Part 1

 
In the 1930's, before I knew of Meher Baba, I was totally devoted to politics and played an active part as a revolutionary: trying to free India, my motherland. The British, who were then ruling over India, twice put me in jail. Altogether I was imprisoned for over ten years because of my political activities.

The second time I was put in jail was in 1940. This time I did not have a trial and was simply incarcerated as a "state prisoner," with no term set to my imprisonment. After five years, I learned that some of the leaders of the revolutionary movement were being released. As these men were considered much more dangerous by the government than I, who was not a big leader, I began to expect that I too would be released soon.

But, instead of being set free, I was shifted to a deep underground cellar from which prisoners were not generally released, and I knew this was the end of the line for me. I thought of my lovely young wife, Subhadra, and my widowed mother whom I loved dearly, having to till our acres of farmland, waiting patiently and lovingly for me to come home — but I knew now that I would never see them again.

If I could only get out, I thought, I would even give up my revolutionary activities. I had really grown tired of being in jail and began to crave freedom. But I knew it was no use thinking in those terms for I would never get out and my loved ones would never even know what had happened to me.

I was very depressed. Then one day, I suddenly sat up with a jerk, "God, only God, if He exists, can help me!" The thought just came to me that the only way out of jail was to ask God to help me.