Celebrating Akshardham Day :Pramukh Swami Maharaj Nagar

To fulfil his guru’s wish of building a temple in Delhi, Pramukh Swami Maharaj persevered for 32 years to acquire land to build Swaminarayan Akshardham. Within a mere five years, Pramukh Swami Maharaj built Akshardham. 8,000 volunteers served for 300 million person-hours in total to complete, what the Guinness Book of World Record labelled the “World’s Largest Comprehensive Hindu Temple” in 2007. In 2011, the prestigious Reader’s Digest monthly magazine selected Swaminarayan Akshardham, Delhi, as one of “The Seven Wonders of the 21st Century.” As in Gandhinagar, the Swaminarayan Akshardham in Delhi hosts the “Sahaj Anand Water show”, a 25-minute performance with light, sound, water, projection mapping and lasers, based on a story from the Kena Upanishad, the moral of which is to strengthen one’s conviction in God’s all-doership. 

Evening Assembly : 

The evening programme commenced at 5.00pm with a musical symphony. More than 150 youths from across 19 countries of the world sang devotional songs accompanied with traditional and western instruments.  Following various videos, dramas, speeches and cultural dances presented the creation and consequent influence of one of Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s master creations, Swaminarayan Akshardham.

David Fried, Mayor of Robbinsville, New Jersey, USA, shared in a video message, “Pramukh Swami Maharaj lived his entire life in the service of the community and the world. He made his final trip to America in 2014 at the age of 93 to inaugurate the temple here. His life and work have inspired millions across the world to dedicate themselves to humanitarian causes. Today, we still experience that spirit of service through the thousands of volunteers serving here every day.”

In his blessings to the assembly, His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj said, “The Akshardham mandirs are Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s epoch-making creations. As long as this world exists, the Akshardham mandirs will propagate our spiritual heritage and faith. Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s sentiment in the creation of Akshardham was absolutely pure. He had written, ‘May Akshardham inspire all to transform their lives.’ During Akshardham New Delhi’s inauguration, he had said, ‘This Akshardham has been created not out of competition or to increase our glory, but because it was Yogiji Maharaj’s wish.’ Even the sentiments driving all of Yogiji Maharaj’s actions, including devotion to God, were absolutely pure.