All Are Welcome

Meher Darshan is a universal spiritual center whose resources are available to all spiritual seekers regardless of affiliation. All are invited to explore Meher Darshan's fellowship for pursuing core spirituality, especially in the light of Avatar Meher Baba's comprehensive teaching. The only qualifications are a sincere interest and the ability to cooperate harmoniously. We do not discriminate on any basis whatsoever.

What we are is important spiritually, rather than what we profess. Our fellowship is heartbased, meta-denominational, and non-creedal. Hence, no profession of belief is required. Conviction in Meher Baba is not necessary for participation in the fellowship of Meher Darshan, only a sincere commitment to pursue truth wherever it may be found and openness to his teaching as an expression of perennial wisdom. All remain free to come to their own conclusions and make their own choices on the basis of informed deliberation and heartfelt discernment.

Distance Participation

Since consciousness is non-localized, and neither mind nor heart is limited by distance however great, participation in spiritual fellowship and community is not limited by physical location or distance. Moreover, communications technology now makes active participation an option virtually anywhere. In addition, affiliated circles may be established locally where the call arises, and existing local groups with similar principles and goals are also invited to explore affiliation.

Circle of Companions

According to perennial wisdom, ultimate truth resides in the cave of the heart, where it is revealed inwardly through grace and guidance as one ripens oneself by one's own efforts. Even though revelation is always personal and interior, the wise have also emphasized the importance of good company on the way as a complement to one's personal practice of good thoughts, good words and good deeds. Meher Baba himself often encouraged companionship on the way and recommended work in groups.

The circle is the paradigm for our fellowship. The circle represents the companions gathered around the unseen yet omnipresent Master at the center. As the Higher Self of all, we acknowledge and seek to realize this Presence both inwardly in our hearts and also amongst us in our affection for each other. Companions sit on the same level with an equal voice. The key commitment is speaking one's truth from the heart while honoring and respecting each other's truth. Through this voluntary cooperation for mutual benefit we seek to create a field of freedom of thought and expression in which truth can be pursued honestly and sincerely in an atmosphere of love, honor and respect.

The basis of circles is honesty and trust among companions who are linked internally not only with each other but also with the One in whose name they gather. Participation in circles is on the basis of "One for all and all for one," in order to realize "One is all, and all is One." While open circles are unrestricted in composition and without specific direction, dedicated circles are intentionally purposeful and they are composed only of those who agree voluntarily to cooperate with each other for mutual benefit toward a commonly determined end.

Freedom

While the goal of realizing ultimate truth is ever one and the same for all, the means are varied and the caravans traversing the path are many. In addition, each person's journey is shaped by individual constitution and life circumstances. Meher Baba emphasized that everyone's path is unique and that this uniqueness necessitates that all "work out their own salvation." Accordingly, our fellowship acknowledges that meeting this personal responsibility necessitates freedom of choice with respect to means, as well as the need for freedom of thought and expression in pursuing self-inquiry, self-exploration and self-discovery. Participation in our circles therefore requires that companions grant themselves this freedom and also that one accord this same freedom to others.

Truth

Commitment to the unfettered pursuit of truth requires honesty, sincerity and integrity, in other world, authenticity. On the one hand, authenticity entails transparency with those in whom one places trust as one's companions on the way. This transparency involves being open with others by sharing from the heart and being worthy of the trust placed in one. An important aspect of our practice involves "truing" oneself with one's companions, which also preserves harmony in the group and builds consensus. Here "truing is an analogy based on a fletcher "truing" an arrow or a machinist "truing" a bearing. It means bringing oneself within the most narrowly attainable tolerance of error, given the criteria determined by the circumstances, with the recognition that absolute truth is the attribute of the perfect alone.

With respect to absolute honesty, which Meher Baba emphasized as fundamental to leading a truly spiritual life, one of the most challenging aspects of pursuing truth unreservedly is being completely honest and open with oneself. To the degree that one lives in the present and is completely honest and authentic, the next right step makes itself evident intuitively. Worry is the signal that one is not living in the present but rather the past of future. Hence, Meher Baba's dictum, "Do your best. Then, don't worry, be happy. I will help you."

Love

Truth in the sense of spiritual wisdom is the province of the knowledge of the heart, as mystics have testified and Masters have taught. If, quintessentially, God is love, then it is only through love that God is known. By committing oneself to the unfettered pursuit of truth, one ultimately discovers that the mind is incapable of transcending its limitations so as to be able to realize ultimate truth, which is infinite.

The etymological meaning of "philosophy" is love of wisdom. By extension philosophy as love of wisdom is also a way of life dedicated to the pursuit of truth, for those who love wisdom tirelessly seeker her out. To the ancients "philosophy" signified not a speculative endeavor carried out largely by specialists, as philosophy is most often practiced formally today, but rather a way of life dedicated to the pursuit of truth by achieving a balance of head and heart. Our fellowship is dedicated to making the pursuit of truth a way of life grounded in love of wisdom.

Companionship in the pursuit of truth inspired by love of wisdom is grounded in mutual affection and respect, and it has the capacity to transform association and cooperation into true friendship. Moreover, as appreciation grows not only for one's companions but also for the One in whose name companions gather, love for the Beloved also grows.