VIOLATION OF NEW LIFE

[ravisankar santhosmantha]

AVATAR MEHER BABA KI JAI   VIOLATION OF NEW LIFE

'To do routine things at odd times; to create a difficulty where none exists; to pull up with a jerk an otherwise smooth-going situation – all such things have gone to make what we call the New Life.' " Baba overheard his remarks and asked Ghani to explain. Ghani responded with fervor, "Look at the unearthly time for our morning tea – 5 A.M. We have no religious devotions to perform so early in the morning, such as arti, sandhya, puja, kusti-sadra, namaz, and yet, in this God-awful, biting cold weather, we are required to crawl out of bed, groaning, hissing, shivering and coughing, at four-thirty in the morning, just for the cold pleasure of a cup of tea at five o'clock and a chapati – if available. Really speaking, it should be called mourning tea!" Ghani's remarks evoked hearty laughter from the men, and Baba, too, seemed to enjoy the fun. But while bidding good night, he slyly turned to Baidul and ordered, "Tomorrow morning, tea should be served at 4:45 A.M., fifteen minutes earlier." The following morning, Baba again surprised everyone by referring to Ghani's remarks about the awkward time for tea, "I did not sleep the whole night. The spontaneous laughter of all concerned over Ghani's remarks set me thinking. I wondered if the remarks of Ghani regarding morning tea, and the support of it by your delightful laughter, were all to be taken as a joke, or were you serious about it? If Ghani was joking, then I was quite wrong in not appreciating the humor. If he was serious, and if you think the order for morning tea is unnecessary and meaningless, then it is not only criticism, but the most flagrant violation of the conditions of the New Life." The companions were taken aback by this interpretation, which evidently had given Baba a sleepless night. They assured him that, although some of his orders were not always easily understandable, none of them considered them meaningless or unnecessary. Baba then dismissed the previous night's episode as a joke, and the tension soon relaxed. But Baba had doubted the companions' intentions, and so, as an atonement, he ordered each one to pinch his ears, after which he remarked, "One sleepless night is worth the satisfaction that I now feel for the sake of the clarification of your mind and feelings."