Bhiwa had left home with a few coins and only a few roasted chickpeas in his pocket. He had intended to go on pilgrimage to Pandharpur, but it was his great fortune to come face to face with Pandhari (Lord God) himself.
Baba kept Bhiwa at Meherabad and renamed him Bholaram, because of his innocent nature.1 After the evening meal, Baba, communicating by gestures, began teaching Bholaram the alphabet in Marathi. Baba emphasized to him that he was the first boy at Meherabad to be personally tutored by him. Baba assured Bholaram that, whether he remained with him or not, he would continue making progress in his education, in spite of his age.
The number of disciples and workers at Meherabad was rapidly increasing. During the previous few months, the number of men mandali had increased so much that a new residence was built for them. It was a 30-foot square shed-like building, constructed of tin sheets. In a row of its long hall Baba allotted a place to each for bedding and trunks, leaving a space in the center where his seat was placed. Baba named the new building Makan-e-Khas — House of the Chosen Ones. On Friday, 4 September 1925, the building was ready for occupancy and a housewarming was held where all were served tea and bhujias.
Makan-e-Khas was built opposite the Post Office building, next to the temporary quarters occupied by the teachers, Dr. Karkal, and a few members of the mandali with their families. The Post Office verandah, where some of the mandali had been sleeping, was extended and turned into a storeroom for supplies. Gustadji was the storekeeper and resided in the storeroom. Kaka Shahane and his wife Manutai and their children lived in the Family Quarters in Arangaon. Ramjoo and Ghani, who lived near Lonavla, were frequent visitors. Adi Sr. stayed in Khushru Quarters for some time and would come almost every day with his mother, Gulmai. Rustom and Freiny were also living at Khushru Quarters at the time, as Freiny was expecting their second child.
There were two men in Arangaon who worked extracting peanut and safflower cooking oils. Once these two villagers came to Baba with the complaint that their relatives were refusing to take part in a wedding feast at their house, because, according to Baba's orders, no mutton was to be served.
Footnotes
- 1.Bhola means innocent or gullible.