It also happened in the course of their journey that the mandali were made the targets of and received Baba's "stinging arrows," in admonition for the faults of others. After years of such treatment, the mandali were impervious to the Master's insults and humiliations, and remained humble and helpless in the face of Baba's onslaughts, finding no other pleasure except being in his company.
In Nidadavole, Baba paid a visit to the homes of Sastri and Mallikarjuna Rao and met their families. Sastri's wife and two sons, Bhasker and Krishna, saw Baba for the first time here, and the family was blessed. Sastri had made all the arrangements for Baba, even though he was in financial straits. Baba wanted to give him Rs.500, but he would not accept it. By refusing Baba's prasad, his condition grew worse. When he realized he had made a grave mistake in not accepting the amount, he was ashamed of his pride.
Baba later advised him, "Whenever I give anyone anything as prasad, it should be accepted with joy at once, because it is great good luck to receive prasad from the hands of the Avatar."
Baba left for Kovvur at about ten o'clock, but on the outskirts of town he had the car stopped. Dhanapathy Rao was following in his car with his family. Far behind them were the buses transporting the mandali and the rest of the group. Getting out of the car, Baba sat under a tree and soundly rebuked Dhanapathy, Sastri and Arjana Rao because the mandali had become separated from him.
"Don't play with fire!" he warned them. "From the very beginning I have been saying that the mandali should always be with me. You disregarded my instructions and failed to arrange things properly. I am canceling the remainder of the Andhra tour and leaving for Bombay today!"
Dhanapathy sincerely sought Baba's forgiveness and was pardoned. But he learned a lifelong lesson: There is severity amidst the sweetness of the Fire. In this harshness is true sweetness, as the Fire does not glow without it.
The buses had still not caught up with Baba, and Dhanapathy drove back in his car to see what had happened. He discovered that one bus had run out of gas and the other had developed a mechanical problem.
The problems with both buses were eventually resolved, but it still took an hour before the mandali arrived in front of Baba. Though he seemed quite restless, Baba had remained sitting under the tree.