A: Bhagwan Swaminarayan (1781 – 1830)

• Bhagwan Swaminarayan took birth in northern India in 1781CE, a period considered to be one of the darkest in India’s religious history.
• He incarnated to remove the excesses and misinterpretations that had crept into mainstream Hinduism. At the age of 21, He established the Swaminarayan Sampradaya and offered a pure mode of worship.
• He initiated 3,000 sadhus (ordained monks) and was recognised and worshipped as God in His own lifetime by over two million people.
• To continue His work of promoting personal morality and moulding spiritual character, He promised to remain ever-present on this earth through an unbroken succession of enlightened gurus vested with complete spiritual authority and integrity.

B: Gunatitanand Swami (1785 – 1867)

• Gunatitanand Swami was the first spiritual successor of Bhagwan Swaminarayan.
• He lived as an ideal sadhu, dedicating his life to the devotion of God, the service of others, and the sharing of his profound wisdom.
• He was revealed by Bhagwan Swaminarayan to be Akshar (or Aksharbrahma), the perfectly enlightened devotee and the closest entity to God.
• It is through him that seekers can realise God. He continually manifests on earth through the enlightened guru, leaving the path to God-realisation forever open.
  
  

• Gopalanand Swami was a senior sadhu-disciple of Bhagwan Swaminarayan.
• As a child, he mastered Ashtanga Yoga, the crowning glory of Yoga.
• He was an outstanding scholar and devoted himself to propagating the teachings of Bhagwan Swaminarayan.
• As a liberated soul, he is an inspiration to other devotees to follow in his exemplary devotion to and service of God.