MY DAYS WITH THE MASTER

Part Two

Dr. William Donkin

 
1/8/39: Last night, Baba came down to the men's ashram and played the Chinese card game with all of us: the losers get a little tap with a cane from Baba on the backside; all very good fun.

Baba pulls everyone's leg and he gives many nicknames: for example, "bigheaded pig". Padri is the "lamppost"; Kaka is "Popeye"; Chanji, the "monkey, with tail and all." I haven't yet got an undignified name from Baba, but no doubt it will come someday; at least I hope so.

4/8/39: The last day at Meherabad was a bit of a rush, with the new deed for settling Baba's attorneys, etc. being signed.

In the evening, we all played ping-pong with Baba. He plays very fast, hitting the ball hard. No rules, no scoring: he says the ball, racquets, talk and play are all "Chanji", which means higgledly-piggledy, and all in a mess — poor Chanji! Later we were all given peaches by Baba.

A letter from Mr. Workingboxwalla of Nasik was read to Baba describing a sannyasin who seemed a bit hazy in the head and who, on being shown Baba's photo and asked who he was, said, "He is the King of the world", and thereupon he fell on the ground, and held the photograph to his heart, and seemed in ecstasy.

Baba came down early the next morning and I hear him discussing affairs with Vishnu at about 4:45 a.m. Nilu's snoring kept me awake. I was restless that night.

Ramju, Nilu, and I left in the Chevrolet at 8:00 a.m. through Ahmednagar, Rahini, Sangamir, and Banderdera — the latter, a beautiful lake, with monsoon storms on the hills all round, but sunlight on the lake, and passing through Isatpuri, we reached Nasik at 6:30 p.m.

Ramju describes how they walked about 200 miles with Baba in the early days along part of this road from Bombay to somewhere. Baba used to be "rough" with them then, before his silence; one moment in a "good" mood — the next moment, he would hit out at whomever was nearest him; he says Adi senior had the most beatings.

The following illustrates how Baba gave someone a nickname. At Rustom's engagement party, they were served at the end of the meal with a small cake of soap and water each. One of the mandali eats the soap and says it is nasty cheese; the rumor passes down the table that so-and-so has eaten his soap thinking it to be cheese; this reaches Baba's ear, and the ashram bell is rung and Baba's order chalked on the board, from today, so-and-so is to be called 'Cheese'.

Ramju tells me that when Baba told them in 1925 he was going to be silent for a year or so, on the following morning, he became extremely serious and made them all promise not to leave him 'till he spoke, whatever happened, though none realized at the time that they would have to wait 15 years or so!

I have been shown all over Nasik; and am sleeping in Rustom's house; very western, on the same grounds as the Meher Retreat for the western group. Have visited the Pandava Caves, and a Jain temple over the river. Nilu and I leave this afternoon for Bombay and Sholapur to join Baba there.