Obviously belief in one or the other religion cannot be forced upon one against one’s will and for a person like Shri Manik Prabhu Maharaj any use of force in religion was contrary to the very tenets of religion. For a person who believed in universality of religion, such irrational behaviour was anathema. Great events often have trivial beginnings. When the Bilva tree caught fire, many considered it to be a bad omen. But Shri Prabhu himself saw it in quite a different perspective. For him the fire was the fire of Samsara and the deliverance of the Brahmarakshasa was the deliverance of the people from ignorance and superstition. He therefore, selected the confluence of the two rivers for establishing his spiritual center, as if to emphasize that he wanted to bring the two communities (Hindus and Muslims) together. In his visionary mind he saw these two streams of great faith come together and live a life of peace and understanding. How prophetic his vision was can be seen by the fact that even today both the Hindus and the Muslims flock to Maniknagar each year, to honour the great founder of the Universal Truth, the SAKALAMATA.

The moment people came to know of Shri Prabhu’s intention to establish the spiritual center near Humnabad, people flocked to his presence and thus came to be established the present day MANIKNAGAR. Originally, a small hut was constructed for Shri Prabhu to stay. Later, another hut was constructed to establish the GADI, or the Spiritual Seat, which in time to come was to be associated with the living spirit of Shri Manik Prabhu Maharaj. Sitting on the Gadi, he would give audience and his very Darshan would give peace and contentment to all who visited Maniknagar.

The entire atmosphere was surcharged with religious fervour with the name of the Lord and of His representative manifestation always on the lips of the devotees. The Bhajans brought both the ‘Bhagavan’ and the ‘Jana’ together in one great communion, irrespective of caste, creed, faith or religion. The atmosphere reverberated with the sound of Bhajans, cymbals and drums.

With the passage of time, the number of devotees increased, and with the increase, of devotees and lay visitors the need for dwelling places also increased. Shri Prabhu’s mother, who had till then endured separation from her son, came to Maniknagar with the rest of the family. Now that all the family members were at one place, it was decided that proper residential quarters should be constructed. Sacrifices with all the rites and rituals were decided to be performed to sanctify the area. Only in a pure and auspicious place could a center be installed with all spiritual energy concentrated in that place. Shri Prabhu gave his consent and well qualified priests were called for the purpose.

Strange as it may appear, when the priests were bringing the various materials needed for the sacrifice, they were waylaid and all their material was looted. When Shri Prabhu came to know of this incident, he instructed the priests to come without any worry or hesitation and all the requirements would be made available at the proper time.

As it transpired, when the robbers were running away with the stolen materials, they got confused and were not able to find their way out of the forest, where they were hiding. They realised that they had committed a great blunder. They prayed to the Lord for mercy. Shri Prabhu’s compassion made them come to their senses and guided them to Maniknagar where they handed over all the material to Shri Prabhu.

As the need arose, more temples and buildings came up in Maniknagar. Many of the devotees also decided to stay there and constructed their own houses. Shri Prabhu’s brother, Nrisimha, who was working at the darbar of the Nawab of Kalyan, resigned from his post and came to Maniknagar to assist in the management of the spiritual center's activities. His experience in court administration was of great assistance and he could put the ideas of Shri Prabhu in actual practice. He saw to it that the place was protected from wayward robbers, who were abundant in those days. Similarly Shri Prabhu’s elder brother Hanumant Dada took upon himself the responsibility of providing food and shelter to the devotees.

In the beginning it was decided that only Brahmacharis and Sanyasis should be permitted to stay in Maniknagar but this rule had to be relaxed when Mother Bayadevi and brother Nrisimha came to stay in Maniknagar. Many householders were also eager to make Maniknagar their place of residence, so that they could always be in the service of Shri Prabhu.

Along with the construction of dwelling places, an extended hall was constructed for the conduct of Shri Prabhu's Darbar to accommodate more and more devotees visiting Maniknagar. Slowly, regular discipline and some form and decorum came to be established. It came to pass that as soon as Shri Prabhu entered the Darbar Hall, the Birudavali or the Invocation of Shri Prabhu, composed by his brother Nrisimha, was recited in a loud voice by all the persons present in the Darbar. All the people would remain standing till Shri Prabhu himself took his seat on the Gadi. The front row was reserved for the musicians, who would first offer their performances. If no musicians were present then the devotees could occupy the front seats. On the right side was the place reserved for Pundits, Puraniks and Kirtankars. On the left would sit the Sadhus, Sanyasis and Fakirs.

In the Darbar, Shri Prabhu being a Rajayogi would wear rich clothes and magnificent jewellery. However, sometimes he would be seen wearing ordinary clothes. For him everything had equal value. Even when he wore very ordinary clothes his countenance with its wheatish complexion would nevertheless glow like the Sun. The people gathered would bask in the aura and the benevolent grace of Shri Prabhu. The entire atmosphere would be surcharged with spiritual splendour. Shri Prabhu would cast his compassionate glance on all, making everybody participate in the bliss which he was experiencing.

Often, philosophical discussions and spiritual discourses were conducted in Shri Prabhu's Darbar. People from far and near would come with their doubts and Shri Prabhu, even though he had not received formal education in the scriptures, seemed to be better versed in the scriptures than the philosophers in his Darbar and was able to clear all doubts with great ease. The wisdom of innumerable past lives was his inheritance and he would solve the problems with the ease of the Knower of Brahman. Sometimes he would reply even before the questions were asked. Such was his authority, wisdom and spiritual insight.

Many of the people who flocked to him were those who were sunken in the despair of worldly life. For them a word from Shri Prabhu was like balm on their wounds. Such was the graceful presence of Shri Prabhu that his very Darshan would assuage all the misery of a person. They would be absorbed in the Bhajans and all thoughts of the world would be forgotten. Such was the effect of Shri Manik Prabhu on every one who came under his influence. Even when people did not think of him consciously, he activated their lives without their knowledge and his compassion became apparent in the most unexpected way.

Bhagvata Purana (III.25.21) describes the saints as “forbearing, compassionate and composed; they are friendly to all living beings, inimical to no one and their good disposition itself serves as an ornament to them”. ({V{Vjd: H$mê${UH$m: gwöX: gd©Xo{hZm_²Ÿ& AOmVeÌd: emÝVm: gmYd: gmYw^yfUm:Ÿ&&) Shri Manik Prabhu Maharaj epitomised the description of the saint. He was like the sun in the sky spreading his rays on the noble as well as on the evil, good as well as on the bad. It is for the people to benefit by the invigorating warmth and energy of the Sun. The one who hides himself in the shadow or in the dark corners of superstition and bigotry will never have the light of the Sun. He will never be able to come through the travails of Samsara.

Once, a devotee who wanted to test the spiritual powers of Shri Prabhu, had vowed to offer to Shri Prabhu, one sugar candy, which would have cost one paisa at the most, if his wishes were fulfilled. After his wishes were fulfilled he came to Maniknagar, with a bagful of sugar. Shri Prabhu could see that the devotee wanted to show his great generosity in offering a bagful of sugar while he had to offer only one sugar candy, worth one paisa. Seeing the trace of arrogance in this act and with the intention of teaching him, Shri Prabhu picked with great humility, only one paisa worth of sugar.

Human beings in times of despair either offer too little to God, as they are not confident of their desires being fulfilled, or else offer their entire wealth in utter dejection. Then, if their desires get fulfilled, if they had offered too little at the outset they can afford to become generous and offer more at least to show their self-conceit. However, if they had offered their entire wealth they find themselves in a quandary when their wishes are fulfilled. The Lord, however, is neither unkind nor is he in need of the things offered. He can see the faith of each person and the intention and the pain which he had in his heart when he made the vow. Therefore, irrespective of what the devotee agrees to offer when he is in despair, the Lord knows how much to receive and how much to leave for the devotee. His hunger is for the devotee’s devotion and not for his wealth. The relationship with the Guru is not of the nature of trade or barter.

It is the Guru or the Lord who ordains and the devotee has only to be thankful for the Grace and place at the feet of the Guru any thing as a token. It so often happened that many devotees of Shri Prabhu, who esteemed themselves as great persons or devotees, expected Shri Prabhu to recognize them as special and distinct. There were others who thought that by engaging themselves in continued conversation with Shri Prabhu they were close to him but for Shri Prabhu no one was dear or hateful. Shri Krishna is very outspoken on this matter in Bhagavad Gita (IX.26) “Whosoever offers to Me, with devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or water, that offering of love, of the pure heart, I accept”

Outward demonstration of devotion but with a heart full of desires for the fruits, attachment to senses and sense bound enjoyments, is not Bhakti. The Guru in his purity of Mind can see the intention of each of the devotees and therefore the devotee need not satisfy himself with outward demonstration of devotion and service.

Devotion to the Guru should be like that of the child towards its mother. Whether the mother is nearby or not, the child is ever confident that the mother will listen when it is in distress. If such confidence and faith is there, then Shri Prabhu’s Grace will ever be with us to guide us and tide us over the difficult times. Many devotees have experienced this expansive Grace of Shri Prabhu even when they have been in places far from Maniknagar. For surely Shri Prabhu does not reside only in Maniknagar but in the heart of all the devotees as well.

One of the most inexplicable things of Shri Prabhu's Darbar was the flow of wealth in it. In Maniknagar since the days of Shri Prabhu nothing is asked for, yet everything is available at the proper time in the right proportion. As a matter of fact, Shri Prabhu would keep only as much as was necessary, having renounced all attachments to material things. Whatever was collected was solely utilised for establishing and strengthening the Mission. Yet, in his Darbar, everyone, whether rich or poor, wise or ignorant, got what they needed most, blessings, a fruit or cash. There are instances when Shri Prabhu would put his hand under his Gadi and pull out cash for distribution but if anyone searched under the Gadi, nothing would be found there. This inexplicable mystery caused one of Shri Prabhu's biographers to exclaim:

From whence does this wealth endlessly flow,
No one really could ever seem to know
Inserting his hands underneath the pillow,
Enough wealth was sure to flow
for the seeker’s hand.
They turned the Gadi round and round,
Nothing was there ever found.
But sitting on the Gadi he seemed to abound,
Sufficient for each of the persons around.

The grandeur of Shri Prabhu’s Darbar proved one thing. When the Lord oversees us, he knows our needs and so ordains accordingly. Whether we ask for little or more, Shri Prabhu knows fully well what is good for us. If there is Shraddha in us, nothing else is needed. If there is no Shraddha then all efforts and endeavours to please Shri Prabhu are to no avail. He distributed wealth as well as health as needed by the sincere Sadhakas. He was a great Yogi, a great recluse. For him wealth was as good as dust. He saw the Lord in both. Therefore whether he sat on a throne or on an earthen mound, for him it made no difference.

No one was a stranger to Shri Prabhu. He knew each one by name as well as his problems. One of his contemporary biographers, Shri Ramachandra Buva Solapurkar writes: “Shri Prabhu Maharaj used to know each of his associates very closely. He had the extraordinary capacity of assessing the capability of each of them. He would never encourage rumours nor give credence to loose talk. He would immediately tell the person on his face whether he was telling the truth or not. Yet he was considerate of the foibles and idiosyncracies of the people and would treat them in a kind and compassionate manner, guiding them against the folly of getting such pleasures. People who had ill-will for others never succeeded in obtaining his blessings. People who would come to scoff at him, would remain to pray and seek his blessings. Consequently none went from the Darbar without being satisfied in one way or the other.”

“All had access to him, be he a thief, a sinner, a Sadhu, a Sanyasi, an ignorant fool, a learned Pundit, a householder, a fallen woman, a poet, a dancer or a musician, all flocked to the Darbar to perform Seva at his feet. Everyone, irrespective of caste, creed or religion, rich or poor would stay for the Prasad, which would be served alike to all without discrimination. No one had any occasion to hear words like ‘no’ or ‘go’ from anyone in Maniknagar.”

It was the Darbar of Shri Manik Prabhu Maharaj and each one returned from there with a satisfied and contented mind, for Shri Prabhu was, indeed, the Wish Fulfilling Tree.