No. 2 Meherabode Gazette April 2014

Special Issue: The Springtide of Creation!

artist:

Avatar Meher Baba Center of Southern California
Meherabode

1214 S. Van Ness Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90019

In This Issue

1. Meher Baba's Words

2. Ghazal to God

3. "Called"

4. Adi on Seemab

5. Memories of Mehera

6. Meheru & the Champ

7. AMBCSC Archives

8. What's Happening

9. Meher Baba Books

10. Birth of the Avatar

11. The Religion of Life

Acknowledgement

Jai Meher Baba!

and Welcome back to

Meherabode Gazette

in which we reflect on some of the

lanes and byways of loving & serving Meher Baba

globally & locally

In Issue No. 1 (December 2013), Meherabode Gazette focused on the recent passing of Bhau Kalchuri, who proved to be Avatar Meher Baba's last living Mandali (close resident disciple).

If this Issue No. 2 (April 2014) is more diffuse in focus, yet a thread running through this handful of beads is the vivifying

remembrance of Beloved Baba -- whose image ushers in, for His rememberer, a personal (local) "special edition" of that more global condition He has termed "the spring-tide of creation." (This phrase of Meher Baba's sprang to mind when savoring Nadya Rose Phillips' remarkable oil-painting in the detail seen here.) This condition of spiritual flowering was made permanent for one Urdu

ghazal poet -- as alluded to in the items (written by Ward Parks and Adi K. Irani) recalling Meher Baba's rare grant of Liberation (Moksha) to Seemab Akbarabadi. Meanwhile, here amid the realm of Illusion, Meher Baba's orchestral hide-and-seek game continues among myriad atoms, ants, humans, and other divine fragments of the Beloved's universal imagination.

As Spring 2014 unfolds all around us (in the 120th year following Avatar Meher Baba's birth), why not take a moment to reflect on the Springtide of Creation that even now is sending up

green shoots in many hidden (and some not-so-hidden) ways into our shared world of Illusion? -- this perennial shadow of Meher Baba's eternally spring-like Reality.

David Raphael Israel
Mahoo Ghorbani
Co-Editors

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1. Meher Baba's Words

♦ Avataric periods are like the spring-tide of creation. They bring a new release of power, a new awakening of consciousness, a new experience of life -- not merely for a few, but for all. Qualities of energy and awareness, which had been used and enjoyed by only a few advanced souls, are made available for all humanity. Life, as a whole, is stepped up to a higher level of consciousness, is geared to a new rate of energy. The transition from sensation to reason was one such step; the transition from reason to intuition will be another.

♦ This new influx of the creative impulse takes, through the medium of a divine personality, an incarnation of God in a special sense -- the Avatar. This Avatar was the first individual soul to emerge from the evolutionary process as a Sadguru, and he is the only Avatar who has ever manifested or will ever manifest. Through him God first completed the journey from unconscious divinity to conscious divinity, first unconsciously became man in order consciously to become God. Through him, periodically, God consciously becomes man for the liberation of mankind. ♦ The Avatar appears in different forms, under different names, at different times, in different parts of the world. As his appearance always coincides with the spiritual birth of man, so the period immediately preceding his manifestation is always one in which humanity suffers from the pangs of the approaching birth. Man seems more than ever enslaved by desire, more than ever driven by greed, held by fear, swept by anger. The strong dominate the weak; the rich oppress the poor; large masses of people are exploited for the benefit of the few who are in power. The individual, who finds no peace or rest, seeks to forget himself in excitement. Immorality increases, crime flourishes, religion is ridiculed. Corruption spreads throughout the social order. Class and national hatreds are aroused and fostered. Wars break out. Humanity grows desperate. There seems to be no possibility of stemming the tide of destruction. ♦ At this moment the Avatar appears . . .

Meher Baba (The Avatar, Discourses, Volume III)

2. The Ghazal that Led to Liberation

♦ Avatar Meher Baba conducted a series of sahavases -- or strictly

Meher Baba (1958)

speaking, by His own description, one extended sahavas -- that bridged from East to West and carried Him around the globe on His final world tour in 1958. ♦ The first of these sahavases transpired at Meherabad between 15th and 26th February. Three months later He flew to America, where in May He poured out His love to His lovers in the Meher Center in Myrtle Beach; then on to Australia in June, where He inaugurated Avatar's Abode. ♦ The particular moment in all of this that I want to dilate upon here -- the incident that

prompts this exposition -- happened at the outset of Meher Baba's Meherabad sahavas with the Hindi and Marathi groups. On 16th February 1958, among many other activities, singers from the Baba groups entertained their Beloved with bhajans and qawaalis. During the afternoon session one particular singer rendered a ghazal by the celebrated Urdu poet Seemab.

Seemab Akbarabadi (Urdu: سیماب اکبرآبادی), born Aashiq Hussain Siddiqui Urdu: عاشق حسین صدیقی) on June 5, 1882 -- died January 31, 1951, was an acclaimed Urdu poet from India. Beginning with the publication of his first collection of poems, Naistaan in 1923, Akbarabadi published seventy-five books throughout his life.

♦ Midway, while the song was still in progress, Baba stopped the performance. For several moments silence prevailed among the many hundreds assembled there. Then Baba informed His lovers that He had just bestowed on Seemab that ultimate Gift of gifts �-- Liberation from the round of births and deaths. The great poet's offering from an earlier life had borne its Fruit through the Nazar and grace of the Avatar of the age.

♦ Who was this lucky man, Seemab Akbarabadi? We know this much: he was a poet of the modern era, born in Agra in 1880 and passing away in Karachi in

1951 (on 31st January, as it happens). My internet source describes him as the disciple of Daag Dehlvi (1831-1905), one of the great Urdu poets of his day. The word "disciple" here obviously signifies a poetic rather than a spiritual lineage. About Seemab's spiritual backgrounds and associations specifically, I have no information. We do know this, however: at a later date, after the 1958 sahavas, Baba said that Seemab had composed and dedicated his poem to his own Sadguru. ♦ Naturally the story of Seemab and his liberation by the grace of the Avatar will generate interest in the ghazal he wrote, since who ever heard of another poem that created an effect like this one did? I close this "Tavern Talk," then, with a reproduction of the ghazal, first in a Romanized transliteration from the Urdu and then in an English translation. The Urdu transliteration has been taken from a past issue of The Glow (November, 1973, p. 16 [now Glow International]). Since I do not myself read Urdu, the translation was carried out by Gopi Krishna (a Baba-lover from Hyderabad) and me, with help from Meherwan Jessawala and others from Meherabad-Meherazad. We drew to a certain extent on Adi K. Irani's translation that appears in the aforementioned Glow issue. I cannot altogether vouch for the accuracy either of the Urdu text or the translation �- perhaps some scholar and expert in Urdu can improve upon it; but it will give a rough idea. As perhaps you can see even from this crude English rendering, Seemab's dense lines are ambiguous and idiomatic, in the manner of great Urdu poetry; their profound spiritual ideas are expressed in a symbolic language susceptible to many interpretations.

Ward Parks

Editor's Note:

The ghazal by Seemab Akbarabadi discussed above and reproduced below is beautifully sung in a recording provided to the Meherabode Gazette by filmmaker Bob Fredericks, drawning from the soundtrack to Bob's documentary film, A Love Feast Gathering: The 1958 Meherabade Sahavas (60 min. DVD):

Seemab Ghazal (MP3 recording)

The Indian Urdu-language singer, Krishnakant Shukla initially begins with Seemab couplets not included in the ghazal's transliteration and translation as seen below, but then the singer proceeds into lyrical exposition of the couplets on view below.

Seemab's Urdu Text

Ab kyaa bataauun main tere milne se kyaa milaa?
Irfaan-e-gam huaa mujhe dil kaa pataa milaa.

Jab duur tak na koii faqir aashnaa milaa,
Tere niyaaz-mand tere dar se jaa milaa.

Manzil milii muraad milii muddua milaa;
Sab kuchh mujhe milaa jo teraa naqsh-e-paa milaa.

Khud been-o-khud shanaas milaa khudnuma milaa.
Insan ke bhes me mujhe aksar khuda milaa.

Sar jasha-e-jamal ki hairaniyan na puuch.
Har zarre ke hijab me ek aashnaa milaa.

Paaya tujhe huduud-e taayun se mawara
Manzil se kuch nikal ke tera raasta milaa.

Kyun ye khuda ke dhuundane waale hain na muraad?
Guzaraa jo main huduud-e-khudi se khuda milaa.

Ye ek hi to niyaamat insaan nawaz thi.
Dil mujhko mil gaya to khudai ko kya milaa.

Yaa zakhm-e-dil ko phenkde nazaron se cheel kar,

Yaa aitaraaf kar ke nishaan-e-vafaa milaa.

Seemab ko shaguftaa na dekhaa tamaam umr;
Kambakht jab milaa hamen gam aashnaa milaa.

An English Translation

What can I say, what did I achieve when I met you?
I got the knowledge of pain; I found address of my heart.

When across a long distance I could find no friendly guide,
Your humble supplicant at last arrived at your doorstep.

I reached the destination and gained what I desired; I attained my object.
Indeed, I got everything the moment I discovered your footprint.

A Self-seer and a Self-knower I met; I met the Self-revealer.
In the guise of a man I found verily God.

Do not ask about the distressing bewilderments

in the celebrations of beauty.
Hidden behind the veil of every particle I uncovered a dear one.

I found you superior to the limits of what I could conceive;
By going beyond the high station is revealed the way to you.

Why are these seekers of God disappointed?
Having crossed the boundary of self, God is met.

This is the only gift that man was favored with;
When I found my own heart, what other godly thing was there to receive?

Either tear away and cast out from your sight the heart's wounds,
Or else agree that you have found in me the mark of faithfulness.

Throughout his entire life Seemab never appeared to be happy;
Whenever I met that wretched fool, I found a companion of sorrow.

Editor's Note:

Ward Parks is a writer, editor, and Meher Baba scholar living near Meherabad, where he continues to edit and publish many treasures of Meher Baba literature.

3. "Called" [a poem]
I am called, but I shall not answer, Until I am called by Thee. Above the tumult of voices, Thy silence shall summon me. And I shall ascend into Thee, Bodiless, thoughtless, free -- Released from unending becoming, To be, and not to be.

"Moonlight Serenade" -- digital artist: Cherie Plumlee

Poem by Malcolm Schloss, from The Infinite Glory (1945)

4. Strive with All your Heart
♦ There is a ghazal by Seemab which, upon hearing some of the lines, Meher Baba gave the poet liberation. Seemab was out of the body at the time. I would like to share some of the lines from this ghazal with you: Either peel off the layers of wounds of the heart and throw them out of sight, or accept the wounds (of separation from the Beloved) as positive indications of love.

Meher Baba (playing manjira) with Adi,
listening to music

♦ My dears, what else is there to do but accept every situation as given by Him, and allow yourself to be ground to dust cheerfully? There is another ghazal that says that this life has been forced upon me, so why not keep happy?

♦ Welcome the gifts of effacement of the false self that He offers even though it hurts. In coming to Him, everything dear to us - our friends, our concept of the spiritual path, everything - has to be taken away leaving only Him. Believe me, nothing that anyone has done to you has been done with malice. Each thing done by those who seemed to have hurt you were done out of the sincerity of their perspective of how to serve Baba, no matter how

limited that perspective might be. ♦ This doesn't mean that your feelings of being hurt are not genuine. It is just that we have to grant the sincerity of the motive of others. The nature of the spiritual path is that two people who disagree can both be right. You see, only He is right and everyone else at best has only partial glimpses of the Truth. ♦ You have been blessed because, in the pain of what you have experienced, a new enthusiasm to reach Him and fall only at His feet has been born in you. This is what is important. Don't dwell on the past, don't be bitter about what has happened, but strive with all your heart to be His. Give yourself completely to Him. He is responsible for your spiritual welfare, don't be concerned about anything else. Remember Him, and automatically you forget yourself.

Adi K. Irani

Editor's Note:

Adi K. Irani, one of Meher Baba's close resident Mandali, served as secretary to Baba for many years. The above writing appeared in Letters from the Mandali of Avatar Meher Baba (1981), edited by Jim Mistry (pp. 92-93).

5. Memories of Mehera

♦ I met Mehera for the first time on her 74th birthday up on Meherabad Hill on December 22, 1981. ♦ I had just arrived at Meherabad that day after a two-month pilgrimage through Europe visiting places Baba himself visited. On the way, I spent time with Delia Deleon and spent a week with Baba's brother, Adi Jr., then on to Paris visiting Anita (DeCaro) Vieullard. From there I visited Rome, the Assisi cave and Venice. From Sri Lanka I flew to Madras and took a two-day train ride though central India, perfectly timing my journey to arrive at Meherabad on Mehera's birthday. ♦ As I wished her a happy birthday, she remembered and thanked me for a birthday/Christmas present I had sent featuring a beautiful white stallion which had reminded me of the White Horse Avatar and the young man who loved, cared for and rode the horse naked like the wind through the mountains.

♦ Given Mehera's love for horses, when I saw the book it was irresistible. The fact that there were a few photos of the boy naked -- although very modestly photographed riding the beautiful horse, gave me pause at first. But the beauty of the photo essay overcame my hesitation and I just knew it wouldn't be a problem or misinterpreted. ♦ I had seen the book in a Fifth Avenue bookstore window in New York City while riding by on my bicycle. Although I'd not yet met Mehera, I just knew this would be a nifty birthday present and that she'd love it. I addressed it to "Mehera Irani, King's Road, India," foolishly neglecting to include the city or state. How huge India is, and she actually didn't even live on King's Road! That's the street the Trust office is on. It was literally like addressing it to "Jane Smith, Main Street, America." What were the chances of it ever getting there? ♦ Well, it took five months but finally found its way to her, guided undoubtedly by my love, she wrote, in a beautiful letter which she sent me afterwards, as amazed as I was that it had arrived safely. The card I enclosed with the book read on the front, "Humanity is One Body, One Spirit"; and inside I wrote:

"Dearest Mehera,

This is a book about a White Horse and Love.
Meher Christmas, Ed Flanagan, 1980"

♦ The card was returned to me when Mehera passed to Baba. The letter which Mehera dictated, handwritten by Mani and which I received the following May, read as follows:

Jai Baba

Meherazad

May 7, 1981

Dear Ed.

Just a few days ago I received this beautiful book you sent of such a magnificent horse -- so beautiful in physique and in spirit, as is the boy he accepts and loves.

Posted in November, I received the book at the end of April -- The wonder of it is that it arrived here safely. I guess because of your love for Beloved Baba, He guided it to its proper destination even though the name of the town Ahmednagar was not on the address [nor was the state, Maharashtra].

Horses are my favorite animal, so I am doubly appreciative of this captivating book with its beautiful photos and touching story -

All who read and see it cannot help but enjoy it. I will treasure this book. Love in Beloved Baba to you from all your Meherazad family.

In Beloved Baba's love -

Mehera

♦ My other poignant memory of Mehera was on the 13th anniversary of Baba's entombment, February 7, 1982 on that same first visit to India. The men and women Mandali as usual came for a short ceremony with all the women mandala entering the Tomb together to lay a very large flower garland. The day before this, I asked one of the Western residents, Davana Brown, who assisted the women Mandali and was on her way into Ahmednagar to order flowers for the women, if I gave her a few rupees would she pick up a small garland for me also. I didn't know much about those things. ♦ The next day Davana arrived before the women and told me that Mehera and Mani were requesting me, if I would I like, to help carry and lay the large flower garland with the women inside the Tomb. Now I assumed that this had always been a women's only ceremony, so being male and being asked to join in with them was likely a first. I had somewhat mixed feelings of honor on the one hand and slight self-consciousness on the other. It really was a simple, though unusual gesture. ♦ On that same day when the women arrived up on the Hill, as usual they would exit the car and enter the east-room of the water tank building. Here was where they had actually lived on and off for some years between long road trips with Baba in the late '30s and '40s. They still had a lot of their old things in there -- old beds and chests and they would stop there to freshen up before walking the short distance to the Samadhi. ♦ That day, when I'd seen all the women leave the East Room heading for the Tomb -- or so I thought -- I peered tentatively down into the cool, dark interior stone entryway, curious about what they might have kept in there. Suddenly, I heard Mehera's voice: "Ed, is that you? Come in if you like." I hesitated. "It's alright," she insisted. So, I felt my way into the darkness as my eyes became accustomed to the dim light inside. As I entered, Meheru quickly passed by me to stand guard outside the door, so that no one else came in. ♦ Mehera then explained about the old days and how they used to live here. She started pulling out old stuff to show me. One of the things was a small doll-like straw figure of Baba that she'd made and dressed up with a photo of his face pasted on it, and a little swing-cradle that she'd swing him in.

Photo courtesy of Raine Eastman-Gannett's Photos of Mehera Collection

♦ Swinging the Avatar Krishna was a favorite pastime of his women gopis -- cow-herders -- during his previous advent about 4000 years ago. As she started swinging him, she sang Brahms' Lullaby to him in the softest, most tender voice, with such poignant longing and sadness that my eyes filled. The air was electric with her one-pointed love for him. It was just Baba and her -- I wasn't even there. And then, even Mehera wasn't there; only Baba's presence emanating directly from her. That beautiful scene is always vividly before my eyes when I consider the meaning of pure thoughts, words, and deeds. I knew I had just been given a profound gift.

♦ Years later, reading Mehera-Meher, I learned that Baba himself also swung this same little cradle while she sang this same lullaby to him. Mehera loved Baba so much that whenever he told the women Mandali he was leaving to go on a tour, within moments tears welled in her eyes. It was painful for her to bear separation from him, but she never said a word. She accepted Baba's absence, knowing how much spiritual work he had to do for the world....

Think of Baba and say His Jai.

Don't worry, be happy,

give a smile and make it snappy.

Even if it's a burdensome yoke,

never forget all life's a joke.
Baba is the play and actor,

He the tears and He the laughter.
So when most you want to cry,

think of Baba and say His Jai.

- Mehera Irani

[poem quoted from Ivy O. Duce, How a Master Works, p.489.]

Ed Flanagan

Editor's Note:

These anecdotes present Ed Flanagan's recollections of Mehera from his first three-month visit to India (late 1981 through March 1982).

The above narrative is excerpted from Ed's approximately 1500-page manuscript, Christ Come Again, future publication of which is anticipated.

6. Meheru and the Champ

♦ In 1993, during Meheru's visit to Los Angeles, my wife Lynn, our son Danny, Christie Pearson and I took Meheru on a tour of Culver Studios, which had once been the Selznick lot here Gone With The Wind was filmed in 1938.

♦ Walking across the lot, we ran into a makeup artist friend of ours who had just stepped out of a soundstage to get some fresh air. She was accompanied by the star of the commercial she was working on: George Foreman.

♦ George Foreman is known these days primarily as the wildly successful entrepreneur behind the "George Foreman Grill" but he had been the heavyweight boxing champion of the world for a year-and-a-half back in 1973-74. Our friend introduced us to the ex-champ whom I introduced to Meheru, explaining that she was a distinguished visitor from India and a

Meheru Irani (courtesy
of Love Street Breezes)

disciple of Meher Baba. The massive six-foot-four boxer greeted Meheru very graciously and sweetly, with deference. ♦ I didn't realize it at the time, but back in 1977, after a devastating defeat to Jimmy Young, Foreman claimed to have seen God in his dressing room and announced he was going to retire from boxing, devote himself to God, and become a preacher. He spent the next ten years preaching and eating, blowing up to 300 pounds. ♦ Then he decided to raise money for his church by returning to the ring. Although the boxing world laughed at him, he won 18 straight victories by knockout before losing to Evander Holyfield in a bid to regain the heavyweight championship.

♦ After Meheru passed, I found out that just a month before meeting her, Foreman had tried to mount another comeback at age 44, but suffered a disappointing loss to Tommy Morrison that seemed to mark the end of his career. However, ten months later, in his first fight after meeting Meheru, he stunned the world when he improbably knocked out the reigning champ, Tommy Moorer (a fight he only got because of his celebrity marquee value) and, according to Wikipedia: "As the arena erupted in cheers, he went back to his corner and knelt in prayer. With this historic victory, Foreman broke three records: he became, at age 45, the oldest fighter ever to win the World Heavyweight Championship; and, 20 years after losing his title for the first time, he broke the record for the fighter with the longest interval between his first and second world championships. The age spread of 19 years between the champion and challenger was also the largest of any

Meheru Irani at Meherazad
photo by Anthony Zois (January 1975)

heavyweight boxing championship fight." ♦ Since I'm on the gross plane but veiled, far be it from me to suggest that there was any connection between Mr. Foreman's unprecedented athletic achievement and his meeting with Meher Baba's most athletic Mandali member ten months earlier, but it's pretty interesting, huh? In 2007, George Foreman published a book called: God in My Corner: A Spiritual Memoir.

♦ That day we met him, being a sports fan, I was pretty excited to meet the former champ and, as we walked off, I told Meheru, "You can tell everyone in India that you met the former heavyweight boxing champion of the world." Meheru just smiled politely, but eight-year-old Danny put it in perspective, rolling his eyes at the thought that Meheru would be impressed by a mere boxer as he pointed out: "Dad, she was with Baba."

Jeff Maguire

Editor's Note:

Jeff Maguire, who lives with his wife Lynn in Los Angeles, is a screenwriter by trade. He also currently serves as Vice-President and Finance Committee Chair at AMBCSC. Among his Avatar-centric hobbies, is the crafting of "Baba trivia questions." Here's a small sampling from Jeff's collection:

Q: What did Baba stop doing on October 7, l954?
A: Using the Alphabet Board.

Q: What was Mehera's favorite color?
A: Green.

Q: Where did Baba frequently encounter Archie Goodwin?
A: In Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe books. (Goodwin is a fictional character.)

Q: The Center in Myrtle Beach covers an area of some: a) 100 acres. b) 300 acres. c) 500 acres. d) 800.
A: c) 500 acres.

Q: Where was Manzil-e-meem?
A: Bombay (now genarlly called Mumbai).

BONUS Q: What does Manzil-e-meem mean?
A: House of the Master.

Q: What is dedicated, "To the Universe- the Illusion that Sustains Reality"?
A: GOD SPEAKS.

7. AMBCSC Archives
You have no idea what just one scrap of my sadra will mean to the world in the future. -- Meher Baba

As a sample of recordings in the extensive collection maintained by AMBCSC Archives in concert with The Oral History Archive Project, here is a link to a sequence of talks given in Southern California over a period of years by Filis Frederick (1915-1987).

Filis Frederick Talks

Mehera J. Irani, Meher Baba,

Filis Frederick, Adele Wolkin

AMBCSC Archives has uploaded many video clips to YouTube. Here are several that feature excerpts of talks given by Filis Frederick.

The Enchantments of Worry (9 min. 37 sec.)

The Inner Self (9 min. 36 sec.)

Demystifying Death (4 min. 30 sec.)

Prem Yoga (8 min. 45 sec., from the 1986 So. Calif. Sahavas)

8. What's Happening at Meherabode

I am mindful of all the qualifications you have. The only qualification I want you to have is Love. Love Me and I am pleased with you.

Meher Baba

The Dome

Meher Baba has drawn us together at His own Meherabode so that we might share in His grace, shining bright as the sun.

♦ Meherabode is felt by many to be among the loveliest of Centers devoted to Meher Baba in the United States. It is a secluded one-acre sanctuary in a residential neighborhood located a bit south of Hollywood, nestled among mansions from the 1920s with the remnant elegance and style of that period. There is a serene atmosphere and palpable presence of Baba's sweetness amid the Center's lovely gardens, along the walking paths, and within the hushed meditation chapel called the Dome. Meherabode's spacious Meeting Hall is the perfect setting for talks and concerts; and Meher Baba Books (our extensive on-site bookstore) is near at hand (just through the glass doors).

♦ Meherabode is a unique and active Meher Baba Center, where weekly public meetings are held every Sunday, as a a primary outlet for community sharing. We endeavor to keep this alive and continuous throughout the year without interruption.

♦ A Concert and Musical Love Feast (with songs, blues, ghazals, kirtans, and varied other delights) was presented by special guest Raine Eastman-Gannett.

♦ In the Presence of the Lord was a wonderful concert performed by Robert Een (composer-singer-cellist) & Friends.

♦ Last summer's Annual Silence Day Sahavas- A Grace Odyssey featured special guest speaker Naosherwan Anzar (writer / speaker / publisher) and guest musician Jim Meyer (songwriter, singer and painter). This was a love feast gathering with the give and take of divine love. We look forward to its sequel this July.

♦ The Artistry of Jurgis Sapkus was a workshop meeting by the gifted Lithuanian artist who has been devoted to Meher Baba for more than four decades, sharing his artwork (both sculpture and painting) with many distinctive images of Meher Baba.

♦ This year's annual Amartithi celebration at Meherabode featured lively devotional music by Sheela Bringi and musicians as well as a notable talk by guest speaker Allan Saviskas.

♦ Meher Baba's 120th Birthday was honored with a three-day celebration.

♦ Saturday, February 22 -- An Evening of Indian classical Music featured "An Ethereal Duet" -- Sitar & Violin d'amore performed by Aloke Dasgupta and Indradeep Ghosh.

♦ On February 23, we enjoyed a musical concert by special guest singer-songwriter Billy Goodrum, along with songs by Deborah Ash (just back from India) and by the Still Yet More Chamber Players (a.k.a. Pris & Chris Haffenden). There was Persian festive food Plus a birthday cake, and more.

♦ The third day of celebration was on February 25, with Billy Goodrum's music and also presenting Indian classical music performed by special guest artists Kamaljeet Ahluwalia (playing Santoor) and Jas Ahluwalia (playing tabla hand-drums).

♦ On March 23 we celebrated Nowruz (Persian: نوروز [nouˈɾuːz]) means "the New Day," the Iranian (Persian) New Year, marking the astronomical beginning of spring, and recalling for us once again the Springtide of Creation.

♦ It is such joy to seeing so many people in the world turn to God. There are so many opportunities for everyone of any age, any culture, any walk of life to share and spread Meher Baba's message of Love and Truth. ♦ We are very fortunate that Meher Baba has provided us with so beautiful Center as Meherabode. May we always strive just to please Him.

In His Love and Service,

Mahoo Ghorbani

9. Welcome to Meher Baba Books

The Bookstore at Meherabode

♦ As an essential activity of the Avatar Meher Baba Center of Southern California, Meher Baba Books offers a wide array of books by and about Meher Baba for Baba-lovers and the general public, including Meher Baba's primary works as well as diverse books published in America, India, and other parts of the globe. Also on offer are materials in other media -- CDs, DVDs, photographs, cards, buttons, lockets, and other specialized objects. ♦ The first Meher Baba Centers in Southern California were bookstores, which opened spontaneously in several cities (Pasadena, Venice Beach, Hermosa Beach) in the late 1960s and early 1970s; these were followed by the Love Street Bookstore for several decades. ♦ Meher Baba Books is the successor to all those ventures. Its physical location is a charming space adjacent to our Meeting Hall at Meherabode in the heart of Los Angeles. There is also the online bookstore at Meher Baba Books, which caters to customers throughout the United States and globally.

♦ We have recently redecorated the Bookstore to create a lovely atmosphere and spatial flow for visitors to enjoy. Shoppers are invited to browse, linger, and enjoy the quiet atmosphere. Custom-made wooden bookcases are grouped in sections around the sitting area, filled with lots of Baba books, plus framed Baba and Mandali photos, Baba T-Shirts, jewelry, greetings cards, specially-designed mugs and cups,

children's books and more. ♦ Several display tables present newly arrived items, artist Jurgis Sapkus's sculptures, photographs, and a selection of featured books.

♦ Our online Bookstore is also nicely designed to showcase Baba's works and treasurers, featuring books, DVD, CDs, photos, jewelry, apparel, trinkets. Working in concert with our Archive Committee, we have made many rare and unique DVDs available, considered to be precious items.

♦ The recent phase has seen a fresh wave of newcomers to our Bookstore, in tandem with our regular Sunday programs and also coordinated with the new initiative of periodic concerts held at Meherabode. ♦ Meanwhile, our online bookstore draws customers from around the globe, including Iran, Iraq, India, Norway, Austria, Canada, Australia, England, Egypt, Turkey and more. Shoppers from East, West, North and South of the US contact us, inquiring about Meher Baba books and other Baba-related items. ♦ It is joy to serve all of the people of this new humanity, knowing how the thirst of their search for truth has brought them to this entry to the ocean of Meher Baba, Avatar of the present age.

NEW ARRIVALS

♦ The Real Treasure (Volume V): Life of a Resident with Avatar Meher Baba's Mandali, is the latest in a series of books by Rustom Falahati. This fifth volume is the first to be printed in the US. It contains short stories which may prove helpful to Baba-lovers dealing with everyday situations while keeping Baba's pleasure in mind at all times. Only $9.00

♦ The God Seeker: Lessons in Discipleship -- the Diaries of Minoo Kharas. A powerful testimony of man's search for God, this is a practical manual for spiritual seekers everywhere. $28.00

♦ Mehera-Meher -- A Divine Romance by David Fenster 3-volume Paperback, 2nd edition. Mehera-Meher is the story of an intimate, Divine Romance between the Beloved and his closest disciple Mehera's firsthand narrative gathered from over 200 hours of tape recordings made by the author, David Fenster, from the years 1974 to 1982. $90.00

♦ The Voice of Intuition, by Emily Chantiri. In her new book, The Voice of Intuition, Sydney journalist and best selling author Emily Chantiri helps readers to tap into their intuition. Chantiri weaves a personal, narrative tale on how listening to her intuition helped her through her life. $22.00

♦ What The Heart Wants: Poems by Alice H. Klein. In a sequence of 100 poems, New York native and Berkeley denizen poet Alice Klein's first v olume -- after many years of dedicated work on the craft of poetry. $14.95

♦ Journey from Here to HERE by Max Reif. A bouquet of love messages to the Beloved. Poet Max Reif puts his musical skills to work -- or to play -- in language crafted to amuse and entertain the Beloved in verse. $9.00

The selection of memoirs we carry that continue to draw interest includes:

♦ As Only God can Love by Darwin Shaw ($24), ♦ Spread My Love by Charmian Duce ($20), ♦ He Gives the Ocean by Najoo Kotwal ($20), ♦ Growing up with God by Sheela Fenster ($33).

Meher Baba Books always stocks the Baba classics. Think of us for God Speaks, Discourses, Wayfarers, all your old favorites of Meher Baba literature.

♦ Meher Baba Books is an important source of financial sustenance for the operating expenses of AMBCSC, helping to ensure the grounds of Meherabode remain an "Oasis of His Love" for His children and the new humanity. ♦ Our thanks for all your support, patronage, and visits to both our brick & mortar and online bookstore. Many thanks for your interest, patience (when needed), and your continuing orders. ♦ See you soon!

Mahoo Ghorbani, Bookstore-walli

10. "The Birth of the Avatar" [a poem]
Have you been touched by God, lately? If you have, then you know what is mercy, what is Love What is shadow, what is Light.

If you have been touched by God;

Then you won't question how, why and what.

The Poet with Esfandiar Vesali

You will keep silent and follow your heart!

You will take a risk, jump a cliff

And let go of all your faults!

You will sing, play and dance,

And in your madness act as if you are a smart as!

Oh, if you have been touched by God,

You will give away the whole world for a Kiss

And you will trade your whole wealth

For a bit of grain out of His Lips!

Have you been touched by God, lately?

If so; you will know the Love stories of Hafiz, Kabir and Rumi.

You will become a dervish and dance with a Qawwali.

You will run away from your name, fame and admirers

To capture a cup of wine from That Saki!

You will cry in your laughter and laugh in your cry

And won't know the difference between the night and the day

The pain and the pleasure or the wet and dry!

Oh, if you have been touched by God lately;

You will know how fortunate you can be!

Hush! Don't say a word and let it be

For even the angels at you, will feel envy!!

Mehernoush McPherson

11. "The Religion of Life"

♦ When a man becomes a serious aspirant for God-realization, his entire mind is thrown in utter confusion by the new and irresistible impulsion to unchain itself and be initiated into the undivided and boundless life of true values. While attempting to overthrow the burden of the false and restricting ego, the mind needs the direction and help of the Master.

♦ The process would be higgledy-piggeldy and chaotic unless it is under the controlling guidance of the Master, who knows the ins and outs of the Path. The consciousness of the disciple, with all its darkness and limitations may be compared to the undeveloped state of a bird in the egg. During the period of incubation, the mother-bird has to sit on the egg and hatch it with warmth provided by its

wings, before the bird attains to full development and comes out in unrestricted freedom. In the same way, the disciple has to receive from the Master all His loving protection and direction, before he can become spiritually perfect and inherit the complete emancipation of God-realization.

♦ But the Path to the summit of Truth is not strewn with roses. Deep-rooted attachments, in all their uncanny forms, must be courageously and ruthlessly plucked out, so that the crystal purity of the heart may reflect the unutterable sweetness of Divine Life. Selfishness in thought, emotion and action must be completely driven out so that there may be an unretarded release of unimpeachable Divine Love. Not by seeking individual happiness or safety, but by again and again offering ones life in the service of others is it possible to rise to the unsurpassed completeness of realized Truth. God is not to be sought by running away from life but by establishing unity with the One in the many. Purity, Love and Service are the watch-words of spiritual life.

Meher Baba

'Lord of Light" - Digital artist: Cherie Plumlee

"The Religion of Life", a discourse given by Meher Baba, was published as a booklet by Mildred Kyle in 1948 and was later reprinted by Filis Frederick in The Awakener: A Journal Devoted to Meher Baba (Vol. 16, No. 2, 1976). The fuller discourse excerpted above can be seen here: The Religion of Life.

*A Heartfelt Acknowledgement*
Thanks to all contributors. Our deep gratitute to the Avatar of the Age, Meher Baba, and to the greater Los Angeles Meher Baba community who have inspired us to assemble this Gazette. Thank you! The Editors

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