Heroines of the Path:

Princess Norina Matchabelli

By Filis Frederick

                          Margaret Craske, 1946 - Awakener Magazine.  

II Margaret Mary Craske " Zulekha (Persian name)" Baba's Dancer  

I first met "Miss Craske," as her ballet pupils invariably call her, in the fall of 1946, when she arrived from London to take up her position as ballet mistress of Lucia Chase's Ballet Theatre. It was her first job on her return from seven years in India with Baba . . . years that had told on her health. She was not sure she could handle such a position, not only because of her health but because of her long absence from the professional world, her total immersion in the incredible discipline of following the Avatar on His home territory, as part of His intimate Circle. But Baba loves to throw you from one opposite of maya to the other, from absolute seclusion to great worldly activity, just as He alternated His seclusions with His whirlwind public darshan tours and work with the masses.

Margaret was born in Norfolk, England in 1892. Her father was owner of a small coastal fleet. She started studying dance at an early age; and was always very athletic. At 18 she took up ballet and progressed quickly. She studied with the famous Enrico Cecchetti in the private London studio he ran from 1918 to 1923, while he served as teacher for the Diaghilev Ballet Company. She says of Cecchetti, "He was already old when I met him . . . he was a darling . . . he would bend his head and look under his eyes at you as if you were a criminal. And he did occasionally give us a tap with the stick. That's not legal now. He was a very fine teacher. One loved him."

The Theory and Practice of Allegro in Classical Ballet

She danced with the Diaghilev Ballet Company but her performing career ended abruptly with trauma of the Achilles tendon. Thus she took up her incredible career as a teacher. She founded her own ballet school in London in the Thirties. She is philosophical about the loss of a stage career: "I hurt a tendon. I couldn't dance for some time, and then I was getting older . . . so what!" she says now.

In one year she lost five people dear to her. Her parents, a teacher, a friend, a sweetheart. In a depressed mood she searched for a place to get away and heard from a casual acquaintance about a retreat in East Challacombe, Devonshire, run by a man named Meredith Starr. When she went down there for a rest, she was much drawn to a photograph of Meredith's spiritual teacher, Shri Meher Baba. Meredith had recently been to His ashram in India and was expecting Him to visit England.

As we all know, Baba came much sooner than expected and the small group of souls drawn to Starr's retreat had the privilege of being the first "aspirants" Baba contacted in the West. They included Mabel Ryan, Margaret's partner in her dance school, Delia de Leon, Kitty Davy, and Kim Tolhurst. Baba nicknamed a small group "Kimco" of which Margaret was a part. They were the "lighthearted" ones, as distinguished from those who were spiritually "serious", addicted to long hours of meditation, etc.

Margaret met Baba at the home of Kitty Davy in London. It was she who first opened the door for Him. At that moment, she saw Him as "a vision of gentleness, grace and love that touched the heart immeasurably." At the end of that momentous day, she says, "I only knew that from that moment, whatever rough treatment He may have afterwards handed out, there has never been a moment's doubt as to His being the embodiment of Love and life."

In one amusing incident at Portofino, she went out on the terrace to enjoy the moonlight, peeked in the window, and scared her roommates silly, who took her for a ghost. When told the story, Baba said. "There's one thing I admire about my Western disciples (pause) their courage!" Once, on the train to Marseilles, Baba, whose compartment adjoined Margaret's, said He would tap on the wall 3 times if He was awake, and if she was too, she was to reply with 3 taps . . . meaning? 'I love you.'

In 1939, the Master called her to India for the 3rd time. Again, she gave up her ballet school. Baba's order was to come immediately after war broke out: He had to have someone cross the sea after war began. By a series of persistent maneuvers she got on the last boat out of England and arrived in India at a time when Baba was involved in creating the first Universal Spiritual Center at Bangalore.

Some young Baba lover said when you go to India you just exchange Western maya for Eastern maya. Now Margaret became one of the close group around Baba Easterners and Westerners mingling their sanskaras together. Margaret told me that one doesn't know how "Western" one really is until you live in the East. For example, she described some of the intense East-West battles in the kitchen over food and diet. One Eastern lady insisted rice was pure protein! A Westerner, an avid vegetarian, found a piece of pork in the canned beans, but the others showed their sense of humor  they took it out in the garden and buried it with great ceremony! Finally, the work of preparing separate menus became too tedious; and all agreed on a common menu. The same happened with religious holidays. There were a tremendous number and Baba insisted each should celebrate the others' holidays. Again, it got to be too much and just a certain number were celebrated by everyone.

Anita de Caro once told Margaret she was tired of Maya and would like to get out of it. Margaret's answer was "But I love Maya." I always loved her for that answer.

Photo: pinterest -- seated around Baba - Anita De Caro (profile, looking up), Margaret Craske

From Anita, Zurich, 13 December:1933    

lathi. Margaret felt these "martial" exercises may have had some inner link with outer military events in the world in the '40's . . . World War II, Partition in India, etc. Though absolutely down-to-earth and as uninterested in the occult as Margaret is - she is always so grounded it is a delight 

For example, one rainy day in June 1944, Baba asked her to "throw the cat out"  a feline she had been taking care of. But she couldn't bring herself to do it. Again, Baba asked. Again, she couldn't do it. Then Baba threatened that if she didn't do as He asked, she would have to leave, and never see Him again. She threw the cat out into the pouring rain. That was "D-day", when the Allied forces made their Normandy landing in horrendous wet weather.

Again, late in 1941 He dictated many cables for her to send to Elizabeth, stating His wish to visit "Honolulu, the Philippines, or any place in the Pacific." After December 7, 1941 and the sack of Pearl Harbor there was no more mention of the Pacific. Most of the places mentioned by Baba were later seized by the Japanese.

The seven years of life with Baba in India had many phases. She was one of the few Western women allowed to live intimately with the close Eastern disciples, Mehera, Mani, Dr. Goher, Naja, Mehru. Ostensibly she joined them because of an illness that needed special care. How kindly Baba circumvented the jealousy of the other Western women! But there were also trying times; for example, when Baba ordered her to "disappear" whenever He came to visit the Eastern women - and without explanation. Surely a most humbling experience.

          Standing - Margaret, Meher Baba, Mani, Khorshid. Sitting - Kitty, Norina, Mehera, and .. 

Another way Baba "peeled" her ego was to ask her to dance for Him, often in the strangest places and ludicrous circumstances! When the famous film project was being worked on, she was asked to devise a "Dance of the Spirits"  with two "dancers" only, Delia and Rano, each representing 60 dancers, while Kitty played the piano! Another task Margaret had was to read aloud to Him, especially His favorite detective stories by Wolfe or Edgar Wallace. Zuleika was the Persian name given her by Baba.

But Baba had, in a playful moment, under the name of "Mr. Thomas", taken a dancing lesson from her (Santa Margherita, 1932) and acquitted Himself as gracefully as ever. "He had a perfect spine," she says, "And I know what a perfect spine is!"

One test for all the Western women was the presence of His beloved Mehera. Every Avatar has His "feminine counterpart" as part of His innermost Circle. Ram had His Sita, Krishna His Radha, Buddha, His loyal wife, Mohammed His Khadijah and Jesus, Mary. Avatar, of course, is the true Beloved of us all, man or woman. But for some of the Western women, the privileged position of Mehera in His Circle evoked real jealousy, at times concealed as derogatory indifference, sometimes flaring in bad moods. It was a blow to your female vanity to find yourself "in second place" and some never got over it. It is to Margaret's credit that she saw through Baba's game, and harmonized with His chief woman disciple so well that Mehera was often in Margaret's care. Baba used to take Margaret's palm and trace an "M" on it, meaning "How is Mehera?"

Carousel); Don Mahler, now in charge of the Metropolitan Opera Ballet Company; Bunty Kelly, top dancer in the musical Brigadoon, now teaching at Adelphi College; Peter Saul, in charge of dance at Cornell U.; Marie Adair, in charge of ballet at Sarah Lawrence, and others. In 1956, they gave a special ballet performance for Baba in the Barn at Myrtle Beach; and you can see them in the old 1958 movies carrying Baba about in His special chair.

Photo: Cecchetti International - Classical Ballet | All Rights Reserved

After the stint with Ballet Theatre, Margaret was a moving force behind the Metropolitan Opera Ballet for nearly 20 years. At 90 years of age she is still teaching at the Manhattan School of Ballet. It is still the aim of an aspiring dancer to "study with Margaret," and of aspiring Baba lovers to touch base with her and draw from her some of Baba's love, wit and wisdom. Asking her once for spiritual "advice," she told me, "Be like a rag doll, then Baba can work through you." It's perhaps the technique of a good dancer, to be so relaxed, so balanced, Maya can't tip you over . . . You may even get to love her, like Margaret.  

                                          1956 ; [ top ]( l - r ) - Tex Hightower, Baba, Peter Saul [ bottom ] Bunty Kelly,  

                                          Margaret Craske & Marie Adair. photo - Tony Zois.  

Next week we will share from an account of the life of  Jean Adriel

from The Awakener Magazine, Volume 20, Number 2