Mahant Swami Maharaj

Mahant Swami Maharaj
Mahant Swami Maharaj
Personal
Born
Vinu Patel

(1933-09-13) 13 September 1933 (age 91)
Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India
ReligionHinduism
Religious career
GuruYogiji Maharaj,[1] Pramukh Swami Maharaj[2]
Websitewww.baps.org
HonorsSpiritual successor of Pramukh Swami Maharaj

Mahant Swami Maharaj (born Vinu Patel, 13 September 1933;[3] ordained Keshavjivandas Swami) is the present guru and president of the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), a major branch of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya, a Hindu denomination.[4][5][6]: 157  BAPS regards him as the sixth spiritual successor of Swaminarayan, following Gunatitanand Swami, Bhagatji Maharaj, Shastriji Maharaj, Yogiji Maharaj, and Pramukh Swami Maharaj.[7][8][9]: 60–2  He is believed by his followers to be in constant communion with Bhagwan Swaminarayan, and ontologically, the manifestation of Akshar, the perfect devotee of God.[10]: 46–7 

Mahant Swami Maharaj received initiation as a Hindu swami from Yogiji Maharaj in 1961.[11][12] He was revealed by Pramukh Swami Maharaj as his future spiritual and administrative successor in 2012,[13] roles he assumed upon Pramukh Swami Maharaj's passing in August 2016.[7][14]

  1. ^ "Interviews".
  2. ^ "Mahant Swami Maharaj".
  3. ^ "Mahant Swami formally installed as new head of BAPS, here is his first speech". DeshGujarat news from Gujarat. 14 August 2016. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  4. ^ Mamtora, Bhakti (5 November 2018). Jacobsen, Knut A.; Basu, Helene; Malinar, Angelika; Narayanan, Vasudha (eds.). "BAPS: Pramukh Swami". Brill’s Encyclopedia of Hinduism Online. Retrieved 5 February 2020.
  5. ^ Patel, Aarti (December 2018). "Secular Conflict". Nidān: International Journal for Indian Studies. 3 (2): 55–72.
  6. ^ Gadhia, Smit (1 April 2016), "Akshara and Its Four Forms in Swaminarayan's Doctrine", Swaminarayan Hinduism, Oxford University Press, pp. 156–171, doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199463749.003.0010, ISBN 978-0-19-946374-9
  7. ^ a b "Mahant Swami Maharaj Sadhu Keshavjivandas succeeds Pramukh Swami as guru and president of BAPS". DeshGujarat News from Gujarat. 13 August 2016. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
  8. ^ "Pramukh Swami Maharaj, Hindu guru and Neasden Temple founder – obituary". The Telegraph. 17 August 2016. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
  9. ^ Williams, Raymond Brady (30 September 2018). An Introduction to Swaminarayan Hinduism. Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/9781108332989. ISBN 978-1-108-33298-9. S2CID 145147532.
  10. ^ "BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha Today". Hinduism Today. Himalayan Academy. October–December 2019. Retrieved 22 November 2019.
  11. ^ "His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj" (PDF). BAPS.org. BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha. 13 August 2016. Retrieved 13 August 2016.
  12. ^ Ludwig Brent, Peter (1973). Godmen of India. Penguin Books Ltd. pp. 12. ISBN 9780140034608.
  13. ^ "HH Mahant Swami Sadhu Keshavjivandas to be spiritual successor of HH Pramukh Swami Maharaj". www.gg2.net. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  14. ^ "Final darshan and rites of Pramukh Swami Maharaj". BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha. Retrieved 13 August 2016.