An Unimaginable Journey of Love

Parinaz Mubaraki is Baba’s. There is no doubt about it when you first see her. And then when you speak to her, she emanates purity, firm faith and determination to be His. It is only afterwards that you notice that she is visually impaired.

I met Pari, as she is fondly called (also meaning angel or fairy in Hindi), when she first came to the Meher Center as a Youth Sahavas worker in 2017 from India. I gave her a tour where she walked about the Center feeling His presence not through its physical beauty, but purely through the direct connection with Him in her heart. She later told me that she has never seen an image of Beloved Baba. Therefore, I had observed during our time that there were no layers or faculties between her and her Beloved, His presence was more lucid, more alive in her entire being. And I have remembered her ever since.

Parinaz was 10 years old when she started to go blind. By age 15 she was completely blind and was juggling other health challenges. Soon after, amidst her rock bottom, she visited Meherabad with an aunt. “When I walked into the Samadhi, I felt complete peace, a sense that Baba knew all my struggles and a consolation from Him that my suffering was unavoidable,” she says. Since then she has been with Baba, had the courage to love Him and has also brought her family to Him.

It was Baba’s compassion that miraculously brought Pari to the Youth Sahavas. In 2015 she was attending the Young Adult Sahavas in Meherabad when she heard about the Youth Sahavas at Baba’s home in the West. She had never traveled solo before but had a deep longing to go. She put one step forward and the Master rewarded her with the courage for the rest of the journey. “I wanted to try traveling on my own. It was a huge, improbable thing for my parents and I to imagine, but Baba helped at every step. I found a companion to go with me. On my way back though, I had no one to travel with and was using assisted travel offered by the airlines. During the seven-hour layover, I had to sit in a waiting lounge by myself. I wondered how I would use the bathroom or get a bite to eat. I didn’t have the answers, so I took Baba’s name and fell asleep while doing that. When I woke up, across from me sat a man, who came to me and offered help. He happened to be on the same flight as me and took care of me through the entire journey.”

When the next year came along, Pari heard a deep voice within to go back to the Sahavas for a consecutive time. This time she travelled with no companion. Her time at the Sahavas was magical. “Everyone was so loving and so patient with me. I applied to be at the art tent, even though I am terrible at art,” she laughs. But her biggest take-away from being at the Center was that she was never made to feel challenged because of her blindness. In that atmosphere, the healing of her own traumatic teenage years began.

For the third time, Pari tried to come back but this time flight delays and cancellations kept her from making it to the Center. Baba obviously had other plans, and she was accepting of His will. Parinaz trusts that she will be back, when Baba orchestrates another trip for her. Meanwhile, she treasures relics from the Center: a wood chip from the original foot bridge that Baba walked on, the wood chips from the Lagoon cabin chair, and wonderful memories of being enveloped in the bubble of His love.