Gustadji had a different preoccupation. All day long, he would gather sticks and twigs from the Rosewood compound, and fill one room with them. Once a week, he would warm his bathwater by burning these pieces of wood. All the other mandali were taking cold baths. On his bath day, Gustadji would begin lighting the pile of twigs from morning, and the water would go on boiling until noon. Then he would carry the hot water to the bathroom, where he would remain for several hours — until 5:00 P.M.! He was very particular in his habits; he would soap every part of his body thoroughly, then carefully scrub it slowly, over and over again.
One day Baba was playing the card game La Risque with the mandali when halfway through the game he threw down his cards on the table.
"I want you to go outside and meditate," he gestured.
The mandali were surprised at his sudden instructions, because they would never meditate.
Pointing outside, Baba motioned, "Go there and select your seats. When I clap, shut your eyes and settle down comfortably. When I clap again, start meditating."
He added, "But on what subject, what theme, will you meditate? Meditate on God. And what is God? How will you bring God before your mind's eye? Clear your mind of all thoughts. Bring before your mind's eye the brightness, the brilliance, the effulgence. That is God. Think on it. Just be there. But God is infinite. There is no limit to Him. He is the mighty Ocean of Effulgence. So, where will you be meditating from? You will be in it. Picture that effulgence all around you, and just be in it.
"When you hear the second clap, begin to mediate on the effulgence of Existence that is God infinite and eternal. As soon as you hear a third clap, stop and come to me."
So the mandali went out into the compound. They sat down on the ground, each one at a distance from the other. Baba clapped, and they shut their eyes. They settled down, and soon afterwards, a second clap was given. They dutifully began to meditate as instructed. But hardly had a few minutes passed — just when they had started to enjoy it! — when Baba clapped, and they reentered the bungalow. The card game was resumed with no further mention of meditation.
Baba continued his seclusion work in Judge's Bungalow until Monday, 30 April 1956, and that afternoon, in Nariman's car, he departed for mast contacts, accompanied by Eruch, Pendu, Baidul, Nilu and Chhagan (who had been sent for from Ahmednagar). Traveling day and night, Baba contacted masts in Pandharpur, Sholapur, Gulbarga, Aland, Hubli, Dharwar, Belgaum, Kolhapur, Sangli and Islampur. The journey lasted for four days, but there is no record of the contacts made.