There was a time when Shri Nathji had been persuaded by Mr. Jalie to speak at the Hindu Club to an audience of Indians. Mr. Jalie hoped to draw Shri Nathji from his shell of seclusion. But the meeting was to end in a fiasco. Anything done against the will of Shri Nathji could not succeed.
Shri Nathji spoke to the assembled group of Indians in a powerful tone. Spiritual light had begun to emerge from him once again. Glimpses of it flashed across to the audience. The people were beginning to lose themselves in self-forgetfulness, when the powers of darkness began to act.
Shri Nathji always used the phrase:
Main last baat kaih kar khatam karoon! One last word before I finish!
This had been a characteristic feature of all his sermons. Of course, he never finished, and continued speaking until he had to use the phrase again. His audiences were never conscious of the time and could scarcely distinguish between the first thing he said and the last thing he was going to say.
The beautiful inter-weaving of themes made one unconscious of the time. Shri Nathji wished to end his sermons soon only so that his audience could attend to their worldly chores, and he would time and again remind himself while speaking: Main last baat kaih kar khatam karoon!
Shri Nathji recalled how, in the early 1930’s, Sir Abdul Qadar, a Judge of the High Court at Lahore, had come to Shri Nathji at the beginning of his sermon, and said: Hazrat, please do not mind if I sit at the back of the hall. I am afraid I will have to leave in the middle of your sermon. I have an important meeting to attend.
Shri Nathji had been courteous enough to suggest that he could very well excuse himself from the entire sermon, but Sir Abdul Qadar insisted on listening for the duration of the little time he had: Let me derive as much benefit as I can!
Shri Nathji finished after two hours. The audience was bathed in a divine glow. Shri Nathji was surprised to find Sir Abdul Qadar inside the hall.
Sir Abdul Qadar! Did you return here from the meeting you had to attend? Shri Nathji asked him.
No, Hazrat, said the judge, I haven’t left the hall since the time you began speaking. It was impossible to leave. I became unconscious of space and time when words began flowing out from your mouth!
At the Hindu Club in London, Shri Nathji had begun to unveil his divinity, but very slightly. There was a boisterous group of Indians in the back row who began to laugh each time Shri Nathji said: Main last baat kaih kar khatam karoon!
This was in strange contrast to the dignified silence of Indian audiences in India. Many people were disturbed at this unwanted interruption. Not being able to tolerate it any longer, Pran Nath got up from his seat, and turning to the boisterous group, said: Behave yourselves! You are in London!
The moment he said this, however, there was pandemonium in the hall. It was very distressing for Pran Nath to see the very Indians he had been defending in England, put up such a poor show of manners.
Shri Nathji stopped speaking. While the disturbance continued in the hall, he had a strong spiritual glow upon his face, and he was smiling, a picture of peace and tranquillity.
Shri Nathji often used to say:
The Divine Power does not wish to reveal itself to everyone. It shies away from the undeserving. It is only when I withhold the inner light from people that their minds are not kept in leash. When the full light is on, all sounds of dissent are submerged.
And Mrs. Jalie said:
When the satanic powers were doing their worst, Shri Nathji’s face was beaming with radiant smiles.
Justice Bhutt had often observed in India:
“Whenever difficulties surround Shri Nathji the spiritual glow on his face becomes even more intense!”
Even during the hours of his relative solitude in London, Shri Nathji would be ever waiting for genuine seekers after truth.
Baihaltaa jiss se meraa dil koi aisaa naa milaa
But ke bande mile, Allah kaa bandaa na milaa
There was not a one who could please my heart,
There were many who worshipped idols,
But not one who worshipped God!
The objects of the material world had become like idols on the altar of which man delivered his worship. This was as true in London as it was elsewhere in other cities of the world, including those of India.
There was a time when Shri Nathji was walking home along with Mateshwari and Mr. and Mrs. Jalie. On the pavement stood a Christian preacher speaking to the passers-by in a loud voice. But nobody paid any attention to him except Shri Nathji, who stopped to listen. The man was very grateful to Shri Nathji, and said: I thank you, sir, for giving me a heedful ear. This is a city of heathens, nobody here is interested in God.
It was a strange sight – a preacher preaching to God about God! At least God was interested in Himself!