At about 3:00 P.M., Patwardhan gave a wonderful vocal performance until 4:30 P.M., which Baba and all highly enjoyed.
Baba kept repeating: "He is blessed because he can make me happy."
After the program, Baba embraced Patwardhan and gave him a handkerchief. He also had his photograph taken with the singer. Afterwards, Madhusudan sang a few ghazals. The day ended with each one going to Baba, kissing his hand and leaving the hall.
Sometime before, Amar Singh Saigal had given his good friend, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, and other cabinet ministers a few booklets about Meher Baba. A report of his meeting with Nehru was sent to Baba at Meherazad, and after Baba heard the report on 22 March 1963, he had dictated these instructions for Saigal:
Saigal should find another good opportunity to help the Prime Minister by telling him that, if he is not convinced about Meher Baba through hearsay, then it is time he should make it a point to meet Meher Baba personally to feel convinced of his Avatarhood. The personal contact with the Avatar and the Avatar's grace may help the Prime Minister feel convinced.
God in human form is the Avatar, and God's shadow in human form is man; therefore, there is a world of difference between the grace of the Avatar and the blessings of saints. Arjuna was blessed by saints and sages, but the instant grace of the Avatar convinced him of the Avatarhood of Krishna, for there is nothing impossible when the Avatar wills it so.
Hence, it is time for our dear Panditji [Nehru] to come into the direct contact of the Avatar of the Age and begin to strive for that Freedom which, once gained, knows not any bondage but gives the freedom from freedom itself!1
I know that Panditji has no time to read things which help this process of unlearning. Yet, moved by Panditji's sincerity and honesty, I want you to tell him that Baba asks him to read a portion from God Speaks for five minutes daily, beginning with the first page and ending with the last.
I want you to take an appointment and have at least ten undisturbed minutes and read out the relevant paragraphs of this letter from paragraph three. In addition, I want you to especially read to him without fail, the following message from me:
Even intellectual conviction regarding Reality is not of any importance. The experience of seeing God within oneself as He is — the Ocean of Effulgence, of Love, Truth, Honesty, Power, Knowledge and Bliss — is important.
Footnotes
- 1.Panditji, meaning a wise or learned man, was a widely used term of respect and affection for Jawaharlal Nehru.