MESSAGE AT THE FOUNDATION CEREMONY OF THE MEMORIAL TOWER

 
You are today witnessing a solemn occasion of supreme importance. While the world is feverishly occupied with the vanishing things of the moment, there are always those who gain a true perspective of life through the Grace of the Master; and these lucky few are ever willing to make their whole lives an ever-renewed and ceaseless dedication to the universal and ageless truth of the imperishable and undivided Life Divine. The spiritual grandeur of those who set aside all thought of the self and make their lives an offering to the divine and imperative Cause of the Master is in itself ineffable. While the beauty of such lives surpasses all description, the Memorial tower to be created here is something much more than an ornament of crowning glory for those souls themselves. A visible memorial like a tower which symbolizes their life of unfailing loyalty and love can itself become a medium for inspiring the generations to come.

The Memorial Tower of my departed devotees which will be erected on this spot will be a reservoir of inspiration and power for posterity. Their memory is not being perpetuated for their sake; they had absolutely no desire for name or fame. Their memory is being perpetuated because it will be an example for those who are living, as well as for those who are to come. A life of sacrifice based on love is never lost; it is not only beautiful and fruitful in itself but also in the creative inspiration which it leaves behind.

The foundation of the Tower is being laid on the tomb of My dearest Masaji and on the bedding of one of My beloved disciples, F. H. Dadachanji, whose selfless service to My Cause was wholehearted in its devotion and signal in its attainments. There are also others, like Buasaheb and Munshisaheb, who served My Cause with unimpeachable integrity of character before dropping their physical bodies. For each one of them a separate flower is placed in the foundation of the Tower; and the names of all of them will be inscribed on the Tower of Glory which will be erected on this foundation.

The symbolic representation of these departed souls through flowers dispenses with the separative burial or cremation ceremonials which are prevalent in different societies; and the putting of all these flowers in the same foundation is intended to emphasize the truth that though the bodies of these devotees were different, they were all parts of One Eternal and Indivisible Soul.

The Memorial Tower has completely dispensed with the physical bodies of departed souls, for the physical body is only the illusory shadow of the soul. Those devotees whose names are likely to be inscribed on this Tower after their demise will have free choice in respect to the disposal of their bodies. Their bodies may be buried or cremated or disposed of on the tower of silence, according to the rites of their respective religions or according to any desire expressed by them during their lifetimes. They all shall be represented on the Memorial Tower by their names.

The Tower will be in memory of men belonging to different religions and will, in fact, represent the fundamental unity of all the great world religions. All the great world religions have in their own ways revealed the same One Truth which I bring anew, and this unity of all religions will be clearly emphasized by placing on the Tower the emblems of all the important world religions. The Tower shall thus be a silent proclamation of the unity of all religions. The unshakable peace of Life in Eternity and the unfading glory of Conscious Divinity shall crown the souls which are represented by the Memorial Tower. They are eternally mine. I bless them all.