A New Way of Living Together
by Evan M. Bussanich
November 2, 2011
Source: OmPoint International Circular, no. 6 (Autumn 2011), pp. 35-36.
I was asked to share an account of this vision publicly after several private conversations about it. Any description of an experience of this kind risks sounding fantastical or other-worldly, but to me the content of the message far exceeds in importance any seeming specialness of the manner it was conveyed.
In early June of this year, I happened to be sitting in the Lagoon Cabin, where Meher Baba had met privately with many of his lovers and followers. I had gone there with no particular agenda or question, and my mind was clear and relaxed. I had closed my eyes, and bowed my head to better feel the atmosphere inside the room, which is usually palpable to anyone who has spent time there.
After a short time, I felt a strange sensation of a hand lifting up my chin, and tilting my head upward. I opened my eyes. I began to feel a tightness between my eyes, then a tingling, then an electric sensation that became quite intense. Suddenly, a shooting sensation entered the point on my forehead and penetrated to the center of my head. I saw that it was a series of images, one after another, as though looking at a flip-book. This lasted for a short time, perhaps twenty or thirty seconds.
At first, I couldn’t see the images clearly – some appeared to be people, places, or maps. After the stream had stopped, and my mind had cleared a little, several distinct images came to my mind’s eye without having to recall them, as though I was being shown them specifically.
The first image that I could see was a large map of the Eastern half of the United States. Everything was in darkness, like a shroud. But there was one area that was lit up brightly, and it was conveyed to me directly that this was a safe, protected place that would be largely shielded from any disruption in the world that may come to pass. It extended from the coastline inward, like a semicircle – and covered the lowest quarter of Virginia, most of North and South Carolina, and the northeast third of Georgia to the coastline again. It seemed as though the Meher Spiritual Center was at the midway point within this semicircle of protection, as though it extended out from it.
My view expanded, and I began to see the entire United States, and then other parts of the world. It was clear from this view that there were several others of these bright spot areas of protection, perhaps around a dozen or so, scattered all throughout the world, at least one on every continent. The only ones I remember clearly were in the southeastern US and in southern Europe – possibly in the vicinity of Italy and/or Greece. It was clear there was one in the area of central India, but it was hard to tell precisely where.
After seeing these bright spots, the darkness that covered the rest of the world became more transparent, and I was able to see what was happening in the world. It was clear that many governments and economic systems had collapsed, and conditions were chaotic in many places. There did not appear to be anything like a widespread conflict, like a world war, but rather many regional difficulties. There appeared to be climatic shifts, especially droughts that had impact on food supplies, causing social upheaval. Social upheaval and natural disasters seemed especially prevalent in parts of North America, while disease and armed conflict were present more on other continents.
I saw a series of ripples all up and down the west coast of the US, the way pebbles will ripple when thrown into still water. I took this to mean great seismic activity occurring, but it did not seem to significantly destroy the land mass of California, despite being extremely destructive to everything on land there. It appeared to be survivable for some people. In fact, all of the disruption conditions around the globe seemed survivable for at least some people, and it felt as though it was up to individual karma who would be spared. I remember how astonishing it felt to see how exact the effects would be on every single person in the midst of such widespread disruption and chaos.
I saw that there was a string attached to everyone, and they were being pulled into precisely the perfect place for them to be. This reminds me of the person that asked Meher Baba if they should try to move away from cities in preparation for the events that would change the world. Baba emphatically told them it did not matter whether they were in the middle of a city or the middle of the Himalayas. Each was as safe or as dangerous as the other.
This story is told in Lord Meher [vol. 11, p. 3880], Meher Baba’s biography as follows:
Once, in Scarsdale, Baba revealed to his lovers an upcoming catastrophe in which many would die. Fred Winterfeldt mentioned someone who, in order to protect his family and himself from the destruction Baba had foretold, wanted to establish a home high in the mountains and stock it with provisions.
Baba interrupted, stating emphatically, “No place will be safe, not even the top of the Himalayas! Only by the grace of God can one be saved.”
“Will this destruction be manmade or natural?” Fred inquired.
It will be both,” Baba replied.
After seeing all of this, I felt remarkably peaceful about it. Everything was exactly as it was supposed to be. What I had been shown had answered any question I might have had, and given me absolute reassurance. I took this time to ask a question about what I should do in preparation for these events, which seemed to be anywhere from five to twenty years off.
The answer I received had to do with my vocation, medicine. I was told that the place I live – Asheville (but that also the Chapel Hill area would be important) – was a place where many different kinds of medicine were being gathered together to flourish and be preserved for the future. I was told I would contribute to this in some way.
Then, the last images came forth in my mind. I saw that the bright area here in the Southeast would be a place that other people would try to get to, if they could. People would come from all over. Then I was flying down out of the mountains, over the lowlands of North Carolina, and I saw thousands and thousands of little, tiny farms and villages packed together densely, all of them with their own little lights.
I saw that knowledge and technology had not only survived, but began to thrive and expand. I did not see the entirety of humanity driven back into subsistence living, with no tools or learning to build upon. I saw a new way of living together, despite the collapse that had changed the world completely.