He was a tall, well built man, who had a house on a steep mountain-top in Mussoorie on the way to Gun Hill. It was an ordeal climbing up to the house. He had named it Chand Niwas. In later years in life when he had become old, he would have two coolies pull him up to his house by a belt strapped to his waist.
He would always come before Shri Nathji and listen to his words in spellbound silence, lost completely in Shri Nathji’s divinity. Amongst the intellectuals of the time, he was one of those who had great faith in Shri Nathji and always said so to people.
There was a time when he and Maharaja Sarila were walking on the Mall alongside Shri Nathji.
Maharaja Sarila said to Mahabir Prasad Agrawal, “Jab Swamiji bolte hain to aise lagtaa hai jaise pushp varshaa ho rahi hai! When Swamiji speaks it is as if there is a showering of flowers!
Mahabir Prasad instantly said:
“Main to naheen kahoongaa ke pushp varshaa hoti hai! I will not say it is like a showering of flowers!”
Maharaja Sarila was taken aback for a while. He had thought that the chief engineer had great faith in Shri Nathji. However his fears were resolved when Mahabir Prasad added:
“Main to kahoongaa ke amrit varsha hoti hai! I will say that it is a showering of Nectar!”
There were times when Mahabir Prasad Agarwal would be seen walking on the Mall Road along with Shri Nathji reciting Shri Nathji’s verse:
“Samundar men katraa fanaa ho gayaa,
Fanaa ho ke laa-intahaa ho gayaa
The drop of water perished in the ocean,
And perishing it became of infinite dimensions”
There was a time when Mahabir Prasad Agrawal said to Shri Nathji at Mussoorie:
“Maharaj! Halwa tayyaar hai?
Is the sweet dish of Halwa ready?”
And Shri Nathji said to him:
“Mahabir Prasadji! Halwaa to tayyaar hai. Magar bhook hai aapko?
The Halwa is ready. But do you have the hunger for it?”
Mahabir Prasad thought for a moment and then said:
“Naheen Maharaj, bhook to naheen hai!
No, Maharaj I do not have any hunger!”
Shri Nathji said jokingly:
“To phir Halwaa mujhe khilaayenge?
Then will you feed the Halwa to me?”
Mahabir Prasad Agrawal gave a wonderful reply:
“Maharaj! Bhook bhee lagaa deejiye aur Halwaa bhee khilaa deejiye!
Maharaj! Awaken a hunger within me, and give me the Halwa as well!”
Shri Nathji would relate this episode numerous times in his sermons over the years.
Shri Nathji would say:
“It is the voice of the Vedas:
‘Athhaa to Brahm jigyaasaa’
“O man, having come into this world seek to know God! Evolve a hunger for Him. But, alas, the desire for God does not come easily to man. The heart of man runs spontaneously towards the things of the world – towards his family, his job, his house, cars etc. But he has to force his heart towards God. Man has to concentrate hard in order to think of God! He has no spontaneous hunger for Him. It is a strange paradox – man cannot detach his mind from the things of the world, try as he may, and he cannot attach his mind to God, try as he may!
“Duniyaa se to man hataaye naheen hat taa aur Bhagwan ki or lagaaye naheen lagtaa!
“This may lead God to say: ‘Main hee aisee bekaar cheez niklaa jiskee or zabardasti man ko lagaanaa parrtaa hai! Perhaps I am the most useless of all things that people have to force their minds hard to concentrate upon me!”
Here was Shri Nathji bringing the living hunger for God to the people of the world. Even the greatest of atheists found a hunger for God awakening within their hearts the moment they came before him. Even though Shri Nathji did not preach any spiritual disciplines, yet his very presence brought home God to the people.
Ayaan hai jab vo khud hee dareen jaa
Hamen matlab rahaa kyaa nihaan se
When He Himself is before us everywhere,
What have we to do with the Invisible now!