By Mounir Murad

What we perceive to be the “Truth” is in reality no more than a few slivers of light emanating from a bright star. Our knowledge, despite the rapid advancement in science, is at the kindergarten level—if that—when compared with the knowledge of the Lofty Worlds of this vast universe and that of any other universe(s). Even if we are able to travel at the speed of light, space exploration will remain limited to those stars that are reachable in our lifespan, such as Proxima Centauri Alpha, which is about 4.3 light years away from Earth. To travel across our galaxy would take 90,000 light years. To cross to the nearest galaxy would take 3,000,000 light years. Our universe contains about 125,000,000,000 galaxies, let alone any parallel universe(s). To say we are a grain of sand on the beach or a drop of water in an ocean would not be an overstatement. All that I just mentioned is true when viewed through the eyes of human beings using our understanding of the laws of physics. What if there are more advanced entities in the universe that travel vast distances in a nonlinear fashion by bending the space-time continuum? What if there are entities that travel at speeds faster than that of light? How could the vast energy that converted to mass during the Big Bang, thereby creating this universe, have existed from nothingness in violation of the laws of conservation of energy? How could the past, present, and future be one and the same for individuals endowed with Spiritual Powers, in the likes of Jesus Christ? Humanity will never be able to arrive to such answers on its own without intervention from powers that are far beyond its level. But how do these powers manifest themselves to humanity?

Daheshism is unique among religions in its ability to tie in all possible existences throughout this universe and other universe(s) to each other and to the Spiritual Worlds that created them. Granted, this knowledge is relative to our Spiritual merit and it is only at a very primitive level if compared to that of the Loftier Worlds. Albeit a primitive knowledge, yet it is a much more comprehensive view than what traditional religions or philosophies have to offer. This vast universe is ruled by the thousands of Sayyals (Spiritual Fluids) of the highest Spirit in the Spiritual Worlds before God, known as “Christ.” This powerful Spirit is not only the source of Prophets, Guides, and Reformers, but also the force behind the advancement of science, philosophy, literature, music, and art. Individuals such as Einstein, Socrates, Plato, Beethoven, Mozart, Shakespeare, and many others, can be viewed as Guides with a specific mission to extend humanity with a specific form of knowledge. The Sayyals of Christ brought us Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and many others. Mind you, each religion came at a specific period in history, for a specific group of people, and according to their Spiritual merit. It is this Great Spirit of Christ that brought humanity a 20th century manifestation of itself in the form of a new Prophet and Guide to fulfill the prophecies of the past and make new ones for the future.

Prophets of Judaism prophesied the coming of the Messiah. Today, Jews are still waiting for the Messiah. About 2000 years ago, they rejected Jesus Christ as the Messiah, because he did not fit into their image of what the Messiah is supposed to be, for he was the son of a carpenter and lived a very ascetic life. They envisioned the Messiah to come as a powerful king, rid them of the Roman rule, and restore to them the glory of Israel as it was during the rule of kings David and Solomon. Christians and Muslims are waiting for the second coming of Christ. Christians expect the second coming of Christ to be a spectacular scene, where Christ comes on a cloud and gather up all the believers. Most Muslims expect the returning Christ to preach Islam. The Shi’a, a sect of Islam, expect the “Mehdi” [The “Guided One” and redeemer of Islam] to come along with Christ during the end of times. The New Testament and the Qur’an both associate the second coming of Christ with the end of the world and the destruction of Earth. During the first decades of Christianity, Christians preached that the end is near, yet two millenniums have passed! Over 1,400 years ago, the Qur’an also preached that the end is near. Events from the past had shown that expectations are one thing and reality is another. Who is to say what “near” means in Spiritual terms?

As the Dark Ages came to a close, the world witnessed the age of Renaissance, where literature, philosophy, art, music, and architecture flourished. At the same time, major scientific discoveries paved the way for the Industrial Revolution and placed science and religion on a collision course ever since. No one could ever forget the horrific treatment of Galileo by the Catholic Church and the horrific crimes committed against humanity during the Spanish Inquisition. In the late 19th century and early 20th century, the inventions of Thomas Edison played a fundamental role in the advancement of scientific knowledge and scientific discoveries mushroomed. In 1901, Marconi transmitted telegraphic messages ushering the way for long distance communications. In 1903, the Wright brothers took their first flight. In 1905, Einstein introduced the Special Theory of Relativity and proceeded with the development of the General Theory of Relativity. In 1907, Lumiere developed color photography. In 1908, Ford produced the first model T automobile. In 1910, Marie Curie finished her “Treatise on Radiography.” No time period in the known history of the world would even come close to what the 20th century delivered in terms of scientific achievements—that provided enlightenment and at the same time drew the world closer to total annihilation. The second coming of Christ came at a crucial time for humanity, not only to affirm scientific discovery, but also to frame such a discovery in a Spiritual context. His descent to Earth was also to warn of the impending danger from annihilation unless humanity embraces: love and virtue over envy, greed and immorality; brotherhood of man over exploitation and injustice; and Spirituality over materialistic tendencies. So it was that on June 1, 1909, an immigrant Christian couple to the Holy Land, gave birth to Saleem Moussa El-Ashi, who grew up to be Dr. Dahesh, our Beloved and Guiding Prophet, the returning Christ, and the gift of Heavens to humanity.

During the childhood and youth periods of our Beloved Prophet, the popularity of Gibran Kahlil Gibran was growing in the United States and abroad. Kahlil Gibran is considered by Daheshists to be the forerunner to Dr. Dahesh—in the same fashion John the Babtist, who is the reincarnation of the Prophet Elijah, was the forerunner to Jesus. Kahlil Gibran published Spirits Rebellious in 1909; The Madman in 1918; The Prophet in 1923; and Jesus, The Son of Man in 1928. He died on April 10, 1931. Our Beloved Prophet died on April 9, 1984, a day shy of the 53rd anniversary of Kahlil Gibran’s death. Dr. Dahesh was only 21 years of age at the time of Gibran’s death and the two never met in person. Our Beloved, at the time, was extremely moved by Gibran’s writings. In his book, Secrets of the Gods, our Beloved speaks highly of Gibran and his writings and calls him “my brother” in one of his poems. Why shouldn’t he, for Gibran is known to some Daheshists, to have had certain Sayyals extended to him from Christ.

Dr. Dahesh grew up at a time when the entire world was in turmoil. WWI was a horrific war where millions upon millions died, massive populations uprooted or became homeless, and many great cities were devastated. Such were the conditions that he lived under during the first few years of his life. Soon after, his father died and he was placed in an orphanage for a short period of time, where he received only a few months worth of education. He never formally attended school, however, his writings filled over 100 books. In 1930, he took residence in Lebanon and on
March 23, 1942 Daheshism was declared and attracted an intellectually diverse group of individuals. Daheshism appeared at a time when the world was engulfed by WWII—a war that exceeded its predecessor in magnitude and ferocity and ended with the total annihilation of the cities of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. In the beginning of 1946, Dr. Dahesh wrote his book Memoirs of a Dinar, through which he foretells the annihilation of Earth by means of nuclear weapons. As to when such a moment may come, no one knows exactly. We learned through a Spiritual Message that Daheshism must spread first and here is the reference:

“Let it be known to you that the various religions that are present among the nations, have existed for a Spiritual purpose, otherwise, they would not have existed. The Buddhist possesses certain Sayyals, through which, merited being a Buddhist. So too is the Confucian, Muslim, Christian, and so on. Therefore, the diverse religions would not have existed without a purpose and know also that they will also have an end because the crucible of Sayyals will condition the form they must take. At that point, you will find one religion and one faith dominating this entire Earth. Let each one of you be certain that this will take place sooner or later. One may question how this could be knowing that the end of this Earth is near—a timeframe that does not allow the Sayyals to be conditioned and be of the same level to allow this amazing transformation in the souls of human beings? I respond to this person by saying that when the time comes for this life-cycle on Earth to end, whoever becomes a believer and walks the true path—those are of a significant number—will be grouped and will be sent to a world loftier than their last world of continuous suffering. As to those who could not walk this path as their duty dictated them to do, they will be given a different Earth other than this one where the Sun does not shine on them and they no longer see the glittering of the stars.”

This message is very consistent with the Bible and the Qur’an when talking about the Final Days, Day of Judgment, and Day of Gathering. According to the Epistle of Paul to Thessalonians, he wrote: “There is no need to write you, brothers, about the times and occasions when these things will happen. For you yourselves know very well that the Day of the Lord will come as a thief comes at night. When people say, “everything is quiet and safe,” then suddenly destruction will hit them! It will come as suddenly as the pains that come upon a woman in labor, and people will not escape.” 1 Thessalonians (5:1-3) According to the Qur’an: “They ask you about the Hour, when it will strike. Say: “The knowledge thereof is with my Lord; none but He will disclose it at the right time. It will be fateful in the heavens and on earth, and will not come upon you except suddenly.” (Sura Al-A’raf: 187)

Our Beloved had come and gone and now it is our responsibility to carry the torch that he lit for humanity. As we enter the 2nd century since his birth, we can only hope that the following few years expose the world to the Message that our Beloved had suffered for. His Message of love, compassion, and Spiritual enlightenment will become a beacon to the world that guides those who strayed from the path of righteousness. Yes, the Day of the Lord will come, but that doesn’t mean that we should get depressed, give up, or become idle. On the contrary, we should look at the time we have left in this life as an opportunity to make a positive mark on humanity and to Spiritually elevate ourselves. May this blessed day of June 1, 2009, be a turning point in the life of every human being.