A Well of Water Springing Up

In Vie et Enseignement de Tierno Bokar, a book about a Malian spiritual leader in the first half of the 20^th century, the author Amadou Hampâté Bâ described Bokar’s teachings about a concept called taqlid. It is defined as an attitude of simple imitation, meaning that one only does what one sees others do and does not use his or her own intelligence. To teach it, Bokar related the following parable: “Le puits qui ne reçoit ses eaux que du dehors reçoit en même temps mille choses que le courant entraîne. Il se trouve exposé à toutes les ordures et à un danger plus grave encore : se trouver à sec à peine y a-t-on puisé. En revanche, le puits dont l’œil est en lui-même n’a pas besoin des pluies pour se remplir. Ses eaux filtrées par les interstices de la terre restent abondantes, pures et fraiches, même au moment des plus grandes chaleurs. Il en est ainsi de ceux dont la foi en Dieu dépend des apports extérieurs et de ceux qui tirent leur foi de leur propre méditation et de leur conviction intime. Les premiers sont sujets à variation et leur foi n’est pas exempte de doute. Les seconds demeurent immuables. Ils sont dans la pleine Lumière, la pleine lune de leur foi, laquelle ne connait jamais l’obscurité.” (“The well that receives its waters only from outside receives at the same time a thousand things that the current carries with it. It is exposed to all sorts of filth and to an even graver danger: to run dry as soon as one has drawn from it. On the other hand, the well whose eye is within itself does not need rain to fill. Its waters, filtered through the interstices of the earth, remain abundant, pure, and fresh, even in the heat of the most extreme weather. This is the case with those whose faith in God depends on external sources and with those who draw their faith from their own meditation and inner conviction. The former are subject to variation, and their faith is not free from doubt. The latter remain immutable. They are in the full Light, the full moon of their faith, which never knows darkness.”) The lesson is that we must be nourished not only from others external to us but from internal sources. In the language of Latter-day Saints, we would say that one must have their own convictions through the Holy Ghost of the reality of God and His commandments. Imitation of other mortals certainly can be good, but if that is all we ever do we will be in trouble spiritually. We must strive to have an inner well of spiritual knowledge obtained through our personal relationship with God. Then we can use that inner source to navigate the challenges of life successfully, not dependent on others to always tell us what to do or how to act. The Savior put it this way when He also used a well to teach: “Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:13-14). We need an inner well of spiritual life that comes from the Savior Himself and not from external sources.

            Bâ summarized the teaching of Bokar this way: “Certes, le taqlid est une tendance que l’on rencontre sous tous les cieux, et pas seulement en Islam. Elle a sévi, et sévit sans doute encore, dans bien des milieux qui ne sont pas nécessairement religieux. L’histoire de l’humanité, ancienne ou contemporaine, nous en apporte maints exemples. C’est une faiblesse inhérente à l’homme et c’est pourquoi Tierno Bokar insistait tant auprès de nous sur ses dangers, nous incitant toujours à nous informer pleinement avant de prendre une position, à ne jamais nous arrêter à la surface des choses et à faire appel a ce don que Dieu nous avait fait : l’Intelligence, la Raison supérieure.” (“Certainly, taqlid is a tendency that is found everywhere, and not only in Islam. It has been rife, and probably still is, in many circles that are not necessarily religious. The history of humanity, ancient or contemporary, provides us with many examples. It is an inherent weakness in man, and that is why Tierno Bokar insisted so much on its dangers, always urging us to be fully informed before taking a position, to never stop at the surface of things and to call upon this gift that God had given us: Intelligence, Superior Reason.”) This reminds me of what my mission president would often say to us when we had questions about what to do in this or that situation: “Use wisdom!” Jacob put it this way, “O be wise; what can I say more?” (Jacob 6:12) It also reminds me of this familiar counsel from the Lord in our dispensation: “For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward. Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness; For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward” (Doctrine and Covenants 58:26-28). We should certainly seek to imitate others, including the prophets and the Savior Himself, and to do those things that the Lord commands. But our life cannot be made up of only imitation or doing what we are told to do. We must learn to choose with our own wisdom and use our free will to bring to pass righteousness and good things through the intelligence and reason that the Lord has given us.

            In sacrament meeting yesterday a brother shared a story about a scary experience he had at Lake Powell with his family and some friends. They were on a houseboat together with his family and two others, waiting for one more to arrive. As he drove the houseboat, a sixteen-year-old young man came to him and asked if he could learn to drive the boat. So, he taught the young man how to operate the houseboat, which was apparently not very intuitive. Later that day, they parked the houseboat and some of them went to go get the other family. It turned out to be a terrifying experience because a storm came and the water became very rough. One of the problems was that the houseboat came loose and started drifting away while the one who normally drove it was not there. No one remaining knew how to drive the boat, except for that sixteen-year-old who had just barely been taught. He was able to successfully get the houseboat back into place where it needed to be in the storm, all because he had taken the initiative to learn something for himself. That is the kind of “anxious engagement” we should have to learn and do things for ourselves so that we can “do good” as the Lord desires. We should not settle for taqlid—only imitating and following others—but should strive to be ourselves a well of good things in order to serve and bring to pass much righteousness.