A group of Parsis from Bombay have been visiting Meher Center: Rashna Karachia and her friend Mithoo, accompanied by Mithoo’s son and two female cousins. My husband, Jonathan Burroughs, spent the day with them Tuesday, taking them on a tour of the Center and out to lunch, shopping, etc.
Rashna, whose mother, Sheroo Pauri, is a relative of Meherjee Karkaria, first met Baba at Guruprasad in 1960 at age nine, when she sat at His feet and enjoyed watching His changing moods and expressions—sometimes kindly, sometimes laughing, other times fierce or angry-looking (but even as a child she sensed his anger was due to some inner work he was doing). His eyes would dart here and there and she says she could never look steadily into his eyes.
The story that Rashna told during the tour at Baba’s House is about her husband, Eruch Karachia. He was a college student in 1954 when he went with a group of college friends to catch a glimpse of Meher Baba at the railway station in Pune. Having heard that one who stands too close to a saint would risk becoming mesmerized, he stood at a safe distance on the fringes of the crowd gathered to see Baba. In Baba’s group were some young Western women, and taking note of this, Eruch K. wondered how it could be that a man claiming to be the Avatar was embracing and kissing women.
At that very moment Baba gestured for Eruch K. to come to Him. He hesitated but was pushed forward by his college buddies.
Baba embraced and kissed him, and he bowed at Baba’s feet, weeping. Baba then gestured:
Rashna, whose mother, Sheroo Pauri, is a relative of Meherjee Karkaria, first met Baba at Guruprasad in 1960 at age nine, when she sat at His feet and enjoyed watching His changing moods and expressions—sometimes kindly, sometimes laughing, other times fierce or angry-looking (but even as a child she sensed his anger was due to some inner work he was doing). His eyes would dart here and there and she says she could never look steadily into his eyes.
The story that Rashna told during the tour at Baba’s House is about her husband, Eruch Karachia. He was a college student in 1954 when he went with a group of college friends to catch a glimpse of Meher Baba at the railway station in Pune. Having heard that one who stands too close to a saint would risk becoming mesmerized, he stood at a safe distance on the fringes of the crowd gathered to see Baba. In Baba’s group were some young Western women, and taking note of this, Eruch K. wondered how it could be that a man claiming to be the Avatar was embracing and kissing women.
At that very moment Baba gestured for Eruch K. to come to Him. He hesitated but was pushed forward by his college buddies.
Baba embraced and kissed him, and he bowed at Baba’s feet, weeping. Baba then gestured:
“What you see is not Me. What you don’t see is Me.”
Source: Personal communication to Jonathan Burroughs on July 31, 2012, written up by Kendra Crossen Burroughs and posted to Kendra's Notebook August 2, 2012. OK'd by Rashna.
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