The Hidden Treasure

As a service project, Ruhi Book 4 participants planned and conducted a program to celebrate the 2006 commemoration of the Declaration of the Báb. (Participants were: Alysia Lor, Fareed Lor, Ziba Lor, Michelle Tomichich, and Margaret Sanford. Sue Grandy had not yet returned from a visit to her aunt.)

The study circle members chose two prayers to begin and end the program, music, and a game for everyone present to play. The youngest participant was 7 and the oldest was 93; another community member had recently undergone hip surgery.

One member of the group remembered a story in Brilliant Star, called The Hidden Treasure, that related details of the event. Aha! Stalled consultation resumed. The group would conduct a treasure hunt to commemorate the day when the first seeker found The Bab!

Everyone in the community had to be considered for this enterprise. All members of the Ruhi Book 4 study group contributed something, even though one member was away for the initial planning session. It was deemed necessary to include everyone who would be attending the celebration.

Preparation included finding prayers and appropriate music on CDs for the program.

The Brilliant Star story was copied, one paragraph per large poster-card coloured orange, blue or yellow. Pastel colours were chosen to make the writing easy to read. A pattern, making 12 irregular pieces out of each card was devised by the member absent from the initial consultation. The same pattern was used to make 12 pieces of each card.

The program was typed up and copied. Team Captain flags were made.

Permission was obtained from the hostess of the evening to hide puzzle pieces within the home. Hiding sites were sited within the living room, dining room and hallway. Children hid the puzzle pieces. (Children could not join the team whose colored puzzle-pieces they hid.)

One member acted as DJ for the evening.

- "The Remover of Difficulties", on a CD, in Arabic, opened the program.

- An emcee introduced Shaykh Ahmad and Sayyid Kazim as persons who managed to solve the secret of "The Qaim" who would arise to lead mankind to world peace. 

- An orchestral version, on a CD, of the Hidden Word, The Royal Falcon, was played.

- Then the game was introduced by the youngest member of the Ruhi Book 4 study circle who provided the following rules:.

Rules for "The Hidden Treasure", are as follows:

1. There are three teams: Orange, Blue, and Yellow,.

2. Each team has to find pieces of one paragraph on a colored card. One colour per team.

3. Three members of the Study Group have hidden puzzle pieces in a designated area. (Those members hiding the puzzle pieces were eligible to play, if they joined a team of a different colour from the pieces they hid.)

4. Three members were designated "Team Captain" and given the prepared flags, one colour for each team. All pieces found for a particular team were turned over to the team captain to hold.

5. If anyone found a piece of the puzzle, not in one's own team colour, the piece was left in place for a member of the appropriate team to find.

6. Once all the pieces (12 each times 3) of the puzzle were found, the puzzles were solved so the story could be read.

During play only one piece of the puzzle remained to be found. It held up the program because the piece was required to complete the opening paragraph. (The hider forgot where that puzzle piece had been secreted.) The other teams had found all their pieces and assembled them into the appropriate paragraphs, but the opening paragraph was not complete. Tension mounted as the rooms were scoured to locate the missing puzzle-piece. What a relief it was when the errant piece of the puzzle was finally discovered! Finally the story of The Hidden Treasure could be revealed. The children present shared reading the story consecutively.

- Then a musical selection, on a CD,  I am, I am, the Chosen One by Joe Crone was played. All present were immediately transported into a meditative state as the excitement of the game gave way to the realization that we were celebrating this momentous occasion so many years later in another land far away from the original evening.

A circle of Removers of Difficulty in English ended the formal program.