"...the solid mountain of our true nature stays where it's always been."

Your Friday photo…

One late summer evening, photographer and guest caretaker Juan Mendez took this photo of the Topa Topa Bluffs as seen from Meher Mount. Long-time volunteer Sam L. Ervin suggested these words from the Sufi poet Rumi.

“There are many winds full of anger, and lust and greed. They move the rubbish around, but the solid mountain of our true nature stays where it’s always been.”

— Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī

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Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī, also known as Rumi, was a 13th century poet and Islamic scholar. Avatar Meher Baba enjoyed listening to Rumi's poetry and praised him as one of the greatest minds of all mystical and spiritual literature.

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Source
Coleman Barks, “Feeling the Shoulder of the Lion: Poetry and Teaching Stories of Rumi,” p.91, Shambhala Publications, 2000. (Selections from Rumi’s epic poem, Mathnawi.)

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"You gotta go out and look toward the Topas..."

Your Friday photo…

A little after midnight on May 11, 2024, Meher Mount Caretaker Ray Johnston received a phone call…

“You gotta go out and look toward the Topas,” said the friend over the phone.

Immediately Ray ran outside and saw the aurora borealis behind the Topa Topa Bluffs.

The rest of the Ojai Valley was covered in clouds, but higher up, the sky presented this incredible light show.

The aurora borealis appeared due to a geomagnetic storm caused by solar flares. This meant that parts of the world that are never able to see the aurora borealis (also referred to as the Northern Lights) were able to witness it for two nights in a row.

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