Part 7b:

IVY ONEITA DUCE

After the accident in Oklahoma, Baba wired for Ivy to come and help, and she and Charmian flew to Prague. Ivy's immense practical experience was invaluable to the travellers, some of whom, though not hurt, were in shock at the unexpected violent turn of events. It was Ivy who sent us the first detailed bulletin on Baba's condition, also Mehera's and Elizabeth's state, for which we were all grateful. It fell to Charmy to wash Baba's clothes in a laundromat, and I recall with a chill her saying "There was so much blood!" Charmy had wanted to drive Baba across the U.S. — she had the trip all mapped out — I recall the tender, enigmatic look He gave her, with His "No."

Later, in July, it was in Mrs. Duce's apartment that we saw Baba again. Actually many people came who had missed Him in Myrtle Beach. For three days Baba, in double cast, in intense heat, gave His darshan. By Baba's request all were asked to read the large sign placed in the anteroom:

"I am equally approachable to one and all, big and small,
To saints who rise, and sinners who fall,
Through all the various Paths that give the Divine Call.
I am approachable alike to saint whom I adore
And to sinner whom I am for,
And equally through Sufism, Vedantism, Christianity,
Or Zororastrianism and Buddhism, and other 'isms'
Of any kind, and also directly through no medium of 'isms' at all."

But most people at that time were unacquainted with Sufism; a few knowledgeable ones read the great Sufi poets, Hafiz, Rumi and Kabir, but the popular esoteric groups were the Theosophists, Rosicrucians, Alice Bailey-ites, Vedanta groups, the "I am," movement, etc. I don't know whether it was in '52 or '56 but Ivy visited the Alice Bailey headquarters in New York to invite Miss Bailey, who made a great to-do about "the Reappearance of the Christ," to meet Baba, and got a very rude reception. We all went through similar experiences with other leaders of spiritual groups. But as Baba told one of us later, "It is the link of love that draws you to Me." If it's not there, no amount of prestigious books or devotees will help. It was fascinating to observe those that did come to meet Baba and watch Him forge or pull on these invisible golden chains. How fortunate we felt, that His glance had fallen on us!

It was her daughter Charmian and Energy (Marion Florsheim) who drove Baba, Mehera, and the others to all their many medical appointments, with Dr. this and Dr. that. As Ivy says, Baba must have given Western medicos a big push in 1952!

It was at Meher Center, in 1956, that Baba tackled the continuing friction between the Sufi and non-Sufi Baba lovers, with a rousing discourse to us all. "What is the use of My left hand slapping My right hand?" He asked, demonstrating with His graceful hands. He liked groups, He wanted us to work in groups, but not to switch from one to the other. At this time Ivy had moved back to Washington and Baba very graciously visited her home there on His way to California. Here He teased His hostess by "finding" an enormous fish bone in the "perfectly boned" filet.

Before Baba came on this trip, Ivy and I had agreed to try to document it as fully as possible, and we split up the responsibility: she would try to film and tape the trip and I would write it up. She also arranged for publicity for Baba at the various big city stops — New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco. In the beginning, Baba was agreeable; her press conference in New York came off fairly well, but the rest of the trip was not always successful. Baba wasn't at all keen on the public spotlight. This led to a lot of hassles for Murshida, and one or two amusing incidents. Our trip from Myrtle Beach to Washington, D.C., for instance, was amazingly shortened (the pilot was stunned), we arrived so early there was no limo for Baba — and no T.V. cameramen.

San Francisco, where Ivy had a strong group of mureeds, also proved a test for her. How well I recall how we all waited breathlessly downstairs in the hotel waiting to hear if Baba liked the arrangements! No, He didn't! He was going to cut His visit short and leave for Australia! Then Adele and I were called and Baba asked if we would switch rooms with Him — ours was in the very center of the hotel where He wanted to be. Of course, we were delighted.

Making arrangements for Baba and His "fellow travellers" is never easy and on this trip Murshida was greatly tested. I know she once said the real behind-the-scenes stories could never be told. But that is true of any account of "timeless time" spent with Baba. It would take a Tolstoy to describe it all, perhaps because imagination can do a better job of character delineation, showing the inner conflicts and problems on which the Master is working. It is hard to be objective or even to guess exactly what Baba is doing to you or why. It is a test of your surrender to accept that it will ultimately make you one with Him.