But a Sadguru is not to be found so easily. It requires love, the search for Truth amidst hardships and sufferings, and undergoing untold difficulties — these draw the Sadguru to the deserving ones.
If by hurting a person temporarily you provide a permanent healing, this apparently cruel act of yours is, in fact, a blessing. In the same way, suppose that by rendering a temporary healing you create a permanent hurt; this apparently blessed act of yours is, in fact, a curse. A doctor cutting open a boil and causing so much pain to the sufferer is considered an enemy who has hurt one; but when the pus is removed the patient is relieved, and the doctor is considered a real friend who helped.
So the Sadguru is at first apparently considered an enemy when he tries to remove sins and wipe out desires and sanskaras of the aspirant by forcing strict discipline on him, renunciation, et cetera. But when the bliss of union with the Divine Beloved is attained through his grace, he is considered a true friend.
On Saturday, 10 December 1927, a few of the ashram boys, who were profoundly moved by Meher Baba's love and who preferred meditation to studying, were singled out and kept separately from the other boys. Raosaheb was put in charge of them, and special food arrangements were made for them. This was the beginning of what was to be called the Prem (Love) Ashram .
At first these boys of the Prem Ashram were kept down the hill with the Irani boys, but after five days all were shifted up the hill where Baba stayed. At times the other boys in the Meher Ashram also appeared profoundly affected by Baba's love similarly to those who were now segregated in the Prem Ashram. But for the most part, the Meher Ashram boys were more inclined toward their studies than meditation.
On 12 December, Keki Irani from Ghatkopar visited after a long time. On the 15th at Shahane's house, Rustom read to Baba an article from the newspaper about a live crab being created from a piece of metal. This elicited the following candid explanation from the Master:
This is due to occult powers, but remember it has nothing to do with ghosts. Ghosts and occult or black magic are quite different. Spirit [mind and energy] itself, as in ghosts, is a power, originally the power of cause; but occult powers are powers that are caged and covered.