Chapter 10 — Vallabhesh Saved from Thieves

Literal. Vallabhesh, a Brahmin businessman, vows to feed 1000 Brahmins at Kuravpur if his trade succeeds. It does. He travels with the money, accompanied by thieves who plan to rob him. They kill him in his sleep. Shripad — now dead but apparently capable of intervention — appears with trishul and khatwang, kills three thieves, spares the fourth (who claims innocence), and tells him to apply enchanted vibhuti to Vallabhesh's body. Vallabhesh revives; he and the spared thief continue to Kuravpur and feed 4000 Brahmins.

Symbolic. The chapter establishes that the Guru's protection persists after his physical departure — a structural claim important for the post-Mahasamadhi chapters of the book and for the Swami-Samarth tradition's claim that Swami Samarth is Narasimha Saraswati continued.