Rome and Home

Baba taunted the man, replying, “Yes, you cannot follow because you are in Rome, and I know because I am at Home! This is the difference between you and me. You are in Rome and I am at Home!”

The priest then left, quite puzzled by his encounter with Baba. What Baba meant by “Home” was that he was one with God, and “Rome” was the church – rites, rituals, orthodoxy. God abided in Baba, and Baba abided in God. But to the priest God was in Rome – the church in Rome.

Above is an excerpt from a story from Lord Meher that I received in my inbox today and quite like. The punchline of course is the following:

 You are in Rome and I am at Home

This quote carries more weight for me because I attended a Catholic school and was nominally a Catholic until about age 15 when the penny dropped so to speak. While I'm not in Rome anymore, I'm still far from home or "walking far from home" as the Iron and Wine song lyrics go. What follows is the full story and a wonderful photo of Baba taken in 1936 when he was 42 years old. He looks magnificent. The photo immediately follows the story. 

(March 1937) Baba was in Nasik. Malcolm Schloss had met a Catholic priest at a religious conference in Nasik and he urged the priest to meet Baba, but he declined. When he told Baba, he also seemed uninterested. However, due to Malcolm’s persuasion a meeting was arranged. The following conversation between the priest and Meher Baba then ensued:

When they met, Baba commented to him, “All the Mullajis (Muslim priests) are good; the Pope is good; the Pandits (Hindu scholars) are good. But only the Sankaracharya (1) (head of orthodox Hinduism) can speak for hours on end!”

The priest had recently returned from participating in the religious conference, and hearing Baba’s words, proudly refuted, “It was not the Sankaracharya, but I who spoke during the whole conference. The Sankaracharya could not argue convincingly at all. He could not say a word to me and I rebuked him severely.”

“Yes,” replied Baba, “these Mullajis, and the Sankaracharya, all need to be warned. They deserve lecturing and need to be taken to task.”

“You just said they are good and now you say they need to be lectured,” the priest said. “I don’t follow what you mean.”

Explaining, Baba spelled out, “The Sankaracharya and high priests have big heads – they are intellectuals – but they have small hearts. You, however, have a good heart.”

Baba added, “There are many to teach in the world, but very few to learn.”

“What do you mean?” asked the priest.

“They all teach but none of them wants to learn – and those who teach do not know the Truth themselves!”

Baba then recounted a striking incident concerning Baily: “A chap named Baily was my school friend and he just could not believe how a boy like me who used to play marbles with him, could as a man attain such a high state while he was still in the same state where he was. The difference between him and me was so phenomenal that he wanted to see some miracles as proof in order to gain conviction about me. One day, when Baily was writing something in my thatched hut in Poona, all of a sudden the inkwell began dancing up and down! He was flabbergasted. After a little while, the pen jumped from his hand and also started to dance. He started shouting, ‘Baba! Baba!’ and wept continuously for some days. From that day on, he was convinced of my powers and had faith in me.

“I told him, ‘You are a fool. If this small phenomena could convince you of spirituality, why don’t you go and follow Muhammad Chhel, who was a well-known tantric magician?’

“All miracles are child’s play, whereas spirituality is far above them. Miracles in themselves have no spiritual value or significance. But they are necessary and, at times, performed by the Master as a means to convince people of Truth and spirituality. Jesus performed miracles not for his own gain, but to make people recognize the Truth and to create faith in them. Yet, when he was crucified, he who could raise the dead, did not stop it!”

Changing the subject, the priest asked, “Why do you keep silence? Why don’t you speak?”

“I always speak!” Baba smilingly replied, “I continually speak through you, through all the high priests and through everyone.”

Not following what Baba meant, the priest asked, “Then why do you use the alphabet board?”

“I talk through you and all, and I answer questions through this board.”

The priest looked more perplexed and asked, “How? I don’t understand.”

Baba taunted the man, replying, “Yes, you cannot follow because you are in Rome, and I know because I am at Home! This is the difference between you and me. You are in Rome and I am at Home!”

The priest then left, quite puzzled by his encounter with Baba. What Baba meant by “Home” was that he was one with God, and “Rome” was the church – rites, rituals, orthodoxy. God abided in Baba, and Baba abided in God. But to the priest God was in Rome – the church in Rome.

(1) Footnote: In Hinduism the Sankaracharya is similar in status to the Pope in Roman Catholicism.

Lord Meher, Original Publication, Bhau Kalchuri, Vol. 6, pp. 2129 – 2130. Link.

My Grandfather's Clock

My father gave me his father's gold pocket watch when I left home in late 1973 and it was stolen a couple of years later in a house break-in. He was clearly disappointed when I told him later and I was upset by its loss when it happened but there's was nothing to be done except to accept its loss.

Last night I dreamt that a watch of mine had broken when I dropped it. In appearance, it was some weird composite of a smartphone, wristwatch and pocket watch and I remember trying to get it fixed. There was no resolution of the problem. However, I was quite soon after this splashing about in a pool and diving underwater.

Upon awakening, I associated this with the amniotic fluid of the womb and the broken chronometer, reminiscent of my grandfather's fob watch, was a sign that my time was up. Admittedly the night before, I had been contemplating my mortality as I lay in bed trying unsuccessfully to sleep.

With my birthday a little over two weeks away, I seem to be somewhat preoccupied with my mortality as if turning 75 is somehow more significant than other birthdays. Meher Baba died 25 days short of his 75th birthday and I'm now past that point with about 19 days remaining. 

Daniel Norgren's song "Everything You Know Melts Away Like Snow" playing on my phone as I write this. I play this song quite often on my guitar.

Everything you know

Everything you know

Melts away like snow

Melts away like snow (mm-hmm, mm-hmm)

Everyone you love

Everyone you love

Grass will grow above

Grass will grow above (mm-hmm, mm-hmm)

Cold black starry night

Cold black starry night

Makes my day look bright

Makes my day look bright (mm-hmm, mm-hmm)

Never comes the day

Never comes the day

That keeps the night away

Keeps the night away (mm-hmm, mm-hmm)

New green grass will grow

New green grass will grow

Folks will come and go

Folks will come and go (mm-hmm, mm-hmm)

Speaking of music, the title of this post is also that of a old song that goes like this:

So the old man lived ninety years in this song. Will I last that long? 

Interment

February 7, 1969

Beloved Baba’s beautiful Form was interred in the crypt, which is now His Samadhi. It happened to be His birthday according to the Parsi calendar.

I just happened to see this as a footnote in the daily email I receive from the Meher Baba Bombay Centre. So 55 years ago, Baba's crypt was sealed. Of course I was oblivious of this and instead was drifting aimlessly. I continue to drift for another year until I hit a rock in the form of national service in April of  1969.

However, I had heard of Meher Baba by this point in my life, having attended a talk given by Bill Le Page at the University of Queensland in 1968. It made no impression on me at the time except it did seem to cement His name into my memory because more than a decade later I recognised the author of "God Speaks" as the person about whom the talk had been given all those years ago.

It wouldn't be until almost 30 years later that I'd finally get to stand in front of the crypt but I did get there eventually. It just took a while. I was nearing 50 back then and now I'm nearly 75. I'd accepted Baba when I was a little younger however, when I was 44 back in 1993. At that time, the penny just dropped after "God Speaks" finally made sense to me.

Mu’inuddin Chishti

The following appeared in my inbox today from the Meher Baba Centre in Bombay and quoted from Lord Meher, Original Publication, Bhau Kalchuri, Vol. 7, pp. 2391 – 2393:

(Feb.1939) On one occasion, referring to the purpose of his visits to different shrines, tombs or dargahs of saints and Perfect Masters, Baba stated:

By my living presence, I clean the tangled atmosphere of the shrines of the dead saints, Sadgurus and Qutubs. This complicated atmosphere is of the thought world. Thought force is really very strong and powerful. Chaitanya did not go to places of pilgrimage for the sake of pilgrimage, but for cleansing their atmosphere which were full of the sanskaras of thoughts of worldly people. Chaitanya was a Hindu Perfect Master, during the time of Shankara. He originated the ecstatic song or evocation, “Hare Krishna, Hare Ram!”

For my work, a pilgrim on the third plane is more helpful than the place of a dead Master of the seventh plane; but a well-known dead saint or Master may have a strong influence due to the multitudes going to his tomb. That is why I thin down the effect of this complicated thought atmosphere by visiting such places.

Meher Baba went to the shrine of Mu’inuddin Chishti several times. Chishti is responsible for more converts to Islam in India that any other man. He converted over two hundred thousand people during his time in India; no one else ever did such, even the Mughal warlords during their invasions. On a later occasion, Meher Baba revealed that the Sufi Master Mu’inuddin Khwaja Saheb Chishti was the Qutub-e-Irshad of his time.

I asked Bard to explain the term Qutub-e-Irshad (link):

The term "Qutub-e-Irshad" is a composite phrase consisting of three words:

• Qutub: This word in Arabic can have multiple meanings depending on the context. In Sufi terminology, it often refers to a "pole star" or a spiritual guide who serves as a central figure within a specific lineage or order. It implies the individual holds high spiritual authority and wisdom.

• e-: This is a Persian connecting particle, meaning "of" or "belonging to."

• Irshad: This word in Arabic signifies "guidance" or "instruction."

Therefore, when combined, "Qutub-e-Irshad" translates roughly to "Pole Star of Guidance" or "Master of Instruction." It refers to a highly respected spiritual leader within a Sufi tradition who offers guidance and instruction on the path of spiritual enlightenment.

Meher Baba explained that at any given time on Earth there are five Qutubs or Perfect Masters overseeing the affairs of the world. One of these five in charge and is referred to as the Qutub-e-Irshad. Of the five Qutubs in Meher Baba's early life, Sai Baba was the Qutub-e-Irshad:

Was this ascetic a Hindu or a Muslim? People of every religion and caste in India would seek him out. This holy man belonged to no caste or religion or "ism." He himself was the true fakir, the Emperor of Emperors. Why would people journey hundreds of miles to see him? Because his eyes shone brilliantly with a magnetism that drew them towards him. The light in his eyes attracted thousands to his feet.

Hidden in this extraordinary fakir was the Qutub-e-Irshad of the age — the head of the spiritual hierarchy and the leading Perfect Master of his time. He who held the key to all worlds and universes in his very hands appeared as a ragged beggar in a nondescript village in India. In his hands the conflicting forces of the world's turmoil and the throes of the universes were kept balanced! It may be difficult for a worldly-minded materialist to believe this, but it is a spiritual fact. Source.

Bard had this to say about Mu’inuddin Chishti (link):

Mu'inuddin Chishti: A Revered Figure in Sufi Islam

Mu'inuddin Chishti, also known as Khwaja Gharib Nawaz ("comforter of the poor"), was a revered Sufi preacher, scholar, and mystic who played a significant role in spreading and shaping the Chishti Order of Sunni Islam in the Indian subcontinent. Here's a summary of his life and contributions:

Life and Lineage:

Born in Sistan, Persia (present-day Iran) in 1141 CE.

Descended from both Prophet Muhammad and Ali ibn Abi Talib.

Received spiritual guidance from renowned Sufi masters in his youth.

Embarked on a pilgrimage to Mecca, spending time in Baghdad and Delhi before settling in Ajmer, India, in 1206 CE.

Contributions:

Established the Chishti Order in India: He is considered the founder of the Chishti Order in the Indian subcontinent, known for its emphasis on love, devotion, and inclusivity.

Promoted interfaith dialogue: He cultivated relationships with people of different faiths, fostering peaceful coexistence and mutual understanding.

Emphasized service to humanity: His teachings stressed compassion, generosity, and service to the poor and marginalized.

Attracted diverse followers: His charismatic personality and message resonated with people from all walks of life, regardless of caste, creed, or social status.

Left a lasting legacy: His tomb in Ajmer became a major pilgrimage site, attracting devotees from all over the world.

Significance:

Mu'inuddin Chishti's contributions are considered pivotal in the spread of Islam in India, particularly Sufism, which offered a more mystical and inward-looking approach to faith.

His teachings and personal example resonated with diverse communities, contributing to social harmony and interfaith dialogue in the region.

He continues to be revered as a spiritual guide and source of inspiration, not just for Muslims but for people of all faiths and backgrounds.

Further Exploration:

If you're interested in learning more about Mu'inuddin Chishti, here are some resources:

• Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mu%27in_al-Din_Chishti

• Ajmer Sharif Dargah website: https://ajmerdargahsharif.com/

• Books and articles on Sufism and the Chishti Order

I hope this overview provides a helpful starting point for understanding Mu'inuddin Chishti's life and significance.

This news article from January 29th 2019 provides additional information.

I'm On Your Side

With AMARTITHI coming up tomorrow, I felt I should post something and I've come up with the lyrics of a song by Paul Kelly that I came across for the first time only a few days ago. The song is "I'm On Your Side" and the first time I heard it, I thought of Baba and the fact that he is always supporting us. However, we tend to forget that and often feel that we alone and unloved. 

Link to video clip of Paul Kelly singing this song

Here are the lyrics and a link to the guitar chords:

I'm on Your Side 

You've been crying a long long spell

You've been drinking from the Devil's own well

You're just hanging on to your pride

Hold on to me now

 

I'm on your side

I'm on your side when you think there's no one

I'm on your side when darkness falls

I'm on your side

All you gotta do is call

 

The trees on the shoreline are all fresh from the rain

The ship on the water is heading for the main

Open your window, let the good air inside

You don't always know when

There's a change in the tide

 

I'm on your side when others turn on you

I'm on your side when your back's to the wall

I'm on your side

All you gotta do is call

 

I'm on your side though you might not believe it

I'm on your side when the shit rains down

I'm on your side

I'm gonna stand your ground, stand your ground

Ooh, call on me, all you gotta do is call

For other posts connecting Meher Baba with music, see:

• https://sean-reeves.blogspot.com/2021/08/its-been-long-long-long-time.html

• https://sean-reeves.blogspot.com/2021/08/the-one.html

• https://sean-reeves.blogspot.com/2021/12/across-bridge.html

The Number 13

My brother, Anthony or Tony as he was mostly called, was born on the 13th January 1960. Yesterday would have been his 64th birthday but he never made it that far. He died in June of 2021. Yesterday I was 27313 days old (yes I keep track of my diurnal age) and was struck by the fact that the last two digits of this number are 13. Furthermore, the number factorises to 11 * 13 * 191 and so the number 13 appears again. My brother Tony had a rather unlucky life and so I asked Bard the following question. What follows is the question and response.

Why is it that certain cultures regard the number 13 as unlucky and try to avoid using, replacing it for example by 12A so that we have the progression 11, 12, 12A, 13.

The association of 13 with bad luck is a complex phenomenon with roots in various historical and cultural factors, rather than a single definitive reason. Here are some of the most common explanations:

Religious and mythical associations:

Christianity: Judas, the 13th guest at the Last Supper, betrayed Jesus.

Norse mythology: Loki, the mischievous god, was the 13th guest at a feast and tricked another god into killing Baldr, the god of beauty and innocence.

Other cultures: In numerous ancient cultures, the number 12 held significance because of lunar cycles and zodiac signs. 13, then, represented imbalance or disruption of this perceived order.

Numerical factors:

Fear of the unknown: 13 often follows a perfect pattern (e.g., 12 months in a year), making it stand out and seem unpredictable.

Death and misfortune: Some historical events (e.g., fall of Constantinople) happened on the 13th, reinforcing the negative association.

Psychological factors:

Confirmation bias: People tend to remember instances where bad luck followed the number 13, overlooking events when it didn't.

Cultural conditioning: If a culture teaches that 13 is unlucky, individuals are more likely to interpret occurrences after encountering it as negative.

Cultural variations:

The extent and reasons for avoiding 13 vary across cultures. Some countries, like Italy, consider it particularly unlucky on Fridays. Others, like Japan, associate it with good fortune.

Modernization and changing perspectives:

In recent times, the superstition surrounding 13 has weakened in many societies. This is partly due to increased secularization and awareness of the lack of scientific basis for the association.

Overall, the negative association of 13 is a fascinating example of how cultural beliefs and historical events can shape our perception of numbers. While the specifics vary, the fear of the unknown and the power of cultural conditioning often play a key role in perpetuating such superstitions.

Coincidentally, the house I've lived in for eighteen years now is numbered 12A! I next asked Bard the following:

Can you give some examples of common phrases or situations involving the number 13.

Absolutely! Here are some examples of common phrases and situations involving the number 13:

Negative connotations:

Friday the 13th: A superstition associated with bad luck and misfortune.

Unlucky number: In many cultures, the number 13 is considered unlucky and often avoided.

Kiss of death: In sports, being the 13th player chosen in a draft may be seen as a disadvantage.

Baker's dozen: This phrase refers to 13 items instead of the usual 12, used to compensate for potential oversights or theft.

Counting sheep: Traditionally counting sheep to fall asleep, some people skip over 13 to avoid nightmares.

Positive connotations:

Lunar cycle: There are 13 full moons in a Gregorian year, inspiring traditions and symbolism in some cultures.

Tarot cards: The Death card (number 13) in the Major Arcana symbolizes transformation and new beginnings.

Bar mitzvah and bat mitzvah: Occur at the age of 13, marking a significant coming-of-age ceremony in Judaism.

Lucky number: In some cultures, like China and Thailand, the number 13 is associated with growth and prosperity.

13 colonies: The original colonies that formed the United States of America.

Neutral situations:

Floor numbering: Some buildings skip the 13th floor due to superstition, often replacing it with 12A or 14.

Card games: There are 13 cards in each suit in a standard deck of playing cards.

Puzzles: Many crosswords and Sudoku puzzles have 13 columns or rows.

Space missions: Apollo 13 was a lunar mission marked by technical challenges but a successful return to Earth.

Musical chords: The 13th chord in music theory can create complex and dissonant harmonies.

These are just a few examples, and the significance of the number 13 can vary widely depending on the context and cultural background. The fascinating thing about this number is its ability to evoke both positive and negative emotions, making it a truly intriguing figure in human culture.

I hope this provides a good starting point for further exploration! Feel free to ask if you'd like more examples or information about specific cultural interpretations of the number 13.

Of course there's also the rhyme that goes: 

• Monday's child is fair of face
• Tuesday's child is full of grace
• Wednesday's child is full of woe
• Thursday's child has far to go
• Friday's child is loving and giving
• Saturday's child works hard for a living
• And the child that is born on the Sabbath day is bonny and blithe, and good and gay.

Poor Tony, as you might guess, was born on a Wednesday and so certainly confirms these assignations. Ah well, this was just a post to commemorate his passing.

The One True Death

Meher Baba once said: “None dies, and none knows to die. The rare one who knows to die is never born again!” By this Baba means that whether we are incarnate or discarnate, we remain in illusion. We die physically only to be reborn again in the flesh. 8,500,000 cycles of life and death are necessary before we achieve true death, the death of the ego, after which no further physical incarnations are necessary. We have discovered the answer to that age-old question of "Who Am I?".

It is only when in a physical body that we can achieve freedom from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth. This got me thinking about the inhabitants of the astral and mental planes. These planes are populated by beings, are part of creation and thus remain in illusion. I can suppose that after a great many incarnations, many reach a point of complete disillusionment with the physical plane. It no longer holds any appeal for them and their karmic liabilities are such that they are not drawn back to the physical plane to settle them. 

Unlike most of us, who in the afterlife enter a period of intense introspection, these individuals become free to interact with other entities who are on a similar wavelength. They can enter communities and enjoy the structures that these communities have built. There they can live and interact with others. They can later choose to act as guides and support those individuals who have died and are temporarily discarnate. Most of these individuals will lapse into deep subjectivity before long but in the meantime those permanently resident on the astral planes can be of assistance.

However, these dwellers on the astral plane will not achieve liberation there. For that, they will need to experience a physical incarnation and perhaps run the risk of getting trapped on the wheel of life and death again. This is not likely to happen however, given that they are not compelled to return because of karmic liabilities. They can take their time and plan an incarnation that will maximise their likelihood of making progress in the sense of entering a higher plane on the astral after death. Eventually, by this strategy, they may even enter the mental planes.

This is purely speculative on my part. Baba does not talk much about the residents of the astral and mental planes and rightly focuses on what we can do here and now on the physical plane. It's easy to get distracted by astral travel, lucid dreaming, chakras, yogic practices and so forth, often reinforcing the ego in the process rather than diminishing it. Still, it's interesting to speculate about what's going on there.

Prognostication

Soon after arriving in Yogyakarta in the closing days of December 2023, I noticed a car number plate directly in front of the taxi that we had hired to take us from the train station to our place of accommodation. The number plate read:

H 1305 SR

8-26

It was the SR that caught my eye of course: Sean Reeves. Now my mind clicked into gear. H is the letter used by vehicles registered in the Special Region of Yogyakarta and I took this to stand for Hidupan meaning "life" in the Indonesian language. The 1305 I interpreted as the number of days remaining of my life.

Given that the date was the 28th December 2023, 1305 days from this date is Sunday, July 25, 2027. The 8-26 (short for August 2026) suggested to me that I'd perhaps fall ill in August 2026 and pass away on July 25th 2027. I used Wolfram Alpha on my phone to quickly calculate the date of my possible demise. If it comes to pass, I will be 78 years old.

That age reminds me of Barry Thomson who was the owner of the accommodation that I moved into when staying in Brisbane a few years ago. He was 77 when I met him. He had battled advanced melanoma in his 60s and was now seemingly hale and hearty. He gave me two books he had written on how he had overcome his cancer. He died some months later, having quite quickly succumbed to brain cancer. He may well have been 78 at that point.

I should never have met him had I not been standing in the doorway of some alternative accommodation that I had first considered. The caretaker with two young Asians in tow suddenly arrived and took instant offense to the fact that I was blocking his doorway. A couple of years later I ended up living in that accommodation but on that occasion sharp words were exchanged and I ended up at Barry's place.

Even though Barry succumbed in the end, his story is an inspirational one because he did live a good many years cancer-free after his initial diagnosis and it wasn't because of any help from the medical establishment who had written him off. He followed his own path and won the battle. I need to do the same with my own mysterious affliction and try to find a remedy using my own methods.

I looked at the transits to my chart on July 25th 2027 and I'll link later to an astrological discussion of what I found. This is all much ado about nothing probably but it's interesting how I've become more focused on the timing of my exit from planet Earth. I'm probably not unusual in this respect but I should get on with living and making the most of the time that I have left.

This post has got me thinking about the use of the word "dead" in various expressions, so  I created a post on this topic in my Pedagogical Posturing blog called Dead Eye Dick.