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2vfeher l3aba’s76th Birthday Celebrafion

FEBRUARY 28, 1970 BARBIZON-PLAZA THEATER NEW YORK CITY

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ARRIVAL THROUGH DENIAL(Enlightenment begins in self-denial and ends in self-revelation)

by Meher Baba

Before enlightenment shows oneclearly who one is, there are the false-selfassertions : I am a man, my name is Jack;I am a woman and my name is Jill.

Before SELF can assert Reality, allfalse-self assertions must be denied. Andsince his body is the source of his identityas Jack, a man, and the cause of false-selfassertion, he must deny his body-wants.

The body wants food and drink—so food and drink must be denied.The body wants rest and sleep—sorest and sleep must be denied.The body wants to sit, to walk about—so sitting or walking about mustbe denied.But it is impossible to deny for long

the body’s wants. The better way, theway that is evermore delightful and easy,is to begin to forget oneself—untilself-forgetfulness becomes so completeand absolute that nothing is rememberedexcept the Real Self.

The various spiritual disciplines havebeen evolved to help one forget one’sfalse self; and when faithfully practisedthey not only advance one on the Path ofForgetfulness, but, because of the law ofaction and reaction, all those closelyrelated to or connected with the self-forgetting self experience some spiritualadvancement. The more the self-forgettingself forgets himself the more he isremembered by all those connected withhim; and the more these remember him,the more they forget themselves.

Now, one of the easiest ways ofcultivating self-forgetfulness is toconcentrate on a picture of the Master,for this helps the aspirant shift to someextent his concentration on himself toone who is the being and form ofPerfection. And when the picture uponwhich he concentrates becomes alive, this

is called Illumination. And this seeing ofthe alive picture brings about furtherforgetfulness of himself.

Soon he has no more thoughts abouthimself at all; his whole mind is focussedon the Uwving face and form of the Masterwho is the eternal Beloved; and eventuallyhe merges in Him forever. He then knowsthat he himself was all along the Realityof his own concentration. This is Self-revelation. And in this is real Self-assertion: “I Am That”.

The forgetter of himself has becomethe rememberer of who he is. And allthose who forget themselves inremembering him are also liberated. As it

has been said of old thattf one memberof a family attains emancipation, withhim are emancipated generations of hispast and also his present connections.

Self-denial is arduous, forced; andself-forgetfulness is easy and natural.Self-denial would be the quicker way if it

could be done; but it is impossible. Evenif the aspirant succeeds in overcoming,say hunger, after awhile he begins toenjoy fasting; and this is a new want—he wants to fast. So he must deny hispleasure in fasting and eat, though eventhe sight of food may nauseate him. Oragain he succeeds in conquering sleep andenjoys wakefulness—he wants to remainawake. And if he is to master that wanthe must sleep though to sleep seems likelosing all which he has so hardly gained.

There becomes no end to denial andcounter-denial; and even the strongestwill and the stoutest heart will breakdown on this path.

But Self-forgetfulness can bepractised by everyone and its way is easyand delightful and safe because it isalways under the tender regard of theMaster.

PURSUITSby Francis Brabazon

When a man pursues the secrets of the things contained in space,

He is chasing the flying shadows of the Beloved’s face.

When a man dares dive deep within himself sharply eager for seeing,

He comes as last to the experiencing of Self’s pure being.

We look out from the prisons we have built over a billion years

Not knowing that their very stones can be dissolved by love’s tears.

When men were strong they were not ashamed of tears’ meekness;

Now that we have become half-men we call them weakness.

It is good to look out, search, examine every spoor

Till one picks up some man-tracks leading to the Beloved’s door.

Our arrival there is the purpose of every road

Whether we go as freemen or as beasts under a goad.

More blessed are the stones of the road that takes us to the sight of God’s face,

Than a man who pursues the secrets of the things contained in space.

A thousand times I’ve said: What a beloved you are!A thousand times I’ve fled from your glances Meher—

Only to return to the shelter of your smile.Certainty is mine—yet never can I be sureSave of one thing: one day I will arrive at Nowhere,And you will be everywhere. And I shall sing.

On that glad day of Grace when my song has become one note—

The pure note of your Name, the heavens will trembleAnd blush with shame because they caused me to dissemble

Before you, beloved Meher.

A thousand times in joy I have set out for your doorHoping that you would employ my hands to sweep your floor—

Only to find that you had spread a feast for me.Certainty is mine—yet never can I be sureSave of one thing: one day I will arrive at Nowhere,And you will be everywhere. And I shall sing.

Francis Brabazon

;4-vfeher 73aba A Short Biographical Sketch

MEHER BABA (“Meher” means “mercy,” or in Persian“sun,” and is the name by which he was called as achild; “Baba” means “father”) is Merwan Sheheriarji

Irani, born at Poona, India, on February 25, 1894.One morning in May 1913, while a student at Deccan Col

lege, he was bicycling down Kedari Road when he looked upand met the eyes of an old woman sitting under a neem tree.He knew who the woman was, Hazrat Babajan, reputed to be avery holy person to the inhabitants of the area who held her invery great esteem. She beckoned to him, whereupon he left hisbicycle and went over to her. She arose and embraced himthough not a word was said. He remained sitting with her forabout fifteen minutes and then left her. That was the first meet-ing between Meher and Hazrat Babajan.

After that first meeting he visited her every night. One nightin January 1914, when he made his usual visit, she kissed himon the forehead. Babajan was later to declare, “This child ofmine will after some years create a great sensation in the worldand do immense good to humanity.”

After returning home Meher lost consciousness of his body.It was not until November of that same year that Meher regained a little consciousness and behaved, it was said “as anautomaton possessing intuition.”

Years later, Meher Baba identified Hazrat Babajan and fourother holy men with whom he subsequently came into con-tact, as the Perfect or God-Realized Ones whose function wasto “unveil” the superconsciousness in him. Babajan, he said,gave him God-Realization—the complete merging of his con-sciousness in the Infinite Ocean of Divine Love, Knowledgeand Bliss—thus enabling him to realize by his actual experience,the Infinite Existence which is God. It was a period, as mdi-cated above, when he was completely unconscious of thethings of the world.

However, it was at the end of December 1921 that UpasniMaharaj, one of the five mentioned above, returned MeherBaba completely to normal consciousness of the world withfull retention of his God-Realization, and signified it with ashort address. “Merwan,” Upasni Maharaj said, “you are theAvatar and I salute you.”

“Avatar” is a Sanskrit word meaning “One who is sent”and thus it can be equated with other words that apply to whatis regarded as a similar and special phenomenon, namely,Messenger, Christ, Son of God, Messiah, Rasool, Prophet, etc.,even though these terms are variously interpreted. But MeherBaba has given his own unique explanation in his bookGOD SPEAKS, whose theme is Creation and its purpose.

Whatever may have transpired during Meher Baba’s relationship with the five individuals mentioned, the fact remainsthat it was plain to many who came into contact with MeherBaba thereafter that at the very least he possessed an unusualunderstanding of the spiritual life and a deep and rare insight.

As a result he drew disciples to himself very readily whomhe trained for an arduous life of selfless service through moraldiscipline, love for God and spiritual understanding. It wassome of these early disciples who gave him the name ‘MeherBaba’ which means ‘Compassionate Father.’

After years of intensive training of his disciples, Meher Babaestablished a colony near Ahmednagar, India, that is calledMeherabad. Here his work embraced a free school wherespiritual training was stressed, a free hospital and dispensary,

and shelters for the poor. No distinction was made betweenindividuals, and all mingled in common fellowship through theinspiration of the Master. At Meherabad many of his Easternand Western disciples who were of different backgroundsreceived their training under his personal guidance.

Meher Baba told his disciples that from July 10, 1925 hewould observe Silence, and since that day he has maintainedthis Silence which he said was necessary for universal spiritualreasons. His many spiritual discourses and messages havebeen dictated by means of an alphabet board which was discarded on October 7, 1954, and he now uses unique handgestures which are interpreted by his disciples.

Meher Baba has travelled extensively throughout Indiagiving his ‘darshan’ or spiritual blessing to hundreds of thou-sands and contacting many of a special category of advancedspiritual pilgrim whom he has called “masts” (pronounced“musts”) or God-intoxicated souls.

He has also travelled many times to the Western world andvisited several countries. His first visit to the West was in 1931and his last visit to America which he has visited six timesand more than any other country, was in 1958 when he and hisdisciples stayed at the Center established in his name atMyrtle Beach, South Carolina.

In November 1962, Meher Baba reversed the current of histravels by inviting followers from all over the world and Indiato enjoy a few days of his ‘darshan’ and companionship atThe East-West Gathering which was held in Poona.

In spite of all this activity Meher Baba has consistentlymaintained that his “work” is neither to teach nor to found anew religi’on, but to.awaken the sleeping soul of man to ahigher state of consciousness of man’s Real Self which is God.

He is therefore committed to no “ism” whether of religion orof politics. He has pointed out that while he appreciates all“isms” for the many good things they seek to achieve, Truth,while equally including them, transcends all of them andleaves no room for separative divisions, which are all equallyfalse. For the unity of life is integral and indivisible and it willremain unassailable and inviolable, in spite of all conceivableideological differences.

Meher Baba has said that when he breaks his Silence he willspeak “One Word” which will go to the world as from God,not as from a philosopher, and that it will go straight to theheart. The effective force of this “Word” and the reaction to it,he has said, will be in accordance with the magnitude andreceptivity of each individual mind.

What is so impressive about Baba, as his disciples andfollowers call him, is the LOVE which radiates from him andpermeates through all of his activities. It is through the powerof LOVE, which is utterly selfless, that he awakens in thosewho come to him a new, deeper and far more beautiful under-standing of life whose purpose he says, is that the individualshould realize the Godhood inherent in himself.

As C. B. Purdom, author of Meher Baba’s recent biographyTHE GOD-MAN, 50 aptly said, “Meher Baba is beyond the scopeof familiar categories and ordinary experience is insufficientto account for him except on his own terms. It is sufficient tobe in his presence to know the Truth. He does not need tospeak; he has the power of Truth in him. Meher Baba is theMaster of one knowledge, which is God, but that knowledgeincludes everything else.”

NOTE : Avatar Meher Baba dropped his physical body 12 :15 P.M., January 31st, 1969.

THE AVATAR’S PRAYERby Meher Baba

0 Parvardigar, the Preserver and Protector of All,You are without Beginning, and without End;Non-dual, beyond Comparison; and none can measure You.You are without colour, without expression, without form,

and without attributes.You are unlimited and unfathomable, beyond imagination

and conception; eternal and imperishable.You are indivisible; and none can see You, but with eyes Divine.You always were, You always are, and You always will be;You are everywhere, You are in everything ; and You are also

beyond everywhere and beyond everything.You are in the firmament and in the depths, You are manifest

and unmanifest; on all planes and beyond all planes.You are in the three worlds, and also beyond the three worlds;You are imperceptible and independent.You are the Creator, the Lord of Lords, the Knower of all minds

and hearts; You are Omnipotent and Omnipresent.You are Knowledge Infinite, Power Infinite, and Bliss Infinite.You are the Ocean of Knowledge, All-Knowing, Infinitely-Knowing;

the Knower of the past, the present and the future,and You are Knowledge itself.

You are All-merciful and eternally benevolent;You are the Soul of souls, the One with infinite attributes ;

You are the Trinity of Truth, Knowledge, and Bliss;You are the Source of Truth, the Ocean of Love;You are the Ancient One, the Highest of the High; You are Prabhu

and Parameshwar; You are the Beyond-God, and theBeyond-Beyond-God also; You are Parabrahma; Allah;Elahi; Yezdan; Ahuramazda; and God the Beloved.

You are named Ezad : the only One worthy of worship.

Program

1—Welcome Address Michael Loftus, Master of Ceremonies

2—Avatar’s Prayer Dr. Harry L. Kenmore

3—Women’s Arti Julie McNall, Violin

4—Dances “Natanam Adinar” & “The Lord’s Prayer” Matteo

5—Message from Mehera Annarosa Karrasch

6—Okame to Gombei (Dance) Matteo

7—The Significance of the Mandalis Visit Dr. Harry L. Kenmore

8—Begin The Beguine Nola Larkin

9—Birthday Address Adi K. Irani

10—The Whole World In His Hands Leonard Willoughby

11—Medley Combo

12—Birthday Address Meherjee Karkaria

13—Pal Of Our Mandali Days Dr. Harry L. Kenmore

14—Jai Baba Bernice Ivory

15—Prayer of Repentence Dr. Harry L. Kenmore

16—Finale—Happy Birthday to Meher Baba

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l3aba’s 9ift

One late afternoon, about the fifteenth of July (1969), Mehera wasstanding by the east window of her room at Meherazad looking at some newlyplanted shrubs and thinking of her beloved Baba. Sdddenly her attentionwas drawn to the Umar tree just a few feet from the window and she saw to heramazement the likeness of Baba’s face etched on the tree trunk.At first she thought it was due to the way the light played on the tree trunkhelped by her imagination; but no, it was Baba’s face with all thebeauty, serenity and compassion that was His.

Mehera told no one for a few days, but each day when she looked,beloved Baba’s serene image was still there. Mani was then called to look atthe tree and also others of the household, and without being told, eachin turn saw’ Baba’s face so clearly. This is indeed a reminder to us and toall His lovers that Baba is with us always. Mani took some photosso that all could share in this wonderful happening.

It is so very interesting to see during the course of the day,due to the shifting of light and shade, how beloved Baba’s expression changesand also the outline of His head-dress, sometimes it is a crown witha peacock’s feather, sometimes an Arab’s, or sometimes the scarves as he usedto wear them.

Of course the news spread from place to place among villagers andtown-folk, far and near; those who are Baba lovers and those who are not havebeen coming to pay homage before Baba’s image on the Umar tree.

What is of special significance is that among the Hindus theUmar tree is considered sacred as it is the seat of ‘Dattatre”, that is, ofBrahma—the Creator, Vishnu—the Sustainer and Mahesh—the Dissolver,and now that Avatar Meher Baba’s image is to be seen on this tree thesignificance is supreme.

On one particular ocasion, all the school children of the nearbyvillage of Pimpalgaon-Malvi came to pay homage and the garden of Meherazadresounded to their shouts of Avatar Meher Baba Ki Jai!

What a compassionate Gift our beloved Baba has bestowed upon us.

Avatar Meher Baba be praised!Amen.

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THE PRAYER OF REPENTANCE

We repent, 0 God Most Merciful, for all our sins ; for every thought that was false or unjust orunclean; for every word spoken that ought not to have been spoken; for every deed done thatought not to have been done.

We repent for every deed and word and thought inspired by selfishness, and for every deedand word and thought inspired by hatred.

We repent most especially for every lustful thought and every lustful action; for every lie;for all hypocrisy; for every promise given but not fulfilled, and for all slander and backbiting.

Most especially also, we repent for every action that has brought ruin to others ; for everyword and deed that has given others pain; and for every wish that pain should befall others.

In Your Unbounded Mercy we ask You to forgive us, 0 God, for all these sins committed byus, and to forgive us for our constant failures to think and speak and act according to Your Will.

Meher Baba

This whole program is given under the auspices of “Society for Avatar Meher Baba.”Board of Trustees : Dr. Harry L. Kenmore, President; Mr. John Bass, 1st Vice-President;Mr. Fred Winterfeldt, 2nd Vice-President; Mrs. Ella Winterfeldt; Mrs. Annarosa Karrasch.

THE READING ROOM AND OFFICES OF THE SOCIETY FOR AVATAR MEHER BABA

121 WEST 72ND STREET, NEW YORK, N. Y. SUITE 2A-B.