Within these four days, Baba had embraced almost 7,000 lovers, and he told the Westerners:
“”"Your love gives me strength and renews me, which is borne out this morning. I have come after embracing 3,000 lovers!"
Baba informed the group, "In about half an hour, you will hear some of the best musicians of India. They play classical music. The chief singer is Vinayak Rao Patwardhan. He visited Russia some months ago, and it is said that [the Russian Premier Nikita] Khrushchev looked down his throat to see if he was concealing some instrument, so remarkable is his voice!
"Patwardhan and his whole family love me very much. He usually charges a big fee to perform, but gives his best performance for me without any fee. When I sent him word, he postponed his engagement in Calcutta and will soon be here to sing before me."
Referring to a qawaali sung the day before, Baba commented, "The lover complained about separation from his Beloved. The Beloved seems very callous. The lover has to stitch up his lips. This is what happens when you get the gift of love from God! Thus, suffering is God's gift to man.
"The seventh-plane Biblical saint Zacharias sealed his lips, although he was sawed from head to toe! I am thinking of sewing you up, Anita, from head to foot to seal your lips!"
Baba asked where Ivy Duce was, and also Helen Webb. Both were ill with the flu and had stayed at their hotels. Baba sent Charmian Duce to bring them, stating this occasion was their last chance to see him in his physical form.
Then he began to joke with the group. He teased Harry Kenmore about his big appetite and eating so much.
“”"Right after breakfast he is hungry!"
When Baba heard that Marion Florsheim and Zarouhi Bahjejian had gotten back their passports from the thieves, he commented, "Nothing goes anywhere, but it comes to me. Remember that you wanted to give me Rs.400? The thief took away exactly Rs.400. So, now it is settled."
Baba reminded the group to send him one letter when they returned home.
“”He also stated, "In 1963, I will not see anyone, nor hear any correspondence. I will prepare for the urge to break my silence. In an emergency, you may send me a telegram reply-paid. Reply-paid forms, when not needed for replying to you, can then be used for cabling others."
