History
During his lifetime, when Lord Swaminarayan went around village to village, on request from his followers he gave his belongings as 'prasadi' to his followers. This 'prasadi' is passed from generation to generation, and is still owned by hundreds of families. [4] Swaminarayan temples also have their own collections, but items are usually not kept in an organized manner. The people who pass through them have no historical information about these items. [4] Acharya Tejendraprasadji Maharaj has endeavored to establish this museum of Swaminarayan's belongings. He had some personal collections of Swaminarayan, and dreamed of gathering the 'prasadi' from the devotees. He intended to put all this collection, which gave a glimpse of Swaminarayan's life, in the museum. To fulfill this dream he passed on leadership of the Narnarayan Dev Gadi to his son, Koshalendraprasad in order to give full attention to this project. [2] He agreed to celebrate his 60th birthday only on one condition, that all the donation and proceedings given by the devotees will be passed on towards the realization of this museum. [2] This was the founding stone of the museum. [2]
The museum was opened on 8 March 2011 by the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi. [1] The ceremony started on 5 March 2011 and continued till 9 March 2011 in which 800,000 people participated. [5] An organ donation camp was held on the museum premises on 8 March 2011 to coincide with the opening ceremony by Shatayu (a NGO). A total of 1600 - 900 women and 700 men - took the pledge for multi-organ donation. [6]
Rakeshprasad is a Hindu spiritual leader. He is regarded by the devpaksh faction as the disputed leader of the LaxmiNarayan Dev Gadi.
Swaminarayan, also known as Sahajanand Swami, was a yogi and ascetic believed by followers to be a manifestation of Krishna or the highest manifestation of Purushottama, around whom the Swaminarayan Sampradaya developed.
The Laksmi Narayan Dev Gadi is one of the two gadis (diocese) that together form the Swaminarayan Sampradaya. It is headquartered at the Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Vadtal and controls the Dakshin Vibhag Lekh.
The Vachanamrut is a sacred text consisting of 273 religious discourses delivered by Swaminarayan from 1819 to 1829 CE and is considered the principal theological text within the Swaminarayan Sampradaya of Hinduism. Compiled by five of his senior disciples, Swaminarayan edited and approved the scripture. As followers believe Swaminarayan to be Parabrahman, or God, the Vachanamrut is considered a direct revelation from God and thus the most precise interpretation of the Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, and other important Hindu scripture.
Shree Swaminarayan Mandir Kalupur is the first Temple of the Swaminarayan Sampraday, a Hindu sect. It is located in Kalupur area of Ahmedabad, the largest city in Gujarat, India. It was built on the instructions of Swaminarayan, the founder of the sect.
Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Bhuj is a Hindu temple in Bhuj. This temple was constructed by Swaminarayan, founder of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya.
Swaminarayan Mandir, Gadhada, also known as Gopinathji Dev mandir, is a Hindu temple in Gadhada, Gujarat, India. This Swaminarayan Sampradaya temple is one of the six temples built by the sect's founder Swaminarayan.
Tejendraprasad Pande, formally known by his full title as Sanatan Dharma Dhurandar Acharya Maharaj Shree 1008 Tejendraprasadji Maharaj was appointed acharya of the Narnarayan Dev gadi (Ahmedabad) of the Swaminarayan Sampraday, a Hindu sect, by his father, the previous acharya, Devendraprasad, and was enthroned on 13 October 1969.
Acharya Shree Tejendraprasadji Maharaj founded International Swaminarayan Satsang Organization (I.S.S.O.) in the United States on the occasion of Vijaya Dashami in the year 1978.
NarNarayan Dev Yuvak Mandal (NNDYM) was founded by Koshalendraprasad Pande in 1994 with its headquarters at the Kalupur Swaminarayan Mandir (Ahmedabad) and was created to help young people to confront the challenges of life.
The Desh Vibhag Lekh is a document written by Swaminarayan in 1827 establishing the division of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya into two dioceses by territory of Ahmedabad and Vadtal. This document is highly regarded by the two diocese as it establishes Acharyas as the successors to Swaminarayan. Groups that regard sadhus over acharyas downplay the importance of the Lekh as an administrative document.
The Nar Narayan Dev Gadi, named after the two forms of supreme lord Nara-Narayana, is one of the two Gadis (seats) that together form the Swaminarayan Sampradaya. Its headquarter is at the Swaminarayan Temple, Ahmedabad and controls the Uttar Vibhag.
The Swaminarayan Sampradaya, also known as Swaminarayan Hinduism and Swaminarayan movement, is a Hindu Vaishnava sampradaya rooted in Ramanuja's Vishishtadvaita, characterized by the worship of its charismatic founder Sahajanand Swami, better known as Swaminarayan (1781–1830), as an avatar of Krishna or as the highest manifestation of Purushottam, the supreme God. According to the tradition's lore, both the religious group and Sahajanand Swami became known as Swaminarayan after the Swaminarayan mantra, which is a compound of two Sanskrit words, swami and Narayan.
The Swaminarayan Mandir in Weehawken, New Jersey is the first Swaminarayan temple of the Narnarayan Gadi in the United States. It is the national headquarters of the ISSO and comes under the NarNarayan Dev Gadi of the Swaminarayan Sampraday. Today there are four Swaminarayan temples in New Jersey alone.
Ayodyaprasadji, known to devotees as "Sanatan Dharma Dhurandar Acharya Maharaj Shree 1008 Ayodyaprasadji Maharaj", was the first acharya of the north diocese of the Swaminarayan Sampraday sect of Hinduism. He was the son of Rampratapji, Swaminarayan's elder brother. He was the 1st successor of Swaminarayan in the North Diocese, Ahmedabad). He was enthroned as Acharya on 10 November 1826 and held the post till his death.
Shree Swaminarayan Gurukul Rajkot Sansthan, commonly known as Rajkot Gurukul or Swaminarayan Gurukul, is a Hindu religious and educational organization with headquarters in Rajkot, Gujarat. The organization is within the Laxmi Narayan Dev Gadi of the Swaminarayan Sampraday.
Shree Swaminarayan Temple, Chicago, IL is a Swaminarayan Hindu temple located in the Chicago suburb of Itasca. Opened in 1998, it comes under ISSO of the Nar Narayan Dev Gadi. It was built at the cost of $10 million, reportedly the most expensive Hindu temple in the Midwest at that time.
Shri Swaminarayan Mandir is a temple complex in Bhuj, Kutch district, Gujarat,India, which is managed by Nar Narayan Dev Gadi of the Swaminarayan Sampraday, a sect of Hinduism. The inauguration ceremony of the temple held from 15 to 23 May 2010.
Koshalendraprasadji Pande is the current acharya of the NarNarayan Dev Gadi of the Swaminarayan Sampraday and is the 7th successor of Swaminarayan in the North Diocese.
