Can you explain the specific reasons why Dev failed to recognize Sai Baba when he appeared as a Sanyasi?

Dev's failure to recognize Sai Baba was due to a specific misunderstanding rooted in a prior encounter. As Dev himself reflected in Chapter 40, the Sanyasi who appeared at the Udyapan had previously visited him to collect funds for cow protection, well before Dev had even extended the invitation to Baba. Because that first visit was for fundraising, when the same Sanyasi returned and asked for a meal, Dev did not infer that it could be Baba. He reasoned that if the Sanyasi's first appearance had occurred *after* the invitation, he might not have been so confused. This, combined with his failure to recall Baba's specific words—"When I come for the meal, two others will come with me"—caused a "delusion" to fall upon him, preventing him from recognizing his revered Guru.