“Dreams are God’s quiet way of allowing us to go insane quietly [while we sleep], so that we can remain sane [when we are awake].”

We all dream, but not everybody remembers their dreams. Some people not only remember their dreams but place great importance on them. There are various schools of psychology that have tried to decipher the meaning behind them. I often find dreams fascinating, but I do not try to interpret them. Dreams in which the Master or the God-Man appears, however, belong to a different category altogether. It is said that some spirits can assume any form in order to trick people. However, a God-Realized Master revealed to one of His lovers in a dream that it is beyond the power of any spirit, good or bad, to assume the form of the Master, even in a dream. Nor is the Master or Avatar’s appearance a product of the dreamer’s thoughts; it is a gift of His unbounded grace.

So, Avatar Meher Baba’s appearance in the dreams of His lovers holds its own significance. It purifies all levels of the mind, even those not necessarily known to the dreamer, and guides one to be more receptive to what He wishes to give us in our lives with Him.

The following two stories illustrate how, even on a worldly level, Baba’s dream appearance has helped His dear ones.

My friend Bapu Shinde of Pune was a prosperous businessman who owned a line of shoe stores. But in the ‘50s, when Bapu was just starting his career, he lived in a small apartment and his whole family slept together in one room. At night, the family kept a small oil lamp burning near their bed to give a little light. One night, one of the children got up to go to the bathroom. It was summer, and when the youngster returned to bed, she threw off the thin sheet that was covering her. The fabric landed on top of the lamp and began to smoke.

Meanwhile, Bapu was having a dream. In his dream, Baba was about to visit his home. He saw Baba arrive in His car down below on the street. It should have been a happy time, but Bapu was worried. The family stayed on the second floor (first story) of a building with two entrances. So two separate flights of stairs led up to their apartment, and Bapu wasn’t sure which flight Baba would take. As he wanted to be there to welcome Baba, he became anxious not knowing which flight of stairs he should descend to receive Baba. This anxiety became so great that it woke him up. He sat up in bed and became aware of the fact that there was smoke in the corner. As he became more awake, he realized that the sheet was about to catch fire, and he quickly removed it. He definitely felt that Baba’s dream appearance saved his family from being burned. He felt greatly thankful to Baba and his conviction in Baba’s divinity was increased.

Perhaps I should mention that Bapu played an important part in the building of the Pune Baba Centre. When Bapu died, Baba expressed His close connection with him by remarking, “My Bapu has come to Me.”

This reminds me of another instance of Baba’s dream help. One day in the early ‘70s I was traveling back from my farm to my home town of Kurduwadi, and was changing trains at the Pandharpur train station. I had slipped my money through the small ticket window and was waiting to receive my ticket when I heard a voice exclaim, “Bal Natu, is that you?” I was startled, as you usually do not expect to have the booking clerk at a train station recognize you or call out your name. I peered through the opening.

“Bal Natu,” the voice repeated with excitement, “come in, come in, I want to talk to you.” It turned out that the booking clerk was someone I had known years before, Babu Bhosle. I knew he had seen Baba once or twice at Guru Prasad, Pune in the 1960s. As we had not been especially close, I was more concerned with getting my ticket than engaging in conversation. “I’m sorry,” I replied, “but I don’t have time now, I have to catch my train.” “Don’t worry,” he assured me. “I won’t let the train leave without you, come inside.”

“What do you want to talk about?” I asked. “I want to tell you about a dream of Meher Baba I had.” As soon as he said Meher Baba’s name, I was drawn to hear it. Bhosle said, “Go around to the back, and I’ll let you in. Don’t worry, I will not only give you a ticket, but I will personally escort you to the train and see that you are seated. I won’t let you miss the train.” So I walked around to the back. Normally only authorized personnel are allowed in the ticket office. Not only are train tickets kept there, but there is usually quite a lot of money lying around. Nonetheless, my former friend unbolted the door and ushered me into the office, then closed and locked the door behind me.

While continuing to issue the tickets, Bhosle told me his story: “I was in some trouble a while back. A group of railroad employees were charged with embezzling and all were suspended. I was one of those suspended, though I was not a party to the crime. I didn’t know what to do. Things looked very bad for me. The night before I was to meet with my lawyer, I had a dream. Meher Baba appeared to me and He said, ‘Don’t worry.’” “Oh, yes, He often says that to His dear ones,” I told him. “But wait, there is something more to this dream. Baba then said, ‘The one who is accused cannot be a witness in the same case.’ With this, the dream ended. As you know, my English is not that good. I didn’t know what the word ‘accused’ meant. But when I woke up, I remembered that sentence very clearly and I got out a dictionary and looked up the word ‘accused.’ That morning I had been called to see my lawyer. He had meant to spend the time rehearsing my testimony but I said I had no intention of being a witness. ‘What do you mean?’ he asked me.

“I repeated what Baba had conveyed to me in the dream, ‘The accused cannot be a witness in the same case.’ My lawyer was amazed. He was the lawyer, but he had forgotten this clause. He looked it up and it was right. I could not be made to testify in a case in which I was one of the accused. The railway authorities needed my testimony and when they found out that I had no intention of giving it, they had no choice but to drop all charges against me. I was reinstated so that I could give the testimony they were seeking. Thus Baba saved my job. The railway authorities transferred me and that is why I am here.” By the time Bhosle had finished telling me the story, the train whistled and he escorted me to my seat.

I was struck by this dream. The fact that Bhosle did not even know what the word “accused” meant only further increased my conviction that Baba had indeed come to his rescue. Hearing it helped me to better understand Baba’s compassion, offered with this timely help. Baba helps even those who have only casually come into His contact. And in spite of our not remembering Him, He never fails to remember us and help us in our times of need. Countless are the ways Baba helps His dear ones. He visits them even in the dream world. All of creation is God’s dreaming, but it is the divine joke of the Avatar that sometimes He Himself appears in the dreams of the dreamers. Dreaming, dream and dreamer are only Him; He plays all the parts in His Game of finding Himself as the Eternal Awakener who alone exists.