A Miracle by Meher Baba

LORD MEHER p. 3241 SAVED FROM DEATH

In 1948, Kanchan, daughter of the Ahmednagar photographer Bhaiya Panday, became gravely ill, and the doctor held no hope for her survival. She was so weak she could not even raise her hand. Her temperature had risen to 105°F, and her family was terribly worried. Panday went to Pimpalgaon and Baba asked him, “Why have you come?”

He replied, “What is the use of our having faith in you when my daughter is about to die and you have no thought for us?”

Smiling, Baba asked, “What is the matter?” Panday told him about Kanchan and explained that she had not eaten anything for several days. Baba had Donkin bring two potatoes, and giving them to Panday spelled out, “After boiling these well, give them to Kanchan to eat.”

“The doctors have forbidden her to take anything other than liquids,” Panday informed Baba.

“Kanchan is dying anyway, so why let her die of hunger?” replied Baba. “Let her eat and die!”

Accordingly, on his return Panday made Kanchan eat the boiled potatoes. The girl had been reduced to a skeleton; she could not talk, and it took her four hours to eat them. When the doctor came and was informed she had eaten potatoes, he stormed out without examining her. He was sure she would not live for more than a few hours.

But when he came the next morning, Panday found that Kanchan’s temperature had come down to 101°R. He thought: “If the fever goes away completely, she’ll live.” In two hours the temperature went down to 95°, and all were anxious about this. Panday was sincerely praying to Baba, and in half an hour her temperature rose to normal.

Amazed, the doctor said, “I do not understand how this happened. I have never seen a case like this before.”

Panday said, “This is the effect of the potatoes given by Meher Baba.”

Panday went to Pimpalgaon again, and Baba asked, “Has Kanchan died?”

“By your grace, she is alive and well,” he said. Baba gave him prasad and motioned to him to leave for home immediately, which he did – more convinced than ever that Meher Baba was the Lord of Lords. …

God, I love this. Here’s this guy who does exactly the wrong thing in approaching a Master – he starts by blaming the Master for his problem. So then Baba not only completely ignores this, but then starts acting like a Perfect Master not an Avatar in taking an interest in this individual who would seem to have no universal merit at all. Then, after all the great declarations about how unethical it would be for him, as the Avatar, to perform a miracle, that is exactly what he does. Not to mention the attitude, “since she’s going to die anyway, you might as well kill her on purpose with these potatoes.”

Indian commoners are unbelievably simple and trusting. This guy undoubtedly thought that his daughter would die from Baba’s prasad, and he was willing to be party to that, and IMO that kind of trust is what attracted Baba’s nazar in the first place.

But here’s the kicker – and I know how egotistical this will look, but I’m going to write it anyway – if I were a Satguru, this is exactly the kind of miracle I would perform, one that breaks all the rules by solving someone’s problem, and which is exactly like a successful medical intervention in that the only effect it has is to return the people involved to normalcy. The father is now a normal father because the daughter is a normal daughter, get out of here, next problem please.

Avatar Meher Baba ki Jai!
Vishveshwar