THE INFINITE TREASURE

 
Meher Baba remained in Mandwa for a few days and it was during this stay that he referred to himself as being a God-Conscious Master, a Sadguru or Qutub, and remarked about his mandali — circle of disciples — for the first time:

From the very beginning, I have a circle consisting of a fixed number of men and women. In the near future, these individuals will gain the ultimate experience of Truth and Knowledge.

Out of millions of souls, only one becomes perfect. Perfection entails unimaginable hardships and sufferings. The Perfect Man can bestow divine consciousness — the experience of Infinity — upon anyone in the twinkling of an eye. The Perfect Man bestows conscious divinity at the right moment upon those who have an age-old connection with him.

To clarify this, suppose a man has suddenly risen to wealth. After becoming rich, however generous he may be, he will not distribute his riches to every poor person in the world. He will give it to the selected few who are closely connected with him.

Further suppose that this wealthy man is driving in his car and passes a pauper lying beside the road. He will either leave him there or stop and hand him some money. But if he comes across a poor man and discovers him to be his long lost brother, how will he react then? Despite the importance of his errand and inherent nature of his position (working to gain more wealth), he will stop the car and without the poor man's asking, he will take him in his car to his house and keep him there in luxurious comfort.

The same is true in the spiritual path. To acquire the gift of divine knowledge, a person must have a close connection with a Perfect Master. It was because of this spiritual relationship between myself and Babajan that she — without my asking, striving or longing for it — bestowed on me the experience of God I now have. And it is this intimate, spiritual relationship which will make me, in the very near future, share the infinite treasure with twelve of my first disciples.

Hearing this conclusion, each man wondered if he was one of the fortunate people in his circle.

After clarifying to the group of men that he was indeed a God-Conscious Guru, out of highest regard they began referring to him as their Master.