Guru Nanak's meeting with Sajan the Thug, from a manuscript of the Janam Sakhi (Life Stories)

Guru Nanak's spiritual authority came from, among other qualities, his perceptive powers to see through external appearances of people and situations. In this episode,travelers to a holy city became victims of Sajan, a villainous swindler, who, while pretending to be an innkeeper, would rob and kill those who lodged at his inn. Nanak (at the bottom right) was immediately able to recognize Sajan's motives, and when he was questioned by the guru, Sajan repented sincerely and became a devotee.