User talk:Nemonoman/Silence Sandbox

Silence
From July 10, 1925 until his death in 1969, Meher Baba was silent. He communicated first by using an alphabet board, and later by unique hand gestures which were interpreted and spoken out by one of his mandali, usually by his disciple Eruch Jessawala. Meher Baba said that his silence was not undertaken as a spiritual exercise but solely in connection with his universal work. "Man’s inability to live God’s words makes the Avatar’s teaching a mockery. Instead of practicing the compassion he taught, man has waged wars in his name. Instead of living the humility, purity, and truth of his words, man has given way to hatred, greed, and violence. Because man has been deaf to the principles and precepts laid down by God in the past, in this present Avataric form, I observe silence."

Meher Baba often spoke of the moment "that he would 'break' his silence by speaking the 'Word' in every heart, thereby giving a spiritual push forward to all living things." "When I break My Silence, the impact of My Love will be universal and all life in creation will know, feel and receive of it. It will help every individual to break himself free from his own bondage in his own way. I am the Divine Beloved who loves you more than you can ever love yourself. The breaking of My Silence will help you to help yourself in knowing your real Self." Meher Baba said that the breaking of his silence would be a defining event in the spiritual evolution of the world. "When I speak that Word, I shall lay the foundation for that which is to take place during the next seven hundred years." He promised to break his silence with an audible word before he died, often stating a specific date when this would occur. See for example:                            His failure to fulfill these promises disappointed some his followers, while others regarded these events as a test of their faith. Since he remained silent until his death, some followers speculate "the Word" will yet be spoken, or that his silence was broken in a spiritual rather than a physical way.

After he had a vision in 2004, one close disciple recalled hearing Meher Baba speak a few hours before he died, although this contradicted his earlier accounts.

On July 10, Baba's followers celebrate Silence Day to honour him.