BANDA—GCHK&R PAR VAT 153
rock at the base of the MIL The visitors commenced to
ponr in. They demanded to see Balak Ram. Ramdas ex-
pljtin£"il to them the situation as it stood. They were
inncL disappointed and grumbled. He discharged the
duty imposed on him: that is. on the one hand of per-
?iia»ling the visitors not to climb up the hill to see Balak
Ruin and, on the other, of carrying food and water to him in
ids solitary cell.
One tiring lias to be noted that this part of the hill was
t»ereft of water supply. There was neither a spring nor a
.veil. Water had to be brought from a well nearly two miles
fr«'om the cave. The kind friends Bahadur an*l Jagannath
airaii{4e<i for the supply.
0m* night Ramdas discovered Balak Ram lying down
on a Hat rock, at the top of the cave, moaning and crying
with pain.
'"What is the matter with you, Ramr1* Rarmlas asked,
approaching him.
'"Maharaj. I haTe a severe attack of toothache. I cannot
bear the excruciating pain/' he sobbed.
Ramdas passed his hand over him soothingly* when he
added: "Do yon know \vhy I suffer like thisr I shall tell
you; I can \vell understand that it is all due to the curaes
of my wife ami children whom I have deserted."
"Lord!"7 Ramdas exclaimed, **if that be the case why
not retnrn to them?"
'Impossible/' he jerked out: "I have absolutely severed
myself from them, leaving no hope of return.""
"There is no such thing, Bam. Yon can yet go back to
them if only yon make up your mind," Ramdas assured
him.
But Balak Ram was firm in his convictions. Soon after
this he fell asleep and the following day he was free from
pain-
Day after day passed. The visitors from the city, who
came in large numbers, clamoured for Balak Ham's darshan.
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