In the Name of the Supreme Power, Allah"
The eleventh session of the eighty-fourth round of Congress 60’s educational workshops, dedicated to travelers and companions, started under the mastership and guardianship of Mr. Hossein Dezhakam, with traveler Jafar serving as the secretary, on Wednesday, April 23, 2025, at 9:30 a.m., with the agenda: "The Second Valley and Its Effect on Me".
Hello, friends. This is Hossein, a traveler.
I hope you’re all doing well. As for me, thankfully, I’m doing fine. Today is the 3rd of Ordibehesht, 1404, and the time is 9:34 AM (just a moment ago, they came and lit the candle in front of me; this is something the secretary does, my dear).
So, how are you all? I’m glad to hear that you’re well, and I’m doing well too. There are a few topics I’d like to go over with you before we get to the main subject.
One topic is related to weight loss. Well, generally, if someone's weight exceeds a certain limit, they can't perform certain services. However, we do have a few people who are athletes, such as wrestlers, weightlifters, or bodybuilders. They engage in excellent sports, and while they may have some extra weight, it’s all muscle and tissue—no belly fat or anything like that. If they have a few extra kilos, it’s usually quite minimal. For instance, there might be 4 to 5 people, or maybe 10, in Congress who are in this situation. If they come to me, I’ll check and, since they’re athletes and specialized, I’ll allow them to participate in those parts of the program, even if they have a little extra weight.
The forms have changed. The cigarette forms have been updated, and they will be distributed to you. The CDs related to cigarettes are now listed on those forms. The Jones forms are also changing, and the CDs related to Jones are now written on those forms. The interviews have been modified as well. I told them to be very strict with the interviews. I specifically said that they must be strict.
Thirty female travelers were interviewed, and 14 of them were rejected. The female companions also saw a significant number of rejections, especially the newcomers’ guides. However, for those wearing the orange scarves, 20 to 30 people were tested, and only one was rejected. I reprimanded my assistant for letting so few people fail. I told them they should have rejected more (laughter from the audience).
You need to ask clear questions, and the person must know the answers completely. The process has to be taken seriously. The guide must not make mistakes. Anyone guiding another person to reach a certain place must know the way perfectly. This is a very serious matter.
Now, people come from all over—Tabriz, Rasht, and from wherever. When they are interviewed, they’re asked questions by three interviewers. Each of the three guides asks one question, and the person must answer. They should not ask more than one question each. When the three people sit down, each interviewer is only allowed to ask one question. They cannot ask three questions. If they asked multiple questions in the past, that’s fine, but from now on, anyone conducting interviews can only ask one question. If the person answers, that's fine. If not, they will be scheduled for another interview two weeks later. When someone fails, it doesn’t mean they can’t be a guide. It simply means they should come back in two to three weeks and continue the interviews until they pass.
This is one issue. Another issue: I had to remove someone from their position and told them, "You’re no longer an assistant or whatever role you had! You're no longer a guide, your position as a watchman is over." When we do this, we should not mourn or cry! People get upset; they cry... What’s all this nonsense? I removed them, and amidst all the crying, moaning, and wailing, they asked, “Why did you remove me from this role?” I replied, “The reason is exactly this—because you're crying right now! That’s the only reason you were removed. You're upset and crying!”
Well, they get removed. So be it! It’s not like a municipality where you set up a booth somewhere and say, “This booth is mine, and I won’t move!” Things pass. Right now, 2,000 new guides are coming in—newcomers’ guides, Jones’s guides, the DST guides. The others must leave! Some people move, some change, some switch roles. When assistants come in, some must go. Agents leave, border guards leave—everything in the system changes.
So, when someone is removed, instead of crying and complaining, they should stand up! They should say, "I want to stay in Congress 60 and serve. Whatever task you give me, I’ll do it!" You tell me, "Go clean the toilets," I’ll go clean them! You tell me, "Sweep the floor," I’ll sweep it! "Go to the OT section," I’ll go there! Whatever role you assign me, I’ll do it! It doesn't matter if I’m a general, a colonel, or a soldier. No! Whatever service they tell you to do, you must do it. “Do this work,” you say? Fine! "Hand it over to someone else," fine! This is how it should be, and we must understand that if a task is taken away from us, we should not be upset.
Another issue: For Golrizan ( the money donation event), the deadline for their commitment is the end of Ordibehesht (May) 1403. This means that those who have made the commitment must settle their accounts by the end of Ordibehesht.
Right now, for those who have been accepted, we are creating their files step by step, and a lot of precise work is being done on their files. Then, in groups of 100 to 200 people, we will give them their guide scarves, so they can begin serving in various areas, God willing.
The thing is, if our goal is to serve, we shouldn't be sensitive about why something was taken from us or why someone else was chosen. In Congress 60, we don’t have “why” questions! You’re an assistant? Fine, stay as one. Tomorrow, they may remove you. So what? It’s important to understand this and know that when someone expresses dissatisfaction, they’re going to get a negative point. They’ll say, "This person doesn’t have the capacity; they’re not fit for the job."
The person you told to be a guide, and now you’re telling them not to be, is constantly complaining. This means they don’t have the capacity for this work! You need to have the capacity—not only to take on work, but also the capacity to handle it if the work is taken from you.
So, that’s that.
Let's move on to the second valley, today’s lesson, right? "No creature enters life aimlessly." We often think that life just continues on its own, flowing aimlessly, and it just does its thing. A bunch of cows, sheep, animals, water, the sea... If you want to run a household, how many issues are there? How many problems arise? How much work does the housewife have to do—sweeping, cooking, washing dishes? And the other members of the household help out too. It’s a lot of work! A small office is the same, a Congress (Congress 60) is the same, a city is the same. Creation works in the same way!
In creation, work must be done for things to function. If work isn't done in creation, and there is no movement, life would be destroyed and perish. So, the greatest factory, the greatest house, the greatest company, and the greatest city in all of existence is life itself. Every detail in life that works has a purpose, and it must have one. Their existence is necessary; there is nothing in life that is created without purpose.
It says: "No creature, no creation." A creature means something that has been created. The creator becomes the doer, and the created is the one being acted upon. A tree is a creation, a desert shrub is a creation, a mouse is a creation, a snake is a creation, a worm is a creation, a mosquito, a fly—all of these are creations, and none of them were created in vain. They all have purpose and a plan. Now, think about humanity! No human is created without purpose. There is definitely wisdom behind it, and there are tasks they must fulfill. Each person must play a role in the course of creation, and they exist to fulfill a place in this cycle.
Just as in the society we live in, where one person is a doctor with a certain task, another is an engineer, someone runs a shop, another is a farmer, one person plants wheat, another sells wheat, one turns wheat into flour, and another makes bread from it—each person has a duty. Similarly, each of us humans has a role in the entire creation. Just as we have a responsibility in society, we also have a responsibility in the whole of creation. Therefore, we must understand that we are not here without purpose.
To say, "I didn’t choose to come here"—No! I say that each of us, every single one of us, has chosen to be here. You may not have reached that knowledge yet, but if we look behind the scenes, we see that every one of us who steps into life has chosen it for ourselves. We had the choice! We could have not come. In fact, I believe that we even chose our parents, our city, and all of these things to get to this point. So, when someone says, "I didn’t come by my own will, so now I want to end my life! They brought me into this world for no reason! Who told you to give birth to me? Now, they're acting like they're entitled to something from their parents—asking, 'Why did you bring me into existence? Why did you create me?'"—no! You wanted to come. So, each of us is here to accomplish something.
When we say we are servants of God, or that worship comes from servitude, it means that humans are created with a deeper concept of worship—it means "being a servant" and serving. A servant is someone who works more. We, as divine creations, are servants working in this system of creation; in other words, we are laborers in this creation. Each of us has a duty, and if we fulfill this duty correctly, we are always in peace and comfort. If we don't fulfill this duty, we are held accountable. How are we held accountable? Does someone come and interrogate us? No! Our own actions are what lead to our misfortune and misery. When you suddenly abandon this system and go after heroin, that heroin will destroy you. That heroin will hold you accountable. That heroin will make you miserable. Sometimes, it takes your family away from you, takes your character, your dignity, and everything from you.
Now, this is one example; there are other places too. There are other paths; it's not just about drugs. Because we have many actions and behaviors that are much worse than drugs. We commit injustices and do things that are a hundred times worse than drugs. These actions are also accounted for.
So one thing that is being conveyed to us is that humans are the most honored of all creations; no one and no creature has come into existence for no reason. Now, human beings, who are at the peak of this matter, are distinct from all other creations of God. Because it is humans on this planet who can make changes and have made changes to it. Humans have created machines, built buildings, established cities; they have created cities, and now they are even leaving Earth and attempting to travel to other planets, among many other things. All of these accomplishments are the work of humans. Therefore, we can never say that we came into this world for no reason, or that we didn't want to be here. Some people even curse their parents, asking, "Why did you bring me into this world?" But no! It’s not like that. We have a duty, and we must search for that duty, find it, and fulfill it. Whatever that duty is, we should pursue it and do it. When we do, we will feel peace. When we are on the right path, it means we are fulfilling our duty. When I am an engineer and I do my engineering work excellently, I feel at peace, and I think, "Yes, I am on the right path." But it may be that you are a university professor, yet you don't feel peace! You are not in the right place. Or you might be a surgeon, but still feel no peace. You are not on the right path! Even if you have a lot of wealth, you are not in the right path. We only feel peace when we are on the right path. Of course, this is very different from indifference.
Then the next part says: None of us are nothing, even if we think of ourselves as nothing. I might say, “I have no worth,” and want to destroy myself or commit suicide. But that’s absolutely not the case. None of us are nothing; all of us have value. Sometimes we are the ones who make ourselves feel worthless. Right now in Congress 60, we have so many people—tens or even hundreds of thousands—who once saw themselves as nothing. They truly believed they were worthless. But through effort and persistence, they reached a point where they now say, “No! I really do have worth and value.”
There are times when someone might say, “This person isn’t even worth a penny.” But no matter what stage a person is at, they must know that they are not nothing—they are not worthless. Through our behavior, conduct, and actions, we can change our position. Wherever we are, if we carry that sense of worth with us, then we are never here in vain—we have not come into existence for nothing. We have entered this life for a specific purpose, and we must find out what that purpose is. And when can we discover it? When we are on the straight path.
That’s enough for now; I’d like to give the rest of the time to the others so they can participate too.
Continuation of Mr. Dezhakam’s points during the session, between the participants' sharings:
Next year, in the upcoming exam, Jones guides and smoking-cessation guides will also participate in the central test. So next year, when we hold the exam, Jones guides, smoking-cessation guides, newcomers’ guides, orange-shaal holders (DST guides)—everyone will take part in the exam and be placed into categories. Then, those who want to become a Jones legion guide should start studying the materials now. These are rankings, and each level of ranking is different.
At one point, we may think that we have no value. At that time, we might not see any value in ourselves, but for many others, we are valuable. Many people love us; many are dependent on us; many want us to be here. It could be a father, a mother, a lover, a spouse, a relative, or a colleague. For many, we may be important, even though we might think we aren’t. But if we think about it, we will see that for many people, we are important. The most important thing is what I mentioned in Valley 2. I’ve used this example many times, and I’ll say it again. When Prophet Moses went to Mount Sinai for prayer, on his way, he saw a worm wriggling in the mud. He was astonished and wondered, "Why did God create this worm in the mud?" He went to God and hesitated to ask. But God told him, “If you want to ask, go ahead and ask." Moses asked, "Why did you create this worm?" God replied, "Before you asked me, the worm asked me, ‘God, why did you create Moses?’" See the comparison and the example: the great Prophet placed next to a worm. From the worm’s perspective, Moses has no value, just as from Moses’ perspective, the worm has no value. We too may be like this sometimes. Therefore, none of us are worthless.
Reminders for the Guide's File: Those who were interviewed in previous rounds must undergo the interview process again. Those who are newly accepted as newcomers need to complete the guide training practicum. If they have already served in that capacity, they should make a note of it themselves.
While they are doing the guide training practicum, there might be someone who is the supervisor at the clinic; they don’t need to go to the clinic again. They should simply write that they were a supervisor before. For example, if someone has worked in the OT department, they should do the guide training practicum for that specific department and not need to go again, just write that they were in OT department. Similarly, if someone has been a border-guard, they should do the guide training practicum in border-guarding legion and write that they were a border-guard before. The interview form must be fully completed, and no questions should remain unanswered. Those who were not smokers do not need a confirmation sheet.
Typed by: Companion Nasrin
Translated by: Companion Marjan
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4/30/2025
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