(July 1945) Baba then asked, “Do you know the story about Nilu and the box of sweets?” Donkin did not, so Baba narrated:
Nilu is very, very fond of sweets. He pines for them night and day. One day in Meherabad, I told Pilamai to fill a tin with cow dung and wrap it up like a gift. She did it quite well, and taking it, I went to the mandali.
Nilu’s mouth watered on seeing the parcel. I called him and told him how much I loved him, how dear and special he was to me. I said that he was to open the tin, keep half the sweets for himself and distribute the rest among the mandali. With a happy heart, he started to untie the package. But finding it full of cow dung, he was taken aback and his face went pale.
I told him: If you turn white on seeing the contents of this, remember the whole world is like cow dung. When you realize it, your attachment to the world will pale. Just as you threw away the cow dung, you will one day say good-bye to this world and its affairs.
Lord Meher, Original Publication, Bhau Kalchuri, Vol. 8, p. 3051