Comments on: A beautiful darkness

By: lucy

lucy — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 15:13:11 +0000

a beautiful darkness, indeed! i have visited this post a couple of times now and words seem insufficient for response…the picture truly speaks volumes!!! peace to you, friend!

By: Tess

Tess — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 22:22:57 +0000

I feel really blessed to read all these comments and know that you are thinking of us all. Barney, your story of your own brother and your quote from Bahá’u’lláh are very moving.

By: Abdur Rahman

Abdur Rahman — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 21:03:02 +0000

Peace Tess

My deepest condolences at this time for you and your family. May God grant you all ‘peace beyond understanding’.

It’s a lovely photograph. Allah bless your brother.

Abdur Rahman

By: Barbara

Barbara — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 00:49:40 +0000

I feel privileged to have been allowed to share those quiet, dark moments with your brother and you as his soul passed into God’s embrace. The photo you shared clearly shows his loving nature and your posting reveals yours. God gave you to one another as a blessing that death does not take away. Peace.

By: Barney

Barney — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 20:29:05 +0000

Tess, I’m sorry to be late in offering my comment. I wanted to thank you for such a beautiful, touching, moving description of your brother’s last hours on this plane of existence. It reminds me of my own brother’s last hours of physical life. He had cancer (prostate cancer that spread to the bones), but despite being heavily sedated he managed to work himself into the “Lion Position” that Buddhist practitioners of the particular Tibetan school to which my brother adhered before he passed away. The impact of being close to one of these special souls as they make the transition to the next life can be extraordinary, even for those who don’t believe that there is anything transcendent.

I hope you won’t mind if I end with a quotation from the writings of Bahá’u'lláh:

‘Know thou that every hearing ear, if kept pure and undefiled, must, at all times and from every direction, hearken to the voice that uttereth these holy words: “Verily, we are God’s, and to Him shall we return.” The mysteries of man’s physical death and of his return have not been divulged, and still remain unread. By the righteousness of God! Were they to be revealed, they would evoke such fear and sorrow that some would perish, while others would be so filled with gladness as to wish for death, and beseech, with unceasing longing, the one true God—exalted be His glory—to hasten their end.

‘Death proffereth unto every confident believer the cup that is life indeed. It bestoweth joy, and is the bearer of gladness. It conferreth the gift of everlasting life.’

By: anita

anita — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 17:19:06 +0000

A moving tribute—he was fortunate to have had such a loving sister, and you were fortunate to have had him to love.

By: Tess

Tess — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 16:38:57 +0000

Towanda, Christine, thank you. And Christine, I think your phrase is absolutely right. A gift of a life.

By: Abbey of the Arts

Abbey of the Arts — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 15:00:23 +0000

For some reason I wasn’t able to comment the other day, but just wanted you to know this was beautiful and the photo is stunning. What a gift of a life. There is a little something heading across the Atlantic to you.

By: towanda

towanda — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 03:36:32 +0000

A beautiful photo, and a beautiful remembrance. Peace, friend.

By: Tess

Tess — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 18:00:35 +0000

Thank you all for your comments here, it seemed important to me to try to articulate those experiences. It’s a strange thing, blogging, isn’t it? So personal and yet in other ways so anonymous.