He repeated, "Ahuramazda, Ahuramazda" for a few hours but then began uttering instead, "Meher Baba, Meher Baba," until 5:00 A.M. The next day Baidul told Baba about it, but Keki defended himself, claiming that he himself had not been conscious of it, but that he had been staring at Baba's photograph during the repetition. He then asked for Baba's forgiveness.
"Don't worry," Baba told him. "Meher Baba himself is Ahuramazda."
When the circular about keeping awake and repeating God's name was sent to Baba's lovers in Nagpur and other places, Deshmukh over-enthusiastically declared that this was the "Night of God-realization!" and that some would attain that divine state.1 The mandali came to know of it and planned a practical joke to fool Deshmukh when he was to visit Dehra Dun on 30 October. Deshmukh arrived that morning and, according to the men's plan, Bhau approached him at the gate and drew him aside.
"Doctor Saheb," he said. "Something has happened! All of the mandali have become like masts from the night of the 28th. Only I, unfortunately, have escaped that state. It is my bad luck nothing has happened to me."
Listening with keen eagerness, Deshmukh eyes widened and he inquired, "What has happened?"
Bhau replied very seriously, "All have turned into masts! But when Baba comes they become completely normal. No sooner Baba leaves, than they revert again to that state. I am really unfortunate that no experience has been given to me."
"Don't worry, Bhau," Deshmukh reassured him. "You are a member of the mandali and Baba will surely bestow his blessings on you one day."
Bhau took Deshmukh inside their bungalow. Eruch, Nilu, Pendu and Vishnu were in one of the rooms. Eruch was lying down and had covered himself from head to foot with a blanket. Pendu was smoking two cigarettes at once. Nilu was sitting before a heap of rubbish he had piled in front of himself. Vishnu was leaning his head on a bundle of cloth with a dazed expression. No one spoke to Deshmukh. He tried to remove Eruch's blanket but Eruch snatched it away and pretended to sleep. Pendu was crawling on the ground. When Deshmukh tried to draw his attention, Pendu pounced on him, growling in anger. Deshmukh was frightened and left in a hurry. Coming out he encountered Don, who had tied tree branches around his waist and strapped two sickles to his hips for cutting grass! He was chewing an unlit cigar, and Deshmukh was convinced that he and the others had become masts.
Footnotes
- 1.Meherjee arrived at this time, also, and stayed for a week.