Northern Michigan Meher Baba Discussions

A discussion of Meher Baba issues, basically for the interested seeker. Not intended as an apologia or a format for debate.

10/27/2004

Little People

The web site of one Christian presents statements from Meher Baba that were chosen to seem particularly preposterous. One supposed statement (quoted?) is that there is a planet where the humans are only 10" tall. I don't know whether this was an actual statement or not. The website lets the statement stand for itself. It does, of course, seem like an odd thought.

But sometimes the news is odder! Catch this release from the BBC today:

'Hobbit' joins human family tree
Scientists have discovered a new and tiny species of human that lived in Indonesia at the same time our own ancestors were colonising the world.
The three-foot (one-metre) tall species - dubbed "the Hobbit" - lived on Flores island until at least 12,000 years ago.
The fact that little people feature in the legends of modern Flores islanders suggests we might have to take tales of Leprechauns and Yeti more seriously.
Details of the sensational find are described in the journal Nature.
The whole idea that you need a particular brain size to do anything intelligent is completely blown away by this find Dr Henry Gee, Nature
The discovery has been hailed as one of the most significant of its type in decades.
Australian archaeologists unearthed the bones while digging at a site called Liang Bua, one of numerous limestone caves on Flores.
The remains of the partial skeleton were found at a depth of 5.9m. At first, the researchers thought it was the body of a child. But further investigation revealed otherwise.
Wear on the teeth and growth lines on the skull confirm it was an adult, features of the pelvis identify it as female and a leg bone confirms that it walked upright like we do.
"When we got the dates back from the skeleton and we found out how young it was, one anthropologist working with us said it must be wrong because it had so many archaic [primitive] traits," said co-discoverer Mike Morwood, associate professor of archaeology at the University of New England, Australia.


10/26/2004

Entering the Path, Part Two

"Before Realization, the veil must be torn away and the mind must die. It is due to this veil that every individual mind functions in the gross and subtle bodies. Removing the veil would separate the gross from the subtle; when that occurs, in the subtle state you would be able to see internal things with as much clarity as you see gross objects. While doing all physical activities such as eating, drinking, sitting, standing – while your body is functioning – there is simultaneous progress into the subtle world. When the gross is separated from the subtle, it is like killing two birds with one stone.

But the veil must be ripped off. Though this veil is thin, at the same time it is very strong. It cannot be slit easily, but it can be rent in an instant by a Perfect Master. If it is torn, the consciousness of the soul at once enters the first plane. When a parrot escapes from its cage, it flies straight into the air without looking back.

But progress comes to a halt at the first plane if the rent in the veil is made through one's own efforts or with the help of a yogi or saint – an imperfect guru. Seekers advance on their own, but it is ultimately useless, as they inevitably become entrapped. If a Perfect Master is there to help, he would not tear the veil unless the aspirant is fully ready; then the Master would take him straight to the goal."


This passage from Lord Meher seems to take a different angle: that the act of personal will that is involved in "tearing the veil" and entering the path is not as salient or useful as the act of the Sadguru. Of course Baba said he left that veil in place, generally, for his mandali, to allow them to support his Avataric work, and then, rather than letting them climb, plane by plane, to the goal, he became the express train. Obviously there are mysteries in this area that are incomprehensible, especially for those of us who see with gross eyes.

10/25/2004

Entering the path

In Listen Humanity (P167), Meher Baba writes: "At last, weary of enslavement to the gross world, the individual decides to free himself from the enticements of matter, In this moment of irrevocable decision, the individual cuts himself loose from the bondage of gross desires and ascends to the realm of energy. His will now reinforced, the individual prepares for a release of vital force far greater than was ever available to him during his bondage to the gross."

What is fascinating to me in this quote is the reference to a conscious decision to give up the gross world and enter the path. Many years ago, I had an experience of a vast radiant field of light. I remember struggling not to lose myself in it, repeating Baba's name over and over until I returned to ordinary consciousness. I've sometimes (surely mistakenly) imagined that this was a glimpse of the first plane. Although the imagination I had was probably false and certainly False in a real sense, it is still interesting to me that my own sense of will seemed to be almost purely directed to clinging to the gross. Any thoughts about the quote?