The man went home and told his wife, "I said only one, but now it is 40!"
"So our poor Portofino secret is probably already out to the world," Baba concluded, meaning some had written about it.
After lunch on 19 May in Nasik, Baba offered mangoes to some of the group. Some declined, saying their stomachs were too upset to eat a mango. Baba did not like this and spelled out:
What does not come spontaneously never comes! How many of you refused, how many of you hesitated, when I offered you the mangoes? In truth, there are many ways of testing faith and love. Love always seeks the will, happiness, pleasure and [to obey the] commands of the Beloved — always. Love never thinks of itself; that is love and that is God. God gives eternally. Love also gives; the lover never expects.
I had first intended to give you the rotten mangoes! But I knew that not one of you would have willingly taken them. And yet you all talk of dying for God! Be honest. When you say you love me — do love me.
Don't you remember the story I told you of Ramdas and Kalyan; how Kalyan sucked the mango tied to Ramdas' knee thinking it to be poison? This is love: to be ready to die for the love of the Beloved — for the happiness of the Beloved.
Changing the subject, Baba explained about Jesus and his apostles Peter and Judas:
Now, who is Christ? The individual soul. Who is Jesus? The Avatar of Nazareth. What is Christ? The Son of God state.1
Judas helped Jesus Christ in his Universal work. If Christ had not undergone the crucifixion, he could not have taken the burden of the universe upon himself. Jesus brought about his own crucifixion.
Peter loved Jesus the most. Jesus loved him most, although the love of Jesus for all was the same. Can you explain this? Loving all the same and yet some more than others? It is like the different parts of the body: they all belong to you, but you love some parts more than others. The eyes are more dear than your fingers. Is this clear?
Jesus loved Peter most in this respect. Peter was his eyes. When Jesus said to Peter, "You will betray me," Peter knew he would betray his Master, the one whom he loved most, and yet he bore it bravely.
Footnotes
- 1.For an explanation of the states of God — The Father, Son and Holy Ghost — refer to The Nothing and The Everything, pp. 139–143.