Whether we notice it or not, Maharaj and Swami are constantly protecting us from bad things happening to us. In this story we will learn about Sura Khachar, a person who was about to go through a very bad time of his life. Sura Khachar was one of Maharaj’s dearest devotees. He was a unique Kathi Darbar who lived in Loya. He would make others laugh but he would not smile himself. He was really close with Maharaj and thus had a lot of respect for Maharaj’s sadhus and devotees.

One night when Sura Khachar and his wife, Shantiba, were fast asleep, thieves sneaked into their house and stole their safe which had all their gold and money. Shriji Maharaj, the all-knower, was aware of exactly what had happened. To protect his devotee, Sura Khachar, and to teach the thieves a lesson, Maharaj used his divine powers to make the safe so heavy that the thieves could not carry it. They tried with all their might, but the safe would not budge. Soon, the sun slowly began to rise in the horizon. Fearing that they would be caught, the thieves left the safe and ran away. People passing by saw the safe and discovered it belonged to Sura Khachar.

When Sura Khachar and his wife woke up, they noticed their safe was missing. As they were frantically looking for it and fearing the worst, they saw it lying unopened a short distance outside their house. Puzzled, they rushed to check it. When they opened it they were surprised to find that not a single penny was missing. Sura Khachar told his wife, “Our safe was stolen, but by Shriji Maharaj’s grace we have got it back.” His wife said, “Maharaj has saved us from a great calamity, so go and invite him to our house.” They decided to spend half of the amount in hosting Maharaj.

Maharaj was once residing in Kariyani at Vasta Khachar’s house. Sura Khachar went there and requested Maharaj to visit his house in Loya. Dada Khachar from Gadhada said, “Maharaj, the brinjals in Lakshmi Vadi are now ripe and very good so come to Gadadha first.” Sura Khachar, who was very witty and remarked, “Maharaj! Dada Khachar is praising the brinjals instead of you. I will be very happy if you accept my invitation.” Maharaj always enjoyed such witty humour and accepted the invitation from him.

The news spread that Maharaj was going to Loya and would be holding  a shakotsav. Devotees from nearby villages made their way to Loya bringing brinjals. Around 60 maunds (1200 kg) of brinjals were collected. Maharaj himself then prepared the shak of brinjals. Maharaj then asked Dada Khachar, “Are the brinjals here better than those in Lakshmi Vadi?” He replied, “Wherever you set foot, prosperity follows.”

Maharaj was pleased by the sincere love of the devotees and stayed in Loya for two months during which he gave many discourses. These have been recorded in the Loya section of the Vachanamrut.