The Gitanjali Express was faster than the Maharashtra Express and its arrival time at Akola was scheduled two hours ahead of the Maharashtra Express.
As the train approached Akola station, Shri Nathji shut his eyes and went into a deep meditation. His spiritual waves had begun to spread in all directions, surcharging the hearts and souls of the residents of the city. It appeared as if Shri Nathji were coming into His own.
As the wheels of the train neared Akola, crowds surged forward. Bhola Nath Bhagwan ki Jai! Nishkalank Premavatar Shri Bhola Nathji Bhagwan ki Jai! the crowds chanted with joy.
And Shri Nathji stepped on the soil of Akola once again, after 27 years.
Reliving his visit to the city in 1950, Shri Nathji said:
Even as water mingles into water, so is Love mingling into Love today! When I was here in 1950, I had said: ‘Main aapke liye book knowledge naheen laayaa, Divine Touch laayaa hoon! I have not brought book knowledge for you, I have brought a Divine Touch!”
And that was exactly what he brought with him a second time.
The crowds surged forward to touch his feet. Hundreds of women with little thaalis and flames, performed an aarti of Shri Nathji. Hundreds of garlands fell around his neck.
At the railway station was Shri Chimanlal Bhartia, a prominent citizen of Akola, who said:
Isn’t it a miracle that you missed the train in Nagpur and arrived here in Akola two hours ahead of schedule? I had seen your portrait several times here in Akola and my heart had been greatly gripped by it. Meeting you today is a great day in my life!
There was the aged Shri Sapkal, the 80-year-old lawyer who had met Shri Nathji in the 1950’s, who tore his way through the crowds and placed a garland around Shri Nathji’s neck.
In 1950, you had left your blessings with me, he said, and I flourished in life, and had no troubles of any kind. Give me your inner touch now and let me be free! Who can I turn to now?