"These dhuni ashes contain the essence of many of Your sublime messages..."

Your Friday photo is in honor of the Darshan Courtyard…

The Darshan Courtyard at Meher Mount was born out of fire. And ashes representing Meher Baba’s words symbolically help form the foundation of the courtyard.

The Darshan Courtyard is in the space of the Baba Room where Avatar Meher Baba gave darshan (the grace of seeing or being with the Divine) to His followers on August 2, 1956.

The guesthouse with the Baba Room burned to the ground on October 14, 1985. All that remained was the stone fireplace and chimney — now known as Baba’s Fireplace.

In 2021, plans were underway to build a courtyard celebrating this space and Meher Baba’s Presence. Meher Mount invited followers from all over the world to send their favorite Meher Baba quote.

Each quote and the person’s name were printed on a special piece of paper. These quotes were read aloud and then placed in a special dhuni (sacred fire)* at the Darshan Dhuni event on June 12, 2021.

In 2024, when it was time to break ground for the actual building of the Darshan Courtyard, the ashes from this Darshan Dhuni were put under the spot where Meher Baba sat during His time in the Baba Room. The groundbreaking ceremony was on dhuni day October 12, 2024.

This photo of a sunset over Baba’s Fireplace was taken by Ray Johnston just before construction began on the Darshan Courtyard in 2024. The following statement from board president Sam Ervin was made during the groundbreaking dedication later in 2024.

“These dhuni ashes contain the essence of many of Your sublime messages that are cherished by Your lovers around the world.

The dhuni fire in which they were burned was fueled by wood from Your tree, Baba’s Tree.

We now offer these ashes carrying that Divine essence expressed by You to mingle with the earth supporting the Darshan Courtyard.

We ask that You accept this, as an expression of the hearts of Your lovers, yearning for Your presence.”

— Sam Ervin, Darshan Courtyard Groundbreaking 2024

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Note

*Meher Baba lit the first dhuni in 1925, and later ordered that there be a monthly dhuni event on the 12th of each month in Meherabad, India (home of Meher Baba’s Tomb Shrine). At this dhuni, participants throw in a sandalwood stick dipped in ghee into the fire, an act signifying the renunciation of some attachment.

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Related Stories

• The Special Darshan Dhuni Film

• The Darshan Dhuni Quotes & Contributors

• "There’s something so unique that happens when people gather in Meher Baba’s name and presence..."

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“What hurts me most is the loss of Meher Baba’s pictures and writings.”

Your Friday photo is in remembrance of Meher Baba’s New Life and the 1985 New Life Fire at Meher Mount…

On October 14, 1985, the Ferndale Fire, whipped by Santa Ana winds, came up the southwest ridge of Sulphur Mountain. By 9 p.m. on that Monday night Meher Mount was ablaze. 

The fire burned everything – buildings, equipment, fences, Baba’s Tree, and a 1950 Ford Woody station wagon. This was the station wagon Agnes Baron drove to take Avatar Meher Baba to and from Meher Mount in 1956.

“What hurts me most is the loss of my documents, library and Meher Baba’s pictures and writings.”

— Agnes Baron, Ojai Valley News, 1985

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Meher Mount calls the Ferndale Fire the ‘New Life Fire’ because Meher Baba’s New Life phase started on October 16, 1949.  The fire at Meher Mount was still burning right through the start of the anniversary of the New Life.

Meher Baba’s New Life was a phase of His work. It was a life of helplessness and hopelessness, relying only upon God.

“When the New Life Fire happened at Meher Mount, it literally required Agni to give up everything and start all over,” remembered Bing Heckman.  

She was left shoeless, homeless and with just the clothes on her back.

“What hurts me most,” Agnes told the Ojai Valley News, “is the loss of my documents, library and Meher Baba’s pictures and writings.”

The Baba Room — where Meher Baba spent most of the day with His followers in 1956 — was completely burned by the fire.

The stone fireplace from the Baba Room remains as a touchstone of His visit and His Presence at Meher Mount.

Almost 40 years later, there are plans underway to build the Darshan Courtyard in the footprint of the Baba Room. It will celebrate Meher Baba’s physical presence at Meher Mount.  

The courtyard is planned to create a space to sit, reflect, meditate, enjoy the outdoors, and remember the Divine.

 ~Margaret Magnus, Communications Director

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Sources

• Margaret Magnus & Sam L. Ervin, “The New Life Fire — Keeping Meher Mount through Hellfire and Damnation,” Meher Mount Story Blog, accessed September 1, 2024.

• “Meher Baba’s New Life,” Meher Mount Story Blog, accessed September 1, 2024.

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