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1270THE WEST LEARNS TO SING1931

Baba would stay up late at night, sitting with his lovers outside under the stars; however, all would feel fresh when Baba woke them early in the morning. After lunch on Sunday, 20 September 1931, Kitty and Zilla departed for London, and Enid left the next morning.

Ann Powell, who was staying nearby with friends, was given an interview on the 21st. Ann had been interested in Theosophy and had met Meredith during a previous stay at East Challacombe. She was from Wales, so Baba called her Welsh Ann. Thirty years later, she wrote of that first meeting:

On arriving at the [East Challacombe] house, I felt defeated, helpless and hopeless ... I found support leaning on the porch by the front door. The whole burden of my past seemed to be upon me. I felt a tremendous upheaval, and it did not seem possible to me at that moment that Baba was who he claimed to be.

Baba was playing quoits [British variety of horseshoes] with his disciples in the garden. He left the game and went and sat on a garden seat. He looked at me and called me over to him, beckoning me to sit by his side. Then he placed his hand in mine ... At that moment the burden was lifted and my Real Self was revealed to me.

I was weeping when I met Baba, and I continued weeping in his presence. A disciple was about to console me, but Baba said, "Leave her alone. She will be very sincere towards me."

I do not remember leaving Baba's physical presence. It was a timeless experience as though I transcended the space of the four miles as I returned walking to South Devon. Upon my arrival there my friends inquired as to what did I think of Baba? I tried to express my thoughts to them but found my experience was beyond words to explain. The calm and peace remained with me throughout the years, until the present day.

In the afternoon of the 21st, Baba called Kim, Margaret Craske and Margaret Starr privately and explained in detail with a diagram the process of creation, evolution, reincarnation and involution of consciousness. At the end (to Margaret Craske's great relief) Baba told them all not to think too much on any of these details, stating, "Love is greater than anything — any amount of knowledge or explanations."

A telegram arrived in Combe Martin on the 22nd from Vishnu in Nasik, conveying the news that Hazrat Babajan had dropped her body in Poona on Monday, 21 September 1931 (at about 4:30 P.M.). On the 18th, one of her fingers had been operated on at Sassoon Hospital (where Baba was born). Baba commented: "By Babajan having dropped her body, numerous difficulties will crop up and circumstances will soon change. For this reason, yesterday I abruptly changed my plans about proceeding to Persia and then returning to India, and have decided instead to go to America. The Round Table Conference, the precarious economy of England, the chaos in Russia, Japan and China, and the rumors of war all convey that circumstances will now rapidly change."

Babajan's Beloved Son sent a telegram to Ghani directing him to donate Rs.4,000 on his behalf toward erecting Babajan's marble tomb.

While in Combe Martin, it seemed that Baba divided his time between his closest followers. The first two days were spent with Herbert; the next three with Kitty and Zilla; and the last four with Baba showing special attention to Margaret (Craske) and Kim. As various persons would come to see Baba, Aga Ali would announce, "Baba, Kim and company are here." From this, Baba began referring to the group collectively as Kimco.

Almost every day, Baba would call Chanji and Rustom to his room to discuss the trip to America — much to the chagrin of Meredith, who would have preferred the Indian disciples take a back seat to his own imagined closeness with Baba.

At night after the others had gone to bed, Chanji would sit on his cot and write notes of the day's activities in his diary; thus we have this record. 

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