The Swaminarayan Tradition and BAPS
The Swaminarayan tradition is a devotional school of Hinduism born of the life and revelations of Bhagwan Swaminarayan, and BAPS carries that tradition across the world today. Here you will meet him, his teachings, and the living gurus who continue his work.
What is BAPS?
BAPS — the BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, in full the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha — is a worldwide Hindu fellowship within the Swaminarayan tradition of Hinduism, dedicated to individual spiritual growth and to the service of God's creation.
It is rooted in the revelations of Bhagwan Swaminarayan and guided today by a living guru, His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj.
Who is Bhagwan Swaminarayan?
In BAPS, Bhagwan Swaminarayan is identified and revered as God; his divinity was witnessed by disciples and observers of his own time. He was known for his loving way of bringing people not merely faith, but faith-driven morality.
Alongside his divine revelations, historians credit him with a social reformation: he initiated a new order of swamis (ordained renunciants), rescued women from the practice of sati (widow immolation), campaigned to save the lives of female infants, and embodied tolerance.
What did Bhagwan Swaminarayan teach?
Bhagwan Swaminarayan taught that devotion to God is the ultimate joy — nurtured under a true Guru, and lived out through humility, service, and a daily life devoted to God. In his own framing:
Bhakti is the ultimate joy. Joy is already intrinsic to every one of us; to experience it, we must join ourselves entirely in the devotion of God — bhakti.
Follow the true Guru. This is done most easily under the guidance of a Guru wholly devoted to God. By emulating him and following his teachings, we shed the ignorance and habits that cause our misery. Bhagwan Swaminarayan expressed the thought this way: become like Akshar, the Guru, and offer true devotion to Purushottam — God, the Ultimate Being.
Humility is the ultimate mark of greatness. The antidote to ego is humility. The Guru is known most readily by his humility, and it is a quality every disciple — woman and man alike — strives to emulate.
Selfless service. The true devotee wishes always to serve God and his satsang, because sevā (selfless service) is the practical tool that wears away one's ego, vices, and bad habits.
- A God-devoted lifestyle. By living by the instructions of God and his Sant, and striving for purity of purpose, thought, and action, one's life naturally turns toward God. Some of our disciplines include:
- maintaining a vegetarian diet that also excludes onions and garlic;
- abstaining from alcohol, addictive substances, and drugs;
- offering prayers at least twice each day.
What is the Akshar-Purushottam Philosophy?
The Akshar-Purushottam philosophy is the central teaching revealed by Bhagwan Swaminarayan: one supreme God, Purushottam, is eternally served by his ideal devotee and divine abode, Akshar.
The aim of spiritual life follows from it — to become like Akshar (aksharrup) and, in that state, offer humble devotion to Purushottam.
This concept is not left as an abstraction: in BAPS, Akshar is understood to be present today in the person of the guru, the living ideal of that devotion. The principle is set out in full in the Satsang Diksha, the guiding text written for the fellowship by HH Mahant Swami Maharaj.
Who are the Gurus?
In BAPS, we believe Bhagwan Swaminarayan remains eternally present on Earth through an unbroken lineage of God-devoted Gurus. This guru parampara is a direct continuity — the same teachings, and living guidance, carried unbroken into the present day.
The line of Gurus after Bhagwan Swaminarayan are:
- Gunatitanand Swami (1784–1867)
- Bhagatji Maharaj (1829–1897)
- Shastriji Maharaj (1865–1951)
- Yogiji Maharaj (1892–1971)
- Pramukh Swami Maharaj (1921–2016)
- Presently, His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj (b. 1933)
Who is His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj?
His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj (b. 1933) is the present guru of BAPS and the sixth spiritual successor of Bhagwan Swaminarayan.
He is revered for his profound humility, purity of heart, and unwavering devotion to God. Under his spiritual guidance, era-defining landmarks — the BAPS Hindu Mandir in Abu Dhabi, Swaminarayan Akshardham in Robbinsville, New Jersey — have risen as global symbols of faith, harmony, and service.
Across continents, he continues to inspire humanitarian initiatives, youth development, and interfaith dialogue. His life is spirituality lived in action.