“The Treasure Untold”

Kitty Davy gave the following talk on the 19th Amartithi in 1988 at the Meher Spiritual Center in Myrtle Beach. It is excerpted from the book One Fine Thread, Talks on Meher Baba by Kitty Davy.¹

Hidden in your penniless hands is Treasure untold

Your beggarly life will be the envy of kings!

—from the “Song of the New Life”²

The treasure untold. I think we all feel from time to time the Truth of

these words from the “Song of the New Life.”

Today, for a brief moment—but a deeply precious moment—a time has been set aside when we can share together this treasure by celebrating the nineteenth Amartithi of the passing of our Beloved Meher Baba.

This intimate sharing is also a joyous sharing. As Mani remarked in the Family Letter of March 1969, in reference to the thousands who came to Meherabad to pay their final respects at Baba’s Tomb before the interment: “The breath that stirred this gathering of lovers . . . was not so much a sighing of ‘Come, let us weep together,’ but a crying of ‘Come, let us adore Him.’”³

The treasure we share is the continued intimate Presence of our Beloved—a coming together with Baba, in spirit, just to be alone with Him—a time for a true sahavas or darshan. As Baba so frequently stressed in the early days: “Come and be with Me, sit with Me.”

Referring to this time of “give-and-take of love,” Baba said in the Barn in 1958: “I am the only Beloved and you are all my lovers; or I am the only Lover and you are all my beloveds. I want you all to remain happy in my sahavas. I am the Ocean of Love. Draw as much of this Love as possible. Make the most of this opportunity. It rests with you to draw as much love as you can out of the Ocean.”⁴

Isn’t this one reason that we are gathered here for Amartithi this morning? Though Baba is not with us in the physical form, we can feel His Presence in the spirit. Many years before actually dropping His body, Baba gave the following message—His last on the alphabet board—to those who had expressed concern over the dropping of His physical form mentioned in His “Final Declaration” of September 1954: “I am always with you and I am not away from you. I was, am and remain eternally with you, and it is for promoting this realization that I have severed external contact. This will enable all persons to realize the Truth by being bound to each other with internal links.”⁵

Amartithi is the remembrance of the day on which Baba broke external links to foster thendevelopment of internal links. These links to Baba, which each of us has, are our ever lasting Treasure.

On this day of Amartithi, when we remember the dropping of the physical form of our Beloved, my thoughts return to an incident during the New Life period. Baba referred to the devotion, love, and service of His very early disciples who were then departed, by offering a prayer to God on their behalf: “. . . I appeal in all humility to the most merciful and gracious God that He should bestow His grace upon each of these departed ones. . . .” Then He continued: “Since the spirit is immortal, so those whose bodies have returned to the earth are still living in the spirit. And yet, today, I feel constrained to offer homage to the flame of sacred love, which is so dear to God, that burns in every loving heart; the same flame that burnt with different intensities in the hearts of all these departed ones. . . . ”⁶ After Baba’s prayer, the names of 124 close disciples and lovers who had passed away were then read out by Eruch.

Thus, at this time, it seems appropriate that we should remember some of the very earliest lovers of the Beloved who have more recently departed: Pendu Irani [1986], Rano Gayley [1986], Arnavaz’s brother Homa Dadachanji [1986], and most recently from the West, Lud Dimpfl, who went to Baba only one week ago [January 19, 1988]. By remembering them, we also remember Baba, for He referred to His closest ones as parts of His physical form.

And so, whether we are in the body or have departed, our treasure of living in the spirit with Baba remains. How can we of Baba’s close family, who have the good fortune and destiny to be called by Him—how can we become more aware of this great Treasure?

One question we ask ourselves: Why have we been chosen to share in this Treasure? Margaret Craske asked Baba in the early years: “Why out of all the billions in the world have we been chosen?” And Baba, using His board, spelled out slowly: “You have no idea how much you have suffered, how much you have desired it.”

The opportunity of being with Baba is available to us all. May we welcome and endure whatever suffering comes our way, and remember Baba’s words: “He who seeks My pleasure finds the Divine Treasure.”⁷

Today, on Amartithi, lovers of Baba join together all over the world, forgetting all else in the Presence of His eternal and infinite spirit. What can our response be to such a great gift? Baba tells us: “Be with Me constantly. Come to receive My love, which is ever available. I will help you to obey Me, to love Me and to surrender to Me.” It is not only at Amartithi that we have the opportunity to have Baba’s darshan. In the Family Letter of March 1969, Mani wrote that long before dropping His body, Baba had casually remarked that “soon when He started giving His darshan to His lovers, it would not be for a limited period but for all time.”⁸

Many of you report feeling Baba’s Presence so much whilst on pilgrimage at Meherabad. I recall Sheila Krynski writing from India a year ago: “My favorite times here are at Meherabad and in the Tomb. It is very powerful and very private. It’s those times alone that I treasure. Not alone painting, not listening to music, not thinking. But just alone with Baba. Everything else is lovely and pleasant but not central, and just fills the time between those moments.”

With Baba’s Treasure constantly available, we must be ever alert to His Call, so that we do not miss an opportunity to be with Him. To recall Baba’s words read out to us in the Barn during sahavas in 1958: “One thing is certain; I want to give you my love. It depends on each of you to receive it. The easy way to receive it is to forget your home, family and worldly affairs,

when you are here, and be receptive to my love. This is the first thing. The second thing is to have a good night’s rest, sleep well each night and feel fresh when you come here for my sahavas each day. I am God: and if you remain drowsy in my presence, you will miss me and your drowsiness will oblige you to remain absent from my Presence. . . .”⁹

This lesson was also brought forth at the time of Jesus just before the Crucifixion. Jesus had called His most intimate disciples to be with Him, and He took them to Gethsemane to wait with Him. The following is what happened, quoting from the Gospel of Matthew:

Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane and saith unto the disciples, “Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.” And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy. Then saith He unto them, My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death; tarry ye here and watch with Me. And He went a little farther and fell on His face and prayed, saying, O My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me. Nevertheless, not as I will but as Thou wilt. And He cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the Spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O My Father, if this cup may not pass away from Me, except I drink it, Thy Will be done. And He came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy. And He left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words: Then cometh He to His disciples and saith unto them, “Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand. . . .”¹⁰

Therefore, let us be more alert, more reliable, more responsible, and not succumb to drowsiness in Baba’s Presence. In closing, Baba tells us:

I am the Divine Beloved worthy of being loved because I am Love.¹¹

Love Me more and more, because for the sake of Love, I have come among you.¹²

Hold fast to Me so that I will take you where I go; otherwise, you will be lost. I am the Emperor. If you belong to Me, you will have access to the Infinite Treasure that is Mine.¹³

The only one and sure way to find your abode in Me is to love Me.¹⁴

Love me because I am Love.¹⁵

Listen once again to the twenty-third psalm of David, familiar to us all:

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters.

He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

1. One Fine Thread, by Kitty Davy, p. 239 – 245
2. Lord Meher, online rev. ed., by Bhau Kalchuri, p. 2811.
3. 82 Family Letters, by Mani S. Irani, p. 343.
4. The God-Man, by C.B. Purdom, pp. 299-300.
5. Lord Meher, p. 3651.
6. Ibid, p. 3021–22.
7. Ibid, p. 5236.
8. 82 Family Letters, p. 348.
9. The God-Man, p. 300.
10. Matthew 26: 36–45, King James Version.
11. Lord Meher, p. 5375.
12. Ibid, p. 5318.
13. Ibid, p. 4898.
14. Ibid, p. 3411
15. Handwritten note on the typescript of Kitty’s speech. In His 1967 birthday message Baba said, “It is easy to love Me because I am Love.” Meher Baba Calling (1992).