Love Street Lamp Post 3rd Qtr 1999 by AMBCSC ARCHIVES PRINT LIBRARIES

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Editor’s Page Dma Snow

Jai Baba Folks,

ture versus Nurture versus Karma. In the light of what Baba has told us about the winding and unwinding of Sanskaras, how much of how a child turns out, is due to the “

e are preparing this issue in April and as I write, the bombs are falling all over Kosovo in Yugoslavia and the bul lets are flying in High Schools all over the United States. This in addition to the usual murder, mayhem and terror the world over! We have only five months to go till the year 2000. Renowned psychic Edgar Cayce said the earth will tip on its axis, California fall into the ocean, and major earthquakes will hit New York. Prognosticator Nostradamus, I believe, said much the same. Closer to home, what did our Beloved say would happen? Three quar ters of the world will be destroyed.” From the information many of us have gleaned as we pumped the Mandali for the literal meaning of these words, “whici I speak in My language, it would seem not to be a physical de struction, but perhaps the wiping out of Sanskaras, or who knows what! However He did leave us many of His thoughts on war and how it was a necessary thing. People do have to un wind their Sanskaras created in many previous lifetimes. We felt it an appro priate time to include a section on war. The Love Street Bookstore sells a pa-

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perback entitled MeherBaba on Warif you want to follow it up in greater de tail. Ethnic cleansing (what an innocuous term for such a hideous thing!) could be seen to be the cause of the Columbine High School massacre disaffected teens thinking they were the Supreme Beings and wanting to exterminate the rest of the school. The deranged teenagers only lack the scope and influence of Milosovec, but what they are all accomplishing has the same goal. The decades old argument between psy chologists and psychiatrists has always been “Nature versus Nurture. Perhaps it is time to throw a third agenda into the ring “Na—

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can manage to emulate Him forjust one day a year! We recently received a notice from Meherazad with the request that it be posted on our bulletin board. Upon reading it I found it to be a gentle reminder from Eruch as to the meaning of our pilgrimage to the Beloved’s Samadhi and His home at Meherazad. This pil grimage is not something to be taken lightly; we are not there on vacation (even if that’s what we told them back at the office or school). We need to behave differently with respect, with awareness ofwhere we are, and the ef fect our presence has on those around us. In 1987 I was there with my col lege age daughter who had insisted on wearing shorts (albeit knee length and very wide) to the Samadhi where she was scolded by an Indian woman for showing great disrespect. Tearfully my daughter told Mani that she was sure Baba didn’t mind how she was dressed! Mani replied in her infinite wisdom and sweetness, “No my dearest, Baba doesn’t mind, but He wants you to consider the older, more conservative people who do mind and are upset by such things. Fashions have changed much in the past 12 years the clothI ing worn by the young ones has become even skimpier. Please remember that baring your midriff to sun bake out side the Pilgrim Center (and pretty much anything you wouldn’t catch your grandmother doing) is not appropri ate behavior. Remember also how incredibly lucky we are to be some of the very few people in the whole wide world who actually know God! Not as some Biblical character, but a flesh and blood Man who walked among us in our time. In exchange for the Grace He bestowed on us (for He has stated it is only by His Grace that we love Him) let us try to love and obey Him, but most of all to please Him. —

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circumstances chosen by the soul prior to incarnation in the particular body needed to accomplish what has to be unwound or wound? I asked Jamie Newell Baba lover, J ungian, and very talented musician to ex plore this theory for us. Silence Day —July 10th. Will you be able to make it through the day without uttering a word? Read some of the Beloved’s many (unspoken) words on this subject, and gather your strength and determination. After all, if it was important enough to Him to maintain silence for 25 years, surely we —

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A publication of the A vatar Meher Baba Center of Southern California

LoveStreet Lamgosr welcome The £ovc$trcct £amLLbsr is dedicated with love to A vatar Meher Baba. Its primary purpose is to contribute to a sense of community among all His Jo vers by pro viding a place for sharing His remembrance. All the members of the Baba family are invited to contribute to this feast ofLove. Your stories, photos, art work, poetry, letters, articles, and humor are all actively solicited. We seek expressions of Baba’s message of Love and Truth. Please submit your text on computer disks if possible (in any software format) ; typewritten copy on white paper is also acceptable. Be sure to clearly identify all submissions and credit every quote or reference.

Consciousness and Chaos

Jamie Newell

Eric Solibakke

Cherie Plumlee

Larry Green

Various Artists

Robert Fredericks

Various Contributors

Barrett, Watson, Stevens

Meher Baba on War and Oneness Billboards We Have Seen.

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Boy Scouts Accept Meher Baba Religious Study Program Gallery of the Heart The Midwest Gathering

Silence The Southeast Gathering

Avatar Meher Baba’s Natal Horoscope

Sculptor of the Beloved Vivian Agostini -

Ebb and Flow

The Awakener

Kendra Crossen

Michael da Costa

submissions, subscriptions, donations: Love Street LampPost Avatar Meher Baba Center of Southern California 1 2 1 4 South Van Ness Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90019-3520 323-731-3737 or Bababooks@aol.com —

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Intimate Conversations

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Sarah McNeil

Robert Kinnery

Melani Jones

Dma Snow

Poetry

various contributors

Announcements

various contributors

Luke Jamison and Betty Lowman

various contributors

Dma Snow

TechnoBaba Don’t Worry Be Happy and Souls On Fire

deadlines: for the January March issue: April June issue: July September issue: October December issue: -

November 8th February 8th May 8th August 8th

Love Street Bookstore: Dma Snow (at the addresses above) 310-837-6419 between 7 and 11pm 310-839-BABA (2222) 24 hour fax Bababooks@aol.com

Editor’s Page

Children’s Corner Humor for Huma

The Love Street Bookstore

credits: editor: design and layout: digital preflight: distribution: cover:

Dma Snow Cherie Plumlee, Betty Lowman Tom Hart Chris Lyttle Baba Silence

Oil painting by Diane LePage

The J.ove5trectJanq1thst’ is published quarterly, in January, April, July, and October. All contents © 1996 Avatar Meher Baba Center of Southern California. All quotations, photos, or books, of Avatar Meher Baba, © AMBPPCT India

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We extend our heartfelt appreciation to all the individuals and organizations that own the copyrights to the Meher Baba pictures we have used throughout this issue to bringjoy and love to the hearts ofall LoveStreet LampPost readers. All words, images, and graphics in this publication are property of the copyright holders and/or the contributors. Messages and photos of Meher Baba © Avatar Meher Baba Perpetual Public Charitable Trust, AhmednagarJndia, and © Lawrence Reiter. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited by law.

Consciousness and Chaos Jamie Newell, Nashville, TN

nd I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe to the inhabiters of earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels Rev 8:13 which are yet to sound!” —

“The time has come for the pre-ordained destruction of mu1tiJe separateness which keeps man from experiencing the feeling ofunity and brotherhoocL This destruction, which will take place very soon, will cause three-fourths of the world to be destroyed The remaining one-fourth will be brought together to live a life ofconcord and mutual understandin& thus establishing a feeling of oneness in all fello w beings, leading them towards lasting happiness. —

Meher Baba, Final Declaration

Any attempt to talk about Meher Baba and his work, in almost any context, ends up sounding reductive. If we could un derstand and explain God in a few words, we would have no questions to begin with. Baba himself has chosen to use metaphors and similes in many of his most impor tant explanations, because the final truth cannot be understood directly. As he says in God Speaks To understand the infinite eternal re ality is not the GOAL of individualized beings in the Illusion of Creation, because the Reality can never be understood; it is to be realized by conscious experience.” Even so, we seek answers to the confus ing questions that perplex the mind. ‘Why “

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must the world be plunged into chaos?’ ‘Why war in Kosovo and Iraq and else-

It’s Termination: II, when he discusses the

necessity that

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the ego pass through the fire of intelligent consciousness.” (p. 169) He explains that the conscious (explicit) ego forms a barrier that prevents the contents of the uncon quest by the editors of The Love Street scious (implicit) ego from entering consciousness. When the unconscious contents LampPost. finally do enter consciousness there can be For answers to the broad questions, we many problems. “This release of inhibited can only go to Meher Baba himself. Why tendencies naturally brings about additional war? confusion and conflict in the explicit ego.” The basic causes of social turmoil that often precipitates into war may be found in ( p. 169) Even more so when someone with a very poorly developed explicit ego is inthe individual, the social whole, the func vaded by these “inhibited tendencies.” tioning of maya and in the very intent of For those with a bent toward psychoGod’s Will. Inasmuch as these are essen logical exploration, the Analytical Psychol tially one in the final analysis, this means ogy of C.G. Jung parallels Meher Baba’s no more than that war is a part of the diexplanations of these phenomena in many vine pattern.” MeherBaba on War p. 6. But areas. Jung felt that the center of the psyche why should war be part of the divine patwas not the ego but a preexisting structure, tern? “During times of war, great forces of destruction are afoot which at times might which he called the Self, which was essen tially identical with what is generally re seem to be dominant. But constructive ferred to as God. In his discourse on God forces for the redemption of humanity are and the Individual, Meher Baba says: also released through various channels. “We have seen that the possible field of Though the working of these latter forces consciousness is limited by the sanskaras. is largely silent, eventually they are bound This limitation creates a division of the hu to bring about the transformations that will man psyche into two parts. One part falls render safe and steady the further spiritual within the range of consciousness, and the progress of humanity. Meher Baba on Wai other part falls beyond it. The unconscious p. 10. part, in its full extent, is identical with the unsatis feel sometimes answers Such power that is behind matter. It is referred consciousness. of gross us of fying to those it as God by the orthodox religions. The isn’t to and madness, such like It all seems reality, which is symbolically repultimate bombs build to children madness that causes through such concepts, can be this resented does Why classmates? and shoot their only by bringing the uncon fully known happen? consciousness.” (p. 19). into scious aber persons, mad or “In feebleminded cases of madextreme in felt that, ung of responses rations from the average pattern J in war is often demonstrated as such ness, mental their and actions are the result of Colorado the (like violence of in acts and of ways incapacity to adhere to the ordinary school killings), there is an overwhelming the world... They lose their balance of mind of the ego by aspects of this preexisting form due either to insufficient mental develophe calls the Self. The weak ego struc which ment or to the operation of physiological or explicit ego) is unable to maintain (or, ture psychic forces of disruption.” Meher Baba, in the face of the ‘Godhead’ (or ar balance The Wayfarers p. 4. OK, I understand “inas it were, and becomes inflated chetype) sufficient mental development, and by it through identification with it. In other “Physiological...forces,” but what are “psy words, the individual identifies with the chic forces of disruption?” Baba seems to Godhead (archetype) to such an extent that be referring to related phenomena in his he or she, sometimes only briefly, feels that Discourse on The Nature of the Ego and

where, why terrorism, why children killing their classmates?’ and on and on. While I claim no expertise on this subject, I am happy to share my thoughts in response to a re

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they are the Godhead (archetype), and are swamped with the overwhelming power that such an experience represents. This would be something like putting 100,000 volts of electricity through an ordinary light bulb. The bulb, as does the individual ego, burns out with a great flash. But, if it is our goal to “make the uncon scious conscious, then don’t we all have to withstand that 100,000 volts at some time, too? There are at least two ways that imme diately come to mind that will help us in this endeavor. First, to continue with our light bulb metaphor, we can use Meher Baba as our transformer, to help us manage the voltage that we receive. In another context, Baba describes this as developing a “provi sional ego” (see the discourse on The Dynamics of Spiritual Advancement (p. 254)). Another way of managing the high voltage of contact with God is to strengthen the ego through the development ofwhat Baba calls “Some Divine Qualities” (yes, it must be strengthened before it can be eliminated, see The Nature of the Ego and It’s Termina tion I (p. 161)). These qualities include: patience, persistence, acceptance, forbearance, moral courage and confidence, freedom from worry, cheerfulness, enthusiasm, equipoise and one pointedness (see the dis course on The Qualifications of the Aspir ant: II for details on these “divine qualities.”) These techniques can help us with our individual striving for balance, while still maintaining contact with God, but what about the social and cultural madness of war? This brings us back to Baba’s statement that all of this is part of “the divine pattern,” and his statement that through war constructive forces for the redemption of hu manity are also released through various channels. What can this mean? Jung has some interesting ways of looking at mankind’s historical relationship with God that might suggest some interesting theo ries in this area. J ung generally saw the human relationship with God as an inner experience, a re lationship with the Self, which has historically been projected outwardly. In his book, Answer to Job, Jung asserts that, as human consciousness developed, so did the widely accepted God-image. In Western culture, a clear development of the accepted God-image can be seen from Job, where God is quite barbaric in his treatment of Job, “

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through to the prophets, where God is seen as much less destructive and indifferent, and up to the incarnation of God in human form as Jesus, where God is described as the good father who is wholly benevolent. Leaving aside for the moment the question of the role of the other Avatars, one can imagine that a similar change in consciousness must accompany the advent of Meher Baba. In Answer to Job, Jung goes on to say that the book of Revelation describes the necessary influx into consciousness of the “dark side” of God that has been pushed out of consciousness by the world view that God is wholly benevolent. Thus, on the eve of the new millennium we have hoards of apocalyptic visionaries (Jim Jones, David Koresh, Paul Brunton, et al) who await the horrible destruction of the world. Jung says that this is the natural outcome of the hu man psyche’s attempt to compensate for the one-sided view that God is exclusively good. Meher Baba has many times pointed out that he is in the so-called good as well as the so-called bad. He tirelessly pointed out the unity behind all things, lest those around him break things up into opposites and cre ate separateness. In Bhau Kalchuri’s biog raphy LordMeherBaba says: “In a virtuous life, evil is suppressed and good surfaces; but the evil is still there. The bad sanskaras re main and have to be worked out, if not in this life, then in the next or the one after. In the spiritual life, both good and bad sanskaras express themselves, and both get nullified. A spiritual life leads one toward naturalness, whereas a virtuous life, in the guise of humility, inflates the ego and perpetuates it!” (p. 4591). If we put all of these ideas together, a picture begins to emerge. First, we have Meher Baba’s statement that war is part of “the divine pattern,” along with his statement that through war “constructive forces for the redemption of humanity are also re leased through various channels. Then we consider Jung’s theory of madness as often being precipitated by the incursion of an un conscious God-image (archetype) along with his theory of the compensatory nature of the unconscious. Putting all of this together, we might surmise that, as a result of Meher Baba’s manifestation, and the influx of divine energy that has flooded the world since His advent over one hundred years ago, more and more people are being flooded by “

this unconscious God-energy, which is now becoming conscious. It may also be that, as more and more people have this experience, more and more ‘light bulbs’ will eventually blow out as well. These ideas are nothing more than a brief overview of one approach to understanding the apparent chaos in the world today. I cannot say whether these mental meanderings are close to, or far offthe mark. I do, however, share the concern of many others who are saddened to see so many souls who are unable to withstand the pace of this most troubling and glorious of ages. In the end we can only hold tighter to his daaman, and to his words. For as He has said in His Universal Message:

4ll this world confusion and chaos was inevitable and no one is to blame. What had to happen has happeneo and what has to happen will happen. There was andis no way out except through my coming inyour midst. Ihad to come andlhave come. Jam the Ancient One.” -

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Meher Baba on War and Oneness Excerpted and arranged from Listen Humanityby Eric Solibakke, Oslo, Norway

ar cannot create any real cleavage, even between the people who are fighting against one another. These people seem to be different from one another because they have different minds and bodies, but when judged from the point of view of their souls, all differences are not only secondary but simply false. The spiritual unity ofall souls remains inviolable fri spite ofallwars, and from the point of view ofultimate reality, no soul is really at war with any other soul. There can be a war between ideologies, which may extend to and involve the minds and even the bodies of the people, but the undivided arid indivisible Soul remains One in Its unimpeachable, integral unity.

The basic causes ofthe social turmoil that often precipitates into war may be foundin thekidividua1 the social whole, the functionfrig ofmaya andki the very intent ofGod, will Inasmuch as these are essentially one in the final analysis, this means no more than that war is a part ofthe divine pattern. Insofar as war affects the individual, however, it must be understood at all the levels within illusion from which it is precipitated. The first is the level ofthe individual himself. It may readily be seen that most persons are immersed in their own egos and selfish viewpoints. This is the life of illusory values in which men are caught. If man were to face the truth he would understand that all life is one, and in this understanding, forget the lim iting self (Listen Humanity, p. 128). But man does not face the truth, regarding himself as separate from and competing with the rest of mankind. This attitude often breeds a concept of personal happiness that creates lust for power, unbridled greed and unrelieved hatred. The second level from which wars are bred is that of the social whole. Here, economic pressures are often cited as a major cause. Also, resistance to aggression seems a reasonable

cause. It would be an illusion within illusion, however, to claim that wars arise merely to secure material adjustment. They are more often the product of uncritical identification with narrow interests which, through associa tion, finally come to be regarded as ones sole right. To profess that humanityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s problem is merely that of bread is to reduce humanity to the level of animality. The third is that of maya.

When truly understooc/ all conflicts and wars are seen to be a part of the Divine Game They are thus a result ofthe divine will, which finds expression in the world of manifestation, the cosmic through the medium of maya power that cause the illusory world of duality to appear as real. The purpose served by maya is twofold: (1) it can be instrumental in trapping the mind in the duality of illusion, and (2) it can also be instrumental in freeing the mind from the grip of spiritual ignorance and bondage. Maya should not be ignored; it must be handled with detachment and understanding. Wars are the work of maya, and are either spiritually disas trous or beneficial depending on whether they are based on attachment to or detachment from the hold of maya. The final level from which the causes of war spring is no level at all. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

ft 1 a part of the Divftie Plan of God to give to a hungry and weary world a fresh dispensation of the Eternal and only Truth. During war great forces of destruction are afoot which at times might seem to be domi nant. But constructive forces for the redemp tion of humanity are also released through various channels. Though the working of these latter forces is largely silent, eventually they are bound to bring about the transformations

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that will render safe and steady the further spiritual progress of humanity. During war there are persons who unveil their inherent higher self through the endur ance of pain, and by acts of bravery and selfsacrifice. It is better that such unselfish action be released under the stimulus of danger than not released at all. It is better that men better that men forget their petty selves under the pressure of collective calamity, if need be, than remain permanently absorbed in fear and greed.

Great sufferftig awakensgreat understandingfti man. Supreme suffering fulfills its purpose when it awakens him finally to genuine longing for real understanding.

Unprecedented suffering leads to unprecedented spfritualresults. It contributes to the basing of life on an un shakable foundation of truth. J ust as war is not an unmixed evil for the individual, so it may have certain forward-propelling effects on humanity as a whole. The destructiveness of war tends to bring humanity to a spiritual crisis born of the physical nightmare. Inevitably suffering and misery pose the question ofwhat it alhleads to, how it will all end. Gradually people become sick of want and sick of fighting. Greed and hatred finally reach such an intensity that everyone becomes weary of them. Then mankind begins to suspect that the only way out is through selflessness.

The only afternative to war and its suffering is seen to be to stop hatkig and to love to stop wanting and togive, to stop domkiatkig and to serve.

Wars require the exercise of cooperative functioning, and in this resides one positive result. Still, the value ofthis cooperation should not be overestimated, for too often it is artifi cially restricted by identification with a lim ited group or ideal. Often war is carried on by a form of love, but a love that has not been properly understood. In order that love may come into its own it must be free, untram meled and unlimited. Love exists in all phases of human life, but usually it is latent; or it is limited and poisoned by personal ambition, racial pride, narrow loyalties and rivalries, and attachment to sex, nationality, sect, caste or religion.

For the resurrection of humanity, the heart ofman must be unlockedso that unadul teratedlove may be manifested lii it a Jove uncorruptedand free from “and ithie.” —

People who make unlimited sacrifices for the sake of their country or political ideology are also capable of the same sacrifices for God and the truth. As war teaches that even the man in the street can rise to the greatest heights of sacrifice for a selfless cause, it also teaches that all the mundane things of the world wealth, possessions, power, fame, family and even the very tenor oflife on earth are tran sitory and devoid oflasting value. In this manner the incidents of war also win man over for God through the lessons they bring. It is now high time that universal suffering should hasten humanity to the turning point in its spiritual history. It is now high time that the very agonies of our times should become a means for the bringing of real understanding of human re lationship. It is now high time for humanity to face squarely the true causes of the catas trophe of war. It is now high time to seek a new experience of reality. —

ft is high time that men have a fresh vision that aiJlife ±c one in Go who alone Is’ reaJ and all thatmatters. GodL worth livkg

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else i’ a vafti and emptypursuit ofifiusory value. War is a necessary evil that is in God plan to awaken humanity to its destiny as the new humanity. The time is now ripe. Men are ar dently seeking to contact the embodiment of the truth in the form of a God-man, through whom they can be inspired and lifted into spiritual understanding. In this critical time ofuniversal suffering men are becoming ready to turn towards their higher self and to fulfill the will of God. They will accept the divine guidance and love, which alone can bring about spiritual awakening. Divine love will perform the su preme miracle ofbringirig God into the hearts of the new humanity and of establishing in them a true, and therefore lasting, happiness. Divine love will satisfy the greatest longings ofmankind, make men selfless and helpful in their mutual relations, and ultimately resolve all problems.

The new brotherhood on earth will be a fulfilled facl and nations will be united in the fraternityoflove and truth. Ailthose who must undergo the rigors of war have great need for equanimity. It will be profitable to remember that the soul remains unscathed by the destruction of material things, and death itself is only a gateway to further life. Therefore those who would play their part well in the divine game should re main unmoved by bereavement and loss, im parting to others a spirit ofcheerful resignation to the divine will. Due to lack ofspiritual insight, sufferings of war inevitably embitter many persons, and they need to be helped to recover a sense of the unspoilable sweetness of life. Those who have been initiated into the eternal value of inner life must assume the responsibility of driving away unwarranted gloom and depres sion and cheering those who are in deep sor row. When crisis is upon one, let one thoughts not be for self but for others for the claims of the divine Self which exists equally in all. War cannot be justified merely because it brings certain spiritual qualities as by-prod—

ucts, for these qualities can also be developed in time of peace. It is time now for humanity to develop a spontaneous spirit of love and service, rather than require the stimulus provided by danger to precipitate unselfish ac tion. All should face the crisis of war with patience, fortitude and selfsacrifice, never forgetting that the redemption of a distracted humanity through divine love is much closer than one dreams at such a time. Listen Humanity edited by D. E. Stevens Copyright 1982 AMBPPCT.

Nothing To Worry About Meher Baba

et Me tell you this fact: there is noth ing to worry about, nothing to be dis heartened about. We are all, each of’ us, meant to be happy. God, who is within us all, is to be experienced as infinite happi ness, and it can be done only through love for Him. To find the Truth, one not only has to depend upon analysis and intellectS but on the heart. Intellectual understanding is not as important as experience through the heart. God is the only Reality, and He cannot be analyzed. Reason cannot reach Him. When one, through love, finds Him, one finds Him in everyone. We must seek God in everyday life. Look for God; God loves those who seek Him, and when we seek Him with all our heart, we find Him in ourselves. The goal of life is to know God, the Infinite one, in everyday life. Baba gives you His love, that love which will eventually help you to find God. Don’t worry. My love will give you that strength and conviction which makes you feel that you belong to God. Seek Truth with all your heart, and Baba will help I am in this world to help people to love God, to find Him, and to see Him. Do your work selflessly, and you will be doing it for God. I will help you with my Love, that you can do this perfectly. LordMthez Vol II pg. 3887. —

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Boy Scouts of America Accept Meher Baba Religious Study Program by Larry Green, Myrtle Beach, SC

ecalling my youth, the experiences I had as a Boy Scout were positive, educational, rich, and rewarding (to say nothing of fun). Because of these memories, I encouraged my son Timothy to join the Scouts, and I have since become active as an adult volunteer. There are currently many young Baba byers who are of Cub Scout or Boy Scout age, and quite a few who are presently registered in the Boy Scouts of America. The bargest youth organization in the world, Scouting is a worldwide brotherhood with members in over 150 countries and territories. With focuses on personal fitness and helping other people, Scouting also places great emphasis on duty to God. In the Boy Scouts of America, the final point of the Scout Law is, “A Scout is reverent,” and members are encouraged to complete a special religious study program given by their faith. Those who complete their faith’s program are entitled to wear the Boy Scouts of America’s religious emblem. Each faith also provides a medal, and pictures of these dif ferent awards, displayed in various Scout books, are regularly seen by the boys and their families. As a follower ofAvatar Meher Baba, what study program could my son Timothy com plete? For several years, there had been twentysix religious organizations recognized by the Boy Scouts of America, each providing study programs for their members. These included Zoroastrian, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, Mos lem, Bah’ai, and several Christian programs. As followers of Meher Baba, we investigated the wide array of programs available. Naturally, each was found to be connected with the doctrine, dogma, and religious prac tices oftheir particular faith. After true delib eration, it was determined with conviction that the time had come to implement a new program for those boys whose “religion” is based on a Meher Baba program that would embrace Baba message of Love and Truth and life as the Avatar of the Age. The boys from Meher Baba families in our immediate circle of Scouts in the Myrtle Beach area received the news of the devel opment of such a program with enthusiasm. Reactions varied from, “Yeah, I’d like to do

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it,” to, “That would be awesome!” As Scouts and their parents from different locations around the U.S. heard about the creation of the program, the responses were always filled with eagerness and excitement. Some expressed how they had wished for such a program, and others commented how they were wondering when one was going to be established. The need for a Meher Baba study program in the Boy Scouts was obvious. It was also clear that as more and more Meher Baba kids reach scouting age, the need would steadily grow. In order to develop the program, a steering committee was formed in July of 1992, made up of myself Charles Haynes, Anne Gibes, and Naosherwan Anzar. Following the Boy Scouts of America’s official procedures for establishing a religious emblem study program and award, we secured Manes approval as chairman of the Avatar Meher Baba Trust. After eight months of concerted effort, two study programs were de veloped and written, one for Cub Scouts, grades 2 through 5 entitled “Love For God,” and another for older scouts ages 1 1 through 20, entitled “Compassionate Father.” Jamshed Mistry, of Matamoras, PA, a member of Cub Scout Pack 77, was the first boy to participate in the required nationwide

field testing of the programs. After complet ing the “Love For God” study program he wrote, “I think this program is very good for

boys; it tells you all about Baba and I like it. I

I served as his counselor. Going through the program together gave us several wonderful opportunities to discuss stories about Meher Baba, think together about the meaning of some of Baba sayings, and converse together about the seven ways to love God as given by Baba in the message “Love and God.” Timothy also completed a service project by helping Jeff Wolverton in Baba’s garden on the Center. The whole program was rel evant to him and I could see it made him feel good. For completing the religious study program provided by his faith, on April 22, 1994, during a Friday evening meeting at the Meher Spiritual Center, my son received his recognition as a member of the Boy Scouts of America, and as a follower of Ava tar Meher Baba. For further information about these study programs, please contact the Committee for Meher Baba and Scouting, 843-272-3498.

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Previously published in The Glow InternationaZ February, 1995.

The Shock of Their Lives Meher Baba

merica now leads the material side ofthe world and yet has such poten tial that she can lead the world spiritually, if awakened. Awakening is love for God in the form of Jesus God crucified. And God will do it. He can do it. And now the time is near, very near when the spiritual —

loved the stories and the sayings and also learning ‘How to Love God.”

Once the field testing was completed, the programs were submitted to the Religious Relationships Committee of the Boy Scouts

of America for approval. Finally, after going through all the required channels, on Febru ary 8, 1994, the Religious Emblem Study Programs provided by the “Meher Baba Faith” were fully accepted and given official approval by the Boy Scouts of America for use by its members nationwide.

Now Timothy, a member of Cub Scout Pack 840 in North Myrtle Beach, could be given an opportunity to complete a religious study program for his faith. There was no question of which program would be appropriate for him. As his parent,

upliftment has to take place. America is

destined to lead the world spiritually. Truth never fails, and lovers of God will soon triumph. In this country at present, unfortunately, the youth is not taught spintuality. Youth is not even given ethical edu cation. But be sure that these very youths who know not of God, but know only to

eat, drink, be merry and do lustful actions, will soon get the shock of their lives and know that loving God is life, real life. the Goal of life. —

Gllnipsesofthe GodMan, Vol. III, p. 42,

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@ Going to India?

extra batteries. !V[odestclothes— no shorts for women, long ones for men. Teengirlsplease note: no bare midriffs or bare shoulders, no low-cut blouses or tight tank tops. Loose pants no tight clothing of any kind. Remember you are here to commune with God not drive the local guys crazy!

sect bites, sunburn, and other itches Addressesof friends to send postcards to. Large mug for your tea or coffee. Packets of hot apple cider, or special hot chocolate for the hot water supplied. Blankbookto write your experiences in

some great non-stinky moisturizing lotion). Hat— a must. Sunscreen— a must. Toiletpa per likewise. Bath towel and face cloth. Rubber thongi no bare feet germs and worms! Plenty of film for your camera, and

Some not-so-obvious ones: Soappowderfor the few things you may wish to hand wash. Clothes pins (pegs) to hang clothes. Softpillow or neck roll. Nail brushand manicure kit. Calculator(for those bazaar forays) Aloe I/era Gelis great for in-

An Important Letter from Eruch Jessawalla Regarding Pilgrimage

Here’s a check list for you. First the obvious things:

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1ashhht (torch), small and large extra batteries. Hairdryer(ifyou simply have to have one) that is 240 volts. Adapterto fit the Indian sockets. Insectrepeilant(Avon has

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An Imperfect Pot Author Unknown

water bearer in India had two large pots; each hung on each end of a pole, which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at th end of the long walk from the stream to the master’s house, the cracked pot ar rived only half full. For a full two 1 years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a halfpots full of water in his master’s house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do. After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. “I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you.” “Why?” asked the bearer. “What are you ashamed of?” The pot said, “I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your masters house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work and .

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you don’t get full value from your efforts.” The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, “As we return to the masters house, I want you to no:: % tice the beautiful J•’’ flowers along the r path.” Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the wild beautiful flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it some. But at the end ofthe trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again the pot apologized to the bearer for its failure. The bearer said to the pot, “Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side ofyour path, but not on the other pots side? That’s because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage ofit. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you’ve watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my masters table. Without you beingjust the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house.” Each of us has our own unique flaws. We are all crackpots. Submitted by Charles Harmon. .

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e His lovers must not forget why we come to Meherabad in the first place. Meherabad is a place of Holy Pilgrimage. It is not a vacation spot, resort or retreat. It behooves each pilgrim blessed to cross His Threshold, to accept all conditions of their pilgrimage as the prasad given to them by their Beloved Lord. To have one’s pilgrimage accepted by the Lord is no easy task, for it means more than to merely bow down at His Samadhi. We must accept wholeheart edly any and all trials and tribulations that may beset us during our pilgrimage, knowing full well, that these very difficulties when happily accepted without reservation or ex pectation, mark His acceptance of our pil grimage. Doubly blessed is the pilgrim who, in spite of all hardships, remains cheerfully resigned to the conditions ofhis pilgrimage. And yet, Beloved Avatar Meher Baba, in His Infinite Compassion and Benevo lence, has made our pilgrimage so comfortable and easy that we have forgotten all that He Himself, as Man amongst men, suffered throughout His Ministry to awaken His love in our hearts. Dear brothers and sisters, we have been blessed to receive His gift of love, now it is time for us to return that love by dissolving all expectations, reservations and desires in total gratitude and resignation to His Will. With warm regards in Love and Service of our Beloved Lord Avatar Meher Baba. Yours lovingly, Eruch

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Gallery ofThe Heart

Children’s Corner

hope you enjoyed looking \ethrough our Gallery of the Heart. Below are listed the artists and names of their paintings according to the number in which it is shown in the gallery.

Baba’s Bee Betty Lowman, Palo Alto, GA

the Meherana gathering in October, 1997, the children made a beautiful garland out of marigolds, grown by the Pearsons from seeds from the Meherazad garden. The twins Sohrab and Rustom garlanded Baba sandals at Dhuni, then after Dhuni, we were given the garland back,todecoratethechildren’spandalfor the twins’ visit the next morning. We put itaroundaniceBabaphoto,andputitright up front on the table, where the twins would see it first thing. When they came up to visit, they went straight to the photo and lovingly paid their respects, then they looked at all the kids’ artwork and joked with everybody there. Later that day, as some of us (Betty Lowman, Cherri Nelson, Armin Kraemer and Jennifer Grilli) were packing up the pandal, we started to take the garland off the photo, when we found a big beautiful black and yellow bumble bee nestled in the flowers, intently gathering all the nectar he could. We decided to leave him alone, figuring he’d fly away in a while, but he never did. We finally decided to carefully take the garland I , and hang it up, so that we could pack the photo and he could have his nectar, but the bee didnlike that at all. He flew around angrily and wouldnt settle on the garland. “He must want to be there with Baba’s photo,” we reasoned, so, carefully, we put the garland back around the photo, and, sure enough, he flew back onto it, and proceeded to intently gather every last bit of sweetness from those flowers, and that photo, until it was literally time for us to drive away. By then, he was gone. ..

# 1 Meh er B ab a at D awn and #3 Meher Baba at Sunrise on page 20; #7 Baba in the Poppies and #9 Infi nite Ocean on page 2 1 ; # 1 1 Baba on the Fence and #1 5 Camelia Baba on page 22 are by Margo Watson. Her greeting cards are 4’x6” photos on 5’x7” cards with matching envelopes $3 and 8”xlO” prints for $30 each. #5 Kalki and His Master on page 20; #6 Baba Clouds, #8 The Ancient One, #10 Lord of Transformation on page 21; #12 Beloved, #14 Meher Sunrise on page 22; and #16 MoonDreams and #17 Merwan on page 23 are by Cherie Plumlee. Her artwork sells as 4”x6” greeting cards ith a single gold or silver matte and matching envelopes for $3 each, 5”x7” prints for $5 each and 8”xlO” prints for $30 each.

Jakes Dream Jake Jamison, El Cerrito, CA Jhe whole family was at Meherana Luke, Mommy, and Daddy. Then a miracle happened. All the different animals intheworldstartedtodance,thedeerstarted to dance andjump around, then the rabbits andeventhesticksonthegroundwouklpop and down in time to the music. Even the clouds began to dance. The sun would dance bybecoming bright and then getting darker. Then I saw a statue of Meher Baba and it came alive and began to move. I saw Baba face in all the trees and Baba began to sing and it was so lovely, and the music could be heard around the world. It filled the whole world.Then when Baba stopped singing, all the animals went back to the forest. At the end a shooting star that was Baba flew across the whole world.

Both articles reprinted from TheMeheranaMessenger Left, Issue 2, 1998; right, Issue 1, 1996.

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#2 Baba at Zurich and #4 Mehera on pg 2 0 ; # 1 3 Moon and Stars on page 22; #18 Meher Baba, 1930s on page 23 and the painting on the cover are by Diana LePage. Full-color prints of her oil paintings are available thanks to a revolutionary new process which enables high-quality pho tographic prints of the paintings to be transferred permanently to artist’s canvas. You can order: a small c anvas (8 x 1 2 “) for $50 a medium canvas (1 2 x 1 8 “) for $75 a large canvas (20”x30”) for $ 1 50. “

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ii you are fond of Diana’s oil paint-

ings, they are also available as color photos on cards with envelopes. We have a large selection of her cards, at least 20 more than are displayed here. They are $3 each.

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xx 51ep 3nside.

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empowers lives, profound knowledge, wild generosity, and a sweet playful genius un paralleled in world literature. Need I say more? Again all this for only $14. Next up is an intriguingly titled video Three Quarters of the World. Released by Meher Baba House in New York, this 30minute video was designed to be broadcast on community access/cable TV, and is now made available for individual viewing. A major portion of the tape consists of a video conversation with Alexandra Marks, Senior Correspondent with The Christian Science Monitor, interviewing Bhau about Meher Baba. Among the topics: Religions, rituals, and ceremonies, The Dream of Illusion, and Meher Baba and His Manifestation. This portion of the tape has English subtitles, which is very helpful for people who have difficulty with Bhau’s accent. As an added bonus, also included is a music video of images of Baba set to Bhau’s original song, “Wake Up, 0 People, You Wake Up.” This video is priced at an unbelievable $15. You read that right $15x! At that price, you can be very generous in your gift giving. It is also excellent to have on hand for your friends who want to know who that man in all your photos is. Diana LePage, originally from Los Angles and now residing by Avatar’s Abode in Australia, painted the magnifi cent portraits of Baba on our cover. The original painting in oils, over 7 feet high, hangs in Baba’s room at the Abode. Diana specializes in painting huge portraits of Baba, and as such, they are priced out of the average person’s means. However, she has found a way to make her paintings available for everyone at very reasonable prices. They are reproduced on a canvas textured medium, much smaller of course, and look very beautiful. Besides the cover, we sell a number of her other portraits, some of which are featured in our Gallery of the Heart on pages 20-23. Sizes and prices will be listed in the Gallery order form. Danny Ladinsky’s book IHeard God Laughingwas so popular that a group of musicians got together and set many of the poems to music. Sufism Reoriented hasjust released 3 different CDs and tapes with 30 or more of Danny’s poems. Two “

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Jai Baba folks,

nce again, many new items we lay before you to help you drink more and still yet more of His love. Each quar— ter, as I tell you about new books, photo cards and audio tapes, realize it is not just a new product on the market, but the cul— mination of, at times, years of work and the outpouring of a Lover’s praise to his Beloved. So it is with the first of our offerings. It has been quite a few years since Jim Meyer gave us the impassioned musical Our Danny, author of the two absolutely tape called Relentless Love which still delightful renderings of Hafiz The Subsells well, and if you don’t have it you ject ThnightisLoveand IHeardGodLaugh should! ($12.) But this time Jim has given us his tour ing. The Baba bookstores around the country weren’t the only ones selling his de force a 75-minute CD entitled Ways they also found their way into books toAttain theSupremeReality. Title sounds BordersTM and other commercial familiar, you muse? bookshops. In 1952 Baba commissioned the Their success made the literary world lover Malcolm Baba and poet American and take notice the huge publishsit up inspired of poetry create a book Schloss to of Penguin/Putnam is now selling house realiza the “on writings by the Master’s The Gift. By far the largest latest his ing com of attainment the tion of Truth and The Giftcontains 250 po books, the 3 of with Union plete, constant, conscious from two very famous praise High ems. God.” own right is printed their in translators book his was The extraordinary result from Andrew jacket book on the Reality. Ways to Attain the Supreme should do for translations “These Harvey: lly and Baba praised it enthusiastica translations Barks’ Coleman Hafiz what of compared Malcolm’s poems with those on all paths Seekers Rumi. for done have Perthe incomparable Hafiz and also the they emit.” the radiance from benefit will fect Master Shankaracharya. He asked himself: Barks Coleman from And that it be published. Nearly 50 years has a lin Hafiz, inside universes are There passed since this rare gem of Western follows Ladinsky Daniel masters. of eage its 36 mystical poetry was completed the playfulness: the rascal moves well.” poems with accompanying commentary Sylvia Boorstein adds These remarkby Meher Baba has long been out of print. able short poems are magic tricks ver But Jim has set all 36 poems to music bal sleights of hand that cause the mind he has composed especially for this col to blink and that replace the imagined lection. The recording was engineered, perception of grief and woe with the realmixed and co-produced by Grammy ity of joy.” award-winner Bill Szymczyk (the Eagles, Again, quoting from a review, “With The Who, Joe Walsh etc.) so we know it this stunning collection of 250 of Hafiz’ is going to be of superb quality. most intimate poems, Daniel Ladinsky As if all that wasn’t enough, the entire has succeeded brilliantly in capturing the text of the original book is included as a essence of one of Islam’s greatest poetic 24-page booklet! All this, for only $18. and religious voices. Each line of The Gift Another of our very talented artists has imparts the wonderful qualities of this gained major recognition in the world spiritual teacher: an audacious love that outside of Baba lovers: Daniel Ladinsky. —

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of the CDs are by a very talented Mischa Rutenberg, who has composed the music and sings the songs. One is called Dance Dervish Dance and the other Come to My House. The third CD WhisperlLove You is many of the same poems, but sung by different musicians, each of whom has composed their own music so they are quite different to Mischa’s. A very talented and musical group indeed! Sufism Reoriented wants as many people as possible to be able to enjoy this beautiful music and to absorb the wonderful words the great love for God that flows to you in Hafiz/Danny’s original words and then passed on to the listener with an extra dollop of love from Mischa and the other singers. To this end, they have set the purchase price at an unbelievable $9! That’s right both CDs and tapes are $9 each! Since they only arrived this morning, I have not had time to listen to them all we will review them in the next issue but I think by then many of you will have bought them for your self. But at the mo ment I am listening to and absolutely bying the Dance Dervish Dance CD. These, as are the other two, are love poems from the East presented in popular song styles

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T-shirt createdby Lance Faladino

XXL, and XXXL. The first 3 sizes are $12 each and the last 2 are $14. Better order immediately if you want the XXL and XXXL as we have very few in this size.

Till next time see you, In the Bookstore, Dma —

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Three New Sortg Albums WhIsperirtg”l Love You” :

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InspIred by Meher Babas Love for RaFIz Whisper 1 Love You 15 new songs composed and performed by Antoinette Davis, Randy Hammon, Hank Mindlin, Mischa Rutenberg, Victor Seckeler, Julia Skiff. lJartce Dervish 1Jarce 14 new songs composed and sung by Mischa Rutenberg. 2 -shirt created by Bob Fredericks

Come To tvty

from the West, such as Bossa Nova, rock, pop, ballads, blues, cabaret, and others. We have two beautiful new tee shirts to tempt you. As always, printed in color on 100% cotton and available in M, L, XL,

We used to sell car license plate holders made of metal that have “Don’t Worry Be Happy Avatar Meher Baba” engraved top and bottom on them, bought about 10 years ago. We were able to sell them for $10. I can’t get them made in that qual ity for less than $18 now, so I decided to downgrade to a flexible plastic that they tell me has an expected life of 5 years. These sell for only $4. Finally we were able to buy some of Baba’s 7 color flags in India. They mea sure 19”x 34” are brightly colored cotton and sell for $8. We also have the shoulder bags, quite roomy for tucking books etc. in, made from the same material for the same price. To order anything from the Bookstore you may phone, write, or email me. All information is on the table of contents page.

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Rouse

14 more new songs composed and sung by Mischa Rutenberg. Hafiz Love Poems from the East presented in song styles of the West: rock, pop, ballads, blues, cabaret, bossa nova and more. All lyrics adapted from IHeard God Laughing Renderings ofHafiz by Daniel Ladinsky. Each album contains more than an hour of music.

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Announcements And the winner is... was a other’s Day May the grand day for celebrating and not just for the usual reasons! At our weekly meeting at Meherabode three very lucky winners were drawn out of the hat ( read -“chosen by Baba” ). This was the drawing of the fabulous Around theWorid, Follow in His Footsteps Sweepstakes that we had told you about in the J anuary issue. The Grand Prizewinner was our own Sam Ervin, a long time member of our Centei and major contributor to all our efforts. Sometime the ways of our Beloved are difficult to fathom we must realize that nothings happens by chance; as He has said, “Not a leaf falls but by My will,” and as Mother Teresa so succinctly put it, “It’s easy to tell what is God’s Will it’s what happens!” Many thousands of us would have loved to have gone thousands for whom an around the world trip is totally beyond our financial reach. Sam is one of the few people who could have afforded to go un der his own steam but would he ever? Probably not, as he is a very busy execu tive. However Baba obviously thought he shouldgo and this is His message to Sam and family! So many of the Baba Centers around the country are running these Fly to India sweepstakes to raise the much needed funds for their respective Centers, so if you win one do not everthink it is by chance, and so generously give your ticket to someone else you feel may need it more than you. That is, in effect, saying “Thanks. but no thanks Baba!” Consider it your very personal message from Him. The second prize of every video we sell in the Love Street Bookstore went to an overjoyed Ossian Stoddard ofKershaw SC. “It was truly a kiss on the cheek from our Beloved Baba. What more can one say!” There will be a Baba feast at the Stoddard home for a long while to come! Connie Crawford, currently residing in AZ, but previously a member of the Center here won the third prize of a $250 gift certifi cate to The Love Street Bookstore. h, 9 t

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A Note from Our Trust-walli

Entries came from around the world, including Australia, India, Canada and England. Congratulations to our three winners and many thanks to the hundreds of you who participated. Unfortunately we raised only sufficient to cover all the costs, so on a realistic fundraising basis it was a bit of a disappointment, but it was certainly fun trying, and I know we have brought a lot ofpleasure to the winners. Perhaps we should not be quite so ambitious next time as we were hoping for $30-40,000 on that one. Baba gave u’s this magnificent Center, but it is definitely a ‘fixer-upper’ and needs a lot of work before we can get our permit from the City, so we will definitely be holding many more fundraisers in which we hope you willjoin to help us achieve our goals.

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A/litchellRose reports on the following headline in an Indian newspaper:

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Rocket Fires India Into Commercial Orbit

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By Suresh Seshadri

you’ve been thinking that some time you’d like to make a love-donation to the Trust, today may be the perfect time. The Avatar Meher Baba Trust runs a first-rate school, provides medical care for villagers and maintains Baba’sTomb Shrine and Trust properties. There are also benefi ciaries ofthe trust whose living expenses are covered by donations from Baba-lovers. All of these worthy projects were specified by Baba Himself, in the Trust Deed. Many of the Trust’s charitable projects arid outreach projects are carried outbyEastern and Westem volunteers. Some projects, however, require the assistance of paid Indian workers, and as India raises its standard of living, the cost of materials and labor is on the rise also. Morelove-donations are also needed for the ongoing archives project; preservation of the precious articles used and touched by Baba that mean so much to all of us. If this appeals to you, please make your check payable to Friends of Meher Baba Trust, and send it to: Lynne Berry, 267 Hanover Drive, Costa Mesa, CA 92626

Audio Tape Lending Library

(Reuters)... Mitchell comments Tho bad “

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fused to like India where it was.”

you ever find yourselfin a ‘dry spell’ spiritually? Are you bored listening to the same old negative news, weather and traffic reports on your way to work? Would you rather have something inspiring to usten to? Do you need an interesting theme for your Baba meetings. . .? Well, the au dio library has many interesting and intellectually stimulating discourses on life with Baba. We have over 150 titlesjust waiting to be delved into by inquiring minds. What unsuspecting treasures to behold! Don’t waste your time on this tired old world any longer. Make your choice to move into the cosmic Baba linkup. Lynne Berry (official tape walli) is ready to assist you. For cata log or info write to: AMB Lending Audio Library do Lynne Berry, 267 Hanover Drive, Costa Mesa, CA 92626-6 173.

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SRIHARIHOTA, India

Lynne Berry

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Dinner Auction at Meherabode O

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Annual Fund Raising Dinner Auction was a wonderful success. The committee, headed up by a very creative Cookie Reindeau, transformed Meherabode into a Persian Night Under the Stars. The decor was simply fantas tic! No one had ever seen our Center looking this glamorous! It took Cookie and her he’pers 3 days just to transform the Center, and many weeks before that in preparation. The catered Persian Dinner was sumptuous and the entertainment and donated auction items were all top notch. Rick Flynn was flown in from Atlanta GA to be our MC and chief auc

tioneer. He kept the evening gothg at a lively pace and helped us to raise $29,000! Our main item was a signed copy of God Speaks that went for a very loving donation to the Center of $ 1 1,000. And it was all ac complished by cell phone! We had a caller from Northern California who was having a wonderful time bidding blind going only by the auctioneers descriptions. Elias ended the evening with some wonderful Baba trea sures, and in the process, moved us closer to getting that new roof we so badly need. Some of the other treasures that were donated for auction were some ivory prayer beads that belonged to Princess Norma —

Matchabelli they fetched $660, a signed beautifully framed photo of Maui $700, $ 1000 for a photo of Upasni Maharaj that had been touched by Baba, and $2,200 for a framed button and locket, also touched by Baba. These evenings are so much fun, and do so much good! We had an enor mous amount of treasures for Silent Auc tion, some as low as $5. so no one left empty handed. Everyone went home happy and the Center can now breathe a little easier in the financial department. A very big thank you to everyone who helped make this night such a success! —

Searching for cherishabies amongst silent auction treasures.

A selection ofiterns for the live auction.

Rick Flynn. Linda Zavala, Wendy Warci Cookie Reindeau andFred Stankus, the hard- working committee! Cookie takliig bids by phone for God Speaks

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Book Reviews Intimate Conversations Sarah McNeill, Sussex, England

hen I finished reading Bal Natu’s book, Intlinate Conversations with the A wakenez I turned back to the start and read it again,just for the another chance to visualize what goes on in the mind of one who is solely focused on Meher Baba. The book is a unique work. Inner landscapes of great beauty are revealed. Baba strides easily into view or appears quietly beside the author and is re ceived with a natural and spontaneous delight so that the reader feels privileged to share the encounter. The range of Bal Natus personal ques tions to his Beloved Baba fill the pages of the book in patterns that intertwine like ara besques in a Kashmiri shawl. The reader can follow any one ofthe designs along a thoughtful thread of question and answer. My personal starting point at the time ofreading was this question: “How can the individual expe rience God as an inner presence when the body functions as a perceptual apparatus that constantly directs attention to the outer world?” The thread I chose to follow through formed, in the end, a perfect circle, though at the start I could not see where it was leading. But after I’d copied out carefully selected passages from some of the answers Bal Natu received in re sponse to his questions, here what I found in answer to mine: “The purpose of ha ving a human body is to understano feel and realize the blissfu] formles Infinite spirit ever residing in you, that I am. Understanding the paramount im portance and function of the human body must become a longing of the heart an intensepassion. Yourmindis ‘7iydra-headed soyou are unable to make anyLirm decision that is dose to your original nature. This impedes the biossomingofhf Blossoming is a very natural and delicate process ofgradually becoming a ware of ftis an art ofabid Mypresence withinyou ingjoyfufly, withouthinerresistance to thenum beriess laws ofnature that are operatthg in and throughyour life. Just start to witness whatever it is that is -

happening withinyou andaroundyou, whith is oniy theperihery oflife, andreturn to the Cen tre which Jam. Thi is the way to grow in my presence. Let thli beyour deep passion, your sole focus. Ifin your life you allow the insignificant to become significant, you will find that even ordinary chores and duties become channels to feel my loving presence. Start to remem ber me at the beginning and also at the end of every major activity ofyour daily routine. The you will notice that I am also particiat ing with you. Occasionally my intimate re sponse will flood your being. Subtler than space, finer than time, My presence is ever accessible, though not necessarily easy to reach. Silent dialogue with me is one of the ways of feeling my pres ence. Ifyour inner attention is focused on Me you will sense a delicate tug within you, regardless of the activity you are engaged in, andyou will become aware that I am caring for you, anxious to help you. No activity is insignificant. Th be practical, start with any ordinary activity, like sl4oping into your clothes, liftJam ing a spoon orputtingpen to paper verypleased whenyou rememberme during very ordinary actions. Because your ‘i-ness is most deepfrandfirmlyrootedin ordinary thihgs. Call on mein the little nayin thelittlest things that youdo. Fortheythen sprout tinyyet mighty wings which wilgracefully transportyou to the higher andsubtlerrealms ofMypresence within you. Wash the dishes, dean anddry them softly as ifyou were offeringyourprayers toMe. Attendto your bills and memoranda as though you were doing all that buskiess for Me. Don divide life into the temporaland the spfritual. Jam the Indivisible One. Calling on Me helps shed unwanted bur dens gathered during the initial pursuit of external goals. One begins to feel light in heart and mind. Gradually the burden of thoughts and feelings falls away, the douds of confusion disperse. This marks the auspi cious moment when one perspective shifts from outer to inner It is only when you slow down that the secrets of life can begin to reveal themselves to you. But you have to understand that going slow isn the same as moving slowly To go slow means to stay centred in my remem brance. It means honoring every activity by giving each its full measure of attention. Perhapsyou may wonder how this is done? “

Bybringingbody, mindandheartinto harmony Once this harmony is establisheo then even the most rapid movements ofa dancer or an athlete are clow”because they are totally centered lii the movement. What Ic harmony? When there is no conflictbetween thoughts, feelings and activities, they express themselves in one resonance. That Ic harmony. Moments ofharmony are precious offerings to Me. W]th this harmonyyou will find that life takes on a subtiei more precise rhythm. You become aware ofthe sheer immensity oflife, withits diversityandinterconnected-ness. A time wilcome whenyou wiigo so slow thatyou won be concernedabout what wiihappen even in the next moment. Th ctay low”is toperceive myglory in ev eryone andeverythingand to honourit with all respect. ft is to be conscious that Myglory Ic the source andfoundation ofFerception itself” That statement brought me back to the question I’d had in mind at the outset and I felt this completed the answer. A great deal has been left out in selecting these particular quotes. To fill in all the gaps, you will have to read the book! All I have done here is to pur sue one line of thought through the pages of this book. Just one thread in the pattern Bal Natu weaves through his narrative. The overall design is rich enough for each reader to find and follow a different line of thought, guided by the signposts ofBal’s questions and answers in this third volume of his Con versations with theA wakener Published by Sheriar Press, available at The Love Street Bookstore, paperback $12.

Music Reviews TechnoBaba Robert Fredericks’ New CD by Robert Kinnery, Meeker, AK

echno Baba is an interesting mix of neurotic visionary ambition and acoustic inner-achievement. It has entered the left field of Meher Baba musical cul ture and will leave it’s mark on it somewhere. Never before has the Baba-culture been injected with 648 megabytes of elec tronic music that pretends to be solemn, sober, sagacious and danceable at the same time.

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The mix master of TB has taken soundbytes from Meher Baba’s mandali (and also a Meherabad volleyball game) and has mixed them into electronic music to, as he puts it, “reframe them” so the result is a collage of sound and speech to help the listener into a meditative mode of absorbing the content of the talk. What to say about these 73 minutes of insolent yet innocuous yet for some rea son, satisfying sounds, except to say “May Baba’s Nazar be on the conflicted soul who created it!” I would recommend Techno Baba to all those who are ready to hear something different. You can hear samples of this CD on the www by going to: http://westwood. fo r t u n e c i t y. c o m I m c q u e e n I 6 8 4 I technobaba.html Following are some of the comments from folks who have heard this most un usual work: “

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TechnoBaba tracks finally knock my Baba music world out of the 70 s framework. “Baba can use any means” as Mani says (in TechnoBaba)” Ken Neunzig —

“The TechnoBaba is great. .it is a great thing for the youth to hear Mani’s and Eruch’s voice. It is a great thing you did. Baba gave you a good idea.” —Rustom and Sohrab Irani to Robert Fredericks. .

“Cool Man! Radical! Like wow! Awesome, dude!” .overheard by a gaggle of unidentified older teenagers. —

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Someone sent a band to my house, Andit startedplaying At five in the morning Itook this as a sign God wantedme to sing! Then the moonjoined in And a few ofthe tenor- voiced stars, And the earth offeredits lovely belly As a drum. Before Iknew it, Irealized Aflhuman beings could be happy Iftheyjusthada few music lessons From a Sweet Old Maestro Like Hafiz. IHeard GodLaughing, Renderings ofHafi by Daniel Ladinsky, Dharma Publishing, 1996.

This CD is totally awesome! the

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Video Reviews Don WorryBeHappy and Souls On Fire by Melani Jones

Don WorryBe Happy. Cindy Paulson interviews Dr. Meredith Moon and Bill Stephens on Hawaii Public Television, March 17, 1999, 60 minutes, VHS.

this heartwarming video, Meredith Moon, Ph.D, tells for the first time the story of her search for God, and the excitement of coming to Meher Baba. Throughout her life, until 1970, Meredith sought God without finding any evidence of God’s reality. Everywhere she went, she asked people, “How do you know that God is real?” No one ever gave her a satisfactory answer to that ques tion. On the morning of December 7, 1970, without warning, Meredith Moon saw a bril liant white light streaming into her room. Her attention became focused on an oval-shaped aura at the foot ofher bed. Suddenly the reality of God Presence filled her entire being, and she began to weep uncontrollably. “You’re real. You’re real! You’re really real!” she cried. A kind of sweet energy came from the aura and wrapped around her like a cocoon. From that moment on, her heart was filled with un conditional love and she knew that God is Love. At the same time, she realized that no learning had led to that experience. It was a gift, pure and simple—a gift of God’s precious grace. The sense of God immediate Presence stayed with Meredith for about a month. Then, to her dismay, it left her, and she began to experience her own personal “dark night of the soul.” During that long and difficult pe nod, she traveled widely, going to ashrams, visiting spiritual groups, seeking contact of some kind with that Presence of God she had known. But nothing helped. Nothing seemed to bring her closer to that Reality she knew existed. Once she happened to open a Meher Baba book and read the words, “I am God in human form,” and she threw the book down in disgust. She was led to study psychology and psy chotherapy. Attracted to Carl Jung, she took some of her training at the Carl Jung Insti tute in Switzerland. But still she could not

find the peace and bliss she had known for that precious month in 1970. But then, while living in Virginia, she met Charles Haynes, who had met Meher Baba and who was then teaching college religion classes. Charles’ knowledge, sincerity and humility won her ovei and she somehow knew that Meher Baba was a truly great Master. Subsequently Meredith Moon and Charles Haynes taught a course together. Finally Meredith went to the Meher Spiritual Center in Myrtle Beach, where she recognized Meher Baba as the Godman, and as her personal Master. Soon after, she made her first of many pilgrimages to India, where she immersed herself in Baba and became close to Baba’s intimate disciples. Meredith lives on the island of Maui, where she does her Baba-centered psychotherapy and dreamwork with her patients, and is ac tive in the Meher Baba community.. This highly recommended video features a spirited discussion by Cindy Paulos and Bill Stephens. along with Meredith, about Meher Baba’s life and work, His Samadhi and mandali in India, and the Meher Spiritual Center in Myrtle Beach, SC. It also contains sparkling footage of Meher Baba from Pete Townshend’s great video OParvardigar along with Pete himself singing his rousing version ofthe Parvardigar Prayer, $20, one hour long.

Souls OnFire. Cindy Paulson interviews William M. Stephens on Hawaii Public Television,March 3, 1999, 60 minutes, VHS Whether you’ve read Bill Stephenss lat est book Souls On Fireor not, you’ll enjoy this interview of Bill by popular TV host Cindy Paulos. Stephens tells some of the stories behind the stories featured in his book, Souls On Fire, which profiles some of Meher Baba’s fa vorite saints, mystics and masters, such as Mirabai, Hafiz, Rumi, Teresa of Avila, the immortal Babajan, Ramakrishna and many more great souls. Get this video and learn why the great sadguru and immortal poet, Kabir, is buried in two separate tombs. One ofthe tombs is in a mosque, and the other is in a Hindu temple. Learn, too, why Kabir, when death was near, insisted on traveling to Magar (despite the ancient belief that persons who die in Magar reincarnate as monkeys) instead of dropping his body in the holy city of Benares (where tradition held that dying in Benares would assure a high birth in the next incarnation). Learn, too, how a great sorcerer who had murdered dozens of innocent people became, through the grace of God, the most famous saint in all of Tibet.

One story of Bill’s that touched my heart is his account (first related by Meher Baba) of Rabia of Basra, reputed to be the most beautiful woman in the world. As a child, Rabia was sold into slavery after her parents died in a famine. Growing up under harsh, even bru tal, conditions, Rabia was sustained by inner strength, and she radiated serenity and purity. Toiling day and night as a slave, she would pray to God in the early hours before dawn. One morning her owner, a merchant, observed her in prayer and saw a great light over her head. Convinced she was a saint, he released her from bondage. For a time she lived in a cave and earned money as a musician. Later she actually lived in a brothel. But this was a cover for her real work of saving souls, for her only lover was God. Rabia, of course, was one of Meher Baba favorite saints. And Baba told us that Rabia later reincarnated (for her last birth) as Babajan, the great Master who lifted the veil from the consciousness ofAvatar Meher Baba. Another wonderful story is about Mirabai, a sixteenth century Hindu queen whose heart was aflame with love for God. After her hus band, the king, was killed in battle, the new king and queen were embarrassed by Mfrabas religious fervor, her consorting with sadhus and dervishes, and her ecstatic dancing. Time after time, they tried to murder her but the Lord Krishna always protected and saved her. Mirabai’s songs are still sung all over India. There’s all this, and much, much more in this hour-long video, including Bill Stephenss own personal story ofcoming to Baba through a near-death experience that changed him from an agnostic to a lover ofGod, and erased his addiction to alcohol in the bargain! This outstanding video should be in every Baba love?s library. $ 15 1 hour playing time. —

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Three- Quarters ofthe WorlcL’A Chat with Bhau Kaichuri This is a 30-minute video with subtitles. Interview conducted by Alexandra Marks. Directed and Edited by David Hammer. Produced by ‘Destroyer’ (Lynwood Sawyer).

Most significant, I believe, is Bhaus emphasis that the mind must go and the heart must come. This is a strange assertion to make to a television audience (for whom the video was

designed)—the “average” people who, as Alex

keeps reminding Bhau, are out there wondering what on earth he talking about. But Bhau makes the assertion with confidence. This is a man who was trained by Baba to withstand ridicule and humiliation. He is not worried about what people think; he is determined Review by Kendra Crossen Burroughs, simply to deliver to them the Name of Meher Meher Mount, Ojai, CA Baba and the message that they must stop eated in front of a formal backdrop of thinking and start feeling. I watch the video black drapes, the little man stuttering in a again, to practice and learn to hear with the heavy Indian accent seems slightly awkward. heart what he is saying, because it is very im The beautiful, poised, articulate American portant, and it does not make sense when journalist is asking him a logical question— heard with the mind. “Who is Meher It strikes me that Baba?”—and she the interview is actually wants a logical ana conversation between swer. She wants him the mind and the heart. to explain that Baba is But don’t worry about a spiritual master, that Alex having to play the he was born in India, part of the bad guy. It that he calls himself only an act her lips the Avatar. But Bhau when she pronounces Kalchuri won’t play the lovely name of the game. His reply is Baba betray her. simple: “He says, ‘I am I think this is an you.” important video. I It’s a promising imagine it being beginning to this watched hungrily by unique video with its people in the not-tooprovocative title. The distant future June 1998 interview people who have just came about by auspi realized who Baba is. I Bhau Kaichuri with MeherBaba. cious coincidence af savor the thought of ter Bhau’s scheduled talk on peace at the what they will experience when they get to United Nations was canceled owing to strict the end, with that incredible image of a little security around a conference on drugs attended girl’s face dissolving into Baba’s, and that dy by world leaders. namite bit of eye contact with the Beloved. Alexandra Marks, a Baba lover who is SeIncidentally, Baba did say that someone would nior Correspondent for the Christian Science get Realization through watching Him on a Monitor, is the interviewer. In addition to stills film (see G1owInternationa August 1998, and film clips of Baba, there is a song with page. 19). Love Street Bookstore. $10.

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lyrics by Bhau, “Wake Up, 0 People, You Wake Up,” beautifully performed by Betsy Greene and others. The excitement of the folks who put this video together seemed somehow tangible as I looked at the box, read the accompanying flyer, and viewed the tape. They know it is good, and that it is all Baba’s doing. The conversation touches on several vital themes—world peace, drug abuse, religion.

Dios Habla by Don Stevens, Nice, France

ne of the first projects discussed be-

tween Baba and Don Stevens to be

carried out was the start of translating the Discourses into French, Spanish and Ger man. The French and Spanish translations

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were made and published some years ago, but it soon became clear that unless such works were brought to the market by a

well-established publisher, they tended to remain in storage unsold and not in the hands of devouring aspirants. Finding and interesting the publisher link then became the goal of much of Don’s and Compan ion Books’ efforts. Not long ago Don’s last boss, the Sec retary for Energy for some time in the

Spanish government, upbraided Don for not having used their friendship earlier to solve the problem in Spain, and promptly turned up the personal introduction to Spain’s most respected publisher in the esoteric field, Editorial Kairos, owned by the Paniker family, which is half Spanish and half Kerala Indian, a wonderful com bination thatjust has to have been set up by Baba. Paniker father and son immediately became enamored of God Speaks, but de cided that its publishing would have to be preceded by the appearance of a biogra phy of Baba half on his life story, and half outlining his philosophy. After a few adventures, they set the specifications for this book and told Don to write it for them. After a few more adventures’ Don did just that, and Heather Nadel and Meherwan Jessawala spent a month with him going over the final draft. Meanwhile, that great adventurer José Henriques, residing in Argentina, discov ered the man waiting in the wings for the translating of God Speaks, which was yet to be done. Hector Morel promptly turned out stunning translations of both God Speaks and the Baba biography. Kairos have now given a firm release date for the Spanish biography of 0cmber, and Sheriar expect to complete Meher Baba, the Awakener of the Age this summer. Kairos have set a realistic sales goal for the biography, and will then publish Bios Habla. All three books will be available throughout the Americas and Europe. If you don’t know Spanish you’d better start learning it right away to enjoy the artistry of Morel’s translation, which had the Sufis’ Spanish language expert lost in a sort of continuing ecstasy. Do you have a favorite bookstore which you can persuade to stock these treasures?

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( What of the Warm-Housed Ones?

Meher Baba on Love WhatisLove?

Francis Brabazon

To give and never to ask. Whatleads to thisLove?

Grace.

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What of the warm-housed ones, and us on this trackless journey? How great the distance between us we are bound and they are free. —

Grace is not cheaply bought. It is gained by being always ready to serve and reluctant to be served. There are many points which lead to this Grace: Wishing welifor others at the cost ofonei’ selE Never bathbftin Tolerance supreme. Tryingnat to worry.

I would return to the hills of my youth and work in the fields But what woman would I now lead out at the harvest festivals? —

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so try! Trying not to worry is almost impossible others Thinking more of the good points in and less of their bad points —

Whatleads to this Grace? <

Doing all of the above. If you do one of these things perfectly, the rest must follow. Then Grace descends. Have Love — and when you have Love, the union with the Beloved is certain. When Christ said, Thove your neighbor,”

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he did not mean fall in love with your neighbor. When you love, you give: when you fall in love, you want. Love me in any way you like, but love me. It is all the same.

To partner me could only be one whom all other men scorn Yet to match my spirit’s step no goddess has yet been born. —

Following the melodies and rhythms of your glance Has made me an expert in every type of dance.

Love me

I am pure, the Source of purity, so I consume all weaknesses in my fire of Love. Give your sins, weaknesses, virtues, all to me — but give. I would not mind even one falling in love with me — I can purify; but when you fall in love with anybody else, you cannot call it love. Love is pure as God. It gives and never asks; that needs Grace. ThePath ofLove, ed. Filis Frederick, pp. 98-99

I have been dancing since you sent the stars out on your breath Dancing with my pretty shadow in a Dance of Death. —

Lately, bushman-eyed (so I thought) I have been tracking your footprints to your dwelling-place Only now to discover that all along I have been in love with my shadow’s charming face! —

Baba Our Hearts Are Broken by Ron Greenstein Baba, our hearts are broken into by You everyday! Breaking and entering is the charge. Now, what do You have to say?

Still the evidence is mounting that You are the Master Thief, And that You’ll be found guilty, well, we have full belief.

Larceny, too, for we have found some worries have disappeared. If You offer up an alibi from these charges You can be cleared.

But we’re prepared to bargain as regards Your plea. J ust promise to keep on breaking in, and we’ll happily set You free!

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Walled on one side by desert and on the other by sea, There is nothing for it now but to await your whim’s mercy. From The BelovedisAiin All

Humor for Huma Limericks

all began when Jamie Newell and his wife Zo were discussing some Baba re lated topics and she began reading a quote from Lord Meher (page 4169) in which Meher Babasays: Ynlranliveda wall named Sabir. Jamie began to laugh, and Zo stopped reading to ask why he was laughing. He re plied: ‘in Iran liveda Wall Sabir who went around quoting Kabir He said “Thereyou are though Godseems so fai he actually is very near!” “

They had a good chuckle, and he put it out on the Baba List serv, suggesting that we could all have fun making Baba limer icks. Following are some of the better efforts. If any of our readers want to join the game we would love to hear from you. —

From Frank Bloise There once was a disciple who thought That in his Master’s web he was caught So he tried his best To pass every test And treasured what his Master taught There was once a sweet child born in Poona An event for the world per fortuna He came and He went Leaving most to repent The missed chance to dive deep in Varuna From Jamie Newell A great master named Babajan sat with a boy named Merwan twixt his eyebrows her kiss brought the young man such bliss his consciousness of the gross world was gone From Ron Greenstein There was once a disciple named Mani With a disposition so sunny She’s passed and we’ve missed her The Beloved’s kid sister Her stories were charming Her smile quite disarming And her jokes were well-told and funny

Dog and Cat

From Anne Fahy As He walked in Mahabaleshwar Few knew He was Parameshwar He took in the sights Booked a room for the night Havingjust arrived for Alwar. An actress by the name of Tallulah had interests that ran to peculiar She told the Avatar: “You are the Real Star, BABA Dahlirig I never could fool ya” As Annie I make my confession Before Baba, my life was depression. He yanked me by the mane, Said “you’re missing the best part of my game.” Now my blues are only impression. As He rode up to Harmon on Hudson Baba dreamed up the man named Ted Judson An architect will he be he will sing hymms to me I’ll make him taller than Elmer Fudd’s son. From Sarah McNeill A Delhi djinn in a djellaba Was corked in a flask in the harbour; And he tried to get free With ten thousand and three Shouts of “Jai Avatar Meher Baba!” A flower-loving lady from Saaba, Decided to make a nice arbour. When her friends went in there And beheld a fine chair, They said, “Hey! Its an arbour for Baba!” Said a foot-weary pilgrim from Pune, Overcome by the heat of mid-June, “If I say Baba’s Name Again and again I’ll eventually reach Dehra Dun”. Then he cried, as the fierce heat of noon Was dispelled by a sudden monsoon, “If I’d done that before He’d have helped even more And I could’ve reached Dehra Dun sooner.” A Westerner offered prasad Said “I can’t eat that stuff. Suga?s bad!” Though, reclining at ease In her salwar kameez, Her Real Self was feeling real bad. A Thai teacher teaching Tai Chi While drinking a cup of chal tea, Said, “I think I can see That my future should be Teaching I Ching instead ofTai Chi.”

newly discovered chapter in the Book of Genesis has provided the answer to Where do pets come from?” Adam said, “Lord, when I was in the garden, you walked with me every day. Now I do not see you anymore. I am lonesome here and it is diffi cult for me to remember how much you love me.” And God said, “No problem! I will create a companion for you that will be with you forever and who will be a reflection of my love for you, so that you will love me even when you cannot see me. Regardless of how selfish or childish or unlovable you may be, this new companion will accept you as you are & will love you as I do, in spite of yourself.” And God created a new animal to be a companion for Adam. And it was a good ani mal. And God was pleased. And the new ani mal was pleased to be with Adam and he wagged his tail. And Adam said, “Lord, I have already named all the animals in the Kingdom and I cannot think of a name for this new animal.” And God said, “No problem! Because I have created this new animal to be a reflec tion of my love for you, his name will be a reflection of my own name, and you will call him DOG.” And Doglived with Adam and was a cornpanion to him and loved him. And Adam was comforted. And God was pleased. And Dog was content and wagged his tail. After a while, it came to pass that Adam’s guardian angel came to the Lord and said, “Lord, Adam has become filled with pride. He struts and preens like a peacock and he believes he is worthy of adoration. Dog has indeed taught him that he is loved, but perhaps too well.” And the Lord said, “No problem! I will create for him a companion who will be with him forever and who will see him as he is. The companion will remind him ofhis limitations, so he will know that he is not always worthy of adoration.” And God created CAT to be a compan ion to Adam. And Cat would not obey Adam. And when Adam gazed into Cat’s eyes, he was reminded that he was not the supreme being. And Adam learned humility. And God was pleased. And Adam was greatly improved. And Dog was happy. And the cat didn’t give a fig one way or the other. “

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The Midwest Gathering by Robert Fredericks, Chicago, IL

At Rockford, Illinois, May 22-24th

eher Baba’s twin nephews, Rustom and Sohrab Irani, Jal and Dolly Dastur and musical guest Jane Brown directed our focus for the weekend to our Beloved Avatar Meher Baba. This was the tenth anniversary of the Midwest gath ering under the organizational efforts of Carol and Miron Kovalevych, Helen Keuller, and Louie Fladger who put their heart and soul into the work of providing the 80 attendees with a wonderful weekend of worry free accommodations, an abundance of guests, and all you can eat meals. Rene, Miron and Loule spent hours in the kitchen sacrificing their time to create the best tasting homemade Iasagna, salads, fruit and vegetable dishes, veg and non-veg meals arid desserts west of Bombay! But Saturday morning found Jal Dastur in the kitchen pre paring dessert, a special treat of watermelon juice enjoyedby all! The attendees of the Midwest Gathering hail from Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Minnesota, Michigan, Iowa, and a few other places around the U.S. The opportunity to renew friendships made from many years of Gath erings andjourneys to Myrtle Beach and India, created the warmth that so many value and which draws people from miles away to attend. This weekend of love and sharing began with home cooking created and organized by Renee Keuler, then a musical performance by Jane Brown and guitarist John Poeg, fol lowed by Rustom and Sohrab delivering their famous foot-stomping, hand-clapping ghazals, and humorous and poignant sto ries of their life with their Uncle Baba and Aunt Mani. These two can lift even the most world-weary spirits with their music and patter in a matter of moments. Dolly Dastur led the 7 am Arti with music from Ten Veras, Michelle Shaffer, Bob

tionship to the Mandali Mani, Eruch, Mehera, Padri and the others, and their feelings and thoughts on how to live with Meher Baba today. Though Jal and Dolly are travelling across the U.S. this year, this was the only Sahavas program they are attending and the Midwesterners were very fortunate to hear their stories in the expanded format that the Sahavas provides. After lunch, a musical dessert was enjoyed by all as Jane Brown sang, accom panied on viola by Mira Lutgendorf. Then the twins launched once again into their treasure trove of Baba, Mehera, and Mani, stories, musical favorites, and concluded with the rousing Gaate Chelo. The Saturday night program began sol emnly when Kyle Morrison offered up a few thoughts on what the tenth anniversary of the Midwest gathering meant to him, and then moved into a lighter arena with songs and poetry presented by the youngest sahavasees. The evening concluded with a dance featuring music from Techno Baba, the wildly different Avataric Trance Dance CD. It started with the track, A.M.B.K.J. which features Rustom and Sohrab speaking over electronic dance music. People were torn between listening to the words or danc ing up a storm to the music. Either way it was a big hit! Sunday morning began again with Arti at 7 am, and then following breakfast we -

JalandDollyspeaking to all.

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Fredericks, Lisa Nelson, Linda J ones and others. A breakfast of salad, fruit homemade bread and croissants, and then back to the meeting hall for more Baba stories. Jal and Dolly told us of their timeless mo ments spent with Baba, their rela

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Brown brought her warm charm and sweet voice to the Midwest for L the first time and she moved deftly between poignant Indian ghazals to ‘60s rock and roll. We hope she will 4 return as our guest singer soon. But most of all, the reason for f F ; the Sahavas was to receive and share Beloved Baba’s love and warmth and family and His tender hug to ‘ last us all another year. Baba’s pres ence was felt by all as they departed r for only a short separation as the Bob Fredricks andMarvin Shaeffer entertaining us. iviidwest will have a second gath August 27-29th with guest speaker on ering gathered for the last story telling session with u B h a Jal and Dolly. Jal speaks slowly and deliberKalchuri. ately, retelling stories that he lived through For infor with a weight that underlines their signifimation on cance to him. Dolly speaks more brightly and attending freely with a lightness that reveals her peace the August andjoy in living with her Beloved. Together gathering they make the perfect couple, complementcall Carol ing each other and filling in each others stoat (312) ries when necessary. They are a treasure of 6330696. the Baba community and the Midwest

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Gathering thanks them sincerely for the time they spent with us. Sohrab speaks and sings boldly, Rustom relaxes and waits for the next song. They are Beloved Baba’s incomparable twins, who have so enriched us and will continue to do so for many years. They are a favorite of the Midwest and we look forward once again to welcoming them with a Baba embrace. Jane

Iane Brown dancing Saturday niqht.

A Wio Holy Band Hafiz Your breath is a sacred clock, my dear— Why not use it to keep time with God’s Name? And if your feet are ever mobile Upon this ancient drum, the earth, 0 do not let your precious movements Come to naught. Let your steps dance silently to the rhythm of the Beloved’s Name! My fIngers and my hands Never move through empty space, For there are Invisible golden lute strings all around, Sending Resplendent Chords Throughout the Universe. I hear the voice

of every creature and plant, Every world and sun and galaxy— Singing the Beloved’s Name! I have awakened to find violin and cello, Flute, harp and trumpet, Cymbal, bell and drum— All within me! From head to toe, every part of my body Is chanting and clapping!

Hafiz, The Beloved has made you Such a Luminous Man! For with constant remembrance of God, One’s whole body will become A Wonderful and Wild Holy Band! IHeard GodLaughing, Renderings ofHafiz by Daniel Ladinsky Dharma Printing, 1996.

The Midwest Gathering. Jai Baba!Allphotos byJohn Poag.

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Silence Day Quotes

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Meher Baba (from various sources) od has been everlastingly working in silence, unobserved unheard, except by those who experience His infinite silence. If my silence cannot speak, of what avail would be speeches made by the tongue? The very moment when He thinks my speaking should be heard universally, God will make me break my silence. Through endless time Gods greatest gift is continuously given in silence. But when mankind becomes completely deaf to the thunder of His silence, God incarnates as man. The Unlimited assumes the limited, to shake Maya-drugged humanity to a consciousness of its true destiny and to give a spiritual push to the world by His physical presence on earth. He uses the body for His universal work, to be discarded in final sacrifice as soon as it has served its purpose. God has come again and again in vanous forms, has spoken again an again in dif ferent onds and different languages the same one Truth but how many are there that live up to it? Instead of making Truth the vita! breath of his life, man compromises by making over and oven again a mechanical religion of it as a handy staff to lean on in times of adversity, as a soothing balm for his conscience or as a tradition to be followed in the footsteps of the past. Man’s inability to live God’s words makes them a mockery. How many Christians follow Chris’s teaching to ‘turn the other cheek’ or ‘love thy neighbor as thyself’? How many Muslims follow Mohammed’s precept to ‘hold God above everything else’? How many Hindus ‘bear the torch of righteousness at all cost’? How many Buddhists live the ‘life of pure compassion’ expounded by Buddha? How many Zoroastnians ‘think truly, speak truly, act truly’? God’s Truth cannot be ignored; and thus by mankind’s ignorance and weakness a tremendous adverse reaction is proand the world finds itself in a duced cauldron of suffering through wars, hate, conflicting ideologies and nature’s rebellion in the forms offloods, famines, earthquakes, and other disasters. Ultimately when the apex is reached, God manifests in human form to guide mankind to the destruction of its self-created evil, that it may be rees tablished in the Divine Truth.

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I would say I am not silent, and that I speak more eloquently through gestures and the alphabet board. Ifyou were to ask me why I do not talk, I would say, mostly for three rea sons. Firstly, I feel that through you all I am talking eternally. Secondly, to relieve the boredom of talking incessantly through your forms, I keep silence in my personal physi cal form. And thirdly, because all talk in itself is idle talk. Lectures, messages, statements, discourses of any kind, spiritual or otherwise, imparted through utterances or writings, arejust idle talk when not acted upon or lived up to. I am never silent. I speak eternally. The voice that is heard deep within the soul is my voice. the voice of inspiration, of intu ition, of guidance. To those who are recep tive to this voice, I speak. .

Baba Keeps Silence IvyO.Duce

here are as many theories about why Baba kept silence as there are people to propound them. One thing is certain, and that is that Babas silence had no resemblance whatever to that held by religiouses who undertake it for the sake of undisturbed meditation or contemplation. Watching Baba handling three or four aspects of communication at once, on different

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levels and perhaps over vast distances, convinced me that it was absolutely necessary for him to conserve every second in order to get his universal work done. He always came directly to the pofrit and never wasted a word when dictating to us. Of course he often re minded us that when he did finally break his silence, his word would have the effect of an atom bomb and that if he did not observe si lence, how then could he break it and make it that effective? He also said, “The Avatar always goes through some special crucifixion. Jesus spent forty days in the wilderness. Baba keeps si lence.” In 1965 he had been silent for forty years! Howa Master Works, p. 6 8 Copyright 1975 Sufism Reoriented, Inc.

Meher Baba’s Deafening Silence by Sky Emerson Wiseman, Billings, MT

eher Baba’s Silence is perhaps the most remarkable and intriguing aspect of His Advent as Avatar of the Age. I have spent considerable time contemplating His Silence and reflecting on its meaning. Mystical concepts such as “Speaking the Word” and “The Soundless Sound” present challenges to mylimited mind but penetrate to a deep heart level beyond the realm ofthought. The physi cal difficulty of maintaining silence for even one day in my routine worldly existence causes me to view Baba’s incredible silence with awe. For Baba intensely active life as The Avatar to have been carried out in silence is beyond comprehension. Beloved Baba has given us many esoteric statements regarding His Silence, and each of these statements is in itself a multifacetedjewel capable oftaking us where we have never been. Yet finally, no matter how much I draw my attention to Baba’s Silence, the beauty and power ofits exquisite meaning lies far beyond the arena of my limited expe rience and my limited power of expression. There is one particular experience for me in this lifetime that stands out as one in which I felt, if only briefly, something of the essence of Baba Silence. It was a Silence that neverberated in my inner being out ofthe depths of His Ocean. To this day the experience remains powerfully etched in my consciousness. In Meherabad on Silence Day morning 1988, I

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had the privilege of entering the Jhopdi Hut where Baba had retired that night of July 9, 1925 to begin His Silence. The Jhopdi had been opened especially for all to visit on Silence Day, and yet I remained in the hut for what seemed liked an eternity. While I sat quietly in that simple sacred space Baba’s Silence became tangible. His Silence emanated from every corner of the room, and my perception was that it was not only deafening but blinding. Never have I experienced an atmo sphere more light and ethereal. The impact of Beloved Babas Silence was so intense that for weeks after returning to America I could deepen into a feeling ofbeing in its midst. Even today, I can sometimes feel the Silence of the Beloved pouring forth that morning in His Jhopdi. Later that Silence Day afternoon I was present when Mehera, Mani, and the other women Mandali walked to Baba Samadhi. His Silence once again came raining down as the women moved majestically up Mehera bad Hill. Mehera caught my eye and nodded almost imperceptibly as She passed by. It was as if She spoke to me inwardly saying, “This is His Silence. Do you hear it? Do you feel it?” The events of that Silence Day often come flooding back to me. I experienced only the merest sense of Baba’s deafening Silence that

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“Do you know where he lives?” Baba asked

at small and large gatherings. He had com posed many Baba songs and Baba would en-

me.

joy hearing them. The lively tunes made the words ofpraise that much more appealing and

“I don’t have his address,” I replied, “but I know he is living somewhere on the Deccan

Baba would often have Madhusudan, accom panied by others, sing for Him and the assembled group. One of his songs which was well received

College campus.”

was “Meher Ekam.” One interesting feature of this song was that all of the lines, as far as I

remember, ended with the letter “m.” This struck Baba fancy. So much so, that for a while He took to adding an “m” to the names of those residing with Him at Guruprasad. For ex ample, Pendu became Penduem (not the same as in the earlier years, Baba had nicknamed him as Pendulum) Vishnum, Meherjeem, etc. One weekend, in the group of lovers who had assembled was a judge, a Mr. Mukarjee, from Calcutta, along with his wife. When he returned home after the darshan, he wrote Baba aletter in which he said that he had been so taken with the song “Meher Ekam” that he and his wife now sang it to themselves every ,

day. When Baba heard this, he suddenly looked

Baba seemed pleased. Go and ask his opinion ofthis song,” Baba gestured. I accepted this command, but perhaps I didn’t seem ea ger enough, for Baba gestured, “Don’t wait until tomorrow. Go today.” So, after getting a copy of the song, I took a rickshaw to Deccan College and found Shastri Pandurang’s quarters. He was surprised to see me, and we made casual conversation for a while before I came to the point of my visit. I showed him the song and explained Baba’s concerns about the un grammatical use of Marathi, Hindi and Sanskrit words in the song. Shastri Pandurang replied that he also liked the song and thought it was a good one. “Yes,” I agreed, “but what about the Ianguage?’ “It is written in the language ofthe heart,” he replied, “so ordinary rules ofgrammar don’t “

apply.”

I was happy to receive a verdict I tould

Guruprasad. This was a mansion on Bund Garden Road, given for His use by the Maharani of Baroda. Through the early 60s He compassionately allowed His lovers to come for His darshan on some weekends. Frequently

concerned. “What kind of impression will people get,” Baba wondered, “if they hear this song being sung? It is a mixture of languages,” Baba gestured, “Marathi, Sanskrit, and Hindi. When people hear this song with these Unusualwords, what will they think of Me? Will it give them the wrong impression?” Baba turned to me and asked me what I thought. I said, “Personally, I like the song Baba. It has a nice tune and the words seem heartfelt and I think people will understand that it’s only a song.” “Is it grammatically correct?” Baba asked. “Baba, it seems okay to me,” I replied again, but Baba was not satisfied. “Do you know Shastri Pandurang?” He asked me. Of course I knew of him. He was a well-known Sanskrit scholar working at the Deccan College Research Institute of Languages. In addition, he would come himself to have Baba’s darshan whenever he could, since he lived nearby. (Late Shastri Pandurang translated all of Shankaracharya hymns from the Sanskrit into Marathi. Baba even gave a briefmessage to be included in the book when it was printed. When he came to Guruprasad, Baba would sometimes have him, or his son,

Madhusudan of Pune, who was regarded by

recite the famous hymn of Shankaracharya,

the Beloved. The Beloved can only be found

Baba lovers in India as their song writer lau reate, would visit Guruprasad to sing for Baba

“Shivoham,” which contains the essence of Vedanta.)

within you, for His abode is the heart.”

day, but it penetrated deep into the core of my

being. He filled my cup with Silence that day and I was incapable of receiving any more. When the question of the meaning of

Baba Silence is posed, the closest I can come to answering is to silently reflect on the ex quisite light of the Jhopdi illuminating my heart in great waves of His Divine Love His Jhopdi and a glance from the One who loves Him as He “should be loved.” Silence Deafening Silence. —

—

Language of the Heart Bal Natu, Meherabad, India

tarting in 1959, Meher Baba began spending the summer months in Pune at

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relay to Baba. I stayed for a short time, as

Shastri Pandurang offered me some refreshment. Then, as soon as I could politely take my leave, I hurried back to Guruprasad. It was

as ifBaba had been waiting for my return. As soon as He saw me, He gestured, “Well, what did he say?” “Baba,” I replied, “he says it is written in the language of the heart awakened by Your Love, and ordinary rules of grammar don’t apply.”

Baba appeared to be very relieved to hear this. He smiled and gestured, “Then it okay if the judge and his wife continue to sing the song. He seemed pleased with the end result and gestured for me to come closer. He gave me a fresh sumptuous grape, His divine “

bounty.

The language ofthe heart inspired by love is truly beyond all rules. This reminds me of a time Beloved Baba conveyed to His lovers, “The prayer God hears is the prayer from the heart...God does notlisten to the language

ofthe tongue, nor to the language ofthe mind, He responds to the language ofthe heart. The language of the heart is the song of love for

Jai Baba!

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The Southeast Gathering ‘99 He knew that Baba was God, because Baba had responded to his thoughts in the midst of hundreds of people. From that day forward, K.K.

by Winnie Barrett, Jim Watson, and Bill Stephens; Photographs by Rusty Rust

he twenty-second Southeast Gathering

Ramakrishnan dedicated himself to the task

was the best one yet!’ exclaimed Lela Stephens, who went to her first gathering in 1982, when she was seven months old, and

of spreading Baba’s message of love and truth to the world—by speaking, writing, publishing and working tirelessly with the Pune Meher Baba Center. Ramakrishnan was accompanied on his trip to Georgia by Pascal Kaplan, who shared information about Sufism Reoriented, and in a presentation titled “Prac tical Spirituality: Is There Any Other Kind?”

has been to every one since except the one in 1998, when she was in Australia on a scholarship. “Every year I see good friends I havent seen for ages. There’s nothing like it! Next to

the Youth Sahavas, it’s the top event of the year!” Lela was echoing the sentiments of more thai-i a hundred teenagers who attended

showed beautiful videos from the Consortium

the latest South East Gathering.

of the Arts.

As always at the Gathering, held in the foothills of the mountains of North Georgia, there was lively and memorable music, and

A wonderful surprise at this yea?s Gath ering was the unscheduled visit—a “bonus gift” for all--of an endearing Baba-lover who met his Beloved in 1930. A. K. Kasthuri and his lovely wife Leela have lived in California for a number ofyears, but only a relatively few Baba lovers from the Southeast had known of them. Thanks to Meher Baba’s perfect

there were skits, games, hikes, focus groups and square-dancing. There were warm and wonderful speakers who have spent the best days of their lives with Meher Baba, who is the inspiration for the Gathering and the fo cal point of all the joy

timing, all those who attended this year’s

and play and discussions. On the stage, be-

Southeast Gathering had the rare opportu

hind the speakers and entertainers, were ex quisite paintings of Baba done by Roger

nity to meet AK., who has been with Baba for

an incredible sixtynine years, having first met Baba when AK.

Stephens. This year, for the first time, we were fortunate to have as a spe cial guest K.K. Ramakrishnan, truly a

was five years old! AK.

was the grandson of one of Meher Baba’s early disciples, Mr.

Sanpath Aeyangar of

beacon of Baba love and service. He told of a “chance” encounter with Kaikobad in the early 1950s, which led

to his meeting Adi K. Irani, who told him he

Madras. During formal and informal sessions at the gathering, A. K.

Kasthuri shared marvelous stories, diaries,

The multi-talentec/Annalena Phihi,s sings at the ciosingmusical session. Paintings in background by Roger Stephens.

might see Meher Baba at the Pune railway sta tion as He departed for Andhra. Ramakrishnan perched on a bridge for an hour, gazing at Baba while He sat in a railway car, waving to His devotees and wait-

letters from Baba and

other memorabilia of the Ancient One info-

Then, as Baba took a he seat,

herabad for two days at the end of the Three

thought, “And He sat on the

Incredible Weeks. Having completed a Bible

mount and

correspondence course, he was familiar with

the multitude sat around Him.” Suddenly he thought, “So Baba must be the Christ!” At

lug for the train to depart. Later Ramakrishnan was invited to Me-

stories of Jesus. As Baba walked up the hill, he thought of the verse, “He went up the mountain and the multitudes followed Him.”

Meher Baba peers out from behind thispyramid ofbeautifui and talentedyoungsters.

that instant, Baba looked directly at him, and he feltlike a piece ofice had touched his chest.

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cus groups and casual conversations. Wher ever he went, people gathered around him. As important as the

stories he told was the

atmosphere created in the telling. His loving, humble, eloquent and lively presence created a splendid exchange of Babas love from heart to heart.

Another fascinating guest was Bili Eaton, ‘

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so Amazing,” which is the title of her lively talk. At the same time Frank was gasping who came to Baba in 1952 after trying to push book of memories of Meher Baba. Buy it. and clutching his stomach. Not knowing God away for many years. An atheist at age You’ll love it. Just as everyone at the Gath what to do, they went to a bar and drank whis thirteen, she became curious about various re ering loved Bill Eaton and her unique Smligions years later while work(/ ries of her Divine Beloved. as a dance instructor for A real show-stopper was the heart-stirArthur Murray’s Studio in ring music of Cathy Riley. Cathy has a natu New York. But none of the ral way of involving others in her music (as paths she studied satisfied shown by the choir she pulled together in her, and she was quite happy only two days) and also in helping children with her life of dancing, tap into their own creativity to compose nightclubbing and partying. original pieces that were shared with At one point, when she was sahavasees. Cathy’s songs are always a joy out of work and trying to to ear, head and heart, as she gathers words, choose between two job ofideas and symbols from such great souls as fers, a friend suggested she Rumi, Bhau, Tagore, and of course Meher pray about it—a novel idea to Bili. However, after thinking Musicalguest Cathy Riley helps both children and about it, she decided to test adults create their own music. God (ifHe existed). She said: “Ifyou’re real, give me a sign. If by tomorrow at nine o’clock, the studio agrees to %/ ø Irrepressible auctioneers EdLegum the salary and terms I proanclRoger Stephens. posed, then I’ll believe in you.” Next morning at ten minutes before nine, key sours while watching basethe studio agreed to her terms. Bili was aston ball on televi ished, but surely it was only a coincidence, she sion. Suddenly decided. God had nothing to do with it. Years went by and Bili became interested Bill began sobin Religious Science—using the mind to bing uncontrol lably and they heal—and she and others met regularly to dis left in embar cuss mental powers and such. A man named rassment. Mr. Frederick began meeting with the group. That was One night Mr. Frederick suggested they might Bill Eaton’s inlike to invite his daughter Fills, who had met troduction to a spiritual master named Meher Baba. So Fills what she now Frederick told the group about her experi calls “A Love ences with Meher Baba. Not long after that, ,“ 4 Bili Eaton, while walkBaba. Along with her own ing down the street, rich singing voice, Cathy had an intense experi forth a bounty of brought utter bliss. ence of Baba-full sounds from oth Soon she was attenders of all ages during the ing meetings at Fred three-day sahavas.. and Ella Winterfeldt’s. # And then there was the Then onjuly 20, 1952, auction an annual fundafter Baba was injured in a collision in Okla :? 4 raising event. Roger Stephens and Ed Legum homa, Bill met Baba in were dynamic, entertaining New York. That first and most successful auc meeting was overtioneers who succeeded in whelming, and then raising over $4,000 for the she and her friend Avatar Meher Baba Trust Frank went out on the in India. Paintings and tem the streets, where photographs with links to perature was 104 de Baba or to His close ones grees. Bill broke out Ourguest speakers express final thoughts andfeelings at the closthgpanel discussion on Sunday morning. were in great demand, and into a cold sweat and Left to right: A. K KasthurL Bii Eaton, K K Ramakrishnan, Pascal Kaplan. an exhilarating time was started shivering all had by all. over, her teeth chattering so she could hardly irig

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Avatar Meher Baba’s Natal Horoscope The Awakener

(Meher Baba horoscope was cast by an astrologer named Zoltan Mason, who owned a metaphysicalbookstore in New York City.)

r. Z. S. Mason, a well-known New York astrologer (at 789 Lexington Avenue, N.Y.C.) was given Meher Baba’s birth date, without his name or other iden tifying material, from which he cast the chart and gave this remarkable interpretation of Baba’s life and mission for the upliftment of humanity in the New Awakening. He is, indeed, the “Aquarian Avatar,” so long pre dicted by the Magi of our times. “This is the horoscope of a practicing occultist. Aquarius, the sign of metaphysics, is rising; it is the eleventh Sign of the Zo diac, showing the advanced state of his reincarnation. This sign is ruled by Uranus and Saturn. Uranus is in the 10th House, that of the profession and of destiny. Saturn is in the 9th House, that of God, ofhigher thinking, religion and philosophy. Both these Planets are retrograde, showing that material and worldly interests are not desired, but that the mind and spirituality, will be the destiny for this life: the Sun and the Moon are in Watery Signs in Trine to each other (harmony between his first and second na ture, or between his soul and will of realiza tion). The Sun is in Pisces, the Twelfth Sign, the ultimate of the possibility of reincarna tion. The Moon is in the 9th House, where Saturn is also placed. The old astrologers said that a destiny can be powerful only if, by birth, the Planets are either in their own Signs or in Exaltation. Here, in this chart, we have Saturn exalted (pure) and Mars, which rules the destiny in this horoscope, is in exaltation also, the latter is the dispositor of the Moon and Uranus. “The cusp of the Tenth House (the destiny) is in Scorpio, the strongest Sign, called the sign of the Magician, but not the magi cian ofthe hands; it is the Sign ofthe Magi cian of the Soul, or that of somebody who makes Magic with the soul of others. We have a confirmation ofthis in our horoscope; it is given by the Moon in Scorpio, the Sign ,

where the Moon is in the fall. It is hard to

understand the meaning of the Moon in Scorpio, but it seems that this Planet here is much more important for the realization of psychic phenomena, and, very often, we find the same in charts of psychiatrists, occultists, and, in general, by people having a magic power over others. “Mars, the ruler of Scorpio, is in the 12th House, called the Occult House. People who have the ruler of destiny in the 1 2th House will have seclusion in their destiny—willingly or forced. In this chart, Mars is very well aspected by the Sun and the Moon; also Mars is in exaltation (purity) showing that it will be his free choice that he lives sometimes in seclusion. Mars in Capricorn is the strongest expression of the will for realiza tion. This combination shows that the se clusion has a purpose: that of practicing the occult. This is not the chart of a dreamer, but of one who has the power of occult realization. There is another indication of the very high standing ofthis personality: in the first House, Venus is rising in the Sign of Aquarius, as so often is found in the chart of occultists. Venus here is retrograde: this person is not interested in the love of only some people, he is not interested in physical love, as indicated by Venus in Aquarius (ruled by ,

Saturn) and Saturn in Libra is ruled by Ve ,

nus; each in the House of the other, called a

“reciprocal reception” in terms of astrology. Venus and Saturn are in Trine, the best pos sible aspect. This Venus is not a “low” Ve

nus. The native is not a man who goes for little things; he is not a charlatan; according to this chart he has a very high spiritual standing. “This horoscope gives the following information about his financial possibilities. It shows that he will have money, mostly re ceived from others, which often comes in the form of important gifts, as the Sun is in the House of Money. The Sun rules the 7th House, the House of Followers. He has im portant followers. Pisces is very prolific, showing a great number of followers, but Pisces also shows that they are occult fol lowers, and not followers of worldly inter-

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ests. The ruler of Pisces, Neptune, in the House ofLove, shows that the gifts are given with love. There we have another “recipro cal reception” between Neptune and Mer cury; Mercury in the House of Money confirms that he gets his money not only from his followers but from the sale of spintual works. Once more Pisces shows that the works are more than one, and that the subject must be of occult and spiritual love. People read these writings with great pleasure. “It would be possible that he heals people—that is, masses rather than one; in general, he must have magical power and is using it for unusual attainments. The whole horoscope is unusual in its beauty, seriousness, by his exaltation for God and by the exaltation of his will to realize God. Saturn

rules Mars here; he has an unusual destiny and it is not a simple one—it is extraordi nary. He must eventually be important not only abroad, but in his own country. Jupiter partly rules the Sign of Pisces, meaning that he will not only be unusual in the outer world, but also in his own home. The end of life will be in important surroundings, as Jupiter is in the 4th House, the House of the End. In general, it seems to me the horo scope is too important to be that of a healer only; this man thinks about himself as an occultist. As a soul he is much superior to the av erage, and an unusual reincarnation. This is shown by the Sun and Moon in this chart. This person has a mystic soul, but he would not go in for simple healing. “In general, he must be a tall man, not very big, but strong, with sharp eyes, deep voice. I would say, dark eyes, maybe dark brown. “The health is good, although Uranus and Mars in this chart could show some ac cidents or operation. Didn’t he die already? Did he have an accident and die in it? Was the accident in line with his profession? Were his feet or legs hurt? He was not by himself when he had the accident; others were involved. “Children of Saturn have a long life. Venus rising also denotes something favorable. He dies under Mercury. Mercury is very bad in this horoscope, good for the occult

and bad for the health. Mercury is ruled by Jupiter and Neptune. Neptune gives mostly unusual death causes which cannot be clearly diagnosed. No physician will find the clear

ii: cause of this man’s death. Could he be mur dered? No. The planet of death, Mercury, is in a very good aspect with Jupiter, from the fourth House, showing that he dies a natu ral death in his home, but as already said, the true cause will not be found. His open enemies cannot cause his death, unknown enemies also cannot come into consideration. It would be an unknown sickness. “I see no bad traces of character. He must have an absolutely pure life. He is living a sexless life and is absolutely perfect as horo scope, from the occult standpoint. His soul and will are pure, in perfect harmony.” From TheA wakenez vol. 2, no, 1 (Summer 1954), pp. 9-12. [So do you still think astrology is all nonsense?! Ed.]

Meher Baba:

The FBI Files SUBJECT: Merwan Sheriar Irani

Would it cause a big scandal in “Baba-Land?” Well, here is the information in the FBI files: It begins with a letter dated Oct. 24, 1958 forwarded to the Norfolk office of the FBI from the state department by a woman in Williamsburg, VA. Her name is “blacked out” as are many names and locations (to protect their privacy) She was concerned over the ac tivities of Him because both of her daughters became interested in Baba. She suspected that Baba was “an American who lived on the west coast.” She went to a meeting in Myrtle Beach and was concerned because Baba said that .

“Russia would bomb the United States in October of 1957.” She called the group in Myrtle Beach a religious cult and after attend-

ing the meeting she was definitely convinced that they were Communist. She mentioned that Baba communicated to his followers by “mental telepathy.” This woman had also contacted the Norfolk, Va. and New York City Police Dept. about her concerns telling them she believed there was something subversive about the organization. Finally there is a closing paragraph that stated “the discussion group meetings were

FILE NUMBER: 105-73696

small and unobtrusive and no further inves tigation is being conducted in the Norfolk

SECTION NUMBER: 1

Division (of the FBI) and this matter is be-

Brad Mandel, Annapolis, MD

Well, there it is, some of the high points of Meher Baba’s FBI files. I can see a smile on Baba’s face at the thought of it.

y hands shook slightly as I noticed the return address on the envelope:

The Department ofJustice, FederalBureau of Investigation. After 2 and a half years, I finally had the requested file. I opened the envelope...

(Let me back track a little. About three years ago, Ihad subscribed to the Baba listserv and enjoyed the Baba talk on the Internet. Someone asked a question about whether Baba had an FBI/lie. Idecidedto write to theFBlunder the freedom ofinformation act, (‘FOIPA) to see if there actually was a file on Baba. Iga ye them the name of Meher Baba, also known as Merwan Sheriar Irani. About 6months later Igota letter backsaying there wouldbe a delay as the FBI had so many requests under the FOIFA. It eventually took two moreyears.) ...in my hands. My mind spun at the thought of it. What would be in this file? Should I make it available to other Baba Lovers?

ing considered closed.”

Ceremony Discarded But Arti Will Continue Sam Kerawala, Meherabad, India

udwig Dimpfl: ‘Sam, you were telling us this evening about a conver sation you had which led to Baba ex pounding on the future of world religions. Would you tell this to our friends here?’ Sam Kerawala: ‘I don’t remember ex actly what year it was, but it was dur ing one of my short stays in India—just got home on leave after my three-year contract. In Meherazad I was talking to one Baba lover named Shatagan Kumar from Dehra Dun, and I told him that one thing I liked very much about Baba’s statement was that after his Advent, this religious ceremony and all that, would be mostly discarded. I said thank God, at least this will happen, because ceremony seems to be a big burden of mankind today. But Shatagan Kumar said that he didn’t feel it in the same manner, because right in Iaba’s own living presence such things as singing Baba’s arti, performing certain prayers and all, were allowed by Baba himself, with the result that even after his Advent, things like artis and performing pujas will be adhered to. This conversation was slowly taken up to Eruch and thence to Baba, and Baba then said that yes, things like arti and puja will continue, but there will be one difference. There will be no such thing as sectarianism about it. Each and every individual willjoin in this perfor mance of arti and puja. He may be Christian or Zoroastrian or Hindu or Muslim. Religion will not matter at all. They will all join in and sing the praises of the Lord from the bottom of their hearts, irrespective of what religion they belong to.’ —Sam Kerawala in conversation with Ludwig Dimpfl, 1964, from How a Master Works, by Ivy Oneita Duce, Copyright 1975 by Sufism Reoriented, Inc. Walnut Creek, California. ,

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Spiritual Freedom of Humanity Meher Baba

over the world the spirit of man is crying out for freedom. Love of freedom and the search for freedom are the prin cipal characteristics of humanity. In all races and in all climes, in all countries and at all times, the watchword for groping and strug gling humanity has always been freedom! There are very few persons, however, who really understand the full implications of true and unqualified freedom. And there are many who, in their partial understanding of the real conditions of freedom, strive only for the attainment of that kind of existence which gives them a sense of relative freedom. Thus different persons long for dif ferent kinds of freedom according to the different things they have come to value. Freedom to live as one wishes is sought in all spheres oflife. This imperative demand for freedom usually expresses itself by fas tening upon some external conditions of the kind ofexistence people wish to lead. Hence those who identify their being with their country. seek national or political freedom. Those who are animated by economic pur poses seek economic freedom. Those who are inspired by religious aspirations seek freedom of religion. Those who are enthusiastic about sociological or cultural ideology seek freedom of movement and freedom to ex press the ideals that they cherish and wish to propagate. But there are few who realize that the basic freedom, which alone gives the stamp of true value to any of these different kinds of relative freedom, is spiritual freedom. Even if all the external conditions of a free life were completely fulfilled and guar anteed, the soul of man would still remain in woeful bondage if it failed to realize spintual freedom. All the different types of freedom that fasten upon some external conditions must, in their very nature, exist within certain lim its. For the freedom that an individual or community or state seeks must be consis tent with a similar freedom for other mdividuals, communities, or states. National economic, religious, or cultural freedom ex presses itself in and by means of the duality of existence. It lives on duality and is sus

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tamed by duality; therefore it has to be rela tive and limited and cannot be infinite. It exists in varying degrees. Even when it is won through persistent effort, it cannot be a permanent attainment, since the external conditions having once been secured are not secured forever but are capable of detenio rating in the course of time. Only spiritual freedom is absolute and unlimited. When it is won through persis tent effort, it is secured forever. Though spintual freedom can and does express itself in and through the duality of existence, it is grounded in the realization of the inviolable unity of all life and is sustained by it. One important condition of spiritual freedom is freedom from all wanting. It is want that fetters life through attachment to conditions that would fulfill that want; if there is no want, there is no dependence or limitation. The soul is enslaved through wanting. When the soul breaks asunder the shackles of wanting, it emancipates itself from its bondage to the bodies gross, subtle, and mental. This is the spiritual freedom that brings with it the final realization ofthe unity of all life and puts an end to all doubts and worries. From Discourses, by Meher Baba, copyright 1987 AMBPPCT, Ahmednagar, India, Printed by Sheriar Press, 1995. —

What is Spirituality? Meher Baba

is the undoing of what you have been doing since ages. You always thought of selfish motives of eating, preserving your life and attending to every need with zeal. All these lives you have made a habit oflooking to yourself. If the slightest thing goes against your habit you are upset. Now, to undo all these selfish bindings, you have to do what you have not been doing, or not do what you have been doing. What you have been doing always is thinking ofyounself; so now you must not think ofyourself but think of others. This is what is called LOVE. But it needs character, poise, perseverance. POISE what is POISE? That state of mind where nothing excites you, noth ing upsets you; then only can you help others, then only can you make others happy. That means LOVE. Thinking NOT OF YOURSELF BUT OF OTHERS. If you are in the Sahara and for four days you have no water to drink and all of a sudden -

.ii

one bottle of water appears, how do you re act? If you have poise, you will let your com panion drink and not mind dying and letting her live. But, if you fight and grab for it, you lack poise and spirituality. It is this poise that makes you sacrifice and makes others happy. For example, I always say: Make the best of everything. Here you have food, swimming, boating. Make the most of it and feel happy. Do not say it is not spiritual to enjoy innocent pleasures. But when we are driving on tour and there is dust and we feel hunger, thirst and feel sick, then feel as happy as you do now. This is poise. Ifyou do not feel happy when it is not easy to feel happy, then (under these conditions); you are not spiritual in enjoying this swimming, boating etc; is this clear? I do not mean making a show of being happy, but to really FEEL HAPPY. For you, My circle, it is all right. You live with Me, leave all for Me, so you are serving the Universe. But for those who are not living near Me, this Poise is 100% essential for spintuality. Again, what is spirituality? POISE, PERFECT POISE. MAKE THE MOST OF EVERY SITUATION. HE WHO UPSETS NO ONE IS A GOOD MAN. HE WHO IS UPSET BY NO ONE IS A GOD-MAN. From Gift ofLove, Sayftigs andMessages ofA vatar

Prime Minister Vajpayee Pays Tribute to Shivaji Frank Bloise, Vineland, NJ The followingnotice is ofinterest to Baba lovers because Baba told us that Shivaji was one of His ‘ninor incarnatIons. Excerpted from Indian Express Ne wspapers Bombay March 31st. ‘

umbai (Bombay) and Raigad: Prime Minister Atal Behani Vajpayee paid a day long visit to Maharashtra during which he named Mumbai airport after Chhatnapati Shivaji on the 319th anniversary of his death atop the historic Raigad Fort. The Prime Minister paid rich tributes to the State’s warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Mahanaj and urged fellow countrymen to draw inspiration from the life of the great Maratha. He described Shivaji as the greatest ever war-strategist, a ruler par ex

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cellence and a champion of social and cul tural uplift. Not everybody possesses such a mix of a war-strategist, a qualities like Shivaji ruler and a strict disciplinarian who understood the problems of his subjects and followers. .and was a champion of peace,” the Prime Minister said. Vajpayee spoke from a dais which was erected right below the spot Shivaji used to address his subjects and followers. “If Shivaji were still alive, he would have completed his task, but now his followers would have to take the lead and take the country ahead,” he said. This is the unconquered fort, from where Shivaji laid the foundation of Hindavi Swarajya and later was coronated, the Prime Minister reminded the gathered au dience.

The Habit of Ninda Meher Baba

“

he three most important things to be eliminated before attaining God Realization are greed, lust, and ninda; the last, meaning “back-biting,” is the worst and most disastrous. One can overcome greed, or even lust, though both of these are very hard to get over; but the worst and most difficult of all to eliminate is the habit of ninda: speaking ill and trying to find faults or flaws in oth ers, because this particular act or vice incurs the burden of sins or what is technically termed as sanskaras of others. Treasures, ed. Jane B. Haynes, pp. 128-129 copyright, 1980 AMBPPCT.

IfYou Were to Get an E-mail from GOD... Dear One,

(

got up this morning, I watched you and hoped you would talk to me, even if it was just a few words, asking my opinion or thanking me for something good that happened in your life yesterday—but I noticed you were too busy trying to find the right outfit to put on and wear to work. I waited again. When you ran around the house getting ready I knew there would be a few minutes for you to stop and say hello, but you were too busy. At one point you had to wait fIfteen minutes with noth ing to do except sit in a chair. Then I saw you spring toyourfeet. I thought youwanted to talk to me but you ran to the phone and called a friend to get the latest gossip. I watched as you went to work and I waited patiently all day long. With all your activities I guess you were too busy to say anything to me. I noticed that before lunch you looked around, maybe you felt too embarrassed to talkto me, that is whyyou didn’t bow your head. You glanced three or four tables over and you noticed some of your friends talking to me briefly before they ate, but you didnt. That’s okay.There is still more time left, and I have hope that you will talk to me, yet

you went home and it seems as if you had lots of things to do. After a few of them were done you turned on the TV. I don’t know ifyou like TV or not, just about anything goes there and you spent a lot of time each day in front of it, not thinking about anythingjust enjoying the show. I waited patiently again as you watched the TV and ate your meal, but again you didn’t talk to me. Bedtime I guess you felt too tired. Af ter you said goodnight to your family you plopped into bed and fell asleep in no time. Thali okay because you may not realize that I am always there for you. I’ve got patience more than you will ever know. I even want to teach you how to be patient with others as well. I love you so much that I wait everyday for a nod, prayer or thought or a thankful part of your heart. It is hard to have a one-sided conversation. Well, you are getting up again and once again I will wait with nothing but love for you hoping that today you will give me sometime. Have a nice day! Your friend, GOD

After That, Ruano Smoked in Peace Margaret Craske

ver and over again, Baba emphasized His wish that we should not criticize one another, especially with that form of criticism known as backbiting. Here is an instance in which He did not give a straightforward correction but without a word showed us what we were doing. Living with us in the ashram in Nasik was a most charming woman by the name of Ruano. She loved Baba and, not having been told by Him that she should not do so, continued as she had done for some years to smoke cigars. Well, this roused the critical ire of some of the group, those who had de cided ideas of what should or should not be done in the ashram of a great spiritual teacher. Baba said nothing and, seemingly un aware of it, allowed the affair to go on for some little time. He waited until one day while we were sitting around Him, then He produced a large box of cigars and with a loving smile and gesture presented it to Ruano. The gentle correction was perfectly clear, and after that Ruano smoked in peace. And on that particular issue at least, we were re leased from the sin of “backbiting.” TheDanceofLove, p. 58 © AMBPPCT. ,,,.

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.,,,

11 A Letter from Bhau Dear Brothers and Sisters in Baba,

his fall Bhau had asked me to post a note on the Baba Listserv and various Baba web sites conveying that, owing to the greatly increased pressure of Trust work, it is no longer possible for him to continue his personal correspondence. We fmd we must post this letter again as Bhau is still getting mail. This was not at all a step that Bhau wanted to take, and he delayed long before taking it; but the force of circumstances has left him with no alternative. Since then, many dear friends and close ones throughout the world have, as requested, desisted from their personal correspondence with Bhau. Bhau has been deeply touched by this; indeed, the silent consideration they have shown attests to their love more than any letter could do.

At the same time, a fair amount of personal mail condnues to flow in. Those of us

around Bhau know how virtually impossible he finds it to keep from replying in these cases, keenly conscious as he is of the feelings of the persons concerned. Unfortunately, a trickle of

such correspondence will inevitably increase to a stream and a river, as has happened in the past: and this will interfere with Trust work at

a particularly critical juncture.

Lust, Greed, and Anger

ThePath ofLove Needs Reprinting!

Meher Baba

Adele Wolkin, Los Angeles, CA

was through the medium of “The Awakener” journal that Meher Baba chose to have many of His original mes sages first circulated in the English language. It is never to be forgotten what

Baba told Don Stevens about His own words, “My spiritual charge is in those words.” Fills Frederick founded and ed

ited TheAwakenerfrom 1953 to 1986. I was present at the time when Filis personally presented to Baba her long cher ished dream to publish ajournal dedicated

to Him. Baba’s response to Fills was of full approval along with a few conditions, which she fully obeyed. Thus, with Babas

blessing and direction, Filis nurtured her “baby,” TheAwakenei for 33 years. In the 1970’s she made an exquisite selection from articles that she was so privileged to receive from Meher Baba directly. That unique selection Filis col lected in a soft cover book entitled The Path OfLove. For many years this price-

less treasure has been out of print despite requests for reprints from Baba Lovers throughout the world. Now, Sheriar Press

Therefore, Bhauji has asked me to reiter

has determined that $5,000 is required to

ate his heartfelt request to all Baba’s dear ones

reprint 1500 copies, bound with Perfect Bind and featuring a newly designed cover. As we are first and foremost rais ing funds for the County mandated upgradings to Meherabode, we do not happen to have a spare $5000. We need your help! All wishing to contribute towards this undertaking please contact the Avatar Meher Baba Center of Southern California, 1214 South Van Ness Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90019-3520, Attn:

to refrain from sending him personal letters

( as distinct from letters concerning necessary Trust work). He continues to give talks at the Pilgrim Centre at Meherabad, for those who come here on pilgrimage, and he is currently planning another visit to the West next year. By Baba’s grace, there will be many fur-

ther such occasions in the future for the free flow and sharing in our One Beloved Divine Love. In Him, Ward Parks

he chief forms in which the frustrated

ego finds expression are lust, greed, and

anger.

Lust is very much like greed in many re spects; but it differs in the manner of its ful

fillment, which is directly related to the gross sphere. Lust finds its expression through the medium ofthe physical body and is concerned with the flesh. It is a form of entanglement with the gross sphere. Greed is a state of restlessness of the heart, and it consists mainly of craving for power and

possessions. Possessions and power are sought for the fulfillment of desires. Man is only partially satisfied in his at-

tempt to have the fulfillment of his desires, and this partial satisfaction fans and increases the flame of craving instead of extinguishing it. Thus greed always finds an endless field of

conquest and leaves the individual endlessly dissatisfied. The chief expressions of greed are related to the emotional part of man. It is a form of entanglement with the subtle sphere.

Anger is the fume of an irritated mind. It is caused by the thwarting of desires. It feeds the limited ego and is used for domination and aggression. It aims at removing the ob stacles existing in the fulfillment of desires.

The frenzy of anger nourishes egoism and conceit, and it is the greatest benefactor of the limited ego. Mind is the seat of anger, and its expressions are mostly through activities of the mind. Anger is a form of entanglement with

the menta!sphere. Lust, greed, and anger respectively have body, heart, and mind as their vehicles of ex pression. Discourses, p. 1 1 © 191 1 AMBPPCT.

Treasurer. And please mark your dona

The Weaver

one knows the secret of the weaver who spread his warp through the uni verse. He dug two ditches, sky and earth, made two spools, sun and moon, filled his shuttle with a thousand threads, and weaves

till today: a difficult length! Kabir says, they’rejoined by actions. Good threads and

bad, that fellow weaves both. TheBgjakofKabfr Translated by Linda Hess and Shukdev Singh.

tion Path of Love. Donations of $50 or more will naturally net you a free copy, hot offthe press! We appreciate so very much all help you can give

—

this book must be made

available again. For further information contact: Adele Wolkin 714A Pacific Coast Highway Redondo Beach, CA 90277 (310) 540-8414

•“6 •

The Lesson

hen Jesus took His disciples up the mountain and gathering them around Him, He taught them, saying, ‘Blessedare thepoorin spiritfor theirs is the kingdom ofheaven. Blessed are the meek Blessed are they that mourn. Blessed are the merciful. Blessedare they who thirst forjustice.

•

•••‘“

....

...@

Blessed areyou whenyou suffer Be glad and rejoice for your re ward isgreatin heaven...” Then. Simon Peter said, ‘Do we have to write this down?” and Andrew said, 4re we supposed to know this?” and James said, “Will we have a test on . .

and Phillip said, “Whatifwe dothknow

Meherazad Mind and body in New York Spiritualiy eating Baba physically, steak andpork I will missyou, You will miss Me But one day, we will be One and departing happy, smiling knowyour task here is done.

—

Dear Chappy Answer snappy; Areyou happy?

and Bartholomew said, ‘Do we have to and John said, “The other disciples didn

And Kenmore shot back:

have to learn this.”

—

Chappy Happy!

and Mark said, Yfwe donfinish this, can

we take it home?” and Matthew said, “When do weget out of

Another piece goes like this: Baba wrote:

It the law ofLove Divine thatyou must withei you mustpine thatyoumustsuffei butnot whine speak no word and write no line ifyou longfor lentine.

here?” and Judas said, “Whatdoes thishave to do

with real life?” Then one of the Pharisees present asked to see Jesus’ lesson plans and inquired of Jesus his terminal objectives in the cognitive domain... And Jesus wept...

hadn’t thought of it. So then Tricia says we should go back and do it. He was still there in the check-in line. I argued that it would be imposing and stars were exposed to enough of that stuff; but Tricia insisted it would be for Baba (and Mel of course!)! “O.K. you do it.” “No, you.” “Come on Jim you’re better at this sort of thing, I’ll feel too embarrassed.” “Yeah, but it will be less threatening from a woman.” Well Tricia won out. I got the “Don’t Worry Be Happy” card from my wallet and started back across the terminal. I felt very apprehensive about how Mel might react. How could I present Baba via this card without being pushy or intrusive? Suddenly the perfect line popped into my mind. “I’d like to give you this... it’s in appreciation of your work.” After I said my line and handed him the card I expected to make a clean, quick getaway! But it was not to be. Again he looked directly at me with a big smile and said thanks. Then he held the card up, focused all of his attention on it, and said very clearly and powerfully, —

A brief exchange went something like this: Note from Baba:

turn this in?”

......

!!•!

Mel Gibson Meets Baba!

“Don’t Worry... Be Happy... Meher Baba.”

By Jim Migdoll, N.S.W. Australia

Incredibly he pronounced Bab&s name perfectly. Like the way Mandali say Meher! Well mission accomplished now I could be off. Nope. After a second or two of staring

Baba?” I answered roughly, “Well... you know how there are all these so-called gurus

—

A Happy Chappy This interesting exchange was posted on the listserv

n September, 1987 my wife Tricia and I were at the Sydney, Australia airport. Tricia was off to India on pilgrimage. there’s Suddenly she exclaimed, “Look Mel Gibson, let’s go talk to him.” As we ap proached he was squatting down looking through his carry on bag and the first thing I noticed was how completely ordinary the and it’s contents were! The same bag jumbled mess anyone would have in their carry on bag. Next I noticed his clothing. Even if one tried to ‘dress down’ it couldn’t be that au thentic. As Tricia gripped my arm, trembling nervously, we mumbled something really stu pid and embarrassing like, “Hi. We really like your movies. I expected an exasperated, halthearted “thanks”. Instead he looked up directly at us with a big smile and genuine energy (a ‘real’ person!) and intensely re sponded with an Australianism like, “Good on ya’...thanks a lot appreciate that” Not a note of phoniness in it. So we wandered away. Several minutes passed and Tricia said, we should have given him a Baba “Hey card.” I agreed and felt frustrated that we . . .

he following is one of a number of poems that Baba wrote to Harry Kenmore in an exchange of poetry between the two of them:

Harry dear, you arefine yetyou need celestial wine wine that makes God out ofswine and in one case out ofnine makes one Qutub who does shine over the world ofmine and thine. Here’s another from that series when Kenmore was staying with Baba for an ex tended period while treating Him as a doc tor (chiropractor) following His accident at Satara (I believe) Baba wrote this for him just before the end of Harry’s stay: ,

Harry dear, do obey Me as did Peter, as didJohn Keeping in your heart Your Daddy you willgo as not gone Leaveyour mindin dear

—

...

“

—

. . .

at the card, he looked at me and in a very clear and direct manner said, “Who is Meher

around nowadays who ask people for money, or collect lots of cars? Well, Meher Baba is a genuine Spiritual Master” Again he smiled well and said something like, “O.K. we Tricia de back to I got When thanks.” —

cided to keep watching him to see what he did with the card! We could see it clutched in his hand as he waited in line. Then after

check in as he walked to the escalator... still held in his hand. Up the escalator and out of sight still holding on to Baba! P.S. Tricia and I both decided that he was much more handsome in person than any photo or movie we’d ever seen! Incredible eyes. P.S. #2 The Baba card was one we had printed in Sydney and it had the Sydney —

Meher Baba Information P0. Box address on it. For weeks afterwards I had an ongoing fantasy of getting a request for more informa

tion and then we’d casually invite Mel over for a cup of tea! Several years later when the Don WorryBeHappysong swept the world I would wonder if he still had the card. —

r3 ®

truths we have received from the Beloved.

Sculptor of the Beloved

Though at home the fits of crying come at times, I know that reason will prevail eventu ally and what will remain uppermost in my mind is ‘her gain,’ and that ‘myloss’will evapo rate entirely.” Louis Agostini is at 5 14 West Mango, Lantana, FL 33462.

Vivian Agostini (1902-1999) by Kendra Crossen Burroughs, Ojai, CA

ivian Agostini, a gifted sculptor who captured the living beauty ofBaba likeness in a commemorative bronze medallion, died on March 24, 1999. Vivian was staying with her husband, Louis Agostini, at an assisted living facility in Florida until she had an aneurysm that sent her to a nursing home. Louis visited almost daily. Although Vivian appeared to be unaware of her surroundings, she surprised him by saying, “Thank you, thank you!” after he had twice recited Baba’s prayers and twice sung her favorite hymn, “The Ocean of Love. He writes: “I also poured out into her ear exhortations to re member Baba, and I feel sure she must have done so two days later when she died some minutes before I arrived.” Vivian was born Ida Losh in Russia in 1902. While Louis describes himselfas a “Sunday painter, Vivian was a professional sculp tor specializing in portraiture; she was also gifted in oil painting and drawing. 1mong her works is the masterful bronze bust of Elizabeth Patterson that sits in the Pine Lodge at Meher Center in Myrtle Beach. Louis told me how Elizabeth had sought Baba’s OK for the inscription at the base of the sculp ture, “Elizabeth, Disciple of Baba”; Baba corrected it to read: “Elizabeth, Disciple of Meher Baba.” Louis Agostini was a secretary to Paul Brunton, the mystic who wrote negatively about Baba in his book A Search fri Secret India, so Louis was initially skeptical about Baba. But after visiting Meher Center and reading Listen, Humanity and The Wayfarers, both he and Vivian were drawn into the Beloved orbit. When the 1962 East-West Gathering was announced, Louis was ready to go to India, but Vivian insisted she could not bow down to any man who called himself God. She changed her mind after Louis received a mes

Viv, Viv, Viv-Viv-Viv, I Love Thine A love poem in the “Merz” style by Louis Agostini

Bas-Reliefscuipture ofMeher Baba

“

sage from Baba saying he was happy that “at least one of you” was coming yet they had not told Baba there were two of them! Vivian first meeting with Baba upset her because Baba had barely looked at her (she thought at least he would compliment her on her bust of Elizabeth!) ; she wanted to go back to New York, but Louis helped her calm down. At the next gathering it was announced that I there would be no more introductions or pri vate meetings with Baba. But then Rano brought the I message that Baba wanted to see Vivian Agostini! Baba indicated that he wanted to give Vivian a spe cial embrace, but she could not accept it. She sank to her knees, telling Baba in tears how much she loved him. (And he did embrace her after all.) After returning to New York, Vivian decided to sculpt the medallion in com memoration ofthis experience.The design was approved by Baba, and the medal was struck in 1964. It was reissued in 1994 in honor of Baba’s 100th birthday and is available from the Love Street Bookstore. “I can hardly believe that my soul-mate of 52 years is no longer here, Louis wrote in a recent letter, “but I am consoled by the many —

“

(‘Dada&artistshke Schwitters were looking fornewforms ofexpression. Their experimental work led to much of what today is regarded as modern art. Inhis orithal verse, on which Loui poem is baseo Schwittersintendedapenetrating satire oflove poems.)

h thou, beloved of all the senses, I love thine! Thou thee thee thine. I thine, thou mine. We? That belongs on the side not here. Who are thou, many-gifted woman? Thou art art thou art? —

Some may say, thou they don’t know let them say. They don’t know how the church tower

stands. They don’t know how the Avatar comes.

Thou wearest thy scarf on thy feet, or never at all; Or never at all. Hallo thy dark blouse, clashed in light folds. Dark I love Vh light I love thine! Thou thee Thee thine, I thine, thou mine We? That belongs on the side in the cold glow. —

Viv-Viv-Viv, how say those who don’t know?

Prize question: 1. Viv has hands directed from above. 2. Viv is dark and light, light and dark.

3. Then what color are the folds. Thou other-worldly soul fri everyday dress, thou dear Baba child, I love thine! thou thee thee thine, I thine, thou mine We? That belongs to the glowbox of time. Viv, Viv, Viv-Viv-Viv, I trickle thy name. Thy name drips as softly as the rain. Dost thou know Viv, dost thou already know it? Thy name reads from behind as from the

front, Thus dearest one, thou belongs to all time.

Honor strikes all who gather here now To admire thee wholly for earths task you have done.

(

Ebb and Flow By Michael da Costa, Norwich, England

am sure that most of us have experienced the ebb and flow of Baba’s presence; the closeness that feels so good, that enlivens everything; then the apparent absence which makes everything feel empty and meaningless and back again, etc. Well, this is an ac count of an experience of ebb and ebb! A few years ago the tide went out for me in a way it had never done before; in fact it nearly disappeared over the horizon! Haying lived with the ebb and flow of Baba’s presence for so many years, I did not at first worry about it, being fairly confident that the tide of His love would soon enough flow back in to give me the life-nourishment that I needed. However, time went by and the ebb continued to such an extent that it seemed as if a plug had been pulled on the ocean bed. When, after a trip to India failed to stem the tide, a note of desperation began to creep up on me and gave rise to this piece:

Slippery Fingers The Crisis of a Faltering Baba Lover —

It has been going on for far too long! Many separations I have experienced, but each one brief in duration, painful and lonely, but brief, until soon, with a sigh, I would find myself back, clearer and stronger in the warm glow of your pres ence. But this one has been going on for far too long. What is its meaning, its pur pose? What is the lesson to be learned? Is it you, in your compassion, who withdraw yourself in order to create greater longing in me? Or could it be me, who, blindly self-absorbed, turn my back on you? Or both? or neither? And why so long, such an absence? Why so strong the separation? I look at your picture, and feel nothing; I hear your words, and understand nothing; films which once enthralled me leave me cold; your lovers’ utterances irritate; I travel half way round the globe, sit with your most beloved ones, and their love and wisdom float right by me; I place my head on your blessed Tomb, hoping for just a whisper which will tell me that my

r3; heart has still a glimmer of life in it. But nothing, nothing! and it has been so long; so long that a darkness is beginfeelings of fling to grow in me ... of helplessness. hopelessness. . ..feelings unless. . Could it be that somewhere concealed within despair lies the seed of hope? Somewhere in the darkness, a thin shaft of light? for if I did in fact feel nothing, would I not indeed feel nothing? For what would it matter? What would I care? But it does matter, and I do care, for without the felt presence of your love, there is nothing, flothing which matters, nothifig which makes sense of the whole crazy mess of things. Is that the paradox ofthe New Life? that in hopelessness lies true hope ? that in helplessness, help ul timately comes? So here I am, desperately hanging on to your damaan, for I know, somehow, that You are here, standing right beside me, as once you stood, silently, over the sleeping figure of your beloved Jean Adriel, tortured by your apparent aban donment. She did not know then that you were there, but now surely knows, being. as she is, with you, at peace, forever. So yes I am holding on, for I know also that you are here, deep within me, waiting patiently for the moment of my awakening. I too am waiting, but impa tiently, to be shaken awake once more by your love. So I beg you my Lord, please hurry, my grip on your robe is slipping! please hurry, hurry, my fingers are slipping Another year went by and still my fingers continued to slip and my desperation grew as I felt no sign of return. Once the wine of Love has been tasted, two years or more in the wilderness without even water to drink is hard to bear. I planned another trip to India, hoping that this time my heart may be reclaimed, even though I know that it was foolish to go to that blessed place with any kind of expectation other than to be open to receive whatever Baba offered. In fact whilst there, things got even worse! I felt distant from everyone and everything; my emotional landscape be-

came more barren; I went through the motions, attended Arti, said the prayers like an automaton, bowed down to furni ture! I felt totally alone. There seemed to be no point in standing in long lines for Mandali hugs. I think I grew as removed from Baba as it is possible to be without actually letting go of His damaan. I could not have been more unhappy. This continued for nine days. On the tenth day I went up for morning Arti as usual. As I listened to the words of Begin the Beguine I felt a faint stirring in my heart. Could it be. . .? No. As flat as ever. I went into the Tomb for darshan, and re ceived my prasad. As I began to move away I found someone was blocking my way. She smiled, opened her arms wide, and enfolded me in the warmest of warm embraces. Then she whispered in my ear, “I have a message for you from Baba!” I can barely remember now what the message something about how much He was but whatever it was, it came loves me crashing through my defenses, with full orchestral and choral accompanirrent penetrating to my very core. Overwhelmed, I collapsed in a flood of tears. Later, over breakfast, I asked her how she had received the message. She told me that whenever she goes into the Tomb, she opens herself to receive whatever Baba may give to her. On the previous evening this message had come through loud and clear with the instruction to pass it on to me. However, she forgot to do so, and when she had gone for darshan that morning, Baba scolded her for not doing as He had ordered, and He insisted that she do so immediately. On hearing this I hurried back up the hill and was blessed to have the Tomb to myself. ‘So why,’ I complained to Baba, ‘did you have to send a messenger? Why did you not tell me Yourself?’ I swear He chuckled as He replied ‘I have been trying to get through to you since ages but you have been so self-absorbed that you could not hear. And even ifyou had heard, you would have doubted that it was Me. So this was the only way I could be sure you would receive my message, my love.’ He was right of course is He ever wrong? I came out of the Tomb into the sunlight. The prodigal son had returned home. —

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t.— —V,...

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Silence A day ofSilence Can be a pilgrimage in itself A day ofSilence Can helpyou listen Th the Soulplay It marvelous flute and drum.

Is notmost talking A crazed defence ofa crumbling fort?

...

Ithought we came here To surrender in Silence,

Toyield to Light and Happiness, Th Dance within In celebration of Love Victory! IHeard GodLaughing Renderings ofHafiz by Daniel Ladinsky, Dharma Printing, 1996.

(

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A vatar Meher Baba T-shirt art created by Lance Paladino.

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