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about these ideas with anyone who is interested in doing so. If you would like to correspond with me you may do so at: DawSayer@webpal.org For anyone who would like to discuss religion with me - there are some points that I would like to first list - to determine if we agree. If you do NOT agree about one of the following points - PLEASE let me know, and also WHAT your position is. Otherwise, anything that I might say would be wrongfully based upon the assumption that it would be understood in a particular way - and likewise I would be misunderstanding statements made by yourself. I first list the points and then give examples so that you can hopefully clearly understand what I mean. I call these first points "premises". Premise One.
in any manner of true concept. Beyond what we call space or time - or any other qualification that one might make to say that there is or could be any but the One True God.)
something different than the Creation and apart from it. The opposite belief, called "pantheism" being that He is in His Creation and that creation itself is god).
definitions of size, or limitations imposed by concepts of space and time).
and delusions, about the appearances of reality and truth.)
men cannot comprehend God on their own.
Himself known to man).
through His Prophets and Revealed Word.
means that there always has been - and always will be MORE for man to learn about God and His Creation. and many in the world are still so today - but few avowed Christians, aside from Mormons, proclaim themselves to believe in more than one god. A great many people, indeed most people, actually have difficulty accepting that there is REALLY only one God and they make in their minds idols of other powers separate from God. 2. The concept of God and His Creation being one, which is defined as pantheism, is more usually found among what we call New Age Religion. 3. Most people do not really wrestle with or try to grasp the meaning of the concepts Infinite and Eternal. 4. Again, the Mormons see God as a physical being, and that all is matter. Monality versus duality, like Infinite and Eternal, is another one of those concepts that many people have not really wrestled with. 5. Man's relationship to God in that man is completely subservient to God offends a great number of people today - who feel that they can figure out anything through what they call "science" and that in reality God is unnecessary to them. 6. Recognition of the Prophets and the Revealed Word - is almost anathama to many people today. Their view is, if Jesus existed, He was "just" a man - and that Scriptures are simply a collection of myths, ancient stories, and outdated beliefs from early times. 7. On the other hand - many people hold an opposite view regarding Scriptures. They feel that they have in THEIR scriptures ALL knowledge and that there is none other. Thus the Jews hold onto only the Old Testament - saying to Jesus - "What need have we of You. - We have Abraham and our Fathers (the Prophets). And the Christians are not about to accept Mohammad and the Koran, because they feel the Bible is the FINAL Word of God, although Jesus said - that He could not reveal unto them many things that they were incapable of understanding at that time. And the Moslems feel that the Koran is the Final Book - and that Muhammad was the "Seal of the Prophets" - so that they persecute Those Who follow Him. In discussion with Christians, a beginning point often is that I say that Christians hold too small an idea of Jesus. In response to their question of how that can be - I respond: 1. Many Christians hold Jesus to be God. "The Father and I are One". If this is true, then with God being Infinite any comprehension about the nature of Jesus would then need to be Infinite also - and equally impossible to encompass as would it be impossible to encompass the understanding of God. 2. While many Christians will repeat phrases such as - "Under no other Name under heaven, shall man be saved, except through the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ" - they do not really look at the immensity that we see today of the Galaxies - and comprehend what that means. 3. Many Christians in talking about Jesus place Him at one point in time and space - 2,000 years ago on this single planet. THAT is a very limited idea. The most difficult concept for most person's to comprehend about Baha'i- is what is meant by the term "Manifestation of God". This is most often where we need to begin - but I am willing to discuss instead any other issue that correspondents wish to discuss. I welcome your emails. Peace and love, Bruce bruce@webpal.org |
Spreading Awareness about: Wiederaufbau der Gesellschaft nach Grosser Katastrophe. <@}-|-|-- --|-|-{@> Reconstruction of Society after a Great Catastophy.
Showing posts with label Prayer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Prayer. Show all posts
Premises of Religion
Prayer Table of Contents
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Prayer
Table of Contents: Prolog: Some Thoughts on Prayer and Meditation
Ahmad: A Special Tablet.
. Perspicuous Verses: of Bahá'u'lláh
who hast fixed thy gaze upon Me, for this Tablet which hath been sent down for thee - a Tablet which causeth the souls of men to soar. Commit it to memory, and recite it. By My Life! It is a door to the mercy of thy Lord. Well is it with him that reciteth it at eventide and at dawn.
there shall be kindled in their veins a fire that shall set aflame the worlds."
and consider that the Blessed Beauty hath fully foretold future events. Let them who perceive, take warning!" -- 'Abdu'l-Bahá
and then again at the Bahá'í World Congress in New York City in 1992 where I became acquainted with Harjot Sidu and Vido Ighani who provided me with the translation that I first published here, my not being aware of any other. I have now received from Bob Haugen a translation that appeared in The Bahá'í World, 1936-1938, Volume 7, page 421. The above now largely follows that translation.
for this web site whose purpose is the amelioration of the troubles of the Great Catastrophe.
There are few Bahá'í books on the "method" of meditation and although I have taught the subject for several decades I am not prepared to formally make a presentation at this time. There are numerous methods, and Bahá'ís are free to choose such as is suitable to them, but they are REQUIRED by Bahá'u'lláh to meditate. For many years I have had in abeyance a project to correlate the ancient Aphorisms of Pantanjali (one of the best known guides in Hindu literature on the subject of meditation) to statements on the subject in the Bahá'í Teachings. In this regards there is a surprising wealth of material, in the Bahá'í Writings, as how to sit, focus one's mind, and other such disciplines. To this end, I have made notes of comparison with several versions of Pantanjali translations, including a literal one, (since I do not read Sanskrit) but with Shoghi Effendi's proscription of teaching meditation in Summer Schools, I have not given a high priority to the project. There is considerable confusion in the minds of many people about the distinctions between prayer and meditation. Recitation, Intonation and Chanting are important and will undoubtedly play a much more prominent role in Bahá'í culture in the future. All of us pray, or should pray, but in the Western world - few of us chant. Chanting is to prayer like singing is to talking. Even someone, such as myself, whom everyone announces to be tone (or at least tune) deaf, can but wonder at the capacity of a trained opera singer to overwhelm the combined efforts of an entire church congregation. I have heard beautiful chanting of Bahá'í' prayers in English, but it is a rarity. A mere cultural quirk bceause there is nothing specific about the Persian or Arabic languages that makes chanting only possible in those languages. Also in the Western world, few people meditate. It is more difficult to describe the relationship of meditation to prayer. It is a capability of the human spirit on up the ladder from concentration and contemplation. It passes beyond the murmuring of sound and symbol although we can be led into the ecstasy of it by revealed meditations. As an analogy, let me say that while we all use math and numbers to some extent we can but vaguely guess at the capacities of theoretical mathematicians. There are many other examples of the distinctions between the accomplishments of the trained versus the untrained in areas such as acrobatics, ice skating, dance, sports and other fields of endeavor. What then would lead one to think that all people can pray or meditate equally well without training when few have even stopped to ponder the distinctions between concentration, contemplation and meditation. Undeniably, quality of prayer is affected by, among other things, purity of heart. But this is a chicken and egg matter. One leads to the other. No matter how inadequate one feels - they must begin to pray. Indeed, prayer may well (and most surely will) reveal to them even much greater inadequacies than they ever imagined. Still it remains the only path to salvation, no matter the type of one's soul, and whatever paths of Truth they trod (matters which I deal with in the POP series). Many in the Western World are in non-praying societies and the practice and habit of prayer will be very strange to them. Some new Bahá'ís find the requirement of even a daily obligatory prayer requiring a discipline that they are not used to. The further discovery that Bahá'ís are supposed to also pray both in the morning and evening and to repeat 95 times the Greatest Name (a step towards meditation) is best left to their progressive spiritual development. Some like myself, (and I share this with you, only so that you may know the variety of Bahá'í life) after decades fall into a pattern of almost perpetual prayer. Indeed, I would say that the goal is to have one's every thought focused on Bahá'u'lláh. To have one's every motivation to be the motivation of Bahá'u'lláh. Prayer is the path. Oftentimes in life, tests and difficulties are the motivation to pray. A prayer often learned early on by new Bahá'ís and Bahá'í children is the Bab's Remover of Difficulties. That prayer also, some come to a convention or practice of repeating nine, nineteen or ninety-five times, in times of exceptional challenge. A personal choice of mine was to repeat the Tablet of Ahmad nineteen times daily. Indeed, for many years, in addition to the Fast prayers, I would say it nineteen times each day for the nineteen days of the Fast. Each one must find their own discipline and it is well to remember that Bahá'u'lláh CAUTIONS about being given to long prayers. It is amazing, in a lifetime, how the prayers will add up. How easy and joyful it becomes. That indeed, the most joyful hours of the day become those spent in prayer and meditation. As one progresses along the path of prayer they come to learn that Bahá'u'lláh has recommended a number for special situations and occasions. I won't go into those now, but one will eventually come to the Perspicuous Verses, which Bahá'u'lláh recommends (does not require) that one say every "eventide" and "morn". Add to these 'Abdu'l-Bahá's Daily Regional Prayers for teaching, and suggested daily prayers for one's loved ones, and one can have a very full prayer schedule. However, to say daily the short noonday prayer sometime between noon and sunset, along with the 95 repetitions of The Greatest Name (for this some use a rosary) and to say with absolute sincerity The Greatest Name in the morn and evening, fulfills the requirement of God. God does not need our prayers. We pray to benefit ourselves, not God. A simple repetition of the Greatest Name ninety-five times a day, will add up in a half century of devotion to the Faith, of one having said it over fifteen million times. In actuality, one who is that devoted will find themselves saying it many more times a day than that, and the lifetime multiple will be much greater. A simple saying of the Tablet of Ahmad, at least once a day for the last 30 years of their life will result in their having said it over ten thousand times. Those who recite it that regularly ("withhold not thyself therefrom") will again find that they have actually recited it much more often, and consequently many more times than that. Yes, over the years, the prayers add up, and as Bahá'u'lláh says - think not that they do not have effect. We are more blessed by our own, and other's prayers, than we can imagine. Today, we live in a non-praying world, and this presentation will seem very strange to many people, but in the future when Bahá'ís gather daily in their communities for prayers and the meaning of meditation becomes better understood, then it will become more meaningful and, indeed, commonplace.
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The Perspicuous Verses
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Among others, these perspicuous verses have, in answer to certain individuals, been sent down from the Kingdom of Divine knowledge: 'O thou who hast set thy face towards the splendors of My Countenance! Vague fancies have encompassed the dwellers of the earth and debarred them from turning towards the Horizon of Certitude, and its brightness, and its manifestations, and its lights. Vain imaginings have withheld them from Him Who is the Self-Subsisting. They speak as prompted by their own caprices, and understand not. Among them are those who have said: "Have the verses been sent down?"
by Him Who is the Revealer of clear tokens! Verily, the Inevitable is come, and He the True One, hath appeared with proof and testimony. The Plain is disclosed, and mankind is sore vexed and fearful. Earthquakes have broken loose, and the tribes have lamented, for fear of God, the Lord of Strength, the All-Compelling."
hath been loudly raised, and the Day is God's, the One, the Unconstrained."
with the Kingdom of His signs."
by Him the Lord of attributes! "Where is Paradise, and where is Hell?"
the other thine own self, O thou who dost associate a partner with God and doubtest." "We see not the Balance."
None can see it except such as are endued with insight."
dwelt in the Land of Mystery. Take heed, ye who are endued with discernment!"
when We drew forth the Hand of Power from the bosom of majesty and might. Verily, the Crier hath cried out, when the promised time came, and they that have recognized the splendors of Sinai have swooned away in the wilderness of hesitation, before the awful majesty of the Lord, the Lord of creation. The trumpet asketh: "Hath the Bugle been sounded?" Say:
when He mounted the throne of His Name, the All-Merciful." Darkness hath been chased away by the dawning-light of the mercy of thy Lord, the Source of all light. The breeze of the All-Merciful hath wafted, and the souls have been quickened in the tombs of their bodies. Thus hath the decree been fulfilled by God, the Mighty, the Beneficent. "When were the heavens cleft asunder?"
of waywardness and error." and looketh to the right and to the left.
No refuge hast thou to flee to." "Have men been gathered together?"
whilst thou didst lie in the cradle of idle fancies." "Hath the Book been sent down through the power of the true Faith?"
Fear ye, O ye men of understanding heart!" "Have I been assembled with others, blind?
and hell hath been made to blaze with the fire of the impious.
from the horizon of Revelation, and the whole earth hath been illumined at the coming of Him Who is the Lord of the Day of the Covenant!" The doubters have perished, whilst he that turned, guided by the light of assurance, unto the Dayspring of Certitude hath prospered. Blessed art thou, who hast fixed thy gaze upon Me, for this Tablet which hath been sent down for thee - a Tablet which causeth the souls of men to soar. Commit it to memory, and recite it. By My Life! It is a door to the mercy of thy Lord. Well is it with him that reciteth it at eventide and at dawn. We, verily, hear thy praise of this Cause, through which the mountain of knowledge was crushed, and men's feet have slipped. My glory be upon thee and upon whosoever hath turned unto the Almighty, the All-Bounteous. but the theme is unexhausted. Be patient, for thy Lord is Patient.
—Bahá’u’lláh
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Translation of Voice Recording of Chant by 'Abdu'l-Bahá
Voice Recording of
Chant by 'Abdu'l-Bahá
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Praise be to God that we are present in this radiant meeting and turning toward the Kingdom of Abhá. That which we behold is due to the Grace and Bounty of the Blessed Perfection. We are atoms and He is the Sun of Reality. We are drops and He is The Greatest Ocean. Though we are poor, yet the Treasury of the Kingdom is full of overflowings. Though we are weak yet the confirmation of the Supreme Concourse is abundant. Though we are helpless yet our refuge and shelter is (in) His Holiness Bahá'u'lláh.
Glad-tidings! glad-tidings!
Glad-tidings! glad-tidings!
Glad-tidings! glad-tidings!
Glad-tidings! glad-tidings!
Glad-tidings! glad-tidings!
Glad-tidings! glad-tidings!
Glad-tidings! glad-tidings!
Glad-tidings! glad-tidings!
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Tablet of Ahmad
the Nightingale of Paradise
the Protector, the Incomparable, the Omnipotent.
the Wise One.
Whosoever desireth,
and never shall be able to do this,
Remember My days during thy days,
and all the heavens and the earth arise against thee.
and be not of those who doubt.
be not thou troubled thereby. thy God and the Lord of thy fathers.
or hear His Melody with their own ears.
and kept them from the path of God,
hath also turned away from the Messengers of the past and showeth pride towards God
and withhold not thyself therefrom.
and a service in both worlds.
and a mercy from Our presence,
and remove his afflictions.
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Time of Trouble
the purpose of which is the amelioration of the troubles
of the Great Catastrophe.
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A Prayer For Urgent Needs I beg Thee by the King of Names and Maker of heaven and earth, by the rustling of the leaves of the Tree of Life, and by the Utterances through which the realities of things are drawn unto us, to grant me [here name your supplications and wishes]" Sep 1923, Vol. 14, No. 6, p. 166: This prayer is to be used at midnight. followed by the recitation of the Greatest Name 95 times, using "Ya Allah El-Mustagath", which means: from Whom relief and help is sought most urgently." The Ruler in the palace could hear them chanting it for long hours, possibly as a round.
He, verily, is the all-sufficing. In Him, let the trusting trust. In Him, let the trusting trust.
—Bahá’u’lláh
which cause fear, such as earthquakes.
the Lord of the seen and the unseen, the Lord of creation".
—Bahá’u’lláh
nothing can ever hurt me, and with Thy love in my heart all the world's afflictions can in no wise alarm me.
—Bahá’u’lláh
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Say: Praised be God! He is God! All are His servants, and all abide by His bidding!
- The Báb
Thou art the Remover of every anguish and the Dispeller of every affliction. Thou art He Who banisheth every sorrow and setteth free every slave, the Redeemer of every soul. O Lord! Grant deliverance through Thy mercy, and reckon me among such servants of Thine as have gained salvation.
- The Báb
God sufficeth unto me; He is the One Who holdeth in His grasp the kingdom of all things. Through the power of His hosts of heaven and earth and whatever lieth between them, He protecteth whomsoever among His servants He willeth. God, in truth, keepeth watch over all things. Immeasurably exalted art Thou, O Lord! Protect us from what lieth in front of us and behind us, above our heads, on our right, on our left, below our feet and every other side to which we are exposed. Verily, Thy protection over all things is unfailing.
- The Báb
Say: God sufficeth all things above all things, and nothing in the heavens or in the earth but God sufficeth. Verily, He is in Himself the Knower, the Sustainer, the Omnipotent.
- The Báb
O My God! Let no harm beset me in times of tests, and in moments of heedlessness guide my steps aright through Thine inspiration. Thou art God! potent art Thou to do what Thou desirest. NO one can withstand Thy Will or thwart Thy Purpose.
- The Báb
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Tablet of the Holy Mariner
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"Study the Tablet of the Holy Mariner that ye may know the truth, and consider that the Blessed Beauty hath fully foretold future events. Let them who perceive, take warning!" -- 'Abdu'l-Bahá the Well-Beloved! Bid thine ark of eternity appear before the Celestial Concourse, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Launch it upon the ancient sea, in His Name, the Most Wondrous, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! And let the angelic spirits enter, in the Name of God, the Most High. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Unmoor it, then, that it may sail upon the ocean of glory, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Haply the dwellers therein may attain the retreats of nearness in the everlasting realm. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Having reached the sacred strand, the shore of the crimson seas, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Bid them issue forth and attain this ethereal invisible station, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! A station wherein the Lord hath in the Flame of His Beauty appeared within the deathless tree; Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Wherein the embodiments of His Cause cleansed themselves of self and passion; Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Around which the Glory of Moses doth circle with the everlasting hosts; Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Wherein the Hand of God was drawn forth from His bosom of Grandeur; Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Wherein the ark of the Cause remaineth motionless even though to its dwellers be declared all divine attributes. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! that which we have taught thee behind the mystic veil, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Perchance they may not tarry in the sacred snow-white spot, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! But may soar upon the wings of the spirit unto that station which the Lord hath exalted above all mention in the worlds below, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! May wing through space even as the favored birds in the realm of eternal reunion; Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! May know the mysteries hidden in the Seas of light. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! They passed the grades of worldly limitations and reached that of the divine unity, the center of heavenly guidance. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! They have desired to ascend unto that state which the Lord hath ordained to be above their stations. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Whereupon the burning meteor cast them out from them that abide in the Kingdom of His Presence, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! And they heard the Voice of Grandeur raised from behind the unseen pavilion upon the Height of Glory: Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! "Inasmuch as they have purposed to rise to that sphere which the wings of the celestial dove have never attained; Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! "Whereupon the ship of fancy standeth still which the minds of them that comprehend cannot grasp." Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! And with her brow signed to the Celestial Concourse, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Flooding with the light of her countenance the heaven and the earth, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! And as the radiance of her beauty shone upon the people of dust, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! All beings were shaken in their mortal graves. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! She then raised the call which no ear through all eternity hath ever heard, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! And thus proclaimed: "By the Lord! He whose heart hath not the fragrance of the love of the exalted and glorious Arabian Youth, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! "Can in no wise ascend unto the glory of the highest heaven." Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Thereupon she summoned unto herself one maiden from her handmaidens, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! And commanded her: "Descend into space from the mansions of eternity, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! "And turn thou unto that which they have concealed in the inmost of their hearts. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! "Shouldst thou inhale the perfume of the robe from the Youth that hath been hidden within the tabernacle of light by reason of that which the hands of the wicked have wrought, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! "Raise a cry within thyself, that all the inmates of the chambers of Paradise, that are the embodiments of the eternal wealth, may understand and hearken; Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! "That they may all come down from their everlasting chambers and tremble, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! "And kiss their hands and feet for having soared to the heights of faithfulness; Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! "Perchance they may find from their robes the fragrance of the Beloved One." Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Thereupon the countenance of the favored damsel beamed above the celestial chambers even as the light that shineth from the face of the Youth above His mortal temple; Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! She then descended with such an adorning as to illumine the heavens and all that is therein. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! She bestirred herself and perfumed all things in the lands of holiness and grandeur. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! When she reached that place she rose to her full height in the midmost heart of creation, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! And sought to inhale their fragrance at a time that knoweth neither beginning nor end. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! She found not in them that which she did desire, and this, verily, is but one of His wondrous tales. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! She then cried aloud, wailed and repaired to her own station within her most lofty mansion, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! And then gave utterance to one mystic word, whispered privily by her honeyed tongue, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! And raised the call amidst the Celestial Concourse and the immortal maids of heaven: Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! "By the Lord! I found not from these idle claimants the breeze of Faithfulness! Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! "By the Lord! The Youth hath remained lone and forlorn in the land of exile in the hands of the ungodly." Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! She then uttered within herself such a cry that the Celestial Concourse did shriek and tremble, Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! And she fell upon the dust and gave up the spirit. It seemeth she was called and hearkened unto Him that summoned her unto the Realm on High. Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Glorified be He that created her out of the essence of love in the midmost heart of his exalted paradise! Glorified be my Lord, the All-Glorious! Thereupon the maids of heaven hastened forth from their chambers, upon whose countenances the eye of no dweller in the highest paradise had ever gazed. Glorified be our Lord, the Most High! They all gathered around her, and lo! they found her body fallen upon the dust; Glorified be our Lord, the Most High! And as they beheld her state and comprehended a word of the tale told by the Youth, they bared their heads, rent their garments asunder, beat upon their faces, forgot their joy, shed tears and smote with their hands upon their cheeks, and this is verily one of the mysterious grievous afflictions - Glorified be our Lord, the Most High! - Bahá'u'lláh |
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