Bhagwan Swaminarayan

Right next to Rāmānand Swami’s āshram in Loj was the home of Jivraj Sheth. Every day, Muktānand Swami would give spiritual discourses there. One day, Nilkanth Varni attended this kathā with some swamis. He noticed that men and women were sitting together while listening to the discourses. Nilkanth Varni thought, “This is an impediment to doing bhakti. This can create an obstacle in a swami’s observance of eight-fold celibacy. Additionally, sitting together during kathā could increase their inner distractions and sway both men and women from their path of bhakti.” With this thought, Nilkanth Varni immediately left the sabhā. The next day, when Muktānand Swami went to deliver kathā, Nilkanth Varni told all the swamis, “Come to the mandir. I will deliver kathā for you there. Men and women sitting together and listening to kathā like this is not appropriate according to our dharma.” When it came to observing niyam dharma, Nilkanth Varni did not worry about what others thought of him. Thus, after explaining this dharma to everyone, Nilkanth Varni established a new tradition in which men and women sat separately to listen to kathā, ensuring purity in bhakti.

Nilkanth Varni was new to the āshram, and though he was only 20 years old at the time and 23 years younger than Muktānand Swami, his spiritual authority was undeniable, as seen in this prasang. One day, Nilkanth Varni noticed a small opening in the āshram’s wall. The house next door belonged to a gruhasta (householder), and Nilkanth Varni observed a swami and the gruhasta’s wife exchanging live coal for cooking through the small window. Seeing this, Nilkanth Varni told Muktānand Swami, “This hole in the wall will one day surely compromise the swamis’ dharma. Thus, swamis should maintain no relationship with any woman, whether direct or indirect, as this is considered inappropriate.” Saying this, without waiting for approval from Muktānand Swami, Nilkanth Varni himself plugged the hole in the wall. Muktānand Swami was deeply impressed by Nilkanth Varni’s firm insistence on observing celibacy as prescribed in the scriptures and inspiring others to observe the same.

Nilkanth Varni did not tolerate any impurities or compromises in dharma and bhakti under any circumstances, nor was he influenced by modern practices. His actions continue to teach and inspire future generations about the importance of celibacy and discipline in the spiritual path. Bhagwān Swaminarayan established a sampradāy in which he provided clear guidelines for both renunciants and householders on observing moral conduct between men and women. This is why we sing in the ārti: “Dharma ekāntik sthāpak, bhakti paritrātā” [He is the establisher of Ekāntik Dharma and protector of pure bhakti].