Coming Closer to God (Page 3 of 4)

In 1966, Meher Baba gave me the mandate to go and tell the world that Meher Baba is God in human form. Throughout my life as I was growing up in Meher Baba’s fold, he emphasized again and again sharing his name with the world, which I have been doing through Beloved Archives and Glow International. Are Sufis going out into the world and sharing his name with others and do you have public programmes that would help his name to be disseminated, his message to be disseminated?
First, it is important to differentiate between the plan Meher Baba had for you and the plan he had for Sufism.

Right.
He directed you to do that and that is how you serve him. Sufism he directed not to spread his name or his message in the world, but to live his principles of love, trust, harmony, cooperation and so on, in our daily lives. So that is assuredly what we concentrate on. We have never been directed to do otherwise. The one exception is that he has asked us to take charge of his book, God Speaks. We do that with great conscientiousness to make certain that we always have fine quality editions, the best printing that we can achieve. We also recently subsidized an English language printing of God Speaks within India to allow this edition, which appears almost identical with the one sold in America, to be sold there at a reduced price.

Now to focus a little bit on the role of the Murshida. To what extent do you, as Murshida, direct the lives of the members of the Order? And as a follow up, is implicit obedience to your wishes a prerequisite to becoming a member?
As with many questions of a spiritual nature, there aren’t black and white answers. So I am going to begin with a little bit of background. First the term “obedience” used in the spiritual sense is much misunderstood. I think if people took a moment to open Baba’s Discourses, where he talks about the relation between a spiritual teacher and student, their questions would be dissolved in a moment. It’s a highly lucid, simple and direct explanation.
Obedience in the worldly sense is in a different world from obedience in a spiritual sense. Obedience in the literal sense refers to a power relationship. If you take a bipolar dimension, one of the many bipolar dimensions that create illusory reality, and put at one end “power” and at the other end “lack of power” or “weakness”, then obedience in the worldly sense would be any relationship along that dimension — a relation of one with less power to one with more power. Weaker to stronger. Now, I’ll try to contrast that with obedience in a spiritual sense.

But that was the follow-up question. My initial question was, as Murshida, are you called upon to direct the … let’s put it this way, is it incumbent in your role of Murshida to direct the lives of your mureeds?
The role of a Murshida or Murshid is to nurture and foster the student’s increasing ability to surrender to their highest knowing of love. That is the sole and central purpose of a Murshid or spiritual guide. It is to help the student increasingly yield to, or obey higher love. This is obedience in the spiritual sense.
Most often a teacher does this by watching for examples of especially sweet and loving behaviour of a student — it might be something fresh and new for them — and taking pains to recognize it and value it, bringing home to the student its importance so he or she can consolidate this new learning and move forward. Usually weaknesses of a student are not spoken of at all. Mostly a Murshid guides the lives of students by supporting their expanded understanding of life as they come to them and as they begin to explore trying to live them. Then the Murshid tries to nurture this growth.
     Now, from time to time students do ask questions of a practical nature, like: Should I take this job? Should I marry this person? Should I follow this medical treatment that my doctor recommended? In those cases, I normally try to be light and commonsensical. Rather than giving a specific answer, I encourage the student to get more information about what is before him or her, or in some cases, to consult with a professional if that proves to be relevant. I try to encourage students to feel safe in the world, to feel that the world belongs to Meher Baba and that he is in his world. That the world is perfect if they accept it, accept life, take up their role in the world responsibly and with sincerity and then love him. So, I try to demystify ideas of a practical nature and encourage trust that Baba is with them as they go about their daily affairs in the world.

This is a follow up: Meher Baba said that he would hold himself responsible for the spiritual welfare for all those who may be prepared to and do follow a Murshid or Murshida of Sufism Reoriented. Do you personally feel absolved of all responsibility since as Murshida you are often called upon to direct the lives of your mureeds?
Since the kind of direction that I offer students is to support and nurture their ability to honour their highest understanding of love, that isn’t the kind of relationship that builds karma. It frees karma! That’s far away from the give-and-take of the marketplace of illusory reality that builds karma. So I am not worried about incurring karmic responsibility. In addition, I also regularly offer up our lives to Meher Baba. I ask him to take what we bring and make it his own. And I believe that he does that.

Murshida Conner answers questions.

A little bit about the mureeds. Those who become members or mureeds of Sufism Reoriented have to be qualified to be members. One of the criteria, as mentioned in the Charter, is to be able to cherish no material ambitions. How does this play out as a member of the organization, while living and working in the marketplace? Apparently for most of us, it would be most difficult.
Well that’s an important question and a good one to ask in the context of America – America in the present times. Most of my students are actively involved in the world. I believe that an active life of responsibility helps to anchor the students’ dedication to Meher Baba by providing many practical channels for living his principles and sharing them with others. I am immensely pleased when Sufi students are vitally involved in the world.
Our members represent a cross-section of American vocations. They are in every trade except plumbing and in every profession. They include nurses, receptionists, computer operators, schoolteachers, construction workers, contractors, doctors, lawyers, dentists, etc.
     You have to remember that our students meditate on Meher Baba, following his guidance, for nearly an hour every day. They normally do this in the early morning hours before they leave for their work.

Would you explain that a little further?
Meher Baba in our Charter asked every member as a condition of membership to repeat his name for 30 minutes every day and to meditate on him for 15 minutes, either in his formless state or on his form. So our people do that every day. Murshida (Duce) used to say, “I can always tell when you are not doing your meditation because your eyes aren’t shining.”
     So, before they go into the workplace they have done their meditation. I ask them to remember Baba when they go out into the world, to accept the responsibilities that come to them, do them cheerfully, sincerely, to the best of their ability and love God. Then Baba comes and joins them. And in ways that are quiet but very significant, he transforms what they do. He makes it his.

Now, if any of the tenets mentioned in the Charter or in your opinion are violated or broken, are the members expelled as not having fulfilled their role as a Sufi mureed?
Here again, we need to build a little background. Processes of spiritual transformation normally unfold gradually and over time. When a deeper layer of consciousness becomes ignited and begins to press for expression, it often takes several years at the minimum before a new structure of thought and feeling has stabilized and the old, layer of consciousness has dissolved and dissipated. During this period of transition, Sufi students may have glimpses of higher truth that they are not yet able to consistently hold and realize. In time, they will be able to do this. But for a time these insights come as sporadic glimpses pointing a direction for the future. During these transitions it is not uncommon for the person to be pulled by a layer of consciousness that has become exhausted and is dying or by a transitory bundle of primitive sanskaras passing through their consciousness as a natural, organic part of their transformation. But the weight of their growth, the centre of gravity of their growth, is in the direction of honouring the higher valuing, knowing and loving that is the goal of Sufism.
     What is important is not whether a student makes a mistake, has misadventures, acts compulsively and so forth, in an isolated case. What is important is where the centre of gravity of their growth lies.