Because of the accident, Baba was not able to bend over and bow down to each as he would have liked. So a stool was kept on his right. Each poor person was told to place his foot on the stool, and Baba would touch the foot with his hands and then touch his forehead. Each person was then taken to Baba's left, where he was handed a bundle of sweets wrapped in the piece of cloth, which Baba would touch with his left hand. Although seated in the wheelchair, Baba had an expression of indescribable happiness on his face while absorbed in this work. And though there was no lessening in his hip pain, the obvious pleasure he derived in working for the poor seemed to have effaced it.
Baba had called Hoshang Bharucha (of Navsari) to Meherazad that day, and, pointing to the villagers, Baba remarked to him, "I am in each of them."
The number of poor men and women exceeded 700, and though there were 40 extra pieces of cloth, when they too had been distributed with the sweets, Baba gave the remaining poor persons two rupees. Seven hundred and six persons had been actually given tickets for the function, but 36 did not turn up. Instead, several poor persons without tickets appeared. The supply of cloth and sweets was exhausted, so Baba instructed Baidul to wait there for the rest of the day. When those poor people with tickets showed up, Baidul was to touch each person's feet and hand each two rupees. After this was finished, Baba touched Baidul's feet 36 times.
During the program for the poor, the mast-like Barakoti had arrived, and Baba was pleased to see him.
