LOVE IS LIKE ICE CREAM

It was Sunday morning at Prashanti Nilayam. After finishing the morning Interviews, Baba went to the western side of the Mandir where the children from the primary school were seated. Baba does not like anyone to sit in the hot sun, and certainly not the sweet little ones. [This was in the days before the present roof was built.]

He made them all sit in the shade in the porch near the Interview room. The children beamed as they trooped in and sat in an orderly fashion, followed by Baba who came from behind them, beaming with a big smile!

He came to the first row and all of a sudden started singing “Love is My form…” He asked the children to join in. All of us who were fortunate to be there were exhilarated at this unexpected gift of Grace! Grace always comes unexpectedly.

Halfway, He stopped and asked the children, “What is Love?” smiling mischievously. The children were taken by surprise at this question and smiled nonplussed!

Baba obliging gave the answer and said,
“Love is ice cream!” Baba allowed the children’s laughter and the adult’s surprise to die down before He explained further. Baba, the ideal teacher, is a Master of the technique of teaching. A startling question to evoke attention, provoke curiosity and hold the interest of the listener is the Master’s method! All ears were now alert, awaiting Baba’s explanation:

“Love is sweet like ice cream;

Love is joy like ice cream;

Love is cool like ice cream

and Love is pure like white ice cream.”

Apparently meant for the children, but it was a gift from Baba to all of us, this extraordinarily original definition of love from Love Incarnate!

Images are sketched by poets to make the abstract concrete; Baba the Poet of poets gives images which have great spiritual depths, and the Avatar of the Age uses the most modern of them to make us understand what He wants to convey. In the Krishna Avatar, it was milk, curds and butter; in the Sai Avatar it is Love, Joy and ice cream!

From “Spiritual Blueprints of My Journey” by Indulal Shah