Meher Baba's Life & Travels
1923 : HIS MISSION EXPANDS
Chapter 5 :
1.
INTRODUCTION & CONTENT
This web page / chapter 5, follows Merwan Irani in 1923, expanding his first close group of both male & female followers.
The beginning of this page continues the story from the previous page, when Meher Baba and his first group of men mandali (close ones) are residing in Dadar, Bombay at the Menzel-e-Meem building.
Click on images and maps to enlarge them, also click on the under-scored names to visit their web pages.
CONTENT: 1. INTRODUCTION
2. MANZIL-E-MEEM
3. VISIT TO KALYAN & MALANG FORT (GAD)
4. MOVING TO ARANGAON
5. 1ST TRIP TO QUETTA
6. WALKING TREK STARTS AT AHMEDABAD
7. MOVES BACK TO BOMBAY
8. WALKING FROM BOMBAY TO SAKORI
9. TRAIN TRIP TO KARACHI & 1ST SEA VOYAGE TO BOMBAY
10. TRAIN TRIP: BOMBAY TO SHOLAPUR & BACK TO MEHERABAD
& RETURNS TO BOMBAY.
Click on the following button to visit the previous page in Meher Baba's Advent.
2. MANZIL-E-MEEM
On 3rd January 1923, Meher Baba called all the men at the Manzil-e-Meem and announced a new routine whereby on a daily basis for an hour or two, there would be time set aside to hear all matters of concern from the men. This meeting would be chaired by Meher Baba, be followed with recreational activity.
This meeting was called a "Gutta" or wineshop / tavern.
The old car was finally sold by lottery to a Hindu man - Shri Satchitananda, one of the bhajan singers from Mahim in Bombay.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.471
15th January
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'The Path'.
To read these discourses click here - 'The Path'
29th January
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Couplets from Ghazals'.
To read these discourses click here - 'Couplets from Ghazals'
31st January
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Being targeted by Baba'.
To read these discourses click here - 'Being targeted by Baba'
1923 Historical Timeline :
3rd January : At least 17 people were killed in the collapse of a bridge over the Cowlitz River in the U.S. state of Washington.
February
By 2nd February, Meher Baba was on the 38th day of his fast. He then went onto a liquids diet. On the 15th February, he instructed 500 people to be fed and 100 poor people to be clothed.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.474
2nd February
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'State of God-Realization in a Sadguru'.
To read these discourses click here - 'State of God-Realization in a Sadguru'
Early February
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Transfering Power between Sadgurus'.
To read these discourses click here - 'Transfering Power between Sadgurus'
8th February
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Contacting Spiritual Masters '.
To read these discourses click here - 'Contacting Spiritual Masters '
1923 Historical Timeline :
2nd February : Bulgarian Prime Minister Aleksandar Stamboliyski survived an assassination attempt.
3rd : A magnitude 8.3 to 8.5 earthquake struck the Kamchatka Peninsula in the Soviet Union, generating a twenty-five foot tsunami that raced across the Pacific Ocean.
8th : An explosion killed 123 miners at the Stag Canon #1 mine in Dawson, New Mexico.
A gas explosion killed 33 men at a mine near Cumberland, British Columbia.
In early February, Baba explained to Dr. Ghani his process with his Masters.
Baba said, " In my case, Babajan gave me Realization : and for understanding I had to go to Maharaj, who took 8 years to finish the process of understanding. During this period of my process of understanding, if I had connection with some others, I would have gone to many for such understanding. Such Masters who advance the student are also entitled to be called a Master, although, in the real sense, there is only one Master."
Baba also revealed about the 'charge' ( authority ). Baba said, " The last 4 months that I was with Maharaj at Sakori, I had to externally take charge in writing. The stamped paper agreements written here by me, ....."
Ramjoo's Diaries p.152
One day in February, Meher Baba convened a session of the "Gutta", for all the men of the Manzil. Baba said " Let us have a motto".
All agreed, suggestions came and finally they all agreed to "Mastery in Servitude". It became the motto of the Manzil, later the Master's work.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.478
CHOWPATTY BEACH,
BOMBAY
February,.....continued
On the 12th February, the Poona men mandali ( close ones ) arrived and were sent to Chowpatty Beach to bathe and wash their clothes, before being permitted to enter the Manzil.
On the 13th, a large pandal 'tent' was erected over the Manzil's backyard, to celebrate Baba's 29th birthday.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.483
13th February
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Differences between Natural, Unnatural...... '.
To read these discourses click here - 'Differences between Natural, Unnatural...... '
A Pathan ( of ethnic Pashtun ancestry ) in the service of Saint Tipoo Baba brought a bouquet and a
garland of flowers for Baba on the 15th. He in return, sent Tipoo Baba a garland and a sheet of flowers for
Abdur Rehman Baba's tomb.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.137
15th February
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Why are Circle Members in the dark ? '.
To read these discourses click here - 'Why are Circle Members in the dark ? '
Later that day, 500 poor people were brought to the Manzil to be fed. The Poona visitors returned to their homes.
The following day, Maulvi Abdul Wahid travelled from Hyderabad to the Manzil. Previously, he had been meditating in a nearby mosque and having seen the bright lights above
the Manzil he was prompted to visit.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.483
Please note : There is no image for Maulvi Abdul Wahid
The feast was continued up to 4 pm with about 800 poor were fed. The mandali
broke their complete fast which had began the previous night, at 9 pm. Baba, however, did not break his liquid fast.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.155
1923 Historical Timeline :
12th February : Born : Franco Zeffirelli, Italian film and opera director; in Florence (d. 2019).
13th : Italy's ruling Grand Fascist Council passed a resolution stating that no member of the Fascist Party could also be a Freemason.
Born : Chuck Yeager, U.S. Air Force test pilot who, in 1947, became the first person to "break the sound barrier" by flying faster than Mach 1.
16th : After 32 centuries, the inner chamber of the Tomb of Tutankhamun was opened in Egypt near Luxor, as Howard Carter and his archaeological team broke the seal and went inside to find the sarcophagus of the boy pharaoh of Egypt. Inside the tomb were 5,398 separate items, including Tutankhamun's solid gold coffin.
17th : Born : Kathleen Freeman, American character actress and comedian; in Chicago (d. 2001).
SAINT TIPOO BABA ABDUR REHMAN BABA'S tomb ABDUR REHMAN BABA
February,.....continued
Baba's birthday was celebrated on the 19th February at the Manzil-e-Meem.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.160
Later in February, Shireen ( Baba's mother ), Daulat and her sister Freiny, cousin Naja and Gulmai came to Bombay for Baba's birthday celebrations. The ladies were accommodated on the top floor of the Manzil. Baba stayed downstairs with the men.
During Baba's birthday, he was profusely garlanded whilst seated on the floor. Another 200 people came for his birthday. All feasted, then a qawaali singing program followed.
Baba's birthday was celebrated on the 19th February at the Manzil-e-Meem.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.160
Please note : There is no image for Freiny ( Daulat's sister ).
1923 Historical Timeline :
19th February : The U.S. Supreme Court decided the case of United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind, upholding a lower court determination that the definition of "white persons" did not extend to light-skinned persons who were not of European descent for purposes of naturalized U.S. citizenship.
SHIREEN D. IRANI DAULAT S. IRANI NAJA R. IRANI GULMAI K. IRANI
February,.....continued
The following day ( 20th ), Baba asked Daulat in a private meeting "Are you willing to marry your daughter Freiny to Rustom ( K.).
Daulat agreed, as this arrangement had been planned for some months. That afternoon Meher Baba betrothed Rustom & Freiny ( who had also come ) to the Manzil, this gave both mothers great pleasure.
Later, Baba remarked, " After Rustom's wedding, I am thinking of moving to some village for a while." Gulmai then asked, " Why don't you come and visit our property near Arangaon village, outside Ahmednagar ?"
Baba replied by asking, "Why do you say that ?" Gulmai replied, " Your visit has been foretold by a local saint Gilori Shah."
Baba behaved as if he didn't understand so Gulmai repeated the story that Gilori Shah had told her. Baba then told Gulmai after hearing her story, to complete the tomb for the saint as he so wished.
On the 23rd February, about 200 poor, blind and maimed were fed, and 50 were clothed.
The following day ( 24th ) news came from Davla Masi that Perfect Master Maharaj had become very weak from he self imposed imprisonment in a bamboo cage.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.160
Please note : There is no image for Davla Masi ( female
)
24th February
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'To die the Real Death '.
To read these discourses click here - 'To die the Real Death '
1923 Historical Timeline :
23rd February : The Declaration of the Rights of the Child, written by Eglantyne Jebb, the English social worker who founded the Save the Children organization, was published in Geneva.It would be adopted by the League of Nations on November 26, 1924, as the World Child Welfare Charter.
28th : The nation of Greece used the Julian calendar for the last time before adopting the Gregorian calendar, used by most of the world, the next day.
Born : Charles Durning, American actor; in Highland Falls, New York (d. 2012).
RAMJOO JAFFER HORMUSJI VAJIFDAR DURGABAI KHWAJA H. NIZAMI
March
On the 7th March, Baba, along with Beheramji, Gustadji, Ramjoo, Adi & Vajifdar, took a car ride to Munshi's home on Charni Road in Bombay. This was the first time in 3 months of strict confinement. They stayed a couple of hours. Later that night they returned to the Manzil and leaned the Upasni Maharaj had sent some of his men to bring Merwan back to Sakori, which Baba refused.
Upasni's chief female disciple Durgabai also came a few days later and tried, tried to convince Baba, but to no avail.
For a couple of weeks Upasni Maharaj had been verbally disrespecting Baba to many who came to him, including Shireen - Baba's mother and Adi K. Irani. Shireen was physically abused by Upasni Maharaj, which scared her, but later settled down after talking with him.
Webmaster
On the 9th March, the Manzil was again staged to celebrate the engagement of Rustom & Freiny Irani. Decorations were everywhere - 200 tables sets, it was like a royal feast.
Family members were in their finest clothes for the event.
Baba told Freiny after the ceremony not to return to Sakori, but to stay with his aunt
( Gulmai's sister ) in Parel in Bombay.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.496
Baba returned to Charni Road on the 13th, staying the night there, returning to the Manzil at 5pm on the 14th.
The Manzil on 19th had a distinguished visitor - Khwaja Hasan Nizami who had come by car, to see Baba, but Baba had disallowed anyone to see him. Arrangement were then made for some of the mandali to see Nizami the following day near Chowpatty in Bombay.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.173-4
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khwaja_Hasan_Nizami
1923 Historical Timeline :
7th March : Adolf Hitler told the Chicago Tribune that he would support automobile magnate Henry Ford (who was known for his anti-Semitism) if Ford ran for President of the United States, though he denied that the Nazi Party had received any financial backing from Ford.
9th : The first bill ever introduced by a woman in the British House of Commons was carried. It was Lady Astor's bill forbidding the sale of alcohol for consumption on the premises to persons under 18 years of age.
10th :The capsizing of a Greek Navy transport, the Alexandros, killed about 150 Greek officers and soldiers of 3 battleships.
12th : American electronics engineer Lee de Forest held a press conference to demonstrate his new system of "talking movies", Phonofilm. The process recorded sound directly on to film so that what was seen and what was heard was simultaneously reproduced.
Born : Wally Schirra, U.S. astronaut who was the first person to travel three times into outer space (d.2007).
19th : In Egypt, Lord Carnarvon, financier of the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun, was bitten by a mosquito, causing an infection and blood poisoning that would cause his death within two weeks.
March... continued
One day in late March, Baba decided to go to Sakori alone. As he walking to Dadar Railway Station, the men mandali followed him and when he told them to go back they refused even when he was persistent. He then relented and they all went back to the Manzil. Soon afterwards, he told the men that after Rustom's wedding in May in Ahmednagar, that he would be staying in Arangaon with a few men and life would be very tough.
Whilst some of the men were starting to dismantle the partitioning at the Manzil, others were trying to sell Upasni Maharaj's biography.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.499
1923 Historical Timeline :
26th March : Died : Sarah Bernhardt, 78, French stage and film actress, died in Paris, France.
April
On the 5th April, Baba consented to Ramjoo and Dr. Ghani taking the Madras Express from Lonavla where they lived, to Poona, where they joined others and then travelled by motor lorry to Shivapur. The distance from Poona R.S. is 27 kms / 17 miles.
The following day, they paid their respects at the court of Kamarali Shah Darvesh, where thousands from Poona and elsewhere had come to celebrate the anniversary of the death of Hazrat Kamar Ali (whose name means 'wisdom') who was a great Sufi. He passed away at a very early age of 18 years and thereafter he was honoured as a saint. He was buried at this place about 700 years ago.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.184
https://www.indianmirror.com/temples/kamar-ali-darvesh.htmlhttps://aalequtub.com/hazrat-qamar-ali-darvesh-r-a/
1923 Historical Timeline :
4th April : Born - Peter Vaughan (stage name for Peter Ewart Ohm), English television actor; in Wem, Shropshire (d. 2016).
5th : Died - George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon, 56, English aristocrat who had financed the expedition to find the tomb of Tutankamun.
3. VISIT TO KALYAN & MALANG FORT ( GAD )
April..... continued
Meher Baba and a few of the men that included Ramjoo, Ghani and Khak Saheb, returned to Kolyan on the 13th April at 2:30pm, taking tongas for the mountain journey to Saint Malang Shah's tomb ( dargah ); the same tomb that they had tried to visit in late October 1922.
Reaching the base of the mountain, Baba stayed with Sadashiv, whilst the others went up to the mountain, to bow down and then make offerings of pretty flower sheets on the grave on Baba's at the saint's dargah.
This all took 2 1/2 hours.
The journey back to Kolyan was
14 miles / 22.5 kms, in the hot sun. Once they returned at 2pm, Baba took them to a restaurant near the station and allowed the men soda water and watermelons, because the local water was
polluted.
Baba and the party left for Bombay by a local train, while Ramjoo and Dr. Ghani went back to Lonavla where they lived, by the evening express.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.500-502
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 185-6
1923 Historical Timeline :
12th April : Lee de Forest successfully demonstrated his Phonofilm system to the New York Electrical Society & was introduced to the public with three short movies at the Rivoli Theatre in New York City on 15th.
13th : Born - Don Adams (stage name for Donald J. Yarmy), American television actor known for Get Smart; in New York City (d. 2005).
April... continued
On the 15th April, Baba went to the marriage ceremony at Naval & Dina Talati's house in Central Bombay. Before the wedding started, he called them into the street, where he blessed them, and he rode back in a tonga to the Manzil-e-Meem.
1923 Historical Timeline :
15th April : Insulin first became widely available for diabetes patients in North America.
18th : Died - Savina Petrilli, 71, Italian founder of the Sisters of the Poor of Saint Catherine of Siena.
20th : Born - Tito Puente, Puerto Rican American salsa and Latin jazz musician known for "Oye Como Va"; in the Spanish Harlem section of New York City (d. 2000).
April... continued
The men had packed the luggage ready for the next chapter, leaving the Manzil-e-Meem.
Ten months had passed and the remaining 13 men left by train on the night of the 19th for Ahmednagar.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.502-5
By the 19th April 1923, all the arrangements for leaving the Manzil, were completed in full detail, including the disposal of the Flour Mill. Baba decided to leave for Ahmednagar that night on the Raichur Passenger train.
The Menzil premises were duly handed back to the owner, the heavy luggage was dispatched to the station, and an outhouse was retained as an office for the matters of the 'Circle & Co.
4.
MOVING TO ARANGAON
April... continued
When they arrived in Poona, Baba's relatives, Ramjoo, the Kasba Peth mandali & fishermen were present at the railway station. Baba was profusely garlanded with flowers, while refreshments were served.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.505
April... continued
The train left Poona at 7:30am on the 20th April and arrived in Ahmednagar a few hours later. ( see end February 1923 map prior for journey details )
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.505
The train ride from Poona to Ahmednagar in 1923, took 5 hours.
1923 Historical Timeline :
21st April : Italy celebrated the Founding of Rome as a holiday for the first time as 50,000 Fascists in black shirts marched in military formation through the streets of Rome.
25th : Born - Albert King (stage name for Albert Nelson), U.S. blues guitarist and singer; in Indianola, Mississippi (d. 1992).
26th : The wedding of Prince Albert, Duke of York, and Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, who would become King George VI and the Queen Consort in 1936, took place at Westminster Abbey.
KHUSHRU QUARTERS, AHMEDNAGAR
Khushru Quarters became known later as Meher Nazar, the Trust office on Kings Road, Ahmednagar.
April... continued
Meher Baba stayed at Gulmai Irani's residence at Khushru Quarters. Apart from her family, the Zoroastrian community was hostile towards Baba and ridiculed Gulmai and her family. Baba stayed secluded in his room for 7 days, before exploring Ahmenagar for several days.
On the 30th April, Baba took a long hike with the men mandali to Happy Valley, some 14 miles / 22 kms north of Ahmednagar. They stayed at a duk bungalow, a government rest house for several days.
Baba celebrated Upasni Maharaj's birthday on the 3rd May, whilst still at Happy Valley and instructed his mandali to fast for 24 hours and cook food for hundreds of the poor from the nearby
village.
Late in the night, after the villagers departed, Baba left Happy Valley with his mandali at 11:30pm and walked back to Ahmednagar in the dark. They reached
their Khushru Quarters at 2:00am ( 4th May ) quite exhausted.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.506-9
1923 Historical Timeline :
30th April : The Irish Republican Army's new Chief of Staff, Frank Aiken, announced a ceasefire and called on all IRA volunteers to relinquish their weapons on May 24.
Born : Al Lewis (stage name for Abraham Meister), American comedian and television actor known for The Munsters and Car 54, Where Are You?; in New York City (d. 2006).
2nd May : The British Broadcasting Company opened its new wireless radio studios at Savoy Hill.
3rd May : American army pilots Oakley G. Kelly and John A. Macready completed the first non-stop transcontinental flight across the U.S.
The Pan-American Treaty, officially the "Treaty to Avoid or Prevent Conflicts between the American States", was signed in Santiago, capital of Chile, by representatives of 16 nations in the Western Hemisphere.
Part of the road / path that Baba took from Ahmednagar & Happy Valley, went past his future home at Meherazad in the
late 1940s - 1960s.
AZ
TRIP TO HAPPY VALLEY
May... continued
During the day of the 4th May, Adi informed Baba of some of the slander that was being said by family members staying at the house. He was also informed that Gulmai ( his spiritual mother ) had not returned as instructed from Sakori.
Baba stormed out and rapidly walked through Ahmednagar. He finally stopped on Station Road. Some of his men, leaving their belongings behind, followed him.
They crossed the Sina River, after walking 6 miles / 10kms to the south, and came across some dilapidated buildings near a small village.
When they entered the area with the dilapidated buildings, they met the watchman who informed them that the buildings were once a British military post and were now owned by Gulmai's husband - K.K. Irani. The nearby village was Arangaon.
Baba sat down under a neem tree by a well, he pointed out the newly constructed tomb for the Muslim saint Gilori Shah. Other features were also observed.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.510
1923 Historical Timeline :
4th May : Born - Eric Sykes, English writer, comedian and director; in Oldham, Lancashire (d. 2012).
Arrived in Arangaon's outskirts
4th May... continued
Rustom K. Irani realized that Baba was gone and so he raced on his motorbike looking for him, eventually finding him sitting under a tree. Rustom had tears in his eyes as he asked why he had left.
Baba said, "I no longer wish to stay in Khushru Quarters" and he explained to Rustom, that he wouldn’t be attending his wedding, but would bless the him and his bride later. Rustom was sent back to send their belongings to their new location.
Later on, the baggage arrived and the men spread out their bedding rolls. Their night was disturbed by swirling hot winds, and a snake, which they eventually killed.
The Post Office
May... continued
The next day (5th May), the men swept and cleaned the Post Office building. Baba and the men stayed there for that night. The next day, the cleaning and repair of the mess hall (Old barracks) began. It took the whole day and night; even Baba helped out.
During the 6th May, Ghani, Ramjoo, Sadashiv, Munshi and Vajifdar arrived and quickly adopted the new daily schedules. Baba told them that life here was too rough for them
them and sent all of them, except for Ramjoo, back to Bombay.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.511-2
https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/read/50267608/meherabad-avatar-meher-baba-trust
1923 Historical Timeline :
7th May : Born - Anne Baxter, American stage, film and television actress (d.1985).
May... continued
On the 8th May, Meher Baba changed his mind and attended Rustom's wedding, but stayed on the top floor of Sarosh Manzil. The men were instructed to help prepare Gulmai's home for the wedding ceremony.
Rustom & Freiny were married the following day (9th May), with Baba dressed in a new suit of clothes. The 'puja' was performed before him. Baba did not attend the public ceremony, but he did bless the couple later, at the Sarosh Manzil where the bridal feast took place. A small programme was held for Baba.
Pilamai Jehangir Irani had come from Karachi for the wedding. She became devoted to Baba after meeting him.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.513
Rustom K. Irani was 25 years old & Freiny J. Irani was 19 1/2 years old when they married.
Wedding attendees below image that are known are :
* KHANSAHEB - Kaikhushru Sarosh Irani, the father of the groom RUSTOM, also his daughters - PIROJA & DOLLY and husband of GULMAI.
* Meher Baba's mother SHIREEN came with her youngest son ADI & daughter MANI.
* Gulmai's sister's husband KAIKHUSHRU MASA Z.B. Irani came with his daughter KHORSHED.
* Shireen's niece NAJA is standing next to her.
* FREINY ( the bride ) has her mother DAULAT standing behind her.
May continued....
May 10th
After the music stopped, Baba informed with the men mandali the next arrangement for them. He
instructed Khak Saheb to go back to Bombay and stay with Munshi and Sayyeb.
The Kasba Peth men to go back to Poona and the remaining 13 men - Jal, Gustadi, Adi K., Babu Cyclewalla, Baidul, Barsoap, Beheramji, Masaji, Pendu, Nervous, Padri, Ramjoo and Slamson, would stay with Baba in Arangaon.
Ghani was sent back to Bombay a couple of days later.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.516
JAL GUSTADJI ADI K. B. CYCLEWALLA BAIDUL
BARSOAP BEHERAMJI MASAJI PENDU NERVOUS
PADRI RAMJOO SLAMSON PILAMAI H. IRANI
May continued....
May 11th
Once Baba decided who went where, there was another dispute that arose in Gulmai's family, which gave Baba the excuse to leave. They all walked to the Ahmednagar Railway Station and stayed in the traveller's shelter there. Baba didn't want to go back to Arangaon.
After a couple of days at the shelter, Baba decided to go back to Arangaon. Their goods were once again transported there by cart. It was also decided to clean and repair the old mess hall - old bungalow, ( see image below ) to house the men.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.192-6
On the 11th May, when Baba stormed out of Sarosh Manzil, because of the slander accusing him future deceitful actions. Baba first walked to the Railway Station, stopping at a deserted graveyard on the way. He and his men rented a dharmashala - rest house.
Beheramji had gone to the Post Office near Arangaon and returned by bullock cart with all their belongings. Gulmai was distressed by Baba's departure from her house and their property, husband Kaikhushru went to the rest house and pleaded with Baba to return to Arangaon and Baba agreed.
After a 3 days stay, Baba walked back to Arangaon on the 13th May and stayed in the Post Office building.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.517
By the 22nd May, the mess quarters were quite ready for occupation, when suddenly a small snake was found inside a bedding roll. This incident sparked Baba to decide to immediately leave Arangaon, Ahmednagar district and India for Persia.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.192-6
Because of the snake situation, Baba said he wanted to go somewhere where there wasn't any snakes or scorpions. Suggestions were made and Pendu suggested Quetta. Baba liked this and since he had promised Pilamai that he would visit Karachi. Baba later said, " Not only should we leave Arangaon, but we should also leave Ahmednagar, Bombay and India altogether and go to Persia by route of Quetta and Karachi."
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.521
The distance from Khushru Quarters to the dharmashala was half mile.
1923 Historical Timeline :
22nd May : Stanley Baldwin, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, took office as the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
24th : The Irish Civil War came to an end. Éamon de Valera, leader of the Irish Republican movement, and Frank Aiken, the Irish Republican Army chief of staff, issued an order to all IRA volunteers to lay down weapons and return home.
May... continued
During the wedding period, Meher Baba stated to Pilamai J. Irani, " Gulmai is my spiritual mother, but remember you are my spiritual sister, so you should stay in close contact with me ".
Mehera J. Irani did not attend Freiny's wedding even though she was Freiny's sister.
She was staying in Sakori with Upasni Maharaj. She was doing manual labour carrying stones, earth, etc., on her head in an iron container for the contruction work, along with Maharaj's female devotees, who were also helping in the work.
Mehera's knee became swollen during the wedding period and Maharaj did not allow her to work or attend the wedding. Others who attended the wedding had wanted to propose to Mehera, but she was absent.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.518-9
Mehera J. Irani was 15 years old at the time.
Baba told Soona Irani ( see below ) who had come from Bombay for the wedding with her daughter Khorshed ( 13 y.o. ), not to go back to Bombay but to stay in Ahmednagar, so that they could have Baba's darshan ( blessing ) regularly.
Before leaving Arangaon, the topic of giving a name to the place ( Post Office & barracks ) was discussed. Baba renamed it "Meherabad ", "Abad " meaning a prosperous settlement, or a flourishing colony. A large sign was painted and Nervous nailed it between 2 poles, near the railway tracks.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.521
SOONA IRANI KHORSHED K. IRANI ( young )
5.
1ST TRIP TO KARACHI & QUETTA
May 1923 ... continued
On the morning of 25th May, Baba ordered everything from Meherabad moved to Khushru Quarters. Only bedding rolls and small personal items were carried on their journey to Quetta. Baba and his party walked from Meherabad to Ahmednagar on a path that ran alongside the railway tracks reaching Ahmednagar Railway Station at 10:30am.
Many had gathered prior to Baba's arrival to bid him and his entourage of 5 women and 14 men farewell.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.521
They left Ahmednagar by train at 12:30pm, reaching Manmad in the early evening.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.197 & Lord Meher Vol.2 p.523
The 14 men are shown in the following image taken prior to their trip from Bombay to Quetta.
The men are : Adi K., Babu Rao ( Cyclewalla ), Baidul, Abdul Rehman ( Barsoap ), Beheramji, Nervous, Padri, Pendu, Ramjoo, Jal ( Baba's brother ), Masaji, Gustadji & Slamson.
The 4 women are : Gulmai, Soona and her daughter Khorshed, Pilamai & her infant son Vithal.
Click on the under-lined names to visit their respective web pages on this site.
1923 Historical Timeline :
25th May : A 5.7 magnitude earthquake in Iran killed 2,200 people in and around the city of Torbat-e Heydarieh.
The photo below was taken just prior to Baba and his men mandali left Quetta for Ahmedabad in late June 1923. They had just received their kafnis outfits for their forthcoming long foot journeys.
May 1923 continued....
25th May... continued
The train reached Sanchi ( north of Manmad ) and past the sculptured stupas dedicated to Lord Buddha. Baba made a comment about the Buddha in India over 2,500 years ago.
" Gautama was physically perfect, or had a perfect body, in comparison with the other Avatars".
The train arrived in Agra and all disembarked on the 27th May. They were instructed to carry their own bags even though there were rail porters on hand. They stayed at the Empress Hotel.
Despite it being a very hot day, they later, followed Baba to see the city's main attractions, Taj Mahal & Agra Fort.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.523-4
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanchi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agra https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taj_Mahal
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agra_Fort
1923 Historical Timeline :
26th May : British authorities in Palestine, under League of Nations mandate, issued a declaration of autonomy to the Emirate of Transjordan, now the Kingdom of Jordan.
Born : James Arness, American television actor best known as the star of Gunsmoke; in Minneapolis, Minnesota (d. 2011).
AGRA
May continued....
28th May
The next morning ( 28th May ), they went to Mathura ( north of Agra ) and stayed in a Hindu dharmshala. The men bathed in the Jamuna River and also washed their clothes.
Mathura is famed as the birthplace of Lord Krishna and they went to the shrine-temple where he was born 4,000 years ago.
That night they took rides in boats on the Jamma River.
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.525
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mathurahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yamuna
MATHURA IS 200 KMS FROM DELHI.
MATHURA IS 50 KMS FROM AGRA.
1923 Historical Timeline :
28th May : The success of the newly developed drug tryparsamide, as a treatment and cure for African trypanosomiasis, commonly called "sleeping sickness", was announced by Dr. Simon Flexner of the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research.
MATHURA
May continued....
29th May
The following day, 29th May, Meher Baba and his group left Mathura by train and arrived at Delhi at 5:30pm.
Baba cancelled a visit to the city, so they had only hurried
glimpses of the old city. The railway station had 17 platforms. They all made their way to
platform for the N.W. Ry. Mail train to Bhatinda ( now Bathinda ), in
the Punjub state.
Please note : During this travel period, the rail lines were not established in some areas; hence the round-a-bout route
to get to Karachi from Delhi. Refer to the previous large map May-June 1923.
The following images are of Delhi, Bathinda & Samasata Railway Stations. Click on images to enlarge.
May continued....
30th May
They arrived the following morning ( 30th May ) at Bhatinda and changed trains for Samasatta and again changed trains at Samasatta ( now in Pakistan ) for the Karachi Mail train, which arrived in the evening for the journey to Karachi. The train was packed like sardines when they boarded and the heat was terrible when they left.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.199-202
KARACHI
May continued....
On May 31st, the
train arrived in Karachi later that
morning, Pilamai's husband Hormasji and others
including Baily greeted Baba and the group at the railway
station. Baba was garlanded.
Baily's sister had
previously moved to Karachi and Baily had been sent ahead to help with the
arrangements.
They all then went in Victoria
horse drawn buggies to Pilamai's house where they stayed. They washed and refreshed themselves. She later gave Baba and others a tour of the city and visited his paternal uncle Khodadad and his aunt Banu, who had moved from Bombay, they also visited Baily's sister at her home.
They went for a drive to Clifton and its sea front. Kothare Parade was recently completed with fine pavilions built of stone and concrete, also a bandstand, which impressed many.
They also visited the docks at Keamari, which was serviced by trams. Many fine building were seen including cinemas and the Empress Market.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.202
Lord Meher Vol.2 p.526
Check the map above for the places mentioned in Karachi.
The book sources don't mention which part of Karachi they stayed, but it would be presumed they stayed near the Parsi Colony which is near the Zoo & Soldier Bazaar.
Meher Baba and his group stayed 7 days in the Karachi area.
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/369787819389458818/
1923 Historical Timeline :
31st May : Born - Rainier III, monarch of the European principality of Monaco; in Monte Carlo (d. 2005)
Click on the following images to enlarge.
1st June 1923
Baba had decided to take the men on a tour of the city. The tour was to take place after Friday prayers at the Aram Bagh Mosque. The men that attended prayers misjudged the time and returned late, upsetting plans that Baba had made. Later, many taxis were hired and they headed to Soldier Bazaar near the Zoo and Botanical Gardens which were combined.
After the visit, they took to the main streets such as Bunder Road in Karachi to check what films were playing so they could arrange a time later that night to see a programme. They explored the docks at Keamari and the different camps of the city.
From Keamari, they took a ferry ride to Manora Island on the other side of East Channel, with Baba Island nearby. Manora Is. was mainly occupied by the military.
After returning to their residency and had supper, they left for the cinema.
The following 2 days were very uneventful except for occasional walks nearby.
They toured the city in large Buick cars of that period 1918-1923. The year & models are not mentioned. The models shown above
are very typical of the model for that period, shown above.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.203-4
Check the big map above for the places mentioned in Karachi.
Check out the main page of Karachi in the 'Location' folder. Click the name Pakistan then Karachi to visit.
Some place names especially roads have had their names changed to Pakistani names.
Click on the following images to enlarge.
June continued....
4th June
Baba and his group left their house at 6:30 am and took the tram to the railway station. The train left for Malir ( a small village ) at 8:15 am, travelling 2 stations away, on the N-E outskirts of Karachi for a picnic.
They stayed in the compound bungalow, a short distance from the station. Because of the scarcity of water they moved to a nearby hotel, but again little
water was to be found. They walked a few miles to a field where water was being pumped by a motor and so they bathed, washed, etc. They returned at the end of the day to
Karachi and their residency.
Ramjoo's Diaries p.204-5 & Lord Meher p.526
The next 2 days were not recorded, but it is assumed they rested before moving on, which Baba had made changes on the 5th June.
1923 Historical Timeline :
4th June : The British cargo ship Trevessa foundered in the Indian Ocean while traveling from Australia to Mauritius. While all but ten of the 44 crew were able to escape to lifeboats before the ship sank, sixteen men in one lifeboat spent the next 25 days drifting at sea before they were able to reach land, finally getting to the Mauritius island of Rodrigues on June 29 after a voyage of 2,000 miles (3,200 km).
The musical revue that would bring the Marx Brothers to Broadway, I'll Say She Is, debuted at the Walnut Street Theatre.
The following images are of Malir, near Karachi, Sibi Railway Station and the Bolan Pass and Quetta Railway Station.
June continued....
7th June
Meher Baba and his group left Karachi on the train for Quetta at 9:30 am, On the way the temperature rose considerably and the sand dust from the desert was blowing everywhere.
8th June
At 5:45 am the following day they reached Sibi Junction. They stopped for an hour while, as a security requirement, everyone was examined
medically. The police checked their travel papers, because of the frontiers people. They headed off again an hour later for Quetta via the Bolan Pass, with security very tight all along to Quetta.
Please note : There were continual skirmishes with mainly Afghanis and some locals
who lived either side of the border between then British India (now Pakistan) and Afghanistan. These people were referred to at that time as 'frontier people'. Because of the constant troubles,
the British had an army garrison based in Quetta and also an air corp stationed there.
1923 Historical Timeline :
8th June : The British House of Commons passed a bill giving women the right to divorce their husbands on the grounds of infidelity, without having to prove cruelty or desertion.
9th : The government of Bulgaria's Prime Minister Aleksandar Stamboliyski was toppled in a bloodless coup led by General Ivan Valkov's Vonnyat Soyuz, a private organization of reserve officers.
QUETTA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quetta
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1935_Quetta_earthquake
A larger display of images can be viewed on the main page for Quetta on this website.
The city of Quetta was destroyed in 1935 by a massive
earthquake.
They reached Quetta at 5:30 pm, 9th June and were quickly taken by carriages to a rented house on Bruce Road next door to Rusi Irani's home. Baba stayed on the 1st floor while the men stayed upstairs. Everyone refreshed themselves upon arrival.
Rusi was a confectioner and owned a restaurant so therefore he was able to take very good care of his guests with regards to food, etc. He was also an amateur magician and would perform to Baba and the group throughout their stay.
Being at 5,000 feet above sea level, it was very cold.
Pilamai's brother Rusi Jehangir Irani, was residing in Quetta with his wife Khorshed Banoo Irani with their 2 daughters. Khorshed's sister Soona Banu was married to Gulmai's nephew Dinshaw, Sarosh's brother. They had all attended Rustom's wedding and had met Meher Baba.
The real reason for the trip, was Baba wanted to meet Rusi's daughters - Goher ( 7 years old ) & Katie ( 3 years old ). Rusi gave Baba a tour of the city - the orchards & Garden of Jamasp. Baba also met a mast opposite his house.
Lord Meher p.528
RUSI & KHORSHED IRANI MEHER BABA IN QUETTA 1923 KHORSHED & HER CHILDREN
The above images of Quetta were taken in the 1920s & 1930s & after the May 31st 1935 devastating earthquake. Click on the images to enlarge them & their details.
June continued....
On the 9th June, Rusi took
Baba and the group on a sight-seeing tour of Quetta and it's many gardens and orchards. About this
time, Baba made contact with a mast ( God - intoxicated person ) called Allah, who
was staying at a hotel opposite to their residency. Upon seeing Baba, he picked him up and swung him around, it took a while for the Mast to let Baba down.
The following day, 10th June, they walked to and then inspected the Kabari Markets and on the following day, 11th June, the men without Baba, visited Sandham Hall and its fine grounds, the local museum, which was closed and the nearby large Town Hall building, including the very fine rest houses and shelters.
The next day, 12th June, they walked to see the road known locally as Thandi Sadak
( Gloucester & Lyntton Roads ) to look at the tree canopies over the road. They also saw British military aeroplanes buzzing the skies and the Scottish Highlanders marching past twice daily, in full dress and bagpipes playing.
Baba bought up forth a new plan.
They were to stay for the next 6 months in India before going to Persia, possibly taking a walking tour from Kashmir to Bombay with long stays along the way. The next day, 13th June, at 6pm Baba had a desire to climb the large hill over-looking their house. Everyone dashed through the town to the foot of the hill over several miles away but once there the climb was abandoned.
The next few days were uneventful, but on the 18th June, Baba and the group went to see the 1916
1923 Historical Timeline :
10th June : Fishermen at Long Key, Florida reported harpooning a 20,000 pound sea monster. They said it continued to fight even after fifty rounds of ammunition had been fired into it.The monster was identified as a whale shark.
Below : The 1916
Above :
June continued....
On the 21st June, Baba and his group travelled in 3 Ford cars and a Ford lorry took them to see the Waterworks in the mountain pass at Urak - 14 miles away ( 22kms ). Having arrived, they settled in the visitor's bungalow, food was prepared and was consumed by all.
After lunch, Baba was photographed under a tree*, which proved successful. Many photos were taken by the streams and pools of water and some which included the surrounding hills. Everyone was back to Quetta by sunset.
*The photo taken of Baba can be seen at the start of Part 6 on this webpage ( June 26th).
The following day 22nd June, Baba had a meeting with the men mandali about the upcoming journeys and all agreed to Baba's conditions.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 210-214
Sohrab J. Irani ( Rusi's brother ) was the photographer at the Urak Valley.
They visited Hanna Lake which is the main water reservoir for Quetta.
1923 Historical Timeline :
17th June : Mount Etna erupted in Sicily with several loud explosions.On the Italian island of Sicily, several villages built on the side of Mount Etna— specifically, Piccilo, Pallamelata and Ferro— were destroyed by lava, but no casualties were reported as residents had time to evacuate.
The images below are of the 1922 Ford motor car & 1920 Ford Model TT truck, typical models of the
time.
June continued....
On 23rd June, Baba and the men tried on the new kafni clothing which they planned to wear on their upcoming walks.They had several photos taken in these clothes.
( see May 25th group photo )
Later that day, they went to the Empire
Cinema watching the 1920 film "Heliotrope". ( see film poster above
)
Baba had sent Asthma to Ahmedabad to get his father's permission to travel in the future.
On 24th June, after lengthy
discussions, the touring program was changed, Calcutta was now the starting point of the
next foot journey, then on the following day, 25th June, the starting place was now agreed to be Ahmedabad in Gujarat State.
Prior to leaving, Baba threaded a length of string to 2 matchboxes and stretched them, then handed one end to Gulmai and spoke to her through the other end and then did the same with Katie ( Rusi's daughter). The telephone was introduced in India 2 years later.
They all packed their things and walked to the Quetta Railway Station, with the steam train was scheduled to leave at 4:55 am on 25th June. The Quetta people had given them a hearty send-off.
Rusi's daughters - Goher & Katie had given
Baba a goodbye kiss.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 215-6
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.537-9
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heliotrope_(film)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6pCp1fUk1M
6. WALKING TREK STARTS AT AHMEDABAD
June continued....
When they arrived in Hyderabad ( Sind ), on the 26th June, they changed trains, ( the rail gauges changed a couple times, also ). Their luggage was weighed and again later when they changed trains at Marwar. Some rail personal were being very difficult, so much so when the station master ( who was a Brahmin ) arrived to see what the commotion was, he made his own inquiries, Baba then handed him a Urdu copy of Upasni Maharaj's new biography, when the station master saw Baba's picture in the book he quickly cleared the way for them to travel without further ado.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 216-7
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.540
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyderabad,_Sindh
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyderabad_Junction_railway_station
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marwar_Junction_railway_station
June continued....
They arrived at Ahmedabad on the 27th June at 9:30 pm. Sadashiv, Asthma & Vajifdar were there to meet them at the station. Baba sent Gulmai, Khorshed, Soona & Sarosh to Ahmednagar along with their trunks, leaving on the Bombay train at 10 pm. He advised them to stay there until called upon. Sadashiv was sent back to Poona the following night and Vajifdar put on the new clothing attire for the walking journey.
They all took numerous motor lorries to move their belongings about a mile away, staying at a Parsi traveller's house, with Baba's Muslim men pretending to be their servants, so they too could stay.
Asthma was sent back home and would not contact Baba ever again.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 217
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.540
1923 Historical Timeline :
27th June : The first refueling of an airplane in flight was accomplished, as U.S. Army Air Service.
A fire in Beijing's Forbidden City destroyed the treasure hall and the imperial gardens.
Nikola Pašić, the Prime Minister of Yugoslavia, was slightly wounded in an assassination attempt in Belgrade.
The above images show the various places that Baba & his mandali saw in Ahmedabad & the surrounding district. Click on the images to enlarge them and for descriptions.
June continued....
The following day, 28th June, they hired a motor lorry and they went sightseeing in the historic city of Ahmedabad. The first place visited was a Jain Temple, then a factory that made matches, mechanically. They saw Kankadia Lake, crossed the Sabarmati River, passing Mahatma Ghandi's ashram on the way to Sabarmati. They tried to tour the main jail, but were denied entry. After touring in the hot sun on the back of a truck all day they were glad to return to their dharmashala.
On 29th July, Ramjoo & Barsoap went to the main Friday Mosque which was on Reachy Road near the Three Gates, for Friday prayers. After that, they visited the tomb of Sultan Ahmed, who founded the mosque. The 30th was a quiet day.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 217-8-9
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.540
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmedabad_Junction_railway_station
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hutheesing_Jain_Temple
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kankaria_Lakehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabarmati_River
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabarmati_Central_Jailhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabarmati_Ashram
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teen_Darwazahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmad_Shah%27s_Tomb
1923 Historical Timeline :
28th June : The first general elections in Turkey's history were held to pick the secondary electors in each precinct.
29th : Juan Crisóstomo Gómez, Vice President of Venezuela, Governor of the Caracas Federal District and the younger brother of President Juan Vicente Gómez, was assassinated in his room at the presidential residence in Caracas, the Miraflores Palace.
30th : A time bomb exploded on a Belgian troop train just as the cars were crossing over the Hochfeld railway bridge in the occupied Ruhr region of Germany. Eight Belgian soldiers were killed, along with two German civilians.
The below images show the various places that Baba & his mandali saw in Ahmedabad & the surrounding district. Click on the images to enlarge them and their descriptions.
On 1st July at 4 am, they began their walking tour, quietly walking through the town, reaching Jetalpur in the south at 7:45 am. They had walked only 10 miles / 16 kms, but they were exhausted so they spent the day at a nice spot. They set off for Kaira at 5:30 pm, taking an apparent short cut via Barejadi, which proved to be incorrect. They arrived at Barejadi at sunset, and stayed the night at a dhamarshala. They had travelled 14 miles / 23 kms the 1st day.
The following morning at 4:30 am, 2nd July, they set off again heading back to the original main road, but they had to traverse muddy and thick sandy tracks and in the hot sun, it was too much for most of the men, especially Pendu, Ramjoo, Masaji, Baidul, Padri and Vajifdar.
When they arrived at the Vatrak River, with Kaira township ( now Kheda ) on the other side, Baba instructed them not to drink the water, but they could splash themselves in the very shallow river. Baba also ordered all the men to throw away their fez caps in the river. After crossing the river, they eventually found a resting place in the town. Slamson was ordered to go to centre of the town and get lunch.
Padri showed his tongue to Baba to show how swollen it was, he couldn't speak. The lack of decent water was the main problem for all.
News came quickly that the locals seriously feared that Baba and his men were bandits. Staying there could prove to be danderous to them, so it was decided to move immediately. They hired 4 bullock carts to take them to Mehmadabad Railway Station ( now Mahemdaved ) about 7 miles / 11 kms away, arriving at 7:15 pm.
They stayed at a local traveller's shelter until their train to Broach ( Bharuch ) arrived.
They departed at 11 pm.
Baba and the mandali had travelled 29 miles / 47 kms in 2 days.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 221-4
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.541-5
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jetalpurhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barejadi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vatrak_Riverhttps://www.timesnownews.com/india/article/kheda-satyagraha-how-gandhi-made-the-journey-from-mohandas-to-mahatma/210282
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kheda
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahemadavad_Kheda_Road_railway_station
Note : Kaira was famous for an insurrection in March 1918 starting there, Mahatam Gandhi convinced the locals in Gujarat to standup to draconian local laws. Click on the above links to get more information.
1923 Historical Timeline :
2nd July : Pope Pius XI sent a letter to the papal nuncio in Berlin appealing to Germany to make every effort to make its payment obligations and cease its resistance campaign which removed the possibility of coming to an agreement.
A railway accident in Romania killed 63 people
The below images show the various places that Baba & his mandali saw in the district south of Ahmedabad towards Kaira ( Kheda ). Click on the images to enlarge them & descriptions.
July continued....
They arrived in Broach ( now Bharuch ) on 3rd July at 3:30am and stayed at a traveller's house. They attempted to wash themselves and their clothes in the nearby Namada River, but it was way to muddy, etc. They returned to the house and rested till 4pm.
Masaji, Pendu & Vajifday as instructed beforehand, left Broach by train for Bombay.
Pendu was very weak health wise and was sent to Quetta to
recuperate.
At 4pm, Baba and the men left Broach from the Jamshed Baug for Ankleshwar. They again walked to the Namada River and hired a boat to take them across. Strong winds during the crossing made it very hazadous, Nervous was badly injured when he was struck on the forehead by the boat ropes and almost lost his eye. The boat got stuck in the mud because of the low river levels, they then waded through the mud and transfered their belongings to another boat. Although they were all muddied they found it humerous even when the 2nd boat also got stuck, and they all had to push it to the shore.
They reached Ankleshwar Railway Station at
8:30pm. They stayed the night on the railway platform and they were finally allowed to drink as much as they wanted.
38 miles / 61 kms covered in 4 days.
They boarded the train for Surat came at 4am and they reached Surat at 6am, 4th
July. They took the horse tongas to the Parsi traveller's house. Here they cleaned & bathed and ate well. Baba
wired Rustom to meet them at Navsari on the 6th.
They left Surat at 4am on 5th July, carrying their belongings as they walked beside the railway tracks, parallel with the road. They reached Sachin at 9am, resting for 2 hours, they had a small snack each and they continued walking. They finally reached Navasari at 5:30pm.
They had covered 24 miles / 39 kms and Baba was not well.
In Navsari, they camped in the Sohrab Gardens of the Parsi Dharmasala called Sorab Baug situated in the middle of the town. A Parsi man arrived and wanted Baba's darshan, Baba refused citing exhaustion but the man persisted, so Baba sent Gustadji in his place. The man didn't know what Baba looked like, so he gave his 'namaskars' ( greeting - a salutation to a divinity ) and then left.
On the 6th July, there were fears in the town, that Baba and his men were theives, etc. The police came and rudely interogated the group. Baba had sent Rustom to fetch Sohrab Desai was a very distinguished resident in the town and was editing the Gujarat version of Upasni Maharaj's biography. Sohrab arrived and admonished the police for their impertinence, saying he has come for Baba's darshan and these are his men. The police asked for forgiveness and requested Baba's darshan as well, but Baba refused and the police departed.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 224-8
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.546-8
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bharuch
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bharuch_Junction_railway_station
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narmada_Riverhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ankleshwar
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ankleshwar_Junction_railway_station
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surat
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surat_railway_station
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sachin,_Gujarathttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navsari
1923 Historical Timeline :
4th July : A massive Ku Klux Klan rally, the largest in the organization's history, was held in Kokomo, Indiana. Attendance estimates ran as high as 200,000.
5th : Martial law was ended in the Kingdom of Egypt for the first time in almost nine years, with the release of 250 political prisoners who had been sentenced by British military courts during and after the outbreak of World War One.
6th : A railway accident killed 17 passengers and injured 28 in New Zealand near the town of Ongarue on the North Island.
6th July continued....
Sohrab Desai ( see image below ) was meeting Meher Baba for the first time, Sohrab was overcome and invited Baba to his house; Baba accepted. Sohrab was taking care of his widowed sister, Baimai, who, unable to walk due to a leg fracture, had been bed-ridden for several years.
Upon seeing Baba,she suddenly leapt out of bed to meet Baba with tears in her eyes, she was Standing ! After that she gradually began to improve her ability to walk.
Baba pointed to a picture of Zarathustra in the house and declared, "That's exactly how Zoroaster looked, I am your Prophet Zarathustra !"
Sohrab's niece, Manija, was at school in Bombay at the time, she came to live with Baba 14 years later and he renamed her Mansari.
Baba and his men mandali returned to the dhamarshala ( resting house ), where he announced that the foot journey to Bombay was cancelled and that they were going to spend 3 months in Nasik ( Nashik ).
Gustadji went to his relative's house in Andheri in Bombay to ask if they could stay in their house in Nasik. Rustom accompanied him that afternoon by train.
After meals, Baba and the men left for the station at 8pm and departed Navsari at 10 pm for Nasik.
This concluded the foot journeys. They had walked 62 miles / 100 kms in 5 days.
Baba and the men arrived at Dadar Railway Station in Bombay at 5:30 am, 7th July. They were met at the station by Gustadji & Burjorji P. Dahiwala. They all proceeded to the nearby G.I.P. station where many of the Bombay followers gathered, including the Talati family, which included Dina's parents Hormusji & Rupamai Karani.
Please note : The following Bombay map has the relevant details.
The Nasik train departed at 7:25 am. Masaji joined the party on
the train to Nasik and arrived at Nasik at 2:45 pm. Sayyed Saheb Pirzade was waiting for them at the station and he had horse carriages ready to take them to Nomanbhai's bungalow where they were to stay. This was 6 miles / 10kms from the railway station. Nomanbhai was one of the original Kasba Peth followers in Poona.
Baba was still on a liquid fast for several months.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 228-9
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.548-51
SOHRAB DESAI MANSARI DESAI SAYYED SAHEB MASAJI IRANI B. P. DAHIWALA
7.
MOVES BACK TO BOMBAY
July continued....
On 8th July, Baba along with Gustadji, Beheramji & Munshi went to select a permanent spot to stay, which they found near the river at Gangapur. Later Baba, after ciding an excuse, said that they should return to Arangaon.
They all woke up at 4:30 am, 9th July and were all at the Nasik Railway Station at 7:30 am courtesy of Aziz Ahmed's car doing 3 trips. They reached Manmad station at 10:30 am. After lunch, they boarded the Dhond ( Daund ) train at 12:15 pm and reaching Ahmednagar at 5:30pm.
They immediately left the station for Meherabad near Arangaon carrying their belongings
as they walked the 5 miles.
After they arrived, Baba joined the men taking dal-rice at meal time, breaking his fast. It was his first meal in 4-5 months.
The next day, after waking at 5:45 am, 10th July, Slamson, Masaji & Padri went to Ahmednagar to purchase materials to repair the Post Office. They also collected their trunks that were stored at Khushru Quarters. Baidul and Nervous fixed the roof tiles and installed new glass in the windows. Rustom arrived from Bombay.
On the following day, 11th July, Baba suggested that instead of repairing the Post Office, it would be better to go back to Dadar in Bombay, get employment, and distribute Upasni's book, amongst other things. The following day, the men convened a meeting amongst themselves, and agreed to move back to Dadar into the small office behind the Manzil-e-Meem house. Adi K. Irani was sent back to stay with his mother - Gulmai.
On the 12th July, the men loaded the bullock cart with their belongings and proceeded to walk to the Railway Station. They departed Ahmednagar at 12:45 pm and arrived at Manmad station at 5:30 pm, where they had a snack. The train to Bombay departed at 7:30pm. On the 13th July, they arrived in Bombay at 4:30 am and reached the Manzil office very soon afterwards.
It was the monsoon season !
Everyone in the group soon settled into the various tasks
that Baba assigned, especially, the bookbinding of Upasni
Maharaj's biography "The Perfect Master". Many of the men got jobs to suppliment themselves and the others. Work continued uneventfully through to
mid-August.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 231-4
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.551-2
1923 Historical Timeline :
15th July : The government of Egypt banned its Muslim citizens from making the Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca, as well as its annual subsidy to the Kingdom of Hejaz, after King Hussein bin Ali, King of Hejaz barred the Egyptian medical escort caravan from accompanying the Egyptian pilgrims into the kingdom.
20th :General Pancho Villa, the retired guerrilla leader who had led the Mexican Revolution that forced out President Porfirio Díaz and brought Francisco I. Madero to power in 1911, was shot dead along with his assistant Daniel Tamayo, his chauffeur Miguel Trujillo, and two bodyguards, Rafael Madreno and Claro Huertado.
22nd : Born - Bob Dole, U.S. Representative for Kansas 1961-1969, later U.S. Senator from 1969 to 1996) and twice the Senate Majority Leader (1985 to 1987 and 1995 to 1996) before making an unsuccessful run as the Republican candidate for President in 1996; in Russell, Kansas (d. 2021).
28th : In Australia, New South Wales Premier Sir George Fuller ceremonially turned the first sod in the construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
An explosion killed 28 coal miners in England at the Maltby Colliery in Maltby, South Yorkshire.
30th : The British Empire formally made claim a 5/36ths section of the continent of Antarctica.
31st : A railway accident killed 47 people at the German city of Kreiensen.
British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin's cabinet voted to approve the report of a cabinet subcommittee that formally approved the British Mandate for Palestine and endorsed the 1917 Balfour Declaration. The legally binding document was the first official British report for the policy of Zionism and the creation of a Jewish state in Palestine.
Born - Ahmet Ertegün, Turkish-born founder and president of Atlantic Records; in Istanbul (d. 2006).
August 1923
On the 10th August, news came from the printers in Lonvala, that the remaining pages to Upasni Maharaj's biography will take longer to print, Meher Baba decided to visit the town
with the men. Baba sent Ramjoo and Dr. Ghani ahead to plan for their visit; they left Dadar in the afternoon and arrived at night.
Baba arrived by the Express train, on the evening of 16th August, with Gustadji, Behramji, Barsoap, Adi and Rustom. Mr Abdul Tayeb drove the party to Mr. Madni's bungalow where they freely stayed. They were given the use of Abdul's car which they used, over 7 days, to visit places, such as, Khandala, Walwan (Valvan Lake) & Bhushi lakes. Sadashiv & Vajifdar accompanied them.
On the 21st August, Baba and the men, visited Ramjoo's & Dr. Ghani's homes.
The following day, 22nd August, at 5pm, Baba decided to leave for Poona. The others were told to pack up and follow suit the following day. At midnight, after staying at Sadashiv's home in Poona, Baba unexpectedly returned because he was disappointed by the welcome he had received. However, after lengthy discussions it was decided to return to Poona but this time they were to stay at Abdullabhai's home (Ramjoo’s brother - Abdulla Jaffer).
Baba arrived by the evening express train and stayed the night at Abdulla Jaffer's home.
There was a Muslim festival during this time, which included a street parade.
Baba viewed the parade from Dr. Mody's dispensary, where seats were reserved for Baba's invited guests - Daulat Irani and her daughter Mehera, Soona & her daughter - Khorshed.
On the 27th August, Baba and the group went to Saswad, 7 miles / 11 kms from Poona, for a picnic ( see map below ).
Then on the 28th August he went to his family's home in Butler Mohalla, his men came as well. Baba's sister Mani was 5 years old and sat on his lap. They then went back to Abdulla's home.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 235-9
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.554-8
1923 Historical Timeline :
2nd August : United States President Warren G. Harding died at 7:30 p.m. San Francisco time (10:30 Washington time), it is now more commonly believed to have been from heart failure, aged 57, the 29th President of the United States since 1921.
Born - Shimon Peres, Prime Minister of Israel 1977, 1984 to 1986, and 1995 to 1998, then President 2007 to 2014; as Szymon Perski, in Wiszniew, Poland (now Vishnyeva, Belarus) (d. 2016)
3rd : The inauguration of Calvin Coolidge as 30th President of the United States was held at the family home in Plymouth Notch, Vermont.
10th : German President Friedrich Ebert issued a proclamation outlawing the circulation of pamphlets calling for the overthrow of the government or acts of violence. The penalty was three years' imprisonment or a fine of up to 500 million marks.
14th : A coal mine explosion at the Kemmerer Coal Company killed 99 miners near Kemmerer, Wyoming.
**British Marine Air Navigation Co Ltd, the world's first scheduled passenger flying boat service, made its first flight, departing from Woolston, Southampton to an airstrip on the Channel Islands.
15th : A series of tidal waves killed at least 346 people on the W coast of Korea,and 1,000 were missing.
16th : At the annual amateur bullfight in the French resort of Arles, four people were killed and 25 injured when an angry bull leaped over a barrier and charged at young men wishing to demonstrate their skill.
18th : A typhoon killed more than 200 people at Macao, Portugal's colony on the mainland of China.
20th : Born - Jim Reeves, U.S. country music singer-songwriter; in Galloway, Texas (killed in plane crash, 1964)
21st : The cityKalamazoo, Michigan passed an ordinance forbidding a dancers to stare into their partners' eyes.
24th : Katō Tomosaburō, 62, Prime Minister of Japan since June 12, 1922, died after a short illness.
Born - Homi Sethna, Chairman of the Indian Atomic Energy Commission who guided the development of India's first nuclear bomb, an atomic weapon first detonated on May 18, 1974; in Bombay, British India (d. 2010).
25th : The Greek government ratified the Convention Concerning the Exchange of Greek and Turkish Populations,two days after the Turkish government had ratified it, clearing the way for the involuntary transfer of 1.5 million Orthodox Christians from Turkey to Greece and 500,000 Greek Muslims to Turkey.
**Violence broke out in Carnegie, Pennsylvania between citizens of the heavily Catholic community and the 10,000 Ku Klux Klan.The locals threw stones and a Klansman was shot dead; a dozen arrests were made.
27th : Neville Chamberlain took over from Stanley Baldwin as British Chancellor of the Exchequer.
28th : Groundbreaking was held to start construction of the Parliament House of Australia in Canberra.
29th : Born - Sir Richard Attenborough, English film actor and director; in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire (d. 2014)
29th : A riot broke out in the small city of Perth Amboy, New Jersey when a mob of 6,000 attacked a hall where a meeting of 150 members of the Ku Klux Klan was being held.
**The film The Hunchback of Notre Dame, starring Lon Chaney, premiered at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
31st : The Corfu incident began as Italian naval forces shelled and occupied the unfortified Greek island of Corfu with 11,000 troops.
**The United States formally recognized Mexico.
August continued...
Two days later, 30th August, Baba had decided to go to Bombay, but wanted to visit a man named Mulog who lived in Kirkee near Poona, who owned a brickyard. They travelled by car to Kirkee. Years later Mulog would swindle Baba's father and end up in court.
Baba and
the men returned to Bombay later
that night by the Poona Express train to Dadar,
arriving at 7 pm. The car they used in Poona was returned to Lonvala.
Soon afterwards, they found a place in Parel, a new building opposite the Kohinoor Mills near Dadar tramway station. They moved there on the 2nd September and the next day 3rd,
they moved to new premises at Irani Mansions ( now
Tafti Mansions ) No.6 on the 2nd floor, on the street near the G.I.P. Dadar railway
station.
The following 5-6 weeks was very routine, working towards the publication of Upasni's Gujarati biography.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 239
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.558
God-Man p.45
1923 Historical Timeline :
1st September : A devastating earthquake with an approximate magnitude of 7.9 struck Japan at two minutes before noon. Over 120,000 people were killed and 2 million left homeless as half the city of Tokyo was destroyed.
**An explosion killed 21 coal miners in Australia at the Bellbird Colliery in Bellbird, New South Wales.
Born - Rocky Marciano (ring name for Rocco Marchegiano), American heavyweight boxer and world heavyweight champion 1952–1956.
2nd : Admiral Yamamoto Gonnohyōe was installed as Prime Minister of Japan.
**The Kantō Massacre of non-Japanese ethnic minorities began in Japan in the aftermath of the earthquake the day before, starting with vigilante groups targeting Korean residents on the island of Honshu, at first with the encouragement of local police, and then with the participation of police and the Imperial Japanese Army. An estimated 6,000 people of Korean, Chinese or Ryukyuan descent were killed.
**A "German Day" rally attended by over 100,000 nationalists was held in Nuremberg.
7th : Interpol was founded as the International Criminal Police Commission at a conference of police officials from 16 nations meeting in Austria at Vienna. It would adopt its present name in 1956.
8th : Seven U.S. Navy destroyers were accidentally sunk in the Honda Point Disaster off the coast of California in the largest peacetime loss of ships in U.S. history, and 23 sailors were killed in the heavy fog.
9th : Apostolos Alexandris, the Foreign Minister of Greece, informed the Council of Ambassadors that he would accept the decision of their arbitration commission to resolve the Corfu incident.
Born - Cliff Robertson, American film actor and Academy Award winner; in San Diego (d. 2011).
10th : The Irish Free State was admitted to the League of Nations.
12th : Southern Rhodesia became a British colony following a 1922 referendum
13th : A military coup orchestrated by General Miguel Primo de Rivera seized control of Spain.He was sworn in as Prime Minister of Spain on the 15th and appointed his new cabinet. At de Rivera's behest, King Alfonso XIII suspended the Spanish Constitution and imposed martial law.
15th: Oklahoma Governor Jack C. Walton declared "absolute martial law" statewide in his fight against the Ku Klux Klan.
16th: Born - Lee Kuan Yew, the first Prime Minister of Singapore (1965 to 1990); in Singapore (d. 2015).
17th: Born - Hank Williams (stage name for Hiram King Williams), influential American country music singer, inducted into both the Country Music Hall of Fame (1961) and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1987); in Butler County, Alabama (d. 1953).
26th: The Council of Ambassadors awarded Italy an indemnity of 50 million lire against Greece over the Corfu incident, over British protests.
**German Chancellor Gustav Stresemann suspended seven articles of the Weimar Constitution and declared a state of emergency.
27th : Italian forces withdrew from Corfu in compliance with the Council of Ambassadors agreement.
- Bulgarian troops captured Ferdinand from the rebels, effectively ending the September Uprising.
-
A train wreck killed 30 people in the U.S. state of Wyoming after a bridge was
washed away by flooding of the North Platte River.
28th : Abyssinia was admitted to the League of Nations, by unanimous vote of the League's General Assembly.
**Violent windstorms and flooding struck Louisville, Nebraska and Council Bluffs, Iowa, killing 14 people.
29th : The British Mandate for Palestine went into effect for what would become the nation of Israel.
**The French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon went into effect by France's agreement with the League of Nations.
September continued....
In this period, Meher Baba wanted to go on a walking journey to Sakori. . A bullock and cart was purchased, being the same as the ones used on the Poona to Bombay foot journey in 1922.
The title of the new Gujarat version of Upasni Maharaj's biography is "The Perfect Master of Sakori".
The book's bookbinding, and other aspects of publication, were worked on at the premises in which Baba was living. He wanted the book completed before his walk to Sakori from Bombay, which was planned in mid-October. After 6 weeks, the books were completed. By mid-Oct. all copies were sold. A thousand copies were purchased by Maharaj's devotees to be handed-out to university students. The balance of the Marathi & Urdu version "Protector of the Poor" was stored in cupboards in the Irani Mansion for Vajifdar to sell. The Circle & Co. was closed down.
Baba had instructed Naval to obtain passports for Baba and certain mandali, although Baba didn't indicate which ones will go with him to Persia.
The name change from Persia to Iran occured in March 1935.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 239
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.559
8.
WALKING TRIP -
BOMBAY TO SAKORI
*** Refer to the following large map for locations.
October 19th
They awoke at 3 am and soon began their walk to Sakori.
The men were : Meher Baba, Adi, Rustom, Baidul, Beheramji, Burjor, Gustadji, Ghani, Nervous, Ramjoo, Sarosh, Slamson, Vajifdar & Babu Rao. Sadashiv who was in Poona was to join them at Thana.
Vajifdar & Burjor were only going as far as Gatkopar, the destination of the 1st day of walk. Durgabai Karmarker's son Raghunath was also to walk with them to only a certain way. All the luggage was in the bullock cart driven by Baidul. They walked the 7 miles / 11.2 kms to Gatkopar.
Sarosh's brother-in-law Keki Irani requested Baba and his men mandali to come to his home for lunch, made by his mother. Baba agreed.
Keki was a photographer and Baba allowed him to photograph him and
the others. The previous photo was one that he took ( Baba in the clouds ).
Baba only ate a handful of rice and dal once every 24 hours and one cup of tea.
Later that day, Vajifdar and Burjor returned to Bombay.
The next day, 20th October, they left Keki's house at 4 am, in the dark, but they were also holding kerosene lanterns. They hiked the 10 miles / 16 kms to Thana and stayed in a dak bungalow. Sadashiv arrived later that night from Poona by the evening Express train.
Burjorji came to see Baba briefly in the afternoon and returned in the evening.
They left Thana the next day 21st October at 5 am and walked 4 miles / 6.4 kms , when they came to a river, near the village of Kolshet, they hired boats to cross it. Baidul & Raghunath had taken the cart to a bigger boat in order to cross the river.
Once Baba had crossed the river, they went on the 'Bombay to Old Agra' road for another 6 miles / 10 kms towards Bhiwandi, which they later reached and stayed in a dak bungalow. Raghunath was sent ahead to Sakori, he was too slow and unattentive to Baba.
Food had been organised to be brought from the town to feed everyone, but it was extremely late in arriving. Baba became upset with the lateness and at 5 pm Baba stormed off from Bhiwandi for the village of Padgha some 10 miles / 16 kms away. The men went after Baba while Baidul & Ramjoo stayed behind to wait for the food. They were then to bring the cart to Baba.
When Baidul & Ramjoo arrived later in Padgha with the cart, they found Baba and the men staying in a rest house.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 241-3
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.560-3
1923 Historical Timeline :
2nd October : The foreign occupation of the Turkish city of Istanbul, formerly Constantinople, ended with the departure of the remaining troops from the UK, France and Italy.
**The Küstrin Putsch, an attempt by Bruno Ernst Buchrucker of the right-wing Black Reichswehr paramilitary group to overthrow the Weimar Republic government of Germany and Chancellor Gustav Stresemann, was put down by government troops
4th : Born - Charlton Heston, U.S. film actor and political activist, Academy Award winner for Ben-Hur, born as John Charles Carter in Evanston, Illinois (d. 2008).
5th : Cao Kun was elected president of the Republic of China by China's parliament.
**Manuel Teixeira Gomes took office as the seventh president of Portugal.
Born - Glynis Johns, South African-born British stage and film actress, Tony Award winner for 1973's A Little Night Music; in Pretoria (d. 2024).
11th : All 30 people on the freighter SS City of Everett died when the ship foundered in the Gulf of Mexico.
13th : The capital of Turkey was moved to Ankara from Constantinople in advance of the October 29 declaration of the Republic of Turkey.
15th : A group of three young men from the Bombay Weightlifting Club in India— Jal P. Bapasola, Rustom B. Bhumgara and Adi B. Hakim, set out from Bombay (now Mumbai) with the goal of becoming the first people to travel around the world by bicycle. They would return on March 18, 1928, after traveling 44,000 miles (71,000 km).
19th : The first and only school shooting in New Zealand took place at the Waikino School in the village of Waikino on the North Island. The gunman shot seven students and the school's headmaster, killing two boys, aged 13 and 9. Five days later, an unknown person burned down the Waikino Schoo. The death sentence was commuted, he died in 1938.
October continued ....
The next day, 22nd October, they set off at 4 pm for Shahapur, 11 miles / 17.7 kms away.
They arrived at Asangaon at 8 pm, only 8 miles / 12.9 kms in 4 hours but they were exhausted because of the rough road. They stayed the night on the Asangaon Railway platform. However, because it was a very noisy and busy station, they didn't get much sleep.
On the 23rd October, they left in the morning and reached Shahapur within half an hour. They rested and ate at 2:30 pm, Baba sent Gustadji and the slow walkers ahead to Khardi which was about 10 miles / 16 kms away. Baba and rest of the men left at 3:35 pm and soon they caught up to the slow group. Baba's group reached Khardi at 6:40 pm and again stayed at the town's nearby railway platform. The slow group arrived later.
The next morning at 4 am on 24th October, Baba and 11 men left Khardi for Kasara. Here the real ascend of the Ghats mountain range began. The cart had to be pushed from behind; it was hard going. When they arrived in Kasara, they stayed at a dharmshala. The men were very tired and Baba decided to chide them about their weaknesses, and the like, which upset some of them.
Kasara is 1,028 ft above rea level. Rustom was sent by train to Igatpuri* to arrange for food
for their arrival on the following day. He returned after a couple of hours.
* Ramjoo's Diaries stated the the distance from Kasara to Igatpuri was a total of 13 miles / 21 kms. p.249
The following day, 25th October, they woke very early at 2:30 am and left Kasara an hour later. After a short walk, they encounted a very steep hill, where the men had to push the bullock and cart for 2 miles / 3.2 kms & 13 miles / 21 kms later, they arrived at Igatpuri
( which is 1,000 feet higher than Kasara ) at 8:45 pm. They went to the dak bungalow.
At 4pm, Baba wanted to go to a nearby lake, but no one else wanted
to go. So they stayed. Baba seemed to get upset; he told all the men, not to talk to him. This paved the way for Meher
Baba keeping silent with the mandali.
On the 26th October, they got up at 6 am.
Baba was still keeping silent and conveyed messages through Beheramji. A village cobbler arrived and repaired their
sandals. They left Igatpuri at 4 pm, they reached Ghoti 5 miles / 8 kms. They went to the railway platform to rest. They decided later to visit Bhandardara Lake before going to Sakori. Arrangements were made for Mr. Aziz Ahmed, an assistant engineer at the dam works and a devotee of Baba, to transport them from
Bari to Bhandardara, a distance of 5 miles / 8 kms.
The next day, 27th October, they left Ghoti & the Agra Road at 3 am for Bari, some 14 miles / 22.5 kms away. Ramjoo was sent ahead to greet Mr. Aziz. They met Mr. Aziz who had a car. After breakfast, 6 travelled in Mr. Aziz’s car, and rest in a tonga to Bhandardara & the dam. Baidul drove the tonga & Mr. Aziz's driver, drove the bullock cart.
Baba and the men arrived at 1:30pm. and had a meal. The dam wall being built was 263 feet / 80 metres at the lake, was nearing completion after 15 years of construction. The wall needed just another 7 feet / 2+ metres to be completed and had a foundation breadth of 233 ft / 71 metres. They took a small cruise by a steam launch. After this visit, they returned that evening to Bari.
Early morning of 28th October, they left Bari for Rajur, a 14 miles / 22.5 kms hike. The bullock was very tired, so Baidul unloaded the cart and drove it empty to Rajur. Their belongings were put onto a carriage supplied by Mr. Aziz. The carriage was returned upon arrival. When they arrived they stayed in a rest house.
They left the next day 29th October, at 4
am, the bullock cart once again carrying their belongings, reaching Akola at 7 am, after having walked
13 miles / 21 kms in 3 hours. They stayed at a bungalow.
They had sweets and coffee for breakfast. Later, they hired a cook from the village to assist with the meals. Then they rested
again.
One of Perfect Master Sai Baba's Masters was from this village. His name was "Swami of Akola" aka Shri Swami Samarth Kendra Ramdaspeth Akola.
The other Perfect Master Narayan Maharaj had met him also when he was a young sadhu wandering in Akola.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 239-55
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.564-70
1923 Historical Timeline :
22nd October : Two pro-Royalist Lieutenant Generals of the Greek Army, staged a revolt of officers and attempted to overthrow the government of Greece before elections could take place, they failed.
23rd : Frank Sutton, U.S. television actor known for portraying "Sergeant Carter" on Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.; in Clarksville, Tennessee (d. 1974).
24th : The Hamburg Uprising in Germany ended as hundreds of communists were arrested and hundreds more fled the city.The final death toll was 61 civilians, 21 KPD members, and 17 police.
28th : Reza Khan became Prime Minister of Iran after being appointed by the reigning monarch, Ahmad Shah Qajar.
29th : The Republic of Turkey (Türkiye Cumhuriyeti) was proclaimed by vote of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, with Ankara as its new capital, formally bringing the Ottoman Empire to an end.
30th : The first government of the Turkish Republic was formed with Mustafa Kemal Atatürk as president and İsmet İnönü as prime minister.
October continued...
They left Akola on 30th October at 3:30 am, the 12th day of their walking tour. After walking 5 miles / 8 kms they stopped by a river near the village of Kalas.They walked, on mostly flat ground, to Sangamner (e) covering 14 miles / 22.5 kms. After a meal they arrived at Nimbgaon Jali (ka) at 9 pm, where they stayed at a dak bungalow. They had covered a total of 26 miles / 41.8 kms .
After breakfast on the 31st October, they left for Bableshwar at 10 am. only stopping for a short rest at Loni, during the
hottest hours of the day, later they reached Bableshwar before sunset. They stayed at a bungalow at an
intersection of 4 roads. Baba asked the men to observe a fast from that night till they meet Upasni Maharaj the next day.
On the 1st November, the men mandali left for Sakori at 4 am, some 10 miles / 16 kms away. Baba stayed with Slamson in a bungalow in Babaleshwar. The men were instructed to give the bullock and cart to Upasni's disciple Yeshw(v)ant Rao.
Baba decided to hire a motor lorry to truck their belongings to Ahmednagar.
At Rahata ( Rahta ); Padri, Vajifdar and Burjor had arrived by train as per Baba's instructions, and met the men on their way to Sakori. They finally reached Sakori after a 14 days which covered nearly 200 miles / 322 kms. After washing themselves, they went to take Upasni Maharaj's darshan, at a small bamboo cage in which he had been confined for the past 10 months.
Upasni
Maharaj was not happy to see the men. He was scathing and
abusive to them all. He said to them, "You no-goods have put me in a cage and yourself go about from place to place. Have you obliged me by walking 200
miles ?" Then said, "Keep to what you are doing under instructions of whoever is your somebody",
also, "Go as soon as possible back to where you have got to return".
When they reached the compound gate, Upasni agreed to give his blessings to them but
once Durgamai served them tea they were to immediately leave Sakori. They were given some food as well as tea then they returned by foot to Babaleshwar, arriving after sunset. The men reported to Baba and told him what had transpired during the meeting with Maharaj. Baba explained the actual significance of the events.
The next day, 2nd November, a lorry with seating for 14 people arrived at 6:30am. After their goods were loaded on top, they set off for Ahmednagar which was 45 miles / 72.4 kms away.
The truck broke down at Rahuri village. An hour and a half later, after the damaged engine part was replaced, and with the village crowd pushing their truck to help start it, they resumed they journey. They reached Ahmednagar at 2 pm and were put up at Khushru Quarters. A meal, provided by Rustom's family, awaited them. Babu Rao & Sadashiv were instructed to departed for Poona that evening by train.
Thus concluded the walking tour from Bombay.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 256-61
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.569-71
1st November
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'God-Realized beings have to keep busy '.
To read these discourses click here - 'God-Realized beings have to keep busy '
1923 Historical Timeline :
2nd November : Born - Dr. Charles Kamalam Job, Indian surgeon and medical researcher in the study of leprosy; in Palliyadi, Madras Province, British India (now in Tamil Nadu state of India (d. 2012).
9.
TRAIN TRIP -
AHMEDNAGAR TO KARACHI
& 1ST SHIP VOYAGE
November continued...
The following 2 days were spent washing themselves up and resting after the last gruelling walk. Baba suddenly decided to move out of the Khushru Quarters to the traveller's rest house near Ahmednagar railway station on the 4th November. All the men followed him there. Here they spent time planning the next tour to Persia ( later Iran ). It was agreed by all, the 11 men accompany Baba to Karachi and stay there till February and then go to Persia. All had to sign a document stating that they were not to accept any external help, or other assistance, on this trip.
Ramjoo & Dr. Ghani were not bound this as per a previous agreement until
Feb. 1924. They all agreed to leave by the 11th Nov. for Karachi.
On the 11th November , all the men made their way to the railway station and took the 12:30 pm train from Ahmednager, with only Rustom to see them off as per Baba's instructions. Rustom garlanded Baba prior to leaving. They all travelled in 3rd class and and after reaching Manmad in the evening, they stayed in a shed nearby. At 10 pm, Baba and the men took the Nagpur Mail for Jalgaon, while Ramjoo was instructed to wait for Nervous who had missed Baba's train, to arrive from Ahmednagar. Nervous arrived at 2 am, 12th November and they both left on the 2:30 am Calcutta Mail train for Jalgaon, arriving at 5:30 am and meeting up with Baba and the men.
Later that morning, at 8:30 am they departed on the Bhushawal-Surat train. They passed Amalner where the G.I.P. railway changed into the Tapti Valley Railway. In the evening, they passed Bardoli, a Gandhi movement centre. At 7:30 pm they reached Surat, here they moved their luggage to the opposite platform to take the train from Bombay to Ahmedabad. Baba and a few men went to the nearby bazaar, to pass the time while they waited for their train. Here they encounted a pitiful young man, Baba instructed Ramjoo to feed him at a local hotel and purchase a train ticket for him to go back at Vadala. Baba's train arrived and they departed for Ahmedabad at 10 pm.
They arrived in the early morning of the 13th November. Here Baba and some of the men went to the city and brought back some sweets and toast for the men waiting back at the railway platform. At 8:50 am they departed on the train for Hyderabad-Sind that was attached to the Delhi Mail. At 7 pm, their carriage was attached to the J.B. Railway train at Marwar Junction. They soon left Marwar, still in the 3rd class carriage.
After travelling through the desert, the train arrived in Hyderabad-Sind at 12:30 pm on 14th November. Baba and some of the men went into the town to find a place to stay, while the others waited at the railway station. Baba returned and said the town was very unsuitable because it was smothered in sand from dust storms. He told the men to prepare to leave for Karachi, by train. They needed to hurry because one was due very soon. They boarded the Quetta-Karachi Mail of the N-W Railway.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 262-7
1923 Historical Timeline :
4th November : The Australian government issued an appeal to fit men of military age to enroll as special constables as the Victorian Police strike entered its fourth full day.The strike gradually petered out with the hiring of these Specials.
6th : A coal mine explosion killed 27 miners of the Raleigh-Wyoming Coal Company in Glen Rogers, West Virginia.
8th : The Beer Hall Putsch began in Munich as Adolf Hitler and 603 members of his Nazi Party's Storm Troopers surrounded a large beer hall.
Born - Jack Kilby, American electrical engineer and 2000 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate for his role in inventing the first integrated circuit, as well as the handheld calculator and the thermal printer; in Jefferson City, Missouri (d. 2005).
9th : The Nazi Party was banned throughout Germany after its members had attempted the coup d'etat.
10th : Born - Hachikō, Japanese Akita dog known for his nine year loyalty to his deceased owner (d. 1935).
14th : Germany suspended the payment of its reparations, explaining that France and Belgium had broken the Treaty of Versailles by occupying the Ruhr and that payment would not resume until they left.
14th November, 1923 : Karachi, British India
They arrived at the Karachi Cantonment Station at 6:30 pm, Bailey had been wired by Baba to meet them at the station. Baba went off to choose from several places to stay that Baily had found. Baba settled on a bungalow at No. 2445 Soldier Bazaar. Victoria carriages were hired to move the luggage. That night they slept on the floor.
The following day, 15th November, all went to work to clean the bungalow. Baba & Baily named the place Halt Ho. Rent for 2 months was paid to the landlord. The next day 16th November, Baba abruptly said they should immediately go to Basra, ( then part of Persia ) and sent some of the men to arrange tickets on a steamer, to see the landlord, and anything else that was necessary. But, news came later that making new arrangements was not possible, because the Persian Consulate was closed. There was also news that malaria-carrying mosquitoes were infesting the places where they were planning to go.
On the 20th November, the day was scorching hot. Those not employed went with Baba to Clifton Beach, but they only stayed for 15 minutes before returning to Halt Ho.
Dr. Ghani was granted permission on the 21st to return to Poona due to the
poor state of the housing. Baba said he could go and return whenever he wanted to. He left the same day by train.
On the 17th November, Vajifdar wrote a letter stating that Navrozji (Naval Talati) had gone to the Persian Consulate in Bombay to get endorsements for the men's passports. The Consul refused to endorse them unless he saw all of men personally, except for Baba, whom he had seen and endorsed a couple of days earlier. Surprisingly, Baba had never been to the Consulate and had not seen the Consul or had been in Bombay during the previous 6 weeks.
On 22nd November, Baba decided they should all leave the next day for Bombay by steamer ship. Baba said, "Now we should all leave at once for Poona!"
Everyone packed up their belongings in a mad rush. They embarked at 4:12 pm on the ship S.S. Vita, where they were booked on the top deck of the ship along with their luggage. There were about 800 passengers on board.
Instead of spending 2 months in Karachi they spent 8 days. During the voyage to Bombay, it was very cold at night with ferocious winds blowing all the time. It was a miserable trip, especially on the top deck, which was open to the elements.
The following day, 23rd November, they approached the Kutch on the coast at 7 am, and then proceeded towards Dwarka, passing it at 12:30 pm with the ship later docking at 4:30 pm at Porbandar. On the voyage, a Parsi man took exception to the men’s unkempt appearance. He wrote a very unflattering article in a Parsi newspaper on the 30th December. which was full of untruths about Baba and the men. When they were approaching Bombay, Baba indicated that he wanted to be in seclusion at an unknown railway station for part of the day, which remained unknown by most of the men.
They arrived at Victoria Dock, Bombay at 11:30 pm on the 24th November 1923.
Please note : Meher Baba at another time, when he was explaining some of the attributes of the Avatar, he stated that the Avatar was the only one that had a "Spiritual body" and that he could manifest anywhere.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 267 - 73
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.577 - 82
1923 Historical Timeline :
17th November : At least 17 crew were killed after the German steamer Kronos struck a sea mine off of the coast of the Estonian island of Saaremaa while sailing from Stettin to Saint Petersburg.
18th: Born - Alan Shepard, the first American astronaut; in Derry, New Hampshire (d. 1998).
20th: U.S. patent no. 1,475,024 was granted to African-American inventor Garrett Morgan for the first three-position traffic light (with a red-amber-green signal for stop, caution and go respectively) still in use a century later.
23rd: Regular radio broadcasting began in Australia as the station 2SB launched its services at 8:00 in the evening in Sydney.[73] The station, now with the call letters 2BL, is now branded as ABC Radio Sydney and is the flagship station of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's radio network.
Click on the images below to enlarge them.
10. TRAIN TRIP - BOMBAY TO SHOLAPUR
& then to ARANGAON, later
BOMBAY
November continued...
When they arrived in Bombay on the 24th November, Meher Baba had given
instructions to his men mandali; Nervous, Padri & Slamson were to stay in Bombay. Adi and Masaji to go to Ahmednagar, while
Baidul and Beheramji went to Poona.
Meher Baba left for Lonavla on the 25th November, by the Poona Express train, with Gustadji, Dr. Ghani and Ramjoo. Baba and Gustadji got off at Khandala so as not to be recognized by anyone in Lonavla. Ghani and Ramjoo proceeded to Lonavla and borrowed Abdul Tayab's car to come back and pick up Baba, coming across him as he was walking along the roadway. They then drove to a bungalow at Valvan nearby.
Soon afterwards, Baba found a potential place nearby to stay for his seclusion work, but he wanted it rent free for a month or so. Abdul went to Bombay to persude the owner to loan it. He later telegramed Baba stating that the owner wanted to stay there himself during the same period.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 274 - 275
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.582 - 583
November continued...
On the 29th November, Baba went to Lonavla Railway station where he took the train to Poona at 8:30 pm. When the train arrived at Poona station on the 30th November, Beheramji joined Baba and Gustadji and they took the train to Sholapur, travelling in a packed 3rd class carriage. They arrived at midnight and spent the night on the platform after they were harassement by police and station staff.
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.583
November continued...
At sunrise, 30th November , they hired a tonga and toured the city in the hot sun until 1 pm, they then went to a traveller's bungalow to rest. At 5 pm they went to the railway station and bought rail tickets to Akolner, near Ahmednagar, this deplited their money. They left Sholapur and arrived at Dhond at 4 am, 1st December and changed trains for Manmad. They later reached Akolner. Baba had sent Beheramji to Ahmednager to fetch Rustom, which he did, arriving that night with both him and food. They spent the night on the station platform.
The next day, 2nd December, Baba was not pleased with the place and decided to return to the Post Office building at Meherabad. During the day, waiting for Rustom to arrive, Baba befriended a young lad named Ismail who worked at the station in Akolner*. He accompanied Baba and the men to Ahmednager arriving at night and then walked to Meherabad beside the railway tracks, arriving late at night. No one had recognized Baba at all during this time, which was perfect for Baba's seclusion work. They stayed in the Post Office building, Gustadji arrived much later with their luggage on a bullock cart. No one in Arangaon knew that Baba had arrived after a 6 months absence. A tent was erected within the building and Baba stayed within it secluded.
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.586
*Akolner village is 16 kms from Ahmednagar.
1923 Historical Timeline :
1st December : The damburst of the Gleno Dam killed 356 people in the province of Bergamo, sweeping away people in the villages of Bueggio, Corna and Dezzo in Italy.
Born - Dr. William F. House, American hearing specialist who invented the cochlear implant, the first device to restore hearing; in Kansas City, Missouri (d. 2012).
2nd : Born - Maria Callas (stage name for Sophie Kalos), American-born Greek soprano singer; in Manhattan, New York City (died of a heart attack, 1977).
3rd : Born - Moyra Fraser, Australian-born British TV actress in Sydney (d. 2009).
4th : The Cecil B. DeMille-directed epic film The Ten Commandments, the most popular movie of 1924, premiered at Grauman's Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.
14th : A 5.3 magnitude earthquake killed more than 300 people in Colombia and Ecuador after striking near the border town of Ipiales in the Nariño Department.
19th : Born - Gordon Jackson, Scottish actor; in Glasgow (d. 1990).
21st : The French airship Dixmude exploded and crashed into the Mediterranean during a thunderstorm. All 50 on board were killed in the worst air disaster in history to that point.
**The Nepal–Britain Treaty was signed at the Singha Durbar, Nepal's royal palace in Kathmandu, by British envoy W. F. T. O'Connor on behalf of King George V of the United Kingdom, and Nepal's Prime Minister, Field Marshal Chandra Shumsher, on behalf of King Tribhuvan. The British Empire acknowledged Nepal's right to conduct its own foreign and domestic affairs.
23rd : In the burial chamber of Tutankhamun's tomb, the heavy outer canopy over the sarcophagus was successfully removed.
24th : Born - George Patton IV, U.S. Army Major General; in Boston (d. 2004).
Click on the images below to enlarge them.
December
Baba had sent Ramjoo a letter explaining all to him on the 5th December. Signed - Merwan.
After a week, Gulmai (who lived in Ahmednagar) and her son Adi, who had come days earlier to help out, were allowed to see Baba. In the last week of December, Baba went to Poona for a couple of days and stayed at Sadashiv's place in Kasba Peth. Baba held a large darshan program with several hundred people attending. Babu Rao brought along an Anglo-Indian seeker named Lewis Charles Nelhams.
When Lewis first saw Baba he thought he was looking at Jesus himself. Baba talked to him privately and told him to remain in Poona.
Ramjoo had received a letter from Baba on the 30th December, detailing his travel plans and telling him to remain in Lonavla after meeting on the 31st. It was signed - Merwan.
Soon afterwards, Baba returned to Meherabad without anyone (except for a few men) knowing where he had been. He was still on a fast. On the 31st December, Baba came out of seclusion and left Meherabad for Bombay via the Poona rail line, with Beheramji and Gustadji. Baba had written earlier to Dr. Ghani and Ramjoo to meet him at Lonavla station when his train arrived on the way to Bombay. When they arrived, the men were alarmed by Baba's poor physical appearance. Due to his fasting, his appearance was like that of a skeleton, but he was also very cheerful. They gave him some cocoa and they travelled with him as far as Khandala. Baba arrived in Bombay that night and stayed at the Bharucha Building which Vajifdar had rented according to Baba's instructions. Here he maintained his seclusion but curtailed his fasting periods.
This brought the monumentous year for Meher Baba of 1923 to a close.
Ramjoo's Diaries p. 275 - 285
Lord Meher Vol. 2 p.588 - 589
1923 Historical Timeline :
27th December : An assassination attempt was made against Japan's Prince Regent Hirohito.
**The American freight steamship Conejos sank in the Black Sea with the loss of all 37 sailors.
Died - Gustave Eiffel, 91, French engineer and architect best known for his design (in 1889) the Eiffel Tower.
29th: Russian-born American engineer Vladimir K. Zworykin and Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company filed the first application for Zworykin's invention, "Television System". U.S. Patent No. 2,141,059 would be granted on December 20, 1938.
** The Italian steamship SS Mutlah and its crew of 40 disappeared after sending a distress call while sailing in the Mediterranean Sea.
Born - Dina Merrill, actress, socialite, businesswoman and philanthropist; in New York City (d. 2017).
The story of Meher Baba's advent continues onto Chapter 6.
REFERENCE BOOKS
The reference books that were used on this webpage :
Lord Meher Vol.2 - Bhau
Kalchuri pages 468 - 589
Ramjoo's Diary - Ramjoo
Abdulla pages 135 - 285
The Perfect Master - Charles B. Purdom pages 58
- 67
The God-Man - Charles B.
Purdom pages 40-46
LINKS TO THE OTHER PAGES OF MEHER BABA'S LIFE
Click on the following buttons to visit those webpages.