Meher Baba's Life & Travels
State flag of China since 1949 Old Nationalist flag in the 1930s
From 1928 to 1949, Nanking ( Nanjing ) was the capital of the then Chinese Republic. The railway line between Shanghai & Nanking was known as the "Jinghu railway", a name now reserved for the line between Beijing and Shanghai.
Webmaster :
On the 22nd June 1932 at 3.00 pm, Meher Baba and his 4 men
mandali arrived in Shanghai and were met by Herbert Davy and Baba's brother
Jal Irani. After settling in their hotel rooms at the Palace Hotel, they toured parts of Shanghai by foot and trolley tram. The following night - 23rd they all took the Shanghai to Nanking train at 11 pm. They arrived at Nanking Railway Station the next morning -
24th and they all went to Herbert's house at No.1. Pei Sze
Ting.
For the next 2 days Herbert showed Meher Baba and his companions the sights of Nanking, which is described in the Lord Meher book extracts. On the night of the 26th everyone except Herbert boarded the train back to Shanghai, Baba had given Herbert instructions to return to Europe the following week and to meet him when Baba's ship arrived in the French port of Marseilles on the 28th of July.
Once Baba and his 7 companions arrived in Shanghai they made their way and boarded the ship SS Kaisar-i-Hind which was to take them back to India. The ship departed on the same day of the 28th June.
Herbert left Nanking on the 4th July by train heading to Northern China, the U.S.S.R. ( Russian ) border, connecting onto the Trans-Siberian Railway at Chita all the way to Moscow, connecting to other rail services onto Warsaw, Berlin and Amsterdam. Here he took a ferry to London. Later in the month, he and his sister Kitty met Meher Baba wharf side in Marseilles on the 28th July as pre-arranged a month earlier.
The Shanghai to Nanking rail distance is about 299km (185 miles)
Thursday, 23 June 1932
Afterward, they went to the railway station ( Nth. Shanghai ) and boarded the 11:00 P.M. train for Nanking. Baba, Herbert and Kaka sat in first class, and Beheram, Jalbhai, Adi Jr. and Chanji were seated in second class.
Friday, 24 June 1932
They reached Nanking the next morning at seven o'clock. Pendu and Gustadji were waiting on the platform to receive Baba. All went to stay at Herbert's house two miles from the station. As ordered, Pendu, Gustadji and Jalbhai had been waiting in China for three months, expecting Baba's call to join him in America. Prior to Baba's arrival in China, Vishnu and Raosaheb had been sent back to Nasik.
After refreshments, Herbert took Baba to see the Great Wall in Nanking. A lake was nearby and Baba walked along it a long distance. Nanking was a pleasant city and reminded Baba and the mandali of Poona. Baba was driven up the Purple Mountain in the afternoon to see the memorial to the revolutionary leader Sun Yat-sen. Though the roads were rough, Baba liked the surroundings.
In the evening the group sat around Baba in his room and listened to music. Thereafter, Baba dictated cables for Chanji to send to America, England and India about his change of plans.
Many Chinese students from the National Central University, where Herbert taught, and older men and women came to meet Baba in Nanking. At first, when showing Baba the sights, Herbert had taken Baba to more quiet areas of the city. But Baba said, "No, take me to where the crowds are." So in Nanking, too, Baba wandered about the dirty, downtrodden lanes of the poorer sections, where the Chinese peasants gazed at him in wonderment.
Herbert's teaching assignment was coming to an end. Wishing to serve Baba, he said, "If you want me to visit Dairen [Talien], Manchuria, Siberia, Moscow and Warsaw on my way to London, I will."
Baba replied, "All right. Then proceed to Marseilles via Manchuria and Russia, and meet me there on July 20."
On Sunday, 26 June 1932, Baba saw a film at the National Cinema, drove through the swarming lanes of the city again and visited a temple of Confucius. Baba was to leave that day and Herbert presented him with a lacquered statue of Mile Fo ( Maitreya Buddha ) , which is the name used by the Chinese for the "Coming Buddha."
After staying for three days in Nanking, Baba entrained for Shanghai at 11:00 P.M. They arrived at eight in the morning and left at 4:00 P.M. for Bombay on the SS Kaiser-i-Hind on the 28th. Herbert Davy left for Dairen (China's northernmost seaport) six days later on his way to Russia.
General Maps
June 1932 shipping & train routes taken by Meher Baba & his group on the 1st World Tour.
June 1932 : Final stage of Meher Baba's 1st World Tour - showing the various routes taken.
Nanking Central Railway Station
Mid 1932 Train routes for Meher Baba and his group
Further along this page is the detail account of Herbert Davy's travels through China .
Note : All letters & postcards on all these web pages posted to China are courtesy of the Meher Trust Archives in India.
Herbert Davy's letter to Meher Baba on 13th Jan. 1932 written from the Bridge House Hotel, Nanking.
Webmaster :
The above photo was taken in Nanking ( now Nanjing ). The group are standing
outside the walled city. The Nanking City wall was built between 1366 and completed in 1393. This photo was taken about May 1932, prior to Rustom K. Irani
( 2nd left ) leaving to meet Meher Baba on the 9th June in
Honolulu, Hawaii, when he sailed from the California.
Soon afterwards, Vishnu & Raosaheb were sent back to India.
I believe the 3 people posing for photos are not Parsis as stated. Baba did dine with Parsis in Hong Kong, this is where the confusion arose.
With thanks to Mike Hong & other members of the Chinese Meher Baba group for their assistance.
Webmaster :
On the 4th July, 1932, Herbert Davy departed Nanking by train to the port city of Dairen as agreed upon by Meher Baba, who had left China 6 days earlier - 28th June by the ship
S.S. Kaiser-i-Hind back to India.
Herbert proceeded by train through Northern China often controlled by the Japanese forces, along the Chinese Eastern Railway which connects with the Trans-Siberian Railway at Chita in Russia. From there he went on to Moscow, then Warsaw, Berlin and Amsterdam eventually reaching London, England.
After a brief stay with his family in London, he, along with his sister Kitty, met with Baba at the French port of Marseilles, on the 28th July at noon.
( L - R ) Gustadji, Beheram, Baba, Chanji, Adi Jr., Kaka, Pendu and Jal
Herbert Davy arrived in Portofino on the 4th August 1932 after his gruelling train journey from China via Russia.
Herbert's return to China via the Trans Siberian Railway to the Chinese- Manchurian border and finally returning to Nanking after another long gruelling journey through Northern China. See the next web page North China for a detailed account.
NANKING VIEWS
Temple of Confusius, Nanking
NANKING ( NANJING ) TODAY
