) that human beings who are of descent from Adam and Eve had their Sayyals extended to them through procreation—Sayyals that carry within them the consequences of the Divine disobedience that they had committed, thus meriting to be bound by misery and ignorance after they have had a happy life in the lofty Worlds of Paradise enjoying high levels of knowledge. It is a pity that after their fall they have not preserved their lofty Sayyals by avoiding evils and improprieties. They have immersed themselves in vile activities and were lost in ignorance until God, in his infinite Mercy, pitied them and sent His Prophet Noah to guide and warn them. However, they resisted Noah and ridiculed him for one hundred years, thus meriting death through the Flood that spared only those that merited to be saved.

God allowed the human beings that survived the Flood to procreate. It was not for the bodily pleasures of sex and for the population of the Earth with their descendants—as what religious interpreters think, because they can’t imagine Earth without human beings—but rather to separate the good from evil Sayyals through procreation thereby making a distinction in their intellect level and propensities. According to the “Letter of Father Noah”—that was revealed in a Spiritual Session held by the founder of Daheshism on June 11, 1943, in the presence of two witnesses mentioned before and was miraculously written on several sheets of paper—each Sayyal is responsible for its own deeds, thoughts, and desires. The revealed letter gave details of the Flood and clarified what was unclear in “Genesis.” The following is what Father Noah said: “In the twenty-seventh day of the second month of the year, Divine Inspiration told me: “Noah, disembark from the ark along with everyone that is with you. There is no objection in procreation for reasons that must be kept secret from humanity for the time being, however, it will be unveiled at the appropriate time.” The Lord also told me: “Man has a corrupt and evil heart and for this reason he must populate the Earth. Each righteous person will separate himself from the herd of evil human beings and his happiness will be great when the final hour comes—the hour of judgment and retribution.””

This Divine address affirms that man molds his fate with his own will—be it righteous or evil. The pathways to choice are wide-open to him and it is he who creates his own destiny by either regaining the lost Paradise by defeating his evil propensities and earthly desires through his aspiration for Spiritual values as well as through his enlightenment by the study of the physical phenomena, thereby discovering natural causality and the Spiritual causality that lies behind it; or by continuing to live in ignorance, struggle, and misery by giving up to inactivity and to his personal fate that he had created in pervious life-cycles. That’s because the Sayyals of the Soul contain within them powers of intellect, dispositions, and propensities that do not die, but rather transfer from one form to another at death and according to their merit. The situation with individuals is not different from that of nations. So, what was the fate of humanity after the Flood?

After the occurrence of the fatal Flood and the passing of a few generations, human beings reverted to worldly values and subjected themselves to the attractions of evil, sensual desires, and inactivity, thereby lowering their intellect level and degrading the propensities in most people. They feared the wrath of God every time the sky thundered with torrential rain; the sea turned stormy; a calamity of some sort befell them; an overwhelming desire taken over them; or fearing an enemy. They would resort to those among them who are smarter or more cunning, beseeching them for protective power. Those in turn would extend them with fictitious powers to control whatever they wanted to control by creating for them spells, amulets, and conjurations…all the fictitious tools and lies that eventually led to magic. Soon after, magic intermingled with true religions by distorting their truth and desecrating them and at times replacing them. In this fashion, the deception of magic intermingled with religion in every nation and gave people the illusion that through magical means they can subjugate people, nature, and bring gods to their side. With the spread of illusions caused by magic, the human mind became paralyzed and the tempo of civilization slowed down for many centuries.

It became clear to Daheshists through heavenly inspiration received by the founder of Daheshism, that the Sayyals of human beings that contain their propensities, intellect, and dispositions are the ones that mold their destiny and set the order of their fate in this life as well as in the next. Each individual becomes a prisoner to his own personal fate that he had determined with his free choice. Whatever applies to individuals applies to groups and nations and is relative to the extent of harmony between the individual wills, propensities, and thoughts. Their Sayyals are the ones that elevate or degrade them as well as determine their condition—be it health-wise, mental, intellectual, or economic. Their Sayyals are the ones that provide them with freedom or repression; wealth or poverty; regress or progress; all under the auspices of a Spiritual Order not subject to error. For any group of people, Spiritual causality is based on their wills in the current and previous life cycles and the fate that they had determined for themselves.

According to Daheshist teachings, God does not interfere in the reward or retribution of man and does not judge any other creature—despite what many interpreters of religion tend to think. The Creating Power—a concept in Daheshism that closely resemble that of great scientists headed by Einstein—created a cosmic Spiritual Order that determines the fate of individuals and groups based on what their Sayyals had chosen with their thoughts, deeds, and propensities. Anyone that contemplates the laws of nature—a mere physical front to the Spiritual Order—will find many physical proofs. Any object that is lifted up without support will fall down due to the effect of gravity. However, this gravity differs [in strength] on the moon or on any other celestial orb. The nature of magnets do attract iron however, they will not attract wood. Any natural element can be transmuted into other elements by raising or lowering its atomic frequency, such as transmuting platinum into gold or lead in nuclear laboratories. In this manner, it is possible for individuals and groups to direct their wills on their evil thoughts of materialistic propensities that are anchored in their Sayyals from previous life-cycles and turn them into good thoughts and noble propensities (psychologically, their wills are likened to nuclear reactors acting on an element). Daheshism does not negate environmental factors—to include political and economic systems, religious traditions, social habits, and educational and upbringing factors—in growing feelings of animosity between people, or to reinforce certain directions. However, these conditions take place for Spiritual reasons in the form of natural turn of events—even though their roots may stem back to ancient times.

According to Daheshist principles, the Divine Spiritual Order will not allow degraded Sayyals to dominate elevated Sayyals with the passing of time. Air lies above ground and not below it—even if some is trapped into a cavity due to natural conditions. Likewise, it is not possible for the more evil to dominate the evil except as a mean for reform or awakening. This social event is very common between nations and has been repeated many times throughout all ages. We have seen primitive invaders (like the barbarians and others) invade civilized nations (like Athens, Rome, and the Arabs) over many successive eras. There are many who think that coincidences supported by military might determine the extent of control one nation has over another and the rise of one and the fall of another. However, the truth is contrary to that and it would be virtually impossible to have this knowledge save the Prophets and Messengers. All these events take place according to an Order of Spiritual causality that is based on Divine Justice—meaning the net merit of successive life cycles.

The Daheshist view that negates the presence of coincidences in any event surrounding individuals or groups parallels the view by prominent scientists—especially Einstein when he said: “God does not play dice!” Will Durant (1885-1981) the famous historian and sociologist in his book “Lessons of History” said [paraphrased]: “is it reasonable…that history has no meaning and does not present us with any lesson and that ancient history, in a broad sense, does not contain anything but repeated mistakes of devastating damages, yet with a significant impact on the future?”

It is impossible for the Just and Merciful Divine Power to do something that contradicts its Perfection. Just as the Divine Power helped humanity by allowing the redemption Sayyal of Christ to enter Adam in order to guide his descendants—even if it meant exposing this Sayyal to suffering and subjecting it to the harsh laws of Earth—and did not abandon the weak humans without help—who are prone to evil, vice, sensual desire, and all materialistic temptations. This help came sometimes in the form of a Messenger [Prophet] in the likes of Abraham, Moses, Jesus Christ, and the Arab Messenger [Muhammad]; at times in the form of a Spiritual Guide of an enlightened mind to receive revelation and Divine Inspiration in the likes of Akhenaton, Rama, Lao-tzu, Confucius, Buddha, and Gandhi; at other times in the form of a wise individual with lofty Sayyals to guide with his enlightened mind in the likes of Orpheus, Pythagoras, and Socrates; yet at other times in the form of thinkers, writers, poets, and social reformers with noble Sayyals extended from the Sayyals of the Prophets of God in order to continue their Mission when they are no longer alive.

I will briefly elaborate on several Spiritual Messages of Divine Guidance and the extension of their Sayyals to certain societies and how the fates of these societies were historically relative to the degree of applying or opposing the principles and moral values of these Sayyals:

The Tower of Babel and Gilgamesh

Prior to Abraham, the incidents of the Tower of Babel and Gilgamesh are perhaps as far back through factual history—or religion—as we can go. “Genesis” tell us that the inhabitants of the region demarcated by the two great rivers were able to advance the art of building and embarked on building a very tall tower surrounded by a city that can shelter them all. From what we derive from the text, the reason for building the tower is so that they can immortalize their name and not be dispersed all over the world. There is no doubt that the undertaking of such a project testifies to the level of their ambition and advanced intellect. However, the pathway to civilization had shown that science could be used for the good and righteousness as well as for evil and vice and there are many proofs available throughout every era, beginning with the invention of the dagger, sword, and bow and ending with the invention of nuclear and Hydrogen bombs, Television, movies, and the Internet.

That’s because the Spiritual elevation of the individual (as well as that of society) does not truly take place unless his propensities and thoughts elevate along with his intellect. If we examine the hearts of the people of Babel—as the Lord has done—we will find that the motive behind the building of the tower, as mentioned in “Genesis” was for satisfying their arrogance and for their desire to control others that would have led to the oppression of others on the one hand, and to dare God, who is in Heaven, on the other hand. By building a tower with its “peak in heaven” they reach the gate of God (Babel from Hebrew Bā b el ‘Babylon,’ from Akkadian bāb ili ‘gate of god.’) It is the same ambition that was within their angelic origin in the Worlds of Paradise when they dared to cross the boundaries set for them before completing their prescribed period of time, each according to his merit. By doing so, they had fallen to Earth in the form of Adam. For this reason, God confused the languages of the builders, scattered them, and destroyed their dream. As to their first king, it was Nimrod, the grandson of Ham, the son of Noah. According to an incident in the Old Testament, the Prophet Noah was enraged by his son, Ham, and cursed his offspring.

One may wonder: Could there have been natural causes that took place at the time and caused the destruction of the Tower of Babel and the dispersion of the people of Babel? Even if we suppose that natural causes were the real culprit here, there would have been just Spiritual reasons for their occurrence to punish a people that did not learn a lesson from the Flood and who returned to committing acts of oppression and vices—acts that caused the destruction of their predecessors.

If we examine closely the “Epic of Gilgamesh,” our attention is drawn to the Spiritual reasons that motivate its two heroes: Gilgamesh (the king of Uruk, a city that falls south of Babel and its name is linked with Nimrod) and Enkidu. Anthropological finds confirmed the existence of Gilgamesh, while Enkidu may have been a symbol introduced by the author of the epic. The king was known for his perverse desires in waging war and to sexually exploit women—especially brides right before their wedding. His people feared him and asked the gods for help to rid them from him. The heavens heard their cries and inspired a strong man that lived in the forest among animals to confront him. It was Enkidu, the symbol of primitiveness and innocence that has not been spoiled by nature. However this uncivilized human, prior to his gradual entry into the city, was destined to lose his natural innocence at the hands of a prostitute. With the loss of Enkidu’s innocence, Gilgamesh defeated him, however, he then befriended him. Enkidu’s fate was to die early in part as penalty for losing his innocence and in part to save Gilgamesh. Only through Enkidu’s death that the conscience of the king was revived and Gilgamesh then sought knowledge and contemplated the secret of death and what lies beyond.

He undertook many adventures and subjected himself to many risks in seeking the secret of immortality until he finally found it in Utnapishtim (Noah)—this righteous man that Heavens spared him from the devastating Flood because of his good deeds, virtues, and adherence to Spiritual values. His reward was to live happily in an eternal Paradise. After Gilgamesh had met and talked with Utnapishtim, it became obvious to him that regaining eternal paradise does not take place through oppression, the killing of people, lavish mundane glory, and becoming a slave to the desires of flesh and blood, but rather through “despising materialistic pleasures.” It is in this fashion that Enkidu’s death was a key to reform and the secret to immortality. Gilgamesh returned to his kingdom full of wisdom. The father of the gods appeared to him in a dream saying: “O Gilgamesh! This is the explanation of your dream: You were given rein because it is your destiny. As to immortality it is not your destiny. You should not sadden your heart by this, so don’t be unhappy or sad. The father of the gods had given you the power to resolve things and made you both, darkness and light to the people. He had given you dominion over countless people and made you victorious in many fatal battles…However do not misuse this power; treat your servants in the palace fairly; and be just in front of the face of the sun.”

There is no doubt that the transformation of Gilgamesh from a tyrant king who inflicted on his people oppression and misery to a just and wise king was due to his suffering from a conflict within himself between his lofty and degraded Sayyals until finally the victory was for the lofty over the degraded Sayyals. He may even possess a Prophetic Sayyal that extends to Noah. The glorification of Gilgamesh at his time as well as in our time through this wonderful epic—that preceded every known epic—is due to this noble Sayyal. This is very possible, because it is not necessary for the Mission of the Prophetic Sayyal to be limited to the delivery of a Spiritual Message.

 

 

The Prophet Abraham

The fate of Abraham was sealed to be a father to descendants who produced three Spiritual Messages, namely Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. However, despite the wave of Spiritual awakening that took place during the inception period in all three religions, most of the believers who came after the inception period did not differ much from the nonbelievers in their oppression, fights, selfishness, sensual desires, and mundane values. The causes are attributed to many reasons such as, hypocrisy, appeasing authority, and gaining favors or interests. Since human beings are punished by their Sayyals—just like all creatures—the nations of believers and nonbelievers have not seen peace and tranquility for four thousand years.

Abraham left Haran (in the region demarcated by the two great rivers), the homeland of his father, and migrated to the land of Canaan at the age of seventy-five. His wife accompanied him along with his nephew, Lot and his wife. They have taken with them their personal properties that could be transported. However, Canaan was facing famine, so Abraham and company headed to Egypt. When they had arrived and fearing that the Egyptians would kill him and take his wife Sarai (Sarah)—who was very beautiful—he asked her to claim to the Egyptians that she is his sister. In “Genesis” it is written: “…The Egyptians did see that his wife was beautiful. Some of the court officials saw her and told the king how beautiful she was; so she was taken to his palace. Because of her, the king treated Abram [Abraham] well and gave him flocks of sheep and goats, cattle, donkeys, slaves, and camels. But because the king had taken Sarai, the Lord sent terrible diseases on him and on the people of his palace. Then the king sent for Abram and asked him, “What have you done to me? Why didn’t you tell me that she was your wife? Why did you say that she was your sister, and let me take her as my wife? Here is your wife; take her and get out! The king gave orders to his men, so they took Abram and put him out of the country, together with his wife and everything he owned. (Genesis 12:14-20)

The reader will undoubtedly see the behavior of Abraham as weird and unjust—especially when the punishment that came down on the Pharaoh, his family, and the people was severe and reminds us of the misfortunes that befell the Pharaoh at the time of Moses. The answer to this query lies in understanding that human events are being stirred up by Spiritual reasons unknown to them—especially during the times of Prophets. In reality, Sarai was not the daughter of his mother, rather the daughter of his father, so he was truthful when he said that she is his sister. (Genesis 20:12) As to the Spiritual aspect, is it logical for a Prophet to sacrifice his honor, conscience, wife, and the integrity of his faith for the sake of being treated well and fear of being attacked? Is it possible for a Prophet to do such a thing without an inspiration telling him to do so? The Prophet David took the wife of Uriah, the Hittite because she was his wife in a previous life cycle. This is what we have learned from the founder of Daheshism in his inspired book “Memoirs of Jesus of Nazareth.” Can we definitely deny that Sarah was not the wife of the Pharaoh in a previous life cycle and that it was necessary to reestablish sexual relations with her so that he, his household, and his people would receive their just punishment for whatever improprieties they had committed? If so, then his situation is similar to that of David and that the difference between Abraham and Pharaoh in that Abraham was a righteous Prophet in front of God, while the Pharaoh was a sinner who had to have a sexual relation with Sarah so that punishment can be administered, otherwise, he would have had an inspiration or a dream that prevented him from executing his sinful desire.

The proof of this comes to us from the Holy Bible where after Abraham returned from Egypt, the situation repeated, but this time with Abimelech, king of Gerar (south of Canaan). The king became attracted to Sarah and after he had learned that she is Abraham’s sister, he decided to take her as a wife. However, the Spirit of the Lord came to him in a dream and told him that he would die if he touched her because she is Abraham’s wife. In fear, the king said to the Spirit of the Lord: “…Lord, I am innocent! Would you destroy me and my people? Abraham himself said that she was his sister, and she said the same thing. I did this with a clear conscience, and I have done no wrong.” God replied in the dream, “Yes, I know that you did it with a clear conscience; so I kept you from sinning against me and did not let you touch her. But now, give the woman back to her husband. He is a Prophet, and he will pray for you, so that you will not die. But if you do not give her back, I warn you that you are going to die, you and all your people.” (Genesis 20:4-7) In the morning of the following day the king called his men and told them about the dream and then he admonished Abraham for what he had done, however, he was generous with him and welcomed him in his kingdom.

A similar situation happened with Isaac, the son of Abraham and his wife Rebecca (who is Isaac’s cousin). While in Gerar, Isaac had spread the word that Rebecca is his sister fearing being attacked. Abimelech, who was still in power, was inspired to look through a window where he saw Isaac caressing his wife Rebecca, so he was certain that she was his wife. The king called Isaac and admonished him and then sent word to his people warning them not to mistreat this man and his wife, otherwise, they will be put to death. (Genesis 26:7-14)

The saving of Lot and his two daughters and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah

There is hardly a city these days where its dwellers are not living the lifestyle the dwellers of Sodom and Gomorrah had lived or a similar lifestyle full of vices and careless practice of sexually deviant behavior! Did it ever occur to the dwellers of these two cities that the sky would rain on them sulfur and fire to melt their homes and bodies as punishment for the vile acts they have committed with their free will? Likewise, it did not occur to the people at the time of Noah that the warning of the Prophet [Noah] could come true and that they would face destruction by the Flood. In our era, the age of advanced physical sciences and technology, there is hardly a natural disaster that takes place without having scientists look for natural factors in explaining their occurrence and stand blind to the realization that there is a Just Divine Power behind these natural factors that exact retribution from the devastated human beings in accordance to their merit in this life and in previous lives.

On this issue, it is important to make the following clarification: Spiritual Truths to people are more like medications that are given to them in specific proportions necessary to benefit them and according to their comprehension. For this reason, Spiritual Truths are explained relative to the advancement of science on the one hand and on the other hand relative to the Spiritual intellectual abilities of those receiving them. Of those individuals that knew the founder of Daheshism closely and had a long experience in finding out how he receives Revelation and performs miracles—especially those individuals who witnessed Spiritual Sessions that he used to hold—know very well that it is impossible for God (meaning the Absolute Creating Power or the Eternal Father) to address human beings directly and regardless of their being plain individuals or Prophets. It is the Angel assigned to deliver a Spiritual Message or to perform a Miracle who addresses the Prophet and the believers. It is the same situation when a Divine Spirit addresses individuals during a Spiritual Session held by a Prophet—as in Daheshism. In light of this, Daheshists understand the signals mentioned in Holy Books about Prophets addressing “God” or the “Lord.” It was necessary for the Hebrews to believe that the two “Angels” that destroyed Sodom and Gamorrah were truly “Angels” due to their intellectual level and the extent of advancement in physical sciences at their time that would not allow them to comprehend that there can be advanced civilizations on any planet outside of Earth. The founder of Daheshism explained to us that they were messengers sent by the Governor of a great advanced civilization on an alien planet and assigned to observe the behavior of the inhabitants of Earth and their scientific accomplishments.

The Governor, addressing a woman traveling with him on a cosmic spaceship that visited Earth after the end of World War II said: “We did not find significant innovations on planet Earth like our amazing innovations. Our spaceship travels at the speed of light (300,000 Kilometers per second) while the fastest speed accomplished by human innovation is 40,000 Kilometers per hour…Now we will go to Hiroshima and Nagasaki in order to file a report on the effect of the nuclear bomb that annihilated more than 100,000 individuals in 1945. There will come a day when we will make ourselves known to the inhabitants of Earth. At that point, our Emperor will either order us to occupy Earth or destroy it on top of their heads because they are evil and immoral and fire does not burn their sins. I still remember what my grandfather told me about the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah where news of their evils reached the grandfather of our Emperor—he was an Emperor as well—who sent them warnings to either stop their vile actions or be destroyed, but they did not care. Lot, the righteous, thought they were angels, while in reality they were mere messengers of the Emperor who incidentally were descendants of the giants. The giants [on our planet] are of the same size as the inhabitants of Earth.”

Joseph, the righteous

Any misfortune inflicted on human beings or creatures is brought on them by their own Sayyals, where their activity, thoughts, and desires in their existing or previous life cycle determine the type and severity of the punishment in accordance with a comprehensive Order of Divine Justice that involves the Angels and cosmic superior civilizations assigned to supervise inferior civilizations. In the occurrence of events, there is no such a thing as a coincidence and retribution only impacts those who merit it. No one can escape retribution even those who are related to the Prophets. The wife of Noah was not allowed to enter the ark of survival and the wife of Lot was turned into a pillar of salt. The Old Testament mentioned the wife of Lot while the Qur’an mentioned both in the following verse: “God sets forth, for an example to the unbelievers, the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot: They were (respectively) under two of our righteous servants, but they betrayed their (husbands), and they profited nothing before God on their account, but were told: “Enter you two the Fire along with (others) that enter!” (Sura Tahrim10)

We digress to Abraham who after reaching old age without having a son, was asked by his wife, Sarah to sleep with her maid, Hagar on a hope of having a child for Abraham. Hager gave birth to Ishmael when Abraham was eighty-six years of age, then after Spiritual intervention, Sarah gave birth to Isaac when Abraham was one hundred years of age. Isaac had a son named Jacob (changed to Israel by the Spirit) and Jacob had twelve sons, where Joseph was one of the twelve. Joseph was Jacob’s favorite son and he loved him so much that he placed him above all of his other sons. What made things worse were the dreams that Joseph would see and tell to his brothers—who saw him as arrogant and proud. In one instance, Joseph told his brothers: “We were all in the field tying up sheaves of wheat, when my sheaf got up and stood up straight. Yours formed a circle around mine and bowed down to it…Then Joseph had another dream and told his brothers, “I had another dream, in which I saw the sun, the moon, and eleven stars bowing down to me.” (Genesis 37:7-9) His brothers were very upset and envious of him and when they have reached the limit of their tolerance, they conspired to kill him. However, after intervention from his brother Reuben, they threw him into a well located in the wilderness. When Reuben was away, the rest of his brothers pulled him out of the well and sold him for twenty pieces of silver to a caravan of Ishmaelites headed to Egypt. In the valley of the Nile, Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officers and the captain of the palace guard, purchased Joseph from the Ishmaelites. Potiphar was pleased with Joseph and made him his personal servant; so he put him in charge of his house and everything he owned.

It didn’t take long for the wife of Potiphar to be attracted to the good looks of Joseph, so she tried to seduce him, but he was able to escape her seduction and ran outside, however, in doing so, he left his robe in her hands. She was very upset with him and told her husband that Joseph tried to rape her, so Potiphar arrested him and placed him in a prison where all the king’s prisoners were kept. Soon after, certain events took place and made the king angry with his chief baker and wine steward and he placed them in the same prison with Joseph. One day, each one of them saw a dream and told it to Joseph, who interpreted both dreams. The interpretation of the dreams came true and the Pharaoh ordered the killing of the chief baker and the emancipation of the wine steward. Joseph remained in jail for two more years.

One day, the Pharaoh saw a very disturbing dream and all the magicians and wise men of Egypt could not interpret it. At that point, the wine steward remembered that Joseph can interpret dreams and mentioned that to the Pharaoh, who ordered Joseph be brought to him. The Pharaoh addressed Joseph saying: “I have had a dream, and no one can explain it. I have been told that you can interpret dreams.” “Joseph answered, “I cannot, your majesty, but God will give a favorable interpretation.” The king said, “I dreamed that I was standing on the bank of the Nile, when seven cows, fat and sleek, came up out of the river and began feeding on the grass. Then seven other cows came up which were thin and bony. They were the poorest cows I have ever seen anywhere in Egypt. The thin cows ate up the fat ones, but no one would have known it, because they looked just as bad as before…” Then the Pharaoh told Joseph another dream similar to the previous one and then Joseph interpreted both dreams saying: “The two dreams mean the same thing; God has told you what he is going to do. The seven fat cows are seven years, and the seven full heads of grain are also seven years; they have the same meaning. The seven thin cows, which came up later, and the seven thin heads of grain scorched by the desert wind are seven years of famine. It is just as I told you—God has shown you what he is going to do. There will be seven years of great plenty in all the land of Egypt. After that, there will be seven years of famine, and all the good years will be forgotten, because the famine which follows, will be so terrible…Now you should choose some man with wisdom and insight and put him in charge of the country. You must also appoint other officials and take a fifth of the crops during the seven years of plenty. Order them to collect all the food during the good years that are coming, and give them authority to store up grain in the cities and guard it. The food will be a reserve supply for the country during the seven years of famine, which are going to come on Egypt. In this way the people will not starve.” The Pharaoh saw in Joseph wisdom and knowledge, as well as the “Spirit of God,” so he appointed him as governor of his entire country with authority second only to his. Soon after, the interpretations of Joseph came true and his prestige grew in front of the king and the people. (Genesis 39-41)

The way the events played out, we feel as if all the ill will that Joseph’s brothers had for him and despite the suffering he had endured, turned out to be good fortunes for him. Actually, as we shall see, Providence made it good fortunes for Egypt, the brothers of Joseph, and his family. As soon as the drought spread to the land of Canaan, famine took hold, so Jacob requested his sons to go to Egypt to buy grain—especially when news of plenty circulated among the people. So, they left Benjamin—who is their youngest brother and the brother of Joseph from Rachel—with their father and the ten brothers headed to Egypt. They met Joseph in his capacity as governor where he recognized them, however they did not recognize him. After testing them repeatedly, Joseph revealed himself to them by saying: “I am your brother Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. Now do not be upset or blame yourselves because you sold me here. It was really God who sent me ahead of you to save people’s lives. This is only the second year of famine in the land; there will be five more years in which there will be neither plowing nor reaping. God sent me ahead of you to rescue you in this amazing way and to make sure that you and your descendants survive. So it was not really you who sent me here, but God. He has made me the king’s highest official. I am in charge of his whole country; I am the ruler of all Egypt.” (Genesis 45:4-8)

In accepting the invitation of Joseph, they returned to the land of Canaan to escort back to Egypt their father, Benjamin, wives, sons, and daughters using the Pharaoh’s chariots. After Jacob had lived in Egypt for seventeen years, he died. The brothers of Joseph remembered their horrible crime toward Joseph and feared that he would turn on them to exact his revenge. So, they approached him and requested his forgiveness. He answered them: “Don’t be afraid; I can’t put myself in the place of God. You plotted evil against me, but God turned it into good, in order to preserve the lives of many people who are alive today because of what happened. You have nothing to fear. I will take care of you and your children.” (Genesis 50:19-21) The answer that Joseph gave his brothers is a lesson in love, mercy, and forgiveness to them and to every evildoer. It is similar to the saying of Lord Christ while on the cross: “Forgive them, Father! They don’t know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34) However, in saying “I can’t put myself in the place of God,” he brings to their attention that they would have to be punished for the evil act they had deliberately committed, for there is no escape from reward and retribution even in doing an ounce of good or evil.

The Enslavement of Jews in Egypt

It is written in “Genesis” that the “Lord” appeared to Abraham in a dream when he was of old age and childless and said to him: “Your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land; they will be slaves there and will be treated cruelly for four hundred years. But I will punish the nation that enslaves them, and when they leave that foreign land, they will take great wealth with them. You yourself will live to a ripe old age, die in peace, and be buried. It will be four generations before your descendants come back here, because I will not drive out the Amorites until they become so wicked that they must be punished.” (Genesis 15:12-16) We shall see that this prophecy is a Divine announcement of what is to come to the descendants of Abraham, the Egyptians, and the Amorites over hundreds of years after the passing of Abraham. However, this Divine announcement of future events does not influence the outcome because their occurrence is contingent on the choices and free will to commit good or evil. The first part of the prophecy points that the Amorites will not be expelled from Canaan where the Hebrews had hoped to live because Divine Justice will not allow the punishment to take place before they had merited it and despite them being unaffiliated to the descendents of Abraham. It is impossible for human beings to anticipate the occurrence of the second part of the prophecy or even to deduce it using logical historical analysis.

The reader may wonder: What is the fault of the children and their descendants if the brothers of Joseph are the ones who conspired against him? The Daheshist answer is that the Sayyals of the parents had extended to their children and their descendants. Modern genetic science affirms the transfer of genes—where the DNA carries their capabilities, diseases, and fundamental physical and psychological properties—from parents to their offspring. For this reason, if those who committed vile acts did not get punished in their lifetime, they will be punished through their descendants because their Sayyals are an extension to the Sayyals of the parents, grandparents, or ancestors. The second commandment of the Ten Commandments affirms this Daheshist Truth, for the Old Testament says: “Worship no god but me. “Do not make for yourselves images of anything in heaven or on earth or in the water under the earth. Do not bow down to any idol or worship it, because I am the Lord your God and I tolerate no rivals. I bring punishment on those who hate me and on their descendants down to the third and fourth generation. But I show my love to thousands of generations of those who love me and obey my laws.” (Exodus 20:3-6)

In this manner, human beings live subject to an Order of Divine Justice that will not malfunction. In their own free wills they create their own destinies and by choosing, they create their own fate and the fate of their offspring. Events occur in accordance to the merit of the people involved and are viewed by human beings to be the work of natural occurrences. The events are stirred for Spiritual reasons and it would be impossible for human beings to unveil them unless Divine Knowledge assist them in attaining this knowledge. As to the enslavement of the Israelites, it took place gradually. When a new king that doesn’t know Joseph took the reins of power and the Israelites in Egypt had multiplied and accumulated wealth and their hearts swayed from the worship of the only God, the God of Abraham. God created fear in the hearts of the Pharaohs, so they tightened their grip on the Israelites and enslaved them in hard labor and made them work in the fields and in construction for four hundred years, as the prophecy of their grandparent Abraham, the friend, had indicated.

As to the Egyptians, they were not rewarded for their evil action. Most likely, Joseph, the righteous lived about 1900 BC. He was contemporaneous to the end of the Middle Kingdom that existed between 2,375-1,800 BC (according to many historians, among them Will Durant). When Joseph died, the era of turmoil and unrest extended for more than two hundred years. Then God allowed Egypt to rise again under the rule of strong kings that forced peace and revived the people. This took place during the New Kingdom (also known as the Egyptian Empire). Perhaps peace and prosperity were a mercy and a test at the same time. However, they did not benefit from the mercy and failed the test, because all they cared for is the subjugation of neighboring nations in order to oppress and enslave them the way they enslaved the Israelites. This situation continued until the death of Amenhotep III in 1,380 BC, after he had imitated his predecessor Thutmose III by his indulgence in materialistic desires, excessive recreation, spending huge amounts of money on the priests and giving them properties, and allowed them to have sexual relations with hundreds of women in the temples dedicated to prayer under the guise that they are the mistresses of the god Amun (Amon).

Amenhotep IV reigned after Amenhotep III and lived a simple and pure life that is indicative of the lofty Sayyal that directed and inspired him. He was very faithful to his wife Nefertiti—even though she did not give him a male heir. He made many great accomplishments that no one before him in Egypt ever did: First, he established monotheism symbolized by the worship of Aton (Sun) and created for him the most beautiful of supplicating hymns. He changed his royal name that has a partial reference to the god Amun to Akhenaton [Ikhnaton is rarely used] that has a partial reference to the god Aton, the source of life, light, happiness and love. He outlawed multi-theistic worshiping that was a common practice for centuries. Second, he expelled the hundreds of women that the priests were desecrating the temples by having sexual relations with them under the guise that they are the mistresses of the god Amun and he also minimized the influence of the priests and reduced their revenue. Third, he preferred to abandon the lands that suffered under the oppression of the Egyptians and refused to send his people to die in wars for the sake of greed. However, his life was short, for he did not exceed thirty years of age when he died. He ruled from 1,369-1,353 BC. His military leaders and the priests hated him and after his death they destroyed everything he had built and returned to the worship of ancient gods and forbade the people from pronouncing his name and called him “the great criminal.”

The immorality of the Pharaohs and priests increased and their wealth became great. After 100 years Ramesses II reigned and married hundreds of women—some were his own daughters. The amount of slaves the priests held were 107,000 (at the time about one third of Egypt) and 500,000 heads of cattle, in addition to tons of gold and silver and astronomical agricultural products. When the Ramesses dynasty ended, the head priest took over the reign of power by force and changed the empire to a theocracy where superstitions and incantations flourished. From that point on, the Egyptian civilization took a fast course towards disintegration and the neighboring nations began to revolt against Egypt and establish their own rule. Such was the case with the Libyans, Ethiopians, Assyrians, Persians, Greek, Roman, and Arab…

With the advent of Moses, the Israelites are released from bondage

Anyone reflecting on “Genesis,” sees that the timing of the Divine Order with the birth of Moses coincides with peak tyranny and oppression of the Israelites during the reign of Ramesses II. He ordered his people to “Take every newborn Hebrew boy and throw him into the Nile, but let all the girls live.” (Exodus 1:22) This criminal act repeats during the birth of Jesus Christ at the hands of Herod the Great. Criminal Sayyals pass through cycles where they meet with the Sayyals of Guidance. We know through the events mentioned in the Old Testament how baby Moses escaped death. When the Prophet Moses grew up, the period of Spiritual retribution of the Israelites had just finished and he saved them after inflicting on the Pharaoh and his people severe Spiritual penalties for the oppression and the crimes they had committed. It is important to clarify here a matter that seems odd: the behavior of the Egyptian rulers and subjects was very illogical. Despite the power of the ten devastating blows inflicted on the house of the Pharaoh and the Egyptian people that culminated in the death of all firstborn males throughout Egypt, the Pharaoh refused to release the Israelites. Even after he permitted them to leave, he changed his mind and he followed and chased them until his army drowned. There is no doubt that his decision was not the type of decision he would normally take, but rather forced upon him through a Sayyal that “made the king stubborn.”

In Exodus, the “Lord” addressed Moses saying: “Tell Aaron everything I command you, and he will tell the king to let the Israelites leave his country. But I will make the king stubborn, and he will not listen to you, no matter how many terrifying things I do in Egypt. Then I will bring severe punishment on Egypt and lead the tribes of my people out of the land.” (Exodus 7:2-4) In this manner, when an individual merits punishment, his eyes will be covered and his brain will not function properly so that punishment can be inflicted on him as well as anyone else that also merited punishment. Throughout the 430 years that the Israelites had spent in bondage, most have deviated from Spiritual values. The decisive proof is their rush to worship the golden calf after Moses had left them for few days in Mount Sinai. The coming of the Prophet Moses was a Divine mercy for the Israelites—who had to struggle for a long time in order to return to the practice of Spiritual values and deserve to have the new Spirit of Grace continue within them. They were given the opportunity to establish a great nation during the times of the great Prophets David and Solomon in the 10th century BC. However, did the Israelites practice the Laws of Moses?

It may always be the mistake of the Israelites in thinking that they alone are God’s chosen people and that they are exempt from Divine punishment. For this reason, it didn’t take them long after their exodus from Egypt to gradually deviate from the Divine Laws and later on their corruption, deception, in fights, and greed led to the division of the kingdom after Solomon had died into two: Judah and Israel. Despite their repeated rebellion, the Mercy of God sent them at various times Prophets to warn them with an impending punishment unless they change their ways. After the warnings of the Prophet Isaiah (around 740 BC), Divine Will allowed Sargon II, king of the Assyrians to occupy Samaria, the capitol of the kingdom of Israel and to expel its residents in the year 722 BC. The fall of Samaria was a lesson to be learned for Hezekiah, the king of Judah (716-687 BC) so that he would institute a comprehensive religious reform during the time of the Prophets Isaiah and Micah. Years after Hezekiah, Josiah, the king of Judah (640-609 BC) instituted deep religious reforms that included fighting against idol worshiping. Unfortunately, the seeds of these Spiritual callings fell on bad soil, for the Hebrews in their two divisions [Judah and Israel] did not learn from their difficult times, rather closed their ears even to the warnings of the Prophet Jeremiah, thus meriting Divine Fury represented by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylonia, who completely destroyed Jerusalem; demolished its Temple; exiled its people to Babylon beginning in the year 598 BC; and gouged out the eyes of its king Zedekiah in August, 587 BC. After the evacuation, the Jews were forced to live in Babylon for half a century. The Lamentations of the Prophet Jeremiah was the byproduct of this disaster that befell on Jerusalem. The founder of Daheshism in his version of “Lamentations of Jeremiah,” said the following about Jerusalem: “Its enemies became its masters, for the Will of the Lord ordered its humiliation because of its many evils.”

When the Divine Will permits one nation to dominate another or one ruler to dominate another, it does not necessarily mean that the dominating nation or ruler are Spiritually loftier or closer to gaining God’s approval, because many are the times that the dominator is a temporary tool to punish and awaken the dominated from Spiritual slumber. The proof to this came to Moses in the form of an Inspiration as he entered Jordan and addressed his people saying: “It is not because you are good and do what is right that the Lord is letting you take their land. He will drive them out because they are wicked and because he intends to keep the promise that he made to your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. You can be sure that the Lord is not giving you this fertile land because you deserve it. No, you are a stubborn people.” (Deuteronomy 9:5-6)

In Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar became close to Daniel after he had interpreted his dreams. His behavior with Daniel resembles that of the Pharaoh with Joseph and God had mercy on him and protected his reign until time came for his punishment due to his cruelty. Likewise, his successor, Belteshazzar, was punished for his arrogance and was killed by Cyrus the Mede, who reigned over his kingdom in the year 539 BC. This great king distinguished his reign from others in his religious and political tolerance, for in 538 BC he issued an order to allow the Jews return to Palestine and to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem. The Prophet Jeremiah as if answering the question why no other king had taken such a tolerant position, said: “Thus says the Lord to his anointed One (Christ), to Cyrus whose right hand I have grasped to subdue nations before him and strip kings of their strength… For the sake of Jacob my servant… I have called you by name and given you a title… Though you have not known me I shall strengthen you… I have aroused Cyrus in righteousness, and I will make all his paths straight; he shall build my city and set my exiles free, not for a price or reward, says the Lord of Hosts.” (Isaiah 45:1-13)

I asked the founder of Daheshim about what the Prophet Jeremiah meant by “Anointed One” (Christ) in talking about Cyrus and his answer to me contained the following explanation: This shows how Spiritual causes pertaining to events are kept hidden from human beings. Even though Cyrus was not a Hebrew and did not relate to Abraham directly, he had a Sayyal from the Sayyals of Christ. Christ here does not mean Jesus Christ, but rather the power of Spiritual Guidance that was later on represented in the noblest way by Jesus of Nazareth and because of that, he was referred to as the Christ. It is not mandated that the Sayyals of Christ had to only take the form of Prophets and Messengers, for some Sayyals may be present in kings or military leaders, reformers, or other distinguished human beings. Cyrus is one of them and is mentioned openly in the Holy Book after Melchizedek, king of Salem.

In the year 428 BC, Ezra, the great Jewish scribe and priest came to Jerusalem from Babylon with a huge crowd of Jews and instituted religious reforms and gave the Laws of Moses their final form. Jeremiah had preceded him in returning from exile and his calling for reforms. However, the Jews did not benefit and did not learn their lessons from the calamities that befell them and did not listen to the warnings of the many Prophets sent to them by Divine Mercy—that no other nation had seen—until the advent of Lord Christ, as we shall see later on. The fate that they had molded with their activities, thoughts, and desires made them fall under the rule of the Macedonians, Ptolemies, Seleucids, and then Romans…