In December of 1939, a stone monument for Nonny was built adjoining Baba's Tomb on Meherabad Hill. Sarosh had ordered the headstone from Poona. Baba had instructed that the words Nonny, Baba's Lover be carved on it. Baba further ordered that food be distributed to the poor on the anniversary of Nonny's death every year in commemoration of her deep devotion to him.1
␞The day after Nonny's death, on Sunday, 15 October 1939, Baba remarked, "Before the war ends, two more of the circle will pass off [on]. It may be two male members or one male and one female. Bu t they will be the luckiest to have left their bodies at such an important and critical period of my great work of creating an upheaval all over the world."
After Baba's arrival in Bangalore, his attention focused on two things: his mast work and the establishment of a Universal Spiritual Center. As mentioned, the site for the center was selected at Byramangala, 22 miles from Bangalore and three miles from the Bidadi railway station. More than 560 acres of land were purchased, and plans for erecting nine separate structures were drawn up, containing 350 rooms. A committee consisting of Norina, Elizabeth, Pappa Jessawala, Adi Sr., Ramjoo, Chanji and Jal Kerawalla was formed to oversee the financial and other aspects of the center.
The foundation-laying ceremony was initially fixed for the 25th of October. But the local farmers requested that the ceremony be held after harvesting the crops on the Byramangala property, even though the property no longer belonged to them. October 25th was also the day of convocation at Mysore University, with which some of Baba's followers were involved. Therefore, the ceremony was postponed until the middle of December. The land had belonged to about 40 farmers and the government, and its purchase had been greatly facilitated and quickened through the influence of Dewan Mirza Ismail.
When Baba had first arrived in Bangalore, no rain had fallen and the crops were drying up. The farmers of the villages surrounding Byramangala came to know about Meher Baba and one day approached him, praying to him to send rain soon.
Baba ironically advised them, "The best remedy is to let me go from here! Drive me away! It is my misery to be always stuck in dry places."
But Baba then assured them that rain would fall. From the next day, rains did begin, gladdening the hearts of the poor farmers.
Footnotes
- 1.Thirteen years later, in 1952, at the insistence of Nonny's son, her ashes were taken to America, where they were reburied in a family plot in Maryland, next to her husband.