To illustrate what he had been talking about, Shri [Baba] called up one of the mandali, who stood before him. he proceeded to wrap four cloth straps (pata) around the mandali member’s eyes, covering them entirely. Shri went on to explain:
You can’t see me now because these cloth straps cover your eyes. You still have eyes, you possess the means of seeing; yet even though I am sitting right here in front of you—both of these are facts—still you can’t see me. Why, when both the means of seeing and the thing to be seen have been made available to you, why then can’t you see? Because of these four straps wrapped around your eyes! Remove these four covers and at once you will see me.
In just the same way, you all have inner eyes with which to see Paramatma. Self, Truth. This Self, this Truth, is near you, with you, within you, but you can’t see It on account of these covers that are the four big elements, the four attributes of Maya. Remove these covers, remove these blinders (parda-pata) from your sight, and at once you will see Paramatma! But how can you do so—how can you tear away the covers? It is the work of a Sadguru to strip off these bandages, to pull aside these curtains of Maya or bhas. thus enabling you to behold your own true Self. But only one who is himself a Realized Self, only one who has seen and known Self and Truth, is qualified to do this. Without such a One, other subtle seers such as yogis can lead you no further except on into darkness. Such is the unique and incomparable power of Realized Ones!
– “Meher Baba’s Tiffin lectures”, p294
11-November-1926; Meherabad