“The sigh within the prayer is the same in the heart of the Christian, the Mohammedan, or the Jew. They are all indivisibly longing for the same God.”
— Avatar Meher Baba, Easter 1933
On Easter Sunday in 1933, Avatar Meher Baba was traveling in Rawalpindi (now in Pakistan) with a group of His followers.
He visited a Christian chapel with the group and remarked:
“All worship returns to Me. The sigh within the prayer is the same in the heart of the Christian, the Mohammedan or the Jew. They are all indivisibly longing for the same God.”
In January 1965, Avatar Meher Baba’s niece, Shireen Irani (now Bonner) traveled from London with her father, Adi Irani (who was Meher Baba’s brother and known as Adi Jr.), and her mother Franey to Meherazad, India, for Meher Baba’s darshan (His blessing).
At that time, Shireen was seven years old, and according to accounts in Lord Meher, was quite intelligent and precocious.
Shireen asked, "’Baba, I know we are born again and again, but you are God; so how is it that you get born?’"
“Feeing so blessed as Baba’s guest” are lyrics from “Oh Meher Mount,” an ode to Meher Mount written and performed by Mark Trichka and Lisa Brande. The drone photography by Ben Hoffman captures the beauty and openness of Meher Mount to complement the music and create this special video.
Amartithi — January 31st — marks the day in 1969 when Avatar Meher Baba dropped His physical form. Followers around the world gather to celebrate this day. Why? Here is a sample of personal reasons given by some of Meher Baba’s followers.
The following was written by Eruch Jessawala, one of Meher Baba’s close disciples, in the months after Avatar Meher Baba dropped His physical form on January 31, 1969.
Meherazad [Meher Baba’s home] is pleasant and peaceful, but we feel that everything is vacant. It is like feeling some presence in a vacuum, feeling ourselves, so to say, in a vacuum.
In the midst of our duties we sadly miss the familiar phrases ‘Baba wants you’, ‘Baba said so’, ‘Baba wants you to do this’. These phrases are no longer heard nor are they said.
We don’t feel Baba’s absence, but we surely miss Him. And we miss His silence too, because we found His silence wherever Baba was. Baba and His silence were inseparable for the last 44 years.
“Throughout the ages men have been deeply involved in the struggle for peace and happiness. It is this struggle that lands them into chaos and misery. If men were only to become conscious of the fact that peace and happiness are not to be fought for but to be sought for within oneself, they would abandon their fighting and be at peace with themselves and the world.” - Avatar Meher Baba
Meher Baba states, “The basic causes of the social turmoil that often precipitates into war, may be found in the individual, the social whole, the functioning of maya [illusion] and in the very intent of God’s will.”
In the booklet, Meher Baba on War, He gives the world a profound explanation of war and its spiritual significance. He succinctly lays out the causes of war, the various ways the limited mind tries to comprehend it, and our responsibilities in understanding and dealing with war.
Avatar Meher Baba embarked on a phase of His work known as the New Life on October 16, 1949.
“Baba ends His Old Life of cherished hopes and multifarious activities, and with a few companions begins His New Life of complete renunciation and absolute helplessness…,” Meher Baba declared.
Meher Baba and His 20 companions, including four women, wandered from place to place begging for food. While begging Meher Baba wore a green turban and a white kafni (robe) and walked barefooted. He had an ochre-colored satchel and carried a brass pot in the right hand.
“While almost all are puzzled by Baba’s New Life, they are also fascinated by it,” said Bal Natu, a close follower of Meher Baba.
Not all Meher Baba’s guests at Meher Mount come in human form.
When my husband Juan Mendez and I were caretaking at Meher Mount, a yearling buck visited on a daily basis. He would spend most of the day leisurely resting in a spot behind the Caretaker Quarters.
Every day, around midmorning, he would quietly appear. The young buck would nibble at the plants around the Visitor Center. And then he would lay down behind the house with its back against the wall, facing a statue of St. Francis in the garden.
The yearling would stay there until late afternoon — sleeping, preening, and licking his legs.
Merwan Dubash shares stories about his childhood and teen years of being with Avatar Meher Baba.
Through Merwan's stories that describe simple acts of reading the newspaper aloud to Meher Baba or playing card games with Him, we get a glimpse of the intimate daily contact with God in human form.
Take a moment now to watch these videos that make you feel as if you are in Meher Baba’s presence.
The warning was for Hurricane Hilary with the “best case” scenario being a tropical storm. Caretaker Ray Johnston had prepared Meher Mount for the storm.
What happened? There was a 5.1 earthquake with the epicenter about 2,000 yards from Meher Mount.
“It’s big one,” Ray said, when he picked up the phone just moments after the 5.1 earthquake.
Just as everyone was bracing for Hurricane Hilary — the first tropical storm since in 1939 — the earthquake struck the Ojai Valley at 2:41 p.m. on Sunday, August 20, 2023.
“The aftershocks keep coming,” he later texted. They ranged in magnitude from 3.1 to 3.9 with an estimated 30+ aftershocks continuing throughout Sunday night.
The following article along with four photographs of Meher Baba were published in the Los Angeles Times on Wednesday, August 1, 1956. Meher Baba, who was staying at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, met with the press on July 31st to answer questions. The article appeared at the top of the front page of the local news section of the Times.
Whether you’re a dedicated bird watcher or a novice, there’s something about being at Meher Mount. You want to grab a pair of binoculars and go see what birds you can find.
And if you’re a photographer, you are always looking for opportunities to capture their beauty on camera.
The following story is about drilling a well and how it represents faith versus conviction. Eruch Jessawala, one of Meher Baba’s closest disciples, frequently told this story to pilgrims visiting Meher Baba’s home in Meherazad, India.
When Meher Mount received the gift of a sadra worn by Avatar Meher Baba, Sam L. Ervin, board president, was moved to write this poem.
A sadra (also sadhra) is a thin muslin shirt traditionally worn by Zoroastrians. Meher Baba adapted the sadra into an ankle-length garment which He regularly wore.
February 25th marks the birthday of Avatar Meher Baba, born Merwan Sheriar Irani in Poona (now Pune), India on February 25, 1894. Every year on this auspicious day, followers of Meher Baba gather to celebrate His Advent.
This birthday message was given by Meher Baba for His 75th birthday in a family letter dated January 26, 1969, just days before He — the deathless one — dropped His physical form on January 31, 1969.
Meher Baba has been a touchstone for me since 1974 – an authoritative guide on my soul’s map during my almost constant travels. For the past almost 50 years, as my travels increased and my spiritual aspirations deepened, Meher Baba continued to be a constant marker for my life’s GPS.
At each important turn, He has played a part, created direct routes, sometimes detours – all usually without my knowing it had been done until I had reached my “destination.”
My destination this year in 2023 has been an unexpected return to Meher Mount as a temporary caretaker.
“When Beloved Baba walked this earth as the beautiful God-Man, He left His imprint in everything and everyone He touched. The dishes that He ate from and the cups that He drank from, the clothes that He wore, the games that He played with… these tangible links to Him come to us today suffused with His fragrance.
“Baba’s sadra, His alphabet boards, His precious hair – each is a unique and irreplaceable link to His human form.”
On January 31, 1969, Avatar Meher Baba — God in human form — dropped His physical form. Even though, in hindsight, Meher Baba had given hints to His close disciples (mandali) that He would leave His body, they were surprised and grief stricken.
This story takes place soon after Meher Baba dropped His body, and the mandali were dealing with their heartache. Mani S. Irani, Meher Baba’s sister, shares an incident that helped her with her grief.
