On the day of Sharad Poonam, there is the largest full moon of the year; it also marks Mul Akshar Brahm Gunatitanand Swami’s birthday.
Gunatitanand Swami is the divine abode of God, Akshardham. He is the divine power, known as brahm that transcends and sustains all of creation. Gunatitanand Swami is the Swami in Swaminarayan and the Akshar in Aksharpurushottam. Hence he is the perfect devotee worshiped along with the Almighty God in the form of Akshar Purushottam Maharaj. He was the first spiritual successor to Shreeji Maharaj.
Childhood
Swami Atmanand, who was a great saint of the time, prophesied in a dream to Sakarba Sharma the advent of Maharaj, and that God’s abode will be born to her as her son; Mulji Sharma (Gunatitanand Swami) was born in 1785.
As a young child, Mulji showed that he was beyond this world and had no interest in daily mundane life. His attachment to God was evident from His earliest years. Once He demanded to drink milk that was to be offered to the murti of Thakorji. His mother refused, but Mulji insisted saying that He was one with God and the offering would please God if He were to drink the milk; He promptly drank the milk. To the astonishment of His mother, a thin white line appeared on the lips of thakorji’s murti.
Swamiji’s Glory
Maharaj had proclaimed on a number of occasions the true identity of Gunatitanand Swami. Many of Shreeji Maharaj’s words describing the true identity of Mulji are recorded in ‘Shri Purushottam Charitra’ that was written by Lodhika Highness Abhaysinhji.
At their first meeting, when Mulji was 15 years old, Maharaj had stated, “This Bhakta Mulji is in constant union with Me and, in the future, he will spread My Glory”.
Mulji left His home to become a sadhu in 1816 after Maharaj appeared before Him in the form of a vision and had beckoned Him. Maharaj held a special religious ceremony in order to initiate His divine abode as a sadhu. At this ceremony Maharaj named Mulji as Gunatitanand Swami and said, “I am extremely delighted to initiate today this Mulji Sharma who is my Akshardham incarnate, in whom I dwell along with numerous liberated souls, and is limitless and is My Akshar Brahm”.
The rapport between Gunatitanand Swami and Maharaj was one of a sublime God-bhakta relationship. Even before He had met Maharaj, He used to describe to His parents the actual movements and exploits of Maharaj in the form of Neelkanth Varni as they were unfolding.
Maharaj Himself was bound to Swamiji. On one occasion Maharaj was in an assembly and He started to sweat profusely. When devotees enquired why He was sweating so much, He said that He was carrying a great burden on his shoulders. Devotees were puzzled because Maharaj was not carrying anything. When they enquired further He said that His Akhsardham was carrying a heavy load of mattresses and that they should go and help Him. On another occasion Maharaj was returning from a visit when He happened to come across Swamiji, both stopped and were transfixed gazing at each other. After some minutes Maharaj sought permission from Swamiji, “Sadhuram, will you give me leave now?”.
Swamiji’s Mission
Maharaj made Gunatitanand Swami the head of the Junagadh Swaminarayan temple. Shreeji Maharaj had instructed His saints to go to Junagadh to commune with Gunatitanand Swami for one whole month every year, and if they could not go one year then they should spend two months there the following year. Swamiji brought spiritual bliss to all and gained respect from fellow devotees and saints, but nevertheless only a few fully appreciated Swamiji’s true glory.
When Shreeji Maharaj had finally decided to leave His mortal frame at the age of 49 years, He called for Gunatitanand Swami from Junagadh for a private meeting. He instructed Swamiji to teach people of Maharaj’s own supremacy, that He is the supreme God from who all the incarnations of God had originated.
Maharaj also addressed Swamiji by saying, “O, my dearest, how can I forget you? I am bound by you, I pine for you just as a thirsty man yearns for water and a hungry man for food…” After Maharaj’s funeral, Gunatitanand Himself lost His composure; whilst walking in a field He thought to Himself, “Oh! Water is the life of this grass… Similarly, Maharaj was our life. He is gone!” and He became unconscious. But then Maharaj appeared in a divine form and consoled Swamiji saying, “Swami, I have not gone away! I dwell in you eternally”.
Thereafter Gunatitanand Swami engaged in spreading Maharaj’s message. Many of His teachings are represented in the book ‘Swami ni Vato’, which is read along with the Vachanamrut. Herein He describes Maharaj’s greatness but also the glory of the Gunatit saint explaining that in the absence of Maharaj, the true saint is the only path to salvation in the form of Akshar Purushottam.
After Maharaj had gone, some devotees had started to drift away from the Swaminarayan faith. One such devotee (Karunashankar) searched for the peace of God in the sect, but he could not find any such place. Someone told him that Gunatitanand Swami at Junagadh is a great Swaminarayan saint, so he went there. He spent some weeks there and one day he asked Swamiji, “Swami, I have been everywhere throughout the Sampraday (sect) to observe the state of Satsang. Everywhere it seems that Satsang has become old and stale! But, here, why does Satsang seem so fresh, lively and youthful?” Instinctively, Swamiji replied, “Karunashankar, Shreeji Maharaj Himself is manifest here”. And so Swamiji revealed that Maharaj Himself was still manifest through Him.
Succession
Pragji Bhakta, later known as Bhagatji Maharaj, became Gunatitanand Swami’s spiritual successor. This became the start of the line of spiritual successors in whom Maharaj remained manifest through Bhagatji Maharaj, Shastriji Maharaj, Yogiji Maharaj, Pappaji Maharaj and now the current day pratyaksh (manifest) Aksharpurushottam Swaroopo.
