The plight of the mandali was truly unenviable. In Nasik, Baba made them become fakirs! Food was of the poorest quality, and all were depressed.
The validity period of Persian passports at that time was for only one year, and Baba's previous passport had expired. This time, too, Baba refused to write his signature for a British passport. Instead he applied for another Persian one by putting his thumbprint under a recently taken photograph in a brown fur coat. The new passport was issued in Quetta on 24 May.1
On Monday, 1 June 1931, accompanied by Aga Ali, Chanji, Buasaheb, Raosaheb, and Gustadji, Baba left Quetta by train for his third visit to Persia. The route chosen was again plagued with trouble and hardships.
They reached Duzdab five days later. From Duzdab, they drove by car and arrived in Meshed (Mashhad) at noon on the 6th, where they occupied a rented residence near a garden. Baba would walk daily to a garden in Meshed and also went to the movies several evenings. One day while he was strolling about the town, two women followed him. Reaching his residence, Baba beckoned them inside and asked what they wanted. They were prostitutes for hire. Baba explained to them about leading a pure spiritual life devoted to God.
While looking at Baba's face, the women burst out crying, "O Holy One! How can we make up for our sins? Our lives have been so immoral; we are beyond salvation."
Baba consoled them, explaining, "A Holy One is like the ocean. It is so vast that, whether you throw dirt or sandalwood into it, it assimilates both, leaving its waters as pure as before. In the same way, the Holy One also takes upon himself the good and bad of both the virtuous and the sinful, merging them in his ocean. In this way, even the worst of sinners are purified. So from now on, avoid your present way of living and accept that you have been forgiven and made pure."
Both prostitutes were deeply moved by Baba's silent words. Baba bade them sit beside him and their hearts cried out, "O Holy One! We dedicate our new life at your feet!" They shed tears of repentance before him, and their sins were washed away by their tears at the Beloved's feet.
While in Meshed, Baba kept Aga Ali by his side at all times.
Baba remarked about the boy to the mandali, "If Ali remains pure, I will make him a salik!"
Ali was now serving as Baba's personal aide and would also read his alphabet board at times.
Footnotes
- 1.The local photographer, named Bal, requested and was granted a second sitting on 29 May for another portrait, but those images have been lost.