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Vasant Panchmi Parva - Day 3
As we saw in yesterday DST, Shastriji Maharaj’s only intentions were to see Shriji Maharaj’s wishes come true. Shriji Maharaj had promised that a mandir would be built in Bochasan, and Shastriji Maharaj made this a reality. He even fulfilled Shriji Maharaj’s wish later when he constructed Sarangpur.
Similarly, he understood that Shriji Maharaj’s deepest wish was always that Gunatitanand Swami be recognized and understood as Akshar. Shastriji Maharaj, with the guidance of his guru Bhagatji Maharaj, understood that Bhagwan Swaminarayan - Purna Purshottam Narayan - is eternally attached to Aksharbrahma Gunatitanand Swami. He not only understood this for himself, but he set out to help countless people understand this greatness.
Despite harassment from the opposition, the groundbreaking ceremony for the mandir was carried out without any trouble. Now, they started to dig the foundation. Swamishri himself joined in this seva. The sadhus and devotees also worked with enthusiasm. Many devotees lent their oxen and carts for the mandir cause. They sacrificed their farm work, thereby putting aside their livelihood for up to six months.
Once, while digging the foundation, some devotees found a pot of gold treasure. They told Swamishri about it. Swamishri, not at all allured by wealth, at once exclaimed, “In this mandir, we will consecrate the murti of Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth. She will bring wealth from all over the universe. So, let this wealth remain buried.” Swamishri then had the treasure buried in the foundation. He was determined to rely only on God and the seva of God’s devotees to build the mandir.
The day of the murti-pratishtha, 5 June 1907 (Vaishakh vad 10, Samvat 1963), quickly approached. All were unable to contain their enthusiasm. For the first time a Param Ekantik Sadhu like Swamishri would consecrate Akshar-Purushottam Maharaj in the sanctum of a mandir. The preparations for the festival were proceeding in full force.
After the yagna had finished, the sadhus and devotees lifted Shriji Maharaj’s murti and placed it in the central sanctum for the murti pratishtha. Next, they tried to lift Gunatitanand Swami’s murti. Surprisingly, even though it weighed less, Swami’s murti did not budge. Everyone wondered to themselves, “Is Swami testing us?” Exhausted, they all came to Swamishri and related what had happened. Swamishri immediately came to Gunatitanand Swami’s murti and prayed, “Oh Swami! It is for you that we left Vartal. It is for you that we tolerate insult and persecution. Please have mercy upon us. Please reside in this mandir.” Swamishri then pushed a spike underneath the murti and, immediately the murti was lifted up and easily carried to the mandir. It was placed in the central sanctum next to Shriji Maharaj. Swamishri then performed the murti-pratishtha. The victory call of Akshar-Purushottam resounded everywhere. The promise that Shriji Maharaj had made to Kashidas Mota had now been fulfilled by Swamishri. The true upasana of Akshar Purushottam was finally established in the central sanctum of a mandir.
Bochasan Mandir was the first in our sanstha, hence the name: Bochasanwasi Akshar Purshottam Swaminarayan Sanstha. We see that only the prarthana of Shastriji Maharaj worked to lift Gunatitanand Swami’s murti. This is because Shastriji Maharaj was the Satpurush, him and Gunatitanand Swami were one swarup. He was in constant commune with both Gunatitanand Swami and Bhagwan Swaminarayan.
With Bochasan mandir done and complete, Shastriji Maharaj did not slow down, he did not become complacent. He continued to spread the Akshar-Purshottam Upasana across Gujarat.
Discussion Questions
- Shastriji Maharaj has two aims when constructing Bochasan Mandir.
- What were the two aims?
- What does each aim show to us about Shastriji Maharaj’s intentions?
- When the treasure was found in the grounds, Shastriji Maharaj chose to leave it buried, showing complete detachment from wealth.
- Why did Shastriji Maharaj do this?
- Why did he place more importance on relying on Maharaj and Swami and the seva of haribhaktas?
- When the murti of Gunatitanand Swami could not be lifted, Shastriji Maharaj’s heartfelt prayer resolved the issue.
- What does this show us about the power of prayer?
- What are times in our lives where we can use the power of prayer to solve our problems?