At Baba's request, a few men told jokes, and at eleven everyone went for lunch. Baba also walked to the dining pandal.
While entering the kitchen, Baba found one of the stone steps loose and took the workers to task, warning, "Don't you see this? If someone falls and breaks a leg, it will be calamitous to my sahavas. It is better to lose some money than for someone to slip and lose a limb!"
Immediately, the faulty stone was repaired.
After lunch, Baba met in the hall with Keshav and the workers from Hamirpur. As he had previously explained to the Telugu group, in a similar manner Baba explained how to do his work in his name. Keshav translated into Hindi Eruch's English interpretations of Baba's hand signs and gestures.
After tea, all gathered in the hall at 3:00 P.M., where Vishnu of Dhagwan sang bhajans at Baba's request.
Addressing Pukar, Baba said, "Do you have a [singing] voice?"
Pukar rejoined, "I can speak, so I must have a voice!"
Everyone laughed, and Baba asked, "What sort of voice do you have?"
Pukar said, "That is for others to judge."
Baba asked him to sing a song, and he attempted it in a soft, off-key tone.
Baba commented, "What a small voice for such a large body! Your voice only you can hear!"
Smiling, Baba added, "I enjoy teasing you, Pukar!"
Vishnu of Dhagwan began another song, but before he could finish, Mohan Lal Sharma of Delhi joined in and began to sing in an emotional tone. When he finished, Baba asked Kishan Singh to sing, and he very loudly began: "From Shiva's phallus has emerged Merwan! Jai Meher Baba, Jai Merwan!" His voice was so loud it carried over 200 yards, and the entire assembly shook with laughter. Baba, too, was smiling.1
Baba called upon Was Deo Kain to sing, but on the excuse that he had a sore throat, he escaped.
Baba reminisced, "In Manzil-e-Meem, there was a Parsi lad who was an exceptionally good singer. The only trouble was he would become nervous when told to sing and would begin coughing and stammering. But once he started, he would go on singing without stopping."
Footnotes
- 1.Although Baba would laugh heartily at times, he was always silent. His laughter did not make the least sound.