[Tavern-Talk] May The Victory Be His

[Tavern-Talk]

			May The Victory Be His

Last night I had a dream. Mandali Hall was packed with pilgrims and 
we were listening intently to Eruch and Mani.

Mani was seated  on the Persian carpet, next to Baba's foot cushion, 
and Eruch was in his usual place under the window sill.  Mani was 
describing to the packed hall the dream her mother had had just 
before Baba was born. Although I was dreaming, the story Mani was 
narrating was true.

"It was the night before my mother gave birth to my God-brother. She 
was in the Sassoon Hospital in Poona. But In her dream mother had 
already given birth and was standing outside her home, holding her 
newborn baby in her arms. As she stood there, she saw a river of 
humanity pass by her; men, women and children, old and young, black, 
brown, white and yellow, and as each person passed by, they turned 
towards her and looked intently at the baby in her arms.

"The river of humanity seemed endless," Mani told us, and even after 
Shireenmai woke up, the river seemed to stretch on and on and on.

"When my mother told my father Sheriarji the dream, he had said to 
her, 'Oh Shireen, you have no idea who is to be born to us, you have 
no idea.'"

Suddenly I woke up. I looked at the clock and it was two a.m.

Yes, I thought, we have no idea who He really is, and yet, in His 
compassion He has drawn us into the orbit of His love. He has blessed 
us to long to love Him, to serve Him and to glorify Him. And, in 
just a few hours more, we will be celebrating the most magical event 
ever, the Birth of the Birth-less  One.

The chill of the early morning prompts me to bury my head more deeply 
into the soft folds of my pillow and gather the quilt on my bed more 
closely around me, but Mani's dream words flood my mind and heart.

There is still time, but in another hour I will be getting up and the 
most wonderful and, simultaneously, the most exhausting day of the 
year will begin, 25th February, the Birth date of the Eternal 
Beloved, Avatar Meher Baba.

Eruch used to joke that even those who had trouble sleeping the rest 
of the year, would snore soundly the night after Baba's birthday, 
totally exhausted from the day's celebrations. But we wouldn't have 
it any other way.

Here at Meherazad, during these days prior to Baba's birthday, there 
has been much hectic activity. Every nook and corner of His home has 
been cleaned and scrubbed to a shine.

Outside Baba's room and the main house, scintillating stars and 
ornaments hang from every doorway and rafter. Colored lights are 
strung across the trees and shrubs in Mehera's garden, along the 
balcony of the bungalow, and a beaming, bigger than life size Baba 
photograph, encircled by a frame of flickering golden lights, beckons 
silently from the roof of Baba's room.

Although Baba's room always looks beautiful and is kept immaculately 
clean, just before His birthday it is given a fresh 'face-wash'. His 
bed is covered with an especially lovely bedspread(counterpane) 
chosen for this occasion, and just before 5 o'clock in the morning on 
the 25th of February, a basket full of red, fuchsia, peach and yellow 
roses will be placed near Baba's bed so that each one taking His 
darshan can offer a flower, as they offer their heart at His Feet.

In front of the main bungalow, Baba's room, the Meherazad Gates and 
the original entrance of Mandali Hall (facing Mehera's garden), the 
servants have spread a fresh layer of cow dung. These areas have 
become natural canvases for an Indian art form called Rangoli. 
Beautiful and unique designs have been painted on the ground using 
colored chalks and, for Baba's birthday, gold glitter.

On the men's side, the verandah has also been decorated with tinsel 
streamers, shining globes and sparkling stars. Mandali Hall has been 
transformed from the simple office of the Avatar to His enchanted 
palace. Each photograph adorning the white washed walls of Mandali 
Hall is caressed by a shimmering garland. Above Baba's Seat, a 
luminous golden crown hangs suspended by almost invisible threads, 
the ornaments glittering like multi-colored jewels.

Everywhere the fragrance of roses permeates the predawn air. There is 
a feeling of having stepped out of this world as we know it, into a 
special fairyland, into a realm where only love reigns supreme.

But all this is merely the outward expression of our yearning to 
offer something tangible, something of our selves in celebration of 
the Birth-date of the Eternal Beloved. So that brings us to the real 
question - how do we commemorate the Avatar's Birth in His very own 
home, Meherazad?

Eruch would often be asked this question. "So what do we do? He gave 
us the guideline. Assemble in the hall before 5am and at the stroke 
of 5 o'clock, shout out in unison seven times, AVATAR MEHER BABA KI 
JAI!

"When He was present here, we would greet Him and wish Him a Happy 
birthday. Baba would smile in silence and each one would be given an 
embrace. Now that His physical presence is not with us, we stand here 
in the hall, waiting for the chime to ring 5am. He told us, all you 
have to do is shout out seven times AVATAR MEHER BABA KI JAI! And we 
do that and we remember His being with us. The women mandali do the 
same in His room and our echoes reach them and their echoes reach us.

"It is not so much a celebration, as a day of great joy. We greet 
each other saying "Happy Baba's birthday" and embrace Baba in each 
one. All that is past is past and drowned in the ocean of His love. 
It may appear superficial, if a stranger were to come here and see 
this, but within each heart there is that fresh resolve to dedicate 
our life to Him. To implore Him to help us to lose our self, so that 
He alone emerges victorious. When we hail Him and say 'AVATAR MEHER 
BABA KI JAI!' we are imploring Him to help us lose our lower self so 
that we may be vanquished in His love. It is the defeat of the lower 
self and the glory of the true self."

Today, at Meherazad, Baba's birthday is observed, essentially, just 
as it was during His lifetime. The men mandali assemble in the 
Mandali Hall and the women mandali in Baba's room. And when the clock 
strikes 5 am, the moment of Meher Baba's birth, all call out AVATAR 
MEHER BABA KI JAI! just as Baba had instructed.

The echo of His Name breaks through the predawn silence, sound waves 
reverberating in His infinite ocean of love. Each voice adds its 
chorus to the symphony, each heart silently sings His glory, each 
mind makes its fresh resolve.  Seven times we call out His victory! 
Seven times it echoes back to us, AVATAR MEHER BABA KI JAI! 

May the Victory be His.


Davana Brown
For Tavern Talk
25th February 2008

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Tavern Talk is the electronic newsletter of the Avatar Meher Baba Trust
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