With the onset of cool, damp, autumn weather in Cannes, Baba’s health noticeably suffered. On Sunday, October 31st. (1937), one of the remaining Westerners asked Baba, “Why does a Master fall ill and make use of medicine?”
In reply, Baba stated:
The West differs from the East in its ideal of spiritual perfection. The West believes perfection to signify the possession and use of psychic powers.
A yogi can do all the jugglery by using psychic powers. He can abstain from food, go without sleep, leave the body at will, or stop his breathing, et cetera. Spiritually considered, a moral, good man who works in the world selflessly for others is much better and stands higher than many yogis with all their occult powers of performing miracles, which are nothing but jugglery without any spiritual importance at all; because whatever a yogi does is for his own individual self, and hence he is not selfless. He overcomes one illusion by creating another, which differs fundamentally from the teaching and work of a Sadguru or Qutub.
A Perfect Master, who has to take upon himself the burdens of the world in order to absorb them, must necessarily have physical reactions and, consequently, must suffer physically like an ordinary human being.
Krishna, Muhammad and Jesus were perfect. By submitting themselves to the law of action and reaction they established that law of karma, and were selflessly and willingly subject to it. But, in spite of subjecting themselves to this law, they stand above the law. They could, in a second, have cured themselves or rid themselves from actions and reactions. What then would be the meaning and purpose of action and reaction?
Sadgurus and Qutubs absorb the dual effect of the universal illusion by taking humanity out of the illusion through liberating mankind from the bonds of action and reaction. The Perfect Master absorbs duality in his true Existence in order to sublimate it.
Ramakrishna had cancer and he could, in an instant, have cured it with his infinite powers. Jesus fainted on the cross several times which he could have avoided, but it was a necessary demonstration for the good of humanity…
Lord Meher, Original Publiation, Bhau Kalchuri, Vol. 7, p. 2232.