TEA & TALK

Saturday, April 19, 2008

1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. The talk will start promptly at 2:00 p.m. Tea will be served before and after the talk.

The Talk topic will be “Meeting Avatar Meher Baba” given by A.S. Jagannath of Andhra, India.

Please join Mr. and Mrs. A. S. Jagannath when they visit Meher Mount to share stories about beloved Avatar Meher Baba. Mr. Jagannath first met Meher Baba in 1955 at a Sahavas program in lower Meherabad. Although he had attended the Sahavas out of curiosity, Mr. Jagannath was rendered speechless upon first seeing Meher Baba. And when Meher Baba later embraced him, he immediately surrendered to Baba as he melted into His arms and accepted Him as God in Human form. Though he lived in Andhra, he took every opportunity thereafter to be with Meher Baba.

Mr. Jagannath is sitting at the far right.

BIOGRAPHY FOR MR. JAGANNATH

I was born in a joint Hindu orthodox middle class family in Madras (now Chennai), India in 1926, the youngest of the three brothers. My father worked in the High Court at Chennai and retired as the Deputy Sheriff of Madras in 1937. In the entire family, I was the only one who was educated in Catholic schools, right from the kindergarten class, but could not complete my graduation. I joined Indian Railways in 1949 and was posted to Vijayawada (Andhra Pradesh) on the administrative side.

My religious life was completely overshadowed by rituals and ceremonies in spite of my convent education. My father was a member of Divine Life Society and I had the occasion to accompany him to meet religious heads and I was made to pay obeisance by prostrating before them by my parents with particular emphasis that I should under no circumstances touch them physically.

At Vijayawada, I continued my religious way of life full of rituals and ceremonies, when in 1954, one of my collegues in office informed me that one Avatar Meher Baba was visiting Vijayawada and will be giving Darshan on a particular date. Till then I never heard His name. As there was no prefix to His name that He was a Saint or Sadguru, I was not interested and did not attend the Darshan programme.

In Feb 1955, my collegue once again approached me with a letter received from Adi K Irani, Secretary to Avatar Meher Baba that Baba desires that a “Naamjap” (repetition of God’s name) be conducted in every Avatar Meher Baba Center continuously for a week and requested that I should join them, since I was regularly attending such bhajans. As it was mentioned that that God’s name”Parabrahma Paramatma” would be repeated and not Meher Baba’s name, I acceded to his request and took part in the programme and entirely forgot about it.

In September 1955, I received a circular direct from Adi K Irani that Avatar Meher Baba would be holding a Sahavas programme at Meherabad, Ahmednagar in Nov. 1955 and that I was selected along with 200 other participants to attend the Sahavas. The Sahavas was arranged language group wise, with the Telugu group’s meeting in the first week of November 1955. I was in a dilemma as I knew nothing about Avatar Meher Baba except having taken part in the ‘Naamjap’ earlier in Feb 1955 and here was an invitation to attend the Sahavas gathering. Even this very word SAHAVAS was new to me, as meeting the Holy persons is called Darshan programmes. To attend or not was uppermost in my mind and finally I decided to attend more out of curiosity than anything spiritual.

My first meeting with Avatar Meher Baba was something which I remember very vividly to this day. On seeing His matchless beauty on that day, seated in the sofa chair in the Mandali hall at Lower Meherabad (the sofa chair is still there in Mandali Hall), I was rendered speechless and rooted to the spot. Next day, when all of us were introduced one by one to Him, it was another shock, because Baba was embracing each and every one of us, which to me was something I had not done with any other spiritual personality in all my 29 years of age, and also because my contact with such spiritual persons was limited to just paying obeisance and falling flat on the floor at their feet.

It was taboo to touch such personalities, leave alone embracing them. I was in despair as to how to conduct myself when Avatar Meher Baba Himself embraced me. I was so clumsy in embracing Baba. The outcome of all this was that I surrendered to Him and accepted Him as God in human form as I melted in His arms. There was no going back to the old orthodox life of rituals and ceremonies.

Now coming back to my family, I was married in 1946 when my wife was aged only 15 years. Initially I could not take my family for the Sahavas programme as there was a restriction that children under 10 years were not allowed. I took them only in 1957 to Sakori where Baba gave His first Darshan after the 1956 accident at Satara and from then on, we were attending regularly all His Darshan programmes at Guruprasad, Poona. The last Darshan we had was in 1965, after which He did not give His Darshan due to ill health and seclusion work.

Finally, when Beloved Baba dropped His body, I was at Meherabad for His entombment on 07.02.1969, paying our last respects along with thousands of others. Every year since then, our entire family has attended the Amarthithi on 31^st January as volunteers. We will be doing so as long as He wants us to do so. It is His Grace.

- A S Jagannath

SILENCE DAY
July 10 - noon to 5:00pm
Traditionally a work day at Meher Mount but this year we are enjoying a day of relaxation and rejuvenation in Baba's loving spirit of silence. You may wish to bring a picnic lunch to enjoy outdoors in the shade. Bring a notepad and pen to communicate while you are observing silence. Meher Mount has plenty of good books for you to read while you are here. A perfect time for the individual or group day retreat.

WORK PARTY SAHAVAS!!!

These gatherings are ongoing throughout the year, as needed. We will be working out in nature enjoying the magnificent views and gratefully honoring Baba's grace which allows us all to unite our physical efforts in service. Call for date and time details. 805-640-0000

ANNIVERSARY OF AVATAR MEHER BABA'S VISIT

First Saturday in August

Join us anytime from 10:00am to 5:30pm

We will celebrate His time at Meher Mount with scheduled events throughout the day. Enjoy informative talks about Baba's visit from people who were here with him. There will be video of Baba and a dramatic reading in His honor. During His visit in 1956, Baba said "I love Meher Mount very much and feel very happy here. "This land is old, and I have been here before." On the day of His visit Baba directed everyone to go out and love God through nature.

Please bring your own refreshments and a picnic lunch or something to share for potluck as we celebrate the Avatar's love for Meher Mount.

A great day for family fun & friendship.

Suggested donation - $15

SPECIAL ACTIVITIES
Other activities are scheduled periodically, including special guests sharing their memories of Meher Baba, poetry, music and work parties.

To receive announcements of special activities and events, please register for the Meher Mount mailing list, by sending your name, address, phone number and e-mail address to: info@MeherMount.com

805.640.0000

info@MeherMount.com
www.MeherMount.com

Meher Mount, 9902 Sulphur Mountain Road, Ojai, CA 93023, U.S.A.