On Sacred Ground

To Love The Lord As Mehera Loved Him

Shortly before Baba dropped His body, He told Eruch that after He was gone people would come with all sorts of spiritual questions.

“What will you tell them? Remember, all the answers are found in creation, providing you are able to decipher them.” [1]

I am reminded of that incident every May when the temperature sizzles dramatically and the fields surrounding Meherazad look as though they have been singed by fire. Only the gulmohar tree rises up out of the parched landscape, its brilliant orange-red blossoms seeming to bear tribute to the sun’s fiery rays. And when I find myself gazing at the tree’s remarkable beauty in the midst of summer’s wasteland, I remember Baba’s words about creation and I wonder: Is the striking beauty of the gulmohar an analogy for something far deeper, a truth beyond the physical world—to love the Beloved as He should be loved, one must walk willingly through the fire. One must become consumed, not from without, but from within, by the unseen flames of love.

It has been twenty-eight years this month since Baba’s Mehera passed away from our midst; twenty-eight years since humanity has had the privilege of being in the presence of unparalleled love for Meher Baba. For, being in Mehera’s company allowed one to be transported vicariously into a realm where love alone is the sustaining force. All thoughts, all actions, all conversation, in one way or another, led to only one thought, one goal—to please Meher Baba. And to be in proximity of such profound and one-pointed focus on the Beloved was to witness the glory of love in all its childlike simplicity.

Mehera had a singular role in creation, one played out in every Advent. Meher Baba said she was His Radha, His Sita. She was the beloved of the Beloved, the purest soul in the Universe. She stood apart from all in her love and life for Meher Baba, and yet she exuded accessibility, a playfulness and innocent joy that made you want to be in her company.

One day there were just a few of us resident women chatting away with Mehera when she spontaneously told us, “You know, I never get enough exercise, so let’s take a walk.” We followed Mehera as she swiftly proceeded to walk towards the green gates of Meherazad and the Approach Road stretching ahead of it. Mehera, just like Baba in His early films, seemed to fly down the road. Although she wasn’t walking that fast, we had to almost run to keep up with her. Mehera loved beauty and saw in beauty the reflection of her Beloved—because it was His creation, every detail was of interest to her. As she stood for a moment wistfully admiring the beautiful archway formed by the boughs of the trees lining either side of the approach road, she remembered how often Baba had walked down this very road.

Mehera was quiet for a moment before remarking, “See how we are walking in sandals over the rough pebbles and stones. Mira walked barefoot for the love of her Krishna. In one of her songs she says, ‘The world tried to captivate me, but then I realized I’d taken this form to love and worship the Lord.'” [2]

Mehera explained, “The world was not for Mira, but it reminds us how sacred it is to have this form, this body, and to use it for the purpose it was intended—to love the Lord.”

—Davana Brown for Avatar Meher Baba Trust, 25 May 2017

[1] According to Eruch, Baba was trying to bring home to him that for every spiritual truth there is an analogy in creation that explains it.

[2] Saint Mira was a 16th century Rajput princess who gave up everything for her love of Krishna. She is still remembered and revered for her devotion to Lord Krishna and the songs she composed and sang in praise of Him.