 Good morning everybody. I hope you had a wonderful sleep and It's wonderful to be here, and I'm deeply grateful to the Association for Baha'i Studies For the invitation to participate in this session. I Also feel extremely privileged to share this platform with somebody I dearly admire and very much love And that is where dear Faraneh Hadim, Varqa Hadim known have for a long time And and was privileged to be in the same community with her and with her dear husband Rami Friends this topic that I have chosen for this session I called it that Eureka moment Because it's about this concept of discovery science progresses through discoveries and I called it as you could see at the end of the Title I added two more words. I called it an exploration Because I've imbibed this sense from The writings and also from observing whether or not really we do progress Because we knowingly or unknowingly rely on the power of divine guidance in whatever field of endeavor we may be To arrive at the greater measure of the truth Now I Have rarely come across a quotation That is so sunk sinked and so capable of truly conveying to us the definitions of these two Most mystical and very difficult to define terms religion and science and This document one common world that has been mentioned many times and I do really hope that there will be a conference completely dedicated to everything that is embodied in this document to guide us into Sharing with the peoples of the world the vision of the fact that we are of one common faith and We find it in page 33 and I have bulleted it so that it could perhaps help us in Understanding this definition and I put the words religion and science in between brackets because they Exact court does not use these terms. So this is just for us to be helped The sentence actually the paragraph starts with the term religion is religion as science as science And then they go into the definitions The one meaning religion discerns and articulates the values Unfolding progressively through divine revelation and this concept of progressing The the the affordment progressively is what we see in religion But is also what we see in science The other is the instrumentality through which the human mind Explores and is able to exert its influence even ever more precisely over the phenomenal world The one defines goals that serve the evolutionary process The other assists in their attainment Together they constitute the dual knowledge system impelling the advance of civilization Each is hailed by the master as an effulgence of the son of truth So before I take you to the premise of this talk I would like to just give you a little bit of a background for to make it a little bit more personal. I Was born in Iraq few years ago and I Always and I think partly because I'm a Leo I always wanted to be an actor and Drama was very important for me from a very young age and I played in drama I directed prom drama and that was my future that was going to be my career And you could see even in my hands when I do this But I think it took a little while of my for my parents to convince me that that's a really a nice hobby and That perhaps particularly in Iraq that was not necessarily the best of careers chosen for me So I began to think about what it is. I wanted to do and medicine was there Screaming loud and clear at me. I wanted to do medicine and I wanted to just be a healer I wanted to be involved in the very process of Helping people to be healed So I was determined to do this and in a way I was also competing with my own cousin Who had been her family pioneers in the Seychelles and never had the chance to do major science But she was so smart that when she came back to Iraq managed to get her British GCE degree advanced level and got the Cambridge exam and not Cambridge, Massachusetts the other Cambridge and Was accepted in the faculty of medicine So I was determined to go in the same direction. I was doing my international baccalaureate and Was had hard worked very hard and I think only few of you here and I know some who are from Iraq here Who will appreciate what I'm talking about when I say those days were remarkably Scary because of the circumstances in Iraq both politically and for the faith that we went to the baccalaureate with Guards with Clashnikov standing by the door to be able to actually sit for our exams and As we're doing this, I'm sitting there in this exam and the exam being taken throughout the country with the same set of examinations same sort of questions and I Saw a from the window after about half an hour 35 minutes a bundle of paper thrown Right into the hole came and landed exactly beside me And I knew what it was because I could see the person sitting in front of me being very Aware of the fact that it didn't land beside him. It landed beside me. So I Knew that this was answers to the questions and somebody had actually Basically is helping him cheat So I raised my hand I called the invigilator and I said, I'm sorry. This has just come through the window It has nothing to do with me. Please if you don't mind remove it He opened it and it was indeed that and he removed it and I Didn't know that the next few minutes will change the course of my life. I Went back into answering my Questions and I just looked at the person in front of me. He turns around and He flicks his switchblade At me and says I will get you outside. You've just destroyed my future. I was I Was 15 and a half at the time and I was Well, I'm of a high the last thing I want to say, okay, I'll meet you outside. I'll get you Maybe I should Secondly I was really young. I was scared So scared that I just didn't know what to do. I decided that The concept it's better to be killed than kill maybe applicable here But also flight is not a bad concept so I answered sufficiently to actually finish there my paper just enough to pass and ran out and ran 38 minutes to my home and My marks were not sufficient to go to the faculty of medicine So that part finished and I was no longer allowed to go into medical training and I was despairing and I wanted to do nothing else but there what was so I had the only choice open to me was the faculty of science and education and Okay, I wanted chemistry chemistry wasn't available. You have to do biology Don't want to do biology But to cut a long story short within a matter of Six months I fell in love with this subject and that's partly because Again parents and the love that I was surrounded within the encouragement made me understand that it is not until you love Until you get attracted to something and look at the positive part of it that you begin to See things very much differently from when you don't have that vision so I became a biologist and The rest is history. I came to England and was educated the University of London and So on and so forth. I became an immunologist in my training. I say this because When we are forced sometimes in our careers we have to be to do the best that we can and when we do so new vistas open before us new opportunities open before us and Remarkable learning and false Let me come back to the premise of this talk And in a way really this slide and I would like you to concentrate rather than on me But on the material that's going to be on the PowerPoint presentation projected by the LCD To so that we could journey together through this as quickly as possible The concept that I am deeply interested in is how does knowledge become advanced? We know that it is a primary purpose a primary reason for the For both religion and science We know that both are created by the same source God is the source of this and we will visit some of the writings Confirming this he is the fashioner of all and that includes science and knowledge as well as the arts That scientific discoveries are the result of the pursuit of answers To a serious questions. That's what we do as scientists. We are Inquisitors we'd like to have answers to Minor and major questions But how do we achieve this is what is intriguing isn't that it's only our Intellect that guides us into this process and therefore if you're clever You will find out and that's because you are clever or isn't that that? Intelligence is necessary To then be inspired To receive guidance from a divine source So if I want to just give you with the foundation of this is that if there is a realm Where perfection of the sciences and the arts exist? Our task is to make ourselves Through humility, but through also knowledge Expertise make ourselves Conduits so that that science and that perfection of knowledge can continue to flow upon us but that this flow is Is piecemeal this floor is incremental that is Commensurate with the capacity and our ability to not only understand it but to convey it and to apply it So the concept of turning to the source is Prelude to The revelation of that science Through these instruments and I would like to see scientists ultimately consider themselves to be instruments conduits and Means by which that perfection of the sciences will continuously be revealed to us In the writings of Abdul Baha, and I'm so deeply touched by the fact that mr. Banani Gave us the first clue of this of the value of revelation because it helps us to understand This connection in the worlds of God from the tablet of Hikmat from the tablet of wisdom to now turn to the writings of Abdul Baha and to see that Abdul Baha refers to the sciences as Bridges to reality. He says if then they lead not to reality not remains but fruitless illusion By the one true God if learning be not a means of access to him the most manifest It is nothing but evident loss It is incumbent upon thee to acquire the various branches of knowledge and to turn thy face Towards towards the beauty of the manifest beauty This concept of turning Once you have acquired the knowledge is an important concept that Baha scientist and Eventually scientists in the world will realize is a key for discovering The reality of science and the reality of the answers to the questions that we have That thou may us be a sign of saving guidance amongst the peoples of the world and a focal center of Understanding in this fear from which the wise and their wisdom are shut out except for those who set foot in the kingdom of lights and Become informed of the veiled and hidden mystery the well-guarded secret Now the source of science we know is God and the writings Truly not only adumbrated, but they are very clear about it in the summons of the lord of hosts in this Surah Hakel We read or in most heart of this temple We have made the the dawning place of our knowledge and the dayspring of our wisdom and to all Who are in heaven and on earth From thee have we caused all sciences to appear and Unto thee shall we cause them to return So the connection is not that way created and left there for you to discover It's created and they continuously to be connected to that source Erlong shall we bring into being through the exponents of new and wondrous sciences of potent and effective crafts and Shall make manifest through them that which the heart of none of our servants have yet conceived Science Abdul Baha says is an effulgence of the son of reality the power of Investigating and discovering the verities of the universe the means by which man finds a pathway to God Today's science may not be Seen as exactly that but There is no doubt whatsoever that as the change that is already discernible Begins to have its influence in Allowing people to understand that things are being revealed Through them, but not necessarily from them is When we truly begin to discover the answers to the Multiple questions and we talk about medicine It is no wonder that Abdul Baha said Medicine is still in its embryonic form. It is not yet necessarily fully bored Science is the first emanation from God toward man I have added all of this emphasis because of the references to the different Headings here all created beings embody the potentially Potentiality of material perfection, but the power of intellectual investigation and scientific acquisition Is a higher virtue specialized to man alone He refers to it He refers to science as a mirror He says in fact science may be likened to a mirror Where in the infinite forms and images of existing things are revealed and reflected and I I'm deeply Touched by this vision of the fact that what we do here is Reflect the perfection of the sciences that already exist in the realm of God Our task is to be able to be The best possible mirror and the best possible mirror is one that is cleansed The most skillful mirror is the one that has already emptied itself of itself Beside this it is necessary Abdul Baha says that the signs of the perfection of the spirit should be apparent in this world So we are about bringing this into this world So that the world of creation may bring forth endless results and This body may receive life and manifest the divine bounties We need to draw from that source After Baha says although to acquire the sciences and arts is the greatest glory of mankind This is so only on condition That man's river flow into the mighty sea So it is when we merge our Droplets With the mighty sea that we are made to flow as a river We are made to flow as Being supplied by that source That man's river flow into mighty into the mighty sea and draw from God's ancient source his inspiration if then The pursuit of knowledge lead to the beauty of him who is the object of all knowledge How excellent that goal But if not a mere drop will perhaps shut a man off from flooding grace For with learning come with arrogance and pride and it bring it on it bring it on error and indifference to God Now the last part is a feature to a great extent today within scientific and academic communities Because we have not yet acquired that vision of the fact that we are not it We are instrument and that instrument can only function better with the Relative degree of Humility that we express the greater degree of humility the greater the science that will emerge And that has been shown over and over again That the greatest of those who truly discovered and brought about the change in This world those tipping points Were the ones who were humble and I will mention at least one of them at the end But this is also beginning to change so if we are to be Turning to the source The source is going to inspire us This concept of inspiration is very interesting because when I began to look at it I was amazed at how many references are there in the writings about inspiration But Abdul Baha is also very careful about telling us the difference between two types of inspiration But let's define inspiration first Abdul Baha says inspiration. What is it? Whence come it? Whence comes it? Is that which reaches our heart divine or satanic? How can we judge? Reflect on the divine forces. What has assembled us together? It is not a material but a spiritual force which has created this bond between our hearts This attraction and affection for one another a power stronger than reason a power which founds nations creates human unity and Makes us renounce the world To discover sciences and organize laws which work through all creatures But then he asks this question. He says the question arises How shall we know whether we are following inspiration from God or? satanic Satanic promptings of the human soul How shall we attain the reality of knowledge? by the breaths and Promptings of the Holy Spirit which is light and knowledge itself Through it the human mind is quickened and fortified into true conclusions and perfect knowledge This is conclusive argument showing that all available human criteria are erroneous and defective But the divine standard of knowledge is infallible by turning to that source by recognizing that it is coming from that great Ocean of knowledge It is when we connect ourself to it that we know and we pray that our guidance is Driven by the Holy Spirit and it is not driven by satanic fancies Man is said Abdul Baha It was quoted in Bahá'í world faith Man is said to be the greatest representative of God if he comes under the shadow of the true educator And is rightly trained he becomes the essence of essences the light of lights the spirit of spirits He becomes the center of the divine appearances the source of spiritual qualities The rising place of heavenly lights and the receptacle of divine inspirations If he is deprived of this education he becomes the manifestation of satanic qualities the sum of Animal vices and the source of all dark conditions Further quotes from the writings about inspiration Abdul Baha again says it is evident therefore that man is in need of divine inspiration Divine education and inspiration that the spirit and bounties of God are essential to his development essential Where it not for the inspiration of the breath of the Holy Spirit this life would be a farce The you the heart in of man is open to inspiration. This is spiritual communication You shall see the host of inspiration descending Successively from the supreme world the procession of attraction Falling incessantly from the heights of heaven the abundance of the kingdom of al-Abha Pouring continually. I cannot see this Not applying to our scientific endeavors to our artistic endeavors to our creativity That creativity that comes from the realm of the creator himself Now there are parallels and this is what is also fascinating when you begin to put yourself in that posture of Wanting to continuously observe The the parallels between the spiritual realm the spiritual Understanding that we have and the scientific facts that we have you could become Absolutely amazed if not mesmerized by the fact that they Converge and move in parallel lines at times to an extent that I could absolutely Come home dancing with a reality realization that there are images Shapes and I don't mean just physical shapes But principles and concepts that regulate the very essence of the body of man That reflects the world order of Bahá'u'lláh and I hope one day we will have another opportunity When we have another conference on science or religion to talk about some of these parallels, but I'm going to give you one example So there is this reciprocity between the two realms of of science and spirituality science and religion in the body of a man Which is the true divine example or parallel the spirit when in ideal control of all the lesser parts of the organism Finds the utmost harmony throughout the whole body each part is in perfect reciprocity with the other parts I Study lungs I like breathing and I'm an immunologist by training and Immunology is one of those fields that are a bit like kind of astronomy to an extent because you are delving into the unknown and It is very mystical it is a science that is constantly being shaped and finding its ultimate Answers to Remarkable questions and these questions and this is what sometimes I'm amazed about are about the propagation and the protection propagation and protection of The order of the body I study diseases that are Very important particularly since some of them are now epidemic asthma is now an epidemic particularly in the so-called developed world COPD or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is the disease that is the result usually of smoking is Going to be within the next eight years the number two killer in the whole world Even if every smoker stops smoking today It still will be the number two killer in in the world And also cancer These are the areas that we are covering in in our study In the field of immunology there is this concept of almost universe within universe as you discover one layer of this onion You then peel it off and there is another layer We're now beginning to discover that there are almost Worlds within worlds within the very cell we could begin to see that there are at a molecular level the signs and symptoms of a system within the smallest tiniest units of that very cell It's almost like there are cells within cells and when you go to the writings. Bahá'u'lláh tells you That there are worlds within worlds that there are universes within universes sons within sons So my work is about Particularly with the field of asthma. That's outlined in the bottom there How does it start? We've got some wonderful observations that I'm going to be pursuing on as Mr. Banana and he put it my holiday I wish it was In Australia and two laboratories pursuing three questions there one of them is how does it start we have evidence that's the uterus and the early New natal stage of life is extremely important in regulating the whole process that may lead to this set of complex syndromes What regulates it? What are the mechanisms that regulate it and can we identify? rapid accurate and Reliable markers that are non-invasive that you could very quickly tell whether or not The patient is going to respond to a bc or d treatment or a combination thereof today This disease is treated by shotgun Therapy everybody gets the same thing and compliance to treatment is one of the worst in the world It's less than 50% people give up treatment and ultimately die of asthma Because there the medicine does not work for them. We are now targeting Individuals not targeting the disease But we are addressing the individual in the treatment itself. I'm interested in inflammation as one angle of this science of immunology and I don't want to go into too much detail here because we don't have time but The concepts that are there you could hear words that we find extremely Abundant in the writings we find the concept of attraction the concept of mobilization the concept of stimulation and Putting the the emphasis on the ability of these cells to become activated to become responsive to respond to Messages that they receive in order to perform The tasks that they have to perform Again, I don't think I have enough time to take you through some of the Things that I would love to talk to you about some of our work but just see the difference between the airways of the one in the bottom panel where the The hole is open for the air to travel and compare it with the other two Where in an asthma the patient has no space to breathe. This is a child who died of asthma and And you could see the cell that I'm interested in the cells that are staining pink there Or red are the cells that cause much of the damage there And it is our intention to try and reverse this this condition and not allow any more Children to die of this of this disease. This is the goal I give to my students my graduate students before they come that their goal must be lofty and that lofty goal is providing help and support and eliminate the suffering and ultimate potential death of the ones who are afflicted by this condition I'm studying the cell that is Moving around before you and that's the one that I was telling you about where we're beginning to find There are words within it and that you find also in the writings were Bahá'u'lláh says With the hands of power. I made thee and with the fingers of strength. I created thee And within thee I have I placed the essence of my light in Esselmont we see Him referring to the fact that in the writings Bahá'u'lláh wants us to express our inner true self This concept of inner true self is a concept in immunology that a cell begins to express its true self Once it is Stimulated to realize what capacity it has that's Very much applicable to us and you see it here in another cell type that we studying called the mass cell where you could see The cell as beginning to respond to the message and to begin to produce what is capable of Generating otherwise it is sitting there resting and not Dealing with with anything because it appears to be in a random phase Turn thy sight and to thyself Bahá'u'lláh said That thou mayest find me standing within the mighty powerful and self-subsisting I'm gonna move quickly here Spiritualizing science therefore is a goal that we have The nature Shogya for the house of justice says and scope of such a civilization are still beyond anything the present generation can conceive The prosecution of this vast enterprise will depend on a progressive Interaction between the truths and principles of religion and the discoveries and insights of scientific knowledge This entails which I love this quote Living with Ambiguities as natural and inescapable feature of the process of exploring realities Scientists are beginning to realize that there are not going to be any black and white answers that Particularly in the field of biology. We are not about the Cartesian pattern of thinking which is By reductionist approach, we find the little Nut or screw that is loose. We tighten it disease is gone because the machine is now functioning We are far more complex and genetic variation as well as Other environmental reasons are going to continuously influence this and keep us Busy trying to find answers we talked about the necessity for humility in Our seeking to find that truth Bahá'u'lláh says humble thyself before me that I may graciously visit thee scientists and academics This is our motto It is when we do so that we begin to truly acquire the knowledge that God wants us to reveal to this humanity and that Humble man without learning but filled with the Holy Spirit is more powerful than the most no Nobly born profound scholar without that inspiration He who is educated by the divine spirit can in this time lead others to receive the same spirit Albert Einstein was one of those people who Once finished his work began to realize the power of the mystical on him Realize that to become a true scientist you cannot do so without the profound effect of Religion and spirituality and I'm not going to take you through the quotes because of the time that we have He says science can only be created by those who are thoroughly imbued with the aspiration Towards truth and understanding. I cannot conceive a genuine scientist without that profound faith Science without religion is lame religion without science is blind and he did indicate that what came What he gave did not come from him, but through him. So beloved friends It is when we acquire facts when we contemplate reflect and imagine when we have a vision We arrive at that Eureka moment when our comedies Shouted having got into the tub and displaced water Commensurate with his own volume and shouted Eureka It may not necessarily be that he found the answer but that because he was specialized and because he was seeking that the That realm of knowledge found him to be the instrument to convey that knowledge He was able to articulate it. He was able to give us that very important law and that as we become conduits We have to realize that that truth that will be relieved revealing will be a measure of the truth Because it's a world that is full of endless discoveries if we do so We truly will influence and change the academic world today because we bring in an end to arrogance and end to unnecessary competition and an end to Thinking that each one of us as scientists are It and if you want to again knowledge come to me because I am going to purvey to you We are only Learners and when we acquire that posture that is when we are most effective. I Close friends with this quote from Abdul Baha He will come to your aid with invisible hosts and Support you with armies of inspiration from the concourse above He will send unto you sweet perfumes from the highest paradise and Woffed over you the pure breathings that blow from the rose gardens of the company on high He will breathe into your hearts the spirit of life Cause you to enter the arc of salvation and reveal unto you His clear tokens and signs. Thank you friends