It was on the seventh day in the month of June when Haebaktari the Hermit left his hermitage in the land of the Mundas to visit the city of Haram.
For five years he dwelt in seclusion submitting himself to the will of Allah, it was a deep longing to see the city of his birth and the friends of his childhood, that caused him to give up the sanctity of his hermitage.
As he journeyed toward the city of Haram, a bright light from the heavens descended upon him and the voice of Allah spoke to him saying “Haebaktari son of Jezankiah, thou hast been faithful to me and thou hast served me well, I shall bless you and make your name great throughout the land of the Mundas.
Go you now into the city of Haram and teach the people the things which I have commanded you”
Haebaktari glorified the name of Allah, he cried with a loud voice saying “Blessed be the name of Allah, God of earth, wind, fire, rain and space, I am thy servant and thy command is my will.
I of myself shall not speak to the people of Haram, it shall be thy voice which speaks through me and I pray that the people will hearken unto my words”.
After having thus rendered due obeisance unto Allah, Haebaktari continued his journey to the city.
As he was approaching the city gates he saw a great multitude gathered together awaiting his return.
The word had already come unto them that Haebaktari the ageless Hermit of the Mundas was returning to the city of Haram.
When he entered the city they all cried out in one voice “Welcome Haebaktari, son of Jezankiah, for five long years our eyes have hungered for the sight of your face and our ears have hungered for the sound of your voice.
Long have you been gone and much we know you have learned during the years of your contemplation, we would entreat you this day to speak to us from the repositories of your knowledge.
There has been great confusion among us, many have departed from the ways of Allah, to seek the ways of other gods.
In our confusion we cried out unto Allah and asked him to send us one who would pacify us and guide us in the way of righteousness and truth.
We know that you have been sent to us by Allah Himself, we entreat you to speak to us of God, some say that Allah is the one true and almighty God some say that it is Jehovah, still others say that it is Brahma.
If we serve Allah and one of the other gods is the true god, will He not consume us with fire because we had not worshiped or serve him?”.
Haebaktari meditated upon these words, then he answered saying “there are many things of which we make gods, there are many gods and demigods, many are they who make gods of their possessions and Overlords, howbeit there is but one supreme and omnipotent God who is the creator of the heavens and the earth, He is called by umpteen names throughout the earth”.
“People of Haram know that The One God who created your souls has unlimited power, His thoughts were the first vibrations to move in space, from His thoughts came you.
You are a lesser form of God enclosed in a body, The One God, who created you, is the centre of your being; He knows your thoughts and all your hidden desires.
When you reach out to make contact with The One God, you reach out with your thoughts, thoughts are vibrations revolving within the ether, The One God is the highest source of all thoughts, and he encompasses all lesser thoughts.
Do you think people of Haram, that the all wise God who created you for the purpose of serving him would wantonly destroy you because you call His name Allah. Jehovah or Brahma, when in truth he knows that you are only reaching out to find Him with the thoughts that He gave you, which are even His lesser thoughts dwelling in a lesser being of His own creation.”
“Tell me O people of Haram, if you had sons and daughters in a faraway land and their only means of communicating with you is by letters which are their thoughts dressed in the mantle of words.
Should you receive a letter and in that letter your were addressed by a name other than mother or father, but in your hearts you know that the letter is conveying thoughts to you personally, would you in anger renounce your children because they did not address you as mother or father”?
The all answered “No wise Habaktari we would not?
Haebaktari continued “If you being finite beings and would not renounce your children because they called you by different names; think of The One God, who is infinite, as high as the Milky Way is above the earth, so much higher are the thoughts of The One God than your thoughts”.
You read the Holy Scriptures and you were taught to pray to a God who created you and all the earth.
When you pray your organize your thoughts into a series of words and you speak those words to God.
Prayer is your way of reaching out to your God, to praise or thank him, prayer is the expansion you your God self in the realm of the spirit.
You who recognizes The One God as the centre of his being should fear not destruction if you should call His name Allah, Jehovah or Brahma”.
The people again asked “Is it right to worship in a Mosque, a Synagogue a Monastery or a Church”?
Habaktari answered “If it comforts you, build unto The One God a house of wood or stone and call it what you will, worship within it if you must, for it is better to worship within than to worship not at all.
When you gather yourselves together in your house of wood or stone, know in your hearts, that The One God dwells not in structures which you have erected with your own hands but rather in the unlimitedness of the universe”.
“Speak no evil of him that enters not such a house for oftentimes he worships in a greater house of which structure you are not worthy to lay a corner stone”.
Then Sylvian, a Christian preacher form Haram came forth and said, “Haebaktari, we have known you form the days of your youth, you have lived among us until you became inebriated with the wine of heresy.
Cursed and possessed of the devil have you become, a serpent and a spewer of venom you stand before us seeking to poison our minds and lead us form the truth which we have inherited from our fathers”.
A usurper of the scriptures have you become, a harbinger of lies and a servant of the devil are you, who deserves death.”
“Let us O people of Haram” shouted Sylvian “Stone this heretic to death and burn his carcass and scatter its ashes in the east wind that is may be bourne out of Haram to the hovel of a hermitage in which he slothfully dwelt all these years”.
The crowd was angered by the words of Sylvian, for they wanted to hear Haebaktari speak, they silenced him and took him away.
After the turmoil subsided, a young man spoke up and said, “You have told us that it does not matter in what house we choose to worship, now tell us how we should worship”.
Haebaktari answered, “Let your worship be in sincerity and truth, do not make a great show of holiness for men to behold, for it is not to men that you should render your worship.
Accept The One God as the eternal source of your life, be humble as you seek his divine guidance.
Let all things in your life be secondary to The One God for without Him, you are like the leaves of a withered tree which the wind scatters into space.
Beware of the actors disguised as holy men who speak in loud voices, bidding others to make contributions unto God, the contributions given usually go into their own coffers.
Be merciful unto your fellow men regardless of their religion, race or political affiliation, even as The One God is merciful unto you, though your deeds are such that you do not deserve mercy.
Crave not after the things of the contingent world for they shall perish, rather seek you the things of the spirit which are life eternal.
Covet not any man for his riches, for his riches are often like a vast ocean which separates the rich from the shores of his God.
If you are rich, give unto the poor that they may satisfy their needs for all the riches that you amass on this earth, cannot equal an act of charity in the sight of The One God.
Fear not the persecution of the wicked ones if you are delivered into their hands, they too shall be delivered unto a mighty judge and you shall be free.
Let not the charms of a woman become a deep pit wherein you fall and your soul becomes stagnant.
If you desire the gratification of a woman, then take unto yourself a wife for it is better to have wife than to be chained to a cross of lust.
Husbands, you who mistreats his wife is showing disregard for the companion given to you by The One God.
Avoid the embranglement of the world, for their purpose is to beguile your minds and retard the elevation of your souls.
Be not conformed to the systems and traditions of men for such conformity is like a millstone around your neck dragging you down into an abyss of futility.
“Set not your heart’s desires on things created by the hands of men, for what are they but their earthly fancy made visible. If you must use them then do so with a spiritual understanding, let not yourselves become so attached to them that you pine and lament their passing if you should be taken away from them or they from you.
To pine and lament the passing of earthly things is to doubt the benevolence of The One God.
He knows all your needs and will fulfill them if you but only ask in spirit and in truth.”
Copy not the behavior of those who follow the ways of the world for six days and choose a seventh day to worship and proclaim their righteousness.
Worship The One God your creator every day regardless of where you are or who you are with.
Wait not for a special day when you are among a special gathering to do your worship.
Condemn not those who single out a special day to do their worship, it is better to worship The One God one day in every week than to worship him not at all”.
Now there was a man in the crowd who was from a faraway land and he was a Christian, he came forward and addressed Haebaktari. “Are you not erring in unjustly criticizing the Sabbath, wherefore did Moses write “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy, six days shalt thou labour and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the is the Sabbath of the lord thy God in it thou shalt not do any work. In six days the lord made the heaven and the earth, the sea and all that in them is, and rested on the seventh day.
Wherefore the lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it”
“So then thou Hermit who speaks with a viper’s tongue, is it not right for us to keep the Sabbath day and worship the lord our God.?.
Haebaktari answered and said “My friend the laws of Moses were given a people living under different conditions, did not Jesus in his day abrogate some of those laws.
What would the governor of Haram do to you my friend if you were to stone to death someone who broke your Sabbath? would he join in the stoning or would he have you arrested?. Would you tomorrow take your disobedient son who does not heed the warnings of his parents to the city gates and have him stoned to death?”
“It behoveth you not to set yourself up as a judge of the laws of The One God, for from age to age he renews his message to humanity.
Were all the laws of Moses applied to you and those of like mind methinks you would have all been put to death for failing to obey those laws.
Does not your bible also say, “Beloved be not ignorant of this fact that one day with the Lord is a thousand yours and a thousand years as one day”.
So then sir, if a day can be a thousand years, you and your fathers before you have yet to keep a Sabbath.”
Jesus said “The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath” The One God is Lord of heaven and earth and also Lord of the Sabbath, he who sincerely serves The One God fulfills the Sabbath even if he should be out in the field sowing seeds to feed his family.:
“If in your hearts you should doubt and fluctuate in uncertainty and it comforts you to keep a Sabbath, then let your hearts keep a spiritual Sabbath, which is not from sunrise to sunset but from dawn to eternity”.
Then an eunuch came forth and said “Great master, why do you speak of “The One God” and not of Allah”
“I speak of The One God, because I want to avoid confusion among you, if I should say Allah, then some would say in their hearts that all other names use for The One God are depicting false Gods.
When I speak of The One God, I speak of the omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient creator of the universe.
If you conceive him to Allah, El Shaddai, Jehovah or Yahweh, condemn not the one or the other.
We are all leaves from the tree of life and though we are scattered throughout the earth and there are divers religions among us, there is but one boundless God, who transcend them all.
Not even the infinity of the universe could withstand the wrath of umpteen almighty jealous Gods”
Now the night was fast approaching and the crowd began to disperse with wonder in their hearts as they contemplated the revolutionary words of the Hermit, they went their way spreading the sayings of Haebaktari in all Haram and the land of the Mundas.
Ken George Dill
Jamaica 1979
