A PATTERN FOR THE FUTURE

 
There is another example of Baba setting a pattern for the future before dropping His body. This occurred in 1968, and involved Mehera. Mehera, of course, had been completely secluded from men for decades. Other than Baba, she never talked with a man or saw one face-to-face unless a very rare exception was made by Baba.

Even in the New Life when they were camping, the men were absolutely separate; Mani recalls that at night the women could see only the men's lanterns, far away.

Then on January 31, 1968, exactly one year before Baba dropped His body, Baba asked Mehera to come out and stand with Him on the verandah of the house and greet the men mandali. As Mani recalled:

Baba told Mehera, "Stand by My side, and I will bring the mandali and all the others over, whoever are here. Just look up and say, 'Jai Baba'."

She looked at Him, and Baba said, "It's all right. I'll be right here." So Mehera dressed in a sari and went out onto the verandah and stood beside Baba. There, standing down in the garden before them, were the [men] mandali of Meherazad (the household mandali), and the mandali from Ahmednagar, Adi and so on, and Meherabad — I'm sure Padri and the others from Meherabad were there.

Baba said, "Look at her," and they looked up at Mehera.

And she said, "Jai Baba," and they all said, "Jai Baba."

And that was that.

Therefore, after Baba dropped His body in 1969 — exactly one year later to the day — when it came time for the Great Darshan in Poona, Mehera felt that, yes, He wished her to greet and speak with Baba-lovers, even men, about Baba. You see, Baba had physically enacted in His presence what was to happen in the future. So every time before a program began in the 1969 darshan, when all had gathered in Guruprasad, Mehera would come to the mic and say, "Jai Baba," and the whole room would resound, "Jai Baba." And then the program would start.

 

THE JOYOUS PATH, vol 2, pp. 847-848, Heather Nadel
2015 © Avatar Meher Baba Perpetual Public Charitable Trust