Part 5b:

ELIZABETH CHAPIN PATTERSON

In India, Elizabeth had a most unusual privilege. Baba gave her permission to stay in the Panchgani Cave, 5,000 feet up in Tiger Valley (well-named!) in the Western Ghats. Baba Himself had had the cave dug in 1929 and stayed there in seclusion. He had allowed only two other disciples, Behramji and Pleader, to stay there. On May 8, 1939, Elizabeth was to stay in the cave exactly 12 hours. Baba Himself locked her in, telling her not to fall asleep. She had a paranormal experience (2) that night and when she asked Baba if it was symbolic, He said yes, and she would understand its full meaning later. Another interesting experience she and Norina shared occurred on their trip west in 1932. Baba wanted them to accompany Him on the train; they wanted to drive across the U.S. Somewhere in the western desert they lost their way. Suddenly, a man in a car ahead of them beckoned to them to follow him. They did, but when they stopped to thank him, his car had disappeared. They discovered a bridge had washed out on the original road: if they had followed it they might have been killed. In Hollywood, Baba said, to save them He had to send one of His "abduls", or agents (3).

When she returned to America in '41, she, together with Norina, began her search for a property for a spiritual center, as Baba had requested. He had prophesied that there would eventually be five centers in the United States. One would be virgin land, with a freshwater lake beside the ocean, and be a gift from the heart. Of the other four, one would be in a big city, one in the mountains, one in the desert, and one in the center of the United States. So far, only one has materialized — Meher Spiritual Center "on the lakes" in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina — 500 acres of secluded woodland which embraces Long Lake, Alligator Lake and a fabulous mile of beach. It also, being opposite Bermuda, has the temperate climate Baba wished. Simeon Chapin, Elizabeth's father, was a wealthy stockbroker and sportsman who had purchased this property and others in the sleepy little town of Myrtle Beach primarily for the good duck hunting on the lakes, and the golf links close by. He gave it to Elizabeth, who, after fruitlessly searching throughout the U.S. recalled this gift; it was on Easter Sunday, 1943, that she and Norina first viewed it. When she dedicated it solely to Baba's cause His requirement that it be a "gift from the heart" was fulfilled.

Together with Norina, Elizabeth turned this raw virgin jungle into a beautiful spiritual retreat. Only one who has lived through those nine years of hard work can appreciate what a task she accomplished. She poured both her personal fortune and her love into it. Above all, at every decision point, she consulted Baba. It was totally His. It is this dedication and purity of purpose that I believe made it a success. Others have failed to create viable centers because of mixed motives but in Meher Center there was always a blending of head and heart: Elizabeth's immense practicality and her devotion to her Master. The biggest legal problem or a detail like a broken light bulb could claim her whole attention.

She also very generously let others share in its development. I was lucky to be one, and spent a great deal of time at the Center and at Youpon Dunes, her home in Myrtle Beach proper. The story of the Center has been told many times elsewhere and would be too long to record here; sufficient to say, when Baba came at last in '52, He was well-pleased with His dear Dilruba's gift. Now 31 years later, it is still functioning as she planned and a road through Briarcliffe is appropriately called Patterson Drive. Her love for the Center extended to the whole community of Myrtle Beach, which she served in many ways. She helped found Ocean View Hospital, and Community Volunteer Services; was a "pillar" of the Methodist Church, etc.