Baba turned to Ivy and asked, "Have you heard of the ancient Sufi prophet, Khwaja Khizr ?"
She replied that she had heard Rabia Martin speak of him. Baba explained:
"Khwaja Khizr now and then takes on a physical body if there is some spiritual situation that absolutely demands it. The Realization of Francis was such a case, because he had no Perfect Master to give him Realization. So on the night we read about on Mount La Verna, [near] Assisi, during which Saint Francis also received the stigmata [wounds of the Crucified Christ], Khwaja Khizr, in his temporary human form, gave this beloved Western saint the touch of grace which made him a Perfect Soul — a Sadguru or Perfect Master."1
After this explanation, Baba, Eruch, Adi, Meherjee and Nilu walked back to Baba's house to rest until 1:30 P.M. A group of younger lovers walked with them. When they arrived at the fenced entrance to the house, Baba dismissed them to go back.
The group stopped in the little clearing in front of Baba's house and began talking, but Bili Eaton followed Baba. The mandali had gone ahead. Bili recalled the incident:
I could not leave him. It was as though I were tied to him. I stopped at the gate because I did not dare go any farther. Baba turned around and looked at me and the love in his eyes was fantastic! All the while I looked, his eyes were glowing and he looked at me and smiled. It was as though I could feel the pull. I glanced over at the others, but they were standing there not noticing. The mandali, walking ahead, did not notice, either. It was as if Baba and I were alone in the world.
Baba then gestured to me to go and walked on up the path to his house. I remained standing there, unable to move. Baba turned around again, his eyes glowing. He looked at me, and I could feel the pull. He smiled and made the same gesture. He turned around a third time, and this time I made the motion, "Why are you pulling me and sending me away at the same time?" He smiled a beautiful smile, and then I was released. He continued toward the house, but this time I was able to walk away. Not easily, but I was able to move.
Footnotes
- 1.In an earlier discourse, given in November 1927, Baba states that Saint Francis traveled to India and received God-realization from a Hindu Perfect Master.