Byramangala Universal Spiritual Centre Byramangala Universal Spiritual Centre
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MEHER BABA UNIVERSAL SPIRITUAL CENTRE BYRAMANGALA, BANGALORE, INDIA I t was in the year 1939, the then Diwan of Mysore State, Sir Mirza Ismail suggested that Meher Baba visit Byramangala as a possible site for a spiritual centre. On 4 August 1939, Beloved Baba was taken to see the site by the Chief Engineer of Mysore State. It was an ideal site with a fertile soil and in the immediate vicinity to an artificial lake. Baba liked the place and inspected it again on September 1 and Dr. William Donkin, one of Baba's men mandali, wrote in his diary: " The new ashram is to be called the Meher Baba Universal Spiritual Centre." Adi K. Irani, Baba's close men mandali, noted in his diary: A meeting of the Universal Spiritual Centre was held on Tuesday, October 10. Norina Matchabelli, Elizabeth Patterson, Papa Jessawala, Ramjoo Abdulla, Jal Kerawala, Chanji and Adi. K. Irani attended the meeting as members of a committee. The project of the Universal Spiritual Centre then proceeded in full swing. Along with the initial purchase of lands, over 560 acres, plans for the nine different blocks, comprising 350 rooms were worked out and drawn to the scale.S unday, December 17, 1939, was a memorable day. On this day, Meher Baba came up in Elizabeth's Buick car at 4.34 P.M. A band greeted Baba and before He came, two singers praised Him with songs. All was very gay, with leaves, flags and flowers. All of the 4000 people, assembled there, were accommodated under a specially erected shamiana - a huge open sided tent, with Beloved Baba's seat at the centre. A poetical composition welcoming Meher Baba was read in Persian by A.K. Syed Rasul, followed by a speech by C.V.Sampath Aiyangar and Ms. V. T. Lakshmi. Acharya Chakravarty, a noted exponent of Vedanta, too welcomed Meher Baba. Meher Baba walked over to the Foundation area and seating Him on the stone-piece, with the shovel, specially prepared of seven metals, dug into the earth. Baba was wearing an old brick red colour coat and a dhoti. Meher Baba's Special Message on the occasion was read out.B aba revisited the place in October, 1953, and stayed in one of the rooms for three days. By this time, only nine rooms were constructed, three of them half complete. It was from 1983, a group of Baba lovers took up the task of creating an active Meher Baba Universal Spiritual Centre at the site. In November 1989, Baba lovers celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the centre. Between 1989 and 1994, the construction of the Central Structure was completed and on 17 December 1994 it was formally opened for the pilgrims. Murshid James MacKie, the leader of the American Sufi group was the Chief Guest. Around four thousand Baba lovers and seventy Sufis along with two other Western Baba lovers attended the function.T oday, Venkoba Rao, one of Baba's mandali, and his wife Laxmibai stay in Byramangala looking after the Centre. A Trust, registered with the Registrar of Societies on 11 August 1983, manages the Centre. V. Deva Rao, son of Venkoba Rao, is the Secretary of the Trust.Pilgrims visiting the Centre should contact :Mr. V. Deva Rao Phone: Landline - 080-27202160, Mobile - +91-9880311569
Address of Meher Baba Universal Spiritual Centre: Meher Baba Universal Spiritual,Byramangala Centre Abbankuppa village ittimadu Post,Bidadi Hobali, Ramanagara Taluk,Bangalore Dist., 562109. HOW TO REACH MEHER BABA UNIVERSAL SPIRITUAL CENTRE 1.The Centre is situated about 35 Km from Bangalore City on Bidadi-Harohalli Road (near Abbanakuppa Bus Stop). The Centre's signboards have been placed on Bangalore - Mysore Highway at 31Km and at Abbanakuppa Bus stop. 2.Bangalore city is reachable from any part of India by availing Flight, Train and Bus services. 3.Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is regularly plying buses from KSRTC Bus Station. Buses for Byramangala are available from Platform 4 of Bangalore Railway Station. Pilgrims should get down at Abbankuppa village Bus Stop. It takes about an hour to reach at this Bus Stop. Alternatively, buses going to Bidadi Bus Stand can be boarded. From Bidadi Bus Stand, regular private transport services to Byramangala are available. _________
MEHER BABA'S SPECIAL MESSAGE DELIVERED ON 17 DECEMBER 1939 THE FOUNDATION DAY OF THE MEHER BABA UNIVERSAL SPIRITUAL CENTRE AT BYRAMANGALA T he world is at War Today.It has engulfed all departments of life, political, economic, social and religious. The instinct of self-preservation enhanced by fear and uncertainty of the future is aggressively active in the guise of various pseudonyms and catchwords. Exclusiveness is parading as nationalism; self-interest is known as economics, fanaticism is synonymous with religion, libertinism is looked upon as social and moral freedom and exploitation is termed politics. This instinct of self-preservation is legitimate and natural with the lower order of life, in the scale of evolution. But when it expresses itself through man, it makes him nothing more than a talking animal and as such, he is yet a long way off from deserving the title, " the best of creation." Is it anybody's fault if one finds himself on the right side of things or the wrong side of things? No! Every human being has come to serve and achieve a definite purpose and by playing his part to perfection, he automatically works out his own salvation. There is the difference however. In the divine scheme of things individuals or people when instead of progressing higher onward, are about to lapse into bestiality. It is suffering that rehabilitates them. Spiritual Masters achieve for humanity this same resurrection much more easily and less painfully by not only preaching, but translating into fulfillment the too familiar words "self-denial and brotherhood of man," whose very beginning and whose ultimate end is LOVE. T he time for such a universal awakening is looming large in near future, to meet which the scheme of a Universal Spiritual Centre is founded today.M ysore will surely realize at no distant date its singular good fortune in possessing amongst many progressive features, the spiritual capital of the world as well.I bless every one of you, the participants and non-participants in the greatest scheme of spiritual regeneration the world has ever known and foundation of which you have witnessed today.T his scheme of a Universal Spiritual Centre symbolizes the character of My Divine Mission on earth.I Bless You._______
T he world was really at War that day, the 17th of December 1939. Events simmered in 1939 leading to the most devastating catastrophe the world has ever suffered - the World War II. It began in 1939 as a European Conflict between Germany and an Anglo - French Coalition but eventually induced to include most of the nations of the world. A rare coincidence, or a preordained event, 17 December 1998, assumed new significance when in the early hours of morning America and Britain launched the awesome missile attack on Iraq. The world has'nt learnt much between 1939 and 1998.It is still at War. Beloved Baba's Message of Love and Universal Brother hood is as relavent today as it was on 17th December 1939. |
