Meher Baba's Life & Travels
1925 - 1926
HIS SILENCE
Chapter 8 :
1. INTRODUCTION & CONTENT
The story of Meher Baba's advent continues from Chapter 7.
This web page / chapter 8, will
follow Meher Baba ( Merwan Irani ) in the years 1925 to 1926 with his first close
group of both male & female followers.
Baba has now settled down in the area near Arangaon village, which is now known as Meherabad.
Click on images and maps to enlarge them, also click on the under-scored names to visit their web-pages.
1925 - 1926
CONTENT : 1.
INTRODUCTION & CONTENT
2. RETURNING TO
MEHERABAD
3. TRIP TO VISAPUR
4. HIS SILENCE BEGINS
5. MEHERABAD EXPANDS
6. GUJARATI ARTI WRITTEN
7. BROTHER JAMSHED
DIES
8. TRIP TO
RAHURI
9. BABA
MOVES UP THE HILL
10. NARAYAN MAHARAJ VISITS BABA
11. TRIP TO LONAVLA
12. BABA MOVES TO BOMBAY
13. BABA RETURNS TO MEHERABAD
Page references are marked LM ( Lord Meher ).
Click on the following button to visit the previous page in Meher Baba's Advent.
2. RETURNING TO MEHERABAD
During the month of January 1925, Meher Baba sent Naja Irani to Poona, while Mehera Irani, her mother Daulat and friend Khorshed Irani stayed at the Khushru Quarters in Ahmednagar.
Baba had been staying the last 2 months at the Bharuch Building in Bombay, but on the 25th January, Baba returned to Meherabad with the men and a new phase of his work began. Baba referred to Meherabad as his permanent headquarters.
Many newcomers came increasing the number to over 40 people. Some stayed permanently, and others for short periods.
Meher Baba had given the women instructions to meditate for 30 minutes each day, and write the Zoroastian name for God - Yezdan and repeat the name.
They were also instructed to cut each name into small pieces and roll up each piece. These were to be immersed into the sea at another time. In addition, they were tasked to stitch clothing for the children and poor at the nearby Arangaon village.
They were called sometimes to Meherabad from Ahmednagar to report how many they had made. Baba always insisted on more, at least 200 shirts were needed.
January 1925 Historical Time
1st Jan : Norway's capital Christiania was renamed Oslo.
- A small contingent of U.S. Marines arrived at Nanjing to patrol the vicinity of the university and protect Americans there from further looting. Note : Meher Baba visited that city in mid-1932.
9th Jan : Born : Lee Van Cleef, film actor, in Somerville, New Jersey (d. 1989)
13th Jan : 25 were killed and 60 injured in a train crash in Westphalia, Germany.
15th Jan : Hans Luther became Chancellor of Germany.
- Soviet leader Joseph Stalin fired Leon Trotsky as Commisar for Military and Naval Affairs.
20th Jan : The Soviet–Japanese Basic Convention was signed, in which Japan and the Soviet Union restored diplomatic relations.
23rd Jan : A coup d'état in Chile overthrew the September Junta.
25th Jan : The tomb of Tutankhamun was reopened in Egypt so Howard Carter could resume his archaeological work.[33] Carter was disappointed to find that the pall which had covered the sarcophagus was now ruined because someone in Egypt's antiquities department had carelessly stored it in a wooden shed that did not provide adequate protection from sunlight.
25th Jan : Born : Paul Newman, actor, entrepreneur and activist, in Shaker Heights, Ohio (d. 2008)
28th Jan : A contingent of Russian mercenaries working for the Fengtian clique captured Shanghai with no resistance.20 were killed and 20 wounded in Shanghai.
30th Jan : Turkish authorities exiled the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Constantine VI to Greece, to strong objections from the Greek public.
31st Jan : The dog sled team of Leonhard Seppala with lead dog Togo ran the longest and most perilous leg of the serum run, through the dark across the dangerous ice of Norton Sound.
February 1925
Meher Baba's 31st birthday was celebrated at Meherabad, under a large canopy which had been erected over the Post Office verandah. Baba's whole family had arrived prior, along with close followers from Poona, Bombay and Ahmednagar. About a hundred participated in the celebrations.
Most departed within a couple of days. Most of the close women moved to Meherabad staying in the PO building on the other side of the railway tracks. Baba would visit each day and sit on an empty tea crate on the veranda, which had the name "Brooke Bond" written on it.
During one of his visits to the women's quarters Baba asked Mehera if she knew the English song,"Swanee". She did and after singing it, he asked her if she could teach him the whole song. Baba did sing the song after learning it.
To view more details about this song visit the webpage.
https://www.meherbabatravels.com/music/songs-music-played-to-meher-baba/swanee/Written by George Gershwin & lyrics by Irving Caesar
All 4 sides of the Post Office compound had bamboo screens so the women could live in strict privacy.
By this stage over 100 people including children now resided in Meherabad. A female resident dedicated her life to Baba and moved in with the women, her name is Valu Pawar. She assisted Mehera with the duties.
February 1925 Historical Time
1st Feb : Ahmed Zog ascended to power in Albania, becoming its President, Prime Minister
- Miguel Paz Barahona takes office as President of Honduras.
6th Feb : Prime Minister Chandra Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana of Nepal announced his intention to abolish slavery in the country.
8th Feb : The Sheikh Said rebellion broke out in southeastern Turkey.
Born : Jack Lemmon, actor, in Newton, Massachusetts (d. 2001)
11th Feb : 138 German miners were killed when the Stein mine in Dortmund exploded.
15th Feb : Vitorino Guimarães became Prime Minister of Portugal.
17th Feb : Born : Hal Holbrook, actor, in Cleveland, Ohio (d. 2021)
18th Feb : Born : George Kennedy, actor, in New York City (d. 2016)
20th Feb : A mine explosion in Sullivan, Indiana killed 51.
21st Feb : Bulgarian Prime Minister Aleksandar Tsankov declared a state of war throughout the country amid fighting between Bulgarian and Serbian irregulars attributed to communist agitators.
- A dynamite depot in Brazil exploded, killing 621.
26th Feb : A major Wahhabi raid was carried out across the border of Transjordan.
27th Feb : The legally reinstated Nazi Party held a convention in the same hall in Munich where Adolf Hitler had launched his failed putsch.[19] Hitler made his first speech since his release from prison to a packed audience of over 4,000 in the hall as another 1,000 stood outside.
MODEL OF THE POST OFFICE VALU PAWAR
March 1925
On Saturday, 21st March, the Meher Charitable Dispensary and Hospital was opened.
Meher Baba, Rustom K. Irani and his father Kaikhushru Sarosh Irani performed the opening ceremony and Baba told the villagers, no matter what religion etc, all people would be treated for free, including food and clothing. A local doctor, Y.G. Karkal directed the hospital. Some of the men mandali were appointed to assist, Padri became the pharmacist.
The next 15 months, almost 7,500 patients were treated, including surgery. A special room was erected for cataract eye operations.
There is no known image of Y.G. Karkal
March 1925 Historical Time
2nd Mar : Lauri Kristian Relander became the 2nd President of Finland
3rd Mar : The 4th government of Turkey began.
9th Mar : Bavaria imposed a two-year ban on Adolf Hitler from public speaking, limiting him to addressing only private, closed meetings. The government was nervous at the large crowds Hitler was drawing.
13th Mar : In Halle, Germany, six Communists were killed and 30 wounded when police broke up a communist demonstration.
16th Mar : At 22:42 local time a 7.0 earthquake shakes the Chinese province of Yunnan killing 5,000 people.
17th Mar : An explosion at a coal mine near Barrackville, West Virginia killed 33.
18th Mar : Fire in northeastern Tokyo destroyed 3,000 buildings.
19th Mar : The British government announced that it was proceeding with the development of a major naval base at Singapore.
On the 25th March, the Hazrat Babajan School was opened and both English and Marathi were taught to the 7th graders. This school expanded into a high school with proper walls and tin sheets.
Arjun Supekar was the director and Vishnu Deoruhkar became the teacher, others taught as well. Chanji also assisted. Eventually, there were about 200 children in the
school.
A separate school with a female teacher was opened for girls.
This school later moved to Arangaon. Books and writing material were all free of charges.
At first the Harijan ( untouchable) children and Brahmin kids were kept separated, but over time they were unified and this message went to the parents as well.
March 1925 Historical Time
25th Mar : Scottish inventor John Logie Baird publicly demonstrated the transmission of moving silhouette pictures at the London department store Selfridges.
30th Mar : Died : Rudolf Steiner, 64, Austrian philosopher
31st Mar : 67 soldiers of the Reichswehr were reported drowned when a pontoon bridge over the Weser river near Minden collapsed.[31] Later reporting alleged that the casualties were over 200 Germans.
Baba would inspect every building and their method of care either in teaching or cleaning. He often disciplined the mandali.
Another darshan was given and about 5,000 people came from all the villages.
On the 14th April, Baba left for Bombay to purchase khaki material for the children's clothing. When he returned, a local tailor named Waman was hired to stitch the clothing and all of the cutting was done in Baba's presence.
Baba returned to Bombay and spent 2 days with Munshi Rahim at his home.
There is no known image of Waman & Chhagan S. Dattatrey.
April 1925 Historical Time
3rd Apr : The Ulster Unionist Party won the Northern Ireland general election.
8th Apr : The Australian government and British Colonial Office announced a joint plan to encourage 450,000 British citizens to move to Australia by offering low-interest loans and skills training.
9th Apr : 2 were killed and 11 wounded in Damascus when a demonstration against Lord Balfour near the hotel where he was staying turned into a violent confrontation with police.[8] Arabs resented Balfour's promotion of Jewish interests in Palestine.
10th Apr : The Russian city of Tsaritsyn was renamed Stalingrad, after Soviet leader Joseph Stalin.Lord Balfour hastily left Damascus as Arab protests against him continued.
12th Apr : The funeral for Patriarch Tikhon of Moscow was the last major public Orthodox event in the Soviet Union for over sixty years.
13th Apr : Abd el-Krim of the Riffians led an attack on French forces in Morocco marking a renewed intensification of the Rif War.
14th Apr : Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria escaped an assassination attempt when a group of anarchists opened fire on his car as it traveled through the Arabakonak Pass.
Born : Rod Steiger, actor, in Westhampton, New York (d. 2002)
MUNSHI RAHIM DHAKE PHALKAR GULMAI IRANI
Soon afterwards, Baba returned to Meherabad and a Brahman called Chhagan S. Dattatrey came to see him and told of his and his family's dire economic situation. Baba invited him to move to Meherabad and assist in the teaching at the school. Baba also revealed his divinity to him and he was so absorbed with divine love at Meherabad. Another Hindu man Moreshwar Ramachandra Dhakephalkar, he was known as Dhake, was a teacher at Ahmednagar and Baba also asked him to work in the school. He agreed but on very generous terms, Baba agreed. Two weeks later he moved to Meherabad.
In 1922 while Baba was living in the hut in Poona, Gulmai presented Baba with a pair of sandals made by a cobbler named Kanhoba Rao Gadekar. These were the only sandals Baba wore throughout his journeys.
On 29th April 1925, his son Ramchandra came to Meherabad for Baba's darshan (blessing).
Baba invited him to stay and work as a teacher and his education in Poona was to be funded by Baba. Later the whole Gadekar family moved to Meherabad and his father's job was to repair Baba's sandals. Ramchandra's son - Digambar in the future years would spread the word about Baba throughout the world.
There is no known image of Kanhoba Rao Gadekar or Pavarti.
April 1925 Historical Time
16th Apr : A terrorist attack known as the St Nedelya Church assault was carried out in Bulgaria. A group belonging to the Bulgarian Communist Party blew up the roof of the St Nedelya Church in Sofia, killing 150 at a funeral service for General Konstantin Georgiev.
17th Apr : Paul Painlevé became the New Prime Minister of France.
RAMCHANDRA GADEKAR P.M. UPASNI MAHARAJ SAINT SAKHUBAI
On May 10th was Upasni Maharaj's 53rd birthday and celebrations were to be held in Meherabad. Lots of
singing and prayers and recitals were performed throughout the day. At the end of the day a film was played on the life of a Hindu
saint Sakhubai.
At another time, Baba indicated that Naja was Martha and Mehera was Mary of Bethamy at the time of Jesus. Baba had to explain to Naja why some people had more duties than others, she was complaining she was working too hard.
10th May, 1925
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Story of Sakhubai'
To read these discourses click here - 'Story of Sakhubai'
Mid May, 1925
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Staying close to a Perfect Master'
To read these discourses click here - 'Staying close to a Perfect Master'
May 1925 Historical Time
1st May : Cyprus became a British crown colony.
- Mausoleums in Al-Baqi', Saudi Arabia were destroyed by King Ibn Saud.
Born : Scott Carpenter, astronaut, in Boulder, Colorado (d. 2013)
2nd May : Born : Roscoe Lee Browne, actor and director, in Woodbury, New Jersey (d. 2007) & John Neville, actor, in Willesden, London (d. 2011).
5th May : In Tennessee, high school biology teacher John Scopes was charged with teaching evolution from a chapter in the textbook Civic Biology.
6th May : The Wilno school massacre occurred in Wilno, Poland when a pair of eighth-grade students attacked the board of examiners with bullets and grenades, killing several people as well as themselves.
8th May : South Africa passed a bill making Afrikaans the official language of the Union.
10th May : New Zealand Prime Minister William Massey died in office. He was succeeded by Francis Bell.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anointing_of_Jesushttps://www.gotquestions.org/life-Mary-Bethany.htmlhttps://www.gotquestions.org/Martha-in-the-Bible.html
https://guideposts.org/prayer/bible-resources/women-in-the-bible/martha-of-bethany/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sant_Sakhuhttps://www.imdb.com/title/tt0393682/
3. TRIP TO VISAPUR
At another time in May, lepers were brought to stay at Meherabad inseparate quarters. They were supervised by a lady leper called Parvati, who was also very attentive to Baba.
Baba went to visit Ramjoo's new business - Meher Rice and Flour Mill on the 23rd May, to inaugurate it in Talegaon. Baba and his men arrived the night before in Talegaon near Lonvala. They stayed the night at the train station platform. Baba returned to Meherabad the next day.
Baba on another day, went to Visapur south of Arangaon, for a picnic with the school children. Baba travelled incognito by wearing Western clothing and avoided giving darshan.
At Visapur he went to see the water tank being built by prisoners of the local prison.
23rd May, 1925
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Suffering of Prisoners'
To read these discourses click here - 'Suffering of Prisoners'
May 1925 Historical Time
12th May : Paul von Hindenburg was sworn in as president of Germany.
13th May : Aloys Van de Vyvere became Prime Minister of Belgium.
17th May : Thérèse of Lisieux was canonized as a saint.
18th May : Alfonso XIII of Spain signed a decree ending martial law in Spain.
19th May : Born : Malcolm X, minister and activist, in Omaha, Nebraska (d. 1965) & Pol Pot, Khmer Rouge leader, in Prek Sbauv, Cambodia (d. 1998)
20th May : Gerardo Machado became president of Cuba.
21st May : In an expedition directed by explorer Roald Amundsen, two specially-equipped seaplanes (the N24 and N25) took off from Kings Bay (now Ny-Ålesund) in Svalbard, Norway in an attempt to be the first to fly to the North Pole.22nd May : Unsure of their position, experiencing engine trouble and with half their fuel used up, the crew of the N25 touched down on the ice 150 miles short of the North Pole. The N24 spotted their predicament and landed as well. The next twenty-four days would be spent trying to chisel a primitive runway to take off again.
25th May : High school teacher John Scopes was indicted by a grand jury for violating Tennessee's anti-evolution law.
26th May : International plans were drawn up for possibly sending a rescue expedition towards the North Pole, as the Roald Amundsen plane expedition had not been heard from since its departure five days earlier.
27th May : The Coal Glen mine disaster occurred in Coal Glen near Farmville, North Carolina. 53 miners died in the explosion.
29th May : British aviator Alan Cobham set a new record for the longest nonstop flight in a light airplane, flying his de Havilland Moth from Croydon Aerodrome in London to Zürich, Switzerland.
30th May : Gordon Coates became the 21st Prime Minister of New Zealand.
June 1925
On the 2nd & 3rd June, Meher Baba led all the students of the Hazrat Babazan School to his Jhopdi, where he discoursed them and the mandali on many spiritual topics.
Baba had told the men and women mandali that from June 15th, he would be keeping silent and he would be using written notes and gestures.
On the 4th June, he declared "I will observe silence for 1 year. I will not speak to anyone. But all should hold fast to my feet. Those who last with me until the very end will greatly benefit." Baba later departed for Bombay and returned a week later bringing cloth which was to be used to make exercise uniforms for the school children.
1st June, 1925
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'God can be seen'
To read these discourses click here - 'God can be seen'
2nd June, 1925
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Higher & Lower Spirits'
To read these discourses click here - 'Higher & Lower Spirits'
3rd June, 1925
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Comparing Yogis to Sadgurus' & 'Be like a Football'
To read these discourses click here - 'Comparing Yogis to Sadgurus' & 'Be like a Football'
4th June, 1925
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Hold fast to the Master'
To read these discourses click here - 'Hold fast to the Master'
June 1925 Historical Time
2nd June : Canada claimed all land between Alaska and Greenland up to the North Pole.
3rd June : Born - Tony Curtis, film actor, in New York City (d. 2010)
6th June : Norway sent out two planes and two steamships to search for the North Pole seaplane expedition of Roald Amundsen which had been missing for over two weeks.
8th June : An explosion in a coal mine in Sturgis, Kentucky killed 17 people.
Born - Barbara Bush, First Lady of the United States, in New York City (d. 2018)
9th June : 10 were killed and 48 injured in South East Queensland, Australia when a train derailed.
12th June : French Prime Minister Paul Painlevé flew to Morocco to assess the front line situation in the Rif War.
On 13th June, Gulmai had been cleaning the ceiling of termites, etc., and fell and severely spraining her ankle. Baba applied plaster compressors and declared he was delaying the start of his silence until she got better. Baba mentioned his upcoming silence on the 18th June, stating "Within a few days, I will begin keeping silence. All of remember to hold fast to me, no matter what."
Baba then went with some of the mandali to Kaka Shahane's home for a meal.
Then on the 26th June, Baba declared that he would observe silence from the 10th July. A sign and notice were printed and erected in Meherabad to that effect.
18th June, 1925
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Inviting a Fakir'
To read these discourses click here - 'Inviting a Fakir'
20th June, 1925
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Keeping up your Worship Schedule'
To read these discourses click here - 'Keeping up your Worship Schedule'
June 1925 Historical Time
13th June : Charles Francis Jenkins demonstrated synchronized transmission of pictures and sound at the Jenkins Labs in Washington, D.C.
15th June : Both crews of the abandoned Roald Amundsen North Pole flight expedition piled into the N25 and barely managed to take off from their makeshift airstrip.
16th June : The crew of the N25 landed safely near the coast of Nordaustlandet, Svalbard, Norway.
- The Rockport train wreck killed about 47 people near Hackettstown, New Jersey.
17th June : The Geneva Protocol was signed, prohibiting the use of chemical and biological weapons during warfare.
23rd June : The Shaji Massacre occurred when British troops fired from Shamian Island across the river to Guangzhou, killing 52 and wounding 117.
25th June : Theodoros Pangalos became dictator of Greece.
27th June : An earthquake of magnitude 6.6 struck near Helena, Montana.There were no causalities
29th June : An earthquake in Santa Barbara, California resulted in 13 casualties and an estimated $8 million damage. - South Africa passed a bill excluding non-whites from skilled or semi-skilled work.
Born - Giorgio Napolitano, 11th President of Italy, in Naples (d. 2023)
On the 8th July, Baba convened a meeting of the men mandali at Meherabad, and instructed every person for over an hour about their duties, for the forthcoming year of silence. Some close ones from Bombay came, matters about the school and the property were mentioned on the following day.
Behramji, Rustom K, Arjun, Gustadji and Padri were the only men allowed to speak to Baba at certain times each day. Many directives were made throughout the day, including when he told Gulmai, "There will be another world war*, it will be much more destructive and extensive than the one before. Rivers of blood will flow ! I will dip my kerchief into that river of blood and tie it around my head ! Not until the world cries for God will I give up my silence !"
* WW2 began in 1939, some 14 years after Meher Baba mentioned it.
2nd July, 1925
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Mind & Body'
To read these discourses click here - 'Mind & Body'
July 1925 Historical Time
1st July : Died : Erik Satie, 59, French composer
4th July : Police in Rome reported that the treasury of St. Peter's Basilica was robbed of 5–7 million lira worth of valuables, including gold crosses and other religious objects.
6th July : Numerous arrests were made and stolen items were recovered in the St. Peter's Basilica robbery case. Six workmen who were doing repairs in the vicinity of the treasury room were among those arrested.
Born : Bill Haley, American rock and roll musician known for his group Bill Haley and the Comets; in Highland Park, Michigan (d. 1981)
8th July : The Riffians launched a new offensive against the city of Fes in the Rif War.
4. HIS SILENCE BEGINS
When the teacher Pandoba pleaded with Baba, that if he became silent, people would no longer have the opportunity to hear what he had to declare, and the world wouldbe deprived of his teachings.
Meher Baba replied,
"I have come not to teach but to awaken !"
These were to be his last words to anyone outside of his circle, and this message was the meaning of his divine mission to the world.
The evening of the 9th July, he went to the women's quarters at the Post Office building and conveyed his final verbal instructions:
"Now listen to my last words because from tomorrow I will keep silence for one year. Attend to your duties with love and fulfill them with all your heart. Cook for the children at the school as if they were your own." "I have much to do for the world. When my work is done, I shall speak."
50
9th July continued...
Baba left them at 8pm and was accompanied by his uncle Masaji, and then he visited the men mandali's quarters. He expressed similar words to them. He also said : "Whenever you go out during the night, always carry a lantern with you.Always beware of snakes ! I will save you from every calamity under the sun, but I won't help you if you are bitten by a snake. So be careful !"
Some more instructions were given as well.
It was 8:30 pm when he concluded talking to the 20 men around him. "I am going to the Jhopdi now. All of you go to bed."
They all dispersed, Padri went off to urinate taking a few steps he saw a 3 foot cobra ( one metre ), he lifted his lantern and shouted "Snake, snake."
Meher Baba came out of his hut and said : "What is all the noise about ?"
"Baba, we have killed the snake !"
"Who saw it?"
"I did", said Padri.
"Were you carrying a lantern ?" Padri nodded yes.
Baba was pleased that he followed his instructions about carrying a lantern. Padri handed him a staff and Baba smashed the head of the cobra with one blow. Padri was order to wash his hands several times after he buried the snake.
Baba repeated his instruction to the men "I am warning you all again. Be
careful of snakes !. Always carry a lantern and take care. Now I want everyone to go to sleep."
Baba then walked over to the women and spoke with them briefly : "How fortunate you are having heard my voice so many times today !" " This incident with the snake took place to allow you to hear me speak for the final time."
He then departed to his hut for the night, while Masaji kept watch.
The next day 10th July at 5am, Baba woke up, washed and did his rounds and inquired with them, but in writing.
*End of Vo.2 LM.
July 1925 Historical Time
10th July : The Scopes Monkey Trial began in Dayton, Tennessee with jury selection.
54
10th July continued....
During his inspections of the settlement of Meherabad, Baba had a young boy who followed him with a pencil and paper. This is how Baba now communicated with everyone.
On the 13th July, Meher Baba commenced his* 'book' in the Jhopdi. He would write daily from 5am to 8:30. The contents were written in various languages, he often wrote in it at other parts of Meherabad. This book was completed in
several months. This book according to Baba contained secrets that one day their content will be revealed. During the day, Baba also did other activities, such as grinding corn alongside his brother Jal, and interviews were given.
Baba revealed in discussions his minor incarnation of Shivaji and about his spiritual master at the time, Swami Samarth Ramdas ( 1608 - 1682 ), and that many men in the present with Baba were with Shivaji. Baba indicated more will be revealed in the next 2 years.
* There is a web page on this website about 'Meher Baba's Book' - click on the link to visit.
July 1925 Historical Time
11th July : France and Spain agreed to coordinate their efforts in the Rif War.
Born : David Graham, English voice actor; in London (alive in 2024)
14th July :The Occupation of the Ruhr began to wind down as the first French and Belgian troops evacuated.
17th July : A joint manifesto signed by 40 prominent Indians was publicized, calling for the British government to give home rule to India.
18th July : Flooding in Seoul, Korea killed hundreds as dikes broke on the third straight day of heavy rain.
21st July : The Scopes Trial ended with John Scopes being found guilty of violating the Butler Act and fined $100, which both William Jennings Bryan and the American Civil Liberties Union offered to pay for him.
- The Battle of al-Kafr was fought in the Great Syrian Revolt.
July continued .....
On the 22nd July, Baba gave a discourse about 'Divine Sight'. The following day (23rd) he visited Kaka Shahane's house and explained about 'Freedom'.
** To read Baba's discourses mentioned, click on the following - 'Divine Sight' & 'Freedom'
That night Baba appointed *Louis Nelhams to be his constant attendant replacing Bal.
Louis had septic wound on his leg and he was receiving treatment at the hospital. In the next 3 days he became weaker.
On the night of the 26th July, Baba remarked "Nelhams will be free of all pain tomorrow morning". Pendu and Padri had nursed him. Louis died as Baba indicated. Baba wanted him to have the opportunity to be by his side.
The following day (27th), Louis had Christian rites performed for him in Ahmednagar and then the men mandali attended his funeral and burial in a Christian cemetery near Bhingar, now a suburb of Ahmednagar. There was no stone for his grave or any marker, just an entry in a burial register records as H.H.6.*
Baba observed fast all day and not even drinking water. When the men returned, Baba said that Louis will come in contact with Baba again. "His mind was still active !"
*There are no known images of Louis Nelhams.
* A proper grave marker was installed in the
early-2020s
July 1925 Historical Time
24th July : Britain enacted the first Palestinian Citizenship Order, 1925, officially outlining the legal definition of a Palestinian for the first time.
29th July : Born - Mikis Theodorakis, Greek songwriter; in Chios (d. 2021)
PENDU PADRI P.M. TADJUDDIN BABA
Meher Baba gave a brief discourse on 8th August on 'Morale Conduct'.
Click on the following to read this discourse - 'Morale Conduct'
On 17th August, Perfect Master Tajuddin Baba passed away. It was several days before Baba mentioned it. Then on the 22nd, Baba asked everyone to bathe first and then gather together in the school. Later, Baba garlanded Tajuddin's photo first and then garlanded the other Master's photographs.
The following day ( 23rd ), Baba remarked about Jesus' life and death in India, prior to that he spent some time in Rangoon, Burma, before settling in Kashmir.
To read those remarks made by Baba click here - Jesus Christ
On the 24th August, a young man called Mastan arrived in Meherabad. Baba stated that he was on the 1st Plane and he was a 'mast' ( a god-intoxificated person ) and the first of those persons to reside in Meherabad until his death in 1933. Gustadji and Sidhu looked after him.
August 1925 Historical Time
1st Aug : Domingos Leite Pereira became Prime Minister of Portugal for the third time.
- Many British seamen began a strike in response to their monthly wages bring cut on this day from £10 to £9. Many who were on land refused to sail out; others at sea stayed wherever they landed, from Australia to New Zealand to South Africa.
2nd Aug : The two-day Battle of al-Mazraa began in Syria.
Born - Alan Whicker, British journalist and television host (Whicker's World), in Cairo, Egypt (d. 2013)
5th Aug : U.S. Marines were withdrawn from Nicaragua after a thirteen-year occupation since the country's 1912 civil war. - The Grand Olympic Auditorium opened in Los Angeles, California.
8th Aug : Approximately 40,000 members of the Ku Klux Klan marched down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C.
9th Aug : The Kakori conspiracy train robbery took place in India.
13th Aug : A presidential decree in Turkey permitted women to wear hats and clothes of their choice for the first time, instead of being required to wear veils and somber colours.
14th Aug : Tidal waves in Korea, 400 dead and 1000 missing extensive damage was done to houses and property. 15th Aug : Norway formally annexed the Spitzbergen Islands.
17th Aug : The Fourteenth World Zionist Congress opened in Vienna. 30 were hurt and 50 arrests were made as protests outside the congress by fascists turned violent.
- A typhoon did extensive damage in Japan.
19th Aug : A boiler exploded on the steamship Mackinac in Narragansett Bay off the coast of Rhode Island, killing 42.
22nd Aug : Born - Honor Blackman, actress, in Plaistow, Newham, England (d. 2020);
25th Aug : The Occupation of the Ruhr ended as the last French troops withdrew.
- In the Rif War, The Moroccan Rif city of Al Hoceima was virtually leveled from Spanish naval bombardment.
26th Aug : Thunderstorms and flooding killed 11 in Japan. Many bridges were washed out and a railway tunnel in Atami collapsed.
28th Aug : Donald O'Connor, dancer, singer and actor, in Chicago (d. 2003)
29th Aug : In the Great Syrian Revolt, Druze rebels captured As-Suwayda citadel from the French after a forty-day siege.
31st Aug : French and Spanish planes and warships conducted a massive bombardment of the Rif Republic capital of Ajdir.
- A pair of PN-9 seaplanes under the direction of aviator John Rodgers took off from San Pablo, California, attempting to be the first to fly from California to Hawaii and set a new record for a non-stop flight by a seaplane. One of the planes was forced down early, but Rodgers' plane continued on into the night.
5. MEHERABAD EXPANDS
A newly painted sign with 'Meherabad' was erected. On the 4th September, another building was ready to accommodate the ever expanding residence, the building named 'Makan-e-Khas' or the 'House of the Chosen'. This was opposite the Post Office building.
Because there was a constant flow of visitors from throughout India seeking Baba's blessings and attending the many festive occasions, Baba requested a new dharmashala to be built near the well. He named the building 'Shri Upasni Serai', 'Upasni's Holy Inn'.
Accommodation, meals, and the visitors health were to be attended to. This building was opened on 20th September. Waman was asked to give the speech, even though he was nervous.
September 1925 Historical Time
1st Sept : A Spanish troop transport carrying 1,000 foreign legion troops was sunk in Alhucemas Bay by Rif shelling.
- John Rodgers' seaplane touched down in the Pacific Ocean short of the goal of Honolulu due to a lack of favorable winds. Although naval ships were stationed at intervals along the route, the plane ran out of gas trying to locate one.
2nd Sept : The Australian government announced new tariffs that included preferences for British goods.
- John Rodgers and his crew removed the fabric off their seaplane's wing, rigged it for sailing and headed for Hawaii.
3rd Sept : The U.S. dirigible USS Shenandoah broke up in a squall line near Caldwell, Ohio; 14 crewmen were killed.
7th Sept : An attempt by Spanish troops to make an amphibious landing at Alhucemas Bay ended in disaster. The Spanish withdrew after losing 500 men.
8th Sept : The Spanish attempted a second amphibious landing at Alhucemas Bay, this time successful, after a preliminary bombardment and a feint landing near Cape Tres Forcas.
Born : Peter Sellers, comedic actor, in Portsmouth, England (d. 1980)
10th Sept : John Rodgers and his crew were spotted by a U.S. submarine as they sailed their disabled PN-9 seaplane toward Nawiliwili Harbor at Kauai, nine days after they had gone missing when it went down in the Pacific Ocean. The minesweeper USS Tanager (AM-5) was dispatched and towed them to shore.
13th Sept : Born - Mel Tormé, jazz singer, in Chicago (d. 1999)
14th Sept : The Byzantine cross appeared in the sky over the city of Athens during an old calendar service, which at the time was being persecuted by the Greek authorities. The police sent to end the service found themselves weeping alongside the thousands of others who witnessed the miracle. This event attracted many to the cause of preserving the old Greek Orthodox calendar and reinvigorated the faith of many embracing the secularity of the times.
Born - B.B. King, American blues musician; near Berclair, Mississippi (d. 2015)
25th Sept : The U.S. submarine USS S-51 was sunk off the coast of Rhode Island in a collision with a merchant steamer; only three of her crew survived.
27th Sept : Hundreds died in Shandong Province as the Yellow River overflowed in China, the worst flooding since the 1887 deluge.
30th Sept : Greek dictator Theodoros Pangalos dissolved the country's Constituent Assembly.
- A Vatican committee issued a circular to the directors of pilgrimages notifying them that women found in churches not wearing opaque clothing that covered their head, collar, legs and upper arms would be ejected.
During this time, Baba's school friend Khodu and his wife Naja came to reside at Meherabad. He had accompanied Merwan when they visited Sai Baba and Upasni Maharaj in 1915.
Khodu and Naja had a son Dinshaw, Baba called him his 'first disciple'. Baba appointed Khodu in charge of the water for the settlement, Baba named him 'Sailor'.
Another one of the residents Eruchshaw was renamed Peshotan, later as 'Pesu'. The name referred to a well-known Parsi priest from the past.
Another resident, Gangaram Limbaji Pawar was from Arangaon, he was a Christian carpenter when he moved to Meherabad and was assigned to do repairs. Baba named him Ajoba, meaning 'Grandpa'.
There are no known images of Gangaram Pawar "Ajoba".
KHODU with NAJA & baby DINSHAW MEHERABAD sign PESU
On the 30th September, a son was born to Rustom K. and Freiny Irani. A celebration was held, Baba later named the baby Feram (Falu). During the celebrations a Muslim man began to dance and striking himself on the ground. Others were impressed by his performance but Baba was in agony with pain. Baba stated "I am suffering because of the Muslim's prancing and jumping !
Pesu replied "What a frenzy of love overcome that man !"
Baba snapped, "it was not love, but a sham ! Posing is the greatest sin and God never forgive it. God is afraid of hypocrites and keeps Himself at a distance from them".
Pesu then asked, "Then what is love!"
"Fire in the oven ! answered Baba. "He who loves does not know that he loves !
I have warned you to be natural and not pretentious. God cannot be fooled; He knows what you are ! So what is the use of pretending to be what you are not ?"
In early October, Baba ordered a large table, 4 feet wide & 7 feet in length ( 1.2 X 2.1 metres) to be built with a small cabin attached on it. This table-cabin was placed under the neem tree opposite the Jhopdi. There was enough room for one person to sit inside. A hand grinder was attached to one side so Baba and his brother Jal would grind corn each day.
Baba commenced writing his book again. He did not reveal what he was writing, the book contents remained secret. Baba moved permanently on 11th October to the table-cabin.
He wrote continually, throughout the days.
October 1925 Historical Time
2nd Oct : Spanish troops entered the Rif Republic capital of Ajdir.
3rd Oct : Born - Gore Vidal, writer and public intellectual, in West Point, New York (d. 2012)
4th Oct : The Hama uprising broke out in Syria.
- S2, a Finnish Sokol class torpedo boat, was sunk during a fierce storm near the coast of Pori in the Gulf of Bothnia, taking with the whole crew of 53.
5th Oct : The Locarno Conference began in Locarno, Switzerland between several European powers to negotiate a security pact.
10th Oct : About 15 people were killed in Catanzaro in Italy when a train plunged over a bridge after high floodwaters weakened the bridge's supports.
12th Oct : A contingent of 600 U.S. troops entered Panama at the request of President Rodolfo Chiari to put down a massive renter's strike.
13th Oct : The British seaman's outlaw strike ended. It continued in Australia, however.
Born: Lenny Bruce, comedian, in Mineola, New York (d. 1966) & Margaret Thatcher, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, in Grantham, Lincolnshire, England (d. 2013)
14th Oct : French forces withdrew from Damascus amid rioting after the French displayed corpses of Druze rebels.
1925
On 16th October, a list of 40-50 mandali members was drawn up.
Meher Baba then ordered them to fast for 24 hours on tea and water.The next day was Divali, the Hindu New Year and festival of lights celebrations. Baba handed out sweets, which he
blessed - called prasad, to all including the students. He also handed out to the children sparklers and firecrackers which Gulmai had bought.
Baba was given a ceremonial bath wearing his thin cotton sadhra, by the women mandali and they then began the washing of the Master's feet while the band played. More singing and artis were performed throughout the day.
9 months had passed since Baba returned to Meherabad, and he had not shaven, but on the 21st October, Gangaram Pawar - a barber from the Manzil-e-Meem in Bombay, was allowed to give Baba a shave.
October 1925 Historical Time
16th Oct : The Locarno conference ended with several agreements in place.
Born : Angela Lansbury, actress and singer, in Regent's Park, London, England (d. 2022)
17th Oct : Twelve people were killed and 20 hurt in a train collision on the Milan–Genoa railway line in Italy.
18th Oct : The French began a 48-hour bombardment of Damascus.
23rd Oct : Born - Johnny Carson, television host, in Corning, Iowa (d. 2005)
26th Oct : The League of Nations ordered a cessation of hostilities between Greece and Bulgaria and gave them 24 hours to bring their troops back behind their respective borders.
29th Oct : The Balkan crisis ended as Greece completed its withdrawal from Bulgaria.
Born : Robert Hardy, actor, in Cheltenham, England (d. 2017)
31st Oct : The Persian Parliament formally deposed the exiled Shah of Persia, Ahmad Shah Qajar, ending the Qajar dynasty and clearing the path for Prime Minister Reza Khan to assume the throne.
1925
In early November, the villagers from the neighbouring area approached Baba with a request for rain, as there was a prolonged drought, drinking water was scarce and the crops were in danger of failing.
On 10th November, at night, Baba was again beseeched for rain. After Upasni Maharaj's arti was sung, Baba ordered a pit dug and a dhuni (sacred fire) was lit at 11pm that night. Baba informed the villages, "God has heard your prayers. Now go straight home'.
An hour later, a heavy rain fell, the rain showers lasted 15 hours and the villagers crops were saved.
November 1925 Historical Time
1st Nov : 17 were killed in a mine explosion near Gelsenkirchen, Germany.
2nd Nov : In Australia, 100 police clashed with 1,000 striking seamen on the wharf in Fremantle as the officers tried to board a ship that the strikers were trying to damage; many were injured and 100 arrests.
6th Nov : Died - Khải Định, 40, Emperor of Vietnam
9th Nov : Forces allied with Wu Peifu inflicted a defeat on Zhang Zuolin after several days of fighting south of Xuzhou, China.
10th Nov : The Archbishop of Canterbury appointed a committee of six doctors and six clergymen to investigate the veracity of faith healing.
Born : Richard Burton, actor, in Pontrhydyfen, Wales (d. 1984)
Throughout November 1925, Meher Baba continued to write in his book daily.
On 22nd November, a large crowd arrived for Baba's Darshan, Flower & tea stalls were set up on the side of the road, to cater for the crowds.
Some 500 people now lived at
Meherabad, so a kitchen was built to feed them. This was inaugurated by Baba with ceremony on the 30th
November.
Because there was a lack of seating space, Baba ordered a large building to be built 66' X 96' (20.1 X 29.2 metres). Baba named it "Sai Darbar-Sai's Court", after his Master- Sai Baba.
The foundation was laid on the 29th November in the presence of thousands who had come for darshan. The building comprised of bamboo mating and corrugated iron roof sheets. A stage was erected at one end.
The building was completed on 30th December.
Baba began giving darshan inside it and later the last parts of Baba's book were written within it.
November 1925 Historical Time
11th Nov : Howard Carter and an autopsy team began the unwrapping of the mummy of Pharaoh Tutankhamun. The process was exceedingly difficult.
Born : Jonathan Winters, comedic actor, in Bellbrook, Ohio (d. 2013)
Born : June Whitfield, British actress, in Streatham, London (d. 2018)
12th Nov : The British submarine HMS M1 sank with all 69 hands in the English Channel when it was hit by the Swedish ship SS Vidar.
17th Nov : Born - Rock Hudson, actor, in Winnetka, Illinois (d. 1985)
20th Nov : Born - Robert F. Kennedy, politician, in Brookline, Massachusetts (d. 1968)
22nd Nov : The forces of Guo Songling began to lay siege to Mukden, the capital of Zhang Zuolin, in China.
25th Nov : Prajadhipok took the throne of Siam upon the death of his brother Vajiravudh,, monarch of Siam.
27th Nov : A state funeral was held at Westminster Abbey in London for Queen mother Alexandra.[30] The kings of England, Denmark, Norway and Belgium marched behind the casket in the procession.
Born - Ernie Wise, comedian, in Bramley, Leeds, England (d. 1999)
29th Nov : Parliamentary elections were held in Uruguay.
30th Nov : The Australian seamen's strike ended after fifteen weeks when Melbourne, the last port to hold out, capitulated.
- Religious convents and dervish lodges were closed in Turkey.
MAHATMA GANDHI 1920s SAI DARBAR BUILDING
1925
On the 9th December, it was reported in the newspaper that Mahatma Gandhi was in search of a Guru. Baba remarked, "Gandhi will one day be perfect, but before perfect he will take 3 more births".
Baba walked up Meherabad Hill on the 11th December, to have a picnic near the water tower. Baba made comments about
'Anger' and 'My Real Form'.
To read this remark click here - 'Anger'. or 'My Real Form'.
Later in the month on the 25th, Christmas was observed and celebrated. During the following days, Nusserwan Satha's sister - Gaimai Jessawala came with her children to stay at Nusserwan's house in Ahmednagar. Gaimai's family lived in Nagpur.
Shortly after arriving, the whole Satha family, 6 brothers - Meherjee, Jemi, Nusserwan, Homi & Pilu, also the 4 sisters - Banu Kerawala, Gaimai, Gula Satha & Shirin Damania, including their children were all dedicated to Meher Baba and all went to Meherabad to see him.
December 1925 Historical Time
1st Dec : The Locarno Treaties were formally signed in London, intended to secure the post-war continental European territorial settlement.
- France negotiated separate treaties with Poland and Czechoslovakia pledging mutual assistance in the event of an attack by Germany on any of the signatories.
- A new general election was held in Bolivia after the May 2 results were annulled.
3rd Dec : The Northern Irish Border Agreement was signed between the United Kingdom and Irish Free State delineating the border of Northern Ireland.
4th Dec : The Armenian Orphan Rug was formally gifted to U.S. President Calvin Coolidge in recognition of U.S. humanitarian assistance following the Armenian genocide.
5th Dec : The city of Medina capitulated to the forces of Ibn Saud without resistance.
8th Dec : Born - Sammy Davis, Jr., entertainer, in Harlem, New York (d. 1990)
10th Dec : The Nobel Prizes for 1925 were awarded in Oslo.
13th Dec : Born - Dick Van Dyke, entertainer, in West Plains, Missouri
15th Dec : The War Ministry of Japan ordered 3,500 troops to Manchuria to protect the South Manchuria Railway and other Japanese interests around Mukden as the forces of Guo Songling advanced against Zuolin.
- A League of Nations commission ruled on the Mosul Question by assigning most of the territory in the oil-rich Mosul region to Iraq, despite strong Turkish objections.
- Reza Shah took the oath to become the first shah of Persia of the Pahlavi dynasty.
17th Dec : The Siege of Jeddah ended in victory for Ibn Saud.
23rd Dec : The Saudi conquest of Hejaz was completed when the Kingdom of Hejaz surrendered to Ibn Saud.
Late December 1925
As Gaimai's tonga which was carrying her children and others, was about to reach Meherabad, she asked her 9 year old son, Eruch to get off so it lessened the burden on their horse, and in doing so, he fell and scrapped his elbow which began bleeding. He followed on foot. When they arrived, Baba inquired about his injury and applied ash from the dhuni and wrapped it with his own handkerchief. Baba then gave Eruch a kiss, padded his head and held him in his lap. This was the first meeting between Baba and Eruch who in the following decades was to be one of Baba's closest disciples.
Baba told Gaimai, that he was her 6th brother.
December 1925 Historical Time
27th Dec : 52 miners were killed in a mine explosion near Palaú, Mexico.
1926
6. GUJARATI ARTI
On the 7th January, Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Service'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Service'
An arti was written in the Marathi language by Mohan Shahane, at the start of the new year, but the mandali wanted one in Gujarati language. Baba told the mandali to compose one, but he wasn't satisfied with their efforts, so he wrote the arti called "Bijave Naar Jallatani" on the 11th January, which later became known as the "Gujarati Arti".
This was sung after some time later.
January1926 Historical Time
3rd Jan : Theodoros Pangalos declared himself dictator in Greece.
Born - George Martin, producer of The Beatles, in London (d. 2016)
7th Jan : Ongoing downpours in Europe submerged Great War cemeteries in France and flooded the London subway system.
8th Jan : Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud was crowned King of Hejaz in a ceremony at the Grand Mosque of Mecca.
- Bảo Đại became Emperor of Vietnam.
9th Jan : A band of twenty Mexican rebels opened fire aboard the Guadalajara-Mexico City train, then looted and burned the train. An estimated twenty to fifty people were killed.Most of the rebels were killed .
12th Jan : The Pasteur Institute in Paris announced the discovery of an anti-tetanus serum.
13th Jan : A mine explosion in Wilburton, Oklahoma, killed 91.
15th Jan : Turkey adopted the Swiss Civil Code as part of the ongoing reforms instituted by President Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.
20th Jan : Born - Patricia Neal, actress, in Packard, Kentucky (d. 2010)
22nd Jan : Soviet Foreign Minister Georgy Chicherin sent a threatening note to the Manchurian government.
Check out the "Arti" page on this website : https://www.meherbabatravels.com/music/artis/
Oh God command that the fire of our ignorance be extinguished
Your lovers yearn for You to bestow upon them the Light of Faith
Oh Murshed Meher Baba we (your lovers) lay our heads at your Feet
Oh Meher Baba, You have made yourself perfectly aware of your Godhood.
You are the Lord of Truth, You are the Lover and the Beloved in One.
Being the torrent of infinite Knowledge, You are the Ocean of Oneness,
Oh Master, bestow upon us, the wayfarers, the Knowledge of Ezad (the only One worthy of worship)
For You, Oh Paramatma are Omniscient and are Divine Knowledge Itself.
Give us to drink of the cup of God's Love that we become intoxicated.
Oh Saki, we offer our lives in sacrifice to You, give us this draught.
Only is You steer our ship while in mid ocean can we remain afloat
Oh Meher Baba, the Captain of our ship, You are our Protector.
Oh Meher Baba, the Captain of our ship, You are our Protector.
JANE ( BROWN ) MOSSMAN SINGS HER VERSION OF THE GUJERATI ARTI
1926 continued....
On the 26th January, several followers came from Ahmednagar after they heard that Meher Baba had died or been killed. Hearing their comments Baba remarked, " Even if the heavens and earth should come together for that purpose, I am not going to give up my body for the next 26 years*( 1952 ). After that, whether I drop my body or not will depend upon my will, but I shall not keep a connection with the body after I am 90"( 1984 ).
* In 1952, Meher Baba was involved in a serious car accident along with others at Prague, Oklahoma, U.S.A.
Meher Baba gave an explanation on 'Impure thoughts'.
To read this remark click here - 'Impure thoughts'
Babajan's birthday was celebrated by many on the 28th January.
January1926 Historical Time
26th Jan : Scottish inventor John Logie Baird demonstrated a mechanical television system for members of the Royal Institution and a reporter from The Times at his London laboratory.
30th Jan : 27 miners were killed in a gas explosion in Mossboro, Alabama; 26 escaped unhurt.
- The Allied occupation of the first zone of the Rhineland ended.
31st Jan : Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini assumed the power to rule by decree.
A mechanical pump was installed to provide water more easily on the 3rd February. Baba helped with the work.
Feram 'Chanji' Dadachanji moved permanently from Bombay to Meherabad on the 9th February.
On 18th February, Baba's birthday was celebrated
with many thousands coming for the event. During the festivities, Baba was carried on a palanquin up the hill near the water tower. Here the women mandali
performed Baba's Arti and ceremonies, led by Gulmai.
Later, he walked to Shahane's house in Arangaon where his arti was again performed. Nearly 50,000 came to celebrate, fireworks lit the night sky.
February1926 Historical Time
3rd Feb : 20 miners were killed in an explosion in Horning, Pennsylvania.
10th Feb : Germany formally applied to join the League of Nations.
11th Feb : Born - Leslie Nielsen, actor, in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada (d. 2010)
14th Feb : The Nazi Party held the Bamberg Conference.
17th Feb : The Grand National Assembly of Turkey approved a secular civil code to regulate matters of marriage, inheritance, divorce and adoption.
7. BROTHER JAMSHED DIES
On 27th February, Baba's brother Jamshed passed away at his in-laws' home in Lori;
he was 33 years old. His mother Shireen hired a taxi to bring his body back home to Poona.
Baba gave a lengthy sermon to the mandali on 'life and death'. This was prompted by the surprised reaction many of the mandali had by Baba appearing to have a casual indifference to his passing.
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Death & Dying' and 'Emancipation & Immortality'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Death & Dying' or 'Emancipation & Immortality'
February 1926 Historical Time
22nd Feb : Born - Kenneth Williams, actor, in Islington, London, England (d. 1988)
23rd Feb : In Mexico City, 7 Catholics were killed in clashes between rioters and government agents who were taking over the Church of the Holy Family.
27th Feb : 600 members of the Sicilian Mafia were arrested in Italy, including two mayors and other municipal officials.
Jamshed's wife - Khorshed moved to Meherabad on the 4th March, staying with the women mandali after his funeral in Poona. His body was taken to the local 'Tower of Silence' as per the Parsi tradition.
Meher Baba gave a 'Candid Remark'.
To read this remark click here - 'Candid Remarks'
25th March
Meher Baba gave a 'Candid Remark' and gave a discourse
on 'Intelligence'.
To read this remark click here - 'Candid Remarks' or
'Intelligence'.
30th March
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Sanskaras' & 'Creation'.
To read these discourses click here - 'Sanskaras' or 'Creation'
March 1926 Historical Time
1st Mar : Washington Luís won the Brazilian presidential election with 98% of the vote.
5th Mar : Ivar Lykke became Prime Minister of Norway
7th Mar : The first commercial trans-Atlantic telephone call was made from New York to London.
8th Mar : Dirk Jan de Geer became Prime Minister of the Netherlands.
Neill Armstrong, American football player and coach, in Tishomingo, Oklahoma (d. 2016)
14th Mar : The El Virilla train accident killed 248 people and injured 93 in Costa Rica.
16th Mar : Robert Goddard launched the first liquid-fuel rocket at Auburn, Massachusetts. This was considered by some to be the start of the space age, although his rocket did not reach outer space.
Born - Jerry Lewis (stage name for Joseph Levitch), American comedian, film actor and longtime fundraiser.
17th Mar : Feng Yuxiang's Guominjun troops at Dagu Fort near Tianjin exchanged fire with Japanese warships carrying Zhang Zuolin's Fengtian troops.
18th Mar : Massacre took place in Beijing. Government troops and police shot 47 unarmed demonstrators who were protesting unequal treaties with foreign powers and their March 15 ultimatum.
Born - Peter Graves (stage name for Peter Aurness), American actor known for Mission: Impossible; in Minneapolis, Minnesota (d. 2010)
20th Mar : The Zhongshan Warship Incident took place; a suspected kidnapping plot against Chiang Kai-shek was foiled.
30th Mar : Alexandru Averescu became Prime Minister of Romania for the third time.
Born - Ingvar Kamprad, Swedish businessman who founded the multinational furniture company IKEA in 1943; in Älmhult (d. 2018)
Baba stayed in the box-cabin in Sai Darbar for nearly 5 weeks, from 26th March to 2nd May. From here he wanted to move to the west room of the abandoned water tank on Meherabad Hill. The land was owned by Gulmai's husband - Kaikhushru Irani.
On the evening of 3rd May, Baba led a procession of school children and mandali up the hill. There was a lot of singing and sweets were handed out by Baba. After a while everyone returned down the hill, except for brother Jal and a boy called Bal who remained to share the night watch.
The stone building provided a quiet place for Baba to do more of his writings for his book.
The water tank had been built by the British Army during W.W.1 where they had camps set up for the duration of the war. Some time after that they sold the whole area to Mr. K. Irani.
April 1926 Historical Time
2nd Apr : Inter-communal riots between Hindus and Muslims broke out in Calcutta (British India).
Born - Jack Brabham, racing driver, in Hurstville, New South Wales, Australia (d. 2014)
3rd Apr : Warplanes of Manchurian warlord Zhang Zuolin began bombing Guominjun-held Beijing.
Born - Gus Grissom, astronaut, in Mitchell, Indiana (d. 1967)
4th Apr : Martial law was declared in Calcutta (British India) as rioting continued there.
10th Apr : Mauna Loa erupted in Hawaii. & King Fuad of Egypt inaugurated the new Egyptian Parliament.
13th Apr : Lincoln Ellsworth and Roald Amundsen departed from Oslo to Spitzbergen, where they would board the airship Norge to fly over the North Pole.
14th Apr : Born - Gloria Jean, American actress, as Gloria Jean Schoonover, in Buffalo, New York (d. 2018)
16th Apr : Zhang Zuolin's army
surrounded Beijing as the Guominjun retreated. & entered Beijing 17th Apr.
20th Apr : Acting president of China Duan Qirui fled from Beijing to Tianjin; Hu Weide assumed the post.
22nd Apr : Born - Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom, in Mayfair, London (d. 2022)
Iran and Turkey signed a "Treaty of Friendship" in Tehran.
24th Apr : Germany and the Soviet Union signed the Treaty of Berlin, in which each pledged neutrality in an event of attack on the other by a third party within the next five years.
25th Apr : Reza Khan was crowned Shah of Iran under the name "Pahlevi".
27th Apr : 10 were killed as rioting continued in Calcutta.
28th Apr : Harper Lee, author, in Monroeville, Alabama (d. 2016)
30th Apr : Born - Cloris Leachman, actress, in Des Moines, Iowa (d. 2021)
May 1926 Historical Time
1st May : The lockout of 800,000 British coal miners began.
- Five people were killed and 28 injured in fighting between socialists and communists during May Day events in Warsaw, Poland.
2nd May : Civil war broke out in Nicaragua.
- Women in India are allowed to stand for election to public office.
3rd May : As called for by the Trades Union Congress, an estimated 1.7 million people began a general strike in Britain in support of the locked out miners, at one minute to midnight.
JAL S. IRANI WATER TANK ON MEHERABAD HILL KAIKHUSHRU IRANI
Meher Baba stayed 7 days in the empty water tank room. Thereafter, he continued his routine of inspecting the lower settlement and then returning and resuming his writings. Baba remained unshaven for quite a while and the only comment he would make about his book is that it contained 'spiritual secrets'. Access to the room in the tan, was gained by climbing an iron ladder to a small open window 7 feet from the ground, through which he would crawl.
On the 16th May, * Angal Pleader visited Meherabad and read from the Puranas scriptures. He then revealed that he recently met Perfect Master Narayan Maharaj and told him that he devoted to Meher Baba. Narayan remarked, " I and Merwan are One. By serving him, you are serving me. He is a 'Sat Purush' - "Perfect Man'. Merwan has been to me in the past".
In the next few days, Baba gave a lengthy discourse on 'Masters duties and
workings'.
To read that discourse, click on the following - 'Masters duties and
workings'.
* There is no known image of Angal Pleader.
19th May
Meher Baba gave a discourse on 'Real Darkness & Real
Light'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Real Darkness & Real Light'.
May 1926 Historical Time
5th May : The Norge airship left Gatchina near Leningrad, bound for Vadsø in preparation to cross the North Pole. Born : Ann B. Davis, American TV actress and comedian; in Schenectady, New York (d. 2014)
8th May : Born - Sir David Attenborough, English documentary producer and naturalist; in Isleworth, London
Born - Don Rickles, American TV and film comedian who specialized in insult comedy; in Queens, New York City (d. 2017)
9th May : Explorer Richard E. Byrd and co-pilot Floyd Bennett claimed to be the first to fly over the North Pole in the Josephine Ford monoplane, taking off from Spitsbergen, Norway and returning 15 hours and 44 minutes later.An entry in Byrd's diary discovered in 1996 suggested that the plane actually turned back 150 miles short of the North Pole due to an oil leak.
11th May : The airship Norge departed Ny-Ålesund en route to the North Pole. Roald Amundsen led the 16-man crew. 12th May : Airship Norge reached the North Pole.
- The May Coup began in Poland.
14th May : Born - Eric Morecambe, English comedian; in Morecambe, Lancashire (d. 1984)
16th May : Mehmed VI, 65, the last Sultan of the Ottoman Empire ( reigned from 1918 to 1922 ).
17th May : Wilhelm Marx became Chancellor of Germany for the second time.
19th May : The French Air Force bombed Damascus, trying to suppress the ongoing revolt.
PERFECT MASTER NARAYAN MAHARAJ PURANAS BOOKS
8. TRIP TO RAHURI
On 22nd May, 1926, a tornado swept through Meherabad, tearing up and flinging some tin roof sheets at some distance.During the storm, Baba called for a phonogram and a record was played, this brought an immediate stop to the storm. Later the same day, Baba and 14 of the men mandali took a bus to attend the wedding of a relative of one of the men in Rahuri, a nearby town, named S.N. Nagarkar.
On the way, they halted at Dehre village and some of the men were ordered to beg for some food, which only some were received. They resumed their journey to the marriage and once there, Baba was revered by all. It seemed that later it became apparent that Baba came to meet a Dr.D.W. Chobhe, who gave lunch for all at his residence.
On the 20th May, Baba gave a discourse on the 'Sadguru's Work', & the 'Spiritual Planes'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Sadguru's Work' & 'Spiritual Planes'
May 1926 Historical Time
22nd May : Belgium, France, Great Britain and Netherlands signed the Belgian Neutrality Treaty
24th May : The eruption of Mount Tokachi killed 165 people in Hokkaido, Japan.
A Eye Hospital was opened on 25th May, and surgeries were being done by the resident doctor, who had earlier applied to an ad placed by Baba in the Times of India newspaper, advertising for an eye doctor. Surgical equipment was purchased, Pendu and Padri assisted the doctor. Many other operations were performed for the locals for whom eye sight was restored.
On the 27th May, Baba discussed on the 'Difference between the Avatars'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Difference between the Avatars'.
Then Baba talked about the 'Allurement of Maya'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Allurement of Maya'
Perfect Master Upasni Maharaj's birthday was celebrated on the 29th May with great reverence.
Baba explained on the 31st May about the 'Indian Culture of offering Coconuts to Saints'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Indian culture of offering coconuts to saints'
This was followed by an explanation about 'Sansakaras and Sahavas with a Master'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Sansakaras and Sahavas with a Master'
May 1926 Historical Time
25th May : Parliamentary elections were held in Romania.
26th May : Riffian rebel leader Abd el-Krim surrendered to the French in Morocco, ending the Rif War.
Born - Miles Davis; American jazz musician, trumpeter and bandleader, in Alton, Illinois (d. 1991)
28th May : The 28 May coup d'état, commanded by Manuel Gomes da Costa, began in Braga, Portugal.
31st May : José Mendes Cabeçadas became both President and Prime Minister of Portugal.
On the 3rd of June, Baba gave 'Advice to the Mandali' about how your life is a mere movie.
To read this discourse click here - 'Advice to the Mandali'
In early June, Naval Talati travelled from Bombay to visit Babajan in Poona. She stated that Meher Baba was her shopkeeper. She then said, "My shop is not located in any building or world. My world consists of only Yezdan or Merwan!"
At Dr. Karkal residency, while holding tea for Baba and the men mandali, Baba gave a discourse on the 5 Perfect Masters and who has the key.
To read this discourse click here - 5 Perfect Masters and who has the key
119
June 1926 Historical Time
1st June : Born - Marilyn Monroe, American actress, model and singer, in Los Angeles (d. 1962) & Andy Griffith, American actor, singer and writer, in Mount Airy, North Carolina (d. 2012)
3rd June : Born -Allen Ginsberg, leftist American poet associated with the Beat Generation; in Newark, New Jersey (d. 1997)
4th June : Ignacy Mościcki became President of the Republic of Poland. He would serve until 1939.
5th June : Britain and Turkey signed the Anglo-Turkish Agreement on Mosul.
7th June : Kazys Grinius was elected President of Lithuania by the Third Seimas.
10th June : Born - Lionel Jeffries, British actor and director, in Forest Hill, London (d. 2010)
Died : Antoni Gaudí, 73, Catalonian architect
Baba's Uncle Rustom was the director and actor of the Bombay Parsi Theatrical Company.
On Sunday 13th June, the company came to Ahmednagar. Baba and everyone from Meherabad, a group of 150 people including children went to see the play. Baba left early and Chanji later described in detail the drama staged. Baba found out that someone offered the mandali 'paan' ( an Indian mouth sweetener, freshener, and digestive made from betel leaves which is chewed ) which they ate.
Baba said, "As long as you are with me, do not eat any fruit or anything else offered to you outside. Those who consume such edibles take-in from the giver many sanskaras which add to their own sanskaras."
Zarathustra's death anniversary was observed on the 16th June. Baba stated, "I will fast until the end of February 1927, because I want to breathe conversely to give the finishing touches to the preparation of the circle....."
To assist Baba in his fast, it was ordered that each man would start a rotating fast, beginning at 8pm on the 19th June till 3pm of the following day, 19 hours per person.
On the 21st June, it was a Muslim holiday of Bakri-Id. The Muslim mandali observed it in Meherabad. Baba stated, "They feel that if the Prophet killed a goat on this day, they should do it too. They should try to kill their minds instead of goats! What is the use of slaughtering defenseless animals ?"
Then sarcastically remarked, "If I ordered the mandali to wear hats and not to ever go out in the sun bareheaded, after some years it will be considered a religious practice to always wear a hot in the sun."
Baba made a discourse about 'Sadgurus'. To read this discourse click here - 'Sadgurus'.'
On the 22nd June, gave another talk about 'Truth in Religion' also 'Theosophy'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Truth in Religion' & 'Theosophy'
June 1926 Historical Time
16th June : Aurelio Padovani, 37, Italian Fascist leader, was killed in the collapse of a balcony at his home, along with eight other people. He was an early Fascist leader who had fallen out of favour with Mussolini
20th June : The 28th International Eucharistic Congress opened in Chicago, with over 250,000 spectators attending the opening procession.
20th June : Lightning storms and flooding in northern and central Germany killed 10 and destroyed crops.
25th June : Hundreds were reported dead from the flooding in León, Guanajuato, Mexico as irrigation dams broke overnight.
28th June : Mel Brooks, American comedian and filmmaker; in Brooklyn, New York
29th June : Arthur Meighen became the Prime Minister of Canada for the second time.
30th June : English pilot Alan Cobham took off from the River Medway to begin a round-trip survey flight from England to Australia in his de Havilland seaplane.
9. BABA MOVES UP THE HILL
Meher Baba had stayed for almost 2 months in the water tank on the hill. Baba came back with his bedding to stay in the cabin in Sai Darbar, on the 30th June. His writing in his book continued.
On 1st July, Baba indicated he would observe silence till February 1927. Later in the day he gave a discourse on 'Bliss'. To read this discourse click here -'Bliss'.
In the 7th July, Baba gave an explanation of Kabir's couplets on the topic of 'Yoga'.
To read this discourse click here -'Yoga'.
July 10th, was the 1st anniversary of the
Master's silence was observed. The school and dispensary were closed to all and the mandali kept a fast with Baba for
24 hours. Later that day, Baba was at the dhuni with the men, some of them had a nap and they a dream of Babajan's demise. After they awoke, they told their dream.
Baba explained " that she has stopped all her activities and duties and they have been transferred elsewhere. Within 10-20 days, at the most 200 days, she will give up her body. After that, there will be chaos for 2-3 years in the world, and after that there will be peace and spiritual progress."
Later Baba added, "there will be a change in my lifestyle as well."
On the 12th July, Baba announced a new routine for himself and the mandali for the next 7 months, till 7th February 1927.
Rustom K. asked Baba a question about the 'Circle' on the 16th July.
To read this discourse click here -'Circle'.
Then on the 20th July, Baba gave a talk about 'Death', and a comment about 'Seperate meals because of religious dogma'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Death' or 'Seperate Meals & Religious Dogma'.
On the the 27th July, Baba gave a discourse on 'Spiritual duty of Sadgurus'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Spiritual duty of Sadgurus'.
July 1926 Historical Time
4th July : The Sesquicentennial of the United States was celebrated to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
10th July : A bolt of lightning struck Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey. The resulting fire caused several million pounds of explosives to blow up in the next two to three days.
Born - Fred Gwynne, actor and author, in New York City (d. 1993)
14th July : In New York, Linton Wells and Edward Steptoe Evans completed their flight around the world in 28 days, 14 hours and 37 minutes, beating the old record of 35 days.
Born - Harry Dean Stanton, actor and musician, in West Irvine, Kentucky (d. 2017)
20th July : Édouard Herriot took over as Prime Minister of France
23rd July : Raymond Poincaré formed the new government in France.
28th July : The United States and Panama signed the Panama Canal Treaty.
30th July : The Albanian Border Treaty was signed, in which Britain, France, Greece, Italy, and the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes settled the frontiers of Albania.
Meher Baba gave another discourse on the 5th August about 'Spiritual Independence VS Political Independence'.
To read this discourse click her - 'Spiritual Independence VS. Political Independence'.
Then on 7th August, Baba discussed the 'Situation with Upasni Maharaj & Babajan'.
To read this discourse click her - 'Situation with Upasni Maharaj & Babajan'.
Gulamasi Satha visited Baba on 8th August, she helped him grind corn when a storm suddenly came and it was tearing off the tin sheets off the roofs and the dust was terrible. In the evening, with the storm still raging, she wondered how she would get back to her home in Ahmednagar. Baba suddenly looked at her picked up a metal pot beside him and flung it forcefully away. The storm immediately stopped. She was amazed ! When she returned home she told her brothers about the powers Baba had over nature.
Baba explained on the 16th August, about past 'Avatars'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Avatars'
On the 19th August, Baba gave an explanation to several mandali about 'Scripture differences'. To read this discourse click here - 'Scripture differences'
August 1926 Historical Time
3rd Aug : Some 400 armed Catholics barricaded themselves in the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico and exchanged gunfire with federal troops until they ran out of ammunition and surrendered, 18 were killed and 40 wounded.
Born - Tony Bennett, singer, in Astoria, Queens, New York (d. 2023)
4th Aug : Umberto Nobile was feted in Rome for his part in the recent North Pole expedition, as 20,000 filled the square in front of the Palazzo Chigi.
5th Aug : English pilot Alan Cobham arrived in Port Darwin, Australia to complete the first half of his round-trip flight between England and Australia.
6th Aug : Gertrude Ederle became the first woman to successfully swim the English Channel, also setting a new record time of 14 hours, 39 minutes.
10th Aug : In Mexico, 20 people were executed by federal firing squad over the church riots.
11th Aug : In Berlin, 50 were injured in rioting between communists and republicans on Republic Day.
- Eastman Kodak said it was working on color motion picture film.
12th Aug : A munitions factory exploded on Csepel Island in Hungary, killing 24 and injuring 250.
13th Aug : Born - Fidel Castro, revolutionary and politician, in Birán, Cuba (d. 2016)
15th Aug : Father Luis Bátiz Sainz and three members of the Mexican Association for Catholic Youth were executed by firing squad.
22nd Aug : Bloody Sunday'; violent clashes took place in Colmar in the Alsace region of France.
- Greek dictator Theodoros Pangalos was overthrown in a military coup led by General Georgios Kondylis.
23rd Aug : Died - Rudolph Valentino, 31, Italian film actor.
24th Aug : Pavlos Kountouriotis was restored as President of Greece.
29th Aug : 20,000 German monarchists staged an assembly in Nuremberg to hailRupprecht of Bavaria..
30th Aug : A funeral Mass for Rudolph Valentino was held at Saint Malachy's Roman Catholic Church in New York. Thousands watched the funeral cortège as it proceeded down Broadway.
10. NARAYAN MAHARAJ VISITS BABA
Sometime in August 1926, Perfect Master Narayan Maharaj visited Meherabad while travelling throughout India. On this occasion the train on which he was travelling, stopped suddenly as the were approaching Ahmednagar . No-one knew why, then Narayan said "No, this is Meher Baba's ashram. Go look". When the disciple opened the door of the carriage, they were amazed to see Meher Baba standing under a tree with hands folded. Narayan was informed that Meher Baba was nearby and Narayan came out of his compartment and stood at the door of the train, silently looking at Meher Baba.
After a few minutes, he signaled to Baba, "Should I go ?" And Baba waved to him to leave.
Narayan returned to his compartment and the train started up again. The engineers on the train couldn't explain it and Narayan smiled.
At other times in the 1920s when Narayan's train was going through Ahmednagar, it would mysteriously stop near Arangaon, they would see Baba's hill through the train windows. After a few minutes the train would start up again.
Meher Baba playing cricket wearing his Kamli coat.
On 1st September, Baba started a fast with no solid food to be consumed for the next 5-6 months.
The Parsi New Year was on 9th September, a cricket match was played and later gifts were handed out. A bhajan program was held till 9pm.
On 19th September, Baba remarked, "A moment of one's life passed with a Sadguru is more valuable than a 1,000 years of 'tapa-japa' - repeating God's name with beads". Or as Vivekananda said, "To light a hokkah (water pipe) for a Sadguru is better than millions of years of meditation".
A Colonel Merwan Irani visited Meherabad on 20th September, he was the highest ranking Indian officer in British Army during W.W.1. He came with 2 other men to confront Baba, who he thought to be a fraud. The Colonel was upset that his sister Daulat and her daughter Mehera were living in very poor conditions instead of the comfort that they were accustomed to. They were asked to remove their shoes before they entered Baba's room, they felt insulted and abruptly left.
The Colonel's other sister Freiny, was Padri's mother who lived near Babajan's seat in Char Bawdi in Poona. He was upset that she was devoted to Babajan and was allowing her son to be with Baba.
After the Colonel departed, Baba commented about 'Worldly-minded people'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Worldly-minded people'
September 1926 Historical Time
1st Sept : In Spain, 100 were killed in flooding from storms that followed a fifty-five-day drought.
5th Sept : A camouflaged and armored merchant ship SS Kiawo sailed into Wanhsien, China bearing a naval crew and attempted to board the Chinese-occupied merchant ship Wanhsien. It came under fire from the Chinese troops on shore, and the gunboats Cockchafer and Widgeon returned fire. There were approximately 22 casualties on the British side, 250 dead on the Chinese side and 100 civilians killed in the crossfire.
- King Alfonso XIII declared martial law in Spain.
- A timber barn being used as a temporary cinema in Dromcolliher, Ireland caught fire when a candle ignited a reel of film stock. 48 died in the tragedy.
8th Sept : Germany was formally admitted to the League of Nations with a permanent seat on the council.
9th Sept : About 1,000 Greek rebels, many still loyal to the deposed Greek dictator Theodoros Pangalos, attacked government troops in Athens.
13th Sept : The Murulla rail accident killed 26 people near Murrurundi, Australia.
18th Sept : A Category 4 hurricane struck Miami in the early morning hours. An estimated $100 million damage was done and many buildings in downtown Miami were destroyed.
20th Sept : The Miami hurricane struck Pensacola, Florida, and completely destroyed almost every pier, warehouse and boat in Pensacola Bay.
On the 21st September, Baba selected 20 men mandali and started on foot towards the village of Walki, a distance of 6 miles. Each man carried a sack for begging and when they arrived, each one went begging for food, there was some success, but later when the villagers learned that Baba and his men mandali were there, they were very happy to comply. They all returned by 3:30 pm. Whatever food was left over after they were fed, was distributed among the rest of the mandali who hadn’t come with them.
Baba gave a talk on 'Spiritual Cowards'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Spiritual Cowards'
On 22nd September, Baba gave an explanation to the mandali about the state 'After death'.
He also gave a talk about activities of Sadgurus & Yogis and the theme
'All are equal in his sight'.
To read this discourse click here -
'After
Death' & 'All are equal in his
sight'.
On 26th September, Baba gave a talk on 'What does a God-Realized person have in common'. To read this discourse click here - 'What does a God-Realized person have in common'
On 30th September, Baba gave a talk on 'Yogi requested from a Sadguru'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Yogi requested from a Sadguru'.
September 1926 Historical Time
23rd Sept : The United States negotiated an armistice in the Nicaraguan Civil War
Born - John Coltrane, jazz saxophonist, in Hamlet, North Carolina (d. 1967)
25th Sept : The League of Nations Slavery Convention abolished all types of slavery.
26th Sept : Born - Julie London, singer and actress, in Santa Rosa, California (d. 2000)
WALKI TOWN
On the 1st October, 1926, Baba gave a discourse on ' Do not be afraid.....'
To read this discourse click here - ' Do not be afraid.....'
On the 3rd October, 1926, Baba gave a talk
on 'India's independence from Britain'.
To read this discourse click here - 'India's independence from Britain'.
On 12th October 1926, Baba again decided to retire to the water resevoir on the hill, which he indicated would be a period of 100 days of special work. The mandali and students took Baba up the hill in a procession at 8:30pm, bhajans were sung and tea was served.
About this time, Baba talked about the water shortage in Meherabad. He observed, "See the paradox and irony here : when the outsiders come for my darshan, their desires are fulfilled by my blessings. They find enough water in their wells by seeking my grace. But at Meherabad, all 3 wells are short of water."
Baba then cited the tale of the MuslimPerfect Master Khwaja Saheb Christi of Ajmer who sat under a tree for many years. He concluded, " That particular tree not only stopped bearing fruit for Khwaja Christi, but after sometime it withered and died."
Another well was ordered by Baba near the railway line. But no water was found. A series of events happened regarding villagers fnding water with Baba's grace and the mandali trying to do the same.
October 1926 Historical Time
1st Oct : English pilot Alan Cobham landed his de Havilland seaplane on the River Thames to complete a 28,000-mile flight from England to Australia and back.
2nd Oct : Air Union Blériot 155 caught fire and crashed at Leigh, Kent, killing all seven aboard. It was the first in-flight fire in airline history.
10th Oct : The Kuomintang captured Wuchang, China after a forty-day siege.
12th Oct : The Condé Diamond, a famous rose-coloured diamond that once belonged to the seventeenth century general Louis, Grand Condé, was stolen along with other valuables from the Condé Museum in Chantilly, France.
15th Oct : The International Congress of Expert Surveyors convened in Geneva to standardize surveying techniques around the world.
16th Oct : The ammunition on the Chinese troopship Kuang Yuang exploded near Jiujiang, China, killing 1,200.
Khwaja Saheb Christi of Ajmer
On 18th October 1926, Baba and 14 of his mandali went to Bhingar, a suburb of Ahmednagar, about 2 miles from the centre of town, to give a darshan in the afternoon. The crowd was very large, which became very unruly Regardless of the mandali, they became uncontrollable. The police then advised that Baba should leave.
*see map for August 1925 on this web page.
Baba stated that he will commence another fast on 20th October. Baba's table-cabin was moved to a new location, as were a couple of other buildings to make way for it. Baba completed writing in his book there.
On 21st October, at 10pm, Baba selected a group of the mandali and stated, "Before November 1st, I want you to demolish the school, dispensary, hospital, Sai Darbar, Upasni Serai and the leper asylum, leaving only Makan-e-Khas intact".
Baba stated,"I intend to go back to Persia with a select few, and I will remain there till February. Rustom, Adi, Ghani, Ramjoo and others will be called there once my future activities are decided."
A list of those to join Baba was given to Naval Talati in Bombay, and he was instructed to help obtain any needed passport by 25th October. Other directions were given to complete the documents needed, everyone was convinced the trip was going ahead. He then called a meeting and stated that he would agree to stay in Meherabad under certain conditions which was spelled out. A vote were taken and all agreed to stay.
October 1926 Historical Time
18th Oct : Born - Chuck Berry, American rock and roll musician, in St. Louis (d. 2017)
- Klaus Kinski, actor, in Sopot, Free City of Danzig (d. 1991)
19th Oct : The 1926 Imperial Conference opened in London.
20th Oct : More than 650 were killed by a hurricane that hit Cuba.
22nd Oct : The Kars earthquake struck Turkey and Armenia.
23rd Oct : The Fazal Mosque, the first purpose-built in London and the first Ahmadiyya mosque in Britain, was completed.
24th Oct : Harry Houdini gave his final performance at the Garrick Theatre in Detroit.
19
Rustom K. made some remarks to Baba about the closing down of most of the programs that were available in Meherabad. Baba replied to his remark "You promised salvation..."
To read this discourse click here - "You promised salvation..."
Dismantling the buildings began on 26th October. All goods and materials were sold at
an auction. Many of the items were repurched by Gulmai's husband - Kaikhushru
Irani.
On the 9th November, a farmer came to Baba, praying to him to bring rain. Baba said, "Don't worry, there will be plenty of rain. What is needed is to turn the key. It will happen as you wish." Almost immediately, it started to rain and continued for a couple of days, flooding out some of the buildings.
On 10th November, Baba gave a talk about ' Depending on Oneself' & 'Your mind should be as firm as a rock'.
To read this discourse click here - ' Depending on Oneself' & 'Your mind should be as firm as a rock'.
October 1926 Historical Time
28th Oct : Pope Pius XI consecrated the first six Chinese bishops since the seventeenth century.
31st Oct : Harry Houdini, 52, Hungarian-American illusionist and stunt performer;
11. TRIP TO
LONAVLA
It was decided on the 11th November 1926, to move to Bombay. Baba said he would go before the 20th Nov.
On the 17 November, Baba mentioned ' American in Baba's Outer Circle'.
To read this discourse click here - ' American in Baba's Outer Circle'.
Later, he wanted to go to Lonvala and Bombay on 25th November and returning on the 4th December. He might even go to Karachi.
Baba then gave strange nicknames to some of the men, he gave himself the name - Samander, which means the Ocean or the Sea.
On the 24th November, Baba and the men departed by 2 buses for Lonavla, avoiding the crowds that had come to Ahmednagar Railway Station to see them off. The luggage was sent by train.
There were more than 20 men with Baba - Beheramji, Bhau Cheema, Chhagan, Dhake, Gulab Shah, Gustadji, Jal (24), Vishnu (23), Mohan Shahane, Padri, Pandoba, Pendu, Sailor, Shankarnath, Sidhu and Nadirsha. - Total
16
The women were - Daulat, Mehera (19), Freiny (23), Naja (18), Big & Small Khorshed (16).
- Total 6
November 1926 Historical Time
3rd Nov : The Barnes-Hecker Mine disaster occurred in Ishpeming, Michigan, the worst industrial tragedy in Michigan's history. 51 men died when an explosion in the mine filled the tunnels with water from a nearby swamp. Died : Annie Oakley, 66, American sharpshooter.
7th Nov : Born - Joan Sutherland, Australian singer, in Sydney (d. 2010)
11th Nov : The United States Numbered Highway System,[14] including U.S. Route 66, was established.
14th Nov : Adolfo Díaz became President of Nicaragua for the second time.
15th Nov : The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) officially came into being.
- The Balfour Declaration was unanimously approved at the Imperial Conference.
20th Nov : The Balfour Declaration was announced to the public at the Imperial Conference in London. Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Newfoundland would become self-governing dominions.
23rd Nov : R. L. Burnside, American blues musician; in Harmontown, Mississippi (d. 2005)
24th Nov : Queen Marie of Romania ended her visit to the United States and Canada, departing from NYC.
THE MEN
BHAU CHEEMA MOHAN SHAHANE NADIRSHA GULAB SHAH
GULMAI BIG KHORSHED SMALL KHORSHED
Baba told Rustom K. once they were settled, to bring the children. 2 miles from Lonavla is the village of Valvan, where they had hired Bohri's bungalow. Baba was not happy with the arrangements.
On the 26th November, Chanji was Baba's secretary and record keeper, he would type his discourses. Baba remarked to him, "You find these discourses of mine very interesting...."
To read this discourse click here - "You find these discourses of mine very interesting...."
On the morning of the 27th November, people came to visit Baba.
Barsoap, Chowdhari, Jamadar, Sayyed Saheb came from Poona, also Waman Dani, Meher
Baba's mother-Shireen, her daughter Mani (8) and sons Adi Jrn (12) and Beheram (20). Total 11
* There is no image of Waman Dani.
November 1926 Historical Time
27th Nov : The Treaty of Tirana was signed between Italy and Albania, establishing a de facto Italian protectorate over Albania.
30th Nov : The final holdouts in the British coal miners' lockout – South Wales, Yorkshire, and Durham – returned to work, ending the labour dispute after seven months.
Born - Richard Crenna, American TV and film actor, 1965 Emmy Award winner; in Los Angeles (d. 2003)
RUSTOM K.
CHANJI
SHANKARNATH KAIKUSHRU
KHANSAHEB
During the singing program, Baba gave a discourse, ".......God exists is not hypocrisy".
To read this discourse click here - "....God exists is not hypocrisy"
Baba gave also a discourse on "Yogic Powers".
To read this discourse click here - "Yogic Powers"
He then gave an explanation on " Sanskaras"
To read this discourse click here - " Sanskaras"
DR. GHANI MUNSIFF
RAMJOO ABDULLA JAFFER
The following day, 29th November, Baba went to Talegaon to visit the flour mill which was owned by Ghani and Ramjoo, it was named after Baba - the Meher Flour Mill. They returned in the afternoon.
During the outing, they had driven past the Lohagen and Visapur Forts, near the village of Karla. Baba remarked that the area had been "Shivaji's playground."
Click on the name SHIVAJI to visit the web page on this site.
Later Baba gave a discourse about the "Sadguru Circle".
To read this discourse click here - "Sadguru Circle"
* There are no images of the flour mill in Talegaon.
TRIP TO TALEGAON
The rest of the mandali arrived at Lonavla on the 30th November.
Baba later gave a discourse about 'Cleanliness in all
matter'.
To read this discourse click here - 'Cleanliness in all matter'
The following day, 1st December, Rustom K. arrived with the school children. The next day, 2nd December, they were sent back to Ahmednagar with Nical, who was a teacher for the students.
Arjun Supekar fell critically ill, during the stay and was taken to Dr. Bhiwalkar's hospital.The doctor was a close disciple of Baba's. In the days, large gatherings came to see Baba, even though, Baba still would visit Arjun daily.
After 10 days, Baba decided to take the train to Bombay with the mandali on the 5th December. Some were ordered to stay and nurse Arjun. Before leaving, Baba gave him a kiss and then left.
MEHER BABA ARJUN SUPEKAR
12. BABA MOVES TO
BOMBAY
December 1926 continued...
Meher Baba and the Mandali arrived at Dadar Railway Station in Bombay at 5pm. Baba and a few of the men mandali took a Victoria horse carriage to Ramda's bungalow in Santa Cruz. The women arrived by tram with Naval.The other men arrived at 10:30 pm after some hardship with the heavy luggage. After a few days, on 10th December, Baba gave instructions that the Mandali had to find work for themselves.
Baba said, "If you are not active, you will grow lazy which would prove a hinderance to my future work".
The men agreed to make matchboxes. Some of them went and procured the materials to make them.
On the 12th December, Baba remarked, "8,000 matchboxes should be ready daily; otherwise, you should seek some other job". Baba consulted with the Mandali about where to go in the future. All preferred Talegaon, which was near Lonavla. Ramjoo was wired to make the arrangements. During this time, Baba was sending some back to their homes.
Baba was informed on the 14th December, that Arjun was in critical condition.
December 1926 Historical Time
2nd Dec : At a conference in Tianjin, the northern warlords of China formed an alliance to fight the Kuomintang.[3] Zhang Zuolin was elected commander of the army to be known as the Ankuochun.
-British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin ended the martial law that had been in effect since the general strike.
3rd Dec : British mystery writer Agatha Christie disappeared from her home in Shere, Surrey.
5th Dec : Claude Monet, 86, French Impressionist painter.
6th Dec : The Forty-Third Council Session of the League of Nations began in Geneva.
10th Dec : The Nobel Prizes for 1926 were awarded in Oslo.
11th Dec : Big Mama Thornton, American rhythm and blues singer, in Ariton, Alabama (d. 1984)
13th Dec : Väinö Tanner took office as the Prime Minister of Finland.
14th Dec : Agatha Christie, missing for 11 days, was found at a spa in Harrogate. Her husband Archie issued a statement claiming she had been suffering from amnesia.
17th Dec : The 1926 Lithuanian coup d'état overthrew President Kazys Grinius and installed Antanas Smetona.
About the 19th December, news came that large crowds were surrounding Babajan every day. She would also frequently making herself conspicuous by riding about Poona in a horse tonga. Hearing this Baba remarked, "This is the sign of Babajan dropping her body, and I should now be as near to her boundary of work as I possibly can".
Baba stated the Upasni Maharaj cancelled a trip to Bengal when Sai Baba was about to drop his body in October 1918, and returned to Sakori near Shirdi where Sai was residing.
* Babajan dropped her body 5 years later in 1931,
Although other medical experts came for Arjun, he died at 5am, 22nd December 1926.
Upon hearing about Arjun, Baba said, "From my stand point, it is good that he died. He was seeing me in my real form for 3 days before his demise and he is now with me. He has been given a spiritual push".
Baba sent Dr. Ghani instructions for his funeral in Poona.
13. BABA RETURNS TO MEHERABAD
The bungalow in Talegaon was not available. Rustom K. arrived in Bombay on the 23rd Dec. and suggested to Baba, that he should return to Meherabad. Baba agreed.
In the evening of the 24th December, Baba and his male & female Mandali left for Ahmednager by the Delhi Express train, travelling via Manmad. They reached Meherabad at 9am on the 25th December. As soon as they arrived, news came that Dr. Karkal, who had managed the hospital in the settlement, had died.
Baba stayed in the Jhopdi, the men Mandali took up residence in the mess quarters, and the women Mandali stayed again the Post Office building. Each person was given duties.
A school for boys was re-established on the 31st December.
Baba gave a discourse on "Love"
To read this discourse click here - "Love"
This was Baba's last hand written discourse.
December 1926 Historical Time
19th Dec : The Condé diamond, stolen in October, was recovered in Paris when a hotel chambermaid bit into an apple left in the room and found it contained the stolen gem. Police arrested the culprits.
23rd Dec : Nicaraguan President Adolfo Díaz requested U.S. military assistance in the ongoing civil war. American peacekeeping troops immediately set up neutral zones in Puerto Cabezas and at the mouth of the Rio Grande to protect American and foreign lives and property.
25th Dec : Japan was plunged into mourning at the news of the death of Emperor Taishō. Hirohito became the new Emperor.
27th Dec : Imperial Airways announced the first scheduled air service from Britain to India starting January 1.
31st Dec : Turkey, the last nation in the world to use the old Julian calendar, marked the day as "December 18, 1926", then switched over at midnight to the Gregorian calendar as part of the reforms set by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.
- The Buster Keaton comedy film The General was released.
Born : Billy Snedden, politician, in Perth, Australia (d. 1987)
This concludes the year for 1926.
REFERENCE BOOKS
The reference books that were used on this webpage :
Lord Meher Vol.3 - Bhau
Kalchuri pages 687 - 893 ( On-Line p.564 - 758
)
The Perfect Master - Charles B. Purdom pages 49
- 67 (1 Ed.) & 1976 Ed. p.72 - 107
The God-Man - Charles B.
Purdom pages 49 - 67
LINKS TO THE OTHER PAGES OF MEHER BABA'S LIFE
Click on the following buttons to visit those webpages.
Posted : 23 July 2024 193