ONLY A PERFECT HUMAN BEING who has attained the divine state of Sahaj Samadhi – God Consciousness plus creation consciousness – can understand the life of the Avatar. An ordinary person clothed in sanskaric ignorance can never gauge the Avatar's infinitude. The earthly life of the Avatar is utterly beyond conception, for who can have any idea of his inner working and universal activity? Still, by his strolling about in the compound of this world and by his outer work and activity, the Song of Wine rises up to link the singer with Infinity and inspire him to cross the seas of Maya – Illusion.

Each act of the Avatar is his leela or play in his cosmic game. In MEHER PRABHU (LORD MEHER) every effort has been made to delineate a picture of this game. MEHER PRABHU includes not only a historical study of Meher Baba's advent from the beginning, but also my personal experience of being in his close contact day and night for many years. Above all this work is the fulfillment of the Beloved's direct instruction to me to write this biography. Since I was a witness to Meher's leela – divine play – for many years on this physical plane, the events imprinted in my mind and heart took shape in black and white in the fulfillment of his wishes. But the culmination of this writing, in accordance with his orders, was only possible through him.

I am deeply indebted to Adi K. Irani, Baba's secretary for many years, who placed his office records at my disposal and allowed Feram Workingboxwala to assist me in compiling the material for this book, and translating pertinent documents from Gujarati and Marathi into English. Feram felt inspired to help me and since he was the recordkeeper of Meher Baba's correspondence and messages, his help was invaluable. Feram also felt inspired to translate all that I originally wrote in Hindi into English. Without Feram's translation this biography would not have reached English¬speaking readers for many more years.

I bow down to the love of the following of my kith and kin who have furnished me with information for the details in MEHER PRABHU: