I would like to share one story that speaks to the enormous purpose or connectivity, not only of Meher Mount, but also of Baba’s Tree.
During my tenure as caretaker (2002-2010), I had to travel to Santa Fe, NM, as part of my work. On my travels there, I liked to go to the Santa Fe flea market. When I was at the market, I noticed a gentleman that was selling honey and bee pollen.
The bee pollen was extraordinary. It was almost psychedelic in color. It was so colorful, and it felt alive. I was really drawn to this guy, his honey, and his bee pollen.
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One Sunday morning, a friend and I did a tree tour of the Ojai area, and we came up to Meher Mount to see Baba’s Tree. I couldn’t believe it was one tree.
After that, I got my family involved. My kids were 10 years old and 15 years old at the time. It was important for me that they learn to appreciate and love nature.
When I initially had the idea to go up to Meher Mount, they were like, “Oh yeah, right, dad. Sure. It’s a tree. Big deal.”
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One day while sitting on Mehera’s porch at Meherazad*, I showed Mehera a photo I had taken of Baba’s Tree. The photo was taken at a distance from Baba’s Tree as the sun was beginning to rise.
The sky was filled with beautiful vibrant pinks and blues. The blue was the sky blue of Meher Baba’s flag.+
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I was visiting with my two young boys. Baba’s Tree was really inviting, and they both started to climb the limbs on the tree. Then I noticed all the flowers at the base of the tree and thought maybe my boys shouldn’t disturb anything.
I started to tell them to climb down from the tree, but before I would even say the words, Meher Baba’s face appeared to me (kind of see-through and sparkly like) about a foot from mine.
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I remember this Hafiz poem-rendering coming to mind being at Baba's Tree at Meher Mount, and that poem then, and still does, take on special meaning for me now.
And I remember once reciting this poem to Eruch Jessawala* who said: "The sky is a tree and the stars its branches ever reaching for us, like God."
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In 1956, when Avatar Meher Baba visited Meher Mount, caretaker Agnes Baron took Him on a tour of the property.
As they crested the hill overlooking a corner of the property, now known as Avatar’s Point, a large oak came into view. Agnes turned to Meher Baba and said, “Baba, I’ve always thought of this as Your Tree.”
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It’s safe to say that no one associated with Meher Mount foresaw that two years – almost to the day – after high winds and the 2017 Thomas Fire felled most of Baba’s Tree, that what was left of the tree would be recovering nicely and is now the centerpiece of what is emerging as Baba’s Tree Grove.
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In the days immediately following the devastation of Baba’s Tree from the December 2017 Thomas Fire, volunteers looked for rays of hope. One of those rays of hope was the growth of new sprouts on Baba’s Tree.
Another ray of hope was the realization that there was a small Coast Life Oak (Quercus agrifolia) that had been ‘hiding’ in plain sight very close to Baba’s Tree. And this tree, most probably Baba’s Tree progeny, had only been slightly burned by the Thomas Fire.
Meanwhile, in another spot near Baba’s Tree and previously hidden under the canopy of Baba’s Tree was a growth-suppressed tree stump of a Coast Live Oak that had been cut down sometime in the history of Meher Mount.
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Just as the October 2014 board meeting at Meher Mount was winding up, contributing writer for The Ojai Valley Visitors Guide Perry Van Houten arrived to find out more about Baba’s Tree for an article he was writing. Board President Sam Ervin took him on a tour and provided background information along with a number of photos.
What follows is the section about Baba’s Tree from the article “Ojai’s Trees” by Perry Van Houten published in the Winter 2014 edition of the The Ojai Valley Visitors Guide and used with permission from the publisher, Ojai Valley News.
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"An infinite number of branches spread out from me. It is I who work through you all and suffer for you all. ..." - Avatar Meher Baba
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It was a Monday or Tuesday when Meher Mount is officially closed. However, we were going to run some errands down the hill, and we had earlier opened the front gate for our departure.
Meanwhile, back at the Visitor Center/Caretaker Quarters, we were busy and not expecting visitors, so we weren’t watching for them. Somehow a couple of visitors slipped by.
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As Manager/Caretakers at Meher Mount, my wife Pamela and I encountered a number of people who happened to visit seemingly for “no reason” at all.
Maybe they were inexplicably drawn up Sulphur Mountain Road or were just out for a drive in the mountains. Regardless, they were unknowingly led to Meher Mount, and ultimately, Baba's Tree.
These unintentional visitors came in all shapes and sizes, from students to seekers to tourists to long-time Ojai residents who seemed baffled that they “never knew this place was here.”
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