Man's extremity is God's opportunity. Man has only the fleeting present of the moment. God has a whole indivisible eternity at His disposal. The result is man is in perpetual hurry. God is not. Hence a man has to speak for words are necessary for the man in a hurry, because words are his natural substitutes for what he cannot be and is not. Words denote wants. One who is full and fulfilled has no more use for words. The needy man uses words. Words are part of man's delusion, frustration and impatience God does not need words for He is and does not need tobecome. One who has no delusion and who has inexhaustible patience has no need for the spoken word. Such a One is God. He needs no language of words. His manifestation is the Word. That is why the Bible said “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God. And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us." The Hindu Vedas and the Scriptures proclaim that the Nada (Sound) is Brahman, "Shabda-Brahman" The Islamic announcement is "Annal Haq." The point is that the Divine uses no alphabet, no letters, no words, but all alphabets, letters and words emanate from an merge in the divine Reality. He is neither Alpha nor Omega nor Beta nor Theta, but all in One and One in all. The reason is plain. Words are dependence. The Divine is independent. Words normally (i.e., baikhari) bear the triple curse—the imperfection of the body that utters it; the impurities of the atmosphere and the tattwas that are the medium to convey them; the imperfection of the body that hears them. Normal (baikhari) words therefore conceal more than they reveal. These element concepts about the Word have to be clearly grasped before an attempt is made to understand Meher Baba's message: "I shall only speak One Word and this Word will penetrate the hearts of all men."

Meher Baba's Silence for the last 41 years and the postponement of the date of his breaking the Silence have perplexed and baffled many minds. It is therefore an appropriate subject for our thoughts on this occasion of celebrating his 72nd birthday. There is an expectant mood created by Meher Baba's announcement "The time for the breaking of my outward Silence to utter That Word is very near." People are asking how near, when, and on what date? Are the dates liable to alteration?