Baba accepted, instructing that the white horse, when obtained, should be delivered to Sarnath. Thus, during Baba's two-week stay in Benares, both families rendered invaluable services to him.
On Thursday, 1 December 1949, Baba joined the companions after tea and handed Ghani a chit with two Urdu couplets to be read out, describing the Old and the New Life:
Discard now the imaginary dream of separation; You were God, you are God, but now become God.
Make yourself miserable, battered, shattered, destitute and inaccessible; Become the voice of calamity, distress, sorrow and troubles.
Baba then set out on foot for Sarnath with the men and women companions — and Age was able to add new material to its storehouse of treasure! The companions were not ready to taste the Wine of Love from their Beloved, and so he himself, playing the part of devotee, had forsaken everything material for their benefit. Though the gods were sharing in this divine drama, not having gross bodies, they were unable to have his physical contact — and for this they envied the companions!
Baba left first at 7 A.M. with the women, accompanied by Adi Sr. to guide them. The men companions left after loading the luggage into a truck, walking while shouldering their meager belongings. Soon the men formed the advance group, and Baba and the women followed a furlong behind. Baba at times went ahead to be with the men, and then returned to the women. Each one's heart echoed the chorus of the New Life song:
Listen to the silent words of Meher Baba, which contain the history of all lovers of God ...
The companions marched triumphantly to the beat of this "silent language" of the Lord. As if to hail the momentous occasion, a mast was spotted on the road. Baba had him included in the retinue, and the mast walked the four miles north to Sarnath alongside the group of men.
In Sarnath, Dr. Nath had rented a friend's bungalow for Baba and the women outside Sarnath, at the village of Pahariya, and another, an eighth of a mile away, for the men. The Nath and Khare families were to send meals by car from Benares, and thus continue to oversee all arrangements from a distance.
On the afternoon of the 2 nd , Baba played the dholak as Adi Sr. sang and accompanied himself on the harmonium. Baba instructed Ghani to amend the Old Life Seven Names of God prayer from: "Hari, Paramatma, Allah, Ahuramazda, God, Yezdan, Hu" to: "Khuda, Paramatma, Allah, Ahuramazda, God, Alakh [Attributeless God], Ishwar." Adi sang this for about fifteen minutes, with Baba continuing to play the dholak and Nilu chiming in with finger-cymbals.
Ghani read out a few couplets he had added to a poem he had composed. Baba praised the poem, but admonished Ghani for including a reference to him as Khursh-e-Zaman (the Avatar). He had him cross out the line and pinch his (Ghani's) ears in repentance. As Ghani noted in his diary, "In this New Life, Baba scrupulously avoids being referred to as Master, Sadguru or Avatar; he has even tabooed discussion of spiritual subjects in his presence. Baba admonished all once again that nothing should be said or done in his presence which would in any way recall the Old Life."
Since the beginning of the New Life, Padri had been living near Meherabad, keeping an eye on the persons living there, as well as taking care of the buildings and land. Padri had been called to Sarnath from Ahmednagar to deliver the caravan, two bullocks and a bullock cart, but he did not arrive until 3 December. He had been instructed not to see any of them, especially Baba. Padri was to leave the caravan, cart and animals at the railway station, without conversing with Eruch and Pendu, who had to travel to the Mughal Sarai railway station to take delivery. (Later, Padri was entrusted to make certain additions and modifications to the caravan.)
The printed copies of the Song of the New Life arrived in Sarnath that day. Baba distributed a copy to each of the companions and instructed that Nath be given 20 copies.
Khare had agreed to send two horses and a saddle to Sarnath.
"After Don and Sadashiv give the horses a trial ride," Baba said, "Ghani will be made to ride. If he succeeds in keeping his seat on the horse, then it will be a sure criterion that the horse is safe for me to ride!"
Mehera was consulted, as she knew about horses, and gave her opinion, and one was selected.
Sarnath is the most sacred place to Buddhists all over the world, as it is the place where Buddha preached his first sermon and initiated his first five disciples. After this time, Sarnath became the center of his activity, and it is said that Buddha remained there.
There are many Buddhist temples and giant stupas in Sarnath. In the main temple near the stupas, a Japanese artist had painted frescoes depicting scenes from Buddha's life. There are also separate underground stone rooms originally used for meditation, with steps leading down to them. At that time, these underground caverns were mostly in ruins.
Baba took the women to show them this place on the morning of the 3 rd , accompanied by Adi and Nilu. When they reached there, he directed Mani to write down on a slip of paper the name of the known Avatars in this cycle, and give it to him.