Prasang 41
A Pledge Like No Other
Gunatitanand Swami once visited Unā as part of his yearly vicharan. Due to communal tensions at that time, several wealthy merchants, including Vallabhjibhāi, Karamchandbhāi, and others, fled from Unā to Hadiyād for safety. Vallabhjibhāi’s brother, Kalyānji Sheth, who was doing vicharan with Gunatitanand Swami, expressed their distress, saying, “All the merchants have taken refuge in Hadiyād. If they return to Unā, they fear losing their reputation. But if they move to Bhāvnagar, they will suffer great financial loss, as they have a significant amount of unpaid dues to collect from people they lent money to in Unā. They are in a severe crisis.”
Hearing this, Gunatitanand Swami reassured them, saying, “Follow my advice, and all your troubles will disappear.” Kalyānji Sheth eagerly responded, “We will do as you say! If you wish, we will vow to offer silver doors and a swing for Radharaman Dev.”
In response, Gunatitanand Swami smiled and said, “I do not ask for such offerings. Instead, take a vow to firmly accept and propagate that Shriji Maharaj is sarvopari. If you do this, your troubles will be resolved immediately.”
Kalyānji Sheth was astonished and said, “Swami! Taking a vow to recognize Purushottam Narayan as the supreme Bhagwān is something completely new. By doing this, we not only gain liberation but also worldly success. From today onward, we will firmly believe in Shriji Maharaj’s supremacy and spread this truth to others.”
As soon as the merchants made this vow, within a short time, the Nawāb himself invited them back with great honor and celebrations. Their crisis disappeared completely. The misunderstandings caused by the situation were resolved through Gunatitanand Swami’s guidance, and their faith in Shriji Maharaj as the Supreme Bhagwān became unshakeable.
Gunatitanand Swami’s greatest achievement was spreading the truth of Bhagwān Swaminarayan’s supreme divinity. If Gunatitanand Swami had not appeared, people might have regarded Swaminarayan Bhagwān as just another incarnation. However, Gunatitanand Swami firmly established his supremacy in the Satsang.
Even those who had lived closely with Shriji Maharaj for years struggled to recognize his true divine form, but Gunatitanand Swami eliminated this. For example:
• Ātmānand Swami, who lived 116 years, was called to Akshardham only after Gunatitanand Swami enlightened him about Shriji Maharaj’s supremacy
• Rāmpratāpbhāi, Shriji Maharaj’s elder brother
• Shukānand Swami, Shriji Maharaj’s right-hand
• Muktānand Swami, who was considered the mother of Satsang
• Premānand Swami, the great sant-poet
All of them attained firm conviction in Shriji Maharaj’s supremacy through Gunatitanand Swami. No other paramhansas preached Shriji Maharaj’s true divine form as explicitly and powerfully as Aksharbrahma Gunatitanand Swami. Thus, it is rightly said:
Sampurna mahimā Shrijino ne pativratāni tek,
Pekho santo pānchaso, pan Gunātit to ek.
[He understood the full glory of Shriji Maharaj and possessed an unwavering, singular devotion (like the resolute vow of a devoted spouse) to him. There were 500 paramhansas, but there was only one Gunatit.]
