In the city of Gadhada, stands the Swaminarayan temple, one of the six temples built under the supervision of Swaminarayan himself. The land for constructing this temple in Gadhada, was donated by Dada Khachar. Ardent devotees of Swaminarayan, Dada Khachar gave the courtyard of his own residence to build the shrine. It is said that Swaminarayan not only supervised the construction but also helped in the construction of the temple. Swaminarayan   installed the idols in this temple on 9 October 1828. In May 2012, the spires  of the shrine were plated with gold, making it the first temple in Gujarat to have golden spires

Location Gujarat, Botad, Gandhinagar

Legend

The Swaminarayan sect is a subset of Vaishnavism, in which followers offer devotion to and worship Swaminarayan as a form of Parbhrama. It is popular in the state of Gujarat. They have build many temples across the state to worship the Lord in accordance with their beliefs, traditions and rituals. The temple of Gadhada is one of the six temples which was made under the supervision of Swaminarayan.

Architecture

The temple is built in white marble and gold and resonates serenity and peace.  The spires of the temple are gold plated. Enshrined in the sanctum are the idols of Lords - Gopinath and Harikrishna in the middle shrine, Dharma and Bhakti and Vasudeva on the western shrine and Revti-Baldevji, Shri Krishna and Suryanarayan in the eastern shrine. The shrine is double storeyed with domes and arches. The temple is placed on a high plinth and has a vast assembly hall. On the circumambulatory path, there is the idol of Ghanshyam facing northward. On the southern side of the temple, there is a neem tree and the chamber of Vasudeva where Swaminarayan gave his discourses to his followers.

Culture

Gadhadha is a holy pilgrimage centre for followers of the Swaminarayan sect as Swaminarayan is believed to have spent more than 27 years of his life here.

Pic Courtesy : shreeswaminarayanbhagwan.blogspot.com

Darsan Info

Temple timings - 5.00 AM to 12.00 PM, 4.00 PM to 9.00 PM

There is an online streaming of live darshan at the Swaminarayan temple.

Darsan Dresscode

Devotees are advised to wear clean and conservative attire.

Famous Festival

August - Janmashtami

November - Diwali

Temple Rituals

The priests perform puja to the deities. There are daily aartis in the morning, evening and night.

Additional Info

 

Raj Rajeshawari Hotel

 

 Supermarket : Available