We were regularly on the move, hardly staying more than a few days at a place except London and Lugano, and that too to arrange and fix future programs.
Somebody has played mischief there too, as appears from false reports published in the John Bull magazine. But this mischief has fortunately done no harm in England or America, for they all know what kind of trash magazine this John Bull is, whose editor we hear was convicted several times for such false allegations about persons of prominence. Sane people won't even read it! But unfortunately in India people don't know this, and there are people here whose only business in life is to play mischief against Baba and his mission; and instigated by writings from persons like [K. J.] Dasturji, they leave no stone unturned to make the most of these defaming reports prejudicing the minds of so many.
But Baba is quite indifferent to these; rather in his own way he enjoys these; or to put it more clearly, he invites and creates such opposition for his working.
In April last, when we were in Lugano, he explained one evening to some of his intimate devotees that he wished to avert the great catastrophe — the outbreak of a great worldwide war, preparations for which were going on on all sides — and save humanity from the atrocities and ruination through devastation and destruction from such a war as this.
To avert this, three things were necessary: First, to create an opposition — against himself on a wide scale. Second, to incur physical sufferings on himself. Third, to allow some minor clashes here and there, instead of a worldwide, destructive war.
For personal sufferings, he said, he was prepared to incur anything on himself. But for the opposition which he had to create, he warned all his devotees not to be misled or upset by anything. And immediately after he warned all, the very next day the article in John Bull appeared in public. But no one was affected there.
And then Babaji [gave another] great test. He openly declared to all in England and America that he was going to break his silence on the 13th of July [1932] in Hollywood.
Nice publicity was given to this breaking of Baba's silence after seven years, which almost all considered a great event, and elaborate preparations were made to celebrate the same on a grand scale.