Part 1, January 21, 2021
The Thursday Evening Reading Group in Asheville, North Carolina while reading Sheela Kalchuri Fenster's book, with David Fenster, "Growing Up With God", was inspired to invite Sheela and her husband David Fenster to join the Group's Zoom meeting for a special session. In this Zoom meeting with the Group on January 21, 2021 Sheela relates stories of her 12 years as a young girl living in proximity with Meher Baba, from when she was 5 years old to 1969 when she was 17 years old and Meher Baba dropped his physical form. Sheela's father Bhau Kalchuri joined Meher Baba as one of the mandali in 1953. Four years later, Baba called Sheela and her family to live in his near proximity.

The Kalchuris had many opportunities to be in the Beloved's presence, and Sheela's first-person account paints a vivid, intimate portrait of life near Meher Baba, from the perspective of a child and teenager. TRT: 01:46:41.

Part 2, April 15, 2021
Once again the Thursday Evening Reading Group was inspired to invite Sheela and David Fenster to join the Group's Zoom meeting. They again graciously accepted. In this second Zoom meeting with the Group on April 15, 2021 Sheela relates additional stories illustrating Meher Baba's omiscence, omnipresence, and omnipotence while describing the serious challenges involved in obeying the Master.

Given Sheela's unique experience with Meher Baba coupled with the perspective of a precocious youngster, viewers are sure to be richly rewarded. TRT: 01:43:07.

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From the Introduction to Growing Up With God

Growing Up With God chronicles a unique time spent in the company of Avatar Meher Baba by a precocious young woman who first met Baba when she was less than one year old. Sheela Kalchuri Fenster lived in Meher Baba’s physical proximity for twelve years, from the time she was five until Meher Baba dropped his body in 1969, when she was seventeen.

People often wonder what it was like to live near Baba and Growing Up With God gives a candid look at life “behind the scenes” with both the men and women mandali. There were plenty of humorous moments -- and plenty of fighting, too!

With an extraordinarily vivid memory, Sheela recreates incidents and conversations from her years spent in the close company of Meher Baba and his mandali. It is a tale rich in lessons for us all, demonstrating the enormous amount of suffering and sacrifices required to live near the Avatar of the Age.

Although I was young, I listened carefully to Baba’s explanations. Once, someone wrote, “What are my bad sanskaras in this lifetime that I’m suffering [physically] so much? What did I do to cause my present suffering?”

Baba explained that the person was suffering due to his past sanskaras. He went on to state: “If something bad happens because of you or is your fault, but your motive is not bad, take my name and I will forgive you. Your sanskaras will be wiped away.”

I said, “Mehernath [Sheela’s brother] hits me and it hurts — so naturally I tease him. I understand I shouldn't, still I do it.”

“Even when you lift your little finger, you are collecting sanskaras. But when you understand about sanskaras and you still do bad things, you suffer more. If you do something innocently, the sanskaras are not as binding.”

“How will I ever be free from these?”

“You have to be free from both good and bad sanskaras. When you do something bad, ask for my forgiveness. Before you sleep at night, stand near my picture and say, ‘Baba, I am giving you all my good and bad sanskaras.’ And then don't think about them again.

You shouldn't have any doubts about it, whether or not I took those sanskaras. As soon as one doubt arises, I cannot help you be free.

“So don't think about them again. Once you give something to me, forget about it. I will take care of it. You are free from that. But you have to trust me. And don't think since I am taking care of it, you can keep doing bad things. Don't think, ‘Baba is taking care of my sanskaras, so it doesn't matter what I do.’ It does matter. If you do something bad with that feeling inside, you will suffer a thousand times more.”

I said, “Okay, I won't do something intentionally, but suppose something happens and it’s my fault. Suppose I don't mean to do it?”

“I will take care of those sanskaras.”

“Will you really do that for me? You won't suffer for that, if my sanskaras go to you? I don't want you to suffer, Baba. I collect them and then you have to suffer?”

“If you put filth into the ocean what will happen? Will it smell? No, it will be absorbed in the vastness of the ocean. So whatever you give me — perfume or garbage — is like a drop in the ocean. It doesn't affect me. I am the Ocean. Whatever comes into the ocean is absorbed, cleansed, wiped out. You don't have to worry about my suffering.”

In this short video, David Fenster tells how his book, Mehera Meher came about. David and his wife Sheela Kalchuri Fenster were invited to the Northeast Gathering held on June 7, 2003 just as the original hardcover 3-volume set was about to become publicly available. David presents an overview of the book and briefly covers its origin and inspiration, the 200+ hours of audio taped interviews with Mehera and the other women and men Mandali as well as some publication features.

MEHERA MEHER, A Divine Romance by David Fenster, 3-volume paperback, 2nd edition, 1785 pages.

Mehera-Meher is the story of an intimate, Divine Romance between the Beloved and his closest disciple. The three-volume revised paperback set draws deeply from Mehera's first-hand narrative gathered from more than 200 hours of tape recordings made by the author, David Fenster, from the years 1974 to 1982. To this he painstakingly researched and added other historical material from Mehera and those close to her to create an epic, 1,785-page biography of Avatar Meher Baba's foremost woman disciple. Includes more than 500 photographs, many in color.

Published by Meher Nazar Publications, 2013

The recently updated PDF digital edition of Mehera-Meher contains many small corrections, new material, additional sidenotes, and more films Baba saw.

ORDER BOOK: Sheriar Books