On Wednesday, 17 February 1932, Baba's 38th birthday was celebrated quietly with a simple program of bhajan, kirtan, bathing Baba, arti, and the distribution of prasad by Baba. While conversing with his lovers, Baba suddenly asked one of them, "What are you thinking?"

"You know, Baba," the man replied.

Baba responded, nodding, "Yes, I do, but tell me anyway." Ghani asked why Baba always asked people to tell him and whether it was better to "speak out" or to keep silent. Baba responded:

Speaking out is better always. I have come down on your level to be among you. I know everything. I know what you are thinking and what hardships you have undergone. But by my asking you to say it out loud, you will get relief and be benefited. For that reason, I ordered you to speak, which is for your good. Even if you don't reply and remain quiet, I know; but by your speaking out, it is always for your own good and to your advantage.

My Universal mind is the central station to which every individual mind is linked. So, wherever a person may be, I know what he is thinking and doing every moment. At every moment I know the thought of every person and the thoughts of the whole world simultaneously. Not only this, but I also know what you will think tomorrow or after 1,000 years, and I also know what you thought thousands of years before. This is Knowledge — infinite and indivisible — and it is beyond your imagination.

In January of 1932, Kitty and a few others in England invited Baba to return there for a week in the spring — to "pay Baba back" for the week he had given them in Paris. Baba immediately wired back: "Delighted. Accept invitation from Kimco for one week."

Baba's first visit to the West in 1931 had had a profound effect upon those fortunate, selected individuals who came into his contact. The following are excerpts from a few of their letters:

"The day of days remains present through all, the day I met you. The beauty that is Shri Baba penetrates even the commonest things. I find myself still dumb. In contemplation, you appear as the Flaming Rose on the Tree of Life, and the flame is amber-gold."

"Meher Baba, the Beloved through whom love flows like a river of gold. Your touch has made me know that I can no longer dwell in the heresy of separateness. May it give me the courage to plunge through the flames in the world of Reality — to conscious, perfect love. Please help me!"