This year, after a lapse of many years, it has been arranged to have my birthday celebrated again on a large scale, because it would give you the opportunity of meeting many of my Eastern devotees. Also, I want to distribute grain and cloth to about 10,000 people and touch their feet with my hand while doing it.

But the working of Maya often assumes ironic forces. The 17th and 18th of this month are election days for the New Constitution. People throughout India will go to vote at the polls. Thus half of the people who otherwise would have come might be unable to do so, although Rustom and others expect more than 10,000. (These 10,000 are not the guest devotees who will be here on the 18th.)

Talk at Meher Ashram, Nasik, February, 1937

"Gar Khudi Dilse Mita'e To Khuda Too Hojai" (As if)

Kutub: Kutub in Sufi means "center". That center controls the whole universe, through his agents. Meetings are held, but these meetings cannot be seen with the physical eye. Abdals: The agents who control the gross only are called Abdals. They are capable of changing their bodies. The Urdu word Badal means "change". Abdal is "one who can change." The last war was controlled by Sai Baba. Now it is your Baba who controls the whole universe.

Hal and Kal: Hal and Kal are two Sufi terms. Hal means 'feeling' and Kal means 'speaking'. These are the literal translations. But the mystical meaning of Hal is 'the real' and that of Kal is 'the false'. For instance, if one were to look intensely at this pencil in time it would disappear. Has anyone tried it? This disappearance is Kal (false), but when in continual, actual experience the thing is seen yet known to exist, this disappearance is Hal (real).

This afternoon we talked about 'illusion and delusion'. Now, what is self-delusion? We say that so-and-so is self-deluded. What is meant by that? Someone answered, "A person who imagines himself to be what he is not", to which Baba replied: This imagination is so strong that the self-deluded man does not doubt he is what he thinks himself to be. He feels he really is this or that person. This delusion is very positive but it is, after all, delusion, and although these persons are not hypocritical they are very dangerous, but not seriously so. In a sense, all are mad. Deluded persons are mad. For instance, you think you are the body: you are body-mad. Are you not mad? (addressed to one of the group.) You are mad, but God-mad.

Illusion . . . delusion . . . self-delusion . . . Maya. There are seven branches of Maya. Illusion, delusion, self-delusion are three. The other four I will talk about next time. You will then know what Maya means. Everything goes in "sevens". Evolutionary stages, 7. Spiritual planes, 7. Consciousness, 7. Flights of imagination, 7. Maya in 7 aspects. Seven days in the week.

Unveiling of the God Within

Nadia (Countess Nadine Tolstoy) put this question to Baba. What is it like to feel yourself God?" Baba replied, "Heaven and hell, God and man, all are here."

Baba then gave the following explanation: "You are now God, plus Nadia. When Nadia disappears, God remains. Take the "I" away and God remains. You are God plus Nadia. (Baba repeated this statement 3 times). So, Nadia must go. Now, God is always there (pointing to Nadia) but Nadia predominates. Let Nadia go, and then God remains.