|| Shri Swami Samarth ||
Some days before Rangapanchami, the king had asked all his courtiers to be present so that the preparations for the festival could be discussed. Chintopanta Appa Tol, being the personal secretary to the king, was expected to be present. However, he was delayed as Shri Swami Samarth was at his home.
When the king sent a messenger ordering him to be present at once, Maharaj instructed him, "Don't go to work!"
A staunch devotee of Maharaj, Tol obeyed and did not go but was scared that the king might be angered. Just then, a second message arrived from the palace again ordering him to join the court but Maharaj once again forbade him from going.
"What will you do if someone cuts your throat!?", said Maharaj angrily and let out a barrage of expletives.
"How dare he sit outside and pass orders to come to court", He continued.
Tol was convinced that some untoward incident was certain to happen in court today and that Maharaj was protecting him. Then, with full faith in Shri Swami Samarth, he stopped worrying about the king's displeasure.
Gopal Joshi Haralikar, who was present there, asked the messenger, "Where was the king seated when he sent you here?"
The messenger replied that the king was seated on a bench outside the main palace gate. Maharaj, through his powers, was watching over the king.
Later in the day, inside the king's court, the courtiers were seated in a row on either side of the king. One of the courtiers, Ganpatrao Khandagle had his sword fastened to his waist, and when he got up to address the court, the tip of the sword touched the headdress of another courtier, Ganpatrao Baste, and it fell to the ground.
Baste, felt insulted and in anger moved forward to strike Khandagle with the intent to kill him. The heated situation needed the effort of the rest of the court to cool down. However, the festival celebration preparations were not discussed, and the incident left a bitter taste in everyone's mouth. For having created trouble for no justifiable reason, the king exiled him from Akkalkot.
Shri Swami Samarth may have instructed Tol not to go to work that day to spare him from witnessing and participating in this incident.
|| Shri Swami Samarth ||
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