Swaminarayan Sampraday
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Swaminarayan Sampraday was the sect established by Bhagwan Swaminarayan (April 2, 1781 - 1830). Bhagwan Swaminarayan was handed the leadership of the Uddhav Sampraday (later known as Swaminarayan Sampraday) from his Guru Sadguru Ramanand Swami, to continue and to propagate the teachings and philosophy of Vishishtadvaita, which originates from the Ramanuja Sampraday.
Bhagwan Swaminarayan has stated that those who know me to be their choicest deity and wish to achieve moksha(Salvation) shall follow only the Swaminarayan Sampraday under the leadership of the Dharmavanshi Acharyas. (Vachanamrut Vadtal 18, Nishkulanand Kavya - Purushottam Prakash)
According to writer Raymond Brady Williams, "The Swaminarayan Sampraday has over 3.5 million followers worldwide. It has more followers, both householders and saints, and support more large temples than the other Swaminarayan groups".[1]
Bhagwan Swaminarayan and his Sampraday
After the passing of Ramanand Swami, Bhagwan Swaminarayan held a large gathering of the followers at the town of Faneni. It was during this sabha, whilst explaining that God is one, He is Narayan, He is our Swami, Bhagwan Swaminarayan introduced ‘the father of all Mantras’, Swaminarayan. It should be noted that there was no Swami who he had appointed his successor or as an ideal devotee, at that time. The name refers wholly & solely to one entity, Bhagwan Swaminarayan. Thereafter the name Swaminarayan Sampraday(formerly known as uddhav Sampraday) came into existence.
He established temples at Ahmedabad, Bhuj, Muli, Vadtal, Junagadh, Dholera, Dholka, Gadhpur and Jetalpur – installing images of various manifestations of God, such as Nar Narayan Dev, Laxmi Narayan Dev, Radha Krishna, Radha Raman, Revti Baldevji, etc. Bhagwan Swaminarayan made Gadhpur his home, in recognition of the devoted love from Dada Khachar.
At Vadtal, Bhagwan Swaminarayan established the dual Acharyaship, in direct succession to himself. This he did by means of a legal document (known as Desh Vibhagno Lekh), which he dictated and got written by Shukanand Swami. Learned saints and elder satsangis witnessed this document. Copies were presented to Ayodhyaprasadji Maharaj & Raghuveerji Maharaj – these are currently in the possession of the current Acharyas. "The document was accepted by the Bombay High Court as the authorative document regarding the apportionment of the two dioceses, so it has legal standing".[1]
Bhagwan Swaminarayan appointed Shree Raghuveerji Maharaj to the Laxmi Narayan Dev Gadi at Vadtal, and Shree Ayodhyaprasadji Maharaj to the Nar Narayan Dev Gadi at Ahmedabad. Presently, HH Acharya Maharajshri Rakeshprasadji Maharaj adorns the illustrious seat of Laxmi Narayan Dev Gadi, whilst HH Acharya Maharajshri Koshalendraprasadji Maharaj has spread the glory of God as Acharya & leader of the Nar Narayan Dev Gadi at Ahmedabad. It is the uniqueness of the authentic bonafide Swaminarayan Sampraday, that the closest a tyagi (saint) comes to leadership is being appointed the Mahant Swami (head-saint) of a Shikharbandh Temple. At all times, the true saints of the Sampraday take their instructions from the Acharya, their ultimate Guru & leader.
At the age of 49 years, his work having been accomplished, Shreeji Maharaj died at Gadhpur, promising to remain within the Swaminarayan Sampraday in:
- 1. the images he installed (and the Acharyas succeeding him as per the Desh Vibhagno Lekh and Shikshapatri Slokh 62)
- 2. the Acharyas installed by him (and those in direct succession)
- 3. the saints he initiated (and those initiated by succeeding Acharyas)
- 4. the scriptures, such as Shikshapatri, Vachanamrut, Satsangi Jeevan, Nishkhulanand Kavya etc (and those authorised by succeeding Acharyas)
Fundamentals of the Swaminarayan Sampraday
The Swaminarayan Sampraday with its roots in the Vedas was founded by Bhagwan Swaminarayan. It follows the Vaishnav tradition and to its followers represents the purest form of Sanatan Dharma (Hindu) religion. It focuses its faith on salvation through total devotion – bhakti – to the Supreme God developed through dharma (virtues), gnaan (spiritual wisdom) and vairagya (detachment). Established on the pillars of spirituality, it reaches out far and wide to clear the confusions and questions of the moral, social and material world of today.
The Swaminarayan Sampraday (Formerly known as Uddhav Sampradaya) is bhakti-focussed and advocates God within the disciplines of dharma. Bhagwan Swaminarayan has propagated a philosophy where he says that God is supreme, has a divine form, is the all-doer and is completely independent. He simply stated that jivas (souls) never merge or dissolve into God and neither are they part of God, but are always subservient to God. Redemption consists in the realisation of ekantik dharma comprising righteousness, right knowledge, detachment and, above all, devotion to that God.
The Sampraday consolidates characters in societies, families and individuals. This is done by mass motivation and individual attention, through elevating projects for all, irrespective of class, creed, colour and country. The hallmark of the Swaminarayan devotee is that he or she devoutly begins the day with pooja and meditation, works or studies honestly and donates regular hours in serving others. No stealing, no adultery, non-consumption of intoxicants, vegetarianism, and non-conversion are the 'panch vartman' or the five principal vows, that act as prerequisites for being considered as part of the Sampraday. Such mortal purity and spiritual surety add a deeper brilliance to all the hundreds of social services performed for better life.
Bhagwan Swaminarayan's lifetime objective was to establish a permanent system of achieving aatyantik kalyaan – the ultimate redemption from the cycle of life and death. He aimed at achieving this by establishing the following :-
Murtis
As an adjunct to the scriptures in establishing Ekantik Dharma and consolidating the framework of the Satsang (holy fellowship), Bhagwan Swaminarayan constructed magnificent stone mandirs- buttressing Upasana – worshipping god in all His greatness and glory, and bhakti – unalloyed devotion towards the deities. Towards the end of His second decade of work, He placed a greater emphasis on bhakti over detachment – vairagya to foster love for God. This emphasis on bhakti culminated in the building of mandirs. The mandirs served four major purposes
- as a permanent place for offering worship
- as a centre for religious gathering and instruction
- as a centre for studying Sanskrit, devotional music and Vedic literature
- as centres of social services where alms, medicines and clothes were available to the poor and needy
In a span of six years, from 1822 till 1828, Bhagwan Swaminarayan sanctioned the construction of nine mandirs in Gujarat : Ahmedabad (Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Ahmedabad), Mooli, Bhuj (Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Bhuj), Vadtal (Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Vadtal), Jetalpur, Dholera (Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Dholera), Dholka, Junagadh (Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Junagadh) and Gadhada (Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Gadhada).
The sadhus (monks) and devotees provided the labour considered as seva or devotional service. Swaminarayan himself is said to have carried stones on his head, hauling them up the hill from the river Ghela to Dada Khachar's courtyard during the foundation laying of Gadhada mandir. He also carried thirty-seven bricks in the construction of Vadtal mandir. He further spread the concept of unique monotheism by installing murtis such as NarNarayan, LakshmiNarayan and Radha Krishna declaring that God is one but appears in many forms(Shikshapatri Slokh 109-111). He also consecrated his own murtis, named HariKrishna Maharaj in temples such as Vadtal.
He entrusted the day to day performance of the worship rituals in these mandirs to the sadhus.
Shastras
Religious literature of the Sampraday forms another fundamental aspect of the purpose of Bhagwan Swaminarayan's arrival on this earth. These endorse the preaching, principals and the lifetimes of Bhagwan Swaminarayan. The Shikshapatri, written by Bhagwan Swaminarayan, stands as the basis of the Sampraday in which it contains the sum and substance of all the sat-shastras or scriptures, thereby eliminating the need for followers to refer to any other shastra for guidance. In addition, the Vachanamrut, Satsangji Jeevan, Nishkulanand Kavya, Satsangi Bhushan and Shree Hari Digvijay are prominent scriptures approved by Bhagwan Swaminarayan.
Dharmavanshi Acharyas
Dharmavanshi meaning belonging to the lineage of Dharmadev – the father of Bhagwan Swaminarayan. In 1826 Swaminarayan Bhagwan established his two adopted sons (the sons of his brothers Rampratapji and Ichcharamji) as the sprititual leaders of the Sampraday. He installed them as the Acharyas for each and every follower including both householders and ascetics. Bhagwan Swaminarayan gave sole authority to these two individuals to perform the installation of the murtis in temples and the initiation of sadhus and householders into the Sampraday. The two Acharyas are based in Ahmadabad known as NarNarayan Dev Gadi and Vadtal, known as LakshmiNarayan Dev Gadi. The current Acharyas are 1008 Shree Koshalendraprasdji Maharaj and 1008 Shree Rakeshprasadji Maharaj.
Sadhus/Saints
The sadhus, initiated by either Dharmavanshi Acharya, also form an integral part of the Sampraday. They lead a strict life refraining from worldly pleasures and devoting their whole life to the service of the holy fellowship. They preach the philosophy and lifetimes of Lord Swaminarayan and encourage people to follow a pious and religious life. Bhagwan Swaminarayan has stated in the Vachanamrut on numerous occasions that the association of Satpurush (true saints/devotees) opens the path to moksha(Salvation)
Bhagwan Swaminarayan's Spiritual Succession
The Acharyas of the Sampraday are more than mere administrative heads, they are the spiritual leaders and the Guru through whom the path to moksha (liberation) is opened according to Bhagwan Swaminarayan.
Bhagwan Swaminarayan adopted Ayodhyaprasadji from his elder brother Rampratapji and adopted Raghuvirji from his younger brother Ichcharamji and placed them as the Acharayas (Spiritual Leaders) of his sect. (Shikshapatri Slokh 3)
He accepted the two as his own sons and handed the Northern- NarNarayan Dev Desh (diocese) to Ayodhyaprasadji and the Southern- LakshmiNarayan Dev Desh to Raghuvirji in Vadtal on VS 1882 (1826 AD) Kartik Sud Prabodhini Ekadashi (ironically on the same day he was given the Acharya-pad by Ramanand Swami). The NarNarayan Desh is based in Amdavad and LakshmiNarayan Desh in Vadtal. Though known as NarNarayan Dev and Lakshminarayan Dev Gadi, both are the Swaminarayan Gadis as they are the only authentic gadis established by Bhagwan Swaminarayan Himself. The Acharyas are householders and their respective wives (Gadiwala) stand as the females’ Guru. The Gadi is passed on to the most capable of the sons from their family.
- 1.Initiate followers into the sampraday with a Samanya Diksha by giving the guru-mantra
- 2.Initiate monks-sadhus by giving them the Maha-Bhagwadi Diksha
- 3.Perform murti-pratishtha, install deities in the temples
- 4.Authenticate scriptures of the Sampraday
- 5.Act as the Guru and leader of the entire sampraday
These responsibilities have been prescribed in the Shikshapatri, Satsangijeevan and Desh Vibhag no Lekh, and according to these shastras no other individual other than the Dharmavanshi Acharyas are permitted to carry out the above duties. In the scripture Purushottam Prakash(Nishkulanand Kavya), the writer Nishkulanand Swami describes the instance when Bhagwan Swaminarayan established the Dharmavanshi Acharyas.
Bhagwan Swaminarayan felt that now that he had established the grand temples and splendid sampraday, he wanted to keep his sadhus free from the affairs dealing with wealth, power etc. He therefore decided that he would create leaders for each and every sadhu and householder, who would then subsequently be responsible for the sampraday.
He then declared “Those who serve these Acharyas with food, jewellery, vehicles, animals, flowers etc shall be worthy of Akshardham(...) I shall emancipate those who serve and respect these Acharyas. Through these Acharyas I shall give kalyaan (give Akshardham) to all souls(...) (Purushottam Prakash Chapter 37, Verse 6-20)
“After a lot of thought and consideration I have decided to give the Gadi to them…” (Chapter 39 Verse 8)
“Therefore all of you shall obey the Dharamkul and serve them. They are not ordinary beings, they are great Devtas (Gods). As well as being my Sons they are Bhramin and my Bhaktas and by serving them you shall earn immense happiness. All your wishes will be fulfilled, this is my command that is to remain permanently.”
“So both householders and sadhus obey their (Acharyas') commands, and not the fancies of the mind. Do not take any actions without their consent…..do not enter into debates with them even if you are greater in knowledge or wisdom…you shall regard the Acharyas as faultless – you shall obey their commands. If you keep them pleased then I will be pleased with you because they are in place of Myself….. I am forever residing in them. I am in them, and they are in Me. I am never far from them and I give darshan (divine sightings) residing in them (...)”
“I am forever residing in the Dharmavanshi Acharyas. After seeing such followers I have decided to remain here (in the satsang), therefore those who worship the Acharyas have worshipped Me.” (Purushottam Prakash Chapter 40)
The establishment of the Dharmavanshi Acharyas was therefore immensely important for both administrative and spiritual purposes.
The constitution of the sampraday is laid out in Desh Vibhag no Lekh which describes in detail the functions of the Acharyas.
“(...)it is my command to all sadhus, bhamcharis and all satsangies, that for the purpose of your kalyaan (emancipation) you must obey and follow the two Acharyas of Dharmavansh, and obey their commands by thought, action and speech. If this is compromised and whoever turns elsewhere ( rejecting the Acharyas) will find that they will never find sukh (happiness) in this world or the worlds beyond and will experience immense distress(..)” (Desh Vibhag no Lekh)
Furthermore, in one of the most authoritative scriptures the Vachamanamrut, Bhagwan Swaminarayan states one of the prerequisites for attaining Akshardham.
“…The devotee who is aashrit of Dharmakul (i.e. he who has received initiation from Dharmavanshi Acharya and remains loyal to the Acharya) gets a divine Bhram-state body by God's wish…” (Vachanamrut, Gadhada Pratham Chapter 1)
So it is seen as imperative to be a humble loyal follower of the Dharmavanshi Acharya once receiving the diksha (guru mantra) in order to be qualified to achieve a bhram form.
Even Gunatitanand Swami, one of the main sadhus of Bhagwan Swaminarayan states “He who insults the temples, Acharyas, sadhus and satsangies will find his roots being destroyed and will inevitably fall from the satsang.” (Swami ni Vato Prakran 5, Vat 104)
Swaminarayan Sampraday Developments
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Currently the Swaminarayan Sampraday is working on a Swaminarayan Museum in Ahmedabad, to treasure Bhagwan Swaminarayan's most cherished items of Prasadi which can be viewed by all people for darshan. The museum will hold items such as Bhagwan Swaminarayan's writing scripts, day to day garments, ornaments etc. This is the first ever project in the Swaminarayan Sampraday to create this unity in all of Bhagwan Swaminarayan's Prasadi items from Temples all over the world. This museum had been a long dream of H.H Nivrut(Retired) Acharya Tejendraprasadji Maharaj.
In 2001 ISSO-Seva was established. It is an independent running charity under the Swaminarayan Sampraday to give a helping hand to mankind, to help the homeless and needy as well as making awareness about the modern day diseases and infections. It provides relief for when a natural disaster strikes worldwide. The charity is run by professionals and volunteers of the Swaminarayan temples and tentres.[1]
In 2005 a 17 acre plot of land was acquired in Middlesex UK, to build the first ever Swaminarayan Temple with separate praying rooms for the men and women. This will accommodate the community and help advance the future generation of followers, as well as other rooms for providing education classes and conducting social and community events. It has been named Dharma Bhakti Manor.
The opening utsav for Swaminarayan Manor was held between 31 July to 6th Aug; this was the marking of the first Swaminarayan Hindu Hostal in the Crawley/Gatwick area.[2]
The Swaminarayan Sampraday controls and maintains the first nine authentic Swaminarayan temples built by the instructions of Lord Swaminarayan as well as many other temples in India and centers worldwide. Due to the Earthquake on 26 January 2001, much of the City of Bhuj was shattered, including the magnificent and divinely constructed Bhuj temple. The saints & satsangis of Kutch residing in India and abroad, have resolved to construct a new marbled temple a short distance away from this historic site.
References
See also
- Acharya Shree Koshalendraprasadji Maharaj - NarNarayan Dev Gadi
- Acharya Shree Rakeshprasadji Maharaj - LaxmiNarayan Dev Gadi
- Janmangal Namavali - 108 names of Bhagwan Swaminarayan
- Shikshapatri - Code of Conduct written by Bhagwan Swaminarayan
- Vachanamrut - Questions and Answers from Bhagwan Swaminarayan