Imagine that you are walking through a mall and a stranger politely asks you where the restrooms are. You give him directions and continue on. Then, afterwards you realize that the person was none other than Michael Jordan! You might regret you didn’t give him more specific directions. Or you might wish that you had taken him to the restroom yourself. This is how it is in satsang. Even though we have Swami Bapa right in front of us, we fail to recognize his true glory. This is what had happened to Karno Gadhvi.

Karno Gadhvi was from the village of Ramoldi. Once, in Vartal, he saw Shriji Maharaj riding his mare, Manki. Karno was amazed by Manki’s beauty. He was so attracted by the horse that he did not even look at who was riding Manki. Even afterwards, this picture of Manki never left his mind.

Later, Maharaj arrived at Karno’s village. Karno happened to pass by and was surprised to see Manki. Since he did not remember the actual rider, he did not recognize Maharaj on the Manki, and he thought that Maharaj had stolen Manki.

“O! Who did you steal this mare from?”

The Kathi darbars who were travelling with Maharaj became furious on hearing Karno’s rude words. Karno went up to Manki, held the reins and shouted at Maharaj, “Where did you get this mare from?” The Kathis were so mad that they were ready to attack Karno. However, Maharaj gestured to them to stay calm.

Maharaj very calmly said, “Gadhvi! This is my mare.” Karno still thought that Maharaj was lying and continued to speak very rudely. “I know it’s not yours!” Maharaj replied back, “Gadhvi, if this mare isn’t mine, then who’s is it?”

“I saw Swaminarayan ride this mare in Vartal. So there is no way that this mare can belong to you!” Karno shouted.

The Kathis who had already pulled out their swords, began to laugh. “O Gadhvi! The one riding this mare is Bhagwan Swaminarayan.”

Karno was shocked and immediately bowed down to Maharaj. “Maharaj, I didn’t recognize you. Please forgive me for being so rude.”

Maharaj was pleased with Karno’s sincerity and humility. Maharaj patted him on the back and said, “Gadhvi! Even the gods fail to know me. So how can I expect humans to recognize me? But on seeing your sincere feelings, I bless you with redemption.”

Imagine how much happiness you would feel if you could recognize Shriji Maharaj,  Purna Purushottam Bhagwan – Supreme God, while he was right in front of you. That’s how we should feel when Bapa is with us. Only if we fully understand Bapa’s glory can we appreciate who he is and feel happy from within.